Disneyland Half Marathon Weekend Recap

We're taking you from the rain-soaked finish line of the half of a half in Disney World to the sunnier (but still chilly) paths of Disneyland and the Disneyland Half Marathon Weekend. Carissa and I contrast the two experiences, sharing the unique atmosphere and community vibe that sets Disneyland races apart. The convenience of the park's layout, the energy of running through the City of Anaheim, and the heartwarming stories of runners overcoming personal hurdles will have you feeling like you were there side by side with us. 

Finally, we pull back the curtain on what it takes to bring such an event to life, from the overnight rehearsals to the final moments before those magical words 321 Go!  We chuckle over on-stage slip-ups and celebrate the collective effort that goes into ensuring each race is as magical as the last. Join us as we share these behind-the-scenes peeks and personal reflections that paint a vivid picture of the Disneyland Race Weekend.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:04

Welcome to 321 Go the Podcast. I'm John Pelkey.

Speaker 2: 0:08

And I'm Karissa Galloway, and we're bringing you stories from start to finish to keep the everyday athlete motivated to keep moving towards the next finish.

Speaker 1: 0:17

Alright, everyone. Well, our guest today and I feel weird calling you a guest it is my co-host, my actual friend in real life, karissa Galloway, breaking down the races in Disneyland. Quite the weekend out there, like our marathon weekend weather was I don't think what everyone expected to be. Looked awfully chilly out there, but we'll also. She'll be answering your questions on the weekend and all of that sort of fun stuff.

Speaker 2: 0:44

Yeah, that's right, John. Will I spill the Disneyland tea? You will have to listen in to find out. We're also going to chat about the races. You'll hear kind of John and I's perspective, a comparison, if you will In healthier you. We're going to turn the tables on John and I want to thank you guys so much over the past two weeks for saying thank you, like for listening. That's so cool when John and I are like, oh, you actually listened. So if you are listening, please keep sharing on social subscribe, rate us all of those things, email us and let's do this.

Speaker 1: 1:36

All right, folks, we're going to skip the chat. Actually, it's all going to essentially be a chat Q&A with Karissa about Disneyland, but before we do that, we want to shout out to our sponsor, sarah Acres with Runs On Magic If you want to experience some extra special magic during those Run Disney weekends, or if you're looking to get away on a cruise and in a chilly morning here in Central Florida, yeah, yes, sarah, like to get on a cruise. Sarah Acres with Runs On Magic, she can help.

Speaker 2: 2:04

Yeah, she can play in just the right experience for you. So they're totally free. Complimentary travel planning services, personalized itineraries specializing in Run Disney universal. It's okay if you want to go there, cruise vacations. You can find her on Instagram at Runs On Magic, where she's going to share special offers and more RunsOnMagiccom, or email her at RunsOnMagicTravel at gmailcom.

Speaker 1: 2:29

All right well, karissa Galloway, thank you so much for joining us here on 321 Go the Podcast. As we start all of our podcasts, how are you? And a question that, frankly, does need answered on a regular basis, given your movement around the globe. Where are you?

Speaker 2: 2:46

I am good, I am crawling out of the sleepless hole and as I'm doing this, I'm making gestures and someone said to me at Disneyland we need video because I know you and John are like making all these funny gestures. So I'm good, I'm very happy to be talking to you. I've missed you. I'm home in Oakland. As you said, it's a very chilly day. I am disappointed that the three page bio I wrote for my intro was cut, john, but I guess you assume people know me.

Speaker 1: 3:12

Right, right, I think maybe we'll dole it out like a Dickens story, where you get like a couple sentences over a period of time and by the end of everyone having to listen to all of our podcasts, they'll have your whole bio.

Speaker 1: 3:24

But we don't have time for that, you know, before we move out west, I do want to talk about things back east, but it just struck me that until I think what yesterday you were knee deep in the hoopla of run Disney weekends and it feels to me now like marathon was a decade ago. I had a whole week of doing stuff around the house. I watched a lot of football. So let's jump back, because you were not here for our wrap up show with our marathon wrap up with Riley and Tracy. So, having had some time to think about it though you were apparently quite busy your thoughts on marathon weekend, because I know you listened to our episode and we talked about it A lot of challenges, whether it was certainly a challenge, shortened race, all those things were a challenge, but I think Tracy and Riley and I all agreed it was such a joyous time at the finish line of all those races, including the rainy finish lines.

Speaker 2: 4:27

You know, I think the rainy race the half of the half, as you will will go down as one of our things we remember because you know, matthew, matthew does did ran through and I said I just started singing because I always think for him and I was like it's rain and Matthew, and then it clicked in my head like wait, let's play that song. So Steve played it and then somebody else was like play this, play this. So the rain song. Just people's faces were smiling, they were having fun, they were dancing through that finish, even though it was in no way the experience that anybody wanted to have, and it's so like it's heartbreaking to every single person of run Disney I've had spent a good amount of time with Adam Ball, our senior VP, over there, because he was in the other coast talking about it and he's a runner too.

Speaker 2: 5:11

Nobody wants to take away running through the castle. Nobody wants to stop you from achieving that goal, especially those first timers out there. So the way people were able to, for the most part, pivot, if you will and again find that joy, I loved. And while I cannot officially support this choice those of you running around the parking lot and those of you getting up to 13.1, maybe exactly what I would have done had I been signed up for the half and I've run the half for the past two years. This year I was never going to run it, so I didn't have to kind of work through that disappointment, you know as well on my end and I also think, john, had I been signed up for it, knowing we were going to run through the rain, I may not have done it from a like standpoint of like sickness, get it, you know, kind of looking forward, but I loved it and I've thought about this.

Speaker 2: 6:00

I think, of our four Disney, walt Disney World Weekends Marathon is my favorite because it has such an amazing challenge with it, with the dope beat and then there's a marathon. It's huge and you kind of feel like everybody comes there. It's the classic race. So I thought it went really well. And I do want to circle back to my comment about the nuts because I feel like the full picture maybe was it. Did not think I should have said it.

Speaker 1: 6:24

You weren't here. You weren't here to defend yourself. We all had, you know, like with all memories of things, we all had kind of differing memories about it. But if you would like to, if you would like to defend your position on the, on the nutsack on the nutsack.

Speaker 2: 6:38

It's not a defense but, if you will, from my point of view. So I see this gentleman coming and this was 10 K day and John and I were identical. We weren't identical, we were Chip and Dale, but we were the chipmunks and we both had the chipmunk ears on. And again, these are all hand gestures that are unnecessary for this non visual medium. And so I pointed at the guy and I was like you were talking, I think, and I was just kind of pointing recollection, like we have the same ears on. And then when you were done talking and I was like you know, you've got the ears, but he had a fanny pack down low with Chip and Dale on it. So I was like, well, we got the ears, but we don't have a place for our nuts, a nutsack. Just trying to highlight that he had this cute Chip and Dale fanny pack, but apparently you don't talk about places to put people's nuts on a microphone.

Speaker 1: 7:24

And I would say for people who don't, who haven't done what we've done or been on stage talking and any sort of you know, large gathering like that, when somebody says something like that that has a double entendre to it or is not on purpose humorous thing, those are like my favorite moments on stage and I think many of us and I just remember making eye contact with you after you said it, in that recognition of oh goodness, this, this is going to be a thing, isn't it? And and then you were doubled over and laughter, which I tell everybody, look for that on a run.

Speaker 1: 8:04

Disney weekend on stage when something else is a happening, if Riley's doing an interview or Tracy or whatever is happening, and you look and you see Carissa doubled over laughing. We've had one of those moments and and we did I knew what you were talking about, but again, no one else could see.

Speaker 2: 8:20

Mr Nutsack. No one else could see his tiny little Chip and Dale fanny pack. Now I've called them tiny, I'm not making it better.

Speaker 1: 8:27

Yeah, no, you're really not. You're really not. But just to give everybody an idea, it was obviously where he's keeping, you know, maybe maybe some snacks in there keeping his phone. Whatever it was it was, it was innocent but indeed, indeed, one of the favorite moments that my second favorite moment of that was my second favorite moment of the weekend. My favorite moment of the weekend was dancing in the rain at the finish line.

Speaker 1: 8:46

Yeah, when they were playing when Steve moved on to the rain songs and playing all the fool in the rain by Led Zeppelin. I'll say it again great moment, one of the great moments ever. But you were pointing out that I was literally joyously dancing in the rain, and me joyously doing anything is rare, but it really was and you're right, we will. We remember the canceled half marathon event. We were and.

