The best Titan story ever told

So, what's new with Ashley?
The answer: not much.

One thing that is new, however, is my decided adoration for Six Flags over Texas. Yep. Bobby, Amanda, Daniel, and I all bought season passes this year.
I think I've been three times in the last four weeks.
I've gotta say, one of the most entertaining happenings this year was watching Davey ride all his "first" rollercoasters....first time to ride the Batman...to ride the Texas Giant....to ride the Titan...

Yes. Davey riding the Titan. That will go down in the Six Flags archives as the best Titan story ever told. Everyone within driving distance of Arlington has heard a Titan story. This is fact.
But today I will tell you a story that will widen your eyes and trump all the others.

Okay, so Davey (12 years old) had never ridden anything more intense than Judge Roy Scream.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with this ride....suffice it to say that the Judge Roy is popular with young children, pregnant women, and the elderly.



It also happens to be one of my favorite rides....but that's just 'cause it's a classic. You can't go to Six Flags and not ride Judge Roy.
But I digress.

Anyway, one by one, we would pass other, bigger rollercoasters. And one by one, we would talk Davey into getting in line. Often, it would take quite a bit of persuasion....but every time he'd get off the ride, he announced that he loved it and often wanted to ride again.
After awhile, the group decided to head on over to the big one....the Titan.
The Titan, for those unfortunate few readers who don't have the privilege in living near enough to love or fear it, is a terrifying steel rollercoaster. With a first drop of 255 feet, which culminates in a 120-foot underground tunnel, it is one of the biggest in the world. From the top of the hill, you actually see into the Ballpark in Arlington.





So everyone quickly jumped in line. Everyone, that is, except Davey, who was prepared to wait on the side until the ride was over, when we would move on to something else.
What Davey was *not* prepared for, you see, is Daniel's strong hand on Davey's collar, dragging him into line with the definitive statement, "You're coming too."
And Davey was made to stand in line, looking white as a sheet as he watched car after car pull in with breathless, mussy-haired passengers staggering out towards the exit.

Because of the way the lines were arranged, some of us went on the car before Davey and Danny. We all waited at the exit, curious to see how the poor guy took it.

Well, the car pulled in, the passengers exited, and there he was. Davey, pale and bleary-eyed, stumbled out of the car and walked toward us. Danny actually looked a little drawn as well.
The obvious questions commenced: "What happened? Did you love it?"
"Love it?" Danny replied, "He wouldn't know! He fainted!"
Yeah.

"We were riding up the hill, right? And I was just looking straight ahead, to the top. I never look over the edge--dude, that freaks me out!--anyway, I could hear Davey next to me, his voice is gettin' all shakey, 'Danny....Danny....Danny.....'
"And then we drop, and Davey gets louder, 'DANNY! DANNY! DANNY!!' and he keeps doing that for the whole ride. Right around the time that we hit the second really big drop, (where the car stops for a second at that checkpoint) I realized that Davey wasn't yelling 'Danny...Danny' anymore. So I looked over at him, and he was like this!"

(Here, you'll have to picture Daniel imitating Davey.... slumped in his seat, with his head cocked back and slightly to the left, his eyes rolling back under almost-closed eyelids, his tongue lolling out of his mouth...)

(also...imagine the following taking place at a speed of 85 mph, on that very intense second drop, screaming around an insane spiral, and around the last bend, which is where the camera takes your souvenier picture...how I wish we had bought one!)

"At first I wasn't sure if he was just....I don't know. But I said, 'Davey,' and he didn't answer, so I shoved his shoulder, and he didn't do anything, and man, I was FREAKED! So started yelling 'DAVEY! DAVEY!!' over and over and I grabbed his shoulders and shook him really hard, and I just kept shaking him and screaming at him and eventually he woke up. He opened his eyes and looked kinda dazed for a second, and then he realized where he was, and then he was, like, 'AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!'"

Can you imagine waking up like that? Yeesh...

"Man," Danny said, as he came to the end, "I was so worried. I mean, I didn't want to get thrown-up on!"
(Yeah, that was his primary concern...)

I actually got Davey to ride it a second time with me. Haha, at every turn, he was grinning and yelling above the wind, "I DON'T REMEMBER THIS PART!! WOOOO-HOOOOO!!!"

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And all of this sets the awesome stage for this Sunday, when I will meet Ethan, one of my favorite internet acquaintances, at Six Flags. He's in town for a wedding, and we've blocked out Sunday afternoon. The poor kid's only ridden on wooden coasters. This will be a fine introduction.
Hehehe....

I can't wait.

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And on that jolly note, I end this entry. My comp time is wayyyy up.
Adieu, mas compains!
~Ashley Michele~