With December 2022 now in the rear view mirror, it’s time for a quick review of what happened last month on We Were Inverted. There were a few fun things of note, but with the holiday season and my continued job search, there isn’t a ton to recap. This CAG Report will be on the shorter side.
Singing Cows? I'm In!
With the winter holidays I considered doing a vlog or two and uploading them to the We Were Inverted YouTube channel. The thing is, I vlogged from all the parks I visited this year, last year for their winter holiday events. While it would have been content, I decided that I just wanted to relax and enjoy the parks this time. I still took some photos for the trip reports, but it was nice not having to record everything. Plus, one of those days would have been super hard since I was wearing gloves.
The only video I published in December is one I filmed a few months ago. It is the Hershey Chocolate Tour dark ride in Hershey’s Chocolate World, located just outside Hersheypark. I’ve been on this ride more times than I can count. I’m sure many viewers from this region have as well. It’s a ride so many families enjoy. For the rest of you, however, I hope you’ve had a chance to check it out. It’s a fun ride full of lights, sounds, information, history, scents, and even a free chocolate bar upon exiting.
Tampa & Some Top Gun
All of my pins from last month came from eBay purchases. I had been watching auctions for the license plates from Busch Gardens Tampa (BGT). I have a complete collection of both plate series from Busch Gardens Williamsburg (BGW) and I’ve been wanting to acquire the ones from its sister park. I managed to grab Tigris, Python, and Kumba all for under $10 each. I also nabbed the Sand Serpent Ambassador pin since I was unable to secure either the SheiKra or Montu license plates.
The only non-BGT pin of last month’s additions is an oldie, but one I could not pass up. It’s a Top Gun pin from Paramount’s Great America, now California’s Great America. With this site’s obvious Top Gun inspiration, it was a no-brainer. I also have a Top Gun pin from Paramount’s Kings Island too, which is now, surprise, surprise, Kings Island! I know, you had no idea!
3, Almost 4 Park Visits in December
Before the end of September I had hopes to visit a few of the regional parks for their winter events. In the past the crew and I have lucked out with some good weather and got in lots of rides on some of our favorite coasters. Other times, it was super cold and we found some rides to be closed. Much like the last two years, we lucked out and also struck out.
I managed a visit to BGW earlier in the month, meeting up with Chris and Carrie one last time before the end of the year. We had some decent weather for December and got in what we wanted to do.
In mid-December, I made my way up to Hersheypark a couple of times. The first time was just Sam and I. While it was cold, even Candymonium was running. We were surprised.
The second visit to Hershey came when Renee invited me out with her fiancé, Chris, and her brother, Brady. It felt like the same temperature when Sam and I visited, but we arrived to find a good deal of the rides closed. Many more had by the end of the night as it gotten even colder.
Sam and I originally had plans to visit to Kings Dominion for New Year’s Eve, just like we had done last year. A rainy forecast had us wait until New Year’s Day instead. So one day later meant a whole new month and a whole new year. So that trip report is still yet to come.
Kicking of 2023
Aside from the upcoming trip report from a New Year’s Day at Kings Dominion, January will see the annual Who Earned the Most? blog hit the site. That’s been a fun thing tally and explore at the end of every year. While I do keep track of the majority of everyone’s credits as the year progresses, I have to touch base with a couple of people to verify what they rode. Some of us didn’t see too many new additions while a couple saw quite a few. And one even grabbed a few in the final days of the year.
Even with some of the parks in this region moving to a year-round schedule, I’m not sure if I’ll be headed out to any parks in January. Maybe I can work on getting a new interview for the site lined up or a brand new entry in the Influential Coasters of My Childhood series. I have yet to talk about Comet from Hersheypark and that’s the coaster that is hands down the most influential in me becoming an enthusiast.
If there’s something you’d like to see, let me know. I’m also open to new ideas and new series I could add to the site. Shoot me a message if you have any ideas.
