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Just got back from a quick trip to my old stomping grounds. I used to work at Busch Gardens VA 1994-97, and I had not been there in awhile. I was looking forward to some new credits and riding some of my favorites. Started the trip at Kings Dominion on Sunday May 19th. Cloudy and a bit cool, so crowds were pretty non-existent. Rode Tumbili, my very first S&S 4D free spin. Smooth as anything, and not too crazy. In fact, since I rode by myself, I don't recall flipping upside down even once. Racer 75 was fun although I hate the seat dividers. No need for them when you already have a seat belt and individual locking lap bars. Twisted Timbers. I rode this the first year it was open and enjoyed it. This time it just felt like a never ending set of bunny hills over and over. Not a fan. Grizzly ran well esp. with the new track from last year. Did the log ride which is always fun. I was also doing a livestream on YouTube with my friend, and the viewers insisted I get my face painted. I obliged. After a few hours in the park, I headed down to Busch since they posted on Twitter (I refuse to call it X) that DarKoaster would only be running on weekends. I parked in the Italy section only to find NO TRAMS. Ridiculous. It's almost a half mile walk to the front gate. Got to DarKoaster and joined the 50 minute line. The SLOWEST moving line, and the abundance of Quick Queue made the line even worse. They REALLY need a single rider line since I saw train after train (which only hold 10 people) leave the station with empty seats. Cool concept, but when you're riding in the dark, you cannot brace yourself for the sudden turns. My neck still hurts. Came back on Monday for a full day in the park. First up: Loch Ness Monster. It LOOKS great, but even with the new track, it is still rough as ever. The effects in the tunnel are cool if you could see them. They have projections on the side walls, and with the harnesses, it's really impossible to get a good look. Verbolten was fine, nothing out of the ordinary. Finally got my first ride on Pantheon. Great area, queue, and then....they really cheaped out on the station. It looks like a barn or cheap Home Depot shed. The ride was good though VelociCoaster is WAY better. Comfortable trains and fast dispatches helped to keep the line moving. Alpengeist was closed. Like not even close to being open with park benches blocking the entrance. Strange. I worked in the Entertaiment Department when I was there, so I wanted to see what shows they had. The "Trio De Roma" show in Italy had 2 performers and did exactly ONE sort of Italian song "That's Amore." VERY underwhelmed. Anyway...enjoy the pics! Yeah...light crowds today. About to ride my very first S&S 4D Freespin All in all, not bad. Not crazy and definitely not worth more than a 5-10 minute wait. I had the whole train to myself! The best part of the ride before the non stop bunny hills. Nice job here. Lots of new wood made for a smoother ride. The queue for the log ride. Again....no one here! My face painting as decided by my YouTube viewers. One more pic and then washing it off! This is where I parked. A half mile walk to the park. Cool part of the ride. Whee! Nice entrance....horrible station. Lots of new track and paint. Still photogenic. The new monster statue at the bottom of the 2nd loop. Will still NEVER forgive the park for ripping out the iconic circular stage and putting in this travesty. Eh.... Closed. The view from the skyride. The new and improved tunnel...sort of. Cool tunnel on Invadr.

I think one thing that a lot of "should have gone with Intamin" takes are missing is... Cedar Fair owns another Intamin accelerator coaster that's been a huge pain in recent years. In March 2022, Xcelerator at Knott's went SNBO for the 2nd time in only 5 years. The first closure lasted 8 months, the second closure would last almost 2 years. So while CP was planning for a Dragster renovation during the 2022 season, it's sister coaster was facing even more long term downtime while waiting for the manufacturer service department. That, plus all the other issues with Dragster, had to have influenced the choice to find another supplier.

Considering how quickly the Zamperla Thunderbolt coasters seem to go from 'That was surprisingly smooth' to 'never again', maybe it's a good thing they're identifying issues and adjusting as early as possible.

Should give them time to install free lockers, right? /s