coasterer

More.. It's your typical wild mouse type ride, really Like I said, I was lucky the workers rode it with me, there was literally not a soul around. The ride itself was nice and enjoyable. I wasn't used to the seats facing out, but the way we were balanced, it hardly spun at all one last shot Boy I LOVED Animal Kingdom. This was... not the same You and me both, camel. You and me both Climbing Cars. I passed this on my ridiculously long quest to find water. Life in the Tikuji is tough A train... not open Holy hidden jungle temple where am I??? Oh, then there was this path that went to a whole nother area, that was nothing like the other part of the park It was well... barren There was a ferris wheel some bumper cars, a few kids rides, and a swings, but this place was just oddly quiet Here's those swings And last photo of the trip, just... with the cast and all, sweeping by her self off in some out of the way corner just... I have no words. Thanks again for reading, I'll keep adding pictures as I take them!

Tikjij-ni-wadi was easily the strangest park I’ve ever been to. It was less like an amusement park, really, and more like an extensive low-hanging fruit grove. If you were lucky, you occasionally stumbled across a ride or two, or maybe even a path. But you rarely saw any other people… The park was incredibly out of the way, tucked away in a corner of north Mumbai that didn’t look like it saw too many people. To get there from Esselworld I had to take the ferry back to the mainland, grab another rickshaw to West Borivali bus station ST, hope I was in the right place, ask a bunch of people which bus I wanted (most people didn’t speak English, and the ones that did weren’t from the area and didn’t know), try and convey to the conductor that I wanted to go to Tikuji-ni-wadi, get on board with no certainty that you were going to the right place, ride the 40 minutes to Mapada (?) bus stop, and then walk about a mile up a dirt road that frankly, looked like the last place you would find a theme park. But find it I did, and by mid afternoon, I had paid the Rs. 370 entry fee, and was ready to go. As soon as you enter, there’s a main path that cuts down the park for a ways, disappearing in the overhanging branches of the mango groves. On either side were entrances to different square groves, all without paths and no way to see through to what was on the other side. I literally had to crouch to move around. Occassionally I would find myself in various places like, you know, the center of the road of the go kart track, or in a 300 foot covered walkway lined with beds. But finally I was able to spot a sign for the kiddie section, and a couple minutes later, had made my way up to the wacky worm ride. I pretty much just sat down and was sent on my way for a double circuit. It was cool how much jungle had built up around this ride. You couldn’t see any of the rest of the park. The park’s other coaster, the spinning coaster, was just as out of the way, way out in one of the far corners of the jungl-… I mean theme park. Once again, there was not another guest in sight. The two workers were just chilling out in front of the ride, and when I asked if I could ride, they told me I had to ride with three other people to balance out the train. Well perfect. So I waited, a little, and then a little more, and finally three women came by, but when I asked if they wanted to ride, they just laughed and said they worked here too. But after a little persuasion, I convinced them to ride with me anyway, and so I got my credit with the help of three of the workers who took the lap with me. It was pretty nice, really, sitting facing the outside was new for me on these mouses, and it was definitely different. But unfortunately, with the train balanced, we hardly spun at all. Still a nice find though, considering I felt like I was lost in the jungle. The rest of the park was just kind of strange and not much going on. I took a nice long out of the way walk… in order to find where the hell I was again, and did a little bit looking, but there wasn’t too much I really felt was worth the ride at that point. From there, it was back to the bus stop, try and hop on the right bus by guessing (my advice is, friend locals while you’re here, or at least someone who can speak Hindi or Mararti or whatever dialect needs speaking – these friendly people will make your life so much easier), ride the bus for 20 minutes, bypass the overturned tanker truck in the ditch off to the side being hoisted out by cranes, switch buses when yours breaks down in another ten minutes, and then finally get to where you hope you’re stopping, and then wander around asking as many people you can for the incredibly illusive Volvo bus stop that will take you back on the 14 hour ride home to Goa that evening. If I had tried a little harder, I definitely could have worked something out with some people in Bombay and stayed the night, or seen a little more of the city, which I’m sure is amazing, but I was constricted on time with class requirements. So that’s Tikuji-ni-wadi, and my whole Bombay experience, but I’ll definitely post more pictures as they come in – we’re going to Agra tomorrow for the Taj Mahal and all the other Islamic mosques and tombs and stuff, so I’m sure there will be no shortage of pictures. And then expect another park in a couple weeks hopefully. Again, thanks so much for reading, I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it. -Danny Here's that bus stop I finally was pretty sure I found. Just a kilometer or so's walk to the park from here And this is where I began to be less sure of the fact that I was heading in the right direction Woooo! Found it. By this point, it was around 4, I was pretty darn tired, and pretty darn thankful I had made it here. But oh look, that's adorable... there parking lot is about 20 feet wide So right. Finally inside, here's the main path. Noooooot many rides at first glance This is misleading. It's not a coaster. It's one of those sky cycle things. And the problem with it was, I was chasing the track around for like 5 minutes, trying to find the entrance, but couldn't see anything because it was all above the trees that hung down to about 4 feet off the ground I'm sorry Tikuji-ni-wadi, but your layout just really doesn't make any sense. This picture was taken at waist height, which is the only reason you have any idea of what's more than 4 feet in front of you And this is where I found myself on the go kart road. Whoops Oh good, 100 beds. This is... unexpected A bridge.. presumably to somewhere worth going. At least, let's hope !! Oh look a ride let's go ther - ... oh, nevermind Also not really in operation mode. But hooray for commercialism oh boy oh boy oh BOY! We're HERE! There was no one there, but I was able to find a worker nearby and he got it going no problem, as soon as I sat down Indian credit number 5 hooty hoooo! Look how much jungle there is!! Really lovely foliage work, don't you think? and then it was over to coaster number two

Thanks so much, everyone for reading and responded. I am so grateful for the things you've all said so far, you guys are all really great. I've grown up reading so many amazing trip reports and seeing so many incredible pictures from all over the world from all other TPR members, and it's so great to be apart of that now. @r78 - I'm glad SOMEone caught the veggie tales quote hahaha - but seriously, water buffalos are everywhere here. @jdcoffeytime - The wooden coaster was actually surprisingly stable, and pretty standard, as far as wooden coasters go... except of course for the lack of lapbar haha @Big Mike - great to hear from you again, hopefully I'll run into you sometime again on the east coast @Jynx242 - David, thanks a million. Go to India. Your comments mean a ton to me, and I would love to meet up sometime, any time, and hit up a park. @JayJay719 - Jason! Soon, my friend, soon, they'll be up as soon as I can manage. Tell Boulder Dash I say hi @Hotlanta - definitely, if you're here, check these places out. Also, Esselworld bills itself as having Asia's biggest water park. I didn't get a chance to check it out, but I'm sure it's worth hitting And to everyone else, again, thanks so much, I'll for sure keep posting pictures whenever I can grab a few spare minutes, and if you've ever once given India a thought, or even if you haven't, I can't stress enough that you should come and see it for yourself, whenever you get the opportunity. Photos don't hardly do it justice.

