2018 San Diego 3-Day Route Preview

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Our final 3-Day of the year is this weekend, and we are so excited to be heading back to the West Coast for the 2018 San Diego 3-Day. As the date fast approaches, we are giving a sneak peek at our 60-mile route, which will immerse walkers in the beautiful sights of San Diego and celebrate the final walk of the year.

Event Manager Meredith Parker walked her first 3-Day in San Diego years ago, so she (along with our whole San Diego coaching team) is very happy to welcome all of our participants next weekend.

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It will all begin at the Del Mar Fairgrounds once again, which was just home to the Breeder’s Cup race, and is a source of great local pride and excitement. This Opening Ceremony site has become a favorite for participants and supporters alike, and we’re excited to once again kick off our journey here.

Meredith enthuses, “It’s a great, festive location that’s home to a lot of iconic events for the city. Such a big, open space that’s perfect for us!”

After the Opening Ceremony, we will be making our way through Del Mar, which is always so welcoming to our walkers! Make sure to keep an eye out for the Toast Lady! After lunch at the picturesque Kellogg Park, we will enter La Jolla and spend Friday afternoon walking through that area, including passing Pacific Beach.

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We will finish the day at our camp site at Crown Point Shores, which has been a wonderful location for the last few years.

Meredith says, “It’s along the shoreline of Siesta Bay so you’ll get beautiful views! The residents of Crown Point have been so welcoming us for more than a decade, and we can’t wait to bring our sea of pink back to the park.”

Coach Staci echoes that, saying the whole team works year-round to maintain “meaningful and cooperative relationships with all of our sites, keeping walker safety and enjoyment as the top priority.”

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It’s the perfect spot nestled in the nature of the park that will be excellent to celebrate at 3-Day Main Street (Who is excited for those Bank of America massage chairs?!), as well as being a great camping grounds for a restful night’s sleep.

We will spend Saturday in San Diego proper, including a stop at Ocean Beach’s Dog Beach South for Pit Stop 1. There will be lots of local cheering stations on Day 2, as well as calming nature walks through Tecolote Shores, Mission Bay Park and De Anza Cove Park.

Then on Day 3, we’ll be back in San Diego for stop at Fanuel Street Park and Bonita Cove before lunch. Coach Staci says all the lunch spots throughout the weekend are picturesque and relaxing spots, so walkers can look forward to that all weekend long.

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Day 3 only has 15.5 miles on the route, so it will be quick and fun for our walkers! Pioneer Park and Balboa Park will also be great spots for photos and fun!

Our 60-mile journey ends at our Closing Ceremony, which once again will be at Waterfront Park.

Meredith explains, “It’s right on the harbor, across the street from Embarcadero, which is a waterfront area that hosts the Maritime Museum and the Star of India full-rigged sailing ship.”

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The park is relatively new to the San Diego landscape and is close to Little Italy and the Gaslamp Quarter, which are perfect places to celebrate with friends and family after your 60-mile journey! There will be plenty of amazing photo ops so get your selfie smiles ready ?

We are so excited to celebrate with San Diego all weekend long and end our 2018 3-Day season making bold strides together towards a cure for breast cancer. We have had Bold Goals for 2018 and beyond, and all of you are helping us take important steps towards achieving them.

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Walking for MeeMaw: Meet Jessa G. from the San Diego 3-Day

“I think the thing I love most about the 3-Day is how much the entire event is like one big family reunion. Everyone is so open and easy to talk to. Everyone is there to support everyone else.”

When Jessa G. talks about the 3-Day, she is truly describing a family affair. Her mom, Heather, has been a part of the 3-Day in one way or another since it began in 2001. Heather, and now Jessa alongside her, walk in memory of their MeeMaw (Jessa’s grandmother, and Heather’s mom). MeeMaw lost her fight to breast cancer when Jessa was young, and since then Heather has been a part of the 3-Day family.

(Jessa and her mom)

A few years ago, Jessa also joined the Pink Bubble as a member of the Youth Corps!

“I had finally found a way that I too could join my mom in memory of my MeeMaw!”

Last year was the first year Jessa was old enough to walk the 3-Day…and walk she did! She and a family friend took on those sixty miles with smiles on their faces and determination in their hearts.

