Canobie Coaster

Gatlinburg A short update today and this one will be very much like the Pigeon Forge one. Gatlinburg is another tourist area about 15 minutes from Pigeon Forge. There are many parallels between the two places and some big differences. Like Pigeon Forge, there were plenty of stores, eateries, and attractions. The biggest difference for me (a positive) was that Gatlinburg was very walkable. Most of the attractions were on a 1-2 mile stretch on the main street. Pigeon Forge meanwhile was more of a highway with longer distances between attractions. Some of the things we did: Moonshine- Yes moonshine is available down in Tennessee. I'm not a drinker, but I enjoyed hearing the moonshine stories at the Ole Smoky Tennessee Moonshine. I highly recommend Aaron! He was incredibly into it and had plenty of moonshine to offer. Earthquake the Ride- I missed out on the Jurassic Jungle Boat Ride, but this more than made up for it. If you are unfamiliar with Earthquake, read the reviews on Yelp. They describe the attraction perfectly. The whole ride is nonsensical and includes bears, snakes, rats, and apathetic employees texting. This is truly a can't miss attraction. Smoky Mountain Brewery- This was a really good bar. I had a burger and it was very satisfying. Not quite as satisfying as the AC though, but close. We wanted to hit the two mountain coasters, but we simply ran out of time since Gatlinburg had so much to offer. The holy grail of rides that are so bad they are good. Jesus is always watching in the south. Ran out of time to hit Ober Gatlinburg and their Mountain Coaster. Got distracted by moonshine. Plenty of tourist traps. Like Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg has a great setting next to the Smoky Mountains. The non-Seattle Sky Needle.

Dollywood Dollywood was the most anticipated park on the trip for me. Enthusiasts raved about the park's food, theming, and ride selection for years. The park was always on my bucket list, but the addition of Lightning Rod pushed it over the edge and forced me to finally visit. My visit was in late July and unfortunately as many of you know, Lightning Rod was listed in "technical rehearsal" but it was really down. That was a major bummer since the ride looked amazing and has received rave reviews, but I didn't let that ruin my day. Dollywood is one of the nicest parks in the country! The theming and food were as good as advertised. Due to my dislike of sweets, I was able to resist the cinnamon bread. I did indulge in the meats though. I really liked the cheesesteak that I ordered and liked the all-you-can-eat buffet even more. Walking around the park was a real treat since every area, except possibly the County Fair area, was incredibly well themed. Coasters are the highlight of any park, but Dollywood had some standout non-coasters too. Smoky Mountain River Rampage was one of the best river rapids rides I've been on. The rapids absolutely soaked everyone in the boat and ruined my shoes for the rest of the day. The Mountainside Slidewinder was a very weird water slide that really drifted up the turns. The screamin' swing (Barnstormer) was also better than average thanks to the nice theming around the ride. As for the coasters: Tennessee Tornado- This was my favorite ride at Dollywood. You'd think a mega Arrow looper would be rough, but this one was glass smooth. The ride's setting is amazing and keeps the layout fairly well hidden before riding. The first drop is one of the best on any coaster and it's followed by 3 large and forceful loops. The only drawback is the ride's short length. 9 out of 10 Mystery Mine- The theming was on par with a Disney coaster and really immersive. Thanks to having Untamed at my home park, I was able to avoid headbanging during the transitions by leaning forwards. The first half was pretty slow, but the quirky layout was pretty enjoyable. No doubt the second half is the ride's highlight. The climactic plunge is well-timed and intense. It's followed by a dive loop with plenty of hang time. 9 out of 10 Wild Eagle- Like all of Dollywood's coasters, Wild Eagle had a great setting. This one towers over the park thanks to its location atop a hill. The first drop is outstanding and the ride's inversions were graceful and well paced. Unfortunately this wing coaster had some bumpiness during the ride and the restraints got quite tight while waiting on the brake run. Wild Eagle was still a very good ride, but these two things dragged it down a bit. 8 out of 10 Firechaser Express- This is the perfect family coaster. The ride's layout is very unique. Both launches aren't overly intense, but they are fast enough to generate the speed needed to give some pops of air. The whole ride is perfectly smooth and it's a pretty long ride. 8 out of 10 Thunderhead- I really wanted to like this wooden coaster more, but I couldn't look past the bumpiness. The layout was fantastic and my ride in the front had several good moments of air, but again it wasn't the most comfortable coaster around. I really hope Dollywood can retrack this ride and restore it to its former glory. 7 out of 10 Blazing Fury- More dark ride than coaster, Blazing Fury does have a coaster section as the finale. The ride's scenes have plenty going on, but a few are pretty dark to see. The coaster section at the end was better than expected. The drops had some punch and when I rode in the front, I even got a pop of air. There was no splashdown though. Did this ride used to have a splashdown effect? 7 out of 10 Slideshow Spin- Yes I rode it. As far as kiddie coasters go, this one was pretty uncomfortable. One ride was enough. 2 out of 10 I love screamin' swings. Mmmm cheesesteak. I resisted joining the cult and didn't even have a bite. Blasphemy I know, but I hate sweets. I would have thought fireworks being sold at gas station was a contrived plot device. Nope. That's actually a thing in Tennessee. Firechaser Express is the perfect family coaster. Dollywood has a cult of cinnamon bread worshipers. Someday I will be back to ride this. Yes it was closed. I missed it by a week. The ride sure looks pretty. At least I could play Lightning Rod plinko... They have coasters too. The Slidewinder was so weird, but awesome. We really flew up some of those turns. A very well themed euro fighter. The drop on this one is breathtaking. What's in the mine? Dollywood broke the mold of the cheap-feeling tourist traps in Pigeon Forge. It's one of the best looking parks anywhere! Dollywood also has water rides. This one destroyed my sneakers. Some operating coasters. Tennessee Tornado was fantastic. Very forceful and smoother than some B&Ms! Only photo I got of Thunderhead. The ride has a great setting and a cool layout, but it was pretty bumpy. Wild Eagle's location is even better than Thunderhead's. Wild Eagle was really fun. I liked the first drop and the elements, but I wish the restraints weren't quite as tight (especially on the brake run) and the ride wasn't quite as bumpy. The logo is pretty sweet though, especially at night.

