The day started off with my having to wake up at 6:30 (felt like 3:30 to my body) and getting in the car to drive the 2 hours from my hotel to SFNE. When I arrived, i was greeted with the image of the M&M stairs!!!!
Well, at least they weren't actually IN the park, so i didn't have to see them again. After purchasing our tickets, we made a beeline for my first Intamin Mega, Bizzarro. Bizzarro was fun, I rode it twice in a row, and enjoyed it both times. Unfortunately, the flame effects seem to have been taken out....shame.
After Bizzarro, we decided to take a ride on Gotham City Gauntlet: Escape From Arkham Asylum. This was a fun wild mouse, even if it had some odd bumps that shouldn't be on a "new" coaster.
Next, we headed for my first SLC, Mind Eraser. I found it wasn't as rough as people seem to make it out to be. This was definitely one of my favorite rides of the day. It had tons of footchoppers as well as fun inversions.
After Mind Eraser, it was off to Batman: The Dark Knight. This was another of my favorites of the day. This is a fun, albeit somewhat compact, B&M Floorless. I was actually pretty impressed with the amount of track that was fit into the amount of space available.
Next we headed off towards the other end of the park, and stopped off at Thunderbolt for a ride. My first time on it, I actually didn't like it. To me, it felt too rough, especially considering the lack of pacing. In addition, the ride ops were quite slow, which also detracted from the experience. the second time, however, i seem to have gotten a better seat, because the ride seemed less rough and I did feel some airtime, even if it was weak.
After Thunderbolt, we headed off toward Pandemonium. Somehow, we decided to take the gondola over to it. After boarding, right before the ride op launched us, the ride broke down. Luckily, we weren't actually on the cable yet, so we were able to get out and walk the rest of the way. Once we arrived at Pandemonium, yet another first for me, this time being my first Gerstlauer. I really liked this ride; it's short, but at the same time, just long enough.
After Pandemonium, we ate lunch at, well, PANDA!!!!
After lunch, I raced onto Flashback. I've been on boomerang clones before, so this was nothing new. But i think that they're always fun, so i took a ride on it.
After Flashback, we headed over to Cyclone. I rode it in back the first time, and somehow I found it basically forceless. In addition, the screeching noise coming from it's wheels was less than pleasant. the second time however, I rode in the front and DAMN was it better. I got some Massive ejector over the crest of one of the hills. In addition, it seemed to be running faster than it had earlier, so that was good.
After this, I went about riding coasters as I saw fit. I found myself hanging out more around some of the bigger coasters at the back of the park.
More Pics:
O'Ryleh?
After a long day at the park, i returned to my hotel, only to find out that my room could not be found due to some odd error......
My final Ride count:
Bizzarro x8
Mind Eraser x5
Batman: The Dark Knight x5
Pandemonium x2
Thunderbolt x2
Cyclone x2
Flashback x1
Gotham City Gauntlet: Escape From Arkham Asylum x2