Canobie Coaster

Volcano has the most forecful LIM Launch for me. In fact, it is the strongest launch of any kind that I have ever experienced.

I've never liked Zoomerang's paint job at Lake Compounce. Even when they repainted it, I've never liked it. Additionally, I didn't really like the look of the Bat at Canada's Wonderland, SFNE's Flashback, and The Great Escape's Boomerang. I guess I just don't like the looks of several boomerangs. Thunderbolt (SFNE) and Rebel Yell are two of the ugliest wooden coasters that I have ever seen. They badly need a new coat of paint. Really? I actually like the colors as they are. It desperately needs a new coat or two, but I think the two shades of blue-grey work really well together. I agree as I thought that Flight Deck was the nicest looking SLC I've seen so far. Granted, the ride itself is garbage but at least it has one thing going for it.

My favorite "themed" ride would be Apollo's Chariot and Dueling Dragons. However, in terms of best themes, I love Splash Mountain, Tower of Terror, Test Track, Expedition Everest, Pirates of the Caribbean, and the Haunted Mansion a lot.

^ Excellent choice. Of all the parks I've been to Knoebels is my favorite. I've visited them 4 times, and never once have I had a line for anything that exceeded 10 minutes- and one of my visits was on a Saturday. Phoenix is the best wooden coaster I have ever ridden and simply can't be missed. Definitely get the all-day wristband because you will want to ride this thing all day. Twister is an excellent secondary coaster. Packed with laterals and even some sneaky good air, Twister is an excellent Robin to Batman (Phoenix). When I rode it last in 2006, I thought that the ride was relatively smooth, but that could have changed a bit just judging by what some are saying here. In terms of flats, Knoebels can't be beat. Make sure you have time to ride the Flyer, Grand Carousel, Scooters, Downdraft, Super Round-Up, Fandango, Looper, Cosmotron, and several other of their attractions. I simply didn't have any bad rides at Knoebels. Also, make sure you hit their log flume as it is my favorite I've been on outside of the two epic Orlando flumes. Additionally, I'd definitely pay a bit extra to experience the Haunted Mansion and Scenic Skyway. Both are incredible experiences. Lastly, I recommend getting food at Cesari's Pizza. The pizza there is fantastic! I hope you have a great time.

I've only been on three GCIs (both Lightning Racers and Wildcat) and of the three Hershey's Wildcat was far and away the best. Now I haven't ridden it since it got equipped with Millennium Flyer trains, but I thought that this was the wildest wooden coaster I had ever experienced when it had PTCs. It was just very fast from beginning to end and stuffed with delicious ejector air and laterals. While I still like the Phoenix more, Wildcat is my 2nd favorite wooden coaster.

I've only been on two B&M floorless coasters to this point and unfortunately they weren't two of the more popular ones. However, despite this, I found Hydra and SFNE's Batman really fun. Of the two though, I liked Hydra better by a good deal. In fact, Hydra is my fifth favorite B&M after Behemoth, Apollo's Chariot, Dueling Dragons- Fire, and Dueling Dragons- Ice.

1) Dueling Dragons- Fire 2) Dueling Dragons- Ice 3) Talon 4) Great Bear 5) Alpengeist And I think I'll be getting my first Batman the Ride credit at Six Flags Great Adventure next month, so I think that it will pass Alpengeist on this list. I didn't really like Alpengeist all that much. It was forceless for me.

^ Steel Force had pretty comfortable trains too, but the B&M and Intamin hyper trains were more comfortable in my opinion.

^ I wasn't too big of a fan of Apollo's tunnel. It was just "meh." Honestly, I kind of forgot it was there until you reminded me of it.

For me, B&M Hyper Coaster trains are by far the most comfortable seats in the market. Not only that, but they allow for some insane airtime to be experienced. I also enjoy Schwarzkopf trains, B&M inverts/sit-down looper trains, Expedition Everest's trains, PTC trains (especially ones with buzzbars), Intamin hyper trains, and Millenium Flyer Trains. The worst trains are so much easier for me to decide on- Togo Stand-Ups.

Worst coaster ever for me would be Enchanted Forest's old Kiddie Coaster. I remember it being an incredibly painful experience when I was 4 years old. As for the worst major coasters I've been on, I'd go with the old Rebel Yell that went backwards since that was incredibly bumpy the whole way through and gave me a really bad headache. Also up there would be Canada's Wonderland's Flight Deck. Now I know why everyone despises SLCs because this one took pain to a whole new level.

That makes sense. Why did Holiday World remove it?

Cool TR. Yeah, I've always heard that Dragon is a pretty rough coaster, but at least they made it look nice. But I've always been fascinated by that Mine Train coaster. Not only would it give the fantastic views that you described, but it also looks like it would give some decent air. The rendition of Arctic Blast is pretty cool as well. I'm shocked I haven't heard more about that coaster. Also, the park didn't look overly crowded. Did it still have decent crowds? I'm just wondering because I know that the park had been concerned that the new Disney park would significantly cut into their business.

