rcdude

I've been to most, but not all of these parks (missing the Pennsylvania parks and Kings Island). If I were planning this trip, I would probably use a schedule similar to this: Tue 27: Fly to Philadelphia, possibly visit Dorney Park Wed 28: Six Flags Great Adventure Thu 29: Knoebels, Hersheypark if time permits Fri 30: Hersheypark Sat 31: Washington DC Sun 01: Kings Dominion Mon 02: Busch Gardens Williamsburg Tue 03: Drive to Carowinds, Evening at Carowinds if time permits Wed 04: Carowinds, leave mid-afternoon to drive to Dollywood Thu 05: Dollywood Fri 06: Dollywood's Splash Country Sat 07: Drive to Santa Claus, stop at Beech Bend en route if time permits Sun 08: Holiday World Mon 09: Morning at Holiday World if needed, drive to Kings Island, evening at Kings Island Tue 10: Kings Island, leave late afternoon to drive to Cedar Point Wed 11: Cedar Point Thu 12: Cedar Point Fri 13: Drive to Cleveland, Fly Home As far as skip the line systems go, you probably will need Flash Pass at Six Flags Great Adventure and you may need Fast Lane at Kings Dominion. For the other parks, you'll likely have enough time and crowds will be low enough that a skip the line pass won't be necessary. One day is definitely enough at Dollywood (if in doubt, you can buy a Q2Q...Dollywood's is the cheapest in the industry), and it should probably be enough at Holiday World (although I don't know what their weekend crowds are like, hence allowance for some extra time). For extra parks, I haven't been to any of the three you listed, but Knoebels seems like the best option for adding one. Kennywood would be a little tricky to do unless the trip is extended or time is cut elsewhere, as it is at least three hours from every other park on the trip. While Dorney Park has added attractions since 2005, they all appear to be somewhat standard models and therefore the park doesn't seem worth a return visit given the other parks on the trip. However, if you have a pass and you feel up to it you could do a short visit on your arrival day. I added Beech Bend to the list as it wouldn't require much additional driving time and the park is small, so it could easily be done on a driving day. I also added Dollywood's Splash Country since you said you like waterparks and it is convenient, but that can be skipped and that day used elsewhere on the trip if desired (you can still do a waterpark as included waterparks are available at Hersheypark, Kings Dominion, Carowinds, Holiday World (definitely recommend visiting this one), and Kings Island, but I don't know their operational schedules at this time of year).

I like rides with high positive g's in general, but I don't like anything that results in a greyout or rides that have nothing but high g's. For example, I like forceful loops and tight turns, but the helix on Goliath I'm not too crazy about. I'm also not a huge fan of the Batman rides as they are almost nothing but positive g's. When it comes to positive g's or airtime, airtime wins if the restraint is a lapbar and positive g's win with a shoulder harness.

Ice Mountain Bobsled at Enchanted Forest on Sunday. I don't plan to be on another coaster until WCB.