^^Thanks a lot Larry, will do ^hahahahahaha, thanks. They warned us in orientation before we went that we would get alot of stares. Needless to say, when I have a camera anywhere near me, I get stares when I'm in the US, let alone when I'm the only white person in a hundred miles. Thanks for the comments! So last weekend we had the weekend off, and I was able to take the 14 hour bus ride (complete with onboard Bollywood film) up the coast from Goa to Mumbai, and arrived in northern Mumbai by around ten o clock. A simple rickshaw ride over to the ferry (60 rupees, if you bargain.. alot), a quick look for an ATM, which turned into a mile and a half walk, and the 35 rupee ferry ride over to Esselworld, getting me there around 11 in the morning. The park itself was only 510 rupees, (about 11 bucks), and was just about empty, it being monsoon season and all. Esselworld is billed as the biggest park in India, and it was pretty decently nice, considering the standard I expected. Esselworld was decently sized, and was nicely covered with a lot of trees. Some of the rides were pretty spread out, but all in all, they had a good selection of rides. The staff was inCREDibly nice and hospitable, and was super interested in me, as an American, and as an avid theme park enthusiast. I'll take you through the rides and stuff through the pictures, but it was amazing to get out to these parks that are so rarely visited, and I really enjoyed the whole experience. Also if some of the pictures are a little blurry or aren't very good, I apologize, I just figured I'd try and include as many as possible to try and give you all more perspective. Thanks for reading!! Park map You have to take a ferry to get to the park. The greatest and smallest of all the ferries. Holy Burmese Pagoda it's like Disneyworld!!!! oh man oh man oh MAN! Tilt a whirl Every amusement park should have this sign Heading toward the central part of the park We've got stray dogs yes we do, We've got stray dogs how bout YOU!? First credit!! One of (if not the only) wooden coasters in India Zipper Dipper "Please keep all arms and legs and saris and head coverings and scarves and any extra fabric inside the vehicle at all times." I wouldn't necessarily say that I got permission from the park so much as I'd say that they really couldn't care less what you do on rides in India. This ride didn't even have a lap bar, and the ones that did, they didn't even check Final part of the Zipper Dipper So this park's wacky worm. They had a pretty strict under 48 inch height rule in place, but I got to talking to the ride op for quite some time about all sorts of stuff, and even though he knew how appreciative I'd be if I could ride it, his supervisor was walking around, and if he got caught letting me ride, he could get fired, which I completely understood. But when you're white, you automatically have something to talk about with Indians, and the more we talked, the more I told him about the US and about TPR, and eventually, he decided that he'd take me to his supervisor directly to see if I could ride. So we went, and when I met with his supervisor, he took me to HIS supervisor, who was super cool, and super interested in helping out, and suuuuuper hospitable, and before I knew it, me and the entire staff of Esselworld were walking out to the wacky worm to personally escort me on and stand guard on the station while I enjoyed two courtesy laps. I was floored by the hospitality, and incredibly grateful for the experience. It's amazing what starting a conversation can do for you. the creepiest of all the kiddie rides Enterprise a rainbow. how lovely Hoola Loop!! Actually pretty smooth in the front. Quite an enjoyable ride Quite small and compact, but a pretty decent layout I love this country so much Theme Park Review represent Some of the layout. The loop was reeeeeally smooth The transitions were the roughest part, but even the laterals were perfectly smooth The Zyclone. UnFORtunately, it was down due to maintenance issues, so this is the only picture I got A couple hours later, they were putting up that green construction tarp walling around it. Don't really know what was going on. A pretty standard Indian theme park food vendor. Amazing Monster wait, really? An ice rink? One more Zipper Dipper OH GOD WHERE!? Oh nevermind, silly me. It's just the park's giant submarine! The park's newest attraction I presumed, Monsters in the Mist. It was just a dark ride kind of thing, with some ok animatronics, and some reeeeally good lighting. Fairly amusing Aqua Dive, the park's water coaster just a simple oval track, but if you like water... then good lord have at this thing It really is amazing how much of this splash ends up in your lap. I mean, at one point, I would have bet money that we were actually submerged in the pool. There was no escape. I mean, the train would hit the water so hard it occasionally couldn't make it up the 3 foot incline on the other end. Hooray for the Indian maintenance team hedge maze!! Don't know if I caught the name of this guy God bless these rides these are so wonderful Oh wait I lied, I did get one more shot of Zyclone Noted One last shot of the pagoda, thanks so much for reading!! I'll put up pictures from Tikuji-ni-wadi sometime in the next 24 hours I think

