DerekRx

Sure hadn't felt like Autumn for the last couple of days. May as well use this as an excuse to have another one of my leftover Summer brews. Some lemon, honey, and banana flavors, but man that metallic taste gets funkier every time Red Brick Summer from Atlanta Brewing, a wheat

This weekend was Phoenix Phall Phunfest at Knoebels. Of course, that would mean we'd have to follow our new tradition of going to Selins Grove Brewing Company in nearby Selinsgrove beforehand. As usual, plenty of awesome stuff on tap! and after a shout out to Joe, we're off to Knoebels for some Phun! For Heath's second beer, he goes with the Market Street Fest, Selins Grove's Oktoberfest. He wanted to get more beers, but Kim wasn't with, so he had no DD. But I finally elude the ghost hand and show off my Golden's Special Bitter regular style Ghost hand attacks and blocks the shot of my next beer of excellence But we did more than just drink! They've got awesome food, but as usual, Selins Grove has awesome specials. Here Nicole enjoys some shrimp and avocado tacos and I know I won't find a finer West Coast style IPA anywhere else in the area, so I jump at the chance to have another one here Heath was glad to get the Golden's Special Bitter...on the beer engine. Nothing better than an English beer on cask Even though they're still playing catchup after getting new bigger and better brewing equipment, they've still got amazing stuff on, as usual. Back at one of our favorite places...a place so awesome that Nicole DEMANDED we go. Apparently someone hit their old sign though

^^Dude, there's an Elissa IPA!? That would make someone very happy, if she liked IPAs. Does the label at least have a rodent on it? Tonight I decided to head down to Capones after work because I heard they just got in and tapped a keg of one of my favorite beers ever, one that is only brewed this time each year, and is really best as soon as it's brewed. Bring on the Sierra Nevada Harvest Ale! a few of BAs elite show up, including Phatz front and off-center in the hat, to try this stuff, as they'll never venture as far as Pittsburgh to actually buy it! Tomorrow they'll all run back to their neighborhood bars and say "I tried Voodoo beers, who wants to touch me!?" Pilzilla wasn't too shabby either. Of course, no free beer is a bad beer, but these were exceptionally fantastic. I look forward to heading back to Pittsburgh and trying to get more of their stuff, as they're in nearby Meadville 6 of their offerings were being presented. Of course I tried them all. My favorites being the Voodoo Love Child (a Belgian made with cherries) and White Magick of the Sun (an imperial Wit), but the Wynona's big Brown Ale was pretty good too After I got done my meal and drinks, it just so happened that there was a sampling going on in the bottle shop of Pittsburgh's newest brewery, Voodoo Seeing how Capones had Troegs Nugget Nectar on tap and I was wearing a Nugget Nectar shirt, I was going to get one, but I knew it was a batch from like February, so I skipped it and went with the East End Black Strap Stout out of Pittsburgh instead. Fantastic coffee and chocolate flavors, one great stout First up, the Sierra Nevada Harvest Ale. Just as awesome as I remember it, just phenominal. Lucky for you guys, they decided to bottle it this year for the first time as well. Not sure it's as good, but we'll find out soon enough! So go try to find some, as it's very limited! A fresh taplist just created today with plenty of awesome things on it. Makes me wish I had a designated driver so I could enjoy more After work, the 1 hour drive to Capone's is well worth it, as he's always got plenty of awesomeness both on tap and in the bottle shop. After picking up plenty of purchases for future updates, it's time to head inside for dinner

Wow, Bubba! That's quite a lot of posting. See, now you know why we try to do this daily, at least that way we've still got the taste fresh in our heads! Glad to see you didn't fall off the drinking wagon or anything though!

^I'm older, but I STILL have tastebuds! Tonight I decided to go with another pumpkin ale, from one of the first places to make them in the modern era. I guess if I want something that tastes like pumpkin pie, I may as well go for the real thing Unfortunately, I didn't really care for it. Too bland in the taste, though it did get a little cinnamon flavor as it warmed up. Buffalo Bills Pumpkin Ale from California, as one of the first, it should be pretty good

Had a nice birthday, pretty typical day of working and eating. Decided to switch up the drinking a little bit though by doing something I normally don't do during the week...(plus Nicole had to go to Allentown anyway) and to end my birthday fun, a nice refreshing Shipyard Pumpkinhead, one light and spiced pumpkin ale Meanwhile the bar's proprietor was busy trying to kick his keg of Hoegaarten so he could get a keg of something Oktoberfest. He succeeded Pretty good stuff. Not nearly as good as they are over in Germany, but nice and sweet and dangerously drinkable Being October and all, I decided to try the Hofbrau Oktoberfest, a product of Germany My birthday will see me back in the Allentown area to one of the finest bars around. A bar where there is no charge, no smoking, and everything is free!

