So yesterday Matt, Me, Osam and Alyson all went to Cedar Point. We had a wonderful time – just a great day. I actually took lots of pictures but on a disposable camera so that I wouldn’t be worried about losing it – I’ll share some once I get them developed.
Anyways I wanted to write down my thoughts on each coaster so that next year we’re prepared…I’m warning you this is long (and probably boring) but it’s really just a way for me to remember:
Cedar Point Thrill Rides (in the order we rode them):
Raptor –1994- 45 min in line
I love this ride. We waited for the first car which was totally worth it. There were a few seconds there when I wasn’t quite sure my stomach was going to be cooperative for the day but all in all it’s a fun twisty turny flippy ride.
Blue Streak –1964- 15 min in line
I love this ride, too. Classic wooden coaster – the oldest at the park. Love the little bump hill after the big one – makes my stomach flip every time. So much fun.
Iron Dragon – 1987- 5 min in line
This is a fun little coaster. It’s a hanging one and Matt really liked that it felt like you were flying through the woods. Plus there was no line so that’s a big bonus.
Millenium Force – 2000 - 1.5 hours in line
BEST RIDE EVER. Oh my god. This is exactly what I think a coaster should be. AMAZING first hill, smooth, and fast. 93MPH to be exact. No flips, but I’m more than fine with that. I love that there is stadium seating so that every seat gets a view of the drop, I love that the sides of the car are open so you don’t feel so restrained…. Seriously, this was worth every second of the wait.
Sky Hawk –2006- didn’t ride
Yeah… we got into line for this and realized that if every single line in the park was this long (1.5 hours) we weren’t going to be able to ride very many other things… so we moved on. I’m bummed we missed it but I think we made a good decision. It looked really fun, though!
Cedar Creek Mine Ride – 1969 - didn’t ride
This is also a fun little coaster…and my childhood (meaning before I was big enough to ride everything) fav…. but we were real worried about time at this point so sadly, we skipped it.
Mean Streak –1991- 0 min in line
Ugh. We got on it talking about riding again… halfway through the ride I turned to Matt and said – “I’m so not going on again”. It’s a wooden rollercoaster so it’s rickety. Not like a little rickety (like the Blue Streak or the classics at Kennywood)… No It’s more like put your whole body in a cocktail shaker rickety. It’s fun ‘cause it’s long and it all twists around itself… but the shaking made me hurt. I guess I’m more of a stirred kind of gal.
Gemini – 1978 - 10 min in line.
I have such fond memories of this ride. It never has a long ride b/c there are two cars… and it was always so fun with me and my dad in one car across from my mom and brother in the other. We’d always try to hit hands but we were kids so it never worked… it was fun to try, though! Yesterday something was off in their timing… the cars didn’t line up at all… it’s not nearly as fun when you’re not racing. This is still a classic, though and a good ride.
Magnum XL 200 – 1989 - 20 min in line (twice)
I love this ride… and 20 min?! That’s nothing!!! I’ve waited for the magnum for 3 hours before! We totally rode it twice… It’s another great rollercoaster with a big first hill and a smooth, fun ride (and no flips). The boys didn’t like the pretzel turn – they whined about hanging outside of the car the turn happens so fast… but I still love, love, love this ride.
Corkscrew – 1976 - 10 min in line
I sat this one out. It’s an inversion ride but it’s an old inversion ride so the restraints don’t adjust for height. Because I’m short I end up banging my head back and forth between them (even when I push my head back as everyone constantly tells me… I’ve tried it… on this ride it doesn’t work.). It always gives me a headache – even as a kid. Matt really liked that flips are classic, simple forms, though – it goes through one perfect loop and two spiraling corkscrews. It’s a good ride, just not for me.
Top Thrill Dragster –2003 - CLOSED
WTF?! The sign offered no explanation other than “this ride will not open today, we offer our apologies” Um. That sucks. But whatev.