Hey guys I've been in India for the last couple weeks for a class, and was finally able to get to a couple of the parks farther up north. 15 of us are here for an architecture class, studying how religion and politics affect Indian art and architecture, but generally just having a great time in this incredible country. We're staying in Goa for four weeks, then heading down south to Madural for two weeks, before ending the program with a few days in Delhi. After the class ends, a friend and I will be staying a week extra in Nepal. On the weekends we usually take a trip somewhere in the country to look at some building or site or whatever, but so far classes have been pretty minimal, and we've had a bunch of time to just get out and explore. I would hands down encourage everyone to visit India at least once in your life - it's probably the most beautiful place I'll ever see. Goa itself is a beautiful, beautiful city, colonized by the Portuguese in the 1500s, providing for some really nice architecture. Goa is known for its beaches though, and while we haven't been able to take too much advantage of them because of the monsoons, they really are fantastic. We've seen some pretty amazing Buddhist caves, and a bunch of really neat temples - and the food is incredible. A little hard to stomach if you just jump in head first, but eat a lot poop a lot - that's the only way to live here. But just a note, being white in India is preeeeetty pretty difficult. Especially if you're a woman. This area where I was in Bombay was pretty inaccessible.. you get a lot of looks and a lot of people trying to rip you off, and it really is quite clear that you're the ONLY white person in the area. You get a lot of people taking pictures of you, and asking where you're from, or pointing and laughing, especially if they notice you getting overcharged for something. As far as roller coasters go, India isn't the beeeeeeest place to be, as you might imagine, but while I'm here, I'm of course going to take advantage of it. The two parks so far have been ridiculous, and I can't what to see what the other parks have up their sleeves. Before I got to the parks, I wanted to just give a little context, and show some of the pictures I've taken from the last two weeks here. Hope you guys enjoy. I'll post pictures from Esselworld and Tikuji-ni-wadi shortly, and then I'll probably be able to hit a park in Madurai, a park in Delhi, and the only coasters in Nepal, sometime within the next month. Thanks for reading! Enjoy -Danny The underground Indian mango market Quick everyone, let's play the "find your favorite rare fruit vendor in here and take a picture with them" game my friend Kameron cricket!! Miramar, the closest beach to us. The most beautiful skies I have ever seen have been here, over the Indian Ocean We're goin to the Ritz!! Seriously though, I could eat Indian food every day for the rest of my life street in Panjim, the capital city of Goa, near our hotel We took a hike through one of the back neighborhoods, and found this spectacular look out As part of our class, we do community service over at a local orphanage. Joey and I usually just end up playing human jungle gym for 2 hours, but I wouldn't have it any other way traversing a mountain pass The Aurangabad caves, 29 or so Buddhist temples carved out of cliff some 1500 years ago.. and me. The carvings were incredible the Buddha a God and I Overlooking the valley ...a few of the caves had bats ohhhhhh Hindu cave carvings One of the caves at Ellora was this enoooooooormous temple all carved out of the mountainside. Innnnncredible I have no words I looooove taking pictures of Indian families. So many beautiful people Varun, on the ledge of the temple covered with hundreds of guardian animals We got to climb up the surrounding hills Some amazing views to be had Finally at the top. Sooooo many less safety regulations in India Not even sure what this is coolest kids in India. Took this on the climb up a mountain to a fort that was never penetrated beautiful people Finally at the top one day, everything the light touches will be MINE!! Disclaimer, this is NOT the real Taj Mahal, just a replica, made by the son of the brother of the patron who was the carpenter for the guy who had the idea for the real Taj Mahal, or something like that WORLD CUP MANIA!!! Calangute, on a monsoon day only in India. In India, everybody really does have a waterbuffalo. It's amazing Somewhere in India, I don't know where I am And I'll leave you for now with some rice paddies and some beautiful colors. Be back shortly for Esselworld!! Thanks for reading!!

YES! I'll be in the area, and could probably drag a couple friends out if numbers are still an issue

Unbelievable!!! A few years ago I added "Ride every B&M in the world" to the list of things to do before I die I can't believe you're only 29 You are my hero. Thanks so much for posting this!

^^ Not tooooo many looks haha. We were out in the courtyard in front of the park, and it was like 3 in the afternoon, with very few people entering or exiting. @angryemobeaver and jynx242: thanks haha. I really appreciate that comment. The way I see it, there's no reason to go to a park if you're not gonna have a good time. Again, I really appreciate the comments, everyone. Thanks a lot!

It was hard to tell what they were doing on Possessed. At times there was no one in the station and it'd be sitting on the launch track. Sometimes there were people working on some of the wheels it looked like, with the train partially out of the station. We saw it launch a couple times, but never full speed, and never more than one launch up the first spike.

^^ lol. Thanks for the responses everyone! ^^^ We didn't do dragon... isn't that a powered coaster anyways?

Hey guys, My friend Kameron and I made it up to Dorney Park last Friday, tryin to take advantage of the 12 hours of operation on a weekday. Unfoooortunately it was physics day, and so there were a TON of kids runnin all over in their matchin t-shirts, but all said and done, there really weren't that many people there, and we got a TON of rides in on Talon Hydra and Steel Force. Sorry this is up so late, finals over here have been crazy Talon was reeeeal nice. I love B&M inverts, and while I wasn't expecting much from Talon, it was a really nice layout, and the transitions were really well thought out. The last half was great, and the whole thing, while very forceful, was really smooth and quite enjoyable. Hydra also had a really refreshing layout. While it kind of died out halfway through the ride, the front half was really enjoyable, and full of quirky, slightly non-traditional elements, that didn't really kick your butt, but was again, a nice, enjoyable ride. Possessed wasn't open for some mechanical issue... which was kind of a let down. Steel force was nice, again, nothing real intense, but a nice ride. There was some airtime if you sat toward the front. But, it was my 200th coaster! Really, pretty exciting We saw Demon Drop goin up, which was really exciting. I've ridden it at Cedar Point, and was really glad that it at least got a new home, instead of getting scrapped. Thunderhawk, the woodie, was almost unbearable in the back, but surprisingly airtime filled in the front, around seats two and three. We got our kiddie credit, and our wild mouse (Kameron's first), and hit up a few of the flats... including the rapid ride. Now, I have NEVER seen so many unavoidable waterfalls on a water ride. It really wasn't even fair. There was no escaping the buckets and buckets of water. Half of the water falls covered the entire river. All of them got you more wet than you'd ever expect. It was unbelievable. We were both drenched. So if water's your thing, then have at it. Over all, we had an AMAZING day, and really enjoyed the park, getting a ton of rides in. Thanks for reading! Well hey there Talon's first drop This tight turn was great. Loved the last half First loop action I really liked the brown mulch under the ride. I don't know why, but that, and the trees.. and the really nice paint job... looks real great Immelman! Turn thing Beautiful sign placement Kameron's first Wild Mouse... Not his favorite haha Hydra and me: a memoire cobra roll Love floorless barrel rolls I love the color on this thing too Guys watch out! Oh.. whew Love how it's kinda set into the hill side JOJO ROLL!!! Favorite part of the ride, hands down. Looks kinda like a brochure.. Up close. Pretty sure this is where Kameron lost his room key.. Hydra from the back Timing at its finest Steel Force and Thunderhawk. Bummer it wasn't open. I'd a loved to get another impulse credit Guys get excited.. This ride.. The most important of all the rides because... BAM 200th coaster. and the kiddie coaster credit. Originally, when we went, 5 high schoolers were on it. Then when we tried to get on the next ride, the ride operator said we were too big. Trying to persuade him otherwise, pointing out that five highschoolers had just ridden, he said that you couldn't ride unless you were 16 or under. ... Really? Well, I didn't really feel like arguing and there were no kids around to steal, so we decided we'd come back But we certainly didn't want to miss the Woodstock's Express photo opportunity while we were there Kind of becoming a thing Talon: the grip of... oh dear Talon from afar Post rapids.. seriously, the wettest I've ever been.. Wait, what? So beautiful. So devoid of any forces... until the last helix This took so many tries to get.. Pensive... right Too cheap to pay for park food, so we had to resort to this Never let go, Jack Went back, new operator, asked nicely, and there didn't seem to be any 16 year old or younger rule.. BAM, got it Don't mess with this guy.. First try on the whip ride.. what an enjoyable use of our time. Seriously though, great fun Hydra at dusk Goodbye Dorney park!! Thanks for reading!

