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Canobie Coaster
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Posts posted by Canobie Coaster
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Great report! Bobbejaanland has always looked like a fascinating park because of the oddball theming.
Dizz's track looks very odd for a Maurer spinner. The track is a lot beefier than their other spinners. I took a look on RCDB, and their other ones doesn't have the extra spine. Does anyone know why this installation specifically may have it?
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I was just there for an Oktoberfest trip so I can give some thoughts.
Oktoberfest is actually more in September, but if by some chance it's still running while you are out there, that should be near the top of your list. The ride selection is awesome, but it's also the general atmosphere of the place is magical.
For parks, the best two that I visited (by far) in Germany were Europa and Phantasialand. Those two parks have incredible theming mixed with some good thrill rides. We had a short visit at Holiday Park, but Expedition GeForce alone is worth the visit in my opinion.
I didn't make it to Hansa, but I have heard good things about that park. Heide Park could be worth visiting if Colossos runs again, but I haven't heard good things on their operations as of late.
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Bayern Park
Bayern Park was the complete antithesis to Oktoberfest. Instead of the loud, bustling midways, Bayern Park had the feel of a well-shaded, scenic German village. The entry area reminded me of the architecture in the German section of Busch Gardens, but again, much quieter. As a whole, I'd say the park caters to children. But it was also home to two of the most intense rides on the trip, Freischutz and Duell der Adler. Interesting, these two rides are two of the park's newer attractions too so maybe they're trying to spark a demographic shift and target a whole new audience.
Hobo, I don't think we're in the city anymore.
This poor lion may have been slightly violated during our group photo. Only slightly.
The architecture on these buildings made me feel like I was at Busch Gardens.
We only had 3 hours at the park, so we began a quick loop. While the rides at Oktoberfest try to top each other in a dick measuring contest, Bayern Park really tucks most of its rides away. Without the map, we probably wouldn't have found 2-3 of the smaller coasters. We wanted to begin with the funky river rapids water slide. The weather was slated to get cooler as the day went on, so we wanted to knock this out first in case it got us drenched. So we proceeded through an odd-looking castle that we thought was the entrance.
Thought is the key word. The queue was a narrow, winding labyrinth in almost total darkness. When we reached the end, we realized we had made a mistake. We considered bailing out, but decided to stick around and see what was inside. We figured it'd be some type of walkthrough. When the doors opened, we were shocked to see a drop tower. Mind you, the tower was probably no more than 40-50 feet in height so it was clearly a junior drop tower model. But nonetheless we were intrigued by the ride being enclosed.
Soon after the ride began rotating (yes the tower spun too) towards the top. Each level of the tower had these creepy looking dolls that were honestly more terrifying than the garden variety ghosts in Tower of Terror. As a kids tower, the drops weren't that fast, but they did give a tiny stomach dropping sensation. Later in the ride, I was surprised by a few fast ascents to the top that even gave some pops of floater air. When we got off, we weren't really sure what we had just ridden. I still can't believe the amount of theming put into a junior drop tower, but we ended up enjoying the ride they call Thaolon. 7 out of 10
In retrospect, this doesn't really look like a river rapids ride.
Instead it was an enclosed, haunted, junior drop tower that ended up being way better than it should have been.
Next we actually got on Whitewater Rafting. Turns out the entrance passed right over the ride and had a big old sign next to it, go figure. None of us had ever seen a rapids ride quite like this. Honestly, it was pretty similar to those Whitewater West spinning raft things that Cypress Gardens and Six Flags New England used to have. Except here the dinky inflatable rafts were replaced by robust river rapids boats. And that honestly made the slide more terrifying.
The section leading up to the lift is a decent little lazy river section with some theming. I think it was themed to mining, though we're pretty sure one scene had a dude bludgeoning another dude with a hammer. I thought this was a kids park? But after the haunted dolls and murder, I wasn't so sure. After the lift, the thrilling section began. It felt wrong careening full speed in a river rapids boat towards an unbanked water slide turn. Since we had a pretty full boat, we were genuinely terrified four Americans would send the raft careening over the edge, giving the park some more bodies to use in Thaolon. I think you can tell we survived, but the rafts definitely slid up the walls more than expected. The final splash was surprisingly dry, but we appreciated it. 8 out of 10
We enjoyed the lazy river while those miners were non-lazy and mined.
It was a slightly unnerving feeling sliding up the walls in a big old raft, but when we realized it was well engineered, we ended up really liking it.
As the rest of the group enjoyed their first beer of the day, we decided to venture off to the far side of the park. One end of the park has a pretty large pond and the walkway loops around it. At the end of the loop are some kids rides, highlighted by the cute little mouse ride where we saw kids riding in the not-in-America position (aka sitting on the back of the car with their feet on the seat while enjoying an ice cream cone). But there was one adult ride down there and one that could genuinely be dangerous after beers, an alpine slide.
Earlier this summer, I rode my first alpine slide at Attitash. I really enjoyed the ride, but I definitely rode it with training wheels and exercised discretion around almost all of the turns. On Attitash's, there were several steep drops that were seemingly engineered for stupid decisions. Accidents on that thing are common bedside stories in New England. Give me a mountain coaster and I'll ignore the brake like Massachusetts drivers ignore the speed limit. But when it's possible to fly off the course, I am careful. I started with that tentative approach on Twinbob Rodelbahn, but about 1/3 of the way down I realized the downward angle was so slight that I couldn't possibly fly off the course. My hubris was rewarded as I sped (though that's an overstatement) the rest of the way down. Honestly it was ok, but I found this one a little too tame and significantly shorter than Attitash's. 5 out of 10
I'd say riding this after beers was tempting fate, but I don't think this one went fast enough to send you over the edge.
Note the kid definitely not sitting on the seat.
