BeemerBoy Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 CoasterMania '07 *Warning - scary statement ahead* Okay, I'll be completely honest. We LOVE Cedar Point! While many of you are scratching your heads, I'll just say that I'm not big on general industry awards, but I simply can't argue the "World's Greatest Amusement Park" title they love to flaunt. Our last visits were in '02 and '03; both during CoasterMania. While you'd tend to think the abundance of CP fanboys would cast an annoying shadow on such a long day at the park, we've found the event (despite some unfortunate circumstances in '03) to be quite enjoyable. For $32, it's hard to argue with over 18 hours of park time, including 4+ hours of ERT, a pretty good picnic lunch, and a nice Q&A session with the top Cedar Point executives. Well, in our minds anyway. As I mentioned, our '03 visit was during TTd's first month or so of operation. It turned out that Dragster decided to act like a 420 foot tall lawn ornament for the duration of the event that year. While everything else was still enjoyable, Dragster's maintanence issues, and subsequent handling of by park execs left a sour taste in our mouths. Basically, this is what happened. Both the alarm clock AND the front desk clerk failed to wake us up on time. Therefore, we arrived about an hour late for the morning ERT, and failed to hear the announcement regarding TTD. Throughout the day we kept hearing people mention about exit passes that were handed out as an apology for TTD possibly being down all day. Well, at the picnic lunch, I was able to speak with one of the executives briefly (name withheld). I explained how and why we arrived a bit late to the event, and kindly asked if there were anymore exit passes to be handed out. He politely answered, "I'm sorry, but unfortunately we gave them all away this morning." I understood, and proceeded to compliment Cedar Point on a terrific event despite the unfortunate TTD situation. He asked where we were from, and upon hearing that we roadtripped it from South Florida, he leaned closer and quietly said "don't tell anyone, but here's a couple for you," as he reached into his pocket and promptly pulled out two TTD exit passes. I gladly accepted, thanked him as we shook hands, finished our conversation, and walked away. Okay, inside I'm thinking why did you blatantly just lie to me before handing me passes? Obviously, the ride never opened and we left with two unused passes. Fast forward to this past friday (6-15-07). For four years, I was always more upset at being lied to than missing a ride on Dragster (am I wrong for feeling that way?). However, considering how much we still love the park, our willingness to forgive and allow for redemption, and the addition of Maverick, it was time to head back to "the point." Armed with two extremely outdated 2003 TTD exit passes. I'll get into the meat of the details from the event prior to the second set of pics. We arrived on Thursday around 3pm, checked into our hotel, rested a while, and then entered the park at 5pm for the Starlight hours offered at a reduced rate. We were accompanied by Shannon's cousin Todd, for his first highly anticipated visit to the point. Todd shed somewhere in the neighborhood of 21 lbs. over the last couple months by walking around 150 miles. He did so with the inspiration of riding Millennium Force comfortably. Give him a big hand for that one! The five hours gave us a great opportunity to be gracious park guides, and help him knock out about 8 credits. That allowed us to enjoy the next day's event at a more leisurely pace. From 5pm to 10pm we were able to ride TTD, MF, Maverick, No Streak, Mine Train, Gemini, Woodstock, Magnum, and TTd once again in the dark during the fireworks display. Not too shabby for 5 hours. Finally, on to the pics...... I leave you from the first part of the TR with No Streak. It's screaming "Somebody love me, PLEASE!! Look at how pretty I am at dusk." Yep, that's what I think of TTD at night. The ride was much more interesting than the lame thumbs up pose. I don't think I'm authorized to use the signature move without a certain New England cop's permission. Blurry pic. Check. This was following our first ride. Relax kids, there's more Maverick pics to come later. While I snapped this pic, we were listening to the theme music from Pirates of the Caribbean. Huh? I know when I think of old westerns, Clint Eastwood, the Duke, and Johnny Depp as Captian Jack ALWAYS come to mind! Okay, now seriously, how does this happen? There's freakin' 10,000 of these throughout the park, yet you people still can't hit the mark? I like what you did with the place, CP....green water and all. Maverick experienced a short downtime, which is the ONLY reason you saw No Streak first. Now it was time to boost my Aquatrax count. Do I at least get any style points? Mean Streak. Voted one of the top 2 woodies in Sandusky for the past 16 years!! My favorite part of the park. Who says Cedar Fair doesn't have trees? Oh wait, I'm guilty of that. Sorry, CP. I apologize in this instance. Forgive me? I'll be your best friend. A sign of quality. And of postponed openings. Shannon says, "I still loves me some Millennium Force." Oh yeah, we see you yellow train. I'm sure we'll get reaquainted with you soon. Hi, I'm Draggin' Iron. As the park's unofficial monrail, I just wanted to say a quick hello before they head over to MF. Things were great until I got a metal rod through my head. Four years later, and we're almost there. First up, TTD. And Shannon rejoices, considering I already had a 400+ft. rocket credit under my belt, and she had to listen to me talk about it until now. For the folks who actually appreciate the rich history of the park. OMG OMG OMG. Wait, I'm a grown adult. Breathe. Ok, there we go. Awesome. Now where can I find me some Callahan Brake Pads? Hmmm, it's not quite the way I remembered it. Has Jimmy fallen on hard times? Ah yes, that'll do. "Hey guys, yell out if you see a good place to stop and take a dump." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeemerBoy Posted June 19, 2007 Author Share Posted June 19, 2007 Day Two. Our day at the park began at 6am, as we weren't in a huge rush to join the running of the bulls to Maverick. Instead, we purposely arrived casually late and went straight to Raptor. A big thank you goes out to Maverick for thinning the lines to both Raptor and MF for morning ERT. We managed 3 front seat rides in about 15 minutes, and then headed over to MF (I absolutely refuse to call coasters cutesy names like Millie, btw.) MF was about a 15 minute wait, and was still running great. There was definitely a noticeable Intamin shake after the first overbank, but the rest of the course still delivered in my mind. I'm not gonna fan any flames about airtime or lack thereof, but my butt managed to float off the seat four different times, thus leaving me satisfied. Personally, I'm a height and speed freak, so the first drop and many low-to-the-ground moments have always been more important to me when it comes to judging this ride. We then headed over to Maverick for one ride before the morning ERT session ended. Here's my thoughts on the ride. From the front seat with a little work on your part, it's the best ride in the park. The ride from any other seat just didn't seem to cut it with me. Quite honestly, it took 3 rides on it before I was even willing to rank it above Wildcat, which I really love. I found that if I leaned forward from the very beginning, hunching over and sticking my head out as if riding a crotch rocket motorcycle, the ride became comfortable and very exciting. By leaning forward, seeing and anticipating the transitions and turns, I was able to avoid what was rather uncomfortable head and neck banging from any other seat. The course itself was really fun. It had a little bit of everything in it, and only once did the pace slow down almost to a stop (curiously, when we rode later in the day with 6 trains on the course, our train slowed to a crawl before launching out of the tunnel). The lack of the heartline, although disappointing, didn't really make a huge differnce. Lauching into a trim was a bit odd, but you definitely picked up plenty of speed immediately following it. All in all, as long as it remains as smooth and quiet as it currently is, CP has a big winner on its hands. Following our morning ERT, we headed to the front of the park for what was the only real disappointment of the day. Strangely, there was only one location open for any real food for the enthusiasts. It created a huge line just for donuts and muffins. Oh well, not the end of the world as we still had some time to kill before the park opened at 10 to the GP. At noon, we headed to the convention center for a nice Q&A session with CP Executives, including Dick Kinzel himself. Honestly, I had no intentions of asking anything, and allowing the throngs of coaster dorks to do the work for me while we sat and listened. Here's a brief synopsis of what was said. Please remember, I only took mental notes, so none of the following is directly quoted, and only summarized. First off, a gentleman asked the panel if they had any reservations about going back to Intamin after TTD. Following some small laughter by the panelists, which included about seven executives to which I can't remember any but Mr. Kinzel specifically, the answer was no. Kinzel expressed that he was dismayed that Maverick opened a couple weeks later than planned, and placed blame on the manufacturer, but admitted that Intamin delivered a satisfying product in the end. He also said that there were 3 coaster proposals on the table before they settled on Maverick. One was similair to MF, one was similiar to Magnum or something, and the other I don't recall. This got me to thinking about wood. I then grabbed the mic and asked if at anytime during the planning stages with Intamin, was an Intamin woodie considered? His answer: NO. I followed up by asking will there ever be? his answer once again: NO. Ok then, thanks. None of it was demeaning, but the answers were clear and concise. Folks, I wouldn't go placing any bets on Intamin wood showing up at the point anytime soon. They were, however, very encouraged by working with GCI and Renegade. The vibe was that Renegade will be a measuring stick for future wood installations at CF parks. Here's the rest of the highlights: - There will definitely NOT be any B&M flyer at CP, ever. - A dive machine is not out of the question. - One of the gentlemen in charge of future ride installations or whatever, has been pushing for a darkride for years now. - The earring rule on Maverick is implemented by Intamin, not CP. - This is speculation on my part, but I'd look for KD to receive something big in the next few years. - Demon Drop is still for sale. - When discussing theming, Kinzel made the comment that if given the choice, he'd always rather spend an extra million on more track than theming. - And on a lighter note, someone asked if they had ridden Kingda Ka? I can't remember who answered, but they said they were there to ride ET, and after pausing for comedic effect, said that KK was down. - Finally, it was mentioned that it's a possibility that Clair Hain of GCI *may* eventually try to improve Mean Streak. We can only hope! Following the Q&A, we caught up with someone to ask about our 2003 exit passes. Without hesitation, we were directed to park operations, where they glady took down our last name and instructed us to provide it at any time to the ride op at the exit of TTD for a direct pass onboard. Thank you Cedar Point! Without a doubt, this made my day, and you easily redeemed yourself. That was alot to read through, so I'll just say that everything else went terrific, and we are definitely anxious to return asap. Thank you all for reading. Now onto the second batch of pics. Enjoy. One last aquatrax shot before break. A few more to come later. Who said they slacked off on the theming? Jesse James drove a pickup, and Billy the Kid owned a cherrypicker didn't they? Just missed the perfect money shot. Hi, I'm the water cannon where the heartline roll used to be. If you piss me off, I'll get all up in your face. Launch. Sorry, I *had* to. Mmmmmmmmmm. From the second swithback from the water, it proved to be about an hour wait. The grounds around Maverick looked great. Damn that was boring. Oh, I'm not an aquatrax? How bout a water cannon in the face? You can all relax now. Here is the segment entitled obligatory Maverick pics. See how sexy I am? Hi, I'm Millennium Force. I'm tall, blue and handsome. I have one of the world's greatest first drops, own lakefront property, like to live in the fast lane, and can always show you a good time. If you think airtime is overrated, and would like to get to know me, look me up at cedarpoint.com. Mission Accomplished. 