Cedar Point

[swerb]

Went there Monday for the first time in a long time. Forgot how GD awesome the collection of thrill rides is there. We take it so for granted. Put it into perspective for me when my son and I were in the line for the Ferris Wheel at the end of the night and had two girls that drive 14 hours non stop in from Lincoln, NE in front of us, and a couple that drove 8 hours from Missouri behind us.

Some stream of conscious thoughts ...

Breakers Hotel - It is expensive, but if you do Cedar Point once a year, it's worth the dough. Our hotel room was a 3 min walk from the one entrance. And you get in the park an hour early to ride all kinds of shit with no lines. Had dinner last night at the Hibachi place in there, which was excellent. And breakfast this morning at the Perkins in the hotel. Also, during our 4 PM - 8 PM break from the park, also hit the pool and hot tub before dinner (hotel has three pools) and then the ice cream shop in the hotel after dinner. Also have beach access, to a real nice beach.

Millenium Force and The Top Thrill Dragster - I had never ridden either. Sweet Mother of Christ are these two amazing.

The Windseeker - The new one. Doesn't last very long, and you don't go very fast, but it's terrifying on a whole nother level. Being 310 feet in the air, in a swing, with your feet dangling. With some tripped out "you're really GD high in the air" music playing. Rode this at night, it was an out of this world experience. It's amazing how high you are, and how windy it is up there.





MaxAir - Most underrated ride in the park, by far.

Beer - Not enough places that sell it there. I had to work really hard to put down 7 or 8 draft beers at the park yesterday.

My son - First roller coaster ever, turns six in a few weeks. Tricked him into riding The Iron Dragon, telling him it wasn't a coaster. He also had to incognito tip toe the height pole. He loved it.

Bumper cars, The Gemini, The Log Ride (now called something else), The Witches Wheel, and riding the Cadillac Cars - Still fun.

Power Tower - Ride has no lines, ever. Not sure why. None yesterday and others told me its always that way. It's a cool experience, being shot up like that.

Being stuck still at the very top of the Ferris Wheel at night - Maybe the scariest thing in that entire park (to me).

Any type of food on a stick - Is awesome.

The unwinnable games - Were winnable, at least for a day. One shot, made it into one of those tiny hoops to win my son a Buckeye Ball. Threw a softball into that big white jug on one throw to win a ginormous pink elephant for my daughter. And $5 in darts at the "throw it in the tiny red star" game won my son a big Captain America stuffed toy. Total investment $9 for three really nice prizes.

Next year - Two full days. For sure. Weekdays. Being able to ride all that crap with no lines is outstanding. Longest I waited for anything all day was the Dragster. 30 min at like 10:30 AM. Rode Max Air 5x with no wait any time.

[FUDU]

Haven't been on the two newest but never the less I love the point. IMO the Millennium is hands down the best amusement ride ever built. High tech, fast, long, and puts some fear into you. The ride up is half the fun, quiet as the wind the cable and hustles on the way up, yet it still takes a while b/c of how high the ride is allowing nerves to build. Genius.

Power Tower is still great, might be the scariest ride in the park when you choose to drop.

Meanstreak is solid and Gemini is still good enough to not completely ignore. although I hate the Corkscrew, absolutely hate it, worst ride ever.

You go with kids that are old enough to go on everything and it is a blast.

Season pass is one of the best values you will ever get anywhere. Drive up at 4pm on Friday and you can get lucky with a small crowd and still home by 11.

[peeker643]

My girls would rather go to CP than Disney. They love it, we go every year, usually for two days with one at the park and one at the water park attached. I prefer off site to Breakers because I don't like the rooms (some are simply old and shitty) although the benefits Rich talked about are nice, especially the beach.

Millenium Force is the best ride I've ever been on and the Maverick is ridiculous too. That one was new last year(?) and it prompted my tiny, saintly wife to yell, "What the EFF was THAT?!?" as it slowed down toward the end and just as things got quiet. hen she spent 10 minutes apologizing which was even funnier.

Millenium and Maverick are so good that you can usually walk right onto the Magnum with no wait and that's excellent too.