At one end of the pond was a Disneyland sized castle.
After burning the good chunk of the day on non-coasters, we figured we should start racking up the credits. The first one we hit was the custom Zierer Tivoli, Achterbahn (aka Roller Coaster in German). There were no real drops, but the ride had the obligatory super long train so the helixes generated decent speed in the back. The best part of the ride was how it interacted with the nearby trees. It was definitely better than most junior coasters, but just an ok ride overall. 5 out of 10
It's a Zierer so of course the train is a gazillion cars long.
Many of the ride's helixes loop around trees, which is always better than the standard Six Flags parking lot.
On the way, we passed the park's flume and since it was a walk-on, we gave it a whirl. While Oktoberfest had the unique traveling flume, Whitewater Ride had the standard portable flume layout. The drops were just ok, but what made the flume slightly better than usual was the little landscaping and theming around the ride. While a standard layout, it's built on a hill and the first turn actually had some hidden theming. I guess it's obligatory for all German flumes to have at least one random show scene. 5 out of 10
I've seen this layout a few times, but I've never seen it look this good.
Continuing the theme of the day, we again got distracted on our way to the credits and made our stop at the slide. Usually slides are relatively tame affairs unless they have been throughly waxed and can give some air. This slide was different. I honestly think this slide would never have to be waxed and it would still give a crazy ride. Called the Steep Slide, it's appropriately named. I don't know what the angle of descent was, but I can confidently say it was steeper than most coasters and was on par with a speed slide. Because of the tight radius at the start of the slide, you're guaranteed to get some frightening airtime. The whole experience isn't more than 3-4 seconds, but it's a rush. 10 out of 10
The slide on the left is your normal wave slide, but what's that on the right?
That angle of descent looks steeper than most coasters. And it gives better airtime than most drops too.
We then went into credit whore mode since we had less than an hour left. Next to the death-defying slide was Froschbahn (aka the Frog Ride). Also a Zierer, this one was far less respectable than the larger one across the park. Like most rides at the park, it looked great and the layout was well-hidden. The latter was a plus so no one (hopefully) saw us riding this credit. 2 out of 10
The layout goes behind those trees. All 200 feet of it.
It was time to try my first Butterfly. But which one to pick? The park has two, one enclosed and one outside. We decided to go all in and picked the indoor one first. The coaster (if you call it that, I do) is located in an odd castle building that contains quite a few do-it-yourself attractions. Along with Star Shuttle, there was also some rock walls, a manual swinging ship, a weird looping ride, and some free arcade games. Naturally we all ran to the credit first.
I was in a group of 4 people that had never ridden a Butterfly before, so it took us some fumbling around to figure out how to operate it. Eventually we got it and the ride was fun. The first drop really had me feeling it in the gut, kind of like the first drop on a Vekoma boomerang, but the rest of the ride was just meh. It seemed to take a while to stop; a fact that made for an entertaining show with a few other members on the trip. 4 out of 10
This park really has a thing for castles, doesn't it?
Butterfly 1.
While we were in the building, I decided to try the manual swinging ship, Komet. I hadn't seen it run, so I figured it'd be a cute little ride that rocked back and forth. I pulled the lapbar down that rested a good foot off my lap and pulled the string to start the ride. The instructions said to hold the string to keep the ride swinging. The first few swings were like a lawn swing, so just as I started yawning, the ride reved and made a sound that would excite 1001 Nachts woman. It then got higher and higher and higher. When it reached its max height, I was afraid I'd break the dang thing, but I was getting some surprising ejector air. Who would have thought a swing no taller than 20 feet could be capable of air that strong. I would have loved to keep going, but I didn't want to be a dick and stopped so the next passenger could be treated to the airtime buffet. 9 out of 10
Aw so cute.
And then it transforms into an airtime machine.
After Komet, I had to try the funky inverting wheel. I had to wait about 3-4 runs (the longest wait of the day by far) and was treated to a considerably tamer ride. Yes it inverted. But the inversions were taken incredibly slowly. Honestly the best part was intentionally stalling the wheel upside down much to the chagrin of the passengers waiting in line. It was an interesting little ride, but I wish it inverted a little faster like the Unicoasters. 5 out of 10
The powered wheel of death was shockingly tame by comparison after the little swing ride.
With only 20 minutes left before ERT, we ran over to Butterfly. A few people sat it out after the first one, but the real credit whores (myself included) made sure to ride the outdoor one as well. It was the same ride pretty much, except this one was shaded by trees instead of being illuminated by incandescent light bulbs. 4 out of 10
Butterfly 2.
So you may have realized that I saved the park's two biggest thrill rides (and arguably best rides) for last in Freischutz and Duell der Adler (the Sky Roller). That was intentional for two reasons. One, I didn't want to make everything else in the park seem tame by comparison. Two, we had ERT on them and I wanted to ensure I had time to hit everything else. Number two is the primary reason, but since we had 10 minutes before ERT, we decided to sneak a ride on Freischutz through the normal queue. Thought normal isn't the right word here. The queue is a maze. And I don't mean that in the sense that it's ridiculously long. No I mean it in the literal sense. It is actually a series of 3 mazes with multiple routes. All paths seemed to lead to the station, but it was still weird.
This was my second Maurer X-Car. My first was Rip Ride Rockit. When the Rockit opened, I remember reading several reviews stating the ride was rough. I was worried during my ride, but I was treated to an almost glass-smooth, intense coaster that I ended up loving. With the same lapbar only trains, I had high hopes that Freischutz would deliver another smooth and intense ride. It did half of that. The top speed is less than 50 MPH, but that launch was surprisingly forceful. It was no Top Thrill Dragster, but it put the launches of Helix and Flight of Fear to shame.
