Theme-Park-Urge

There are usually two carnivals at Nolensville Pike and Old Hickory - the beginning of May and the end of August. I think that the first is usually done by Dickson Carnival Company and the second is by Geren Rides - at least, that's how it's been in the past. The Cool Springs carnival is usually held around the end of May and can be seen in the mall parking lot from I-65. Franklin Main Street Festival is also at the beginning of May. 2011 was the first year that I had heard of it though, after being in Nashville for five years. I can shoot you a PM if I see that any are running, if you'd like. The majority of these pics were shot with a Sony Cyber-shot. I switched to a Canon EOS Rebel T2i around September, 2010. Thanks to anyone who posted compliments!

Next up: Favorites - none of which have been shared on TPR before. This is just a sampling of my personal favorites from my travels over the last couple years. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do! Journey To Atlantis - SeaWorld Orlando (2008) Kraken - SeaWorld Orlando (2008) Kraken - SeaWorld Orlando (2008) Kraken - SeaWorld Orlando (2008) Freak Out - Cool Springs, TN Carnival (2009) Wild Mouse - Idlewild (2009) Round Up - Idlewild (2009) Fandango - Knoebels (2009) Sklooosh - Knoebels (2009) Coastline Plunge - Hersheypark (2009) Wildcat - Hersheypark (2009) Fahrenheit - Hersheypark (2009) Fahrenheit - Hersheypark (2009) Fahrenheit - Hersheypark (2009) Fahrenheit - Hersheypark (2009) Sidewinder - Hersheypark (2009) Storm Runner - Hersheypark (2009) Storm Runner - Hersheypark (2009) Great Bear - Hersheypark (2009) Great Bear - Hersheypark (2009) Great Bear - Hersheypark (2009) Great Bear - Hersheypark (2009) Cheetah Chase - Busch Gardens Tampa (2009) Scorpion - Busch Gardens Tampa (2009) Kumba - Busch Gardens Tampa (2009) Montu - Busch Gardens Tampa (2009) SheiKra - Busch Gardens Tampa (2009) Ride Of Steel - Darien Lake (2010) Boomerang - Darien Lake (2010) Viper - Darien Lake (2010) Ravine Flyer II - Waldameer (2010) L. Ruth Express - Waldameer (2010) Mega Vortex - Waldameer (2010) Canyon Blaster - Great Escape (2010) Steamin' Demon - Great Escape (2010) Screamin' Eagle - Seabreeze (2010) Silver Comet - Martin's Fantasy Island (2010) Roller Coaster - New York, New York (2010) Speed (The Ride) - NASCAR Café (2010) Canyon Blaster - Adventuredome (2010) Rock-O-Plane - Franklin, TN Main Street Festival (2011) Loop-O-Plane - Franklin, TN Main Street Festival (2011) Zipper - Nolensville Pike, TN Carnival (2011) Firestorm - Tennessee State Fair (2011) Mega Drop - Tennessee State Fair (2011) Ferris Wheel - Tennessee State Fair (2011)

Next up: Thrills - close-ups and action shots. Voyage - Holiday World (2007) Voyage - Holiday World (2007) Thunder Run - Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom (2007) Georgia Cyclone - Six Flags Over Georgia (2007) Orbiter - Lake Winnepesaukah (2007) Maverick - Cedar Point (2007) Maverick - Cedar Point (2007) maXair - Cedar Point (2007) Steel Hawg - Indiana Beach (2008) Cyclops - Mt. Olumpus (2008) Avalanche - Timber Falls (2008) Swing Shot - Kennywood (2009) Thunderbolt - Kennywood (2009) Thunderbolt - Kennywood (2009) Jackrabbit - Kennywood (2009) Wild Mouse - Idlewild (2009) Flume - Knoebels (2009) Skloosh - Knoebels (2009) Tidal Force - Hersheypark (2009) Wild Mouse - Hersheypark (2009) Fahrenheit - Hersheypark (2009) Fahrenheit - Hersheypark (2009) Comet - Hersheypark (2009) Lil' Dipper - Camden Park (2009) Montu - Busch Gardens Tampa (2009) SheiKra - Busch Gardens Tampa (2009) SheiKra - Busch Gardens Tampa (2009) Ravine Flyer II - Waldameer (2010) Ravine Flyer II - Waldameer (2010) Comet - Waldameer (2010) Comet - Great Escape (2010) Bobsleds - Seabreeze (2010) Whirlwind - Seabreeze (2010) Whirlwind - Seabreeze (2010) Silver Comet - Martin's Fantasy Island (2010) Sky Jump - Stratosphere (2010) Canyon Blaster - Adventuredome (2010) Crazy Mouse - Tennessee State Fair (2011)

Next up: Dusk & Night - as darkness sets in, many parks come alive. Top Thrill Dragster - Cedar Point (2007) Giant Wheel - Indiana Beach (2008) Water Swings - Indiana Beach (2008) Seattle Wheel - Williamson County, TN Fair (2008) Seattle Wheel - Williamson County, TN Fair (2008) Mega Drop - Williamson County, TN Fair (2008) Cyclops - Williamson County, TN Fair (2008) Sky Wheel - Tennessee State Fair (2008) Starship 3000 - Tennessee State Fair (2008) Windstorm - Old Town (2008) Thunderbolt - Kennywood (2009) Volcano - Kennywood (2009) Hurricane - Nolensville Pike, TN Carnival (2010) Loop-O-Plane - Nolensville Pike, TN Carnival (2011) Starship 2000 - Tennessee State Fair (2011) Ferris Wheel - Tennessee State Fair (2011) Firestorm - Tennessee State Fair (2011) Mega Drop - Tennessee State Fair (2011) Tennessee State Fair (2011)

Next up: Water - a collection of pics that feature fountains, waterfalls, lakes, etc. and focus on the more serene aspects of parks. Thunder River - Six Flags Over Georgia (2007) Pirate - Lake Winnepesaukah (2007) Shafer Queen - Indiana Beach (2008) Avalanche - Timber Falls (2008) Entrance - SeaWorld Orlando (2008) Phantom's Revenge - Kennywood (2009) Phantom's Revenge - Kennywood (2009) Phantom's Revenge - Kennywood (2009) Paddle Boats - Kennywood (2009) Fountain - Kennywood (2009) Fountain - Kennywood (2009) Fountain - Kennywood (2009) Old Mill - Knoebels (2009) Fountain - Hersheypark (2009) Fountain - Darien Lake (2010) Ali Baba - Waldameer (2010)

