While on vacation we did more than just relax in/by the pool.

Jay loves roller coasters so we headed to Carowinds for a day of fun.

What roller coaster did Jay have to ride?

Fury 325

According to wikipedia, it reaches a height of 325 feet (gee… did you see that one coming?) which makes it the “tallest and fastest Giga coaster in the world.”

This is the first rise that takes you up 325 ft before dumping you over the peak. Apparently it’s the world’s tallest chain lift coaster. Wikipedia says that the total ride time is 3 minutes and 25 seconds. Again… did you see that one coming?

We went on a Wednesday and I was surprised that there wasn’t much of a line. I timed it and they stood in line for only about 10 minutes before they were climbing onto the coaster. Yes, “they”. I’m not a big fan of roller coasters so I held the bags while Jay, Raven (my sister’s stepdaughter) and Raven’s friend went on the ride.

Jay is in the white shirt in the middle of the above picture.

Apparently Carowinds had to receive permission from the FAA to build this coaster since the park is so close to Charlotte’s airport. It was actually interesting to watch all of the jets coming and going as you are riding the rides.

You can’t see Jay’s face in this picture because Raven’s friend’s hand is in the way, but can you feel the pure joy emanating from him?

Here’s an interesting tidbit for you… the first time we went to Carowinds we rode the Intimidator. I didn’t mind this ride, but I really prefer to have my eyes closed while on them as I don’t want to see where we are going. Well, when we got off the ride they have the screens where you can see the pictures that were taken during your ride. The picture was taken on the first drop of the ride and I wish I would have purchased it as it shows Jay as you would imagine he would be on a ride: giant smile on his face, leaning into the drop/turn with anticipation.

I did end up riding Fury once, but that was it. I saw the picture from that one… Jay was happily smiling and completely enjoying himself, and I looked like I had just smelled something horribly nasty with my eyes shut. To be fair, I was having sinus issues and it was very painful for me to ride with the pressure being placed on my head during the loops and turns.

So I held the bags while the others went on more rides. The crowds really were not very big, so the waits were decent.

At one point Jay and Raven decided they wanted to ride this:

When I saw this I thought that either it was some kind of torture device, or else a relic from the Apollo training missions. I think that I’m right on both accounts.

First it starts to spin you, rotating around the center point of the ‘fan’. You can see Jay’s head in the very outside seat of the purple section.

But then…!!!….!!!!

It raises up and spins you around just like a fan. Seriously!! I mean, who in their right mind looks at that and think it looks like fun??!

But then… !!!!….!!!!….!!!!

The seats rotate, too!! It’s insane! Who voluntarily gets on that thing??

I think that Jay would have one of those in our back yard if we had the room.

All-in-all, it was a good time. We spent some time with Raven and enjoyed a day out in public. That quickly changed by the time we got back to my sister’s, though. It was pool time again.