stefa70

Great news Kim!

"Good things come to those who wait"

Yes, it's me again!

I will try to make this as short as possible as it's NOT a Disney trip.

This was a Daytona International Speedway trip.

If you're not into racing, you might want to bail out now.

If you are into racing, stick around and I'll show you a good time!

For my fellow NASCAR fans, you know the off season seems to last forever. I needed the rumbles of motors, the smell of burning rubber and some hot men in firesuits.

The Rolex 24 hour race was this past weekend, so we booked the KOA up the road, loaded the truck and camper and headed east.

We normally stay until Monday so we can watch the end of the race, which runs from 3:30 Saturday though 3:30 on Sunday but Nate & my friend Alice (who joined us) had to work on Monday, so we checked out on Sunday.

Since we weren't going to be at camp much, we took the bare minimum. No cart, bikes, lamps, signs, coolers, screen room.....NADA.

Regardless of where we're going, Mason is more than ready.

Since I signed up for the 5k for Saturday morning, Alice signed up for the 2.5 mile walk. Alice has had a knee replacement so she can't run. Nathen also signed up to walk with Alice.

Trevor? He was the official bag holder, rooter and photographer.

Nate and Alice followed us in my Jeep since Mason hates to share the backseat.

Yes, my Jeep is covered in pollen! ICK!

It took us a little longer than normal to arrive as we ended up behind this vehicle.

This dude had a few flimsy straps holding all that stuff so we hung back until we could pass him safely. I wasn't in the mood to have a stove on the hood of the GMC.

We finally passed Sanford & Son and kept on driving.

It took us about 2 hours & 15 minutes to get to the KOA. Here's a shot from the road.

And the office as you pull in.

I took some more pics of the campground the next morning, I'll share those later. This is not a fancy place. No pool or clubhouse, just the essentials. It's all about location! This KOA is right on International Speedway Blvd, 2 miles from the track.

The new owners are doing a lot of improvements as it used to be a trailer park, so you may see some strange pad layouts.

We have stayed here before for the Rolex race and for NASCAR races and it's perfect for that scenario.

It cost me $90 for Friday and Saturday with no minimum stay.

For NASCAR events, it's $100 a night, 5 night minimum.

LOCATION!

The owner drove up on his cart and welcomed us. I went to the office to check in while he chatted with Nate, Trevor & Mason. By the time I came out, Trev was already backing into our site.

I missed all of the backing in because the owner stopped me again, to chat. They are a super nice couple that I chatted and joked with all weekend long. By now, I'm just ready to get to the camper and unload my stuff.

Nate, Alice and I needed to go to the track to pick up our run/walk packets.

Finally, I walked to our site and was unloading the truck when a mans voice (over my shoulder) says "Hey Shorty!"

In my head: dude, go away! I just want to get set-up!

I assumed it was the same guy....it was not! It was this guy! :heart:

Nate, Trevor and Donnie had worked together to surprise me. I was so shocked and happy! It totally made my day.

We hung around and talked with Donnie before he left for the Fort to do some repairs on his camper.

After Donnie left, we left for the track.

This guy was at the KOA too. Notice his dog in the passenger seat.

In minutes, I got my first glimpse of the track!

I got a quick dry shirt and my bib. Check out that number...484, that's gotta be a good sign.

Alice and Nate just got a plain t-shirt, same design.

It only took us about 30 minutes from camp to track and back. Since I had worked and trained at 4:00 that morning, my intentions were to relax at the site and get a good nights sleep.

Mason likes relaxing.

Nate, Alice & I did walk across the street where there is a HUGE flea market. They have a leather shop in there where I bought a new belt. They close at 5:00, so a lot of the vendors were shutting down already.

Nate & Trevor went out that night to a new go-kart track and Alice and I were in bed by 8:00pm. We had to be at the track at 5:30 on Saturday morning.

Pics from my run, the campground, the race, the drivers and food coming up.

You're not sure if the glass maker blows? :rofl2:

Anna is a beautiful princess.

Good stuff Dave. Carry on please.

