Disney Race Pins

Disney is great at pulling money out of wallets. It's one of their great gifts that they usually do it in a way that you don't mind. :) For every race they release a commemorative pin. I suppose it helps that they already made hundreds of different designs as part of their "Pin Trading" program, which means that they already have the production and distribution in place, AND if they find themselves with extras after the expo they have a non-running market that will buy them as limited editions.

When you register for a Disney race, they allow you to purchase up to two pins per registration, so Wil and I always get a pair of each one that's available. The catch is, in most cases you don't know what the pin looks like when you sign up! Luckily, we have liked all of them so far.

Our first pin came from the 2009 Walt Disney World Marathon:


When we registered for the Disneyland Half Marathon, there were two pins available, so of course we got both.




And at expo, there was a third option -- and "I Did It" pin. I'm the type of person who doesn't like to "jinx" myself by buying finisher gear before a race even starts. But I also know that things sell out if you don't buy them when you see them! So I went ahead and bought it... but left it in the bag until after the race. :)


For the 2010 Walt Disney World Marathon weekend, we bought the pins for both races plus the Goofy Challenge.





And at expo we were able to get complete sets of the limited "Medal" pins (which we had missed in 2009):




And now... this week they've released the artwork for this year's Disneyland Half Marathon pin:


This may well be our last Disney race -- Anaheim isn't the most inspiring place to run, and Florida is really far to go. But it's nice to be wrapping up on an anniversary year with special medals, shirts, and, yes, pins.