Darien Lake

Labor Day Weekend was a blast!!!! 

(Yes....We realize it's currently October and we're just getting around to this story....sorry for the delay)

Laura: 

As part of our Labor Day festivities, we decided to check out the Darien Lake Amusement Park about an hour west of Rochester. Alex and I had never been to an amusement park together, so we thought it would be a nice way to spend our weekend. Plus, we purchased BOGO tickets at Wegman's (a local grocery store) which made the outing much more affordable. 

Based on the website we expected Darien Lake to be similar to Six Flags - St. Louis, but I would say it's not as nice - there are fewer rides and the whole park seemed old and slightly in disrepair. Despite these cosmetic flaws, the park as a whole was pretty decent and we still had a great time. Here we are after taking a spin on "The Predator" - the tallest wooden roller coaster in New York State!

I was terrified!!!!!!!!! I can't even remember the last time I rode a roller coaster, so going on the tallest one in New York state (with the steepest hills I have EVER seen....looked like you were going straight down into the ground, no slope whatsoever!) was really scary. Also, sitting in the very last row sure added to the whip-lash factor commonly associated with wooden coasters. Oh my neck was so sore the next day!!!!

After riding The Predator, we moved onto another coaster - Boomerang.

Boomerang is the teal rollercoaster depicted here. This ride "begins with a steep incline backwards out of the station, and then propels guests forward through vertical loops and hills. Then, repeat the circuit in reverse". So...let me clarify in case you don't fully understand the terror this ride induces...after everyone is strapped in, the cars are pulled backwards (very slowly) up the steep incline on the left. Once the cars have reached the optimal height you are suspended waiting for the ride to release you and send you rocketing through the station where you originally boarded to ride the crazy spirals and loops of the coaster. New Yorkers must really love steep hills because once again the launch track is VERY steep, so once the ride has retracted you into the "READY TO GO" position you're staring straight into the ground and praying that your shoulder harness doesn't accidentally release, thus allowing your body to hurtle to the pavement below.....did I mention I get scared on rollercoasters? LOL. Despite my terror, the ride was still fun!




After this second roller coaster ride I was feeling pretty nauseous, so I requested we try something a little more relaxed to give my stomach a little time to settle. Solution: The Giant Wheel! We took a nice relaxing ride on the Ferris Wheel and got some nice views of the park and all the other rides it had to offer.

At the top of The Giant Wheel!

From the Giant Wheel, we moved onto the log flume (another slow-paced ride to give my stomach time to settle) and a couple more roller coasters.

Alex:
The next roller coaster we rode was a very small and fairly level one called Motocoaster.  Having said that, I should add that the coaster 1) propels you from 0 to 40 in 3 seconds, and 2) has you sit atop a dirt-bike frame with no supports/restraints above your waist.  Without any real side-supports the twists and turns feel a lot more aggressive.  Zoom in on the pic to see what it looks like.





By that point we were getting a little tired and wanted some non-theme-park food.  There were a lot of pools and water rides at the park that we will have to return and check out another time, maybe when we have some more delightful visitors!  So come on up to the ROC! Definitely a fun way to spend our day!