BitterOldHag

How long were the FL+ lanes? I went on the 6th (Sunday) and it was good until 1:00 when Diamonback and Mystic Timbers were 20-30 minutes. I am going again this Saturday (I know, first day of Fall Fest ) and have FL+ and am wondering if I should just power through as much as I can again from open till 2:00, or if I can slow down a bit. I think I know the answer but just thought I'd ask!

I echo what Bill said about the park being very busy on Sunday. I will also mention that I must have ran into a bottleneck when it came to FastLane. I rode The Bat (which does not offer FastLane), DropTower, Banshee, Adventure Express, Orion, Antique Cars, The Beast, Italian Job Backlot Coaster, and the Train between 11:00 and 1:00. Then I got caught in a traffic jam at Diamondback, which had a 20 minute FL wait. And finally I went to Mystic Timbers, where I waited a half hour. To be fair, I don't think MT opened with the park, so that may have explained the wait, but I was so used to the walk ons that the 30 minute wait was slightly upsetting. That was until I got assigned to the front seat. Sweet Fancy Moses, Mystic Timbers is insane! FastLane was definitely worth it. I highly recommend anyone going to the park purchase it in advance as I don't believe it is being sold at the park.

So this is kind of a stupid question, but since I know many of you have YouTube channels, and Robb of course runs one of the most successful channels out there, what do you do when you see clips (or entire videos) that you created used by others? I am not sure why this is upsetting me so much, but lately I have seen lots of my work used on other people’s channels. Credit MAY be given in the form of a barely legible watermarked name in the lower corner of the screen, or more often than not, credit isn’t given at all, and never has anyone reached out asking to use my videos on their channel. For me it’s not about money because I barely make anything. It’s about the fact that these people can’t/don’t use their own footage for videos on their channel. As an example, someone used 7 clips of mine for a historic video they created and narrated. I was never asked but they did put my YouTube name on the clips. Obviously, the park they were referencing is defunct, so they can’t use their own footage. But why is it so hard to just ask for permission? It seems like there are many of these channels out there that just piece together other people’s work (TPR is definitely “borrowed” quite often) and then monetize and take credit for them. To me, this is kind of not fair. My favorite was when two of my recent videos were filmed by someone’s iPhone and put up on their channels. You were even able to see the person click “play” on their tablet as they filmed the video running on the phone. Ugh! So, what should someone do in this situation? Do I be a prick and file a copyright claim? Do I contact the other channel and ask them to please ask for permission in the future? I have no problem with someone using my footage, as to me it is flattering. I just have a problem with someone taking my footage and using it like it was their own without asking. Sorry if this was not on topic... but I figured there are some experts here and I was hoping to pick some of your brains! Thank you.

Same here. On Tuesday the 1st, I checked for FastLane availability on Saturday the 5th and it appeared that it was available. Today, I checked and FastLane was no longer available for Saturday. Perhaps they really are limiting how many they sell. That was okay though as I pushed my visit to Sunday the 6th for my 50th birthday... so I’m hoping for a fun day of FastLane walk ons!

I was there on Saturday and got there at 11. I went straight to Millennium Force and waited 20 minutes as the line was socially distanced down the ramp and through one or two switchbacks. When I got off, I got back in line and again waited 20 minutes... so you may be able to get your SV and Maverick passes and then just ride MF without a pass. Just a thought. Also note that they are assigning seats (you can ask for front or back though I think). I was really only at the park to buy some of the cool "vintage" t-shirts they had and ride Cedar Downs (which also has a t-shirt!. Mission accomplished as Sky Ride was down due to winds. Ended up riding Cadillac Cars instead. But I will say that the park handled everything very well. Entry was a breeze, MOST people were standing on the social distance markers in the line areas, and while mask use was pretty lousy (lots of chin straps), park employees were trying their best to yell at those folks to put them on right. Enjoy your trip!

Thanks midgetman. I appreciate the info!

