Canobie Coaster

I'd love for there to be any tall observation ride that allows photography.

First Steel- Rudy's Rapid Transit, Favorite- Iron Rattler (you'll see this a lot) First Wood- Yankee Cannonball, Favorite- Phoenix First 100ft Coaster- Boulder Dash, Favorite- Iron Rattler First 200ft Coaster- Steel Force, Favorite- Skyrush First 300ft Coaster- Kingda Ka, Favorite- Fury 325 First 4D- X2, Favorite- X2 First Alpine- Mountain Coaster @ Jiminy Peak, Favorite- Nor’Easter Mountain Coaster (Attitash) First Boblsed- Alpine Bobsled, Favorite- Alpine Bobsled First Boomerang- Zoomerang, Favorite- Great Escape’s First Dive Machine- Griffon, Favorite- Griffon First El Loco- Steel Hawg, Favorite- Steel Hawg First Eurofighter- Untamed, Favorite- Mystery Mine First Flying- Superman (SFGAdv), Favorite- Tatsu First Floorless- Batman (SFNE), Favorite- Superman Krypton Coaster First Indoor- Space Mountain (Magic Kingdom), Favorite- Space Mountain (Disneyland) First Inverting- Rock "n" Roller Coaster, Favorite- Iron Rattler First Launched- Rock “n” Roller Coaster, Favorite- Maverick First Mine Train- Big Thunder Mountain (WDW), Favorite- Big Thunder Mountain (Disneyland) First Motocoaster- Motocoaster @ Darien Lake, Favorite- Wave Breaker First Racing- Lightning Racer, Favorite- Gemini First Spinning- Pandemonium (SFNE), Favorite- Turbulence First Stand-Up- Shockwave, Favorite- Georgia Scorcher First Suspended- Big Bad Wolf, Favorite- Vortex First Wing- GateKeeper, Favorite- GateKeeper First Water Coaster- Journey to Atlantis (SD), Favorite- Journey to Atlantis (SD) First Wild Mouse- Monster Mouse (Quassy), Dark Knight (Any) First Arrow- Canobie Corkscrew, Favorite- X2 First B&M- Great Bear, Favorite- Fury 325 First Curtis Summers- Wild Beast, Favorite- Georgia Cyclone First CCI- Boulder Dash, Favorite- Boulder Dash First GCI- Lightning Racer, Favorite- Gold Striker First Gerstlauer- Pandemonium (SFNE), Favorite- Mystery Mine First Gravity Group- Wooden Warrior, Favorite- Voyage First Herb Schmeck- Yankee Cannonball, Favorite- Phoenix First Intamin- Alpine Bobsled, Favorite- El Toro First John Allen- Woodstock Express, Favorite- Blue Streak First Mack- Wild Mouse (Hershey), Favorite- Manta First Maurer- Wild Mouse (Funtown), Favorite- Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit First Morgan- Steel Force, Favorite- Phantom’s Revenge First Premier- Backlot Stunt Coaster (Kings Dominion), Favorite- Full Throttle First RMC- Wicked Cyclone, Favorite- Iron Rattler First Schwarzkopf- Sooperdooperlooper, Favorite- Shock Wave First S&S- Steel Hawg, Favorite- Steel Hawg First Togo- Shockwave, Favorite- Shockwave First Vekoma- Barnstormer, Favorite- Rock “n” Roller Coaster First William Cobb- Cyclone, Favorite- Cyclone First Zamperla- Woodstock Express, Favorite- Thunderbolt First Zierer- Rudy’s Rapid Transit Coaster, Favorite- Verbolten

Ew. I've never had it happen on a coaster. I've had someone puke on me while on a carnival Ferris Wheel. Some idiot teens were intentionally forcing themselves to puke to nail everyone below them.

^^ I would be so freaked out riding that. Having a second hill over 400 feet smaller than the first drop with the track ending like that would be far scarier than anything currently at the Stratosphere tower.

Wow that's truly amazing considering what type of waits Lightning Rod has been pulling.

^ True but loading and unloading on opposite sides will help them achieve whatever dispatch interval they are going for. The load/unload area on the free spins or any ride that loads/unloads on the same time can turn into a cluster really quick.

I feel like this could attract some interesting people. I can see this now: Guy- "Hi nice to meet you." Girl- "Don't you wish we could be on an Intamin instead?" Guy- "Yeah B&M sucks." Girl- "Anything after 2000 is forceless." Together- "We're almost atop the 120 foot lift hill and now we're going to go through 5 inversions."

Being able to (presumably) unload and load on opposite sides of the station should help there compared to the free spins.

Great photos! I think Six Flags St. Louis is the last of the Six Flags parks in this country that I need to get to. It looks like one of the nicer ones (in terms of appearance) and the wood coaster collection looks pretty good. Wow Over Texas really shows up the St. Louis version of Mr. Freeze for the ride entrance. In Texas, you enter directly into the well-themed ice cream factory.

