teacherkim

Got a chance to ride AFO last Sunday. I didn't mind the hard stop on the brake run but holy hell that thing has some extreme ejector air, particularly on the bunny hills at the end, but all in all I thought it was great. Note, I usually really like rmc's and the restraints do not hurt my shins like others report. I will say I only rode it in the front, my son rode once in the back and he was almost speechless about how wild it was and after a back seat ride followed immediately by a front seat ride he needed a break. Which I think is a first for him. So, for those that haven't ridden it keep that in mind! The whole vibe kind of reminded me of Thunderbird in the sense that there just shouldn't be a B&M launched wing coaster in a corn field but.....there it is. That RMC just shouldn't be there at a fun spot on the side of the road, like a carnival ride, but there it is

FYI - at the CoasterCon banquet Pete Owens and Eugene Naughton confirmed that they are looking at ways to improve the reliability of LR including the possibility of changing the lift hill mechanics. When asked if they were committed to keeping it a launch the answer was a clear and emphatic "no". I also talked to someone who did a VIP tour that included lunch with Pete Owens and according to that individual he discussed that they were looking at switching it over to a fast chain lift. While the extreme enthusiasts groaned a bit at this news (which in my opinion irritated the higher ups a bit but they were clearly expecting it) they did explain, and I clearly understand their perspective, that they just could not continue to have a $20+ million attraction that was only operational 65% of the time; which is probably a bout the percentage it was open during our 3 and a half days there. We personally witnessed 2 rollbacks, heard about a few more, saw them waffle back and forth with 1 train versus 2 train ops, etc.

I cannot predict the future BUT I can report that on Sat 6/24 they apparently had the busiest day they've had in 5 years. This was according to the team member that hosted a behind the scenes walkback of GASM and the storage area for the track of the new coaster. There was a post con add on day but with maybe a hundred or so ACE'ers they were not a huge impact and in fact it didn't even officially start until about 3 pm. We didn't get there until 3:30 since we'd been before and had to drive in from Charlotte but some others at the event that got there at open reported that it took 1 and a half to 2 hours to get through the parking lot toll booths, parked and into the park. Yikes. It was packed and hotter than hell and I did see one team member pass out and a couple other people getting sick from the heat. Stay hydrated out there people! I will give the park credit where due. Mindbender, ironically the only credit we didn't have, was down when we got there. I have no idea if it was simply mechanical or possibly related to the accident at Gronalund and doing extra inspections (we didn't find out about that until later) or what but they ended up opening it the last hour or so of operations. That was nice with the crowds and the fact that we wanted the ride and was a nice surprise that they kept the ride crew around and opened it up so late in the day. Also, since the event included ert on Goliath and TC from 9-9:45 they closed both lines early so they were cleared out for the ACE event, otherwise there would not have been any real ert. They were on top of if too because I saw two women unhook the chain across the entrance to Goliath after they closed it to get in line and they got booted right back out. There was a TON of security all over the park. The VIP DE lounge is awesome and had the best air conditioning in the park and actually had ice at the drink stations. We got some burgers at Johnny Rockets and took it in there to eat which was amazing and they were showing the Braves game on the smaller TV's and the Karate Kid on the central TV (I'm guessing they maybe rotate some classic movies or something?) If you need/want all the credits.................I would advise fastpass. If you are content to chill and just experience what you can then I would just prioritize your rides.

I'm short, 5' 1", and I have a bigger problem with my shoulders than my head on Mystery Mine, because there is so much space between the top of my shoulders and the restraints. Actually had restraint shaped bruises on the tops of my shoulders from getting jammed up into them. If she is taller, and most people are , then there might be more of a head issue. My son is a good 9 inches taller than me and very thin and it's more of a head banger for him. We almost never think the same rides are uncomfortable so body size/shape/height is definitely and issue with the experience. For instance I never have the shin discomfort that so many people complain about with rmc restraints, so I guess that's one win for those of us that are "fun sized"

I'm guessing they're only offering it during one of the ert sessions out of fear that if they tried to do more and it crapped out there would be disappointment, but boy is it going to be swamped on that one ert session. Maybe they will try to sneak in another round if it is behaving, you know better to under promise and over deliver.

You didn't mention the dates for your Dollywood/Carowinds trip (and you probably have it all planned out already) but do keep in mind that CoasterCon will be at Dollywood 6/18-6/21 and Carowinds 6/22-6/23 with a post days at SFOG the evening of 6/24 and Fun Spot Atl the morning of 6/25. I wouldn't try to change if your dates coincide at this point but just be aware that will be going on.

I think Rocky Top is one of the best of the alpine coasters and it's right on the way in and out of Dollywood, quick and easy. Going up to Anakeesta is probably worth it, along with the soon to be two mountain coasters they have a canopy walk, zipline, restaurant and awesome views. Ober Gatlinburg also has several activities including a mt coaster and is a pretty spectacular cable car ride to the top. As far as go karts/putt putt/etc they abound all over Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg and I don't think there is a particular standout. The Old Mill in Pigeon Forge and Pancake Pantry in Gatlinburg are both great places to eat. If you want to souvenir shop I suggest Gatlinburg, it's the older more sophisticated cousin of Pigeon Forge. If you have never been to the area I highly suggest spending a day or at least half a day in Smoky Mt National Park. The Sugarlands Ranger Station is just a minute or two outside Gatlinburg and the park rangers there have lots of info on the trails. There are several that you can do in just a couple hours or a half day that do not require any special equipment, just fun short hikes, and they have them all rated on how strenuous they are. Several places in Gatlinburg make sandwiches/box lunches specifically to take on day hikes, just google it and you will find a list. And if you really have the time you can also go whitewater rafting in the area.

