ginzo

See it's all kind of subjective. I thought that Fahrenheit was kind of sluggish, especially being right next to Storm Runner. And there are those that swear up and down that Millennium Force has "ejector air", but to me that's something only a "midwest nutjob" would claim.

^Probably because Alpengeist runs more like a SLC than a B&M. But, really, 54 isn't a horrible ranking when you consider how many steel coasters are out there. There might be close to 2,000 steelies operating. I dunno the exact figure.

The results look pretty good. I'm happy that Tele2 Insane made it into the top 20, albeit barely. It's a bit of an underdog, but in my opinion FAR more intense than just about any coaster on the planet. I wonder if Diamondback will be able to stay in the top 10 next year. It did get a healthy amount of riders though. Might not be able to pin this one entirely on "midwest nutjobs".

What use is bubble-headed optimism in the face of harsh reality? They couldn't make a go of this park even when the new owners paid less than 10% of what it cost to build in the first place. The only way they could get anyone through the gate was to price admission so low that they couldn't afford to pay even the smallest bills to vendors.

^Or worse: Go to Disneyland!

Congrats on finally getting to ride SD2K.

Dumb, but nowhere near as dumb as some of the shit Detroit has shoveled out over the years. Like the school bus with gas tank placed under the emergency exit. Or the Pinto with the exploding rear bumper.

^Also, as Robb has learned, those park rep jobs have extremely high turnover. Newbies won't have as good of contacts in the press, etc.

Unless it's opening day for the ride or something, 3 hours is too long for anything. I'd look into going on other days or finding a less busy park to visit. The one time we went to KD we managed to get all the credits in about 4 hours on a random weeknight in July.

I'd take a short, great ride like Piraten, Raven, or Ravine Flyer II over a long and boring one any day. To me, length is kind of like height, a meaningless stat hyped up by parks for the GP. It says little about the overall quality of the ride. Joe "It's not the size of the wave" C.

My vote goes to Predator. What an awful piece of crap.

^You forgot to ask him what lenses he uses.

But Jeff Johnson is going to join. I'm sure you're quite the young buck in comparison.

^I think that was the "make your own bread" attraction. And only Elissa succeeded.

^BTW, has anyone found a way to blame TPR for Prowler's high rating yet?

Thanks for posting this update, Hanno. That was a great day! It's funny how a little guy like Piraten can wind up being better than almost any coaster out there.

Favorite new coaster: Balder. Most memorable park moment: Eating dinner at Blue Bayou after getting married. Also, that was one of my first experiences with getting a decent meal at a park. Most memorable coaster moment: El Toro's first drop in the back row. Best ERT session: Three way tie between Expedition GeForce with TPR 2008 and Balder with TPR 2009 and Tele2 Insane with TPR 2009. Least favorite coaster: Son of Beast. KI could have used that money to build something good. Least favorite park: Clementon Lake. What a dump! Most interesting ride you've seen introduced: Tele2 Insane. Least interesting ride you've seen intoduced: Any time a Vekoma Boomerang or SLC was moved and opened up as a "new" coaster. Your favorite TPR moment (favorite post, trip report, video, whatever!): The entire Scandinavia Trip was my favorite TPR experience. R&E really outdid themselves in planning it. The parks were consistently excellent as was the general treatment we received from the parks. The decade's biggest flop: Hard Rock Park. They built a $400 million park that nobody wants to go to. The decade's biggest success: Disney Parks firmly holding their lead in attendance. The best meal you've had at a park: EPCOT Food & Wine Festival 2008 and 2009. The worst meal you've had at a park: Most counter service at Six Flags and Cedar Fair parks. That food isn't fit for pigs. Best park turnaround: Possibly DCA. It's nice to see the park finally get the capital it needed. Worst park turnaround: Re-opening Hard Rock Park as a cheap knock off of its former self. What was the biggest trend of this past decade: Huge money problems all around. Lots of park closings and sales. Favorite Independent Park: Knoebels. After visiting three years in a row, this park never fails to impress me with how well they hold their own against all the mega parks with infinitely more resources. Basic rides run at their best (Phoenix, Skooters, Flyers) can match all the fancy toys Universal and Disney can dream up.

Schadenfreude.

I figure the point of a roller coaster is to entertain. And that video was as entertaining as any ride we took on that trip. To me, anyway.

^I actually gave Bandit a decent ranking (somewhere in the middle) because of the on-ride videos. Why don't all brutal woodies sell on-ride videos?

^^^^From another point of view, most of the top 10 woodies have extreme forces, something that GCII is not really known for. Not that I don't like GCII, they just don't kick your ass like some other rides do. I think the comparison to B&M is apt. Both firms make coasters that are very solid and loved by GP, enthusiasts, and parks alike. But they don't go to 11. Well, B&M used to go to 11, but that's another topic.

Five and one more is on the way.

I've always thought it was funny that Switzerland has no Swiss coasters, but it's not like they're lacking in thrills. In the winter they have insane skiing and during the summer the Alpine region becomes one of the leading places for extreme sports in the world. Maybe roller coasters are a bit unnecessary when you've got base jumping, paragliding, white water rafting, bungee jumping from cable cars, bungee jumping from helicopters, ropes courses, etc.

Good point! We can also blame TPR for Voyage being #1 again because of the 2007 Midwest Trip.

Not if you're just looking at who wins the contracts for big steel coasters.