^Yeah, the Amber is kinda weird for a wheat. Tonight, time for the last of my Sweetwater IPA. Such a sad day. Still great, though it's starting to lose a little of its citrus hop kick, so I'm sorta glad I didn't hold off on this until later. The last bottle of one fine citrusy IPA that Joe gave to me. As much as I wanted it to last, I just couldn't keep away from it for long

As it's October now and we kicked off Pumpkin Ale season on Friday night, I decided to try another one last night, this time the newly brewed Jaw Jacker from Arcadia Brewing out of Michigan. Smells of pumpkin pie, loaded with cinnamon, pumpkin, nutmeg, and some bready goodness. Probably my favorite pumpkin ale to date as it was very well balanced with all the different flavors, and wasn't too light nor too heavy in ABV. Jaw Jacker pumpkin ale, really evil bottle art.

Today was our annual return trip to the Pennsylvania Renaissance Fair, making it Nicole's first experience at such a place. So why is this in the beer thread? Why because this is the only Renaissance Fair in the nation to have its own microbrewery on premises. Here's to you, Michael! Go Phils! back home, I would be celebrating both the Phillies win and the memory of Michael Jackson, a real beer expert (no, not THAT MJ) and in a Shakespearian way, everyone died Havoc ensued Our dude won, we were happy! and with more fire, here comes El Toro, part of the joust! much better than anything George Lucas could come up with! She gets to light stuff on fire, she's my hero! Nicole being part of the action! what's better than 2 dudes swordfighting? Time for me to enjoy some Red Sea Amber, nicely hopped yup, Damien Blade is insane! then, 3 swords at once?! then having some random audience member pull the sword out! Dude's insane! and juggle at the same time! Nicole was so impressed with the firebreathing dude, we went back to watch him swallow swords then, more beer! Swashbuckler's Gold for Nicole and more Oktoberfest for me and Nicole gets a new necklace made of green amber Afterwards I go back to buy myself a weapon, Elsid Mark, the brewmaster, goes over the history of brewing and his own personal story, all while we get free Oktoberfest! haha! The brewing plans, we have them! Now we can brew on our own!! ok, the history of brewing seems to be soothing the savage Heath Heath's getting a bit antsy, better see if there's some herbs that can calm him followed by some S&M action Two tipsy guys and some pointy weapons, not a good idea time for some action, like fire blowing dudes just in case you want to be a furry, here's where you can buy your long lost tail haha! This time I get to be on the kissing bridge! This time it's the Capt Rude for us, tastes much like the East End Black Strap Time to refill before heading off to watch some more performances The brewpub is a really hopping place, and even more special since the taps are directly connected to the tanks While Heath and I load up on the Helles Syren after a little enjoyment in the sun, we decide we need more beer! Nicole goes for the Capt Rude Stout if it's good enough for the Queen, we shall partake in it as well after the first pour goes to the Queen and company, everyone agrees it's worth drinking the Oktoberfest beer made just for this weekend! The brewer, Mark, drills the ceremonial hole in the barrel to enjoy the goodness They even got the local German club to come in hauling the barrel for the Queen Swashbuckler Brewing, the Fairs own brewery now sports a nicer looking brewpub seating area and to make the Fair even better, this weekend's special theme was Oktoberfest!

To help Nicole return to good health, I decided to make tonight stout night, one of her favorite styles of beer. The wonderfully awesome and highly ranked Obsidian was all for me. Such a great stout. For Nicole, the Java stout, along with some chicken tenders with Anchor Bar sauce to help clear out her sinuses Tonight's selection Bell's Java Stout and Deschutes Obsidian Stout

Happy belated birthday, Bubba! Still feeling a bit like summer, but starting to cool off finally, I decided to enjoy some of Troegs latest offerings. Lots of nice chocolate and coffee notes go with this beer. Gonna taste great on those chilly fall evenings Next in line, Dead Reckoning Porter, a newly unretired brew I really hope they start brewing something like this yearly, it's great for a warm day First, Scratch #1, their California Common/Steam beer.

I don't know what is up with Six Flags, but all of these announcements seem VERY rushed. No concept art, no CGI. It's almost like they knew Hershey moved their announcement up and still wanted to try and steal their glory. I'm interested to see exactly what theming will actually be inside these rides vs just in the queue. I also agree with those confused as to why a park that already has a crazy mouse is getting a standard wild mouse as well, even if it is indoors, it's the same sensations (at least for the turns section).

