January 4, 2014

The WDW Marathon Meet Up That Isn't

The meet ups that traditionally accompany most of the runDisney races are highly anticipated among runDisney enthusiast. "Blog stalking" traditionally starts a couple weeks out since the only way to get into these events is by being among the quickest to submit an RSVP email to the designated address when the request for sign ups hits the blog!

I'm sure you can imagine the disappointment felt around the blogaverse yesterday when 5:00 pm est came and went and there was no meet up post to be found. Then the news was broke by a few bloggers with connections to runDisney employees confirming that there will, in fact, be no meet up accompanying next weekends event. #sadtrombone

Logistically I get it, I really do. With the Dopey Challenge being added this year, the weekend is jam packed with races. Add in that those participating in said challenge have to hit the expo Wednesday in order to get there bibs for the 4 races that lay ahead of them I'm not even sure we can consider it a weekend any more! 

What I am not thrilled with is the way that runDisney handled the situation. Knowing the hype they create with these events, and the fact that people have been directly asking about the meet up on both Facebook and Twitter for weeks now there has been no official statement made directly from runDisney. 

I understand that these events are not guaranteed, but when being directly asked it would have been considerate to reply with a simple "thank you for asking, but due to . . . we have decided not to do a meet up for this event, but keep an eye out for future meet ups." Easy peasy, right?  

The way it stands now it seems as though unless you on the runDisney, uber exclusive, media blogger list you are not worthy of receiving this information directly from the horses mouth, so to speak. And really that is just kind of sad considering how loyal Disney fans are.

But now, with the fate of the marathon weekend meet up sealed, it is time to look forward toward my favorite fairy and the Tinker Bell Half Marathon. Will there be a meet up, or won't there? I guess we shall find out in the next week or so!! 

If you are interested in seeing what attending a runDisney meet up is like check out my recap of last years Tink Half Meet Up and find out!

10 comments:

  1. I agree Summer, I don't understand why they couldn't let people know sooner than Friday at 5pm through a couple bloggers. I mean I LOVE runDisney and the ATL Meetup was the highlight of my year, but they knew people were stalking and ignored questions...which can be considered rude. BUT the good news, those WDW marathon runners will be at WDW next weekend.....can't shake a stick at that.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh definitely, Julie! I would be totally fine being at WDW without a meet up!

    I just wish runDisney would have addressed this themselves, and a lot sooner then now. Especially when it appears that their bloggers have known for several days, at least.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yes, communication is always key! Nice post!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Great post - agree 100%. I am also disappointed (but not really that surprised) that there is no criticism whatsoever from those "uber exclusive" bloggers. I guess they can't be expected to be impartial and still receive the preferential treatment?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, I agree. That is one reason why I will never be on the "in" list. I LOVE Disney, but not enough to pretend that never disagree with their actions.

      Delete
  5. I agree! It seems this is becoming the norm for most Disney events not just the runDisney meet up. Very disappointing for Disney fans and bloggers that arent on the "in" list too!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have noticed that also. It's really disappointing considering that the vast majority of their income is in no way related to their preferred bloggers. Yet for whatever reason, they are choosing to communicate through them instead of addressing the true fans directly.
      Rather off putting, if you ask me.

      Delete
  6. I love runDisney events and have done a bunch of them. Unfortunately, with the exclusivity of the blogger meet ups and Disney promoting specific merchandise that can only be found if you are through the expo door the second it opens, they've created a sense of mass hysteria every time something is announced. The Disneyland Half Expo was the worst expo experience I have ever had since I started doing races. There's a sense of urgency that causes the crowds to get a little crazy. There are particular bloggers that are favored over and over and for what? Most of those are getting tons of perks while doing very little to promote a brand (runDisney) that doesn't really need any promoting!

    Sorry to rant, but a lot of the magic I used to love about runDisney events has been replaced with a lot of cult like consumerism.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I know exactly what you mean. I wish I would have gotten some of the shoes last year, but I didn't want to mess with it. Especially after they said at the meet up that they only had 150- 200 pair for the whole weekend!
      I was not at DDD, but I was following along on FB and Twitter and I just couldn't believe what I was seeing and hearing!! I'm hoping Tinker Bell isn't anything like that.

      Delete