Lake, Steak, Cake and Shake - Sunday, Nov. 20, 2016

Thank you to everyone for the Facebook and blog birthday wishes. They mean a lot to me. My birthday was awesome!

Lake: Sunday morning, Bob and I went our separate ways as he had a half-marathon training run and I was doing a 10k Volksmarch worker's walk with Susan M., Rick and John. 

Southside Lions Park is where we started our walk. The walk will be an event sponsored by the Randolph Roadrunners Volksmarch Club (the one I belong to). The weather this morning was magnificent--clear, cold and dry. 

The first mile of our walk was around Lions Park Lake where we saw great white egrets, geese and American coot. A few fisherman were out vying with the egret for rainbow trout that are stocked in the lake in fall and winter.  (Catfish are stocked in the summer.)

John, Susan M., and Rick at Lions Park Lake

After the lake, our route took us on the Southside Lions Park Trail for a 5.2-mile, out-and-back walk along Salado Creek and through Comanche and Covington Parks.

Entrance sign to Comanche County Park

Rick, Susan M. and John - Covington Park

John, Susan M. and I - Covington Park

J Street Turnaround Point for the walk

Types of trees we saw included, but were not limited to, live oak, cypress, and pecan. There are also palmettos and bamboo along the path. 

Trees draped in Spanish moss

The bike path

Susan M., John and Rick

We saw a North American black vulture eating a raccoon beside the creek

Below, in the tree, we have  a committee (wake, kettle, or volt) of vultures which had all been feasting on the raccoon.

North American Black Vultures at Salado Creek

Salado Creek

When the walk was over, Susan and I wanted to see "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," the precursor to the Harry Potter books. Bob had finished his walk and called to see what we were up to. He's not a big sci-fi/fantasy fan, but he wanted to be with me for the movie I chose for my birthday. The movie was starting in 20 minutes, so he met us at the theater. Susan M. and I loved the movie. It is funny, creative and has a good story and acting.

Steak and Cake: Lunch time was way past due by the time the movie let out. Off we went to 54th Street Grille and Bar. One of the meals I wanted on my birthday was steak. When we sat down at the table, lo and behold, the special was a 6 oz. Filet Mignon served with salad and steamed vegetables. It was meant to be and it was very good. Because it's my birthday, they gave me a free piece of chocolate lava cake with ice cream. I shared with Bob. (Susan had dessert as her main dish, so she didn't want the cake.)

Shake: After lunch we went home to relax. Once it was dark, Bob and I went to Six Flags Fiesta Texas for their "Holiday in the Park." We had a good time, saw two of the shows, walked around and saw the lighted Christmas tree and other Christmas decorations.

Bob with a "holly"-day princess

One of the shows we saw was called "The Majesty of Christmas," and was the Christmas story told entirely in song. It was pretty impressive. Mary came riding in on a donkey. There were two angels flying on a track up in the air. A multitude of people visited Jesus at the manger and a herd of goats, two kids and a sheep all made their way up on stage from the theater floor. When it came time for the wise men to arrive, they came down the center aisle of the theater. 

After the first wise man, Bob said, "So is there going to be a camel?"

"No way!" I replied.

Well the joke was on me, because not a minute after I said it, I turned around, looked back up the aisle, and sure enough, a wise man on a camel was riding through. 

I poked Bob and I said, "No way! There's a camel coming down the aisle." We both totally cracked up.

After that show, we made our way over to the Christmas tree lighting with lights set to music. The first song we heard was by Trans-Siberian Orchestra, one of our favorite bands.

Behind the tree was the Rockville High Theater which was where the next musical show would be. We found seats and relaxed until the show started. This was a Christmas song-and-dance extravaganza with lots of classic holiday songs.

 

 

A classic carousel

We went for a ride

On the carousel, I chose the cheetah. Unfortunately, it did not go up and down. That's what I get for choosing the feline.

Poltergeist coaster and the Ferris wheel.

The park was amazingly uncrowded. Possibly folks are waiting until after Thanksgiving to go. Lines were very short for the rides. Bob and I went on Pandemonium Coaster. After that he was done with rides for the night. 

I wanted to go on Iron Rattler. The line was so short I was able to snag the front car for an unobstructed view. However, it was so dark I couldn't see much anyway. I loved it!

On the way out of the park we snagged two Choco Tacos for our late-night treat. From Six Flags we headed home. 

Thank you, Bob, and Susan M. for the fun birthday. 

Wild and Wonderful Weekend, Part 2 - Sunday, Oct. 30, 2016

Continued from Part 1...

Today is the last day of Fright Fest and the last day Six Flags Fiesta Texas is open until November 19. November 19 Six Flags opens for their Holiday in the Park winter wonderland. 

