Brandon, Jayme's son
The next morning we loaded up the mini van and prepared to cross the rest of Kansas, with our final destination being Kansas City, MO. This was to be a day for the kids. No museums or historical things. Our plan was to go to Worlds of Fun, a Six Flags style amusement park. We were on the road by 8 AM and arrived at the park about 3:30 PM. I had guaranteed our arrival at our hotel, so I was planning a late check in, so the park was our first stop once we hit the city limits.
Me and Jolene in the back
Arriving at 3:30 wasn’t going to be a problem either. By that time in the day, the morning people, which is most everyone, is starting to lose their steam and thinking about going home.
Our ride across Kansas gave us plenty of time to listen to the radio. We mostly listened to music to help while away the hours of boring Kansas countryside. It was here on the Kansas plains were word reached us of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman.
Front to back; Jolene, Jessi, Margo, and Me
I specifically remember hearing that OJ Simpson was not considered a suspect, and thinking “That’s good. I always liked OJ” But, we all know how that turned out.
It was hot when we to there and we had no real plan, so we kind of bounced around a little. But, Jolene, my oldest, desperately wanted to ride the big roller coaster. I used to like roller coasters. Yell and scream and revel in the danger and the physical sensations. Now, I like nice firm ground without too many dangers, perceived or otherwise. But, Jolene is 10 years old and finally of sufficient height, so that she can now ride everything in the park. Margo, my dear wife, doesn't like roller coasters. She got over the novelty of them almost as soon as she rode one. That left the chaperoning and hand holding duties to me. I looked around for other volunteers. Mom was having no part of any roller coaster. My brother was game, but he had his hands full finding things for Brandon, his 3 year old son.
One of Worlds of Fun’s big roller coasters is called the Orient Express.
Front to back; Mom, Brandon, and Jayme
That sounds innocent enough, like a train rides though the country side. Not so much. You start be traveling what seem to be a mile up a hill. Then when we got to the top, I was praying that it would be a nice gentle slope on the other side. We were in a middle car, the screams from the front car let us know, that God wasn't answering that particular prayer. (He did allow me to live through it, so I guess he was listening later on) After that first hill the car we were riding into launched into a series of loops and twists that would make Neil Armstrong sick, one more minor hill, and few more jolts and jerks, and the ride was over. I was very thankful that I hadn't eaten in awhile. Our final surprise came at the end of the ride, when we were afforded the opportunity to purchase a picture taken of the car we were riding in. The picture was snapped when we were ample distance down that first hill, to be convinced that it was going to be a hell of a ride. This picture thing is pretty common nowadays, but in 1994, it was new. In ours, I actually looked like I was smiling. That's what I told everyone, but in actuality I was gritting my teeth in horror. Jolene’s expression is much more honest. She has a look of unadulterated terror on her face.
As I mentioned it was hot.
The Monsoon (photo courtesy of worldsoffun.com)
June anywhere in the Midwest can be hot. Worlds of Fun’s log ride is called Viking’s Voyage. All log rides are essentially the same thing. You get in some reproduction of a hollowed out log, and ride it through the water until you come to a big hill, which you plummet down, and make a big splash at the bottom. We were looking forward to the big splash. Jayme, Mom, and Brandon rode one log. Margo, Jolene, Jessi, and I were in another. This was a big deal for Jessi, because she was only 5 and didn’t get to do that many of the big kid rides. Margo had to hold on to her tight, because this ride you sat on the floor, with no seat belts, or even seats for that matter. When we hit the big hill, to make the splash, Jessi was almost gravitated out. But, she was having a great time.
We rode on the Sea Dragon, a ship the swings back and forth, higher and higher and several of the kiddie rides. We had passed a couple of water rides on the way over to Kiddie Land, and Jessi had expressed an interest in riding them.
The Monsoon (photo courtesy of worldsoffun.com)
The two she had noticed were call “Fury of the Nile” and “Monsoon”. The Fury of the Nile puts you in round boat and you float through five acres of sights and spills (literally). The Monsoon is an up one side and down the other water ride, that creates a big splash at the bottom. We rode the Monsoon. We would be me and my two girls. Margo stayed with Mom. Brandon was too little, so Jayme stayed behind as well. The ride doesn’t last long, about a minutes and a half. Most of that time is spent snaking up the hill. The down hill part last about 10 seconds, and then you splash, and float back to the beginning. It’s a lot of fun, and if it is a hot day, it feels really good. But, this was our last ride of the day and it was getting dark, so the really hot weather was behind us. When we plowed through the water at the bottom of the chute, the Water Gods spared Jolene and I. The Gods cried all over Jessi and she left the ride soaked to the bone. By the time we met up with the rest, Jessi was shivering and very cold. Margo, who had admonished me to keep a close eye on Jessi, promptly sent me to the concession stand for a Worlds of Fun towel.
That was it for our day, and we were soon on our way to hotel, the Motel 6 of Blue Springs, MO. Tomorrow we would be heading to St. Louis.
