It’s sad but true: the summer is swiftly coming to a close. My brother
starts tenth grade on Tuesday, while I start to register the fact that,
for the first time in 18 years, I’m not going back to school. We decided
that the family ought to have one last hurrah before getting back to
the daily school-year grind, so on Wednesday we piled ourselves in the
van and headed for Six Flags Ohio, formerly known as Sea World. We had
not been there since it made its transformation.
Upon our
arrival in the general vicinity of the park, we were befuddled because
we could not find any signs pointing us in the right direction. We
thought we had missed a turn somewhere. It turned out we were going
exactly the right way, but there were no signs announcing the park until
we were almost upon it. You would think Six Flags would make a greater
effort to let people know where they are, but we found it without a
problem so there was no big inconvenience.
We were inside the
park by 10:30, and at this point we split up, my mom, brother Nathan,
and I heading for the animals and my dad and brother Benjamin off to
tackle to roller coasters. The first stop for the three of us was
Boomtown, a section of the park dedicated to kiddie rides. Nathan and I
have been too big for kiddie rides for years, but we had a great time
wandering around and inspecting the colorful and creative Looney
Tunes-themed decorations. Very fun. Made me wish that I was little
enough to enjoy the rides.
One of the first things we saw when
we entered the park was the monorail, but we were never able to figure
out where you got on it. We deduced that it must have been somewhere in
the water park, but we never did find the entrance. As it happened, we
only wound up going on one ride the whole day. It was a junior roller
coaster, not quite a kiddie ride but definitely not in the big leagues
either. We looked forward to riding Uncle Willy’s Wild Ride, the white
water rapids raft ride, but most of the water rides were not operating
due to the power outage the week before. This was something of a
disappointment, but it allowed us to spend more time in the Sea World
part of the park.
We have gone to Sea World several times, and
it always was a day-long affair. With Six Flags in control, the park
has more attractions than can possibly be visited in one day, and they
are spread out, requiring a great deal of walking to get from one end of
the park to another. Dad and Benjamin immersed themselves in the
amusement park portion of Six Flags, riding as many coasters and thrill
rides as they could fit in. Even then, they were not able to ride
everything; we, on the other hand, were not able to see all of the
available programs, although we were able to see the main ones. It’s no
wonder the park sells two-day passes. One disappointment was that while
the park usually stays open until 10, it closes at 6 during the last
couple weeks of the summer season. Therefore, we had four fewer hours to
try to fit everything in.
The animal portion of Six Flags is
very similar to its old incarnation. Features include a dolphin pool, a
seal exhibit, two penguin exhibits, a reptile house, and an aquarium. We
started out by watching the dolphin show, a short but impressive
display of the acrobatic abilities of the park’s four dolphins. Last
time we went to Sea World, the dolphins had constant access to the whole
pool, and visitors were allowed up against the wall and could pet the
dolphins if they came close. This time, the dolphins spent the time when
the show was not in progress in an inner portion of the pool, and a
rope gate restricted the access of the public to the pool’s edge. The
dolphins were clearly very interested in their visitors; they
continually hopped up so that their heads were peeking out at the crowds
watching them.
The African penguins were situated outside,
and most were huddled in a group on the far end of the exhibit. One lone
penguin swam near the spectators. The indoor exhibit was far more
animated, not to mention a nice relief from the heat of the day. The
black room was air-conditioned, and behind the glass dozens of penguins
of varying types lounged, waddled, or slid on the icy land or raced
through the clear water, sometimes leaping up to land upright on the
surface. We stayed in the penguin house for quite some time, enjoying
the penguins’ entertaining antics. The seal and sea lion exhibit is one
of the noisiest animal exhibits, as the inhabitants bark continually
while swimming and sunning themselves on the rocks.
The indoor
exhibits of the reptiles and fish were interesting and informative. My
brother impressed us by rattling off facts about all the fish, which we
confirmed by glancing at the information placards. Outside the aquarium,
we had a nice time trying to pet some of the small marine animals in
the touch pool. Everyone’s favorite seemed to be the sting rays, which
felt slimy and slippery and appeared to be very good-natured despite
their rather unpleasant-sounding name. As we walked along outside, we
could also see zebras and a wide variety of birds, some caged but most
free to roam the waters of the creeks and small ponds throughout the
park.
The sea lion/otter/walrus show has always been one of
Sea World’s most entertaining offerings, and the new format didn’t
change that. The theme was home repair, and while the sea lion helped
the humans with some home fix-it projects, the wily otter slipped in to
cause some mischief and the enormous walrus (ironically named “Tiny”)
dropped by to fix the toilet. The show was full of oversized props, bad
puns, and anthropomorphic activity by the three animal stars. It was a
hoot.
The whale show had more in common with the dolphin show,
though it was shown in a large arena comparable to the sea lion and
otter show. The marine star of Six Flags showed off his stuff, swimming,
jumping, and flipping and thoroughly soaking the people in the first
ten or so rows. This showcase of the majestic orca is always as much a
high point of the day as the slapstick pinnipeds, and once again, the
show did not disappoint.
We also took in the Batman-themed
water show out on Geauga Lake. This presentation featured performers on
jet-skis and a variety of other small watercraft and featured three
nifty Gotham City sets. The dialogue was pre-recorded and played over a
loudspeaker, so the actors simply made exaggerated gestures to make it
appear as though they were talking. They also managed to throw in a plea
for environmental consciousness by making a major plot point the
dumping of dangerous chemicals into the lake by Bruce Wayne’s factory. A
fun show with some pretty impressive stunts, if a bit corny at times.
Before we had to sprint back to the front of the park to pick up my
brother’s caricature, we watched the Tiger Island tiger show, featuring
two white tigers interacting with their trainers and engaging in such
activities as climbing trees and jumping across logs. A nice way to
close out the day.
There was a mass exit from the park at
6:00, and there were only two exits through which cars could escape. We
spent an hour in the parking lot before we were able to get out onto the
road. This is clearly a common occurrence because there were children
lugging coolers full of pop and selling them to disgruntled drivers
stuck in a mile-long line. (A note about beverages: in the park, vendors
sell twenty-ounce bottles of pop for $3.25, but the same bottles are
available from the pop machines for $2.) I think that the end-of-day
traffic could be handled better; we’ve never had to wait that long to
get out of an amusement park parking lot.
I do think the
parking situation could be improved, and I see no good reason for the
park to close so early. Six Flags was very crowded, and I’m sure most of
those in attendance would have stayed until 10 given the opportunity.
If the managers felt so strongly that such an early closing was merited,
they at least should have offered discounted rates; 12 hours to 8 hours
is a pretty significant drop in time. My family got a pretty good deal
because we picked up some buy one, get one free coupons at McDonald’s
and were thus able to get the five of us in for $120. Without the
coupon, $200 is a pretty steep price to pay for a reduced amount of
time. Beyond those complaints, however, it was a very enjoyable day, and
the amusement park and animal park were equally satisfying to my
family.
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