Speaker 2: 9:11

I were at ESPN club having a beer, yes, yes, and then we got the phone call the weekends where things go wrong.

Speaker 1: 9:17

Again, we're very sorry that everybody didn't get to do their 13 to one. I was incredibly impressed by people running around the parking lot and then people doing it. You know you'd see them later at the, at the resorts and stuff, but it really did. I think everybody did come together and realize that you know, if this is the least of our problems today and we certainly hear about greater problems on any race weekend that people are dealing with we're going to be okay and we were so shout out to everybody who who said thank you, everybody who backed up the decision, realizing that you know, safety is really everyone's first concern, but fun stuff, all right, let's, let's, let's, let's move west. You know I don't understand anything west of the Mississippi River. So, moving on to Cali, overall, the first time back since, I believe, what 2017 in in Anaheim. How was the weekend for you?

Speaker 2: 11:29

I mean, for me it was great and we, if you're looking at you, know what we had to do and our terms of just entertainment and being a race announcer. It was great. For me, it's great to be back. I've always said it's like the greatest honor of my life that they brought me back. I don't know if I'll come back for Halloween, like I don't know these things, because you don't go, I go, you know, and I've always gone back and forth and you didn't. And that's a lot of what people ask. Where's lots of? Where's John?

Speaker 1: 11:52

But I'm- they don't care for me. They don't care for me. West Coast Run. Disney doesn't care for me.

Speaker 2: 11:55

If you're listening, I know that's fine. You don't ever care for me.

Speaker 1: 11:58

I'm a people didn't like me in the beginning. It took years for me to get a fan. I did.

Speaker 2: 12:02

This is new to us people. So I was going to say that somewhere in this people liking us and like taking selfies at the finish, like this is a last year and a half thing, and it's very strange because John and I have done Marathon for 20 years and for 12 years of that, let's just be very generous to say 12 years. You find someone. Oh, I ran the Disney Marathon. Oh, I was the announcer, really, yeah, I was on stage, the only woman on stage. No, okay, great, thanks, have a good day. No one cared that we announced the Disney Marathon. No one knew who we were. So this is fun. It's like a new chapter. It's also a terrifying chapter because, john, what happens once people start to like you?

Speaker 1: 12:37

You start to be on the radar of folks. And then they pay attention to what you do, and we really don't want that.

Speaker 2: 12:44

Yeah, no, no. So it was fun. And what I've always said about Disneyland is that because of the closeness of the parks and John, I can't, you've never been there it's hard to describe. But like, there's three hotels and the two hotels that you can go up essentially are ones in the middle and ones at the end of the downtown Disney. So the expo is in the Disneyland Hotel, which is where I'm staying. So for me to simply walk to the lobby or walk to get food I'm going to run into runners.

Speaker 2: 13:08

I can go into the expo, say hello, go back to my room To get to the Disneyland Park. Don't say Magic Kingdom, it's a Disneyland park. There's a monorail about I don't know, less than 200 meters from where my room was, it's just and then you can pop into the park and Disney California Adventure at Disneyland are essentially across a block from each other. You just can walk from one park to the other. It's amazing, it's life changing when you think about on a typical run Disney weekend in Walt Disney World. Should I want to go into the park, it's going to take me at best 45 minutes to an hour to get to any park and it's just not feasible for us. But here I can pop in say hello, spend an hour in the park and that's taken me 90 minutes and it makes it feel like a more Disney experience for me, so selfishly. That's why I like to go to California.

Speaker 1: 13:55

Well, and following on social media too. The interesting thing is there were a lot of people chiming in who hadn't done a Disneyland race before and they're veterans of Walt Disney World, and talking about the fact that they could just roll out of their hotel room and walk to the Corral area. And obviously we don't have that. The questions come about about parking and all of that sort of thing. So, yeah, I don't.

Speaker 1: 14:18

Again, never having been there, I got a better sense because there were so many more people who filmed the course and the area. I got a little better sense about how compact it really really is. All right, so that is a big difference, obviously. What's another? Obviously and I'll bury the lead, I'll throw it out there and let you expound on it running through a city versus running through a property. Even when you're not in the parks, at the Disney, at the marathon, you're on Disney property. People run off property. And again, for the guy who's obsessed with the New York marathon and how they are able to do that with all the different boroughs, that to me is just fascinating. That City of Anaheim is a big part of the race.

Speaker 2: 15:03

Yeah, and shout out to the mayor of the City of Anaheim. So we're backstage on Sunday and, where you know, people kind of line up to do interviews and if it's me and you or whatever, we don't really interact with them because we're kind of focused on what we're doing. So there was this woman in a sparkle skirt with a cute shirt on, with a Mickey Mouse ice cream bar, and I knew the mayor was gonna be speaking and shame on me, down with the Patriarchy. It never ticked in my brain that that woman in the sparkle skirt may be the mayor, because it just says Mayor Aiken. But she was. She ran both races in her rainbow sparkle skirt.

Speaker 2: 15:36

So the cooperation with the City of Anaheim was huge and being able to have this event it's not just like, well, disney World War. Yeah, we're having to redo the course a lot and work around construction, but it's a contained sort of enterprise. So the half is the only day that you go out into Anaheim, so you'll do your park miles first and then you head out into Anaheim. They went by Honda Center, they went to Angel Stadium, which they couldn't go inside this year but hopefully in the future they'll be able to.

Speaker 1: 16:00

That was a big disappointment. That was a big disappointment for veterans.

Speaker 2: 16:02

I think something was happening on the inside that was monster trucks. Maybe I'd heard. So like it was, I mean, could be like this is gonna become like a like a obstacle race. You know you have to climb over the muddy.

Speaker 1: 16:14

I sort of now see, I'm sort of enjoying that visual.

Speaker 2: 16:16

Yeah, that visual.

Speaker 2: 16:18

And then the other thing is like the entertainment becomes something that Disney can't control. So there were bands out there. I heard some good things about some of the bands out there, but I did hear a lot of people got personal bests and they were excited about that and some of that may be because they were stopping less, but when you get out there in the city you know you're doing a half marathon. So I liked that. People got to kind of see the best of both worlds. The 5K and 10K were all park contained, which I think is really nice, and I think something the way we'll talk about this probably a lot as this goes on, the way it's the race is viewed in Disneyland is that the park itself, and this is kind of what Mark Farah has started to say.

Speaker 2: 16:58

The park is the entertainment. Mark has said, and you can elaborate it and tell me I'm wrong. I'm crazy about that. I don't want to put too many stops in the park. I want you to enjoy being in the park. So I think when you get to Disneyland, how do we balance? This is the only place we can put characters, but also we want you to enjoy running through the castle. We want you to have that magic of running around the corner and Pixar Pier and the lights are on in the music, and that's an experience you're never going to get again. We don't want you to spend that standing in line. So it's like it's that balance there where people are saying, well, walt Disney World, and this is where we're going to throw Mark Farah, our show director, onto the bus. He puts something every third of a mile, so he's created a monster essentially.

Speaker 1: 17:40

Well, it makes sense because, again, you don't want to be running through Disneyland park and every 400 yards there's another group of people that you either have to make your way around or feel the need. There are plenty of photo ops just being in the park in a morning with the lights turned on and everything. It's one of my favorite things about all my years in theme parks is the time as I've been able to spend in parks where there's no one there and the lights are on and it's just such a great visual. So, yeah, that was, and I also shout out to the folks who were the veterans, letting people know who were newer oh my gosh, I've run in Orlando for years and there are nowhere near as many characters and think well, you can't put Pinocchio out on Route 6 in Anaheim particularly Pinocchio because he can't be trusted alone.

Speaker 2: 18:28

We all know that.

Speaker 1: 18:31

Yeah, but of so many people chimed in and it was fun to see actually the folks in Anaheim cheering them on People dressed up in Star Wars things this is not the race that you were looking for, like an up backdrop.

Speaker 2: 18:43

Somebody brought a backdrop of up, which is just amazing. So then you're getting the best of both worlds, and I love that experience.

Speaker 1: 18:51

All right, you've almost done it. At this point, somebody who East Coast runner, who's not a, I know we're still doing hand things, it's like we're on stage.

Speaker 2: 18:59

We're still on stage. We can't stop. We don't know what to do?

