I Did Something...

I've always been a thrill seeker who loved roller coasters. As a child, my grandma would take my sister and I to Cedar Point Amusement Park at least twice a summer. The last time I went was 16 years ago, just before becoming pregnant with #1.

When I was more than 200 pounds overweight, I could only dream of riding the roller coasters that I loved. Some of you may remember my last episode with an amusement park. My children have never had the chance to hear me scream as we flew down a 200 foot drop on a coaster. That is, until last weekend.

Mr. Sign and I took the girls to Cedar Point and had the time of our lives. I rode over 15 rides, walked 7 miles and lasted 12 hours. The girls were begging us to leave because of sheer exhaustion. The excitement I felt watching my daughters' delight as we transcended our first hill was one of my life's goals.

Daughter #1 convinced me to ride this ride against my better judgement . Mr. Sign and daughter #2 were smart and decided to sit this one out. Here is the description of the ride:

Top Thrill Dragster. Reaching a stratospheric 420 feet tall and topping out at an unheard of speed of 120 mph, this new steel screamer helped Cedar Point reclaim the title of owning the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the universe.

Riders begin their epic journey aboard this whopping 42-story screamer by securing themselves into ultra-cool trains that resemble top fuel dragsters. The train then moves into a "starting line" position, where it is launched forward, reaching 120 mph in approximately four seconds. The train then zooms straight up the 420-foot-tall hill on track that rotates 90 degrees, crests the coaster's apex and then free falls back to Earth. But hold on, this isn't your father's roller coaster. As the train races 400 feet to the ground, the track twists an unbelievable 270 degrees – what a rush! Riders then return to the station to begin regaling their friends with stories of the greatest ride of their lives.

May not accommodate Guests of Exceptional Size.

Did you see that last line? "May not accommodate Guests of Exceptional Size." I fit!!! With no problems. Well, no size problems.

After waiting over 3 hours through 3 breakdowns, #1 wanted to leave without riding. I forced her to ride and we rode in the first car. As soon as the ride stopped, I had an immediate migraine most likely caused by not eating and the fact that the coaster boasts 2 G's (the space shuttle astronauts feel 3 G's on lift off). Going from 0 to 120 miles per hour in 4 seconds is tough on you. When we finished the ride, it broke down before we got back to the station. We were stuck for 15 minutes and had to be rescued by walking on a narrow plank beside the track. The picture below on the right is the initial takeoff. Check out the skin on my face! The pic on the left is after falling 320 feet. Notice I didn't put my hands in the air on this one.

This is #1 waiting for the ride. Yes, that is a 90 degree angle that the cars travel up the track.

There is nothing in the world like the feeling of your stomach rolling as you climb and descend those hills! I can't believe I missed all this because I was too fat.

#2 and I rode the Gemini. (Yes, I'm an idiot who took pictures while moving on a roller coaster. The things I do for the blog world.)

We rode some coasters in the dark and then headed on to the spook houses. The entire park is decorated for Halloween. I love Halloween!

This is me waiting in line for the Vampire Lair:

Chalk another great day up to weight loss surgery and the fact that I could have never done this a year ago.