Living The Dream at California’s Great America

Today was a decidedly uneventful day in that big dudes in camo didn’t laugh at me, a 12 year old girl didn’t want to cut me, and nothing happened to my car. Living the dream my friends.

I have, however, been getting a lot of e-mails since the USA Today piece. I’ve been doing my best to reply in a timely manner and I’m proud to say I’m currently at Inbox 0. I probably shouldn’t have typed that, because now I’m at Inbox 1. Don’t send me any e-mails until I finish writing this trip report! ;)

I headed to California’s Great America from San Francisco this morning around 10am. I didn’t drive on the Golden Gate Bridge at all while in San Francisco, but that’s OK because I walked it 5 years ago.

I got to Great America around 11:30am after a brief stop at Chipotle (Tip: if you ask for an extra scoop of black beans they will give it to you. I’ve never been denied!) and it was finally sunblock weather on this tour. I’m happy to report that it looks like I’ll be able to retire my jeans and hoodie for a while. I feel at home when it’s hot. Shorts and Vibram Five Fingers from here on out, I hope. :)

My first stop in the park was Flight Deck, formerly known as Top Gun.

It’s a fun ride. I especially enjoy the feeling of wearing Vibrams on a ride where your feet dangle in the air. It makes me feel like a kid again.

Next I headed to Grizzly, Great America’s lone wooden coaster.

A short kid behind me kept trying to get me to move an extra foot in line as soon as the line moved. Some people don’t understand personal space. :)

Grizzly wasn’t a bumpy wood ride, but it didn’t have any air. I think besides the beauty of the wooden coasters getting air and feeling like you’re going to go off track is the best part of these rides.

Demon was next. Why oh why oh why oh why did I attempt to go on a corkscrew even though I’m retired? Momentary lapse of judgement. I seem to be having more of those lately. Also, I didn’t realize it was a corkscrew until I tried to sit down. Again, corkscrews are not made for tall people and I have to squish my back to get harnessed in. They say that insanity is doing the same thing more than once and expecting a different result. Conclusion: I’m insane.

I hit Vortex, my final coaster of the day, next. Vortex is a stand up coaster and if you’re not careful it can be very painful to ride standing up due to the “bicycle seat” that you don’t want in your way. I think I’ve figured it out. Get harnessed in, feet flat on the floor, and then crouch slightly so when you go upside down you can push your feet down and keep your crotch from getting damaged by the bicycle seat. Too much info? Nay. Just the right info. You’re welcome.

More Great America photos here.

Tomorrow I’m heading to the Santa Cruz boardwalk to ride the Giant Dipper, which I will also ride in San Diego next week. Kind of a waste to drive all the way to San Diego for a duplicate coaster, but it’s historic and I’ve never been to San Diego.