Updates to Princess Half Marathon Race Shirts


In order to avoid the mayhem we encounter during the Disney Marathon weekend over the whole race shirt situation, we decided to do our research a bit earlier this year. For those of you who do not know, there was such a debacle over the shirts for the marathon ( especially the ladies, and the ones who needed a smaller size).  It was just overlooked by hundreds of runners that the sizing for the long sleeved marathon shirts were men’s ( or unisex) sizing. Therefore women who normally wear a size medium race shirt signed up for a medium and quickly realized they were swimming in it and needed to exchange it for an extra small shirt. We have since learned that the only Disney races that offer woman's sizing are the Princess Races ( and Tink). Disney does allow you to switch shirt sizes but we were told we had to wait till the last day at the very last hour of the expo ( This was our experience during the Marathon weekend, although some others have said they didn't have to wait till the last day, but just know that Disney COULD make you wait till the last day of the expo to ensure that they have enough shirts for those who still need to pick up their race packet.)  The last day of the expo we stood in line for over two hours so we could have a chance at exchanging a shirt.  Luckily, we did get one. What is the point of having a shirt to commemorate your very first marathon if you can’t even wear it?  This was just a little back story, now on to the real topic at hand......The princess half marathon shirts!

  When I signed up for the Glass slipper challenge, I saw that there was an extra small option.  I didn’t remember seeing that as an option for last year’s Princess half (although I could be wrong).  I wanted to know what exactly the difference in sizing was between the small and the extra small, so after much investigation this is what I found. ( you can apply this information to any size shirt)


This is the Princess Half Marathon Race shirt from 2013
 

1.      If you have run the Princess half this year (2013) and last year (2012), you will notice a considerable size difference in the shirts. The 2013 one is a slimmer fit. Even though I got it in a size small, I would actually consider it to be an extra small ( especially compared to the 2012 shirt)  Here are the dimensions of the 2013 shirt: 

Across the chest (from under arm to underarm) it is 16 inches

 From shoulder seam to waist band ( vertically) it is 23 inches long.
 
 Waistband of shirt is 17 inches across.
 
( sure enough when I compared the measurements of this shirt to the Run Disney size chart, it was closer in size to the 2014 x-small)

2.      Run Disney has confirmed that the style of the 2014 Princess half shirt will not be the same as the 2013 shirt (I don’t mean design either, I mean cut and size wise).

3.      Run Disney has put up a sizing chart to help you decide which size might be the best fit for you.  (My advice is to start measuring some of your other race shirts ( make sure they are tech shirts) and compare the dimensions.  Princess Half Marathon Sizing Chart .

4.      I know for a fact that on my order form that I chose a size x-small for the Half marathon and small for the 10K, yet RunDisney had my order down as both shirts being an x-small. So whatever you ordered for your half is what you will end up with for the 10K too. (which is generally not a problem for most people, but I was just worried about sizing and figured that if I ordered one of each, I at least would have one shirt that fit properly)!  I asked if I could have one of each and the lady at Run Disney said they would be the same size for both races.

5.      If after seeing the size chart you feel you need to change sizes, RunDisney said the approximate cut off for the shirt ordering would be October 7th. But I would get your ordered changed ASAP so there isn’t any problem.

Hopefully this has helped clear up some confusion on shirt sizing for the prince half weekend.
It's always hard to tell what the sizing of race shirts are going to be like, especially when they change from year to year.   Unfortunately we are always in that "in between" size and don't want to "guess" wrong, especially when it comes to a cool Disney race shirt.  
  Was this post helpful to you? Have you always been spot on when picking your race shirt size?  Are we the only ones that stress over this kind of stuff?  Please share your own race shirt stories if you have one!

10 comments:

  1. I really wish Disney would start doing separate men's and women's sizing for ALL of their races. It just does not seem fair in my opinion...

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    1. We agree! There was some talk about that last year ( since statistics have shown that the majority of RunDisney runners are women, but I guess nothing ever became of it. We shall see)

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  2. runDisney did offer men's and women's sizes for marathon weekend next year. Considering the price for these races and the popularity, I don't think it's asking too much for rD to have both sizes included, and then each runner can decide at registration which option they want.

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  3. Disney has always said they were unisex shirts but I think that is changing this year. You can't pick different sizes for the challenge races because your packet comes all put together...it would make it way more chaotic at packet pick up if you had to keep track of what size was what race and stand in even more lines. Its not just disney that does unisex shirt sizing...I have even more from other races that are unisex. I guess I just figure that going in unless it is a women's race.

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  4. runDisney has always offered only unisex sizes during WDW Marathon weekend, Disneyland Half, and Wine and Dine. They are offering gender specific starting in 2014 for Marathon weekend, and I've heard a rumor during the DL meetup that they would also incorporate this during DL half weekend.

    I have also been able to exchange shirts at any time during expo hours - I've never been told to wait for a specific time?

    I definitely agree - for the price we pay, and the lead time with when we have to register, I think we SHOULD be able to select gender specific shirts!

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  5. Yup, runDisney has always only offered unisex shirts and I remember reading it at one point in their information. I don't think I've ever run a race anywhere that offered women's shirts unless they specifically said it during registration. Always assume it's a unisex shirt unless it says it or it's a women only race. For 2014 has made the announcement that they will start offering both men and womens shirts.

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  6. I do appreciate that Disney actually puts your requested size in your packet and allows the exchanges, however much less than ideal the system is overall. I reserved a small shirt at the 5K I ran last weekend; the shirts were at a separate pickup table and when I arrived I was told the smalls were all gone. At least Disney gives us a fighting chance. :)

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  7. A sizing chart! About time...so glad they've included that! My shirts for Dumbo are ginormous. :0/ Thanks for sharing this info! Appreciate it! :0)

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  8. Good to know! I'm assuming they're going to be New Balance since I believe they are the new official sponsor? Either way, I'm excited about women's cut shirts- especially for all of the races now.

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    1. O, I did not know that New Balance may be the new sponsor. I was told that the shirts were from Champion. Hmmm, I may have to look into this even more now...haha. If you have any more info on the shirts being from New Balance, please let us know! Thanks!

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