An interesting trip

Well hello there,

The past week or so has been quite interesting for me and the family. We had the awesome privilege of going to Owego, NY to conduct a wedding for the Shantz family. The ride was supposed to take about 6 hours. Several road construction projects and That beltway caused the trip to last about 10 hours. My kids are traveling champs and only asked "Are we there yet?" a couple of times.

The wedding was beautiful and all went well in Owego. From there it was off to the Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio. I have always been enthralled with this place due to its number of roller coasters and how awesome they are. Well I was not disappointed in the park. However, I do have to tell you about my Griswold moment.

I love getting to the park early. I love being in front of the crowd. I love making the most of my day in the park. I drive my family, I don't let them take breaks, I study park maps, I plot the day, I know when the show times are going to be. I am very ambitious about rides and knowing when the best time to be there is.

So we got up on Monday morning last week, ready to go. Breakfast eaten, backpack ready, everyone into the van, and a quick turn of the key. Nada. No power, battery dead. The park opens at 10am and its 9:30.

I run into the hotel to see if anyone has jumper cables. The only guy that does is a little upset with hotel management over his room. He volunteers his cables as soon as he is donewith his discussion. The cables wouldn't stretch across the median of where my van was parked. Back to the hotel to find the guy that drives the blue Chevette. Guy found, moves his car, and jumper cable guy maneuvers his vehicle into a position that allows us to make a connection.

Fire the van up and off to Wal Mart for a battery check. I suspect it is the battery since it is the original and it has gone over 60,000 miles. New battery installed and off to the park, about 2 hours behind schedule and in the midst of the crowd. We got in a few big rides, but the crowd was huge. Guess I am not the only one that likes big roller coasters.

We did manage over the course of two days to ride some awesome stuff. The Maverick is a new smooth as silk coaster that is awesome. The Millenium Force a 300 foot drop broke a world record back in 2000, and yes very fun. I missed out on the 120mph 90 degree up and down coaster known as "Dragster". Next time I guess.

Anyways a good trip, very glad to be back to home. Glad to be back to the normal traffic. Really enjoyed Sunday, and I do hope that we all take friendships a little more seriously.

Blessings to all

Jay