Pigeon Forge A short update for tonight. After meeting up with Robb & Elissa, we had the first bus ride of the tour to Pigeon Forge. Having never been to Pigeon Forge, I was amazed how many tourist trap attractions and shops there were. It was like Lake George, Fisherman's Wharf, and Clifton Hill (Niagara) had a love child. It was amazing! I saw the Jurassic Jungle Cruise in all of its glory, dozens of go kart tracks, arcades, and much more. Once we dropped our bags off at the hotel, we went out to ride Pigeon Forge's two mountain coasters. The first one we hit was at Goats on the Roof. I have no clue how someone thought of the concept for Goats on the Roof, but it was so weird that it was awesome. As the name suggests, the attraction consists of a building with goats on the roof. Then they have this awkward inclined bicycle that you can peddle to send a tin can with food up onto the roof to feed the goats. Oh yeah, they also have a mountain coaster. The Goat Coaster was my second mountain coaster; my first was the one at Jiminy Peak a few years back. I liked how open several of the turns were since you really got a sense of how high up you were. The speed was pretty good, but the ride didn't have any of the little dips that Jiminy's coaster had. The ride made up for it with an adorable goat cutout though! The second one was the Smoky Mountain Alpine Coaster. In my opinion, this one was a far superior ride. The ride begins with 5 minutes of lift hill porn through a dense forest. One the descent began, I found SMAC hit its top speed almost right away and really hauled down the mountain. There were several small dips along the way and two tight, downward helices. I'm speechless. South = Jesus land so this store makes sense. The coaster travels quite a bit up the mountain and has a nice layout. Yes this is really a thing, Goats on the Roof. And it's awesome. I want a live shark! The other alpine coaster down the road (Smoky Mountain Alpine Coaster) was the better of the two. This one had a better setting, was a longer ride, and maintained its speed better through the course. Oooh nuts. It's the 8th wonder of the world...a truck!

Is it fill in any available row or do they let you wait multiple trains for a specific seat?

I rode GASM in the second row and second from the back. Both seats were bumpy for me. I wanted to ride Thunder River, but the line was incredibly long since it was 95 degrees out. I had to wait 2 minutes just to get one raft to come by to take the photo in my TR, so I didn't want to try waiting. I used Splashwater Falls to cool off instead. Dare Devil Dive has the worst capacity, but at least the park didn't neuter the capacity of a coaster that once was considered the top steel coaster on the planet (cough: SFNE cough).