For the record, I am pro-CKCK! No apologies necessary though as I've been gone and still trying to catch up on reports.

Belle is adorable! Mason doesn't last long in the dog park either (he's only 5) I think it's due to sensory overload. He sniffs, he lifts his leg a time or two and sniffs some more. When he's foaming at the mouth, it's time to go.

I second the carrot cake cookie! Good stuff.

Arghhh, Happy Birthday Adam! :walk-plank-smiley:

Cute Scuba guy too!

That's it? 32 pages?

Geez, I expected more from you. :raspberry:

Let the Ohana debate continue....I'm with CK, just bring me the food.

Another great job!

Three cheers for Stef for another great TR.

Thanks for sharing the cool pics

My pleasure!! It wouldn't be half as much fun without the great comments from all of you.

Great TR thanks for bringing us along.

Just a few comments now that I'm caught up.

Love Boo! She's about your size.

Since the 5 yr old is 1" short I'm giving 3/2 odds

Remember Donnie is older, but if dies first you might be older than he. So be nice to the senior citizens.

Great pix of the boat ride to the Contemporary and sunset.

Great pix of the Fort at night.

Hope to meet you and the boys soon.

:rofl2: Good stuff, Ray!

Yes, Boo and I are almost twins!

Hope to meet up with you too...but I don't speak German, so don't be talking crap.

:bravo: :yay: :thumbsup2:

Thanks TJ!

Stef,

Loved, loved, LOVED the trip report!!!

First of all many thanks to Jordan for his service. Our country is fortunate to have young people like him, that are willing to serve our country.

My oldest son (19) and my Mom, were down at Disney for the same exact time frame you were there!!! They arrived on the 8th too, and flew home on the 15th. They stayed at the Pop Century. They couldnt get over how warm it was for the entire week......actually it was too warm for my Mom!!!! I was surprised to see Jordan in his jeans and what looked to be boots in most all of the pictures.........he was probably comfortable and here my Mom was in shorts and t-shirts saying how hot it was!!!!

I wondered the whole time, I read your report, if your path would ever cross with my son/Mom. But you guys were always at different parks then they were. The closest you probably came was on Sunday, they went to the first showing of the Hoop-Dee-Doo and you were at the fort until you boated over to the Contemporary.

So glad that you all had such a good time! The party for Jordan sounded great. What a terrific thing to do for him!

Hope you get back to the fort soon!

Heidi

Thanks Heidi! You need to check in more, I worry about you when you're gone too long.

That's cool that your Mom and son were there at the same time. I wish I'd have known, I would have stood at the HDD and met them before the show. Would be the next best thing to meeting you.

It was extremely warm for the second week in January!! I loved it because I hate anything below 75, but some of the northerners were HOT, especially walking around in the parks.

Thanks for reading!

I'm a bit late but, Stef got her Boo, Stef got her Boo. Yea!!! Sorry your TR is ending, it was fun reading all you were able to do. Again thank Jordan for his service and I'm glad he had a nice trip to the Fort with you.

Yes Bo, I got Boo! I truly believe in love at first sight and she was mine!

Better late than never, thanks for joining me.

Wish we had a less-than-2-hour drive home from the fort! Great report. Loved the sunset/sunrise pictures. Thanks for sharing your trip with us!

Happy to bring you along Gwen! Between all the fiends, we'll keep you "in the Fort" until your return.

Great trip report and thanks for letting us all ride along!!!!!!!

Thanks! You're welcome along anytime!

I'm sad this is over! Really enjoyed your trip report. Thanks for sharing! I'm enjoying some crock pot chicken & dumplins tonight. Love that receipe. Thanks!

Awesome! Glad you enjoy the recipe. So easy and what my boys call "stick to your ribs" food.

Great TR, Stef! I wish I could have been there to celebrate Jordan's safe return with y'all! I enjoyed the pics and your story telling!

Thanks Rita. I wish you could have been there too. It was great to see Mama, she is such a little pistol! I want to grow up to be just like her.

