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I got off work at 5, and the plan was to meet my boss and his girlfriend over at the Point at 6 for a few hours of riding. I did feel kind of weird at first about being the “third wheel,” but not only did THEY invite ME, but also I know each of them pretty well and consider both to be friends, so it wasn’t a big deal at all. After running late and scurrying around (including finally getting my parking sticker placed on my car, which took the attendant forever to do because the old sticker would not come off), I ran into the park at met them perfectly on time at the Hot Potato french fry stand. They were getting food, so I did not hesitate to join. This was my first taste of CP’s famous cheese fries for the year, and I was shocked at how expensive everything was. Cheese fries and a 16 ounce soda cost me a borderline ridiculous $6.30! (I can remember getting angry when it cost me $5.60 a few years ago). I know there has been a recent thread about food prices getting out of hand, which I didn’t read. I may have to revisit that topic and chime in…
The fries were tasty however (despite the overload of cheese). During dinner, my boss informed me that he and his girlfriend had just waited an hour for Millennium Force. That seemed a bit long, considering the small amount of cars I saw in the parking lot. I asked if they were running 3 trains, and he said they were. Wow! Considering that even Wicked Twister with its low capacity had a 25 minute wait and everything else was a walk-on, this shows that Millennium Force has some serious staying power. It is still THE ride everyone wants to ride at CP. We didn’t ride it, but from watching it run from the midway, it appears also to have regained its speed, as it no longer crawls, but flies, over the tops of the third and sixth hills.
First ride up was Wicked Twister. Neither of the two of them had ridden it, so we wanted to make sure we got it in. After a 25 minute wait that moved very respectably fast considering the one-train op, we were ready to board. After coaching them to ride in the back, I was called up to ride since I was a single rider. My friends would ride in the train after me, so I could see their faces, which was cool. Unfortunately, the ride op paired me with a guy riding in the middle. This was the worst Wicked Twister ride I’ve ever had, which is not to say it was bad. Definitely stick to the ends of the train, though, particularly the back. Luckily, the other two got the second to last seat, and they agreed the back spike is where it’s at.
Next, my boss’s girlfriend wanted to ride the Power Tower. Seeing that one of the green towers was down, we decided to get shot up (no drug reference intended :) ), which I like better than getting shot down anyways. The wait was practically a walk on. Gotta love that pop of air you get at the top!
Maggie was next on the agenda. After a quick trip to the bathroom (where I had to wipe off some cheese from my shoes that had spilled there during dinner…oops), we were greeted to Magnum sending out half-empty trains. I could not believe it! I have never seen the Magnum station this empty ever! Our first ride was in the middle since there were empty seats for the taking. I have not ridden Magnum in the middle for a LONG time. The ride was decent and rather smooth, but also kind of boring. Despite very strong winds, trims were on, which made for a decent ride, but not the insanely fast rides I experienced earlier this season. When we got off, we decided to take advantage of the non-existent line and ride again. This time, we went to our favorite seats. Me: ejector seat. Them: back (they tried ejector seat once and didn’t like it because of the pain). Even when she’s not running her fastest, Maggie always delivers in the ejector seat. The on-ride photo of me says it all: hunched forward (after being thrown forward due to the airtime) with my shirt and coat coming off me in my back! God, I love this ride!
Next was Gemini. Only red was running. This was one of my best Gemini rides ever…neither sets of trims were on, which led to insane airtime on the return stretch and a rollicking helix.
By this time, it was approaching 8, so we were going to try to hit the Blue Streak on the way out. Unfortunately, we didn’t walk fast enough to make it before it closed, so instead we decided to eat some more! :) I got a funnel cake with soft serve on top of it…yum (although since I work in the ice cream vending business, I must say I noticed that CP uses cheap soft serve that is more icy than creamy in the Corral Funnel cake stand…probably 3.5% butterfat shake base rather than 5 or 6% standard soft serve). This combination of dough, ice cream, and powder sugar set me back another $4.25, by the way. On the way out, there was a group of people lined up at Raptor’s entrance for some obvious after hours ERT. My guess is that it was employee night at Raptor—does anybody know?
So ends yet another report of a few hours at my home park. I love CP in May, which is why I’ve already been there five times this season. Hope to get back later in the week, too. Thanks for reading!
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I get the feeling there's a conspiracy over at King's Island to remove anything that has "K" or "C" in its initials.
*** This post was edited by MooreOn on 5/29/2002. ***
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