JMUDUKZ's Coast to Coast Pre-Trip Report

So even though I STILL haven't finished my last TR, it's time for a new pre-trip report!! 2 weeks until Tink!! Whaaaa!! Between the holidays and and playing nurse to my mom (who had a double spine fusion the week before Christmas) I have not been running and am feeling unprepared. As always, thoughts, comments, and suggestions are more than welcome. Be warned, it's long. I tried to keep it short, but I got a little carried away....

Trip #1: West Coast
Resort: Disneyland Hotel

16 Jan - Thurs
Flying out early from DC and will hopefully arrive around 1130 into LAX. The plan is to grab the Disneyland Resort Shuttle - not quite the Magical Express, but it will get the job done!! Hopefully LA traffic won't be too bad and I'll make it to the resort around 1ish. The plan is to check in and then head directly to the expo, which starts at 2 and is held in the DLH (which was part of my rationalization for spending the extra $$ to stay at DLH - not that I needed a whole lot of convincing!). After picking up my schwag, it's off to Disneyland!! Dinner will be either at the Plaza Inn or Rancho de Zocalo. DL closes around 8 which I'm sure will be about the time jet lag is setting in, so back to the room to settle in for the night.

17 Jan - Fri

If I've read the websites correctly, I think there are EMH at DCA today (and another convenient rationalization for spending the $$ to stay at DLH!). My plan is to line up an hour early so that I can DASH straight to Carsland to get FP for Radiator Springs Racers. The morning will be spent exploring Carsland. Lunch will be at Bayside Brews for some beer and pretzels!! Woohoo!! Planning on returning to the room early/mid afternoon for some relaxing, then back in the park early evening. Dinner is undecided, maybe DTDD?? Maybe more beer and pretzels!!

18 Jan - Sat

Since I've done both parks by this point, it'll be a relaxing day, exploring three Disney hotels, then wandering through the parks. Not much on the agenda other than an early dinner at Naples, then back to the room to pretend to go to bed early.

19 Jan - Sun - RACE DAY!!!

Since the race starts at 5!! I'll be up early, if I can sleep at all, worrying that my alarm won't go off and I won't get up in time (even though I've set 2 alarms AND asked for a wake up call!!). I have no idea how long it will take me, since my Disney races have tended to be SLLLOOOWWWW due to my incessant need to take pictures of absolutely everything. After the race, it's a shower and a short nap then off to Trader Sams for some celebratory bevvies!!! I have one more day of tickets, so I will go back and wander Main Street, picking up souvenirs and hitting anything I missed. I have a late dinner at Steakhouse 55, then it's time to pack up and get ready to return to reality. Oh - and at some point - Taratru, we must meet up!!

20 Jan - Mon - Go home day. Booo.....

I have a ADR at PCH Grill for the character breakfast. This may or may not stick, particularly since I have such a late dinner at Steakhouse 55 the night before. Then it's time to hope the bus back to LAX and return to reality, with my luggage hopefully one Tinkerbell medal heavier!!

Back in the day, when I planned this trip, my initial plan was to rent a car and then go watch either the LA Kings or the Anaheim Ducks play. However, I failed to check the schedule, and turns out neither team is playing at home this particular weekend, so I scrapped the car and decided to just immerse myself in Disney, even though Disney is so much smaller here than in Orlando. It seems so weird to only have 2 parks to do. I was only going to buy a 3 day PH, but buying the park tix through the race, there was only a $30 difference between a 3 and 4 day PH, so I went with the extra day. Reading up on last year's race, it looks like Saturday and Sunday are very heavy crowd days, due to the race and the holiday weekend, so if it gets too crowded, I have the extra day so that I'm not really rushed.

And now, for the second part of the Coast to Coast...

Trip #2 East Coast
Resort: Pop Century

20 Feb - Thurs

Once again, flying out from DC early. Fingers cross that this trip goes as smoothly as the last two. If so, I'll be at the hotel by noon, checking in!! After check in, I'm heading to the Expo to try to grab my stuff before it gets SUPER crowded. Thankfully, unlike with Wine and Dine, there is official race transportation so I can avoid all the snafus I experienced in November. After the expo, I'm heading to the MK for the afternoon. FP+ for HM, Peter Pan's Flight, and BTMRR. Dinner most likely at Pecos Bill with LOTS of Dole Whip sprinkled throughout the afternoon!!