As 2011 nears an end, I realized that I haven't posted to TPR in a while (let me just say that things have been crazy). Now that things have seemed to settle down a bit and I wouldn't dream of posting old trip reports, I thought that I would share some of my favorite pics from my park visits, presented in themed categories. I hope you enjoy them! Happy (early) New Year! First up: Flowers & Foliage - a collection of flowery pics meant to show the more beautiful aspects of parks - proving, once again, that beauty can be found where you least expect it. Sky Ride - Cedar Point (2007) Iron Dragon - Cedar Point (2007) Cedar Creek Mine Ride - Cedar Point (2007) Cyclops - Mt. Olympus (2008) Little Titans - Mt. Olympus (2008) Journey To Atlantis - SeaWorld Orlando (2008) Journey To Atlantis - SeaWorld Orlando (2008) Pittsburg Plunge - Kennywood (2009) Satellite - Knoebels (2008) SooperDooperLooper - Hersheypark (2009) Trailblazer - Hersheypark (2009) Storm Runner - Hersheypark (2009) Storm Runner - Hersheypark (2009) Stanley Falls Flume - Busch Gardens Tampa (2009) Scorpion - Busch Gardens Tampa (2009) SheiKra - Busch Gardens Tampa (2009) SheiKra - Busch Gardens Tampa (2009) Kumba - Busch Gardens Tampa (2009) Skyride - Busch Gardens Tampa (2009) Sky Ride - Waldameer (2010) Sky Ride - Waldameer (2010) Grand Carousel - Great Escape (2010) Sky Ride - Great Escape (2010) Carousel - Martin's Fantasy Island (2010) Carousel - Martin's Fantasy Island (2010) Gondola Wheel - Martin's Fantasy Island (2010) Mega Disko - Martin's Fantasy Island (2010)

Here are a couple Great Escape images that you listed, Larry, as well as a Kennywood Raging Rapids sign pic. Keith

Thanks for your replies and kudos!! To answer an earlier question: I actually use a Sony-Cybershot. I hope to upgrade to an SLR soon... I'm glad that you found Kennywood as beautiful and aspiring as I did!

Part three (aka The End): Don't forget: there's even more Kennywood pics at www.ThemeParkUrge.com. Thanks for reading! And fireworks! But not before one last history lesson... Goodnight. The Windmill. And with that, I say: Bayern Kurve! For some reason, I love this shot. Maybe it's coz I actually know what I'm looking at. Most probably won't... Volcano! (with a different camera setting) Volcano! Musik Express! Even prettier at nite! Fountains, flowers, and the flag. A fountain! Yes, I kind of like fountains... Phantom's Revenge! Lost Kennywood. I love the way this pic turned out. Thunderbolt! Get it? Arrow 360. Kennywood Arrow. Yeah, it actually took me quite a while to realize... Aero 360. Paddle Boats. Jackrabbit. As nite fell, Kennywood lit up! The Merry-Go-Round. And since we're on the subject of daughters, here are seven daughters (of whom, I have no idea...) standing in a row while jugglers perform around and over them. They kept it going for about five minutes! Since we're on the subject of Merry-Go-Rounds, here's Kennywood's. I found this to be adorable. Actually, if I ever have a daughter, she WILL have a Merry-Go-Round horse like this in her bedroom. I'm proud to be an American, where we can display our country's flags in cute little wheel barrel flower planters and not risk persecution. It don't get any more historic than this. Speaking of history... And its history. After conquering just about the whole park, I decided to meander a little. This is the windmill. I thought that this was a nice touch, even if it was sponsored by BP. It's still subtle. Kennywood's antique cars: Turnpike. Garfield's Nightmare. Sorry, I passed since I hadn't heard amazing things about it. Here's a better look. All the ride does is go around in a flat circle until you reach this launch pad. Then, airtime ensues. You can see the launch pad here. Plus, this kid's expression is priceless. Check out the blonde girl's hair. That's how much airtime you got when you hit (what I call) the launch pad. Next up, another Kennywood classic: The Kangaroo! I have no idea how I got this glow... Here's Kennywood's Skycoaster. I only like this shot coz somehow Pitt Fall is in the distant background centered and framed by Skycoaster's supports.

Part two: Oh yeah, here's Kennywood's Paratrooper, which they ran in hyper-out-of-control mode. Seriously, I've never seen a Paratrooper swing so much or rotate so fast! Stay tuned. Part three (aka The End) coming right up. And the final drop. Actually there was a girl in line in front of me teaching her young riding partner about double-downs, which I found to be very cool. And again. And here is that "big drop". This is the turnaround that precedes the "big drop". You actually pick up a good head-of-steam before reaching the tunnel. One cool aspect is that after leaving the station, you go down a ravine and up into this tunnel, then down again; all before the lift. Jackrabbit's trains were pretty sweet! Check out the old-school bumper on the front. Either this guy thought that he moving OR he was showing his young riding partner how it's done OR he was hamming it up for the camera. You decide. Everyone who's been to Kennywood has this picture, right?!? Let's keep the classic wooden goodness going, shall we...? Jackrabbit's up next! Red's in the lead. I was in the red train and had the outside track on the first turnaround. My train won. But it would've been more fun if there was a little hand-slapping during the turnarounds. The Racer was a lot of fun. I did not know that... More history for those who care... Seriously, I loved how the park had these posted everywhere, coz I DO care! Which also happens to be right next to this: The Racer! Whoo hoo! More Kennywood history for those who are interested... I found it quite apropos that the Shooting Gallery is located here. People didn't seem to get too wet on this. Log Jammer. Blah, blah, blah... (The ride's not blah, the caption is) I was kind of worried about the woman across me losing her lunch when she said that she's never been on a ride like this and hasn't been to a theme park in many years. Thankfully, she survived. They left us hanging up there for a good while. Yes, it's a double-inverted floorless swinging ship. Or DIFSS for short. Aero 360! Oh yeah, and a miniature version of The Turtle, called Turtle Chase. Cute. Ok, enough with the kiddie rides... You didn't come here for kiddie rides, did you?!? You came here for... Oh yeah, Kiddieland also had this contraption called Dizzy Dynamo; which I can't say I've seen before. Adults can ride, but I did not. I'm no whore. Then there's this: Lil' Phantom. Kennywood also has a pretty nice Kiddie section, most of which are your normal rides: Kiddie Swings, Kiddie Ferris Wheel, Frog Hopper, Rockin' Tug, Crazy Bus, etc... Too cool and cute, all at the same time. Auto Race was another classic ride in Kennywood's arsenal. The obligatory Laffin' Sal pic. The classic Kennywood clock. I then made it through the pre-show of Ghostwood Estate only to have it go down. Sorry, but I'm not waiting an hour for a shooting dark ride. She went for it. And I'm thankful, coz Thunderbolt rocked my world in a good way! Now it's in my wooden Top 5. Suggest to her that she take her frantic kid out of the station and I'll ride with her youngster. (Yeah, it sounds creepy in hindsight) Too bad once it came our turn to board (a mother with her older son and me with her younger son), the older son chickened out. Leaving me to do only one thing... Luckily, just as I got in line, a family of three walked up behind me. I thought all was well... I sure hope that I can find a partner to ride with me coz I ain't leaving the park without riding this coaster... A little history for those who care... I'm thinking about replicating this drawing on my bedroom wall. What do you think?!? Hey, that's my high school's moniker! You don't know how many times I've heard AC/DC's "Thunderstuck" in my life... Thunderbolt! Noah's Ark sits making a very annoying noise while I'm trying to eat my fries. I didn't have time to actually partake in the attraction, coz I was heading here: Yes, I had to get the cheesy bacon fries, but I wasn't brave enough to get gravy on them. Close-up of The Turtle with a little Phantom action in the background. Although extremely simple in its design, I still found The Turtle to be plain good old fun. Yep, it's a turtle. A little history for those who care... Next up: The Turtle!