Out of all the announcements of the day, this is probably the best one (even if I figured it out WAAAAAY before people invested so much into the Nantimi thing) The thing that worries me the most is the vertical chain lift. I could sense LOTS of breaking with that and kinda wish they would have gone with an LSM vertical lift instead. Still, I've got my season pass all set for next year so bring on the ride! And let the Nantimi 11 have the first rides, I'll have it all season (followed by stops at Troegs and Appalachian Brewing).

I find it amusing that the same ride is going to three different Six Flags parks, but only SFNE's will be part of the Flashpass. Good luck to everyone at the SFGA's who want to ride this thing!

Wow, really poor choice of names for a ride, Six Flags. I don't think they're naming it Goliath to stay away from the DC naming, as all the Dark Knight coasters are opening next year. I also don't think it's so as not to confuse guests who know there is another Batman up the road in Dallas, as Dallas is getting Tony Hawk just like SFFT has. I think SF is just being cheap and doesn't want to register with a new original name. Apparently Goliath is Six Flags Viper of the new era. Can't wait to see Great Adventure's Goliath end up being a Vekoma roller skater in 2009. Dumb name, but probably the best "new" ride in the chain for next year, at least it's thrilling and forceful, though only for the teens and adults.

Woohoo! Deja Vu falls, but how big will this area be if it's only taking up the spot Vu resided in?

I'm glad to see Six Flags will still manage to add larger coasters to their parks. While Thunderbird may not have been my favorite GCI, it was still a really fun ride and perfect for the masses. Hopefully they tweak those LIM brakes though if they add them to this one. I'm sure this will be a big hit with the people in St. Louis, and will probably be the most enjoyable and comfortable woodie at the park. Yet one more reason for me to finally get to SFSTL.

Last night I needed some head, Gumballhead that is! excellent blend of hops and wheat. One fine summer brew, and a BA best Three Floyds hoppy wheat brew, Gumballhead, displaying lots of head but no gumballs

^^We saw Skyhawk running, but never bothered to ride it. We did the one at Kennywood and the one at Thorpe, we're not really fans of it, too short, kinda boring, and LOUD! And yeah, you should have waited to go with us, now you know better, stupid Canabians!

It always rains for YOU. On my 3 visits without you, I've had beautiful weather all the time at the Point, compared to the 2 times with you and horrible monsoons of death and destruction. You must attract bad weather more than I scare it away. So, what have we learned from this PTR? Plan on going to CP when Derek does, NOT when Elissa visits I think the only thing that was closed for us was MaxAir, which like assploded or something.

Oh sure, go when the weather is nice, I see how it is Looks like even more fun when the weather cooperates, and I miss it so much already. But fear not, BACT will return in a few years to this amazing festival for more than 1 day. And next time I'll bring 2 livers and a full stomach to start! Hope to see you in a few weeks, Andy!

Last night I decided to try something from Terrapin that Heath gave me, as its season was up. much more flavorful. Crispness and sweet floral hop presence Looking for something appealing to drink, I went with Dogfish's Shelter Much like the Wake N Bake that Bubba got, this one was funky. Too thick and alcohol tasting. Sad to say I had to flush this turtle down the drain Terrapin's Imperial Pilsner, part of their Monster series

Pics from day 2: Lucky shot of MF to end this trip report. mmmm, Maverick, the main reason I can't wait to go back to CP But we still got nice views on the drive out of the park. Magnum would be our final ride of the day, as we had to head back to PA. and it seems that sign is all the GP needs to stay away, as the coaster had almost no line. Poor Magnum While Magnum apparently doesn't have an entrance sign, it does have this! you know it's slow when the suspended coaster swings IN during a turn No ride on Iron Dragon for us today, we didn't want to fall asleep so early in the day now THAT is Hot Dan Death right there! When we be hungry, there's only one thing I gotta get at CP, an elephant ear loaded with cinnamon and sugar Blue Streak may be the best wood coaster in the Cedar Fair family, surprising for how old it is Raptor still holds its own amongst the inverts, but then again it was one of the first, and has strong forces Back to Raptor for some more good rides Robb, does this sign bring back memories Not as terrible as I remembered it being, but we didn't ride in the backrow where I normally would ride. Loopage Mantis, one of my least favorite standups, but quite photogenic Shout out to Wes, who apparently made quite an impression during the Midwest Trip some cute Halloween theming in the Frontier section back to Millennium Force for another fun ride They look cool though and adds something to that area of the ride for the viewer Water cannons look pretty but don't really get people wet Only sad part of the ride is the brakes right after the 70mph launch. But oh well, it's still freaking fast! Such an awesome 1st drop, all 100 feet of it. Proving it's not the height, it's the degree Heath and Kim agree. Even though the back is rougher and more intense, it's worth a ride Maverick is seriously one of my favorite coasters. It's got a little bit of everything mmmm, airtime mmmm, Stengel dive Unlike Saturday's crowds, Sunday's ERT was fairly lite. Even with a 25 minute downtime on Maverick, we still got 2 rides in during that hour. Day 2 in the park sees morning test runs prior to Resort ERT Breakfast good, free breakfast gooder! A morning is not complete for Nicole without coffee Just chilling in the lounge eating breakfast, even Heath is ready to rock again, as sick as he was Best thing about Concierge floor, free food!