Always enjoy chatting with Ed too. So proud of him for signing up for the coast to coast run. He was hemming and hawing about going and I said DO IT! Life's too short to have regrets.

Mama responded with "You'd think with all the running he does, he wouldn't be so fat!" :rofl2:

Hi Steph! We rode by your site late Saturday night after we arrived, but the party looked like it was dwindling down....we were tired and had the boys so we didn't stop. I rode by Sunday evening, but didn't see anyone. Hate we missed you all. It looks like everyone had a wonderful time.

As I said in our emails, please Thank Jordan for his service!

Betsy

Darn!! Wish we could have hooked up, but there's always a next time.

Hope you had a great trip!

Loved every moment of your trip report!

Aww thanks so much! Glad you enjoyed it.

I could be mistaken....but I think that's Larry's van!!

:cupcake:

EEK! I escaped just in time!

Thanks for sharing. Enjoyed your TR.

Except when it ended.

That part sucked.

Thanks. Agreed, that part sucked.

Thank You for sharing !

No, thank you for reading!

I have to say Thanks to Jordan, for serving, and was excited that ya'll choose us to celebrate with ya'll, us redneck short people have to stick together, I had a good time, but I thought I was gonna die when Judy, said that about the C-A-K-E, and the comments that followed, Sorry we didn't get to stay for cake, I really didn't feel good this whole trip. but Stacy and I had a great time with all of you. I even meet some new fiends this time. Genia and Tony, we had a good time with ya'll too! I still have to check on the other thing for you Stefa, and I promise I will.

Had a great time with you Kelly. Tell Brittany thanks for the hot, new country singers she introduced me to.

Maybe I should have warned Judy that Jordan could spell.

I knew that you hadn't been feeling good, I'm flattered that you came out and at least had a little bit to eat.

I don't care what anyone says: Short, rednecks rule! :)

Great report Stef!

Looking forward to your next report and hoping Jordan's last year goes by quickly and quietly stateside.

Thanks Aaron, I hope so too! Some of his troop mates have been moved to Alaska. ICK!

Like TCD, I thought the runners were out before the park opens. They sure start early! And they claim to have cut times you have to make in order to finish. Maybe they don't enforce them? It sounds like they should have the park open later that day. I think that would frustrate people less than the situation you described.

I agree Kelly. I'd bet some of those folks will be changing their family vacations, to avoid marathon weekend, in the future

It was a great trip. I had a great time. Thanks for bringing me.

I think I would have joined Mason under the table. I don't like leaving either.

;D That's a pretty small table Annie!

Glad you enjoyed the trip.

Really REally enjoyed this report! Please give Jordan a great big THANK YOU from H, the boys and I!

A quiet evening at WDW....*sigh*. :)

Thanks Kim, I've given Jordan more hugs than he can possibly stand. He appreciates all the support more than you guys know.

I love the sunrise photos. You did a good job keeping the GI out of the shot.

Mason is awesome!

I love how he's the first in the truck on the way to the Fort and you probably have to drag him in on the way home.

I remain impressed at how fast you and Trevor can pack up and get home.

I am sad that this report is over.

TCD

Avoiding GI is getting harder and harder.

Don't be too sad, I have a small race report coming up, hopefully starting tomorrow. I know you're not a speed fan but it's a TR all the same.

Awesome TR as ususal!!!!

Safe travels this week-end!

Thanks dear!

Sorry I got behind, I did travel safely, I'm home!

Bravo! I loved your report! But I'm sad it's over. Nothing is worse than that last drive out of the Fort, looking back longingly, sighing at the thought of having to go back to real life.

I love your Boo. Will she stay in the camper, or does she have a prominent place at home? She is my favorite from that movie, too. Kitty!

Agreed, pulling away is the hardest part. Best way to do it is like ripping off a band-aid, do it and move on.

Boo is resting comfortably in my bedroom. When I come back home at 6 to wake the guys up for work, she has become the new alarm clock. If I could repeat any of the names I have been called, I would, but this is a family board. For some odd reason they do not find her as endearing as I do.

