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When the gates opened up at 9:00 for resort guests, i found out at the last minute that i needed a 'resort pass' to get in early. While waiting, i heard more complaints of TTD not being open than i have read on this site about CP as a whole. Including the large amount of downtime, and people saying that they "better have" been working on it all night, i wasnt too thrilled, but i just kept to my self anyway. It was my understanding, and from experience last year, that i didnt need one.
So i rushed to find my mom to get one. When i found her, she said that she didnt get a resort pass either, and after a few things already, she was a bit upset. After speaking with the manager (ill leave out all the complaints), i got my resort pass and got into the park around 9:20. Still earlier than everyone else, but it was a little time that i could have used.
With common sense telling me that everyone would be rushing to MF because of TTD being closed, i went for some early morning rides on magnum. I got 3 rides, and afterwards felt a bit beat up in my thighs, but i wasnt too upset. The good part was that due to this i learned of a little trick that takes out a little of that pain, which ill share later.
With only a few mins before the park opened to regular visitors, i went over to MF to get my hand stamped for it since i heard alot of talk about them running out quickly. When i got there, there was a sign that said free way wouldnt be destributed until 11:00, so i got in line for mantis. I got a front row ride, and the whole wait lasted about 40 mins. Not too bad of a ride, but not too great. Just one is good enough for me to last the whole trip.
With 20mins left, i went over to wait for freeway on MF. When i got there, there was a line that extended from the freeway stand (about 20ft away from the ride entrance), all the way back to a wooden styled exterior food place back by MF's 2nd and 3rd hills. Although i didnt check for the name, im sure most of you know what im talking about. After about 15mins, they started stamping, and i ended up with a 2 - 3:00 ride time. After getting MF's, i went over to get Raptor's, which also ended up being 2 - 3:00.
After getting both my freeway stamps for the day, i met back up with my family to walk around a bit and get lunch.
We walked back towards WT, and ended up eating over at Macaronni's(sp?). Not the best i ever had, but it wasnt too bad. It was about 12:45 when we were done, and we walked over to WT. While i got in line(only a 30min wait), they went over to ride the ferris wheel. I ended up being paired with a single rider in the 2nd to last row. I didnt mind since i was going to ride in the back anyway, and i really didnt think a few feet would make that much of a difference. After riding last year, i knew there was more potential for the ride, and after hearing it wa up to full power, i couldnt wait till the ride got moving. The 2nd time up the back spike was amazing, and i couldnt believe how much more up we were in comparison to last year. WT is deffinately a whole new ride at full power!
BTW - heres a funny GP story. While waiting for WT, a girl behind me asked her friend if the (water) was the ocean! I couldnt belive my ears! Her friend told her that she "thought" it was lake erie. The girls looked to be between 13 and 15, and i couldnt believe they didnt know it was lake erie. Good laughs there.
Luckily, we all got out at the same time, and we only had about 20mins until the water show started. So we got a few drinks, and headed into the marina to get our seats. I dont watch many shows, but i liked this one. Despite some of the very obvious humor that was planned, there were still some suprising elements that made the show great, and i really recommend watching it.
After the show was done, i went over for my ride on raptor in thanks to freeway. Great way to get around that 1 1/4hr wait. This time i rode in the 3rd row, taking just about whatever was available. I wanted to ride in the front, but the front row que was full. With 15mins left until my freeway expired, i went over to MF. With only 15mins in the actual line, and a short front row line, i opted for front again. The whole weekend, MF ran with excellent air in the front on all 4 hills, so riding in the back didnt seem like such a must to get some air on the ride. Another great ride on MF.
Afterwards, i headed back to the hotel to go swimming with my bro, and to get an early dinner. After dinner, we went over to play challenge golf. Afterwards, we split up again, and i went back into the park. Since i had yet to ride blue streak, i went over for my dose of wood (which is lacking at CP). Air filled just like everyone says, i left with a smile. Deffinately one of the best woodens i have ever been on, but my list for wood runs short.
By then, it was around 9:00, and i decided to use my pass that i got from the TTD ops the previous night on MF. Although i thought i would just get freeway access, the girl in the front told me that i could go up the exit ramp and through the handicapped entrance. This time i skipped a long 1hr 45min wait, and got my first front row ride at night on MF. Deffinately worth it. The downside to the whole thing was that i got plastered with bugs. I think i hit about 4 on the ride which i felt hit my face, and when we got back into the light i had about 5 dead bugs on my new TTD sweatshirt.
It was then around 10:00, and i headed over to maggie to wrap up my trip. Now here for my trick. Since i could bear the semi-chilly air (it was colder the previous night), i took my sweatshirt off, and folded it a few times. When i sat down, i put the sleeves behind my back, and positioned the folded part right under the lap bar. This added roughly about 1 extra inch of padding to ease the pain. I still got lots of air, and the view on the ride was wonderful at night. Maggie is now a must-ride for me.
It was about 10:45, and all except for not riding TTD, i was pleased with the amount of rides i got despite the long waits. With a few mins to spare, i went over and tried out the grand-prix racing (the one you need to be 16 for). The course was ok, and it was obvious when the motors shut off due to the governor, but i managed to pass a few people in the corners and it was all fun.
I had a great time, despite spending much of my trip alone. Although i didnt get to ride TTD, im not entirely dissapointed since i got the great news that my mom made reservations AGAIN for august. We are supposed to come back for 4 days, so hopefully it will be running ok then.
Well thats all, hope you enjoyed reading.
-Matt
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1. Millennium Force
2. HypersonicXLC
3. Alpengeist
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