Future of west coast runDisney

[Anisum]

True! At first I thought it would be the 6-month mark, then in time to start the Galloway plan, and they sure have proved me wrong so far!

As much as I hate to say it, I've been thinking for awhile now that it'll be canceled, but that they aren't 100% sure yet and don't want to make an announcement until they are totally sure (which is infuriating for those waiting, but I get it - just don't get what it is what they're waiting for to be 100% sure that it's a no-go). Because once they DO make the announcement it'll be a total sh*tstorm of (valid) complaints (what's happening with the other West Coast races? What about people who have already signed up for Light Side? No more Coast-to-Coast/Pink Coast-to-Coast/Kessel Run? What about people who have already booked flights or non-refundable hotels - we know international runners need to plan pretty far in advance? Etc.). I have thought that their customer service is already non-existent (exception: WDW Half cancellation, I was impressed with how they handled that), so we'll see what they do.

I wonder if they're waiting to announce until they can answer (most) of the complaints that will arise the moment they do. I do think it will suck for those who pre-book flights and hotels. Also what about travel agents and charities? Did they get their bib allotment and will runDisney refund them so that their customers can be refunded.

Mostly I am curious to see how they handle refunds, if the weekend is canceled, for Light Side runners that did the early registrations. I don't think they (runDisney) are on the hook for flight or hotel refunds (lesson learned - runDisney races are NEVER set in stone, so never book anything that isn't refundable!)...but they need to compensate in some way for the race registrations. I can't see them giving a full refund back to credit cards (I'm not saying that I don't think that's what SHOULD happen, I just don't think that's what WILL happen) because they have never done that before. I'm going purely off of what they did when they canceled the Tower of Terror 10-miler: people that had deferred from the previous year (what was the last year, but no one knew it at the time) didn't get refunds, they got the offer to transfer to another race weekend. This situation wouldn't be quite the same since it was 1.) deferrals, and 2.) assuming that if Light Side goes, all West Coast races will go, but that is my guess as to what they will do - transfer or refund in the form of a Disney gift card. Again, I am not saying that I think that this is what they should do (I hope they do full refunds to original payment forms - that's what happened for me when a local race was canceled), but I cannot recall a time where they have ever done full refunds, and not in the form of a transfer or gift card. The partial check option they initially gave @Dis_Yoda is interesting, and I hope that I'm wrong and that they do full refunds by check or to original payment forms...

I think if there is another West Coast runDisney race it is far easier for them to say you can defer to another race or get a Disney gift card. If they end up cancelling all west coast races however I think they'd have to offer a check or cash refund even if $50 was taken out for active fees or some BS. People wouldn't be happy about that (nor should they) but you can't expect locals to commit to travelling to east coast runDisney races. I think too it will depend on how many entries they sold before closing entries back up.

 

[Ariel484]

I wonder if they're waiting to announce until they can answer (most) of the complaints that will arise the moment they do. I do think it will suck for those who pre-book flights and hotels. Also what about travel agents and charities? Did they get their bib allotment and will runDisney refund them so that their customers can be refunded.

You could be right...they're going to really need to beef up CS to deal with all of the complaints.

It will TOTALLY suck for people who have booked hotels/flights - if I had been planning on this race weekend I 100% would have booked flights months ago.

I'm not sure how it works with TAs and Charities, not sure how early they actually get the bibs?

I think if there is another West Coast runDisney race it is far easier for them to say you can defer to another race or get a Disney gift card. If they end up cancelling all west coast races however I think they'd have to offer a check or cash refund even if $50 was taken out for active fees or some BS. People wouldn't be happy about that (nor should they) but you can't expect locals to commit to travelling to east coast runDisney races. I think too it will depend on how many entries they sold before closing entries back up.