SeaWorld San Antonio After ZDT's my next stop was SeaWorld San Antonio. And the two parks could not have been more of a contrast to each other. One was a tiny little FEC that used every square inch available while the other was a corporate park with a huge, sprawling layout. Having been to the San Diego one a few years back, I had a rough idea what to expect- a park primarily full of shows with rides sprinkled throughout. For the most part, that assessment was true. Since I only had a single weekend in Texas, I had a pretty jam-packed itinerary. I knew I wasn't going to leave that state without making it to both of the Six Flags parks. Because my travels brought be close to ZDT's and SeaWorld, I was able to squeeze them in as well. ZDT's is a park meant for a quick credit run. SeaWorld? Not so much. SeaWorld is definitely meant to be a full-day park so you can take in all the shows and enjoy the rides at a more relaxed pace. By the time I entered SeaWorld's gates, it was already 2:30 pm, so a speed run ignoring the shows was necessary to make it to Fiesta Texas at a reasonable hour. Being Texas, it was hot as balls. While I think my car slightly over-exaggerated the temperature, this gives you an idea just how hot we were talking. I'm just glad it was a dry heat or else I would have been tempted to hop a fence to swim with Shamu. I think it was actually *only* 106 degrees out, but still. I had to park pretty dang far away from the gate. The walk to the gate was probably 10 minutes. Meanwhile at ZDT's, in 10 minutes I was probably boarding Switchback for the second time. Just to ensure I got in and out of the park quickly, I purchased the QuickQueue for a reasonable $25-30. I know the lines at SeaWorld typically aren't too bad for the coasters, but any time I could save would be worth it since it would give me an extra ride on an awesome looking RMC later in the day that ended up becoming my new favorite coaster. So I'd say it was money well spent. I went through the entrance only to find... Another entrance! Aquatica was a separate gate and with the temperatures, I wouldn't be shocked if it was busier than the main park. Having worked up a sweat walking into the park (Holiday in the Park 30 degree temperatures are more my thing), I was ready to cool off. So my first stop was Journey to Atlantis. The time estimate wasn't up at the main entrance, but the entire queue building was filled so it looked to be a pretty substantial wait...but not with my handy dandy QuickQueue. I felt kind of bad bypassing that entire queue, but that quickly went away when I was strapped into the next boat. While San Diego's version was light on theming compared to the original in Orlando, the Texas version made San Diego's look like Splash Mountain by comparison. All Texas had for theming was a nice looking queue line and a single tunnel after the main drop. The ride did look nice though, but I guess I expected more from a SeaWorld park. The turntables were really slow, but a neat little feature. The backwards drop was tiny, but any backwards drop gives me a good free-falling sensation I rarely get on forward facing drops. The final plunge is taken forwards and was a really good drop; it was much larger than usual for a ride of this type. The subsequent splash got me quite wet, but not to the unbearable level of most shoot the chutes which was much appreciated even on a hotter day. It's basically a glorified shoot the chutes, but it's a massive one and that makes it a pretty fun ride. 7 out of 10 I started with the glorified shoot the chutes that's barely a coaster. This little tunnel is the entirety of the ride's theming. Six Flags doesn't look so bad now, huh? This looked absolutely drenching off-ride, but it actually didn't soak me to the bone. As I continued counterclockwise around the park, I was reminded that 95% of guests visit SeaWorld for the shows. The midways were packed to the gills as a few shows had appeared to have gotten out. I'm sure the shows were pretty good based on my experience at the San Diego park, but there was coasters to be ridden so I navigated my way through. Because of how narrow the walkways were relative to the number of people, I had flashbacks to all my visits at Disneyland trying to get through seas of people in Tomorrowland to use a Space Mountain fastpass. Actually I have to correct myself. There were coasters and a water ride to be ridden. Since I had QuickQueue, I decided to hop on the park's river rapids ride, Rio Loco, on my way by. Like Journey to Atlantis, this one also appeared to have a pretty substantial wait. Without QuickQueue, there is absolutely no way I would have even considered riding Rio Loco. Rio Loco didn't really have any theming, which was disappointing haven ridden the rapids ride in the San Diego park. However, the ride did have a very nice setting through the woods. The ride experience was also a bit different from the other river rapids I've been on. Usually any rapid sends a wave of water cascading into the boat, soaking guests. But on this one, 90% of the rapids didn't send water in the boat. Instead, the rapids just caused the raft wildly oscillate through the water, which made it a surprise when one of them sent a small wave towards the boat. Towards the end, there was an absolutely drenching waterfall that I somehow avoided, but other than that, you can escape this ride with nothing more than a few splashes. While unthemed, it was still a decent river rapids ride thanks to the wilder river, the nice setting, and the Russian Roulette waterfall at the end of the ride. If you have QuickQueue or a full day, Rio Loco is worth checking out. I'd say it's in the middle of the road for river rapids rides. 6 out of 10 No theming on the Rio Loco. Just a crazy river. Ah maybe that's the theming. Enough of the water, it was time to ride the Batman that isn't actually Batman in Great White. I used the QuickQueue entrance, but it really wasn't necessary as it was just a one train wait. I boarded in the back. The first drop and three inversions were the standard forceful affair of any Batman clone, but the second half felt different. There was a bit of a rattle and the forces weren't nearly as pronounced as I didn't feel the blood rush to my legs. Not sure if I just got a sluggish ride or if there was a subtle difference accounting for it. The corkscrews are still plenty fun, but it was definitely a bit tamer than the one I rode a few hours later or the next day at SFOT. Still a very solid invert. 