21 Feb - Fri

Morning at AK. Seems as though Festival of the Lion King will be closed for reno, so I don't really foresee spending a whole lot of time at the park. The afternoon will be spent at DHS with FP+ for Star Tours, TSMM, and TOT. I hate that they won't let you FP+ both RNR and TSMM. I'm not a Star Wars fan, and really don't care about Star Tours, but there's not much else at that park that I want to ride. Dinner is at Beaches and Cream, followed by a stroll on the Boardwalk to burn a few calories!! Depending on how I feel, I may go to Jellyrolls for a bit. I love dueling pianos, but I've never been to JR. Anyone know how it is?? Worth it?? Or just skip back through the international gate and hit up R&C for a Cider Black on my way back to the buses?? Thoughts??

22 Feb - Sat

Up at at 'em early today!! I have a friend running the Glass Slipper, so she'll be at the 10K this morning and I will go cheer her on. Early FP+ at Epcot for Soarin, The Living Seas, and Spaceship Earth, followed by lunch at via Napoli and then some time spent in the WS (and at R&C for a cider black!! LOVE those things). Today will be an easy day. Hoping it's warm enough (and now I'm probably jinxing it) to sit by the pool back at the hotel and rest the legs a bit. It's another early race start, which means another early bed time tonight.

23 Feb - Sun - RACE DAY!!!

Well, if there was ever a day to prove I am indeed a princess, today is the day!! Time to turn in the glass slipper and put on the running shoes!! I swear, I've seen more of Osceola parkway this year than anyone should ever see. The goal at this point is to finish, upright and collect my bling!! Following the race, it's back to the hotel for the obligatory post-race nap and shower (possibly in that order....). Then it's back to Epcot, wearing BOTH my medals, where I have a Biergarten reservation for lunch. Bring me a stein of beer!! I just realized that I made a FP+ for Test Track following lunch at Biergarten. Hmmmm....it really seems that the proper order should be really fast, turn-y ride, THEN German buffet and stein of beer. May have to rethink this one. Following the beer consumption, it's time to relax at the hotel, meet up with JoAnne and maybe Taratru? for drinks (and pictures of us with our medals!). There are EMH until 1am at MK that night. The plan is to relax until about 10pm, then head back to the MK and hit up the rides. However, after 13.1 miles and a stein of beer, odds are about 50/50 of that happening.

24 Feb - Mon

On today's agenda is the KTTK tour in the morning, which will end with lunch at Columbia Harbor House. Lobster roll?? Yes, Please!! FP+ for SM, Winnie the Pooh, and the Little Mermaid. Then wander around the MK and the other parks, hitting whatever I've missed. I may take the ferry back and forth to the TTC. That is VERY relaxing!! Highly recommend!! Back to the resort to doll myself up and then it's dinner at California Grill and Wishes from the observation deck.

25 Feb - Tues - Go Home Day Booo.....

So when we were there in Nov, we had a HORRIBLE HORRIBLE meal at Portobello (did I mention it was HORRIBLE?). Disney made the mistake of sending me a link to write a review of my trip and I wrote a truthful, yet very poor review of our Portobello experience. The manager ended up calling me to follow up and in an effort to make it right, she is supposed to be sending me a gift card to one of the three restaurants that the Levy group operates at DTD (the other two being Fultons and Wolfgangs on the West Side). I'm thinking I may try to hit up Wolfgangs for a really early lunch before the ME scoops me up to take me back to reality. That might be tight on time though, so that's still up in the air.

All of this will net me a grand total of three medals - one Tink, one Princess, and one pink Coast to Coast. Sadly, I didn't get into Glass Slipper, so I'm missing out on the fourth and fifth medals, but that's on next year's agenda. I've decided I'm going to ask for a birthday button for the Princess trip. I did all of these races to celebrate my 35th birthday and my (gasp) 36th birthday (gasp again) is in March, so why not celebrate??

The good news is that it appears that my Disney obsession is contagious. My mother wants to do Wine and Dine and that is her goal to help her recover from her surgery (it's been 3 weeks today, and she did a 45 minute walk around her neighborhood, so I'm thinking she will make it!), so we're looking at a November trip in 2014. My sister who went to W&D with me this year wants to do a race so that she can wear her medal around the park like I did (and have everyone comment on it), so we're looking at Marathon Weekend for 2015 (we'd both do the 1/2 - we're only 1/2 crazy) and then of course, that means the DL Half (or Tink again, since it's moving to May) to get the blue Coast to Coast. People keep telling me I have a Disney problem, and I admit that I do, but if I keep running so that I can keep going to Disney, isn't this a good thing!!

Finally, if you're still reading, I realized that since I never finished my TR from W&D Half, I never posted the pic of me and Taratru from the MVMCP. So here it is!! It will be followed by more - one in CA and one in FL in 2014!

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