Spirited Spring Break News, Observations & Thoughts ...

[Pumbas Nakasak]

I'll admit to not having any interest in the case personally, but I am going to throw it out there that what Singer is being accused of didn't have anything to do with TWDC. Just a hunch, if you will....

what if he was dressed as Goofy?

 

[wm49rs]

what if he was dressed as Goofy?

Well, I'm not one to judge what people do behind closed doors. With age-appropriate partners, of course....

 

[jlsHouston]

OK, so I didn't get to visit EPCOT for Flower and Garden Fest, so I was thinking about maybe heading back up this weekend. Not all that serious, but ...

I thought I would check rates for a last minute Easter Holiday at Walt Disney World. This is for a 4/19-4/22 stay ... so I could spend Easter Sunday at the World and a few days after.

Here's some of what I found in a quickee search:

ASMu/ (standard room) $158;
AoA (suite) $422;
BWI $537;
BLT (Studio) $607;
SSR (Studio) $431;
FW (cabin) $425;

Yes, those are all REAL rates ... now, let's play 'What the market really sustains.'

The Ritz-Carlton Orlando $258;

Gaylord Palms $179;

WDW Swan $159;

WDW Dolphin $149;

Hilton Bonnet Creek $149;

Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress $189;

Hilton DTD $109;

Sheraton LBV $106;

Wyndham LBV $82;

The Buena Vista Palace $102;

Sheraton Vistana Resort (TWO bedroom unit) $154 ... Now, if you would prefer to check-in tomorrow (Friday, April 18) for a five day getaway, the rates largely stay the same. And, if you book using a hotels.com coupon, you can reduce these rates by 12%. RealityLand anyone...?

Thoughts? Anyone? @ParentsOf4 ?

My thoughts are that I spontaneously decided a couple of weeks ago I had to make one more trip before summer and I really wanted to be there over the Star Wars thing which I never have so I can relate to missing EPCOT and F&G, which is really amazing, I mean the butterfly thing I love, we have one in Houston and all the topiaries...and the little food kiosks, so I basically found even with passholder discount the rates for 9 nights at a deluxe over a holiday weekend sucked.

I am all for charging what the market will bear. I can even relate a little to the concept that I want $750 to take your load and if ABC Trucking will take it for $ 600 then by all means hire him. Oh what's that ABC is out of trucks and your load has to go??? Well then wouldn't matter if ABC was charging $ 1 to haul the load he ain't gotta truck...

But as you pointed out...look at what the rates really are for a 3-4 star room around the WDW area. And look at the premium tacked on to an onsite deluxe room..

So fortunately I was able to snag points for 4 nites in a studio off a DVC person and then I just booked 4 nights at CSR because it practically is like a deluxe anyways...I really wanted to stay over by EPCOT but oh well...not at $ 335/night on this trip...

 

[Turtle]

Idea: (Don't take the name seriously) MARVille

An alleyway in Disney Springs with a couple of Marvel themed experiences, meet/greets, restaurants, and shops all built to rack in $$$.

 

[Lee]

Why would Disney fear this? Bryan Singer and the X-Men franchise are at Fox.

If anything this is probably a classic hollywood hit job by Disney to tarnish Fox and the X-Men films.

Because it's Marvel. People see Marvel, they think Disney. At least they are starting to.

On the subject of Singer, this article makes for some interesting reading.
http://www.donmurphy.net/naked.html

 

[PhotoDave219]

Because it's Marvel. People see Marvel, they think Disney. At least they are starting to.

On the subject of Singer, this article makes for some interesting reading.
http://www.donmurphy.net/naked.html

Lee, where might I find details on the deal between fox & marvel for the x-men & the sony deal for spidey?

 

[Goofyernmost]

Being physically unqualified to run the prescribed distance in the arbitrary time set by RunDisney officials. That creates a hazard to the other runners. Same reason you can't drive 40 mph on I-4.

If they are in the back of the pack, which they will actually start in they will be no threat to the super jocks. Live and let live.

 

[Goofyernmost]

And it goes beyond being a hazard to other runners. It moves on to being a hazard and safety risk to themselves, and everyone around them. Large portions of the race do take place on quasi public roads. That Disney either closes down completely, or closes off lanes for runners. At a certain point, they need to reopen those lanes. If you cannot meet the prescribed 16 min mile pace, you prevent them from being able to open the roads back up safely. Some races choose to handle this by letting the runners run on open roads, with no closures. Disney chooses to do it safely and close the roads.