Time to wrap this up, at least for now. I'm going to a cousin's wedding in Washington next week, so if time permits I might try to visit a couple of the Pacific Northwest parks. If I do, I'll be sure to add those reports here, but for now I've got one more Nor Cal park to report on. Park 4: Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk-July 19th, 2013 Unlike the other three Northern California parks, which I visited in 2008, the last time I had visited Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk was in 2004. I think this is overall the best of the Nor Cal parks, and with a new coaster it was definitely time to return. Unfortunately, the day was the worst of the four park days on the trip. To start with, we had terrible service at an IHOP in Santa Clara and encountered traffic getting to Santa Cruz. As a result, it was close to noon by the time we finally arrived. It was a Friday and supposed to be overcast, so I figured people would come in the afternoon and evening, leaving the crowds relatively light until around 2 P.M. Well, it ended up being nice weather, and my crowd predictions couldn't be more wrong. Every single attraction had a full or overflowing queue when we arrived, and by the time we left all the headliners had additional temporary queuing set up. As if that wasn't bad enough, operations were not very good and line jumping was just as bad, if not worse than what I saw at CGA the day before (fortunately operators would deal with it if they saw it). I was hoping to do the dozen or so rides on my checklist and get out of there by 3 P.M., but I ended up staying until 5 P.M. and not even completing my checklist. Ride Reviews: I only rode each of these once, as the lines did not allow for re-rides. Double Shot: I was expecting this to be like the smaller double shots with extreme airtime, but I was disappointed as it felt more like a small space shot with some airtime but not a ton. It was fun, but I wouldn't wait 20 minutes for it again. This was one of the few rides with good operations, as the loading only took about 60 seconds each time. Also, the restraints seemed tighter than on other S&S towers, as I was barely able to get the belt buckled but have never had a problem on another S&S tower (and I had just rode Supreme Scream a month earlier). Haunted Castle: Definitely the most elaborate of the three dark rides at the park, this one was probably my least favorite but still very good (my grandparents said it was only a step below some Disney dark rides). All of the sets were well done, but it was very dark so some stuff was difficult to see. I didn't realize the cars rotated throughout the ride, so that was a nice surprise and something I'd like to see on more dark rides, and the ride was significantly longer than I expected. Unfortunately, even though there was a 20 minute wait only four cars were in use, which meant all four would go and then the line would stop for a couple minutes until they came back. They really should use at least 6-7 cars on a dark ride of this length. Giant Dipper: I really like this ride, but it is a bit overrated. The ride is extremely smooth for its age and is certainly fun, but I've never got any of the airtime I hear about and it's more of a large family woodie compared to modern coasters. Still, I'd rank it third in California (behind Apocalypse and Gold Striker), and while it doesn't quite make my top ten list it still is in the top quarter of woodies I've been on. Annoyingly, the ride was only using one train even though the wait was 45 minutes and the second train was just sitting there (I did see both later in the day, but why not start with both if you're expecting crowds). Logger's Revenge: Good log flume, but not great. I rank this one as about on par with CGA's even though it's only about half as long. Not quite as wet and the drop is smaller, but still fun. Due to the temperatures, this was one of the few rides with a short wait (10 minutes), but it moved slowly due to only one loading station in use. Ghost Blasters: I like this ride. In fact, it's probably my favorite of the Sally shooters I've been on (it certainly has the catchiest theme music). I scored 1,610, which I assume is a pretty good score (it was certainly higher than either of my grandparents' scores). This is the only other ride that I thought had decent operations, although the queue was full so it was still a bit of a wait. This ride also had the worst line jumping of any ride in the park, although I saw a couple groups kicked out because they were caught (usually it was a parent waiting separately and then their kids rejoining them when they got off so they could ride again without waiting). Wipeout: This was new since last time I visited, and all I knew was that it was a breakdance. This is a very good ride, easily the best breakdance I've been on and one of the best spinners. While I still think the Astrosphere at Funtown Splashtown is the best in-the-dark flat ride, this is definitely one I'd like to do again. This ride would also be the worst nightmare of anyone who suffers from even a tiny bit of motion sickness. Cave Train Adventure: My favorite of the three dark rides at the park as although it is very cheesy, it is done very well and is a unique attraction. I don't know if this ride has more than one train, but it was only using one even with an overflowing queue. Other than Giant Dipper, this was the longest line I waited in. Cyclone: Only did this because the line was short. I like round-ups, but they're not one of my favorites, and this was just a typical model. Rock-O-Plane: This is a very old ride, but still a very good one. While I could not get the cage to flip completely, I did get it locked in a number of interesting positions and still had a fun ride. The only thing I don't like with this attraction is that it can be very uncomfortable as you're only restrained by an unpadded lap bar, but for a ride as interesting as this it's worth it and just adds to the somewhat sketchy feeling the ride has. Skyglider: Even though it would have been far quicker to walk, we decided to take the Skyglider just for fun when we were heading out. Nothing too special, just a chairlift running approximately 1/2 the length of the boardwalk. The following rides were on my checklist but I did not get a chance to ride them: Undertow: Not open yet. In fact, nobody was even working on the ride. The cars are on the track, but it doesn't appear to have run once. The station area was only half-done, and other than missing catwalks next to the brake runs everything looked in place. I don't know if it's Maurer Sohne or SCBB's fault that this isn't running yet, but I'd think the park should be doing everything they can to open it as soon as possible. If it can be tested without the delayed parts, test it, and if not get the station and queue completely done so once the parts arrive and are installed it just needs to be tested and opened. No park should be opening their new ride the last week of their peak season. 1911 Looff Carousel: I really like this carousel as it still has a working ring dispenser, but the line was out the door and I didn't want to chance waiting and not getting an outside horse. Hopefully next time I'll get to ride, as this is one of the must rides at the park in my opinion. Crazy Surf: I mainly just wanted to ride this since it was new. Unfortunately, the line was too long. Sea Swings: Same as the Crazy Surf...new ride, long line. At least this one is a common ride. Fireball: This ride frustrated me more than any other. I'd heard it was one of the better rides of its type, and especially after missing Delirium I really wanted to ride. I got in line after getting off Giant Dipper and waited for about ten minutes only for the ride to break down. Since SCBB is a pay per ride park, they kick everyone out of line when the ride goes down so that was a waste. Later in the day, I saw the ride running so I tried again, even though the line was overflowing into a temporary queue. I waited all the way through the line, and when I got to the point where I'd be on the next cycle the ride broke down again and everyone was kicked out. Unfortunately, we had to leave so I didn't have enough time to wait and try a third time. In total, I wasted at least 45 minutes trying to ride this and not being able to, and I could have easily done one or two other rides with that time. I like the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, but I just did not have a good day there. Perhaps this is normal crowds for a Friday, in which case I need to avoid Fridays for future visits. If not, I got unlucky in encountering excessive crowds and poor operations simultaneously and it will hopefully be better next time. I'll try again next time I visit the Bay Area, if for no other reason than getting on Undertow, and I'll be sure to allow a full day if possible (or at least more than 5 hours) in case of crowds. Perhaps it is better to visit in the evenings and/or midweek. That's about it for this trip. Overall, it was a good trip. I left out the two days I did stuff with my relatives, but none of it was that interesting (most exciting thing was taking the ferry to San Francisco and walking around a bit). I don't know when I'll get the chance to return to the bay area...if there's a bash next year, I may have to come up for that, but otherwise it will likely be anywhere from a few years to a long time. Pictures: I've only got a handful from SCBB because I was busy running around trying to complete my checklist and get out of there at a reasonable time. From here, it isn't obvious that Undertow isn't open, other than the fact that it's not cycling. However, upon closer inspection there are some missing parts and the station area is only half-done. People always rip SFMM for construction delays, but I have to nominate SCBB for worst delay of 2013. Giant Dipper is the signature attraction of the park, and one of the oldest coasters in the world. If only the ride was running two trains...I really wanted a second ride. Either Fireball is more unreliable than most Intamin rides or I got super unlucky to have it break twice on me. This is about as close as I got to the ride. Surprisingly, the beach was not as busy as I thought it would be. Yes, there were still plenty of people there, but it wouldn't be hard to get a decent spot or anything. If I'm not mistaken, this is one of Sally's most popular shooting dark rides. It certainly is a good one. Another of Santa Cruz's dark rides. I described this to my grandparents as Kingdom of the Dinosaurs crossed with the Calico Mine Ride but done in a cheesy cartoony style. Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk has a traditional Ferris Wheel. However, it's not worth riding. Instead, ride the Rock-O-Plane. Probably the park's second best flat ride after Wipeout. This is roughly half of Logger's Revenge. The ride is no more than three minutes long, but is still a decent flume ride. I'll end with an overview of the park. It really was a very busy day. Next time will hopefully be better. Thanks for reading, and check back in a couple weeks as there may be a few reports from rarely seen Pacific Northwest parks.

Oh man if the headliners are just 30-45 this will be glorious! Certain ones will most likely be more like X2, probably Tatsu and Green Lantern, and possibly Riddler's Revenge. Note that the time estimates assume rides are being run reasonably well. If there are one train operations or significant stacking, lines could be longer. I just know that last time I visited SFMM on a non-WCB Saturday (although one in December), I was able to get on all the coasters and leave by 6 P.M. even though I left the park for lunch at a sit-down restaurant. If you're trying to get on everything with minimal waiting, I recommend ending ERT at Goliath and going counter-clockwise from there. Depending on what time lunch is at, you could probably do Colossus, Scream, Green Lantern, Batman, Riddler's, Gold Rusher, Apocalypse, Superman, Ninja, and maybe Tatsu before lunch. It may be tempting to go to X2 first, but that ride rarely opens on time and the line will drop mid-afternoon (usually to below 30 minutes), plus Green Lantern and Superman have terrible capacity.

^At SFMM, I'd guess the headliner rides will be 30-45 minutes, and at Knott's 15-30 minutes. While it is a weekend, most schools will be back in session by this time so it should not be too crowded (certainly not enough to require a Flash Pass or Fast Lane). If you mean during ERT, as a general rule there are few enough people that lines are kept below 15 minutes and often are only two or three trains.

I rank coasters using a letter grade system, where A is an ERT-worthy ride (such as Gold Striker or Medusa), B is really good, but not something I'd necessarily want to ride continuously (such as Flight Deck or V2), C is good, but not worth a long wait (surprisingly, none of these in Northern California), D is only worth riding if there is almost no wait (most family coasters and mass produced coasters fall into this category), E is I don't need to ride again (Grizzly would be here) and F is never again (only a handful of non-kiddies rank this low). In general, anything that requires a trick to enjoy will never rank above a C, and Vortex I actually rank as a D (the only B&M ranked this low). My belief is that if a coaster is good, you should be able to sit normally and enjoy the ride, and if you can't it is at best an average ride. Thanks for mentioning this. I have seen too many people at the park that are worthy of being ejected. There's the usual lovely line jumpers and Gold Striker vandals, but then there are those that really infuriate me, such as "tub jackers" over at the flyers (two incidents, one was a kid who wasn't watched by his parent(s), and the other was a kid where I was walking toward the tub and he ran and snatched it from me). I will also never forget those pre-teen imbeciles who built up a large quantity of spit in their mouths and released it onto Angry_Gumball and I during a back row ride on Flight Deck. We went to the ride ops to inform them of what happened but the kids got away...oh well, they'll get it someday. While I wouldn't necessarily consider "tub jacking" ejection worthy (although the operator should make them wait for the next cycle or send them to the back of the line), anything that either causes a safety hazard, could be considered criminal activity, or results in an unpleasant experience for another guest definitely deserves an ejection. I don't work at a park, but to me it certainly seems like too many people get away with stuff they shouldn't because parks don't police guests well enough. The sad thing is parks shouldn't need to police guests to keep trouble from occurring, but due to the number of dumb guests they do. Some parks are certainly than others, but I have yet to visit a park and not see at least one person during the day who deserves an ejection (usually line jumpers or people taking illegal POVs). This probably explains why I thought the back was smoother. In the back, I was in the right-center seat, but when I rode in the middle I was in the outer-left seat. Perhaps new trains could improve the ride, but when a basic 1976 Arrow is better than a 1991 B&M there's certainly a problem. Any coaster that requires a specific seat to enjoy or a specific riding technique to avoid having your ears bashed into oblivion is obviously in need of a serious overhaul. And I've never had an issue with Scream, but I don't generally mind rough or shaky coasters as long as they aren't painful (and I've never had more than minor headbanging on Scream, usually when riding in the back).

I'm a little delayed but that's okay. I'll definitely have Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk up by the end of the week as well as I'm leaving on another trip this weekend (which may or may not include additional parks). Park 3: California's Great America-July 18th, 2013 Even though Six Flags Discovery Kingdom has a better coaster collection, I've always felt that California's Great America is the better of the two larger bay area parks. They have a larger ride selection, the park is nicer, operations are generally better, and it is rarely crowded. Yes, it is still my least favorite Cedar Fair park, and up until this year it didn't have anything world-class, but the park is still a nice 2/3 of a day park (full day if you also visit Boomerang Bay). Due to traffic I was unable to arrive at opening, but I did get there shortly afterward. The park was a little more crowded than when I last visited in 2008, probably due to the influence of Gold Striker. However, I never waited longer than 20 minutes for anything, many rides were 10 minutes or less, a number were walk-ons, and I was able to do everything I wanted to, re-ride everything I wanted to, do some bonus rides, and leave the park by 6 P.M. Keep in mind that this was a summer weekday when most parks this size experience 45-60 minute waits for their headliners, but here both were under 15 minutes all day (the waterpark did look busy, but probably nothing more than 30 minutes). So, how was the brand new Gold Striker? Ride Reviews: Gold Striker: I am a huge GCI fan, so I was really looking forward to this ride. It did not disappoint. While not my favorite GCI (that still belongs to Thunderhead), and I think an opening year Apocalypse would probably edge it out, Gold Striker is my favorite wooden coaster in California, my favorite ride at CGA, and my second favorite GCI. The ride maintains a breakneck pace throughout the whole ride and has much stronger forces than most wooden coasters. My grandfather rode with me and was surprised how intense the ride was. My aunt rode as well and thought the ride must be launched or powered in order to maintain its speed, and couldn't believe it was all gravity driven. I like the tunnels on the ride, and while people complain about the walls I didn't really pay any attention to them while riding. My only complaint about the ride is assigned seating, and although it is necessary with the station design it is the main reason I only rode twice despite a 15 minute wait (both rides were in the middle, and I didn't want to wait and get placed there again...grouper was not allowing requests). Vortex: Wow, this ride has gotten bad. I've always remembered it as being rough, but this time it hurt. I've been on smoother Vekoma and Togo rides. Easily my least favorite B&M, both due to the roughness and the uninteresting ride. Since it was a walk-on, I rode twice (once in the middle, once in the back), and surprisingly the back was smoother, but both hurt to a degree. Even though CGA is short a couple coasters, this ride needs to be retired or completely refurbished. Demon: This one hurt too, but unlike Vortex I was somewhat expecting it. Rode twice as it was a walk-on (once in front, once in the middle), and...yeah. I do like the layout and setting of this coaster (especially the double corkscrew over the water), but the ride is just outdated and could use a replacement. Still one of my least favorite Arrow loopers, though not the worst out there. Barney Oldfield Speedway: I really like this vintage car ride because it let's you drive around and under the structure of Grizzly. It is a fairly long ride, and although the layout is basic it is still fun. It was also one of the few rides my grandmother could do. The wait was only five minutes, but it certainly got longer later in the day due to limited capacity. Drop Tower: I hate the name, but I love the ride. Standard Intamin tower, but there's nothing wrong with that. I got my aunt to ride, even though drop towers are one of the few ride types of ride she doesn't like. When we got down and were asked if we wanted a re-ride (since there was no line), she shook her head and was the first one out the exit. I did re-ride later even though there was a short wait. Tiki Twirl: I like this better than the regular Disk-O rides, but they're just so common now that I can't get excited by them. Fun ride, but not one I'd wait long to do. Psycho Mouse: This was the longest line in the park at 20 minutes. Fairly standard wild mouse, not specifically good but not bad either. It is smoother than most of them and uses less braking due to banked turns, but the layout is standard and operations left a bit to be desired. Still, I rode twice as it is one of the better coasters in the park (surprisingly). Grizzly: This also had a 20 minute wait (yes, the 1980s woodie has a longer wait than the brand new one). Before, I've said that the ride was fun but nothing special, but after riding Gold Striker I realized this is boring and a bit rough. Yeah...this was the only coaster I didn't re-ride, and I honestly wouldn't care if I never rode it again. Loading takes forever due to extremely overkill restraints, and other than the first two drops the ride is slow and dull without so much as a hint of airtime. Eagles Flight: I always like any type of aerial lift (possibly due to my love of skiing), and this one is quite useful as a method of transportation. It's about a four minute ride from the back of the park to the front, and you get a good view of everything. The line to go from back to front was 10 minutes, but the other direction it would have been a walk-on. Go figure. Rue Le Dodge: One of the better bumper car rides I know of. The cars go at a reasonable speed and the arena is large enough to avoid pileups. I do wish they allowed head-on bumping, but even without that the ride is still quite fun. Certainly far better than my local bumper cars (the ones at Knott's). Flight Deck: Outside of ERT sessions, it is rare that I get off a ride and go right back on. However, I did with this ride. Of the three B&M Inverted coasters in California, this is my favorite, and while not one of the best (mainly due to the shortness of the ride), it is still excellent. The helix at the end remains my favorite part of the ride, but it's all good. I got assigned a middle row for the first ride, and requested the front for the second (glad I did). My aunt rated this as her favorite coaster in the park, but I prefer Gold Striker as I don't think I'd want to ride Flight Deck more than a couple times in a row but could easily do an hour (or more) on Gold Striker. Firefall: This was broken last time I visited, so I made sure to ride this time. It wasn't that great. The program is rather uninteresting with only a couple flips, and the restraints are horrible. I'll stick with my local top spin (Riptide at Knott's) as it is much more intense and doesn't crush you into the seat. Flying Eagles: I enjoy flyers, and while this one isn't particularly special it was still fun. I couldn't get the cable to snap, but still got some pretty good swings. The line was about 15 minutes due to slow loading times. Rip Roaring Rapids: Good rapids ride, certainly better than the one at SFDK. I really like the use of pools on the ride to slow boats in areas where spectators can blast riders and at the end when you pass under the sprayer. The ride is also deceptive, as you'll go a while without a significant splash and then suddenly hit a rapid that soaks the boat. I got pretty wet, my aunt not as much. I wish they would load more than one group per boat, though...even though the line was only ten minutes, it was a bit annoying to see a stream of boats with only 2 or 3 people when they seat 6. Loggers Run: Good log flume, but not great. The ride is a bit drawn out for my tastes, but I do like the double drop at the end and getting to tour the water park. I saw a couple groups get kicked off this for trying to ride with swimsuits (odd that they allow it on the rapids but not this). I got wetter than I expected, but as I rode right after the rapids it didn't matter. Orbit: I like enterprises, but they are a rare ride. The ride is not too intense, but is just intense enough to be a thrill ride. It also never feels like you're inverted on this rides, even though by glancing to the side you can tell that you clearly are. White Water Falls: This probably gives the most airtime of any splash boat I've been on since there are absolutely no restraints. However, there is zero wetness factor to the ride. I was surprised to see three boats in use on the ride even though there were only about ten people riding (I would have gone by myself until the boat behind me pulled in and a few kids joined me). Star Tower: I actually hadn't been on this before because it always seemed pointless, but now that Gold Striker is there you get a neat view while going up. I ended up getting a double ride as somebody freaked out and they had to bring the cabin down prematurely. Celebration Swings: There was no line and I like swing rides so I figured I'd give it a ride. Pretty standard, although I encountered some terrible kids (story below). The only ride I missed that I would have liked to ride was Delirium (it was down every time I walked past). I probably would have done several of the other non-kiddie rides if I had more time in the park, but none of them were on my must-ride list. Ride Totals: Barney OIdfield Speedway: 1 Celebration Swings: 1 Demon: 2 Drop Tower: 2 Eagles Flight: 1 Firefall: 1 Flight Deck: 2 Flying Eagles: 1 Gold Striker: 2 Grizzly: 1 Loggers Run: 1 Orbit: 1 Psycho Mouse: 2 Rip Roaring Rapids: 1 Rue Le Dodge: 1 Star Tower: 2 Tiki Twirl: 1 Vortex: 2 White Water Falls: 1 Total: 26 rides in 8 hours (3.25 rides per hour) Coaster Rankings: 1. Gold Striker 2. Flight Deck 3. Psycho Mouse 4. Demon 5. Vortex 6. Grizzly Although it was mostly a good day, there were a couple annoyances of note... Poor Groupers: On Gold Striker, assigned seating is somewhat necessary due to the station design, so although I don't like it that's how it is. However, I found it annoying that seats were being assigned on Vortex and Flight Deck, both of which have never had assigned seating and have room for several trains of riders on the platform. Neither one had much of a line, so I'd always see the back car or two empty (waste of a perfectly good backseat ride). Also, even though there was a short line on Flight Deck, the grouper was not pairing up groups of two, so trains had a number of empty seats. Yes, the line was short, but in my opinion the grouper should either do their job to keep the line moving or just hold the line with necessary to merge in Fast Lane users (never buy this Saturdays and holidays) and let everyone pick their seat. I already mentioned that the Rapids grouper wasn't filling boats either, and at Psycho Mouse it was one group per car (even if they were a single rider next to a group of two or three). I would hope this isn't the case when the park is busier, as it would be unacceptable at most parks. Terrible Guests: I saw more line jumping at CGA than I usually see at my local parks (even SFMM). I also saw tons of graffiti on the walls of Gold Striker's queue, despite the ride being brand new, and both times I rode there were a couple people adding to it (I would have alerted the operators but didn't want to start a fight...I was getting some strange looks from the vandals who saw me with my camera even though it was always pointed at Gold Striker). The park really needs to crack down on this, as it is the worst I've seen at any park. Finally, there was a group of kids on Celebration Swings who needed to be ejected: first they were holding hands and spinning chairs, even after being told not to, then a couple of them removed their shoes and tossed them from the ride (while it was spinning at full speed), and finally one undid his bar and would have jumped while the ride was still spinning and about ten feet off the ground if the operator didn't yell at him. I'm very surprised the ride operators didn't stop the ride and remove the kids, especially after they started dropping shoes intentionally. For the most part, however, the day was pretty good. CGA is a decent park, but isn't really worth traveling a long distance to visit. The park needs more attractions, and hopefully after a decade long drought they'll get some in the near future. Tear out Vortex, Grizzly and Demon, add another headliner coaster and another family coaster, fill in some of the dead space with modern flat rides, revamp the kidde areas, and add a slide tower or two to the water park and this could be a great park. Unless Cedar Fair wants to make CGA a thrill park (which it really isn't...it's one of the most family friendly Cedar Fair properties), simply adding more coasters isn't the answer. Pictures: Since the CGA gang already has this park pretty well covered, I didn't take many pictures, but here are the handful that I have. I always like to show my traveling companions at some point. This is my aunt, who visited SFDK and CGA with me. And these are my grandparents, who accompanied me everywhere except SFDK (they were mainly going to visit my Kentfield relatives, but volunteered to visit other parks so I wouldn't be by myself). Okay, so this is the primary reason for visiting CGA. It may not be the tallest or fastest of its type, but it is one of the best. An example of trying to be artsy and goofing up. I was trying to get the train under the lamppost but pressed the button a half second early. Oh well, it's still the best shot I've got with a train. I liked this better when it was Survivor themed and had a storyline and soundtrack. There are better wild mouse coasters out there, but this one isn't bad. Master Schwarzkopf's spinning disk, an oldie but goodie. One thing I like about CGA is that the park just looks nice. Too many corporate parks feel generic and cheap (especially Six Flags parks). Kids enjoying the kiddie credit I will likely never have. And finally, is this an acceptable amount of wetness? The final park, Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, should be up tomorrow or Friday.

Yes, it is unfortunate that Full Throttle had to operate with one train, but I'd much rather see the ride running one train than not running at all. I also find it interesting how often the "buy an extra train" suggestion is brought up because it seems like a very rare thing for a park to do. Other than Disney, Universal, and SWO/BGT, are there any other parks/chains that routinely buy additional trains for their coasters? I can't think of a single ride at a Cedar Fair or Six Flags park that has more trains than it can run at a time.

For 2014, CGA should either get a new slide tower for Boomerang Bay or 2/3 flats to replace Invertigo. The slide tower is probably more needed since the park already has a good flat selection, but the waterpark only has five full-size slides. Some type of bowl slide would probably be a good fit, or if Cedar Fair wanted to really invest and have a unique ride a water coaster would be a huge draw, but any type of slide tower would be good. However, since the park just got Gold Striker this year, I wouldn't be surprised if there is nothing significant next year (despite the park feeling the most lacking of the Cedar Fair parks I've visited).

I've heard this one before and knowing SFMM I would not be surprised if they did this. However, if Colossus was made into one super long coaster I would hope that either the ride is configured to race (and the park operates it that way) or both tracks were significantly different, as doing the same thing twice would be repetitive and somewhat pointless (unless the ride is very, very good). I could also see the park converting the coaster into a non-racer by re-doing one track and completely removing the other, as that would be the cheapest option, but I hope they don't as I think that would do more damage to Colossus than the shoulder harnesses did to Revolution. Either way, we probably won't know until well into next year as Iron Colossus would be ready for 2015 at the earliest.

Just so you know, temperatures are typically in the 90s at SFMM in September, and the park is neither small nor flat. However, humidity is not usually an issue and the park closes at 6 P.M. Just stay hydrated and don't rush around the park, and you'll be fine. If it is anything like last year, expect half the rides in the morning and half in the evening, and if you don't think you'll make it just wait in line. Schools will be back in session so I doubt it will be terribly crowded (although it won't be dead). You don't need two hours. For reference, I live in south Orange County and have made it to the park in an hour and a half to an hour and forty-five minutes for previous WCB events. Early morning and late night on weekends are the rare times that LA freeways are somewhat empty, so unless there's a freeway closure or major accident you should easily be able to make it in 90 minutes or less. I'll be purchasing tickets next week as soon as I find out which day(s) my family members want tickets for. My brother said tentatively Knott's only, but I need to check with my dad and sister.

Thanks for all the comments (for both reports). I meant to reply to previous comments, but forgot about it, so I'll post replies for everything so far and do anything else posted with the CGA report. It is certainly a nice park, and one you could easily spend longer in. The first time I visited, we planned on four hours and stayed for six just because of how much we all enjoyed the park. Quicksilver 12 times in a day...not sure I'd make that, but I'd definitely ride it four or five times during a full day visit. It is faded, but it doesn't really look bad. Living in southern California, I can think of at least half a dozen coasters at my local parks that look worse. You're welcome. If you are ever down in the Gilroy area, have the time and can get a reasonable discount, I highly recommend stopping by the park, even if you can only visit for a couple hours. I wouldn't drive 2.5 hours for the park, but if it's only a 30-45 minute detour it's worth it. I do like GCIs, they are my favorite wooden coaster manufacturer and four of my top ten woodies are GCI. However, I don't officially rank wood and steel coasters against each other and placed Roar based on its relative ranking compared to V2 and Superman (as all three are in my B group of coasters). The only important thing is that, in my opinion, V2>Superman>Boomerang. Glad you like them. SFDK does have a nice skyline, although it is a bit cluttered due to everything being at the front of the park and being approximately the same height. I'm not patient enough at a theme park to sit there and wait for a perfect shot (nor do I have anything fancy for a camera), so I tend to just take random photos when I happen to see something interesting as I'm walking by or waiting in line. Typically I end up with a handful of good photos, a number of average ones, and a few not so good ones (which don't make it into the report). I've been to SFDK three times (previously in 2001 and 2008), all on summer weekdays in July, and this was the only one without significant lines. On both previous visits, most attractions were 30 to 45 minutes, with the most popular rides approaching an hour.

Park 2: Six Flags Discovery Kingdom-July 16th, 2013 Of the four parks in Northern California, Six Flags Discovery Kingdom is the only one I'd consider a thrill park. Although not a place worth traveling a great distance for, the park does have some good coasters. For those not interested in thrill rides, however, the park has a collection of animal exhibits and several shows, as well as some family rides, though not as many as most Cedar Fair parks. Unfortunately, when I last visited in 2008, the park had the worst operations I had ever seen (at the time). One train operation on all coasters except Medusa, and very slow employees on almost all rides. I remember Medusa being over a half-hour wait when the line wasn't even out of the station as the second train would often stack behind the station before the loading gates were even open. Worse, I noticed that on most rides, any cycle with Flash Pass riders was loaded and dispatched rapidly, leading to my theory that the park wanted slow operations to sell Flash Passes. Additionally, there were several ride closures on that day, and due to a late arrival we encountered 30 to 45 minute waits for every attraction on a summer weekday in July when it wasn't even excessively crowded. Naturally, re-rides were few and far between, and we didn't have time for anything other than coasters and a couple flats. This visit, however, was completely different. It was a summer weekday in July again, but we managed to be inside the park fifteen minutes prior to rope drop. To my surprise, not only was everything open (although a few rides had delayed openings), two trains were in use on every coaster that could accommodate them and stacking was minimal despite adopting the extremely ridiculous visual scan. As a result, we managed to ride every coaster by 1 P.M., do several non-coaster rides, get any re-rides we wanted, and check out the animal section. Also, with only one exception, no line was more than 30 minutes despite similar crowd levels as my previous visit. Last year, Six Flags Discovery Kingdom added Superman Ultimate Flight, and I planned a trip to the bay area to ride it. However, due to a surprise family trip to Europe and the announcements of Gold Striker and Undertow, I decided to delay my trip by a year so I could get all three coasters in. Of the three new Northern California coasters, Superman was the one I was most looking forward to, as I had heard it was the best coaster at the park (and the best steel coaster in all of Northern California). Did it live up to the hype? Ride Reviews: Superman Ultimate Flight: We went straight here upon opening and ended up in the back seat on the first train of the day. I knew what to expect, but my aunt (my only companion for today) did not, and after the ride could only think "what just happened?" Now, I may be biased since Xcelerator and Full Throttle are at my home parks, but I found Superman fun but underwhelming. It is certainly a very different ride than any others I've been on, but I don't think it is an amazing travel-worthy coaster like the reviews said. We did ride a second time later in the day (in the front seat this time), but after a 60+ minute wait due to average 90 second dispatches (not the fault of the crew, as it was caused by priority boarders) it just didn't seem worth it. I would definitely try to ride this coaster on a future visit, but would not consider it a must ride and would probably skip it if the line was anything over 30 minutes. Roar: I'd heard this coaster had gotten very rough. After riding, I agree that yes, it is rough, but it is not nearly as bad as many other woodies (including my local woodie, GhostRider). I love the first drop on this coaster, and although it is my least favorite GCI, I still prefer it to any non-GCI woodie in California save SCBB's Giant Dipper. Rode twice, including a back seat ride, and I definitely could have rode again if time permitted it. The line was only about ten minutes, despite appearing significantly longer due to the hold position being right inside the entrance. V2: Vertical Velocity: I really like this ride. In fact, it's probably my favorite inverted coaster in California. The ride is short, but the entire thing is just pure fun, and I feel that this has a better launch than Superman. Rode twice, including a front seat ride, and I would have done a third ride if the line was shorter (my first ride was a walk-on, but my second had a 20 minute wait and the switchbacks were over half full when I checked on it for a third). Sky Screamer: This was new since last time I visited, and while the ride isn't really tall enough to be scary it is still a fun ride. We rode twice as the line had shrunk to nothing by the end of the day (the first ride had a 15 minute wait, during which we got to see everyone streaming into the park). Given its height, I prefer Windseeker, but I think a taller Sky Screamer is probably better than a Windseeker. Kong: Last time I visited, this was my first SLC, and I thought it was terrible. I wasn't planning to ride it, but since my aunt wanted to, the line was only about ten minutes, and I wanted to compare it with my other SLC experiences, we decided to ride. We chanced the back seat, and I don't know if the ride is better there or is just running smoother, but it wasn't horribly rough. It wasn't smooth, but I agree with what my aunt said: "It's not great, but I'd ride again with a short line." Kong is no longer my least favorite SLC, now ranking 4th out of 5 (Canada's Wonderland's Flight Deck now ranks in last place). Medusa: Since the line was never more than 30 minutes for this, we ended up getting three rides on it including a front seat ride, and if we had more time I would have rode more. This remains my favorite coaster in Northern California, and after the front seat ride has replaced Dominator as my favorite floorless coaster. My aunt, who had never experienced a floorless coaster in the front before, thought it was amazing and couldn't believe how convincing the foot-chopper illusion is. Medusa has the best zero-G roll on any non-inverted coaster I've been on, has the only Roll Over on a B&M, and although the second half is somewhat dull it is still better than the whole of many B&M coasters (especially the recent ones). Easily the best ride of the day. Boomerang Coast to Coaster: This was broken last time I visited, so instead of being my 2nd boomerang it became my 8th. In terms of smoothness, this is the roughest of the four I've been on with the original Vekoma trains, but still smoother than any of the ones running Arrow trains. The wait was only about 15 minutes, which was fortunate as even though boomerangs can be fun it would still feel like a waste after a long wait, even though it is a new credit. Tazmanian Devil: This remains my favorite of the Frisbee rides and my favorite non-coaster ride at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. The swinging isn't as intense as the newer models, but the ride spins more, especially at the end when the ride cranks it up to nearly 30 RPM. The wait was only about 20 minutes for this one. White Water Safari: I've always found SFDK's rapids ride to be just okay, as most of the wetness comes from water cannons fired by spectators and a single waterfall as opposed to rapids and other automated tricks. I'm also not a huge fan of the style of boats used on this attraction, as the walls block splashes to some degree. Still a fun ride, but if the line was over about 30 minutes I would probably skip this one. Monsoon Falls: A pretty good splash boat ride due to a steeper drop than most and only simple seatbelts to keep you in. This ride gets you fairly wet, and water cannons may add to the wetness. We got lucky and only had to wait about 2 minutes as one of the boats had two empty seats and it was just larger groups in front of us. After the rapids and then this, we were dripping wet for most of the remainder of the day. Cobra: I wasn't planning to ride this, as I already had the credit and the line was longer than the larger coasters for most of the day. Since it shrunk to a one-train wait, we decided to stop by on the way out. Still my least favorite of the three large Tivoli coasters I've been on, but a good coaster for kids. Ride Totals: Boomerang Coast to Coaster: 1 Cobra: 1 Kong: 1 Medusa: 3 Monsoon Falls: 1 Roar: 2 Sky Screamer :2 Superman Ultimate Flight: 2 Tazmanian Devil: 1 V2: Vertical Velocity: 2 White Water Safari: 1 Total: 17 rides in 8 hours (2.125 rides per hour) Coaster Rankings: 1. Medusa 2. V2: Vertical Velocity 3. Roar 4. Superman Ultimate Flight 5. Boomerang Coast to Coaster 6. Kong 7. Cobra I did not attempt to get the Roadrunner Express credit as I wasn't sure if adults were allowed to ride unaccompanied or not. On my last visit, anyone over 54" needed a child to ride, but I thought I'd heard the rules were changed. If so, I'll just have to get the credit next time. I did find it funny that Roadrunner Express (as well as several other kiddie rides) were included on the Flash Pass, and I wonder how often they are accidentally booked by groups without kids. In addition to rides, we spent a good hour browsing the animal exhibits (which I deducted from the time above). Compared to the San Diego Zoo and SeaWorld San Diego (my local zoo and marine life park, respectively), Discovery Kingdom's exhibits are nothing special. However, as a complement to the ride park, the land and sea sections are great. For the land animals, the Elephant exhibit is probably the best, and the Walrus exhibit was the nicest in the sea section (although we skipped the sharks, so that could be better). I also really liked the butterfly garden, as it was unlike anything I've seen elsewhere. Overall, a great day at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. Although the park has improved since my last visit and is a decent park, it is still my least favorite Six Flags branded park and my least favorite of the parks in Northern California. Even though the park has a lot to do, there just aren't that many unique attractions, and I think that is the biggest flaw of the park. While no other Six Flags parks have animal exhibits (except Great Adventure's Off-Road Safari), everything at Discovery Kingdom would also be found in a normal zoo or marine park, and the rides are mostly standard models. I did not get a chance to see any shows, so perhaps these help to set Discovery Kingdom apart, but until my next visit I won't get a chance to find out. One other random comment about the day: I heard a lot of people comparing the park to their local Six Flags. SFOT, SFOG, and SFMM were all mentioned, and in every case people seemed to have a preference for their local park (not surprised, as all of them were riding coasters and SFDK's coaster collection isn't anything special). I just thought it was funny that there were so many non-locals at a park the size of SFDK (it's one of the smaller Six Flags parks) and everyone seemed to think Six Flags was nothing but thrill rides (which is true of some, but not all, of their parks). Pictures: Might as well start off with Superman since it is the main reason I visited. Superman is one of the most linear complete circuit coasters out there. Since the line is right below the ride, you can get some good shots while waiting. Trains get really close to going all the way over the non-inverting loop on the backwards launch, but even the rearmost set of wheels falls short of the peak. The 150 ft tall barrel roll gives some good hangtime. Not as good as Full Throttle, but still better than most coasters. Sky Screamer...not too effective when placed next to a taller coaster, but still a fun ride. Medusa has one of the few straight drops found on a B&M coaster (excluding hyper coasters and dive coasters). I remember the Roll Over (or Sea Serpent Roll) being highly publicized when Medusa opened. I'm kind of surprised B&M never built another. Animal Time! First up are the cougars. SFDK has four cougars, but they're never all out at once as three of them don't like the fourth. I really like how the tiger enclosure has an underwater viewing area, even though it wasn't of much use today. This one was just hanging out in the middle of the exhibit, while the other one was pacing in a corner. So SFDK has Lions and Tigers, but no bears? I guess they're only worth an oh m There were a lot of people watching the giraffe feeding, but very few people actually doing it. If I remember right, it wasn't too expensive or anything. Just a shot to show the crowds at the park. More crowded than Gilroy Gardens, but not excessively crowded or anything. I'd consider it a Flash Pass optional day. The Walrus Encounter. I didn't get an underwater shot since that viewing area was filled with people, but due to where they were swimming you couldn't always see them from down there anyway. While this is about the maximum height of the swing on Tazmanian Devil, at full rotational velocity you'll do about a half rotation before falling back down. A couple shots of Medusa on the way out. It may be a parking lot coaster, but it is a very good parking lot coaster (it certainly wipes the floor with SFMM's parking lot floorless). Finally, a shot from the parking lot at the end of the day. Good park, not spectacular, but certainly fine for a fun day out. California's Great America coming next week (probably Tuesday).

I'm assuming that you're not doing all these parks in a single trip, and are more trying to compile a list of the must visit non-Disney, non-Universal parks in the United States. In that case, I'd suggest splitting the list into two categories: Destination and Detour. Destination parks are the ones that you absolutely want to visit during your trip, as they are either highly regarded parks or are the biggest in the region. Detour parks are those that would be good to visit if you're in the area, but that aren't worth making a long trip out of the way just to visit them as they typically only contain one or two notable rides. Using this method, I would make the following changes (note: I have not been to all these parks, but have been to most of the east coast and deep south parks): Add these parks to the Destination list: Great Escape Michigan's Adventure Silverwood Theme Park Move these parks to the Detours list: California's Great America Conneaut Lake Park Dorney Park Indiana Beach Morey's Piers Six Flags Discovery Kingdom Six Flags Fiesta Texas Add these parks to the Detours list: Darien Lake Idlewild Kemah Boardwalk Quassy Amusement Park SeaWorld Orlando Six Flags St. Louis Timber Falls Adventure Park Valleyfair There are a few other parks (such as the SeaWorld and LEGOLAND parks) that could be worth adding to the Detours list depending on interest level and available discounts. As for planning the actual trip, I would start by picking a region and finding all the Destination parks in the region, then pick a route that gets to all those parks and as many of the nearby Detour parks as possible. If you wish to extend the trip beyond that, pick other Destination parks and a route that includes Detour parks. Based on your original list, I would start with the east coast parks and come up with a route to all the desired parks in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and possibly Virginia, then either expand it south through North Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia or west through Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and possibly Missouri depending on time and budget.

Even though I live in Southern California, it is rare that I visit the Northern California parks. I have relatives in the area and it isn't that difficult to drive up there, but for whatever reason I rarely do it. My previous visit was in 2008, and before that 2004, 2003, and 2001. However, since three of the parks have received a new coaster in the past two years, I decided it was time for another trip. Also, for the first time, I decided to visit all four parks in the same trip. Park 1: Gilroy Gardens Family Theme Park-July 14th, 2013 I was not originally planning to visit this park, as I went here on my 2008 trip and the park has not changed one bit since then. However, my grandparents (who were traveling with me) really wanted to stop, and my uncle and cousin (who had never been to the park before) were willing to drive down and meet us here. Add in $22 tickets thanks to Club TPR and it was a done deal. Gilroy Gardens is not a ride park. Their most intense ride is a family coaster, and even parks like Disneyland or LEGOLAND feature more thrilling attractions. Instead, Gilroy Gardens is more of a horticulture park, with spectacular landscaping and plenty of interesting plants. Yes, there are around a dozen or so non-kiddie rides, but the real enjoyment of the park is just exploring all the gardens. The park is small, so a half day is plenty of time for the park (those going just for rides would need no more than two hours here), and crowds are rare on any day of the week. Ride Reviews: Other than Quicksilver Express (which I rode twice), we did each of the following once over the four hours we were at the park. Paddle Boats: A paddle boat ride out on the lake. Unlike most parks, Gilroy Gardens does not have an upcharge for this attraction. Capacity is low, however, so I recommend doing this early (within an hour of opening), as it is one of the few rides in the park that actually gets a line. Decent ride, not too difficult to paddle, and gives a good view of the park. You have a time limit (5-10 minutes) depending on crowds. Rainbow Garden Boats: Also known as the spinning boat ride, this attraction is little more than a scenic tour of the Rainbow Garden. This is another attraction that does get a line due to low capacity (4 people per boat). I like this ride, but I do think it is a little on the short side. South County Backroads: One of my favorite rides in the park, a dual tracked car ride with exceptional theming and landscaping. The two tracks run in opposite sections but feature most of the same sights. If there's a short wait, I'd recommend going with the 1950s track as it features a few extra bits (such as driving through a car wash and getting pulled over), but the line for the 1920s track moves faster as its cars can seat four riders instead of two. Mushroom Swing: Waveswinger that looks like a giant mushroom. Pretty good ride compared to others of its type, but the seats feel a little tighter than most. Quicksilver Express: A custom Morgan Mine Train coaster, this is a decent family coaster. The first half isn't all that exciting, but after the second lift hill the ride gets going fairly fast and is quite fun. To my knowledge, the ride only has one train, but it is rarely more than a station wait and operations are pretty good. Sky Trail Monorail: The lapbar monorail, this gives a tour of the Monarch Garden greenhouse and surrounding area. The ride is accompanied by narration and goes past a few animatronic displays of insects (as well as one of raccoons playing with dynamite). Good ride, short, but never has a line thanks to two train operation. Coyote & Redwood Railroad: A train around the entire park with two stations, one at the front and one at the back. Guests may ride this one way or on a round trip. The entire voyage is narrated, although it isn't always easy to hear. I'm not a huge fan of this railroad because almost everything can be seen by walking and the wait can be long due to only one train. For a shorter wait, board at the back station. Pinnacles Rock Maze: Another of my favorites at this park, a challenging maze with plenty of dead ends and circular paths. You can also go up above the maze and watch your friends trying to escape. Of the five people in my group, I was the second out and one person couldn't even make it to the exit. Timber Twister: The park's kiddie coaster, a standard medium Tivoli model from Zierer. I find this ride pretty dull, but it's a good starter coaster for kids. Like Quicksilver Express, this ride rarely has more than a station wait. Garlic Twirl: Teacups attraction that looks like a giant garlic. It was just my cousin and I on this and we got it spinning pretty good, so I imagine a group of three or four could really get this going. I'm not crazy about teacups rides, but I'm guessing this is probably one of the better ones for those that like them. We spent approximately four hours in the park (slightly past opening to about 2:30 P.M.), then left and headed up to my relatives' house in Kentfield (about a two hour drive north). My cousin didn't really care for the park, as he found it boring, but my uncle (who doesn't really enjoy theme parks in general) and my grandparents loved it. I think Gilroy Gardens is a nice park and everyone should check it out, but once you've been there is little reason to go back. After two visits, I doubt I'll bother to visit the park again unless I'm visiting with first timers and/or the park adds a major new attraction. It certainly is a nice park, one of the nicer Cedar Fair parks, but it is too small for the price they charge (without a discount, tickets are $50 and the best online discount is still $30+) and the park is not very exciting for a ride person. Pictures: As Gilroy Gardens is not a ride park, most of these are not ride pictures. Welcome to Gilroy Gardens, the second best landscaped park I've been to. Entering the park, you must cross this bridge. The trees actually grow through holes in the deck. Claudia's Garden is the closest garden to the entrance. You enter under one of the park's famous Circus Trees. From here, it doesn't look much like an amusement park. There are certainly rides here, however. Several of them are food themed. The Garlic Twirl, probably the best themed Teacups outside of the Mad Tea Party. View from the Paddle Boat dock. At 7 acres, the lake occupies about a quarter of the park's total area. Every park needs a carousel. Gilroy Gardens actually has two, but I don't have a picture of the smaller one. Sky Trail Monorail. Quicksilver Express runs all over the hillside in the back. Most of Quicksilver Express is hidden by foliage. I also wonder if the queue has ever been filled up. There was a little animatronic show next to where we stopped for lunch. I didn't watch it, but it looked like it involved talking fruits and vegetables. Typo in the learning shed. This picture was taken around 1 P.M. and shows the maximum crowd on a normal day at the park. Bonfante Falls is named after the original owner of the park and is a neat little diversion. The attraction has five types of waterfalls, each of varying intensity. If you choose to walk behind the waterfalls, you will get wet. The park really is a nice place to spend half a day, and can easily be combined with the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk to make a full day of fun. Time to head out. Six Flags Discovery Kingdom up next (most likely Friday).

I've never been to Florida, but based on my knowledge of the So Cal parks, Six Flags Great Adventure, and Cedar Point, I'd say you should stick with Orlando. While Six Flags Magic Mountain has some great coasters, Six Flags Great Adventure and Cedar Point have many similar (and sometimes better) coasters, so if you're already going to them SFMM isn't worth it (X2 is the only major coaster with no equivalent at these parks). While Knott's is a nice park, it isn't really worth traveling to California just to visit the park, and Universal Studios Hollywood is one park that takes about 2/3 of a day to complete (and it's only coaster is an inferior version of Revenge of the Mummy). Also note that both SFMM and KBF are one day parks at best (especially with a Flash Pass/Fast Lane), and it is impractical to visit California's parks without a rental car, so you will have LA traffic to deal with. The only notable advantage California might have is that you could purchase a Six Flags pass and save money (a Cedar Fair Platiunum Pass probably wouldn't be worth it for just Knott's and Cedar Point). Honestly, unless you're going to add the Disneyland Resort (which would require 2 or 3 days), California isn't really worth the hassle given the other parks on the trip. I won't comment on the Orlando parks as I've never been, but you should be fine with one day at Six Flags Great Adventure provided you purchase a Flash Pass. If you get a Gold Flash Pass, it shouldn't be difficult to get several rides on El Toro, Nitro, and Kingda Ka, and one or two rides on all the other coasters done in a day. With a regular pass, you might not get as many re-rides or have time for many flats, but you can definitely get all the coasters done and re-ride your favorites. If you don't get a Flash Pass, allow two days, or at least a day and a half. At Cedar Point, I'd plan two days if you'll be getting Fast Lane on at least one of the days, and three if not. If you do get Fast Lane for just one day, do only Fast Lane rides on the day you buy it and do all the non-Fast Lane rides on the other day. If you want to ride GateKeeper and/or Top Thrill Dragster more than once or twice each, buy Fast Lane+, but otherwise you can save money and just get regular Fast Lane. Definitely don't buy any skip the line system in advance as it may sometimes not be necessary and, especially at Cedar Point if you're only buying one day of Fast Lane, you don't want it on a bad weather day.

Plenty forceful. The helix is not crushing, but it is definitely pretty strong (probably strongest forces in the park other than Tatsu's pretzel loop) and on most rides I start to get a little tunnel vision by the end of it. I never rode the coaster opening year, but I have heard the brakes were turned up after the death in 2001. You do slow down significantly on the brakes, but the POV videos make it seem slower than it feels.

When I visited Darien Lake last year, I thought Predator was one of Darien Lake's better coasters but it was still nothing special. Even if it was a walk-on, I doubt I would have rode more than once. If the ride is demolished or significantly modified for Lake Monster, I wouldn't miss it one bit. Furthermore, I would be very likely to consider a return visit to Darien Lake as a result of a Rocky Mountain makeover, but even if Predator were to be completely retracked and ran like new it wouldn't be enough to convince me to return to Darien Lake unless I happened to be right near the park.

A test seat is a good indicator of whether you will fit on a ride or not, but due to minor variations it is not exact. Several times, I've visited parks with people who wouldn't fit in the test seat but managed to fit on the ride. Twice, I've been with someone who fit the test seat but not the ride. They are mainly there to let larger guests know that they may/will not fit so the guest doesn't wait in line only to be kicked off (or at least is aware of the possibility before waiting in line). Also, the test seat is only for if you'll be able to ride or not, not whether you'll be able to fit in a specific seat (hence why every B&M test seat I've seen is a big-boy seat unless the ride isn't equipped with them). The test seat is not lying by design, and the park is not trying to shrink lines using underhanded tactics. They are just trying to make sure you don't waste two hours of your day in line for a ride you can't ride. What should we do about it? Either risk waiting in line or just make it a goal to fit the test seat on your next visit.

I visited the park last week and just want to say that Gold Striker did not disappoint! While the ride is not my favorite GCI (that position still belongs to Thunderhead), it is an excellent ride and just edges out Apocalypse as the best wooden coaster on the West Coast. Due to limited time, I only got to ride twice, both times in a middle row, so I can only imagine how much better the ride probably is in the back (seems to be the best seat on most GCI coasters). Definitely a much needed addition to California's Great America, and California's best 2013 coaster. Gold Striker's queue is the worst for graffiti I've ever seen. Both times I rode, I saw at least a couple people writing on the fence outside between the tunnel and the stairs, almost as if it was some kind of public message board. For now, I hope the park just keeps the ride going, but over the off-season hopefully everything is cleaned up and graffiti-proof material is installed (and/or warning signs stating something along the lines of "Defacing this wall WILL result in immediate ejection from the park!" and then strictly enforcing them).

I was just visiting the Northern California parks last week, then I got home to find TPR videos of the credits I just got. Great video! As for Superman Ultimate Flight itself, I thought the ride was good but didn't really live up to the hype. Rode twice, tried both the front and back rows, and both times I left thinking "that was fun, but I thought it would be better." Perhaps I'm spoiled by having Xcelerator and Full Throttle at my local parks, or perhaps I just was underwhelmed after waiting over an hour. I'd certainly ride it again, I just wouldn't call it a must ride or travel worthy and still think Medusa is the best coaster in the park.

I don't see SFMM getting a major attraction next year since they just added Full Throttle this year. If anything, I think they'll get a new flat ride that's unique to Southern California and/or receive a used ride from another park. Instead, I think it would be nice to install something at Hurricane Harbor. I would really like a Proslide Rocket, but even just a copy of the Bonzai Pipeline trapdoor slides would be good. As for Iron Colossus, I'm guessing it will be a 2015 project with the ride closing after Fright Fest this year (the park can promote it as the last time ever to ride Colossus backwards) and hopefully reopening around Memorial Day 2015. I have not heard any rumors about Jetstream closing and it really wouldn't clear up much space unless Ninja was removed also, plus the park can't afford to lose another water ride without adding a new one. I also don't see the park installing a brand new headliner coaster until it is time to retire one of the current coasters (my guess is Viper is the most likely candidate for retirement), and that is probably still 5-10 years away. Finally, I highly doubt SFMM will ever get a Giga Coaster or a Wing Coaster due to the price tag, at least under current management (I remember hearing they couldn't afford a ride the price of Tatsu anymore ($21 million), and both these coaster types are over $20 million).

Giant Dipper at Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk yesterday. Possibly my last coaster until West Coast Bash.

Ranked as of my most recent visit (June 2013): 1. Tatsu 2. Full Throttle 3. Goliath 4. X2 5. Riddler's Revenge 6. Apocalypse ------------------------------ 7. Superman 8. Scream 9. Batman 10. Viper 11. Green Lantern 12. Colossus 13. Ninja ------------------------------ 14. Revolution 15. Gold Rusher 16. Canyon Blaster 17. Road Runner Express Rides above the first line I consider a must ride on each visit as long as the line is under 60 minutes. Rides below the second line I will not bother with unless they are a walk-on. Rides in the middle are worth a 15-30 minute wait depending on their placement. I have only ridden Full Throttle once, so it's position may change after more rides. Apocalypse ranks three spots higher at night.