What better way to celebrate America's independence than head out to Kennywood?!? After all, it is a historical landmark... Thanks to TPR, I had a plan that would hopefully allow me to maximize the day, as I feared the potential for large crowds. The only other park I'd been to on the 4th of July was SFGAM years ago and it was a ghost town then. I was praying that my luck would be much of the same this year, but I planned according to maximum capacity and maximum thrills. Early on, the crowds were extremely light; allowing Phantom's Revenge, Exterminator, and Thunderbolt to be walk-ons. Not bad: it's noon and I've got three of the five coasters I plan to ride out of the way. Good thing too coz, after noon, swarms of people descended on Kennywood. I was amazed by the overall atmosphere at the park: old-school flats (Bayern Kurve, Turtle, Kangaroo) mixed seamlessly with newer technology (Cosmic Chaos, SwingShot, Aero 360) to give the air of excitement and thrills that spans generations. Oh yeah, and the coasters are great too! Phantom's Revenge was great in the front but kind of tweaked my back near the end while riding in the rear. What a great coaster! Thunderbolt was such a surprisingly good ride that it's firmly in my wooden Top 5 now. Racer was wonderful, although I was disappointed with the lack of hand-slapping on the turnarounds. Jackrabbit had a uniqueness to it and was fun, especially the double-down. Overall, the park was great and after almost twelve hours I still didn't want to leave. Cap that off with a fireworks show, and I had a memorable Fourth of July! With that, on to the pictures (posted in multiple parts): btw: There are a ton more pics (yes, there's even more) posted to www.themeparkurge.com Part one: But not before one more pic of Phantom's Revenge. Hang tight. Part two is coming... With that, it's time to move on from the Lost Kennywood area of the park. How awesome is this?!? Somehow I can't imagine this scene in a Six Flags or Cedar Fair park... Pittsburg Plunge and fountains... and flowers. Pittsburg Plunge and a fountain. Phantom's Revenge's second drop and a fountain. Phantom's Revenge's first drop and a fountain. And now for the fountain segment of this trip report: Pitt Fall and fountains. However, these kids (and many others) still love drop towers. I hadn't ridden a drop tower since S:TOP at SFKK. Call me spooked. This is Pitt Fall. Clever name. Exterminator! Actually, for an indoor spinning wild mouse, I was dizzy beyond belief from this! The Kennywood Whip looked fun but I was on to more pressing matters... No Wave Swinger for me. Which lead me to ask: Do chairswings have a weight limit? Coz I never feel safe on them... ...which I'm sure is exactly what the dude flashing the devil horns is thinking. I love giant swings coz there's really nothing to hold onto... I will never pass up a paid-with-admission Screamin' Swing. After a couple spins on Phantom, SwingShot's next. ...and a crazy return trip to the station that gave an unexpected spine adjustment the second time around. ...and the high-speed turnaround... Oh yeah, and there's the second drop that's longer than the first... What you can expect after the first drop. Kind of... I love the way this pic turned out! Phantom's Revenge through the bushes (and trees). I tried to avoid the cliché but couldn't resist... The first drop was fun in the front and pretty intense in the back. I must say that I am a fan of swooping drops! However, I am NOT a fan of sun spots in my pics... Much of the same. Phantom's sexy swooping first drop. Phantom's impressive lift hill. Ah yes, that's what I'm here for (among other things): Phantom's Revenge! Hey, it's open now... Simply the nicest looking Musik Express I've seen in person. Musik Express (and a most beautiful one it is) isn't open yet either. See?!? I didn't know that palm trees were native to West Mifflin, PA. I found Pirate amazingly well-themed too. King Kahuna. I love how everyone's hair is being tossed around. Does this count the same as having two different coaster trains in the same pic?!? Didn't think so... Volcano was a cool take on the standard Enterprise. There were times that I felt like I'd be thrown off and splat in the midway below. Thankfully that didn't happen. Cosmic Chaos was pretty disorienting. Comfy, yet disorienting. It was well-themed too. Cosmic Chaos was my first Disk-O. This classic flat was so intense that I got off and thought I had soiled myself. Good times. That's more like it! Bayern Kurve isn't even open quite yet... Gran Prix bumper cars. Very cool façade. And the park was all decked out with American Flags in the beautiful foilage. Upon entering the park, a stilt-walking Uncle Sam was there to greet everyone. The entrance sign, yep. Kenny's Parkway sitting dormant as no one's here yet. That would change in a couple hours. I'm ready to celebrate America! How about you?!?

This is the shot I entered. Just a simple shot of Storm Runner at Hershey. Photoshop or not?!?!?

Since I probably won't get a chance to post my SeaWorld trip report until after the holidays, I wanted to share some Manta photos from my visit on 11.11.08. Although not construction photos per se, here are some of the highlights (of the first drop):

Part three: Tennessee State Fair (nitetime). Again, if you want to see more photos from this fair click here: http://pics.themeparkurge.com/GalleryThumbnails.aspx?gallery=122462 Goodnite from Tennessee. The Carousel at nite provides me with a good ending to a long yet enjoyable day at the Tennessee State Fair. I don't know why, but I really wanted to take this pic & actually am satisfied with its results. Family Swings looks nice at nite. It'd look nicer if all the bulbs worked though. Orient Express heading up the lift. Giant Wheel all lit up. I love how this picture turned out! Thunder Bolt in action. Dream Catch... I mean Weav... (dammit) Machine by the light of the moon. Will someone please just change the name for me?!? Great! Now that song Dream Weaver is stuck in my head! So far, I've typed (& deleted) Dream Weaver & Dream Catcher when I'm trying to type Dream Machine... Dream Machine looks even more stunning at nite. Big Ben falling from the sky. Big Ben beauty. Close-upside-down Exstacy action! Close-up Exstacy action! Wow! Gorgeous! Pretty! Time for some nitetime Sky Wheel love! Oh yeah, they had a Round-Up that I kept waiting to open but it never did. Yet another boo on you! I had a vision of this shot when I was at the fair earlier & here's the result. One of my all-time favorite pictures! You don't know how many pictures I had to take before I could get this shot timed correctly. Power Surge (again) looks cool! After a quick nap, I headed back to the fair for some nitetime pics. Sound familiar?