Jessa says, “Although I had already been in the background of the walk, helping make sure things went smoothly and happily for all the walkers, I didn’t know how truly challenging it is. Having that walking experience really gave me a new respect for my mom and all the people who walk the 3-Day year after year. Walking in my mom’s footsteps helped me so much. My mom even let me use the same fanny pack that she used in her first 3-Day, 16 years later.”

Jessa’s mom was there to watch her cross her first-ever 3-Day finish line, and they hope to expand their family’s presence in 2018. Both of Jessa’s younger sisters will be on Youth Corps, and her mom will be part of Lunch Crew. Jessa is hoping to make it back from college in time for the event as well, but no matter if she’s walking, or there in spirit, she will have the 3-Day in her heart.

“It’s so important to me to continue to be a part of the 3-Day in any way, because of the amazing work that I’ve seen through the 3-Day do, just over the past few years that I’ve been there. I’ve seen just how it brings people together and creates lifelong friendships of love and support. The pink bubble is something to love and miss when you aren’t there.”

This past year is still fresh in her mind , and she was more than happy to share tips for first-time walkers:

Train more on sidewalks and concrete than on trails!
She also warns against doing any form of activity before the event that could put yourself at risk for injury.
If you need some extra pep in your step, Jessa loves listening to pop artists like Halsey, Ed Sheeran, Avril Lavigne, Bruno Mars, Little Mix, as well as musicals like Hamilton to keep herself motivated during those long training walks.
Need fundraising ideas? Jessa says to “ask literally everyone you know! People are more willing to help out than you would think; teachers, friends, doctors, family, everyone.”
She also recommends asking people to donate old furniture or clothes and having a garage sale where all the money goes towards breast cancer.

These tips come from an expert, too! Though Jessa has only walked the 3-Day once, she has grown up around a 3-Day veteran — her mom, Heather. Jessa says that her mom has been a life-long motivation, and the epitome of someone who is More Than Pink.

“She was the first one in my family to start doing the 3-Day, and she has consistently been a part of them for so many years! She’s talked with so many of the people on so many different events. I haven’t gone to a single 3-Day where I haven’t been approached by one person or another asking if I’m Heather’s daughter. Everyone I’ve talked to has had just the greatest things to say about how she has helped them through something in their lives, or just been there to talk with them even outside of the 3-Day.”

With role models like Heather and her MeeMaw, Jessa is going to keeping walking and working towards a world without breast cancer.

Recruit Your Friends for a 3-Day Slumber Party Before May 31

Who doesn’t love a slumber party? You can have a fun time with your pals, sleep under the stars, share stories and jokes and snacks and more. It’s the perfect way to get in some quality bonding time, and you can do all of that right on the 3-Day!

If you recruit two first-time walkers by May 31 to join you on the 3-Day, we’ll arrange for you to have a More Than Pink slumber party together on-event! This glamping experience comes complete with a large tent that sleeps up to four people, and has air mattresses, pillows and phone chargers.

But time is running out! There are only a few more days to earn a stay in one of our awesome 3-Day slumber party tents, and you won’t want to miss out. Don’t believe us?

This is what Kendall C., one of our 2017 slumber party tent users, had to say about her experience:

“The tent was SO much larger than we anticipated, and the air mattresses and pillows were such a treat to have! I also couldn’t believe there were chairs, which we loved having at the end of the day to relax in. We also would bring all our chairs together to hang out in the evening before bed. I also remember a welcome doormat, and a little table complete with a fake succulent! I mean, that is glamping in my book and I’ll take it any day! To top it all off, there was a cell phone charger we ALL got to use, even at the same time. We were so, so happy to have the Slumber Party tent and it completely made our camping experience perfect!”

You can take a sneak peek inside this year’s tents with Coach Marianne from San Diego, who camped out with some 3-Dayers to test out the amazing slumber party experience. They had a ball!

So, what are you waiting for? Visit The3Day.org/Refer to learn more about our 3-Day Slumber Party offer. Then, start asking your besties to join you for a truly one-of-a-kind sleepover. Let’s go glamping!