August is now in the books. The month felt like it flew by quicker than the Mothman flying through the night! Sorry, that’s a stupid pun that you’ll understand here in a bit. Anyhow, I was able to get out to a four parks last month, including one that had long been on my bucket list. Those trips had me out with several Flight Crew members, as well as my niece, Dalila. It was great getting to spend time with all of them. Talk about a nice change of pace from the last few months where I didn’t get out often. And best of all, these trips didn’t cost much more than travel and food costs. Maybe I should call myself the Cheapthusiast? What do you think, Josh?
Off-Track Bonus Videos
The first weekend in August Sam and I decided to do a road trip we’ve long wanted to do – a trip to both Camden Park and the Mothman Museum, with the two being about an hour apart. I’ve always wanted to visit Camden and Sam loves cryptids and their lore, especially the Mothman. Our plan was to visit Camden Park on Sunday and then the Mothman Museum on Monday. That was before we added in a bunch of other stops to our journey, including more unique and beautiful places.
While plotting our course the night before, Sam pointed out that we’d be passing by the Flatwoods Monster Museum – another museum dedicated to a West Virginia-based cryptid. We added that to our Day 2 plans to break up our drive home.
The night before our trip, I made mention of visiting Camden Park for the first time on the Facebook group, Coaster Appreciation Society (CAS). Fellow group member, Nathan Hall, suggested we stop at Hillbilly Hotdogs. We did that and man, was it ever a weird place, albeit totally fun! While waiting for our food, I decided to film some content to place onto the Camden Park vlog. We too wanted to suggest the restaurant for anyone visiting the park. It was only a few minutes worth of video, which I would later regret. Let me explain.
After visiting and shooting video at both Hillbilly Hotdogs and Camden Park, I began thinking that it might be fun to film all of our stops during the trip. I didn’t like the idea of sticking all that content in a single vlog, however. The more I thought about it, the more an idea began to take shape.
What I ended up coming up with was to add some non-coaster and non-amusement park themed content to the We Were Inverted YouTube channel as bonus content. I ran the idea by Sam and she thought it was a good idea. Two of these videos have already made it onto the channel – one for Hillbilly Hotdogs and one for the Mothman Museum. Sadly, the one for Hillbilly Hotdogs is rather short. I wish I had the idea prior to our visit because I could and would have filmed so much more of the place. Never saw anything like it before and doubt I ever will again unless I go back.
Be sure to check out the two Off-Track Bonus videos above. There will be more to come covering both the Flatwoods Monster Museum and a last minute stop we made to Blackwater Falls as well. I have several more POV’s coming from Camden Park too. Be sure to follow the channel.
2 New Pins, That's All
With funds a little tight lately, I’ve been forced to calm down with my collecting. Had it not been for a last minute trip to Dorney Park on August 28, 2022, there would have been no pin additions at all for this month’s CAG Report. The pins above were both obtained during that visit to Dorney. Yes, I know one of the pins comes from Busch Gardens Tampa (BGT), so let me explain.
Some time ago Josh and Aaron visited BGT and grabbed the Iron Gwazi pin/patch combo pack for me. They forgot to bring it with them to Hersheypark on July 31, 2022, when we met up to ride Wildcat on it’s final day of operations. They did remember to bring it with them to Dorney, though. I’ve been looking forward to adding this to my collection. I now have the pin/patch combo sets for Pantheon, Ice Breaker, and Iron Gwazi. Does anyone know if Emperor has one too?
As for the Dorney Park pin, I’m usually partial to coaster pins, but I do buy some general park pins from time to time. Since I’ve never actually bought a pin from Dorney Park before, I decided to get this one. I liked the old school look to it, especially since my grandfather grew up in Philadelphia and said he visited the park many times as a kid.
With all that being said, if you’re wondering where the rest of my Dorney Park pins come from, they’ve all been bought via eBay or sellers I’ve found on various Facebook groups. I’d love to see Dorney add some new pins, especially after seeing some of their newer merch. Speaking of which, Steven, from Thill Maxx, will be getting some new magnets here soon. I grabbed him a couple during the visit. And any day now the Outlaw Run pin he grabbed me at Silver Dollar City should be arriving in the mail. I can’t wait!
1 Bucket List Park & 3 Area Regulars
When August began and Sam and I decided to visit Camden Park, I thought that road trip might be my only excursion for the month. Instead, it became the first of four – all of which, including Camden, were thrown together a day or two before the trips themselves.
A week after Camden, Renee asked me if I’d like to go to Hersheypark. She had the day off and had a free guest pass tperks set to expire. Since I didn’t renew my pass this year (by accident), she offered me one of the guest passes. Even though I had went weeks before, I couldn’t pass up the chance to hit up Hersheypark again, especially with Renee. We hadn’t been to any parks at all this year up until that day.
About a week after the Hershey trip, my niece, Dalila, was set to come up and visit for a few days. I decided to surprise her with a trip to Busch Gardens Williamsburg (BGW) before the end of her summer break. She enjoys coasters, but is sometimes a little iffy about them. That was the case during our visit, but it allowed us to explore the park in ways my coaster friends and I usually do not.
The most recent trip was the one to Dorney. This trip mostly happened because I had only visited one Cedar Fair park this year, so I needed to put my Platinum Pass to use. Since I hadn’t been to Dorney in 2022, I figured I’d make the trip up and see what Josh and Arron were up to? It was short notice, so I wasn’t sure if they’d be able to make it, but they did. They came out for a few hours and we had a blast getting in some rides together.
- (08.07.2022) Camden Park – Another Small Park Off My Bucket List
- (08.12.2022) Hersheypark – Crazy Concert Crowds
- (08.18.2022) Busch Gardens Williamsburg – A Different Kind of Day
- (08.28.2022) Dorney Park – A Few Hours of Some Much Needed Fun
Spooky Times Ahead
Since I launched We Were Inverted on June 29, 2022, amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, Halloween events were pretty much non-existent that year. In 2021, things were moving back to a bit of normalcy, but some events were still gimped due to area regulations and staffing issues. This year I’m hoping that things are back into full swing. I’m long overdue for some spooky fun at a park. Last year we did visit several parks during Halloween, but for various reasons, I did not get to do any walk-through haunts. Since it’s been so long, I want to do some here in 2022. Naturally, I will be sure to cover that for the site. Maybe I can also find a separate haunt, outside of a park, and cover it for an Off-Track Bonus.
Other than that, I have no concrete plans for September. I have sent out an interview request to someone who inspired me, along with a few others, to launch We Were Inverted. I won’t share who that is because I don’t know if he has the free time, or is interested in taking part. I respect everyone’s time and don’t want anyone to look bad if they decide to decline my request. That being said, are there any other enthusiasts/content producers out there who you’d like to see interviewed? Let me know.
