As you probably might have guessed, my husband, Bill, and myself (Louisiana) are roller coaster fanatics. We have always been, throughout our entire lives (although Bill has been more into the roller coasters than I have; my love for roller coasters grew after I married my husband).
We both love the thrills, speed, and the sensation of being lifted from our seats ("airtime") whenever we ride a roller coaster. Being members of the American Coaster Enthusiasts (ACE), we, as members, travel to different parks in the country and try out different roller coasters and then rate them after we have ridden them.
As members of ACE, we have ridden coasters like "Beast" (Ohio),"Alpengeist" Virginia), "Magnum XL-200", "Raptor" (my personal favorite coaster), "Blue Streak", "Mean Streak", "Millennium Force", and "Gemini" (all at Cedar Point in Ohio), "Superman" (California), and "Riddler's Revenge" (Florida). All of these roller coasters have packed thrills that have tested even those veteran roller coaster enthusiasts, and all have their own special elements that make each of these rides truly memorable and unforgettable.
(Besides "Raptor", my other favorite roller coaster is probably "Millennium Force", also at Cedar Point, in Sandusky, Ohio. Cedar Point has a total of 15 coasters now, thanks to the recent addition of their newest white-knuckle thriller, "Wicked Twister", which is the world's first impulse coaster, where riders are rocketed from the station from 0 to 72 miles per hour in just under 3 seconds and then go spinning crazily up one tower, twisting and turning all the way up, and then going backwards; then doing it all over again. My friend, Roberto Sormiento, rode "Wicked Twister" when it first opened in May of this year, and he said I and Bill HAD to try it.)
Which is why Bill and I (and the kids) are here at Cedar Point.
The kids are on the ground, safe and sound, but Barbara, who is 13, is going to ride the roller coaster with both her father and myself. She is as roller coaster crazy as her parents; nothing daunts her.
We are at the loading station, waiting for our turn. Each time the train goes speeding by, the anticipation in our minds only magnifies. We are getting all the more excited.
Soon, it is our turn. Barbara will have to sit behind us; the cars are two abreast, not four, like the "Raptor". We are loaded in (once the ride operator takes our walking aids and signs our ride permissions slip), and we are suddenly apprehensive; as we don't know what is going to happen. Bill looks at me, and he licks his lips nervously, and I manage to gulp down the bile rising in my throat. I only hope Barbara is going to be okay...
Suddenly, WHAM!!!!! Out of the station we rocket, heading up a twisted track, our seats spinning crazily as we ascend at an incredible rate of speed. The sheer terror of it all causes me to scream, and my husband to gasp audibly. I hear him yell, "OH, SHIIIIIIITTTT!!!" as we spin along the track. The scene below us tilts and spins wildly out of control, making us dizzy.
We then shoot back down the tower, through the loading station, and up a second tower, again, twisting and turning, but this time, backwards. The entire effect is mind-boggling, and downright SCARY. We feel our bodies rising from our seats, and we hope and pray the shoulder harnesses and lap bars are locked and don't come undone during the middle of the ride.
Eww..what a NASTY thought; WHY did I think about this as we are ON this crazy thing called a roller coaster????
We do this several more times; before one realizes it, the ride is soon over. It took less than a minute for the entire ride--three times forwards, twice backwards, but it felt like an eternity--; but my stomach is hurting. I am feeling a bit nauseated, but I fight the urge to throw up. I decide I liked the ride; although it WAS a bit TOO intense for this ol' mama.
(Boy, Roberto WASN'T kidding when he said that "Wicked Twister" was about as an intense of a ride he had ever been on!!)
Hm. I think I will ride this again. But I don't know about Bill..he is looking a bit pale and shaky as the ride operator hands him his crutches; he looks a bit sick.
Barbara loved it, too. At least I can ride this ride again, but this time with my teenaged daughter.
And I can talk Bill into owing me $5.oo for cursing while on the ride. He may not realize it, but I heard him yell the "Sh--" word while on the ride!! (This is a family rule; no cussing allowed in our family.)
Want to review or comment on this short story?
Need a FREE Reader Membership?
Reviewed by Claywoman
8/1/2002
My stomach is upset and I just read about it! I now know why God waits until we are older to give us reasoning brains!
wicked twister. that's it!! your new nickname!! :) (better than twisted sister, anyway!! :) ) whew...this is one ride i will *not* be on. sounds WAAAY too intense! Love the story, though...TEN!! have fun when you ride it, i'll be safe on the ground while you're twisting and turning...hope your stomach doesn't unhinge! :) (((HUGS))) and love from your (saner) twinkie, karla. :)
Boom! Pain! Blackness!
After an RPG attack on their barracks in Afghanistan, corpsmen, Amber Fox, Luke Owens , Wade Scott and Ross Miller wake up in an Army hospital in Germany.
Thus, begins a months long recovery for all of them. A
