On
Monday, Paul and I went to THE BEST amusement park in the world: Knoebel’s
Grove. It is no secret I love Knoebel’s. Growing up, it was the park my parents
always took us to. I have so many fond memories of Knoebels!
Paul
hasn’t been having many symptoms lately so he felt comfortable riding more
intense rides and than he normally would have. I mean, he wasn’t going
to do the Cosmotron or anything (that ride involves a light show and strobe
lights!), but he was game to try some coasters!
Since
most kids were back in school on Monday, there were no crowds and very few
lines. The only ride we had to wait for was The Flying Turns, which was
a new trackless roller coaster I hadn’t had the chance to ride yet.
Absolutely no lines at The Phoenix!
As
we were waiting in line at The Flying Turns, I started to reminisce to Paul about the first time
I ever rode and upside down coaster.
It
was back in 1992, when I was 11 years old. The coaster was called The Whirlwind
and it used to stand at the exact spot
we were at now. It was such a magical day for me and my brothers because I
remember there being no line at all. We rode The Whirlwind, hopped off, ran
back around, and got right back on. We rode it so many times. What an awesome
experience for us!
Super old school picture of The Whirlwind...
I
had the absolute OPPOSITE experience on an upside down coaster at the park on
Monday. And it was the very first thing we rode…
When
we got into the park, we headed straight to Impulse, which is the newest
coaster. Even though it had been running for a year or so, I never rode it
because it looked scary and the line was always long. Today, there was no line,
so I figured why not!?
After getting into the coaster, I immediately felt uncomfortable because the restraint did not go over my head. Any time I have ridden a ride that goes upside down, the restraint was like this:
I like this kind of restraint. I feel secure. And I also like the extra measure of the strap that goes between your crotch, so if for some reason the part going over your shoulders released, it would still stay in place with the strap.
Okay, now this is what the restraint for Impulse is:
WTF?????
Nothing over your shoulders? The restraint wasn’t even tight against my waist!
I swear if I had a gun to my head, I could have wriggled out of the shoddy
restraint holding me in.
“I
don’t like this,” I kept saying to Paul as they prepared us for our ride. “Why
isn’t there anything over our shoulders?” I asked. “I don’t like this, I don’t
like this,” I kept saying. As soon as the coaster slowly started rolling I felt
my stomach drop. I was absolutely convinced I was going to die. The track went
STRAIGHT UP so we were basically on our backs staring into the sky. I don’t
know what I was saying but I was absolutely panicking at this point. I held on,
closed my eyes, and reminded myself that when I flew out of seat and fell to my
death, it would not hurt because I would die right away.
I
kept my eyes closed the entire ride and just kept bracing myself for something
to go wrong. I was never more scared in my life. As scared as I was on the
ride, the emotion didn’t completely hit me until our car slowed to a stop at
the end of the ride. That was the point that I had what I can only describe as
a panic attack. My chest felt heavy yet fluttery and I could not catch my
breath. I could barely stand up to get out of the ride. I was pretty sure my
face was white as I ghost. I could not believe I survived the ride.
Sorry
if that sounds dramatic, but it was legitimately how I felt.
Looking
back, I should have asked to be let off the ride as soon as I realized I was
uncomfortable with our restraints. As we walked to the next ride, I apologized
profusely to Paul for being a killjoy on the ride and that I hoped I didn’t
ruin his experience, but I really thought I was going to die and I couldn’t
help myself from panicking. It took me awhile to calm my heart rate. All I
could think was “I AM ALIVE!!!!”
(The
next day, I went on Youtube and watched a POV video of Impulse. Check it out if
you are interested!)
It’s
crazy that I used to love thrill rides and now that I am older, all I can think
about is “What could go wrong? How am I going to die on this ride?”
There
are very few rides at Knoebel’s that don’t scare me anymore. For some reason I
am not afraid of the Log Flume, The Twister, The Phoenix, or the Skloosh. Of
course I am not scared of the Pioneer Train, Antique Cars, The Carousel, or the
Haunted House.
We
rode the Italian Swings on Monday. I was terrified. I rode the Paratroopers and
The Flyers earlier in the summer and I was scared. Obviously Impulse was the
worst 1-2 minutes of my life and you could not pay me to ever ride that again.
