CedarFlags

I really like Pony's new paint job. Less cartoony with the color contrast. This photo makes it look kind of plain brown, but it's more of a copper color in person.

So I had my first ever visit to the park on Monday 10/11 and it was a doozie.... I'd like to tell a story about Runaway Mountain. And I think my experience with this one ride really encapsulates the entire visit. It's a lot. So... like a huge number of the rides in the park, Runaway Mountain was closed for most of the day. And I get it that parks can't always control these things, but the amount of closures was STAGGERING, especially for the first half of the day. It was hard to tell when it re-opened, because the app actually never updated to say it was closed. For about 3-4 hours, it just kept saying 10 minute wait. But it did reopen and I snagged a Flash Pass wait time for it because the line very quickly got super long. With so many rides being down, the ones that were open definitely had to absorb more people. I decided to walk the queue just to look. The scenery in the queue was gorgeous. I was pleasantly surprised over and over again how lush the park is with all the trees and streams and stuff. The park was so much prettier than I was expecting. I read that the waterfall effect was recently restored and I thought it was cool that they dyed it red for Fright Fest season. So, my Flash Pass time comes up and I walk down the pathway with the sign to find this clump of people standing around. Some are waiting for their reservation time to actually get there, some have made it to their time, and some are guests trying to exit the ride. The ones exiting have to re-enter the station to get their stuff from the bins, while the new passengers are also trying to enter the station to leave their stuff. And it's just total grid lock and the girl at the door is doing the best she can to manage these separate groups of people but it's awkward as hell. So I do get into the station and I'm one cycle behind my turn. And the RO at the dispatch panel *very* aggressively announces that the gates will be open for only 3 seconds before they close and will not open again. Each of the cars (4 riders) has a gate, so that's less than 1 second per rider. And true to her word, she shuts the gates after 3 seconds, leaving one pair of riders stuck on the wrong side and sending the train with an empty row. With a 45+ minute queue. Which then totally screws the grouping for the next cycle and the girl at the door (who is grouping, managing flash passes, managing the entrance queue, and managing the exiting riders who are going back for stuff) has to fully re-group. So I finally get on the ride and it's actually kind of great. Way more exciting than I was expecting, and the turning drop off of the midcourse faked me out into thinking there was going to be an inversion. Super fun. And even though there's no theming in the building, I noticed a spooky little ghost projection on the ceiling as we climbed the lift. Such a nice touch. And then we turned around and I noticed the projector on the other side of the ceiling was showing a blue Windows startup display. So we finish the ride and I get off and tell the Ride Op on the unload platform about the projector... thinking she'll be like "cool, thanks for letting me know about it, I'll call someone." She just kind of smiles and says "okay", and that's it. So... that was pretty much how the day went. Other highlights... NTG is incredible and I think it might be my new #1 steel coaster. But the dispatch times were atrocious all day long. Just about every cycle stacked (running 2 trains), so we were looking at about 3 minute dispatches as the norm. I saw lots of people walked out of the line because they were so frustrated with how slowly it was moving. The 3-second gate rule was also in effect here, but obviously didn't make much of a difference. The Love At First Fright show was so cheese, but the performers were all very talented and I was impressed by the overall production quality. For some reason, the employees checking Flash Pass at each ride weren't actual employees. They were all wearing shirts that were from some Booster Club, and about 1/3 of them weren't even checking or scanning before letting people through. Seemed weird that the park would outsource something like that.

First ever trip coming up next week. I'm so hyped! Based on the price of Flash Pass for the day, I'm assuming that the Columbus Day holiday is pretty busy? Any absolute Dos & Don'ts for a first timer?

You're also going on a Saturday. These events always have variable pricing and there are cheaper options available if you don't want to spend $200. And like... if parks had to give discounts whenever a ride went down, it would be chaos. Go there for the event and the experience as a whole.

Oof... first King's Island over Memorial weekend, and now this. Six Flags America Closes Early After Large Fights

Quick trip the other day. Nothing spectacular to report on. I love the return of the forward launch on Superman, but I think that the backward side is the best overall experience. So glad to see Tatsu back up and running, and it's still a blast. Apocalypse rides a little bumpy but it's not uncomfortable... feels like one of those vibrating massage chairs but just a lot more aggressive. Batman still slaps. TC still not racing.