Power Tower –1998- 20 min in line
I’ll admit… the last time I was at Cedar Point (1998 physics school field trip) I wussed out on this one. Something about the rides that are free falls really freak me out. But this time I figured that if I could handle the ride at the top of the Stratosphere in ‘Vegas I could totally handle this. We were shot up (you have a choice of being shot up or down) b/c the line was shorter. I was really, really nervous. Like people in line were watching me freak out nervous… but it was so, SO much fun. They hold you there for awhile before they shoot you up… so you don’t know when it’s going to happen…. Great anticipation, great rush, great ride.
Mantis – 1996 - 50 min line
Worst. Ride. Ever. And we even took the time to wait for the first car! I knew it going in… it’s a standup coaster and the last time I rode it it just banged my head around – I thought it was because I’m short. Turns out it’s just the way the restraints are designed. They go waaay above your head on everyone – so you actually feel pretty alone in the ride. Well the boys wanted to do it and I was up for anything after conquering the Power Tower… so yeah… while riding it I was thinking “ugh, why did I do this, this is worse than I remember, OUCH, so not fun” but I didn’t say anything… then the ride banged our heads to one side, held them there for awhile, and then flipped them back to the other side, hard… and I hear Alyson next to me say “This is AWFUL.” I wasn’t the only one! We should have known it was going to be bad when everyone getting off the ride wasn’t cheering and screaming but more trying to get back to right... I will not be riding this one again.
Wicked Twister–2002- 20 min in line (twice)
So I didn’t expect much on this one. I figured with the twists it would probably not be so great… plus it just goes back and forth so it’s pretty plain….It was SOOO much fun. So much fun. Totally unexpected fun. And the twists are great – smooth with no banging head. This ride is all about FAST… and I think it made my stomach flip more times than any other ride of the day. We got off of it and immediately got back in line again – it was that fun.
Avalanche Run/Disaster Transport – 1985 - did not ride
It’s an indoor coaster that’s trying to be themed… we would have ridden had there been time but from what I remember it’s not that great.
MaxAir – 2005 - 40 min in line
Whoah, dude. I was a little hesitant on this one because of the spinning… It was fun – when it gets to the top of its pendulum swing it’s pretty insane and a great thrill… but then it keeps spinning. I was sooo dizzy when I got off… A fun ride and I would do it again – but I would plan for a little down time afterwards.
Demon Drop – 1983 - did not ride
We missed this one by seconds… they closed the line as we were running up to it. I’m bummed we missed it. The Demon Drop and I have some history – when I was a little kid I literally got on, got strapped in, and turned white. The operator asked me if I wanted out… and I said yes. Well the next year I was determined… there was a t-shirt about riding all of the coasters and I wanted it… so I conquered my fear and made it onto the ride…. It was so scary…but I was so proud afterwards. Now the ride looks tiny compared to what else is in the park… but it’s still a thrill and I hope Cedar Point keeps it for next year.
All in all it was a wonderful day – going in Sept. is great. Cool weather and short lines.
Sorry for the long and rambling blog… I’ll post some knitting pics and content tomorrow!
ahhh man! i used to go to cedar point every summer (those were the good old days) but i haven't been since college. the magnum was my favorite too! one day i'll get back to ride the millenium force.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun run down of the major coasters at CP. Sounds like you guys had fun. I must share my ride opinions. :-)
ReplyDeleteRaptor is well worth the wait for the front car. Last time I rode it was front car at night. Got a few bugs in the face but still worth it, closest thing to flying that I’ve experienced.
Blue Streak is a fabulous classic wooden coaster. Love the bumps and hills. It shakes you up but only a little.
Iron Dragon. Smooth, very tame, it is cool how you ride through the trees. What is up with the new paint job? The track is all bright and the cars are still red and turquoise.
Millennium Force. I’ve only ridden it once, but it was a fabulous ride. So smooth, so fast. I don’t think I’ve ever screamed like I screamed on the Millennium Force.
Sky Hawk does not look that appealing to me.
Cedar Creek Mine Ride is the best little coaster. I love the ‘big first hill’ into the lake. Have not been on it for ages. Love the tight turn at the end.