Even stuff like the Wicked Twister and the Skyhawk which I discounted previously were awesome.

Rides are great and the park is still kept clean (not Disney clean which is scary and close to sterile but clean as hell nonetheless).

I don't know what it costs this year but when you compare it to other shit and the memories you take away it's worth it. Mine are old enough where we can go spur of the moment for the day if we want. In fact, may do it next week when I'm off.

[swerb]

We paid the extra $30 or so a night to stay in the new wing of Breakers. You're right, the old rooms are shitty. New wing is also the closest to the entrance right by the Windseeker/MaxAir/Wicked Twister.

Didn't get a chance to ride the Mean Streak or Maverick. Those are the two I really wanted to ride that I didn't get a chance to. Wicked Twister was cool ... another one of those rides w no lines at all. Just get right on. One of the benefits of the park having so many amazing rides ... not all of em can have loaded lines.

And yes, the park is very clean. And the employees are pretty pleasant and competent. You can tell they are well trained, place is a liability nightmare.

[peeker643]

The Mean Streak is a whore. Might be the most aptly named ride there. You feel that ride for an hour after riding it.

Youngest was a couple inches shy of 54" last year and couldn't ride the Raptor and Mantis but she took out the tape a couple days ago to make sure that wasn't an issue this year.

Middle one isn't as fearless and won't do Millenium or TTD but youngest and oldest's faces after Dragster were priceless. No time to scream til they were back in the boarding area after it was done and then it seemed pointless.

They also have to have the fries w/vinegar and ketchup every time. Remember that my old man used to love those so the kids at least came by that honestly I guess. Also cool is the picnic area where you can bring subs and shit in and leave it at a table as a rendezvous point all day w/o worry.

They do things right there.

[motherscratcher]

I haven't been there in over a decade, but there's no better park anywhere.

although my wife (a Dayton native) likes to insist that Kings Island is better just to get a rise out of me.

How old until it's worth it for kids? I have a 2.5 year old.

[motherscratcher]

Btw, I think Power Tower might be my favorite ride in the park.

[swerb]

The Top Thrill Dragster is insane. I don't know how you can possibly make a ride that is more of a rush than that. I was shaking like a little bitch for like 10 minutes after I got off that thing.

As a first time rider yesterday, standing in line, the thing that struck me was the faces of the people as they came in. Reminded me of Band of Brothers, the fresh troops rolling into Bastogne, looking at the faces of the shocked and demoralized troops being sent off to their next stop.

[swerb]

How old until it's worth it for kids? I have a 2.5 year old.

My daughter recently turned three. She had a blast. They have two different kids areas (Camp Snoopy and Planet Snoopy) ... so there is all kinds of rides. She rode prolly 15 rides. They also have the train ride, the Cadillac Cars, a bouncy zone, all kinds of shows for kids, paddle boats, the Merry Go Round, etc.

Son turning 6 soon. Good ages for both of em. Very kid friendly ... so much to do with them there.

[hiko]

Going tomorrow, yeah boi!

I haven't been there in over a decade, but there's no better park anywhere.

although my wife (a Dayton native) likes to insist that Kings Island is better just to get a rise out of me.

This used to be a valid argument... in the 80's. Now it's like arguing that a kiss on the cheek is better than a blowjob.

OK, Donny, if you mean the Mean Streak is solid as in it's a solid structure, I'd agree. But that ride SUCKS. Probably the worst in the park. You get off that and you feel like someone beat you with a cinder block.

Milleneum is #1. The combination of everything it has to offer is unparalleled.

I'd put Maverick #2. Just a fun-ass ride.

Top Thrill #3. The line is just too long for the payoff, though.

I'd put Gemini at #4 just ahead of Magnum b/c of the racing factor. Magnum used to be clearly better, but has gotten kindy shaky as it ages.

Then there's a whole mishmash of stuff in the middle. Skyhawk is pretty cool, Power Tower is probably the scariest ride there (the one that goes up slow - my 17 year old nephew and his friend screamed like little girls the whole way up). The boat ride is good on a hot day. Raptor is still pretty fun. And there's always bumper cars.

