Geauga Dog

I made my annual pilgrimage to Darien Lake today. i didn't take a lot of photos since I've taken so many over the years so there won't be any accompanying this brief review. I arrived at the park around 12:15 and it seemed like you owned the park as there were very, very few people there but the crowds started picking up around 2-2:30. It was great that they lowered the admission price for the fall event. Rides closed: Twister, Sleigh Ride, Motocoaster (though it would open by mid-afternoon), Grizzly Run and Pirate. The entire area around Corn Popper (Thunder Rapids to Shipwreck Falls) was closed off. My first ride was on Boomerang, which is one of my favorites in the boomerang family. It's still a relatively smooth ride. Though I really like the newer trains like on Carolina Cobra, the older bullet nose train runs pretty well on this one. Only issue were the bees that were hanging around towards the top of the reverse tower. I was waiting for someone, or myself, to get stung. Viper seemed a bit rougher in spots than what I remember. I do like the new snake skin wrap and dark green paint on the train but there were already spots where the wrap was peeling off. It still irritates me that the old queue line vending machine building under the second corkscrew still stands and in terrible shape and also that the station still hasn't received a new paint job despite the entire coaster was repainted black a few year's ago and now the train getting some love. It seems the foliage around Rowdy's Ridge is starting to fill in nicely in spots. Took a ride on the Hornet's Nest and the ride op there was awesome. She must have been a lifeguard at Splashtown during the summer now doing fill in work on rides. Before she let us on the ride she went over a few things regarding children on the ride that I thought was very professional. Other than that it's no wonder why these rides have become popular since we're seeing a few opening next year in parks. While not crazy like the old Bisch-Rocco models you can get some decent air on these Larson models. Predator was open and it was "okay". The first drop, second hill, and far turn were decent but some of the hills after that were a bit rough and jolty, if that's a correct term to use. As much as I would like to see the current ride preserved as I find it a rather decent layout for what it is, I won't miss it if it does indeed get butchered fo become something else. Not to bring up an old topic but now that I've had my visit to the park I don't think the park needs something radical like what is proposed for Lake Monster. If they could just rework Predator without adding any inversions I think it could be a decent family wooden coaster all over again. Next was Blast Off. I want to say that the new Lakeside Boardwalk area turned out very nice. It makes the center of the park rather vibrant. I only rode Blast Off once and I think it was a much needed attraction though I wish it was just a tad taller. The ride has a strong pop of airtime at the top, which took me by surprise, since it was stronger than CP's Power Tower space shot. The crew was doing well cycling people through. My only little gripe is the lack of a cover at the top of the tower because it makes it look incomplete. Walked by Redhawk, the skyscoaster, and saw they cahrge $50 for a single flyer. Are they out of their minds? Most parks charge at max $30-$35 for a single flyer but Darien's is ridiculously high. I guess I'm spoiled by Kings Island's $10-$15 price, which seems to draw much more business. Headed over to Road Rage Cage, BKA Bear Valley Bumper Buggies. I always liked how they closed up the bumper car building and added strobes and other lighting on the ride. Really adds to the experience though the one way only is a bit of a bummer. Took another ride on Viper and by this time the station was full. Even with one train it seemed the ride ops were doing a decent job getting the train loaded and out on the course. I noticed the former mini golf under the ride is starting to look really shabby so maybe it will be removed next season. Did not ride Mind Eraser (refuse to ride) nor did I take a spin on Ride of Steel (I no longer can fit on the ride) which is fine as it seemed like it took them a long time to dispatch the train from what I could see while waiting in Predator's station. I would have liked to have ridden the Giant Wheel but they no longer allow single riders to ride by themselves. Overall it was a decent visit, not one of the best I've had, but decent. The one train operations on the coasters were a bit of a let down, especially when the crowds started to arrive, but I knew that was what I was going to find based on other reports I've read here during the summer. I still think Herschend is doing a good job with the park, it shows with the renovated areas like Lakeside Boardwalk, but it's still going to take quite a while to get it to where they want it.

Very impressive! The dive loop/Immelman will be to the right. This alone shows perfect placement of the ride for interaction with the midway around it.

Maverick on Saturday night. Pitch black except for the few lights in the Cut Throat Cove haunt under it. The ride was awesome!

I noticed that on my ride last night. Didn't feel the restraint tighten either (sat on left side, second row, inside seat). Banshee is going to look pretty sweet from the Action Zone entrance/Delirium. Let's hope the entire area gets a makeover in the near future.

Apollo's Chariot. I don't hate the ride but I don't understand how some might rate it as one of B&M's better hypers.

Dorney's former Laser. It seemed like I would grey out every time coming out of the second loop.

Looking closer at the photo it looks like a couple smaller supports for the bottom of the first drop have been installed as well.

Stinger from Dorney Park... They already have a standard boomerang. My choice would be an Intamin LSM launch.

Thunderhawk is not a bad coaster. Not sure if it's still there but based on my rides in 2005 the only part that sucks is the weird brake right before the final brake run that kills it.

Lift, first drop and dive loop should be done by the end of October if they keep going at this rate.