The inverted top hat was excellent (I seriously love these inversions) and had some great hang-time. The next bit gave the ride its positive Gs. The vertical loop was decent, but the two overbanked turns afterwards were incredibly forceful and caused me to grey out a bit. The hang-time returned on the zero-G roll and that was followed by a ferocious final corkscrew that really whips you through it. The ride is short, but it's a rush that perfectly alternates between positive and negative Gs.
So you may have discerned by this point that if I'm praising the ride's forces, that it let me down in the smoothness department. And you'd be correct. Thankfully there were no OSTRs or else this could have been brutal. Even without banging my head, I still got a bit of a headache since the ride rattled the entire way through. I don't think there was a single track piece after the launch where I didn't feel like I was riding a vibrator. I got rides in the very front, front of the back car, and very back, and all 3 seats were quite rattly. I did hear the middle seats on both cars were smoother, but I didn't get a chance to try those. Still despite the vibrations, I did enjoy Freischutz since it is a really intense ride with impeccable pacing. 8 out of 10
The queue looks so unassuming, but it's a labyrinth. An actual labyrinth.
Any looper with lap bar only trains gets a thumbs up from me.
The ride perfectly alternates from positive to negative Gs.
Sadly the launch is the only smooth part of the ride. A shame since this could have been pretty high in my rankings otherwise. Still a fun, forceful ride though.
We wrapped up with Duell der Adler, the Sky Roller. I had experience on the versions at Canada's Wonderland, Blackpool, and Liseberg, so I knew how to put on a good show. I rocked the wings in rhythm and was eventually treated to the balls-to-the-wall, intensity that I crave. I probably averaged 50-60 flips per ride. The most amazing thing to me about this flat is just how intense the flipping is. I can't think of a single ride with faster flips out there and for that reason, I absolutely love it.
On what we thought was our last ride, we waited for our restraints to be unlocked, but the park gave us another lap. Most riders were excited by this and we made sure to go out with a bang. The one feature I particularly liked on this one is that the ride statistics are fully visible to riders as they exit. On the other versions I've been on, the flipping stats seem to be hidden in the operator box, so the only way you can keep track of your flips is if the operator calls it out or if you can miraculously keep count while going head-over-heels. Here, there's a monitor so you can either brag about your performance or run before someone calls you out for having as many flips as Big Thunder Mountain. 10 out of 10
I can't emphasize it enough that this is one of my favorite flats out there.
It was great riding with others than fully intended to flip these like madmen. Usually you only see 1-2 people going balls out while the rest of them are stationary or barely rocking.
Yours truly was in car 2.
I thoroughly enjoyed our few hours at Bayern Park. As a whole, it's a perfect family park. But then Freischutz and Duell der Adler are two of the more intense rides out there. I'm not sure if that's the direction the park wants to go in or if they just wanted some added variety in their lineup, but as long as the park keeps their quirky and funky charm going with all their additions, I think Bayern Park will always be worth the day trip when I'm out in Munich.
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I'm just getting caught up on this report, but the photos are fantastic! I'm loving the ride reviews too.
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In the past I've gone towards early-mid October, but I had family obligations the first few weekends in October. The only available day was the end of October. I had one of the early reservations so the line wasn't too bad yet.
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^ And then further to that, there are parks that don't even offer season passes like Canobie or Knoebels.
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^ That very well could have been me. You should have said hi; I don't bite haha.
I thought they were able to salvage the blue one without having to make Frankentrain but maybe I misheard. Regardless the ride was running really well. Having the second train would have definitely helped for capacity but realistically I doubt they would have used it anyway.
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Oktoberfest- Part 3 (Beer, Dark Rides, & Things to Do While Drunk)
The real reason 99% of people come to Oktoberfest is for the beer. I have to admit that I am not a particularly big beer drinker, but that’s because I dislike the taste of a majority of beers. When I go out to eat, I’d rather spend the extra money on a better meal or an appetizer over a beer. However, I broke that rule for Oktoberfest. How could I come to Oktoberfest and not have authentic German brews? That and the fact that beer cost less than water helped. If you can get tap water in Germany, you should book a plane ticket for Vegas.
Simply put, the German beers have ruined many of the American beers I wasn’t a major fan to begin with anyway. I’m not a fan of dark beers, but I am a fan of the lighter beers or weissbier in German. Stateside, my personal favorites are Blue Moon and Allagash White. Those beers are good, but the ones at Oktoberfest put those two to shame. My personal favorite at Oktoberfest was a Paulaner weissbier I had at a mini beer tent by Alpina Bahn. It was easily the smoothest beer I have ever had.
It was a small tent, but this was home to my favorite beer of the trip.
The Paulaner was so smooth.
Speaking of the beer tents. About half the midway consists of rides. The other half consists of beer tents. You have larger tents/festhauses as well as several smaller ones. Finding a seat in the larger ones is like finding a front row parking space at the Christmas mass. You either need to arrive super early, have a large enough group to book a reservation (thank you for TPR), or make friends with random people.
If you don't have a reservation, you better get there at opening. Otherwise finding a seat could be difficult. This isn't an Athletics game.
For the smaller tents, it’s a matter of how packed the tent is. Long story short, they are all usually pretty packed. Even more than the rides. Saturday was akin to standing shoulder to shoulder at a Disney parade, but the other days were more manageable. My personal favorite place to have a beer (not necessarily my favorite beer, though it was good) was at the beer-go-round by Olympia Looping. It’s just as it sounds. It’s a revolving platform with a bar in the center. The place was fantastic to enjoy a beer and just take in the sights- the roar of Olympia Looping, 2 Germans passionately making out next to you, and a dude having a photoshoot with the miniature horse on the platform.