Apologies if this has been asked, but if one purchases a FastLanePlus at the park, do they need an Access Pass for Orion? I would assume "no", but I've assumed before and have been quite wrong! Also, is the Eiffel Tower open? I am considering a trip there this Friday and was hoping to go up to the observation deck to get a nice aerial look at Orion.

Went to Waldameer yesterday and enjoyed my visit as usual, even with the restrictions in place. Crowds were very light, so lines were no issue. Anytime the Whacky Shack is a walk on for two and a half hours, you know it is a slow day. Rode my first SbF Visa family spinning coaster as that is one if Waldameer’s 2 new attractions for 2020 (the other being a 6 lane racing slide for Water World). I actually enjoyed it and can see why they are popping up all over. Ravine Flyer II has the second seat of each car roped off (not sure of the back car though) but was running beautifully. The park looked fantastic with its landscaping, so major props to the staff for that. My lone complaint was the use of masks. Most kids/teens were taking them off on the rides and wearing them under the nose on the midways. I didn’t see anyone enforcing the rule either. I did see Park owner Mister Nelson on a golf cart wearing his mask... I wish he’d enforce the rule as it seems he doesn’t take crap from anyone! I do want to compliment the employees as they were all very friendly and seemed to be having a good time interacting with the guests. A good example was the girl operating The Music Express who was enthusiastically asking riders to scream louder if they wanted to go faster... despite just 2 riders being on board! Overall, it was an enjoyable visit, I did feel safe with all of the hand sanitizer everywhere and my wearing a mask, and it was just nice being at a park after all this craziness has affected all of us. Thanks again to the good folks at Waldameer for doing everything they are so that some of us can have a fun and safe time during these “uncertain, challenging, unprecedented” times...

Waldameer "plans" to open on July 3 for the season. Reservations and masks required, Pirate's Cove closed for obvious reasons, and everyone must buy an admission. There will be no individual points or free admission this year. Here is the link: https://waldameer.com/covid-19-information/ Looking forward to visiting and hoping for nothing but good things for this awesome family park.

Not sure if this is an ominous sign of things to come for summer in Ohio, but I read somewhere that the Ohio State Fair was cancelled for 2020.

Hey anonymouscactus, since we aren't going to have to worry about spoiling anything now, what WAS in the box of that incredibly well-themed haunt?

There are now 3 "special spots" as Dragonflier is also one of those rides. However, I was told you could use those 3 spots however you wanted. If you want 3 Lightning Rod rides, you can do that. Or 2 Firechaser and 1 Dragonflier. It doesn't matter in what combination you use them. That being said, I rode LR, FCE and Dragonflier once each and still had 2 of my 3 spots available. No one was stationed in either the FCE or Dragonflier lines, so I had bonus punches!

It's been a week since my visit, so I guess I should share my thoughts on the park that is still my favorite overall amusement park. - I sincerely hope Blazing Fury isn't removed anytime soon. I know it takes up a good chunk of land, but the ride is a classic and is so much fun. "Fire in the hole" indeed! - Lightning Rod blew my expectations away. It was sooooo smooth and insanely fast, and that quadruple down at the end is absolutely crazy when it comes to airtime. I really shouldn't have ridden this per doctor's orders, but I was in the park, I had TimeSaver, and it was running... so I checked off credit #250 with a pretty good ride! - More parks should follow Dollywood's lead with the Wildwood Grove concept. Families really seemed to enjoy being able to experience attractions with their children rather than having to leave the kiddies in the Parent Swap area! - The employees at Dollywood are truly the best of any park I have been to. - Dollywood's train is an amazing experience. I wish that it ran more often (it was on an hourly schedule between noon and 8) as you'd probably find me on board several times a day, and then picking the bits of coal out of my hair and eyes. - FireChaser Express rules. I don't know why I like this ride so much, but its unique layout, mini-launches and "what's in the shed?" moment make for a fantastically fun ride. Thank goodness for TimeSaver here as the line clocked in at 75 minutes per the app. - The only negative I can give the park is that crowd control through the "Great Pumpkin LumiNights" area was a total cluster. Despite announcements over the park's PA system and signs up everywhere to enter at the Craftsmen Valley section of the park, half of the park was of course going through the opposite way, resulting in an area that was almost impossible to navigate. The pumpkin displays were awesome, but dealing with thousands of people all going in different directions was not. Finally, I need to make sure I mention to anyone visiting the Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg area that you simply must make a stop at Earthquake The Ride in Gatlinburg. I haven't laughed so hard at an attraction in a long time, and I had ridden Jurassic Jungle Boat Ride the day before. Shaking and crumbling support beams, crashing into another subway train, alligators and giant snakes attack, an ape (!) breaks free of his cage (seriously, WTF?), and a swarm of rats wind up onboard with you. It's $10 well spent if you like good silly fun.

