Star Wars Rival Run 2019 Part 6: Kessel Run Challenge

Star Wars weekend includes a special challenge. Back when they had runDisney races at Disneyland, there was a light side weekend at Disneyland to match the dark side weekend at Disneyworld and you could earn the Kessel Run Challenge for running the half at each weekend. After the Disneyland races were canceled, they added a virtual half marathon so the Kessel Run could continue. I've already written all about the Virtual Half Marathon and the Rival Run Half Marathon.

So after the Rival Run Half Marathon, I got the coveted Millennium Falcon medal. Seriously, it's a beautiful medal. It's a bit thinner than I was expecting but it's still plenty heavy. The Kessel Run merchandise sold out really fast this year so I bet everyone else thought it was cool too.

We had to go share our medals with Chewie! He was so excited to see our medals! You can't really see in the picture but he's holding our Kessel medals.

I really enjoyed this challenge. I had a 14 mile run in my Rival Run Challenge training plan so it really was a no brainer. It was $70 on top of the Rival Run Half Marathon or Challenge for the Kessel Run Challenge which included the virtual and half medal plus a special gift when you pick up your virtual half medal at the expo. (This year it was a mini medal pin of the virutal medal.)

You do have to register through the Kessel Run Challenge and not through the Rival Run weekend page. There was mass confusion over this this year and they might change it for next year but make sure you read all the fine print before registering.

The one downside to this challenge is that the medal is pretty similar year to year. The ribbon changes a lot but the base medals look very similar. If you aren't a huge Star Wars fan, you may not want to do it more than once. Ditto if you aren't a huge fan of virtual races. But I did really enjoy it and I could see myself running it again in the future. I love Star Wars!

For me, this challenge really was the cherry on top of the race weekend! Doing the Kessel Run Challenge is the only way to go home with 6 medals from a Star Wars weekend unless you do Dopey. (Star Wars weekend 5k, 10k, Half Marathon, Challenge, Virtual Half Marathon, Kessel Run Challenge)

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Star Wars Rival Run Posts:

Part 1: Expo
Part 2: Joyful Miles Meet Up

Part 3: 10k
Part 4: Half Marathon
Part 5: Rival Run Challenge
Part 6: Kessel Run Challenge-You are here.

Star Wars Rival Run 2019 Part 5: Rival Run Challenge

The Rival Run Challenge was supposed to be my first runDisney challenge but then my friend Melissa and I impulsively decided to do the Fairy Tale Challenge in February so welcome to the recap of my second runDisney challenge. For those of you who don't know, Princess, Star Wars and Wine and Dine challenges involve running a 10k on Saturday and a half marathon on Sunday. (Marathon weekend has it's own challenges which are extra because marathons....) The upside of my spontaneous Princess weekend racing was that it was a nice practice run for Star Wars Weekend.

I was actually able to train properly for the Star Wars Challenge, which was nice. I can run a half marathon and I can run a 10k but it's something else to do them back to back with a bunch of Disney park time thrown in for good measure. I ended up using the Jeff Galloway challenge training plan available on the runDisney website by picking up at week 8 after a one week recovery post Marathon weekend. Princess weekend made me move a few things around, but over all, I stuck with the plan and it paid off with a half marathon PR! (Which I hope to crush in the fall when it's a) cooler and b) I haven't run a 10k the day before.)

My favorite thing to do after a runDisney race is nap and then visit the parks to see the characters from your race. The characters love seeing the race medals and you get some really great interactions! Bonus tip: if the character does autographs, they'll sign your medal if you bring a sharpie. There are only a few Star Wars characters you can meet in the parks and none of them do autographs (hopefully that will change with Galaxy's Edge opening later this year!) but we still got some photos with them.

Kylo Ren was on the half marathon medal so we went to see him. He wasn't impressed with our bling but he did challenge us to join the dark side. I guess the First Order must have pretty high PT standards if a half marathon isn't impressive!

We also got some medal photos over by the Galaxy's Edge mural. It's going to be so amazing to take photos there for Star Wars Weekend 2020! The mural is still pretty awesome and it was nice to get some shots with the Millennium Falcon. And we rode Star Tours because you can't not ride Star Tours! Then we headed back to the hotel for yet another nap.

We capped off the night with karaoke with some of our friends at the Swan resort. It was a bit of an adventure getting there since we didn't want to pay $25 to park at the resort but we made it and it was an absolute blast. I'm not usually one to stay up late and especially not after two super early runDisney race mornings but it was worth it. I really hope this becomes part of our runDisney traditions.

