xmichellex

Had a great day at LC on Saturday this past weekend! Hadn't been to this park in about 3 or 4 years. Weather was gorgeous, but the park wasn't too crowded, and we were able to re-ride just about everything we wanted at least twice. After reading some of the recent comments about Boulder Dash, I was curious to see how the ride would be. I did rides in both the front and back. The front seat was amazing, just like I remembered it. Fast, tons of air, and very smooth. The back, however, was noticeably much rougher, and it beat us up a bit. It wasn't horrible, but it wasn't pleasant (or as much fun as the front). I guess that's par for the course though, as far as BD getting older. It still is one of my favorite wooden coasters, and even though some seats are a little rougher now, it's still one of the best. The only thing that really irritated me about BD was that they were only running one train. I know I said above that the crowds were light, but when most of that crowd is in line for BD, it's a long wait. Didn't bother to do Wildcat or Zoomerang, since I've done those in the past, and didn't feel the need to re-live either of them. I overheard conversations in at least 3 different ride lines where people were complaining about being hurt on Wildcat. Rode Down Time four times in a row since there was no line. I love drop towers, and prefer them to launch towers, so it was one of my favorite parts of the day. I don't think I've ever not had to wait for a tower before. The park looked great, ride ops were efficient and friendly, and the food was good (gotta love the free drinks). Will definitely make a point to get there more often!

Went to Canobie on Saturday, here's a quick TR: Went at 5pm (to get the discounted tix), park was PACKED -- even the lines for food/kiosks were long. That being said, we still got on the rides we wanted, and still had time to eat. As it normally does, the park stayed open an extra hour since it was still full at 10pm. * Yankee Cannonball in the backseat is insane. I feel like it gets more insane each time I ride it. Almost to the point where putting your hands up is scary because at almost no point are you actually seated (aside from the lift, of course). I got so much air my seat-belt loosened by half by the end of the ride. Still one of my favorite woodies. * You are now almost guaranteed to get wet on the log ride, whereas before this ride barely got water on you (or if it did, you weren't soaked). The new lift does seem a little faster to me--not sure if that has anything to do with some of the increased wetness or not. It was 4 of us in the log, 3 not-too-big adults, and a small child--we were soaked by the end. They also added a water spray jet to the exit of the cave (the cave that brings you by the fences), so be warned, that you WILL get wet now. * Equinox was down for a bit when we arrived, but opened up and ran right through closing. I had never been on a flat like this before. I was laughing the whole time because the ride is so ridiculous! My favorite part was coming face-to-face with the arm of the ride, especially at night, since the lights are right in your face, and you feel like you're going to crash. I don't get motion-sick, but I thought for sure this ride might do me in... I was wrong. I felt fine after, except for having the biggest head-rush of my life (in the best way!). Some of the forces felt similar to a top-spin, but this was wayyy more intense. Good addition for Canobie (when the ride is up, that is). The crew running the ride also had load/unload down to a science, so the line kept moving. * The Corkscrew LOOKS great with its new paint job, however, it is still a very unpleasant ride. I watched it run a few times, and thought it didn't look like there was the normal amount of headbanging happening, so we went on. Holy hell were we wrong. The turn into the first corkscrew was the worst. I've been on a good amount of coasters (and a fair amount of old Arrows), but this thing is still such a bummer. I'll always have a soft-spot for it since it was one of my first looping coasters way back in the day, but it's definitely an "OK-to-skip" ride for me now. We also got on Untamed, Star Blaster (the fun little launch tower), and the Zamperla "bouncy" ride (which is one of my favorite flats in the park now). Seriously, the bouncy ride is awesome. If you don't smile on the bouncy ride, you have no soul Canobie is still one of my favorite parks (and will probably always be one of my favorites). Even with the park crammed with people, they keep it looking nice, there's no trash/litter, and the ride ops are friendly and efficient all day. Even only having the evening at the crowded park, we still got on the stuff we wanted to, and that's really due in part to how well they run the rides, especially since a lot of the rides are flats (with a good amount not being very high-capacity), and the coasters (aside from Untamed) run only a single train.