On our full day at the fair, we had lunch at the Lowenbrau tent and it was fantastic. 2 liters of beer, a half chicken, and a massive pretzel. I will openly admit that I’m a lightweight, so I was pretty inebriated after drinking 2 liters of beer in less than 2 hours. Rather than try the 5 liter challenge like a few of the ambitious members of TPR, I knew I was at a happy place and stopped. I was tipsy but still well enough to function and take part in never-in-America attractions afterwards that were made all the better by me not being able to walk straight.
The lion atop the tent said "Lowenbrau" like an angry drunk woken up from his evening nap.
Oh and there was music too.
They said this was a half chicken, but it sure looked like a full chicken. It was huge!
Massive pretzels for beer absorption.
But the highlight was 2 liters of this. Let's just say I got pretty tipsy.
Robb and Elissa were nice enough to take us over to the Toboggan, aka conveyor belt of death slide, immediately after we had our beers. For those who haven’t seen the TPR video (do so immediately), the slide itself is a pretty slick spiral slide. But the real experience is getting to the top. Take those high speed walkways at airports, triple the speed, put it at an incline, and have the hand railings stationary. If that sounds difficult, it is and made it one of the best places at the fair for people watching. I had seen countless YouTube videos of people wiping out on the conveyor belt. Going in, I was confident. Confident that I would spectacularly wipe out. And that was before I had 2 liters of beer.
Before I went I saw countless guys in lederhosen go booty over teakettle, fall flat on their back, or be escorted up the ramp as a furiously marching marionette. If you were a girl or child, the attendants chivalrously were there to help. If you were a guy, they just sat back and watched the show unfold. As I approached the conveyor belt of death, I almost stopped to consider my life choices but just went for it. I almost instinctively grabbed the railing (the leading cause of wipeouts) but was somehow able to contain myself. I wobbled back and forth and a half second later was riding the ramp sideways like a surfer. I made it up! I probably looked like an awkward bumbling fool, but I made it up on my own.
The slide itself was good too. It’s much like the spiral slide at Knoebels. It’s pretty fast. But the experience is really all about the conveyor belt of death which I conquered. Successful on my first try, I was able to get to the stop yet again on a reride (or reslide?) immediately after. I don’t think I’d always make it to the top, but on this day luck was on my side. Instead of tempting fate a third time, I sat back, pretzel in hand, and continued to watch the carnage. 10 out of 10
It looks like an innocent slide, but when you add the inclined, high speed conveyor belt and drunks, you have a recipe for wipeouts.
This fellow was so ambitious. He thought he could make it.
He could not and went butt over tea kettle.
And then rode up on his back.
His buddy after him somehow turned himself around and tried running down, but resistance was futile.
The only other attraction that may beat the Toboggan for people watching is Teufelsrad, aka the devil’s wheel. Like the Toboggan, check out TPR’s video if you have never seen one of these. If you haven’t, picture an arena filled with chanting, drunk Germans with more enthusiasm than a baseball game. In the center, you have an unassuming wooden wheel. The goal is to stay on the wheel, as it spins, longer than everyone else. The MC will call out a category (guys, girls, couples, children, etc) and if you satisfied it, you were welcome to run to the center of the wheel. If you were American and didn’t know German like me, you were pretty much doomed to be stuck on the outside of the wheel where the chances of success was bleak. You really needed to be in the center to have success.
Battling centripetal force, especially while inebriated, would be challenging enough. It’s pretty common for people to be sent tumbling off the wheel within the first minute. With less people on the wheel, it’s a little easier to stay balanced. So that’s why the German carny (who seriously has the best job in the world) releases a wrecking ball. It looks like a giant, poofy Christmas ornament, but the ball appeared to have some deceptive heft to it and would drill unsuspecting riders in the face. If people were still on the wheel at this point, the carnies would then whip out ropes to lasso you off. Don’t worry, they have no regards whether or not they get you by the torso, leg, or neck. To them it’s all the same.
It was definitely an interesting experience going on the wheel, but without a good spot in the center, it was an exercise in futility for me. Although the friction from my shoes did keep me on longer than expected, I always wiped out prior to the wrecking ball being released. But as fun as it was to ride, I found it much more entertaining to watch. In particular, there was a girl who appeared to know the operators and she gave them a run for their money. Even in the end as they tried lassoing her, she would flail about like a breakdancer to wiggle out of the rope. They eventually got her with a blindside lasso, but she made them work for it. This is something I don’t think we’ll ever see in America. And I’m not just talking at a park. This would probably even be considered too dangerous for TV shows. Overall the experience was an easy 10 out of 10.
Round and round they go. And eventually centripetal force wins.
To accelerate things, they send down this festive looking wrecking ball to smash you in the face.
For those still on the platform, they lasso you in like cattle.
And then there were none.
The fair also had a multistory and rather long fun house in Lach Freu Haus. Fun houses alone can mess with a drunk’s balance, but this fun house is particularly evil for two reasons. The first is water. Part of the fun house requires you to navigate slippery stepping stones. One bad step and everything is getting wet. Then there are a few suspension bridges that sink into the water if you move too slowly or weigh too much. And guess what, the average American will sink the bridge into the water, decimating your shoes.
The other element that can absolutely mess with your equilibrium is 3D. Yes the fun house has 3D elements. Are there paintings/pop-outs along the way? No, that’d be too tame and safe. They decided to add a 3D laser show to the spinning barrel. Those barrels are already disorienting enough, so adding 3D seemed like a jolly idea. But that actually wasn’t what caused people to wipe out on the barrel. It was the tilting of the barrel. The dang thing wobbled forwards and backwards as you went through it. So not only did the ground move side-to-side, but it also bobbed up and down. I nearly wiped out, but was able to scamper across before going face-first into the hardwood floor. The same couldn’t be said for a few other members on the trip.
