Photo TR: Dainan's Trek to Ohio

[CycloneMan]

The Plan:

My friends Walter and Jackie have been planning a trip out to Cedar Point for there three year anniversary for a year now! Part of the plan was for my brother and I to tag along, because no trip can be complete with out the Rafferty twins (they say), but for months I've been saying I can't go. Well, the morning (3am) before the trip, I was going over my account and such and I realized, I can fully afford this trip! So I called Walter and told him I was in. I drove out to Jackie's house and we went over the trip and did a run to Great Adventure...because we were bored.

 

The original plan was to drive out to Cedar Point but doing a stop of Kennywood the day before. Do two days at Cedar Point, then go to King's Island, and seeng if we need a second day there or not. If we didn't need one, we were going to go to Kentucky Kingdom! Then go back to Cedar Point for July 4th and then go home stopping at some park on the way.

 

Day: 1

June 29th, 2008

Park: Kennywood

 

Trip Report

We left Manalapan, NJ at around 7am and headed out west. Some where between there and Hershey, I got hold of the wheel and drove all he way to Kennywood. I don't remember what time it was when we got there, all I know is that it was the most driving I've ever done in my life . So first things first, we go in and use our tickets we bought online to get in. I will be honest, this was like being at Disneyland for me (in some way). I've always wanted to go to Kennywood (as well as Cedar Point and King's Island), so I was very hyper and jumpy. Of course I wanted to ride Steel Phantom first...but I couldn't, so I stuck with Phantom's Revenge.

 

I will admit, everytime I went on Phantom's Revenge, I got all excited and couldn't contain myself. So of course, when we got in the station, we queued up for the back, where we ran into our friends Kevin and Emily who we haven't seen since Six Flags America in early May. So, we finally get on the ride and we are going up the lift. God I just love these Arrow noises and then we get slamed down the first drop, which completely suprised me! Then came the second hill which you take at amazing speed! The rest of the ride was filled with great speed, laterals and ejector. This has ranked as my number 3 steel coaster!

 

After that, we took a stop at the Potato Patch for some fries. I got mine with gravy, Jackie went plain, and Walter got cheese and bacon on his. From there we strolled on over to the Racer (because Thunderbolt shut down when we got in line). The Racer was fun. It would have been better if they dispatched the trains at the same time, the train was actually behind the other on the lift, it was an unfair race. From there we went on Jack Rabbit. This ride completely suprised us. I've heard stories, but wanted to try myself. On the double down, I got so much ejector that my feet were off the ground! (I wasn't holding on).

 

After that Walter and Jackie rode the Paratrooper while I filmed a bit. Then the three of us went on to be my new favorite flat ride, Kangaroo. Apperantly it's the last one left in the world, which is a true shame because more of these should be around. The ride goes around in a circle on a track, but the track lifts and ends, and the cars come off the track and float down back on the track. The airtime is pretty sweet and it's just a really fun ride!

 

Next up was Garfield's Nightmare, which was just there Old Mill, rethemed. The ride was a nice break from the heat but it was very lame, and I wish I got to see the original Old Mill...and not some fat cat in 3D. After that we headed over to ride Valcano, there Huss Enterprise. Fun as usual for any Enterprise. After that we took a ride on Phantom's Revenge before heading over to Exterminator, which was in the over flow queue. So we waited it. When we were inside the building the park shut down due to an approaching Tornado! About an hour later, the park reopened and we got in the ride in 10 minutes. This is a Reverchon Spinning Mouse, and it is VERY well themed. This totally blew us away, and we loved every minute of it.

 

The rain cleared, but not all the coasters were open yet so we went into Noah's Ark. Wow...just wow! That's all I am saying . After that we finally got over to Thunderbolt which as now running one train. We waited for the back, and it was alot of fun. Another top 10 from this park. It's mazing how big the first and last hills are in the ravine. I now understand he whole fanbase to this park. I don't feel like typing every ride in detail, but after that we did a few flats and got the kiddie credit. We also did the Turtles and I was flying all around, and the new Ghostwood Manor, whish had a cool preshow, but I don't care for shooting dark rides, so I wasn't totally impressed! Overall, Kennywood was a great park and it was my favorite of the trip, and I'd love to go back!