Then you have the weak-ass club, which includes the aforementioned Mean Streak, the eternally lame Iron Dragon (still remember waiting in line 3 hours to ride that dog the year it came out), the Wicked Twister (or the Sickmaker, as I like to call it), and the Mantis (aka the Backbreaker). I haven't ridden Avalanche Run (or whatever) in so long that I forgot it was still there, but I recall it being useless.

Regardless, a park with so many good rides can have a bunch of dogs and still kick the ass of pretty much every other park on the planet. I already informed my daughters years ago that if they ever wanted to see Disney, they'd have to take themselves, because no way was I driving all the way to God-forsaken Florida to pay more money for an inferior product.

[Larvell Blanks]

Haven't been there in 9 yrs. Last time I went couldn't ride most of the rides with the over the shoulder harness. Too tall and it wouldn't click unless I went Riggs and dislocated my shoulder everytime. There's just no way to contort my body. Hell I was lucky to get on the Millenium. My legs were so bent up that the belt crossed them and barely clicked in. After the wait we had I would've asked them to amputate just so I could ride it.

Looking forward to the day we can take our boys up there. Our oldest is a thrill seeker so I know he'll love any/all roller coasters. We rode one of the Alpine Slides @ Seven Springs last Labor Day and all he could say was "go faster".

[motherscratcher]

Haven't been there in 9 yrs. Last time I went couldn't ride most of the rides with the over the shoulder harness. Too tall and it wouldn't click unless I went Riggs and dislocated my shoulder everytime. There's just no way to contort my body. Hell I was lucky to get on the Millenium. My legs were so bent up that the belt crossed them and barely clicked in. After the wait we had I would've asked them to amputate just so I could ride it.

Looking forward to the day we can take our boys up there. Our oldest is a thrill seeker so I know he'll love any/all roller coasters. We rode one of the Alpine Slides @ Seven Springs last Labor Day and all he could say was "go faster".

jeez, how tall are you?

I still sport a faint scar from the Alpine Slide. I went there for a week with friends. I must have been around 10. Going around a right hand bend I had such a head of steam (and I refused to break) that the left wheels on the cart went over the rail and I flipped. Went sliding down that track on elbows and knees. Not good times.

BTW, the Disaster Transport has to be the lamest ride in existence. Does anyone bother with that anymore? I think I remember it being air conditioned in the line but I could be wrong about that.

[mistero]

Used to get free tickets from work. Sign of the times, we get a chance to buy 1/2 priced ones now. Still a great deal. Going to take the family in July.

You guys didn't mention the best rides. Dodgems, classic cars and the scrambler. I also like the Mine ride, Wild Cat and Disaster Transport, but that's as risky as I'll get. Not a fan of heights. Give me a 200 MPH roller coaster 12 feet of the ground.

How about the Paddle Boat ride? Just wish they would bring back the Earthquake and Pirate rides.

Likely will spend 500 bucks on food. Oh well. Great memories.

[Larvell Blanks]

How about the Paddle Boat ride? Just wish they would bring back the Earthquake and Pirate rides.

Likely will spend 500 bucks on food. Oh well. Great memories.

What? No mention of the Jumbo Jet? Was one of the better rides way back when

Moscratch -
6'6"
back then I was in better shape upper body wise. I was wearing a 56 jacket so I had difficulties getting the shoulder harness over my shoulders into the position to click in. If I were a couple inches shorter it would have worked.

[gotribe31]

So when is TCF day at Ceadar Point?

[jjgmyers]

No love for the Matterhorn or Ocean Motion from anyone?

I went two summers ago for the first time in like 10 years. That place was more ridiculous than I remembered as a kid. Got there around 11am. There honestly wasn't enough time in the day to ride, explore or take in everything that park has to offer. Gotta spend at least 2 days there if you want to be able to do everything.

It was my first time riding Millenium Force. That ride is the baddest effin Coaster I have ever been on. Think I rode it about 2-3 times. Holy shit!!!

