Hi everyone! I need help deciding whether to sign up for the W&D Challenge again.
I did Lumiere's Challenge last year (my first rD event, first half, second 10K). I feel like I should sign up again since registration for the Challenge is still available, but I'm freaking out about hotel options/prices. There doesn't seem to be any decently priced on-site resorts available, but the thought of staying off-site and having my husband drop me off for the races makes me worry that I'll get stuck in traffic/be late
. Last year my sister did the Challenge with me, and we stayed at the Dolphin so we could split the costs & have expo/race transportation.
My W&D experience last year wasn't that great for a few reasons: 1) We were too scared about getting swept that we didn't stop for any character pics, and 2) We both ended up with a GI bug/virus after the half, so 3) We missed the after-party. I was also a bit "meh" about the course for the half (not getting to go through HS). After seeing the course map for this year's Dark Side half, I'm hopeful that the 2017 W&D half might be similar.
The reason I want to do the Challenge again is so I can have a re-match against last year. The only thing keeping me from signing up is the hotel. I'd love to stay at the Swan/Dolphin for the convenience of having race transportation, but the prices are a bit more than I can justify spending at the moment. Any chance that the prices will come down? I've also read DVC rental, but I've never done that before. We've stayed at the Wyndham at Disney Springs for two different trips (both for work), so that's the only point of reference I have for off-site.
OTOH, I could try to be a normal person (boo!) by signing up for a local-ish (1hr away) half marathon on the same weekend as W&D. I'm not exactly excited about the race theme and course, but it would be way cheaper. The thought of missing out on W&D is giving me serious FOMO.
Any advice/feedback would be greatly appreciated!