Speaker 1: 19:02

Do I get where their heads? What's the pitch? Is this your question? Somebody who's used to running here Fly all the way out there, take a train. Well, we could talk about that people's travel issues, because that was a that was ugly early on. But fly out there, take a train out there, drive out there. Why should they do a West Coast race, other than they will not hear my voice ever.

Speaker 2: 19:24

Well, that's debatable, because you'll hear a voice that sounds surprising.

Speaker 1: 19:28

Sounds like me. I apologize to everyone in advance Is this, john?

Speaker 2: 19:30

or is this Matt Starchy on the podcast? We don't know. My pitch would be simple because, especially if you've never been to Disneyland, they're completely different parks and I think the presence of Walt is so huge in Disneyland, just that that was the park that Walt Disney designed. That was where he brought this vision that has transpired and given so many people so much imagination and joy for the course of their life. Like that's there.

Speaker 2: 19:55

So when we're standing in front of that castle and we're doing yoga and I'm on a stage in front of that castle, like it's hard to not have goose bumps thinking about the picture Walt Disney walking through there, the people there on opening day. So I just think, in terms of magic, that is there. I think you're going to see different entertainment and you're going to enjoy that. There's totally different rides. I mean, it's a totally different Disney. So go there, experience it, knowing that you're going to walk away with two experiences that are that are refreshing, that are whole, that you get to do what you love and you get to experience totally different rides, different entertainment, all that kind of stuff. I mean, john, what do you always say if you don't want to travel, go out there, see things. It's like that pitch go.

Speaker 1: 20:34

Yeah, yeah, agreed, I will say watching the videos of it, I'm more intrigued about it now than I was just in my mind. You know, all I know is Disneyland as being a kid and watching. You know old stuff from Disneyland, opening of the park and Disney's wonderful world of color and all of that. So, all right, pretty pretty good pitch. Now some of these questions are going to be coming from Instagram too. I'm surprised how many people follow and have questions, but by gosh they do. And here's one very technical question from email 18 how many athletes were participating this weekend? Because it was a big deal when they announced the Disneyland races coming back and we knew that it was something that was going to sell out quickly. But we never have any idea, disney, we always ask and we get different numbers, but you have any idea how many athletes so I asked and I don't have an answer yet.

Speaker 1: 21:24

We ask people honestly, and if you ask people, you'll get there. Oh, it's around this. There's never really a hard and fast number thrown out to us.

Speaker 2: 21:31

The only one I know is that yoga was about 500, because it's such a small area, which is significantly smaller than what we have in Orlando. I don't know. I do believe that they purposely had the numbers a little bit lower than they had been seven years ago, just to make sure that there was space and that everything went smoothly. So I don't know, I know, I know, so I don't know, I'm sorry. Email 18 I did send some text and ask, but I didn't get an answer.

Speaker 2: 21:58

So I deleted this question, but I didn't, so no no, no, it's a good.

Speaker 2: 22:04

John and I never like I think back in the day I thought like 25,000 people ran Princess and I don't even know how many run now and then there's always a drop off right like and I know this more for Iron man. If there's 2200 people signed up for an Iron man, we're probably going to get 1800 on start day. So there's always that, that drop off, and in the business they call that free money, because you signed up and he didn't show up and he didn't use any resources and you basically just gave the race your money.

Speaker 1: 22:23

Yeah, and when people tell us some sort of round number, I think they're just trying to dismiss us to go away at 20, 20,000, and then you could look at the results.

Speaker 2: 22:29

If you wanted to dive in and we're not that we're not that we don't do that here, where there's no Mikey is my name, wants to know what it felt like to be back.

Speaker 1: 22:38

You've sort of touched on that, but. But how was it for you? Because I, again, I know this. This was a race that means a lot to you, much more than any of the races you host with me.

Speaker 2: 22:47

It does because, like I said before, I mean it was 2012 I was in Australia hosting for the Home Shopping Network in Australia and I got a phone call that was like, do you want to go to announce the Tinkerbone Disneyland? And I was just dumbfounded, like, seriously, like you guys want me to do that, like you guys want me to go, like to fly me out there. And back then they gave us a ticket. I got an extra ticket. This is because the other announcers had had that in their contract, so I would bring my mom.

Speaker 2: 23:10

At the time my mom lived in Virginia, I lived in Florida, so for five years these were the times when I spent with my mom, like getting to go through the parks with my mom. My mom came for the first race and I was like, mom, do you want to sign up for anything? And she's like, oh no, I couldn't do that. She watched the first race and the next race she was like I want to do a half, I can do that. So, like those memories with my mom and my mom's still around she just doesn't get to come anymore because I'm here in Weston, but they were great. And then when Wes and I started dating, he lived in California. So these were the times like these were our dates. These were the things you know we got to do together. So there's just a lot of really happy memories.

Speaker 2: 23:46

And while a lot of this team was new, our entertainment team, for the most part, was not new our producer, our director, our stage manager, some of the people that weren't even on the entertainment team for this race. But we're still working in the park. Some of our agva actors, our character performers, people that I hadn't seen in seven years and, as you know, when you work with the same people over and over again, you have a really close relationship, and so, just coming back and seeing those people, I thought I would cry. When I walked into rehearsals I did it, but on the plane and you know you, always you've cried more on planes. That's like a thing right, a scientifically proven thing.

Speaker 2: 24:19

I sleep, but okay sure okay, well, I'm the daughter of our producer, who may now be our production manager, who was like seven years old when we first started there, would come and sit on the stage with us. We'd like every now and then let her say a name. And now she's in college, text me and was like I just hope I get to hug you. And it just made me cry because, like these relationships that you've built, it's just beautiful. Like these people are really passionate about what they do and about Disney, so it was great to be back. And Mikey, I think he lives on the West Coast and I saw him at this race and then he was like, yeah, I ran marathon to and I totally didn't see him there.

Speaker 1: 24:53

So you know it happens Little known. When they called you to ask you if you would go out there, they had actually called me earlier to ask for your number. So that's kind of where you know it's like me at the finish line. What's the question you're most asked at? Where? Rudy and Chris, that's pretty much what I'm asked. Two times For years that's what I was asked.

Speaker 2: 25:14

Yep, I said it. That's how John became a announcer three, which will have an origin story of that. But if there was a whole thing with the announcer three, there was a whole thing.

Speaker 1: 25:22

Now you mentioned rehearsal at everything because it is it's quite different out there to the entertainment. So let's tackle all of this chronologically. When I last saw you it was Sunday afternoon. We were getting dropped off at the hotel, set our goodbyes and you, when I saw you in person, I should say you were gonna be popping over to the West Coast on Tuesday, which I was still napping and trying. I think I mentioned in our podcast. It was like Tuesday night or Wednesday morning when I finally felt normal again after the weekend. So so take us through that. Why did he head out on on Tuesday and talk about the rehearsal situation and compare it? Because it is much different than what we do.

Speaker 2: 26:01

It's very different than what we do, so when they get these are things that have always been this way in Disneyland, so I don't mind. I actually love rehearsal, even our little two hour rehearsal. I love rehearsal. I think it's fun. We get to spend time together. It's not an event I'm just a fan of, just I'm a theater actor.

Speaker 1: 26:15

I love rehearsal to. It's just such a different animal out there.

Speaker 2: 26:18

So we have always at Disneyland on a day of rehearsal, like an eight hour rehearsal and then that night we'd go in overnight onto the outdoor stages and test everything. Now, john knows this, I know this, knows this, know this A lot of times a rehearsal is not for John and I or Riley, it is for the director and the tech crew to make sure that they know the cues, they have everything loaded in right, that everything's working well. And then in these situations, these stages are being built in places there are not stages, so we're not going to the Lion King Theater and doing a show where this audio has always been set up. So it's making sure that everything works. So our daytime rehearsal is basically blocking for us and, as you mentioned, we had a lot of characters. One of them was an articulated character moment, which is where the characters speak, and so in terms of that rehearsal, that does take a little bit. John and I have done this in Walt Disney World for the marathon start a couple times and this was even a little bit more elaborate than that. So we basically just walk through blocking, we have our fitting in there. So just takes.

Speaker 2: 27:17

You know it wasn't eight hours, I was probably there. I landed at nine, I got there like 1130 and we were done by like 330. And then we did our costume fitting as well there. And then, just so people understand, in Orlando we go in so early because we will do a full Q2Q rehearsal of the start line show every morning before you guys get into the parking lot In Disneyland. We can't do that because of the proximity of everybody. Everybody was essentially hear everything. So we usually do that Q2Q in that overnight rehearsal.

