Skycoastin Steve

^There's a good chance they probably just didn't know any better. I don't think they were lying to you on purpose. Not all coaster operators are enthusiasts.

Well I was pretty close to starting a new topic on this, BUT! I did a search and found this topic, so time to bump! I think we all know how much I lament Rampage's underratedness. I think part of it is nobody ever comes to Birmingham to ride the damn thing, and another part of it was the lack of care it received for so many years under some seriously shoddy ownership and management (a problem we have fixed rather well I might add). After some track work last offseason and more to come this offseason, everyone might want to make a point to come visit AA next year and give Rampage a few spins. Yes, shameless plug for my park. So sue me. And for another CCI that I think is insanely underrated, it's The Boss. I know it probably has a bad reputation for its Gerstlauer trains and lack of omfffggggzzzz AIRTIMEZZZ!!!!! but it's still a hell of a ride in my opinion. Fast, out of control, multiple great drops, and the double helix of death at the end, which I think is only topped by Beast as far as wooden helices are concerned. And maybe I just caught it on a good night, but it didn't really seem that rough to me, although a back seat ride gave me a bit of a headache. The only two rides I had were in pitch black, so that may have added to the greatness of it, as well.

It's absolutely incredible to see just how big that ride is compared to everything else around it. I can't imagine how tall it would look if Drop Zone and the Eiffel Tower weren't there.

^We surely don't get the type of guests that you would get from Camden, but we don't exactly get a GP full of saints, either.

We severely had the same problem at AA with Rampage. Maybe it's because our parks are linked......

One overrated wooden coaster I seem to have forgotten is Raven. I think Raven is a good coaster, don't get me wrong, but it's nowhere near the top of the list for me. It's way too short, not that fast (although the 2nd half of the ride feels faster in the woods). I've just never been impressed by it. I think Legend is a little better and Voyage is obviously leaps and bounds better.

^Where were you sitting when you didn't get any airtime on Diamondback? I sat in the front, middle, and back, and every place I sat had at airtime. The front 3 cars of the train had ridiculous airtime.

^Diamondback is like that. It has some serious extended floating air. Apollo does, as well, and the final drop into the ravine is amazing. Nitro and Goliath are just ordinary to me.

Wood: Voyage Steel: Millennium Force

I agree with there not being a "WOW" factor to B&M hypers. U.S. parks really need to start building some mega-lites. I imagine those are way better than B&M hypers, even with half the height. Somehow I still have Apollo and Diamondback in my top 10, though. --Steve "Magnum is still the best hyper on Earth" Burant

Goliath at SFoG and Nitro. Don't really get how either of these are that great. Good airtime, yes, but pretty boring rides if you ask me. Goliath's helix is awesome, though. Apollo's Chariot is still the gold standard in B&M hypers in my opinion.

I'm in the minority on Magnum. I flippin' love it. I'm not big into rough coasters, but I can't get enough of it. I could ride ejector seat for hours at a time and never get off. Actually, I would probably have a headache eventually, but that's just because it takes all of nothing to give me a headache.

^Yep, or El Toro. As much as I would love a GG there, they seem to make more terrain coasters (Boardwalk Bullet excepted), and CP obviously lacks terrain. Also given CP's extensive history with Intamin and their willingness to splurge on a coaster, I have a feeling we'll be seeing a prefab there at some point in the future. It would certainly help them in the airtime department, since so many enthusiasts complain about the overall "lack" of airtime in their coasters.

^You think that's bad, Wild Adventures has t-shirts that advertise their SLC as going 70 mph and flipping "7 times."

My friend and I are flying from Tampa to the Ontario airport for $89 each way on Southwest. I know Ontario is a ways from there, but we'll be going a few days early anyway to do some other sightseeing before the weekend. Southwest is amazing like that, though.

^I believe so, yes. In that case, I'll build a kiddie coaster on top of Mount Everest and call it the tallest in the world.

^^Because they aren't just going to keep building coasters until that's all they have. They know that the GP likes a good log flume, and they had been without one for a couple years. Since Maverick, they've been concentrating on a wider range of people, with Planet Snoopy and now Shoot the Rapids. If they go wood, any of the current manufacturers would be a great choice. They all make smooth, reliable, exciting coasters. Wooden coaster manufacturing is at an all-time high right now, with everyone at the top of their game. Regardless of who they choose, the next woodie at CP will be quality. In my opinion I just don't think it'll be GCI, because I don't think a GCI would "fit" at CP. CP is a park that loves to push how fast their coasters are and how much they push the limits, and despite the fact that GCI's are fantastic coasters, they don't push any limits.

CP has never struck me as the type of park that would want a GCI. I have a feeling if they ever go wood, it'll probably be yet another Intamin for the park, possibly GG. GCI doesn't really fit the "bigger, badder, faster" modus operandi that CP has had the last 20 years.

^Cargo pockets have never done me wrong. The only time I've ever lost anything was at Dollywood when the little loose article bag I was handed at Mystery Mine had a hole in it and I didn't notice it. My keys fell out of the bag and were left in the cubby hole, and I didn't know my keys were missing till I got all the way out to my car. After freaking out for the entire tram ride back to the front gate, I went to Lost and Found and thankfully they had my keys there. So go figure, the only time I lose something at a park is when I DON'T take it on the ride.

^Just think what a modest investment in shorts with cargo pockets would have done for him instead of getting a $600 phone!

^Maybe because it's an AMUSEMENT park chain, not a THEME park chain.

^That's perfect. Just about what I was expecting, and I'll have season passes for both chains. Thanks!

Although I know details for 2010 haven't been released yet, what's the usual price tag for WCB? Thinking pretty seriously about heading out there, found some ridiculously cheap flights.

By the time they finish making Harry Potter movies, the guy is going to be so old that they're going to have to make a sequel called "Harry Potter: The Mid-Life Crisis."

I had heard of TPR, but never joined until they came to Alabama Adventure this year and got their Rampage on all night long.