Renninger's Mount Dora - Car & Cycle Swap Meet Show & Cruise-In

Today we headed out mid-morning for a 20-25 mile ride over to Mt. Dora for the monthly car and motorcycle swap meet and cruise-in at Renningers Market. The weather was perfect and the ride took us through a few back roads.

We arrived and parked under the huge live oaks, providing shade for our bikes as well as others. Sadie was raring to go...people and dogs, what fun!

The show was small but we saw some really nice cars and a couple of bikes. We browsed the vendors where we picked up some more old license plates, a sign for Stu's future garage and a few other little odds and ends.

Our favorite car was not even in the show...we walked past it on our way back to our bikes. LOL!

From there we headed south so we would take a different route home. We managed to hit a couple of twisties and rode along side a really pretty lake. Before we knew it, we were dumped back into heavier traffic and more heat. A stop at Mickey D's for coffee and ice cream made us all happy. LOL!

After arriving home we sat outside and enjoyed the cooling temps in the shade, read for a while and then took Sadie on a bicycle ride around the park before settling in for the night. Great day!!

Here are a few photos from the car show...those interested can see the rest in our SmugMug album.

Till next time - keep on rollin',
Donna and Stu

It's mine....

 If it's mine it's mine,
if it's yours it's mine,
if I like it is mine,
if I can take it from you it is mine,
if I am playing with something ALL of the pieces are mine,
if I think it is mine it is,
if I saw it first it's mine,
if I had it then put it down it is still mine,
if you had it then you put it down it is now mine,
if it looks like the one I have at home it is mine,
if it is broken it is yours.

Mommy says I'm just like a toddler (see toddler rules above). I don't think so...I'm very good in the house. I only chew on my toys. But no one told me about outside rules...and now that my big girl teeth are coming in, there is just SO MUCH to chew on out here.

Daddy left my carrier on the ground...and I found my Doggles and case. Then I found the sewer cap. Oh, and then there was the cup holder for daddy's outside chair. Hmmmm, do you think I'm addicted to plastic?



Sniffing and lickingly yours,
Sadie

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Gypsy is a little more ready....

My new detachable sissy bar arrived as well as the bags I ordered. Stu got it all put together and it looks great. I won't use the sissy bar unless we are traveling, but it will work out very well!

In addition we stopped at Gator Harley where we get a 15% firefighter discount and picked up the engine guard and halogen fog lights that we had talked about. I have had the engine guard mounted halogen fog lights on my last three Harleys. They not only help you see better at night, they make you a LOT more visible during the day.

Sportsters aren't big dresser bikes and can use all the lighting help they can get. Both the Nightster and the SuperLow use the new, smaller, curved engine guard which limits where the lights can be mounted. Normally they mount horizontally under the top of the guard. On the curved engine guard there is one vertical spot that works for them.

This shot of my Nightster shows the positioning:



Here are a couple of shots of my SuperLow with the new accessories:





Next on the list is looking at a Mustang seat...we'll do that at Bike Week in Daytona!

Still rolling,
Stu and Donna

Day Two at Universal & Final Thoughts

A good nights sleep does wonders....we all felt much better and were raring to go. Breakfast, shuttle and off the Islands of Adventure at Universal. We immediately headed for the Harry Potter World, knowing how busy it would be.

Unfortunately, you had to be staying at the park or have an Express Pass to go straight there. So we opted to do the Spiderman ride followed by the Pteranodon Flyers® in Juraissac Park since we had to walk through those areas to get the Harry Potter World.

We got to the first Harry Potter ride, Dragon Challenge™, turned out that Amanda was too short. The sign said 15 minutes so we waited....an hour, for Stu and Sam to get done with the ride. About 5 minutes before they finally got on, they added two more coasters. Jeesh!

We headed off towards the other two coasters in Harry Potter world, knowing that Amanda was tall enough for both. Not to be....90 minute wait on the sign. Sigh....

