rcdude

So far: Knott's Berry Farm x2 Planned: Knott's Berry Farm (at least one visit per month) Six Flags Magic Mountain (at least 3 visits) Disneyland Disney California Adventure Park Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk Six Flags Discovery Kingdom California's Great America Possible: Gilroy Gardens Family Theme Park Universal Studios Hollywood SeaWorld San Diego Belmont Park (only if SeaWorld happens)

Revolution at Six Flags Magic Mountain. Although I had visited Knott's many times before, I was afraid of shuttle coasters until the mid-2000s and I visited SFMM for the first time in the year 2000.

A Pepsi with dinner.

Sierra Sidewinder at Knott's Berry Farm last Thursday. Still the best of the park's family coasters.

While PTC trains are better than Morgan trains, I doubt it will make much of a difference on this particular ride. Other than possibly speeding up loading times due to a simpler restraint system, new trains probably won't have much of an impact, if any, on Monstre.

Technically, it is the Tiger Mike (Wisdom Miner Mike) at Boomers in Fountain Valley. However, as that ride is barely a coaster I'm going to say it is California Screamin' at Disney California Adventure Park. As the crow flies, it's only a couple miles further anyway (18 for Tiger Mike, 20 for California Screamin') but it still takes me around 45 minutes from my front door to the Disneyland Resort parking structure.

Even though I took advantage of the loopholes in the system on occasion (usually when I happened to be in the other park during my return time), I'm glad that the park is enforcing return times as the system was originally designed. I've run into too many situations at the parks where the Fastpass line was overflowing due to people returning outside their window, forcing the standby line to come to a near standstill. It's not difficult to make it back at some point in the window, and if you know you won't be able to do so, don't get a Fastpass. This might also reduce park hopping as well and keep crowds more stable during the day, as unless your return time isn't for several hours switching parks is probably more hassle than it's worth.

I'll put it this way: If there's no line, I'll ride, but if there is more than a two train wait it's not worth it. It's okay, but every other coaster in the park is better (except Boomerang).

I went to visit the park today (February 7th, 2013) for a few hours after class (yay for a one class day ending at 11:00 A.M.) and it was about as dead as I've ever seen it. The parking lot appeared to have around 50 cars in it plus 20 or so school buses. Even though every coaster except Sierra Sidewinder was only running one train (and that rarely loaded the second one), a quarter of the seats were empty on almost every run that I saw (unless the school groups were riding). Basically, if it is possible for the rides to have shorter lines than they do during a WCB ERT session, they did today. I've got some pictures of the current state of things, but here are a few notes: -WINDSEEKER LIVES! Okay, it isn't open yet, but the ride was moving up and down the tower with maintenance personnel on the platform. According to a ride operator, it should be operating again by the end of the month. -The same operator said that Boomerang (currently closed for repainting) should be reopened in time for spring break, and that the new attractions would reopen at the same time as Timber Mountain Log Ride. -GhostRider is closed for track work. The website says it will reopen on February 16th. -Several other small rides were closed. However, almost everything that wasn't in maintenance was running even if nobody was riding. -Lines were non-existant except for the Calico Mine Ride and whatever school groups happened to be riding. Even the front seat of Xcelerator was only a one train wait. -There are several path closures in the park currently, especially in the Boardwalk and Ghost Town. -Ride Count: Twice each on Montezooma's Revenge, Sierra Sidewinder, and Xcelerator, once on Jaguar!, Pony Express, Silver Bullet, Sky Cabin, Supreme Scream, and Wheeler Dealer Bumper Cars -Time in park: Just over two hours Pictures: Time for my second visit to Knott's this year. I'll be visiting every few weeks until the new rides open to watch construction. Today's closed rides. Not too bad, and nothing unexpected either. One of the school groups in the park. I saw several throughout the day. Wait, this wasn't on the closed ride list. Maybe we just need to wait it out. When I was over riding Montezooma's Revenge, this was parked on the ground. By the time I got to Xcelerator, it had risen. This is the first activity I've seen on the attraction in months. Workers were cleaning off the track of Boomerang with a hose. Some of the old paint showing through. A peek into the construction site. It now encompasses the entire back portion of the Boardwalk, so to walk from Xcelerator to Johnny Rockets you must go around the Calico Mine Ride. Last time I visited, there were just holes back here. Now, many of the footers for Coast Rider are filled and they are working on the rest. The other end of the construction zone. Surfside Gliders should be right about where that pile of dirt is. Pacific Scrambler should be just about here. The games have been completely removed and a new path is being built. On an unrelated note, Riptide is now open for your head-over-heels needs. A look at Timber Mountain Log Ride. Some of the trees have been removed from the mountain, probably for replacement. There were five or six people working in the flume here. Probably doing fiberglass repair or something like that. I'll be sure to do that. How often is the line for the Stagecoach this short? I usually see it closed or with a nearly full queue. The walkway between the candy shop and the glass blower is now closed. The one leading back to Pony Express, however, has reopened. Either everyone is wearing an invisibility cloak or there is nobody at the park today. Although many people complain about Cedar Fair's changes to Knott's, it still has a number of unique diversions. I can't remember the last time I went in here. Don't expect to see two train operation on Silver Bullet anytime soon. As I was walking out to my car, I saw these guys doing track work on GhostRider. It was running really well a month ago, so hopefully this continues to improve it.