 

Photos

Because I have no camera, these are all video stills

 

The GPS was helpfull, but lied to us a few times on the trip!

 

OMFG WE ARE HERE!

 

And this is where I almost died of hapiness!

 

The park looks a bit like it should be called "Kennyhood" from the outside, but it definately is not!

 

From the parking lot, we could tell, we weren't getting on Pit Fall

 

I was sooooooooooo happy....and tired!

 

This reminded me of Lake Compounce

 

The tunnel to get into the park

 

WOW...this looks different than from the outside...

 

faint

 

So...these trains were a bit bizzare looking, but who cares

 

The second drop that dives through the Thunderbolt

 

The sick banked turn of doooooooooooooom (everything is more dramatic when you add more "o"s btw)

 

Ejector here...

 

here...

 

and here...

 

Hey look, Kevin and Emily!

 

Walter eats his Potato Patch fries unaware that he is going to be hit by a train full of riders...GASP!

 

Thunderbolt is all sexy and stuff!

 

Too bad, we'll come back to you later!

 

Insert high pitched squeel here

 

So next up was the Racer

 

The crew kind of sucked

 

Here's one train....

 

...and there's the other, about 10 seconds later!

 

This was are "OMFG" ride of the trip!

 

So innocent and so pure...

 

But the double down will kill ya! Literally...there are no lapbars

 

Walter and Jackie ride the Paratrooper

 

While I eat some yummy pop corn!

 

So here is the world's greatest flat ride, Kangaroo

 

See how it just jumps off the track!

 

Sigh....moving on

 

Yes, we did Phantom again!

 

The restraints are bizzare but awesome!

 

Walter is ready to ride!

 

Pittsburg Plunge doing it's thang (or Pixberg as the locals say)

 

Lost Kennywood looked really great! And even better at night...but by that point, my battery was dead.

 

Chaching!

 

The overflow was at least shaded by Pittsburg Plunge

 

And then there was the neetly themed, indoor queue.

 

Me, Walter an Jackie waiting out the tornado that was in the area.

 

I see a rat!

 

el oh el

 

Very cool loading platform, and very well themed as well! I loved it

 

Noah's Ark, simply amazing. You have to check it out yourself!

 

We finally got to ride Thunderbolt after a long day. And it was so worth it!

 

I just love these NAD trains!

 

The first drop is AMAZING!

 

We end with this shot of Ghostwood Manor. It ws trackless...

 

There would be more photos, but my battery died (because I am an idiot and accidently left my camera on in my pocket for an hour!) So, after we left the pak, Jackie and I drove, while Walter slept, to Sandusky to our fabulous Days Inn, where we crashed, looking foward to our next day.

 

-Dainan "That concludes day 1" Rafferty

[ElToroExtreme]

Very nice Dainan. Cant wait to see more!

[odene497]

I want to go to Kennywood sooooo(more dramatic with o's) bad. I always enjoy your trip reports, looking forward to more.

 

 

 

 

-Nick

[Kingbooba]

I want to go to Kennywood so much! Lost Kennywood looks amazing at night. Plus Phantom's Revenge.

 

Pittsburgh Plunge's splash is huge; much bigger than Escape from Pompeii's here at Busch Gardens.

 

Also, there was a tornado while you were at the park? Talk about weird.

[FeelTheFORCE]

Awesome trip report! Glad to hear you had a good time at my home park, Kennywood! Can't wait to go there, myself.

[Jayjay719]

You went to Kennywood? Without me? How dare you young man! Lol, anyway great start and I can't to see the rest.

[CycloneMan]

Day: 2

June 30th, 2008

Park: Cedar Point

 

Trip Report

I don't feel like typing a full report on Cedar Point, so I will type some things. Okay, so it was rainy all day, and all the coasters were running on low capacity. Two trains on everything that ran three, one train on the woodies...and some steels. I wasn't impressed with the park at all in the morning. In fact, I hated it about half way through the day. But then the park grew on me and I enjoyed it. I still like Kennywood better though.

 

Photos

Here is Jackie and I...tired...but getting ready to head out...

