pixelated85

I'm liking what we can see of the Tron coaster so far. I wonder how far they'll go with the interior themeing (probably a redundant thought). I think it would be pretty rad to see the coaster drop and rise between the levels in the grid arena.

^That's fantastic! I really miss those days. The park seemed so exciting when I was young. Coming down the highway I would watch miles of trees pass by until that gorgeous view of the Jet Scream up front and the Screamin Eagle towering over the back would pop up. The loop on Jet Scream seemed about 100 feet tall back then. And two mine trains! What a concept! I would gladly give up Ninja to Magic Springs if we could get the other mine train back.

I have only fleeting memories of the Big Bad John-side of the mine train as I was so young when it was removed. I do have one prominent memory of the two sides lining up at the end for the final drop, and there was no tunnel over that area at the time. That part seemed really exciting to me, probably because the trains would race down the last drop together if the timing was right. If I recall correctly, there was storage all around the flat bottom of the last drop, as the trains would race by random log flume boats and other things laying around. Side note: maybe I'm remembering this wrong, but didn't there used to be a nightclub in the old Jet Scream station, and they would film it live on the weekends and show it on channel 11?

I share a lot of the same sentiments about this ride. If I rode it for the first time now, I don't know that it would sit so prettily, perched at the top of my favorites list. The airtime is still there (and it's not going anywhere, that's for sure) but the roughness can be too much for more than 2 or 3 rides in a row. But when I think back to the rides I had in its opening year, I get all twinkly eyed and nostalgic. Single-handedly the best coaster rides I've ever had. The speed and airtime were nothing I had ever encountered before, at least not to the extent that they're thrown at you on the Voyage. I didn't think it was possible to have that much air in one ride, or to see it come screaming into the brakes at such an insane speed. I miss those days. I would be all for a topper track makeover if it meant keeping these great traits but restoring an ounce of smoothness to the ride.

Hope your right, maybe you have some inside info... I still have a hunch we could receive another transplant coaster, like Medusa from Great Adventure, which can replace it. It's probably a better bet than a brand new custom install. I'd agree on a transplant being more likely than a new custom coaster for our park. I do wonder if they decide to scrap Ninja and bring in a new coaster if they would still use that same plot of land or finally expand out to some of the unused areas. If they want to use that same land they're gonna need a ride with a smaller footprint than most of the rides I could see feasibly being moved here, unless they wanna get creative and have it stretch east across the train track.

I really like the look of that dive loop. It seems much more "in-line" than most I've seen.

Here's a question I'm not sure I've seen answered (perhaps I missed it): would there, in the end, really be a benefit to doing an Iron Horse treatment vs. a topper track makeover? From what I see out of their existing coasters, both styles seem to be able to maneuver the same way, perform similar elements, etc. So is the real debate over keeping the layout intact vs. overhauling it and possibly adding inversions? I've only ridden Outlaw Run out of the three, and it rode incredibly smooth with really good air. Are their Iron Horse coasters smoother? Also, could they not re-profile the layout and add inversions, all with topper track?

Or... Put a SFNE Bizarro clone at SFSt.L Thought: wouldn't a mirror image clone of Bizarro fit rather nicely on the east side of the park if the station was next to Tidal Wave? With a few adjustments for terrain and what-not, I think it would be kind of baller to see that happen.

Isn't it really surprising just how boring it is? There are stretches of that coaster that came the closest to "highway driving simulator" of any coaster I've been on. Anyway, I had a really terrible time with Mind Erasor when I went (maybe three years ago), I'm glad it wasn't as bad for you. And I agree about Batwing, I found it to be far more fun than Superman at Great Adventure. Easily my favorite ride there, though Wild One is also pretty fun. I felt like Superman could've been so much more. Maybe another hill where that long straight section is? I don't know. And yeah, biggest surprise of that evening was being battered to death by Apocalypse, and then walking away unscathed from Mind Eraser. Concerning flyers, I had only ever ridden Superman and Manta, and while I think Manta is pretty fantastic, Superman is fairly blah to me. Batwing was a great surprise. We kept cracking up during the loop because the forces were just way more than what we were expecting.

If we are rating these coasters based on how they rode in their peak years, Voyage takes the cake. Nothing for me will ever be as epic as my first ride on it in summer '06. If we're throwing in variables such as how they ride now, I'd probably still say the Voyage actually. It needs work, sure, but it's not unrideable, and the airtime and pacing still keep it as one of my all time favorite rides.