Hey guys, Today (Friday), the park was pretty dead. We got to the park around 1, and everything was only a one/two train wait, or a walk on for the whole day. Bizarro never had a line, and neither did Nitro (both ran two trains), and both El Toro (1 train )and Kingda Ka were like a one/two train wait. It got pretty cold, especially after 5, but we managed to get a ton of rides in. The crews were doin a great job. Our rides for the day: El Toro-16x Bizarro-3x Kingda Ka-3x Nitro-21x Batman-6x Runaway Mine Train-1x for a nice even total of 50. Also, I got my first coaster evac on Nitro!! There was something wrong with the controls, and they took us off the train right at the bottom of the lift. We got to walk down the stairs and around the base of the ride under the lift a bit, and through a few back entrances back up to the platform. It was really kinda neat, and while I kinda wish it had been higher up on the lift so we could have gotten a nicer view and more time on the lift stairs, I was still largely satisfied. All in all, it was a pretty great time!

I was also there on Sunday, and really, it was pretty nice. We only stayed until 2, but in that time, rode El Toro 6 times right at opening, Bizarro 4 where there wer only about 10 people on each ride, Nitro 14, where we rode back row I think 12 of those 14 times, Batman 6, and Kingda Ka 4. All of these we were able to just sit on without getting off. The weather was beautiful, and the park looked great and was running incredibly smoothly. Judging by others' experiences, I probably saw a bunch of you, and maybe even rode in the same train as you. Also, does anyone know what Mark Kane was wearing? I feel like I might have run into him on Nitro.

Thanks for the comments ^^JEFF, I completely agree, we are completely spoiled by El Toro. It's hard not to be, from NJ. But while Rebel Yell did shuffle, I was taken aback at how fun it was. I wasn't expecting much, but it did have a nice first drop, some good pops throughout, and it was significantly longer than I expected. -Danny

