We arrived before the park opened and headed straight to the first ride. Unlike Disneyland, even the first line of the day was quite long -- at least 30 minutes. And hot. We got to the front of the line, only to discover that we needed one dollar in cash to buy a single-use locker for my small day pack before we boarded the ride. The people in front of us were caught off-guard too and needed to borrow a dollar for the same reason.
The ride was great, and we trudged up the hill for the next ride. Here, the line was even longer. And it was hotter. I realized I didn't have the exact change for this ride's locker, so got out of line and waited at a concession stand until someone was able to give me change. "So, has anyone considered free lockers while you're on the ride, like they do at California Adventure Grizzly Rapid Rides?" I wanted to ask. Apparently not. "Or selling a card up front that lets you use the lockers without scrambling for change on each thrill ride?" Ditto.
While in line, we noticed several people bypassing the regular line and I wondered if they had Fast Passes, like they do at Disney Parks (notice a theme in my thought process?) Turns out that for an extra $105, you get a pass that lets you go to the front of any line and ride the ride twice in a row. I only like the Class System when I'm in the privileged class, which clearly I was not on this day.
We finally got on the ride, which was good, and then rode two more. As the day wore on, my patience with the park, the lack of ambiance, the heat, the long lines, and the fact that 99% of the park guests were between the ages of 13 and 18 and had the colorful vocabulary you would expect, waned.
"I will do ANYTHING if we can leave now," I pleaded with Katie. Thirty minutes later, we were on the freeway with the Six Flags sign in our rear view mirror. And we won't drool ever again when drive past the park.
