Cedar Point… 9 years later
24 May
Today, Dan and I went to Cedar Point. This was Dan’s first time. I’d been there quite a few times, but my last visit was in 2000 (I’m pretty sure). I felt old for two reasons. One, I hadn’t even heard of the two most recent rides. This seems crazy because, as a kid, we all knew and frequently discussed the newest (fastest, highest, etc.) roller coaster at Cedar Point and plotted to ride it without holding on. In my head, I was still gearing up to ride the Magnum, which was the coolest ride the first time I went to Cedar Point, when I was in the fourth grade. The Magnum’s glory lasted for several years and I can still remember how cool I felt waiting in line for 3 hours listening to the Magnum DJ play “Shoop” and other early 90s greats. I just looked up the Magnum online and it is celebrating it’s 20th anniversary. I am old. The second reason I felt old today though, was that the rides I used to plot to ride without holding on (remember those?)… yeah, well, now I hold on, feel sick and might rather be standing with a stroller holding everyone’s bags and drinks.
Here’s how the day went:
1. We get there, find Ben, Matt, Megan and Erin.
Ben, Erin, Megan, Matt and Dan (upon arrival, before I knew that I was OLD).
2. We head to the newest roller coaster, the Maverick (yes, we immediately thought of the presidential race). The Maverick was way faster than I expected and has a 95 degree drop (which means that it is actually a bit inverted)! Also, remember how roller coasters used to slowly climb the hill? Cha-chink, cha-chink, cha-chink? Well, they don’t do that anymore, they just shoot right up the hill and then right back down. It was a good one though, my stomach was calm at this point.
3. We head to the maXair. This is like the old pirate ship ride on crack. You can click on the link to see it, but imagine if the pirate ship was a spinning disc. I don’t like the pirate ship ride at all, so I’m not sure why I went on this. I thought this ride would never end and when it was over all the blood was in my legs, I couldn’t walk and I thought I was going to puke. So, then we took a break for lunch. 
4. Lunchtime… always remember that when you go to over-priced amusement parks, bring a cooler and eat in the car. As my mom likes to say, “Live by the cooler!” (similar to “Viva la France!”). So, if you are my mom, you stock a full cooler for a 2 hour ride to Columbus. In fact you bring enough in your cooler that if World War III suddenly hit and the highway in front of you was obliterated by an enemy attack, you could probably feed yourself and all of the other survivors for weeks. But if you are not my mom and you are just going to Cedar Point for the day, just bring a few PB&Js.
5. After lunch we head to the Raptor, which is the hanging coaster and was always my favorite. I loved it and never felt even a little bit queasy on it. This has changed. My stomach was going nuts and it made me seriously consider calling it quits.
Dan and I with the Raptor in the background.
6. We head to the Millenium Force. This was new the last time I was at Cedar Point. I rode it then and liked it. I was really getting nervous at this point though. This is the one that replaced the Magnum as the tallest roller coaster in the world (although it’s been eclipsed by one in Japan since then). Dan was looking a little peaked too, but we both ended up really liking it. It was fun scary and had no loops, which probably helped.
7. The last ride of the day, was one of the newer ones called Top Thrill Dragster. Like an old person, I kept forgetting the whole name and just calling it “the Dragster.” Whatever though, when we got there, I found out that it is basically just one fast shoot up a huge vertical and then straight back down and that it gets up to 120mph in 2.9 seconds. I’m not kidding. And of course, the line for the dang thing is right between the tracks, so you repeatedly see people plastered to their seats, scared out of their minds. The ride though… was so much fun! The best of the day by far. It was soooooo fast and my heart was beating super fast by the end, but it was exciting and not nauseating! I’m glad I didn’t give up too early on the rides!
8. Last but not least, we head to the arcade (per Dan’s request). We spent a couple of bucks running around playing basketball, whac-a-mole, the hit-the-button-at-the-right-time-jackpot-thing, etc. And Dan and Ben played a rather intense game of some version of StreetFighter.
Look at that concentration!
Matt and Erin were the big winners though because on the hit-the-button-at-the-right-time-jackpot-thing, they actually both hit the jackpot, so they redeemed their tickets for some nice Cedar Point glassware. Sweet!
Matt and Erin with their winnings!
Dan and I made the long drive home and Dan is already passed out on the couch. Amusement parks are tiring when you’re old.
I used to love roller coasters and such, but after going through engineering school and realizing how many dummies can cheat their way to a degree, it truly does scare me to ride them! Although, most roller coasters are designed over in Europe, and I’m not too sure how their higher education system compares to ours…
Well laurie…I do not enjoy feeling sick but i would like to have the cedar point experience again. I hear some have summer passes.(ben/matt) Maybe we can go next time.My cooler will be fully loaded. I hope you rested and took in a few shows. How were they.
i love that you went to cedar point – it is still the paragon of amusement parks for me since you, beth and I went there the summer of 2001 (cleveland rocks!) ironically I went to California Adventure on Saturday – which if you get a chance go to a disney park on your birthday – you get in free and they give you a button that says your name and the fact that it’s your birthday and all the park employees say happy birthday to you. one woman at one of the gift shops even sang to me, then played me a recording of Goofy singing it. it was pretty awesome. it truly is the happiest place on earth.
We were really tired too. Megan was in the backseat sleeping and we stopped at a stoplight, she woke up fast and said ‘do you need a dollar?’ She thought we stopped at a toll booth ha.
Bri, I’m glad I didn’t have this knowledge before I went. I kept imagining the shoulder harnesses coming unlocked on a loop without it.
Mom, shows are for REALLY old people. Not there yet.
Oh, was that when we went? I kept trying to remember! I was off a year… it is a great amusement park! I’m glad you said that because Dan and I always argue about if King’s Island (please) is better than Cedar Point (it’s not). Happy belated Birthday, I’m glad you had fun!!