Running a half marathon or a full marathon isn't something that should be taken lightly. Putting the body through that much stress and work isn't normal. There are people that train for years to run these type of races that drop dead on course. It happens at least a few times each year. However if one trains properly and correctly, anyone can indeed run those distances. But there are a large swath of people that don't train properly. Training properly has nothing to do with your pace (outside of hitting the minimum dictated by runDisney which is in line [or easier] than every other general public race I know of) and has everything to do with prepping your body. I am all for people who have never run a step in their life training for these races. Those of us on the running subforum provide all sorts of encouragement and guidance to beginning runners (and even those of us who have been running for years) but we encourage people to do it smartly and intelligently. There are people who have NEVER RUN in their life, that sign up for the Dopey challenge. 4 races back to back a 5k, 10k, half and then full marathon. 49.3 miles from someone who has NEVER RUN. Can it be done? Heck yeah. Should most people do it? Not if their idea of training is walking for 30 mins a few times a week. They show up at the races having no idea of general race courtesy as they choose to make this race weekend their first race EVER. Those are the people we speak up about. Not just for the safety of those around them, but their own safety as well.

Show me any runner that has spent the last 4+ months training seriously. Done their endurance work, hit their long milage runs (10+ for a half, 20+ for a full), and shot for that 16 minute pace or better. I (and many of my fellow runners) will fight for that person to be able to finish the race, cheering them on the whole time, and pushing for them to finish. I enjoy heading back out on course at the Princess half after finishing and cheering on those back of the pack runners as they deserve no less encouragement than the Olympian who just set a course record. Those people have business being there. The people who sign up, don't train, and expect to only walk a few miles and then drop out just to get the medal and say they ran the race? Those people I'm not so sure about.

runDisney does everything they can to make their events approachable by all. Setting the lowest pace of any endurance race I've seen, and providing training plans for all abilities and all fitness levels.

I believe that Disney will pick up the ones that are falling that far behind and the roads will be open exactly when they intended them to be open. Those people, for the most part, are attempting to accomplish something that the jocks will never understand. It is to overcome a lifetime of self hatred and shame. They, with or without, preparations had to overcome way more then the physically fit, trained and obsessively conditioned athletes to even enter it. I have stated in the past, if one wants to be really accepted as a marathoner, there are many official ones all over the country... go run in them. This is Disney and part of the mission of Disney is to make people feel good and enjoy their life. It is not all about one group of Forrest Gumps that run to escape reality. It's about people that are trying, sometimes desperately, to re-enter reality. I don't expect the overly competitive to understand this, but, it is as legitimate as any reason to be in the lineup.

 

[jlsHouston]

New Balance has partnered with runDisney to make a special "Disney" shoe collection for 2014 that will only be available at runDisney expos (so they say). Theyre probly wondering why they made the effort to produce special edition shoes for events that are only getting 18 views on YouTube. Not exactly getting the company any headlines. Awesome shoes though. NB really put some effort into it. Nice touches they added.


FYI, I found the Cinderella edition on Ebay for $300. Perhaps someone is selling the free pair they received.

And here is a pic of the cars on the grass at MK that @WDW1974 was talking about
View attachment 51455

I want a pair....but the last time I paid over $ 100 bucks for a pair of shoes I swore I would never do it again...

 

[Stevek]

I don't believe it was at my expense. Not from the screen captures I have seen ... but he is jerk and a bully and Disney looks the other way, but he needs to be gone from the company.

Maybe they gave him the epidural last night by mistake?

The Tweets that went out were meant to be personal messages, not Tweets for everyone to see. Not a defender, don't know him but they weren't meant for consumption by the public. That's one of the many unfortunate downsides of social media. Even an honest mistake that was never meant to be public can bite you in the .

 

[jlsHouston]

I hadnt seen anything for 2013 editions. Thanks for the info. One website I read made it seem like they had just released these around the DSMM event in Anaheim last weekend. My mistake. They are definitely nice shoes. I switched from NB a year ago and started using Under Armour shoes as they fit my foot better. I wouldnt mind having a pair of those Sorcerer Mickeys to tear up. $300 bucks though, man, I'd rather go buy some retro Air Jordans and keep em in the box forever. I have like 9 pair that Im too scared to wear and mess up. (theyre all different editions). Thanks for correcting my train of thought in regards to the NB's.

9 pairs of Jordans? Were you under armed escort when you purchased them?

 

[wdisney9000]

Because it's Marvel. People see Marvel, they think Disney. At least they are starting to.

On the subject of Singer, this article makes for some interesting reading.
http://www.donmurphy.net/naked.html

Man that was a looooooong read. interesting story though. hard to say who to believe. One things for sure though, Singer has got a lot to deal with now, whether the new lawsuit is just a grab for money or someone trying to expose him, his people must be in overdrive mode for damage control. I personally think Hollywood is rife with child abuse in many ways. Elitist, weirdo, eyes wide shut type of situations.

 

[wdisney9000]

9 pairs of Jordans? Were you under armed escort when you purchased them?

lol. they were all purchased at different times, not all at once. I keep them under heavy guard at the house though! (aka the spare bedroom closet lol)

 

[Rodan75]

My point was Disney fears a sex scandal involving one of its top creatives and underage boys.