8 out of 10 Wow this must be a massive invert if it's taller and faster than the park's 15 story, pseudo-hyper coaster. Oh wait it's just a Batman. Well it's not Batman, but it is a Batman. You know what I mean. I don't mind that this layout has been cloned so frequently. It's fantastic. The first half was the same old forceful goodness, but the second half was a bit sluggish. I didn't feel the blood rush to my feet like I do on the other Batman clones. Up next was the park's new hotness, Wave Breaker. This was another ride I was very thankful to have QuickQueue for since it was posting a 45 minute wait. Once I reached the station, I made my way towards the back of the queue. Well as far as I was allowed to go. Someone had unloaded their lunch by the air gates for the back row, which is impressive since it had to have been before they boarded the coaster unless they exited on the wrong side (wait that's entirely possible from what I've seen so scratch that). Thankfully I was allowed to swipe the back by entering through another row. The first thing I noticed was how weird the vehicles and restraints were. I expecting moto-coaster seating similar to one of the Zamperla versions. The ride vehicles are themed to freaking jet skis after all. Instead it's a sit-down train with restrictive rectangles for your feet and an odd "lap bar" that's really more of a knee bar. With how far ahead of you the handholds are, I believe you are supposed to lean forwards like on the motocoasters or a real jet ski. That much freedom in a vehicle was definitely different. The ride began with a launch. The pre-launch sequence feels more like something out of an educational exhibit rather than a coaster. The ride's story is simple enough; there's an animal at sea, so go rescue him. Soon enough, the doors open and you are off. The launches start slow (they're tire driven) but by the end they have a pretty good kick to them despite this being a family coaster. The first swooping hill is pretty large and has some solid forces at the bottom. The next few turns have nice placement over the water, but are graceful and forceless. I know it's a family coaster, but I was hoping those turns would have the standard Intamin magic in them. The second launch is better than the first since you already have a decent head of steam entering it. The second half feels identical to the first. There's another huge sweeping hill with some solid Gs at the bottom and then there are a series of graceful turns above the water until you hit the brake run. Unfortunately there's no airtime (though I'm not sure if that'd be a good idea anyway with those restraints) but the ride is definitely a solid family coaster with a great location. 7 out of 10 New for 2017! Launch 1 has you escape what feels like an educational exhibit in the pre-launch. The ride's only two major hills come after each of the two launches. The larger sweeping hills after the launches have some pretty good Gs, but the rest of the ride is relatively tame. Still fun though. Judging by the lines and their happy faces, Wave Breaker looks like a major win for the park. It was at this point that I was worried I wouldn't be able to get on the park's marquee mechanical attraction (since we know Shamu is their true marque attraction), Steel Eel. After I rode Journey to Atlantis, I saw a train stuck on the lift hill and hadn't seen the coaster run since. I was hoping the ride just had incredibly slow dispatches (something no one should ever wish for, but I was trying to be optimistic), but nope the ride had been down for the past hour and a half. This was an easy shot to take since the train was stuck there. Steel Eel had some pretty bizarre looking supports. I was momentarily debating if I should leave the park and try coming back later that evening after Fiesta Texas, but then I heard the unmistakable clickity-clack of the lift hill. I looked up and saw an empty train crawling up the lift like any train does on an old Morgan or Arrow coaster. Thank you SeaWorld maintenance crew. I just had to wait a few test cycles and then I'd be on the hyper coaster that technically isn't a hyper. Yes it's testing! Reopened just in time as I was passing it. My first ride was in the back seat. I hadn't heard too much about Steel Eel over the years other than a general complaint that the seats were hard and a bit uncomfortable. I never had a problem on Steel Force and the oversized trains looked nearly identical, so I was hopeful I wouldn't have an issue. Having ridden Steel Force quite a bit over the years, I wasn't sure what to expect with Steel Eel. Some of my rides on Steel Force have been far tamer than what you'd expect a coaster taller than 200 feet tall to be while others did have some really solid airtime thanks to the oddly shaped hills that continue increasing in steepness the entire way down. Steel Eel was wilder than any ride I've ever gotten on Steel Force! The first drop had amazing floater air and I actually lost my stomach. The same happened on the next two hills, which were equally as fantastic. The MCBR only slowed the train slightly as it then dove into the second half. The far turn was pretty forgettable but the 4-5 return hills were anything but. The airtime wasn't quite as intense as the first half, but the hills still gave some wonderful floater air. Despite having a shorter layout in track length than other hypers, it didn't feel any shorter. I tried the coaster in the front afterwards and definitely preferred the back. The pops of air were more abrupt in the front, but the air was sustained far longer in the back seat, particularly on the first half. So the one area I didn't address yet was comfort. The track was glass smooth, but were the trains comfortable? I personally didn't have a problem but can see how others may find the harder seats uncomfortable. I think the reason this may not be an issue on the other Morgan hypers like Steel Force because the airtime isn't as intense as it is on Steel Eel. Overall I loved Steel Eel and I think it rates similarly to the better B&M hypers. 9.5 out of 10 The airtime on the first drop was so good it ejected everyone from the train Just kidding, it was a test train. Though the air was amazing! Steel Eel may be below the 200 foot mark, but it feels no different than a hyper. Last but not least (I'm a credit whore after all) was Shamu's Express. Despite the 2-3 train wait, the park didn't have the QuickQueue open so this ended up being the coaster with the third longest wait in the park. Though I would have felt mighty embarrassed cutting a bunch of kids here with QuickQueue anyway . I was lucky enough to get the back seat. I got 2 laps on Shamu. I was fine with that though the kids ahead of me looked like they could go a few more laps. The ride was smooth, but that made it beyond uneventful after riding the other 4 coasters. 1 out of 10 I made sure I had time to ride Shamu. Oh *expletive*! There's evidence I rode it. I can now cross two SeaWorld parks off the list. Sadly the one I'm missing is the one that's widely considered the best, Orlando's. With all the additions Disney and Universal have slated in the next few years, I'll definitely be back in the Orlando area and hope to finally hit that park. I believe San Antonio was superior to San Diego, though I had two wildly different types of days. I had a full relaxed day at San Diego so I was able to soak in all of the shows while my visit to San Antonio consisted entirely of the coasters. San Antonio wins in that area, but I can't comment on how their shows compare since I skipped those to ensure I had enough time at Fiesta Texas. And I'm glad I gave myself time at Fiesta Texas since (spoiler alert) it was the best Six Flags park I have visited.

