So I get stuck out at the convention center in Orlando for 3 days for a technology conference. Wheeee. Lots of time listening to people talk, thankfully about subjects that I'm at least interested in, and hours walking around a floor area with hundreds of vendors. Talk about exhausting....

But thankfully, I was only a couple of miles away from Universal's Islands of Adventure. So once I reached burnout point each day (around 3-4 pm when it started at 8am) So once I was to tired to know a venn diagram from a computer schematic, it was off to the park to try to unwind and get my brain back in order.

Let me say, I love slow, off season days at the park. I didn't wait more than 2-3 ride cycles for anything that I wanted to ride, and often times just walked onto whatever ride it was. But the highlight was Dueling Dragons. It was slow enough that I was able to get off the coaster, walk through the exit and the reride line, and be back in line and boarding the train for the next ride to dispatch. I think in the two days I probably got around 30 rides on both Fire and Ice. Talk about an exhilerating way to relax.

Which is one of the reasons that I love coasters so much. There's just something about them- the rush of adrenaline that comes with the first drop, the exhileration of flying around in otherwise impossible ways, the feel of the wind on your face as you're flying around and through the air, and the great fun it can be to interact with the other people riding the train. It's just that kind of fun that I can't get enough of sometimes.

And it was another reminder why having a season pass for a park is such a good investment when all is said and done. I was able to spend a couple hours each day at the park for 3 days- something that would have been just plain unaffordable if I had been spending money for daily addition. But with this, it's money well worth spending when I, essentially, had 3 days at the park with no money spent outside of a couple of dollars for a cola here and there. And to get in that many rides on one of my favorite coasters in the country- well worth the exchange, and practically a lifesaver during the convention!