Speaker 2: 27:46

However, this time, because everything was brand new, they weren't done loading in yet the stages in the audio wasn't up, so we couldn't do that. So God bless our stage manager, shannon. The first time we ever did the whole show was the show and, as you know, you're nodding your head like that's not cool, that's not fun, for just it's hard on on the team. But it went fine, it went really well. So that's a little bit of the difference in the rehearsal. It's just logistics of like, when can we do this? But those rehearsals are needed because we are creating stages and sound where there is none.

Speaker 2: 28:20

We were literally in the middle of a road that then had to reopen, which is much like it used to be in Orlando out there on Epcot center Boulevard, but that was tiring. That was Tuesday, so essentially it was like get up at 3am Orlando time Tuesday, get there, drive to rehearsal, go to rehearsal. I slept like six hours, which felt good, rehearsed two to like 8am that was the coldest I was. Then I took a nap. Then I went to the Grand Floridian and I got a massage and then the lady was like you need to stretch and relax and I was like thank, you.

Speaker 1: 28:51

They have a Grand Floridian out there.

Speaker 2: 28:52

I mean Californian.

Speaker 1: 28:53

I was going to say hold on, I've never had a massage to the Grand Floridian. No.

Speaker 2: 28:58

I flew all the way back to the Grand Floridian, flew all the way back, so that was like my chill day because, essentially we were off that day day, on Wednesday, but I loved rehearsal.

Speaker 2: 29:09

I just I felt for the techs and our production team because they couldn't necessarily nothing was set up, nothing was going and then and they all kept their cool. You know, they know, but it just I felt for them because I know how stressful shout out to Michael Jordan that is his real name. Michael Jordan, the basketball player, was not in attendance. I just I know it was stressful for them.

Speaker 1: 29:29

Yeah, and full disclosure. We have had mornings out on Epcot Center Boulevard where there's something technical that happened and we really couldn't get through it either. I mean, we try to try to get through a few things and when you do have to go out there and you haven't been through like one rehearsal, you know you can go through one soup to nuts and some things can go wrong and you feel OK, but it's when you haven't done it at all. Yeah Well, to keep you awake, if nothing else, you're not going to fall asleep. You mentioned that. You mentioned the temperatures in the 40s, right low 40s.

Speaker 2: 29:57

Yeah, it was. It got it inched up a little bit warmer I think by the time the end of the race, but it was it was. You know me, I don't love cold. Thank goodness I asked for a down jacket for Christmas, wasn't got me this wonderful alternative down from Lulu Lemon, which saved my life, but we would have hand warmers. I went and I got from Instacart. You know those Thera back heat things. I would wrap those under my wardrobe each day. Our hyper ice one I brought to rehearsal and I let Tetris wear it because he just rolled out a sweatshirt and he was real cold. So yeah, it was cold, but I think in terms of running weather, ok, once you get going, it's always that standing around and then it gets, you know, gets colder right before we start.

Speaker 1: 30:33

Yeah, but yeah, it just, I was just. I think everybody was just sort of surprised how chilly it was. I think people were prepared for it to be like they were not really prepared for some of the rain that we dealt with on our weekend.

Speaker 2: 30:44

Weather is a thing. What's that? Weather is a thing, it happens.

Speaker 1: 30:48

It's unpredictable despite what you may have heard, disney does not control the weather, only the economics of several countries. All right, let's. Let's jump to yoga Now. I have not taken part in the yoga as, as we know, I can't touch my knees, let alone my toes, so probably should jump into that. How different was the yoga out there? You already mentioned you're in front of Walt's castle, for lack of a better term, so that's really, really cool, but how different was it out there?

Speaker 2: 31:15

I think it was a pretty similar you know format. You know you're in front of the castle, there's the ancillary instructors around, because you know wherever you are. Maybe you can't see that instructor. You're looking at that instructor. We had this hilarious start line moment that I just was thrilled to be a part of. I put it on Instagram so people could see it. But you know, goofy and Donald and Pluto roll up and Goofy's like we brought our cats and we're like cats Goofy. We said Matt and then it's just classic. I mean, they were so into their characters like Donald's all mad at him and he's like well, anybody could make that mistake, and so it was. I thought it was a really clever, cute way to kind of kick everything off. And I want to give a shout out to I don't know how much.

Speaker 2: 31:54

We've had articulated characters a little bit, but when we're on stage with them, we're not looking at them, or I'm not looking at them, or if I'm looking at them I'm thinking about my next line, so I'm not visually looking at them, I'm, when I watch the video, back. These performers at Disneyland. They're so good, they're animation, and even when we weren't with the articulated characters, it's the same group of special event performers. They're so talented and it was just really fun to watch and watch all the different animations from the characters, so we had that really fun moment.

Speaker 2: 32:23

It sprinkled a little bit on us at yoga because, yeah, surprisingly, as we're doing it, I'm looking at the radar and there's nothing on it. Matt and I went down, we did the yoga, which was always fun, and that was a great way to kick it off. I think if you have a chance to get into yoga ever, it's again like we talked about one of those experiences you'll never get again in the park to be laying down in front of the castle, like doing the breathing and sintering yourself and filling yourself with gratitude. It's a really beautiful way to start or end a race weekend, because it'll be on Monday of Princess Weekend.

Speaker 1: 32:55

Yeah, I tell you visually that the photos and the video from those events really really are captivating. Also, all right, you mentioned the expo and that's something that we don't really do anymore here. I know you make your way over to the expo you had your books and over with Jeff and everything but I haven't been back for a couple of years because we don't rehearse over there anymore. We rehearse in a different place or, as our rehearsal is, we read through the script. So what was expo like and what was the feedback from people? Again, the level of excitement about a race in Disneyland was so palpable, even with our weekend. A lot of people talk to us about it.

Speaker 2: 33:33

Yeah, I think I went to the expo on Thursday and the energy level was high. It was so busy. People were using that virtual queue to get merch because the merch was highly sought after. Now, in terms of a space, it is maybe like an eighth the size of what we have if you compare Visa and the Jostens together, so it's much smaller. We brought maybe 100 of my books and we sold out on Friday, so I apologize to anybody that couldn't get a book. We're going to figure that out for next time and we're going to bring some more to Princess.

Speaker 2: 34:03

But it was fun to see people again just sort of chatting and then, I think, very busy the whole time. Basically there were lines everywhere, which is great for these vendors and sponsors, because especially those vendors let's take Sparkle Athletic, for example these are small businesses that when COVID happened it was really hard on them. So being able to get back and be able to make their living. Thank you to everybody who supported every small business there at that expo because it does make a big impact to them.

Speaker 1: 34:29

Yeah, absolutely All right. Let's jump into the races here. We're moving along. 5k Friday 5K Day, first race back in Disneyland since 2017. It looked so epic with everybody lined up on Main Street with a start right in front of the castle. How did the 5K go? I know that was the day where it was like 40, right at race time, about 40 degrees.

Speaker 2: 34:51

Yeah, I think that was the coldest morning and just being able to walk out in front of Disneyland and see people, I get choked up, even just talking about it, to be there again back in that moment with these people. I mean we've never had a race in Orlando Like that started in front of Spaceship Earth or started in front of the castle and you're lined up on Main Street. I mean you don't even need us there, really, just like look around folks and play some Disney music Like isn't this cute?

Speaker 1: 35:12

Please, just if anyone is listening. We are needed. We're very much needed.

Speaker 2: 35:16

Please, please, we're still needed. So it was when we had this moment that we had never seen in rehearsal, because you're not going to obviously blow off all these fireworks in rehearsal. But there was a scripted moment and Wesson did not like the way it was scripted. I did it the way it was scripted because I'm supposed to, but I was sort of showing Matt Stark Year, my co-host, how to do it, and so I'd be like say this and a sound would play and I was like watch, I do this and the music would go and our stage manager is there. So when I got to the fireworks my line was like it's great to see you again.

Speaker 2: 35:47

And the fireworks were supposed to go, but they did it because that's the stick. So I kept saying it and I kept saying it. It wasn't happening and I was like why isn't that working? And then Matt was like I think the line is. And then he said a different line and the moment went off. But Wesson felt like I looked like a know-it-all on a mean girl, but I was just doing my script and I didn't feel it was that way. I thought it was fun and you know how it felt.

