PhantomNick

Night ride on Thunderbolt at Kennywood on the 2nd to close out our day....still an awesome ride, especially after dark!!

^ And that would be one of many reasons why TPR trips are amazing!! It can't be stated enough how much you do for the participants of those trips....which is why at some point I MUST go on one!! As for the Fast Lane, I think it's a great idea, and I hope it is implemented at other CF parks soon (especially Cedar Point). With limited sales, I really don't get how people think the standby line will be greatly affected by this. Truth is, most people who buy one aren't going to be continually riding the same ride over and over again. Plus, for only 50 bucks, it's a steal if you're coming from out of town and only have 1 day to visit. Shoot, wish they'd have had this when my wife and I made our lone visit there back in 2009!

Time to post 2 totally different ones..... Steel - Kingda Ka Wood - El Toro

I think the Holiday Lights event is a GREAT idea! I'm thinking it will be pretty well received around here. Shoot, tons of Christmas lights, some hot chocolate, and a chance to devour some Potato Patch fries in December?? Sign me up, please!!

Nice TR! I have to say that SFOG is high on my list of parks I'd like to get to some day. It looks really nice there. Oh yeah, and the new Dare Devil Dive looks awesome as well.

Steve, great trip report as always. Your shots of Windseeker are amazing! I still can't get over how incredible the lights look on that thing! Definitely looking forward to checking it out. And okay, I have to ask, what all is in the Caveman Chocolate flavor? This ice cream lover wants to know!

^ That post is nothing but WIN!! On a semi-related note, looks like we might get a chance to head to KD in August and I can finally experience I-305!

We'll be heading to Kennywood on Thursday with some friends for the first day of their "Celebrate America" festival. Good times!

Stumbled across this video of CP's Windseeker testing at night and thought I'd share it here. The lighting package on this thing looks pretty stunning! Just wow!! Hopefully testing will wrap up soon and it will open up....

Definitely some promising news with the land acquisition. I've always really liked Dorney Park, but it would be nice for their sake if they could break this streak they're on of "hand-me-downs" from other CF parks! I mean, I understand the reasoning behind it, but a legitimate NEW ride would be awesome. And add me to the list of folks that thinks a GCI would be a fantastic addition to their coaster lineup!

My wife and I were blown away by the food at Busch Gardens Williamsburg when we visited last year. It was all superb, but specifically Trapper's Smokehouse pretty much destroys any other park food I've eaten. Some other favorites of mine are Potato Patch fries (Best park fries I've had, period) and the pizza at Knoebels (which was fantastic!). Someone earlier mentioned the chicken fingers at SF Great Adventure, and I'd have to agree with that as well. We got them at the "character cafe" (or whatever it's called) last week and they were very tasty....plus, they came with curly fries, which is all sorts of win!

Nice TR and pics! Looks like a good time was had by all. I haven't been to a Coastermania in a few years....they're always a TON of fun! Looking forward to the rest of the trip, especially your thoughts on my home park (Kennywood)

Nitro at Six Flags Great Adventure to close out our visit last Friday. Loved it! It was a gorgeous day too!

Some flats would be a welcomed addition to their ride lineup for sure! We had a blast there last week, but aside from tons of coasters and many kids areas, their flat ride selection was rather weak. I mean, removing the swings for a trampoline? Seriously?? Also, I have to add that their Safari Park was a huge surprise hit for us during our trip! It was amazing how long it was and just how many animals we saw. Puts any zoo to shame, quite honestly!

^^^ Hershey AND Dollywood in one trip? Hmmmm..... I am thrilled to see that the new Hersheypark coaster is an Intamin! How awesome would a "Hyper-Megalite" be? I'm gonna take a guess and say yellow track on those baby blue supports. Can't wait for the official announcement on this one!