We still managed to have fun at Knoebels and I am pretty sure that as long as I never ride Impulse again, I will enjoy every second I am in the park!
We still managed to have fun at Knoebels and I am pretty sure that as long as I never ride Impulse again, I will enjoy every second I am in the park!
Totally my kind of ride.
I freaking love Knoebels!
We also hit up the pool! They have high dives and water slides!
And you know how I feel about water slides!
Do you remember the first time you rode an upside down coaster?
What sorts of rides do you like/dislike?
Did you ever ask to get off a ride?
We kept saying we were going to take the labs to knobels this month but still haven't gone yet! I am not a thrill ride person and although I don't think I'm going to die, I've started to pass on Tower of Terror and the roller coasters at Disney just because it makes my stomach drop and I don't like that feeling. Most people LOVE tower of terror though and I do think you and Paul would enjoy that ride.
ReplyDeleteThe first upside down coaster I ever rode was at Hershey Park and I was with my dad! I don't think I would have rode it with anyone else.
Oh PS, about that clown picture. My mom has a picture of Belle (her lab) sitting by the clown as the screen saver on her phone and last week the guy at Verizon (who was checking her phone for something) asked her why she would have such a creepy picture on her phone? Creepy? We all thought it was cute!
Was is the Super Dooper Looper you rode? I know a lot of the kids at my school can ride that one. It actually surprises me! Some of the second graders are really tall so they can ride it!
DeleteMaybe you can do Knoebels this fall for the Halloween weekends??? I wish I had a dog to take to Knoebels!!
Hey I heard the Tower of Terror is closing! I don't even know what it is but I just saw the headline today.
LOL some people think clowns are creepy! So cute, I sat in Belle's spot!
I think it might have been the super duper looper. I'm pretty sure it's the Tower of Terror in Disneyland that will be closing.
DeleteYour vid of your entry into the park makes me laugh! I watched it like 3 x already! I used to be completely fearless to ride all the rides. As I have gotten older, however, they don't agree with me at all. They actually make me sick which really shocked me because I never had gotten motion sick before. I don't remember the first upside down coaster I road but the last one I road was about 5 years ago--I am done w/ rides, I think. Makes me sad but I would rather not feel on the verge of being sick for the rest of the day.
ReplyDeleteIt makes me laugh too! :) That is sad you get motion sickness! Can you do things like a carousel or does just the spinning and stuff get to you too?
DeleteI think I can do a carousel but honestly haven't tried. I can always take dramamine but it really makes me sleepy...
DeleteI used to love rides and now that I am older I have no interest. I am way too practical and would also end up thinking of the worst case scenario. Yea, those seats don't look secure enough at all. Thats crazy that they won't have anything over your shoulders!
ReplyDeleteIsn't it funny how kids are fearless and then the older we get, the more convinced we are that something could go wrong??
DeleteI got nervous just reading your description of that upside down ride. I would have been freaking out too. I don't understand how you stayed in without the thing over your shoulders?! Did you have to press your hands hard against the hand holding thing?
ReplyDeleteI don't mind rides that go upside down, but I won't go on rides that go backwards -- ever. Just the thought of that makes my stomach drop! Actually, these days I don't really go on any rides! As a teen I loved roller coasters but as an adult I think about all the things that can go wrong - just like you. I guess we've had more years to absorb all of the news articles where people have gotten hurt or died on coasters ... and those stories are hard to forget when you're about to go on one!
I gripped the hand holdy things for dear life but a lot of the force of the ride made your body stick to the back of the seat. But still. I just didn't understand how I stayed in the car. I feel like I need to read a rationale on how that ride works!
DeleteThe funny thing is, I worry about the stories where people die in amusement parts too, but statistically, amusement parks are VERY safe. I mean, I bet we are ONE MILLION times more likely to die in a car accident driving to the park than we are actually riding a ride... Yet with fear, there is no logic! So I am scared anyway!
I mean, even though I wanted out of the ride, I would not have made Paul get out! And as we were going up that hill, I wasn't thinking that he was going to fly out or that other people in the car were going to fly out, I was just worried about me!!! Wow I am selfish hahaa!
I don't know which one was my first upside down roller coaster, but I love Disney's Rock n Roller Coaster. I like rides that go fast, but I hate rides that drop, like Tower of Terror. I haven't done that ride in a LONG time.