15 minute waits during ERT. Again, thank you Maverick. As do we both love this one. I LOVE this coaster. Oh, hi Joe. The trash cans loved Nikki, Jer, Paul, Tom, Ronnie, Bobby, Ricky, Mike, Ralph, and Johnny's trip reports of camera capturing camera, so they tried their best to replicate it, minus the cameras in hand. If you look close, you can see through about 7 different cans. RCT flower beds. Third time was a charm for her on this one. It should make a certain beer lover happy. We teased Shannon about being photographically challenged, but there's just something so intriguing about this shot she caught. And it makes me one very happy BeemerBoy. Yes, disembodied ride op arm. Three front row rides in 15 minutes does indeed deserve a thumbs up. Hi, I'm Raptor. The Rodney Dangerfield of B&M inverts. Why thank you. If you were wondering what the park entrance looked like empty, here you go. Ooooh, I feel so special. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeemerBoy Posted June 19, 2007 Author Share Posted June 19, 2007 I gotta also say that it was a pleasure meeting many of you during our two days there. We ran into "the one," coreyml and dougstanton (sorry it took us that long to run into you guys ), Jerry (who is a mainstay over at CoasterFanatics.com), and the two GCI interns...aka Adam and Evan. I still want one of those shirts! (btw, please tell the boys to get to work on Mean Streak, if indeed there's any real possibility there.) And finally, I'll leave you with this. Jamie, my count is now 1. On the way back to the locker, Raptor gave us a great look at her. Cedar Fair promotes legalized gambling in their parks. I LOVE it!! This is for all those who constantly complain about a "lack of significant airtime." Four train shot! Well, if you consider Power Tower to have "trains" I guess. You know you want me. 21 million for Maverick, and I still have to lay on concrete?!? Thanks CF! On three....1, 2, 3....awww. LSMs, magnetic braking systems, pneumatic water canons....this must be the Will Smith creative license version of the old west. See? Honestly, it was pretty funny to watch as the wind blew the stream right back onto the oncoming trains. I kept wondering why the trains were returning to the station wet. lol I told you I'd get all up in your grill. At this point in the afternoon, Maverick had 6 trains running. Five of which were both in the station and on the brake run at once. On our way back over to Maverick, I thought this was a cool game, so I displayed my sick skillz with the roundball. Check out that form, fool. I won a small Colts football? I had no use for it, so some random kid in line got lucky. Gemini. Much more fun when they get the dispatches right. My brakes are big Bon Jovi fans. Hi, I'm Magnum. There are still some folks who think I'm a top 5 steel coaster. They're called Ohioans. After boarding from the exit passes, our train was second to go when we were asked to step back into the queue for a brief maintenance issue. I'm not sure what they were doing to the catch car, but it only took a few minutes. They resumed with no test runs. It was funny to see everyone rooting for a rollback. Didn't happen though. (I kidd, I kidd) Keep an eye on these. They're all line jumpers. Corkscrew pic. Yeah, just Corkscrew pic. Lunchy munchies. Q&A, minus the main participants. and I begin to feel much better. ...this.... Hi, I'm Mantis. I look at MF all day and feel horrible about myself. However, if I turn around I see..... Where are we again? And its cars? Did I mention I LOVE this ride? Hi Cameron. Purty. And after riding Blue Streak, you get to see Raptor again. Why do we need two more pics of it? Because. That's why. Just because. All kidding aside, she ran great! Hi, I'm the number one woodie in Sandusky. Sadly, I realize that's not saying much. Even the park benches own Mean Streak. We didn't actually ride 'em, but the sign sure is cool, ain't it? Hi. Hi, I'm Wicked Twister. Would you guys like to be my first riders of the day. Don't worry, two ride ops survived the test runs. What do you think I am? Wolf Bobs? Can you pick out my favorite? We got impatient while waiting, and a fight broke out over MF's top speed. So this was the line for donuts. Mmm, donuts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbalvey Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 OMG, this is seriously one of the BEST TR's I've seen on the site! I *LAUGHED MY ASS OFF* at the 'list of line jumpers.' It really just goes to show you that many of us DO have a great sense of humor! Thanks for posting....this is FRONT PAGE WORTHY!!!! --Robb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ginzo Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 You are really hardcore to drive from Florida to Cedar Point. I don't think I'd attempt that. At least not without some stopover parks or something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skyscraper Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 One of the best trip reports I saw of Cedar Point... You made the best description of Iron Dragon Hi, I'm Draggin' Iron. As the park's unofficial monrail, I just wanted to say a quick hello before they head over to MF. !!! I just can't stop laughing ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asr Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Don't diss Iron Dragon! Anyway, cool TR, I like the Mean Streak jokes. Unlike Iron Dragon, that ride deserves the hatred it gets. It is the worst coaster I have ever had the displeasure of riding. TAER IT DOWN!!11!!!!!