Speaker 1: 36:08

We'll do an online poll from people who were there and saw it.

Speaker 2: 36:10

Thought I was Stark, was it?

Speaker 1: 36:12

a mean girl or not.

Speaker 2: 36:14

And so, but anyway, but it made it more fun than just being like here's the fireworks. But then they did these colored lights down Main Street and so I'm looking at Main Street and then fireworks go off, and then they come back up the fireworks up Main Street to a bunch of fireworks behind the castle. I mean it was pretty, pretty cool, Pretty epic. So there was that Can't top that. The Dapper Dan sang as the Main Street dog catchers and in my head I was, and just being very honest, I was like I thought the Disney World Dapper Dan were better. But now that I think back, we were behind the stage and so speakers were not facing us, so I don't think I could hear. So I take back my judgment, but both Dapper Dan's were equally exciting to have.

Speaker 1: 36:56

Well, we're going to get to the bottom of this. I'm going to find out.

Speaker 2: 36:59

Can we have videos of both and John?

Speaker 1: 37:01

as a stage performer. We'll have former Dapper Dan's on the show to critique it.

Speaker 2: 37:08

I want to be outstanding.

Speaker 1: 37:10

I love it.

Speaker 2: 37:10

What's Aaron's last name? Wasn't he a Dapper Dan who used to sing our anthem?

Speaker 1: 37:14

Aaron, aaron Stratton, aaron Stratton.

Speaker 2: 37:16

That's it. Veteran Aaron Stratton.

Speaker 1: 37:19

My friend Aaron Stratton, who again I will thank years later for getting me the VIP seats for Living Color at the Eat to the Beat series Amazing amazing.

Speaker 2: 37:28

And just to tell you guys, no, I can't get VIP seats to eat to the beat. John has done that. So John has successfully used his prestige better than I have.

Speaker 1: 37:36

Well, well and. I can't get into the parks, so you have that. I pay for an annual pass All right, I'm going to read this question as written, because it was written for me, just for my own.

Speaker 2: 37:51

This was written by Weston, by the way, weston wrote some of this, so I did not write this question.

Speaker 1: 37:55

Just for my own curiosity may not be as curious. No, truthfully. How are the other announcers and who were the other announcers? Is this where you go like? Who ranks me If you had a?

Speaker 2: 38:08

poll. How long was it before Carissa talked about the other announcers? So our other two announcers were fantastic. It was great, wonderful humans, the you was. His name was Matt Starkey. He's from San Diego. He, our race director in California, is Mike Bone, who works for Spectrum Sports. Timing for both races is done by the same team, the Track Shack EMMI team. So shout out to them. And Tom Ward and Alicia and all them and Andres. So Matt does a lot of his races. So Mike recommended him to come in Because at our core we're race announcers. We're supposed to be able to know what to do on stage. We always talk about our number one job is safety, is communication, and then at that finish line, celebrating in those elite runners understanding how far as a half marathon, all these kinds of things. So Matt was great. He's a huge Disney fan. He has a one and a half year old. He got engaged at the end of a marathon, just like me, so did, ironically, sound like John.

Speaker 1: 39:10

Yeah, he's a younger, better looking more athletic person version of me he's me if I had paid any attention to my relative fitness and those sort of things. So shout out to him. He sounded like me, so I'm going to say that sounded pretty darn good.

Speaker 2: 39:27

Yeah, because he sounded like you. I did miss you, though, because you and I have such just a We've done it a few times. Yes, like in a marathon, we were doing something and I was staring at you because we were supposed to go off stage and later on you were like I was wondering why you were staring at me, because if something has gone on, john and I will kind of have these looks and point and whatever. We were supposed to leave the stage.

Speaker 1: 39:49

I know, but it wasn't awkward. It was an awkward. We didn't want to walk in front of the cameras and was for one accrues moment and it was his last. I'm going to defend us for that, but I guess it's a shorthand.

Speaker 2: 40:00

You and I just have a shorthand.

Speaker 1: 40:01

Well, again, you've done this with Matt once, and with me dozens and dozens and dozens of times in different venues. Now you mentioned it.

Speaker 2: 40:11

I will say Matt had a moment, a nut sack moment, and I'm going to mention it Ish not as bad.

Speaker 2: 40:17

We're stretching, we're filling time with the corral. So it's like corral D stands for well, corral C stood for cilantro. So you know it's going good when that's our word for corral C and then D, and then we got to E, and then I was like I try to be a good co-host and we set each other up for stuff in a way and I was like all right, matt, corral F, what does it stands for? And he was like fun, fantastic, all those F words. And I just let it hit. And then I moved on because I didn't know well enough to be like really, but he had his, that was his. So welcome to the club, matt.

Speaker 1: 40:50

Yeah, and in my mind I'm just thinking it stands for when's this F and race going to start? Because that's pretty much by the time you get to F, sort of what people are thinking.

Speaker 2: 40:58

Yes, so, um, kudos to Matt. It's not easy to step into a job like this, um, but he did a great job.

Speaker 1: 41:05

All right. Anything else on the 5k.

Speaker 2: 41:08

No, we're going to talk about what else Matt did at the 10k and he knows he's listening.

Speaker 1: 41:11

Let's move on to the 10k.

Speaker 2: 41:13

Weston got fifth in the 5k. Shout out to him. And then the finish line was one of the most beautiful pictures. Finished lines, pixar, pier, with all the lights on the rides were going. It was awesome.

Speaker 1: 41:24

Oh see, now I haven't seen anybody. I'll have to. I'll have to do a little research.

Speaker 1: 41:26

I haven't seen any video for that. I saw a lot of start line stuff and I saw the yoga stuff which really really really did look cool. Some of the vistas out there just so neat again, because you're in such a compact area and there's so much visual background stuff and everything which, again, you know with us. Hey, there's a spaceship Earth two and a half miles from us, right there, if you catch it at the right time. Uh, though, our folks do a really really good job. All right now. New start line, new staging area for the 10k. Um, and why did that change? Where did that change? Did you enjoy the change comparatively?

Speaker 2: 41:59

So one of the reasons the races left was because they were supposed to build a brand new hotel and it was essentially going to take over our start and fit. It was going to be in the middle of our start and finish line area, so for a long time they couldn't figure out how were we going to would it be possible to do these races. So the start line used to be on Disney way, which, geographically again, john and I never know where anything is. We get in a heated car, we are driven somewhere and then we get out, um, so I don't know where Disney way is, but it was on Disney way, and the finish line was steps away from the Disneyland hotel, which was so convenient.

Speaker 2: 42:27

So we were all out in this parking lot called the Manchester parking lot, um, and so the start and finish were basically 200 meters away from each other, um, so it was amazing to watch them transform this parking lot from what it was when we were at rehearsal early morning hours of Wednesday, uh. So the runners got there again, a lot of people were walking um. A little bit different, uh, but in terms of the setup, there was still the big screen, our stage, with the nice backdrop that matched the race. We could not do fireworks because of where we were. Essentially we were the the.

Speaker 2: 43:02

That Manchester parking lot is owned by Disney, but it is not theoretically called Disney property so there were some, some nuances of that um, so we couldn't have fireworks or a lot of loud noise, so that's why some of the things were different. But once you're out there, once you just plop us up onto the stage, you know it's the same thing. We're ready to go and I think the walking was less walking to the start. Everything's more compact, all that kind of stuff, which I think is good for me as a runner. Logistically.

Speaker 1: 43:28

I like that yeah, yeah, it does sound like in a lot of, in a lot of ways, it's uh a little bit easier. We mentioned it. You know, when you come to a Disney race and if you're listening to us and you haven't done one before, you're going to jump through a lot of hoops to get to the starting line, and it seems like it's a little bit easier out there, given the relative size. Uh, all right, um, we've already talked about it that it's weird without me. Uh, clearly, uh, now, matt had a moment at 10k.

Speaker 2: 43:53

I'm gonna, I'm not gonna let him is it the mylar dance?

Speaker 1: 43:56

is that his moment? I didn't know what's happened.

Speaker 2: 43:58

Okay, so that's separate so at the 10k, matt was gonna leave early because he was gonna go to the finish, which is 200 meters away. Okay, guys, it was right over there so he was an hour break.

Speaker 1: 44:10

By god, I would demand my hour break 15 minutes in right.

