Canadian National Exhibition - August 22nd, 2023

 On Tuesday, August 22nd, my Mom and I headed to the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) in Toronto! The weather was nice with the sun shining and a slight breeze keeping the grounds cool.

This year there were three new rides that I experienced including the over 150 foot tall Observation Wheel, the crazy and intense X-Drive, and the fun and classic Outlaw Coaster!

It was nice to see North American Midway Entertainment add three new rides to the midway this year after a smaller than usual midway at last year's CNE. This year also saw the return of the Euro Slide and Wave Swinger, both of which were absent last year due to various reasons.

Also new this year at the CNE was the Sparkling Symphony, a water fountain and music show (with lights at night). We experienced the daytime version of the show which was still very nice to watch!

Be sure to check out the photos of our day at the CNE! :-)

We arrived at the CNE shortly before 10am, an hour before the rides opened at 11am. Here is a look at the new Outlaw Coaster. 
For those wondering, it is a different unit than the Blitzer coaster that was at the CNE for over the past decade. While both are made by Interpark, the Outlaw features a first turn to the left, while the Blitzer featured a first turn to the right before the first drop. Also, the Outlaw features seatbelt shoulder straps in a addition to the standard lap bar.

The other two new rides at the CNE this year are the 150 foot tall Observation Wheel and the X-Drive, both manufactured in the Netherlands! The Observation Wheel was manufactured by Dutch Wheels and the X-Drive was manufactured by KMG.

The X-Drive is a really stunning and flashy ride! It is awesome to see that North American Midway Entertainment (NAME) bought one of these rides as they only came out a few years ago!

Here is the control panel for the X-Drive.

The X-Drive was testing in the morning but did not open until after 12pm.

Here is a closer look at the Observation Wheel.

Here is some information about the Observation Wheel.

It is a very stunning and spectacular Ferris Wheel. It is almost hard to believe that a wheel of this size is at this year's CNE. I would take a ride on it later in the day.

The first ride to open for the day was the Sky Ride. I managed to get a good view of the Observation Wheel from the Sky Ride.

The Observation Wheel is a portable model that can accommodate over 280 passengers in its air conditioned gondolas, providing a wonderful view of the Exhibition grounds and surrounding area. There is also one VIP gondola that features a glass floor.

Here is a look at the X-Drive from the Sky Ride.

Here is a look at the Outlaw from the Sky Ride.

The Giant Wheel, which has been a staple at the CNE for the past 17 years now looks small in comparison to the 150' tall Observation Wheel.

Here I am on the Sky Ride, my first of two rides I took on it throughout the day.

Here is a look at the all-new X-Drive testing.

As you can tell, it flips and twists its seats in all different directions!

It was nice to the the Wave Swinger return to the CNE. Zierer Wave Swinger rides are a classic staple for many large fairs.

It is impressive how such a large wheel is portable. We've sure come a long way with amusement rides!

The X-Drive continued to test in the late-morning.

The X-Drive is quite stunning with its impressive LED lights. Unfortunately I didn't see the lights as we didn't stay for the evening.

You can kind of see the lightshow that the X-Drive has if you look at the main support and boom.

The light package was really neat to watch while the X-Drive was testing.

The colour scheme of the X-Drive is quite eye-catching too!

Once most of the rides opened at 11am, I first rode the Star Dancer, followed by the Swing Tower, and then the Crazy Mouse.

Here is a view of the fun and thrilling Swing Tower from the Crazy Mouse's queue.

The Euro Slide was back. It provides a fun and classic sliding experience.

As you can see, the Crazy Mouse provides a mixture of emotions!

Up next I took a spin on the classic Polar Express! Who doesn't want to go faster, backwards!

After the Polar Express I rode the Outlaw. While in line for the Outlaw, I noticed the X-Drive was open, so I headed over to it next!

The X-Drive is a wild and crazy thrill ride manufactured by KMG. As mentioned before, the seats flip and rotate the passengers upside down in multiple directions! It is possibly the wildest ride I have been on to date! If you're into thrill rides, I would highly recommend X-Drive!

While I didn't ride the Niagara Falls log flume this year, I noticed the logs were repainted.

Niagara Falls log flume drew quite a crowd all day long!

The Sky Ride was also quite popular throughout the day.

There are now more ways than ever to see the CNE.

At 1:30pm was the first of the say showing for the Sparkling Symphony on the Lakeshore, across Lakeshore Blvd.

The daytime version of this show features music and fountains.

It was quite neat to watch. We even got misted a few times!

I bet the nighttime version of this show is quite spectacular!

The show lasted for a little over 10 minutes.

After a walk back to the main midway, I took a spin on some more rides, including the Tilt-A-Whirl, a classic on any midway!

I even 'dropped in' to take a ride on the Mega Drop.

Everywhere you look, you can see the Observation Wheel as it stands 150 feet tall over the midway.

Since the Observation Wheel is included with the all-day ride pass, I decided to take a relaxing ride on it as the line wasn't too long.

As you go around on the Observation Wheel, you can get some great views of the midway, including that of the new X-Drive!

The panoramic glass of the gondolas allow riders to see all around!

At the Observation Wheel's peak, it is quite neat to somewhat look down at some of the other taller rides, including the Mega Drop and Swing Tower.

The midway began to become a bit crowded in the late-afternoon.

Here's another view of the midway at the CNE.

Passengers get to experience two full rotations while on the Observation Wheel.

As you can see, the skies were quite clear, offering a great view of downtown Toronto from the Observation Wheel.

The Swing Tower is another ride that offers great views of the CNE. It is one of my favourite rides on the midway!

Here I am on the Observation Wheel.

A sign of quality.

Once on the ground again, I took a ride on the Wave Swinger followed by another ride on the insane X-Drive!

The X-Drive is sure to spin and flip you around! Below is an off-ride video of X-Drive in action!

The Outlaw sure stood out with its bright highlight yellow track!

My Mom and I walked through the Enercare Centre. There were many vendors selling many different products. After walking through, I took another ride on the Sky Ride.

It was cool seeing two different wheels on the midway this year.

After eight hours of fun, my Mom and I decided to head home! Thanks for checking out my photos of our great day at the CNE!