Mean Streak. I remember waiting outside in the hot sun for over 3 hours to ride the Mean Streak with my Senior Prom date and another couple. At my high school you had Prom, then After Prom then went to CP the next day. It was insane. The Mean Streak looked so new back in 91, the wood was tan and not gray. I don’t know exactly when the Mean Streak got so rough but I have refused to ride it for at least the last 5 to 10 years. It’s just too rough. I don’t enjoy feeling like someone took a bat to me when I get off a ride. My sister thinks CP should tear down Mean Streak and put in something else. I tend to agree but the coaster does look cool.
Gemini is so much fun when they get the trains aligned. Great ride.
Magnum. Get ready for another Prom story. First time I rode Magnum was when I went to Prom Junior year. We waited for the front seat and rode at night. I was so scared. Great ride, smooth and fast, just not as smooth and fast as Millennium.
Corkscrew. Have not ridden in years. Enjoyed it when I was younger. Dave is looking forward to taking our daughter on when she is big enough, and wants to ride.
Top Thrill Dragster is a total adrenaline rush. I got to ride last summer. I’ve only ridden once. I really thought it would be lame, come on it’s over in less then a minute, but it’s an action packed minute. It sucks it was closed.
Power Tower. Good for you sticking it out and riding. I have not ridden it yet.
Mantis. I totally agree that Mantis is the Worst Ride Ever. I’ve ridden it once and will never ride it again. I too had my head just batted back and forth in the head restraint. Not fun.
Wicked Twister, have not gone on Wicked Twister yet. I got to watch it a bit while we rode the Giant Wheel during our CP visit this summer.
Disaster Transport was ok when it was Avalanche Run, then they enclosed it to be a space ride. I remember it being pretty smooth and I liked the space theme.
MaxAir have not ridden it yet, don’t really want to spin that much.
Demon Drop. What a bummer you did not get to ride. I would not ride Demon Drop for ages, but went on it for the first time during that Senior Prom trip and it was a bit of a let down. It’s still a fun, older ride.
I’m going to add two more coasters. Dave took our 3 year old daughter on Jr. Gemini and Woodstock Express this summer and last summer. She loved both of them. Jr. Gemini is basically up and down in a little loop. It’s so short you get to go round twice, unless a child gets freaked the first time round and wants off before the second go round. Dave said the Woodstock Express is a decent little coaster, ok speed with a hill and lots of turns. Now we are waiting for E to grow so she can ride the Mine Ride.
Jeanne thanks for sharing your CP visit. Apologies for the massive comment. It’s just so fun to dish Cedar Point.
how fun - we just went to cp today! jason proposed to me on the sky ride eight years ago, so since our 7th anniversary is tomorrow (9/11), we decided to go there to celebrate. i grew up 8 mi away from cp, so i had a season pass every year and even worked there for a summer...definitely jam-packed full of memories for me. anyway, the raptor was my first ride and it made me sick (like it always does, but so much worse). i felt better off and on, but basically spent the whole day dizzy and feeling icky :( rode several coasters, including power tower twice and the dragster...both are freakin' awesome!! not sure if it's the fact that i'm older now or something else, but this dizzy stuff is not fun and we left after only 6 hrs. j was bummed cuz there were more rides that he wanted to try, but i was sooo done :( anyway, we had alot of fun, but next time i'll have to try one of those motion wrist-bands or something. great run-down on the rides...ditto on most of your opinions, altho i could never do the max air and am so glad i didn't suck it up and go on it at the end of the day today after hearing how dizzying it was...just watching it made me sick at that point lol sucks gettin' old! :(
ReplyDeleteI love America's Roller Coast! I haven't been there in years, but hope to maybe make it out there for Halloweekends, before it closes. We shall see. Thanks for the reviews. It brought back memories of old faves - Blue Streak, Mine Ride and Gemini! And high hopes for new rides too - Wicked Twister.
ReplyDeleteThe Mean Streak DOES kick your ass. It is a rough ride. I remember waiting for 2 hrs to get on that thing and being in pain when I got off of it.