Upon entering the park on Sunday at noon, we made a beeline for lunch. I had a grilled chicken salad and Bob had the Veggie Stuffed Baked Potato. We shared and had a good lunch. After lunch, the Iron Rattler Coaster had a short line, so we rode that first. Here are a few photos of this crazy roller coaster...

The Iron Rattler coaster

The freaky first drop on Iron Rattler

Iron Rattler coaster train going completely
sideways to the ground! Craziness!

After Iron Rattler, we went directly to Superman Krypton Coaster. Bob went on both coasters with me. We changed it up a bit and rode Sky Screamer 200' into the air next.

Sky Screamer

Then we walked over to another section of the park. As we walked past Batman the Ride, I just had to go on it. Bob declined and waited for me at a shady picnic table and watched the parade of people go by. Batman's track is on the side of the car, so that allows the coaster cars to spin head over heels as they go around the track. In the first photo below, you can see the cars going up to the top of the coaster. Once the cars go over the top, the cars spin fast as you go around the rest of the ride.

Going up

Below you can see the cars on top, in front of the big cloud. 

Batman the Ride

Upon exploring a part of the park we hadn't been in before, we found the carousel and another water ride. We didn't feel like getting drenched so we skipped the two water rides that were open.

The giant Ferris wheel sounded like a nice, relaxing respite from the wild roller coasters, however the line was pretty long so we didn't go on it. Hurricane Force 5 was closed, so that was out as well.

The hot temperature and high humidity drove us indoors to Scooby Doo's Ghostblasters ride. This was the longest line that we encountered today. It may have something to do with the line being inside an air-conditioned building. We suffered through it. This is a kiddy ride, but you get to shoot targets with a laser blaster and earn points. We had a fun competition trying to outdo each other.

Somewhere in the Fiesta Boardwalk area we knew there was a teacup-like spinning ride. It's called The Hustler because the cars are shaped like billiard balls. As we waited in line to go on this we watched to see which cars went really fast. Once we got to the front of the line, we raced to car #3. Bob and I used all our strength to make that car spin. We were going so fast we slid around the seat. We had to let go of the wheel and hold on so we didn't fall off the seat. What a fun ride. We laughed and laughed and decided we need to take four more people on the ride with us so we're packed in tight and can't slide around on the seat.

The Hustler

You can put 4-6 people in these. Two people
literally rattle around inside when they go fast.

Bob in our "car"

Me on The Hustler ride

Snack time and we went in search of food that qualifies as a snack on our Dining Pass. We both got Choco-Tacos and sat to eat them in the shade of some trees. 

After a short walk, I decided to go on the Roadrunner Express Coaster. Bob waited for me in the shade. There wasn't a long line so he didn't have to wait long.

For the rest of the day, we ate dinner, watched people on the Gully Washer water ride, saw a show at Teatro Fiesta (singing and dancing), then went to Dead Man's Party in the Zaragoza Theater. 
 

Show stage

Dead Man's Party was a song and dance extravaganza that included Michael Jackson's "Thriller," "Phantom of the Opera," and many more numbers over the course of 45 minutes. We were very impressed by the quality of the show. "Phantom of the Opera" brought tears to our eyes.

From song and dance, we went to the bumper cars, aptly called "Fender Bender." I was doing great until I tried to give another car a push to free it from the edge. Bad mistake...for the rest of the ride, I was completely stuck in the corner and couldn't get out. Oh well, I'll never try to help someone out of a corner on a bumper car again!

Look out! Bob's behind the wheel.

Darkness had descended and the creepy creatures were out in the Scare Zones. Even though we didn't go to any Haunted Houses at the Fright Fest, we feel we got our money's worth in the park. 

Before we left, I shopped in the Looney Tunes store and got two new T-shirts: one says "Play Hard - Six Flags Fiesta Texas;" the other says "Love, love coasters, I (heart) roller coasters - Six Flags."

On the way out of the park, we went on Goliath, the roller coaster with the tracks on top. I wanted to sit in the front seat because you feel like a bird (or a bat - because it's at night) with no coaster cars in front of you. Bob was unsure about riding in the front car, but I talked him into it. 

After the ride I asked him how he liked it. He said I was "evil" because he had no point of reference (no tracks or cars in front of him). I got the impression he wouldn't do that again.

With that, we said farewell to Six Flags Fright Fest for this season. We'll be back for Holiday in the Park in December. 

We wore ourselves out this past weekend! Travel Bug out.
 

 

Six Flags Fiesta Texas All Day - Monday, Oct. 10, 2016

Or, how much fun can a person have in one day? 

It dawned on me a week ago Saturday night at Six Flags Fiesta Texas that I first rode the huge roller coaster at Pacific Ocean Park (POP) in Southern California with Mom when I was four years old. Next month I will be 64. That means I have been riding roller coasters for 60 years! And this is the first time I've had a season pass. Woo hoo.

