Theme Park Truths

Theme parks bring out the best opinions because everyone remembers their first big coaster, their worst line, and the one food bill that made them pause. We sit down with Wendy, TJ, and Rudy to talk amusement parks the way people actually experience them: what’s worth the money, what’s secretly overrated, and what you should do differently next time you plan a trip.

We start with a quick round of favorites, then jump into a real theme park roll call spanning Cedar Point, Kennywood, Kings Island, Waldameer, Disney parks, and more. Cedar Point becomes the measuring stick, and we get specific about why it can feel underrated when you factor in variety, season passes, meal plans, and the simple joy of popping in for a few rides instead of forcing a full-day marathon. We also get into fast pass strategy and that unmistakable feeling of walking past a long line when you’ve planned ahead.

From there it turns into the stuff you can’t get from a brochure: water park takes, indoor park “gross” factor, a Kalahari story that includes a surprise $56.75 swim-up bar tab, and what it’s like when a slide knocks your confidence sideways. We wrap with practical trip timing, why midweek wins, why night rides feel totally different, how Halloween events change the vibe, and what age kids are actually ready for serious thrill rides.

If you like the show, subscribe, share it with a friend, and leave a rating or review. What’s the most overrated theme park tip you’ve ever heard?

All music brought to you by former guest of the show Speedo

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Welcome And Fun Icebreakers

SPEAKER_05 4:48

Welcome everybody to another episode of the Ride Home Rance Podcast. This is as always your host, Mike Bono. Have a great episode for us today. We've done county fairs, so we figured we would talk about all things theme parks and all your experiences at these. And I got a panel of guests that are to sit here and we're going to talk all things. We're going to have a lot of fun with this. I'm going to let them introduce themselves, but as you guys know, we cannot get through an intro without answering some fitty questions. So everyone, I need your name and the answer to these two questions. What's your favorite cartoon movie of all time? And who is your favorite actor and or actress of all time? And TJ, we're going to start with you.

SPEAKER_04 5:33

How are you doing? TJ, thanks for having me. So cartoon movies kind of a goofy question because is this like cartoons that the show made a movie, or is this an animated movie?

SPEAKER_05 5:47

This is the mind of Finney. I'm going to take either answer. Dealer's choice. Alright.

SPEAKER_04 5:53

Well, I'm going to give you two anyway.

SPEAKER_05 5:54

All right.

SPEAKER_04 5:55

My favorite animated movie of all ever is The Lion King. And then I just think like you got so much in The Lion King, you know, dude's got to find his way. You can be friends with anybody. You have a crazy uncle, you know. The girl always comes to make sure you're right. So I think The Lion King is good. But if you're taking like cartoons, I think of Space Jam. I think of like those when I think of cartoons, and they have a movie of it. So that was my cartoon answer. But my favorite actor of all time is Denzel Washington. I can't find a bad Denzel Washington movie. And if it's a bad movie, it wasn't his fault.

SPEAKER_05 6:34

So gotcha. Wendy, let's go to you next.

SPEAKER_03 6:40

All right. So cartoon, I'm going with Tom and Jerry. I thought about that one because I actually liked the cartoon and then I actually enjoyed the movie. So I'm going with that answer. But Space Jam was pretty awesome. I do got to give props for that answer too. And actor this is a tough one because if you don't know me, then I'm gonna tell you something that you did not know. I don't watch movies at all. Like I don't know a lot of names of actors and all that kind of stuff. So you can name actresses and actors, and I have no idea who these people are. I watch State Line. I am not kidding. In 2020. And so like I know names of stories of things that have happened to people by that, but not actual famous people. So I don't follow a lot. But to answer the question, I do take Matthew McConaughey.

SPEAKER_05 7:42

That's a solid choice, Wendy. I'm not gonna lie to you on that one. That's a solid choice. To round out this panel here, we got Rudy.

SPEAKER_00 7:53

Hi, I'm Rudy. Let's see. So kind of along with Space Jam, my favorite animated is Who Framed Roger Rabbit. It's got that mix of animation and live action. So that one's a good one. Um and favorite actor is Jackie Chan, actually.