Speaker 2: 44:14

So I send the first group and he's like thanks guys, bye. And I'm like what, what? So it's me and we don't even have a character. It's me and a sign language interpreter, and this is how it used to be at Disneyland. So I had it. This wasn't like something I'd never done, um, but it was me sending all the ways off and, john, you know, you go deep. You're like okay, what, what can I talk about? What can I do? Because you don't want to just stay in there. Um, so I wasn't expecting to have to go to the well of creativity. So, and there's not a Riley, so Tetris was gone too. There's no one to throw to. It's me and Valerie, our sign language interpreter. So we did the. We had fun, though, seeing the people you're dancing, you're. You know, I try to not get into the like every single wave, like whose birthday is it? Who's running this?

Speaker 1: 45:01

like right, I try to, I don't know, are they pretty quick I'm sorry to interrupt that pretty quick getting the waves off, because we've gotten so much better at that this is a question further down, but waves are totally different there at currently, and they've always been this way in Disneyland.

Speaker 2: 45:13

So in Orlando we used to have, let's say, a princess. We had a through m, a would go and then it would be like what? Four or five minutes and then be would go. There were not the many waves that we have established in Orlando. So that's how Disney land was. We did not have many waves. So I would say go for a, um, everybody would filter through, which would take a little bit longer. Then you'd have a pause where like B was held maybe 150 meters back and I'd see them walk up and then they'd stand there staring at me waiting to be entertained for three to four minutes. And there's also not a DJ. So I have no one to play off of at the start. There's not a DJ. We have an amazing DJ at the finish line. Sorry all other DJs, clark Chuka is you would. You would die, john, how fast he is on sound effects, on oh, there's Molly and he's playing good, golly, miss Molly within 10 seconds.

Speaker 1: 46:03

You would adore him um, but it was somewhere.

Speaker 2: 46:05

Steve Weinstein, after having a bad Eagles weekend, is now like what well, you know, I'm still mad at Steve because Riley told him to play Taylor Swift. You need to calm down. He played Taylor Swift, riley goes. Why didn't you play? You need to calm down and Steve goes. I thought you were telling me to calm down.

Speaker 2: 46:21

Well, riley can be bossy so that might be he comes he projects um, so please tell us Swift, and you need to calm down yeah, if you are in the corral at the 10k, please let me know how um I did at some point around corral C if I didn't have my gloves, and again, I can't leave the stage. They were behind the stage but I couldn't get them. So I say, can I have some mylar? And I take the mylar and I wrap it around my hand that's holding the mic, because I couldn't even put that in my pocket and I had like this silver, like trophy, like trail, but it really kept my hand warm and and was able to broadcast that because, you know it, it interferes with the timing.

Speaker 2: 46:59

I did worry about that, but I didn't wrap the bottom of the mic and that's. I think that was the key. And then at the end there was a mylar performance, because I was told it was going to be eight corrals and again, maybe I just made this up and then it was. I got to four and I was like, okay, I'm 50% of the way done. You got it. Think about cool things to say. And then it was done and so I did a happy dance with the mylar nice, all right, fair enough.

Speaker 1: 47:21

Which brings us to an IG question, and that's Instagram for the kids listening at home, and if you're probably listening at home or in your car, if you're listening to this Donut R&R, my people wants to know what happens with the mylar. This is a really good question and one I don't have an answer to here at Disney World. So do you know what they do with the mylar?

Speaker 2: 47:39

well, I thought Riley built a home, a crystal.

Speaker 1: 47:41

He does it makes or makes some sort of art project ornaments on Etsy.

Speaker 2: 47:45

I said that Donald was going to try to use it for solar lighting for his home, but they pick it up. They pick it up, as I mean I've never seen as much mylar.

Speaker 1: 47:53

That one marathon weekend maybe, like six or seven years ago, where we fell into the mylar at the finish, this was about as much mylar that was the one where I think they actually ran out of mylar for people who got to the who, who wanted it that that year, because that was the, you know, 29 degree a gear, I believe yeah, they just they pick it up and unfortunately I think it probably gets thrown out and then, or maybe there's you know, maybe someone can start a charity where it goes it's given to the homeless because it is nice and warming, but then the clothes are picked up and that's the idea for the clothes to be donated.

Speaker 2: 48:21

So nothing exciting happens with the mylar. Even in the hotel Weston got one and he was like, do we keep this? And I was like no, we have a box of mylar. But I was telling somebody you and I used to like aggressively yell about the mylar and that joke has has run its course, so we don't really do that joke do you believe? It's. I believe it's run its course. What do you think?

Speaker 1: 48:38

a little bit, though I do still yell at people and I did still see people. No matter how many times we do it, I did still see people with it wrapped around them going across the start line. It's like I can only do so much for you, folks. You can only help people who are willing to help themselves. Yeah, it's all for you. I don't want you to get 26.2 miles there and then it's what's your time.

Speaker 2: 48:54

Oh, I didn't register can I tell you, talking about shouting out people at the start, I had a most exciting moment at the half and I know I'm skipping ahead, but I don't want to forget to tell you this. I saw Tetsu Moto in his Minnie Mouse dress. It's been we haven't seen him in years. I know I was so I was like beside myself with excitement. I'm like there you are, so it's fun when we get to see people. He lives in Japan, so I was coming to Orlando. It was very far and he had his real camera out. It was like time stopped that's so good.

Speaker 1: 49:24

Yeah, I thought about him. It's like, wow, I wonder what you know post COVID, I guess you know people's lives changed a little bit so good, I'm glad, I'm glad he's doing well, glad he's doing well.

Speaker 2: 49:34

I mean, I don't know if it's well, but he's still in his Minnie Mouse dress. We're still in the Minnie Mouse dress running, so it's gotta be pretty good.

Speaker 1: 49:40

All right, now you're mentioning you didn't really have people like getting stories and stuff at the at the start line once you. Once you started in the waves but were there any good stories? I mean, it's just narrowing them down from a from a weekend here is is ridiculous, but it's a different situation out there. What are some good stories that you remember? If you do?

Speaker 2: 49:59

yeah, I mean I think there's always amazing stories and and again, hats off to Riley for the way he has and if you've listened to the podcast sort of developed his point of view at how we get these stories from the runners. It's one of my favorite parts of the race weekend. But, knowing people, there was Jackie out there who I saw at the expo. I gave her a big hug. She was going to the doctor to find out some of the results of her scans and she got good news and then being able to hug her at the start, at the finish of the 10k, was amazing. Our stage manager, shannon she is a cancer warrior, so she is back and so it's great to see her.

Speaker 2: 50:31

Knowing everything that I watched on. You know, I watched her on Facebook going through this journey with cancer and and having her back there, a man with a shirt and his wife said look, you know, look at his shirt, look at his shirt. And it said I beat stage four cancer and he was walking in. And then the woman there's two more stories so a woman named Missy stopped me 10k day in Orlando and she just said she was just happy to be there, that she used to run all these halves and that she had Parkinson's. And now I'm gonna cry it's hard for her to do a 10k.

Speaker 2: 51:00

So that was the day that I went and ran on the treadmill and I was like I'm gonna run this for the people who can't. Well, I didn't know this, but she did coast to coast and she said I didn't get a coast to coast metal because I can't do the half, but I did my coast to coast 10k and it was. She said it was so hard and and for her to you know what I mean just like we take. That's why I could say you get to do this. Like Missy stood in those curls for years, never knowing that, like there was gonna be a day where she couldn't do this. And then, if you saw on my Instagram, did you see the post of the person finishing the 10k? That was an amputee.

Speaker 1: 51:32

I did full leg.

Speaker 2: 51:33

So I finally found out a little bit about her. Her name is Tracy and she said on Facebook it wasn't that long ago I was doing these races competitively, getting Boston qualifying times and aiming to place in my age group. This was my first race back as an amputee, aka part robot. Instead of finishing up at the front, I was one of the very last people to cross the finish with an official time, and the experience was just as magical it was no, it was more magical than it had ever been when I was running competitively. We're all rock stars, every one of us, and I'm so grateful for this opportunity to be there with a few thousand of my newest friends wow.

Speaker 2: 52:07

I mean we just again, we don't know what life will throw at us. And for her to say, oh, I was winning, and now let me just walk this. And she was our second to last 10K finisher and I can tell you there wasn't just a dry eye watching her come through there, because that's not easy to do at all.