So we continued on and here is our Day Two schedule:

Stu, Donna, Samantha, Amanda
      The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man®
      Swing Above the Streets in 3-D
Stu, Donna, Samantha, Amanda
      Pteranodon Flyers®
      Get a prehistoric bird's-eye-view
Stu, Samantha
      Dragon Challenge™
      A high-speed roller coaster chase across the sky
Stu, Donna, Samantha, Amanda (we went twice)
      Popeye and Bluto's Bilge-Rat Barges®
      Better eat yer spinach!
Stu, Donna, Samantha, Amanda
      The Cat in the Hat™
      Whirl Through the Pages of the Book
Stu, Donna, Samantha, Amanda
      The High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride!™
      A High Flying Ride Through Dr. Seuss' Imagination
Stu, Donna, Samantha, Amanda
      The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man®
      Swing Above the Streets in 3-D

SKIPPED:
      Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey™
      Join Harry Potter™ and his friends on a new adventure

      Flight of the Hippogriff™
      Swoop and soar on this family-friendly coaster

      The Incredible Hulk Coaster®
      Feel the Rage

      Doctor Doom's Fearfall®
      Takes Fear to New Heights

      One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish™
      Steer your fish through an obstacle course of fountains

      Caro-Seuss-el™
      World's Most Unusual Merry-Go-Round

Stu's favorite overall was the Dragon Challenge™ and my overall was Popeye and Bluto's Bilge-Rat Barges®. Men in Black from yesterday was the second favorite for most of us.

Here are some photos from day two, the rest are in our SmugMug Album.

We weren't as tired since we had a better night sleep, but our bodies told us different. LOL! We had dinner at the park, headed back on the shuttle and the girls headed back to Nickelodeon Resorts with their parents. They still had a couple of vacation days left and planned to hit Disney again.

So our final thoughts on Universal....it was okay but it's no Disney. The tickets cost more, there are a lot less rides and way less to do for all ages. We knew several things would be closed for renovations (same as at Disney) but we didn't realize the lack of "free" things to do other than the rides.

Both parks have at least one boardwalk type area where you can pay to play games....more money out of your pocket. Due to height restrictions, Amanda didn't get to ride the coaster she wanted. Add in the terrible lines....not our cup of tea. The characters were much less appealing...the superhero costumes were ridiculous. LOL!

We also noticed that the park wasn't as clean as Disney and that was especially true of the bathrooms. Ugh! While friendly and helpful when asked, the staff often seemed more interested in chatting with each other. Most were teen and twenty somethings, only saw a couple of older folks. The music was often deafening and very repetitive.

The food ranged from very average to surprisingly decent...think it depended on the time of day and restaurant. The chicken fingers were much better than the burgers and the pasta was pretty good, too.

If you have teens, this is a great place to let them go and tell them when/where to meet you. Otherwise, younger ones have little to do other than the Curious George area and Dr. Seuss. Oh, speaking of Dr. Seuss....that area was a feast for the eyes. I could have taken hundreds of photos...really enjoyed it.

We can now say....been there, done that, won't bother again.

Till next time - keep on rollin',
Donna and Stu

Day One at Universal

Where to start....at the beginning, I guess. We had a nice ride on the motorcycles from Bee's RV Resort here in Clermont to the Clarion Maingate in Kissimmee (same hotel we stay at each year for Stu's annual retired Firefighter reunion). We got checked in and took showers....then Stu realized he had left his meds back at the RV.

So he hopped back on his bike and made the 30 mile ride up and back...along with getting gas and dealing with two chatty neighbors. LOL! In the meantime, my daughter and her family arrived at Denny's next door for dinner. They were packed....and only had one cook on hand. We finally ordered and just as our food was arriving, Stu arrived and ordered his dinner.

The kids were beat, especially the oldest who fell asleep at the table without eating. We finally managed to get the two girls up and into bed...in less than five minutes they were both asleep. Good thing, the alarm was set early so we would have time for breakfast before the shuttle bus picked us up.

The girls were good about getting up, we ate a nice breakfast at Denny's (currently offering a 20% discount to AARP members). We loaded onto the shuttle bus at 7:40 and headed off on our adventure. None of us had ever been to Universal Studios, but we had all been to Disney several times.

We got there about 30 minutes before the park opened, time enough to get our tickets and get in the main line. We chose to do Universal Studios first, knowing that Monday was a holiday and the Harry Potter section of Islands of Adventure would be packed.