SPEAKER_05 8:13

Other solid choice on that one for sure with Jackie Chan. You can't go wrong with that one. For me, everybody knows me, Mike Bono. I'm gonna show my age a little bit here. And favorite cartoon movie, the Rugrats movie, because I grew up watching the Rugrats and I had the VHS tape of the Rugrats movie. That's that's the one that comes to mind. Space Jam's always up there. Was it orange? It was orange. It was absolutely orange. Absolutely. For sure. Space Jam, the original Space Jam with Michael Jordan is definitely up there too as well. Favorite actor or actress. That's a tough one for me because there's so many good ones. McConaughey's up there for me. But I have to go Jim Carrey as an actor just on his sheer comedic value and its dumb humor that is my that's my jam right there. If I don't have to think about it and it makes me laugh, I am game. And he was the last of I think the slapstick comedies where he's gonna hurt himself to get a laugh, and it gets a big laugh every time. So that would be my answers to those, but we're not here to talk about actors or cartoons.

Theme Parks Everyone Has Visited

SPEAKER_05 9:29

We're here to talk about theme parks. And Rudy, we're gonna start with you here. What are all the theme parks that you have actually been to?

SPEAKER_00 9:37

Yeah, so I've only been to three. Actually, oh, actually, there's a few that don't exist anymore.

unknown 9:43

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 9:44

So Geago Lake and Six Flags, that was in Northeast Ohio area. Cedar Point, I'm not too far from about an hour drive. So go to that one frequently, usually once or twice a summer. I bend to Kennywood in Pittsburgh, and then Kings Island in Cincinnati area, I believe.

SPEAKER_05 10:05

Okay, yeah, Cincinnati. Absolutely preferred Kings Island. TJ, what about you?

SPEAKER_04 10:12

So a lot of the same. We had a growing up, we had a pass to Giaga Lake. So I was about 45 minutes away from there. And then Cedar Point, I'm about an hour and ten. So I go there once this once this summer, twice the summer. Over in Pennsylvania, there's Waldemir, which is actually really cool because you don't have to pay. You can just walk in and walk through it if you're not going to ride anything. So it's great for parents that don't want to ride anything, and you just buy the mercians for your child versus others. So it's pretty cool. In Ohio, we have a convention center, and they used to have an indoor amusement park called the IX Indoor Amusement Park. So um it was you know catered to you know younger, you know, eight years old. So that was a good little starter park. And then when I went down to Disney for baseball every year, so we used to go to all the Disney parks, so uh Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom. I guess if I don't know if those were necessarily theme parks versus you know adventure parks, but my favorite parts were always the rides and the attractions. So absolutely Wendy, what about you?

SPEAKER_03 11:14

Yeah, I'm right there with TJ as well. So all the ones that he's named, I've also been to those. Waldemir is amazing, absolutely amazing for kids and parents. And it's not that far away. So been there. And the indoor amusement park that we have here, the IX Center, when they do that, it's a blast. I mean, we have that every year. I have been to Geoge Lake, I've been to Cedar Point, it's a season pass for that. Well worth it. Does SeaWorld count?

SPEAKER_04 11:47

I'll allow it.

SPEAKER_03 11:49

Y'all allow it. Okay, so we had SeaWorld here, which was pretty amazing, but then I grew older and felt really bad for the animals that were captured and went at least. And I've been down in Disney as well.

SPEAKER_05 12:02

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 12:03

That's my list.

SPEAKER_05 12:05

That's a solid list for me. It's Disney, all the the newer ones, the Islands of Adventure, the Universal. I've been to all of those Islands of Adventure, oddly enough, the first time I was ever old enough and big enough to ride roller coasters, and was a terrifyingly fun experience in that one. Kennywood, solid. I when I was in that area, I would go to Kennywood three to four times a summer just because it's awesome, and you can't go wrong with that. The wooden roller coasters there and and the fries that they have there. Cedar Point, I've been to that one too as well. King's Island forever ago. I honestly can't even remember being at that one, but I do remember going to that one for sure. So that's that's my list. It's a it's a very short list, but all solid choices. Uh Wendy, I want

Cedar Point Value Season Passes

SPEAKER_05 12:59

to stay with you. I know I think I already know the answer to this, but is Cedar Point overrated or underrated in your opinion?

SPEAKER_03 13:06

Honestly, I don't think it's overrated. I really don't. And here's why. Because they make it pretty easy. Yeah, if you're a parent that doesn't ride the rides, it kind of stinks because you gotta pay to get it. That part I will say, because I usually don't ride the rides. Okay. But the season pass makes up for it if you have kids, especially teenagers that can drive without you and you don't have to get the part. Because the cost of it just makes sense. It pays for itself after two trips. Just get the season pass for these kids, you know, and then get the meal plan on top of it. The meal plan is it's it you're gonna spend that much in one day on food anyway, for the cost of the meal plan to get you your drinks and your food, three meals in the day. It's well worth it. Absolutely well worth it for a couple hundred bucks. So I'm gonna say it's underrated for that because I think it's actually a bargain.

