Skycoastin Steve

Hello, HP thread! Would you like to read my trip report on Skyrush's opening day? Of course you would! Go here so you can see pictures like this!

Hello again, everyone! We have finally reached Hersheypark for Skyrush's opening day. I'm sure by now you've all read various rider accounts of Skyrush, and I'm sure several of you have already ridden it. So what did I think of it? Let me put it this way. On a scale of 1 to 10, it ranks at about OMFGWTF. It had INSANE airtime, maybe the best airtime of any coaster I've ever been on (yes, even more than El Toro). It was incredibly smooth (I didn't get any rattling that some people are speaking of, I think they were still vibrating from riding Fahrenheit and thought that Skyrush was doing it), and while the lap bars did get rather tight on both rides, it was nowhere near as bad as Bizarro's lap bars (which are the standard setters for horrible lap bars). As far as steel rankings go, it only came in behind MF and 305 on my list (shut up about MF, it'll never not be #1 on my steel list). As for the rest of HP, I can only shake my head in utter disbelief. They easily had the worst operations staff I've ever seen at a non-Six Flags park, and they were dangerously close to crossing the SFNE/La Ronde threshold for shittiness. It was that bad. Slow, uninterested ride ops, idiotic procedures (like the wait till the station empties of every last living soul before opening the gates for the next train, although that's nothing new), zero ability to adapt to situations like guests being too large for restraints (we watched as the Roller Soaker crew took probably 5 minutes to figure out what to do when someone was too big). There was also a time when SDL, Wildcat, Lightning Racer, Roller Soaker, and Sidewinder were all not operating. So at that point, 5 of their 12 coasters were closed on what was easily the most crowded day they've probably had in a while. It's a good thing HP has rides like Skyrush, Storm Runner, and Lightning Racer that are good enough to get me to come back. Because if they didn't, I can guarantee it would take another new ride to get me to go back. Anyway, back to the good stuff. I really hope we start seeing more of these Intamin "wing" coasters in the States. I hope it doesn't turn out to be like El Toro where it's still the only one of its kind in the country 5 or 6 years down the road. Now on to the pictures! As we arrived to Hersheypark in the morning, I noticed a sign for Fast Lane. BOYCOTT!!!!!! This is what the crowd at the front gate looked like an hour prior to opening. It's safe to say people were excited about the new ride. Time to wait! A look at SDL's new trains. We didn't get to ride it. When it was actually open, the line was pretty bad, so we just skipped it. Obligatory ride sign photo. I think this was the 2nd train of the day. They were dispatching at about an average of four minutes per train (thanks to the worst station design in the universe). The staircase on the left is the line for the front row. No thanks. I always like when coaster construction doesn't infringe on nature like this. They trimmed the tree down a bit, but didn't have to rip it out. For some perspective, our wait started between the last two trees on the right, and we ended up waiting just short of 90 minutes. By the time we got off the ride, the line was another 50 yards or so down the sidewalk. Worst. Station. Ever. Crazy airtime in the back! Crazy airtime everywhere! I love the fact that they built the walkway under the ride, makes for great photo opportunities! The fountains were a nice touch, too. Fantastic first drop. Lots of twisties! The mini airtime hill at the end had probably the strongest moment of airtime I can remember on any ride. AND it's trimmed. And here we have a perfect example of how Hersheypark has ZERO clue when it comes to capacity or efficiency. NINE empty seats on the new coaster when the line is over two hours long. Current computer background. I always like a good silhouette pic. Skyrush was so good, it knocked someone's socks off! No seriously, these socks flew off someone's feet and landed in the landscaping below. This time it really IS a true story! The other fountain. You can ride the dam coaster after waiting in the dam line and climbing the dam stairs to the dam station and sitting in your dam seat. The pull out of the first drop was pretty intense. So intense that when riding in the back right seat on my first ride, I got bent sideways over the side of the train and just about broke every rib in my body. Lesson learned: HANG ON. I particularly like this picture. And YES, IT IS A STENGEL DIVE. Debate over. I also really like this picture, but you can see the abundance of empty seats..........again. All in all, great effing ride. I couldn't give Skyrush just one stamp, so it got multiple stamps of approval! HOWEVER! The Stamp Nazi did NOT approve of Hersheypark on this trip. Better luck next time.

^I'm usually dynamite when it comes to planning out credit whoring trips. It was a rare, humbling experience to fail so hard.

^^Hey! I took that picture! On my phone that I lost on Goliath.

Exactly. Not having to deal with causeway traffic either in the morning or at night would be worth it by itself, even without early entry. I've never stayed there myself, honestly probably never will since I know enough people and have family within an hour that I can stay with, but the convenience factor of Breakers is off the charts.

I TOLD YOU THAT IN CONFIDENCE!!!!

^If I remember the website correctly, if you cross back over within a certain amount of time, the return trip is free. And the toll is $12 now. Either way, it's a pretty neat experience to drive across it, although it's nothing breathtaking or anything.

