First Cedar Point Trip 5/26/15

[Nick_Plummer]

          As a young coaster enthusiast, It's always been my dream to be able to go to Cedar Point. My family lives about three and a half hours away and my parents don't have the luxury of being able to request off so it's hard to plan a trip. Every year my school sends the graduating eighth graders to Cedar Point. Lucky or us, our trip was on a Tuesday so lines wouldn't be as bad. I was constantly checking the weather. The day before the trip said thunderstorms all day so I was really bummed. We arrived at my school at 6:30 AM for the long bus ride there. Thankfully it was a charter bus and not a standard school bus. It was a fun bus ride since I was with my friends but the views weren't very exciting, *cough cough* farm *cough cough*. We were actually in Sandusky around 10:00 and I saw the skyline through the trees. We were practically raving in the bus, just waiting until we finally pull into the parking lot. The bus stopped and I knew that this would be awesome.

 

          We piled off of the bus, stretching from being cramped for 3 and a half hours, and got our tickets and free drink wristbands from the teachers that came with us. My friends and I went into the park and managed to escape the dreaded front gate photographers and headed for Gatekeeper. Me and my friend sat on the left side back seat and it was really fun. Not as exciting or thrilling as I thought it would be but still a fun first ride. After this we were planning on riding Wicked Twister but it was down so we instead went to Top Thrill Dragster. It was about a 10 minute wait and the station was very cramped and uncomfortable but I got on in the second to last seat on the right side. It was short but really fun and I enjoyed it. After this we got some Cokes and walked over to Rougarou. The line was a little more than 15 minutes. I sat down in the fourth row on the left end and thought it was a pretty okay ride. Definitely not as thrilling or even as smooth as I thought it would be. There were some head banging moments that I wasn't prepared for and I had a little headache for a few minutes. We walked across the pathway to Millennium Force. The line was about 30 minutes, (45 if you count the 15 minutes it was down). I wasn't afraid to wait a little longer for the front seat and I'm glad I did. Definitely deserving of all the awards it has received. Millie is an absolute beast (pun intended) and it was extra fun in the front.

 

         After Millennium Force, we had to check in so we went to Coasters Drive-In, where we were to check in. None of us had our phones on us because we put them in a locker near Gatekeeper. We were supposed to check in at 1:00 so we figured we'd be early. Turns out we were 30 minutes late rather than 30 minutes early. The time on the Fun TV in line for Millennium Force had been an hour behind. We sat and got chewed out by our teacher for 10 minutes who was unable to comprehend the fact that 10 people were telling her the same excuse and said we were all just lying. She told all of us that we were going to be with them until 4:00, the next meetup. She made us go back to Millennium Force and wait in line for 30 minutes until the ride broke down. Instead of exiting the line, she made us sit there until 3:00. Millie never opened and they told us that we had to leave the queue. She was madder than a hornet at this point and told us we were going to TTD. I rode next to my girlfriend on it and this was her first time riding it. I forgot about being in trouble for a few moments while riding with her. When we exited we saw that it was 4:15 and we were dismissed to do whatever we wanted until the park closed at 8:00.

 

          We went to ride Wicked Twister seeing that it was now open. It was a couple minute wait though I kind of wished it was longer. The queue has a beautiful view of the beach and I wished I could have looked at it more. It was an okay ride and definitely made us dizzy. We next went to the ride that caused me the most physical pain, Magnum XL-200. It was a walk on and we were actually kind of excited. Though I knew it was a rough ride, I wasn't expecting the hell that my upper legs went through. We got off sore though we had to laugh at our pictures because I was saying the "f" of a word I'm not going to say on this website. We next went to the ride I wanted to ride more than all the others, Maverick. We could see the storm clouds in the distance so we really wanted to ride. The line was about 30 minutes long and we sat in row 4. Hands down best ride at the park. I thought it was better than Millennium Force by a lot. The theming was fantastic and the ride experience was unforgettable. The new restraints were also very nice. My friends wanted to ride Mean Streak but I really didn't want to. I went anyway for the coaster creds but I'm glad I did.