Hey everyone, So you may have heard of the first rider auction for I305 they had going on. Now, normally I wouldn't ever have imagined I'd have the money to participate in one of these, but check it out. The minimum bid was $100, and only 108 people participated, meaning you could low ball a spot, and still make the cut. Also, with each winning bid, the winner received two free admission tickets for that day. So my friend Felipe and I figured that we would use two of the tickets on ourselves, and we could sell the two extra tickets we'd receive outside the park to people looking to buy a ticket regardless. This would mean that our auction bid was reeeeally only around 50 bucks, which was the cost of a general park admission anyway. So why not, right? So we started out of NJ at 8 o clock the night before, crashed in a hotel 6 miles from the park around 1 o clock, and woke up bright and early to some pancakes, before heading over to the park around 8. After being held at parking for about a half hour, we were finally allowed to enter, grabbed a spot about 30 feet from the main entrance, and got in the check-in line for the first rider auction. While perhaps not the most efficient way to get people through a line and have rider order sorted out and t-shirts distributed, they got the job done, and we were ready to start the opening ceremonies one t-shirt, certificate, lanyard, free onride photo coupon, seat assignment, and over-active bladder later (I'd be surprised if I was the only one having trouble controlling themselves at this point.) The ride was beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. It was almost a joke how good looking it was, and how much it loomed over the rest of the park. The paint job almost glowed it was so bright, and it stood out against the sky in the most wonderful way. It was testing by the time we got there, and it just flew around the course. The first hill, under the lift hill, looked like the greatest thing ever. We were 70th and 71st to pick our seat, and got on the 2nd train of the day, 4th row from the back. There was one pair of seats left we could have chosen on the first train, but it was right in the middle of the train, and we opted to take the better seats one train later. The t-shirts, also, were pretty darn cool. Which we wore, of course. Opening Ceremonies started sometime soon after, and it was nice. They had a community band out to play, had a flag raising ceremony, a few big whigs said a few words, they presented the charity money to the respective charities (over $22000), and the Earnhardts gave a hearty wave. Without too much delay, they let us through, and the cheerleaders formed a tunnel, ushering us into the line. At this point, I had pretty much lost all control of my faculties. I was the hottest of messes. The lift hill was faster than you could believe. In no time at all, you're up and over, and falling forever. The airtime was fantastic, and the whole horizon just kinda races up to meet you as you fall. The airtime, even in the back, wasn't *quite* el toro quality, and the OTSR maybe hinder the experience *a little* more than the lap bars on MF's first drop, but still, it was certainly up there, as far as first drops are concerned. That first turn, though, is the biggest turn ever. You're in that thing for sooooooo long. And like everyone's said, greyout is just about inevitable. And then all the sudden you're out of it, and flying up into the sky, and your vision returns just in time for you to realize that you're flying. Again, while the airtime isn't *quite* El toro, you just kinda soar for forever. Then you're just flying around along the ground, every little pop and turn accentuated due to the speed, and you just kinda race across the ground, ejector air on each slight change in direction. The only thing this ride is missing at this point, is a setting. While MF has that beautiful setting next to the water, through the trees, around the woods on the island, I305 races around a large pool of dirt. If they got some trees or a lake, or anything really up in there, like some grass, this thing's speed would really be enhanced. But I have faith that with time, that stuff will come. In our opinion, and with the opinions of the people we talked to about it, the trims greatly affected the second half of the ride. Maybe they were on a little harder today than on media day, but the air on those two hills was slightly better than floater at best, and the back half kind of lost the balls that the first half had hangin out so far. We noticed though, that you could feel the trims much more in the back of the train than toward the front. But still, the back half was fun. In my opinion, this kind of neutering of the out of control pace, does slightly adversely effect the overall experience of the ride. MF still hauls at the end, even if it doesn't do anything exciting. I305 does stuff, a lotta stuff, but it does kinda have it's speed reduced noticeably. The extreme ejector airtime of Bizarro was what this ride was missing, in my opinion, and I feel like that might largely be due to the trim. But overall, the ride was an incredible experience, and the first half was certainly one of the best, most intense, more-wonderful-than-anything coaster experiences in the world. We rode 5 times before the crowds hit, taking advantage of all the empty spots on the trains. And lucky we did, cuz when those crowds hit, they hit harder than anything I've ever seen. We got off, got the first rider t-shirt, got the Earnhardt's signatures, and grabbed a quick picture with them. Then, as we were leaving, the stampede hit, and we got out of the way to Volcano, trying to ride the crest of the crowd for the next couple hours. Volcano was a walk on at that point. An hour later it would be a two hour wait. The first half of Volcano was awesome! But as soon as we popped out the top, the momentum was kinda lost, and it was just a really strange, quirky tour of the top of the Volcano, with an occasional awkward token barrel roll thrown in every now and again. Anaconda was enjoyable until the brake, and then it got a little too rough to handle. Rebel Yell was a bit bumpy, but still rather enjoyable. The Wild Mouse was a Wild Mouse, and Grizzly was rough, but had nice setting. By this time the crowds were everywhere, and we got out to grab a bite. Ok, while I305 was fantastic, we did have a few problems with the park that day. They were not at all prepared to handle the crowds. There were one train operations on everything except I305, Dominator, and the Wild Mouse. EVERYTHING had a HUGE line all afternoon, these lines exacerbated by the one train operations, and slightly fumbling employees, most of whom seemed to be having their first day on the job. And on top of that, almost EVERYTHING broke down. EVERYTHING! It was actually a bit of a joke. Flight of Fear, Avalanche, and Stunt Coaster didn't open with the rest of the park, but two hours later. Which would be fine, but there were soooo many people there. And then at around 1, after Avalanche and FoF were supposed to be open, they had already broken down, and we were told to come back later. Shockwave never even opened, and we saw empty test trains running on that blue kiddie woodie almost as often as not. Dominator got stuck on the lift hill while we were waiting in line, and was out for about an hour, necessitating a lift hill evacuation. FoF's line took over an hour and a half, after it finally opened up, and we saw Volcano's queue emptying due to breakdowns at least twice that day. By the evening, while the line was still sticking out of the back of I305, we arrived to see that they had taken off one of the trains, and were only running one... on the first day of operation. Which we thought was kind of poor form. There were mostly no employees at the front of each line to control guests or answer questions, and the whole place was kind of a free for all. And to top it all off, I305 itself broke down for about 40 minutes to an hour right at around 7:15. So overall, there was a lottttttt of room for improvement, as far as park operations were concerned. We weren't really sure why everything was having so many technical problems, but it became kind of a joke after a while. Not to mention that with so many rides down at the same time, it just made other lines that much longer. I did want to say that Dominator was pretty great, especially in the front row. That, and it's such a beautiful ride. That loop is enormous. But the real highlight of the day came at the very end, after I305 Finally opened up for its more committed waiters. We were on the fourth, and second to last trains of the night, one of the times in the back row, and let me tell you, night rides in the back on this thing were absolutely unbelievable. On the hill you see nothing in front of you but stars, and when you crest at the top, the whole horizon in front of you is pitch black, and you plummet into nothing. There are nooooo lights back here at all, and the first half of the course, without being able to see where you were charging, was one of the most insane experiences I've had. I gotta tell you, back row at night, this thing is almost unbeatable. So we left the park with 10 out of the 14 credits, after 22 rides total, 7 of them being on one of the best night ride coasters in the world. So while the park kinda was a joke in terms of operations and break downs, I305 certainly delivered in a big way, and is nestled in my top five somewhere right ahead of Bizarro. Thanks so much for reading, now for some pictures. Love at first sight With still two hours left before we'd get to ride, I was already losing my ability to function properly Soooo close God, good thing Felipe drove. I don't think I'd have made it. Oh Thanks, thanks so much Jane NOW DRIVE! GO!! Oh my God it's John Pagel. That's right. I rode it first for CHARITY. Not for any other reason. How lovely WE'RE HERE! WE'RE HERE! Look how artsy I am More beautiful than the most beautiful of newborn babies More beautiful than the most beautiful of loving spouses. More beautiful than the... OH MY GOD DID YOU SEE HOW MUCH AIRTIME WAS THERE!?!??! this is just wonderful Oh look, a Volcano.. We've all been waiting so long for this moment!! Ten years we've been waiting for this guy Lovers. Holy first rider t-shirts we look good. The most beautiful sight of them all Oh look, Volcano again Robb put it best. TWISTYYY Too big for one picture, too big for one bladder Personal favorite. For obvious reasons Fresh from the trim During this part of the ride, you're flying A beautiful patriotic salute, and the hairiest tenor sax player of them all While the ceremony was nice, the location of choice made it rather hard to focus on what was being said. A few opening words. Holy cow is that the CEO of Cedar Fair? I believe it issssss!!! Dream job. Thank you, thank you, you're welcome Thank you, tha oh GOD there it is it looks so GOOD! Oh Gosh look at you guys! The Earnhardt children themselves Check #1. Check #2, God bless America Check #3 and... WHOA no time to take a picture of check #4, done and done let's GO! Some cheerleader action Entering the queue In three minutes, our lives were about to change This thing is so far and away more advanced than anything else in the park, it's ridiculous Got to shake Earnhardt's hand... pretty fantastic. The person with the highest bid, Alan H I believe, got to ride with him in the front row on the first ride. Lucky SOB Inside the STATION! Pre ride 1 Thar she blows. The train of destiny After five rides we realized we were on the same train as the Earnhardts again, and got both their autographs and a picture. This is that picture. And just when we were questioning whether it would be worth it to get in line again or head elsewhere we ran into THIS! So while everyone else had other fish to fry, we headed to Volcano! And then to the wild mouse. Not forgetting Rebel Yell. All while the rest of the park was gettin there first rides on I305 We decided that while Dominator is still a pretty solid name, it sounded a bit too much like a German strip club, if said in a gruff European accent. But man what a beautiful looking ride. Holy biggest loop ever. After about a half hour of waiting, a train got stuck on the lift hill, and we eventually decided to bail when they had to evacuate the train. It was well over an hour since they got it back up and running So we got a little closer on Avalanche instead, both our first bobsled coaster, which was surPRISingly fun. After an hour and a half in the FoF line, we saw Dominator back up and running, and headed back down to the front of the park The line was significantly shorter, and the front row was significantly better than any other ride in the park, barring I305 And so we made our way back, once more, to end our journey on the King of Kings [dominion].. After an obligatory ride on this little guy. Intimidator, as seen through the sun protecting queue tarps Please, please go ride this at night in the back row. It'll change your life I promise Last ride of the night, thanks for reading! We had the most incredible time.