* * = Misspelling intentional Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jarmor Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 ..im still waiting on his thoughts on wood...or did I miss it? And it sucks that you were lied to. Personally I wouldn't have taken the passes but rather let everyone know about the situation... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ginzo Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 ..im still waiting on his thoughts on wood...or did I miss it? And it sucks that you were lied to. Personally I wouldn't have taken the passes but rather let everyone know about the situation... From what he said, I don't see what the big deal is. Maybe they just had a set number of exit passes earmarked for this event, and they were all gone when BeemerBoy asked. God forbid they don't give every exit pass they have out at some enthusiast event. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pianojohn Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Great Siouxsie Sue reference! Awesome pics too. Too bad about the no Intamin woodie....but we can hope! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goliath513 Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Dive Machine not out of the question!?!? Where would they have room for another major coaster anyways. In my opinion, they need a new water ride to compensate for the removal of WWL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sfne2005 Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Really great TR! Informative, funny, great pictures and a shout out ! You have my blessing for random sig moves after reading this. Kickass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larrygator Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Dive Machine not out of the question!?!? Where would they have room for another major coaster anyways. Room can always be made and the peninsula is not sinking Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redfoot12 Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Great pictures! I'm also trying to shed some pounds for a CP trip before the end of the year. "This is speculation on my part, but I'd look for KD to receive something big in the next few years." Woo! This supports my post in the rumor super thread! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wes Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 This TR is epic and wonderful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youthink? Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Haha I love the station of Maverick with the people talking VERY good TR! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan King Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Woah Woah Woah Chris Belson Showed Up!?! (See Picture) BTW...Awesome PTR!!! I Loved It!!! You had me laughing! -Ryan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbalvey Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 LMAO! Just now got "Aquatrax" spelled out in the very last pic! Brilliant! --Robb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KingOfNynex2003 Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 awesome photo tr! It makes me want to go over to CP someday now. (When I lose about 110 lbs I'll go) namely because I want to get onto those Intamin rides like MF, TTD, WT and Maverick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParkTrips Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 hahahahah that was awesome Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrMorgan Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Don't diss Iron Dragon! Anyway, cool TR, I like the Mean Streak jokes. Unlike Iron Dragon, that ride deserves the hatred it gets. It is the worst coaster I have ever had the displeasure of riding. TAER IT DOWN!!11!!!!!* * = Misspelling intentional I heard a rumor that they're working on making Mean Streak floorless for 2008. Great trip report, by the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deano Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Awesome TR, and some really good coaster photos as well, thanks for sharing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harbrian9 Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Not wanting to be too PC, but your list would have worked better for me if you had placed the names of other ethnic or racial groups that correspond to the designation "white trash" instead of just the ethnic or racial or sexual orientation name - i.e. "getto" instead of "black", "Euro trash" instead of European, "baja classe" instead of mexican. What your list communicates is that just by being black or mexican or gay, people correspond or are similar to lower class white people. Not a huge deal, but you could have made the joke better. It's like "one of these things is not like the others..." I see middle and upper class white people jumping lines all the time. Mostly at Six Flags parks, but whatever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubba83 Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Certainly one of the best Photo TRs I have ever seen, if not the best. Nice work! Must have taken a long time to write all that and post all the pics! I read every bit though cause it was entertaining. Was your ride on Mean Streak pretty bad then? I really liked my ride when I was there. -Kevin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marktippins Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 kick ass man!! :] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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