6/18 and 6/19

I'll go by topic instead of sequentially. I'll only list things of note.

Magnum XL-200
30 min. Magnum waits make me nauseous. I didn't realize I had never ridden Magnum without 3 trains before until this trip. Boy does it make a difference. The black train "appeared" on the transfer track on Tuesday after being nowhere in sight Monday. I hung around after close to see if they might test it, but nothing was happening. The ride opened with 2 trains Wednesday morning. Hopefully within the next few days...

Maverick
I won't repeat all the things that have already been said about it. Rode it at night for my first ride, which made things a bit more intense than during the day. Felt like my neck got chopped off a few times by the restraints. The ride was stopped for a while when we were on the platform. They let the folks who got stopped in the tunnel ride again without getting off. Classy.

Dragster
Got one ride in 2 days. Didn't try too much to ride. I would estimate that it was down at least 3 hours both days, not including weather delays. I get more nervous about it breaking down, than I do about the ride itself. Didn't seem to be running any more reliably than last year.

Skyhawk
Worst operations that I saw the whole time I was there. About 6-9 minutes between dispatches. The ride op counting off people would disappear for long periods of time. No one enforces the number you are given, resulting in mass chaos loading the ride.

Gemini
Apparently 4 trains means the crew can just take their time. Stacking was happening at least 50% of the time.

Sandcastle Suites
Stayed for 2 nights. While I was not thrilled with the new "golden" paint scheme (it kinda clashes with the red roof). The rooms were nice. They replaced part of the in-room divider with new oak entertainment centers on both sides. These also have new RCA TVs in them. Overall, it was one of the best experiences I've had there.

Famous Dave's
Great service. Great Ribs. No wait at 6:30 on a Monday.

Macaroni's
Great Pizza. No wait at 11:30 on Tuesday (no surprise).

Things I liked:
Police officers enforcing the no smoking policy.
No wait on Power Tower (both sides).
Beer at Hurricane Hannahs

Things I didn't like:
Long Magnum lines.
People that prefix every ride name with "the"
Skeeball machines that don't work.

Other things:
Bugs that hit me in the face: 10 or so
Bugs I swallowed: 1 (Magnum)
Pop machines take 1, 5, 10, and 20 dollar bills. If you put in a 5, you get 2 dollar coins back. So if you put in a 20, do you get 17 dollar coins?
Nathan did a good job of not flooding the Magnum station with people.
Debra works for Park Ops and is at the park like 15 hours a day. She was friendly despite having a crazy day.