Georgia Scorcher didn't have a single rough moment. Riddler's and Green Lantern are relatively smooth (a rough transition here and there), but their intensity is such that my legs couldn't take consecutive rides. Both Vortex stand-ups and Apocalypse are pretty rough. The vine covered walkways were a really nice touch. The only other park I've seen one at was Great America out in California. The park only really felt like a Six Flags park in the back area near Superman, the DC kids area, and near Goliath/Dare Devil Dive. The maintenance was to be expected since I've been to enough Six Flags parks. It's like when you go to Six Flags New England and Goliath's cable snaps or the big three Intamin rides at Great Adventure are all closed when you arrive. I wish I had two days at Carowinds, but unfortunately due to my travel arrangements it worked out I had two days at Six Flags instead. I personally would rather have a park filled with things I want to constantly reride since it adds more variety to the day and encourages me to return sooner. I really liked how Carowinds spread their anchor attractions out and filled in the areas between them. I had plenty to do walking between them.

Six Flags Over Georgia The second stop of my trip before meeting up with Robb & Elissa was Six Flags Over Georgia. This was my seventh Six Flags park and it was one of the better ones I've been to. Despite the familiar feel of Six Flags (usual food stands, corporate partnerships, faded paint, etc), Six Flags Over Georgia also felt different since it was very well shaded. The park had an extremely odd layout that included a random hill in the middle of the park, a steep hill to the Gotham City area, and tunnels between areas. The dispatch times were actually pretty quick at this one with the exception of the VR disaster known as Dare Devil Dive (more on that later). My biggest problem during the visit was the frequent breakdowns and the park's rain policy. I was at the park for two days. On the first day, Goliath got stuck on the lift hill and then closed for the remainder of the day. On the second day, Superman stopped on the lift with me on it due to one rider's ankle restraints not being closed, and this was after a 20 minute breakdown right before that. Each train had random seats locked closed, including 2 in the front seat of one train, which was making life difficult for the grouper. As for the park's rain policy, I was a bit confused by it. On the first day, all of the roller coasters closed due to inclement weather. I was shocked since there were clear skies. I checked my phone's weather app and couldn't see any severe weather warnings for the area either. The one benefit of this is that Dare Devil Dive's line cleared out so I was able to ride it without buying a Flash Pass and paying for the upcharge fee to ride. On the second day, I had Mind Bender close twice while I was waiting in line when it started to sprinkle. Later that night, a tremendous downpour erupted which shut the park's rides down for the rest of the night (this was justified). I really liked the park's coaster collection since Goliath is a great anchor and they had a diverse mix of coasters supporting it. The park also had the best non-Tower of Terror drop tower I've been on in Acrophobia. I didn't think the tilting seats would add too much, but they really elevated this tower. Stopping mere moments before the ground is quite the rush and the ride also comes to a smooth stop. I also liked Monster Mansion a lot and that's another example of something that felt out of place at a Six Flags park, but wa a welcome change. Onto the coaster reviews! Goliath- Thankfully this reopened on the second day I was at the park. Goliath is my favorite B&M hyper by a long shot now. While most of the B&M hypers that I've been on slowly crest the hills, Goliath really flew over the hills. This made the usually abundant airtime even more intense. I particularly loved how the first two drops are similarly sized and gigantic. The helix at the far end of the ride was also very intense and caused me to grey out a bit on each of my rides. 10 out of 10 Superman Ultimate Flight- The original Superman was much better than the clone I've ridden in New Jersey. I didn't realize this Superman was a terrain coaster and my first ride at night was a very pleasant surprise. The pretzel loop had its trademark intensity as expected and the following turns were quite thrilling since they hugged the terrain. 9 out of 10 Batman the Ride- Intense as always. I really liked the oversized Batman logo in the load station and the ride was running fast and smooth. There was no headbanging in the course and the rapid-fire succession of inversions/turns still provides one of the most intense coaster rides anywhere. 9 out of 10 Mind Bender- This is the perfect Schwarzkopf coaster. The drops each give pops of air towards the back of the train and the two vertical loops are very forceful. The ride uses the park's setting very well and is incredibly rerideable. 9 out of 10 Georgia Cyclone- My front seat ride was enjoyable- bumpy with some pops of air. My back seat rides were great. Because of how steep the drops were, the drops provided major ejector air. There were some rough patches on the turns, especially during the ride's second half, but it's definitely tolerable. 8 out of 10 Georgia Scorcher- This was B&M's last stand-up and I think they were onto something. The ride is compact like their early stand-ups, but instead of a rough ride, Georgia Scorcher was perfectly smooth. I really liked the pacing on the ride and the use of the banked turns between elements. While it lacks the height of Riddler's or Green Lantern, this is my new favorite stand-up. 8 out of 10 Dare Devil Dive- VR is a disaster on this ride. I've seen how much VR can ruin the dispatches for a coaster with SFNE's Superman, but Dare Devil Dive hit a new low as I estimated dispatches at 5 minutes, which gives the ride a disturbingly low hourly capacity of 72 riders. As for the ride, it was fun. I loved the lack of OSTRs since they can be painful on the transitions on the other EuroFighters. This one didn't have the bite of the other EuroFighters. The trim on the first drop made the usual ejector air mild floater and the inversions were taken more slowly than I expected. Fun, smooth ride, but the VR situation made this a one and done. 7 out of 10 Blue Hawk- I always heard terrible things about Ninja. The new trains on Blue Hawk made a world of a difference since they eliminated the headbanging. I could see how this was a nightmare before the new trains since my head shook through several of the turns and inversions. With the new trains, I found the coaster enjoyable. The ride had a unique layout for a looper and the inversions had strong forces. 7 out of 10 Great American Scream Machine- This is a very photogenic coaster with its classic paint job. The ride has some good speed and airtime, but it's pretty bumpy. 6 out of 10 Dahlonega Mine Train- I enjoyed this mine train more than I expected. The layout is pretty open and the first two hills aren't particularly tall, but the ride is comfortable. The final drop is pretty tall for this style of ride and builds up some good speed going into the tunnel. 6 out of 10 Joker Funhouse Coaster- I didn't realize this one had a custom layout, but I found it to be one of the better junior coasters. The drops had some good zip on them and I liked that they even included a tunnel on this one. It would have been nice to get multiple laps per ride on this one, but the line was pretty long for a junior coaster (15-20 minutes). Hmmm I wonder what's behind the wall. Never mind, I see the logo. I must be at a Six Flags. Thank you for not having the old OSTRs. This was actually fun. This coaster should not have VR. It's a smooth, fun coaster, but it would be great if more than 72 riders per hour could experience it. The back seat riders are about to go sky high. Georgia Cyclone is one intense woody in the back. This is the best stand-up I've been on. I could have reridden it, which I can't say about other stand-ups. The airtime is so intense, all of the riders were ejected...or the ride broke down and was cycling. I'll go with the second. Goliath was an outstanding B&M hyper, my new favorite. The ride absolutely flew over the hills and delivered strong airtime. The park's other woody looks nicer, but was really bumpy. The ride maintained its speed the whole way and had airtime, so I guess that makes up for it. Whoops I "forgot" my review of this coaster. It's almost as if it isn't one. I like the ride's look though and it seemed popular. The whole Gotham City area of the park looked really nice. Mind Bender is a great ride and has an equally great setting. Schwarzkopf goodness. A dark ride? I must be dreaming. This doesn't feel right at Six Flags, but it's surprisingly well done. Fingers crossed I'll have a Six Flags day. Shade too? I must not be at a Six Flags park. Usually parks like to place taller rides on hills- drop towers, ferris wheels, etc. Because Six Flags is different, they put the carousel atop the hill. See how close Superman comes to the terrain? This is something you don't get on clones.

