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SFGAm, Big Chiefs and The Ride Of My Life, Pt. 2

My First, My Last, My Everything
Photo courtesy of Theme Park Review

Michigan's Adventure


We left SFGAm very late on Saturday night and drove all the way to Benton Harbor, Michigan. Well, okay, Susan drove all the way to Benton Harbor. I rode shotgun and proceeded to *inhale* my dinner from Steak-n-Shake! I swear, if just one of these joints were built in the Twin Cities I would be one very fat but happy man! Since In-N-Out Burger is but a pipe dream in the Midwest I can realistically wish for a Steak-n-Shake.

Our trip from SFGAm to Benton Harbor took 2 1/2 hours. Our late night arrival caused us to sleep in a bit longer than we had planned, and we arrived at Michigan's Adventure an hour late.

I had warned Susan not to expect much from the park. I told her it was ugly and to focus on one thing only, Shivering Timbers. As we approached the park I calmly told her "look to the right." "Okay."

"Oh, Oh my!!! OH MY GOD!!! LOOK AT IT!!!"

We pulled into the parking lot and she still hadn't taken her eyes off of it. I told her she'd better enjoy the view now because she wouldn't be seeing it again until we reached the top of the lift hill. "Huh?"

"You'll see."

We walked inside and the first order of business was the bathroom. Ten minutes later Susan walked out shaking her hands dry and a very bad look on her face. "That was not a good experience," she told me. When I asked her to explain she said it was best left unmentioned, and we were off. I quickly stopped in the shirt shop and found out there was NO Shivering Timbers memorabilia other than a hat, no thank you. No ST post cards to send to Rus Ozana, no ST pins, no shirt, no shoes no SERVICE. "Let's just head for the coaster, shall we?"

Shivering Timbers has added landscaping!! A lush carpet of green grass now fronts the queue, and evergreens line the front of the station. One of the evergreens has turned completely brown, which Robert Ulrich later found to be an omen for the coaster. The line was not very long and after 15 minutes we boarded the front seat of the green train.

This airtime machine is absolutely amazing! It is what it is, and what it is is PERFECTLY engineered airtime! It's simply the highest standard possible for an out and back coaster to achieve. Some folks might prefer twisters, some might like a more out of control element, Robert said he would prefer a dog leg design. I have none of those wishes for Shivering Timbers. I am *so happy* just going up and down up and down up and down I don't care if I experience anything else. This is up and down at its finest and I could never feel anything less than joyful about it!!!

Next, we rode the infamous seat 2 in the blue train. At this point Mark Rosenzweig introduced himself to us and began his hilarious spiel that continued throughout the day, calling ST "Timberado," "Timbers XL 150," "Welcome to Shivering Limits: Flight of Fear - this ain't no coaster in a box!" "Drachen Timbers: the coaster that's NOT for sale!" "You've just experienced Timber Transport - welcome to Alaska!" "Thank you for riding Air Timbers - enjoy your stay at Michigan's Adventure here in Santa Claus, Michigan!"

Seat 2 *is* better than Seat 1! Oh my goodness, the airtime is relentless from this seat!!! And the blue train was absolutely, unmistakably faster than the green train. Susan was screaming her head off during the first ride, but in Seat 2 she really let loose! That ride turned her into Chatty Cathy for the next 10 or 15 minutes! Shivering Timbers has that effect on people, I think - it unleashes a lot of pent up energy. I remember Tim Melago saying he could not stop giggling as he got off the ride and walked down the ramp. That sums up ST's effect on many of us. This is a *joyful* roller-coaster!!!

After awhile we ran into RRCer Roz Stevenson, and later Robert and Sam Ulrich. Robert didn't seem to be quite as taken with the ride as we were, but Sam's glazed-over look and monotone voice quickly identified him as the newest member of C.O.S.T. Roz is always such great fun to hang out with - she later told me she had ridden ST over 70 times this year!

We paused midway in the afternoon to make our obligatory way through the park. First we rode Zach's Zoomer, a nice junior coaster that would have been much more fun had my six foot frame fit better in the seat! My poor knees were battered with every bump of the car. These have got to be the smallest seats I have ever sat in!

Next was Corkscrew. I absolutely love the station! It's got to be the stupidest, ugliest design I've ever seen - so ugly in fact you just gotta love it. The ride has no vertical loop, only two corkscrews, but it's pretty smooth and a fun, albeit quick, ride.

I could swear I heard Beethovan's Death March playing as we approached the Wolverine Wildcat! I rode this thing in June, one day after breaking my ribs on The Raven, and it was the single worst ride I have ever had on a roller-coaster. When we told Robert we were off to give it a ride it he gave us a buyer beware look that made me reconsider for a moment. But I would never give up on a coaster after just one ride! So off we went.

I'm so glad we rode this! Yes, it needs maintenance. Badly. But a middle seat ride on Wolverine Wildcat is not bad! I was shocked at the difference a non-wheel seat made. Wheel seats are just intolerable on this coaster, but a middle seat gave us a little bit of airtime, some good laterals and a tolerable amount of roughness.