For those of you considering a runDisney Challenge, I have a few tips and suggestions.

1) Practice those back to back runs. Even if you don't use the Galloway plan, make sure you do back to back runs to get your legs used to running tired. You will thank yourself when the half marathon rolls around.

2) Take care of yourself after the 10k. It's easy to want to go crazy at Disney and eat all the things and spend all day at the park but don't forget that you have another race the next day. Naps are highly recommended along with getting to bed early. Also, be careful with your nutrition and hydration. It's totally ok to treat yourself but I wouldn't suggest drinking around the world until after your half is done.

3) Take at least one of the races very easy. The competitive types among us might want to crush both races but that's probably not a recipe for success. I'm sure someone has PR'd both the half and 10k in a challenge weekend but many more people have ended up in the medical tent by pushing themselves too hard at both races. This is especially important if it is hot and humid like it was this weekend.

4) Bring something to hold your medals while at the parks and during travel. One of the best parts of a challenge is all the bling but I personally don't like wearing all of my medals all the time. They can be quite heavy and the constant clanking drives me nuts. Even if you do like wearing multiple medals, you'll likely want to remove them for more intense rides like Tower of Terror. I made mine using this tutorial from Heather but Joyful Miles also has a no-sew tutorial if you don't have a sewing machine. I was really glad to have my medal holders this weekend.

******

Star Wars Rival Run Posts:

Part 1: Expo
Part 2: Joyful Miles Meet Up

Part 3: 10k
Part 4: Half Marathon
Part 5: Rival Run Challenge-you are here.
Part 6: Kessel Run Challenge

Star Wars Rival Run 2019 Part 4: Half Marathon

On Sunday, the buses started even earlier than for the 10k so we got up at 2 am with plans on being on the first bus out at 3 am. I really appreciated having a much simpler costume for the half marathon. It definitely made getting ready so much easier! We did make it on the first bus and our bus was one of the first ones to the start area.

The character lines were really short and we were able to get so many photos! We opted to skip Darth Vader since we caught him at the 10k but we got through all of the other lines really quickly. If you want to get lots of character photos before the race, plan on getting to the start area early.

We decided to hang around the main stage area. I've never really watch the preshow but we found a group of Joyful Milers and ended up in a prerace dance party. It was really fun hanging out with my friends and rocking out to some music.

Once we got into the corrals, the preshow entertainment continued. I really liked not having a hike to the corrals for the half like I did for Marathon and Princess weekend but there's a lot of repeat material between the 10k and half marathon preshows in the corrals. Will and I each decided to run this race for time so he went up to corral C and I went to E. Soon we were headed out to the start line and the race began.

The first four miles or so of the course were along the highway in the dark. runDisny had two sections of the course with lazers, lights and sound effects to make it more interesting. One was Darth Vader dark breathing noises and the other was the battle of Endor sound effects. It definitely made this section of the course more interesting but it was dark and I was a bit nervous about injuring myself. I wish some of the course could have had better lighting.

Around mile 3, I had to take my hat off. It was just way to hot so I carried it for most of the race. I wore it for photopass photographers and when I ran through the water stops so I could have two hands free. My hat was definitely not a tech hat and it was just too hot for this race.

My goal for this race was to beat my Marathon weekend half time which was my first half so I decided before hand not to stop for photos unless I was really struggling and knew I was past all hope of hitting my goal time. Rey was out again and there were also a bunch of 501st members along the highway section of the course. I would also have loved to stop for the Hoth and trash compactor photo ops but they had super long lines!

I ran into fellow Joyful Miler Leslie outside of Animal Kingdom and we ran together for a bit. Just inside Animal Kingdom, we ran into Kimberly in Africa but I was still on track so I just waved and kept going. I really wanted to make it to Pandora in the dark because it was going to be beautiful and with the projected high, I wanted to get a lot of the course done in the dark.

I did enjoy running in Pandora in the dark but it seemed less glowy than when I've been there at night during normal park hours. It was also wet and tight through this area so it's a good place to slow down a bit and watch your footing. It wasn't as exciting as Magic Kingdom in the dark during Marathon weekend, but Animal Kingdom was definitely a high light of the course for me.

Then it was out into the Animal Kingdom parking lot and out towards Hollywood Studio. I was in corral E which had a 2:30 and 2:45 pace group. Since my goal was to hit a 2:45 half, I planned on staying in front of the 2:45 pace group and joining them if I started struggling and they caught up to me. I had been safely ahead of them but after Animal Kingdom, they kept catching up with me at the water stops when I slowed down to get water.