^ At least at a concert it can't go flying back at 70 mph. I remember SFNE's old 5 year ban policy if you had your phone out being more effective. Lately I've seen more and more people with their phones out on the rides. What's the worst thing if they catch you now? They just kick you out of the station? I think the penalty needs to be harsher to deter people.

ZDT's Amusement Park I was lucky enough to have a free weekend down in Texas a few weeks back. With only two days down there, I knew the two Six Flags parks were an absolute must with SeaWorld San Antonio being another park I wanted to add. Without a third day, Schlitterbahn or the Houston-area parks were not feasible for me. I was able to cram in a certain FEC with a Gravity Group woody though in ZDT's Amusement Park (though I think ZDT's Super FEC is more appropriate). I landed in Dallas at 8 am and after picking up my car from Texas, I flew down the highway to Seguin, Texas. I say flew since the speed limits kept getting higher and higher. First 70, then 75, then 80, and just when I thought they couldn't get any higher, 85! Soon enough I was in a town that many enthusiasts had never even heard of until ZDT's shocked the amusement world and built the world's first shuttle wooden coaster with an almost vertical drop. Those claims seem like something that would have Six Flags foaming at the mouth, but instead is the crown jewel of ZDT's. Silos and Switchback, that pretty much sums up ZDT's. Unlike other FECs, ZDT's only offers an all-day wristband. That wristband includes unlimited rides on Switchback, the three water slides (including a master blaster, though don't get too excited yet), climbing walls, go karts, a frisbee, and arcade games. For $25, it's certainly a really nice deal and if I wasn't also trying to cram SeaWorld and Fiesta Texas into one day, I would have definitely loved to stay longer to take advantage of all the park had to offer. With a tight schedule, I wasted no time and went to Switchback. How to heard a coaster enthusiast 101. If you've read any of my other reports, you know I absolutely love the two mini Gravity Group woodies in New England in Wooden Warrior and Roar-o-saurus. Despite not being over 40 feet tall, both those rides are jam-packed with airtime while still providing smooth, comfortable rides thanks to the Timberliners. Switchback was almost double their height and had the messed up looking spike. That element looks so messed up on a wooden roller coaster, yet amazing at the same time. I wasn't expecting to hit any crowds at ZDT's and my assumption was correct. At most I had to wait 1 cycle to get the front or back rows. The lift hill is quick and gives you an unobstructed view of the nothingness in and around Seguin. Before you get lost in the view (since everything looks the same), you crest the lift and navigate an impossibly tight turn that feels more like a turn on a wild mouse than a wooden coaster. Gravity Group gets more and more daring on the compactness of their elements with each coaster and without that, I don't think Switchback could have fit at ZDT's. That turn then ends with a ridiculously steep drop that absolutely catapults back seat riders from their seats. It's among the best drops I've experienced on a wooden coaster. I don't think I can accurately give a play-by-play of the next part of the coaster from memory. The coaster then flies through two buildings (or the same building? I couldn't tell it happened so fast) and glides over 3-4 hills that give good floater air. There's also a 90 degree turn for good measure. I had no clue which direction I was going at any point, but was just willing to let the ride take me. This culminated in the spike. If you're in the back, you barely travel up the spike. If you're in the front, you travel a good deal up it and get some great floater air. Wherever you sit though, the image of staring at a near vertical spike on a wooden coaster seems too bizarre to be true. The return trip has less speed that the outward trip, but there's still a few weaker pops of air and the changes of direction are even more disorienting. I couldn't tell you what the layout was going forwards, so I sure as heck had no clue what was happening in reverse. Eventually the ride returns to the straightaway after the first drop, hits the brakes, and returns to the station. Because ZDT's is awesome, they actually have two trains. It definitely wasn't needed on the day of my visit, but it makes major parks look bad that they only have one train when this little FEC can afford two trains on a coaster this small. So how was Switchback and was it worth driving a bit out of the way? I'd say it was definitely worth the side-trip. The airtime wasn't as abrupt as it was on Roar-o-saurus, but it was more sustained and the layout was far superior. Switchback didn't quite make my