Here was our Day One schedule:

Stu, Donna, Samantha, Amanda
      E.T. Adventure®
      Ride Your Bike Across the Stars
Stu, Donna, Samantha, Amanda
      The Simpsons Ride™
      Crash Through Krustyland
LUNCH
Samantha, Amanda
      Curious George Goes to Town
      Water fun and playground
Stu, Samantha, Amanda (the girls went solo 3-4 more times)
      Woody Woodpecker's Nuthouse Coaster®
      The Nuttiest Kids' Ride Ever
Stu, Samantha (Amanda was too short)
      Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit®
      Take Your Music for a Ride
Donna, Amanda
      JAWS®
      Go on a leisurely boat tour off the coast of Amity.
Donna, Samantha, Amanda
      MEN IN BLACK™ Alien Attack™
      Zap Aliens and Save the Galaxy
Stu, Samantha, Amanda
      The Simpsons Ride™
      Crash Through Krustyland

SKIPPED
      Revenge of the Mummy®
      Plunge into Darkness

      TWISTER...Ride It Out®
      Experience what it's like to be a real storm chaser

      Disaster!SM
      A Major Motion Picture Ride...Starring YOU

Most rides were simulated in some way, the only real roller coaster ridden on Day One was the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit® which was Sam's favorite ride of the two days. Amanda's was JAWS®, she loved the special effects and said that's what she'd like to do when she grows up.

The girls weren't interested in the other roller coaster ride (Mummy) or the Twister or Disaster simulated rides. I should have told Amanda about the special effects in those!

Here are a few photos, the rest are in our SmugMug Album.

Needless to say, by the time we got back to the hotel we were exhausted. Fortunately we ate dinner in the park (we had done the meal plan) so we just had to wash up and crash. Everyone was out before 9:00!!

Till next time - keep on rollin',
Donna and Stu

Back home!

I have been SOOOOOO busy....mommy and daddy left me at Doggie Camp again and I really had fun. They had some puppies my size and we played, and played, and played...who needs big dogs!

Mommy and daddy picked me up on the motorcycle yesterday and everyone had to come out to see me ride. They thought I was really cute. Of course I KNOW I'm really cute....[snicker]

I hope we come back here someday so I can play at Preppy Pets again. I really have fun there.

We stopped at the big red and yellow store on the way home and I got, yup, you guessed it, ICE CREAM! I could hardly stay awake for it but I managed...

When we got home I checked to be sure no one had taken anything and then I crawled (yes, CRAWLED) into my bed and went to sleep....for HOURS. Mommy and daddy went out and I barely noticed it.

This morning daddy took me out early then I got up on the bed with mommy and we both slept for a LONG time. I got up on the couch with mommy and daddy for a while.



Then I went outside for a while till it got too hot. I came in and played with all my toys....then.....zzzzzzzzz



Sniffing and lickingly yours,
Sadie

---

Universal Studios

Back in September, Stu and I took my grandson (Joshua) and his granddaughter (Olivia) to Disney World in Orlando. Stu and his late wife had started a tradition of taking the grandkids to Disney for their fifth birthday. This was a continuation of that tradition.

Since Joshua's sisters were well past age five (now being 8 & 9) and had been to Disney more than a few times, we decided to take them to Universal Studios where they had never been. Nor have we....LOL!

The family has arrived at Nickelodeon Resorts where they are spending the vacation week (the kids are on winter break from school in Atlanta area). We'll have dinner tomorrow night with everyone and the girls will spend the night at our hotel. We'll take the hotel shuttle to Universal on Monday and Tuesday, getting together for dinner on Tuesday night. A final breakfast with the family on Wednesday and we'll head back home.

The kids are really excited about Harry Potter World...they both love roller coasters so Stu will get in plenty of riding. Me....I'll be sitting out the more intense rides as well as ALL roller coasters. LOL!

Sadie will once again be at Preppy Pets. We'll be out all day so we won't get a chance to peek at her in the PetCam, but we know she'll be having a ball!

I will take the computer with me but don't know if I will take time to blog until we are back home. Long days with the shuttle leaving at 7:45 am and not returning until after 6pm. LOL!

Oh, the best new news...we are taking the motorcycles! My daughter and family have their car and will do all the hotel shuttling!

Till next time - keep on rollin',
Donna and Stu