We also rode Chaos, Loggers Run and The Flying Trapeze. The Flying Trapeze was actually a GREAT ride!!! About midway through this nice *long* ride the seats began to swing out and in, causing us to come very close to each rider in front.

Back to Shivering Timbers for the rest of the day, where we met another RRC'er, Steven Wilson. We decided to have a go in the very back, something I wasn't able to do when I visited in June. We got the blue train again, and left our seat belts somewhat loose. I also appreciate the way the ride ops pull up on the lap bar rather than push it down into your stomach, so we had plenty of room. As we went up the lift hill we were relaxed and enjoying the rides we'd had on this magnificent machine. We talked about how many rides we would finally end up with by the time the park closed. We casually put our hands up as we approached the top of the li........ OOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHH MYY GOOOOOOOOOODD!!!!

Both of us were *yanked* out of our seats and THROWN toward the sky!!! We screamed and screamed and Susan desperately grabbed at the air to hang onto. I really thought I was going to lose my voice. That element of surprise sustained us throughout the entire ride. We started laughing uncontrollably during the turnaround until we got YANKED down the next drop, at which point the endless screaming began again and didn't end until after we'd reached the brake run.

What a ride!!! We certainly weren't expecting THAT!! This had to be the best backseat of any coaster we'd ever been on. It was absolutely unforgettable.

It also cemented our decision on which seat to ride for the last train of the night. We held out for the backseat on what turned out to be the green train. Robert, Sam and Roz opted for the next to last ride on the blue train, but the backseat was already spoken for by two guys in front of us. So in we went for the last ride of the night.

I had already talked to ride op Mark earlier about the "special ride" several RRC'ers had spoken about earlier. And throughout the day as we continued to ride ST the ride ops allowed me to leave quite a bit of room between me and the lap bar. By the end of the night I was pulling it down only 2 clicks. So for my final ride of the year on Shivering Timbers I decided to go for it. I put my seat belt on but stretched it all the way to the end so that it became nothing more than a token restraint. Then I slowly grabbed the lap bar. One click only. It barely moved toward me! As the ride op made her way down to our seat she reached for the usual placement of the lap bar and noticed it wasn't there. She looked at me and laughed and said "Now where did your lap bar go?" and walked away.

Oh my God, they're letting me do it!!!

We pulled out of the station and I pointed to the lap bar at Robert, Sam and Roz and help up my index finger. I felt the seat belt - it was so loose I could have squeezed Susan in there with me. I knew Sean Flaharty's special ride was no seat belt and wondered if I should release it. I asked Susan if I should unbuckle it and she said no. Then I remembered how far we got launched on our other backseat rides and I wondered what seat Sean was sitting in when he got this "special" ride. For some reason I just couldn't imagine him or anyone else surviving a backseat ride with only one click on the lap bar and no seatbelt. Besides that, I didn't have permission to unbuckle it. So I left it on, albeit fully extended.

I gave Susan a kiss and raised my hands. What happened to me next will forever be remembered as THE RIDE OF MY LIFE!!!

I was THROWN out of my seat until I was actually *standing* in the car, with my head and torso bent 45 degrees, standing directly over the seat in front of me! My arms went flailing and I let out an incomprehensible yell. Susan screamed "OH MY GOD, JESUS!!" I had absolutely nothing to grab onto. The one and only thing that kept me from going completely out of the coaster was that seat belt. I was standing straight up during the entire first drop. I kept my arms up the whole time and as we hit the bottom of the first drop I got SLAMMED down into my seat. At the top of the second hill I was thrown out again, this time not quite as far but still far enough to send me into heaven! Another violent slam as we hit the bottom of the second drop and the whole experience repeated itself over and over after each hill. As we entered the turnaround I was exhilarated and genuinely frightened! It's the first time I've ever been *really* terrified on a roller-coaster and I absolutely loved it - but wow, it's *real* fear! The drop after the turnaround threw me up and out again, producing more terror and more screaming. Only this time it forced the lap bar down quite a few notches, and I enjoyed the rest of the ride in relative safety. Once we hit the helix I was pumping my fists and shouting as hard as I could! Susan and I were both as thrilled as we've ever been, and I knew I had just experienced something very special, indeed!

As we hit the brake run we noticed the blue train heading out for a re-ride!! Yes!! This most likely meant a re-ride for us as well. And by this time it had started to rain. As we pulled into the station I immediately began screaming "ONE MORE TIME!!" Through his microphone the ride op Mark said "I gotta hear it one more time from the guy in back" so I clasped my hands around my mouth and shouted "ONE MO...(cough, hack, laughter, cough, hack, total embarrassment, user dies, thank you). He started laughing and gave the thumbs up signal and everybody cheered. Off we went for a final ride in the rain!

I will always remember that day and that one incredible ride. It wasn't a monumental day - there weren't a whole lot of people there, just a few friends and great acquaintances. It wasn't part of any coaster event. It wasn't even the best train. But there are certain rides that come along just once in a lifetime, and I immediately knew that this was *it* for me. It was the ride of my life and I will never ever forget it!


Next Up: Big Chiefs


Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3


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Email: MarkinArk@earthlink.net