Sandusky, OH
May 28, 2024

copyright Jay Ducharme 2024

We left Hersheypark and Coasterfest™ at about 1:30 on Sunday, and our timing was impeccable. The skies darkened and a light rain began falling. It was a long trip west along I-76 and then onto I-80 through Ohio, heading for Sandusky to visit our daughter and her family. Our grandson was going to be marching in the Memorial Day parade with his scout unit on Monday morning. The closer we got to our destination, the heavier the rains became which slowed our progress. There were reports of tornados throughout the northern Ohio area. By the time we made it onto Route 2 near Sandusky, visibility was challenging. Cars in front of us on the highway came to a sudden stop. There had just been a major accident, only a few minutes before we reached that spot. We sat there for over a half-hour while police, a tow truck and an ambulance worked to clear the area. Meanwhile, vehicles behind us attempted to force their way around the accident but were stopped by the police. When we finally were allowed to pass, we got a look at one of the involved cars. The top of it was completely crushed. We arrived at our hotel after 8:00 pm, the venerable South Shore Inn in Sandusky. We walked into the lobby and encountered mass panic. Water was pouring down from the light fixtures in the ceiling above the registration desk. Workers were scrambling to move computer equipment and find the source of the leaks. Even so, they were able to process us in and give us our key cards. Thankfully, the rain began to let up. We brought our luggage up to our room and collapsed for the night. The next day was cool and windy, but thankfully with no rain. We had breakfast at the hotel. They had recently remodeled their dining area, which was really spacious. When we arrived the previous night, nearly every parking space at the hotel was taken. But now nearly all the guests were leaving. So we had the dining room pretty much to ourselves. There were two pancake machines there, so I made myself a short stack. They were quite tasty. Karen had a boiled egg and some toast. Then we headed out to our daughter's house. We hadn't seen the grandkids since last year, and they had gotten so big. We followed our daughter and her husband to a cemetery where the post-parade ceremony was to take place. We helped a crew there set up chairs. Then we followed a path to the midpoint of Route 250 where the parade would pass by. The cemetery was the last stop along the route, and they'd be coming from the south. The in-laws joined us there. Although it was windy, the sun finally came out. Quite a few people lined the street on either side, most waving flags. We could see the police car lights in the distance. They had blocked off the wide road, which was a main artery through Sandusky. The parade approached featuring the usual marching bands, classic cars and local businesses. The scouts were one of the first groups marching and after they turned into the cemetery road, our grandson joined us. It was an enjoyable affair. When the last vehicle passed, we packed up and headed back to our cars. There was a picnic at the in-laws' house in the afternoon and it was nice to catch up with everyone. Then Karen and I said our good-byes and headed back to the hotel for the night. By then, we were one of only a handful of cars in the parking lot. Tuesday was predicted to be a mixed bag, weatherwise. Originally it supposed to be cloudy, cool and windy with intermittent rain. Then no rain. Then rain later on. But that day was my one chance to get to Cedar Point. The park had opened a new rollercoaster for this season. Actually, it was an old rollercoaster that they had modified. When it opened in 2003, Top Thrill Dragster was the tallest, fastest and steepest rollercoaster in the world, using a air/cable system to launch the train from zero to 120 mph in 3 seconds. You were blasted to the top of a 420-foot-high tower and then plummeted back to earth. The entire ride lasted 17 seconds. I rode it and ended up with a vitreous detachment in my eye due to the forces. So I wasn't a repeat rider on it. The ride was plagued with problems, from the steel launch cable shredding to overheating to an inability to run in light wind. Two years ago, while a train came into the break run, a piece it broke off, striking a woman in the head and severely injuring her. The park shut down the coaster and it never reopened. Over the past year, Cedar Point dismantled large sections of the ride and began a huge reconstruction project that was shrouded in secrecy. It reopened this season as Top Thrill 2, the biggest project by far ever taken on by the Italian amusement ride fabricator Zamperla. They created a second 420-foot-high tower south of the original coaster station, along with brand new state-of-the-art trains with specially designed wheels. They also replaced the cable launch with a magnetic launch system, which in theory would be safer and more reliable. The train would launch forward partly up the original tower, then roll backward and would be shot up the south tower, then roll forward again and be blasted up the original tower and back to the station. The ride opened to much anticipation during the park's first two weeks. Then the coaster was abruptly shut down. The park didn't state the reason, except that modifications had to be made. It gradually came out that the train bogies (the structure onto which the wheels are attached) needed to be modified due to excessive stress. The park offered no hint of when the coaster might reopen. So while I