thrillseeker4552

Can't wait to ride it on Sunday. I think the airtime is surprising people, especially the jump into the top hat. Can't wait!

I completely agree. I lives 30 minutes from Iron Gwazi and while I'm completely stoked about it, there is something about Pantheon I love. That beyond vertical dive off the top hat into the ravine is going to be legendary. I can't wait to visit in April.

Supposedly, the reason they delayed Montezooma's closure was because Xcelerator, Supreme Scream, and Log Ride are all down for refurb currently. And yes, Xcel did just re-open from the repaint in December. I was a little surprised it's down again too.

This is what I was thinking. The park got a brand new train from Intamin in 2016, so I read that rumor and thought.... huh?

Exactly, and it kind of blows my mind that Kumba is still going strong after running year round for close to 30 years. I mean it isn't cycled as much as Hulk (just slower and less rigorous operations day-to-day) but it's still very impressive. So I guess who even really knows.

I am very interested in seeing the lifespan of these older B&Ms that are pushing 30. Hulk was only 16 when it needed replacement, but of course it was cycled more than any other B&M ever. Given that Nemesis is the same age as Raptor, Batman at SFMM, and a few others, I am very curious if this will be a trend in the next 10-20 years.

SheiKra last weekend. Upcoming ones are Ice Breaker on 1/30 and Iron Gwazi on 2/13!

I'll be there on the first day of previews 2/13! I seriously cannot wait. It feels wrong to have this coaster only 30 minutes away from me. Iron Gwazi is going to do so much to an already incredible lineup of coasters.

^I echo your sentiments. While I understand it is likely not going to still be here in 10 years, I really hope it is. I adore the ride. Also, on topic of the thread, I believe Viper received train donations from both Great American Scream Machine at SFGAdv and Ninja at SFOG, so each Viper train now is probably just a combination of parts from all over. I know Ninja also got train donations from XLR8 at Astroworld. Perhaps this is why those Arrow classics are still going strong.

To each their own. I enjoy Kumba, Montu, and Kraken as well, but Incredible Hulk just runs like a bat outta hell. I find it faster and more forceful than any of the others. I also love the launch, insanely whippy zero-g, and the unique layout rather than the typical B&M looper sequence of elements. I also think it's a lot smoother than Kumba and Kraken (although none of them are really rough). But you're right, it does die after the MCBR. Luckily the MCBR is about 3/4 through the ride and that first 3/4 is just so, so good and nonstop insanity.

Just here to echo everything said about Universal (IOA in particular). I have never been a Universal or Disney person, and honestly if IOA had never built Velocicoaster I probably wouldn't have bought a pass. But after going multiple times now since moving to Florida I have to say the park is so much more than Velocicoaster too. I think Incredible Hulk is the best B&M looper - period. It's basically my favorite B&M behind Fury. I also love Hagrid's but low-key I sometimes forget it exists because Hogsmeade is always such a clusterf*ck of people and with the whole virtual line crap that's always maxed out to capacity it's just difficult to ride. (I work weekdays and can only visit the park on weekends so maybe that's why). And yeah, you can do SWO in a couple hours if you only care about coasters.

Xcelerator down again? Hmm, interesting. Maybe the closure back in Nov-Dec was for repaint only and not regular maintenance? Or maybe (hopefully) they're painting over the ugly gray sections? Lol. Also, throughout my entire lifetime of going to Knott's as far back as I can remember, I've never seen Supreme Scream down (obviously not 100% true but it has incredible uptime)! They always have it least *one* tower open. Supreme Scream and Silver Bullet are the ol' reliable for the park. Also, the concept^ looks great! Excited for all these changes coming to the park.

I love the look of the new eatery. That area of the park did need some TLC. And I am all about more easily accessible and higher capacity drink refill stations. Glad they reopened Monte for the time being. I was a little surprised they gave such short notice initially. Who knows why they did that (aside from the downtime this weekend) but it's not a bad thing, get your "last" rides in everybody!

Wrapped up my Top 10. The more coasters I ride, the more difficult this is, but it's still enjoyable nonetheless! There are so many great coasters out there now. 1. Jurassic World Velocicoaster 2. Intimidator 305 3. X2 4. Skyrush 5. Fury 325 6. El Toro 7. Kingda Ka 8. Maverick 9. Steel Vengeance 10. Millennium Force Can't wait to see the results. I have a feeling Velocicoaster will be a welcome addition to the Top 25......

If had to take a guess, I would say a new LSM launch system/braking and new trains. I have a very close connection to Montezooma. It was my first launched coaster, first looping coaster, and really my first "big" coaster ever. I am thrilled the park is choosing to upgrade, modernize, and maintain this ride when they could easily scrap it. It's a 44 year old Schwarzkopf (that has operated year-round, might I add), they could so easily say "it has reached the end of its service life, bye." Such great news!