top 10 woodies, but it slots in between the Beast and Great Escape's Comet which is really good company. The ride has a smooth yet aggressive layout that is truly unlike any wooden coaster I've been on. I couldn't decide whether or not I liked the back or front better since the back had a better first drop while the front gets the spike in full. Guess you just need to try both. 8.5 out of 10 Switchback's first drop is insane. Unbelievably steep for a coaster of this size. Plenty of floater air to be had on this coaster. Going up. Doesn't this look so wrong yet awesome at the same time? As you can see, the back doesn't go too far up the spike. The front is the money seat for that. What else does ZDT's have? They have go karts because what would a FEC be without go karts. They also have a mini frisbee ride called the Dizzy Toucan. From a distance, I thought it was one of those crazy inverting ones like the one at Quassy, but this one just rocked back and forth which was slightly disappointing. There was also a cute little drop tower themed to the parachute towers of yesteryear. Obligatory set of FEC go karts. Though this one had a huge indoor multilevel track. Sadly not an inverting frisbee. Just a Dizzy Toucan. Dwarfed by the silos, which I'll get to later. The park also has a water park. Almost always, I will skip the water park since I don't find it worth the hassle to rent a locker and change into a bathing suit. I also have a hard time justifying standing in a slow-moving line, receiving a sunburn for a ride that I like worse than the options on the ride side. The major exception is if the water park has a master blaster/water coaster. Much to my utter shock ZDT's had one. It was an absolutely tiny one, but a water coaster nonetheless. I had a dilemma. I did have a bathing suit that I brought for Thunder Rapids in case by some miracle Fiesta Texas was empty, but really didn't want to have to change into it. Surely I could find a cop out. Long line? Nope it was a walk-on. However, the ride didn't go into a pool and it was 100 degrees, so what's the worst that could happen (famous last words) riding in my dry clothes. So I hopped on Mad Raft. I didn't get to see the ride run before I boarded but prayed it would be one of the hydromagnetic versions. I took of my shirt, sat down in the very wet raft (should have been a warning), and was sent down the tiny first drop. I rounded the corner and saw the water jets of doom. At least it was 105 degrees out. The tiny little hill unmercifully drenched me. The subsequent hill did have a really nice pop of air. There was at least one (and maybe two) other tiny uphill sections, but neither of these sections had any air. The second half of the ride was a relatively slow downhill section but there were some tight turns. As far as water slides go, Mad Raft was about average, but for a master blaster it was disappointing due to the lack of major drops of speed. I got good enough of a soaking from Mad Raft, which I will admit was refreshing, so I skipped the other two water slides. ZDT's "water park". I still can't believe this place has a master blaster, even if it is tiny. Last but not least is what arguably may be the park's most unique attraction, the Silo Climb. Many parks have the standard 25ish foot tall rock wall. ZDT's laughs at those puny little walls and instead built, what they boast as, the world's tallest auto-belay climbing wall. I have to admit, it definitely looks and feels tall. When you get near the top and realize you're on par with a full-size roller coaster, it definitely gives you a moment of pause and shock even if you are perfectly safe and strapped in. I made a fatal mistake before climbing this wall. When I rode Mad Raft, I kept my shoes on. Despite not having a pool, my sneakers got quite wet. This absolutely killed me on the Silo Climb. I made it about 3/4 of the way up, but the final section has less grip than the initial climb. I went to reach for the next hand-hold, but I heard a squeak and plummeted 50 feet towards the ground. My soaked sneakers were letting me down. I tried again, but slipped at the exact same spot. As someone who rock climbs quite a bit, I was definitely peeved that I couldn't complete this wall. It definitely gives me an incentive to return along with that amazing wooden coaster across the park. The Silo Climb was an awesome belay wall. Just don't ride the water coaster first if you want to complete it... Overall ZDT's is the perfect place to spend a few hours. If you are in the San Antonio area (and I'm guessing that Raptor coaster will have many of you there next year), definitely take the hour trip to check out ZDT's. You will definitely be impressed by Switchback and the FEC does have a few other things worth checking out if you have time such as the water coaster, Silo Climb, and included arcade.