What, no comment on the Trevor butt shot?

I am disappointed.

She is definitely slacking.

*sigh*

that's all Is gots to say

Me too Nik.

One thing is worse. Leaving the Fort with a 20 hour drive ahead of you to get home. That both sucks...and blows.

Wow, you got me there. I have a hard time sitting still for 2 hours, 20 would drive me crazy. (Ok, craziER)

I'm back and caught up Jason!

Cinnamon roll... :drool1:

I love how much Sil would call while you were there and that you shot videos for her. So sweet. :heart:

Waiting for more, please!

When I got a pretzel at Epcot last week, the guy in front of me ordered two of them.

$20 later, he walked away with 2 glorified ICEES.

Holy flashback Dave!

It's been so long since I've had sponge candy that at times I've thought about having it as a kid but not knowing what the heck it was called, or if I had even dreamed it up in my pea sized head.

I'm calling my father and having some Fed-exed, ASAP!

I wish I had known you were in the Villages. I'm about 40 minutes from there. We love to have dinner there and walk the shops. Maybe I'll just go and meet your parents first.

Wegman's is not just a grocery store, it's an attraction! Love it!!

The devil on my shoulder wants to lie and say I have not seen Pete's Dragon since '77, just to force you to watch it again.

I can't do it though....I have seen it quite a few times since then. You were complaining about the effects so I was saying that it was impressive at that time, when I was 7.

Give Pete another chance.

Great update Jason!! I'm all finished up, so the ball's in your court.

I'm so proud you did the 5K!

Great picture of the ball and flag.

NOW I know why you didn't ride TT with us. :rofl2: You could have screamed like a girl, I do!

Wait....I am a girl (I just don't act like one most of the time)

I'll be gone this weekend, but hope to see a lot of updates when I return!

Oooh!! Please tell me "dirty Santa swap" is as sinful and fun as it sounds?!?! :jumpforjoy

This is it folks! Time to wrap this up.

After a quiet, relaxing evening and a good nights sleep, it was time to pack up and head home.

The sun was just creeping up over the 500 loop, so I walked out to the road to snap a pic.

The clean-up process begins.

Mason started out in the dirt.

Then hid under the table like he didn't want to leave either.

The screen room came down.

The blower came out.

I made a trip to the comfort station

Loaded up the cart.

We pulled out around 9:30. My site looks so lonely now. I'm sure someone came along and filled it shortly.

Bye-Bye Fort!

With one bathroom stop on the way (I should have skipped that second cup of coffee) we were home at 11:15.

Thanks for all who shared this trip, both literally and through this report. Thanks for all the great and funny comments!

Til next time!

We're all here for a good time,

but don't start no trouble.

'cause it won't be the first time,

I put a scar on my knuckle.

Now brother I don't mind

I'll be glad to stomp your ass.

But if both of us walk out that door,

One of us ain't coming back.

Wow, when you said you were planning a quiet evening, I thought to myself "I can't wait to see what Stef's definition of quiet is". :rofl3: Well, turns out you DID have a quiet evening. Sounds very nice.

I'm not always wild & crazy!

I may have called Nate's knife a pocket knife (everything smaller than a machete is a pocket knife in my house) It was more of a hunter's knife that clips to your pocket. We weren't sure they'd let him in with that being visible.

Glad you watched Pete's Dragon. It was pretty impressive to a seven year old!

I don't differentiate between FS and GO, I just call it Golden Icks. Anything built that close to the Fort, sucks.

We lived that same day a week or so later!

Love AK and Lion King show.

So happy that it recharged you!

Soon, we were back home.

These were at a site near us. Cute.

We took Mason for a short walk, then Trevor and I walked over to TCD Point for the fireworks.

We brought a flashlight but OH EM GEE, it is dark back there!

Trevor was spotting for gators in the lake, I was spotting for Mike Myers or Jasoon Vorhees in the woods. (Not joking)

We survived the fireworks (and creatures) and walked back to our site, showered and watched a little tv before drifting off.

