ytterbiumanalyst

They put in a brand new lawn next to Possessed. It's quite an upgrade. Truth.

Liquorice. Phantasy Star or Final Fantasy?

Hobbit coaster confirmed!

^^ That's awesome. I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought 60" was a touch unrealistic.

Yep, that's exactly what it's about. And exactly who we are.

Nowhere. The park has no notable food. JB's is decent, and there's GoFresh if you want something not fried. All of it is forgettable, though, so just get whatever's close. Justice League is fantastic, get to it early or use single rider line. Probably not, but you never know with Memorial Day weekend. If everyone's in the waterpark, then you're probably fine without. If lines look crazy, pick one up.

You must not have been around executives much, man. Their daddies didn't pay for their Yale education--ahem, for a smart poor kid to do their Yale homework for them--so they can "labor." It’s their park, they should be able to do what they want. Don’t like it, don’t go. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Don't skip Bat; it's awesome. Really, all the coasters are good, but if you're short on time you can skip Flying Ace Aerial Chase, Invertigo, Vortex, and Woodstock Express. If you get time they're all worth it, especially Woodstock Express. Yes, it's in the children's area, yes there will be a bunch of children in the queue, no it's not a children's coaster. It's a solid old school woodie and a lot of fun.

^ & ^^ Yeah, it occurred to me later that the only photos I took all day were in the House of Barbecue. Because priorities. Really, unless you hate barbecue, this festival is fantastic. SDC has long had their own brand of barbecue sauce, and there are 2 permanent restaurants that serve barbecue: the Mine Restaurant on the square has barbecue chicken, and Riverside Rib House near the Lost River has...well, ribs. During the festival, they take it up a notch and have special sauces, interesting combinations, and a lot more variety. They also have a buffet if you just want to sample everything, but that starts next weekend (ISWYDT, SDC--the weekend after ACE. Smart). It's in Reunion Hall on the square, and has most of the stuff the House of Barbecue does. Oh, and roller coasters too. They do also have some of those. After 3 is great, but Saturdays have been extremely busy so far this year. If you get a Trailblazer Pass, you're good. Since you're here for a while though, I'd recommend after 3pm on Sunday then all day Tuesday. SDC is closed Monday the 14th, so they count it as 2 consecutive days for purposes of the after 3 promotion. Get cinnamon bread. Do the cave tour. Have fun!

Cedar Point has dorms and hires people from all over the world. When I was in high school, I had a friend who went to work for them the summer after graduation. He just moved there and stayed in the dorms, then came back at the end of summer. I wouldn't worry about it. Cedar Point's operations are essentially untethered from anything going on in Sandusky.

Thanks, Bill. Boardwalk's looking great!

Time Traveler, Row 7, after dark. Perfection.

You do. You totally do. Everything is so good at SDC, and their cheesecake in a jar is no exception. This is a place that does food festivals right.

Hey, even better.

Thanks, Big Dipper 80. Noted for my own Cincy trip, hopefully later this year.

Oooh, very nice. I like this a lot. Minor chords, good storytelling, very emotionally present...checks all the boxes. Very much in love with Donald Glover's performance last night.

^ People are stupid.

Mercy Day and Bluegrass & BBQ Yesterday we went to SDC for Mercy Health System's company picnic. My wife works for them, and it's a day that we look forward to. Always very busy, but it does give us the chance for night rides in the spring, so it's fun. We decided to camp at SDC's Wilderness, the first time we had ever done so. It was a pleasant experience, and we enjoyed the 5 minute drive to the park. Certainly not a must for us, as it's only about 45 minutes from our house, but camping is fun. We noticed as we set up the tent that the rides were running until about 10PM, unusual at a park that usually closes about 6 or 7. We would learn later that ACE had an event on Friday night, one day before ours, just so they could be the first to ride Time Traveler in the dark. They had T-shirts that proclaimed that fact too. Have I mentioned how much I love TPR? I'm a nerd, no doubt about that, but even that's embarrassing. Get your sh*t together, ACE. Or don't. We'll have fun either way. On Saturday, we started out the day with 1 hour ERT, which gave us 1 ride on Time Traveler.... Yeah, it's ERT with about 6000 employees and their families, so not exactly unlimited rides. Still, it was really great getting to ride this again. The last couple of times it's been down for weather, as Ozarks springs can be unpredictable, and we just go when we have the time to go, even if it's less than ideal. This was also the first weekend for Bluegrass & BBQ, so we made sure to hit up Red Gold Heritage Hall for some BBQ goodness.... Well. I did. Everyone else was all "I don't like BBQ. I want grilled cheese." So Julie took the kids to get grilled cheese, and I had BBQ. The dry rub was fantastic, as it should be when you do BBQ correctly, but the root beer glaze was pretty good too. Most of our day was spent at the three children's areas. Mercy was giving out ice cream to employees in the pavilion area of the Grand Expo in the afternoon, so we took a break for that. Everyone enjoyed it. We also got good discounts on food and drinks, including a refill mug for $7.99 and cinnamon bread for $4.99. Thanks to everyone at Mercy and HFE who worked out those deals. After closing, the riff raff left and it was just us Mercy folks. The lines for Time Traveler went to about an hour, and the lines for everything else were 15 minutes or less. It was a great time, and we ended our day on Time Traveler, row 7, in the dark. This was my first time in the back car, and oh it is so intense going over that first drop. You're not even out of the station yet before it rips you forward. Row 7 is the place to ride, for real. Legend has it the Holy Grail is inside. So many choices... The Mason jar entrees did not return this year, but the desserts are still here! Rib platter. Very good deal for $16.49. They do give 10% off for season passholders, too. Mmm...strawberry cheesecake with graham cracker crust...in a Mason jar.

OMG, awesome! I honestly expected it never would, that they'd just get rid of it and buy something else. Leave it to Knoebels to get it running against all odds.

You must not have been around executives much, man. Their daddies didn't pay for their Yale education--ahem, for a smart poor kid to do their Yale homework for them--so they can "labor."

Niice TR! Kings Dominion does look like a pretty great park. And I concur about Woodstock Express, assuming it's the same as the one at Kings Island (looks the same at least). It's small, but it's legit.

Congratulations, Carlos! Three years in remission is a big deal. There's a lot they can do these days. Sounds like a fun trip, and a great way to celebrate.

Thsi place looks pretty great! Didn't know much about it besides DiVertical, but it looks really pretty, with several great rides. Fun day!

Pandemonium is all-encompassing chaos, but Riddler can make you question your very existence. Magnum is sinking into Lake Erie.

I often mistake Los Angeles for Sandusky, Ohio. They're just so similar.