#32 Henry's Coasters and Waves
Cedar Point, Ohio; Magic Mountain, California; Six Flags Parks, USA; Malibu, California; Cocoa Beach, Florida
For the month of August, our children Jack, Emma, and Henry will each write an essay for our Travels Across America and Lessons in Life Substack publication. We are giving them no explicit directions or instructions. We want them to write about what they want to and share with you all what they think is important and what they have learned and enjoyed by traveling across the USA. We hope it will inspire you all to hit the road as often as you can with your families, too. Whether it’s a trip right up the street to a National Historic site or a long journey by plane for 100s of miles across the country, just go!
Our final writer is Henry. If you need any roller coaster recommendations or maps to the best beaches, he’s your man.
My favorite thing about traveling is being pleasantly surprised. Whether it’s finding a secret beach or finding a local eating spot or the shock of a steep first drop on a new roller coaster, I’m all in. Some places we’ve been surprised at are Malibu, California, Cocoa Beach, Florida and of course, X2 at Six Flags Magic Mountain.
For me, I love theme parks and they are one of the most exciting parts of a trip. I think they are great times to bond with family and have some fun. Since I’m a coaster nerd, on the car ride up to whatever theme park we are going to, all I can talk about is the rides we’re about to go on. Some of the most exciting theme parks we’ve been to are Cedar Point, Six Flags St Louis, Six Flags Magic Mountain, and of course, Disney and Universal.
First up is Cedar Point: the greatest theme park on earth. Even though I was only 6 when I went there, those rides in Planet Snoopy are the reason why I ride 300 foot tall roller coasters now. Some memorable moments there were the car ride of 7 hours and the sight of the coasters over the horizon. Cedar Point’s coasters made the trip worth it for all of us. I hope I can go back there one day and ride the big rides.
Next up is Six Flags, St Louis. At this park I was 5 and I actually rode a big ride there. It was a mine train and I came off of it crying so it must have been pretty intense for a 5 year old. I would always wish I could go on the big rides with Jack and Emma but I could still ride the kid swings with my mom watching from a bench. I also remember spending time with my mom walking to the kiddie lands and convincing her to let me go on one more ride and that for me is what theme parks are about.
Next up is Six Flags Magic Mountain. I've been here twice but the first time I was 7 and didn't ride anything but most recently I went when I was 11 and rode a lot of things. I planned the whole day out but as soon as I saw the parking lot and how crowded it was, my dad took over and we rode everything we wanted to. The only thing that my dad did that was questionable was tell us that the first ride of the day was going to be X2. Jack had already ridden it and told us to watch out because it’s super intense and I didn’t believe him; but, he was right. We got into the station and saw signs that were kind of terrifying such as “Closing your eyes won’t make it go away.” We got into the seat and we started to lean back and started going up the lift hill. Then, we started dropping and my stomach refused this drop and I held on to the restraint so hard it hurt. Then, we started flipping and I don't know what happened for the rest of the ride. We had no idea how intense it really was but I loved the ride. My dad and sister did not like it at all.
Now, last but not least, is Disney and Universal. I’ve been here over 4 times and it never gets old and we have mastered these parks. My favorite ride at Disney is the Star Wars Rise of Resistance because I didn’t watch a POV of it before I rode it and it was the greatest ride of ALL TIME and we rode it at 11 pm at night in the rain. I don’t want to spoil it for you but just know it is insane.
At Universal, my favorite ride there is Harry Potter Escape From Gringotts and basically you’re on a dragon and you escape a bank and you run into Voldemort which is basically every Harry Potter movie. I loved this ride because the theming was incredible and you felt like you were really in Gringotts. So, those are the best moments and reviews of our favorite theme parks we’ve visited.
Next up is Cocoa Beach and this was the last stop on our recent trip to Florida. So, we got to the beach at 7 am and Jack and I saw that the waves were very good and much better than Virginia Beach. The only problem was we didn’t have our boards. But then we remembered that we saw a sign to rent a board and we immediately started walking to that place. Once we got there, we rented the boards, and walked straight back to the beach and put our leashes on and headed out. We were shocked at how easy it was to get a board and surf for the day for only like $20. I feel a connection to the ocean when I’m out there with the waves and with the animals. Now the waves started to pick up and Jack and I started shredding. Every wave is different and that’s what I love about surfing. We surfed for 3 hours. Then, we had lunch at a shack near the beach and that’s why I beg my parents to take us back there.
The last of my surprises is Malibu, California. We start our story with driving through the Malibu mountains and seeing the sunset and then eating at a place called Sunset. We eat outside. I see surfers catching barrels and can feel the sand on my toes while eating. The next day was so cool because we went to a surfing beach and saw about 25 surfers catching beautiful waves and I thought VB’s were good but I was wrong. Then, we had a nice lunch and went to a wildlife refuge and ended the day with another meal at the Sunset.
The next morning we went to a whirlpool beach and saw starfish the size of a head! I climbed up the rocks and thought, how did this stuff form? And I think that’s what traveling is all about: asking questions and finding the answers any way you want.