I went with zero-G roll. No matter the coaster type, zero-G rolls are incredible. The hang-time that they provide are amazing. Some of the best zero-G rolls I've experienced are those on SFNE's Batman, Great Bear, Hydra, Dueling Dragons- Ice (sorry, Dragon Challenge), and Hulk.

^ Smaller parks would probably endorse something like this since it would bring some publicity to their park. As long as there are no lines, I really don't think you should have a problem getting permission to try and set a record like this. While I've never come close to three hours, I've ridden the one at Funtown 8 times in a row before. Why did I stop? I just wanted to ride the park's better rides eventually like Excalibur, Dragon's Descent, Astrosphere, etc.

^^ That's a really cool photo of Viper. What year is that from? I assume that was with 2 trains. Unfortunately, when I visited the park last week, they only had one train on all of their coasters except the Motocoaster and Viper. Hopefully they can get the red train ready before the end of the season. Lines weren't terrible even with one-train operation for most of the coasters. It was a Sunday. Ride of Steel was the only "long" line there, as it was a 45 minute wait for all three of my rides. I'd say that 1/3-1/2 of the switchbacks were completely full. Viper was a walk-on. Predator and Boomerang were 15 minute waits. The Motocoaster was a 10 minute wait. Then, Mind Eraser was a walk-on when I rode it first thing in the morning, but I heard others complaining that it had a pretty long line later in the day. I never saw, so I don't know exactly how long that line would have been.

^ That's cool. I really hope that both rides are back up in running by the end of August since I get to visit SFGAdv! After visiting Princeton, my parents said they will take me to Six Flags Great Adventure. I can't wait!

Overall, a cool carnival. I just wish my local carnivals had any roller coaster even remotely as tall as Avalanche. So that's where Holiday World's old Firecracker went. A bit off-topic, but were those the colors that the ride had while it operated at Holiday World? I've never been able to find a photo of the ride operating there.

^ It still would be incredibly hard to reach the pedal unless an additional item was used. Again, that would be just speculation and unfair to the people involved. Maybe the Arrow foot pedals differ on strength depending on when they were built.

Yes, that's him. I saw the article in the newspaper. The only one I've been on is Bizarro.

When it is pouring, for me the best coasters to ride are wooden coasters. Wooden roller coasters just get so much wilder (in a good way) in the rain. Last year, I marathoned The Great Escape's Comet for 2 hours in a complete downpour! Since there were no lines, the ops just let everyone stay on.

These are the best tunnels I've experienced on a coaster. Bizarro- Even while it was Superman, Bizarro had two amazing tunnels. Amazingly, after the transformation they actually got even better. Following the ride's thrilling first plunge, comes a mist-filled tunnel that has an incredible head-chopper thanks to the addition of a Bizarro cut-out. But the fun doesn't stop there as I actually find the second tunnel to be even better. Diving underground, the drop into this mist-filled tunnel provides incredible ejector air and laterals. Dragon Coaster- While not particularly thrilling, the tunnel is absolutely gorgeous and one of the fondest memories that I have of Playland. Dragon Mountain- I actually enjoyed this Arrow. Why? Well, the tunnels were one of the reasons. I just loved the final tunnel. It was completely in darkness, had a fairly large drop inside, and was followed by the ride's unique bowtie element. Grizzly- What an insane tunnel! After a plunge into this tunnel, I honestly have no idea what happens in there. While not rough, the tunnel is simply aggressive as I got a mix of powerful air and laterals in there. I'd love to see a photo of what the track actually looks like in there. Incredible Hulk Coaster- The launch tunnel is simply amazing. Not only is it a very picturesque structure, but inside is one of the most powerful launches I've ever experienced on a coaster. Jack Rabbit (Seabreeze)- I just love the Jack Rabbit's tunnel. On my first ride, I was completely caught off-guard by the sudden drop that happens mid-way through. What a great way to end a coaster!

^ Thanks for pointing that out. That's my bad. Also, JimmyBo thanks for clearing up the spinning coaster question.

Excellent TR. These TRs of the European carnivals always make me realize how terrible my local carnivals are. Who is the manufacturer for the mini-mouse and suspended wild mouse? Would Fabbri maybe have made one of them? Glad to hear that Laser is in great shape sporting new trains. Those trains look really cool and I too would love to know who made them. When I rode the Laser at Dorney in 2005, I was very underwhelmed by it. While the drop and loops were very forceful, the helixes were a bit rough and the train was vibrating throughout. As a result, after a couple of rides, I got a headache. Maybe it was just the trains at Dorney (or a bad day), but if Laser was totally smooth I would have absolutely loved it so you guys must have one heck of a coaster if it really is that smooth.

Great addition for the park. With all of the wacky theming at the park, I'd love to see what they could theme a spinning coaster to. Also, isn't the SC 3000 model the one that is at Chessington that TPR gave rave reviews about? If so, how would it compare to the Whirlwind at Seabreeze (SC 2000 model)? I'd love to know since I absolutely loved Whirlwind. The layout was intense and the spinning was just sensational. Much better than the Gerstlauer models in my opinion.