ThrillRide! Special Features

Listen to The Season Pass Ep. 212 - Live at Carowinds w/ Jerry Helms & EJ Randolph 10/3/12

A large helping of my family history is available in a book called "The Cokers of Carolina," and I'm not indulging in false modesty when I tell you that it is one of the most boring books I've ever tried to get through; after several attempts, I still haven't finished and I've given up. Not that there aren't interesting anecdotes, but good grief, it is so leadenly written. Anyway, the point is I've long had a hankering to visit North and South Carolina, since that's where so many of my kinfolk are from, and also to check out Carowinds, the only theme park to sprawl across the border between two U.S. states.

On our Season Pass trip last August, we sammiched a visit to Carowinds in between Dollywood and Six Flags Over Georgia and because of our schedule, we couldn't spend as much time at this park as we wanted to. Had we been able to hang around right up through closing, we'd have ridden more attractions, spent more time really getting to know this place. Some extra spins on Intimidator, the new B&M hypercoaster, would have been especially sweet, especially after dark. That said, it was a fine day and there were a few very pleasant surprises.

If you're not familiar with Carowinds' own history, do listen to The Season Pass episode referenced above; the park's initial development and evolution are covered in some detail. But I'm sure you're already aware that it had been conceived as this area's answer to Six Flags Over Texas, Georgia and Mid-America.

And that's my only real gripe: I wish there was more of that local flavor still in evidence. But this is a park with a lot of great assets and potential, and the introduction of Intimidator is a promising start to Carowinds' next phase, as it heads into its 40th anniversary.

Nice dramatic entrance; love the font choice!

After spending two days at a park as lush as Dollywood, Carowinds felt a little barren. But there were some very thoughtfully landscaped areas, like this one.

And there were areas where a proper design theme was carried through, like this "Carolina Boardwalk" section.

We had lunch here and it was delicious. Highly recommended.