Jantzen73 Posted August 2, 2015 Share Posted August 2, 2015 (edited) I work out of Pittsburgh and have a client I go to about an hour north of the city. It's the same route I take to CP and every time I'm out there I just want to keep going to the Point. But since I need a job to be able to go to Cedar Point my wish has never come true. Well, I was set to be out there this past Friday afternoon... So I got to thinking - I *could* just leave from there to go up to CP Friday evening... I slept on it and after the wife's approval in the morning I booked my room at Breakers Express 5 minutes before leaving for work. I threw some clothes in a bag, grabbed my camera and was set to head to the Point - as a single rider (Hey, they went on a cruise without me 2 weeks ago - that was like a vacation at home for me but don't tell them that ). This is the 2nd or 3rd time I've done a solo trip - and it is a nice change of pace from taking the rest of the family or the kids. I can get my early morning rides in then roam around and take some photos. Since the Point is in full swing I knew I was not going to be spending my time in long lines. And for one day I'd get to do what I want, when I want - something that is nice once in a while. I stayed at Breakers Express for the first time this year. It used to seem OK to me but after being spoiled at Breakers it definitely felt stale. They did add flat screen TV's and some art work above the beds. To be fair, the staff was friendly and the room was clean. For the photos I was planning on taking staying at Breakers Express made sense (and was cheaper). As I was planning on taking some sunset and sunrise shots at Battery Park. I arrived at the park a little after 6 PM and head right to Chick-fil-a using my season dining plan (I definitely have eaten well over what I spent on it and there's still a few months left in the season). Snapped a few pics of Maverick then head over to Lighthouse Point to take some pics from the small dock / walkway they have back there. After that I head to Battery Park for some evening / night shots. Waves were really crashing which made for some fun shots and wet feet. I highly recommend taking a ride over to Battery Park / marina. It is just so relaxing and a nice break from the park. I wrapped up early since I was going to be up early in the morning to come back for more pics. I got there at 6AM and stayed about an hour. Grabbed breakfast, relaxed, showered up and head over to the park for Millennium Walkback (thanks to my handy-dandy TPR membership card). It was now ride time - and despite the crowds forming I was able to get in MF, Maverick, TTD, Gemini, Magnum and Skyhawk in a little over an hour and a half - single rider has its advantages. I ate some lunch, grabbed some Starbucks, edited some photos and waited for the Tweetup to come... Luckily I was sitting in the seating near Luminosity and the Tweetup was near Cadillac Cars! Got my #lineskippie and made a b-line for Millennium Force - head up the exit ramp - waited one train while I had a conversation about Thunderbird with the ride op since I had on a Holiday World shirt and took my seat in the front row. Perfect way to end this quick getaway. Grabbed some salt water taffy from the Sweet Spot for the family and grabbed a below average slice of pizza before heading out. Anyway, on to the pics. There are more here (a lot are similar) if you want to check them out... Who doesn't like LSM lift hills? It was a beautiful evening at the park. Even a little Bluegrass music. Twisty! (You know you say it in Robb's voice) 95 degrees down. Love those new, soft restraints! Maverick make you strong. (and I mean that as a compliment if you are on the boards) Goodbye for now Maverick. A beautiful sky and a 420' yellow tower. Magnum pulling into the final brake run. Some dark skies behind the park and clear behind me made for some interesting shots. Guilty of gratuitous use of filter. Hey it's the banana train! Nice pop of air right there! Who would of thought such a short drop could be so thrilling? From Battery Park across the way. Warning - if you hang out over here you will want to buy a boat - I promise. Self explanatory. The crashing waves were fun to capture. Splash! Long exposure for that extra blur. Sun is setting behind me. Getting darker - can start to see the lights. Of course WindSeeker was down for high winds... Caught a passing boat in this extra long exposure. Good morning Cedar Point! It is just so calming to watch the sun come up behind the 2nd Best Amusement Park in the World. Lots of birds were out and about. See - there's another. Thanks for looking! Bonus pic I snapped from the CP Marina tha few weeks before. Another cool one I took a few weeks back. The lake was really calm this morning. The following are from Sept 2014 - Figured I'd add them here. This is really how it looked - it was jaw dropping for a few minutes. Bird fly-by. It was crazy to see the colors change over the course of like 10 minutes. My favorite shot - actually framed and hanging in my living room! This view happens like every morning - do yourself a favor and check it out next trip. Setting sail for the morning. It was Lion King meets Lake Erie! Edited August 3, 2015 by Jantzen73 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcoaster10 Posted August 2, 2015 Share Posted August 2, 2015 Awesome pics! Sounds like a fun time. I have one question though: "It is just so calming to watch the sun come up behind the 2nd Best Amusement Park in the World." 