Canobie Coaster

Great report! That pizza looks fantastic and Coney Island is always a joy. I actually like Thunderbolt. Yes the panini press restraints come down tight, but I've found the ride fairly smooth. The people I rode with both times thought the same thing. Out of curiosity, did the carousel have music playing? They didn't last year and it felt sort of creepy to ride a carousel without it.

Even on a weekend, lines are not a big issue at the Great Escape. On a weekday, you shouldn't have an issue getting on most rides immediately. The only lines I can see you encountering are the Alpine Bobsled and Blizzard (great indoor scrambler). Make sure to knock out these two rides early if you want to ride them. For the Comet, make sure you ride the blue train.

^ So this is how I maximize my snapping.

Let's see if this date sticks. All I know is I'll be there a few weeks after it opens...if it finally opens.

^ I've had an op do that to me at Knoebels, but I've also had ops not care and let me go full tilt.

Phoenix opened today according to the local news. Link

I remember the original promo images showed one of the Xtreme Spinners which seemed like an odd fit for the park. While I would have preferred one of those, but this is a perfect fit for the park. The world needs more Mack spinners.

Sounds like budget cuts to me.

^ I'm pretty sure they do the same thing on a lot of the hydraulic launch coasters.

Awesome report! It's great to relive the haphazard glory of Camden Park. The airtime on Big Dipper is real. It's remarkable how smooth that ride is considering the appearance. I still won't forget the time I was evacuated after the op dispatched our train with the lap bars up and yelled at us when they physically wouldn't lower. Also I don't think reading a book on your phone is acceptable on the job.

Great report! I love those near vertical slides and all the funky climbs.

Wow I think it at least stayed open until 5 on a weekday in September two years ago.

Thanks! I've definitely felt shimmies on some of the Gravity Group compact woodies like Twister, Roar-o-Saurus, and Mine Blower, but I don't recall experiencing one on Kentucky Flyer. Maybe it was because I was calibrated to riding Voyage all weekend. Do it! You won't regret it. They can't top the Busch Gardens pretzels since they wrap those things in bacon, but they're as good as Wetzel's Pretzels, which is a big compliment from me.