Alrighty, time for Day #2 of our Memorial Day Weekend adventures. Today we visit Ocean City, Maryland, in hopes of some serious credit whoring. There are six total credits that adults are allowed to get in the city, and if all goes according to plan, we'll get the six credits so Skyrush can be Jen's 300th credit! It was a 400-mile trip through 5 states with many twists, turns, and shenanigans. Would we be successful? You have to read to find out.......... Our day would start with a trip across the 17-mile Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel! And while I know that about 90% of the people on this forum are violently allergic to anything that doesn't have to do with roller coasters, I'm still going to showcase some pictures from the bridge. This were all taken from a rest stop at the beginning of the first tunnel. GO AMERICA! Birds and a sailboat. Not quite Boats and Hos, but close. I wonder if this guy knew I was taking pictures of him? This is an outcropping of rocks that shows where the roadway is while it's still lowering under the water and into the tunnel. It's there to prevent any boats from colliding with the tunnel (obviously). The other side! In case you forgot where we were...... USA! USA! USA! I do rather like this picture. Shortly after taking this picture, that giant orange boat crushed that yacht and exploded. True story. Fishing pier. Map of the layout. And my reflection. TAKE THE TUNNEL!!! (See? I got a coaster reference in there for those of you who are bored!) The only thing missing here is a speeding car crashing into a toxic waste truck that blows up and implodes half the tunnel, thereby killing almost everyone except a lucky few who have to be rescued by a shamed former EMT who bares resemblance to Sylvester Stallone. He then brings everyone to Daylight and saves the day! We made it! And here we are in Ocean City! Our first stop is Baja Amusements, a place that mostly features go karts. How rude! Time to get wacky! He looks drugged out of his mind. Employees wearing sleeveless shirts? Seems legit. Moving further into the city, it seems they have a giant display on Medieval torture right on the water! However, the complex housing this giant torture device will not be opening until 6 tonight (even though the website said NOON). In other words, we'll be long gone before that happens. Two credits missed, so Jen will have to wait on 300. Moving right along, we see our next destination is not far away. It's Jolly Roger at the Pier, and they seem to be open! To ride the Looping Star (ouch), you need at least four people or the ride could valley. So we waited for about 10 minutes until a couple employees volunteered to get beaten to smithereens with us. Credit! In case you didn't know, there's a beach in Ocean City. It's a city on the ocean. Duh! For our last stop, we get to the other Jolly Roger, which is on 30th street. The website said the rides open at 2 today. However, we asked an employee, and she said they don't open till 5. So two more credits missed. This day has taken a turn for the horrific. That means we have to come back......... Only 2 out of 6 credits earned, Jen won't hit 300 on Skyrush (although she still has a chance to hit it with Verbolten!), and all that way for basically nothing. The whores have been shamed. HOWEVER! Our day got better as we reached Hershey and cashed in our single day tickets for a preview the night before Skyrush's opening day! Earlier in the thread, you learned about the new species in Tennessee, "Eagleus Wildus." Today, we see Eagleus Wildus' younger, much more badly behaved cousin, Skymus Rushimus Maximus, waiting rather impatiently for opening day. Skymus Rushimus Maximus wants to be unleashed upon the world to crush wimpy enthusiasts' thighs everywhere, and to provide the tougher of the lot the most insane rides EVAR! Run from the storm! Or run with the storm? What exactly is a "storm runner," and what does it have to do with horses?? Who cares? No matter what it does, it looks good at sunset! We would get three rides on this beast before closing. For another ride that looks terrific at sunset....... We have Fahrenheit! Hello, moon! I do really love this element, it's just too bad it's on a fairly boring coaster. And while it takes terrific pictures........ It sucks to ride. So we didn't ride it either day. Thanks for reading, check back later for Skymus Rushimus Maximus' unveiling to the world!

That's about the worst description I've ever seen of a ride incident, but sounds scary.

Every time I ride Storm Runner, it reminds me why it's easily the best accelerator, and one of the best steel coasters in the country.

Poor thing.

Fantastic shots of Kingda Ka!

I only attribute that to them being open year round.

^Traveling to get the credit is what's fun for me, the credit and the craziness that I get to see at the FEC is just a bonus.