I definitely agree with that - I wouldn't want to be "forced" to travel to Florida if I hadn't been planning for that, was a local, etc. And while I think deferrals/gift cards/partial refunds are the most likely options (again, I just have ToT to go off of even though this is a different situation, plus the language on their own website/during registration that there are no refunds), I also think anything less than a full refund is totally crappy on runDisney's part. Whatever reason there is for the (possible) cancellation, they are the ones that condition us to sign up for these races SO early with the recent move to have registration like 9-11 months out. If they'd kept registration at a normal time they wouldn't have to worry about refunds - they need to clean up the mess.

 

[Dis_Yoda]

I missed that you were taking the refund. I'm glad you're getting (hopefully all/most) of your money back and I hope they do right by you!

My response to them was as follows:

Please only process the return if it is for my full $848.61 amount. 　

If it is not, I will wait until the event is officially cancelled by RunDisney so I'm not having to work with multiple refunds. 　​

Guess we'll see what they do!

 

[Ariel484]

My response to them was as follows:

Please only process the return if it is for my full $848.61 amount. 　

If it is not, I will wait until the event is officially cancelled by RunDisney so I'm not having to work with multiple refunds. 　​

Guess we'll see what they do!

Polite but firm!

 

[Dis_Yoda]

Polite but firm!

My job has trained me well!

 

[bumbershoot]

Also what about travel agents and charities? Did they get their bib allotment and will runDisney refund them so that their customers can be refunded.

Doesn't raw threads act as a TA? If so, they refunded in full. Other than RT, though, did any outside TAs or charities actually sell for light side?

 

[Keels]

Doesn't raw threads act as a TA? If so, they refunded in full. Other than RT, though, did any outside TAs or charities actually sell for light side?

They're more like a running club/charity because they aren't required by Disney to sell tickets/room agreements with bibs for certain races.

I'll have to double-check, but last I heard from my charity friend ... they had not received confirmation of an allotment of bibs, so they can't even begin to solicit charity runners for that weekend yet.

 

[Anisum]

I'll have to double-check, but last I heard from my charity friend ... they had not received confirmation of an allotment of bibs, so they can't even begin to solicit charity runners for that weekend yet.

Would charities have the option to drop out or request less bibs. It seems like almost a guaranteed loss for many of them so close to a race when so many of them already struggle to sell out of their allotments.

 

[Keels]

Would charities have the option to drop out or request less bibs. It seems like almost a guaranteed loss for many of them so close to a race when so many of them already struggle to sell out of their allotments.

I would hope so!

 

[trackgam]

You would think that but I never underestimate how poorly prepared runDisney can be. The longer they hold off the more I think it will be moved or cancelled. Either way PoT deadlines can be moved. TrackShack won't mind, right?

trackshack wont mind but I also wonder how long it will take to make bibs based on that... I only say that as logistically you do need some time...
1. they have to have headcount total so they can divide up the corrals (even automated, they need an accurate headcount
2. time for people to register and submit time unless its a "sign up and submit time together"
3. Waivers with the corrals are sent out 2 weeks prior to the event date start
so again, most of this is all automated BUT it does logistically take time and with them having W&D, Super Heros, and WDW marathon weekend all occurring between now and LS, I would wonder how late they could push it back without it turning into an un-organized mess

 

[trackgam]

Would charities have the option to drop out or request less bibs. It seems like almost a guaranteed loss for many of them so close to a race when so many of them already struggle to sell out of their allotments.

i go back to the comment I made months ago that it puts a TON of the participants to raise that kind of money in such a short time so they would either need to reduce the fundraising amount meaning the runner can raise the money and charity loses fundraising money or less runners will sign up bc of the short turnaround to raise thousands of dollars which is disappointing...

