Blast from the Past

File Under: The Exodus to Sadistville

For long-time TDI readers, you may recall my Exodus to Sadistville series. (viewable in the TDI Originals Archive) Well, recently, I had to write a paper for school, on an experiance that stirred up alot of emotion. Well, it didn't take long for me to settle on writing about my trip to Cedar Point for college credit! So here now is my first college essay, "The Exodus to Sadistville".

(Clever, eh? I can combine previous blog posts with an update on my school life!)

NOTE: If you read the Exodus to Sadistville series, you'll know that I actually HAD FUN. I had to up the negative emotions for the paper, and kinda discard all happy thoughts, to make the paper floooow.

The Exodus to Sadistville

In all the eighteen years that I have lived my life, I had never once visited an amusement park. I had never been dropped from extreme heights, never been tossed and turned on a roller coaster, and never once felt the feelings of insecurity as I did on the parks “gentler” rides. After visiting my first amusement park, I had come to the realization that what normally would thrill thousands upon thousands of people scares me to death.

I had traveled down to Cedar Point with some co-workers for a day of fun in the sun. Upon arrival, we decided to try out the first thrill ride right outside the gate, called “The Demon Drop”. It is named appropriately. I was strapped standing up into a cage, then elevated to ten stories above ground level. They leave you up there for a short while, so you can take in your surroundings. I quickly realized that my life-long fear of heights had not gone away. Suddenly, I was plummeted down those ten stories in the blink of an eye. In that second, I experience such a level of fear that I had never felt before. I was terrified. I had no sense of control, no sense of stability, which would normally frighten me. Add in the heights, and the sense of speed, and I realized that this may be a very long, very unsettling afternoon.

Then, partly inspired by my co-workers teasing me, I gathered up the courage to try out a full-fledged roller coaster, called “The Mantis”. This particular ride straps you in standing up, as you complete a series of twist, turns, and loops. And this wouldn’t just be a few seconds of intense fear; this ride took a full minute to complete.

It took a while to get strapped in to the roller coaster. There were many different belts, clips, and restraints to connect. I could barely move inside all the protective restraints. One of my co-workers told me, “If you’re scared, don’t look straight ahead, because it’ll be scarier if you do.“ Soon, the coaster began to pull itself out onto the track. From what I could see, it was nothing but height. That feeling of nervousness swept over me, and soon gave way to fright as the roller coaster dipped down, beginning it’s insane maze of twist, turns, and loops. I tried to look ahead, but that was too scary for my taste. I took my co-worker’s advise, and looked down at my feet. However, it only made me slightly more comfortable. Without looking out directly, I could still feel every move, every rush of air. Finally, after what seemed to be a very long time, the ride came to an end. That would be the last time I would ride that roller coaster!

I informed my group that I had enough with roller coasters and thrill rides, and that from here on out, anything I went on would have to be stress-free. We then went on a “stress-free ride”, a moving observation tower. You sat down inside a round room, with glass windows all around. While ascending, the tower actually spun you around at the same time. The combination of heights, the feeling of moving upwards, added with the constant rotation motion, equaled one very nervous passenger. Once the ride was done, I had an announcement to make: “I’m staying on the ground for the rest of the day.“

Some people may feel excitement when they’re dropped ten stories in the blink of an eye, or when a roller coaster takes you on a fast ride full of twists, turns, and loops. Most people even find the views from an observation tower breathtaking, but not me. I found out that day that I enjoy being on the ground, where I’m not being dropped or tossed, all the while being scared for my life. That day, I confronted some of my fears, but they were not conquered. And quite frankly, they can remain unconquered as far as I’m concerned… I’m staying on the ground.