carolinacaniac

Good report! Looked like you had spent more time than I did there, I arrived around 3-4 in the afternoon, but it was still a good time. I think next year if I go I am gonna get the books of tickets in advance, I paid out the a$$ since i got them there.

The one time I had been to Concord Mills, I ate at the BBQ place, I thought the beef sandwhich was pretty good! So when did jeepers close? I had gotten my credit last year in March the day before going to Carowinds for the first time. I dunno what others would say, but I would coun't it as a ptr! By the way, My step-dad is a big Gonzaga fan, so I know all about Adam Morrison

Sounds like a cool trip, I would be up for it since the three parks are are fun to visit. The problem is that I am going to Michigan the week before with my girlfriend for her brother's high school graduation, and I don't think I could really justify going on week long trips consecutively to my manager. Although I am thinking about heading down to SFOG in mid-March, and it is possible that I may be flying solo, so if you are interested in meeting upthere or catching a ride, who knows?...... That goes for anyone else too, cause I need to be around some coaster nerds too!!!

I'll give you kudos for being there when they won it, that is just awesome! But my buddy Al still has one on me. Because of the stage they have at Mendenhall at ECU, they don't have a ramp or elevator for wheelchair access, so the guy from the Hall of Fame that was escorting the cup brought it down for him to hold while I took the picture for him. As for the fair, I have been to the Puyallup fair in Washington (Born and raised in Seattle till I was 8, then Bremerton till 1999), and it was a lot more organized, and I think there was more to do besides the rides. The NC fair just seemed to be too crowded and there were way too many food stands. It was kind of like if food stands could make a suburban area, then that would have been it.