Gemini and Blue Streak are like little kiddie coasters compared to some of these newer ones.

[Kingpin74]

I'm going at some point this summer. I can't remember, are the weekends that bad crowd wise? I'd prefer not to take a day off but I think I have to if I want to go on a worthwhile amount of rides. I also have no patience. Maybe I'll save it for their Halloween thing in September and October.

Regardless, we are very lucky to have it in the area (I think it's less than 50 minutes from me on the West Side). Pretty remarkable that they've opened a state of the art ride just about every year since 1989. And like several before have said, the result of that today is a murderers row of options where there's bound to be several short lines. And for rides like the Magnum and Raptor to hold up 15-20 years later while the Millennium Force is still arguably world's best 11 years later is awesome. The surrounding restaurant/hotel scene could be better and I'm surprised it hasn't developed more over the years but whatever. And the food in the park is also pretty solid with Chick Fil A, Johnny Rockets, etc. Swerb's right on the Breakers re: paying up for a new room. If you're going to do CP, do it right.

[cozmeesah]

Cedar Point really is the greatest. Going in 2.5 weeks.

You definitely have to ride Maverick the next time you make it up there, Rich. Friggin amazing. Tied with Millenium Force for my favorite ride there. With TTD and the Raptor a close second.

Aside from the normal thrill rides, my two favorite classic rides there are the Blue Streak and Cedar Downs. I will NOT leave CP without riding both, also have to ride Gemini for nostalgia sake. Cedar Downs just makes me feel like an 8-year-old. Matterhorn is also a fun one to ride.

Can't stand the Mean Streak, Corkscrew or Mantis though. I loathe all three of those.

The water rides are kind of perfect for a hot day, too. Haven't ridden Shoot the Rapids yet though, was down when I was there last year.

As far as food goes, have any of you tried that little sports bar place underneath the Raptor over by the Blue Streak? Gameday Grille, I think. It's okay. But if you want something other than normal fair food, it's there. The Joe Cool Café in Planet Snoopy is good, especially for kids. The Last Chance Saloon in Frontiertown is fun as well. They have Pink's hot dogs this year on the midway also.

The only problem is my feet end up killing me by the time I leave, even if I wear good shoes.

[swerb]

As far as food goes, have any of you tried that little sports bar place underneath the Raptor over by the Blue Streak? Gameday Grille, I think. It's okay.

We had lunch there. Had a great sandwich ... food was very good. A lot of TVs, cold air conditioning ... AND DRAFT BEER! Which as I mentioned upthread, is hard to find there.

I drank two 22 oz beers like a poison victim looking for the antecdote in there, then got another to go. You can also stop in there and just get a beer to go. Cool little place.

[FUDU]

Some of you guys under estimate wooden coasters, the Mean Streak is legit for what it is. The best wooden coaster ever was The Beast at Kings Island, before they tamed it, when people were biting off their tongues and having the shakes for hours after riding it.

But as mentioned even the round e round rides at Cedar Point are good. Doing the Ripcord is pretty fun as well.

[fairvis]

I haven't been since I moved down to Alabama in 2006. Used to go once a year, could always find free tickets at Ohio State, as well as someone to ride with. The drive's a hell of a lot easier from Cleveland, though. Dropped my sister off there in 2009 when she was working there over the summer when I was home for a random week in May. 80 minutes from Cleveland Heights, can't beat it.

I do have some friends down here that swear by it. They make a trip (12 hours from Huntsville) every year for a couple of days. Haven't had the time to go along with them and show them the rest of the park. Haven't seen any of the new rides, but in '06 I did wait for 2.5 hours to get on Top Thrill. Rode in the front car as well.

Millennium Force, however, is still probably the best rollercoaster ever created. And with TTD and Millennium, there is never a line for Magnum. Rode that 4-5 times in a row a few years back, can remember waiting for 2 hours for it in middle school.

[hiko]

Some of you guys under estimate wooden coasters, the Mean Streak is legit for what it is. The best wooden coaster ever was The Beast at Kings Island, before they tamed it, when people were biting off their tongues and having the shakes for hours after riding it.