This past weekend we finally made it out to Cedar Point. Originally we were all set up for Memorial Day weekend, but after the reprofiling of Maverick supposed to affect us riding it, we changed our resort reservation to this weekend. Nicole hadn't been to Cedar Point since 1996, so she had lots of stuff to catch up on, and we just wanted to ride Maverick! Say farewell to your precious Magnum CP fanboys! Demon Derek destroy! Nighttime in the park Just for Jahan and other fans of the coathanger designed a shot at sunset Creepy! More Halloween coolness in the hotel includes pictures that change as you walk by Breakers is over 100 years old (well, parts of it are. chances are you don't want to stay in those rooms, they're like dorms apparently) More ghosts! Even the hotel gets into the Halloween spirit The hotel is old and classic looking, and has ghosts too! Hey Jahan, how would you like to wake up to this? We had a room on the 10th floor with concierge service and a park view Time to check out our hotel, the Breakers, right on site Mean Streak should be renamed Arachnophobia for the amount of spiders in the queue Rough, slow, and meandering. What a waste of wood and I'm not sure why, but we decided to ride Mean Streak, since Nicole still liked the ride back in 1996. All these people are going "yay! we're having fun!" They must be from Ohio After about a 20 minute wait because of ridiculous seatbelts that only the op can unlock, Nicole got her final credit To finish off Nicole's credit whoring, we head over to Camp Snoopy One super creepy thing, a demon giraffe AND evil clowns. What could be worse than that (well, besides a hungry coaster enthusiast and you're covered in chocolate) Disaster Transports queue also houses a haunt maze, but we didn't bother In 3D!!!!! Actually it wasn't. In fact, no effects were on at all with the exception of the lift lights Time to head over to 12E, otherwise known as Disaster Transport One old ride that we're glad still exists at the park is Cedar Downs, the Derby Racer. While not as fast as Rye's, it still races AND gallops. Looks like the best park in the world is in the process of painting Raptor bird poop white Raptor, still one of the best coasters at the park, I think. We'll probably be seeing a tombstone for Demon Drop sooner than later, so we had to take a ride on it for Joey Dave, this darkride's for you! The park honors all the darkrides and such the park ripped out over the years during Halloween. Elissa would be sad to see a dead rodent that she never got to count as a credit Everyone here goes "wooooooo!" and as they pass by, everyone in the queue goes "owww, I got sand in my eyes!" Continuing with the Intamin launched theme, next up, Twisted Wicker Biggest shocker, we got Nicole on Top Thrill Dragster...just 6 days after riding Kingda Ka again. We both agree Dragster is better. Smoother, more forceful launch, and better restraints but I doubt Jahan would like encountering this guy very much! CP is having their Halloween Event now. Buffet, coaster in the background, this has ACE written all over it. And I'm sure Rick and Jahan would approve too Wildcat is still one fun ride, and still smooth Mother Goose walks around trying to recruit participants in the Rascal Race. My money's on Gramps, he seems ready to burn One credit Nicole missed last time was Wildcat, which just looks out of place in the park Comfy, fun, and semi-thrilling, it's a coaster the whole family can enjoy (as long as they are over 52" and not too large) Its really tall, really fast, and really just a family ride to us After a Maverick ride, we made it over to Millennium Force for Nicole's credit With a slight delay in opening, we managed only 1 ride during resort ERT, as the crowds were pretty heavy on Saturday, but oh what a ride. We chose the front seat while we could. Staying on site (or having a Maxx pass) gets you 1 hour of ERT. Of course we went right to Maverick, proudly displaying its Golden Ticket Award for best new ride of 07 We start off the day with this front page headline. Lots of GP was talking about it in the park over the course of the weekend

^Maybe they're going to pull a Cedar Fair; operate the park for another year or two then start clearing out the rides. Expect to see the Boomerang heading to Celebration City, SLC to Smokey Mt, and Cheetah to SDC