Hey everyone, Gary here, on monday I was off from class (fall break) and work, and since I had yet to go to the North Carolina State Fair since I moved here in 1999, I thought I would go check it out. I would have taken my girlfriend Melissa, but she had to work all night, so I asked my friend Ted if he wanted to tag along. I think he may be regreting it by now, but at least it was a good time to be had! This is the first time I have done a photo trip report so let me know what you think!! 49_fireworks7.bmp And that wraps up this trip report, hope you all enjoyed!! 48_fireworks6.bmp So they aren't as extravagant as Disney, but it was still fun to watch. 47_fireworks5.bmp AHHHHHHHHHHH 46_fireworks4.bmp OOOOOOOOOOO 45_fireworks3.bmp AHHHHHHH 44_fireworks2.bmp OOOOOOOOO 43_fireworks1.bmp Even though it may seem like this was done for the sheep above, it is done every night at the fair. 42_sheepsex.bmp I have no other way to describe this moment. 41_tedandsheep.bmp Buffalo Ted here was about two seconds away from putting a new meaning into the term "Silence of the lambs." 40_Sheeppoundit.bmp This sheep also wanted to Pount It!!! 39_KKKsheep.bmp Sheep: "THE SOUTH WILL RISE AGAIN!" Gary: "Uhhhh, sure it will" 38_carcover.bmp Well, if this were going to be a new ride, at least they were doing a better job hiding it than a certain park in Ohio! 37_avebrakes.bmp Interesting how advanced these traveling carnie rides can be, I almost thought I was riding Millennium Force!!! Ok, maybe not. 36_Tedonave.bmp Ted approves of Avalanche the second time around 35_pushupguy.bmp I should have been right next to him doing the same thing to work off that fried twinkie 34_garyeattwinkie.bmp If you know someone who would not approve of this item of eating, send him an e-mail! 33_thetwinkie.bmp ....and for whatever reason I decided I must try one 32_twinkiesign.bmp Well, I had heard of these before, but only thought it was a legend, but I soon discovered that it was true! 31_orientexpress2.bmp Dragon: "I am sick of these stupid adults who want to ride me, maybe I can get ride of him by making him crash into my Castle!" 30_orientexpress.bmp Credit #4: Orient Express, this is when Ted finally understood how odd we coaster fanatics can be! 29_garyworm.bmp Credit #3: Wacky Worm 2, and I seem way to damn excited to be getting on this thing! 28_Dortonfountain.bmp This is the fountain in front of Dorton Arena, where the concerts of the fair are held. 27_parkinglotcoaster.bmp So the state fair has a parking lot coaster too! 26_avelift.bmp Another lift hill shot for those enthusiasts! 25_avalanche.bmp Credit #3: Avelanche, well, actually, it isn't, because they had this coaster at the Pitt County Fair in Greenville last year, and I already rode it, but still a fun ride 24_garywinky.bmp If people thought that Tinky Winky was gay before.........(Sorry Melissa, I couln't help it! I had to be Gary Winky!) 23_canepoke.bmp Well, uh....... I guess if you poke a woman in the butt with a cane, she starts to dance with excitement 22_garymouse.bmp Maybe I was a little too happy about getting the lift hill shot! 21_mouselift.bmp YES! Some good old lift hill footage for the lift hill enthusiasts! 20_crazymouse.bmp Credit #2: The Crazy Mouse, the thought that this may be the mouse from the Myrtle Beach Grand Prix came to mind, but I figured that this was probably not the same, since it is featured on Amusements of America's website. if it was the same one though, th 19_squirrel.bmp I suppose this would not be an Elissa approved rodent? He didn't even get the blue ribbon 18_midway2.bmp Another one of the midways 17_midway1.bmp A veiw of one midway from one of the ferris wheels, this is where I had discovered that there was a second wacky worm. 16_wackyworm1.bmp Credit #1: Wacky Worm 1......yes, I said wacky worm one. The NC state fair is weird because they have multiple amusement companies on the midway, so they end up having multiples of the same ride, like 4 ferris wheels, three swing and spin rides, and two w 15_heffalumpkin.bmp But it looks like the Winnie the Pooh ride is on another table, oh well, maybe there are some rides to catch on the Midway 14_disneypumpkins.bmp Who knew that at the NC State Fair, you could have DCA, Fantasy Land and New Orleans Square all within inches of each other...and in pumpkin form no less! 13_littledonkey.bmp The next TPR mascot? you be the judge! 12_littlecow.bmp He didn't seem too happy that his home would soon be below a set of golden arches. 11_pigglets.bmp Members of the Future Breakfast-Side Dishes Club 10_goatpound.bmp This is a tribute to one of the TPR regulars, as this goat wanted to pound it! 09_meatchart.bmp So I guess if I wanted to pick one of the cows in the cow barn here and try to make a fresh steak out of it right there, then this sign would be handy 08_bigcow.bmp Oh yeah, he was a big boy! I think he was about another foot or two longer than I am tall. 07_cowline.bmp I thought all the cows were trying to pose for a picture, but it turns out they were all dreaming about this hunk of meat........ 06_littlehorse.bmp Gary: "I have seen smaller!" Ted: "I'll bet Melissa hasn't told you that before" 05_smallhorse.bmp I normally don't really buy into these goofy little "freak show" attractions, but Ted and I went for it anyway. 04_poopguy.bmp At the entrance of the fair, they have a sign that warns you not to get to close to the animals, otherwise they will poo all over you! 03_brindamourlog.bmp A nice memory, our good old Carolina Hurricanes winning the Cup! I actually got to see the real Stanley Cup when they brought it here to Greenville a week or two ago. It you wanna see the pic, let me know! 02_eatgoat.bmp Although the chicken may like the sign, I am not sure that I would go for that one. 01_StateTruck.bmp Come one, come all, to the North Carolina State Fair!!

Good point, at RDU that is another 60 bucks for the 10 days!

Anyone here think they would just drive to Cincinnati for the Midwest Trip? The way I see it, from here in Eastern North Carolina to Cincinnati is about 610 miles, or around 10 hours, so round trip would be about 1220 miles, so if my car gets about 35 mpg, that would be around 35 Gallons, and for laughters sake we will say gas around then may be around $3.20, so then it would be about $112. Now if I were to fly out of Raleigh to Cincinnati, it would be about $285 (which is the cheapest I have found so far). Not to mention that if I bring someone along, gas money can be split. Personally, I am all for taking a nice little trip to the Queen city on the road

I'm all up for the Midwest Tour and If I could afford it the spain/italy tour. I have only been to Cedar Point (former ride host) and Kings Island, and have not ventured off of North America (only been to Canada and Mexico once each, so Spain and Italy would be a great adventure).