Disney's Expedition Everest - Day III

When you're at the most magical place in the world, time just flies by. I think I'm the idiot who scheduled our 7:45 a.m. Segway tour at EPCOT - what was I thinking. I had a lot of trouble getting up after staying up so late drinking champagne. We had some issues getting to EPCOT on time (note to self: In January when you do this same thing, drive over).

This was a 2-hour ride where you spend the first hour indoors learning the how-to, and the second hour is an outdoor tour of the World Showcase. Everyone told me that Segways are not the easiest things to learn to ride, and I did have my problems. It looks so easy. I actually was pretty good with everything until you had to get off to go over an obstacle. I was unable to keep the handles upright...not once, but twice, and darn near ran myself over. Then I was just nervous about the whole thing. But, the trainer was very good, very patient, and when we went outside, he stayed with me until I was completely comfortable. Thanks, Renee, for the pictures!

Seeing how things went indoors, I was a nervous wreck going outside into the World Showcase. This part of the tour was really cool. As we did different things in various countries, we would eventually group together and the guide would tell us different bits of trivia. Once I got the hang of it, I really did have fun.

When we finished our tour, we decided to leave our car at EPCOT and take the monorail over to the Magic Kingdom. Although Renee loves to be in the MK with her daughter, Kendall, she was excited to do some things she can't do with a 5-year old. We went to the Haunted Mansion (which Renee hasn't been in since the refurbed), and Snow White's Scary Adventure - neither of which are good rides for little ones. Look who we saw when we came off Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin! To my friend, Bill, here's 2 thumbs up to you!

We went to Cosmic Ray's for lunch, did a little more souvenir shopping. At this point, I was practically falling asleep on the rides and desperately needed a nap. We decided to hop back on the monorail, pick up the car at EPCOT, and head back to the hotel for a nap. We had dinner reservations that night at the Wave in the Contemporary and our plan was to head back to the MK for our last evening.

We drove to the Contemporary and our Wave experience was okay despite the fact that our waiter was a boob. About 7:30 p.m. we hopped back on the monorail for the MK. Renee was the first to realize that we had a problem: the park closed early for Mickey's Not So Very Scary Halloween Party. We checked to see if any tickets were available only to find that the cost for the tix was $59/ea. Yikes! Now what to do.

Since the Animal Kingdom closes early, MGM Hollywood would be getting ready for Fantasmic, we didn't think we had much choice but to head back to EPCOT. It was very crowded, but we rode the rides in Mexico and Norway and then found a spot for Illuminations. I usually watch Illuminations over by France, so I was very pleasantly surprised to find that viewing near Mexico was even better. It was a great way to end our trip.

Disney's Expedition Everest - The Race

I was pretty nervous about this. Yes, I know, it was my idea, but I never anticipated the bad news I would get from the orthopedist shortly after we registered for the event. If I could actually have trained for the 5k, I would have felt better about it, but that just wasn't in the cards for me. The doctor gave me cortisone shots the day before we left to get me through the race, but made it clear, "After this race, you cannot run again."

Disney provided race buses to transport everyone to the Animal Kingdom. We got to the race location around 6:00 p.m., which gave me an entire hour to worry before the 7:00 p.m. start.
We were in the 4th wave (total of 11 waves) and we would complete the run, tackle the obstacles, and then get our passports for the scavenger hunt in the park. The waves were staggered in 5 minute intervals, and since we were in the 4th, it bought us a little time in case we (read "Donna") couldn't meet the 16 minute per mile requirement. The other piece of good news was that if you couldn't complete an obstacle, you could basically go around it.

I just felt so bad. Renee is a very competitive person, and sets goals for herself each time she races. She assured me that if she was looking to win, she would have paired up with someone who could really run! She didn't mean that in a derogatory way, and when I could finally accept that she really just wanted to have fun- about 2 minutes before the race started - I felt better about the whole thing. BUT, I certainly didn't want to be LAST! Renee and I go back quite a few years, so she knows me pretty well. I'm expressive and talkative, but when I'm nervous, I get quiet. Renee remembers this well from our skydiving experience! I might be excited about what I'm doing, but I'm worried about it too. Just in case you've ever wondered, this is what fear and worry look like.As the waves in front of us took off, Renee and I discussed our strategy. Brent provided me with a spreadsheet with every imaginable combination of paces we could possible do to meet the required pace.

The problem is that you really do get caught up in the excitement. My plan really was to basically power walk the first mile and get my knees good and warmed up, then slow jog/walk the remaining 2 miles. But the adrenalin kicked in and we did a combo the first mile which didn't go quite as well as I'd hoped, but was an okay 15:30.