I was shocked the operator was encouraging me to go higher after I snapped, but it was a welcome change. I've done a few of the shooters where you are on a motion base while shooting at a screen with 3D glasses, and I personally enjoy them. I prefer a ride with well done physical targets, but I find these rides don't always have good shot feedback so I can't figure out where I was aiming. Plants vs. Zombies had good shot feedback with the on-screen marker and there was plenty to shoot at. I also liked the competitive aspect. I also did ride Boo Blasters at Carowinds, but I ran into the lack of feedback. I do like the one at Kings Dominion though.

Whenever I've been to the park on a weekday, I've found the waits are about the following: Maverick- 45-60 minutes Valravn- 60 minutes or more Millennium Force- 30-45 minutes (wait the extra for the front at least once) Top Thrill Dragster- 20-30 minutes (note- it will break down frequently for 15ish minutes) As stated, Raptor & GateKeeper will have bad waits after opening but the lines should die down by the afternoon. I'd recommend starting at Maverick if you don't have FastLane and then make your way towards the front.

I rode the Smoky Mountain Alpine Coaster and the one at Goats on the Roof. I really liked both, but preferred the Smoky Mountain one since it ran faster. One thing to note about Goats is that their night rides are in complete darkness. The Smoky Mountain one has lights illuminated along the track. I didn't get to try the Gatlinburg ones.

