League Night #2 of 8
Games Played: Indiana Jones, Attack from Mars, Terminator 3, Jack-Bot, Fish Tales
Once again I missed league night, this time because I was at Kings Island riding the legendary wooden coaster The Beast, as part of a whirlwind trip with fellow league members Joseph and Mike S. We drove to the Cincinnati-area amusement park before heading east to Pittsburgh to attend Pinburgh, the world’s largest pinball tournament (the largest it’s ever been, with 800 participants this year). Then after Pinburgh, we stuck around Pittsburgh one more day to visit possibly my favorite amusement park, Kennywood. Although I’m sorry to miss two league sessions in a row (the most I’ve ever missed in a season), it was a great trip and one I will remember for a long time.
Lansing Pinball League was represented by several current and past league members, including me, Joseph, Mike, Jake, Christine, Adam, and Rodney. Joseph and I were the only ones to officially register LPL as our league affiliation for Pinburgh results, despite my attempts to cajole others. Joseph notably represented the league by earning the top qualifier spot in D division and going on to win 2nd in the division after a nailbiting, high-scoring tiebreaker on the EM game Jungle Queen. He won $100 for being top qualifier and $750 for his second place finish.
Joseph (far right) with the other final four players in D division at Pinburgh. The other medal he is wearing was for having a perfect round the previous day, winning all four games in a match.
Mike, Christine, and Jake playing the Bowler Roller game at Kennywood. After several attempts, Mike won a prize.
Jake and Christine came along with me, Joseph, and Mike, to Kennywood this year, which made for a very merry group. I am always delighted to show people around my favorite amusement parks (as that is my other big hobby besides pinball), as it gives me an opportunity to see them through new eyes. The highlights of the day included cramming all five of us into a car on the Turtle (a vintage tumblebug ride, one of only two of its kind remaining in the world), and all of us minus Mike (who didn’t want to get wet) riding the log flume together. I could hear Jake laugh hysterically behind me as I, the front passenger, took a big old wave to the face at the bottom of the big hill.
In just a couple of hours it will be time for this week’s league night, the third of the season but the first for me! Although I don’t have a league night report from last time due to my absence, I did finally catch up on entering the results from the first two nights. Matt has announced that tonight’s games will be Iron Man, Attack from Mars, Demolition Man, and The Addams Family, with Lord of the Rings and Getaway as backup games. I hope to see you soon.