Part two: Tennessee State Fair (daytime). If you want to see more photos from this fair click here: http://pics.themeparkurge.com/GalleryThumbnails.aspx?gallery=122462 Oh! That looks "appetizing"... Stay tuned for the final installment: TN Fair at nite. Then I saw this: Beef Sundae. What the heck is a Beef Sundae?!? They had a Quit Smoking stand. God, how I love irony! (Check out the lady in pink.) Toon Town. A walk-though copyright infringement attraction. Raiders. Tornado. Spider. I was impressed/shocked that they had two coasters at the fair too. Among tons of kiddie rides that I'm not going to post pictures for, there was an Orient Express. Cliffhanger. Giant Wheel. Yep, there were two ferris wheels at this fair. ANOTHER Scooter?!? Seriously?!? Sea Ray swinging ship. Yep, that's as high as it went. Boo on you AGAIN! Tilt-A-Whirl. What carnival/fair doesn't have one?!? A blow-up Haunted House?!? Now, that's a first. Ring Of Fire. Thunder Bolt, straight out of RCT3!! I absolutely love how this picture turned out! It was pretty photogenic too. Dream Machine was extremely nice-looking. ...until you dropped to the ground. ...and sat... ...where you sat... ...then it kicked into drop tower mode, lifting you to the top... First, it shot you up & bounced you a couple times... Big Ben, their space shot drop tower. ...until the arms raise you to upside-down. All the while, you continue spinning!! Believe it or not, it wasn't the least bit dizzying or nauseating! It spins like a Scrambler first, then like an Orbiter... Time for one of my new favorite flats: Exstacy! Scrambler. It was difficult to get a picture of this Sky Wheel in operation, since they ran a split-second cycle: only a couple revolutions & off you go. Boo on you again. I had previously only seen a Sky Wheel operating in one of my RCT3 parks. The Sky Wheel was originally manufactured by the Allan Herschel Company & later reproduced by Chance Rides. The rare Sky Wheel. Starship 3000 (Gravitron). This ride is so intense & seems to never end! Power Surge. One of my all-time favorite flats! Scooter bumper cars. Nitro. That's as high as it went & it didn't spin. A motor was broken but they kept the ride open. I thought that was pretty lame on their part. Boo on you! They were giving like four laps per ride! Such a cute little coaster! Wow! They've got a Wacky Worm here! Dizzy Dragons. Rockin' Tug. Super Slide. In honor of Big Mike! Good luck counting all the duckies in THIS picture! "Help Wanted"? Hmmmm... Another huge game stall. I loved the colorfulness of Mighty Bluegrass' midway! Family Swings. A closer look at the Carousel. Carousel. Elephant Ears?!? I'll definitely be visiting that later! BTW: They were so huge that I couldn't even eat half of it! And I love me some Elephant Ears! See what I mean?!? BTW: you can kind of see the game girl hiding from the camera. She did not want to be captured on film! Many of the games seemed to be over-sized on the midway! This food smelled delicious! Crab Cakes, Coconut Shrimp, Gyros, huge Turkey Legs... Yummy! But $7.50 for a Philly Steak at the TN State fair?!? What gives?!? There was food EVERYWHERE at this fair! You can get your picture on a pony & who doesn't want their picture on a pony?!? Welcome to the Tennessee State Fair. Rides provided by Mighty Bluegrass Shows.

Middle Tennessee hosted a couple fairs recently that I attended with camera in tow. Although just a little more than a carnival, fairs here seem to revolve more around family fun like livestock, beauty pageants, and tractor pulls than high-energy thrills that I look for. Nevertheless, both the Williamson County Fair (located about 30 minutes South of Nashville) held in early August and the Tennessee State Fair (a hop, skip, and a jump from my office in Nashville) held last week provided a good amount of rides, fun, and not-so-healthy food. Both fairs are somewhat unique in that they each offer rare ferris wheels: The Seattle Wheel & The Skywheel, amidst your pretty standard-fare carnival rides. Here are some highlights from these fairs. Thanks for reading & enjoy! First up: Williamson County, TN Fair. If you want to see more photos from this fair click here: http://pics.themeparkurge.com/GalleryThumbnails.aspx?gallery=113897 I leave you with one last view of the Seattle Wheel keeping watchful eye over the livestock. That was the Williamson County, TN Fair. I had fun at my first southern fair! Stay tuned. The TN State Fair is up next. Clatterpillar speeding by with a train-full of youngsters. Is it just me or does the Clatterpillar look like he's been toking on the hookah? Let 'em hang! I could marathon the Hammer for hours! More Hammer love! Moon Rocket (again). Ion (again). Absolutely stunning! More Seattle Wheel beautifulness! Himalaya (again). Time for the nightly two-minute fireworks display. *grumbles* Mega Drop at nite. Cyclops with Mega Drop behind it. Oooh! Pretty lights! Cyclops spinning from underneath. More Cyclops in action. Cyclops (again). After a much deserved nap, I headed back to the fair for some nitetime pictures. I LOVE nitetime carnival photos! ...and a TPR-approved donkey, among others. There was a huge livestock exhibit that included a longhorn bull... Credit alert! Clatterpillar's not for me though. No whoring here. Jumbos. Later in the day a different ride op said that he'd give me a crazy program that was better than his supervisor's prior. He succeeded!! It was absolutely insane!! The ride op told me that he was gonna give me the longest ride of my life & I think he succeeded! It lasted about five minutes! I had a smile that big while riding! Another rarity: The Hammer (Kamikaze)! Super Slide complete with a smiley face. My idea of fun does NOT include sliding down plastic that's been baking out in the 100 degree sun. Kite Flyer. Black Widow (Spider). Sizzler. Tilt-A-Whirl. Let me tell you: the ride's A LOT more scarier when there's no cage to protect you from falling out & splatting on the ground. There was a Moon Rocket (a cageless Ring Of Fire). There's a second midway with mostly kiddie rides including the Honey Bees. I don't know when these starting popping up at carnivals/fairs but they are ANNOYING!! I guess they're doing their job well. Either way, after passing this guy a couple times you want to literally drown him - not by hitting the target with a baseball til he falls in but by hitting him with a baseball bat & holding him under the water. j/k It is funny to see how people react to insults in a public setting though. Alpine Bobs was fun. They gave a nice long ride cycle. Pirate & Alpine Bobs. Aw, hell no!! This is definitely a first!! And the ride's moving!! Pirate swinging ship. Wait! What's dude doing up there?!? Scooter bumper cars. Orbiters are the only flats that really get me woozy. Ion. This was a lot of fun! I hadn't been on an Orbiter since Lake Winnie last summer. Elvis & Vicky Tiu sat in this car. They made a movie called It Happened at the World's Fair which was released in 1963. As you can also see, it is quite a beautiful structure. I don't think the Seattle Wheel could take a bad picture. As you can see, it is a very uniquely designed ferris wheel. This is the only operating Seattle Wheel on the road these days. It stands 90 feet tall. The Seattle Wheel was created by the Valarie Brothers for the Worlds Fair in Seattle, Washington. The rare Seattle Wheel! Himalaya. Mega Drop. Cyclops. I rode this & was quite disappointed with the short cycle (maybe five full-height swings) considering it was wristband day & there were no lines. Rockin' Tug. Carousel. Welcome to the Williamson County, TN Fair. Rides provided by the Drew Exposition. This is the main midway.