 

To buy me shoes because mine got destroyed a Kennywood

 

So at Wal-Mart we found Hannah Montana! We asked her for her autograph but she was all like, "yea, what eva! kthnxbai!"

 

This made us laugh

 

So...yea...like...we are going to Cedar Point or something!

 

You should have heard us in the car...it may go in the video...it may not

 

One of these towers really excited us

 

"INTAMIN FIRST GENERATION DROP TOWER!"

 

So yea...I gave up $150 for a Premium Pass...that actually did pay off

 

Aww...so cute....NOT!

 

Chedar Pint!

 

First order of the day, was Whicked Twister

 

Mind the rain drop on the lense

 

The launch was felt faster than it looked. But I like Vodoo at Dorney Park a bit better.

 

Corkscrew doing it's thang!

 

Kingda Ka...I mean...Top Thrill Dragster started testing a little after opening!

 

Our next coaster was Iron Dragon. My first Arrow suspended coaster.

 

They were only running one train!

 

From Iron Dragon, I got a nice shot of Wicked Twister

 

Fail

 

Okay, so Cedar Point is sworming with bugs and birds, and this bird kept taking Jackie's fries. So what do I do as a good friend? Film it of course!

 

Which should we go on next? The train, or the potentially good Intamin Giga Coaster?

 

For some reason we chose the Intamin!

 

Millennium Force flying by!

 

The queue did fill up later

 

And this is on a slow day!

 

It looks so good

 

But the truth is, Millennium Forceless sucked! And we did not even bother riding it again!

 

The only pop of airtime.

 

At least it gave a good show...sorta

 

Jackie, Walter and I in line!

 

l8r!

 

Nice wet stroll over to the other side of the park!

 

They asked for it!

 

Maverick

 

Me in line for Maverick

 

I liked the queue

 

Except the queue house was like a maze!

 

So, the first drop was really cool!

 

These turns looked very good, but were way too rough!

 

The airtime was great though!

 

As was the hangtime!

 

The brakes after the launch don't really make a difference

 

You take to this ride at too much speed that it's painfull.

 

It's a great ride, just too rough.

 

Seriously...how?

 

Next up was Mean Streak (which we later called Splean Creak)

 

By this point, we waited 45 minutes for Mean Streak. And I was just in a pissy mood and was totally hating Cedar Point!

 

Cedar Creek Mine Ride was fun

 

I don't have a great shot of Gemeni but I really liked it.

 

And the station as well

 

Call me what ever, but I kept accidentely reffering to TTD as Ka the whole time I was there out of habbit! I watched my footage and was embaressed by how many times I called it Ka. I eventually stopped though.

 

I like that it has lap bars

 

But I like the exra hill better

 

Walter in line for Top Thrill Dragster

 

The queue was almost identical to the original Kingda Ka queue...just themed differently...

 

And there were some neet facts posted on the wall

 

The launch track on TTD at least tells you when you'll launch

 

Okay, so visually, I like Top Thrill Dragster better than Kingda Ka. It has a great atmosphere for it at all times. It also has lap bars that makes it more comfortable and no trim brake at the top to slow it down. The only down side is that TTD doesn't have the extra hill like Ka. And I found Dragster to feel like it was missing something because of it. Either way it's a good ride, but not the best.

 

This is the only shot I got of Magnum from the first day at Cedar Point. I will say that it is my favorite coaster at the park!

 

Um, ew...

 

Mantis had a great verical loop

 

The diving loop was nice too

 

But the rest of the ride was just terrible. It made my legs numb and bashed my head around. The worst coaster at the Point, by far.

 

This was also the 1st B&M stand-up coastr for me. That being said, I like the Intamin ones better!

 

From one crappy ride, I get a nice shot of another one!

 

So here's a cool story. After the park closed, I ran to Top Thrill Dragster fro Magnum. We went there before and they said it was down! When I went back I saw a line of people waiting. Walter comes behind me and says "No..." and as he does, a supervisor comes out and says that even though the ride is down, and may not open tonight, they are going to let us in the queue! Mean while this is 10 minutes AFTER park closing! I just looked at Walter and gave him a smirk!

 

After about 20 minutes, the ride reopened and we got the last launch of the night!