Based on what I've heard about the other El Loco coasters, this will probably become the best coaster in Nevada. It sounds like the ride will be very similar to the others, just downsized slightly to fit inside the dome. I can't wait to give it a try next time I'm in Las Vegas (hopefully next year).

5/5

4/5

3/5

2/5

I've got five of them. 1/5

While I know the park could get one and make it fit somehow, I don't see Knott's getting a giga coaster in the near future (aka in the next ten years). A mega coaster I could see, or a similarly sized ride, but I think anything larger than that is probably not going to happen just because it wouldn't be the right fit for the park. Based on what the park is getting this year and the way the new Cedar Fair management is going, I think they realize Knott's is more than a thrill park and will take that into consideration when planning future additions. Honestly, if I were to guess, I'd say the next coaster at the park will be a replacement for Timberline Twister, then a replacement for Boomerang after that. Maybe once those two are done they'll start considering replacing Bigfoot Rapids and/or something else with the next major coaster, but it's probably close to 10 years away. Personally, I'd value a topper track makeover of GhostRider more than a giant new coaster, at least at the moment.

Disneyland is expensive, but it's been that way for a long time. However, when compared to the price of admission tickets, the passes aren't a bad value. If I remember correctly, the cheapest pass has usually been around three times the price of a one day, one park ticket, and even at the current prices they are still fairly close ($87x3=$261 vs $269 for the So Cal Select pass). Even with the most expensive pass, you only need 8 visits for it to be a good value. If you visit both parks and factor in the parking charge, that drops to only five visits. Yes, you can buy a passes to SFMM, Knott's, Universal, and SeaWorld for the price of a pass to Disneyland, but none of those are as good of a park as Disneyland is, and at least half of those have more overpriced admission tickets than Disneyland does. Personally, I'm of the opinion that if someone complains about the price of something, they don't feel it's worth what they are spending. In this case, they shouldn't spend the money. If people don't like the price of a pass, they should downgrade or just not buy one and visit once or twice a year instead. Maybe the parks would be better off without hordes of people who use them simply as a place to hang out regularly after school or work (I seriously don't understand how people can go 4-5 times a week and not get sick of the place...I would never visit more than twice a month) and don't complain about such trivial things as a single burnt out lightbulb on Main Street (I've actually heard that while visiting...I sometimes have to wonder how some of the fanboys can even enjoy the parks at all). As for me, I'm an intermittent passholder dependent not on price but on my school schedule. I got a pass in Fall 2011 (the So Cal Select) since I only had class three days per week. I chose not to renew when my pass expired last October because I now have class five days per week and I'd rather take one day (or maybe two) off school during the year, buy a park hopper ticket and visit for a full day when the crowds are low than pay for the next level pass and visit on crowded Sundays. I've still got passes to Knott's and SFMM so I can use those if I'm craving a park visit (mainly Knott's since SFMM is over 90 minutes away and I'm good with only a couple visits to that park per year).

As far as Pixar movies go, Monsters, Inc. and Ratatouille are probably my favorites, with the Toy Story trilogy, Finding Nemo, and Wall-E falling in somewhere behind them. I didn't really care for Incredibles, Bug's Life, or Up, but Cars is definitely my least favorite (although I haven't seen Cars 2 (no interest) or Brave (just haven't got to it yet). I'm hoping Pixar will spring back as their latest movies haven't been quite as well recieved as most of their earlier projects and the lineup for the next few years doesn't look all that great either (but that is yet to be determined...perhaps Monsters University will be a surprise hit). When it comes to rides, I look at the ride independent of the movie and don't automatically write off an attraction that's based on a movie I don't like. For example, Cars is my least favorite Pixar movie but I really like Cars Land (not just RSR, but the whole area in general), but even though Monsters, Inc. is one of my favorites I rarely ride the ride just because it is somewhat pathetic (though still better than the awful Superstar Limo that was there before it). As for a third gate at the resort, I've always thought it would be neat to have a park entirely based on Disney's major movie franchises, with each land themed to a different franchise. For example, they could have Star Wars land, Marvel land, Pirates land, etc. I don't think it would be a big deal if a franchise had attractions at other parks provided the attractions in the new park are significantly different (for example, Star Wars land could have anything except for a simulator, an Indiana Jones land would need to avoid having a high-tech dark ride, no shooting dark rides in a Toy Story land, and so on). I do think a whole park themed around any one franchise would be too much (even one as large as Marvel), although it would probably still be really popular.

