VegasBaby

I've tried to give GL the benefit of the doubt but it's just an all around terrible coaster experience. I've probably ridden it a dozen times, before each time convincing myself it's not that bad, but then I ride it and remember that it really is that bad. It's painful and just not any fun. Now I skip it and head next door to do extra laps on Batman, which is over 20 years old and still rides great.

Does this mean I can expect it to be really crowded tomorrow? Was considering heading down there for the day to get my platinum pass and finally ride Ghost Rider in all its new glory (haven't been on it in 15+ years). Yes, I would expect it to be very crowded tomorrow. However, Knott's is giving season passholders early entry at 9:30am from April 8-16. So I would go early and get your pass processed (I believe the season pass center opens at 9am) and then use the early entry to get a few rides on GhostRider before the GP gets let in at 10am.

My wife and kids were there Monday and they said it wasn't very busy at all. She said that most rides were a walk-on or 2-3 train wait at most. I think a lot of SoCal school districts have their spring breaks next week, so I would expect it to be a lot busier then.

My wife and I thought the same thing. Having a 9 year old who's not too keen on big coasters really has nothing at SWO to do besides Atlantis, the Shamu coaster, and the shitty penguin ride. She loves Cheetah Hunt and she can't wait to ride Cobra's Curse. I hope SeaWorld Orlando does something like this for their next decent sized coaster Agreed, it would make sense for Orlando to build something like Cobra's Curse that has a 42 inch height requirement. I know they have Atlantis, but they really need another option for families with kids that want something more thrilling than Shamu but aren't tall enough for Kraken/Manta/Mako.

Agreed, these floorless conversions by CF are a really smart way of getting a "new" coaster without dropping $10-20 million. I was really surprised by how great of a ride Rougarou is when I visited CP last summer. I think I only ever rode Mantis once or twice, but now Rougarou is a must ride every visit. I will say that I hope Riddler remains a stand up though because it's a pretty awesome coaster and the stand up gimmick just works on it.

The wings are actually really good, the Boysenberry BBQ sauce is the right combination of sweet & spicy. They put the BBQ sauce on the meatballs as well, so those are also very tasty!

I am going to try and get to the park next week, is anything down besides Apocalypse and Riddler? And does anyone have an idea about when they will open back up?

Will do, we plan on doing a bunch of activities in the Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg area in addition to Dollywood. If there are any must see attractions for a first timer, feel free to share them!

I'm headed to Orlando in August, so I hope they at least stay around for the summer. I've been telling my kids about them for years, so I'd like for them to get the chance to finally ride them. I know it's not the same since they stopped dueling (thankfully my first visit to IOA was when they were dueling), but they are still some of my favorite B&M inverts and the lines are never too long.

I am taking the family there for 5 days in June and we live in Las Vegas. But there's probably some TPR members that have traveled from Europe or Asia to visit Dollywood.

This x 1,000, please don't take out a pair of great coasters for more screen based rides. Hulk and the Dragon coasters are Islands of Adventure and it would be said to see them go.

No, they've always checked bags. They finally added medal detectors, so now all SoCal amusement parks have them.

Agreed, the last thing the park needs is another low capacity launched coaster.

Glad to see Terroride getting a makeover, it certainly needed it. Any idea on what the other two rides (Flying Tigers and Ruka Safari) are going to be?

I know exactly how you feel! I just booked the DreamMore for June 26-30 for our first visit to the park. DW has been on my list for a long time and became a huge priority after LR was built. Summer can't come fast enough!

Agreed, it almost always has three trains running and the ops that work it are very good. Don't let a long line deter you from riding TC, the line moves consistently and fairly quick.

Knott's actually has a higher EBIDTA (profit) number than any Cedar Fair park not named Cedar Point. (At least they did in the last annual report I read.) So to say that there's a financial reason Knott's hasn't gotten a shiny new B&M wouldn't be factual. CF has been spending about $175 million annually in capex expenditures the last two years, so there's certainly room in the 2018 budget for a B&M at Knott's to go along with the RMCs at CP and KD.

From the photos, it looks there will be a small lake beneath the coaster to give the appearance of a jet ski skimming over the water, so that's probably the reason the coaster is being built so low to the ground.

The space argument just doesn't fly, if Knott's wants to put in a new coaster, they will find a way to make it fit. Remember, it's not only the Boomerang space that is available, they also have the Riptide space as well. Plus, as others have pointed out, the Boardwalk area has a lot of open space compared to the rest of the park. I just don't see the park removing a popular coaster (and it was very popular with the GP) and not replacing it with another coaster. The date is especially curious too since they are removing it prior to the busy summer season. If they were simply going to scrap it, then they probably would've waited until after Haunt to shut it down. Plus, 2017 was a smaller capex year for Knott's, and there are several rumors of a major construction project at Knott's beginning in April. All these factors point to Boomerang being replace by another coaster.

I'd rather have a B&M hyper than a dive coaster, but either would be a great addition to the park. Knott's hasn't added a "thrill" coaster since SB in 2004, so it's definitely time for a big thrilling new coaster. The park could really use another high capacity ride, so a B&M would fit the bill perfectly. But I just don't see them removing a popular coaster before the busy summer season unless it's to get a early start on the replacement's construction. Knott's is not taking out Boomerang to plant more grass, that's for sure.

Since Dorney has Stinger, I could see it going to Michigan's Adventure. I don't think that they would just scrap it. It still rides reasonably well (for a boomerang) and I think it got new trains a year or two ago.

Let the speculation begin! Maybe Knott's is finally getting their long rumored hyper coaster?

That's great news on Lightning Rod! I'll be making my first visit to DW this summer and I was really hoping that the issues with Lightning Rod would be figured out by then. I am also excited to check out the new drop tower, which should be open for my visit as well.

That's a good point, if you don't see X2 testing, then hit up VR Revolution or Yolo first. If you go straight to Yolo during the early entry, you should be able to ride it 2-3 times before the GP gets into the park.

It's pretty much always worth it to purchase a Flash Pass at SFMM. I would get there early and use the gold season pass early entry on the far right. Once in the park, I would head straight left up the hill to X2 and get that out of the way first. Then head back down the hill to get your gold flash pass. Depending on how busy it is, you may want to get a 2nd ride in on X2 before you get your flash pass. Tatsu usually has one of the longest waits in the park, so I would reserve it as soon as you get your flash pass. Also, March 18 is not a bring a friend free day, only March 19 is BAFF. So I would definitely go on March 18 as the bring a friend free days get crazy crowded.