Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend Day 1 - The Expo

Day 1 of marathon weekend was VERY good to me! But as the saying goes, the early bird gets the worm. This was absolutely true today. Last night, my friends Jill and Jenn decided that we wanted to wake up early and wait in line for the newest New Balance runDisney shoes. This would be the first weekend they were released, and we wanted to get our hands on them before they ran out. We arrived at ESPN Wide World of Sports complex and followed the shoe prints to the line that had already begun for the shoes. Jenn was nice enough to pick me up and she brought coffee and bagels! We apparently were ready to camp out!

Follow the shoes to find the line

We arrived and took our place in line. I was number 21! There was no way I wasn't getting a pair with such a low number.

Jill, Jenn, and I trying to stay warm in line

We waited in the cold until 9:00AM when the gates opened and we made our way through Champion Stadium where we met the New Balance staff and entered our phone numbers and email addresses into the iPad system they had. This would notify us when it was our turn to enter the side door of the Jostens Center to have our turn at the shoes. Since we were basically at the front of line, by the time we exited the stadium it was time to go meet New Balance. We checked in and New Balance provided each of us with our own shoe expert. They asked us which shoe we were interested in, then grabbed the styles and sizes we requested. I opted for the Sorcerer Mickey 860 V4s. Other shoe styles available included the very cute pink Minnie Mouse shoe also in 860 V4 as well as Goofy and Cinderella in the neutral 890 V4.

As soon as I saw them, I fell in love with them. They magical details throughout the shoe were very well thought out. You also had the option to buy shoe charms and inserts. I found the New Balance staff very nice and very helpful! Now, each person was able to purchase up to four pairs of adult shoes and two pairs of children's shoes. Sadly, many of these shoes are now on eBay at inflated prices which means some people won't get the shoe they wanted. Sad. In terms of the process to obtain shoes, since I was at the front of the line, I absolutely know that my opinion and experience will be vasty different than those behind me. I thought the iPad check in was an awesome idea and very fair and efficient.

Onward to official runDisney merchandise. I have a love-hate relationship with this. I love all the things, but hate spending the money haha. Good thing, my aunt gave me some money for Christmas JUST for the expo, so that helped...a little bit. There were a lot of aisles of merchandise to choose from, sectioned off by race/challenge per the normal.

I bought all the things.

I picked up my usual wine glass and a mug. I also picked up a running hat, it's the one thing I actually didn't have and on some runs wish I owned. I obtained my inaugural Dopey tech tee in red, and a 2014 WDW Marathon track jacket. I chose the marathon jacket because I thought it would translate better when I go non-runDisney races. I also got my four days - four parks tee that has really awesome gold foil accents on it! That was a great surprise. I also bought the individual pins for each race. I like to pin them to my medal ribbons :)

Accessories of sorts

Once I paid for all my goodies, I of course had to head over to INKnBURN and see what was new. If you haven't yet, make sure you stop by the booth! They have released some new items for men and women including yoga gear and new designs! I picked up the new retro surf shirt which will be available online soon, but you can get it at the expo this weekend! Also, while supplies last if you spend $50 or more you get a free high quality drop backpack with your purchase! What a surprise and a great deal! The bags are valued at $20 dollars and are made of high performance material. Go check out their stuff.

That was enough of the expo side of the house. I then went over to the HP Field House to pick up my race packet. This, of course was probably the easiest thing I did today. I picked up my bibs (Dopey runners receive two) and picked up my shirts (which are all awesome). I collected my arms full of STUFF and headed to Jenn's car to deposit my bounty. All in all, today was pretty epic!

Word of caution: If there is something you really want at the expo, go as early as possible. Often sizes, styles, and options will run out! So if you can, make your way to the expo and get your shop on. Tomorrow is day 1 of Dopey Challenge...the 5K. I plan on taking this real easy, but watch for the recap :) Also, sometimes the New Balance system isn't sending emails/text messages when your time is ready! So be sure to pay attention and check in if you haven't gotten notified.

Also, don't forget tomorrow at 1PM at Downtown Disney Marketplace by the carousel is the #WDWRaceTweetUp hosted by Katrina Elle and Weight off my Shoulders! We hope to see you there!

Let's Race!