Most Wisconsinites (and more than likely every single Illini) have been to Great America at some point in their lives, but Cedar Point in Ohio is something special. With approximately 17 major roller coasters, dozens of smaller rides, and bottled water going for $3.50 for a twenty ounce, it was an amazing trip to make last week with my friend Derrik, a good way to say “goodbye” to America by feeling my insides turn to gelatin while being fired 420 feet straight into the air.

Some highlights of the trip were the Dragster (the one I just mentioned), and getting trapped on the Raptor, which is one of those “alternative” roller coasters that were designed by sick minds who apparently were having competitions to see how many people they could get to lose their sandals.

However, it seems that a Saturday in early August is not the best time to go to Cedar Point if you actually want to ride the rides. We ended up waiting in line for 5 hours total for 3 rides, before lunch. That’s where a stroke of luck arrived in the form of the very thunderstorm that almost prevented our Raptor ride: the heavens opened, the screaming crowds vanished into their minivans, and after the skies cleared at 9 PM, there was maybe 500 people left in the entire park for the last two hours. Needless to say, we made the most of that limited time and rode about 7 rides during those last hours.