I’ve put off writing this post for years. I thought I’d want to write about it, and kept putting it on my lists of future blog posts, but every time I tried the words just failed to come. What is there to say about runDisney’s Coast to Coast medal, anyway?
Now defunct in the face of the post-Disneyland race wasteland, the Coast to Coast medal was awarded to those brave, foolhardy, and financially-challenged folks who elected to run a runDisney race in both Walt Disney World and Disneyland in the same calendar year. I got mine in 2014, when I ran the Tinker Bell Half Marathon in Disneyland in January (the last year before it switched to May) and then the Wine & Dine Half Marathon in WDW in November.
I was early in my runDisney career – Tink and W&D were my second and third of those races, respectively – and I was absolutely adamant that I needed to earn the Coast to Coast honor. I remember being so excited to stand for my photo at the W&D expo, which would be used to identify me when collecting my medal after the race. I was almost there. A runDisney elite.
In the rain and chill that was the post W&D Half 2014 experience aka Splash ‘n Dash, I received my coveted prize. “Here you go,” said the volunteer, and possibly “congratulations” although I can’t say I recall. To be frank, the whole thing was sort of impersonal.
But then, what could I expect? It’s just a medal. It’s just a medal for running some races. I didn’t go above and beyond in any capacity. It wasn’t even a back-to-back race challenge. I just flew further one time.
I don’t run races for “the bling,” per se. I have considered parting with my medals before. But I can’t quite do it. Regardless of how large or pretty or they are, if they open up or spin or double as a wine stopper, they each represent an effort I made. Good race or bad, I earned my finishes with blood, sweat, Vaseline, KT Tape, and tears.
My Coast to Coast medal represents a time I… ran Disney twice, I guess. I don’t know.
But with Disneyland races being a thing of the past (at least for now), I thought it was finally time to ruminate on this thing I once thought I wanted so bad, and that others can’t obtain. I conclude that its loss is, to me, no big deal.
Do you have a Coast to Coast medal? How does it make you feel?
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