The rest of the fun house had much tamer elements by comparison, but they were all quite good. It wasn’t quite up to the level of Grona Lund, but there was plenty left. My two favorites were the sliding stairs and the spiral slide. The latter was particularly good since I usually stick to spiral slides and never build up any speed (see the slide at Kolmarden Zoo). This one was quite slick so it was actually enjoyable rather than binding up my shorts. 9 out of 10
This was an awesome fun house with some evil tricks up its sleeve.
Down he goes.
3D, tilting, spinning barrel of doom. Is there anything else it could do to mess with your equilibrium? If so, let the carnies know and I'm sure they'll incorporate it in.
Then there were two rides at the fair that were extreme workouts. Yes the Toboggan and Devil’s Wheel required balance, but I didn’t come off panting like I had run a marathon. That was the job of Looping the Loop and the Uberschlag. Looping the Loop is a manual flying carpet ride. You’re placed in a cage and told to go at it with the goal of completing the loop (note- the vehicles are counterweighted so you never invert, much like a flying carpet). There’s no additional restraints, so you’re free to shift your weight about the entire cage to go over the top. I first tried this evil contraption in the evening. It was easy to get halfway up and there were some good forces thanks to the tight radius. But completing the loop was a royal pain.
I was rhythmically gyrating (there was really no other way to go about it) and eventually got my cage to the top, but I wasn’t quite able to complete the loop. I tried and tried, but I kept getting stuck at the top or right at the top. In desperation, I tried shifting my weight at the top by running forwards, but I mistimed it. Remember how I said we were unrestrained in a cage? The ride sort of threw me backwards during its powerful downswing and I smashed into the cage. Thankfully I was able to regain my bearings and avoided any major injury. I had enough of that thing…for the night.
I probably should have avoided the ride after almost breaking my back, but I decided to go another round. I again worked my way up to the top and kept getting stuck. I wasn’t going to be bested by this German carny’s little contraption! This time when I reached the top, I furiously started jumping up and down like a pissed off child at a mini golf course (I had plenty of experience doing this when I was younger). Eventually I completed the loop! I went around a few times, jubilant and accomplished. Then I held on with a kung-fu death grip until the ride came to a full and complete stop. Mission complete. 8 out of 10
It sounds easy enough to rock this cage over the top.
But by the end of it, you look like this. Exhausted.
While you never actually invert on Looping the Loop, it was possible on the Uberschlag. Since you actually invert on this one, the restraints were much more restrictive. On this one, I felt like a prisoner. The straps tying you to the pole were ok, but it was the ankle restraint that had me thinking I was at Alcatraz. Since I couldn’t throw my body around, I had to gyrate even harder this time in order to build the height of the swing.
Unfortunately I hit a wall (figuratively thankfully) at 120 degrees. I tried going higher, but those 120 degree swings produced some pretty good airtime. By the time I landed back on the ground, I didn’t have enough time to properly shift my weight to go any higher. I kept trying, but when I tried pushing harder it started to hurt my ankle a bit so I drew the line. Getting this one to flip truly would be a beat of endurance. I had to bow out, but still had fun once I got the swings going. 8 out of 10
If you wanted to know what a prison swing would be like, the Uberschlag is for you.
The past few rides are all things that are traps for drunks. The last ride, Fahrpreise, has employees drinking on the job. Don’t worry, it’s not the ride operators. That would be dangerous. They just have their obligatory cigarettes. The drinkers were the live band. Yes this ride had a live band. Before our ride, the operator handed them shots of beer for them to enjoy. Needless to say I have never seen anything quite like it.
The ride itself could only be described as traditional. It was like a hybrid of a trabant and a carousel. The ride had absolutely no restraints, but the tame movements didn’t require them. We had a blast just laughing at the whole ride set-up and enjoying the live music which captured the feel of Oktoberfest perfectly. It’s not a world-beater, but it’s something that needs to be experienced. For us, it was the perfect way to end a night. 6 out of 10
The child of a trabant and a carousel was pretty funky and cool.
I wasn't kidding. They seriously had a live band playing.
Oktoberfest was an incredible experience. Everything from the food to the beers to the people to the crazy rides made the event standout. There’s really nothing quite like it. I was there for 4 days (some full days, some partials) and could have easily spent more time. Riding all the rides does get expensive, but basically everything delivered and was worth it in my opinion. I don’t know when I’ll return to Oktoberfest, but I know I will return someday.
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^ The other thing I love with the metal detectors is even if they do go off, half the time they just assume it's a belt and don't even make you take it off.
The only metal detectors I know work for sure are the ones at Universal
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That ride looks intense and borderline brutal from the POV, but I'm glad it sounds enjoyable from your review.
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The part I don't understand during the story is the robbers used tasers. Doesn't CGA have metal detectors entering the park?
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Lake Compounce Haunted Graveyard
Lake Compounce's Haunted Graveyard is hands down my favorite Halloween event (theme park or any) that I've been to. Before anyone raises any pitchforks, I have only been to haunts in New England so I'm not comparing this to Knott's Scary Farm, Universal's event, etc. But compared to Fright Fest, Screeemfest, the haunted corn mazes, and overpriced houses, the Haunted Graveyard obliterates all of them in terms of quality and value. And it also helps being able to get night rides on one of the world's best wooden roller coasters as well.
Easily the best haunt I've been to.
Two of my biggest pet peeves with haunts are the cost and the lines. Six Flags suffers from both of those while Canobie only suffered from the latter. Lake Compounce suffers from neither. For only an extra $8-10, you can add a timed reservation for this spectacular hour long walkthrough. Sure there may be a 20-30 minute wait after you check-in for your designated time, but once you enter into the Graveyard, you have a full hour of haunts. I don't know of any other Halloween haunt that is nearly this long.
