As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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My DH is finally going to get one of his wishes granted - he's doing the Richard Petty Driving Experience in April (the Rookie experience). He's scheduled for an 8am session and needs to be there for 7:30am. I understand he'll have to go through a training class before he gets to drive. The lady at RP told me that he'd probably start driving around 8:45-9am but I know it will depend on how many other people are there in that session, the weather, etc.
While I'm happy for him, I'm really not looking forward to hanging out at the track with the girls waiting til he finally comes out. But I also don't want to show up too late either. I'd hate for him to drive without us watching.
Has anyone been a spectator at RP and arrived later than the participant? Or if you've driven, did you have a long wait to drive, even for the early morning session?
I'll probably end up going with him or leave for the track slightly later than he does and just deal with it (God bless Nintendo DS's! LOL) but just wanted to hear from others who may have done this. Thanks!!
Haven't done this but its on my wish list too. I hope you get some response because I 'm wondering about the same questions. I hope he has a great experience!
My hubby is doing it on Feb 19th but he is the 9:30 class for the King experience (he just returned from being away with the air force so I went a little crazy and booked a big package as his welcome home gift) I can ask him to tell me how long from the time the class starts till he is behind the wheel and I will report back to you if that is ok. I will be away at the spa enjoying some ME time because I am a worry wort and would lose my mind if I watched him so he told me I should go get a massage while he is doing his MANLY MAN stuff lol
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
We went with a friend a few years ago. We waited patiently in the stands for her turn. She loved it; it was the highlight of her trip. We waited around 1 1/2 hours. The experience has no appeal for me; I took drivers ed on the lower east side here in Manhattan; I've driven the Etoile in paris and around the Colosseum in Rome so this looks tame by comparison
My DH has done it several times and each time I met him after he was finished in the MK. There is someone at the track who takes pictures and he was ok with me not being there.
Ok so I just got back and my DH LOVED IT!!!! he was out on the track getting in the car about 45 minutes after his scheduled class time so it goes by very fast!!! I would only shadow him by a half hour forty five minutes tops!! Have fun.... We did
My DH has done this twice - and he is saying that if you are the first one to drive, you will be on the track within a half hour to 45 min. So I wouldn't wait to long if you want to watch and take photos.
The first time he did it, my DD and I went and watched and we walked around and took photos of some of the things and the track before - and yes thank God for those DS's!!! And then when they brought out all the "drivers' we were able to watch them all get ready outside - then it was the waiting for the end - they have a little "graduation" at the end where they give them their stat sheets with their speeds and stuff - (great for scrapbooking!) - so it can take a few hours, depending on how many drivers there on that session! So bring some snacks and lots of DS games! And don't forget the sunscreen! There is a covered area to sit in!
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Lisa Co-Guide to Sharing the Adventure: Disney World Trip Reports
BEWARE: We just did this. We had a misty cloudy day on the first day. They kept the guys around for over 2 hours tourning the garage and the cars (which was pretty cool) hoping to get them out on the track. Then, JUST as they were getting ready to take off, the sky opened up with rain. In the end, we had to reschedule. Hopefully you scheduled early enough in the vacation that you can reschedule for another day if it rains!
Thank you, everyone, for all of your feedback and suggestions. I still can't decide what to do - part of me would like to be there for him and part of me thinks the three of us are going to go stir-crazy LOL
We did this in Feb . Annual pass holders get to do the ride along experience for free till the end of March. It was so much fun and went very fast. We signed in suited up and were in the car within 20 minutes. The others there were watching someone doing the driving and did not wait long. We did find that we got the wrong directions from our hotel - we called the front desk and were told to ask the tram drivers to drive us there from the Magic kingdom parking lot. WRONG . There is a van that picks you up in front of the pet care center and drops you off there after. They come every 15 to 20 minutes.
Have fun ! it was a blast !!
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1Honeymoon 89 off property,2All Star Music 96,3All Star Sport 98,4All Star Movie00, 5Wilderness Lodge 03,6Shades of Green 05&Double Tree 05&Animal Kingdom Lodge 05 x2(7)
8Old Key West 05 x2(9), 10Wilderness Villas06, 11Old Key West 07& Coronado Springs 07&
Animal Kingdom Lodge 07,12-14Animal Kingdom Lodge 08x3,15Animal Kingdom Lodge 09,16Treehouse/cruise 09,17Old Key West1/ 10,18POP 5/10,19Saratoga/ Kidani 1200/10,Treehouse/AKL conceirge12/11, 21Boardwalk5/12
My Dh went like 119. but there were some that went to 124. I'm not sure what the maximum is, I think up to 140 but it really depends on the driver. You are following the car ahead of you and yo can't pass him so if he's confident that the driver can go faster safely and with confidence, he will speed up so the car can go faster behind him.
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
This is something my husband would LOVE to do. Does anyone have pricing info on this? I can't find it anywhere.
Anyway, if my husband were to do it. Most likely I would send him on his way. The girls and I would go to the MK and we could talk about it at dinner. Don't hate on me for that!