Mike wrote this
Taming Alpengeist
It was as though the deepest pits of hell had spewed this monstrosity of a beast from its everlasting ashes. This cold-hearted iron beast to the people was known as just a rollercoaster, but to me it wasn’t just a rollercoaster it was the coaster, the pinnacle of all mechanical madness, it was Alpengeist. Standing in front of this animal you can see the works of a sinister madman, with a 200 ft. drop reaching 76 m.p.h, compiled with 7 inversions including 2 loops, 2 man handlers, a corkscrew, and last but not least a gigantic boomerang. Just one look at this creature made me cringe in fear, for I knew that today was the day that I would try to overcome a paralyzing fear, a fear of roller coasters.
Unfortunately for me the line that day was extremely long, and each and every step made my heart skip a beat. Step by step I inched closer to the belly of the beast. Walking along the zigzag patter of the queue line my dad reassured me the ride was harmless and “only the anticipation will kill you”. At last we reached the station and to my dismay my old man declared we were going to ride in the front row. That meant more waiting and my face was already pale with an expression as if I had seen my entire family murdered before my own to eyes.
Ten minutes later I am sitting in the car of a suspended coaster completely paralyzed with fear over what I was about to partake on. After being strapped into my seat right next to my dad and checked to see if I was securely locked in as tight as I could possibly be without dying of suffocation, I noticed the fact that my feet were leaving the ground (or was the ground leaving my feet?). I looked down quickly enough to notice the floor had dropped and it wasn’t just my wild imagination, before the car began to rise slowly up the lift hill.
Each clack of the chain connecting with the lift mechanism made my stomach queasy as we ascended toward the heavens. Upon nearing the peak I looked down, and I was amazed at what my eyes had perceived. The view of the amusement park was amazing in all its beauty, from the winding cobblestone streets of Busch Gardens’ Oktoberfest to the serpent like structure known all around the world as the legendary, relentless Loch Ness Monster, and everything surrounding the river that cuts through the park was gleaming from the reflection of the sun off the water’s surface.
As I was admiring the scenery I began to feel my seat even out and I realized why, it was time for the drop from hell. I applied a death grip to the shoulder restraint as I was waiting for the plunge. Slowly the car began to gain speed as more of the car began to leave the lift hill and before I knew it we were speeding at what felt like the speed of light. As I was on the biggest high of my life I realized my greatest fear was coming up, the first loop. Squinting my eyes I prepared for the inversion and about halfway through it I realized that it wasn’t so bad, in fact, it was quite invigorating and that I was addicted to the feeling. I loosened my grip as I prepared for the rest of the twist and turns. The car rocketed through monstrous and hairpin turns that jerked your head to and fro. Up and down, left and right the car moved as we sped down the track until we reached the final stretch, the man handlers and the unforgiving hairpin turns. As we reached the station the car quickly came to a stop right in front of the entrance as we waited for the passengers of the car in front of us to completely depart.
Our vehicle entered its final resting spot, and the shoulder restraints loosened its protective grip but shaken from the ride I had a bit of trouble releasing the strap that held the shoulder bar to the seat, and after a few tries I finally got it. Standing was a battle for my knees because they couldn’t stop trembling from the experience. Struggling to walk a straight line my dad and I made our way to the photo hut where I found out that my picture had been taken at the same exact time I had shouted to my dad “ I love this ride”. Reaching into my back pocket I pulled out the park map to find out the pathway to the next coaster because not only did I faced my fear but I gained an addiction as I made my way back into the line for Alpengeist for another go.
y brother mike wrote this. what do you guys think. for once i actually liked something that my brother did. WOW!! did i just say that?!?! lol. well, i have to get going to school so i can study for my finals. Next Friday's my last day of school!!!!
always, m&m
It was as though the deepest pits of hell had spewed this monstrosity of a beast from its everlasting ashes. This cold-hearted iron beast to the people was known as just a rollercoaster, but to me it wasn’t just a rollercoaster it was the coaster, the pinnacle of all mechanical madness, it was Alpengeist. Standing in front of this animal you can see the works of a sinister madman, with a 200 ft. drop reaching 76 m.p.h, compiled with 7 inversions including 2 loops, 2 man handlers, a corkscrew, and last but not least a gigantic boomerang. Just one look at this creature made me cringe in fear, for I knew that today was the day that I would try to overcome a paralyzing fear, a fear of roller coasters.
Unfortunately for me the line that day was extremely long, and each and every step made my heart skip a beat. Step by step I inched closer to the belly of the beast. Walking along the zigzag patter of the queue line my dad reassured me the ride was harmless and “only the anticipation will kill you”. At last we reached the station and to my dismay my old man declared we were going to ride in the front row. That meant more waiting and my face was already pale with an expression as if I had seen my entire family murdered before my own to eyes.
Ten minutes later I am sitting in the car of a suspended coaster completely paralyzed with fear over what I was about to partake on. After being strapped into my seat right next to my dad and checked to see if I was securely locked in as tight as I could possibly be without dying of suffocation, I noticed the fact that my feet were leaving the ground (or was the ground leaving my feet?). I looked down quickly enough to notice the floor had dropped and it wasn’t just my wild imagination, before the car began to rise slowly up the lift hill.
Each clack of the chain connecting with the lift mechanism made my stomach queasy as we ascended toward the heavens. Upon nearing the peak I looked down, and I was amazed at what my eyes had perceived. The view of the amusement park was amazing in all its beauty, from the winding cobblestone streets of Busch Gardens’ Oktoberfest to the serpent like structure known all around the world as the legendary, relentless Loch Ness Monster, and everything surrounding the river that cuts through the park was gleaming from the reflection of the sun off the water’s surface.
As I was admiring the scenery I began to feel my seat even out and I realized why, it was time for the drop from hell. I applied a death grip to the shoulder restraint as I was waiting for the plunge. Slowly the car began to gain speed as more of the car began to leave the lift hill and before I knew it we were speeding at what felt like the speed of light. As I was on the biggest high of my life I realized my greatest fear was coming up, the first loop. Squinting my eyes I prepared for the inversion and about halfway through it I realized that it wasn’t so bad, in fact, it was quite invigorating and that I was addicted to the feeling. I loosened my grip as I prepared for the rest of the twist and turns. The car rocketed through monstrous and hairpin turns that jerked your head to and fro. Up and down, left and right the car moved as we sped down the track until we reached the final stretch, the man handlers and the unforgiving hairpin turns. As we reached the station the car quickly came to a stop right in front of the entrance as we waited for the passengers of the car in front of us to completely depart.
Our vehicle entered its final resting spot, and the shoulder restraints loosened its protective grip but shaken from the ride I had a bit of trouble releasing the strap that held the shoulder bar to the seat, and after a few tries I finally got it. Standing was a battle for my knees because they couldn’t stop trembling from the experience. Struggling to walk a straight line my dad and I made our way to the photo hut where I found out that my picture had been taken at the same exact time I had shouted to my dad “ I love this ride”. Reaching into my back pocket I pulled out the park map to find out the pathway to the next coaster because not only did I faced my fear but I gained an addiction as I made my way back into the line for Alpengeist for another go.
y brother mike wrote this. what do you guys think. for once i actually liked something that my brother did. WOW!! did i just say that?!?! lol. well, i have to get going to school so i can study for my finals. Next Friday's my last day of school!!!!
always, m&m