I had 15 minutes before my reservation, so I decided to ride the park's Wave Swinger. Usually swing rides are a relatively relaxing and mundane ride, but not so much at Lake Compounce. Ever since the park rehabed the swings a few years back, they have run the ride ridiculously fast. Usually on these swing rides, you can feel the swing slow a bit at the peak of the wave, but on this one the ride whips you through it. I don't know of any other swing ride with Gs comparable to this one. This was the perfect ride to stall before the Graveyard. 8 out of 10
Usually I'll skip these swings, but not when you run it like a bat-out-of-hell.
I didn't get any photos of the Haunted Graveyard since it was mobbed in the queue line and you aren't allowed to take photos on the inside. I've been going to Lake Compounce for 20 years, but last Saturday was the most crowded I had ever seen it. Because of this, the line for the Graveyard stretched through the park's kids area. Fortunately, the line was just because people were either late or early for their reservation depass a good chunk of them and only had an additional half hour to wait.
For the Graveyard, it's not just the length, but it's also the quality. There are hundreds of scare actors inside the Graveyard and they cover every single phobia someone could have- spiders, zombies, hospitals, chainsaws, and priests. The latter is particularly terrifying for boys in the Boston area. While the Graveyard is relatively similar year-after-year, that's fine by me since it's always a spectacular experience and the scare actors keep it fresh.
After leaving the Graveyard, I had 2.5 hours left to explore the park. On my way to Boulder Dash, I figured I'd hit Phobia. Remember how I said I had never seen the park this crowded? Phobia's queue was into the lower switchbacks. Unsure how long that line would take, I decided to skip it for the time being to ensure I made it to Boulder Dash. I was a little scared how long that queue would be considering I knew it'd be running one train. I'd say they were only running one train due to the accident, but let's be honest, the park probably wouldn't have had the second train running anyway based on their track record this year.
I reached Boulder Dash's queue and it was just beyond the pagoda, almost at the main entrance. I had a bad feeling the queue may take an hour, but it only took about 40 minutes, and that included me waiting for the front. The front is my go-to seat on Boulder Dash. The back is fantastic too, but nothing beats the beats the rush of wind on a pitch-black night ride through the mountain. The combination of the setting, relentless speed, strong laterals, and fantastic airtime makes it a top 5 coaster for me. It's not exactly a glass smooth ride, but it's not meant to be and (for me at least) it's not what I'd consider rough. It's a wild and aggressive ride from start to finish, but I find it very reridable.
Despite the cooler temperatures, I thought the ride was running as great as it was during the summer. The return leg in particular felt extremely fast and I'm happy to say the double up has fully broken in after it had a vibration to it on my early season rides. I immediately got back in line and again waited about 40 minutes for the front row. The Beast is often considered one of the best night rides in the coaster community, but I give my nomination to Boulder Dash. It's already a world-class ride during the day, but it becomes absolutely insane once the sun sets. There's no light whatsoever on the mountain. 10 out of 10
Boulder Dash is my favorite coaster for night rides.
I'm willing to bet the second train is off for rehab somewhere.
This is about as much light as there is during the entire course. It's absolutely insane.
I saw Down Time was a walk-on, so I decided to give the park's drop tower a whirl. I was a bit worried that the drop would feel dull after riding the insane version at Foxwoods, but I still enjoyed it. The drop has some good air at the start of the drop and I really love the clock effects at the top. The effects are particularly effective since they vary ride to ride. Sometimes the alarm goes off after the ticking, sometimes it doesn't. I don't know if that's intentional or not, but it makes the drop more suspenseful. 8 out of 10
One of the better S&S towers out there.
I decided to check back on Phobia and the line was quite a bit shorter. It was just past the station, but thanks to the speedy dispatches, I was on the back row in about 10 minutes. The ride is a nice compliment to Boulder Dash. It's smooth, has some solid launches, a freaky inline twist, and a really intense drop. The more I ride these Sky Rocket II's, the more I have grown to dislike the shin guards. On the other coasters I've been on, the shin guard cups around the shins. On the Sky Rocket II's, it rams against my shins pretty tightly and it gets a tad uncomfortable. Since it's a short ride, I can look past it though and enjoy it. 8 out of 10
It's still odd for me to see Phobia here after being used to the Enterprise, but I definitely prefer it.
I had plenty of time to watch it from the Boulder Dash line.
I had 25 minutes left. I considered riding the Sky Coaster since they usually have a $10 haunt special, but I passed on it. The price was $15 (which is still cheap for these), but the big reason was the queue. There looked to be 5 groups and I didn't want to risk missing a final ride on Boulder Dash. The park doesn't close the line until closing, so I debated going on Phobia again. Instead I decided to start queuing for Boulder Dash so I could ensure my last ride was again in the front. I don't regret my plan one bit.
The ride is challenging to photograph during the day. At night, it's nearly impossible.
On the way out, I took a look at Wildcat. It's no secret the ride's rehab took much longer than expected. The ride was essentially closed all year with the exception of one or two weekends at the end of the summer. I figured it'd be open for the Graveyard, but the park decided to start painting it at the beginning of October. The new color scheme looks odd with the black track and orange rails, but it definitely is vibrant and stands out. I'm looking forward to finally trying the retracked version next year since the few people who rode it said it was running much faster. Still rough, but at least it had some air to go with the rattling.
It's hard to tell from this photo, but the ride has an interesting paint scheme. I'm still bummed they decided to start painting it before the season ended though.
Lol...temporarily closed.
If you've never been to the Haunted Graveyard, don't hesitate and go next year. The haunt alone is worth it. Getting night rides on Boulder Dash is worth it, particularly since the park usually closes before sunset in the summer. And when you combine those two things together, you have a truly exceptional event that is my bonafide Halloween tradition.
