hoppedup

This is the verbiage on the ticket I was emailed, hence my call and email:

Response from SeaWorld: Dear Mr. Glenn, Greetings from SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment! Thank you very much for your information request on SeaWorld San Antonio. It is always a pleasure to hear from our guests, for you are the one that helps make our park a success. I spoke to my supervisor and she said that at this time it is okay that you have the Platinum pass. Please stop at any kiosk to redeem your e-voucher and obtain your actual pass. Sincerely, Deborah

I posted in the SWO thread about buying a platinum pass for SWSA from out-of-state b/c it was so much cheaper and a Texas trip was in my plans anyway. I read the actual printable ticket and it says SeaWorld Texas platinum passes are valid for Texas residents only. I went back through the website and read everything I could find and could not find this information. So I repeated the process of buying a pass right up until the payment screen and did not find this information. I called and the person at SeaWorld CS said that if purchased the pass on Ez-Pay installments that I had to be a resident of Texas, but since I paid in full, the passes would be valid. This seems very odd. I sent an email to customer service as well to confirm so I can have something in writing.

Went to the park on Saturday. The forecast probably kept it from being super crowded, but I was surprised by the number of people who were out there in rain jackets. We did a few laps on Fury with the line never making it to the landing on the stairs. The third lap, I had about 2 inches of space between my legs and the clamshell. Holy airtime, Batman! Weight loss has its privileges. I would have just kept going until the lines started getting long but we had some first-timers in tow. We did three laps front row Afterburn without getting off b/c there was no line. I took my daughter and my friend, who also brought her daughter. And the daughters each brought a friend. It was tough convincing them as we walked past a coaster that they should do those last, if at all. (Vortex, Cyclone, Hurler) We left early and my friend said they rode those coasters after we left. She said Vortex wasn't bad, so I may have to unfriend her . She is buying 2019 platinum passes now. I was surprised that while we never had a downpour, the rain was steady a few times and to my knowledge nothing closed due to rain. Pretty sure Ricochet never ran at all. My daughter's friend needed two ride ops to push down to get a green light on Fury. I was nervous for her on Intimidator and sure enough, she did the WOS. Also, we had two free bring-a-friend passes but there was a guy handing out free tickets near the ticket booth from some corporate event, so even the extra two friends got in free. Me & the offspring leaving just as the sun started to come out. Jojo dancer, your life is calling

The first loop is taking shape on Copperhead Strike. Can't wait to get a peek at it this Saturday. https://www.carowinds.com/explore/live-video

I just bought a Platinum Pass from SWSA for the reduced price. Looks like SWO, BGT, SWSA, SFFT, and SFOT are on the agenda in the next 365 days. I'm in NC, about 3h 45m from BGW. YMMV.

I just looked into getting passes for my daughter and I since we may make a trip to Florida later this year. And maybe Texas next year. I understand why buying a pass in Florida is more expensive as there are more parks and opportunities to visit them. BGW surprised me a little, though. Maybe we should just do Texas first. Cost for a platinum pass: SWO, BGT - $359.88 BGW - $347.88 SWSD - $239.88 SWSA - $132.92

New ranking for me: 1. Steel Vengeance + Maverick (5) 2. Fury 325 + Afterburn (11) 3. Skyrush + Storm Runner (17)

Nice report! I think I'll add MoA to the itinerary for our eventual trip to Valleyfair. Buffett fan, eh? He has recorded my friend Will's songs on all of his albums since License to Chill.

The Bat was the biggest surprise of all on a recent CP/KI trip. I didn't have high hopes after riding Iron Dragon. The Bat was a great ride. On one of my rides I sat front row with a guy who would give Robb a run for his money on vocals After suffering through Nighthawk and Batwing, I'd have no qualms with it being Firehawk. I skipped it. I liked Vortex, but it is a one ride per trip kind of ride for me. It's not the worst Arrow looper I've done (Corkscrew), but it certainly isn't the best (Loch Ness Monster).

I'm most excited about Copperhead Strike because it is at my home park and the only one I will definitely ride in 2019. And I love that Carowinds is getting a launch coaster. I like the anticipation and build-up from a lift hill, but there is something in the instant gratification of a launch that I really like. As someone who almost exclusively rides coasters, it will be great to have something with re-ride potential other than Fury, Intimidator, and Afterburn. That said, Maxx Force looks to be more intense, so I might try to squeeze SFGam in on the second trip of 2019.

FWIW, I ate at Coney BBQ on Friday night and Saturday lunch and walked right in with no line both times. The tri-tip and baked chicken were both really good, IMO, and on the meal plan. They also have sides other than fries and mac n cheese. Which I appreciate as a diabetic. I have eaten 14 meals on the meal plan with maybe two more coming before the end of the season, which would average out to $7.19 a meal. With multiple trips to Carowinds, KD, and multi-day visits to CP and KI coming up again next year, I re-upped already on platinum park and meal passes for 2019.