 

In the process, we made friends with a Cedar Point regular named Chris.

 

It was a great night that started with a "meh" morning.

 

On that note, I am going away for a few days on Tuesday, and I'm busy tomorrow, so the next update, might not be until Friday!

 

-Dainan "My 150th coaster was Magnum XL-200" Rafferty

[thrillrideseeker]

WOW! Great TR! So you went to Kennywood on June 29th and Pitt Fall was closed... Tony and I went Friday... so July the 11th and Pitt Fall was still closed. Does anyone know what is wrong with the ride?

 

I must say... with all your talk about Maverick being way to rough, and it going by to fast, and the trim after the launch not slowing the train down... did you actually ride the ride? I mean the ride is not rough at all... it is very very smooth actually, and the trim after the launch really does slow the train down. It slows the train down enough that you can seriously feel your body being pulled forward from the deceleration G's. Maybe you just had a bad ride. As for Top Thrill testing after the park had opened that is expected. It was raining we never run in the rain, or in drizzle, or in haze, or in wind. But all in all it is great that you got the last ride of the night. Great Cedar Point photos!!

~Matthew

[swampfox]

Just curious, is it possible that you disliked Cedar Point early on due to lack of sleep or something? I know when I'm tired I'm hard to impressed. Weather can also do such things.

[FeelTheFORCE]

Dragster staying open after closing is a fairly regular occurrence. It's happened to me many times. Kudos to Cedar Point and the TTD crew for doing so!

[thrillrideseeker]

Dragster staying open after closing is a fairly regular occurrence. It's happened to me many times. Kudos to Cedar Point and the TTD crew for doing so!

 

Now imagine the night when the Employee ride night was suppose to be at Maverick and it was down so they moved it to Dragster. We had to stay there about 1hr after the park closed because of guest, plus we had to stay there 3 1/2 hours after the guest left so employees could ride. To think... we do all of this and still have a smile on our face's at work. What is wrong with us?

~Matthew

[CHILLERLC1]

I had a long drive from Jersey before I got to Maverick. I didn't like it as well. I thought it was too rough. I basically had the other same reactions about the place over the last 10 years. I will say that I just don't get Magnum like other people do. Blue Streak was one of the better coasters at the park. I can't recall if I got Woodstock Express there as well.

[Coasterfanatic245]

You have a pretty bad taste in coasters no offense. You thought Maverick was rough and MF sucked? And the reason rides were running low capacity was because of low crowds. Why run three trains when lines are short??

[FeelTheFORCE]

They were running low capacity because of the rain. This time of the year, whether it's a weekend or a weekday, Cedar Point is always crowded and never has "low crowds." I went the last week in June and rides like MF, TTD, Maverick, Raptor, Mantis, etc. all had lines that were at least an hour and a half long, all day long. And that's with using the maximum number of trains, except on TTD, because it has a better capacity with 5 instead of 6.

[ginzo]

You have a pretty bad taste in coasters no offense. You thought Maverick was rough and MF sucked? And the reason rides were running low capacity was because of low crowds. Why run three trains when lines are short??

 

God forbid he'd have an opinion or dare to the insult Holy Cedar Point.

[CycloneMan]

I'll be honest, I liked Cedar Point, but the place doesn't have really great coasters. My favorite coasters there were Blue Streak and Magnum. I did like Mean Streak too and Wildcat. And I understand te reason for low capacity, it was just retarted waiting an hour for Mean Streak!

 

-Dainan "I'd take Kennywood over Cedar Point" Raffety

[DarkStitch626]

I think I called you when you were at CP. You were in line for Iron Dragon or The cedar creek mine ride. The pics are cool.

[Jim S.]

While I wouldn't say that Millennium Force sucks, I agree that it doesn't live up to its hype and is several notches from the best ride in the park. For me, that honor goes to Maverick, which I didn't find the least bit painful even though the transitions do whip you around. Second place for me goes to Magnum, which is seems more forceful than the overbraked Steel Force, and third to Raptor which is the wildest invert I've been on but still manages to not be excessively rough.

 

The best thing about MF was the view. That, and the weird guy that hangs out there. Evidently you didn't encounter him, or I think you'd have noticed.