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Yes that does say Unicoaster. Those are really fun flats. I really liked the one at Belmont Park a few summers back. The Short Loop Coaster appears to be the long flat ride in the bottom left. I have a feeling that's probably a Larson Looper like you suspect. The only other coasters with a footprint like that and loop are the free flies, but I imagine they would have called it a 4D coaster if that were the case.
I'm also excited by the Sky Fly.
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^ Thanks for sharing! The water coaster looks to have a lot of drops packed into that layout.
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I could see myself making the drive a few times in January-March when all the other parks are closed in the area if they can enclose it. Takabisha's max height is in the ballpark of Mindbender, which they enclosed in Edmonton so it's definitely possible.
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The particular model sounds pretty similar to Croc-o-Nile (former Anchor Bay) slide at Lake Compounce minus the wave pool entry. As often as I've been to Lake Compounce, I have never actually done this slide since it's usually pretty busy.
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So I'm an idiot and drove to Dollywood today before checking their hours to see them closed! Why not keep the Halloween stuff open until Halloween! Heck, even SFOG is open today and tomorrow! Lol
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I've done that once before, but thankfully it was on the way to another park so I didn't go out of my way. Hopefully it wasn't too long of a drive, but it certainly taught me a lesson.
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Great report! My rides on Twister this year really blew me away as well. I did like the ride in the past, but it felt even wilder this year while still being a smooth ride. The front is easily the best seat on it. It's a borderline top 10 wooden coaster for me.
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This ride looks fantastic. The restraints look like the ones on Taron and Red Force, which is exciting. Those restraints were extremely comfortable.
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Foxwoods & Cape Cod Dachshund Day
I had planned to visit the Haunted Graveyard and get my last Boulder Dash rides of the year in on Sunday. Unfortunately Mother Nature would have none of that. Knowing that Lake Compounce can be a big trigger happy when it comes to closing for weather, I had a very strong feeling the park wouldn't be opening on Sunday when I saw a 100% chance of rain. I was right and to the park's defense, the storm was actually pretty brutal with high winds knocking out power in several towns across New England. Generally when I try to avoid a park on Saturday it's due to the crowds, but this time I actually had something planned on Saturday.
Judge me all you want, but that event was Cape Cod Dachshund Day. Yes it's a thing. If you want rides, just skip the next few paragraphs and photos of adorable weenie dogs. The festival was having its 10th anniversary and because of my unhealthy obsession for wiener dogs, I just had to attend once I found out it was a thing. The only word to describe the festival was interesting. The impact of attending would be that there was no way I could make it to Lake Compounce for opening. Thankfully they let you reserve a time for the Graveyard, which was critical since with how crowded the park was that evening, I don't think they had any standby tickets left.
But back to the dachshunds. This festival put everything in perspective. I love dachshunds, but it's all relative. With any hobby/obsession, there are the people who love their hobby but are perfectly capable of functioning otherwise. Many of us had a shared love of dachsunds, but we could also talk about baseball, movies, etc. But then there were the diehards whose wieners got longer than their dogs as they talked about the breed. I think coaster enthusiasts are a perfect parallel. You know those ones that can recite off every stat and have heated debates whether or not a ride is a coaster or not, I basically saw the same thing as a few people passionately tried to disqualify a dog from the fashion show because he wasn't a purebred. He was a hybrid of a Scottish terrier and a dachshund.
The patch wearing ACER vest equivalent in the dachshund world. He had 10-12 dachshunds in his two carriages.
The festival began with a rousing rendition of the Dachs Song. Everyone was wildly out of pitch, but it was so laughably bad that you couldn't help but enjoy it. Think of the wonderfully off-key drinking songs you hear at bars or college parties. That was followed by a fashion show/parade where owners showed off their wieners. The dogs that is. Many were dressed up and looking back, only a few of them walked. Many owners carried their dogs or pushed them around in a baby stroller for the entirety of the fair.
This isn't even the best dachshund song I know, which is a pretty sad statement.
That's one hot dog!
The highlight for me was the Dachshund Fun Run, aka the wiener dog race. I've always wanted to see these wiener dog races because it's hysterical watching a dog so awkwardly shaped run. While greyhound races are competitive and cruel for the breeds, the wiener dog races are completely tongue-in-cheek. Of the 5 heats, there were only 2 close finishes since the race was often determined by which dog decided to run forwards. Most of the dogs confusedly didn't run when the gate opened and others quickly became distracted by the other dachshunds tunneling their way underneath the side of the racetrack.
This captures dachshund racing perfectly. Note the ones confused and in the gate, the rare two that knew to run forwards, and then the random weenies tunneling their way into the racetrack.
The festival wrapped up at 3 so it was a little over a three hour drive to Lake Compounce from Falmouth. On the way, I decided to make a pit stop at Foxwoods Casino. Did I want to gamble away my last week's paycheck? No. Earlier this year, they announced a surprise addition, the Thrill Tower. One of those Stan Checketts/Soaring Eagles towers, it included a drop tower and sky sling. Foxwoods had been rumored to be interested in adding a theme park for quite some time now, so the addition of this thrill ride wasn't shocking. What was shocking was how quickly they installed it. I was probably the one rare nut who showed up to Foxwoods not to gamble, but the rides looked very intriguing.
To save you time if you decide to make your way to Foxwoods, the rides are located behind the Fox Tower. I figured it wouldn't be hard to find a 120ft drop tower, but it's almost entirely blocked by the skyscraper which stands almost 350ft tall. I didn't realize the tower was that tall until it dwarfed a drop tower. After parking in the wrong garage and walking around confused (people probably thought I was drunk), I eventually found a lovely little sign that led me to the rides.
I never thought it'd be this hard to ever find a drop tower. The Thrill Tower looks so puny next to Fox Tower.
Finally I found it!
