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Photo TR: Clan Campbell Storms Cedar Point


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The motto means "Never forget," but I don't remember what we weren't supposed to forget.

 

Yes, Clan Campbell! Famous for the triumph of Robert the Bruce over the English--and infamous for the Glencoe Massacre of the MacDonald's (“Aye, laddie, there were nary a Big Mac or McNugget left once we finished orderin' at the Glencoe drive thru!”)--gathered in Ohio to play the pipes and storm the ramparts of Cedar Point the weekend of May 17-19, 2019! Yes, another milestone in Scottish history!

 

Except that there were no pipes and no storming--and only three Campbells. Still pretty epic, I’d say.

 

My niece Leslie (aka “Les”) had just finished her engineering Ph.D. at Purdue, and her dad, Ward, was going to help her move. Les and Ward were intrigued by Cedar Point, and Les’s boyfriend, Matt, hadn’t been there in years (his last visit predated Maverick). Ward rented a cottage at Lighthouse Point, and I flew to Cleveland to act as tour guide. (This was my third visit to Cedar Point, and I finally have the lay of the land there.) The weather was great too, so we didn’t have to endure the park’s infamous rain shutdowns.

 

But we did get their huge Saturday crowds, which we tackled without Fast Lane; Matt and Leslie were on a starving grad-student budget. Still, we managed to get in the major coasters, and we had “Early Entry” privileges.

 

What did they think of “America’s Roller Coast”?

 

Great rides they loved: Steel Vengeance, Maverick, Millennium Force, and Valravn. Not much of a surprise there.

 

Good rides they liked: Raptor and Gatekeeper. Matt had been a Raptor fan since he was a kid, and Gatekeeper was the first B&M Wing Coaster for Ward, Les, and Matt. Even I had to admit a night ride on Gatekeeper was fun.

 

Crazy ride they liked with some trepidation: Top Thrill Dragster. “Er, are these rollbacks a serious problem?” We had to wait about an hour and saw it roll back twice.

 

Odd ride they thought was hilarious: Magnum. Who else? Bumpy, clunky, and hilarious to Les, Ward, and me (Matt skipped it).

 

Weird ride they didn't think was hilarious: Rougarou.

 

OK ride: Blue Streak. I made sure they avoided the wheel seats.

 

Cramped, painful ride: Cedar Creek Mine Train

 

As for the park itself, everyone agreed that Frontier Town and the Frontier Trail were quite nice, but that the Midway needed a lot more shade.

 

We ate pretty well, too, at Melt and Famous Dave’s, and the cottage worked out perfectly. All in all, a successful long weekend.

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Hmm--this looks a wee bit like the place I stayed at last year, only not as close to Steel Vengeance.

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“OK, what’s that really big ride?”

“Which one?”

“Any of ‘em.”

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This was our Early Entry objective.

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I was hoping that all these folks would run to Skyhawk or Gemini after rope drop, but I was disappointed.

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I think Les is ready. Unfortunately, Steel Vengeance wasn't, and our Early Entry was eaten up waiting for them to finish testing.

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Ward is upset that he can’t bring his basketball on the ride. Well, he would be if he had a basketball. It’s the principle of the thing!

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We will all be reduced to dribbling idiots here without basketballs, anyway.

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What? Nobody told me this ride did that!

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OK, I figured it would do something like that.

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You would definitely lose your basketball here.

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“Huh? I didn’t notice that Maverick did that while we were on it,” said Ward as we walked by on our way to Millennium Force.

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You see that big blue thing? Just head that way.

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I stunk at taking pictures of Millennium Force that day, but this one is kind of, well, . . . here.

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Our quest is at an end. God be praised!

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What’s this all about? Does it have anything to do with that “Forbidden Frontier” thing that opens next weekend?

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You hombres ask too many questions.

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Well, I guess we shouldn't have expected a Shakespeare festival.

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Er, Matt? There’s a zombie truck behind you. Thought you’d like to know.

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“You will kneel before me, Optimus Prime!”