I don't believe this is a money grab at all, but we don't have all the facts. But there has been plenty of talk in the business about Singer and what he's into over the years.

And the fact the young man/accuser has an attorney who is absolutely one of the go-to most respected guys for REAL victims (he doesn't take cases without merit) speaks loudly to me about the veracity of the claims.

17 year old...while underage, let's not pretend it is too young for consent. I think the bigger issue is the allegations of rape and drug abuse. I think it is odd that they picked and chose the defendants that they did.

And I think it is pretty much every company's concern that one of their top creatives involved in any child abuse scandal. Look at BBC.

 

[Rodan75]

Only the Disney of today could keep a resort open like the Poly and NOT be offering rooms at a huge discount for staying in a construction zone.

BTW, I wanted to note that when I listed all the availability for this holiday weekend, I wasn't just showing Disney's absurd price points. But also a fundamental weakness in the O-Town tourist market right now. You shouldn't be able to book ALL of those places. They should be booked solid (on prop and off). They aren't. Not a good sign for the economy.

Are you sure it is the economy and not just the wide spread of 'spring break' schedules from the school districts. Spring Holidays have become much more spread out over the season across the country over the last few years, less focused on the Easter Holiday.

 

[DocMcHulk]

I thought I would check rates for a last minute Easter Holiday at Walt Disney World. This is for a 4/19-4/22 stay ... so I could spend Easter Sunday at the World and a few days after.

Here's some of what I found in a quickee search:

I'll add my family's favorite: Orange Lake Resort.
2 Bedroom Villa (1 KNG, 2 QUEEN BEDS): $209/night
"2 bdrm villas with 1200 sq.Ft can sleep up to 8 comfortably and includes luxury items such as a fully equipped kitchen separate dining room area a family room area with pullout sofa sleeper full size washer and dryer spa tub dvd player furnished balcony or patio area and much more."

 

[5thGenTexan]

I was going to talk about that and the mess that the Hub is now in, but at some point, it's like why? How many people here even visited the MK before 2004? How many were old enough to recall when trees and shade and a park-like atmosphere were part of the charm and beauty of the place. I stood on the MSUSA RR platform on Monday and looked out and it was like a clear shot to the castle. Nothing at all to interfere with lousy pics of a fiberglass castle. I say, let the trees grow (like Walt wanted) and if you want nice castle pics, I'm sure @WDWFigment can supply you with a few.

Folks want to rip UNI for things like Potter's showbuilding and all I can think is ''have they stood in Town Square and looked to the right? Do they not see all of those unthemed backstage areas?''

And once the temp hits 80 or above, the Mk becomes grotesque and there is nothing to help cool it down. No their little show trees in New Fantasyland don't count.

I'm your Huckleberry.

I will be 40 years old this summer. My first trip was in 1985. It was a road trip from Texas and took two full days of driving. My mother told me we had 5 day tickets, but she thinks we only used four because we saw everything there was to see. Multiple times. During the time we were there we also went to Cape Canaveral and a day trip to the beach. My second trip was after 1989 sometime when MGM opened. This trip we also drove, but it was my Dad and stepmother this time. 3 parks to choose from. In 1992 I made another trip, it was a band trip and we rode busses stright through from Dallas to Orlando. Last year we were on a cruise and one port was Port Canaveral. We had a day for however we wanted to see the parks. Having just a day with a 4 year p;d and a 2 year old, we decided on the Magic Kingdom. We were there from opening till the kids gave out about 3:00.

I do remember more trees.

The majority of my WDW time is different than many.

Aside from about 6 or 7 hours last year,
I have never been to Epcot. All my trips have been to EPCOT Center. I have never been without Horizons or World of Motion being part of the day. Communicore was COOL!!!

I have never used or seen a Fastpass, much less a the plus version.

Splashwater Falls wasn't even complete when I was there in 1992.

DHS was still MGM and the animation tour was still open and operational. There was no hat. The backlot tour was still interesting.

 

[disneyflush]

I loved the trees in the hub. The area feels so industrial without them. Sometimes something hidden a little bit is more fun to find, the 'perfect view' being one of them.

 

[bubbles1812]

Because it's Marvel. People see Marvel, they think Disney. At least they are starting to.

On the subject of Singer, this article makes for some interesting reading.
http://www.donmurphy.net/naked.html

Eh... I think people still know pretty broadly that the X-men movies are made by Fox. If anything, I see people complaining/begging for the X-men to be returned to Marvel Studios. And the same goes for people wanting Spider-man to be returned there from Sony. I think the general consensus is that Marvel does a better job with you know, the characters they have developed for 50+ years... Disney's relative hands off attitude also helps.

 

[sporadic]

DHS was still MGM and the animation tour was still open and operational. There was no hat. The backlot tour was still interesting.

I miss the animation tour