Speaker 2: 52:25

So, yeah, there were stories there and I wish we could have known more, I wish we could have learned more, but thank you for those of you who tell us your stories and allow us to share them, because people said to Tracy in this post you were the reason my son finished, my kids saw you and learned so much from you, and I think that's the beauty of endurance sports, which we always say.

Speaker 1: 52:43

Absolutely. And finally, there were kids races, something we haven't had for a long time, and let's just be honest, those can be dicey.

Speaker 2: 52:53

Those can be challenging, so you will love this. I said that we drew the long straw, so the finish for the kids races was the finish, and the start was across the parking lot. Well, clark Chuka got sent to the start to do all the yeoman's work, all the corrals, all the questions from the parents, all the starts, and Matt and I just got to go to the finish and hang out and wait for the kids to come. So that worked out nice for us. Now that I've said this, I'm going to have to go next time, but it was so fun to see the kids.

Speaker 2: 53:21

Elliot ran the 100. And then, about 20 minutes later, elliot ran the 200. I know, I know, right, right, but he ran, but the 200, he legit ran the whole way focused. I haven't posted on Instagram because I was going to wait till later in this week and there were people that would show me pictures of their kid in the diaper dash and their kid now. So it's just like a level of joy and I think the example that these kids get from parents who run like Elliot and Claire know like mama's going to go get on the bike, mama's going to go run that's an example that will stay with them as they go into their adulthood, knowing that it's OK to make fitness a priority in your life, it's OK to take time for you. So I think the kids races support that.

Speaker 1: 54:04

Yeah, yeah, yeah, and I haven't done a lot of them but it is always fun. But there is always that herding cats sort of thing about kids races, and Clark herded those cats well.

Speaker 1: 54:16

Yeah, yeah, and sometimes, particularly if you've done an entire morning of races, then you have to go over there. I know it can be challenging, but glad the kids races are back. I'm glad the race in Disneyland is back and now we move on to the big dog, the half marathon. I know and you put this in the show notes and I didn't even think about it for a large amount of people, seventh race in 10 days. I mean just to wrap my head around the fact that at some point I have to run a 10k this season. It's ridiculous. What was that atmosphere like and what were people? Because we always make the joke. Hey, it seemed like a good idea when I signed up for it, but how were they?

Speaker 2: 54:58

I think they were good. I actually never thought about that. I kept thinking, oh well, it was me, I have to get up all these nights. But they did too. And I think the last two nights of the race, because we didn't rehearse, the runners were actually up before us. I didn't have to beat my call. Time was like 315, johnny 315. I know we were walking by runners to go because we literally got picked up, went to the family reunion stage, dropped our stuff, I put on my lipstick and then we went. So I think they were great. I think that this is such a huge accomplishment for people that did. I kept calling it the Dumb Bee, because it's hard to say dopey to Dumbo. And some people did the 5K 70 miles, john in Disney in two weeks.

Speaker 1: 55:39

Yeah, yeah, I don't even have words. I don't even have a word for that because, again, to throw it out to people who are just throwing the mileage together and thinking, oh you know, I go out and run, I do 70 miles the hoops you have to jump through and we mentioned at Disneyland, they're not quite as big because the property is not as big. You have to do things like parking and transportation. You can walk to the start, but just all the things you have to do around those 70 miles that you're running is and some people probably at some point have to work their job.

Speaker 1: 56:08

I don't know?

Speaker 2: 56:09

Yeah, I mean, I do. Right now I have to turn my phone off. I have so many emails I should not be doing this podcast, but we wanted to get this information out to you. I know and we're going, I know we're going, we're going, all right, we're going to keep going, keep going. These are good questions.

Speaker 1: 56:22

Now here it is, and I saw this. I was kind of following you a little bit in real time. Race started late and there were some people hey, what's going on? What's happening? Can you fill us in and let us know what happened? And it's happened to us? There are a lot of moving parts, people. So what happened to Disneyland?

Speaker 2: 56:40

So the long short answer of that is I never actually know what had happened. So we had a moment where Ken Potrock, who used to be our senior VP, up on stage with the mayor, all that kind of charity stuff we were offstage for, which was nice.

Speaker 2: 56:54

And so Lisa, who I think she was I don't know her exact title, but she was like my stage manager with me, because our other stage manager in Orlando, she's right with us but she's down the shoot, you will Came up to me and she was like there may be a delay, I'll let you know. So I went back up on stage, did our next bit and she came over and she was like just come off, you know whatever, just come off stage. And so you kind of said, oh OK, well, we'll be right back Now. John, questions to you before I go further Do you prefer to be taken down offstage or to be up on stage and tap dance when there's a delay?

Speaker 1: 57:29

I prefer to be taken offstage and just given the information.

Speaker 2: 57:31

So yes, and so I said do I say there's a delay? Do we know how long? And the answer to both of those questions was no, because until information is 100% known, they didn't want me to say anything, because at this point we weren't sure if it was going to be a delay. The hope was that we would come down and then I would just come up with Anthem, because Anthem is the point we're not going to. Now.

Speaker 2: 57:50

You guys know, if Anthem is held the race, there's a reason why Anthem is held. Once we roll in the Anthem, typically on our end, that means we're clear to go roll through everything else. So they said not to say anything about the delay. So I just said we'll be right back. Obviously, people figured out that there was a brief delay, that was maybe 10 minutes, I think, and then we came back up, did the Anthem, which was ah, I mean Joshua, do you know I love this guy's name was Tim and he's the Anthem singer for the Anaheim Ducks and, oh my god, john. I hugged him afterwards onstage because he was so good.

Speaker 2: 58:21

He came up and he was like Anthem singers don't do this. And I knew it was going to be good. When he did it he came up and he was like hey, everybody, it's great to see you. I'm going to sing the Anthem. And I was like, oh boy, if you like that, john, he was so good. So dapper who? So yes, in the past some of the reasons that we have been delayed in Disneyland is because a police is not in place blocking a street, or there is a gate that has to be open backstage for runners to run through. It's not open yet. In Orlando we've been delayed because buses weren't there, for the same reason that we didn't have an all clear further down the course. And there was even a time this year at Half Marathon that you went on stage and said to me because Kim had said I got to tell you something.

Speaker 2: 59:04

And we weren't sure there was going to be a delay, so I'm glad we weren't on stage tap dancing. People figured out there was a delay. I apologize that I don't have the deets on that and even if I did, I might not tell you, but there's just a variety of reasons.

Speaker 1: 59:16

I will say this, and this is from an announcer's perspective and, I'm sure, from an athlete's perspective I always prefer to be able to let people know that there will be a delay. What I never like is like and again it depends on the information, everything and I understand not wanting to tell people that it's going to be late if it ends up not being late, but I do think it behooves you to let people know hey, just be aware, we've got some things out on the course. Whatever we may be holding for just a couple of moments, I think people prefer that and I think what I saw was a lot of people were just a little confused as to it. But I mean again, in the end, you didn't hold for 45 minutes, no, and I think we would have gone back up.

Speaker 2: 59:57

But I guess at that point it was like you told me not to say anything. I don't know better than you. I'm going to do what I'm told and not say anything. So we came down, then we came back up and we got started.

Speaker 1: 1:00:09

All right, here's one, and this is a good question, because we had an Instagram question about it from teacher and the dog, and I shout out to teacher I love teachers and dogs, so shout out to teacher and the dog Wanted to know what it's like to count down from five. Now let me put this into perspective for people who didn't watch. I saw this and the countdown started at five, but you did not do five and four. Apparently, contractually, you are only obligated to do three, two, one go and certainly, as the co-host of this podcast until I'm replaced by your host at Disneyland, I really appreciated that, but why from five globally? And why were you unable or unwilling to say five and four?

Speaker 2: 1:00:51

I think we've always counted down from five at Disneyland I think sometimes it was ready to set go and then I think we don't have time for this. The where three, two, one go came from was part of five, four, three, two, one go. So they do a video and because we couldn't have the fireworks, they were trying to make a big visual and it was just a five, four, three, two, one. So I said to Matthew 10K day I was like you say five, four and I'll say three, two, one. And it was. You know I have the right. So three, two, one go is down. Five, four, three.

Speaker 1: 1:01:20

It was incongruous to me. It was like a bad edit or like one of those Japanese movies where they dub in the English and I'm like what's happening here? This is wrong, but it does remind me that, folks, maybe you remember this there were times where we had a 10 to one countdown on the screen at Disney World and it was brutal.