Kentucky Kingdom After two amazing days at Holiwood Nights, Kentucky Kingdom had a tough act to follow. But two top-notch coasters plus a brand spanking new wooden coaster made for a great day. Once the park opened, I made a beeline for Kentucky Flyer. In retrospect, I probably should have started with Lightning Run since it was only running one train and had a consistent half hour wait later in the day, but hindsight is 20-20. It felt like a scavenger hunt to find Kentucky Flyer's entrance. For those unaware, Kentucky Kingdom has one of the oddest layouts out there. You literally have to cross a road and pass through the water park to reach this coaster. I had considered doing the water park, but Deluge being closed made it an easy skip. Even with Deluge closed, I still had a reason to enter the water park. What a great backdrop for Hurricane Bay. I was the first public rider of the day on Kentucky Flyer. I was joined by a few stragglers from an early morning ERT session on Kentucky Flyer. I think I got 6 straight rides without leaving the station, split between the front and back. Kentucky Flyer didn't quite have the frenetic pacing of Roar-O-Saurus or Oscar's Wacky Taxi. And it didn't have the stronger airtime of a Wooden Warrior or Twister. But that's not needed at this park considering Lightning Run and Storm Chaser exist. The outward leg consisted of some floater air and weaker airtime pops. The second half is quite a bit wilder. The front has 6-7 consecutive pops of floater air, but the back has some borderline pops of ejector. There's also a pinch of banking to mix in some sneaky laterals too. And it's perfectly smooth too. These junior Gravity Group coasters are perfect fits for any park. Their low overall height and low height requirement make them appealing for younger riders, but they pack in enough airtime to satisfy even the most well-traveled of coaster enthusiasts. 8 out of 10 I love the color scheme. That may be my biased Canobie self speaking since it's the same as the Yankee Cannonball. Every single hill gives some type of airtime. On a whim I decided to ride the park's star flyer, Skycatcher. This is one of those rides I really wish allowed on-ride photography because the views of Kentucky Flyer were outstanding. Granted it would be hard to focus considering this ride is moderately forceful. 7 out of 10 So I got my photography fix on the Giant Wheel. This is no ordinary ferris wheel. This is a 150 foot behemoth. It only went around 3 times, but with a wheel this big, that was enough for a satisfying ride. 8 out of 10 Skycatcher gave some awesome views of Kentucky Flyer...and the Giant Wheel gave some awesome views of Skycatcher and Kentucky Flyer. I have a confession to make. I actually enjoyed T3 in my 2016. Yes it was rough, but the restraints prevented all headbanging. But I had an intervention. This ride sucks. It still has no headbanging. Instead it offers back banging. I felt like I had gone 10 rounds with Mike Tyson by the time I hit the brake run. 2 out of 10 I actually enjoyed T3 on my last visit, but now I see the light. This ride blows. I deserved better. So I treated myself to a Storm Chaser marathon. I absolutely love the coaster's placement in the back of the park. It's secluded location means it's always a walk-on. You start with some nice hangtime on the barrel roll, but then you go right into an ejector airtime buffet. That first camelback offers some El Toro-esque airtime. The overbank is over in a breeze and that's followed by a fantastic turnaround with two crazy pops of air entering and exiting. After another quick overbank, comes another powerful airtime hill. It's not quite as good as the first camelback, but it's undoubtedly one of RMC's best airtime moments. The finale is lunacy. You blow through a zero-G roll and then go through this double-up, double-down, trick track thingy. Whatever it is, it delivers some crazy airtime. Your thighs will be feeling it the next day. After one final turn, there's a violent pop of air into the brake run. I heard some say that Storm Chaser was running a bit poorly in 2019. I'd like to know what those people are smoking. Storm Chaser was hauling just as much as it was in 2016 and 2018. There are bigger, faster, and longer RMCs, but this one may have the strongest airtime from start to finish. 10 out of 10 Such a great ride! I can still feel the airtime here. Storm Chaser is like a bull that chugged a Four Loko. Most barrel rolls give hangtime. This one just hauls straight through. Since it was a rather hot day, I was excited to finally ride the park's infamous river rapids. The park claims the rapids are raging, but I think something else is if you ask me. Raging Rapids was a deceptively long ride. None of the rapids are absolute soakers, but there are a ton of them. Plus you also have a waterfall, some sprayers, some misters, and two tunnels. It was pretty clear this used to be a Blizzard River back in the day. 7 out of 10 I don't know why Six Flags didn't do more rock work. Nothing says family friendly like this beauty. I then went from one woody to another. Thunder Run looks like Hurler. And in 2016, it rode like Hurler too. But with each visit, the park has retracked more and more of the ride. Now Thunder Run is quite smooth outside of the first turn. Admittedly I only rode towards the front, but the outward leg had some great airtime. The straight track on the return run feels like filler, but when the ride is giving airtime, it does it well. 7 out of 10 Before there was lightning, there was thunder. Lots of fresh wood. Clearly I'm not at Mt. Olympus. Whoosh! Lightning Run was running one train, so it held a consistent half hour wait all day. But it was well worth it. After all, the op reminded us that we were riding the "world's tallest Chance Hyper GT-X Coaster". I'm going out on a limb here and guessing the ride op was a coaster enthusiast. The first drop had some serious yank and ejector air much like your traditional RMC drop. That's followed by an outstanding camelback loaded with ejector airtime. The middle section of Lightning Run is a blitzkrieg of twists, turns, and little airtime hills. This section's airtime is actually reminiscent of Kentucky Flyer; it's of the quick pop variety. But Lightning Run has a wild finish. After plunging back to the ground, there are four straight airtime hills with some powerful ejector pops. This reminded me of Steel Vengeance's finale. I always hit the brake run speechless. I spent about half my visit queuing for Lightning Run. It was the only ride in the park with any appreciable wait, but I kept coming back for more. It's the definition of an airtime machine and it's insanely smooth too. 9.5 out of 10 They say lightning doesn't strike twice... And sadly they're right. Why hasn't anyone else built one of these. They're awesome! So much airtime. I just love the paint scheme on this ride. I also love how comically oversized the front of the train is. I didn't have time to hit many flats, but there was no way I'd skip Fearfall. I've ridden drop towers three times taller, but these Larson towers are still some of the most terrifying contraptions out there. Calling the drop intense is an understatement. 9 out of 10 I heard more people screaming the lord's name from this drop tower than I did in church. I've ridden a litany of Huss Enterprises, but I had only ridden one Zamperla Endeavor. And I have to be honest, I found the one at Six Flags Over Texas to be an uncomfortable experience. I remember the ride pinching my legs between the seat. So with some trepidation, I decided to try Scream Extreme. And I'm glad I did. The ride was fast and forceful. But most importantly, there was no pinching this time. 7 out of 10 I found it really cool they had t-shirts for this flat. And on that note, I have to say that the gift shop next to the 4D theater is incredible. You have a large selection of merchandise for the park's current lineup. More impressively, you can also find relics from the past such as t-shirts for Chang and even some old flats. Very cool! Sweet, I can finally pick up a shirt for SFNE's boomerang Unless you're gluten intolerant, you also need to get a pretzel at Twisted. I don't care if you're on a diet. Break it. You'll be glad you did. These pretzels are crack. Unlike most parks that just reheat some frozen Super Pretzels, Kentucky Kingdom bakes these beauties from scratch. These pretzels are legit. I spent the last hour getting rerides on Kentucky Flyer and Storm Chaser. I could have easily spent a whole day at Kentucky Kingdom, but I needed to make it back to Cincinnati for my return flight home. Since Holiwood Nights may now be an annual trip, Kentucky Kingdom may also be an annual thing as well. And that's fine by me. They really are an airtime haven for coaster enthusiasts. And the park just keeps growing with each visit.