2nd? What do you consider to be the 1st? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoCal_Coaster Posted August 2, 2015 Share Posted August 2, 2015 Awesome pics! Sounds like a fun time. I have one question though:"It is just so calming to watch the sun come up behind the 2nd Best Amusement Park in the World." 2nd? What do you consider to be the 1st? I think he is refering to Europa Park. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PVA62 Posted August 2, 2015 Share Posted August 2, 2015 Great photos! Really such a beautiful park. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DoinItForTheFame Posted August 2, 2015 Share Posted August 2, 2015 Amazingly beautiful photos!! Thank's for sharing!! Glad you had a good time! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
singemfrc Posted August 2, 2015 Share Posted August 2, 2015 Wow, you are one hell of a photographer, those are beautiful photos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jantzen73 Posted August 3, 2015 Author Share Posted August 3, 2015 Awesome pics! Sounds like a fun time. I have one question though:"It is just so calming to watch the sun come up behind the 2nd Best Amusement Park in the World." 2nd? What do you consider to be the 1st? Yes - As noted Europa park is now quote, unquote - "The Best Amusement Park in the World" according to Amusement Today's annual Golden Ticket awards... Cedar Point "lost" after winning the category for like 14 years in a row. They were using that line in all their promotions and now have gone back to "Roller Coaster Capital of the World". The rankings seem to biased towards those who spend the most advertising with them - I'll leave it at that. As you can tell by my need to photograph and share these pictures that Cedar Point is number 1 with me - granted I've got a lot more parks to visit... So it by all means, it was a joke http://goldenticketawards.com/2014-park-ride-winners/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBpony414 Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 Wowza, you captured some incredible photos!! This was me as I viewed your pics: hey this one's good... cool... oh I like that... Missing Maverick... good shot... WOW... beautiful!!... this one is the best, I'll have to comment on that... this one is good too... No, no, this is my fav!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 Awesome pics. I've never been to Battery Park but it looks like a great place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barge84 Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 Great pictures! Thanks for posting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coastercrazi Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 Incredible pics. I especially like the long exposure carousel one! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boldikus Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 Amazing photos, thanks for sharing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SFOGdude25 Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 Awesome pics. I've never been to Battery Park but it looks like a great place. I've gone there to take pics on my last two trips. It's such a great location! I could honestly just sit out there for an hour just looking at the skyline. Btw, these pics are amazing!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfc Posted August 4, 2015 Share Posted August 4, 2015 Awesome pics! Sounds like a fun time. I have one question though:"It is just so calming to watch the sun come up behind the 2nd Best Amusement Park in the World." 2nd? What do you consider to be the 1st? Yes - As noted Europa park is now quote, unquote - "The Best Amusement Park in the World" according to Amusement Today's annual Golden Ticket awards... Cedar Point "lost" after winning the category for like 14 years in a row. They were using that line in all their promotions and now have gone back to "Roller Coaster Capital of the World". The rankings seem to biased towards those who spend the most advertising with them - I'll leave it at that. As you can tell by my need to photograph and share these pictures that Cedar Point is number 1 with me - granted I've got a lot more parks to visit... So it by all means, it was a joke http://goldenticketawards.com/2014-park-ride-winners/ While I won't quibble about Europa Park being the "Best Amusement Park" (that would be Tokyo DisneySea, by the way ), I'm just not feeling Flying Turns as the "Best New Attraction" (as much as I love Knoebels). Thanks for the great photos of Cedar Point, where Maverick rules. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterjunkie1975 Posted August 4, 2015 Share Posted August 4, 2015 Thanks for sharing those fantastic pictures and making me yearn to return to my favorite park in the universe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SbSteveZ Posted August 4, 2015 Share Posted August 4, 2015 Looks like I just got some nice new desktop backgrounds! These pictures are amazing! I love the ones from battery park! Such a great view of the Point! Thank you so much for posting! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chargersmichael Posted August 4, 2015 Share Posted August 4, 2015 Those pictures are stunning! When I made my first trip to Cedar Point this past June, when first driving on the causeway to get to the park, the only view I had was torrential downpour rain! So I could barely make out all of the rides. But on my way out, the sun was setting and wow it was really beautiful to see that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tororific Posted August 4, 2015 Share Posted August 4, 2015 Cool pictures. I could never have the self-discipline to stand back from the park and click pictures -- I always want to be in the park riding the rides. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
super7 Posted August 4, 2015 Share Posted August 4, 2015 Awesome pics! Sounds like a fun time. I have one question though:"It is just so calming to watch the sun come up behind the 2nd Best Amusement Park in the World." 2nd? What do you consider to be the 1st? Yes - As noted Europa park is now quote, unquote - "The Best Amusement Park in the World" according to Amusement Today's annual Golden Ticket awards... Cedar Point "lost" after winning the category for like 14 years in a row. They were using that line in all their promotions and now have gone back to "Roller Coaster Capital of the World". The rankings seem to biased towards those who spend the most advertising with them - I'll leave it at that. As you can tell by my need to photograph and share these pictures that Cedar Point is number 1 with me - granted I've got a lot more parks to visit... So it by all means, it was a joke http://goldenticketawards.com/2014-park-ride-winners/ Europa Park is definitely an overall better park than Cedar Point when all factors are considered. Ride quantity and quality, theming (which Cedar Fair lacks almost entirely), ride variety (coasters, dark rides, flat rides, transportation rides) and live entertainment. Cedar Point also lacks in food quality and general cleanliness (they can't help it but there is bird crap everywhere!). Cedar Point is great for coaster quantity and tends to get awards just for that. Rating every aspect together, Europa can compete with the Disney parks in a contest that rates all aspects of the park. Europa wins in the thrill and live entertainment categories. Europa may be slightly behind in Disney on the theming level, but the theming at Europa is excellent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Great Zo Posted August 4, 2015 Share Posted August 4, 2015 Awesome photos. Battery Park is one of my favorite spots also. You do have one thing I don't -- the dedication to the craft to actually wake up before sunrise! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
viking86 Posted August 4, 2015 Share Posted August 4, 2015 Those are some fantastic pictures, thanks for sharing! Love the night pictures with all the lights on the rides. The sunrise pictures are stunning as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DorneyKid14 Posted August 5, 2015 Share Posted August 5, 2015 Amazing pictures!!! Saved a couple onto my computer. May have to frame if thats okay with you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jantzen73 Posted August 5, 2015 Author Share Posted August 5, 2015 Amazing pictures!!! Saved a couple onto my computer. May have to frame if thats okay with you? Thanks - I have no problem downloading and using for desktop backgrounds etc. I just ask that you do not re-post the pics as your own or ask permission before using for use other than personal. I'm not a fan of watermarking photos - I do not make money doing this - not that I could. I just don't want to see one of my photo's entered into CoasterMania's photo contest next year or we're going to have a problem - that's all! I can send higher resolution pics of some that you particularly like if you message or email me. I'm really flattered by all the compliments - thanks again. And here's another cool (to me) shot that I snapped from my room at Breakers last year... From 9th floor Breakers September 2014 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vonni Posted August 5, 2015 Share Posted August 5, 2015 Wow! Absolutely gorgeous photos! I'm impressed! Seriously, some of the best perspectives I've seen of CP and the lake! Thank you for sharing those! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaceBoarder Posted August 5, 2015 Share Posted August 5, 2015 There is obviously some talent behind the lens there... Great work with the camera... Thanks for sharing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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