Canadian National Exhibition- August 24th, 2016

Today we made a trip to the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE/ The Ex). Travis had came along for the trip like he had last year. My Mom had also came along as she hadn't been in three years. It was a great day as the weather was nice and the CNE wasn't busy. Also, the rides were running great as usual as North American Midway has a great selection of rides that they bring every year. Below are photos of our day at The Ex.

We arrived at The Ex around 9:40am. They were still setting up many of the concessions for the day so, we did a small tour before the rides opened at 11am.

The Polar Express has been a staple at The Ex for many years. This year, North American Midway had spent $250,000 to refurbish it for this year. It really looks spectacular and rides nicely as usual.

Here is a photo of the iconic Giant Wheel which provides a spectacular view of the midway and surrounding area.

Here is a photo of the Sky Ride which has been popular since it opened at The Ex in 2012.

Here is a photo of the ever popular Haunted Mansion. I took an on-ride video of it so, check out the video further down.

Here's another staple at The Ex. It's the Crazy Mouse which has been appearing at The Ex for 10 years now. It is a Zamperla spinning coaster which is quite fun especially once it starts spinning!

Interestingly enough, there were two blue cars in this photo.

After going up the lift hill, riders navigate tight turns then go down a couple of hills before spinning like crazy in mouse shaped cars. 

Here is a photo of the Alpine Bobs. It is a fun ride as you go around and swing from side to side at highs speeds. But, it is a little rough from traveling.

Here is a sideways photo of Mach 3. It is a KMG Booster ride that flips riders about 120 feet into the air. I have not taken a ride on it yet since its introduction in 2012 as the ride capacity is quite low and the lines can become quite lengthy.

Here is a photo of some of the midway. It wasn't too busy of a day.

This photo was captured by my Mom as I rode The Fireball.

I am the one who is riding with my arms in the air (or facing towards the ground depending on how you look at it). ;-)

Here's a close up shot of me riding The Fireball. It is a fun ride that loops riders upside down. Here you can also see that it was nearly full.

Here is a photo of Scott, Travis, and I riding down Euro Slide which is a 40 foot slide. It is quite fun as you slide down getting some airtime along the way. We rode it multiple times throughout the day. I even created an on-ride video of it that is featured further down.

One thing I did notice while riding is that the yellow and blue strips were quite dirty which caused me not to go too far. Other than that, it is a fun slide!

Here is Scott, Travis, and I after taking our second ride on the Niagara Falls log flume. We didn't get wet on our first ride but, we sure got soaked on our second ride!

Here is another view of the midway at The Ex. There are quite a few rides there so, getting the ride wrist band is definitely worth it as that is what we have been doing annually.

Here is a photo of one of the three fun houses that made an appearance at The Ex this year. This one wasn't too fun as most of the components were broken.

Although I didn't ride it this year, Pharaoh's Fury is a pretty good swinging ship which has quite a bit of airtime in the end seats.

Here is a photo of The Blitzer's sign! It is a compact Galaxi coaster that is quite fun especially with the head choppers! The Blizter was introduced to the Ex in 2012 and has be a favourite ever since.

Here is a nice photo of the Gondola Wheel as viewed from the queue line while we were waiting for our second ride on the Gondola Wheel of the day.

My Mom had joined us at various times throughout the day to see us on some rides. It was her first visit in three years. Here is a photo of her from atop the Mardi Gras fun house.

Here is a shot of the midway from atop the Mardi Gras fun house.

Here is a photo I had captured of Banzai before I had ridden it. It is a relatively fun ride as you get flipped upside down multiple times with your feet dangling below.

Here is another view of the midway at The Ex. As the day wore on, it became slightly busier as people had left work in order to be there for the evening.

Here is another close up shot of the Crazy Mouse just before our second ride on it of the day.

Even though that drop may be small, it still is packed with some airtime! :-)

Here is a view of the Mega Drop from the Crazy Mouse queue line. Mega Drop may be a short drop tower but, it seems more intense than taller ones. :-)

Here are riders in mid-drop. Travis and I had rode Mega Drop earlier that day. Scott had passed it by as he claims it to be a little uncomfortable and jerky compared to Drop Tower at Canada's Wonderland.

Here is another view of the midway with the Zipper in operation.

Here is a view of the Scooter bumper cars. They are fun but, they don't have a whole of bumping power. 

Although I don't ride the Zipper due to many potential risks involved with the ride, I did capture a close-up photo of it while it was in motion.

Here is a cheap inferior version of the Polar Express, the Himalaya. This was a new ride on the midway this year at The Ex. It may have been quite full, but it wasn't as close to being popular as The Polar Express.

Here is a photo of the Scrambler just before Scott and I had taken a ride on it. It sure was running at full speed which caused it to be one of the most intense Scrambler rides I had ever been on.

Here is Quasar in motion. I usually give Quasar a ride but, for some reason I didn't this year. Oh well, it's not like I was missing much.

Here I am on Sky Tower during my fourth and final ride on it of the day! The Sky Tower rises riders nearly 100 feet in to the air while the tower spins at high speeds. It does look intimidating to some but, is actually a really fun ride as I had discovered last year during my visit to The Ex. :-)

Here is a photo of the Sky Tower that Scott had captured while I was on it.

Here is a photo of Swing Tower in full swing while I was riding it.

Here is another photo of the Alpine Bobs while it was loading passengers.

Here is a shot of Re-Mix the floor-less version of the Orbiter that can be found around fairs. I remember riding this a few years ago when it was first introduced to the Ex and found it extremely uncomfortable as it felt like your legs were going to be ripped off.