I ended up joining the 2:45 pace group in the stretch into Hollywood Studios. I was really struggling with the heat and humidity and having run a 10k the day before. The pace group was using a 30:30 interval (mine was 60:30) so running with the felt like a break due to all the extra walking. My body got a bit of a rest and I was able to stay on pace. If I had been on my own, I probably would have slowed down a lot more and lost quite a bit of time.

I started feeling better in Hollywood Studios so I put my hat on, pulled away from the pace group, and put on my happy face for the photopass photographers. I love the candid shots from these races and runDisney really stuff the photopass photographers inside of the parks!

Once I exited Hollywood Studios, I knew that the race was almost over. I've walked from Hollywood Studios to Epcot enough times to feel really confident in handling that distance. It was a bit crowded along that narrow stretch but I took the opportunities to pass people when I could and slowed down a bit when there was less space. Once I hit the Boardwalk, there was plenty of space. I also ran into my friend Audrey in this area but we were both trying to hit tough time goals so we just said hi and kept on with our own intervals.

I entered World Showcase near the UK and made my way around the world. There were more character stops and photopass photographers in this stretch but I just kept moving. Then it was a straight shot out of Epcot and into the finish chute. Just like for the 10k, there were more 501st members just outside of Epcot with very short character lines but I was rocking my time so I skipped these photo ops too.

In the final stretch, I saw Will cheering for me and yelling at me to skip my walk intervals. Which I did to sprint across the finish line. I didn't have my official time by my phone time indicated that I crushed my PR. Whoohoo!

I made it down to the challenge area to get my two challenge medals. It was really cool to get the extra medals! After stopping for an I did it photo, I met up with Will and some Joyful Milers to chill and see how everyone's race went. It was a really rough race for a lot of people which made me even more excited about my half PR. I'm hoping to get an even better time in the fall once the weather cools off again.

Having run one runDisney half race for photos, one mostly for time but with a few photos and one completely for time but with no photos, I can definitely say that each strategy gives the race a really different feel. For me personally, I think I prefer not stopping for every photo because waiting in too many lines and getting passed makes me feel anxious, but not stopping for no photos because there are always a few really short lines that make for some great photos.

The runDisney race weekends are pretty much spread equally out over the best running weather in Florida so that limits my opportunities to PR a longer race like a half so I think that if I continue to run several race weekends at Disney every year, I'll probably pick one to run for time and run the rest with a few spontaneous photos. So you can definitely PR at Disney but it's all about figuring out what you want out of your race and making the most of that experience.

******

Star Wars Rival Run Posts:

Part 1: Expo
Part 2: Joyful Miles Meet Up
Part 3: 10k
Part 4: Half Marathon-you are here.
Part 5: Rival Run Challenge
Part 6: Kessel Run Challenge

Star Wars Rival Run 2019 Part 3: 10k

When Will and I first started talking about Star Wars Weekend 2019, my total running career amounted to one 5k and I hated it. But runDisney looked like so much fun and Star Wars weekend was just a month before our 10 year anniversary so we came up with the genius idea to run a 10k for our 10 year. By the time registration came around, however, I had already signed up for the WDW Marathon Weekend half marathon and talked myself into trying the Star Wars Weekend Challenge. We decided to still run the 10k together and then go at our own pace for the half.

We had a 2:30 am wake up call and made it out on the second bus from our hotel. When we got to the start area in the Magic Kingdom parking lot, the character lines were already so long! I think the rain on the morning of the 5k kept people from getting as many photos that morning so they were all out trying to get photos at the 10k. The only character photo we got before hand was Darth Vader.

Once we got out of his line, we decided to head to the corrals as the other lines were all 45+ mins. Will was supposed to be in corral A but he dropped back to C with me. We got a nice spot in the corral and enjoyed some dancing to the music the DJ played. They did a little preshow with First Order Troopers and resistance fighters. The Troopers' bit seemed to be about the same as last year and the whole thing was a bit cheesy. (It was even cheesier the next morning during the half as the performance was almost word for word the same.) But soon it was time to start!

We quickly came upon our first character stop which was Rey with a Takodana backdrop. She did a really great job as Rey.

Soon afterwards, there were a bunch of 501st and Rebel Legion members. The 501st and Rebel Legion and dark side and light side star wars cosplay groups, respectively, who do a lot of charity events. There's no photopass photographers for them but we had the people behind us snap a photo on our phones. There were also big screens along this section of the course playing Star Wars clips.