Part three (aka The End): One final look at Avalanche as I decide to call it a nite & go get some half-priced margaritas at Pedro's next door. The Wisconsin Dells has been good to me today, even though I'm pretty banged up. Thanks for reading! Oh yeah, I almost forgot, they've got a couple log rides, aptly titled Timber Wolf Log Ride. Here they come! More airtime goodness! More left-hand turn goodness! The miniature golf course make this coaster look beautiful. (That just SOUNDS weird, but it's true!) And these riders are fixin' to crash into that waterfall!! (The hair never lies & that's some serious "h"airtime!) These riders know what's up. Look at it. How can you NOT get air on those hills?!? Seriously though, this little coaster is so much fun for so little that it does! There's so many little pops of air throughout the entire course. ...turn left... *yawns* ...airtime hill... ...turn left... ...airtime hill... ...turn left... ...turn left... That's all this coaster does: turn left... Two of the numerous left-hand turns that this coaster is (in)famous for. See what I was saying about being beautiful?!? The drop. Sorry, the ever-so-fun drop. Seriously, it was fun! The lift. Yep, that's the caption: "The lift". Although Avalanche technically does nothing more than provide a fence around their miniature golf courses, it is quite breathtaking from certain angles. Here's my (blurry) ticket. I'm ready to ride! Timber Falls' headlining act: Avalanche from the back parking lot. Outside the park is a huge Skycraper. If the car didn't rest at the top motionless while others boarded, I would've ridden it (even if it did cost like $20). Next stop of the day/evening: Timber Falls!

Part two: Down the street from the park, I found this adorable hotel: The Carousel Inn. My heart went pitter patter when I saw it! Stay tuned. Next up: Timber Falls! And finally, the last set of waterslides. Well, that just about does it. That's Mt. Olypus. I had a great time there but found myself wanting a little more. IMO, they desparately need flats to keep people like me there longer than a couple hours. Especially since their coaster selection is rather small & not that re-rideable; I can't imagine marathoning ANY of their coasters. Nevertheless, I had a lot of fun! Their old wave pool: Tidal Wave. This one seemed to sputter out a little wave every so often. Two huge way-too-intense-for-my-liking slides located at the back of the park. A huge blue mess 'o' slides. This photo was too adorable to pass up. With my knee banged up along with my thumb, I thought it best to call it quits and just wander thru the outdoor waterpark. This is their new River Troy - another faster lazy river. I opted to try out two of the waterslides since I felt comfortable enough walking up the stairs at an indoor park. I don't know why but outdoor stairs really bother my acrophobia. Indoors, I'm fine. BTW: The slides were AWESOME!! There's also the Warriors Water Walk which looked kind of fun. It looks like a kid's drowning in the Jaguar Hot Tub, yet no one seems bothered by it. ...and cool theming. ...slides... Hispaniola Bay had a ton of stuff for the kiddies. Water fountains... There's a not-so-slow lazy river, aptly titled Mayan Raging River. I did manage to further injure myself on this when I jumped in to retrieve a raft & scrapped my knee on the river floor. Ouch! Ah, the indoor water park. I can sneak into my suit in there. That way no one will see my pasty white skin. Triton overview. Here are the Triton slides that I didn't want to climb the stairs for. Plus, I didn't have my suit on yet. Now out to some of the waterpark attractions... Poseidon's Rage is a new wave pool that throws nine-foot waves at you every 90 seconds or something. I was unable to take any ground-breaking pics of the spinning mouse (big surprise, eh?), so we're done in here. ...and Opa! the spinning mouse. ... a spring ride called, erm, Spring Ride... ...a Disk'O... Wait! Where's the flippin' Disk'O?!? It's listed on the website, map, etc. & I was SO looking forward to ride it. Where'd it go?!? ...a Crazy Trolley... ...a bowling game that used little bocce-like balls... Time to venture into the Indoor Park section where I found Teacups... OK, I remember reading a reference to these robot seats somewhere but I can't remember where or what it was about. Someone please enlighten me!! Why is this just standing off the path?!? This is the extent of their games. Small but nice. I didn't see anyone play a single game all day though. Oh lord. Starbucks has invaded! Who was the Greek god of coffee again?!? I had a "Chicago Style" Gyro here. Which I can tell you is MUCH better in Chicago. But I'll give them points for trying. I wouldn't dare go in for fear that I may not fit through the door on the way out. Here's a gift shop where you can purchase exotic stones imported from Greece or cheaply made touristy plastic goods made in China. I can't remember... The shops had REALLY nice signs IMO but once inside, they were kind of blah. BTW: How is pizza Greek?!? Mt. Olympus doesn't really have a midway per se, but this'd be the closest to it. And Helios, which was closed down. Tiny Heroes beginner track. The Orion Intermediate Track. Oh yeah, Mt. Olympus has a lot of go-karts. This is the Hermes Turbo Track but you probably could of guessed that from the sign, huh... Future TPRers?!? Could KidTums future husband be on Little Titans as we speak? However, the foliage around this little coaster was top notch. Even if they did allow adults, I wouldn't have ridden it, unlike some people I know... ;-P Little Titans was a cute little kiddie coaster that didn't allow adults on it. If I'm paying 10 bucks, the ride cycle better be longer than 30 seconds or a couple full-height swings! Apollo's Swing looked bigger than the one's I had ridden, but wasn't worth the 10 bucks (if I remember correctly). They had a huge Screamin' Swing but it was an upcharge attraction. And another airtime hill into the station! Airtime hill! Finally some excitement! Another on the pond shot. Luckily a train was going by. A little more of the layout taken from ON the pond. Pegasus' drop. (Exciting caption, I know. But, hey, it's not that exciting of a coaster.) Pegasus' lift FRAMED by the trees. Ah ha! Pegasus' cute little pre-lift drop. Ok, my adventure into the wild backwoods of Wisconsin is over & my thumb's not hurting much since I popped an unhealthy amount of Advil, so let's go ride some more coasters!