Hey, I have two extra tickets for opening day if anyone was planning on going but doesn't have tickets yet. We'd probably have to meet you at the park, and they're only good for April 2nd, but send me a message if you're interested.

The way they had it set up, the ride op would take us around once, and upon returning back to the station, would ask everyone on the ride if they wanted to go again. If yes, he'd take us around for lap 2. When me and my girlfriend were the only ones on it, he wouldn't even stop the train. After two laps he'd make us get out and go around, but it wasn't that much of a walk. Also, he'd hold the train for us, even if there were other people who were in the gates as we were getting off and getting around, so that we never missed a lap. I was kinda hoping after around 20 laps he'd just give up and let us camp, but it was fine.

Thanks for the replies! The park was right on the main Gulf Shores Parkway, like a mile or two from the actual shore. You really can't miss it. ^The place you're talking about I think was called the Track Family Recreation Center. It's got go karts, mini golf, a sky coaster, arcade, and bungee jumping. ^^Also, there was quite a large waterpark, it just wasn't open for the season yet. I saw a few good slides, an empty wave pool, and one of those surfing simulation things. It looked pretty decent.

Hello! We spent spring break down at the Gulf Shores in alabama, which just HAPPENS to be about 5 miles away from an operating roller coaster. I noticed TPR didn't have a whole lot of photos of this place, so hopefully this might help. Waterville USA was a really really small park with a solid woodie, some mini golf, go karts, and a slightly larger water park. The amusement park side of it is really less of a park, and more of a small warehouse with a roller coaster sticking off of it. It was $25 to get in, or $5 a ride, and there was really no one there. We just sat on the coaster for a few hours, racking up laps on what was really a beautiful day. The ride itself was nothing great but pretty fun for its size. It had a little airtime and wasn't all that rough. By 3 o clock we needed head back, and ended the day with our 62nd lap. We didn't really have any desire to check out the mini golf or go karts, so I'm not really sure how those were. Thanks for reading! The park entrance. You get a pretty nice view of the ride from the street as you come in. When we first came through here we walked past the actual entrance to the park. The park's that small. first drop The majority of the ride. On one side of the ride is parking lot, on the other is Alabama marsh. Spring Break Oh Ten! The turn around was a little rough, but other than that it was a pretty enjoyable ride. Lift hill One chin for every month of the off season Inside the warehouse thing. There some arcade games, but really, the layout is really ambiguous. We had to ask an employee if we were in the right place to buy tickets. Here's the rest of the waterpark, that wasn't open yet for the season First read of oh ten! Here we go. Most of the time we were the only two on the ride. First drop POV. I did get permission to use a camera on the ride. turn around The 'back' leg That big turn thing right there looks like it could whip you around... but it didn't Obligatory Lift Hill enthusiast shout out wowWOWwow the 'out' leg.. headin up into the turnaround. All in all, the 'out' leg was significantly better than the 'back' leg, but the whole ride was surprisingly enjoyable. Nothing but the classiest in Gulf Shores AL hahahaha.. I think I had farted or something MORE PEOPLE!! Like I said, of all the turn around I've ever been on, this one wasn't the MOST comfortable.. As far as couple pictures go, this isn't really your standard off the shelf shot, is it? The majority of the ride from the other side. There was one ride where the ride op meant to open the gates, but accidentally released the breaks. Whoopsiedoopsies. Anyway, this was the only lap the ride did between opening and 3:15 that we weren't on. It did finally provide an opportunity to get pictures of the ride in action It's a pretty nice lookin ride, really Into the break run That's right. 62 rides Goodbye Cannonball Run. Thanks or reading!

Just sent mine in: 1) Voyage 2) El Toro 3) favorite steel (Storm Runner) 4) Shivering Timbers 5) Thunderhead 6) Hades 7) Prowler 8) Cornball Express 9) Avalanche 10) Renegade And just missing my top ten were Evel K, Outlaw (adventureland), Cyclops, and KRumbler

^ exactly my thoughts. I mean, the airtime on Storm Runner's top hat is FAR more intense than the airtime on TTD. This is probably due to both the speed coming over the top, and the radius of curvature of the track at the top. But except for the fact that you're a couple hundred feet closer to the ground, Storm Runner's top hat is MUCH more intense and exciting than TTD's top hat. The pull over the top is amazing.