The prices for the attraction were pretty steep, but as a thrill seeker I could justify the price as a one-time treat. It cost $25 for the Sky Launch, $15 for the Sky Drop, or $35 for the combo ticket according to their website. Not sure if the website was out-of-date or I just got lucky, but I was only charged $30 for the combo ticket. As an added bonus, I was allowed to take 2 rides on each as long as they were taken back-to-back. That made the cost more palatable for sure.
I started with the Sky Launch since that was by far the more popular of the two attractions. I didn't see anyone else ride the drop tower while I was there, but I saw 5 other people try the Sky Launch. The ride is a smaller version of the tower at Branson's Bigfoot Tower. This was my first time riding one of these nutty Soaring Eagle creations, so I was immediately taken back by how minimalistic the restraint system was. The ride only had a few seatbelts holding me in and combined with how open the ride vehicles are, it's a pretty terrifying experience. Before launching you have the option to select whether or not you flip. Of course I picked the flipping option. I wasn't going to pony up $20 to ride a neutered version of the ride. I wanted it to give me everything it had!
The launch didn't have much oomph to it, but it was sudden and the ascent up the tower was pretty freaky. I've done one of those slingshots before, but being enclosed in the ball took away the sensation of height somewhat. Not here. While much smaller than the adjacent skyscraper, it felt much higher than 120 feet during the ride. Once I reached the top of the tower, the vehicle shuffled slightly to the side and then I received two very wild flips that were accompanied by a stomach dropping sensation. I remember the flips on the slingshot being fluid and graceful. The Sky Launch's flips were aggressive and had some serious punch to them. The ride is a major rush. The only downside is how ridiculously short it is. I figured the first launch would be the best, but I didn't realize you only went up and down once. Thankfully they did give that second ride to make up for it. 9 out of 10
I loved the lighting package on the Thrill Tower.
The open cars, minimalistic restraints, and flipping made this a pretty terrifying and thrilling experience.
It felt only right to follow-up one terrifying ride with another, so I immediately rode the Sky Drop. While a 120 foot drop tower may not sound too special, this is a pretty freaky ride since the only restraint is a seatbelt. Yes Tower of Terror has seatbelts too, but you aren't in an open air gondola like on the Sky Drop. I was fortunate enough to have timed my ride right around sunset, so the views over the Connecticut forest were pretty nice. The one aspect of the ride that surprised me was the audio. There was some nice music during the ascent and it morphed into the sounds of a ticking clock at the top. I couldn't help put think of Compounce's nearby Down Time tower when I heard the audio, but I didn't mind them ripping it off since it's such an intimidating and effective sound atop a drop tower.
And then the drop came. I wasn't sure what to expect from it. I hadn't heard much about these Soaring Eagle towers other than the restraints. Since I saw Stan Checketts's involvement, I was worried the drop would be weaker like the S&S turbo drops. The second the gondola released, my fears had been squashed. The descent had a very powerful stomach dropping sensation and felt some great air the whole way down. The drop felt like one on those Larson drop towers. Without having a chance to catch my breath, I was sent right back up for my second lap and it again took my breath away. I think I slightly prefer the Larson towers for the restraints. That sounds kind of odd with how minimalistic the restraints are on this one, but the seat belt rests firmly on your lap. On the Larson ones, the OSTR leaves you plenty of room to come out of your seat and experience the air. Still it's just a minor nuance and just being listed in the same breath is a very good sign. 10 out of 10
No one else wanted to try the Sky Drop while I was there.
I loved the ride. Since Foxwoods is only 10 minutes off I-95, I'd consider stopping there whenever I pass by. The ride is scheduled to operate 365 days a year (weather permitting), so it may be a rare thrill ride fix for coaster enthusiasts in the cold New England winters. I personally preferred the Sky Drop, but I also admit that I am much higher on drop towers than most. I'd recommend stopping in to try both sides since they truly are wild and terrifying experiences.
After spending a half hour riding and grabbing some food, I left the casino without giving them a single penny. I had a reservation with the Haunted Graveyard and some nighttime Boulder Dash rides.
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Great report! I found the park's Joker weaker than SFNE's when I rode it back in June. But if it's like the one at SFNE, is there a good and bad side?
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I'm loving all these smaller Gravity Group woodies and this looks like another win. It's really impressive how much airtime they cram into rides this short.
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I hadn't been following this thread but that's awesome they're getting a Takabisha clone. The fact track is on site actually gives me hope.
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Great night at the park. The Graveyard was excellent as always and Boulder Dash is again showing why it's one of the best night rides anywhere. With one train, the wait hovered around 30-40 minutes all night. Though there was this exchange I had:
Guy- Are they running just one train?
Me- Yeah.
Guy- Where's the other train?
Me- [Pauses- I know the answer but didn't want to freak anyone out.] They aren't using it.
Guy- Why? Shouldn't it be on the track?
Me- Rehab.
Guy- Oh. You think the park would want to run two trains on a busy night.
I just shrugged and stopped there. So to the park's benefit it seems word about the accident didn't really spread.
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What are your TOP TEN COASTERS
in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
Posted · Edited by Canobie Coaster
Wood
1) Phoenix
2) Boulder Dash
3) Wildfire
4) Balder
5) Voyage
6) El Toro
7) Cornball Express
8) Ravine Flyer II
9) Shivering Timbers
10) Goliath (SFGAm)
The Coney Island Cyclone just missed the cut here.
Steel
1) Expedition GeForce
2) Iron Rattler
3) Fury 325
4) Twisted Colossus
5) Shambhala
6) Helix
7) Millennium Force
8) Skyrush
9) Phantom's Revenge
10) Superman (SFNE)
The last steel spot could easily be switched out for New Texas Giant or Wicked Cyclone. Superman in the front row is better than any seat on those two, but those two are consistently better in every other seat if that makes sense.