Thor’s mighty hammer lies in ruins. So too do the hopes and dreams of runDisney in Anaheim. Whether it’s the official story that so much construction in the area for a new Star Wars Land… and beyond… makes running through the Disneyland Parks logistically impossible or the rumored dispute with the area residents about road closures and more who can really say. But the fact is this Super Heroes Half Marathon Weekend marks the end of the road for runDisney in Anaheim (at least until the inevitable reboot).
Judging by my experience this morning at the Thor 10K, it may be a good thing. Rarely have I encountered as disorganized and unwelcoming a race day than this one. I don’t know if it was my mood and residual issues with the long, long travel snafus that pummeled me yesterday. But I do know that things were not “happiest place on earth” sunshine and rainbows this dark, dark morn.
I knew they’d do it and yet I was still ticked about the $20 parking fee for the two or three pre-park hours I would be there.
As for the race itself, I made the mistake of using a shoe wallet to hold my rental car keys and a couple of 20s. Within the opening mile, the velcro came loose and I lost my keys and a Jackson to the shuffling crowd. I doubled back and endured far too many cries from my “fellow” runners telling me I was going the wrong way. Trust me, ladies and gentlemen. I *know* I’m going the wrong way… but I needed to find those keys. Because I could judge roughly where the foot fall felt weird, I was able to roughly approximate where the keys might have been. Miraculously I was able to locate the black fob key and pull it from pounding feet of other runners. The twenty dollar bill however was lost in the shuffle… so I tried to tell myself parking cost $40. It didn’t help.
I struggled to rally and the various character photo opportunities helped as a salve on my wounded pride, ego, and wallet. Unfortunately, when in Disneyland I made the mistake of asking a group of five cast members to take a photo of me with the castle in the background. They lectured me and said the PhotoPass people would take it farther along. When I asked if they were refusing to take a photo with my camera they acknowledged this. I took off, cursing the unfriendliness of it all. In the amount of time they took yelling at me to move along (I had pulled OFF the course and was asking one of FIVE cast members standing around if they could do me a favor), they could have taken 15 photos.
Angrily I asked myself how many cast members does it take to “guard” a well-lit turn at a 10K? The same number of workers it takes to dig a hole on a construction site — one to work and four to stand around “supervising.”
Later on, as I was coming out of the castle, a security guard told me I could take a photo there. But there were no cast members around to snap a photo… and no race photographers either. I motioned confusedly and finally some other cast members farther down the way took pity and rushed up offering to take a photo. I said I had been told I wasn’t allowed and the security guard shouting at me that that was because I was over on the other side and I was blocking the course. I took umbrage at that and muttered some non-Disney friendly word or two under my breath and decided rather than argue with the guy I should try and just enjoy the race. But I can tell you it might have sounded like “Phooey You” but with more of a “Duck”you know “tone.”
Ahem.
In any case, I ran through the remainder of the mileage, feeling the pangs of my tailbone rattling in the second half to be sure. What that means for tomorrow’s half marathon… and what future discouraging words I will endure… are knowingly unknown.
But for now, here are some shots from the Asgardian Bifrost Bridge of Thor’s 10K:
For the record: I suspect being an international assassin means you have doppelganger “doubles” around the world to confuse one’s enemies. I happen to know the real Black Widow is on a ship in the Gulf of Mexico at the moment. Hashtag: FakeBlackWidow, Hashtag: TheRealBlackWidowIsOnTheWonder.
Also for the record – that’s no Starlord. But that just might be Gamora.
And that’s DEFINITELY not the Grandmaster. I’ve met him before…
Loki and Thor and the Ragnorak of runDisney Anaheim 10ks?
There are more things to say and see… including my brother meeting up with Mom to hopefully cheer me on tomorrow. But to get to the dawn, I need to sleep a spell this night. As a result, it’s time to sleep and mayhaps dream of Valhalla.
And with that, a Stan Lee-ian “Excelsior!”