^ That is true. A new B&M, Mack, etc would convince me to return as well, but I do think I'd want to have Lightning Rod running. Based off the other RMCs I've been on and everyone else's reviews, I know that coaster would rate highly for me. Other than the plane lady, I've found all the interesting people part of the experience.

Wetzels is better than Auntie Anne's but Busch beats both.

This. On my visit last year I had basically less than 20 minute waits on everything except GhostRider which was 1.5-2 hours. I don't even think the block brakes need to slow the train but just being there to allow the 3rd train would be a major help. That layout is too long for just 2 trains.

I was last there in 2010. I've driven by them twice in the past 2 years but haven't felt compelled to stop there. You think that'd be hard for a park with an Intamin hyper but the lack of new rides definitely played in. I think Blast Off and Brain Drain would be the only two new rides since.

New Texas Giant in the second to back row after almost witnessing a fight. Goliath's single rider line would be a useful game of Russian Roulette if the merge point wasn't so far along in the queue. By the time you reach it, it's honestly faster most of the time to just wait with the regular queue. Unfortunately even if you wait in the regular queue, they aren't always amicable to seating requests.

I saw some weird stuff down south. From Drop Line Dude to the pet pig, it was one weird thing after another. And it even continued on my flight. I was across from a crazy woman who stood up who spent 2 hours on my overnight flight screaming and professing her love for Jesus. Nothing like having your Rogue One movie disturbed by a woman screaming, "We're all going to die and see Jesus Christ!" I love the park without it. If they get Lightning Rod running with near constant uptime next year, I think a return visit will definitely be in order for Smoky Mountain Christmas or 2019.

Goats on the Roof...in Georgia Goats on the Roof is synonymous with one of the best alpine coasters and the living embodiment of a Pigeon Forge tourist trap. It wouldn't be a visit to Dollywood without stopping there. After a 2.5 hour drive from Dollywood we made it to Goats on the Roof. I know what you're thinking, "I thought Goats on the Roof was in Pigeon Forge?" Well it is. But there's also one in the absolute middle-of-nowhere Georgia in a town called Tiger. As a full disclaimer, we didn't even intend to go to Goats on the Roof. After a full-day at Dollywood, the plan was to drive back to Atlanta via the Smoky Mountains National Park and then hit up Fun Spot Atlanta if time permitted. We hit the road early only to stop in Gatlinburg. He wanted to check out a moonshine distillery, which unfortunately couldn't sell any on Sunday until the afternoon but he thought it was still cool to see how the most southern drink ever was made, and I wanted to support the best-named pizza place ever, the Mellow Mushroom. Stone baked goodness. I figured this would be a bad candle to put in a car in case an officer pulled us over. "Sir what's that smell?" "A candle." "Please step out of the vehicle." "No seriously it's a candle!" Got my nature credit (again) as well. After leaving the Smoky Mountains, I visited the dark shadowy place on the other side of the Smokies known as Cherokee, NC. Maybe Cherokee is actually nice, but the portion of town we passed through looked like a desolate and desperate tourist trap. We passed a million Indian stores, an abandoned family entertainment center, and gem miles galore. And there was also a river with plenty of people "swimming," though I use that term loosely since the water was only waist deep. Can't say I ever want to stay on that side of the Smokies based on what I saw. Guess this fun park wasn't fun enough for people. We continued down the road passing gem mine after gem mine. If we were counting, we honestly may have passed 20. We didn't want to stop to support the local economy until I saw a sign for Goats on the Roof. This was an immediate slam on the brakes and turn into the parking lot kind of place. I didn't know there was a second Goats on the Roof so this was an amazing surprise goat credit. I thought this was a mirage, but no there's a second location. This looks familiar. This is everything that is right with a tourist trap. Sadly no coaster. I always look at this photo and think that bridge is part of an alpine coaster. For those unfamiliar with Goats on the Roof, the name pretty much says it all and it's everything that's right in a tourist trap. Though if you want to learn about the Legend of Goats on the Roof, they are happy to inform you via a sign. Too bad most people down South can't read it though. Several of those words are beyond a 5th grade reading level. There's no coaster, but much of the place is reminiscent of the Pigeon Forge attraction. It was a hot day, so most of the goats were taking shelter, unless you delivered them food. You could either ride the dilapidated bike of doom and pray you don't take a shaft to the anus or you could hand feed a goat an ice cream cone and watch him deep throat it. I preferred to watch the kids do both these things for me. It was hot so the goats took cover unless food was on the way. Those goats know the sound of the conveyor belt. "Is that food I see?" "I love deep throating ice cream cones!" They also had the most sorry excuse of an arcade ever. I tried to take a photo of the entire arcade and it was a major struggle. Not because it was too large. Rather it was so small I didn't have enough space to get a photo. Eventually I got one and as you can see, the only two games were air hockey and a mini basketball hoop. I'm guessing people aren't coming for the games. As we were about to hit the road, we saw one of the most southern things ever, a pet pig. I kid you not, a family walked out of their vehicle and out plopped a freaking pig. They had a leash and everything for it. And with that, we thought it was the perfect time to head back to Atlanta before gaps formed between our teeth and we pulled banjos out of our pockets. Fido the family pig. I lost it when I saw the leash and everything.