At the end of July/early August, I was fortunate to be part of Robb & Elissa's USA 2016 trip. The trip was absolutely amazing and I'll have photos to share from the parks on that trip. Carowinds- Page 1 Six Flags Over Georgia- Page 1 Pigeon Forge- Page 2 Dollywood- Page 2 Gatlinburg- Page 2 Kentucky Kingdom- Page 3 Kings Island- Page 3 Cedar Point- Page 3 Kennywood- Page 3 Knoebels- Page 4 Dorney Park- Page 4 Six Flags Great Adventure- Page 4 Coney Island- Page 5 Carowinds Before the trip began, I went on a mini trip myself to two of the big thrill parks in the South in Carowinds and Six Flags Over Georgia. Carowinds was my seventh Cedar Fair park. Like the other Cedar Fair parks I've been to, Carowinds was a very clean and had extremely efficient operations. The two big B&Ms (Fury & Intimidator) each ran 3 trains and all of the other coasters except for the junior coasters ran two trains. I thought the parks top coasters were amazing, but the quality level dropped off fairly quickly after Nighthawk. I ended up grabbing a FastLane Plus since I don't foresee another visit to the park anytime in the future and it got me on everything extremely quickly, especially Fury. Some reviews of the rides: Fury 325- This is my new favorite coaster. Fury had the relentless speed of Millennium Force, but the coaster included more moments of air-time, especially on the return leg. The first drop was incredible and sustained the air time the entire way down. The air-time over the second half was much stronger than your usual B&M floater air as I really felt like Fury was trying to tear me from the ride. I rode this 10 times in basically every seat, but my favorite was the back for that first drop. 10 out of 10 Intimidator- This was the worst B&M hyper that I had been on to this point, but I still found the ride really fun. Intimidator had plenty of tall drops, but the ride crawled over the crests of the hills more than Apollo, Nitro, or Behemoth. The back had plenty of floater air time and the front had good air time as well. This is a nice compliment to Fury, which is non-stop intensity. 9 out of 10 Afterburn- I was expecting big things from this B&M invert and it delivered. The ride had great pacing, as the only slow point was the camelback hill right before the corkscrew. The first half has some forceful inversions with my favorites being the fast zero-G roll and the batwing. The final corkscrew is incredibly snappy, so brace yourself. Other than that, the ride runs very smooth. 9 out of 10 Nighthawk- The first Vekoma flyer is bumpier than the other one I had been on (Batwing), but seemed a little faster. The vertical loop and barrel rolls were very intense, but the transitions from lying to flying were pretty bumpy. I prefer the layouts of the Vekoma flyers to the B&M counterparts, but the B&M flyers are better rides because of the restraints and smoothness. 8 out of 10 Hurler- I had ridden Kings Dominion's Hurler, so I had an idea what to expect. My ride in the front was pretty solid, but the back seat ride was considerably bumpier and not something I'd want to experience again. The ride was smooth other than the low-to-the-ground turns. There were pops of air scattered across the bunny hills too. 6 out of 10 Carolina Cyclone- One of the old Arrow loopers, Carolina Cyclone's first drop had a good burst of ejector air in the back and the following two vertical loops were intense. The second half consisted of jerky transitions into the corkscrews and helix. 5 out of 10 Carolina Goldrusher- I liked the landscaping around this mine train, but the transitions seemed jerkier than your average mine train. 5 out of 10 Ricochet- Good wild mouse. Not too much braking on the top turns and the speed carried over to the final drops. The Mack wild mice are my favorites. 6 out of 10 Carolina Cobra- The new trains were definitely an improvement for this boomerang. I could see spots during the cobra roll where my head would have bashed the normal restraints. Without having to worry about my head being battered, I was able to enjoy the two drops more. 6 out of 10 Woodstock Express- This is considerably better than your average junior coaster. The ride has a pop of air or two and is still a pretty smooth ride despite its age. 5 out of 10 Vortex- Ouch. The stand-up restraints were really tricky to adjust and right before my rides the restraints shifted upwards on me. This made the forces on my feet quite uncomfortable combined with a few moments of headbanging. I really hope this ride gets a floorless conversion down the road like Rougarou and Patriot. 2 out of 10 Flying Ace Aerial Chase- This is the perfect ride to prepare young kids for the torture of an adult SLC. The restraints are unforgiving going around the turns and manage to produce headbanging on a kids coaster. 2 out of 10 Outside of the coasters, I really enjoyed the drop tower (like all Intamin towers), Windseeker (love the views, better than the star flyers in my opinion), the Plants vs. Zombies shooting simulator ride, and the Woodstock Gliders flying scooters. On the latter one, the operator was encouraging snapping and held a competition who could get their vehicle the highest! One note to anyone who stays at a hotel near the park without a car, the park is located on a highway and there's no crosswalk for pedestrians. Unless you stay at the Comfort Inn on the side of the park, you'll either need an Uber/taxi or play real life Crossy Road. Hello B&M invert. Once I get through this gate I'm riding you first. Afterburn had a great layout and good forces. One of the better inverts. Little do those riders know that they are about to be rammed by a plane. These riders very well know they are about to be rammed by the coaster. Let's get some aerial views of the park. I love observation towers. Carowinds could escape the Flight Deck name, but not Drop Tower. Good ride regardless of the name. Look at that first drop. There's no sexier sight in the park. The ride's layout interacts well with the front entrance. Fury 325 is my new favorite coaster! A rush from start to finish with plenty of airtime. This is what you see entering or exiting the park. My camera can't handle Fury. I'm not used to elements like this on a B&M coaster. Goodbye Fury. I will definitely be back to ride you again someday. These riders too. My view walking into the parking lot! Yes I played real life Crossy Road. Intimidator isn't quite as intimidating as it's big brother across the park. Still a fun ride though. Intimidator from the ground. Too bad I won this dog. I really wanted the long black weenie...dog. Nighthawk may have been relocated, but it fits in very well at the park and the layout looks designed for it. Nighthawk was very intense, but was quite bumpy in spots. If only the Vekoma and B&M flyers could crossbreed. This was the sleeper hit of the park for me. The ride, like the game, sounds ridiculous, but it's so much fun! For some reason this photo looks boring without Elissa. Please have a floorless conversion sometime in the future. Bright lights. I can't believe the park encouraged snapping. They held a contest to get higher and I won. I also scared parents out of line with my snapping.