B&M - Raging Bull's first drop, in the back seat, is fabulous. Diamondback's first drop is also great. The wing-over first drops on X-Flight and Gatekeeper are excellent. Arrow - KI's Vortex and BGW's Loch Ness Monster. Intamin - Intimidator 305, which I like better than Millennium Force's, and Maverick

I'd be very surprised if it's an Intamin given the lengthy downtime of I-305 this year. If it's going to be a B&M i'd prefer a more modern looping coaster, whether floorless or sit down, since Carolina Cyclone is all they have for a traditional looping coaster.

^I believe someone fell out of Rail Blazer and died so it was converted back to a sit down coaster again.

Vortex would go before Firehawk but Vortex is still quite popular. If Vortex ever does leave I hope they will still retain the station. It's one of the best looking stations in any park I've been to.

Thank you for the great TR so far and for showing other aspects of Japan than just the parks. I can never get enough of Mega-Lite photos so thank you for all the aerials from the Ferris Wheel. Those look like amazing little rides.

^Very well written. Thank you for posting. I totally understand why parks do surveys to get an idea of what their public would like to see at the park but when you're possibly proposing rides like Lake Monster, the giant frisbee, and also make mention of Dark Waters it will get many people's hopes up. Unfortunately nine times out of ten they will be let down. Darien is quite overdue a major new addition but I also would rather they continue to spend their resources doing what they've done by reinvigorating different areas of the park. I didn't get to the park this year to see the Boardwalk but I was very impressed with how Rowdy's Ridge turned out last year. As much as Halloween is BIG business for parks this time of year I don't think Herschend does any big Halloween events at Dollywood or Silver Dollar City but family fall festivals at those parks. I was not surprised when I read they cancelled Dark Waters in favor of having a more toned down fall festival.

Wood: Voyage Blue Streak (Conneaut) Screamin' Eagle GASM (SFOG) Steel: Steel Force Diamondback Goliath (SFOG) Intimidator 232 In Memorium: Big Dipper (GL) Screechin' Eagle (LeSourdesville/Americana)

Agreed. The more I keep seeing of this new management just makes me think that people like Dick Kinzel and Jack Falfas had NO CLUE about running an amusement park company. I am very happy with what Matt has done in his short tenure as CF president so far. It seems the parks, at least CP and KI, are slowly getting their atmosphere back. I'm excited that Kings Dominion is going the retro route for its 40th and nice to see the original logo being brought back even if for just a brief time.

ABC World News just did an update on the fatality. They were saying that the indicator on the train wasn't working properly. They did not say anything about her not sitting all the way back in the seat, which to me, should not even allow the bar to lock.

That does seem like a good ride. For the U.S. they would need to add one or two more cars to the train to add more capacity.

In past visits that I've made during this time of year the Mind Eraser/UFO/Sleigh Ride side of the park was always closed off and in the process of winterizing. Viper's exit would be re-routed towards the entrance of the Galaxy Theater. I do remember one year, however, the entire park was open and they turned the park into a pay-per-ride ticket or POP wristband for a reduced price. I believe this was the first year under PARC.

The triple down on Voyage The third hill and the drop off of the turnaround on Screamin' Eagle The double down on SFGAm's Viper The ravine drop on the Beast The drop off the turnaround and the 90 degree turn and drop on Ravine Flyer II The Boss has several very good drops after the first hill

No particular order: 1. Knoebel's Phoenix 2. Kennywood Thunderbolt 3. Conneaut Lake Blue Streak How far back does one have to go to consider a coaster as being a classic? I would also define SFStL's Screamin' Eagle and SFOG's GASM as being classic.

Had a rare opportunity to visit Kings Island today. Rare in that usually the first two weekends after Labor Day the park is closed for private outings but today it was open to the public. Coincidence that it's also my birthday so I got to spend about five hours at the park as a treat to myself. They were still doing Dollar Days and the food stands were jammed even though the park was relatively dead until mid to late afternoon. Have to give the park props for how they handled the LaRosa's Pizza deal as the long lines moved rather well. They just kept stacking slices of pizza on top of each other and you would just grab as many as you wanted. Didn't get my dollar blue ice cream cone though. As I said the park was relatively dead with near walk-ons to very, very minimal waits on the coasters until the crowds picked up later in the day. Not much work had been done to Banshee since the last photos were taken but I will say the color scheme looks awesome in person, especially the purple colored track. Today the park offered lights on tours of two haunted houses, Madame Fatal's Cavern of Terror (the old Crypt building) and Wolf Park (the old Son of Beast station), as a way to show guests a little of the behind the scenes of creating these haunts. I must say that I think they did an excellent job with Cavern of Terror. It seemed like a rather long maze themed to a wax museum. Most of all I was amazed at how much they fit into SOB's station for Wolf Pack. While the space in the maze seemed tight I think that just adds to the terror guests will encounter inside. For Wolf Pack we had an actual guide tell us a little about the different rooms we went in while Madame Fatale's was just a walk through at your own pace. Not sure about Cavern but we were instructed not to take photos or video in Wolf Pack. From Exit 25 at Kings Mills Road you can see Banshee's crane on the skyline to the left of the Kings Island Resort sign New Banshee footers being prepped behind Wolf Pack. My favorite photo of the day - Flight Deck from the Wolf Pack queue.

I'll add Storm Chaser going to Adventureland Iowa next year. I don't think any of us saw that one coming and yet it's another Mondial Windseeker.