Who is ready for my multi-part, action-packed, credit whoring Memorial Day Weekend trip report? You are?? Fantastic! Here's Part 1!! Ok so in all of my credit whoring days, I've done some crazy stuff in the name of riding kiddie coasters. Last year I did a 2+ hour round trip for a Wildcat in the middle of nowhere Maryland, 9 parks in one day down the Jersey Shore for 22 new credits, did a trip to Williamsburg solely to get the Go Karts Plus credit, among other wacky things. BUT! Nothing I have done could compare to the epic, amazing, hilarious, awe-inspiring trip Jen and I had to Deadwood. This place was discovered by TPR member carolinacaniac a few years back, and considering I went to college maybe an hour from this place, I was always bummed I never made it out there. Well, I bum out no more! Deadwood is this charming little restaurant/FEC type place in the middle of NOWHERE in eastern North Carolina (although basically everywhere in that part of the state is in the middle of nowhere). They have a train ride, a mini golf course, an interesting carousel, an ice cream shop, a full service restaurant, and the reason we made the 200 mile round trip from my parents' house on the water, a kiddie coaster! Most of what I have to say will be in captions, so without further ado, here you go! Our trip has brought us to Ed's Grocery Road in Williamston, NC. We turned onto this road off of Prison Camp Road, so obviously the people of Williamston know how to name their roads. As you can see, we're in a bustling metropolis. We had to fight hours of rush hour traffic to get here. And by rush hour traffic, I mean slow drivers on a two-lane highway with no passing zones. Here we are! Rejoice! The glorious entrance to this establishment. We were beating off the crowds with a stick to get in. Perimeter fence? Seems legit. This little building had some ride parts strewn about in it, I think it might have been some type of teacup ride they wanted to build. Either way, it wasn't open for us that day. The entire town of Williamston came out to Deadwood today! I can barely contain my excitement for what lies ahead! "I have a big head, and little arms!" This coaster probably has more theming than most rides at Cedar Point (not that I really care about that sorta thing, just saying). This is the lonely, corner-dwelling dinosaur. I will call him Emosaurus. The landscaping, the theming, the airtime hill! Joygasm! Unfortunately, we won't get to see the Trial of Jack McCall today. Inside the park now, we seem to have found a lake of Smurf jizz. Wooden geese? Seems legit. What you don't see in this picture are the dozens of Smurfs at the top of the hill jizzing into the stream. In case you need to buy general things. This is how directions are given out in Williamston. "How do I get to _______?" "DID YOU NOT SEE THE DIRECTION SIGN AT DEADWOOD?!?!?!" And you know, the last thing I thought before getting out of the car was, "Gee willakers, how on Earth do I get to El Paso, and how far is it from here?" True story. Train enthusiasts rejoice! Noted! Deadwood Express, baby! Rumor has it Iron Horses 1-46 weren't very reliable, but they finally got it right with #47! This was our trusty train operator. He told us before boarding that we would see things we had never seen before. Little did we know......... Watch the POV, you do not want to miss this! After surviving the aliens, Indians, and eyeballs, OH MY, we needed some cash. Too bad the only bank was a fake one. Coin operated carousel? Seems legit. As you can see, the log flume wasn't quite ready for operation last weekend. However, they are holding out hope that it will be ready by Father's Day....................2016. Either way, there's a good chance it'll be open before Flying Turns. Credit time! Looks like I'm too tall. Good thing we're in a place like Deadwood, where all your dreams come true! Ok, my previous record for laps on a kiddie coaster was 9, which was set at Steel Pier last spring. I never thought it would be topped, until.......... WATCH THE POV! Ten epic laps later, we have survived the Badlands! In most Old West films I watch, there's always a random charcoal grill somewhere in the town. As I said before, Deadwood also has a mini golf course, which would turn out to be one of the most............."interesting" mini golf courses I've ever played. For theming, we have an overturned bench. Jen likes to dwell in dark, dank places. Cement frog? Seems legit. Water tower. Rumor has it, this water tower supplies the whole town of Williamston with only slightly contaminated water. True story. This statue watches over this hole with an eagle eye. Badadum. What a brave man, taking on those aliens again! Ok, time for dinner. Marinated ribeye, tasty! Not as good as Outback's ribeyes, but that's a tough standard. This critter was above our table. No, I'm not kidding. Any idea whose shirt this is? After a horrifying train ride, a record-setting kiddie coaster ride, a harrowing mini golf game, and a delicious meal with Rocky the Squirrel watching out over us, this place absolutely gets the coveted Skycoastin' Steve Stamp of Approval! Thanks for reading, now leave comments, and only positive ones!

^Well that's good news, although I don't think I could make it the 16th.

Not sure why so many people are that upset about Space Spiral being removed. It was a non air conditioned sauna in the sky that was down more than it was operating. There are still a TON of things for kids to do there, and can't infants still ride the carousel?

^News from weeks ago called, they said check the green B&M track thread.

So let's start a pool. Which park will hit $100 first?

^Other than Frontier Trail, what part of the park isn't generic?

I think interaction with the gate should involve machine guns on the side of the train that you can shoot at guests as they enter the park.

I didn't think the restraints were very good. They were hard and hurt my stomach. Edit:

I was hoping it wouldn't be of the B&M variety, but we'll see how it turns out. Hopefully they take a cue from the other wing riders and put all kinds of crap in the way along the course to make the ride more exciting.

^I would say they're about 5-5 1/2 hours apart depending on traffic. You have to go through northern VA no matter which route you take, and that can be a disaster if you're unlucky.

There were days I rode Intimidator 232 several times in a row and my thighs ended up sore from hitting the restraints. Apollo's Chariot has worn my thighs out after several back row rides in a row. If the airtime is strong enough, your thighs are going to hurt regardless. Honestly, after riding Skyrush and Apollo back to back days, the material on AC's lapbars isn't that much softer than Skyrush. They're more ergonomic than Skyrush's restraints, and they're ratcheting instead of hydraulic, but the material surely isn't the problem. But I still don't think it's any different (or worse) than any of the other modern Intamins, all of them have a tendency to staple down throughout the ride. So this isn't anything new.