Another cool photo opportunity was sitting in the Emperor's chair. Don't I look like I belong on a throne? The first four miles of the course were along the highway which can be kind of boring between photo stops. I also had a really hard time hearing my phone beeping for my intervals as the music along the course was really loud! Just something to consider if you use intervals.

Look! An ewok!

We did have one clover leaf on ramp where the green army man usually is. They had the rebel leaders from the preshow here challenging us to keep moving. I didn't like them as much as green army man but it was a nice touch.

We stopped to see Sabine and Ezra (I think) from Star Wars Rebels just outside of Epcot. Hopefully, Rebels will be on the new Disney streaming service so I can finally watch it!

Finally, we hit Epcot during mile 4. We came in the front and took a side detour over by the Sea and the Land before heading out to World Showcase. I love running in Epcot as they really cram in the photopass photographers. The candid running shots are always my favorite. We ended up with some really great couple shots from this area.

 I pretty much had to give up on my interval beeps in Epcot. The music was too loud. So I ran intervals by feel. I wasn't running for time so it wasn't a huge deal but it did make me really nervous for the half as I was planning on going for a PR. I wasn't going to do that without my interval beeps! Will kept me focused on having fun through the end of the race.

One of my favorite photo stops was Darth Maul in the America pavilion. I wish they had a Darth Maul meet and greet in the park somewhere. He's my favorite Star Wars villain!

Soon enough we were headed out of Epcot and into the final stretch. There were more 501st and Rebel Legion members just outside of Epcot and we stopped for a few more photos. Then it was time to cross that finish line and get our medals! I really loved the design of the 10k medal. The gold and green was really striking.

Star Wars Rival Run 10k

Time: 1:59:21

Pace: 19:15 min/mi

We headed down the chute for water, snack boxes and I did it photos. I have to confess that I didn't eat anything from the snack boxes at either race.  This year, the Oreos had been replaced by gluten free pretzels. Normally, I'm all for more gluten free options but as everything else in the box was already gluten free, I didn't think it was necessary. Please bring back the Oreos! I don't really need to refuel much after a 10k, so I ate the banana and then had a chocolate chip Larabar when I got back to the room. (So yummy! Tastes like cookie dough).

******

Star Wars Rival Run Posts:

Part 1: Expo
Part 2: Joyful Miles Meet Up
Part 3: 10k-you are here.
Part 4: Half Marathon
Part 5: Rival Run Challenge
Part 6: Kessel Run Challenge

Star Wars Rival Run 2019 Part 2: Joyful Miles Meet Up

After finishing up at the expo, we headed over to Art of Animation to check into our room. When we stayed here for Marathon Weekend, they offered us a free upgrade to a Lion King family suite so we decided to check and see if there were any upgrades available again. It never hurts to ask! They had a Cars suit available this time so we got to stay in a different part of the hotel. I'm not the hugest Cars fan and Will's never even seen them but we saw so many kids just so excited to see all of the Cars characters around the resort. Definitely a winner if your kids love these movies!


We ended up grabbing lunch at the hotel. Food is always a tricky thing to figure out for a runDisney weekend. On the one hand, if I'm running a half or challenge, it's a serious athletic event and I want to really nourish my body. On the other hand, I'm at Disney and I want to eat all the things! I had a really good breakfast and I opted for a salad for lunch so I could have some carbs at dinner.

This weekend, the meet up was held in Disney Springs down by the House of Blues. It was nice and quiet down there and I really enjoyed this location for the meet up. I ended up shopping after the meet up (Captain Marvel dress) and there are so many great places for dinner. Plus we stopped by Erin McKenna's for some gluten free dairy free donuts on the way to the meet up.

Four youtubers were hosting the meet up-Jackey of Joyful Miles, Gerald of RezRuns, Heather Jergensen and Kimberly of Belle.898. They are all really lovely people who love running and Disney. It was great to see them all again. It was the fourth meet up I've been to and it was great to catch up!

I've also made quite a few friends among the Joyful Miles Facebook group and many of them were also at the meet up. The runDisney community is awesome so please come connect with us even if you are just in the planning stage of your runDisney journey. My first meet up was at Wine and Dine 2018 and I didn't even run that weekend!

I'm a person who has always had a difficult time making friends, especially with other females. It's been absolutely amazing to be so welcomed by this community. Everyone has been so welcoming and kind.

As an introvert, I know how scary it can feel to go to a meet up when you don't know anyone. I probably wouldn't have gone to my first one if Will hadn't been there. But I'm so glad that I did! It makes me sad to think that I might never have gotten to meet all of these lovely people.

