Waldameer: The Coaster With No Name (Oh Yea, CP Too)...

I haven't been to Waldameer since 2000. Not much has changed, but the park does feel a lot smaller than I remember it. I honestly thought it was bigger, more akin to Martin's Fantasy Island, but it's actually quite narrow & small. Still has a nice friendly atmosphere.

One thing I noticed... the Ali-baba ride. Is that a true Huss Rainbow? It doesn't quite look like one & It has metal over-the-shoulder restraints. I know the one at Great Escape is still the lapbar & seatbelt, so can someone clear this up?

Now, the coaster with no name. It's kind of funny how it's advertised on billboards on the way towards the park, the ride itself is open... but mysteriously there is no name to this ride! If they're holding a naming contest, it should have been done months ago.

The cars have big dragons on the side & the sign where the name SHOULD be has a dragon on either end (pictures coming soon). Upon entering, the queue wasn't that bad. It was filled to the end, but for Waldameer... that means about a half hour wait. The ride was testing when we checked it out.

So we went back, bought 6 tickets (3 each) & got in line... the ride broke down about half way thru the line. The mechanics were quite new at this, as they actually whipped out the instruction manual to fix it. Took about 15 minutes, and it was back up & running.
As for the ride itself... it was quite fun. We sat sitting in reverse, and that was quite unique. The lift was extremely fast & the ride was very smooth, no matter how you were whipped around. It wasn't too intense & not too dizzying, but definately a worthy addition for a small park.

The ride-ops themselves never checked or took our tickets. I was more than willing to hand them over, but they never took 'em, so it was a free ride! We wound up using the tickets instead on Big Thunder, their sweet log ride. Felt great on a 80+ degree day, tell ya that much.

As for Cedar Point...
Well, typical trip report just like most others, with a few notables.
We attended on June 30th & July 1st.
Dragster was noted as being broken down since Sunday. There were rumors that too much water got into the system & was down for an unquestionable period of time.
If it was going to be down for those 2 days we went, I was going to be extremely unhappy... 3 trips to the park in 2 years & not one ride. LUCKILY, it wound up testing in the early afternoon & eventually opened up.

Finally got my first ride on Dragster & definately worth all the hype & excitement. Problem I have with the ride is that if you're not in the front seat, you can basicaly forget about getting a picture because the person in front of you dominates the photo.

On July 1st, it was running the full day... but periodically broke down for 10 to 15 minute incraments.

In the morning, we were determined to ride it front seat so we can experience it for what it really is, as well as purchase the souvineer on-ride photo.
After a good 30 or so minute wait without any problems, we got on board, and what happens? It breaks down! Right in the front seat, it breaks down for an unspecified amount of time.

I say "Oh hell no, man!" and we waited it out. After about 10 minutes of chillin' in the train, they made us get out so they can fire out the 1st train. It didn't make it over the top-hat & rolled on back.
After it came back into the station, they let us back on & continued as normal. Some of us were baffled why they filled the trains despite a mis-fired launch. Either way, the next train out did make it, as did we... so it all worked out.

This brings me to a question: When they say "1hr wait time from this point"... do they factor in break-downs?
I timed the wait time & there were 2 break downs during our wait. When we got off the ride, it was 1hr & 3 minuts total. If it wasn't for the break-downs, we would have made it in 30 minutes... tops!

As for the rest of the park... the crowds seemed typical until you reached the lines for the rides. With the exception of Dragster & Millennium Force, most other big coasters were rather light. I think this is THE perfect time of the year to go (before the 4th of July), because Raptor, Magnum (especially), and a few others had less than 10 minute waits. It wasn't worth it to get the FreeWay stamp for those rides in the early evening since the line starts past the freeway entrance.

A little tip to some others who go just for a day trip or two there... get there early & park at the Soak City entrance! It's very convient to get to the waterpark & a closer entrance to the big rides! I was apprehensive at first thinking that was only for hotel & campers, but a little call to the park cleared that up. It's all for public use & is a lot better than the other lot (mainly due to the proximity of the location).

All in all, it was a great trip. With the exception of a racoon who kept breaking into my tent & stealing my food... it was all worth it. If my computer wouldn't have so much PMS, I'd upload some pics & video of the Coaster-With-No-Name at Waldameer!

*** Edited 7/3/2004 6:10:35 PM UTC by DawgByte II***