Great report! I loved my visit to Carowinds last year. Fury is truly an amazing coaster, but the rest of the park isn't too shabby either. I didn't notice Windseeker being any slower than the ones at Kings Island and Cedar Point when I rode them within a week last year. Not sure if they slowed it down recently or if you rode on a bad day. Intimidator is the only B&M hyper I actually prefer in the front. The back row's airtime is killed by that trim brake.

Dollywood...Still no Lightning Rod I had a week long family vacation in Pigeon Forge in early June, so I had plenty of time at Dollywood. I rode Tennessee Tornado, Wild Eagle, Drop Line, and everything to my hearts content except for one ride, Lightning Rod. That sexy looking but perpetually closed RMC sat there taunting me. 3 days after I left Pigeon Forge, the Lightning Rod decided to reopen. For the next few weeks, Lightning Rod ran fairly consistently. Maybe Dollywood really did cure all the downtime by taking the ride down for the 3 weeks leading up to and during my visit (spoiler alert, it didn't since the ride is closed as I type this). Yes it sucked, but if they finally solved all of the enigmatic ride's issues, it was worth it in the long run. Well I had been planning to visit a friend in Atlanta in late July and we were looking for something to do during the weekend visit. Since I knew he was a theme park fan (not a die-hard like me, but he did intern at Disney), I suggested Dollywood and the Smoky Mountains which he was on board with. The weekend before my trip, Lightning Rod heard I was coming and decided to shut down. This was not happening again. Well it then reopened that Monday and Tuesday. Phew disaster averted. Then Lightning Rod did the ultimate sausage tease on Wednesday-Friday by starting the day as TC only to never open and switch to CD by mid-afternoon. With that, I wasn't overly optimistic Lightning Rod would be open and sure enough it was listed as CD bright and early on Saturday morning. So much for the downtime during my last visit ensuring that the ride would run reliably for the rest of the summer. And just like last time, Lightning Rod opened 3 days after I left. I guess I'm everyone's good luck charm if they visit the park immediately after me. Same thing happened on my visit to Dollywood last year as well. I'm glad Robb, Elissa, and the rest of the group got on Lightning Rod after we missed it last year since it really sucks seeing that ride closed. If you want to ensure a ride on Lightning Rod, just cover my airfare and I'm happy to visit the park before you get there and based on the trend, Lightning Rod should be running a few days later. No not again...sigh, the orange sign of doom. Dollywood turning RMC into the villain here. Such a tease. Someday I'll experience the ride's insanity. Someday. I stopped in the chapel and prayed to the coaster gods Lightning Rod would open. I also contemplated buying one of the godly shirts, but knew resistance was futile. Actually I considered buying the Star Wars shirt so I could wear that to the Episode 8 midnight premiere to see just what kind of looks I'd get . What kind of penance do you need me to do to get Lightning Rod to reopen? This may have been my favorite religious shirt. It was so clever, I didn't catch it the first time. I wonder if Star Wars fans would burn me at the cross if I wore this to a premiere. Since I already wrote a detailed report on my experience earlier this year, I won't go into too much depth on my thoughts on the coasters (Click Here if you want In-Depth). Wild Eagle and Tennessee Tornado are my two personal favorites. One benefit of this visit was the park was open until 10. In early June, the park closed at 7 most nights. That meant night rides. I go back and forth whether or not Tennessee Tornado or Wild Eagle is better, but I have to give it to the bird after some amazing night rides. The ride's setting on the hill at night is fantastic. I also wanted to capture some of the thoughts of my friend's experiences on the coasters: Wild Eagle- My friend is 6'3" so usually he's stuffed into a coaster car like a wiener in a pretzel dog. He loved the freedom of the wing seating and the ride's elements. This was his personal favorite in the park. Mystery Mine- I purposely toured the park counterclockwise so when we reached Mystery Mine, the ride's finale would be hidden from view. He thought the first half was relatively tame so he was absolutely shocked by the final plunge and two inversions. He also was impressed by the ride's theming. Tennessee Tornado- He hated the back rows of the cars due to the lack of leg room, but he loved the first drop through the mountain and the rest of the ride when we rode in the front of the cars. Only negative was how short the ride was. Firechaser Express- He thought it was an interesting little coaster, but he preferred the three listed above. Thunderhead- "Once was enough." (And I even rode in the front too) Blazing Fury- He thought it was just going to be a dark ride and was taken by surprise on the drop and great pop of airtime. Love Wild Eagle's placement. Dollywood's fastest operating coaster. Hiding the second half from my friend, priceless. I would have loved to have experienced Thunderhead in the first few years while it was still smooth. But as is it's still a fun coaster. Still one of the best family coasters. The dude in the 2nd row seems to be having the time of his life. We also took quite a few rides on Drop Line. We timed it just right to see the sunset over the Smokies. Actually we were two rides too early, so we just re-rode it until we saw the sunset. This drop tower is up