It's amazing how quickly I've connected with the Joyful Miles family! This meet up has quickly become one of the high points of my runDisney weekend. All of the youtubers are awesome, genuine people but I've also meet so many other wonderful people at these meet ups.

If you are planning your first runDisney weekend or have run at Disney before but haven't made any Disney running friends, I encourage you to connect with people on social media and come to a meet up like this. It really is better to do life together.

I had so many wonderful conversations that the meet up went by way too fast! A group of us ended up at Blaze Pizza for dinner because #carbs. Yummy! Since many of us had to get up really early for the 10k the next morning, we all headed back early to get some sleep.

******

Star Wars Rival Run Posts:

Part 1: Expo
Part 2: Joyful Miles Meet Up-you are here.
Part 3: 10k
Part 4: Half Marathon
Part 5: Rival Run Challenge
Part 6: Kessel Run Challenge

Star Wars Rival Run 2019 Part 1: Expo

Finally, Star Wars Rival Run Weekend arrived! We headed out bright and early to hit up the expo on Friday. We arrived around 9:30 am which left us plenty of time to park and get in line for bib pickup before the expo officially opened at 10 am. Since we were running both the Rival Run Challenge and the Kessel Run Challenge, we had to stop at two pick up stations. First, we got our Rival Run bib and then had our challenge photo taken. For the challenges, runDisney uses a photo taken at the expo to verify your id after the half (or marathon if you run Dopey or Goofy). Then we stopped by the Kessel booth to get our wristband and our virtual medal.

I was really excited to get the R2D2 virtual medal. It was the one I was most looking forward to getting. It's so cute! And inside the virtual medal box was a surprise gift-a mini medal replica pin! I love the medal pins and I was really excited to get one for the virtual race. I immediately put on my medal to wear at the expo.

They moved the bib pickup to the same building as the runDisney official merchandise and the bib area exited right onto the merchandise floor. I really enjoyed this set up as I was really excited to check out all of the Star Wars goodies! We ran into several friends from the Joyful Miles Facebook group at the expo. I've really loved getting to know so many wonderful people through runDisney. My running friends are the best!

I ended up picking up just a few things. I grabbed mini medal replica pins from the 10k, half and challenge. They had sold out of the Kessel mini medal replica pin on Thursday so I skipped that one. I also picked up another baseball cap. I've really fallen in love with running in ball caps! And there were several options available during this weekend. I ended up picking the challenge one. It has a tie fighter and x-wing on it. I decided to skip magnets for this weekend. I didn't love any of the designs and with all of the free passholder magnets I've been getting, my magnet collection is already getting a bit out of hand! No Dooney and Bourke purse this year either but that made my wallet happy.

We also stopped for some character photos outside the runDisney merchandise area. Boba Fett wasn't out yet (the characters have limited hours during the expo) but we did get a great shot with the Han Solo in carbonite background. It was so much fun!

And the other character was R2D2 which was perfect for a medal photo with our virtual half medals. The R2 was one owned by a 501st member and he was beautiful! The 501st really knock Star Wars cosplay out of the park and I love that they were here for the weekend!

Then we headed over to the main expo area for shirts and to check out the vendors. I ran into an issue with my shirts. I had originally ordered a women's small but like for Princess and Marathon weekends, they were too big. But they didn't have any XS available! Ah! I did check back later and was able to get a set of XS shirts but if you think you might need a shirt at either end of the size range, order the one on the end as it's easier to exchange for sizes in the middle.

I didn't end up getting anything from the vendors this time which ended up being a good thing as I ended up picking up a few more Disney things during the rest of the trip. I love going to the Dress Shop in Disney Springs to try on the new Disney dresses. I ended up falling in love with the Captain Marvel dress! I didn't really know anything about Captain Marvel before seeing the movie but I loved Vers/Carol Danvers! (Don't worry! Proper outfit photos to follow!)

And I also finally jumped on the Loungefly backpack bandwagon and got the matching Captain Marvel backpack. I might have gone a bit overboard.... but the runDisney virtual summer series is Marvel themed and there is a Captain Marvel one. :D

And the inside has a really cool Marvel print fabric! I love fun design details like that.

Speaking of Disney Springs, we headed over there for the Joyful Miles meet up after the expo so keep an eye out for that post coming soon!

******

Star Wars Rival Run Posts:

Part 1: Expo-you are here.
Part 2: Joyful Miles Meet Up
Part 3: 10k
Part 4: Half Marathon
Part 5: Rival Run Challenge
Part 6: Kessel Run Challenge