Bearcats, Buckeyes, and Wolverines...oh my!

...or, how I learned to stop worrying and love the Maverick.

CP put out the announcement in February - camp overnight inside the park. For me, being inside a park when the attractions have gone dark is a real treat...and I wasn't passing up the first (and if prologue is precedent, perhaps only) chance to spend the night on the grounds at the Po!nt. The trip plans got muddled quite a bit by some family issues (Jill's parents are both from "The Firelands") but I'll stick to the park stuff other than mentioning how nice it is to have a place to stay within a half-hour of CP. Managed multiple days at KI, MiA, and CP (thankful for the Platinum pass for the improved access and flexibility - not to mention the parking).

Flew into Dayton Thursday, 7/10, nice stay at the Extended Suites about 15 minutes from the park. Got up early Friday and hit morning pre-opening rides on Banshee (Action Zone was open, but Jill's not a fan of the spin-and-spews, and Drop Zone/Bat would be readily available later).

First new "credit" since Jungle Twist at Gibtown - not that I count any more...but Banshee did not disappoint. The layout was so creative and different from the other inverts, and the amount of time spent upside-down was incredible. The restraints did leave us both a little uncomfortable, but not terribly so - a little bruising is good for you.

Got Jill on Diamondback a couple times, and it was running REALLY well...fantastic floats in the front, and prolonged *dropitude* in the back. Thankful the park allowed for seat requests.

Also rode a bunch of other stuff (told Jill I was claiming credit for the "Race for your Life" theming on KI's flume, LOL). The interactives are terrible without the red dot indicating where you're aiming- spoiled by MiB. Surf Dog was good fun, and Racer was running really well. *Despise* the midcourse blocking on Flight of Fear. Operations overall were VERY good, save for FoF and of course, X-Flighthawk...

Midday break for a swim/nap/Applebee's (next to hotel) was welcome, and we got back for some evening rides, culminating with the 2nd-to-last train on the Beast in the front row...fabulous. Saw some of the fireworks from the queue, still not sure why Paramount would run the ride during fireworks and CF doesn't, but a great end to the night.

Couple days visiting with family, and managed to catch Tuesday night at CP...hit the east side of the park, with two laps on Gatekeeper in a half-hour. My first Wingrider, and it was pretty much as expected - B&M builds mostly *really solid, reliable, FUN rides*. Gemini wasn't running blue, so we caught a lap, and managed a couple spins on the Erie Eagles (light snapping was seemingly permitted, and as usual, Jill got a couple pops, me not so much). Closed out the night with a long wait for MForce...love that ride more each time I ride it. Of course, to maintain the trend, we got obstructed-view fireworks from the queue...

Thursday morning, got up and started the LONG drive to Michigan's Adventure. Our one prior visit was about a dozen years ago, and describing it as lackluster would be doing the park, and Shivering Timbers, an undeserved favor. Kept hearing Marley's "Redemption Song" in my head as Timbers pounded us with relentless airtime on the outbound leg. The return run is somewhat rampy and didn't deliver as much, but those first four/five hills were tremendous, very reminiscent of the forst two on Voyage. Hill three surprised with a nice *slam* landing at the bottom, something I seem to enjoy WAY more than most...free chiropractic care (or, for Gonch, included with the price of admission).

Wolverine Wildcat is still a Summers-Dinn, but like Timbers, we found the front car to our liking. The back ride was relatively uneventful and too shuffle-y, but the front was lively and pretty smooth. The flying scooters (Lakeside Gliders) were pretty snappable thanks to the lakeside location which gave a nice breeze...once again, Jill got the best of me, but I caught up on our last lap and ended well. As always, LOVE the Arrow Mad Mouse, but operations were pretty poor and the line backed up quickly (small note: If a car holds 4, and there's one in the car, you can usually find a group who would help you fill up the car rather than sending it virtually empty). The SLC, for some reason, we decided to ride...neither of us had ridden since GL, and won't ride it again at MiA or anywhere else, LOL. Closed night one with a front-row ride on Timbers, and it *rocked*...green train slightly preferred over blue.