After Indiana Beach, the second stop on my 2008 Midwest Tour was the Wisconsin Dells - namely, Mt. Olympus and Timber Falls. Although rain was predicted the entire time I was to be there, I thought that the rain gods would be on my side, especially since I was heading to the home of Zeus. This had been my first time to the Dells since senior prom, when we rented out a block of cabins on a lake (Lake Delton? I’m not sure). Needless to say, the area has changed a bit since I was last there (15 years ago. Dang, I'm getting old). Heck, there weren’t even any coasters there 15 years ago that I remember. Speaking of coasters, Mt. Olympus has a couple that are pretty decent and a couple that impressed me for various reasons. Hades, which I like to think of as Voyage’s older cousin, was thoroughly a fun ride with a thrilling layout. First, I rode in the middle of the train to much adulation. Later in the day, I tackled the front seat and found out that the parking lot tunnel is pitch black even in the front but seemed to give a more jackhammering ride. Overall though, Hades packed a pretty good punch and was a seemingly endless ride. In fact, Hades’ pre-drop course is more thrilling than some coasters I’ve ridden. Cyclops was pretty uncontrollable for such a not-so-large (I can’t exactly call it small) coaster, after braving the age-restrictive back seat. And let me tell you: Holy $h!t, that last drop nearly took my arm off!! Seriously, I had my arms up for the last drop and the forces from the violent ejector air yanked my arms clear behind me with my hand smashing the back of the train. Luckily, I managed to escape with only a severely bruised thumb with a nail that was one step away from falling off. It made for painful picture taking but left more of an impression on my view of the coaster: I don’t think any one drop (or coaster, for that matter) is more pleasurably brutal than Cyclops. Keep in mind that this is coming from someone that thoroughly enjoyed Georgia Cyclone in the back seat too. Zeus was pretty short, simple, and rough. I had heard that this coaster was in need of some TLC, and I couldn’t agree more. It jackhammered throughout the course much to the dismay of my already-hurting brain. I think with a little bit of rehabbing this coaster could become a very enjoyable out-and-back (again). Pegasus was a cute little ride that didn’t provide much in thrills but did finish with a nice bunny-hop into the station. Finally, Opa! was your standard-fare spinning mouse that spun quite a bit since I was the only one in the car. Other than coasters, there are really only go-kart and waterpark attractions to occupy your time. I’m not a huge waterpark fan, but I did enjoy the indoor not-so lazy river and two of the slides. With Mt. Olympus conquered rather quickly due to virtually no lines (Hades queue was the longest of the day, clocking in at a meager 10 minutes), I headed over to Timber Falls for Avalanche - the infamous left-hand-turn coaster. Its layout is nothing to write home about (after the drop, it’s left turn, airtime hill, left turn, airtime hill, left turn, airtime hill, etc.), but it was a lot more fun than I was expecting it to be! After Avalanche, I relaxed with a couple pitchers of margaritas at Pedro’s next door thanks to a buy-one-get-one-free drink deal card that covered 32 local restaurants/bars. This may have been given out due to sagging business in the Dells, which was obvious. At times, the Dells didn’t even seem like a vacation destination, since there weren’t crowds of people anywhere I visited. In fact, the area by Tommy Bartlett’s was a virtual ghost town, most-likely due to the draining/flooding of Lake Delton. Perhaps the bad weather the Dells endured earlier this summer combined with the slow economy has put the area in a rather precarious position. I have the opinion that the future of the area lies in all-inclusive resorts like Mt. Olympus and Kalahari, rather than the park/attraction hopping that was so common in years past and gave the Wisconsin Dells a bit of its charm (albeit white-trashy charm). Anyway, enough chatter. On to the pictures. Thanks for reading and enjoy! llama (!!!)... I think I got that one right! (Did I?) Stay tuned for part two. moose (?!?)... maybe elk (?!?) some species of, erm, some animal... (If you haven't noticed, I'm not very good with animal names. In fact, I'm not a huge fan of animals in general. I don't trust 'em). deer (?!?)... There actually ARE things to see on Duck Adventure. There's a little farm area with reindeer (?!?)... I know, it's just a picture of trees. I like the way it looked, so I included it. Doe, a deer, a female deer Ray, a drop of golden sun Me, a name I call myself Far, a long long way to run (Sorry, that song just popped into my head when I looked at the pic. Feel free to send me hate mail.) Not quite sure what this has to do with anything... If you're unfamiliar with Ducks, they're pretty much boats on wheels & you see them frequently in the Dells (yes, on the streets too). This one gave you a nice backstage tour of Mt. Olympus. Now realizing that it was my right thumb that was smashed & I kind of need that thumb to hold my camera, I decided to ride Duck Adventure. Surely I could remain injury-free on it... And, of course, there's the Trojan Horse go-karts. ...and a Swing. With my thumb throbbing with pain, I decided to take some time off from riding & strolled around to enjoy the sights. They've got a little kiddie section with a Bi-Plane... One last shot of the evil, yet insanely fun (don't get me wrong) Cyclops with Zeus on the right. That probably looked like me: holding one hand up coz my other hand was in my crotch attempting to squeeze the pain away. (Again, notice nobody in the back seat on this train. I'm an idiot!) My thumb was smashed & all black & blue, leaving the nail barely hanging on by a thread. My arms (that were up in standard drop position) were ripped back behind me & my hand slammed against the rear of the car, causing intense pain that kind of distracted me from this point forward. Well, let me tell ya, it is WAY more intense than it looks! Now I know why the last seat is age-restricted!! I'm an idiot!! This drop is so pretty! How can it be remotely intense?!? One more drop to go. I think I can hold my hands up for this. (Notice there's no fools like me in the last car on this train). Oh crap! Violent ejector air!! Time to hang on again! This isn't so bad. That looks like a harmless little bunny hop. Yep. I'm holding gonna hold on a little! Better safe than sorry! OK. That was a pretty intense drop for only being 75 feet! Have no fear! Look! It's a baby! There's no way this coaster is gonna get to me in the back seat! I'm a professional! Sure. Why not?!? I'll do it! I have the cajones! I'm a die-hard coaster enthusiast dammit! How bad can it be?!? Well, since there ARE no other rides, I guess I'll subject myself to further punishment. Haven't they ever heard "Not to kick a man when he's down"?!? Now that my brain is mush, I think I'll walk around & check out some less-intense rides. How about Dive to Atlantis? Nope. It's been turned into Picnic Bench: The Ride, a new prototype based on the wildly-popular Bench: The Ride. ...as confirmed by the girl on the right in the second row. Does her "pose" remind you of anyone in particular...? Ok, that last description wasn't fun & neither is Zeus... It's at about this point that Zeus stops becoming fun & turns into a hold-on-for-dear-life-as-you-protect-the-contents-of-your-brain kind of fun. Wheee! Zeus' first drop. Zeus' lift from UNDER the trees. Ah ha! (BTW: After as many pics as I took, it was hard to figure out which coaster was which sometimes. Most of MO's woodies look the same when you take shots like this.) Zeus' pre-lift. I love the access ladder standing right there. Somehow the lack of idiots leads to park safety. With Hades conquered & thoroughly enjoyed, I visited his neighbor Zeus. And, finally, a drop back into the station. Phew! That ride was intense! (Trust me, it's more intense & exciting in person.) Sweet! Overbanked turnaround. Whipping thru the trees. Even MORE air! A great view from the queue. More twisted track! Super-fast station fly-under! Believe it or not, Hades isn't even close to being done with you yet. Airtime hill! once again. Seriously, the tunnels on Hades put Voyage's post-midcourse brake tunnel to shame, IMO - although they acheive two totally different sensations. One more pop of air before disappearing back into the tunnel... And, it's pretty photogenic too! Where's the train when I need it?!? The post-parking-lot-tunnel course doesn't consist of much, but it is fun as hell! ...then suddenly you're launched back into the daylight clear on the other side of the parking lot! ...you see THIS as you shimmy left, right, left, for what feels like eternity... (image ganked from somewhere online). ...then just as you're falling faster... ...until you're speeding out of control... ...then creep over the edge... ...coz you go up to the top... The drop, however, IS special... And what a lift it is! Actually, there's nothing special about the lift except that it's around 150 ft tall. OK, that's not that special either. Moving on... Finally, we're ready to head up the lift! The end (finally) of the pre-lift course. These "backstage" photos were obtained on Duck Adventure. More on that later. I don't think I can get any closer!! Yep. Even more. Seriously, this coaster has my favorite pre-lift course! More twisted Hades track. More of Hades' track hidden in the trees. Some of this is pre-lift track & some's post-lift. Really, I can't tell which is which... One of Hades' pre-lift turns. The best way to describe it is: Voyage's turnaround without the extreme forces. A couple seconds into it & you've already gotten airtime. Twice! Hades' pre-lift course is also more thrilling (thrillinger?!?) than most coasters' post-lift. The drop out of Hades' station (!!) is larger than & funner than most. I know that funner's not a word but why not?!? More than large = larger. More than fun should = funner. I mean more than funny = funnier. So why not funner?!? Hades' entrance. I've been looking forward to riding this ever since TPR got back from their midwest trip in 07. Mt. Olympus' star attraction: Hades. Hooray! I'm finally here! Btw: I love the plethora of soccer mom mini-vans. Yet another sign & a coaster. Please tell me I must be getting close!... Another sign & some waterslides. Yep, I must really be getting close... Mt. Olympus' Hotel Rome. I must be getting close... But perhaps the storms were moving out. *fingers crossed* The sky led me to believe that my weekend in the Dells would be a wash.