Mile 2 just sucked. My right knee hurt every time I tried to jog a bit, I was sweating like an oinker (it was very hot and humid), and I was worried about those other walkers who were now ahead of us. But, two things happened to give me a little boost. First, I would have laughed if I had any wind left when Renee said, "If you can smell the elephants, we're near mile 2." Ha! Yes, I could smell the elephants as we passed one of the animal outbuildings along the service road. At this point, people had made the turnaround (which I still couldn't see) and were coming back. "Look, there's the Mile 2 sign on the other side." Cool, that meant the turnaround had to be right around the bend....or not. Sheesh, it was still a good 1/2 mile to the turnaround, but hey, there for a second, I was optimistic I could make it. The interesting thing is that we actually did the second mile in 15:00. Crazy.

One more mile to go as we went past Everest. By this time though, racers who had finished the 5k and the obstacle course were back in the park doing the scavenger hunt. I was feeling a little better though because we passed a few walking teams that I knew were in the wave in front of us. Good news for me. Renee tells me we finished the 5k in around 48:00, which actually met the 16:00 pace requirement - we didn't need the buffer we picked up by being in wave 4.

Whew, we finally reached the obstacle course. The first obstacle was a series of corrals. You had to climb over the first beam, drop into the corral, climb the next, etc. I got over the first beam no problem, but landing in the corral was clearly bad news for my knees. I didn't yell, I didn't cry, but I didn't do any more of them either. I helped boost Renee over them and I ducked under.

Next was a net wall we had to climb up, over the top, and down. I didn't have any trouble with this one except for the crazy woman who seemed to be taking a rest - on top. I couldn't get my leg over without hitting her. A close call, but she finally moved a smidge and over I went.

Balance beams were the 3rd challenge. Renee and I hopped on beams next to each other, held hands, and flew across them.

The last challenge was a crawl under netting that was staked low to the ground. We didn't have any trouble with it, but boy were we filthy! We were now one hour into the race.

We grabbed our passports and headed back into the park for the scavenger hunt. The passport had 4 clues with questions that had to be answered. The clues took us to various parts of the park (we were lucky that we knew the park well and that Renee had grabbed a park map earlier in the day!). We had a little trouble with the first clue, but the remaining 3 were a piece of cake and we headed for the finish.

We crossed the finish line at approximately 1:31. After crossing the finish, we picked up our very cool medals, had our scavenger hunt answers checked (we got all 4 correct), and we were done. Whew. I have to say, it was a lot more fun when it was over than it was while we were doing it! Although, that's not altogether true. The obstacles and scavenger hunt were fun, but the 5k really sucked! I must say, Renee was awesome. She was very encouraging the whole way through the race. I know that I would never have had the thrill of finishing if it hadn't been for her. The good news is we were FAR from last!

The park was opened to participants and their families. Renee bought me a beer, and we headed over to Everest to take a ride at night. That was awesome. You're so high up and looking out over the Disney property at night was great. Neither of us have ever ridden the Kali River Rapids. I just hate to be wet and walk around the parks all day in sopping wet clothing. Since we were dirty and sweaty and weren't staying long, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to do the ride. We got a little wet, but there were some in our raft who really got drenched - yes, it's funny when it's not you!

We headed back to Coronado Springs where we picked up a bottle of Iron Horse's Fairy Tale Cuvee (which is only sold at Disney), changed into our bathing suits, and went to enjoy that huge hot tub and sip our champagne. All was right in our little world.

Disney's Expedition Everest - Day II

Those of you who know both Renee and me are fully aware that one of us is a morning person and one a night person. Having said that, however, I must point out that while it may not be pretty, when I'm at Disney, I typically am up and at the parks for the rope drops. On race day, by unspoken agreement, we slept in and casually made our way to the Animal Kingdom. We knew we were going to have a long day, but we didn't want to miss at least half a day in the park.

Renee spotted Chip and Dale, and couldn't resist the chance to flirt and tease the poor chipmunks. "Chip," she whispered in his ear, "you're my favorite." "Dale, you're my favorite, shhh, don't tell Chip." Those poor chipmunks never had a chance.

Since there were no lines, we took the opportunity to hop on Dinosaur. I love this ride. No matter how many times I do it, I still scream even though I know exactly what's going to happen. On our way to Everest, Renee took the opportunity to hop a ride in the convertible. I was pleasantly surprised by the short lines on this trip. We practically walked right onto Everest and then headed for the Kilimanjaro Safari and we hopped right on that too. We took a moment to pause at Camp Minnie Mickey for a few photo ops. We had reservations for lunch at the Tusker House. The Tusker House is a buffet, a bit pricey, but the food is really awesome. Renee and I made a late lunch reservation since we knew we really wouldn't eat dinner before the race. The Tusker House has a show periodically outside with these drummers.It was time to get out of the heat, take a little rest, and get ready for the race.

Disney's Expedition Everest - Day 1

About 6 months ago, I noticed that Disney was sponsoring a new event, the "Expedition Everest Challenge" in the Animal Kingdom park. Other than stating it was a 5k and team adventure race, I really didn't know anything else about it. I was pretty upset about having to bail on the half marathon back in January, and thought this race would be a run thing to do. I talked my buddy, Renee, who drags me into all types of mischief, into doing the race with me. Paybacks and all.