SPEAKER_05 14:06

Okay. All right, TJ, what about you?

SPEAKER_04 14:10

All everything she just said is check so, so hard. I think it's underrated. It's there's nothing like it. I think you have to travel to the different, really different parts of the world to find an amusement park that checks all the boxes that Cedar Point does, with the kitty land, with the medium-sized rides, with the massive rides, with the variety of shows and food options and things around that area that cater to what Cedar Point offers. It's it's an amazing experience. But absolutely, my wife and I, we were about an hour away, maybe a little under an hour away when before we had kids. We got the season pass and we'd go there at five o'clock at night. And okay, we're gonna go ride a couple rides back home at nine. And we did that maybe five times, six times that summer. And you get to ride everything, you can do something different every time you go. Or if you wanted to go the whole day, it was just so it was so worth it. So, but yeah, if you ever get the if you ever get a chance to do the fast passes, it just you you kill the whole park. So no, I think it's underrated actually.

SPEAKER_03 15:18

Yeah, I agree.

SPEAKER_05 15:21

Rodie, what about you? What about your thoughts on the Cedar Point?

SPEAKER_00 15:26

Yeah, I totally agree with both of them. I was there probably two months ago, back in June. And the one thing that stuck out too was the food was actually like really good. Usually, like amusement park's food is just like okay, but this one was really good.

SPEAKER_05 15:40

Yeah, you know, I I feel like amusement park food, like you're you're not there. Like, you know it's gonna be greasy, you know it's gonna be all deep fried, you know it's gonna be bad for you, but that's the best kind of food, you know. Of course. I I've given up in my age at at the healthy eating. Like, I've I've I've I've done it, I'm about to be uh a grandfather, I don't care anymore. Like, you know what I mean? Like where like just give me all the bad stuff. I'm done what I've I've done what I've done. As far as overrated or underrated, I love Cedar Point. Mainly because I love the Sandusky area where it is at. And you can't go wrong with it. It it's it's an amazing, amazing park. And plus, they have the water park attached to it too, as well, that you can get into. And fast passes. I mean, I feel like any any theme park you go to, you get that fast pass. You get to be that guy that's walking past all the people in the lines, especially if you're the one get the like the Disney and get the fast passes, just get to see those people sweating in line. That's that's the favorite, my favorite part for me, is getting to just jog past everybody to the front of the line. I'm I'm that guy.

SPEAKER_04 16:49

You always yeah, you always try to find one person, and you're like, let me see if we can ride this twice, and you find that same person, like, all right, find the goofiest dressed person in line. Let's see if we pass them.

SPEAKER_05 16:59

Can I can I pass them twice before they get on the ride and I get to ride it twice?

SPEAKER_03 17:04

Torture. It's like torture too as a kid to watch that happen. I remember when I was a kid and would go there and watch that happen. I'm like, why shouldn't we get in line for that one? I was so mad because my parents caught it. Oh so mad.

SPEAKER_05 17:19

I was in the same boat when I was younger. We were going to Disney. My I would say this, my dad absolutely loved it. He could not ride any of the rides because surgeries and stuff, he just wasn't able to actually ride it. But that was his chance to go sit in the shade, have a couple beers while we were waiting in line and get the get a good buzz going so he can make it through the rest of the park. You know what I mean? And and he so I I I feel like I'm I'm becoming that now because my wife has taken over, she can't ride any roller coasters or anything like that again due to due to some health issues. So I I always said because those two's relationship will is it's always baffling because they are the same exact person. They they to see those two sitting on a bench in a shade, just having a couple beers, and just absolutely trashing everybody that's dressed weirdly walking past them would be the inner all the entertainment. I wouldn't even need to ride any rides. That that would be the just the sheer entertainment for me. It's watching those two just cut people down. Uh it would it would be fantastic. Uh it's just the the sheer.

SPEAKER_02 18:31

Is that during Halloween? That'll be pure entertainment then.