Busch Gardens is my vote. Like others have said, their top coasters are on par with Hershey's top coasters, but the atmosphere is so much better.

I'll take the new restraints with the exception of the ones on Wild Eagle. Not sure if it's the lower height requirement or just a coincidence, but those ones seem much tighter than the ones on Valravn, Banshee, or GateKeeper..

I think the setting is what gives the edge of Boulder Dash over El Toro for me. Insane ride and one of the best settings anywhere. As evidenced by my name, I am a huge Canobie fan and have probably ridden the Yankee Cannonball well over 100 times. As Canobiefanatic and Canobie Fan have said, the Yankee Cannonball's retracking over the past 2 years has killed the ride's airtime after the far turnaround. You used to get pops of air the whole way into the brake run. It's still a really fun ride though since it's smooth and the first few drops are still good.

Impulse was only running one train last week as well. Thankfully their fast loading and the single rider line let me ride a few times.

I'm happy to see one of these installed. Joker was closed last weekend during my visit to Great Adventure and I was really looking forward to trying it. How's the capacity on these coasters?

You can't even pick your own seat on the Great Chase?

This is from the chain that built a Batman clone at Six Flags Fiesta Texas after Six Flags Over Texas already had one. Not to mention the Sea World Batman clone that was just down the street either. If the ride is fun and compact, I see no harm adding one at Six Flags New England as well. Most people who visit Six Flags New England have never been to Great Adventure, so it would be an entirely new ride for them.

Here's the Knoebels Power Surge sign.

This is my feeling as well. The teaser campaign made this seem like it would be something brand new, never before seen. It is brand new. No one has ever built 3 different height S&S towers right next to each other.

This sounds too much like the SFNE thread. Mean Streak is enjoyable in the front seat, but that's the only enjoyable seat. I'm excited for what's coming. Fingers are crossed it's a RMC since Mean Streak looks similar to Texas Giant and the New Texas Giant is critcally acclaimed.

The theming looks cool and I like how they have three towers with increasing intensity for families.

They look weird, especially the fighter pilot-esque green restraint release buttons, but they made the ride so much better. I was able to ride it 4 times in a row without a headache. It's shaky, but at least the rapid directional changes can be enjoyed instead of beating you to a pulp.

I'd have to go with Knoebels. They have one of my favorite woodies (Phoenix), one with a great layout (Twister), and one very rare and unique one (Flying Turns).

This is great news! I'm glad the park found a compromise. I do wonder if this would have happened unless Cedar Point did it on Iron Dragon.