I got to visit SFA for the first time last month. To be honest, I was very much underwhelmed. I guess I was expecting more, but I don't know why. The park was pretty much vacant and every ride was a walk-on, so that helped. We were able to ride the grown up coasters, with multiples on Superman and Batwing, in a little over 2 hours. Quick notes on my visit: Superman: biggest disappointment of the night, probably because I was expecting much more out of it. Perhaps it was the chilly weather, but the air and speed weren't really there. I did enjoy the never-ending helix and the subsequent lonely airtime hill. More forceful than I anticipated. It ended up reminding me of Mamba- smooth, but... yeah, not really that interesting. Batwing (my first Flying Dutchman): better than I thought it would be. Not rough at all, but the shin restraint made the ride feel awkward. Still, a pretty fun ride. Mind Eraser (my first SLC): let me say this about that- I can think of many, many rides that are more rough/painful than this. Again, perhaps it was the weather, or perhaps they just really maintain it well (as if), but it was not at all the death machine I was preparing for. I encountered maybe two small bumps to the noggin, but otherwise it was fine. That being said, it was forgettable. Moving on with my life. Joker's Jinx- I just love these rides. So cute. I did have words with one of the attendants though. While they joked, laughed, and made under-the-breath comments about people in line (that we could all hear), people were sitting in the train still waiting for their restraints to be checked and the other train had been on the brake run for quite some time. Not cool, guys. Apocalypse- I always did enjoy Iron Wolf. I hadn't ridden it in years though, so I was kinda stoked about getting to ride it out here. Needed an Excedrine afterwards. The theming was ok though, looked pretty nice. Roar- not too bad, not too good. Some surprise air, coupled with some bone shaking curves. Next. Wild One- better than I expected. Good speed throughout, especially through the final helix. Only non-coaster ride we did was their junior-sized Giant Drop. Quite fun. For me, it's that first second or two of the drop that make the ride, so the difference in height of these rides seem to only add to the view from the top. In all, I always make the best out of a bad (or boring) situation. We had fun, but probably won't be back unless something serious happens out there.

I will be hitting up GAdv with a friend for the first time on Sunday, Oct. 27th (we will be in DC for the weekend and were going to hit up KD but decided it would be worth the drive up to GAdv). Any tips for us? Already bought us the gold flash pass, didn't want to take any chances with the crowds.

Hey guys- I'll be making my first trip to KD on Sunday, Oct. 27. Was curious if anyone had some helpful tips on how to manage our day at the park. The calendar said it'll be open 12-10 I believe. Does KD usually get slammed for their Halloween festivities? Should I be looking into their fast pass/fast lane/whatever? Any tips would be great, thanks.

The barrel rolls are very fluid, but the second one in particular, if you're towards the back of the train, has you dangling upside down from the lapbar. Scared me the first time, can't lie about that. The airtime is strong throughout the ride, and because each element is so unique, it's almost hard to tell what's the "strongest". The first drop has a significant punch without a doubt. I'd have to say the curve/drop through the lift, followed by the wave turn, is probably the best chunk of the ride in terms of air. They're taken at a ridiculous speed, and the airtime in both is different than anything I've felt before.

Could this be a mirror image of Batman-Dark Knight at SFNE, with some tweaking to the first drop? I know the stats differ, just looks like the layout could be the same.

Nice pics! I showed them to my color-blind boyfriend, and he says "Why would they paint the whole coaster brown?" ... ... Poor fella...

It would be neat to see something along the lines of the Wile E. Coyote @ SFOG, versus bringing back the old ACME roller ride, if that's even an option. Maybe something that sort of circles Bugs Bunny Land.

^this. It would be so easy to break up the queue through Gotham City park, essentially making a straight line that would lead behind the fence to the rest. It's a bit strenuous on hot days to traipse back and forth from one end of G.C. park to the other, and being that I haven't seen the line even backed up to that part since opening year - was that almost twenty years ago already? - I don't see why they can't give us a bit of a shortcut.

I was fortunate enough to ride OR last week. I was blown away. Everything that's been said about it is legit. Not only is it incredibly intense, but incredibly interesting as well. It's chalk full of "whoa...what was that?" moments. The 2nd to last seat ended up being my favorite spot on the train. You get wonderful float through the first inversion, absurd airtime through every hill, and almost scary hang time through the barrel rolls. The wave turn ended up being my favorite spot on this ride- besides being a crazy element itself, I failed to realize beforehand the elevation difference between entering and exiting, and coming out of it, you feel like the ride kicks into overdrive (as if it wasn't blazing the rails already). Two great big thumbs up, possibly my new favorite ride.

HOLY crap. That POV just blew me away. I think we have a winner.

I've been hoping for this to happen for years. Boomerang could easily fill the role as "My First Looping Coaster" for the kiddos, and while the footprint for Ninja is on the small side, an Intamin Impulse or something Dare Devil Dive-ish would go great there.

Excitement mounting! Booked my hotel/ticket package for the grand opening. Any thoughts on April crowds? We'll be there the week before World Fest starts, so I'm hoping that may curb the crowds a bit, but I shouldn't count on it. Also, if anyone's planning a first time visit, SDC offers a great deal on trip packages through their website, most of which I've found to be cheaper than booking individually myself, and offer a "two-day for the price of one" ticket. We usually stay at Still Waters, which is very clean/comfortable and is on a really great piece of lakefront property.

Do we get to call this the first "terrain" Boomerang? Curious how they'll modify the supports to work with the slope of the hill in that spot.

I have memories of riding Jet Scream (SFSTL) when I was very young, and only having the single lapbar across both seats. Can anyone confirm that the trains at one point had only the single lapbar, or is that a distorted memory? Anyone know if any other Schwarzkopf's rode with a single lapbar at any point back in the day?

What kind of freaky witchcraft stuff are they doing at RMC???!!!! That looks like something that happens to me in NoLimits when I mess up on a turn radius!!! No freaking way. You've got to be kidding me. That looks insane! What. The. What. Thinking bizarre laterals, hoping for crazy floater air, feeling sexy either way.