 

Did you ride Corkscrew? For me, that seriously contends with Mantis for the "most painful" award. In fact, it has no redeeming value whatsoever except that the corkscrews would look nice sitting there as sculpture.

[CycloneMan]

We rode every coaster our first day! And are you talking about the guy who sings Michael Jackson songs? We saw him on our secod day at Maverick.

 

^^And yes Sean, you called when we were at Mine Ride!

 

I forgot to put this in the TR but, I must say that Blue Streak was one of my favorite coasters at Cedar Point, and I really liked Disaster Transport! Which I completely forgot to put in this TR. When we were going up the lift, the girl I was sitting next to, told her red neck father I was afraid so he SLAPPED MY BACK and told me to wake up! I was like, "Yo! What the ****?" and he said, "Yall scared!?" I was like, "Um, no! I've been on 150 something coasters, this is nothing!" Then at the end of the ride, I told Jackie that this reminded me of a Japanese coaster I once rode, so the redneck said to his daughters, "This reminds me of a fat chick I once rode!"

 

That became the line of the trip!

 

-Dainan "The third update will most likely be Friday" Rafferty

[Jim S.]

Yeah, the guy singing Michael Jackson songs, and whatever else he sings. When I was there, he was spending the morning at MF, which seems to be his usual habitat based on the videos on YouTube.

[PKI Jizzman]

After riding El Toro on a regular basis, I think MF would be nothing to anyone! But how does that first drop compare?

 

I'm kind of nervous hearing about Maverick being rougher. A backseat ride last year was very vibratey coming out of the launch...but that was it for me!

 

Glad to hear you got on the rides though it rained!

-JZ

[DATman]

I must say, Mantis is the strangest ride at CP. Glass smooth in the front, total suckage everywhere else. MF is excellent in the back and that's about it (first drop is just awesome). I find magnum and it's triangle hills to just be painful. Blue Streak in the back KILLED. I dunno, it just seems like CP is very bland. Still a fun park, but nothing spectacular. Maverick is esaily the best.

[AmyUD06]

Maverick was incredibly smooth for me the same week as this TR. The back row was absolutely brutal, ramming my neck into the OSTRs despite my best efforts to keep my head back against the headrests.

 

And I will never understand why everyone complains about Mantis. I love it both front row and back, and I don't get any kind of major headbanging or groin pain ether. Tip: When the ops try to adjust the bicycle seat up in to your special place just before locking the adjustment, move it back down a little bit, but not so far that your shoulders are compressed by the OSTRs. Lock your knees and keep them with your heels back against the car (like they reccomend), and keep your head back against the rest.

 

Danian, you do realize that the "Intamin Stand-Ups" are the prototypes for the B&M Standups of the mid/late-90s, right? They were from before B&M split off.

[TopThrill182]

Nice TR! Too bad you didn't enjoy the park and the coasters more but not everyone will.

 

As others have said the reduced capacity you were witnessing was due to the rain. Less trains on the track when it's slippery gives a little more of a buffer in case the brakes / kicker wheels don't slow it down / stop it as effectively. Annoying yes, but I guess better safe than sorry.

 

Millennium Force won't be everyone's cup of tea. It was designed for height, speed, and floater air, whereas rides like Maverick were designed for ejector air, tight transitions, and a pace that never lets up. Depending on what kind of mood I'm in, sometimes I'll enjoy MF much more, sometimes it will be Maverick. They are just two totally different rides. I'd describe MF as a "flying" experience whereas riding Maverick is like riding a mechanical bull. Both are great to me.

 

And I think there is some confusion in this discussion with rough vs head-banging. Maverick is actually, unless you get a bad ride, an extremely smooth coaster. Even the vibration from the launch is gone this year. Yet while the ride is smooth, the tight transitions will throw your head from side to side causing some head-banging. Although I've found that this is one time when you actually want to follow the proper riding position. I always ride with my head firmly up and back against the headrest, my hands holding on the grab bars, and my feet firmly planted on the floor. That actually makes it so my head never touches the restraints once. It does take a bit of practice though.

[CycloneMan]

Guys, this was our first of THREE days at Cedar Point! Don't worry...we had different opinions after the first day