 

          I don't know how many of you are familiar with Mean Streak Henry but I know him from CoasterBob's videos and some blog posts. Normally I wouldn't voluntarily sit next to an older man on a roller coaster I've never met before but I did this time when I saw his shirt. He told me he was on ride 77,465 I believe, (It was over 77,000 I know that much), and I told him about how I'm a Kings Island fanboy and we talked about numerous coaster things throughout the ride. He was a pretty cool guy and I shook his hand when I got off. Mean Streak was not as rough as I thought it would be and though it was kind of boring, it was interesting. We went to queue Maverick again because I REALLY wanted to ride it again. The wait was more fun this time because someone brought three beach balls in the queue and we were all hitting them around. We were almost to the ramp into the station when the ride shut down due to weather. It was 7:00 and we had to get to the Grand Carousel in 30 minutes. We started walking back when it started pouring rain. We sprinted through the park along with about everyone else trying to leave. One of the cashiers at a shop yelled at us but an older man in the shop yelled, "They can't catch all of you, run!" We took a breather by the train crossing in front of Rougarou because the train was still coming but we then sprinted again. We ended up getting to the Carousel before everyone else and we rode it around 5 times until we had to leave. I grabbed a park map on my way out and we went to the bus.

 

          As a Kings Island fanboy I am kind of defeated to admit it but Cedar Point is by far a superior park. The theming and overall experience I had in the park was better than I ever had at Kings Island. I also bought a T-Shirt with some of CP's rides on it which I wore to our graduation party last night lol. Cedar Point definitely felt like a home away from home to me and even though I had never been there before, I felt like I was welcome there. The employees were friendly and the weather was fantastic until the storm hit. I never realized how beautiful and blue Lake Erie was because videos of the park really don't show it. I had a fantastic time and I really hope I can go again in the next few years before I'm out on my own in the world.

 

          Of course no trip report is complete without pictures! Here are some I took at the park:

[TheCandyManCan]

Glad you had a blast and enjoyed your first time ever on the Point. I remember my first time many MANY years ago. Half of the fun now is reliving the old memories with friends and occasionally making new ones. Glad you somewhat enjoyed Magnum. It can beat you up a bit, but it's going to happen, just accept the leg pain and enjoy the countless seconds of airtime Maverick is great with the new restraints I agree. While it does hold you into the seat more robbing a tad of airtime, it's for sure much more comfortable, even if I had no issues before. 

 

Next visit if you get one anytime soon and can remember to do it, ride some of the smaller, older coasters and flat rides. Blue Streak is easily the best wooden roller coaster currently running in the state, and some of the Arrow coasters you missed (Gemini, Corkscrew, etc.) are fantastic rides. I could sit and marathon Gemini all day honestly. Also live E is to not be missed there. The live e that park puts out is seriously superb in every way over Kings Island. There have been days I was there for a weekend and spent the whole day enjoying shows and the atmosphere and didn't hop on one ride.

 

Glad you and your mates had a blast, head up again and have more fun! I know I will be here in a few weeks. I've had an itch to ride again since I left opening weekend.

[Dalefan]

          As a young coaster enthusiast, It's always been my dream to be able to go to Cedar Point. My family lives about three and a half hours away and my parents don't have the luxury of being able to request off so it's hard to plan a trip. Every year my school sends the graduating eighth graders to Cedar Point. Lucky or us, our trip was on a Tuesday so lines wouldn't be as bad. I was constantly checking the weather. The day before the trip said thunderstorms all day so I was really bummed. We arrived at my school at 6:30 AM for the long bus ride there. Thankfully it was a charter bus and not a standard school bus. It was a fun bus ride since I was with my friends but the views weren't very exciting, *cough cough* farm *cough cough*. We were actually in Sandusky around 10:00 and I saw the skyline through the trees. We were practically raving in the bus, just waiting until we finally pull into the parking lot. The bus stopped and I knew that this would be awesome.

 

          We piled off of the bus, stretching from being cramped for 3 and a half hours, and got our tickets and free drink wristbands from the teachers that came with us. My friends and I went into the park and managed to escape the dreaded front gate photographers and headed for Gatekeeper. Me and my friend sat on the left side back seat and it was really fun. Not as exciting or thrilling as I thought it would be but still a fun first ride. After this we were planning on riding Wicked Twister but it was down so we instead went to Top Thrill Dragster. It was about a 10 minute wait and the station was very cramped and uncomfortable but I got on in the second to last seat on the right side. It was short but really fun and I enjoyed it. After this we got some Cokes and walked over to Rougarou. The line was a little more than 15 minutes. I sat down in the fourth row on the left end and thought it was a pretty okay ride. Definitely not as thrilling or even as smooth as I thought it would be. There were some head banging moments that I wasn't prepared for and I had a little headache for a few minutes. We walked across the pathway to Millennium Force. The line was about 30 minutes, (45 if you count the 15 minutes it was down). I wasn't afraid to wait a little longer for the front seat and I'm glad I did. Definitely deserving of all the awards it has received. Millie is an absolute beast (pun intended) and it was extra fun in the front.