Speaker 2: 1:01:40

And part of the reason why and I'll try to briefly sum up the story that we had a different announcer who said go. A different way when they left I'd never said go, really, you had done it some. But I was like, well, I'm not going to attempt to mimic him. We counted down from five at Disneyland and I thought, well, I don't need to count down from five, let's do it from three, and for me, the three, two, one, go the way we say. It doesn't wear out my voice Because you can be in a lower register If for me, like, I'm not up high, like you know. So it's kind of why I do it and I like it and it's fun.

Speaker 1: 1:02:13

It's also better for the pyro text when you're shooting off pyro. You have to well, because to give them, a moment, Because even when you do, previously it was runner set go and sometimes you'd carry it out and everything and it was great and it worked. But for them they kind of want to know where and they can button it Because it's supposed to go off just as we hit, go the fireworks. And they do a great job and they had to be able to hear it.

Speaker 2: 1:02:31

So essentially that was also part of at Disney World. When we switched, they were like you can say three, two, one, go, but you always have to say it three, two, one go. So yeah, I thought we were being kind of funny and he would say five, four and I would say three, two, one. But then I looked back on it and I was like gosh, I should have let him say go one time.

Speaker 1: 1:02:46

So I apologize for being a little bit of a dictator Again. Maybe we have answers to the question was Carissa a mean girl? Maybe we have those answers now. All right, moving on.

Speaker 2: 1:02:55

If my defense mean girls came out on Friday, I believe. So I was on. Oh my god, we didn't even say this and I know we're going over time almost at the 5K, because it was about Pluto, I said three, two, one fetch.

Speaker 1: 1:03:07

Nice, well, trying to make Fetched Did Pluto appreciate it he did.

Speaker 2: 1:03:11

Yeah, pluto was great. He loved it, so I'm willing to make concessions for Pluto.

Speaker 1: 1:03:17

Well, you know, it's all about the dogs. I call every dog into the finish. I don't call every person, I might not even call the winner in, but if it's a dog I'm gonna call the dog.

Speaker 2: 1:03:24

You missed a few figments at one and nine, just saying.

Speaker 1: 1:03:26

Welcome to my world, peeps. All right, this is a great question, actually, and again, kudos to Weston for sending me a few questions to ask, though I could have this conversation all day, because there's so many things I wanna know that we'll talk about off the air. What did you learn out there that could help us? Is there anything that happens out there, anything that they did that's like ooh, if we could add this in, it would add to the experience or make our experience or, more importantly, the athletes experience better.

Speaker 2: 1:03:55

I think just and this is kind of things that went on through the race that we need to just continually harp on etiquette, making sure people first wanna hear us. I know you guys tune us out, but it's that reminder of race etiquette that goes a really long way. So obviously the corrals were a little bit. There were things that went on throughout the course of this race because of congestion, being aware of the etiquette and then if we could get Tim the singer from the Anaheim Ducks out there to sing, I think that would be something to learn.

Speaker 2: 1:04:22

But I think I'm gonna have to circle back in sort of once we get out of the excitement of it. But I guess what I learned is that for a lot of it we went down in the finish for the high fives and stuff, and for me that's the best part, I think, once you've said the names of the people, like looking in someone's face and telling them you're proud of them. And I think Tetris and Matt jumped into that right away too, and really I'm enjoyed that we haven't talked a lot about Tetris, but I think that was a lesson for me. Like just get out there, just be with the people, have fun, celebrate them.

Speaker 1: 1:04:50

I think we found that.

Speaker 2: 1:04:51

Oh, and Josh D'Amoro ran Really. So here's, yeah, here's, here's. Gosh, we're gonna. This is so long and I'm getting distracted, but this is the point. So halfway through the start line show for the 10K, they're like, oh, josh D'Amoro's here. And I'm like, okay, okay. And they're like, no, you need to say something about it. And then like, oh, my God, josh D'Amoro's been standing there watching me run around and dance like a crazy person. Like is he happy? Is he sad? So then I go down there and I get his full name and I shout him out and the buzz in corral A when I say that they're all trying to figure out where he is, like, look around, but talk about making you nervous, right?

Speaker 1: 1:05:24

Yeah, yeah, for people who don't know, he's in charge of all.

Speaker 2: 1:05:27

Oh gosh, the senior vice president he is. His role is at Disneyland now, but it's like of parks experiences and all kinds of stuff.

Speaker 1: 1:05:34

So it's Disneyland. He's kind of globally in charge of parks experiences at the top and I met Josh a couple of times. People love him.

Speaker 2: 1:05:40

So when he ran and he finished and he got confetti and I called him out of the finish, I didn't miss him. But Josh, you know you're not listening to this podcast an hour and 10 minutes into it, but it made me so but really made me nervous.

Speaker 1: 1:05:52

He has a team of people who listen to it and then boil it down to talking points On two speed.

Speaker 2: 1:05:56

Yeah, I know we've done a lot of talking. I've done a lot of stuff. I don't know if I have anything else to say to wrap up. There was the backup at the water. Stop Look, can we?

Speaker 1: 1:06:06

just, can we just mile three Cause? I just saw literally people just posting mile three. What the hell it is difficult. Again we talked about it. You're dealing with Anaheim. You don't have, like the big property that we have, but mile three. There was some congestion. And I think again, I don't know what, I believe, is that Water stops on both sides of the road.

Speaker 2: 1:06:29

And a narrow part of the road.

Speaker 2: 1:06:30

Narrow part of the road, and so I think that's just what happened, and I was saying it could be something as strange as like someone put the table in the wrong place and no one realizes it was in the wrong place, you know what I'm saying? Like just a human error. So, yes, that was an ideal and these are things that I 100% know will be corrected to keep these races going, and these are the reasons why we haven't had been able to have the races, because, as the numbers grow, this park is smaller. It's logistically more challenging to get people through this park, and that may be another reason why there weren't as many character stops, because you can't have that many people lined up. There's only so much real estate. So thank you guys for your patience. Again, like the team wants these races to be successful, so they see your feedback, they take it all in and do everything they can to make the most magical and the safest experience.

Speaker 1: 1:07:19

Well, I tell you, just watching from afar, it really did look like a lot of fun. I was envious that I wasn't there, except for the time that I was lying on my couch just watching football all weekend and thought about they were really working hard out there. But I know you had an opportunity to go to Club 33, but we don't have time to talk about that now.

Speaker 2: 1:07:35

We're gonna talk about that soon when we drop our first of our Olympic trials episodes that are coming up with Keri Tulson. Tetris also knows Taylor Swift. I guess we'll have to talk about that then. But yeah, thank you, John for letting me have this time. If we do have more questions, maybe we'll answer them. But thank you guys for the love, Thank you guys for your energy and your stories and thank you again to Disneyland for letting me come out for that All right athletes.

Speaker 2: 1:07:59

Here's the drill Time to shape up your diet, karissa. Give them the goods. All right, john, it's time for Healthier U. But guess what? I talk too much. So today's healthy question is not a question, it's just. At Disneyland they have a whole place that sells baked potatoes called Troubadour Tavern. Go there. Yep, your face says it all.

Speaker 1: 1:08:19

That was my dinner last night. It was baked potato with broccoli night.

Speaker 2: 1:08:23

Yeah, troubadour Tavern Michael does, told me. I told people it was a big hit. Potatoes have more potassium than a banana, so they're great for runners. They've got those fast acting carbs, so get those and then shout out to everybody who joined Healthier U Next Monday if you're listening to this one it airs I believe that is Jan Uwari. 22nd is our first Healthier U Group seminar series. So thank you guys. If you listened to this before, now and then and you use the code DOPE, it's the biggest savings of the year. If you listen to it afterwards, use the code podcast Not as big, but still some savings. Go to gallerycoursecom to sign up for HealthierU and I can't wait to join everybody there and transform your nutrition.

Speaker 1: 1:09:03

That's right, and we have seen some amazing stories and heard some amazing stories come across the finish line in the first two weeks of 2024 at Run Disney. If you wanna share a story on 321 Go, we wanna hear from you. Email your story to 321Gopodcastatgmailcom and you might hear it on a future episode.

Speaker 2: 1:09:21

Yeah, thank you guys. Thanks for listening. Keep getting out there. We'll see you at Princess real soon, but for now that's it. Bye mom. Bye mom. Bye mom. Three, two, one go. Go.