A couple friends and I managed to make it out to Hersheypark to finish off the season. None of us had been there before, and we were all pretty excited. Especially storm runner. I've been waiting to ride this thing for years. We pulled up to the park around four, and got in with no problem. Crowds were really light today, especially compared to what I've read. The longest we waited was 15 minutes for storm runner the first time, but everything cleared out at around 7. The light displays were great. I actually really enjoyed the idea of lighting up the rides instead of having a fright fest event, which never completely did it for me. So the problem with having Hersheypark in the dark as your first visit to the park is that it gets awfully dark awfully fast. Which means that I really didn't have too much time to get pictures before it got dark. So the entire park was fantastic. It was a really nice setting with a really nice atmosphere, and made for a really enjoyable trip. The only problem would be the layout of the park I think. Some of the stuff was hard to find and out of the way to walk to, but at the same time the organic layout of the park definitely added to the overall atmosphere. Storm Runner was absolutely fantastic. The first ride blew me away. The whole thing is just a huge kick in the butt the entire way through. It's like a roller coaster on steroids. The launch was great, nice and intense, and the air over the top hat was GREAT! If you sat towards the front, you got huuuuuge air at the start of it, being pushed over the hill. And if you sat toward the back, you got huge ejector air coming down the power drop. But really, wherever you sat on the train, it was an airtime feast. From there on you just plunge through the slightly off immelmann and then rip up into the double barrel roll, where you're just thrown out of your seat and whipped around completely out of control. The snake dive thingy just kind of tears you down out of the roll, bringing you extremely close to one of the supports, which I loved. And then you just charge up the final hill, and hit the brakes still not knowing what hit you. The whole thing was just a buttload of power. It was intense and awesome from start to finish, never really letting up. I loved how organic the layout was, and it just tore up the valley, ripping through with no real logic or pattern, completely out of control the whole way. It was fantastic, it really was. And the more we rode it the more I fell in love with it. It really had everything I was looking for in a coaster. The rest of the park was great too. Great Bear had a beautiful location, and the first half was great. But all the flat sections start to take away from the ride after a while. Sooperdooperlooper was nice and fun. It was cool going through the loop with just the old fashioned lap bar. Comet was nice and fun too. Just good old traditional riding. Nothing too intense, just kind of coasting around. Trail blazer was pretty uneventful, but at least it didn't hurt. Wildcat was kind of nifty. Nothing earth shattering, but a good ride. All of these were walk ons, by the way. After the first fifteen minute wait for SR, we walked on everything else, with maybe a train's wait or two. One train operations were kind of slowing some things down a little bit, especially on Storm Runner, but for the most part things were fine. I liked Lightning Racer a lot, but it wasn't quite as intense or airtime-filled as I was hoping. It was cool racing, but it wasn't really necessary. I feel like without the racing, the rides individually would be a little lacking, but really they were both a lot of fun. And Farenheit was interesting. It was better than I was expecting the first time around, given the lackluster reviews I've been reading, but it wasn't great. It really wasn't too painful at all, really. I felt it shake, but it wasn't painful at all. It really wasn't as intense as I was expecting, which was a little too bad. There was some food air on the first drop and coming out of the Norwegian loop, but it just kind of floated around the inversions. It was a nice ride, but it wasn't anything worth writing home about. I preferred spending the rest of the night on Storm Runner, and racked up a total of 11 rides on it, loving every single second of it. Overall we got 24 rides in, and had a great time. Storm Runner is somewhere in my top 3 steel now. I can't decide if it deserves my number one spot, but it definitely is tempting to put it there... It really had everything I look for in a coaster. Ok, so for the pictures I was able to take, given the amount of darkness: And of course no night would be complete without a ride on the pirate ship. Thanks for reading And this is what Farenheit might look like during a meteor shower This is what Farenheit might look like from the view of a somewhat shaky and incompetent photographer Goin up Too bad it wasn't light out, I was looking forward to getting some good Farenheit pictures A little bit of Lightning Racer And this is what Farenheit might look like if you were a dog. It was kinda neat riding the lift straight up at night Finally made it to Farenheit a little later on. It was pretty darn dark at this point. Good old mine trains There was a lot of great lighting around the park that really doesn't show up too well in pictures, but it was great A little grainy, but still one of my favorite shots of the day Great Bear at night This is my favorite time of day to ride coasters Sooperdooperlooper. Pretty awesome On its way back. I love its location I love the way immelmanns ride. One of my favorite elements The first half was nice and intense. The second half not quite so much The first little turn around thing before the first drop was more intense than I was expecting. Some Comet Hollow love I'm all about the B&M inverts Some Great Bear love. Farenheit... kind of looks like a... yeah. This ride was pure fun too. This ride was all about providing a great time Pretty busy loadin station, especially with only one side running. SR looks great with the leaves changing Secret lovers The greatest of all the top hats This part of the ride... was fantastic Definitely better than TTD. First half of the awesomeness Power drop. And what a drop it was Overlooking the most confusing series of paths in the world. I'm just sayin' Perfection at its finest. That's a fine lookin' immelmann

Let's see, I rode Voyage 36 times in one day before, have ridden Batman the Ride at SFGAm 29 times without getting off, and have ridden Batman 211 times now. I could ride that thing all day.

This was amazing! I've always wanted to see Machu Pichu in a bad way, but your TR has me itching to just head to the airport right now. Thanks a ton for sharing!!!