Day two was short, started slighlty after opening (no matter how hard I try, we *never* seem to arrive with the earliest guests for the really short lines). Re-ride the good stuff, made sure to get Zach's Zoomer, and watched in shock as a guy dragged his kid off the car ride angrily lifting him by one arm. Total parenting FAIL. Train ride proved to be a longer-than-anticipated ride. Last time at MiA, the train was a pitiful little loop near the entrance to Timbers - MAJOR points for turning it into in-park transportation..wished we'd known that the night before instead of walking the long way around the horseshoe. Another couple Timbers' rides, and back to Ohio...the drive seemed even longer this time.

Friday morning, back up to CP to meet up with friends and ride pretty much everything. Thanks to CB for the club membership that allowed us to do the camping thing. The registration table was a bit confused since the emails left many questions unanswered. A couple trips back to the car, and we had our cool CP blankets (used for extra padding while sleeping that night) and our registration completed. Since Jill still needed her TTD credit, we waited for the group to get together after the last arrivals around 5pm. Had a GREEAT time, loved Blue Streak. Derby Downs was a repeater, and Raptor, despite a long wait, delivered a really nice ride. Calypso was great, but also had a long wait due to running at half-capacity. The museum was a great detour, even if we weren't in need of AC since the whole time up there was SO nice and cool, thanks to a well-timed Polar Vortex (as opposed to mid-Winter). Closed out the night with a bunch on Mavy (which I've *finally* learned how to ride) and ended with 2 laps on MForce with birdman...fantastic, esp. with the exit/entrance gate open.

Saturday was rainy, but waking up EARLY meant that I got showered and OJ and was ready when MF opened in the morning, less than 7 hours from my last ride. Since the station was virtually barren with about 12-15 people and 2 trains, got about 6 rides before the rain started to get heavier and quite sting-y. Then I went back for a fuller breakfast (thanks, CP) and a couple laps on Maverick (no neck/headbanging!) with the pre-opening people, and a couple Eagles laps before hitting the car for the drive back to Dayton. All in all, a fabulous trip - much thanks to Bryan, Craig, Lisa, Mike, Tina, and esp. Jill and CP.

Sounds fun. Wish I coulda went.

Wanna do Chicago for Labor Day?

Gator, I read the whole thing (twice, actually)...and I don't think (unless I missed something)..you mentioned where in the park you actually spent the night/camped. Great fun to read!

The camping areas were in that area back toward Mean Streak. We camped inside the antique car ride, having three tents out of about 20-25 campsites inside the ride area. I saw several tents at least partially on the wooden walkways near the arcade, show building, gift shops, etc. Fri night's ERT line-up included Maverick, SkyHawk, and CCMR (all of which closed early, presumably with MS) which I regrettably missed in 3 stops at the park. I know it isn't the greatest, but I always try to get wooden coasters at least a lap to evaluate condition and maintenance...as well as having fun even if the ride isn't in the greatest shape.

Sat. morning's line-up also included Gatekeeper along with MF. I think they kept dispatching GK trains for a half-hour or so after I stopped riding. The heavy-misting felt like needles, and if anyone wanted to keep riding after the rain started getting even heavier, more power to them. GK's slower speed and larger trains probably afforded the riders some shelter from the storm...

Tek: Chicago looks pretty unlikely this year...the RMC rides are eluding me. But I have to insist that if you're already up that far north of the city, the trip to Green Bay is WELL worth the effort...

rollergator said:

Closed out the night with a bunch on Mavy (which I've *finally* learned how to ride)

I wish you'd tell me. My son drags me on it every visit. I'd love the ride if it went about 5-10 mph slower.

Until I rode the front row, I got beat up a few times...the trick really is to lean in to each and every turn (like I-305 in its initial configuration, the JERKY turns can smack you into the god-awful shoulder harnesses). Now that I know when to lean my head to the right and when to lean left, and how far, I think I can ride again safely....

I still maintain that you shouldn't have to "learn how to ride" anything...but I had about 4 or 5 rides over the weekend without hitting my head or neck at all....and my opinion of the ride HAS improved considerably (note that I'm still not placing it anywhere near my top ten, LOL).