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The Disneyland Quest

  Matt Ainsworth

  The Disneyland Quest

  Matt Ainsworth

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system without written permission from the author, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review.

  Copyright © 2012 Matt Ainsworth

  This book makes reference to various Disney copyrighted characters, trademarks, marks, and registered marks owned by the Walt Disney Company and Disney Enterprises, Inc. All attractions, product names, or other works mentioned in this book are trademarks of their respective owners and the names and products used in this book are strictly for editorial purposes; no commercial claims to their use is claimed by the author or publisher. All references to such trademarked properties are used in accordance with the Fair Use Doctrine and are not meant to imply this book is a Disney product for advertising or commercial purposes.

  This book is a complete work of fiction. All events are fictionalized. The Disneyland Quest is not endorsed by, sponsored by, or connected with the Walt Disney Company and/or Disney Enterprises, Inc in any way.

  Cover photograph taken by Matt Ainsworth.

  Copyright © 2012 Matt Ainsworth

  All rights reserved.

  For Kim, Ally, and Averi

  Also by Matt Ainsworth

  THE DISNEYLAND QUEST 2

  Dizzy’s California Adventure

  Available April 2015…

  THE DISNEYLAND QUEST 3

  Unlocking the Disney Vault

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Prologue

  Five men in suits walked down Main Street, USA at Disneyland. It was a beautiful summer afternoon in Anaheim, only 83 degrees with a slight breeze. The men were Senior Vice Presidents of Walt Disney Inc. and were making their regular visit to the park the day before their quarterly meeting in front of the board.

  “Lovely day, isn’t it gentlemen?” a short, overweight man with a red bowtie said. “We call this postcard weather. Not a cloud in the sky.”

  “Let’s make this trip quick Pegg,” the tallest of the five men said. “Routine walkthrough. You know, the usual.”

  “Yes, of course,” said Mr. Pegg. “But I just wanted to show you guys something and run an idea past you all. I am going to propose it tomorrow at the meeting.”

  A group of teenagers bumped into Mr. Pegg and continued walking without saying a word. All three had headphones on and were typing away at the screens on their cell phones. Mr. Pegg shook his head in disappointment.

  Mr. Pegg led the group through the opening of Sleeping Beauty’s Castle and into Fantasyland. King Arthur’s Carousel was playing a medley of Disney songs, filling the entire area with music. They walked past the line of Peter Pan’s Flight, continued past the line for the Carousel and Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, and stopped in front of Dumbo the Flying Elephant.

  “Gentlemen,” Mr. Pegg said. “Look around you. What do you see?”

  The four men took in the scene in front of them. Flying elephants swooped past them, white horses rose up and down to the music, and Casey Jr.’s Circus Train chugged by on the nearby tracks.

  “I see kids on rides,” one man said.

  “Ok, what else?” Mr. Pegg asked. “Look closely.”

  Mr. Pegg pointed their attention to the people standing in line for the rides. Almost all of them had a cell phone, tablet, handheld video game, or some other electronic device in their hand. There were kids lying on the ground watching movies on their iPods and adults were typing away on their phones or talking into a headset attached to their ear.

  “This is a problem,” Mr. Pegg began. “The magic here is dying. People are so wrapped up in the device in their hand they are missing the point of the park. Look at this place! That kid over there is a few steps away from a flying elephant, but he is on his back watching a movie. He is IN a movie right now but he is missing it. No one appreciates the history of this place anymore. No one notices the small touches that make this the Happiest Place on Earth!”

  The four men looked at Mr. Pegg. A passionate speech about the park guests changing was not unusual for Mr. Pegg, but he seemed especially worked up this time.

  “I am going to propose something tomorrow that will bring back the magic to Disneyland, something that will let people fall in love with this place all over again. I want people to notice things they have never noticed before. I want people running all over the park and actually experiencing the magic of this place. Tomorrow morning, I am going to propose my idea of The Disneyland Quest.”

  The men stared at Mr. Pegg.

  “The what?” the tallest of the men said.

  “The Disneyland Quest,” Mr. Pegg repeated. “It will be a treasure hunt across Disneyland. Clues and riddles will be hidden throughout the park leading guests to a combination.”

  “A combination to what?” another man asked.

  “The combination to a vault, of course.”

  “And what is in this vault?” The men were toying with Mr. Pegg, certain his idea would be a dud.

  “I was thinking $250,000 and four lifetime passes to all Disney parks worldwide.”

  “You are nuts Pegg,” the tallest man said, bursting into laughter. The rest of the men joined in. “No one will go for it. The bosses might be ok with the passes. Getting people into the park is what they want after all.”

  “Can’t get their money until they get in,” one of the men added.

  “But the $250,000 they won’t go for,” the tallest man continued. “No way, no how.”

  “The $250,000 will be my own money,” Mr. Pegg said proudly.

  The smiles erased from the men’s faces. They began wondering if Mr. Pegg had lost his mind. “If the board agrees to the Quest as I have designed it, only someone who truly knows Disneyland will be able to solve the riddles. If that happens, I will gladly hand over the prize.”

  “If you are putting up your own money, I don’t see why they won’t sign off on this idea,” one of the men said as they turned and walked back toward Sleeping Beauty’s Castle. “It definitely will fill the park, that’s for sure.”

  The next morning the board unanimously agreed to Mr. Pegg’s proposal after another heartfelt speech from the man in the bow tie. There was some stirring from the men and women in the room when Mr. Pegg mentioned the prize money, but they calmed down when he said it would be his money on the line.

  As the board room slowly emptied, Mr. Pegg stayed behind and looked out the window. He wondered if anyone out there would be able to finish his Quest. He wondered if anyone loved the history and magic of Disneyland as much as he did. And if there was, Mr. Pegg couldn’t wait to meet them.