Stopped briefly at Canobie yesterday -- it was PACKED. So packed they were lining up cars to park along the entrance and exit roads, and along the fence of the park (I've never seen it that crazy). They also had cops directing traffic within the parking lot. The parking capacity also explained why a very large section of land has been dug up at the far end of the parking lot--the far end opposite of the Cannonball (new construction area also complete with more entrance towers). Lots of construction going on right now (if you're standing facing the park entrance, the construction area is a huge chunk to the far left of the parking lot, and it even extends down past the waterslide area towards the woods). My initial hope/wishful thinking was "Park expansion, yay!" - but, according to a parking lot attendant, to the best of her knowledge, this new expansion is for parking only (which is clearly needed as evident by the number of people that were there yesterday). Equinox was not running. Interestingly too, the ads for Canobie that have been playing non-stop on the radio in which they really hype-up Equinox have been replaced with the generic Canobie "just for fun" ads (at least, I haven't heard the Equinox ads for over a week now, and it used to be several times daily). Nothing is up on Canobie's site about the ride being down, so maybe it's just a temporary issue? I wonder why this ride is giving them such a hassle. Also, the new log flume lift hill seems faster--anyone else notice?

Ugh, I forgot about Halloween stuff That puts a damper on things... I'd go earlier in September, but KD is closed for a good portion of the month for private events. Do any of the BGW rides close to set up for the haunt like FoF at KD does?

Thanks so much for all the replies! I'll keep my eye on the BGW site. I'll be going Sept. 27-29 and will do BG Friday and do KD the other two days. Hopefully both parks won't be too crazy... was planning to get QQ/Fast Pass at both places since I haven't been to BGW since Drachen Fire was there, and I've never been to KD. Want to make sure I get on everything! Been dying to get down there since last year!

I've never waited more than one or two trains for Mind Eraser, and even that's too much for that POS. Never again! I also noticed it was looking pretty crappy last year too--shame they haven't attempted to touch it up a little. Maybe they plan to tear it down and don't want to spend $ on it (one can hope, right?)

Does BGW not offer the Quick Queue after Labor Day? I only have one day at the park at the end of September and wanted to purchase it for the day, but there's no option to buy it then. Wasn't sure if it was too early to reserve it, or if it's unavailable at that time altogether...

I can't get enough of these new Fantasyland pics! Great report as always!

Thanks again for all the great pics and video... I really loved following along on Twitter today! I can't believe how great the new area looks -- the Little Mermaid stuff looks amazing, but Beauty and the Beast is one of my all time favorite movies and I am just in awe at what they've done. It's definitely my equivalent of the WWofHP at Universal! I'm so excited to see how the Snow White stuff turns out... Disney definitely brought their A-game for this expansion, I'm so happy it's all coming together even better than I thought it would!

"UFO rape machine" Also, that would be a good band name, haha...

Yes! Also, I've never been on a TPR trip, but I feel like these high-five shots sum up how awesome the trips are (especially from everything I've read/seen in so many TR's). These pics totally capture the ultimate "we're having a blast on this ride" expressions!

Awesome!

Everything in these parks looks sticky. That's the only way I can describe it, haha... Thanks for all the live FB/Twitter updates--I love following along with them. Looks like (as always) you guys are having a blast! Glad you've survived all the rides of doom you've come across!

Thanks so much for these gorgeous pictures! I absolutely love how colorful Cedar Point is--GateKeeper will only add to it!

Agreed on that. But it's nice that Canobie is getting a new ride. ^ Yup. I love that Canobie is keeping the park going strong with additions, events, upkeep, etc. They do a great job running this park. I think they have a really great selection of flats already, and having another "thrilling" flat to go with the Frisbee is cool... especially since it's an addition that doesn't require too much space.

Meh... This is sort of cool I guess. I would have taken them even just taking out Flashback and/or Mind Eraser and putting in picnic tables as an improvement.

The FP booth usually opens with the park. You may have to wait a few minutes, but it really doesn't take up too much time.

^ I usually ride it every year, and sure it can be hit or miss, but it's almost always miss. It was really bad this weekend... just shaking all over the place. I was hoping it wouldn't be that bad, but it was. It's not that the park doesn't take care of it, because they do, which is why it still runs fairly well... but, the thing is just old and wearing out. Also, the last few times I've been to the park there has been little-to-no wait for it, which says something. I think it has a few more years left... hopefully Canobie has something brewing for when this thing finally bites the dust. My bf and I were in line for it talking about how it's still such a good-looking coaster (the Arrow track), and how classic it is--it will be a bummer to see it go when it finally does, but I'd rather have something you can re-ride in its place.