I have to agree with what others have said and say the Rolling Thunder hill on El Toro followed by the ejector hill on Bizarro (the largest hill on the return run). Runner-ups include (in no particular order): The drop off the midcourse brakes on GhostRider (before the brakes were turned on) The long sustained floater hill on Goliath (SFMM) Cyclone's (SFNE) first drop if you're in the back car The bunny hops on Magnum XL-200's return run The non-trimmed hills on any B&M or Intamin Mega

I spent a good hour filling out the ballot tonight. Just so many coasters to rank since I do them all individually. I'll submit it tomorrow after I get time to go over it once again in case I made a mistake anywhere. LOCATION IN NEXT LINE (Please LEAVE THIS LINE IN BALLOT) ~"California" NAME IN NEXT LINE (Please LEAVE THIS LINE IN THE BALLOT) ~"AJ Hummel" RANK THE FOLLOWING RIDING SENSATIONS <-LEAVE Abrupt Airtime_____________________________,y,y,2 Floating Airtime___________________________,y,y,1 Lateral Forces_____________________________,y,y,6 Out of Control Feeling/Directional Changes_,y,y,3 Positive G's/Loops_________________________,y,y,5 Sensation of Speed_________________________,y,y,4 COASTER NAME PARK LOC <-LEAVE Bizarro SF New England MA,y,n,1 Favorite Wood Coaster Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,2 Tatsu Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,3 Maverick Cedar Point OH,y,n,4 Top Thrill Dragster Cedar Point OH,y,n,5 Kingda Ka Six Flags Great Ad NJ,y,n,6 Millennium Force Cedar Point OH,y,n,7 Leviathan Canadas Wonderland ON,y,y,8 Intimidator Carowinds NC,y,n,9 Griffon Busch Gardens Will VA,y,n,10 Apollo's Chariot Busch Gardens Will VA,y,n,11 Ride of Steel Darien Lake NY,y,y,12 Dominator Kings Dominion VA,y,n,13 Afterburn Carowinds NC,y,n,14 XCelerator Knott's Berry Farm CA,y,y,15 Alpengeist Busch Gardens Will VA,y,n,16 Mystery Mine Dollywood TN,y,n,17 X2 Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,18 Medusa SF Discovery Kingd CA,y,n,19 Raptor Cedar Point OH,y,n,20 Goliath Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,21 California Screamin' Disney CA Adventur CA,y,y,22 Behemoth Canadas Wonderland ON,y,y,23 Volcano: The Blast Co Kings Dominion VA,y,n,24 Nitro Six Flags Great Ad NJ,y,n,25 Manta SeaWorld San Diego CA,y,y,26 Goliath La Ronde Parc Amus QC,y,n,27 Riddler's Revenge Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,28 Magnum XL-200 Cedar Point OH,y,n,29 Silver Bullet Knott's Berry Farm CA,y,y,30 Intimidator 305 Kings Dominion VA,y,n,31 Vortex Canadas Wonderland ON,y,y,32 Tennessee Tornado Dollywood TN,y,n,33 Space Mountain Disneyland CA,y,y,34 Mr. Freeze Reverse Bl Six Flags St. Loui MO,y,n,35 Wicked Twister Cedar Point OH,y,n,36 V2: Vertical Velocity SF Discovery Kingd CA,y,n,37 Big Thunder Mountain Disneyland CA,y,y,38 Scream! Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,39 Speed Nascar Cafe NV,y,n,40 Crush's Coaster Walt Disney Paris FR,y,y,41 Batman The Ride/Clone SF & Other Parks **,y,n,42 Superman – Ultimate F Six Flags Parks **,y,n,43 Space Mountain Disneyland Paris FR,y,y,44 Superman The Escape Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,n,45 Flight Deck California's Great CA,y,n,46 Fav Schw Shuttle loop Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,47 Flight of Fear Kings Dominion VA,y,n,48 Bizarro Six Flags Great Ad NJ,y,n,49 Batman - Dark Knight SF New England MA,y,n,50 Gemini Cedar Point OH,y,n,51 Matterhorn Bobsleds Disneyland CA,y,y,52 Revenge of the Mummy Universal Studios CA,y,y,53 Big Thunder Mountain Disneyland Paris FR,y,y,54 Fav Gerstlauer Spinn. Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,55 Sierra Sidewnder Knott's Berry Farm CA,y,y,56 Backlot Stunt Coaster Kings Dominion VA,y,n,57 Fav X SC2000 Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,58 Desperado Buffalo Bill's Res NV,y,n,59 Journey to Atlantis SeaWorld San Diego CA,y,y,60 Green Lantern:1st Fl. Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,61 Backlot Stunt Coaster Canadas Wonderland ON,y,y,62 Fav Wild Mouse Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,63 Scandia Screamer Scandia Family Fun CA,y,n,64 Fav Vekoma Boomerang Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,65 SkyRider Canadas Wonderland ON,y,y,66 Loch Ness Monster Busch Gardens Will VA,y,n,67 Dragon Mountain Marineland Theme P ON,y,y,68 Viper Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,69 Anaconda Kings Dominion VA,y,n,70 Fav Loop-Screw Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,71 Green Lantern Six Flags Great Ad NJ,y,n,72 Fav Motocoaster Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,73 Fav Powered `Coaster' Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,74 Avalanche Kings Dominion VA,y,n,75 Mantis Cedar Point OH,y,n,76 Fav Galaxi Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,77 Vortex Carowinds NC,y,n,78 Canyon Blaster Adventuredome NV,y,n,79 Fav Arrow Mine Train Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,80 Quicksilver Express Bonfante Gardens CA,y,n,81 Ninja Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,82 Fav Vek Susp Family Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,83 Roller Coaster New York New York NV,y,n,84 Indiana Jones et le t Disneyland Paris FR,y,y,85 Bobsled Seabreeze NY,y,y,86 Hi-Miler Traveling US,y,n,87 Fav Intamin Bobsled Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,88 Skull Mountain Six Flags Great Ad NJ,y,n,89 Shockwave Kings Dominion VA,y,n,90 Revolution Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,91 Iron Dragon Cedar Point OH,y,n,92 Fav Vek Susp Loop SLC Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,93 Vortex California's Great CA,y,n,94 Ninja Six Flags St. Loui MO,y,n,95 Viper Darien Lake NY,y,y,96 Fav Tivoli Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,97 Demon California's Great CA,y,n,98 Le Cobra La Ronde Parc Amus QC,y,n,99 Fav Zamperla Volare Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,100 Santa Monica West Coa Pacific Park CA,y,n,101 Fav Eurofighter 320+ Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,102 Fav Vekoma Corkscrew Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,103 Fav Arrow Corkscrew Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,104 Fav Spinning Mouse Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,105 Dark Knight Six Flags Great Ad NJ,y,n,106

I remember when I first rode GhostRider, as it was my first big coaster. Back then, I thought the ride was awesome and terrifying at the same time. By the point that I really started to get into coasters, the ride had begun to deteriorate, but up until about five years ago I still thought it was decent. The ride today isn't bad, but it's not great either. More recently, I rode the ride a couple weeks ago in the front seat and had the best ride I've had on it in 5-6 years. It made me realize that if this ride got some topper track and new trains, even without all the fancy layout changes Rocky Mountain tends to do it would probably be one of the top ten wooden coasters in the United States again.

It looks like a bit of work has been done since I was there are couple weeks ago. Everything appears to be on schedule for a Memorial Day opening. I'm guessing we'll be seeing vertical construction begin around the end of next month once all the groundwork is complete. It's also good to see that the park is working on Windseeker, and I hope they're able to get it back up as soon as possible. As for Boomerang, that shade of green combined with the yellow-green of the supports is going to make the ride really stand out. I'm not sure how it will look, but hopefully it looks better than the current color combination (I've never been a fan of the purple/green combo). Unfortunately, it looks like Knott's worst major coaster will remain for quite a while. In Boomerang's defense, it's not the worst one out there, but unfortunately it's not one of the better ones either.

In general, I'd prefer a longer ride over a better themed one. The only time I'd prefer more theming is if the ride is not designed to be a thrill coaster and/or the theming is Disney or Universal quality. Of course, the ride has to be good in the first place. If the ride is good, good theming will increase the ride experience but poor theming won't detract from it. If the ride is just okay then good theming can save it, but bad theming may ruin it. If the ride is truly awful, it could be the most heavily themed ride in the world and it would still be a bad ride.

Last one.

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