TopThrill182

As a fair-skinned former ride operator, Emperor’s lack of a station roof makes me cringe… That said, I like the look of the ride’s layout! Yes, it’s shorter than some of the other dive coasters, but I totally agree that the pacing seems much better without a MCBR placed two elements in.

^^ Yeah, super interesting, thank you!

Thanks for the report! Swinging out over the lake seems pretty awesome. Two questions from someone who’s only ever ridden SkyHawk: Am I seeing correctly that there aren’t seatbelts? What are those things embedded in the ground under each arm?

What’s the worst in your opinion? MF’s FL line really bugs me. I don’t understand why the park doesn’t simply stop filling the entire ramp to the station, which seems like a simple way to provide a better value for FL guests.

I also have to jump in and say how awesome CP’s closing policy was pre-COVID (at least as a guest, I realize many employees were less enthused). I have so many great memories of hopping in line for one last ride 5 to 10 minutes after park close, and as a night owl, I loved it when the line was long. Now, until the park proves otherwise, I definitely recommend people ride everything they want to as early in the day as possible, since ride lines close unpredictably in the evenings—especially when the park is busy.

As others have said, I don’t recommend trying to visit SFMM and Knott’s in the same day—especially not with flights as bookends. (Time aside, I personally find the 5 freeway between LA and Knott’s to be very stressful!) Ride closures aside, I personally think SFMM is a much better choice for a same-day “layover” visit. You can hop on and off some coasters without missing too much. Knott’s, on the other hand, is such a rich park, I think it deserves to be savored in a more relaxed state of mind. In particular, I wouldn’t want to sit down to eat at Mrs. Knott’s Chicken Restaurant at 6pm knowing I have to be at the airport less than two hours later…

Thanks very much for the insight! I was confused by all the “the neighbors won’t allow this” comments given that, as you say, my vague understanding is that individual homeowners can’t do much to block a land use that is a) legal and b) supported by the larger community as represented by a city council. (Neighborhood councils exist in LA; are they not a thing in OC?) I also don’t see why Knott’s would waste anyone’s time or money designing improvements for un-improvable areas, so I assume the park thinks this can work (perhaps with reasonable noise mitigation efforts in an effort to be a good neighbor). Of course, whether Knott’s ultimately wants this coaster is another question. I’m trying not to get excited until the coaster is actually announced, but I’m happy the park is at least contemplating what we all want, and what would be a FANTASTIC addition to the park!

Please let the renewed giga rumor be true! I know roller coaster fans want gigas everywhere, but I sincerely think a traditional out and back giga (or hyper) makes a lot of business sense for Knott's. The park is highly attended, with a large thrill seeking base, and I think a tall, inversion-less, out and back steel coaster is a marketable hole. Plus, I think another high capacity B&M (presumably) coaster would really improve the overall guest experience on busy days. And a parking lot layout seems to render the "loss of charm" concerns moot. Separately, I like PE's new paint job. I think it gives the ride a more natural look, which has always been what I enjoy about the ride (that it really feels like riding a horse through a western terrain).

@tndank Did that actually happen?! Bummer! MF seemed to be up and down all day. I got in line for it around 6:30pm (after it had just reopened from being down), only for it to go down again as I approached the station. I finally got on after a 40 minute delay, but I was nervous the entire time that the empty test trains wouldn’t make it through the course given the relatively cold and windy weather. Despite a similar experience with SV, I ultimately got to ride everything I wanted to, and I really enjoyed closing day 2021. It definitely beat the dreadful closing day 2020!

Is COVID Halloweekends any different from before? I’m mostly wondering if the scare zones and/or mazes have changed at all from an operations perspective.

^ Thanks for the insight! Other than “laziness,” is there a reason why the ride went down to two trains after the refurbishment? And are two always in service, or does the ride reduce to one train ops during the off season for maintenance reasons? For such a busy year-round park, I’m surprised CF wouldn’t have invested in three trains if it could’ve meaningfully helped. Even CP’s converted Rougarou got three new trains, which is two too many most days. Still, even before Ghostrider’s refurbishment, the line always seemed to crawl to me.

Great to hear the park is continuing to tweak the SV queue setup/flow. Not flooding the pre-locker tunnel and both station staircases with standby guests is a big improvement for FLP users. Hopefully the park finds a way to make that stick. To me, the best option is still to keep the tunnel clear but keep the (longer) right staircase filled with guests so seats don’t go out empty.

@anonymouscactusHow’d you manage to get on SV in 10 minutes?! Has the park figured out how to reduce the FLP line for that ride, or did you just luck out somehow?

I totally agree! I've never understood why the park seems so insistent on keeping the entire MF ramp filled at all times. The seemingly simple change of telling the merge attendant to only partially fill the ramp (e.g. up to a certain visual landmark, like the rear of the unload station) would vastly improve the ride's FL value at times throughout the day/season. It would also allow standby guests to spend more time waiting under the shade canopies in the main queue. Similarly, I think the best solution to SV's queue at this point is as follows. Utilize the right station pathway/staircase exclusively, for everyone. Aim to fill all the space after the metal detector. It seems to hold at least two trains worth of people, not counting the one train worth typically waiting in the station, so not having enough people to fill each train shouldn't be an issue. As space allows, send ~24 people from the merged tunnel to the lockers, and then through the metal detector onto the right pathway/staircase. As space allows, send an additional ~24 people (~12 FL and ~12 standby) to the merged tunnel to wait to proceed to the lockers. Aim to not let the tunnel line go past a certain point. This way, FL users would only wait ~4 trains to ride after the merge point. While I would welcome a FL exclusive staircase, this strategy would allow the park to avoid the potential hassle of having to re-split FL and standby guests (which, I admit, worked on opening day but did seem a bit clunky), while making the one remaining pathway to the station flow more evenly and quickly. The park could also eliminate the second metal detector staff position. As has been said, the lockers themselves seem good. They're free, easy to use, and occupy an attractive mini plaza. I think adjusting the flow of guests through the locker area is what needs to be improved.

I realize there are bigger problems in the world, but as a Fast Lane Plus user, I also have to voice my annoyance with SV’s new queue setup! My opening day FL experience was decent: I merged into the pre-locker tunnel, which wasn’t very full. After putting my phone in a locker, I was sent to the left FL staircase, which was mostly empty. I didn’t time it, but I felt like I got on the ride pretty quickly. Today, however, the merged tunnel was much more full, and I was sent to a jam packed right standby staircase, which I realized is significantly longer (in distance) than the left one! I waited a full 45 minutes to ride, 30 after the merge point. That’s without using the lockers, since I stored my phone prior to riding, and on a day when the park was not overly crowded. The party in front of me in the pre-locker tunnel was sent to the left staircase, and they got on the ride almost 10 minutes before me. (They even took time to use the lockers.) I thought maybe I was being too sensitive, but I overheard a non-FL party behind me in the right staircase complaining about the same thing. There also seemed to be more guest confusion today leading up to the lockers. Some guests thought they needed to “cut” the merged line to get to the lockers and then double back. Some large parties didn’t understand why employees were forcing the entire party to go to the lockers, rather than just one person. Finally, and I’m not sure what caused this, but the FL line today was barely shorter than the standby line for my first ride, and exactly equal with the standby line for my second ride. The end result is a quick FL ride on SV seems to be a thing of the past. The merge point is now so far back from the station, it’s hard to see how the FL line will ever be less than ~30 minutes. That’s not too impactful on very crowded days, but on uncrowded days, or at times with few FL users, the FL value for this ride has diminished significantly. TL;DR: My main suggestion at this point is to fill less of the merged tunnel before the lockers and/or use one staircase only (for everyone). I realize the park wants to ensure a constant flow of guests to the station, but I think the park can accomplish that by frequently sending small groups of riders to the lockers from the merge point, thereby still providing a meaningful FL experience. I’m sorry for my rant! I really do appreciate the park finding a way to allow guests to keep their phones in line without compromising safety or the ride’s capacity. I just wish it didn’t come so much at the expense of FL users. Lol