ReplyDeleteOh those drop rides make my stomach flip! I think I rode one of those as a kid.
DeleteThe Whirlwind looks just like the first upside coaster we have at our park, Cedar Point. However, they still have that ride! I haven't rode on it in years, and you couldn't pay me to ride on it because it's painful (head knocking around!). There is never a line for it. I'm sure it's days are numbered. CP also has a swinging pendulum kind of ride and that freaks me out because I have a hard time getting the restraint band tight enough. It's scary as hell! I can totally relate to your Impulse experience!! That ride looks pretty wicked!
ReplyDeleteUgh I hate when rides knock your head around. I love the Great Bear at Heshey Park. Very, very smooth upside down coaster.
DeleteYeah, no. I never liked upside down rides and for sure I never will!
ReplyDeleteI bet your boys like them! :)
DeleteI haven't been to an amusement park in forever! But the worst are those pop-up carnival type ones because I feel like those rides aren't inspected well and they are assembled/taken down every 7-10 days and probably not maintained well. I went to one of those in high school and had a terrible experience!
ReplyDeleteI have actually never rode an upside down roller coaster!
You never rode and upside down coast!!?? Does it scare you? Do you get motion sickness? Do you think you ever will? Sorry for all the questions. :)
DeleteI agree about the pop up carnivals! I do not trust those either!
Hey Megan.
ReplyDeleteI used to love roller coasters. My bout of Vertigo dampened this a bit but something much more intense introduced fear. Vertigo makes roller coasters a sickening experience but the fear just seemed to show up one day. I was at Sea World a few years ago and I was with my friend Chris Cuviello. We were in line for a roller coaster and I got all the way to the ride but was not comfortable. I actually stepped into the ride and my heart rate increased to the point that I knew I needed to step off. I told Chris that I was not feeling it and that I would meet her at the exit. She gave me the thumbs up and that was that. I have courage but I also listen to my gut. Riding roller coasters can be a blast but if your gut says "no" then that is that. You and Paul have faced plenty of life altering issues in your young lives. My guess is that you are just so well schooled on that shit that your "old soul" is just reminding you of your mortality. It kinda sucks to get to that point but there are soooooo many cool things to do that will not give you the feeling of impending doom. You are badass so kick some grass over that shit and move on.
"there are soooooo many cool things to do that will not give you the feeling of impending doom" <---- I agree!!!! And logically, looking back, I know that nothing bad was probably going to happen. I don't get motion sickness or vertigo, I was just scared of DYING. But fear doesn't understand logic.
DeleteI love rides, I always have. The scarier the better. HOWEVER. There is a tiny little local amusement park in a tiny little local city next to us near a lake, and one of the rides there is the scariest MF thing I have ever been on in my LIFE. I can't even really describe why, it just is. I would not be surprised for a second if someone flew off that thing and died.
ReplyDeleteOh man now I want to know what it is!! Picture???
DeleteOh my god! that looks terrifying!
ReplyDeleteI love the video of you dancing at the entrance!! that is the best! that is something my son and I would do at a park!
I've never ridden an upside down rollercoaster, I just don't do roller coasters. I get motion sickness from swings, so all rides make me feel like I'm going to die. A few years back (when I was still married) we took our son to Sesame Place, at the exit there was a Grover Rollercoaster, and it looked very tame and safe, kids as young as my son were allowed in it, so I thought why not? and got on. Well, that was a bad decision... it was fast and very twisty. My son of course loved it, but I had to lay on the grass for 10 minutes after.
Awww I am sorry you could not handle Grover! Do you ever get sick in the car or anything like that?
DeleteNow that I think about it, getting sick on a kiddie ride is not something I should talk about... it was embarrassing!
DeleteAnyway, yes I get sick if somebody else is driving, especially if they have a heavy foot on the break.
Oh my gosh I love amusement parks! Sounds like you had a great time - though the restraints thing would have given me pause, too. I like just about any ride unless it's painful (thinking the kind that slam your head around). I've never gotten off a ride, but I've definitely seen other people do it!
ReplyDeleteYeah rough rides are no fun. I'm not sure I ever saw someone get off a ride besides kids!
ReplyDelete