Dragonflier peaked at 60 minutes according to the app earlier. I’m surprised they don’t have two trains for it even though it is rather short. Fire chaser was 35 minutes. Thank goodness for Time Saver! Had my first ride on Lightning Rod despite doctors saying I should not be riding these “extreme” coasters. Is it wrong of me to say I liked LR better than Steel vengeance? To me, Lightning Rod packs in most of the cool elements (outward turns, crazy airtime) of SV but does it in a more compact package that doesn’t seem to drag on. I am going back tonight for the pumpkin illumination event and am hoping it is still running for a night ride. Dollywood is still my favorite park. It really is the friendliest place in the Smokies. Now I will return to picking the bits of coal out of my hair from the train!

So I am at the park now and waits are around 30 minutes or so but the park just seems packed. I had no idea “Fall Break” was going on... the whole Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg area has been uncomfortably busy all week. Lightning Rod just reopened so I need to head there and they did not punch my TimeSaver card at DragonFlier or FireChaser so two free Lightning Rod rides I guess!

I know this is a major longshot, but Conneaut Lake would be a good home for a ride from Coney Island like the Rock-O-Plane or even their classic Scrambler (put it indoors somewhere and call it the Ultimate Trip ). That Moser Spring/Drop Tower would be a hit as well. Just doing some wishful thinking!

I was amazed at how busy the park was last night. We didn’t arrive until 7:30 and it took us 20 minutes to get in at the main gate. The pass process was relatively painless as others have said though! This year’s Midnight Syndicate show wasn’t as good as prior years. There was a heavy focus on the “story”, which featured the use of old school magic tricks and less focus on Gavin and Ed and their music. It wasn’t bad, don’t get me wrong, but I think I enjoyed the show more when they played more of their music. The only fright zone we got to do was Trail of the Forsaken. I didn’t know that this zone had been reduced in size. And that reduction in size seemed to come with a reduction in scares. We walked through in both directions and had not one scare. Of course, that could have something to do with the large number of people wearing No Boo necklaces. This year’s new addition is called Boneyard Battleground. The park calls it an “entertainment zone”. Located in Celebration Plaza, there is a live band playing songs like “Chop Suey” from System of a Down, all while young girls grind and gyrate on various stages through the zone. At another point, a pole was brought out on stage and a girl was doing erotic moves on said pole. As we walked past families with children, one of the male visitors pulled out some dollar bills and started waving them at the performers. While I’m definitely not a prude, I was definitely surprised that Cedar Point signed off on this as they have traditionally been much more family friendly. Also in this zone we’re several food trucks which seemed to be overlooked as their corner is quite dark. In any case, it’s a unique idea, I’m just not sure if it will go over too well with the large number of families. The CP app had Steel Vengeance with a 135 minute wait and Valravn and Millennium Force with 75 minute waits. That’s crazy for the second Friday of HalloWeekends. I’m guessing the warm weather had something to do with it. Well, that and the fact that all of northern Ohio now seems to have a Gold Pass (myself included!). I’ll be heading back next week to see if I can check out the rest of the scare zones. CornStalkers no longer has FrightLane access, so that is going to have to be a first stop. There is a very cool pumpkin animatronic out front that seemed very popular with selfie takers. Ok, I have rambled long enough. In conclusion, decent night but much busier than anticipated.