was disappointed that I wouldn't get to ride it, I was glad that the issue was caught early and was being fixed. Karen spent the day babysitting the grandkids. Since I had a season pass, I was able to gain early entry to the park. When I arrived at about 9:00, there were hardly any cars in the parking lot. A large sign at the entrance reminded guests that Top Thrill 2 wouldn't be running. At 10:00 the line began moving. Walking down the main midway, the change in Cedar Point's skyline was immediately apparent. There were now three huge towers in a row: the two towers of Top Thrill, plus the Power Tower sandwiched between them. The park skyline was beginning to resemble skyscrapers in a city. The new spike certainly was an impressive sight. I walked past the Coasters diner where the cast of a 1950s musical revue was practicing. They were out there the entire day and must have been exhausted by the end. One of the rides open for passholders was Iron Dragon, one of my favorite rides in the park. So I queued up for that. With the new Top Thrill tower in place, the track of Iron Dragon came really close to one of its pillars which gave the old coaster an added thrill. There weren't many people in the queue line and within a few minutes I was in the station. The attendants weren't allowing guests to choose what seat they wanted. I was assigned a seat in the middle of the train. Even so, it was an enjoyable ride. I really enjoy the swinging motion of the train cars. I was across the midway from the landmark Millennium Force rollercoaster, the first one to top 300 feet in height. That ride normally would have a long queue and a wait of a few hours. With hardly anyone in line, I queued up for it. I heard several people in line saying that this was their first time on this coaster. I wondered whether they had any idea how intense it was. Fortunately, although the yearly mayfly invasion had begun, there weren't the swarms that would appear in a few weeks when riding Millennium would turn you into a 95-mph flyswatter. After about 20 minutes, I was in the front seat queue. I ended up sitting with a guy who had never ridden it before. I still thought that the lift hill was the most perilous part of the journey; it was so narrow and steep that it felt like the train was going to fall off of it. Once we descended the first drop the ride was relentless, careening with disorienting speed through its twisting course. The guy sitting next to me was blown away (almost literally). From there I hopped aboard the nearby Sky Ride station for a trip high above the main midway. From there it was easy to see the many beautiful floral displays that weren't obvious from ground level. When I reached the south end of the park, I set about recording another walk-thru video. That took me about an hour. When I finished, I headed over to my favorite coaster in the park, the venerable Blue Streak that turned 60 years old this year. I thought the park would have commemorated it somehow, but they let it slip under the radar. The queue line was pretty short, but as in the past the ride attendants were assigning seats, which took a bit longer. I didn't understand why they did that, since the station was set up for any-seat queuing and there were plenty of people in line to fill each of the two trains. But in any case, I was assigned seat 7, smack in the middle of the train. We rolled out of the station and climbed the lift hill up to the little cupola at the top. We rolled down the first drop and when we reached the bottom I felt a lot of jackhammering. I'd never before had a rough ride on this coaster, but then I'd always sat in the front. Every hill was the same, bumpy with a hard slam at the bottom. I got off the ride with a headache. That wasn't a great way to celebrate an anniversary. I was getting hungry, and Karen had gotten us the Cedar Fair meal plan. So I was entitled to one meal and two snacks per day. Since we were all supposed to get together later on for a meal at the Grand Pavilion, I opted for my favorite snack: cheese-on-a-stick. And I knew the perfect place to get it: Sagebrush Sue's in Frontier Town. Last year I didn't have much luck in that department. I was told there were "supply issues" and the park didn't have cheese-on-a-stick. But I climbed aboard the Cedar Point & Lake Erie railroad for a trip to the north end of the park. I noticed that behind the train station, the park still had the Millennium VIP Lounge, basically a picnic pavilion with cushy chairs under the final turn of the Millennium Flyer. It was advertised as "a limited capacity oasis that allows you to relax in style with a shaded seating area, complimentary snacks, flavor-infused water, phone chargers and much more." and was available to Prestige passholders. There appeared to be all of three people taking advantage of it. I wouldn't exactly call it a relaxing oasis with the Millennium Flyer blasting by like a jet aircraft just above your head. Within a few minutes we reached the north end of the park. I walked over to Sagebrush Sue's and -- lo and behold -- they had cheese-on-a-stick! So I ordered the cheese-on-a-stick basket, which came with chips. Oddly the meal plan didn't include soft drinks, so I had to pay for that separately. Instead of chips, they gave me a bag of pretzels. I guess that was all they had. I payed $5.18 for a small lemonade. I sat on a nearby bench to eat. The bag of pretzels was 2/3 empty. There was more air in it than anything else. Pretzels didn't really go with cheese-on-a-stick; it made the entire meal much too salty. But the