 Today we have a special treat and a rare (for us) update from Disneyland. Our good friend Christopher got some great shots of Autopia at Disneyland yesterday so we have a first look at the refurbed cars and ride now sponsored by Honda. Written by Christopher Moghtaderi As you are aware, Honda has taken over the sponsorship of Autopia. This may be a good move for Disney as Chevron does not have the greatest image at the moment. Unfortunately, it does not appear much is changing for Autopia. The cars have been waxed, buffed, and possibly repainted. As you can see in the photos, Honda has also re-branded the vehicles with the Honda logo and had some re-striping done. It looks as though they are also replacing some technology in the queue but that remains to be seen (I will send photos of that tonight).       Blue Sky Cellar has been reopened as an AP guest location. Presenting your Annual Pass gets you access to a special preview of "Seasons of the Vine," a documentary on California's Wine Growing industry. Additionally, guests receive special collector pins (one per week) and recipe cards featuring food from the food and wine festival. Other than the preview spot to watch part of the film, not much has really changed with the exception of the infamous "AP" logo that Disney uses.    Related Updates:  Today we're back at Walt Disney World to celebrate Earth Day at Disney's Animal Kingdom. It was also the parks Birthday which meant it was an extra special day. Check out all the pictures of Rivers of Light, Pandora and of course, Cupcakes!!! Written by Renée Girard Happy Earth Day and happy birthday to Disney's Animal Kingdom! Looks like it's going to be a busy day  Disney parks now offer preferred parking for $35. Yikes! I'll save that money for beer, thanks.  The bag check lines are insane!  Jungle Book Earth Day button being given out to guests at Disney's Animal Kingdom today  Party for the Planet events and special offerings going on today at Disney's Animal Kingdom
 Limited edition Earth Day cupcake!  Just a couple of ducks hanging out in front of the Tree of Life.  Work continues on Discovery Island for the River of Lights/Jungle Book.  All construction walls are now down for the Jungle Book show opening memorial weekend.     More of the seating area for Rivers of Light/Jungle Book at Animal Kingdom. Such a beautiful park, can't wait to see it!   One of the entrances for Rivers of Light, with FastPass+ touch point. Great theming!    This owl was rescued and is part of the Flights of Wonder show at Disney's Animal Kingdom.  Here's what currently going on in Pandora at Avatar Land.   Disney's Animal Kingdom is one of their most photogenic parks. Happy 18th birthday!  Thanks again to Renée for another amazing update from Walt Disney World. We can't wait to see the new shows coming up very soon. Related Updates:  Today we have an update from another great RunDisney event in Florida, this time Renée takes us on a run with her at the Star Wars Half Marathon: The Dark Side and the Dark Side Challenge. Be sure to check out all the fun through the parks in the early morning hours and of course the awesome bling!! Written by Renée Girard Getting ready for another RunDisney weekend! Thousands ran in the Star Wars 5k already, and we stopped by the expo.
 All set with my race bib, might as well begin carb loading with a beer.   Storm Troopers patrolled the crowd at the expo. The theming all around the event has been great so far Star Wars Half
 The designs for these medals might be my favorite of all the RunDisney races!  Congrats to those who ran the Star Wars 5k and good luck at the Star Wars 10k, Star Wars Half and Dark Side Challenge!   Early start to the day at Epcot for the Star Wars 10k
 The Star Wars 10k has begun! Starting at Epcot, it goes through the Epcot resort area, DHS & the finish at ESPN  Final stretch of the Star Wars 10k towards ESPN. A good warmup for the Dark Side Challenge tomorrow.  Character lines before, during & after Star Wars 10k were looong. Didn't stop for photos but still enjoyed SW theming  Liked the Star Wars 10k course but not the fact that the start/finish locations were different. Traffic was a mess.  As always, RunDisney doesn't disappoint with the finisher medals for the Star Wars 10k.  Another early morning at Epcot for the Star Wars Half. Photo ops still going on even after the race started!  Packed into the corrals once again, fireworks, and we're off! 
 The Star Wars Half began through some backstage areas at Epcot and under Test Track.   Mile markers throughout the Star Wars Half course were very cool.  R2-D2 was the first character we encountered in the Star Wars Half, but as usual, the line was super long.  With a 5am start, it was nice to see the World Showcase at Epcot all lit up.  After Epcot, we were on our way to Hollywood Studios, through a tunnel of fog.  Kylo Ren was out on the stage in the center of Hollywood Studios.   With limited space due to construction, we didn't spend much time running in Hollywood Studios  Some members of the 501st Legion were cheering us on by Fantasmic. They always look awesome!   Sunrise was starting by the time we got over to Disney's Animal Kingdom   After a long loop through the parking lot, Storm Troopers greeted us as we entered Animal Kingdom  At Animal Kingdom, we trekked through Asia and Discovery Island.
The folks at Disney's PhotoPass, who took over the photography for RunDisney events, did a great job!  More of the 501st Legion sent us on our way as we exited Animal Kingdom for the final stretch of the Star Wars Half
After the finish at ESPN, we noticed a much better transportation system than yesterday.  This guy pretty much sums up how I felt after running 19.3 miles over the past 2 days.  Trio of medals for completing the Dark Side Challenge. There were a few flaws, but overall a great RunDisney event!  And am I the only one who sees "WTF" instead of "THE" next to Dark Side? ;)  Thanks again to Renée for braving the early mornings and crowds to bring us another great RunDisney update. It's sure going to be interesting what they do with the Star Wars races once Star Wars Land opens. Looking forward to it!! If you ran over the weekend be sure to share your celebratory pictures in the comments below or on our social media. |
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