Hey folks!
To give a quick intro, I'm a 28 year old Southern Californian who has been in love with Disney pretty much all my life. My mom says she first took me to Disneyland when I was 2 and my eyes popped out. Apparently, they never went back into my head.
This year, a good friend of mine announced she was moving out of state. As a "final request", she asked that I do the Danskin Women's Triathlon with her. I agreed before they announced the location.
When the location was finally announced, all of my doubts melted away and I knew I was ment to do this - to make personal and Disney history!
Saturday, my mom and I headed to Disneyland. We had booked a room at Paradise Pier (my first time staying at that hotel). At check in, the cast member noticed I was here for the race and asked "So, how do you feel about swimming in our lagoon?" I couldn't help be chuckle and smile and tell him the truth - I couldn't wait!
We checked my bike and our luggage and spent the morning at the parks, walking around, taking pictures and having some "mother daughter" time (which is VERY rare in my family). We went on Pirates and Haunted Mansion, two of her favorites, before "warming up" with a walk from the Lion King Tram area to the sponsoring hotel, the Anaheim Hilton and Towers. I'm not sure how far that was, but I'm banking on around a mile (since we took a LONG route).
The expo wasn't terribly exciting. This is my first triathlon, so I spent most of my time paying attention to Sally, the Ironwoman champ. Her speech and instructions were great for me. We met my friend there and picked up our gear (tank top, packet with numbers for bike, jersey and helmet, water bottle, swim cap, timing chip and band). I tried my hand at winning a Trek bike, but didn't work out. Oh well! My good 'ole mountain bike would have to do this time around.
There was a booth from Jelly Belly passing out "Sport beans". They tasted great and helped with an energy boost. There was also a Danskin area (of course) and a Mass Mutual booth.
A booth selling t-shirts had some great items for spectators:
I was so excited to get my number written on me. (For the record, it's taken me until today to get it all off!)
If anyone saw me on the race, HI!!!! I had a great time! More pictures to come as I get 'em from my mom. It'll probably take about a week, but it was an AMAZING experience that I pray they will do again at this venue next year!
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