cheese-on-a-stick was good, if a little overcooked. Thankfully, they were back to using American cheese, which had melted nicely on the inside. Standing next to me was a representative from the town of Boneville, and advertisement for the train ride. By then the clouds had dissipated and the sun was beating down. So I decided to head back to the car and ditch the jacket that I was wearing. The train ride back to the station was always amusing, with the animatronic skeletons in various absurd scenarios. When I reached the south station, I then boarded the Sky Ride for another trip back to the park entrance. It was shaping up to be a beautiful day. With the weather improving, cars began streaming into the parking lot. By the time I got out to my car, the lot was nearly 3/4 filled. When I returned to the park, I went for a ride on the classic Cedar Downs, one of the only racing derby carousels left in the world. I was still amazed at how large it was. It had to be about 100 feet in diameter. The four-abreast horses would not only go up and down but would also move forward and backward, as if they were actually racing. I sat on one of the outside horses. When the ride was up to speed, I had to hang on pretty tightly. The centrifugal forces were really strong. A PA system played audio of a mock Belmont race which ended in the same horse winning each time. But it added a nice element of excitement to the ride. Next door was the old Cadillac Cars, and it didn't have much of a line. So I queued up for that. Cedar Point once had three antique car rides in the park; this was the last one remaining. I liked the layout, which wound it's way close to the Raptor rollercoaster. There were also amusing billboards posted along the route that parodied various coasters in the park. I then walked across the midway to check out the giant arcade under the Coliseum. They long ago had removed all of their pinball machines. But last year they added an upcharge nine-hole miniature golf course called Boardwalk and Beach. Although I admired the park for trying something new in the arcade, it certainly paled in comparison to the giant Adventure Golf double course they had for many years. The fairways and greens here were pretty small. They were in extremely good condition, however, probably because hardly anyone played them. I next stopped into the Pagoda gift shop, one of the best shops in the park, to pick up something I had passed on the previous year. 2023 marked the 60th anniversary of the Cedar Point & Lake Erie Railroad. So the park had commissioned Lionel to make a replica of one of their engines with its coal car. And the park did it right: the replica was all metal and featured a digital sound system for recreating not only steam engine sounds but also announcements of sights in the park that you would see while riding the train. And of course, it also smoked and had Bluetooth connectivity. But all that came at a price: the train was $500 when it debuted. Although that was a decent price for a new Lionel engine, I couldn't justify that expense. But this year the price had dropped to $400. Plus I had my season pass discount for merchandise. So it ended up costing me a little over $300 for the engine. I also got a couple of other souvenirs, and then headed back to the car to stow them. As I re-entered the park, dark clouds started to roll in and the wind began picking up. I hurried to the northeast end of the park to ride Magnum XL-200, the first rollercoaster with a 200-foot lift hill. Even though the coaster turned 35 years old this year (again, without fanfare), it still packed a punch. I remember how much of a revelation it was when it opened, a steel coaster built to replicate the experience of a typical wooden out-and-back coaster, just on a massive scale. When I arrived at the station, hardly anyone was in line. The park was broadcasting an alert throughout the queue, saying that severe weather was approaching and the ride might have to shut down. Within a few minutes, I was third in line for the front seat. A guy asked if he could ride with me. He had ridden Magnum when it first opened. We were seated in the comfortable and unique train and sent on our way. The lift hill had that peculiar noisy clanking sound that all Arrow coasters have. The view from the top of the lift was still spectacular, and the drop was still breathtaking. The second curving hill sent us plunging to the left and then into that odd pretzel turnaround. From there it was the endurance test back to the station: one triangular bunny hop after another, each one sending us slamming sharply upwards into the lap bar before slamming us down again. It was fun in a sort of masochistic way. Many people who weren't prepared for it would end up with bruised thighs. Then we rolled gently back into the station. I could feel the temperature dropping. I began walking back toward the entrance at a brisk pace as raindrops began falling. Karen sent me a text saying that they decided not to eat at the park because of the approaching storm. Instead they were going to have dinner at their house. I made it back to the car just as the clouds began letting loose. The timing was perfect. If I had stayed any longer in the park, I would have been drenched. I could easily have spent another day at Cedar Point. It's always relaxing for me, even with some of the park's quirks. I was disappointed that Top Thrill 2 wasn't running, but this way the park will get to work out the bugs before my next visit to America's Roller Coast.

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