part 4 - Adventureland – I have a lot to say about this park. Monday night, after my sister had seen both St Olaf and Carleton, we headed down to Iowa for my sister to see Drake, and then Grinnell the day after. Conveniently enough, Adventureland is only a half hour out of Drake. I didn’t have that high of expectations, but it really was a charming place. More people need to get out here if you haven’t, it’s too bad this park’s in the middle of Iowa.. The whole place was really well kept, and nicely landscaped. The paths wove around, ducking under large sections of trees, and around small lakes, and the park had a really nice small park, family-owned feel to it. I was expecting nothing but a traditional old out and back from Tornado, the park’s biggest coaster. I walked right there, and wasn’t really followed by anyone actually, it was kind of weird. Being the biggest in the park, and the closest to the entrance, I thought it would be the big rush to point. But I walked right up to the front, was sat down and locked in, and was sent off on my own in a matter of seconds. I don’t really know what it was about this ride. I’ve been on old rides before, but the charm this thing had – the skid brakes, the gateless queues, the amazing, genial, elderly ride op, the fading paint, the hearty shuffling as it bottomed the hills, and the uncanny pop off the turn around – was unreal. I don’t know what it was about this thing, but I seemed to be greeted by every single one of the long years the Tornado had been standing, hit full force by the thick air of nostalgia, and I tell you, I have not loved a coaster as I loved that first ride in all my years of coaster riding. It was fantastic. Not the greatest ride, technically speaking, but history means a lot, and I’m sure a lot of people here will agree with me there. And the thing I loved about it, by the third ride, people had joined me, including an elderly gentleman, probably along in his sixties, who took the row two in front of me. And he and I rode there for another six laps, not needing to change seats, not needing to say anything, just absorbing everything the Tornado had to offer. I would watch him as I rode, his arm across the seat back of the empty seat next to him, his other hand loosely holding on to the lap bar in front of him, just letting the ride take us. And each time we came around, the ride op, Elmo was his name (easily the most amazing, entertaining, congenial man I had ever met) would walk slowly up to us, muttering something or other how we would be headed around yet again, or how he was glad we hadn’t disappeared that last time, or muttering something that you couldn’t quite make out, but couldn’t help smiling over anyway. And then he would bend down slowly, reaching to test the lap bar, saying how by now he good and well hoped we were locked securely down in there. His name tag said he’d been working there 12 years, and once I saw that, it only added to the ambience. It was just wonderful, I really haven’t felt a connection like that on a coaster ever before, and it kind of makes you glad you’re around to take the time out of life to appreciate things like that. I got off after my tenth lap – it was only 10:40, and for the first time in my life, the ride op came up to shake my hand, looking up at me and thanking me for riding. It really was one of the greatest experiences I’ve had at a park. Underground was next, and they have you wait out of the station behind a closed door, as there is a small preshow before you ride. This little old lady greeted us at the door, smiling widely, ushering us in, bustling about making sure everything was in order. She was terrific as well. I couldn’t really hear the preshow. It was given by this miner type animatronic that looked like it had seen better days, and I was on the other side of the room. The ride itself was cute. Nice and old-fashioned, something you could enjoy with someone who understood older theme parks on the same level you did, or at least appreciated them, and a nice little roll through really old animatronics and old-school mine theming. There were two short lift hills, but that was just to keep it moving along. I don’t recall there actually being a drop, but I might be wrong. I don’t know, I enjoyed it. It reminded me of Blazing Fury at Dollywood. Just kind of a fun, neat, old fashioned trip down the way things used to be. Dragon really wasn’t that bad. The loops were forceful enough, certainly, I definitely grayed out. And the final helixes really weren’t that rough at all. I mean, it still sucked, but I’m alive. I even considered riding it again later in the day, but… didn’t. Outlaw kicked some pretty big butt. It’s kind of stuck way back in the park, only accessible by one, out-of-the-way path, but it’s definitely worth the trek. It’s only 67 feet tall, but it reminded me a lot of Cornball Express. It had that same sort of fun, out of your seat intensity. The setting wasn’t nearly as great, but it was still a ton of fun. Nice and forceful, a bunch of pops of air (especially on the turn after the first drop if you’re toward the front of the train. Watch your knees, I still have a bruise), but the whole thing was just kind of built in good humor. I personally feel it should be way higher on Mitch Hawker’s poll. The ride ops were great here too. There was Linn, an older gentleman who checked the back, and Zachary, a younger guy up front. Both were incredible. They were efficient, on the job, and just great to talk to. I was able to talk to Zachary a lot, and it was just a really nice, friendly environment that you don’t get at too many other parks. And I really like the rules they have at this park. With the buzz bars, the allowed reride policy, and informal nature of checking you into your restraints, they were still able to maintain a really efficient and safe operational air, while letting the rider have a little more freedom, without the sometimes overbearing and unnecessary scrupulousness of other park operations. And every single employee was miles more friendly and amiable than just about anyone else I’ve seen at any other park. Really, I’ve heard that this place had amazing staff, and every single word of it is true. They were able to get the job done, and still had time to smile at you and strike up a conversation, if you so desired. Definitely the best park staff I’d ever seen, and I’ve never even really felt to look for things like that before. It was really refreshing. The whole day was really nice and relaxing. I left around 3 or 4, and had 15 rides on both Tornado and Outlaw, and just had a really nice time at the park. It’s a shame this place doesn’t get more traffic, it’s one of the most deserving parks I’ve seen. I urge anyone even remotely near the area to give this place a chance, and I promise you, you won’t be disappointed. And now for some pictures. The onride pictures were taken with permission. Thanks for reading, I had a really great time. Here we go, last park on the trip And finally, heading home over the log flume. Really it was a great park, and a great trip. Thanks for reading The first drop was pretty good, but that kick coming up on that first turn around was out of control Some more Outlaw Entering the body of Outlaw The rest of the park from the top of Outlaw. Both Tornado and Outlaw were great rides, and it would be nice to see them get a little more love from the world. Good stuff This is what your life looks like right before that tunnel They allowed on ride pictures, so why not? Here's a better look at Outlaw's layout And then back to Outlaw, where the line was a little shorter Tornado heading off. Really, I already miss that thing One more of Dragon Dragon doing it's thing. Expect to gray out on those loops This is Elmo. Easily the greatest ride op I've ever seen. Zachary and Linn, you were right up there. The staff here was second to none, and it wasn't even close The Tornado's entrance area Across that lake again The park's major coaster selection. Not the best, but it's definitely enough, for what the park is Some first drop action. It reminded me alot of Cornball Express Really the only sign I could find for this thing This is where the layout kind of gets hard to visualize... Then way in the back of the park, Outlaw I dunno, just playing around Soooo, it wasn't as bad as I was expecting, to be fair Beautiful place Across the park's lake The Underground was nice, kind of similar to Blazing Fury. The more I was here, the more I fell in love with the place Dragon from Tornado's exit queue These first 10 rides really were the perfect way to start the day Hands down my favorite older coaster. That guy in the corner there, in the blue, is the one I was talking about in my long spiel First stop: Tornado I mean... Food out of a pig's butt. It really doesn't get any better than that. I wasn't really expecting anything from this park, but you can tell right off the bat it has a great small park atmosphere