 

         After Millennium Force, we had to check in so we went to Coasters Drive-In, where we were to check in. None of us had our phones on us because we put them in a locker near Gatekeeper. We were supposed to check in at 1:00 so we figured we'd be early. Turns out we were 30 minutes late rather than 30 minutes early. The time on the Fun TV in line for Millennium Force had been an hour behind. We sat and got chewed out by our teacher for 10 minutes who was unable to comprehend the fact that 10 people were telling her the same excuse and said we were all just lying. She told all of us that we were going to be with them until 4:00, the next meetup. She made us go back to Millennium Force and wait in line for 30 minutes until the ride broke down. Instead of exiting the line, she made us sit there until 3:00. Millie never opened and they told us that we had to leave the queue. She was madder than a hornet at this point and told us we were going to TTD. I rode next to my girlfriend on it and this was her first time riding it. I forgot about being in trouble for a few moments while riding with her. When we exited we saw that it was 4:15 and we were dismissed to do whatever we wanted until the park closed at 8:00.

 

          We went to ride Wicked Twister seeing that it was now open. It was a couple minute wait though I kind of wished it was longer. The queue has a beautiful view of the beach and I wished I could have looked at it more. It was an okay ride and definitely made us dizzy. We next went to the ride that caused me the most physical pain, Magnum XL-200. It was a walk on and we were actually kind of excited. Though I knew it was a rough ride, I wasn't expecting the hell that my upper legs went through. We got off sore though we had to laugh at our pictures because I was saying the "f" of a word I'm not going to say on this website. We next went to the ride I wanted to ride more than all the others, Maverick. We could see the storm clouds in the distance so we really wanted to ride. The line was about 30 minutes long and we sat in row 4. Hands down best ride at the park. I thought it was better than Millennium Force by a lot. The theming was fantastic and the ride experience was unforgettable. The new restraints were also very nice. My friends wanted to ride Mean Streak but I really didn't want to. I went anyway for the coaster creds but I'm glad I did.

 

          I don't know how many of you are familiar with Mean Streak Henry but I know him from CoasterBob's videos and some blog posts. Normally I wouldn't voluntarily sit next to an older man on a roller coaster I've never met before but I did this time when I saw his shirt. He told me he was on ride 77,465 I believe, (It was over 77,000 I know that much), and I told him about how I'm a Kings Island fanboy and we talked about numerous coaster things throughout the ride. He was a pretty cool guy and I shook his hand when I got off. Mean Streak was not as rough as I thought it would be and though it was kind of boring, it was interesting. We went to queue Maverick again because I REALLY wanted to ride it again. The wait was more fun this time because someone brought three beach balls in the queue and we were all hitting them around. We were almost to the ramp into the station when the ride shut down due to weather. It was 7:00 and we had to get to the Grand Carousel in 30 minutes. We started walking back when it started pouring rain. We sprinted through the park along with about everyone else trying to leave. One of the cashiers at a shop yelled at us but an older man in the shop yelled, "They can't catch all of you, run!" We took a breather by the train crossing in front of Rougarou because the train was still coming but we then sprinted again. We ended up getting to the Carousel before everyone else and we rode it around 5 times until we had to leave. I grabbed a park map on my way out and we went to the bus.

 

          As a Kings Island fanboy I am kind of defeated to admit it but Cedar Point is by far a superior park. The theming and overall experience I had in the park was better than I ever had at Kings Island. I also bought a T-Shirt with some of CP's rides on it which I wore to our graduation party last night lol. Cedar Point definitely felt like a home away from home to me and even though I had never been there before, I felt like I was welcome there. The employees were friendly and the weather was fantastic until the storm hit. I never realized how beautiful and blue Lake Erie was because videos of the park really don't show it. I had a fantastic time and I really hope I can go again in the next few years before I'm out on my own in the world.

 

          Of course no trip report is complete without pictures! Here are some I took at the park:

CP has it's downsides. I hate to say that though. Opening day bugs that are bad, and the fact that the season pass system they have never works right with platinum passes bought at other parks. You have to go to either Guest Services or the season pass center to get it fixed. I have had that problem as have many many others. It doesn't help that they blame other parks for the problem.

[TheCandyManCan]

Holy quotations Batman! My Platinum pass hasn't been purchased at Cedar Point in years and includes dining on it. The group I went with for Opening Weekend didn't have issues with the passes or dining either. Only one park and user here has had issues that I've ever noticed with an out of park pass, and it wasn't at Cedar Point. Sorry if you have had issues though.