Pics from my Florida vacation - (Lots of pics, so 56k go make a sandwich)

[SirRangeALot]

We went out to lunch with Cody and Jordan today, and after talking about my vacation I was like "crap, I forgot to put up the pics!" :D So here you go!

We went down there primarily so I could meet my gf's family after dating for the past 3 years :hide: (she's originally from Florida). We stayed with Sheyanne's mom and her husband Paul. Their place is about an hour north of Tampa. They are also about an hour away from the Gulf, but we didn't get to go as much as we wanted to since it decided to rain pretty much all week. :(

We went to Kennedy Space Center on Monday the 28th of July and went to Daytona Speedway and the beach on August 1st. We spent a lot of time with her family, which was fine since they are all very nice people and I had a lot of fun!

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h63/sirrangealot/Florida/HPIM0493.jpg

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Sheyanne was excited she was able to spend a few days with her neice, Shaylee. She's 13 months old and a cutie!

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h63/sirrangealot/Florida/HPIM0579.jpg

Ugh...typical woman already showing in this pic! lol j/k :D
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h63/sirrangealot/Florida/HPIM0570.jpg

Daytona Speedway...
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h63/sirrangealot/Florida/HPIM0581.jpg

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This was pretty cool...this is a breakaway of Jeff Gordon's car that breaks down each section of the car from the chassis to the body. There were TV's that talk about each section and each part lifts up as it's done being discussed. Once it's done, it all comes back down together again!
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h63/sirrangealot/Florida/HPIM0588.jpg

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There were simulators that you could test your driving skills and set the best lap time. Sheyanne's mom's husband broke the best lap record! :D
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h63/sirrangealot/Florida/HPIM0591.jpg

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Ryan Newman's actual car that won this year's Daytona 500...complete with confetti and dried champagne on it! The crew and Newman signed the back of his car...
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h63/sirrangealot/Florida/HPIM0602.jpg

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Daytona 500 trophy
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h63/sirrangealot/Florida/HPIM0608.jpg

Championship trophy
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h63/sirrangealot/Florida/HPIM0611.jpg

This green flag flew on a previous shuttle mission right before Daytona 500. It was placed in Ryan Newman's car for the race.
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h63/sirrangealot/Florida/HPIM0609.jpg

Richard Petty's Driving School was ongoing right on the track. Prices range for the three-day program from $1200-$2400. I'm not THAT big of a race fan, but that would be a cool experience. We took a tram that took us through a tour of the speedway and were able to get down into the pit area for a few minutes as well. :)

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h63/sirrangealot/Florida/HPIM0615.jpg

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This is the stock car you were able to see how fast you could work as a member of a pit crew in jacking up the car and swapping the tires.
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h63/sirrangealot/Florida/HPIM0690.jpg

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The beach!!
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h63/sirrangealot/Florida/HPIM0706.jpg

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Pic of Sheyanne's mom and her husband Paul:
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h63/sirrangealot/Florida/HPIM0723.jpg



Thanks for looking! :beerglass:

[twooly]

Looks like you had a good time.

[Big Nug]

Nice i love that state it's a good time, looks like you had fun.:tu:

[sic_A4]

cool pics. Looks like you had a good time.

[vwmeister]

Nice pics! Looks like you had a great time. Next time you should plan your trip there around Feb, March or April. Much cooler weather. :D

[SirRangeALot]

Nice pics! Looks like you had a great time. Next time you should plan your trip there around Feb or March. Much cooler weather. :D

Yeah, I got some weird looks when I told people I was going down there in late July. Usually when people go it's in the dead of winter, but our plane tickets were dirt cheap ($300 round trip flying out of Dubuque) and Sheyanne wanted to go when she had less college courses to deal with.

[vwmeister]

but our plane tickets were dirt cheap ($300 round trip flying out of Dubuque)

ugh... Don't get me started on air fare. We are going the middle of March and the cheapest we found so far is out of Moline for $382 plus taxes and fees totaling $430. :eek: And I don't think they will be getting cheaper anytime soon. :mad:

[OrangeDUB]

Looks like fun!

[SirRangeALot]

ugh... Don't get me started on air fare. We are going the middle of March and the cheapest we found so far is out of Moline for $382 plus taxes and fees totaling $430. :eek: And I don't think they will be getting cheaper anytime soon. :mad:

Don't forget the wonderful taxation for carry-ons...an extra $15-20 depending on what airline you go through. Fortunately we didn't have to worry about that. It's all attributed to the high cost of jet fuel, plus laying off 9,500 airline personnel and parking 400 planes to reduce costs, then nickel and dime everything else (airline food, carry-ons, etc.) It's a mess, but I'm optimistic it will turn around soon. :tu: