rcdude

I went to the park for a few hours after class today just to see how everything is going at the park and to get my coaster fix. Unfortunately, today was Physics Day so I encountered more crowds than I expected (mainly for the coasters) and a ton of high schoolers, but it was still a pretty good day. A few notes: -Although not listed on the website, High Sierra Ferris Wheel, Red Baron, and Waveswinger are currently closed for maintence (in addition to Timber Mountain Log Ride and Windseeker). -GhostRider, Pony Express, and Sierra Sidewinder were each running two trains today. Jaguar!, Silver Bullet, and Xcelerator only had one due to the second being in maintenance. -Boomerang has reopened. Also, all pathway construction is now done so there are no blocked off areas in the park. -Windseeker is still closed, but it was moving up and down the tower throughout the day. I'm guessing it will probably reopen in the near future (possibly in time for Spring Break). -Based on the current state of construction, I'm guessing Coast Rider will go vertical in 2-3 weeks. The other two rides probably won't be put up until mid-late April. -Today's Rides: GhostRider, Montezooma's Revenge, Pony Express, Sierra Sidewinder, Xcelerator, Calico Mine Ride, Hat Dance, Supreme Scream, Wheeler Dealer Bumper Cars Here are the photos I took today. Some are construction photos and others are just ones I happened to take while walking around. Third visit of the year to Knott's. Today it was overcast and threatening to rain, but luckily it stayed dry all day. Well, I could have picked a better day to visit. Fortunately, only a few attractions were affected and everything else remained a walk-on. First, lunch. Pink's has somewhat become my standard lunch location at Knott's for two reasons: 1. I like it better than almost anything inside the park, and... 2. It's cheaper than anything inside the park. While $10 is still high for a counter service restaurant, when it costs $8 just to upgrade to a combo inside the park it isn't too bad. I love being able to visit Knott's and ask for a Coke without receiving a reply of "Is Pepsi ok?" While having lunch, I noticed Windseeker moving up and down the tower. It did this a couple times during the day. Time to ride Silver Bullet...eh, never mind. This ride may be old and outdated, but it is still a classic that should not be missed by first time Knott's visitors. Plus, today it had no wait. Last time I visited, this walkway was closed, but it has since re-opened. But this ride hasn't. I know it's not a very popular attraction, but I'm surprised it has taken more than a month to refurbish a Ferris Wheel. High-schooler antics. I doubt KidTums would approve. Not many parks still have barrel bridges. It's nice that Knott's has kept things like this around. What happened to all the Physics Day students? I thought they were supposed to be riding coasters and collecting data. I guess they're all still in line for Silver Bullet. Take a look at this picture of Hat Dance and try to figure out what is wrong with it. Here's a hint: blue, green, red, yellow. Windseeker's new evacuation system. I'm not quite sure how it will work, but hopefully it will prevent any more guests from being standed for several hours. Knott's other swing ride is down for maintenance as well. Timing practice on Jaguar. I think it turned out pretty well. Slightly off on Silver Bullet, but still a decent shot. One day, this may be true again. We shall see... The park itself was dead today. It was just a few select coasters (namely Boomerang, Jaguar!, Silver Bullet, and Xcelerator) that had lines. Speaking of Boomerang, it certainly stands out a lot more with its new colors. It had a bit of a line today. Either it was required riding for Physics Day or people think it's a new coaster. After seeing it in person, I will say this about the colors: Blue Boomerang > Green Boomerang >>> Purple Boomerang I do somewhat wish they had repainted the train as well, as it doesn't look as good being the same shade as the track, but whatever. The ride still looks better than it did previously. Now for an update on this part of the park. Foundation work has begun for the two flat rides. This will be the location of Surfside Gliders. In a couple months, Pacific Scrambler will stand here. At the north end of the site, footer work is just about done for Coast Rider. If they want to get the area open by Memorial Day, I'd expect the ride will go vertical by the end of the month. In other news, a new garden has been planted under Boomerang where the remote controlled racecars used to be located. It looks nice. What's this? Supreme Scream is actually using all three towers even though it is a walk-on! That's a rare sight, indeed. I heard people saying Tower of Terror was taller than this. Um...yeah, no. Ending the day with a ride on the best attraction in the park. Placing 44th in the 2012 Mitch Hawker Steel Poll, Xcelerator is one of the best coasters on the West Coast. The line was about 30 minutes or so, but the ride is totally worth it (this is the one ride at Knott's I'm still willing to wait more than 15 minutes for even though I visit monthly). The second train will probably be out of commission for a bit. If you are visiting Knott's over the Spring Break period, do Xcelerator first. It is not a Fast Lane attraction and capacity isn't that great with only one train. And I'll end with a photo of the Physics Day activities. That's it for this visit. Hopefully next time there'll be Coast Rider track to see.

I've got a chance to go through the rankings and this year's top twenty-five or so seem to be pretty much right on when it comes to the general enthusiast crowd. The bottom ten also look about right, and judging from Goudurix's ranking I'm guessing I didn't miss much by choosing Disneyland Paris instead (although OzIris ranked 34...since that's higher than Afterburn (which is generally considered excellent) and OzIris seemed to have the consensus of "just okay" I'm guessing this is inflated somewhat). Other things I found interesting/surprising (mainly based on coasters I've been on): -Coasters that were ranked significantly lower than I expected include Anaconda, Gemini, Manta, Mystery Mine, Riddler's Revenge, and Carowind's Vortex. Manta, Mystery Mine, and Riddler's Revenge are all among the best of their type and I expected them to be more around 70 or so. I'm really surprised Gemini is all the way down at 231, as I figured it would be more in the 140-150 range considering I've heard a lot of people call it Cedar Point's biggest surprise. -With all the negativity Space Mountain: Mission 2 seemed to recieve in this thread, I'm a little surprised it managed to rank at 260, as I thought it would be below 300 -I found it interesting that Dark Knight ranked higher than Favorite Wild Mouse even though many people seem to dislike that ride. I also found it interesting that Demon ranked higher than Anaconda and that CGA's Vortex ranked higher than Carowind's Vortex. -Comparing the results to my personal rankings, the highest rated coaster I've been on is SFNE's Bizarro and the lowest rated is the Zamperla Volare. The coaster I rated highest on my ballot compared to its final ranking is Space Mountain: Mission 2, while the one I rated lowest compared to its final ranking is Intimidator 305. When only the coasters that were on my ballot are ranked, Afterburn, Apollo's Chariot, Avalanche, SFNE's Bizarro, SFMM's Goliath, Maverick, Raptor, Space Mountain, and V2: Vertical Velocity would all be at the same location on my ballot as they are on the results. I'm glad to see the return of the steel poll, and hopefully it will continue to be run every year. Based on the results, it looks like I need to start working on trips to Texas and Pennsylvania (International trips are out of my budget at the moment, unfortunately). Maybe I'll just have to find some way to get to a Texas Giant bash if there is one this year.

^The only Rock-O-Plane I've been on is the one at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, so it's possible others may be different but I'm guessing they're all similar. On that ride, there isn't a specific loading brake, but instead there is an extension of the locking bar that sticks through a slot in the front of the cage. During loading, the operator will place this on a notch in the slot to keep the car from rotating, then they unlatch it (or it might be automatic...I don't remember and I haven't been back in nearly ten years) once the door is closed. Chances are it would end up coming off during the ride anyway, so I doubt you'll be able to get a locked ride. It may sound fun to just do continuous loops, but part of the fun of a Rock-O-Plane is getting the car stuck in unusual positions. They generally aren't the flippiest rides out there, but if you get good at applying and releasing the brake you can get a pretty intense ride out of them. If you just want to do loops, you'd probably enjoy a Kamikaze (aka swinging inverter ship) more.

Here's some I've heard, both in the rumor and GPism category 1. If you are on a ride and the restraint fails, you will fall out at the top of the loop 2. The Final Destination roller coaster sequence could actually happen 3. Disneyland's Space Mountain goes upside down, but it is so quick you don't notice it 4. The back car of the train goes faster than the front 5. If two roller coasters have the same size drop, the one with a steeper drop will always go faster 6. Under perfect conditions, it is possible for Millennium Force/Intimidator 305 to reach 100 miles per hour 7. You can lose your hands on a wooden coaster if you raise them above your head

^Using other two train GCIs as a reference, Apocalypse's capacity is only around 800 riders per hour so that number sounds okay. Based on normal operations I'd estimate the park's other major coasters probably only average around 1000 riders per hour so it isn't much below average for the park (that being said I do think a few of the park's coasters (namely Green Lantern and Superman) have too low of capacity for a major park like SFMM). Whether or not Full Throttle is a capacity problem remains to be seen and will depend on the ride's popularity and how efficiently it is run, but I have a feeling it will have crazy lines the first summer then the masses will return to going straight to X2. It's great to see work being done on the ride. If they are really able to finish the track in April anbd don't have any significant delays during testing, I could see this being open by Memorial Day, but I've got a feeling a mid-June opening is the most likely (probably right around when most of the LA area schools get out for the summer).

Catapult was a really good ride, but it's not that reliable and was very uncomfortable. I wouldn't be surprised if the park just scrapped it. However, if they choose to relocate it I'll be interested to see where it ends up. It would be pretty funny if it ended up in Deja Vu's spot at SFMM, and I could see it fitting in well with the park's offerings, but I don't see that as too likely.

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From what I've been on, it was a travelling Maurer Sohne Wild Maus Classic that used to be owned by Ray Cammack Shows. The ride operated under the name Wilde Maus and used unique two-seater cars instead of the more common four seat ones. This allowed it to run with no brakes until the end of the ride. Definitely a crazy attraction, and the only wild mouse I've seen with a high height requirement (52" to ride, period). The company owned it from 2000 until the mid-2000s, at which point they traded it in for a Maurer Sohne Compact Spinning Coaster. I believe it is still in operation in Europe somewhere, but I'm not exactly sure where. For permanent installations, I'd say Psycho Mouse (Arrow Mad Mouse) at California's Great America is probably the wildest I've been on. The former Tree Top Racers (Miler Wild Mouse) at Adventure City was pretty good as well. For the remainder, I generally find the Maurer Sohne rides to be a little more intense than the Mack variety, with Zamperla's the worst of all. For the spinning mice, Maurer Sohne is best (only counting the Compact Spinning Coaster model here), followed by Fabbri, and then Zamperla (at least in my experience). I don't consider Maurer Sohne's other spinning coaster models or Gerstlauer's spinning coasters to be wild mouse rides so they are excluded from these rankings.

It really depends on the ride. If it's a ride I've been on a number of times (or at least similar to one I regularly ride), I'll give it another shot. If it's something out of the ordinary, however, and I end up not feeling well afterward, I won't give it another try. Only when a ride begins making me sick regularly will I stop riding it, and this has only happened with a couple attractions (namely Tilt-a-Whirls and insane flipping carnival rides).

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My personal list, most of which is common sense: 1. If you get to a ride and your entire group is not ready to enter the line, move to the side and let others past. 2. If in a large group, never spread out and take up more than half of the width of the walkway, and try to move at the same speed as other group members to avoid losing anyone. 3. Refrain from spending your day on your smartphone, and instead talk with others in your group while in line. 4. If there is an empty seat in your row, do not close the restraint until the gates have closed in case a single rider wishes to fill that seat. 5. If you are ever denied on an attraction for any reason, take your complaints (if reasonable) to guest services instead of arguing with a ride operator and holding up operations. 6. Never ride a high intensity ride immediately after a meal. 7. If a ride breaks down while you are in line, either leave immediately or wait it out. 8. If you plan to do water rides during your visit, either store your valuables in a locker or bring a plastic bag to keep them dry. 9. Don't complain about getting wet after getting off a water ride. 10. If things don't go the way you would like, just make the best of it and enjoy the rest of your day as much as possible.

For wood, I'd say the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk's Giant Dipper. For steel, probably Big Thunder Mountain Railroad overall and Montezooma's Revenge for a thrill coaster.

I find both to be about the same roughness wise, but Revolution is the more uncomfortable of the two. Due to the design of Viper's restraints, those with a large upper body experience little headbanging but instead have pressure on their shoulders for the duration of the ride, while Revolution will pretty much deliver a few hits to anyone who rides. Viper is the better of the two coasters, but I'd still recommend riding both of them (especially to anyone who hasn't).

I always really liked Perilous Plunge, and although I never considered it the best water ride in existence it was definitely a must ride for me if the line wasn't excessive. Sadly I never got to ride it with just lap bars, and I hated the four point harnesses as they resulted in a minimum 6 minute loading cycle and made it impossible to ride for a number of people (I can't remember ever seeing a boat go without 2 or 3 empty seats due to riders being rejected). The new boats did improve dispatch times a bit (in my experience, the ride generally took 2-4 minutes to dispatch...still long but not as bad as before), but I can't remember the last time both boats were used. Due to this, the line was generally 30-40 minutes even on days where everything else was 10-15 minutes. The ride also no longer got riders quite as wet (rainy day wetness versus jumping in a pool with your clothes on wetness), the new boats had uncomfortable shoulder harnesses, and, as usual, the ride continued to operate intermittently. It was one of those rides that sounded like a really good concept but suffered from poor execution. As for the drop itself, it was very impressive when the ride opened. When on the ride, it literally felt like plunging off a waterfall. I think Perilous Plunge would have maintained its status as the most visually impressive ride in the park if Xcelerator had not been built right next to it.

^Actually, I think Boomerang Bay was 2004. I know I rode Stealth when I visited the park in 2003, so Boomerang Bay couldn't have opened that year. I would be very surprised if Gold Striker wasn't open by Memorial Day. Given the current state of construction I'd guess it could be ready for a Mid-April opening, but I could also see the park waiting until they go to full time operation to open it (so they wouldn't have to do testing during park operating hours and have guests wonder why it's not open). Perhaps #1rollercoasterfan meant that Gold Striker would open at the same time Boomerang Bay does, which will likely be correct.

I wouldn't be surprised if the first drop is enclosed on this ride. Maybe Cedar Fair will spend a little money and theme the tunnel like a mineshaft so it fits the ride nicely. I hope they will actually do a little bit of theming on the ride (nothing Disney quality, but maybe some mining artifacts near the queue and use lanterns for station lights...stuff like that), as the name wouldn't make much sense otherwise. Gold Striker just keeps looking better and better. I'm really hoping I'm able to get up there and ride it (and Superman and Undertow) this summer.

I'm pretty sure Skyrush is fastest, followed by Intimidator 305, Millennium Force, and El Toro in that order. For coasters with a chain lift, generally the fastest lift hills are found on wild mouse coasters and other rides with single cars (except Eurofighters).

I've got several naming trends that I don't care for: -Any name with more than four large words (ex: The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror is okay but Gotham City Gauntlet Escape from Arkham Asylum is not) -Using a name on multiple unrelated attractions (ex: using Flight Deck on several different coasters is okay since they all share the same theme, but using Goliath on several unrelated coasters of different types isn't) -Using a generic name unless it is the model name of the attraction (ex: calling an S&S tower Space Shot is okay but calling an Intamin tower Drop Tower is not) -Adding "The Ride" or "The Coaster" to an attraction name (ex: Apocalypse the Ride, Batman the Ride, etc.) -Using the format of "Property: Subtitle" (ex: Green Lantern: First Flight, Lex Luthor: Drop of Doom, etc.) As for actual worst name, I'd probably have to go with either Gotham City Gauntlet Escape from Arkham Asylum or Drop Tower. As for worst naming in the context of a park, Coast Rider being put into the same park as GhostRider. For most overused name, Goliath.

I'd probably say the defunct Pharaoh's Lost Kingdom is the most ghetto park I've been to. It had the permanent carnival feel, half the rides weren't running, and most of the ones that were seemed like they were barely in operating condition. The arcade was also full of old, broken games and the whole place was dirty. Surprisingly, the waterpark was somewhat nice (and I believe that part is still open). For currently operating parks, Conneaut Lake Park is the most ghetto I've visited. SBNO rides, damaged buildings, and a whole park that seemed to be on its last legs. Granted, I was only there during exclusive park time on the LeviaTHON trip, and although I had a good time it did seem like the park would not be nearly as enjoyable if I was visiting on my own. I still think this is probably my favorite of the parks that I'd consider "ghetto", but I really doubt it will be around much longer. For chain parks, La Ronde. Parts of the park were nice, but when you've got empty buildings with plywood covering the doors and windows as well as a damaged pathway overgrown with weeds to get to an attraction, it's hard to not consider the place somewhat ghetto.

I'll wait until it's done and I see it in person to judge the new color of Boomerang, but based on what I've seen so far it could possibly be worse than the current colors. I thought the track was going to be a darker green, which would look nice with the yellow-green supports, but if both are too close in color it just doesn't work.

I'm 99.99999% sure it was Matterhorn Bobsleds at Disneyland. The only other possibility I can think of would be the Wacky Soap Box Racers at Knott's Berry Farm, but I think it was the Matterhorn.