Well, after an amazing return trip (finally, after 5 long years) to Six Flags Great Adventure, along with some much-needed additional rides on El Toro (I had only gotten to ride it once during my other trip to the park), I am happy to report that El Toro has vaulted itself into my #1 spot. I got 6 rides on the jaw-dropping bull, and I was astonished how incredible that coaster still is 5 years later! And it has EVERY characteristic of a #1 ride for me - airtime-galore, thrilling, intense, smooth, and extremely fun.....no matter where you sit or when you ride! Every single ride on this wondrous creation delivers the goods. I could ride El Toro all day and be perfectly happy. And that hill over Rolling Thunder? Holy seismic airtime, Batman!! Updated Top 10: 1. El Toro - Coaster perfection for me....airtime unlike anything I've ever experienced!! 2. Millennium Force - Still my favorite steel....interested to see what happens when I ride I305 later in the year. 3. Voyage - For now, it slides down a few pegs. A reride with the Timberliners will be in order however. 4. (tie) Intimidator - Some don't like it, but I had superb rides on it last year! 4. (tie) Apollo's Chariot - Just plain awesome! 6. Diamondback - Great ride packed with airtime 7. Phantom's Revenge - Lucky to have this gem at my home park....I think it's ridiculously underrated 8. Ravine Flyer II - I need to get some more rides on this bad boy 9. Top Thrill Dragster - Yep, it's short....and I don't care. Totally LOVE the rush of this coaster! 10. Phoenix - Again, some more rides are a must on this airtime machine

Thanks for the heads up on the schools guys! ^ Like I said, I ended up being there the day it soft opened after a commercial shoot. They only were running 1 train, and it dispatched about once every 5-10 minutes. I actually got lucky, as I heard people saying they heard it would open around 1, so I ran over there around 12:30 and got in the quickly forming line outside the entrance. I was off the ride by about 2, so not too bad all things considered. It was when I returned later in the evening for a reride that I was greeted with what I was told was about a 4 hour wait. Thankfully, their operations are muuuuch better on Toro now.

Well, we went to BG last summer and fell in love with the place, quite honestly. That park is gorgeous and full of a great assortment of things to do, including some top notch coasters! That said, Kings Dominion in its own right looks great too, as it definitely has a wider assortment of rides and coasters to offer. And we all know Intimidator 305 has firmly put them on the map. All I know is I should be able to find out for myself which park I like better when we head to KD sometime this summer. I am excited beyond belief to get some rides on I305 and see how it stacks up for me.

Lookin' good, and should be open just in time before our visit there on June 2nd and 3rd! Time to FINALLY get some more rides on El Toro!! Sadly, I only have 1 lap on the bull, as my only other trip to the park ended up being the day it soft opened and the wait was around 4 hours! I'm seriously debating a Flash Pass for this trip. Does anyone know if NJ schools are still in session that time in June? Just trying to get an idea on what crowds might be like.

Well, with Kennywood being my home park for practically my entire life, my top ridden coasters would be Jack Rabbit and Thunderbolt. As for most ridden, that honor would go to Thunderbolt.....love that coaster, and should get my first rides of 2011 on it next weekend!

Cedar Point's Windseeker, just like its sister at KI, has been delayed: Windseeker Opening Delayed Not too surprising, as I'm thinking we all thought this was likely after KI's got delayed. At least they can't go and blame Intamin for this delay!

Lines in the middle of the summer can get a tad long, but by comparison to the bigger chain parks, they're not bad at all. For instance, Sky Rocket was a brand new coaster last year and I never saw a posted wait time when I was there greater than 45 minutes. And even then, it would typically only take about 30-35. And if the lines are really that bad, the park now offers a "VIP Coaster Tour" for like 15 bucks that lets you get a front of the line ride on all the coasters. I never found a need for it last year, but thought it was a nice option if someone (like yourself) came from far away and happened to hit the park on an unusually busy day. I may be biased, but I would definitely recommend Kennywood. They have a great collection of coasters, and their flats selection is truly top-notch, with some very rare rides like the Kangaroo and Turtle, along with more modern thrillers like Swing Shot, Cosmic Chaos, and Pitt Fall.

^^^ I'm sure a lot depends on the weather, but I would say that Mother's Day would be a great day to head down to Kennywood! My dad and I went on a Mother's Day several years ago, and even with a decent weather day (it was in the low 60's with clouds and sun), the park had very light crowds. Most rides and coasters were a walk-on or 1 train wait, except for Phantom's Revenge, which that day was about 15 minutes since they only ran 1 train. Plus, if you have a season pass you can take advantage of the 10 buck "Bring a Buddy" day, as mentioned above. It looks like my inaugural 2011 visit will be on the 15th for my brother's bachelor party. The original plan was Cedar Point, but since that fizzled out, we're going to hit up the local park instead!

After reading this thread, a math equation (of all things) popped into my mind: Twister + Twins = Seriously though, the coaster looks AWESOME!! It's remarkable how much coaster they crammed into that space! Kudos to Gravity Group and the folks at Grona Lund. Looks like they've got a real winner on their hands!

Nice trip report and photos! Windseeker looks great, and that lighting package blows away anything I would've thought it would have. That will look amazing running at night!