I had no idea they did that. Thanks to everyone for the info. I do appreciate it!

I have been hoping for that all week! This is all I was able to find (guess I should have looked here first for the parking issue - sorry!), but it confused me even more: So does this mean I can bypass the Season Pass Center and I will be given a pass at the main entrance turnstiles? That doesn't sound right to me but that's what the website says. And as far as the App goes, I bought my Gold Pass on the day they were announced and at that time it showed up in the App as a valid ticket. Now, it's no longer there and I can't add it. Gotta love modern technology!

^ and ^^ Thanks! I was hoping that was the case.

I am going to be "that guy" and ask a stupid question as despite being a CP visitor for many years, I have usually had a season pass in hand before the season started. Well, this year I have a Gold Pass Voucher to process. My wife and I are going to HalloWeekends tomorrow night and I was wondering if the voucher will cover my parking fee, or do I have to pay the $20 to park because I am technically not a Gold Pass Holder until the card is printed up? I couldn't seem to find the info on their website so I thought I'd ask if anyone here knows. Thanks!

That list seems so short when you first look at it, but it's a pretty significant chunk of rides. It's sad seeing Windseeker and Skyhawk on there as they both used to run on Friday's (as did Iron Dragon and Wicked Twister if memory serves me correctly). I understand that staffing is an issue this time of year, but as Bill mentioned, it seems odd that some of the park's big thrill rides are down on Friday nights yet the kiddie areas are open till 10 at an event geared towards an older age bracket. At least Cedar Downs and the Cadillac Cars are still open. I can ride those all night!

This. I used to love Friday nights during HalloWeekends as I could get on Millennium Force 3 times at night in a half hour time frame. It was great. These days, MF gets an hour wait even when the Haunts are open. Same for Valravn, Maverick and probably Steel Vengeance (didn't get to visit HW last season). I say get Fastlane+ on Fridays if you plan on going for rides. It's usually $85 ($65 with Platinum Pass discount) and will get you multiple night rides on all of the above coasters. Both Maverick and MF are especially awesome at night with the nearby scare zones pumping out fog. I'm sure it has been mentioned before, but I also highly recommend the Midnight Syndicate Live show, which is in the Jack Aldrich Theater right near the park's main entrance. The Ohio-based duo are responsible for much of the music you hear at HalloWeekends and countless other Halloween events across the country. They put on a 25-minute show playing about 6 or 7 songs with some sort of backstory attached and usually a few jumpscares thrown in for good measure!

Another "new" item for 2020 is the Gold Season Pass. I skipped on buying a season pass this year for the first time in years due to health issues and knowing the only coasters I can really ride anymore are Mine Ride, Iron Dragon and Blue Streak. But for $99, I decided to pick one up. You get admission to Cedar Point only (well, CP Shores too but none of the other CF parks) the rest of this year and all of 2020, free parking, and 30 minutes of Early Entry, which I'd say is pretty much the same as the Platinum Pass considering the rides don't ever seem to be open at 9:00 anyways. The only things that I will miss from the Platinum Pass are the FL+ discount and the access to other CF parks... but considering I can't do anywhere near as much as I used to, I'd say the price for the Gold Pass is a fantastic deal. Seriously, it almost pays for itself in one visit if you were to pay gate price. And if that is a boat ride coming back, I for one will be a happy visitor. I'll have one more ride I can go on and not have to worry about passing out!

Per Kennywood’s Facebook page, Steel Curtain will be down for maintenance the rest of the weekend. The comments as usual are comedy gold...