Went to Canobie for the 2nd time this summer over the weekend... Had a great time as usual--park was gorgeous as always, staff and ride-ops were friendly and efficient, everything was up and running, wait times were acceptable... Canobie is awesome in that you can pretty much bet you're going to have a good experience there. I rode in the very back of the Cannonball for the first time in a while (usually sit towards in the front)... it reminded me of why it's still one of my favorite wooden coasters--I don't think I was even in my seat for 95% of the time. I was laughing so hard the whole time... that thing is like an ejector air dream machine. They really need to scrap the Corkscrew. Trust me, I love the old Arrows, but this thing is just done, period. I don't think it's going anywhere soon though because it looks like they were in the process of painting it. For anyone else that's gone this year, did you notice Untamed got noticeably rougher? Last year when it was brand new it was a little rough, but not horrible... When I rode it the first time this summer it was not pleasant at all... so I gave it another chance over the weekend and rode it twice within a few hours. The first time wasn't so bad, but the second time made me question whether or not I'd care to ever ride it again. The first half of the ride is great, but the transitions in the 2nd half are brutal. I don't particularly mind a little head-bashing (within reason) since I know how to brace myself, but still... it kind of ruins the ride as a whole. My bf got a pretty bad headache after ride #2 and it ruined the rest of his night. Overall though, I love Canobie, and it will probably always be one of my favorite parks.

Because it specifies that guests will no longer be able to drive "their own vehicles", it seems to imply that it will still be a drive-through attraction, but probably guided (as everyone is already guessing). This may seem lame, but last time I drove through the safari (which I've always LOVED doing), the animal lover in me got sort of bummed out at realizing how much car exhaust the animals must be exposed to on a daily basis during the operating season. This announcement makes me relieved in a way that the animals aren't going anywhere, and they will hopefully have cleaner air while we still get to enjoy them... That being said, three of my favorite vacation memories ever are from this safari--both monkey related, and comedy gold: * Monkey peeing on the car hood of our rental. * Monkey "pleasuring himself" up against our windshield. * Monkey taking off the antenna of the car in front of us.

^ Thanks! Although, since I haven't been to BGW since Drachen Fire was still there, and I've never been to KD, I'm pretty much going to do just the coasters/rides... the haunt stuff would be if time allowed (if at all). Do ride lines get shorter during haunt because everyone goes to the mazes, etc? My initial plan was to do BGW Friday/Sat. morning--head to KD and get a twilight ticket for Sat. night and then have the full day on Sunday...

Hey KD regulars--can the park be done in 2 (or 1 and a half) days in October? Thinking of going to BGW and KD, but both are only open Fri, Sat, Sun in October. How bad does Haunt affect the crowds? Should I even bother? I've never been to KD... I would definitely get a FL pass for the full day we'd have there, but I don't know if that's enough to get though everything (mainly the coasters). For those that frequent both parks--do you think both are do-able in a weekend? I would get a QQ at BGW as well...

Coaster: El Toro Flat: agreed with Me007gold on the Flying Bobs!

Anyone who says they didn't get aroused when looking at that picture is lying.

^ I think maybe I'm just jaded when it comes to this park. I've been going there since I was really small (I'm 30 now) and it was Riverside... back when it had the Black Widow, and a pretty cool log flume, and the Cyclone wasn't half a pile of crap. I feel myself less and less interested in going to SFNE every year. I don't feel like the park has really improved much at all over the years, of course with the exception of Bizarro and even Batman. They did a great job updating Thunderbolt, which I would ride a million times over the Cyclone at this point. When I think of SFNE, all I see are a few worth-it coasters, and the rest of the park full with awful head-bangers that aren't even worth riding (at least more than once). Every time someone asks if I want to go there (since technically it's one of my home parks), I just suggest driving the extra couple hours and hitting Great Adventure instead (and then of course, you're so close to Hershey, might as well stop there too ) I don't think Six Flags really kept up the park as it should have been after they bought it, and they definitely haven't added too many quality coasters/rides. I know they have a height restriction, and land restrictions, but it just seems they've half-a$$ed it for years. Last time I went to SFNE, I grabbed a Gold FP so we could ride everything we wanted all day with minimum waits, but honestly, I felt like it was a waste of money, because after a while there was almost nothing we cared about riding anymore... my SFNE trips just turn into Bizarro trips (which I guess isn't SO bad), but still... I don't know, it's just missing the quality that would make me want to be there more. I choose to spend my time now mostly at Canobie, or even trek to Great Adventure. This is just my opinion though--watching and experiencing the park through the years. I know there's a lot of TPR members on here (and in this thread) that are perfectly fine with SFNE.