Looks like one side is the original lights (which probably don't work anymore) and the other side is new lights that were installed for this photo op.

No one has seen the mazes yet except for the build crew, so no word on the plexi. Fast Lane at Knott's lets you bypass a LOT of line for most rides, so the impact of accessibility passes would be negligible. Some rides have a dedicated FL line, some go to the exit. Mazes generally don't accept accessibility passes because the queues are designed to be ADA compliant, negating the need for an separate accommodation.

Took a little afternoon trip last week. Overall it was fine, but there was just a buildup of small wacky stuff Surprisingly cold for August and it drizzled on and off until about 1pm. But it was a nice break from the usual heat. Several rides were not using their indoor queues (i'm guessing covid safety?) I noticed Superman, Lex, Apocalypse, and WCR (not Batman for some reason). Superman, Apocalypse, and WCR were holding guests outside and then letting one train worth of people into the building at a time. Lex was using the FlashPass side entrance (but didn't have a sign or anything, just shut the front door making a bunch of us think the ride was closed). Goliath parked short in the station when we returned and we couldn't get out for a couple minutes. But the crew had NO CLUE what to do. I was listening to the gal at the panel call it in to the office and the way she described it sounded like they didn't even know what to call this situation. So that was not super confidence inspiring because I knew exactly what the deal was from back in my Ride Op days. Batman had a sign out front saying it was running1 train. But I got to the station and they were running two. But then they unloaded one train and sent it for one cycle with just a single employee riding, and then empty for a second cycle. And then put it back in service immediately after that. I'm not sure if it was a training thing or what, but it was odd. Scream was riding pretty well. Slight rattle still, but much better than I've seen it before. Still a parking lot coaster, but I'm still glad that we have it. The side wheels need some love though, because that turn out of the station is creaky and LOUD. And the final moment of wacky... while in the pre-loading area of the Lex Luther queue, I noticed that the Operator at the panel on one side was getting her hair braided by another employee. Like... while she was working the ride. At the risk of sounding like a Six Flags hater... i would like to point out that their revamped entrance security screening is incredible and I'm completely in love with it. So quick, so easy. 10/10.

I finally got my butt over to Ghostrider on Monday and it was running like GLASS. Seriously, the smoothest (imo) since it first re-opened post renovation. Scary Farm season is usually pretty rough on Ghostrider (lots of 14-16 hour operating days), but if this is how well it rides after a whole summer season, then Knott's ride maintenance is definitely doing something right. Now.... how about we FINALLY get Hangtime open again? This is turning into a repeat of Xcelerator circa 2017.

You will definitely want it on the Friday of your trip. Thursday would be a bonus, but I don't think it would be necessary unless you wanted to squeeze in rides plus mazes.

The Knott's website has it listed as closed until 8/20 right now, so that sounds legit. The lull between summer and Scary Farm is traditionally a maintenance season for GR, so this seems like the park starting a little early but keeping it available on weekends for the busy days? Bummer for me though, cuz I was REALLY looking forward to a midweek no-lines visit soon and being able to get on GR in under an hour.

New Maze announcement! Looks like we only get one new this year but, given the circumstances it makes sense. Also, Knott's has been really big on easter eggs in the last few years, so I wouldn't be surprised to find extra unannounced things once it opens (like the funeral in Forsaken Lake or the dancers that were on the Saloon a few years back). So it's kind of a circus sideshow story, fitting into Carnevil.. Hard to tell much about the actual experience.

Ladies and Gents we have a NEW SCAREZONE this year! GORE-ING 20s in the Memory Lane area. Not sure how well that area lends itself to being a scare zone but I think it's a very clever concept in how it builds on what the park has already done there. https://fb.watch/79_7Um6nMY/

Whiplash or not, Flip Flap Railway and the 3 separate Loop The Loop coasters all opened and operated for several years with a loop. The fact that they had issues and eventually shut down doesn't negate that.

Patrick Wilson in a fitted white tee + RMC.... This content was made specifically for me and I would like to thank SFGAdv very much.