That Gerstlauer sky fly looks like a great fit to give older kids a thrill while allowing younger riders to get a tamer ride if they so choose. Reminds me of Knights Tournament at the California park.

This. Didn't Steel Vengeance chuck a drive tire at one point last year and reopen later in the day?

Great review! I'm glad you "love" the ride.

Below is a site that pulls the park's wait times every 15 minutes and keeps a record from past days. Link

Great report! I love all the inversions after the launch. In that regard, it reminds me of Storm Runner.

hmm. . "boiler room" ? that's not ringing a bell, although there was one near vertical slide outside, that I grit my teeth, decided I'm here once dammit, I'm gonna do it, and took the plunge. but that was a very "open area" slide. so wonder if the one you're talking about is no longer there? or if maybe it's one of those "hole in the ground" slides I didn't go into? (but I would think if it had a camera, it certainly would have had a staff member there monitoring the sliders). Edit: oh wait it was this one, right? [youtu_be] [/youtu_be] that was one of the ones you get to from the treehouse complex. I honestly don't recall the monitor there. . maybe I was just freaked about how steep it was That's the slide! I remember it was accessed straight from the hallway and dropped you into (what I thought) was a boiler room. To get out, you had to squeeze through this super narrow passage way. You can actually see them looking at the video monitor on the video you posted before starting the slide. That was without a doubt the most terrifying slide I've ever done and my favorite thing at the museum.

Great report! Last year I remember that near vertical drop slide into the boiler room had a camera, but I can't remember any others with them. Those ride signs are definitely new though.

Ah ok. For the first morning ride on Day 2 of Holiwood Nights, the trim was off but it came back on later. I wasn't sure if they typically did that in the morning.

^ I'd do the same thing if I wasn't 2 hours away.

Nice report! Most US parks give you free water if you ask for it. Lake Winnie and Funtown are the only two where I've had to pay for a cup of water.

Nice reports of the midwest parks! Out of curiosity, was the midcourse trim off on your morning ride on Voyage?