I flew up to Chicago from Nashville on Southwest (about $69 & a little over an hour flight), then rented a car (something like $49 a day w/unlimited miles) & drove to IB (about a 2 hour ride {tack on an extra hour for the time change, too} on 1/4 tank of gas). If I would've driven from Nashville to IB, it would've taken close to seven hours & probably a tank of gas each way. Since I was I was hitting up some other parks in the upper-midwest, it just seemed easier & more efficient to pay to fly & rent a car, rather than put the miles on my car & spend 14+ hours driving just to & from. By the way, thanks to everyone who enjoyed the TR! And, yes, I'm feeling a bit guilty for not doing Frankenstein's Castle. I had a feeling that I would...

Part six (dude on a crane & nitetime pics): And to finish it off... Thanks for reading & making it thru this all-too-in-depth TR of Indiana Beach! Steel Hawg by the light of the moon. She's almost prettier in the dark. (I wish that wasn't the FIRST time those words were uttered from my lips...) One last trip past Steel Hawg... One last look at the lighted Boardwalk. I like the way this pic turned out even though swinging ships aren't my thing. The Sea Dragon at nite. LoCoSuMo in the front. Hoosier Hurricane speeding by in the rear. You don't know how long it took me to get this shot & I still wasn't happy with it. Falling Star all symmetrical. Water Swings under the moon. It seems to be everywhere... The Shafer Queen strikes a pose. Lake Shafer looks beautiful! One more lap through the park as it gets dark. Cornball's much prettier than I expected. Sweet!!! Ahh... Ooh... Back to Steel Hawg for another quick ride & more pics. Told ya! I even checked out the Water Thrill Show - something I hardly ever do. BTW: This dude's crazy! Although the park seemed to clear out once nite set it, that's when I started to have even more fun. Falling Star standing at the dusk's attention. Falling Star was all bright & shiny. The Water Swings were looking especially inviting. I couldn't have planned this shot any better. This is my new mousepad picture. Time to show Giant Wheel some love... Awesome! Pretty! As the sun started to set, I headed back to Hoosier Hurricane to get some (hopefully) beautiful pics. This is the best I could do this time around... Notice how he's perched ABOVE the floor of the cage?!? No way Jose!! Oh damn! He's filming! Time to go ride again! So I get back to Steel Hawg & there's this duder in a crane cage. What's he doing?!? Yes, Steel Hawg thru the trees. I'm guilty. Time to head back to Steel Hawg.