Oh we've ridden it! Only credit in the park we don't have is the new coaster. So certainly not the end of the world if we miss it all together but was just hoping that it would behave for Con and especially for ert

Nice!!

Ugh, of course it's having issues since CoasterCon is only 2 weeks away. Although, they wisely are only offering it on one of the four ert sessions in the main park and that's a morning ert. I suspect they were very wary of over promising. This way if we get lucky and it's having a good day they can always add it in and everyone will be thrilled but if they don't no one can really complain.

Bert I can't wait to check out the lounge and Joel can't wait to check out the E-sports room when we come down in Dec!! We gotta try to talk Danielle into joining us.

I am POSITIVE he would be/is happy that you have pushed on and are going on another adventure. Have a blast my friend!!

Oh for f**cks it's a common slang expression, I find it hard to believe you are on this forum and have never heard it before.........but whatever that wasn't the point of the post. Sigh. Let's just let it go. Again.

I think you misread that into meaning the SFSTL carousel will not be done until 2026 but it's the Smithsonian one that won't be done until 2026. SFSTL at last update is planned for re opening this year, hopefully in time for National Carousel Day on July 25 but obviously that's not been announced as a for sure yet.

So if SFSTL is so awful and you don't give a shit about it; why do you keep coming on here to talk about it? I think I asked you once before when you were criticizing "thoosies" why you kept engaging them if you didn't like them. Don't think I got an answer but maybe I missed it. Guess what? If you picked any 3 year period we've all had a lot of stuff happen. So what? What's the point? It will take as long as it takes to do it properly as has been stated a million times before. It isn't a competition to be done faster than events in your life. You think it's too long? Cool. Don't worry about it. Don't come to the park for the carousel. Want to ride one with your daughter then how about the one at the zoo, or Faust Park, or city museum, or the mall, or any of a hundred other places. It can be a crappy one, you already said it doesn't matter.

Really. You had to open up this can of worms. Again. Shame on you And 2026 for this carousel is 3 years from now, unless it actually went down in 2020?

That is very interesting about FL. I checked on the website and it doesn't seem the price has really increased or if it did not by a noticeable amount. Hmmm wonder why and if that is chain wide or an experiment or what?

Maybe, maybe not; BUT I can tell you whenever we talk to non enthusiasts about belonging to a "roller coaster club" the layman's term I usually use and traveling around to numerous theme parks, they almost always say something like "oh, have you ever heard of a place called CedarPoint", lol. I mean it's become a family inside joke. CP is definitely on the radar of the gp.

I have to agree with everyone here that you can't really judge if you haven't tried it in however many years, and if Prozach and I are agreeing you are probably on the wrong side of opinion here The homemade cooler lunch will be cheaper sure, but is it a better value in terms of quality and/or time? Leaving the park to eat is a time consuming hassle. I would say no, the new Farmhouse restaurant back by SV has some legit good stuff to eat and I don't mean just compared to other theme park food; but the point is you need to try it before you make a judgement or you're just assuming and you know what they say about that. For many families no specific ride matters more than another. Mom/Dad/Grandma/Grandpa may or may not want to or be able to ride much BUT if there are other things to do.......like a beach, bars, live music, cool places to eat and hang out, an old style beach pavilion with several of those things, etc, etc. then yes, it will attract families. You need to look at the boardwalk area as a whole not just how attractive one particular ride is. Families pay the high price for the Breakers not just for the convenience but also because some family members can enjoy the day doing things other than rides while other family members can stay at the park all day and no one is "stuck" waiting somewhere they don't want to be.

But.......aren't you doing the same when you generalize people that live in "shithole" neighborhoods? (Your words in another thread) And before you say I don't know what I'm talking about I taught public school for 28 years in one of those types of neighborhoods.

Almost certainly nowhere, the park could not get it operational. After the extensive refurb they did, they intended to keep it running as long as possible and I know the maintenance staff was very disheartened that it went down so soon after said refurb.

Thanks for the report, haven't taken the time to drive across the state to WOF in a number of years, but we will be at SDC sometime this summer to use a couple of free tickets we got at the mostly snowed out Coaster Christmas event and are definitely planning on swinging up to WOF at that time to celebrate the 50th and catch ZZ.

I'm sure there are some that do, and I believe there is an official log flume appreciation group. However, I wasn't really thinking of that when I posted, it's just that the left side is not open nearly as often as the right and it is a slightly different track/experience. Plus you are out of range of the pay to blast people soakers on the left.

I'm almost certain we bought FL+ at the main check-in counter at the Breakers. Did I dream that up? Or is it maybe not done anymore?

The bridges are temporary. Usually, both sides are only open on really busy days, plus there has to be enough staff to do it. When only one side is open they usually use the right (as you descend the stairs to get on) because of ADA access BUT that side is currently down for a mechanical issue; hence the bridges for ADA access to the left side. Take advantage of the left being open when you are at the park, it's a lot harder to get rides on that side, lol.