Since my Disney annual pass was good until December 2008, I was excited to get my $$ worth yet one more time. Not to mention, I have only been to WDW in December and January, I was excited to go at another time of the year.

Disney offered a fantastic race package rate at Coronado Springs which just continued to make the trip financially feasible. Coronado Springs is really beautiful but it is absolutely huge. They have a lovely lagoon with sand and hammocks spread around for those interested in a little sunny relaxation. They also boast the largest hot tub on Disney property - we made use of that following the race.

After checking in, we hopped a bus to EPCOT. When planning this trip, I couldn't believe our luck as we would be arriving on the first day of the 13th Annual Food and Wine Festival. Oh yeah, life is good! During this festival, booths are set up all around the world showcase, with samples of food and beverages from various countries available for purchase. We started on the Mexico side and immediately sampled Moet & Chandon champagne from Reims and paired it with a selection of cheese from Holland, Italy, and Spain. We were certainly off to a good start.
From the Spanish booth, I tried the chilled tomato and garlic soup while Renee had the seared tuna w/spicy red pepper coulis & garlic herb ciabatta. We both paired our selections with a Bodega Don Olegarico Albarino. Yum. In Shanghai we shared ginger ice cream. It was very refreshing, "cleansing the palate." La-di-da! In Cape Town, we had my favorite of the day: Durban Spiced Chicken w/coconut milk infused root vegetables paired with a Pinotage. This was rockin'. The vegetables tasted like they had been cooked with cloves and the sauce had a subtle kick to it. Oh my. With only a short stop in Germany to buy my favorite Christmas ornaments, we had been non-stop grazing. Did I mention that we were seriously feeling the effects of the alcohol? Lucky for us, we had just arrived at one of the US booths where we snagged lobster rolls and Sam Adams Lager and grabbed seats at the American Pavilion to watch Big Bad Boodoo Daddy. I love this band and felt lucky that I was going to get to see them. We had great seats for the show, and were able to take a little break.


Following the fantastic show, we hit San Francisco for Seared Beef Medallion w/ Cheddar Cheese Polenta paired with a Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. this might have been my second favorite. The polenta was really creamy and rich. Ready for some dessert, we stopped at the Louisiana booth for Praline Bread Pudding w/ Bourbon caramel sauce. The booths were starting to have longer lines as we came to the French booth. I had Escargot in brioche with champagne (of course!) while Renee continued with dessert, a Milk Chocolate Creme Brulee paired with a sparkling pomegranate Kir. At this point, we pulled up a bench to rehydrate and people watch. Hard to imagine, but we were indeed toasty again. Our last culinary sampling was Puerto Rico where we had Mofongo and a frozen Pina Colada where I immediately had brain freeze.

It took us 5-6 hours to complete our tour of the booths and believe it or not probably only hit about half of the selections. Some were crowded and some offerings weren't very interesting.

This event has a lot of tastings and lectures, but they weren't spelled out in the brochure. It was one of those things that if you stumbled upon it you could do it. While I would have liked to have done one of the tastings, it really didn't diminish my experience. I had a blast.

After grabbing our final beverages - WATER - we found a good central spot to plop and wait for Illuminations. This fireworks/laser show never disappoints. It was a spectacular end to a spectacular day. Thanks, Renee, for this great pic.

New Posts Coming

I'm getting emails - "Update Your Blog!" It's coming. I do have several things to post, including the Disney Everest Challenge and our annual Great American Wine Tour in the Finger Lakes. This weekend - I promise!

Team Climbnasium Takes 8th Place

Team Climbnasium

Tim, Trav, Ryan

Trav and his team participated in the Harrisburg Adventure Race this past weekend. Craziness! They started out running, did some canoeing, had to cross the river, bike, and do various challenges along the way.

No team is anything without cheerleaders.

We brought Kylie a cowgirl hat from our trip. She decided that she and Grandpa should exchange hats for awhile.

After biking to the Y outside New Cumberland, they had to participate in a little hard labor. They had to saw of 3 chunks of wood which were then used in the next few obstacles.

Using their chunks of wood, balance and teamwork was definitely the name of this little game.

Just in case they thought they were drying out from their wade across the Susquehanna, a little dip in the pool was just the thing.

The ropes obstacle was nothing to these climbers. In fact, they made up a bit of time here.

After biking back to City Island, a little jog looked like a lot of fun....right, Ryan?

Congrats guys! For your first race, with no training, you did a fantastic job!

More Yellowstone

The Canyon and Falls of Yellowstone - Picture taken from Artist Point. I can't begin to tell you how breathtaking this view was.Mammoth Hot Springs

Bison

Elk - Although we saw plenty of elk in the fields in the evenings, these elk were right next to the visitor center in Mammoth. We were lucky enough to hear the bull bugling - yeah, and chasing the females around too...he wasn't getting lucky though!