Part five (the boardwalk & panoramic pics) Then, I found this cool retro sign touting IB way back in the day. I love when parks keep stuff like this up. It so adds to its character! Hooray!! I absolutely love Double Shots! Hate drop towers. Love Double Shots. Oh please, for the love of god, let the Double Shot be open... Cute little Frog Hopper, why are you closed too?!? Monster Trucks 3D. Nothing could interest me less. Splash Bash is the interactive water park that was pretty packed. I seem to pick days at parks when everyone is on the water side. No complaints here, though. (Lazy) Action River. This thing was totally in a dream I had about nine months ago. It was such a strong deja vu moment that it gave me chills. Still does. Moving on now... Continuing on, the Big Flush was down. Although I can't even imagine how hot a black water slide gets after it bakes out in the sun all day. Just an observation... This is the Skyroom where they have live bands & dancing. This area totally reminded me of the Myrtle Beach Pavillion (R.I.P.). Dodgems were operating though. (Whew) The obligatory Tilt-A-Whirl; also not in operation. Ya know what? As I'm typing this TR out, I'm realizing that MANY flats were down that day... That's coz I was doing what this girl is fixin' to do: Shoot some Pirates! (or whatever was in The Den Of Lost Thieves; I told you I can't remember...) This skeleton was cool but I honestly don't remember much about the ride itself. Time to check out The Den Of Lost Thieves - their shooting dark ride. Exclusive Flying Bobs mirror POV (see previous caption for admission of lameness). Exclusive Flying Bobs POV (before the ride started - I know, I'm lame). Now that I escaped the fish, time to grab a ride on the Flying Bobs. I could, however, see them eating you in a couple seconds. Seriously, these things are digusting! Actually, I can't see sleeping of any kind going on with these fishes. Whoever's in charge should sleep with the fishes! Too bad this was as close as I would get. It wasn't operating all day/nite. Boo to my first missed credit that I can recall. Time to get my final credit at IB: The Zyklon Galaxi! Here's where you get ribbon fries. Good stuff! There's a Scrambler here too but it only operated half of the time. From what I could tell, they alternated running the Paratrooper & Scrambler, since they're right next to each other. The Boardwalk has a bunch of flats, like the Paratrooper, placed directly on the water. Time to venture down the Boardwalk. From this pic, the park kinda looks crowded but it really wasn't. Aptly named, the Water Swings swing you over the water. Of course, no trip to IB would be complete without the Water Swings. And got these panoramic pics. So I took a walk across Indiana's longest suspension bridge (I think that's what they said) & came across this little sign. Funny, I don't remember a looping steel coaster at IB. Nevertheless, I took the sign's advice... Sadly, the signature ferris wheel wasn't operating all day/nite. This way, huh?!? That's gonna be difficult. Wait! I thought it was called the GIANT Wheel... They also have a putt-putt course located under/within Hoosier Hurricane but I didn't see anyone playing all day. Music Express provided tons of laterals! And it ran backwards! The Falling Star with a dizzying view of the lake. Seasick anyone? These Splash Battles seem to be popping up everywhere. It looked like fun & the riders can shoot people on the Boardwalk & vice versa.

Part four (featuring LoCoSuMo & puke {yes, puke}): But perhaps just as random & freaky as the LoCoSuMo bear, I present Color Your Hair. (The lady on the top left kinda scares me...) Yes, the infamous bear. I didn't see any Mardi Gras beads on him though... ...never to be seen again. Speeding uncontrollably into the mountain... More of the same but with flowers. Somehow LoCoSuMo & flowers don't mix... LoCoSuMo's outside track layout. Hmmm... Odd location for a sign on a coaster... "Hey Jim Bob, we need to put up a sign warning riders". "I got it Rufus, let's put it UNDER the track". Actually, it is quite forgettable coz you have no idea where you're going as you twist & dive through the tunnels, er, mountain. The start of your unforgettable journey... The very unique (& freaky) elevator lift in action. The kids are all smiles while mom reads the newspaper. I wonder if they'll be so content AFTER the ride...? ...this is what happens when you ride LoCoSuMo if you are in doubt. Ewww! I don't doubt this sign but, perhaps, they should fill in the letters at the bottom more. Coz... Next up: LoCoSuMo. Oh, sweet Jesus... Since I was racking up the credits & rides rather quickly, I decided to take a ride on the Antique Autos. This is their shooting gallery & more of Frankie's castle in the distance. Dr. Frankenstein's Haunted Castle was the world's #1 walkthrough attraction in 2006?!? I probably should've done it but a $3.50 upcharge was out of the question. Here's their swinging ship. Not for me. Here's the park map. Is it just me or does it seem like every smaller park has this style of map these days? Such a cool location for flyers! And even though there was no snapping, they still gave a good ride with a very long cycle. What?!? What?!? What?!? Time to check out the flyers: Air Crow. What a fun coaster! I think every park should have a Schwarzkopf of SOME kind! It looks so harmless... Now that's a twisted mess of track! I love me an old Schwarzkopf Jet Star!! With no restraints!! Enough with the closed kiddy attractions! I want some excitement! Tig'rr Coaster should provide some! There's a train station down here too. Ah ha! Winky The Whale's operating!! Kiddy Whip. You guessed it: not operating. Kiddy Cycles. Not, um, operating. Kiddy Cars. Not Operating. Kiddy Boats. Not Operating. Time to check out the Kiddyland section. Many rides in here, like Convoy Race, were not in operation.

Part three (the wooden coaster section of the park): Cornball wasn't as photogenic as Hoosier Hurricane. And I didn't find it as much fun either; lots of jerking & shuffling. Turn left at the log flume. Cornball's exciting twisted first drop. So Cornball Express is UP the steps?!? Well, why is the arrow pointing DOWN then?!? Good. They have a Merry Go Round. Isn't it a requirement, or something?!? Time to venture further into the park. What's this?!? A Mini Pirate Ship. How cute?!? So here's a little more of their "midway" with a barn-full of games to hide you from the sun. Happy riders once again! BTW: does anyone know why the block(ed) off the 1st row?!? The return route back to the station. An absolutely gorgeous setting for a great coaster! There we go. A full train! Hooray! Obligatory shot #2. Yes, that's right: Eight people. Did I mention that crowds were light that day?!? Obligatory shot. Hey! Another train! That only took five minutes... (grumbles to himself) Pretty! Hey! There's a train! (With one train operations, it was a game of patience before you could finally get a good pic) See?!? Hoosier Hurricane really is one of the most photogenic coasters I've come across. And here's the drop... Here's the pre-drop curve... Next up: Hoosier Hurricane. It only provided a little splash. Dare I ask: Acceptable amount of wetness? Rocky's Rapids Log Flume wins - not for scenery, mind you; I just chose it first. Choices... Choices... I've seen better but it'll do... With Steel Hawg conquered (a couple of times) I ventured into the park.

Part two (Steel Hawg artsy shots & coaster porn): When the contraption is attached to the thingies (I know, not real technical...), the ops can raise/lower restraints. When the thingy-majig comes off the car, everything seems to be locked into place. The little computer box seems to be the car's brain that communicates with the control panel. ...to attach itself to those pins. This seems to be how the car's functions operate. Well, this contraption comes up from under the track... I will captionize these though... See those little piston-like pins toward the bottom of the car? I won't caption-ize these pics coz they're pretty self-explanatory.