Heading north from Atlanta, we would roll into Charlotte for our 3rd park of the trip, Carowinds. While I had just visited Carowinds in November 2025 after the IAAPA Expo, this visit during my Southern Thaw trip on March 29th would be a fun visit to the place where the Carolina's Come Together.
We would take a good lunch break at Blue Ridge Kitchen and followed with a ride on Copperhead Strike. Gavin had only ever ridden Stardust Racers before riding Copperhead, and we joked that the Copperhead is the orange track to Stardust. I personally like Copperhead Strike over Maverick, because of its amazing hangtime in row 4.
Following Copperhead, we would take a lap on Carolina Gold Rusher. Its an Arrow Minetrain from the 1970s, but it was pretty fun. I prefer it to Dahlonega Mine Train at SFoG.
They both wanted to go ride Thunder Striker, the second and last B&M Hyper on the trip. I thought after a reride it was ok, but it isn't as good as Goliath.
After our last rides, we took some time to get photographs of Fury before they shut it down for the night. it is really a fun ride to watch, especially since it goes in two states.
Carowinds is a fun park. My last 2 visits were really good, and this park has a solid lineup. Carowinds was one of the first parks I visited outside of Ohio, and Fury helped me overcome my fear of Millennium Force. The park has a special place in my heart as the place that made me an enthusiast. Our visit was well ran, and all the associates were friendly. Its a park that, while I probably won't visit until 2027, I do enjoy making my yearly visits to. Taylor made a vlog documenting our day, click the link to check it out.