Geauga Dog

Not to change the subject but when was this? I went to Martin's in May and rode Silver Comet a few times and they didn't make me remove my glasses.

1. Alpengeist 2. Talon 3. Raptor 4. Batman 5. Top Gun/Flight Deck

1. SFGAdv Medusa 2. Dominator when it was at GL 3. SFMW Medusa (park was still Marine World when I visited) 4. Hydra

That is rather odd because I've had no glasses issues with Motocoaster at Darien Lake. I would think if it came from the manufacturer that it would also apply to that ride. Is there anything different about Pony Express where it would warrant that restriction?

If they really wanted another kiddie coaster then they should have held onto Roadrunner Express/Beaver Land Mine Ride from Geauga Lake. As for this having the so called record for the most coasters I highly doubt anyone in Northeast Ohio has any idea, outside of the enthusiast community, that Magic Mountain even exists or even knows how many coasters they have. Same with the West Coast regarding Cedar Point.

Phantom Theater was a good ride. I always loved the old Earthquake ride at CP when I was a kid. Thought it was better than the Pirate Ride. Currently my favorites are Indiana Jones at Disneyland, Ghostwood Estate at Kennywood, and Scooby Doo and the Scary Swamp at SFStL.

I've really enjoyed your thread and a lot of that brings back many memories. You have quite a collect and just want to thank you for sharing. As for the videos, I have three of those that you've posted including the 1977 "Rollercoaster" movie. I must be a true geek.

Yes, I've read the past two to three pages prior to my registering here. If CP wasn't the first then someone else would have topped 200 feet eventually. Once we hit 200 feet it seemed the sky was the limit as it wasn't long before we were seeing rides 225 feet high (Desperado) and drops of near equal length (Steel Phantom). And how is MF not like Magnum other than manufacturer and statistics? MF is Magnum without all the bunny hills and with more banked turns. You just agreed with me that WT is not innovative. It was more or less trying to one up CP's former competition with a similar ride. You're focused on the size and not what makes the ride different or unique from rides of a similar nature. The cobra roll is what made Raptor unique when it was built. Hydraulic technology is hydraulic technology no matter how it is used. Xcellerator still trumps Dragster. Since you want to refer to taking things to the next level, is Kingda Ka groundbreaking despite being a near clone of Dragster and how does Storm Runner fit into this equation since it was the first in the U.S. with inversions? Does it make the ride groundbreaking as well? Hope I'm not trying to stir up ill-feelings being a newbie here.

Been a long time lurker but I had to register to tell Thrillrider that I understand his side of the discussion. Having grown up going to CP for most of my life, except for the last couple of years, I have to agree that CP hasn't exactly been in the forefront of doing groundbreaking rides. They have always been the ones to have someone else do the work and then they just improve on it by making it a little different. I don't consider breaking height records as being groundbreaking since these records are/were being broken all the time. The only rides they have installed were groundbreaking only for minor reasons, not because the ride experience was new or unique. Magnum was the first to top 200 feet but overall Magnum is basically taking the concept of a traditional out and back coaster and supersizing it. Millennium Force, to me, was just taking the concept of Magnum and supersizing it to 310 feet. The only real groundbreaking feature was the cable lift hill, other than that it's still basically a traditional out and back freeform coaster. Wicked Twister is not groundbreaking. That honor goes to the impulse that was an hour and a half east of the park at what was Six Flags Ohio/Worlds of Adventure. So they added a second twisted spike, big deal, but Superman had the stronger launch and actually went almost all the way to the top of the spikes, unlike Wicked Twister. Raptor was not groundbreaking. Batman at SFGAm was. It has the same inversions except for the then-new cobra roll, which would have eventually been made for the inverted coaster anyway. Dragster, isn't exactly groundbreaking. For hydraulic launches I would think Xcellerator would be the likely candidate. Personally, I'd love to have a 4th Dimension but I know that will never happen however I wouldn't be surprised if CF took a closer look at X-Raptor at Gardaland once that ride opens.