Clean Sweep

I will admit that I am a Disney freak.  There's just something about Disney that takes me back to my childhood and makes me so happy.  My first marathon was the Walt Disney World Marathon back in 2005.  I went back this past January to participate in the Goofy's Race and a Half Challenge where you run the Disney World Half Marathon on Saturday and the full Disney World Marathon on Sunday.  For participating you receive not only a Donald medal for the Half and Mickey for Full, but you also get a third Goofy medal to show the world that you are certainly insane.

Donald, Mickey, Goofy

I've always planned on completing the Disneyland Half Marathon, especially since I'm now situated in California.  I was thinking maybe next year or the year after.  But then Disney announced that they were offering a second medal to people who had completed either the Disney World Half Marathon or Marathon plus the Disneyland Half Marathon.  You receive a Castle medal for the Half and a Coast to Coast medal for doing the two events.

Coast to Coast Medal

Now, I am not a huge medal person.  All of my medals save my first marathon medal are stowed neatly away in a tin container in some far recess of storage space.  I'm pretty sure these two new medals will join the rest.  But there's something about these freakin' Disney medals that get my attention.  I know it's just a huge money machine for Disney and I give them kudos for realizing that by offering a second $1 medal to me they could harvest possibly $400-500 out of me for the weekend.  So yes, I am a (HUGE) sucker.

Registration capacity is up to 85% today so I bit the bullet and signed up.  I'm planning on having a lot of fun during this race.  I'm going to carry my camera and get photos with all of the characters on the course.  Last year the weather was ridiculously hot and nasty so I'm not planning on racing this at all.  I have thoroughly loved all of the past Disney World events I've participated in, and I hope that Disneyland will not disappoint!