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HersheyPark now arguably has the best ride line-up in the country. I mean an RMC conversion, solid dueling woody, classic woody, excellent invert, classic Schwarzy, great Boomerang, operating Intamin hydraulic launch, Intamin megalooper, Intmain insane mega, great B&M mega, S&S towers, indoor spinner, dark rides, family rides. F**k. That's like the dream park I would make in Roller Coaster Tycoon.

Some notes from yesterday: Most of the parks were very uncrowded. Walk ons on Spiderman, Hulk, Mummy, Transformers, ET, Simpsons, Forbidden Journey. VelociCoaster never longer than ~25 minutes. But for some reason Hagrid NEVER posted a line shorter than 2 hours. I mean...I like the thing but if that continues today I guess that'll be an easy skip. Had my first Mummy rides in 10 years, forgot how fantastic it is! Legit airtime a couple times in the coaster section, the sets are great, just a total home run. I did get in one more Woody ride! Transformers is just super bouncy Spiderman. Rode VC in front for the first time. Quite terrific, but the back has more teeth. Incoming storm had Hogwarts looking spooky as all hell. Back it today and probably here on Sunday as well.

This one looks far better than a lot of the other smaller RMCs. Less of the abrupt jerky airtime and more fluid elements. I dig it.

Was at BGT on Tuesday and thankfully was able to get on Iron Gwazi... It was up and running 2 trains just fine up until about 2 or so, when it went down. Eventually we went over and asked if it would reopen and was told it would not for the rest of the day. Bummer, as we wanted a few rides before heading out, but at least we got on in the morning a few times. IG by the way is easily my favorite RMC. Completely kills Vengeance in my mind, no question (I really, really hate the ending of Vengeance...). It was a stunning ride and took my #1 spot for RMC, at least. It was good redemption after riding Wonder Woman at SFMM days prior and how terrible that thing was... But yeah, even the trains were better than usual. RMC must have made some tweaks from many of their other rides so the shin bar isn't actually pressing against my shin, leaving a bit of room, so it doesn't feel like it will snap my leg in two during airtime moments like so many of their other rides. HUGE improvement there.

I didn't realize anyone missed Roller Soaker that much lol. I mean personally, I'd take the new water coaster / racing complex any day. That said, definitely agree this lineup is stacked.

Like how you'll be on a four lane highway, which will just suddenly turn into a two lane stop sign T intersection in the middle of an older miner's town where you have to make a left or a right turn?

So far I haven’t seen too much complaining that it’s not some 200+ foot, 6 inversion, launched record breaker that all of the YouTube thoosies with a copy of NoLimits dreamt it up to be… impressive! Looks like a great ride, and my god Hersheypark is freakin STACKED!

Bring back the Pokemon plan!

Hersheypark has announced Wildcat's Revenge, a new Rocky Mountain Construction coaster for 2023! https://stories.hersheypa.com/hersheypark-announces-all-new-wildcats-revenge-hybrid-coaster-coming-summer-2023/ Wildcat is back and seeking vengeance. Hersheypark amusement park today announced the details of its all-new Wildcat’s Revenge hybrid coaster. One of 15 coasters at Hersheypark, the wood and steel hybrid will join one of the largest and most iconic coaster collections in the United States in summer 2023, 100 years after the first Wild Cat ride debuted at the Park. Manufactured by Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC), Wildcat’s Revenge adds an all-new steel track with unique elements to the existing wooden framework for a one-of-a-kind thrilling ride experience found only at Hersheypark. The hybrid coaster features a 140-foot hill, maximum speeds of 62 miles per hour and four inversions, including the World’s Largest Underflip. “Based on our guest feedback, we knew coaster fans would love a hybrid at Hersheypark, and we’re thrilled to work with RMC on a custom wood and steel coaster with a nod to our history,” said Vikki Hultquist, General Manager of Attractions at Hersheypark. “Wildcat’s Revenge features the very best of RMC’s signature thrills, including four inversions with the World’s Largest Underflip, Inverted Stall, Zero-G Roll and Reversing Downhill Roll.” UNIQUE HYBRID COASTER EXPERIENCE Located in the Midway America region of Hersheypark, Wildcat's Revenge features a fully renovated coaster station with a design that harkens back to the iconic 1923 Wild Cat station with low-pitched gables around the perimeter of the roof. Guests of Hershey’s height requirement and taller (48 inches and above) will sit in one of three custom trains, showcasing fully-dimensional black, charcoal and silver wild cats exacting revenge on their wooden predecessor. The thematic elements are a design first for Hersheypark. The 2-minute and 36-second experience begins as riders climb a 140-foot hill, plunge into an 82-degree drop and hit a maximum speed of 62 miles per hour along 3,510 feet of red track on a black steel and wood structure. The pursuit continues as riders stalk their prey through four inversions, including the World’s Largest Underflip, an inversion that begins with an upward climb, followed by a counterclockwise 270° roll and a dive down towards the side. Following its summer 2023 debut, Wildcat’s Revenge will be open for all four seasons, weather permitting. For more information, visit www.Hersheypark.com/explore-the-park/rides/wildcats-revenge/ and follow along on social media using #WildcatsRevenge.

oh, and I just could not forgive myself if I didn't post this classic right away tho. . . that I took that next morning in the park . . . featuring: ANDREW

The ride system has been revealed just a moment ago: It seems to be a total new design made together with the Efteling and Intamin. Seems to be something interesting since the whole thing has movements that can do a lot. 6 smaller discs can turn around with each holding 18 persons. The large disc (18meters in diameter) can tilt, rotate, go up/down and create a kind of free fall effect. Really looking forward for this one.

Can confirm, there is indeed a wall built around Falcon's Fury and there's a notice posted on the wall saying (paraphrased) that it's down for refurbishment so it can be enjoyed for many more years to come, but due to the supply chain issues it is taking them longer than expected to get parts. I wouldn't expect it to be open until next year at the earliest. That being said, here's some other thoughts from my family's visit last Sunday, September 25th. This was my second visit to the park, but the rest of my family's first trip. We got there right at opening with the intention of making Iron Gwazi the first ride of the day. When we walked over to it, we were greeted with a line sprawling back the length of a football field and a sign up in front of the gate stating "We are working hard to get this ride up and running today!". So, um, yeah... and that's how Air Grover became our first coaster of the day instead. From there, we followed a circle path around the park. My son and I hit the 54" coasters in succession; Sheikra, Tigris, Kumba. All of them were running well. The lines at this point were still pretty short, so we were able to stay on for a re-ride on Sheikra, and we only had a 5 minute wait for the front row on Tigris. Kumba on the other hand was only running a single train, and although there was one family in front of us, it ended up taking about ten minutes for us to get a front row ride over there. My wife and daughter rejoined us to hit Scorpion and Sand Serpent before grabbing lunch. I pitched Scorpion to my wife as SooperDooperLooper's little cousin, as that was her first looping coaster, and to my surprise she actually enjoyed herself! The ride was running amazing without any rattling or headbanging, and it still had some serious bite to its forces. A heck of a lot of fun. Sand Serpent on the other hand, well, it was definitely a credit. We grabbed lunch at the nearby Dragonfire Grill. They honored the SWSA platinum pass discount and knocked about $15 off the cost of the meal. It was here that we learned about their new policy, which is no straws. At all. "Not even paper straws?" "Nope, we gotta save the animals." (Never mind the fact that their reusable cups came with those thick reusable plastic straws, which is more than Six Flags can say over the past few years.) Is this a chain wide thing now? I swear when we were at SWSD back in April, they still had straws there. Whatever. So I ate an ICEE with a spoon. Don't judge me. As the girls were wrapping up their lunch and my daughter really wanted to get some spooky face paint, my son and I headed off to the last 54" coaster of the batch, Montu. In case you didn't already know, he's a huge fan of inverts. His top three for the longest time were Talon, Banshee, and Alpengeist. This only recently changed when we went to IOA back in June and Velocicoaster took the #2 spot from Banshee. We got to Montu to find it a verifiable walk-on in the middle of the day, hopped in the back row, and headed out from the station. Instantly I saw the smile on his face begin to form, and he was laughing, screaming, and having a ball the entire ride. We got back to the station with his hair sticking straight up and he said "I think I have to take Talon out of my top spot." I asked him if he'd like to ride again but this time in the front row since there was next to no one there. We walked around, got back in line for a two-train wait for the front, and in his words "it was even better up front! Oh my god! There was so much going on!" So a back row ride was good enough for #1 and a front row ride firmly solidified that opinion for him. After Montu, my wife and daughter met up with us again for Cobra's Curse, a short ten minute wait from the room with the video projections. This ended up being my daughter's favorite coaster of the day. She wasn't expecting it to go backwards, much less start spinning! My wife handled the first two parts pretty well, but she isn't really a fan of the spinning parts understandably. The theming is pretty great overall, and it definitely stands out amongst the rest of the park's collection of coasters. Cheetah Hunt was up next, and this was the longest wait of the day for us at nearly one hour. I told my wife it was somewhere in between Hagrid (which she loved) and Velocicoaster (which she passed on riding). This turned out to be her favorite of the day, though there were some spots that caught her off guard. We all agreed it would be better without the overhead restraints, though. By this point in the day, it was about 4:30 PM, and we found ourselves back at the beginning of the park. Checked the wait time on Iron Gwazi which had now opened and it was posting a 45 minute wait. We all hopped in line, but my wife decided to sit this one out as well; she's not great with heights, having had bad experiences on her two hypers so far, and her only other RMC hybrid (Wicked Cyclone) took her about six months of contemplation to decide that no, she didn't like it after all. The wait time was significantly less than posted, with a mostly empty station up top, but it was definitely being hampered by the fact that they were only sending on average one train approximately every 5-7 minutes. Even still, we ended up only waiting 25 minutes after putting our stuff in the locker. The ride itself? My son absolutely loved it and has put it as his #3. My daughter unfortunately had the same issues she tends to have with most of RMC's trains, which is the seatbelt buckle digging directly into her thigh, which means every time there's any bit of airtime she winces in pain. I ended up focusing more on her throughout the ride and wasn't able to give IG my full attention, so I'm probably going to have to give it another ride before I can fully form my own opinion about it, but after that first ride I liked it more than Steel Vengeance but less than Twisted Timbers. I'm weird, I guess. After the ride on Iron Gwazi, we decided we didn't want to hop back in line a second time since our flight out of Florida was early the following morning. Instead, we called it an hour before park close, hopped back in the car, made a stop off the highway to grab some Waffle House for dinner as one does, and said our final goodbyes to this very cool park. We still prefer Williamsburg over Tampa, but I can see an argument to be made either way! And I'm pretty pleased with the fact that we were able to hit all of the park's coasters on a Sunday without having to shell out for any skip-the-line passes. Always a plus.

I just wanted to pop in and say thank you to everyone who gave me advice a few weeks ago. I went to Knoebels last Sunday and absolutely LOVED the place. Everything else aside, Phoenix and Twister absolutely blew away all my expectations. Their operations are impressive enough but they both were just fantastic. Phoenix's airtime feels illegal and Twister brings lots of intensity and laterals that I was not expecting. I was a bit worried Phoenix would be the "Millennium Force of woodies" and would become overhyped after all these awards it wins but... yeah I totally get it. Also managed to get on Flying Turns and Impulse, both of which are about what I expected. And despite my slight dairy intolerance, I tried the BBQ pizza anyway and it was delicious and I have no regrets lol (and it was cheap?!). A large slice of pizza and a drink for 6.50 seemed dirt cheap. I didn't spend the entire day at the park but a good 5-6 hours and taking it all in, riding the coasters many times, and enjoying the atmosphere. Oh and the drop tower is also nuts. Black Diamond was closed so I unfortunately didn't do that. I didn't get around to the Haunted Mansion either because the line was just ridiculous and I wanted to get more re-rides on Phoenix and Twister to use up the ride tickets I bought. Overall though I had an amazing time. The park felt like a combination of Lagoon and Holiday World but better than both. I already can't wait to go back. I will also say, the drive from Knoebels directly to Dorney Park was quite... strange? So many back roads and through small, old colonial/Americana towns. Such a different feel than out west or in the south. That drive was one of the most memorable, surprising, but also strange parts of the trip. I've never really done any drive like that.

Imagine is they never tore down Roller Soaker, then the line up would really be stacked.....