Exciting news! Montezooma's Revenge is getting some upgrades and set to reopen in 2023.

Anyone ridden the Orlando Free Fall? I hear reports that it is pretty insane. I'm wondering how it feels compared to Lex Luthor or Zumanjaro. Probably gonna head up and try it out in a couple weeks.

^I agree. Given they are just now breaking ground in January, I give this a late 2022 opening at best.

Don't forget that Kraken's track is now almost the same color as Hulk's. I suppose imitation is the sincerest form of flattery! In all seriousness, this ride does fill a nice gap in the park's lineup. And, well, they could've opened it in late 2020 or early 2021 and beat Velocicoaster to the game. I'm sure they had their reasons but... you snooze you lose, I guess.

Very excited for this! Despite being overshadowed by Iron Gwazi (and even Velocicoaster), it looks like the ride will have some pretty strong pops of air. And even though the quad-launch is a gimmick, I appreciate the extended ride time. Now I will finally have a reason to visit that side of the park lol

So sorry to hear. I also didn't realize he was 80. He was an icon for the industry. I remember watching old documentaries about the various S&S rides he worked on - what a fulfilling and legendary life.

^I was thinking the same thing. Knott's has greatly expanded their hours, particularly during these holiday weeks, with very early openings and late closings. And while a giga coaster with such proximity to homes and roads does pose a concern that I'm sure the park has addressed, it's not like the park is currently silent and peaceful. Xcelerator is right at the edge of the park and is quite noisy, and Montezooma's loop can be heard from way out in the parking lot. Even though it is not official yet, I am stoked the park is even considering this. HangTime was a wonderful addition, and the Boardwalk expansion back in 2013 was also nice to spread out the family rides in the park, but a coaster like this is always what I wanted for the park. There would be nothing like it out west and it would have a great capacity that the park desperately needs. Some sightlines in Ghost Town would be affected but with almost all of the coaster away from the rest of the park I think the impact on theming/atmosphere would be minimal. The parking garage is a huge plus too.

I am losing my mind over this. Wow. They didn’t even remotely have to go this large - I would’ve been stoked with a mini-B&M Hyper. This is insane. Honestly, I think this will be great for Knott’s. I went to the park yesterday and it was the busiest I have ever seen the park in my almost 20 years of going. They REALLY need a high capacity, people-eater coaster that is reliable and spreads out crowds more, which this will. I also have a feeling this will be constructed in phases. Perhaps the parking structure and toll booth reconfiguration will happen first, so that when they tear up the parking lot for the coaster they can already compensate for the mess of construction. Probably 2023 or 2024 but the park is year-round and has historically opened some rides in December so they can really do whatever timeline they wish and makes sense from a business perspective. I was always skeptical of this ride (and still am *a little*) but for me, seeing plans really solidifies things. It happened with every other B&M Cedar Fair adds - we see the plans and it eventually becomes a reality. But there are likely lots of hoops to jump through for this from a permitting/approval standpoint so who really knows.

There must be a big disconnect in park operations from weekdays to weekends. I've been going very often, every few weekends, for the last 6 months and have never had a bad experience. Cobra's Curse was down for a bit over the summer and obviously Cheetah Hunt the last couple months for paint/maintenance but otherwise everything has always been open and running consistently and pretty efficiently with multiple trains. I will admit Cheetah Hunt is a hot mess sometimes. I've seen it on 4 trains, 2 stations and working like a well-oiled machine, and also like you described with one station and heavy stacking. But I've had no issues on any of the other rides. Not trying to blindly defend the park nor discount your experience at all, but I always hear horror stories of the operations from people (who almost exclusively visit on weekdays) - and my weekend visits, which is all I do because of my work schedule, have been awesome and very minimally negative aside from just general crowdedness. And that's from an out-of-towner who never visited the park until 6 months ago. Interesting I guess.

I have lots planned! This year was a huge year for me (moving to Florida and visiting all the parks here for the first time, plus a Cedar Point trip in August), which was awesome after the dud that was 2020. Being out of college now and having a full time career with benefits definitely makes planning parks more fun, easier, and predictable/realistic. 100% certain (since they are my home parks): Universal Orlando Busch Gardens Tampa SeaWorld Orlando Fun Spots (in FL) I'm not a huge Disney person, and definitely not one to fork over the money for a pass, but perhaps a visit or two if Tron and/or Guardians actually opens. Very likely: Busch Gardens Williamsburg in April (pretty much certain at this point) SFMM, Knott's, and SWSD at some point over the summer for the new coasters - if not then over the holidays too Fun Spot Atlanta pretty much whenever their RMC opens. I will likely squeeze in SFOG and Dollywood too when this happens. If the stars align, somehow: Hersheypark Six Flags Great Adventure Other Eastern PA parks I haven't been to the northeast since 2016, and I'm especially itching to get back to Hershey, but this may be in 2023 if everything above ends up happening.