But as mentioned even the round e round rides at Cedar Point are good. Doing the Ripcord is pretty fun as well.

I don't underestimate the wooden coaster. The Beast? Great. Gemini? Great. I even like the Blue Streak and whatever that old green coaster at Geauga Lake used to be.

But the Mean Streak still sucks. Rickety, has really nothing interesting to offer other than the first hill, just a big frickin' waste of space. Knock it down and make a better wooden roller coaster in its spot, I say.

Just got back from CP... seems that the coasters have become The Big Five: Millenium, Maverick, Top Thrill, Mantis, and Raptor. Those all had about an hour wait. Everything else you could pretty much walk on. Gemini, Magnum, Corkscrew (rode it once and said screw that), etc... almost no wait.

Didn't get on the Windseeker, but rode pretty much everything else of note. Millenium, Maverick, and Top Thrill are almost unbelievably good.

Talked to a guy from KC there today - he hauled his family up after he heard about "17 coasters". Seemed amazed by the park.

[General]

I am coming up in mid-August and debating a trip to The Point. I want to see if I can fit it in around the feast and a Tribe game and family time.

[motherscratcher]

I don't underestimate the wooden coaster. The Beast? Great. Gemini? Great. I even like the Blue Streak and whatever that old green coaster at Geauga Lake used to be.

I remember kind of liking the Mean Streak, although I usually don't ride it. Gives my wife a killer head ache, and when that happens it's all over for the rest of the day.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Gemini isn't really a wooden coaster. The frame is made out of wood, but if memory serves it actually runs on rails.

The Geauga Lake coaster was The Big Dipper. I'm pretty sure it got sold on eBay a year or so ago. Who the hell buys a coaster on eBay?

[Mr. X]

This is a great thread. Reminds me of great time there as a kid and college kid smoking joints on the ferris wheel.

Haven't been in 5 years but I doubt they've built one better than Millennium Force since then. Easily the best in there. Second hill of the Magnum used to scare the piss out of me when it looks like you're going into the lake. Front seat a must on that one imo.

I may have missed it but I didn't see Demon Drop mentioned, which is one I love. Seems like you're going to die every time you ride it. Love that feeling.

I like the looks of this new one that's 300 feet up. Need to get back there soon.

[motherscratcher]

Power Tower made Demon Drop obsolete and I'm pretty sure they removed it a few years ago. Kind makes me sad. I still liked it too. Felt like it was going to shoot you out of the top on the way up. I used to put pennies on my knee and watch them float on the way down.

[peeker643]

Power Tower made Demon Drop obsolete and I'm pretty sure they removed it a few years ago. Kind makes me sad. I still liked it too. Felt like it was going to shoot you out of the top on the way up. I used to put pennies on my knee and watch them float on the way down.

You're an odd one.

[FUDU]

I don't underestimate the wooden coaster. The Beast? Great. Gemini? Great. I even like the Blue Streak and whatever that old green coaster at Geauga Lake used to be.

I remember kind of liking the Mean Streak, although I usually don't ride it. Gives my wife a killer head ache, and when that happens it's all over for the rest of the day.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Gemini isn't really a wooden coaster. The frame is made out of wood, but if memory serves it actually runs on rails.

The Geauga Lake coaster was The Big Dipper. I'm pretty sure it got sold on eBay a year or so ago. Who the hell buys a coaster on eBay?

Good memory mo, it is a combo of a wooden coaster and a steel coaster.

My family could have owned Geagua Lake in the late 70's. I got my teeth knocked out on the Big Dipper back when there was no padding on the bar that held you in your seat. I was too short to be on it (I think my dad persuaded them into letting me on with him) and after the first or second hill my face smacked that bar at whatever MPH my face would have been going at the time. Park officials were all over us the rest of the day treating us like kings. That was back in the day when people didn't sue for stupid things or things there were partly responsible for. The next year they had padding on all rides with metal bars that hold you in your seat.

Guess what I got that Christmas?

