Welcome to this month’s Blogorail Red Loop. Today we are covering some runDisney topics including what you can look forward to in 2016.
runDisney Castaway Cay 5K
We went on our second cruise this past December, and my daughter and I decided to run (walk, really) the runDisney Castaway Cay 5K. Now, I’m not a runner by any means, but I figured that I could do a 5K, and it would be a unique experience, right? Well, we did learn a thing or two that I want to share with you. Here are my top 5 tips for participating in the Castaway Cay 5K!
Know Which Side of the Crowd You Need to Be On
We met in Evolution, one of the adult clubs, before time to debark the ship at Castaway Cay. Songbird and I got there early and sat near the front where the course map was shown and discussed. The front of the club ends up being the back of the line heading off the ship. If you have a child you need to drop off at the kids’ club on the island, you need to be toward the front of the VERY long line. If you don’t have kids to drop off and you aren’t in a hurry, stick toward the back of the line to grab a picture of the ship while walking toward the race starting line.
Be Prepared
See the black arrow on the right? What about the red arrow on the left? These arrows show the ship versus the starting line. It is about a 1/2 mile walk just to the starting line of the 5K. It was 80-85 degrees with what felt like 110% humidity. It was HOT! Much hotter than we expected for November. We weren’t quite ready for this changed from our 60 degree training sessions.
Take Entertainment
Make sure to take your source of music for the run! The Castaway Cay 5K wasn’t quite as scenic as the view from the ship. If you start at the black arrow, follow the red arrow to the light blue arrow where you turn right and enter the loop of doom which is denoted by the dark blue arrow. After exiting the loop of doom, you head down the runway, shown by the green arrow. Once you reach Serenity Bay, you turn around, head back for another run through the loop of doom and then back to the starting line, which is now the finish line.
Here are a few pictures from the run. There wasn’t a whole lot to look at along the way other than pavement, sun, and the people in front of you. Music definitely would have helped.
BYOW – Bring Your Own Water
So, there was a water stand at the entrance to the loop of doom; however, there were so many people running that they ran out of cups before we came back out of the loop. There were places to get water, but there were only flimsy cone cups to use after the regular cups ran out. It wasn’t really conducive to getting the necessary amount of water needed considering the heat.
Have Friends or Family Save Chairs
When Songbird and I met up with the rest of the family, it was too late to get any chairs with an umbrella. We won’t make that mistake again. While doing the 5K can be a fun and unique thing to do, the main point of stopping at Castaway Cay is for us to spend that time together. Next time, we will make sure that the ones who don’t do the 5K grab some places to sit. I saw several people coming off the race who were looking for chairs but couldn’t find any on the beach, either.
Having said that, this was definitely a unique experience that we will always remember. The race bibs are nice reminders.
As are the medals we received.
Are you planning to do the Castaway Cay 5K on your next Disney Cruise Line vacation?
Here is the map of our Magical Blogorail Red | runDisney Loop:
- 1st Stop – Home is Where the Mouse Is | Best Disney Running Songs for Your runDisney Playlist
- 2nd Stop – This Roller Coaster Called Life | Castaway Cay 5K
- 3rd Stop – The Delightful Life | What should I wear for my runDisney race?
- 4th Stop – Magical Memories with the Mouse | Planning to runDisney in 2016? An Overview of What to Expect
I’m curious how you felt about signage or knowing the path of the 5K. I haven’t done it myself yet, but my husband did and he and another runner got lost. They made it to the finish line, but did more than a 5K to get there!
Great tips!
Kimberly, there wasn’t much if any signage, and it was difficult to follow. We stayed in the pack, so we didn’t get lost, but I wouldn’t have wanted to lead the way. We did see people going the wrong way around the loop of doom, so we weren’t the only ones who didn’t get the directions right.
Last year, we were supposed to do the Castaway Cay 5k, but illness got in the way. Lisa was still able to do the race though. I love that they’ve gotten actual bibs and medals for those who participate. I remember there was a time that it was very unorganized and it was hit or miss if you received anything for participating.
Were there any special character photo ops when you did your 5k?
We just got back from the Disney Fantasy on Oct. 22 and I decided to run the 5K at midnight the day before. The characters were not out as we were heading to the start line for the 5K, but on the return walk back to the ship afterward, they were already at their stations along the pathway with relatively short lines. They really should have had Mickey there for the finishers to get a picture since he’s featured on all the run 5K items. They only had a single photographer at the line to take your picture if you wanted it. I did get mine taken and bought it as a souvenir since it was a decent accomplishment on vacation. I managed a respectable 29:30 after eating a huge diunner at Palo the night before and staying up late to watch The Jungle Book in the theater till 12:30 am… all finishers received the rubber medal as well and a lanyard with 2016 on it. They removed the year from the medals probably to be able to use them over multiple years instead of tossing them at the end of the year.
This is pretty cool. I’m going in November as well, though, so I’ll remember your point about the humidity.
Does it cost money to participate?
Hi Rosanne! No, participating in the 5K doesn’t cost anything. I signed up at the Port Adventures desk on embarkation day. I thought that was the only way to sign up, but they signed people up the morning of the 5K. I would advise signing up before that, though, because that way, your bib and everything will be ready for you to pick up. Quicker through in the morning.
Great post! The Castaway Cay 5K is one I haven’t run, despite it being offered the last few cruises we were on. Absolutely priceless advice about being prepared for the heat and humidity (there’s a reason the other runDisney races start so daggone early! :)), bringing water, etc. Thanks for sharing the pictures and the details!
Curious. If you aren’t dropping children off, are you able to put your belongings down in beach chairs to save your seats for after the race?
I suppose you always could, but they do discourage saving beach chairs like that. Also, I was really surprised at the number of people heading toward the start line. The trek to the start line is rather quick, and there are staff following at the rear. I did not see anyone breaking from the line of people other than those leaving children.