Bob had to work today, so Susan, Darren and I met at Six Flags Fiesta Texas when they opened at 10:30 a.m. Susan told me she is having a problem with her retina in one eye so she can't go on any wild rides, only smooth ones. Darren and I went on Iron Rattler first thing. We didn't have a long line and made it to the platform before we had to wait. They only had one train running today so it took a while to actually get on the coaster. We were in the second row. It was awesome. 

From Iron Rattler we walked over to Sky Screamer, the swing ride on a 200' tower. Susan and I went on that. The views are amazing from the top! Take a look...

Sky Screamer

From Sky Screamer we headed to Fiesta Bay Boardwalk to do the Scooby Doo Ghostblasters Ride, Crows Nest Ferris Wheel, and Hurricane Force 5. All were rides Susan could go on.

Darren and Susan

We passed Batman: The Ride... 

Cars almost at the top on Batman: The Ride

...and Scream!

Scream! drop ride

Scooby Doo Ghostblasters

Below is Crows Nest Ferris wheel from the ground looking up. 
 

Crows Nest

The weather was gorgeous and we had great views from high up on the wheel.
 

Darren and Susan on the Crows Nest Ferris wheel

Me with Poltergeist coaster in the background

Batman: The Ride and Sky Screamer

Poltergeist

The Poltergeist Coaster (above) is downright disorienting. Once you're locked into your seat with lap bar and seat belt, you're told to keep your head against the headrest. The coaster shoots out of the platform at about 70 mph and doesn't slow down until the end of the ride. As you can see looking at the tracks above, this coaster gets around, literally. At times you have no clue which way is up and which way is down.

Scream! Drop ride

Below is the Pandemonium roller coaster. This coaster has round cars that spin like teacups as the coaster makes its way around the track. Unfortunately, it was closed today. But that's okay we went on it the first time we were here. It's moderately exciting.
 

Pandemonium roller coaster

Batman: The Ride has the tracks on the side of the cars. Some cars face forward and some face backward, but once you head up to the top and go over, all the cars spin head over heels, forward and backward. Crazy ride. At one point, I was hanging from the pull-down bar/seat belt only (facing the ground). This is a thrill ride, for sure.

Batman: The Ride

Superman Krypton Coaster

Sky Screamer tower, Batman: The Ride, and
Iron Rattler in the background

After our great views from the Crows Nest, we went on one of the newer thrill rides: Hurricane Force 5. 

Hurricane Force 5

On Hurricane Force 5 you sit on motorcycle-like seats. The whole circular platform spins in a circle while you go up and down a track. We love it, it's different and relaxing.
 

Hurricane Force 5

By this time we were hungry and opted to eat lunch at Old Blues Bar B Q. Susan and Darren had to leave at 2 p.m. They opted to have funnel cakes for dessert at Mockingbird. 

We said our good-byes and I headed off to ride Goliath, the coaster with tracks on the top. It wasn't a very long line, so I rode it twice in a row. One time I waited for the front row so I could feel like a bird flying with no seats in front of me.

Goliath - the starting climb

Goliath barrel roll

Goliath

It was a little after 2 p.m. and the park was open until 6, so I headed back to ride Iron Rattler. This time the line was much longer. I'd guess it took about 45 minutes to an hour to get on the ride. 

Once on the platform I looked for another single rider so we wouldn't have any empty seats next to us if we rode alone. I met a young man who is also a roller coaster fanatic. We compared notes on the amusement parks we had been to. He is from Vancouver, Washington, so we also talked about the former Jantzen Beach amusement park (a favorite hang-out when I was a teen-ager -- it was before his time, but he knew about the park) and Oaks Park. We both raved about Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio, a roller coaster enthusiast mecca. He and his sister travel the world to go to amusement parks. Next year they are going to England.

Iron Rattler art

Iron Rattler art and the "snaking" line.

A scene from the Iron Rattler line

The "story" of Iron Rattler

Next to Iron Rattler is the Road Runner Express. We went on that coaster the first time we came. I didn't go on it today.

Road Runner Express Station

View of Road Runner Express from Iron Rattler line

Once the thrills of the Iron Rattler coaster were over, I headed to Poltergeist for another crazy ride. I got to sit in the front car, my favorite place. Of course I screamed my head off and couldn't figure out which way was up in that tangle of tracks.

Poltergeist station

After Poltergeist, I finished up my day by going on Superman Krypton Coaster and one last ride on Goliath on my way out of the park. 

Superman Krypton Coaster

Superman coaster station

With Halloween coming up in a few weeks, the park is decorated with all kinds of frightful scenes. I took photos of some of the tamer stuff...

Grateful Dead?

Want to go see this show

Any Young Frankenstein fans out there?

Time for me to go home. That was enough and the park was going to close in 1/2 hour anyway. We all had a blast! Can't wait to go back at night for more Fright Fest fun.

Travel Bug out.