Solo Trip 8-4-11

I had a day to myself and was only 2 hours away from Cedar Point, so I decided to take a solo trip. This was my only visit to the park for this year and is only the second time in my life that I've gone to Cedar Point by myself.

It was a very nice day. Great weather wasn't too hot or too cold. There was a little bit of rain, but nothing too disruptive.

I took two rides on Windseeker, one during the day and one at night. I really like this ride. It is not "thrilling" in a scary way, but it is fun. It gives beautiful views of the park and is quite relaxing. It was quite windy all day but the ride ran just fine. When you spin around at the top, it is obvious that the name Windseeker is appropriate. The ride looks terrific and it really does open up a beautiful view of the Cedar Point Beach. I was also glad that I had a chance to see the lights this year since they probably won't work correctly for long.

I really missed the lights on the other rides. Power Tower and Millennium Force in particular used to have such neat evening light shows. The Ferris wheel is another one that always bugs me with burnt out lights. I really hope that Mr. Ouimet gets the company to pay more attention to things like this. They really add to the experience. On the other hand, I did walk through the Starlight Experience for the first time. It was very well done and gives Frontier Town a completely different look at night.

Blue Streak was running great at 47 years old. I also had a rough but fun ride in the back train of Mean Streak. Magnum is still my favorite, I rode first thing when I got there and again at the end of the day. On the night ride, the fireworks from the evening show were timed out and going off just as we were on our way to the bunny hills. It was a nice way to make up for the long missing special effects in the tunnels.

I also rode Wildcat, Iron Dragon, Gemini and Disaster Transport. All three were fun (in a non thrilling way) as always. I missed the star field that was in Disaster Transport the last time I rode it. Iron Dragon really does need to run three trains. I can’t understand why it is not.

I also rode some rides that I haven’t been on in a long time. Namely the Skyride and Ferris wheel. I think that this was my first time on the Ferris wheel since they moved it over by the beach. I had to wait at front until a group was willing to ride with me since they wouldn’t let me ride alone. As far as the Skyride goes, I did get to ride that alone. I think that the Skyride employees must be the hardest working ride employees of all (as long as the ride is running). All that pushing and pulling the cars into place must be a lot of work.

I took my first ride on Shoot the Rapids. I have mixed feelings about it. First of all, the boats dispatch really slowly. Our boat was loaded and waiting to move forward for several minutes. I noticed that most of the other boats were the same way. The restraint system is the best thing that I have seen Intamin come up with. Very accommodating, comfortable and easy to use. The only thing I found uncomfortable was the leg room in the boats. The hills are fun but the rest of the ride goes too slowly. The island part is dressed up with a little theming, but it would be nice if there were some actual rapids on the ride. It is a beautiful ride to look at and young kids seemed to really like it, but it just seems like it could have been so much better. It definitely does not make up for the loss of White Water Landing. I got pretty wet on Shoot the Rapids and figured that I would also ride Thunder Canyon. It was fun as ever. I thought about riding Snake River Falls, but decided that I was ready to start drying off instead of getting wetter.

Skyhawk is still my favorite flat ride in the park! I just thought I would add that. Also, I like the new placement of Ocean Motion except for the bathroom facility next to it kind of dwarfing it. It is a nice way to welcome families to the park with a ride that most of them can go on.

I had lunch at Game Day Grill today. It was my first time there and I was pleasantly surprised. My Chicken Philly sandwich was pretty good as were the fries and the chicken chili. I left the meal very full and was all set for the rest of the day.

I can’t wait to go back again. Maybe I’ll manage to talk my family wife into going to Halloweekends this year or something.

Nice report. I wonder if the Giant Wheel single rider policy is because of weight? I know they only load certain cars in order to balance, so maybe the need more than 1 person?

It might because of weight. But I think because of the recent accident in New Jersey where a girl fell out of the gondola at Morey's Pier, they are strictly enforcing the "No single rider" policy.

On the good side, the group that I rode with was a fun group. I enjoyed talking to them throughout the ride.