Went for a solo trip hoping to get a quick ride fix in the morning and then take pictures and hit Soak City once the crowds got too bad.
My plan was to get a few quick rides on maXair and then run to Millie before the general public got in. There were about 20 people standing at the beach gate. They were all lined up in the ticket line. Knowing that the season pass folks have a separate line I walked right up to the gate making sure to ask if there were any other pass holders as I passed everyone. Everyone said they had tickets. After standing in front for a minute someone tapped me on the shoulder and said that I needed to go to the back of the line because I had just cut in front of everyone. I explained that I have a season pass and that I was in the season pass line. A few people said they had passes and proceeded to show me their paper tickets. I explained that they did not have passes and I asked the gate worker to confirm that the line I was in was for season pass holders. She confirmed but the ticket holders could not understand the difference between the my season pass and their tickets. I think the situation made a few folks mad but oh well.
When the gate opened I was off to maXair. I kept looking over my shoulder figuring that someone would try to pass me. To my surprise no one was following me. I could not believe it - I got a solo ride! Best ride I have had on it all year. Just me and the sound of the wind rushing by me. Really enjoyable. I feel that maXair is the best way to start the day. Swinging backwards at full speed really gets me going. I sure wish I could sneak a camera on it - there are some truly great upside down angles. After 2 more rides (complete with people who felt the need to scream from the time that the floor dropped to when the ride stopped) it was off to Millie.
How people can say they enjoy standing in line as compared to walking right on is beyond me. The 35 minute wait was insane. The only thing that made it half way tolerable was knowing that nothing else was running so in reality I was not wasting my time. I give credit to the crew as they were swiftly doing their job. However, it seemed every train had its belt problem. Anyway, after my as usual boring ride (sorry after the first drop and turn Millie just puts me to sleep) I was off to Wicked Twister.
Managed 4 rides (2 backseat) before the line grew beyond my liking. Really like the violence of the back seat on the back spike. Great ride, but only if it is a walk on. For some reason even a short wait on this coaster drives me nuts.
Got a couple of quick rides on Magnum. Way too heavy on the trims. Over the course of my two rides they went from a full train to chaining off two cars. There was more than enough crowd to fill the train so I am not sure what that was about.
Hit Gemini for 1 non-racing lap before going to Mean Streak. I know it is silly but I like Mean Streak. It is a bit rough, although not bad if you know where to sit and don’t feel the need to keep your hands up, but c’mon that is how wood is supposed be. To me that is part of the charm. Anyway I am so tired of hearing “%#! this ride” or “this is the worst &#! ride I have ever been on”. Why do people feel the need to cuss like a sailor because they do not like something? If you don’t like - don’t ride it, or at least keep you mouth shut.
Anyway by noon the crowds were getting too large for my liking so I went back to the car to grab my camera. All I could think about on the way out was how stupid this was and how this was a wasted trip. I decided to stick to my plan and I am glad I did. What a different perspective. I went from running from coaster to coaster to taking a nice leisurely stroll looking for things and angles that the average person does not notice. Ended up with 143 pictures, some of which are really cool. Gotta love a 12X optical zoom! I do have to say that I must have looked like a perv in Soak City, but man there are some great shots of the Magnum in there. Granted there were some other things I would have liked to have taken pictures of too;)
I also managed to get a few comments about my PointBuzz shirt. One guy really thought it was true. Even some of the workers were confused by it - Is it really sinking???
All in all a good day, not much riding, but enough to hold me over until the kiddies go back to school. And enough pictures for me to look at during the winter.
You must be logged in to post