Hands in the Air! – U.S. Explorer

The U.S. Explorer checks in from Cleveland

Dear Parents,

Our bus ride to Cleveland, started with Travel Channel clips about Cedar Point and…  on ride point of view videos from Millennium Force and Top Thrill Dragster. Hands in the air, our bus was turned into a roller coaster.

We had a great time at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Tyler and Nikki had pencil races down the grass outside prior to entering while Delilah commented that she got her name from the Grateful Dead after seeing a sign about the museum’s special exhibit. Lee, Evan, Noah, Zach G., Jonah and Matt watched a video on the start of rock and roll and commented that this was their highlight. Seryna and Lyndsay enjoyed the montage of Hall of Fame inductees and sang along with the famous artists. On our walk back to the bus, we snapped a few photos in front of the  Cleveland Browns stadium.

That evening, we played the Quest. Our group was split into two. Everyone had 3 minutes to grab  anything they could carry from their tents. We presented a series of challenges and either the first team to complete the task or the best presentation received a point. In one evening we saw a proposal, an imitation of a staff member, teams race to build a 6 person pyramid, the alphabet recited backwards, a giant game of ring-around-the-rosie and so much more.

It was a beautiful day at Cedar Point. Evan S. went on his first roller coaster. Rickey won a huge gorilla (it takes up two seats and extends into the aisle).  Not only does he keep us company, but he  lends us a comfortable, furry shoulder to lean on. He will likely be heading home with Steve, our driver, at the end of the summer as he is too big to carry on an airplane (or check!).  Although Top Thrill Dragster is only a 19 seconds, it travels 120 miles per hour up a 90-degree 420′ hill. Many of us including Zack R. said it was the “rose” of his day. Haley and Izzy enjoyed Cedar Point’s newest attraction, WindSeeker. Several hundred feet in the air with 360-degree views of Lake Eerie were unreal. This was after they got off of Iron Dragon, the “scariest roller coaster EVER!”

We ended our wonderful day by freezing in the middle of the arcade. All of us frozen in weird and wacky poses for 90 seconds. This caught the attention of everyone in the crowd who couldn’t understand why we were all stuck! Seryna pretended to put her backpack on, Sami and Jamie were hugging and Nikki dropped into a plank position.

Next stop… Ann Arbor, Michigan!

“Who wouldn’t want to be me” (or us!)

The Westcoast Blogger

Baseball Tour laughs it up with White Sox skipper Ozzie Guillen – Major League Madness

Dear Fellow Fanatics:

The MLB players weren’t the only ones getting rest at the All-Star Break. Major League Madness got a 3 day break from baseball as well. We used the time to develop our friendships even better and take in some great attractions.

During our visit to Cedar Point Amusement park, the trip members decided to partake in some carnival games. Pax surprised us all by walking over with a monstrous gorilla stuffed animal which he won by banking a wiffle ball into a basket. Not to be outdone, Ethan and Asher brought home big prizes of their own, 2 giant stuffed dobermans. Zach B., knowing his skill set, shot the lights out in a free-throw shootout and won a basketball.

The next day brought us to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton. Jordan had to close his eyes when a video presentation showed Desean Jackson of the Eagles running back a punt into the Giants end zone completing what was one of the greatest comebacks in NFL history. Justin and Matt were in heated debate about who the better QB was between Eli Manning and Mark Sanchez – as far as this writer is concerned, only one of them has a ring.

At the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the trip members got to see the origins of all their favorite types of music. Bobby and Will absolutely loved the Beatles section, where they were listening to classics such as “You Can’t Find me Love” and “8 Days a Week”.

After the 3 days break, we were looking forward to getting back to the ballparks.  Our first stop in Chicago was Second City Comedy club, where we saw a hysterical performance by some of Chicago’s best amateurs. The highlight of the night however was running into White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen at the show. The trip members were awestruck. Showing his love for kids, Coach Guillen agreed to take a picture with the group.   We also saw the city.  David absolutely loved the bike tour, especially driving by the original Playboy Mansion, which he learnt that Hugh Hefner sold for 1 dollar upon the company’s move to Los Angeles.  On our extreme boat tour – Nathan and Brandon, came off the boat soaking wet (they brought a change of clothes), but with huge smiles as well – and disappointed that there was no time in the schedule to do it again.  The final activity in the Windy City was a trip to the historic Wrigley Field. The Cubs had control of the game up until the top of the 9th when they promptly walked the first 3 guys of the inning only to allow a bases clearing double to lose the game. “I feel like we got the true Cubs experience” said Tyler. Little does he know, these fans have been dealing with losses like that for over 100 years.

Our next few days are jammed packed with baseball. With stops in Detroit, Cincinnati and Pittsburgh, the boys will have plenty of opportunity to get some more autographs and take in a few ball games.

Till Next Time,

Major League Madness

The Westcoast Blogger

Fun in the Sun at Niagara Falls – U.S. Explorer

The US Explorer checks in from Cleveland. We can’t believe we are already a week into our awesome adventure – it feels like we’ve known each other for years!  After loading the bus and saying goodbye to our parents, we set out nervous and excited.  We played bus “speed dating” to get to know everyone [...]