Can't take it anymore!

Waterparks are awesome. Especially in Florida.

I don't understand the comparison of water parks and amusement parks, myself. They aren't anything alike. To me, that's like comparing going to the movies and playing miniature golf. They are both forms of entertainment, sure. But they also provide very different experiences.

They both offer thrills, well if they have good rides/slides anyway.

I have yet to find the waterpark that couldn't bore me in less than two hours. Every waterpark "ride" is just variations on the same theme: a water slide. In my opinion, once you've ridden five or six water slides, you've ridden them all. But you know what? Everybody's got an opinion, and I'm just stating mine. Other people will find plenty of arguments to explain why waterparks are just as good (or maybe better!) than amusement parks, and that's fine. More power to 'em. But they won't convince me.

^Ever hear of a lazy river and a wave pool? Coasters are really all the same, you are on a vehicle that rolls on a piece of track. To me there is a huge difference between a speed slide (like Summit Plummit,) a two tube ride, raft ride, Tornado, Water Coaster and mat slide.

Out of curiosity though, what parks have you visited?

Touchdown said: Coasters are really all the same, you are on a vehicle that rolls on a piece of track.

Yep, heard that one too. :)

Most of the waterparks I've visited have been attached to amusement parks, like Boomerang Bay at Kings Island. I seldom have felt the urge to don a pair of trunks and jump in. Now, maybe I might feel differently if I went to one of the (so I've heard) best stand-alone parks, like Schlitterbahn or one of the Disney waterparks. But you know what? I'm not interested enough to find out. :)

Ensign Smith said:

Touchdown said: Coasters are really all the same, you are on a vehicle that rolls on a piece of track.

Yep, heard that one too. :)

Most of the waterparks I've visited have been attached to amusement parks, like Boomerang Bay at Kings Island. I seldom have felt the urge to don a pair of trunks and jump in. Now, maybe I might feel differently if I went to one of the (so I've heard) best stand-alone parks, like Schlitterbahn or one of the Disney waterparks. But you know what? I'm not interested enough to find out. :)

They probably say that all the time over at WaterSlideBuzz. :)

Another similarlity between the two is that they sometimes shut down coasters to clean up some puke, and they chase everybody out of the waterpark to clean up some poop. Different end, same result.

Since it's winter, I wish Knoebels would let people ride the trough on the Flying Turns with snow disks, or maybe trays from the Oasis cafeteria.

Okay, that's one winter sport I would definitely sign up for. :)

^Ensign, ever been to Holiday World? That's a world class theme park attached to a world class water park, you might want to try out that place before closing the book on water parks.

Why does anyone care if someone likes water parks? I'm not sure I understand the investment here in trying to get someone to change their opinion about their individual likes and dislikes.

Hatham Al-Shabibi said:
Perhaps it's the little thing called reality. Priorities. Bills, family, etc.
In the scheme of things, besides a "release", roller coasters are quite irrelevant in these times.

Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's it. Now, I like to take "real" vacations, and not coaster trips so much. I prefer to just kind of be at the same hotel/place and be able to relax and get away from life/work/weather.

Wow. That must suck living where you do...while having those itchy cravings for thrill rides.

I mean, I'm half an hours drive north and south of parks that are open year round, but haven't gotten around to riding coasters since last August.

Maybe it's because I know they're always open? ;)

Touchdown: Yes, I've been to Holiday World. And trust me, I didn't have time to get in the water. :)

Carrie: I think we're just bored and cranky. Must be off-season syndrome. ;)

Raven-Phile said:

Hatham Al-Shabibi said:
Perhaps it's the little thing called reality. Priorities. Bills, family, etc.
In the scheme of things, besides a "release", roller coasters are quite irrelevant in these times.

Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's it. Now, I like to take "real" vacations, and not coaster trips so much. I prefer to just kind of be at the same hotel/place and be able to relax and get away from life/work/weather.

Oh, definitely. Roller coasters offer an awesome way to get away, theme parks too obviously. I just have this feeling that someday they will be a problem. Some interest think-tank will eventually point out how much steel and wood is wasted on roller coasters and the impact on the environment.

There is (or was) a bobsled place around Strongsville Ohio. I've never been there, though.

I don't get as excited about the ride season as much as I used to, either, Josh. Maybe I'm growing out of it or maybe adulthood is getting in the way.

There have also been some sad times affiliated with parks for me locally (Americana and Geauga's closing, some old favorite rides disappearing, the Conneaut drama, etc.) so maybe thats toned down my excitement.

But its the sweetness and anticipation of things like Diamondback, California Adventure's rehab and Teminator that keep me going.

You guys say that waterparks are the frozen children of water parks. TOTAL BULLSPIT!

Have any you knuckleheads even been sking? You can think of it as a downhill side of a coaster YOU control.

Strongsville has a toboggan run, not bobsled, at The Chalet Tobogganing Chutes. Clevelanders pay attention to outdoor winter sports, more so than anywhere else in Ohio, and "The Chutes" is part of the expansive Cleveland Metroparks area. There are two ice filled chutes, side by side, that run straight down a fairly tall hill. After climbing a path to the top, (seems like a million stairs) riders sit tandem style on one of those long, flat, runnerless wooden sleds and are released for a cold, fast, rush to the bottom of the valley. The chute is 700 feet long and the height is about 70 feet. It's a coaster-like experience, albeit a cold one, and the only thing required is about 8 bucks for a day pass and gloves or mittens. Oh, and your group carries its own toboggan to the top. With a keen eye, and if the trees are bare, it can be seen from I71 southbound - look to the west.

Myself? I'll be heading to Florida tomorrow for a week of NO SNOW, NO ICE, Magic Kingdom (for some quality one-on-one time with Space Mountain before it goes away) and the Florida State Fair in Tampa (an independent midway with the greatest collection of carnival rides you'll ever see anywhere in this country) C YA!

I live at most five miles from The Chalet and yet I haven't been there since I was a kid. I always say it'll be this year...

I was at the Chalet 2 years ago and it is exactly how RCMAC described it. For me it's almost as good as riding a coaster...except for lugging the toboggan up the endless flight of stairs. ;)

Wow, I'm having flashbacks to my youth. We always used to go tobogganing with my girl scout troop. Four leaders and twenty eight-year-olds... can you guess who got stuck carrying that dang heavy toboggan? My poor mom... LOL.

It was always a good time, though.

Count me amongst those who still gets the mid-offseason itch. Luckily this year I had a trip to Disney and an upcoming one to Kalahari to tide me over through the long months of November through March... couldn't talk my cousins into going to Boomers for the Hurricane though, grr! LOL The winters where I have none of these are lonnnggg... and skiing doesn't cut it for me, can't stand up on the danged things, ha ha!