Club runDisney

I don't begrudge Disney offering premium experiences at premium prices like some people do about every little thing (early morning extras, that kind of stuff). But... This has such low value. Too many people are priced out and they're offering very, very little in return for high (or ridiculous) costs. Some 'club'.

re: Corral 'enhancement': The running community is great. Encouraging, supportive, inclusive. (Well... Distance running, anyways.) Disney has been an exemplar of all that, but here they are, finding a way to sow division. "Did you earn that bib, or did you buy it?" What were they thinking?

re: Early access to merchandise:... And this is where I blow my top. Here they are, acknowledging that merch is an issue. Access to top items is limited. So what do they do? Give me $800 and you'll get to the front of the line, skirting a problem we could solve for nothing, but choose not to. (Solution: Don't allow people without bibs into the official merch on the first day and/or Allow catalog purchasing for sold out items. Ebay trolls stay away. Everyone gets access. Easy peasy, even if the quality is in now in the toilet.)

To me, it's an indication that whatever financial issues rD is facing, they don't understand the underlying problems with the events themselves. The entire team needs to be shown the door, and an entirely new group brought in to rebuild from the ground up, willing to listen.

I completely agree! I think that only race participants should be allowed to purchase exclusive race weekend merchandise. You should have to pick up your bibs and shirts and then from there, you are lead into the merchandise area.

It should be as deserved and earned as the actual medal!
 
NYRR? Brooklyn Half sells out on day 1. Other have been selling out lately, but not quite runDisney speed.
Although rD races aren't selling out quite as fast as they were a few years ago...
lol I was looking for a race to run with friends who live in Scarsdale and CT and I was, like, hey what about the Bronx 10 miler? This was about a month before the race and I quickly realized, Oh, yeah, there is no way in heck you are just signing up for this race a few weeks ahead of time.
 
"access to the lowest pricing..."

Does this mean they're going to price yield the registration fees? Or have dates where the price increases, like many other races do?
 
"access to the lowest pricing..."

Does this mean they're going to price yield the registration fees? Or have dates where the price increases, like many other races do?
I think they've started doing price increases? Not sure there's a schedule for that though.
 


"access to the lowest pricing..."

Does this mean they're going to price yield the registration fees? Or have dates where the price increases, like many other races do?

SURELY the prices will simply increase over time... But this idea is so bad who knows!
 
I was excited when I read the headline, but as I looked at it, well this just isn't for me at almost any price. I'm fine with my typical coral placement, have never had to wait so long at the expo that a special area seemed worth buying, use AP to register early, etc. Agree it's a missed opportunity though to formalize the fanaticism that most of us have for these races as evidenced by these boards and the countless groups on Facebook and other places.

At the Silver level I could almost wrap my head around the price. Doesn't Disney usually charge around $75 for virtual races and close to $100 for the jackets? Still doesn't get you to $265, but at least (using Disney pricing) I could say it's not too far off from their usual mark-up. But an additional $200 (for Gold) just to get in a race when they haven't been selling out or the additional $500 for the Platinum? Nope, can't find a way to justify it in the least.

All that being said, I suspect they will find people to buy it as there will be some who want to be part of any inaugural Disney idea/club and they have the $ to spend. Considering how people are roasting them on social media, don't suspect you will see a lot of "positive" comments unless the poster wants to be a target. But just because there aren't positive comments there, doesn't mean it won't sell.
 


When I first glanced the headline I had hoped maybe this club would include guaranteed registrations so I wouldn't have to freak out on registration day and beg my boss to give me time to sit and cuss at Disney's poorly designed IT.

Then I read the article. Aside from being outrageously priced, the whole corral thing really bothered me. I'm a true back of the packer. Some people walk faster than I run. But I'd rather run my 16 minute miles with the balloon ladies than be somewhere I don't belong. Disappointing.
 
I hope this doesn't mean they're planning to take away early registration from AP holders or DVC owners to try and sell more memberships.
I wouldn’t be shocked if as of Wine and Dine 2021 registration there is either no more AP/DVC/Golden Oak preregistration OR Club Members get an additional 48 hour or so jump on them
Or they could have set it up as a reward type system where you receive various perks based on the amount of rD races you have participated in.
See I wouldn’t of minded something like a loyalty program that you still could of turned into a cash grab with a one time buy in fee
 
I am not sure this will sell as well as one may think. This isn't something for the parks. runDisney has a pretty core fanbase. I think if this was done right many would buy in but I haven't seen anyone say they will yet.

I don’t think it is supposed to sell well as much as satisfy a niche market...the VIP tour equivelant of RunDisney. There are already luxury half-marathons with limited participants at resorts like the Greenbrier and this new Disney offering seems like it would appeal to that sort of crowd...lots of money, only a so-so pace, perhaps spotty training, and wanting to avoid the lines and crowds that are inevitable at a Disney race and expo. I’m betting these people think nothing of staying club level when coming to Disney. The buying into a faster corral is just buying more on-course photo opportunities without the fear of being swept and maybe shorter lines. Maybe a couple with a couple thousand dollars to spare want to run together and have their photos taken together but one of them doesn’t have the training times for a good corral so they buy an extra 30-45 minutes earlier start time. Disney has priced this so that the perk areas aren’t crowded and the amount of slower runners in faster corrals likely won’t present a safety hazard. Isn’t it estimated that something like 5% of those running Boston cheated on their qualifying times anyways? My estimated pace never gets me ahead of the middle corrals and yet I usually finished surrounded by those a corral or two ahead of me despite coming very close to my estimated finish time. If you pay Disney, then they don’t consider it cheating despite it being the same thing.
 
Incremental registration fees aren't new to runDisney. They used to do it years ago or at least before the races started selling out so quickly. I think they started the practice again to recreate a sense of urgency.
Yep, the races I registered for in 2011/2012 had date-based price tiers. If they could bring back the sellout percentages too, that would be great.
 
There are so many benefits that would have made me buy this. However, I have to think that the prime audience are the people who really, really want to finish a race and just are pushing ahead of the sweepers as hard as they can. Maybe that extra 15 minutes will make the difference for some people for whom completing a Disney half or full is on their bucket list. So, for them, I won't begrudge it. I am fortunate enough to be healthy enough to have a proof of time that is good enough for me. I guess I'm glad it isn't that great. Merchandise isn't that important to me. If it included Runners Square at all races or something like that, it might actually encourage me to do more races. There is something there for them to work with. This just isn't it for me.
 
I guess I don't understand why anyone would want to advertise (via magnet, jacket, or special bib) that they are members of this club. ?? I'd be embarrassed to display publicly that I may have bought my corral placement!

And anyway... runDisney merch/jackets have felt increasingly cheap (and ugly) lately... especially vs. the nicely designed New Balance, Brooks, etc. brand-name race logo merch from so many other big races!
 

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