SPEAKER_05 18:35

Halloween weekend Kenny Woods Halloween, yeah, their Halloween theme that they have there is phenomenal. Everybody in costume and everything like that. It's it's a good time if you can get to any of these theme parks that have their Halloween, they're still open, and they do their their horror night, if you will. It's it's always always a good time, but yeah, very weird to interest people.

SPEAKER_04 19:02

Oh wow, this is something you know, people would have chosen to wear this every day if they could, and then now they come here, it's like, yep, see, I I found a place, you know. I found my people.

SPEAKER_03 19:12

That's that's what shows up at Halloween. I'm telling you, that's what shows up there. I'm just saying. You pizza stuff and you're like, Do you work here or are you just doing this?

SPEAKER_05 19:28

Yeah, the people that buy tickets and still dress up. It's like, are you working, or did you painting it in hand dress like this? Like, is it what are we doing here? Like, who who's who? Yeah, it's phenomenal when they get those those themes there for that for sure.

Water Parks Slides And A Wild Story

SPEAKER_05 19:44

Wendy, I know we mentioned it there a little bit, but do you go to the water parks that are inside any of the theme parks that you've been to?

SPEAKER_03 19:50

Oh, yeah, for sure. Absolutely. Yes, yes, yes, yes. Lacey River, yeah. I mean, I'm not going there to swim, you know what I'm saying? I'll go to lounge by the water, but I'll watch the kids swim. But I think it's fun. They love all those slides, absolutely. Yeah, just because there's lifeguards paying attention sometimes, you know.

SPEAKER_05 20:13

I got a story about that. I'll get them by at last, but I want to get through everybody here. TJ, what about you?

SPEAKER_04 20:18

So sorry for the stereotype. I am not a good swimmer, so I I can't, I really can't swim. So I just try to stay away from those things. But I like the slides. Like, if you give me like a a speed slide or anything like that, I love those things. It's just I gotta land in like three feet of water, and that's I feel good. Like anything above three feet, you're out. I'm like, yeah, I'm like on my tippy toes, and I'm like, ah, this is I can't be sitting here getting saved by a lifeguard and see the point because grown man can't swim, you know.

SPEAKER_05 20:55

Come down there, Columbus. I'll get you, I'll get you right. I can't get you to swim, I guess. I should have talked to you more. That's right. All right, Rudy, what about you?

SPEAKER_00 21:07

Yeah, I used to love water parks when I was younger, not so much when I got older as an adult. I don't know why. I just think they're kind of gross. Maybe it's more the indoor ones like Kalahari, those types of things. I think not as bad. Yeah, but the indoor ones.

SPEAKER_03 21:22

Yeah, that one kind of grossed me out.

SPEAKER_05 21:24

Yeah, oddly enough, my story's about Kalahari. Being there.

SPEAKER_03 21:31

Understand.

SPEAKER_05 21:32

But yeah, I mean, obviously, I I I grew up being a competitive swimmer. I love the water, love being in it. Again, wife can't can't get on any rides. So me and my son, we went in the winter time, so not a lot of people there. So we were literally walking up a slide, down the slide, up the slide, down a slide. We ran we rode like four or five in like 30 minutes at best. I was like, all right, man, that dad's getting a little old. I need I need I need I need a minute to rest because these steps are killing me. Yeah. Found my wife in a hot tub swim up bar, and the the bartender, she was cool. She was like, hey, I'm switching out. I don't mind that he's here at underage, but then other bartender will. I was like, cool, get me a drink, cash me out, and we'll go somewhere else. That's fine. I get my drink, and she's like, All right, that'll be $56.75. I said, I beg your finest pardon. $56.75. What did what did we buy? My wife's like, I may have had a few. I was like, okay, that's that's that's fun. That's fun. You were 30 minutes, you drank $56 worth of boost and just in a hot tub in the winter. Probably my favorite story. And then when we went out to get to your point about the lifeguards paying attention, we get to this one, and it's one of those fish bowl ones where you're just gonna fall out of a tube after going around. Yep, Sun goes down, he hits the water like a fish, he's to the side. I go down, and somewhere in that bowl, I lost my equilibrium, didn't know where I was, and this dome piece takes when gravity takes over, is what takes everything. So I went down head first, and they said it looked like a dummy falling out of the tube. And when I came up, there was a waterfall, had no idea where I was. This is the first time in water that I didn't know what I was doing, and I was like, So, this is what people who can't swim feel like.