Quick trip last week. The parking lot was already pretty full by 10:20a but the ride lines didn't get too bad until 1 or 2. YOLO and Tatsu were closed. Apocalypse, X and WCR had delayed openings. Batman - Had two trains on the track but only loading 1 due to no line. And yet... they still managed to stack the train upon our return. Yes, they stacked 1-train ops. Didn't think it could be done. New paint looks great and it's still my favorite ride in the park. TC - Did not witness any races while in line and went for a 0 racing ride. Crew seemed to be trying pretty hard, but was just not making it happen. In about 15 total rides, I've raced blue side twice and green side never, so maybe it's just me. Lex - Standard fun ride, the tower sway from Superman cycles is still very creepy. Justice League - On board audio didn't work for our car and I noticed several of the practical effects were not working. Superman - So nice to having it running at full speed again. The wind in your face on the reverse trip is still nuts. Still not a coaster, but still a total blast. Ninja - I always make a point to go on Ninja because it's so old and I never know when it might get the chop (hi-ya!). Operations were RUGGED though. Multiple dispatches of 3-4 minutes. One crew member obviously picking up slack for the rest. Then the ride went down when I was next, but I stuck it out for about 15/20 minutes. Still a fantastic ride, but I do very much miss all the trees. Also, according to a new-ish sign at the ride entrance, Revolution is the "world's first looping coaster". I'm just like...

Accurate

Jeez, this park cannot catch a break this summer...

You win. Lol

They already did a movie tie-in with Terminator Salvation. Black Adam isn't as established, but the precedent is definitely there.

Correct. The area is called DC Universe, and the new ride's footprint will be sandwiched between Batman: The Ride and Riddler's Revenge. So it's definitely going to be a DC character Personally I think Flash and Wonder Woman are the most likely options. WW especially, since Six Flags already has all the logos and stuff pre-made. I was hoping for it to be Joker, but it makes sense that the park would want to expand beyond Gotham City since they purposely rebranded that area a few years back from Gotham City Backlot to DC Universe.

I'm absolutely not here for assigning blame or fault.. just compiling the stories that made headlines. Clearly Holiday World was not at fault, it's just something that happened. The King's Island fights shut down the park and resulted in 6 criminal indictments... that's definitely a significant incident. Also... don't crap on theme park employees finally making decent pay for one season by saying they aren't worth it. That's gross and so disrespectful, especially in a freaking theme park appreciation message board.

I really am just in awe of all the bad luck, accidents, incidents, and general nonsense that has been plaguing parks in America in such a short span of time this summer. And I feel like it's worth cataloging the various stories in one place just to look back on all the craziness. From mid-May to mid-July, these are the stories I can think of... the fights at King's Island's opening weekend that shut down the park the death on Voyage at Holiday World the two ride incidents at Six Flags Great Adventure (log flume flip and El Toro wheels) the lift cable break on Skyrush the lift chain break on Gatekeeper the viral video of the Magic Carpet ride gone insane at a carnival in Michigan the false alarm shooter at Knott's Berry Farm that shut down the park RMC closing Stunt Pilot & Jersey Devil for train modifications death on the rapids ride at Adventureland All of this in under 2 months. Did I miss any other big stories? EDIT: I do realize that some of these are just things that do happen from time to time. but I can't think of another time this many things happened in such a short timespan.

It has 3 trains and pretty much always runs 2. They used to run 1 train on slow days, but that seems to be more rare recently. 1 train ops on GhostRider is hell though because the ride is just so long. On a day where every other ride was a 5-10 minute wait, I waited 30 minutes for GhostRider and there were only 5 cycles worth of people in front of me. Also... we live in a different world than we did in 1998 when it comes to loose items. First off, Everybody carries a $1000 computer in their pocket that they need to put away before every ride. There are exceedingly few people who can just walk thru a gate and sit down,. Secondly, CF has developed one of the most aggressive loose item policies of the major chains. I vividly remember being able to bring a backpack onto most rides by just putting it on the floor and sticking my legs thru the straps. Now Knott's wont even allow shirts tied around the waist anymore because they're "loose items". Big same. I had high hopes for Hangtime that maybe they could squeeze out shorter dispatches with fewer riders to handle, but.... nope.