Here is a photo of the Niagara Falls log flume after a boat had splashed down.

Here is another shot of the midway with the Swing Tower in operation.

Here we all are after spending a fun day at The Ex! :-)

Here is an on-ride photo of the Crazy Mouse that I had purchased with Scott, Travis, and I enjoying our first coaster ride of the day! Below is are on-ride videos of the Euro Slide and the Haunted Mansion! I hope you enjoyed reading my adventures at The Ex! :-)

Canada's Wonderland- August 17th, 2016

It was another great day at Canada's Wonderland which was my 9th visit of the season! Today, Travis came along so, we had also hit up Splashworks, the water park in the early afternoon. We arrived shortly before 9:30am and left around 4:30pm. We did a lot of rides today. Despite it being busy it was a fun day as usual. We even rode Behemoth in the rain which is exciting as usual! Enjoy the photos below!

We arrived at Canada's Wonderland shortly before 9:30am. It was a slightly overcast day which made the temperatures slightly cooler.

While we were waiting for the rides to open for the day, you could tell some rain was coming.

After riding quite a few rides and coasters in International Festival and Action Zone, including a ride on Behemoth in the rain, we decided to take a ride on Mighty Canadian Minebuster and then head on over to Timberwolf Falls to get soaked! Here is a view of Windseeker and Slingshot both standing 300 feet high against the blue and cloud-filled sky.

Here we are after taking a fun, but extremely soaking ride on Timberwolf Falls.

After getting a bite to eat, we spent an hour and a half in Splash Works getting on most of the water slides. Around 1:40pm, we decided we had enough and spent the rest of the day riding rides and other coasters in the park.

Splashworks sure has grown over the years since it's opening in 1992, with the most recent addition of Typhoon and Splash Station last year.

After going to Splash Works, we decided to head on over to Medieval Faire and line up for Leviathan. Operations were great as usual so, even though the queue was full, we only waited an hour in line. Here's a view of Nightmares operating at full tilt.

Here's a view of Drop Tower through Leviathan's track while we were waiting in line.

After riding Leviathan, Scott and I decided to take a ride on The Rage. This shot was captured after our ride.

Although we didn't ride Shockwave today, I decided to get a photo of it in action.

Here's a view of how busy the park was today. People are getting in their last rides of the summer.

Here is a photo of Skyhawk's sign. I rode Skyhawk twice earlier today and flipped 19 times during my 1st ride of the day and flipped 26 times during the ride after that. So far, I've ridden Skyhawk 18 times and have a personal record of 28 flips. :-)

Here we are after another amazing day at Canada's Wonderland! I hope you enjoyed the photos! :-)

Canada's Wonderland- August 4th, 2016

Where's summer going?!? Anyways, here are photos from my 8th visit of the season to Canada's Wonderland! We had an amazing day even though it was extremely hot and humid. Scott and I found relief from the heat by taking a ride on White Water Canyon and Timberwolf Falls. Scott and I were able to get on many rides despite the long lines. Our Mom took her usual spin on Antique Carousel. I hope you enjoy the photos and the video of Drop Tower below!

This is always a beautiful view to start any day at Canada's Wonderland! We arrived at 9:30am, as usual. :-)

Here is Leviathan's lift hill looking through a couple of pine trees nearby Wonder Mountain while we were waiting for the rides to open.

After a few hours of riding rides, getting drenched, and getting a bit to eat, we decided to wander around the park for a bit. Here's a photo of Shockwave in operation. Shockwave is a very fun ride as it twists and flips riders upside down. Shockwave was manufactured by Mondial and opened at the park in 2001.

Here is Scott walking towards Leviathan. We only waited 55 minutes to get on as the operations of the ride crew was amazing during this extremely busy day. :-)

Here's Windseeker peeking out from behind Wonder Mountain as seen from Medieval Faire.

Here's Spinovator, one of our favourite rides at the park. Even though we ride everything, Spinovator still continues to be our favourite because of the fast spinning motion and the feeling of being ejected out of our seats. This classic has been operating at Canada's Wonderland since opening day back in May of 1981 and is a Calypso ride, which was manufactured by Mack Rides of Germany.

Even though we really enjoy rides, we still enjoy classic arcade games at Canada's Wonderland. Here's Scott and I playing an intense game of Air Hockey.

Here's another angle of the same game. Our Mom took those two photos.

Since it was an extremely hot day today, many people were keeping cool at Splash Works. Here you can see riders going headfirst down Riptide Racer which is a fun water slide! We'll probably visit Splash Works next time we visit.

Here is a glimpse of one of the two fountain's that were added in Vortex's pond this season.

After flipping like crazy on Skyhawk for the third time of the day, Scott and I decided to see how Sledgehammer was doing since our ride earlier that day. For some strange reason, Sledgehammer has been stalling and temporarily breaking down in the morning whenever Scott and I ride it during the past few visits. Anyhow, here's how Sledgehammer was at 3:20pm. We went and rode Orbiter to wait and see if Sledgehammer would re-open.

Sledgehammer's neighbour, Psyclone was sending its passengers high into the sky.

Just at that moment, Sledgehammer came alive! After this testing, Scott and I rode it again. :-)

After jumping sky-high and being spun on Sledgehammer, we decided to hydrate once again. While getting a nice cool drink, I decided to take a photo of one of the many nice flowerbeds throughout the park.

After riding a few more rides, we decided to call it a day shortly after 4pm. We had an amazing visit once again and look forward to the next. Thanks for viewing the photos! :-)