[hebner20]

I don't underestimate the wooden coaster. The Beast? Great. Gemini? Great. I even like the Blue Streak and whatever that old green coaster at Geauga Lake used to be.

I remember kind of liking the Mean Streak, although I usually don't ride it. Gives my wife a killer head ache, and when that happens it's all over for the rest of the day.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Gemini isn't really a wooden coaster. The frame is made out of wood, but if memory serves it actually runs on rails.

The Geauga Lake coaster was The Big Dipper. I'm pretty sure it got sold on eBay a year or so ago. Who the hell buys a coaster on eBay?

Good memory mo, it is a combo of a wooden coaster and a steel coaster.

My family could have owned Geagua Lake in the late 70's. I got my teeth knocked out on the Big Dipper back when there was no padding on the bar that held you in your seat. I was too short to be on it (I think my dad persuaded them into letting me on with him) and after the first or second hill my face smacked that bar at whatever MPH my face would have been going at the time. Park officials were all over us the rest of the day treating us like kings. That was back in the day when people didn't sue for stupid things or things there were partly responsible for. The next year they had padding on all rides with metal bars that hold you in your seat.

Guess what I got that Christmas?[/quote]

I'll guess one of two things
1) your two front teeth
2) Chipotle

[Commodore Perry]

As a first time rider yesterday, standing in line, the thing that struck me was the faces of the people as they came in. Reminded me of Band of Brothers, the fresh troops rolling into Bastogne, looking at the faces of the shocked and demoralized troops being sent off to their next stop.

Ha. Great Analogy. The viewing area next to Dragster is a good stop, even if you're not going to ride it. You just don't see human beings move that fast. Its also fun to watch the faces on the train as it rolls out and pauses before launch. People grapple with anxiety in different ways.

[Commodore Perry]

although my wife (a Dayton native) likes to insist that Kings Island is better just to get a rise out of me.

How old until it's worth it for kids? I have a 2.5 year old.

I'm in a similar position with a Dayton wife, though she knows better to insist. Usually she'll subtly bring up a good point about Kings Island, but I just politely smile in response. Kings Island = Cedar Point Jr.

As far as kids go, CP has some really good kids sections, as well as a huge, clean, shallow beach. I have a 3 and a 5 year old, and the beach is the first place they want to go and we usually have to drag them off of it.

That being said, it can be a bit dicey, depends on your kids. For our kids, after about 4-5 hours of running around in the sun, they are done. We have season passes, so its not a big deal to leave early, but if I had paid full admission and didn't get to ride much, I'd be grumbling. If we didn't have passes, we'd probably book a room at hotel breakers so we could go back nap/swim/have beers then head back to the park later.

[leadpipe]

although my wife (a Dayton native) likes to insist that Kings Island is better just to get a rise out of me.

How old until it's worth it for kids? I have a 2.5 year old.

I'm in a similar position with a Dayton wife, though she knows better to insist. Usually she'll subtly bring up a good point about Kings Island, but I just politely smile in response. Kings Island = Cedar Point Jr.

As far as kids go, CP has some really good kids sections, as well as a huge, clean, shallow beach. I have a 3 and a 5 year old, and the beach is the first place they want to go and we usually have to drag them off of it.

That being said, it can be a bit dicey, depends on your kids. For our kids, after about 4-5 hours of running around in the sun, they are done. We have season passes, so its not a big deal to leave early, but if I had paid full admission and didn't get to ride much, I'd be grumbling. If we didn't have passes, we'd probably book a room at hotel breakers so we could go back nap/swim/have beers then head back to the park later.

With young kids it'd be better to go every other year for two days than annually for one.

It's a MUST to break up the day by going back to the room/pool.

CP, Disney, Kings Island...these places are the number one for sighting parents flying off the handle at their kids. Parent paid x amount of money and wants to rush the kid wire to wire to get their moneys worth, meanwhile the four year old just wants to chill a second.

Throw in summer sun and poor food planning - getting stuck waiting for a table, and all of the sudden you've got a Casey Anthony type family situation on your hands.

Who wants to ride the hym hym hymalayaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!