 

[Ariel484]

From runDisneyrun on Facebook...long article (that I admittedly skimmed). Sounds like Anaheim politicians are playing hardball with Disney, maybe this has to do with the races?

http://www.latimes.com/projects/la-fi-disney-anaheim-city-council/#nt=notification

 

[Anisum]

trackshack wont mind but I also wonder how long it will take to make bibs based on that... I only say that as logistically you do need some time...
1. they have to have headcount total so they can divide up the corrals (even automated, they need an accurate headcount
2. time for people to register and submit time unless its a "sign up and submit time together"
3. Waivers with the corrals are sent out 2 weeks prior to the event date start
so again, most of this is all automated BUT it does logistically take time and with them having W&D, Super Heros, and WDW marathon weekend all occurring between now and LS, I would wonder how late they could push it back without it turning into an un-organized mess

That was mostly sarcasm. They have the number of people for each corral is usually pretty well set. If they have less people they generally have less corrals rather than spreading people through fewer corrals. The way it's done now if someone registers after the PoT deadline they submit PoT at that time and don't get the opportunity to change it the way they would prior to the deadline so merging signups and submitting times together shouldn't be an issue. Waivers have to be submitted in person so it would not be a big deal to do day of and announcing corral placement in advance is nice but I doubt they have to commit to it. With regards to the bibs, if you register after a certain date they don't put your name on it, the numbers themselves are pretty static and worst case I imagine they'd just have the numbers and not the names. There are far larger issues than this process though.

 

[trackgam]

That was mostly sarcasm. They have the number of people for each corral is usually pretty well set. If they have less people they generally have less corrals rather than spreading people through fewer corrals. The way it's done now if someone registers after the PoT deadline they submit PoT at that time and don't get the opportunity to change it the way they would prior to the deadline so merging signups and submitting times together shouldn't be an issue. Waivers have to be submitted in person so it would not be a big deal to do day of and announcing corral placement in advance is nice but I doubt they have to commit to it. With regards to the bibs, if you register after a certain date they don't put your name on it, the numbers themselves are pretty static and worst case I imagine they'd just have the numbers and not the names. There are far larger issues than this process though.

yeah.... I guess I didnt think about the names being a nicety.... and I have been one to sign up late and just was pushed in the last corral so I can see where they could easily do that logic of placing them at pick up... I am trying not to turn pessimistic on this whole thing bc I am normally not a negative nancy but I am, like everyone else, getting anxious (for lack of better words) on the future of the west coast. I am even more frustrated with the idea of those races and the impact it will make on the charities that anticipate these races being big contributors to their annual donations and for the local community where people, like myself, branch outside of just disney to go to local businesses for food.

 

[LCPRun]

This is my first time posting, but I've been reading information on the Disboards for years. I've been running the DL races for many years, and I'm a legacy runner with the Tinker Bell races and the Star War Light Side races. Like many other runners, I'm disappointed in the lack of information being put out by RunDisney regarding the status of the Disneyland races for 2018. I did hear from a CM that the delay in racing information may be due to union negotiations within the Disneyland company. It was the CM's understanding that the races were not going to happen in 2018 unless the negotiations were resolved. Whether it is acurate or not, I'm not sure. It is sad to know the end may be near for the DL races.

 

[rteetz]

http://wdwnt.com/blog/2017/10/rumor...ture-race-events-marathons-disneyland-resort/

 

[Z-Knight]

I just had a thought - if all of the West coast races are cancelled for like 3 years then I suspect this will lead to a lot of sellouts for East coast races. I think they will become crowded because people still want to do Disney races but now just have one coast to do it.

 

[StarGirl11]

I just had a thought - if all of the West coast races are cancelled for like 3 years then I suspect this will lead to a lot of sellouts for East coast races. I think they will become crowded because people still want to do Disney races but now just have one coast to do it.

Depends I think on how easy it is for people to travel to a Florida. I've always done CA frequently. But that's because it's less expensive to do CA. The biggest draw with CA for me is we can stay off property and still be a quick hop from DL. Not so much with Florida.

 

[UNCBear24]

http://wdwnt.com/blog/2017/10/rumor...ture-race-events-marathons-disneyland-resort/

Any possibility of a new race weekend at WDW, since Disneyland races are out of the picture for a while?

 

[rteetz]

Any possibility of a new race weekend at WDW, since Disneyland races are out of the picture for a while?

Interesting question but where do you put that weekend? May? September? I feel 4 race weekends for WDW is the perfect amount.