SPEAKER_04 23:29

That's I'm telling you, that's the kidney's gonna sit there. It's like, oh wow, this water got five feet deeper since I got in.

SPEAKER_05 23:35

I I'm 6'5, and I couldn't touch the bottom of where I fell out of. That was the worst part for me, too. And it was just like okay, and I just looked over my son and my wife are cackling laughing because they've only ever seen me dominating the water. Like, I was like, Don't worry, dad's fine, just drown it. Don't worry, yeah, just brown it. And all I heard from the lifeguard was, You good? Yeah, man, I got it. Like, I'm fine, don't get off your bench by all means. Like, I'm thinking like it broke your neck and you know, slamming on the yeah, they they said it looked like a dummy just got dropped out of there because I lost all April whims were flying everywhere. It was I wish I had it on tape. I really do. I'd never have to work again for comedy gold. Just me. Just show just show this video, just show the video. That's all I would do. Just a couple bucks, just point to the screen, just watch.

SPEAKER_03 24:34

They got that on tape. They got cameras all over these somewhere. Somewhere possibility, yes, absolutely. They got that on tape.

SPEAKER_05 24:44

I was like, so so we're not gonna ride this one again. Like, dad's done with this one.

Theme Park Food Price Debate

SPEAKER_05 24:52

Right, Rudy, I wanna I want to stay with you on this one. We again we touched on it. Food at theme parks overrated or underrated.

SPEAKER_00 25:00

I guess it depends on the theme park. Like I would normally say overrated, but going to Cedar Point this last time, their food was pretty underrated. But other majority of theme parks I've been to pretty much overrated, too expensive, just for fried foods. They're delicious, but usually too expensive.

SPEAKER_04 25:21

Gotcha. TJ, what about you? I think what ruins this is fairs. Fair food. Yeah. I think that theme parks are overrated because they could do better. They have the means to do better. And it's just, well, we got to do this every day for whatever the season is, right? So let's just kind of be sustainable. Versus, I feel like fairs are like, oh, we got three, five days or whatever it might be. Let's put out our best foot, you know. So I think that if whenever I go to a place like that, I'm thinking, oh, I'm getting fair food, but you're not. So, but you might find a good food truck here and there. If you find like a like real authentic food truck, it can be fine, but for the most part, overpriced and you don't get the quality of the fair foods.

SPEAKER_05 26:06

I gotcha. For anyone who's curious about this, me and DJ were on a show where we talked all about fair food. I think we had about 15 minutes just on the food alone. Yeah, for sure. Go back and listen to that episode. You'll know what he's talking about. Wendy, what about you?

SPEAKER_03 26:21

No, I get it. I totally get it. Yeah, I'm with them too. Honestly, I feel like other parks are kind of overrated, you know. And I don't know, maybe maybe it's because we're spoiled by Cedar Point.

SPEAKER_01 26:33

I don't know.

SPEAKER_03 26:34

I don't know. It could very well be. But to other ones that I've been to, like I don't know. I think they're overpriced. My experience wasn't the absolute best, you know. It was just kinda like Oh ham, sorta. I was yeah.

SPEAKER_05 26:51

So Yeah, for me it's it's the price over everything that makes it overrated for me. I mean it it the food's delicious. Like I said, it's fried food. I love fried food. But the price of it, yeah, way overrated for me.

Best Days Night Rides Halloween Frights

SPEAKER_05 27:05

Wendy, what is the best day to go to a theme park?

SPEAKER_03 27:09

Ooh, best day?

SPEAKER_05 27:11

Day.

SPEAKER_03 27:14

In the week?

SPEAKER_05 27:15

Yeah, sure. This again, this was this was one of Fitties. He's being very vague on this this part of the day outline here, but we're getting into here.

SPEAKER_03 27:22

So all right. Well, I'm just gonna alright. So I'm gonna answer this two ways. Because I think you need to experience both. So if you're gonna go during the week, I'm gonna say go on like Wednesday. Go Wednesday, like midweek, you know, and like around 11 o'clock. You know, if the place is open. I don't know what time they open up. But the other time to go is definitely go experience the park at night. If you've gone during the day, you have to go back at night. You have to experience it. And I'm not saying to experience have a weekend, which I also think everyone should experience, but the experience of riding a roller coaster at night in the pitch dark on one of our summer nights here with all the lights on, and you're over the water in some of these rides, it's incredible. It's it is an experience where you're like, I am a lot of feet up in the air over a lot of water in the dark, and this is the coolest thing ever to experience, you know. So I think everyone should do it at night as well. Halloween, I'm telling you, I am an adult and it scares the absolute shit out of me every single year to go, but I love it. We all love it, and my girls are older, 25 and 21. And are we going to Halloween? Are we going to hell? It's a thing. It is a thing, and it gets good and better. And their actors are so good you don't know they're actors. I mean, it's so good and scary as an adult. That's my that's my thing.