It was a great ending to an amazing trip.

Coming Up: That dreaded day...vacation is over.

We're finally nearing the end.

It's still Sunday afternoon and Trevor and I just wanted to chill for a while. We would be packing up in the morning and heading back to reality.

We decided to go down to the beach and watch the sunset.

Unfortunately, as you can see by this picture of the Settlement, the sky was really overcast.

We weren't deterred though. It was a busy week and just sitting in a lounge chair sounded peachy.

Ahhhhh

See that seagull along the waters edge in that last pic?

I stalked him with my zoom.

Once we realized our sunset was going to be nonexistent, Trevor started talking about dinner. I wasn't in the mood to drive off property or even take a bus. I suggested taking the resort boat to the Contemporary for something quick. He thought that was a good idea, so we hopped on a boat.

First stop, the Lodge.

After a brief stop, we floated over to the Contemporary.

We've arrived.

Up the elevator.

To the Contempo Cafe, which was nice and quiet!

I had the pepperoni flatbread which was perfect. Tasted good and wasn't too filling.

Trevor had a burger of some sort. He enjoyed it.

We strolled around while we digested.

And used my camera on the self timer mode (thanks Jason) and got our picture with the Mickey head.

As we made our way out to the dock, I was rewarded for not having the sunset I was looking for earlier. The sky was beautiful! I'll share just a few so no one falls asleep.

It just got better and better as the sun disappeared.

Looking back towards the Fort, that monstrosity known as Golden Icks is rearing it's ugly head above the peaceful tree line.

So we will keep focused on the other side of the lake.

We even got to see the castle light up!

Photo limit.....

It just seems like the kind of TR you sit back and enjoy. Peaceful like.

Peaceful is never a word I would use to describe my trips, but if it's giving you some peace, I'm happy!

I didn't realize that there are still runners in the parks when they open- I thought it was set up so they would all be cleared out by then.

TCD

Oh they were still there, for hours!

I'm not sure of a better solution but for paying guests to wait 1/2 hour to cross a street, to get to a ride where chances are they'll wait another hour, made for some ticked off people!

Was the 5 y/o taller than you? Wuz you skeeered?

GMR is one of my favorite things at Disney. When I was a kid ABC always had the Sunday Night Movie and my mom always watched it. She loves movies and I guess that's why I do too. At the end of the ride where they do the panoramic scene of the great movies it always reminds me of that time. Those were the days lol.

No, I had her by at least an inch!

:raspberry2:

Next trip, you and I will ride the GMR!

I too remember the Sunday night movies and love the montage at the end. This trip I glanced over at Jordan & Nate and wondered if they even knew where half of the scenes came from. Doubt it.

Yes, we're getting old...but at least you'll always be older.

Great update !

I have never seen the stunt car show.

Nice pic of you and Boo.

I am really thinking DD would love a Boo doll.

Glad to hear Jordan is at Ft. Lewis. I hope he gets to stay there until his discharge.

My brother was at Lewis until last year. Now he is at Benning.

He wanted to stay at Lewis. He loved it out there, as the good englishman says, " You cant always get what you want."

Never seen Lights, Motor, Action? That's a man's dream show! Fire, burning rubber, cars, motorcyles and stunts! What's not to love about that?!

That's cool about your bro. Jordan just told me it's a real PITA to move bases. All new uniforms, all new clearances....

But, if they were going to move him anywhere, he'd pick Benning since it's so close to home!

Obviously, that good englishman has never met Stef!

I have nothing against Snuggies...when they're worn at home.

I still would trade them for a flying car.

Thanks for pointing out those lockers. (and devores explaining) I've never noticed them before.

Nathen always has a pocket knife on him. Once, he forgot to take it out before we headed into DHS. He stuck it under a bush in the planters and grabbed it on the way out.

That works too! ;D

OJ running through airports........... :lmao1:

Nice dancing! Was it the music or the margarita that got you moving?

Stella is one brave young lady (and probably taller than me :- )

STELLA!!! :rofl2: