DBru

It's sad how hard the midcourse brake grabs on Mamba. Like you said, the first half is a lot of fun and the second half is a total bore. It barely limps back to the station. Cyclone Sam's being closed was one of the bigger disappointments of my Midwest trip last summer. I love indoor flats! (Lightning Rod was also closed, but...that wasn't much of a surprise). Love that photo of Prowler, even if it is from 2018! And I totally agree on both sentiments that Patriot is the weakest B&M invert and also that it has 2 of the best airtime moments on any of them.

This theme is amazing. Can Wild Adventures get a copy? Fingers crossed it's not the SBF model. The one at Energylandia is nap-inducing.

^There is a maple leaf at the top of the map...

You mean you didn't intuitively walk through the Dinosaurs Alive gift shop to find Grizzly's unmarked entrance? Was that not obvious??

I agree that while my feelings about Kings Dominion have deflated more than expected after the removal of Volcano, it still has a relatively solid lineup. Of course, I'm a Grizzly (at night) and Flight of Fear stan, and I think the Italian Job/Backlot coasters are underrated, so my opinion may not be the majority. With that said, as the wonderful Busch Gardens Williamsburg continues to expand with unique and exciting additions, I'm a bit worried about whether KD will be able to keep up. And I do not think the weakest-looking-B&M-wing-coaster-ever would do it. And while Six Flags St. Louis' lineup feels stale due to lack of additions---and the fact that their only "new" coaster in 13 years was a shitty hand-me-down clone---the majority of their 9 coasters are unique and/or thrilling. And they don't even have a kiddie coaster to pad their count. It's too bad Six Flags will never splurge $20 million to reinvigorate that park with a shiny new hyper.

Beautiful! Now hopefully it all melts before Saturday.

The obvious answer is Energylandia. But, besides that, which large, coaster-heavy park do you think has the worst/most mediocre collection of coasters? I’d have to go with Six Flags Great America or Six Flags Over Texas. SFOT has 13/14 coasters, with only 3 or 4 real standouts. For me, they are New Texas Giant, Shockwave, Runaway Mountain, and Mr. Freeze. Some may consider Titan a standout, but I personally think it’s the dullest form of hyper (along with Goliath at SFMM). Six Flags Great America has 15 coasters, mostly clones, with a similar amount of standouts. And as fun as Raging Bull and Goliath are, they’re generally considered among the weakest of their types. At least they ended up keeping Whizzer! Now, don't get me wrong, I'm definitely happy that so many parks are sporting collections of a dozen coasters or more. I know most parks offer more today than they ever have before (maybe not Kings Dominion) and I'm not complaining--I'm just interested in the conversation. (And personally, I prefer a park with a small but very solid lineup--Silver Dollar City, Liseberg, etc.--over a park full of clones). So, what are your thoughts?

Seems to be a very inconsistent team because when I called 2 weeks ago I got on the phone with someone in about 30 seconds. Lol (And they were super helpful!)

I would've thought they'd go with the Funtime version to have a ride that actually works.

My sample size is smaller with about 6 rides over 2 days in 2020, but I would say relative to how it used to run, it's quite rough. My two friends who had never ridden a topper track RMC (only I-Box) were surprised at how bumpy it was in the back row. And no, I'm not confusing roughness with intensity. There are many noticeable potholes, shuffling, and a few jackhammer-ish spots. It's aging considerably differently than the I-Box coasters. With that being said, it's probably still the 2nd best night ride anywhere.

There are only a few (heavily rumored) examples I can think of off the top of my head, such as: Two Vekoma Flying Dutchmen being intended for Kings Island and Kings Dominion, only for Paramount to dump them onto Six Flags after the issues with Stealth DCA's Rockin' Rollercoaster being canceled last minute and picked up by Six Flags Holland The only example I can think of that can be verified is the last minute switch of Chang being moved to Six Flags Great Adventure instead of Six Flags Great America... of course, being a relocation, this is kind of a different situation. There are definitely other coasters that were rumored to be designed for a different park than they ended up in, but I can't recall any of them at the moment.

Thank you for sharing this recounting of your night in Krakow that looked exactly like mine... Actually though, I was shocked at how beautiful Krakow was, and Poland in general. I'd definitely like to visit again in a few years, politics (and roller coaster additions) pending. Big thanks again to Elissa for all the work she put into getting us to Sweden! And also to my deadbeat grandpa who gave me the last name that got me into Group 1.

Thanks for the report! I love strawberries. But... Lame. Just because I almost killed KidTums on one (okay, two) of these in Europe doesn't mean adults shouldn't be allowed to play!

The train station was definitely a mess last summer, even on a day with moderately light crowds. Of course things were being handled a bit differently due to covid procedures, but the station was cramped and unorganized and the line extended way out into the midway and up the hill, causing lots of congestion and confusion. All of this to say... I revamped train station would definitely be welcomed.

^Any update on how the animal tour works with SWSA Platinum pass?

I lasted less than 2 months in CP employee housing. 17/30 year olds should consider themselves lucky!

The Six Flags app lists Poltergeist and Pandemonium as being "temporarily closed." Can anyone who visits the park this weekend report if this is accurate?

It's so bizarre seeing that turn after the second launch so high up in the air! I thought, "This can't be a clone...there's no way Taron is that tall!" But I guess it is. lol

Lightning Rod and Outlaw Run rode much differently than any of the 8 I-Box RMC's I've ridden. After the first couple seasons, those 2 felt like wooden coasters. I have no doubt the 10 people who got to ride Lightning Rod more than once will feel a difference when it reopens.

Also a reminder of how beautiful Screamin' Eagle looked without a big orange and green monstrosity in front of it.

So glad to see they went with the old school trains/restraints! I'm not a fan of B&M's restrictive vests at all. I tend to float around in my seat a lot more with these traditional OTSRs, even if they're a bit bulkier. However, I wonder if they only went with the old trains because this coaster was planned before the second generation invert trains were developed. While the layout has changed, you can see concept art for a proposed B&M invert to be added to Grona Lund all the way back in 2008 on the second page of this thread. Just something to consider.

Nice find! Here’s a blurry image of the concept art Vekoma released for this model back in...2015? Looks like a less fun version of Mack’s Big Dipper coasters.

Darn. For a second there I thought I might be spared the $20 I'll inevitably spend on this thing next time I'm in Vegas.

It's back!!! Great report, per usual, Andy. Lech Coaster truly is fantastic. It has everything I look for in a coaster. Of course I'd prefer no vests at all, but these are probably the best vest restraints on the market. Much thinner and more flexible than B&M's or even the one's Vekoma still seems to be using on their boomerang upgrades. Also, if you'd joined me for Särkänniemi, you'd know this isn't the first station fly-though inversion. Legendia was a highlight of the trip for me. I loved it's small, local, city-park vibe. While I was definitely sad to miss out on many of the unique flats I had been looking forward to, the ones they did have available (especially the HUSS Rainbow ) were really fun. I think they're definitely headed in right direction with their recent investments and with a couple more modern coasters, Legendia will feel like a complete park that's worth traveling for.

Interesting, every time I’ve ridden Kings Island’s Flight of Fear for the last 8 years or so, the mid course has brought the train to an complete halt before releasing it into the second half of the layout. That includes this summer. The Flight of Fears also have a block between the load and unload stations, so they could run 3 trains, regardless. Unfortunately, Kings Island’s now only has 2 trains on site. Neither Poltergeist nor Jokers Jinx even have the mid course brakes installed, so those things run like bats out of hell. While most of the Premiers track smoothly, Kings Island’s FOF is one of the roughest rides in the park. When the train hits the mid course, you can feel (and see) the entire structure shaking back and forth. I just can’t imagine that’s good for the ride’s longevity.