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“Go ahead. Wave something red in my face, gringos. I dare you!”

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Tonight on SyFy: “Mega-Sharknado: The Truck.”

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Time to experience “Macho Overcompensation: The Coaster.”

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“Sure, Chuck. We’ll be happy to stand here in the blazing sun while you wait for a train to launch. Don’t mind us standing here getting all sun burned. Are you sure the ride hasn’t broken down?”

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We witnessed two rollbacks while we waited. This was not one of them.

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I shudder to think how much a trainload of typical coaster enthusiasts would weigh.

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There were a bunch of food trucks in the park. This one was suffering through an identity crisis.

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We decided on this one.

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The empanadas were pretty good.

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Hmm--either I’m drunk, or this hat is. More to come.

Edited by cfc
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Night and day at Cedar Point.

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Raptor was another ride that I stunk at photographing that day. We had to wait a bit for it, too.

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But at least I didn’t make this goof on this Valravn banner.

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All these people are using their phones to find the Keymaster. (Photo by Ward.)

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We took a ride on Magnum later in the day when the line was short. We were laughing as it tried to beat us to death. Such a weird ride.

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Here’s another good reason to stay at the Lighthouse Point Lakeside Cottages. (Photo by Ward.)

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Good evening, Blue Streak. We’re back.

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We had dinner at Melt that night . . .

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. . . while Santa watched. Hur, hur, hur! (That’s for you Rifftrax fans.)

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Ooo, look at the cool lighting . . . d’oh!

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I’m not a big fan of Gatekeeper, but this was the best ride I’ve had on it. Maybe riding it after dark is the key.

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Valravn seemed a bit better this trip, too, even though we had to wait over an hour by the time we rode it. Still not my favorite Dive Machine, though.

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It’s definitely better on the Midway after dark than out in the blazing sun. (Photo by Ward.)

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Yeah, kinda blurry, but I wanted one photo of MF after dark.

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We didn’t ride Power Tower until the next day. Not as purple then.

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Time to call it a night.

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Good night, Steel Vengeance.

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And good morning, Steel Vengeance.

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We started with Maverick for Early Entry because Steel Vengeance was having Early Entry issues again.

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Yeehaw!

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Rougarou happened. At least it wasn’t Mantis.

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Other coasters were closed due to high winds, so Valravn was slammed early. Les tried to declare herself queen in hopes of royal Fast Lane privileges.

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Take us to the front of the line! We command it! Alas, it was all for naught. (Photo by Ward, via Matt.)

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Inspired by the Golden State Warriors come-from-behind victory over the Trailblazers the night before, Matt tried the Three-Point Challenge. It didn’t go quite as well.

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We didn’t ride Corkscrew or Iron Dragon. Probably for the best.

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The last ride of the weekend.

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Nice new sign.

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I stepped aside so that the tight lap bars would lock, and they could enjoy (if that is the correct word) the ride.

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My sacrifice was not forgotten. Ne Obliviscaris!

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This is what happens when you neglect to unpack your bag in a timely manner, and Angus McNasty is around. Thanks for reading.

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looks like y'all had a great time.

 

and I have to say, that pic of Blue Streak in the evening, is the best I've ever seen the coaster look.

 

thanks for sharing, Chuck! (and congrats to the graduate)

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Amazing that they still haven't fixed this gaff a year later.

 

I really did enjoy Cedar Point more than I expected. While I probably won't get back there for a while, I live vicariously through great photo reports like this! Thank you for sharing!

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^To be fair, I think someone peeled off the decal they'd put up to correct the goof. We noticed that other Valravn banners had these appliques.

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The weather looked perfect for your quick trip up there. Is that Lighthouse Point sitting area off of some of the individual cabins or is that a sitting area for any Lighthouse Point people? Seems like a great way to relax for a while.

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The weather looked perfect for your quick trip up there. Is that Lighthouse Point sitting area off of some of the individual cabins or is that a sitting area for any Lighthouse Point people? Seems like a great way to relax for a while.

 

Each cottage has a little deck by the lake.

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