SPEAKER_05 29:04

I gotcha. All right, TJ, what about you?

SPEAKER_04 29:08

Yeah, I'd I agree with Wednesday, too, between Tuesday and Wednesday, but I agree with the Wednesday. Usually Monday and Tuesday, you might have kids' camps, so that can kind of dominate the morning. But Wednesdays are usually pretty safe to have nobody there, which is good to get through the whole park. But a lot of times if you go there early, you kind of tap out before you stay too late. So you might leave at six o'clock, six to eight o'clock. But if you if you're riding one of the last rides of the night, it's crazy because you can't really like see the track. You might have some lights around you, but a lot of the tracks dark. So you're just like, I'm just in this seat, and I hope you're just I hope, but it's so it's it's just it's trippy being that high up and but they're high end, yeah. It's exactly you're literally in the air, just going. So no, it's it's just one of those things where you almost get distracted by the thrill of the ride, by the coolness of the experience of what's going on around you. So no, it's it's just neat. I yeah, I would say like a if you can stay at night at any point, that'd be it's worth your time. Gotcha. Rudy, what about you?

SPEAKER_00 30:18

Yeah, definitely middle of the week. I was gonna say Tuesday, but TJ brought up a good point with those kids' camps. So Wednesday, I think probably would be the best. Yeah, and and uh agree saying late, most of those rides become walk-on. So like Raptor and all those other ones, they have zero wait time, and you can just go on when it gets later in the evening right before closing.

SPEAKER_05 30:42

Yeah, absolutely. Cedar Point, I don't know, I think it was a pretty pretty sure it was Cedar Point. It was a high school senior trip for us, and they had what I thought was just the swings, you know, the thing you said, and it just goes around and around and around. I'm like, oh cool, we can take a little break on this. Nope, it went up 300 feet in the air. And your boy is terrified of heights.

SPEAKER_04 31:07

Uh that's not a that's not a coaster either. That that is that's just here you are. Here's some chains old.

SPEAKER_05 31:14

Like we started going around, and I was like, oh, this is fun. And then I've noticed my feet were getting further and further away from the ground, and that's when the bitch in me came out, and I was like death gripped on these chains, just hanging on for it was getting dusk out, like so it was getting dark. So I'm over the water, I'm 300 feet in the air, about to pass out. And all of my friends that are sitting next to me, like, hey, it's gonna be okay. I was like, Don't fucking talk to me right now. Don't touch me, don't look at me, get me on the ground right now. I hate all of you because they all knew that nobody told me. Nobody told me, and yeah, that I got off, and the my friends that didn't go up looked at me like, Why are you so pale? I've never seen you this white before. I was like, I don't want to talk about it. I need to sit down, I need to cry, I need to sit down away from all of you right now because I hate every single one of you. It's not not good. This is not fun. We were here to have fun, and yeah, and you y'all just ruined it. All the fun we had prior to this just got ruined from this one rocket.

SPEAKER_03 32:22

That thing terrifies me. Hell no.

SPEAKER_05 32:25

Oh god, like I I legit almost passed out. Like that would have been the worst. If I would have passed out on there, there's no safety. It's literally the swing, just a chain across your lap. Yeah, that's gonna save that's gonna save me. Okay, nope. That's a hard no for me on that one. Oh that one was the worst. I like, yeah, I hope that ride breaks down and never never gets operational again for that reason. Oh man, that's yeah, that's it for me. Yeah, well, yeah, that was the worst, worst experience of my life at a theme park for

What Age Kids Should Start Going

SPEAKER_05 33:00

sure. Wendy, what do you think that is age appropriate to to start bringing kids to a theme park?