Update after last week's CP/KI combo: 1. Steel Vengeance 2. Mystic Timbers 3. Fury 325 4. Maverick 5. Phoenix 6. Skyrush 7. Lightning Rod 8. Afterburn 9. Wicked Cyclone 10. Millennium Force

I saw Single Rider Bob a few times when I was doing Millennium Force during ERT. I didn't know who he was until I read the above comments. I was a single rider all day and one of the people I got paired with was a bald guy, 60ish, who was very enthusiastic and yelling, "Let's go. You're cutting into my ride time." He was also asking Single Rider Bob to open the magic gate when we pulled back into the station. There were two ride ops there and the line was close to being past the gate so Bob kept moving. Was my ride partner a member here? Also, I went over to Steel Vengeance to snap a few pics. Announcements are blaring non-stop about cell phone policy. A lady tried to enter the queue WHILE talking on her cell phone. When she was stopped and had the rules explained to her at the entrance, she tried to walk away and put her phone in her pocket. She was stopped again and ended up getting a locker. WTF is wrong with people?

Left Cedar Point after an early lunch, having gotten Maverick x4 and MF x4 during ERT. Also got rides on Raptor, Valravn and Blue Streak. Left in time for two brewery stops in Dayton. I got to KI around 5:10. Went straight to Banshee and it wasn't running so I rode The Bat, because it's right there. I don't think I watched POVs on the suspended coasters, so what a pleasant surprise The Bat was after Iron Dragon. I thought it was great. Then got Invertigo, Racer, Vortex (a bit rough but certainly not the worst Arrow looper.), The Beast, Mystic Timbers ( Wow, new 2nd favorite woodie behind Phoenix), Diamondback, Banshee, Adventure Express, and Flight of Fear. Only wait over 5 minutes was FoF. Had dinner at Coney's BBQ. I ate three meals at the smokehouse at CP in a day and a half and always eat at Harmony Hall at Carowinds. Love chicken, brisket, and ribs. I bailed after dinner since I'll be back in the morning for ERT. Not sure what stayed open but there was a ton of lightning going on about 15 minutes after I left. Looking forward to lapping Mystic Timbers and Diamondback in the a.m. And more rides on The Bat and The Beast. The Beast has an awesome layout and scenery but not sure I could marathon it. Someone refresh my memory on the best seat. I was somewhere mid-train and got beat up quite a bit. I skipped Firehawk. My daughter likes Nighthawk and Batwing, but I don't enjoy them. I'm sure I'll ride it with her next year. Kinda bummed my daughter couldn't make this second trip, but paring it down to two parks has made it a bit more relaxing.

Rode every coaster except Woodstock Express today. Steel Vengeance is definitely my new favorite coaster. TTD went down for about an hour and I just happened to be walking by when it reopened. I did Corkscrew last and I'm nursing that headache with an IPA at Bait House Brewery, Sandusky's newest (and only?) brewery. Gemini had to stop on the lift hill for a cell phone. I don't know why they don't just kick those people out of the park instead of only confiscating the phone.

I'm here today. I think I'm just going to suck it up and get in the queue for Steel Vengeance. Looks like an hour and a half. I already got Maverick, MF, Valravn, Gatekeeper, Rougarou, Raptor, and Iron Dragon. Maverick is my favorite so far. Nice, cool overcast day for coastering here at CP.

I've only used Uber around downtown and surrounding neighborhoods in Charlotte, but I can't imagine you'd have any problem at Carowinds. Just a heads up, the park is closed during the day Friday the 19th, Scarowinds is open 7 p.m. to midnight that day. Park is open 10-5 on Saturday and Sunday with Scarowinds taking over 7-midnight. I went to Scarowinds last year and it was crazy crowded. Not sure about the daytime crowds during Scarowinds. We might go this year because we have platinum passes.

I went to Carowinds Saturday. I had only ridden Fury 325 a couple of times before and I must have been stapled then. Saturday we got in maybe 10 rides and only twice did the ride op push the clamshell down tight. I think it is now my favorite steel coaster for airtime. We got last row for most rides. "We all float down here, Georgie."

QFT. Phoenix is my current #1 woodie. Insane airtime. Might drop in next week and marathon it.

My daughter will not be able to make our second big coaster trip this summer. It's going to feel weird as I haven't been to a park without her since we caught coaster fever exactly a year ago. I would just bail, but I didn't buy a platinum pass to go to Carowinds, Dorney, and a couple of hours at KD. So it's a solo park week coming up for me. We can do the trip again next year and I'll have plenty of info to possibly make it a better experience.

I did all three of these parks back in June. We got to Dorney kinda late, but we rode all the big coasters except Possessed in under two hours with multiples on Talon and Steel Force. The next day we went to Knoebel's and spent six hours there, the longest amount of time we spent at any one park on that trip. We did tickets and were fine, but if I went back I'd get the wristband with roller coasters if available that day and marathon Phoenix. Holy hell, what a coaster! Then we previewed HP that night. In two and a half hours we rode all of the coasters except the boomerang, with multiples on Fahrenheit, and Skyrush. Laff Track was the only coaster with a wait of over 5 minutes. It was pouring rain the next morning in Hershey, so we headed to SFGA. The lady at the ticket booth the night before just scratched out the 'P' for preview on our paper tickets and didn't scan anything, so we may go back to HP in a couple of weeks since our full day tickets should still be good.

^^I bought my 2018 pass on August 25th last year and it included one free admission in 2017 and reduced admission for any other visits. I bought mine through Carowinds and the free pass could be used for Scarowinds or WInterfest as well.

Are you guys not reading the other park threads? Clearly Conneaut Lake is putting a hurting on CP's attendance.