there with Marineland's (only time I'll mention that awful park in this report) for the best view on a drop tower. Plus the ride had some water effects going at the base of the tower which were missing in my June visits. One funny thing is that there seemed to be a Drop Line enthusiast who kept riding again and again through the Timesaver queue. Once we were all in the waiting pen for our ride, he blew a whistle and then started giving a safety spiel and tips for where to sit. I thought he was an employee at first, but no he seemed to just be a dude in love with the ride. Best thing is that I don't even think that was his own whistle. After he used it each time, he placed it back on the corner of the operator booth. Usually I'm a fire kind of guy, but not when it's 100 degrees out. Since the heat index was over 100 degrees, the longest lines by far were for the water rides. Smoky Mountain River Rampage was 70 minutes by mid-afternoon and Daredevil Falls even reached 45 minutes at one point. River Battle appeared to have a full queue, but that's a relatively small queue house. And we weren't in the mood to hike up the hill to Mountainside Slidewinder. The park truly has one of the best water ride collections, which is critical since Tennessee is in that sweet spot that manages to have both high heat and crazy humidity. That looks drenching. This too, but it actually isn't drenching (unless you're in the front row and forget to lift up your feet). With the long lines on the water rides, the air-conditioned shows and Chasing Rainbow Museums were two other meccas during our visit. Dolly's personal museum is really extensive and if you love Dolly, you'll gobble this museum right up. Since I'm not a redneck, I'm not a fan of country so my favorite part in the museum is the timeline of Dollywood's history towards the end. Then we saw the Gazillion Bubbles Show. The name sounds incredibly childish and sounds like something that should be hosted by Barney the Dinosaur, but it's actually an amazing show. The performer, Fan Yang, is a bubble artist (yes that's actually a thing and we're all in the wrong profession) who holds world records for the longest bubble (~150ft long ) and the most people encapsulated by a single bubble with 100 (let that sink in). So the dude is pretty talented and blew, you guessed it, a gazillion bubbles during the show. Then it ended with laser bubble FX. Don't mock the name. You'll be stunned if you ever see it since he looked like a Jedi on stage. The show completely exceeded all my expectations and I highly recommend it if it's running at Dollywood when you're there. AC the Ride. I see Dolly! The name sounds like something a 5 year old would come up with, but this was a seriously awesome show. Looked like a cool show, but it didn't have AC so I walked right by. Like any good friend, I also got him hooked on cinnamon bread. I have never had cinnamon bread (I know, but bear with me ) since I dislike all sweets. However, like 99% of all other humans, my friend loves all things sugary and sweet so he thought it was delicious. Meanwhile I ate an entire turkey leg like a barbarian. I had only gotten a turkey leg one other time at Disneyland and all I have to say is wow. Disneyland's turkey leg tasted like dried-out pork and not at all like turkey. Dollywood's turkey leg actually tasted like turkey and was actually juicy. I'd definitely get one of those again. It gives me a great excuse to act like a savage. That's the most southern name you can have. So is she my grandmother or some weird Southern incestual thing? The Grist Mill, aka Lightning Rod closure therapy. Omg this actually tastes like turkey. Like a savage! The late closure not only meant night rides on the coasters, but it also meant there was the nightly fireworks show. I think the music remains unchanged from the year before (hearing some of those pop songs with the fireworks is pretty unmistakable) but that's ok since the quality of the show is about as good as a theme park's fireworks can be outside of Disney. *as Katy Perry plays in the background* I had a lot of fun at Dollywood, especially since I was there with a first-timer. But it's getting pretty agitating seeing Lightning Rod closed on all my visits only to have it reopen a few days later and then hear all the rave reviews. Yes the rest of the park is still amazing, but it may be a while before I return since I want to ensure that coaster is actually going to be running. It lured me in after operating well at the start of the year and the month after my last visit, but next time I'm going to want to see it run for a longer period of time to avoid getting burned. So hopefully Lightning Rod can be back up and running reliably since it truly looks like one of the world's best coasters and the park is one of my favorites. It's still a really strong park without Lightning Rod, but it's painful seeing that coaster closed visit after visit.

Great report. Busch Gardens Tampa is up there with Silver Dollar City for the parks I most need to visit in the United States. Allegiant really came through for you guys. Best part is that they quickly notified you of the inevitable delay. Stupid Delta didn't alert me of a 3 hour delay in Atlanta until I got to the airport.

Is it just me or does Lightning Rod seem to have more trouble on weekends?

The seat seemed lower relative to the floor and the family jewels were crushed when the restraint tightened. In terms of headbanging it was fine.

Wow there actually may be a coaster with less uptime than Lightning Rod GaleForce has a lot of potential but I just couldn't get over the rattling launch and restraints.