SPEAKER_03 33:08

Oh that's a toppy, but you know what? I'm gonna say like I'm just gonna say like 10. Maybe even 12. I'm gonna say 12. Because Cedar Point, those rides are no joke, man. They are no joke. You are these are not kitty rides, you're not in the kitty park, you know, on the rides that we're talking about, where where your kids want to go, which is the big ride. They don't want to be in the kitty park at that age. But the thing is is those are serious rides. I mean, you are you are off the ground. Like that's no, that's no joke. You better be prepared for how high this thing and how fast this ride is gonna go. You know, so I say caution of like I've seen little kids ride coming off of these rides so many times because they are scared of us and terrified. And I know I'm an adult, I'm doing the same thing, so I get it, but you know, these kids like I think they're just not as prepared, you know. Right. So actually, I'm gonna go with twelve. I'm gonna go with twelve.

unknown 34:13

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 34:14

I feel like mature age. Be ready.

SPEAKER_04 34:17

TJ, what about you? So kind of not biased, but I guess skewed. Since I teach third grade, I'd say nine. I have kids, we just talked about this, and I'll ask them every Monday, I don't know, what'd you guys do over the weekend? And when at least one of them will always say they went to Cedar Point because where where I teach at, it's an hour drive, so it's not far. If there again, you have to know your child, but nine, you're tall enough, you know. So that's kind of what I look at. If you have the height to get on everything, then go. But yeah, that's a waste of a lot of money if you have a kid that kind of isn't that isn't for them. So you started those smaller things, you started those smaller theme parks. But that's why I said Cedar Point is underrated because like it's a mecca of roller coasters, like you're not gonna see those that many high quality thrill rides in one spot. So, but if you have a nine-year-old tall enough that's kind of that's ready and down for it, get them going early because you know it'll they'll they'll get that fear out of their heads. So I didn't go to a theme point, I didn't go to Cedar Point until I was uh senior in high school. And I'm sitting there with my prom, it was for app with our prom date, and I'm just sitting there like, I really don't like roller coasters that much, but I'm supposed to be the tough guy in this whole thing. So like she's supposed to be holding my arm, and I'm sitting there like, oh yeah, let's go do that one first. Oh, okay, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 35:45

Like Rudy, what about you?

SPEAKER_00 35:51

Yeah, so I don't have any kids myself, but I do have a nephew, and he's gonna be three, and I just cannot even imagine taking any young child because they are a little crazy, probably preteen is what I would say too. I I'm trying to think back to myself as well, what I remember. Probably like middle school is what I remember first time going to a theme park, and I'm sure I went as a younger child, but yeah, probably like pre-teenage.

SPEAKER_05 36:22

Gotcha. All right, and uh okay, and now this is a new occurrence here with me.

Best Park Picks And Closing

SPEAKER_05 36:28

Zoom is gonna kick us off in two minutes and 30 seconds, so we're gonna make this one the last. I don't know what happened. This this is a new occurrence, it updated, and I don't know what the hell happened. So we're gonna make this the last question so we can get through all this, and we're gonna have to be kind of quick on this one, guys. Here, but Rudy, this thing with you. If you had to recommend one theme park for people to go to, which would it be a little biased, but Cedar Point?

SPEAKER_04 36:49

Yeah, gotcha. TJ, what about you? I would say cedar point, but I'm telling you, I'm shifting to Waldemere for this fact that parents can go and not have to pay.

SPEAKER_05 36:59

Gotcha. That's that's a sole choice. Wendy, what about you?

SPEAKER_03 37:02

Yeah, I'm in agreement with both of them. I'm in agreement with both of them for sure. Um, Cedar Point, because I'm a bit biased as well, but Waldemere for that exact reason, cost effective. But if you got a little bit of money, I'm just gonna say Disney is an experience that everyone should have. So even if an adult, you know, I appreciated taking my kids older when I took them to experience it. It was absolutely incredible for all of us. So that I will say if you can afford to make that a trip, put that on the family list for sure. For sure.

SPEAKER_05 37:41

Absolutely, yeah. For me, it is Kennywood. The old school wooden coasters and just the whole nostalgia of that, the park, you can't go wrong there for that one. So I am a little biased. I grew up near it. I went almost every weekend as a kid growing up because I love Kennywood. But with that being said, and before Zoom kicks me off for whatever reason now, all of a sudden, that is going to do it for this week's episode of the Ride Home Rants podcast. I want to thank all of my guests, Wendy, TJ, and Rudy, for getting here to talk all things themes parked. And as always, if you enjoy the show, be a friend. Tell a friend. If you didn't, tell them anyways, they might like it just because you didn't. That's gonna do it for me, and I will see y'all next week.