sdcfan88

Interesting on the first one. Looks like they are looking to build smaller less intense versions of NTAG. (A well known example of a non-inverting I-Box coaster) I really liked its airtime and bunny hills so if they can do more of those I'm for it. Simple yet effective.

Funny thing is they didn't put up a fence when they made that new pathway for the debut of Pumpkin Nights. Why do so now? Though for all we know they could finally be demo-ing the tower which would necessitate the need for one, nothing more, nothing less.

Heres a photo put out of the construction fence that was recently put up. It now extends all the way down and around Firemans Landing and extending behind part of the smoking area in front of the old Waterboggan Tower. Let the speculation begin. lol

Speaking of this, as I mentioned in the SDC thread a construction fence was put up around the Waterboggan Tower area thru where the final turn of the railway is. It's a pretty small & wooded piece of land. I remember it being rumored for years SDC was supposed to get their version of Mystery Mine so who knows maybe it's finally happening. EDIT: That and we know SDC has been obsessed with making record breaking "world's first" attractions as of late.

Yeah not surprised they came back. lol Their presence seemed very popular before.

That might indeed be true (and if Lightning Rod was never built LOL) Though on a serious note I do feel Hershend did invest more into DW over SDC up until the past decade which also contributed to the bigger draw. Just look at how quickly DW expanded their real estate (and coaster count) vs SDC from 2000 to now. 2000-2010 SDC got Wildfire, a family flat ride area, and the kiddie coaster. (Powderkeg was a conversion of the short lived Buzzsaw Falls literally reusing most of its track for the mid course, so its debatable if it counts) In fact SDC lost some stuff (Waterboggan and kids play areas) during that time that never got fully replaced. Also SDC's classic Fire In The Hole ride is in disrepair and might actually be demo'd in the coming years while DW fixed their version up. DW added several family/kids play areas, flat rides, Thunderhead, and Mystery Mine. 2010-2020 DW continued its coaster investments with their own kiddie coaster, Wild Eagle, Firechaser, Lightning Rod, and the large family expansion area with Dragonflier. SDC got Outlaw Run, Time Traveler, Firemans Landing and Mystic River Falls. (again with the latter two being a retooling of the site of a former attraction)

The skeleton of the Waterboggan Tower is metal so they could simply strip it down to the frame removing all the old wood and then rebuild around it and reuse the tower as a dark ride element for a small coaster. Think Mystery Mine at Dollywood.

It wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility. Prior to 1986 before Dolly came in, the park was known as SDC Tennessee back when the Hershends first took possession. Also you can already get deep discounts with a SDC or Dollywood pass to gain entry to either park.

Construction fences are up around the old Waterboggan Tower area. Looks like the pandemic hasn't put their expansion projects on hold after all.

^I have had some luck buying/selling that kind of stuff on eBay. Been collecting grandfathered Souvenir Mugs that way.

This actually reminds me of Buzzsaw Falls/Powder Keg at SDC. Most of the GP don't pay attention to know, but there's an old Buzzsaw Falls car wedged in the roof of the queue building and parts of the old track is reused for theming, most notably the "broken" rollback hill and the pieces of track littering the area around the launch. I can definitely see them following suit here since they are both Hershend parks and they like to theme their rides pretty well.

Wow it actually ran reliably with two trains? Its a miracle! lol

Coaster Studios on YouTube had a brief segment on it on their video trip report.

I saw that too regarding the trees. It's quite unfortunate. Man good thing miss Mary Herschend isn't around, she would be having fits over this. She was very adamant on enforcing their tree removal policy they had made for their properties.

Oh boy, Same ol Same ol. Lightning Rod closed down. If they want to stop spending money on refurbing it and have true reliability, they should have admitted it was a failed experiment and just dump the launch system from the equation and have RMC make the main hill taller and add a chain lift while they were in there doing the other modifications and be done with it. They could get away with doing a 200ft drop with that terrain. Unfortunately if this is ongoing, this is not gonna help the ride or the parks image in any way. EDIT: In case I get flamed I was being somewhat facetious in my statement as indicated by the emojis. Lol

My reaction... WTF!? I agree with the others it was one of my favorite rides at the park, now it looks like its gonna have a neutered and shorter ride experience.

I wouldn't be surprised if Herschend instead tries to snatch it up like they recently did with Kentucky Kingdom considering KK's history with Six Flags.

Yeah noticed that too. Almost sounds B&M-ish if that's a term. lol At the same time the more I look into it, the more I feel the same as coasterbill regarding the interest in the Mystery Mine project a few posts back. It will be interesting to see if they rework the interior theming and even the finale segment too.

I've heard of that clause but I had recalled it's for the same coaster type, not the manufacturer in general. That leaves us with a Floorless, Dive, or maybe even an Invert if they built it around 2023 at the soonest. I wouldn't expect an immediate investment on that scale until at least that year anyways.

Yeah not to be that guy but I'd be curious to know where all the tree replacements are for the ones they cleared for Wildwood Grove and the Lightning Rod upgrade... Seems to be a bit of a stretch. They got a lot of planting to do.

Yeah it makes me sad when any park loses a B&M. That's why I made my original statement above. Herschend has the money to give the park one once again if they wanted to even if it's a small compact invert or some other type.

True, not right away but eventually. I think it will greatly help the park to retire all the remaining cloned/shuttle coasters it has. (which really T3 is the sole survivor)

I could definitely see them putting in another Mack Launched Spinner in its place if so. The park could also use a small footprint B&M.

Not going to Kings Island before Vortex was removed. I know many said Vortex became painful in its final years but I always had a soft spot for the old Arrow coasters.

It will be interesting to see how this develops. Being a regular SDC passholder (being my home park) it will be neat if HFEC will soon offer a Platinum Pass like Cedar Fair to visit all the Herschend owned parks. Right now it's just 50 percent off admission to Dollywood and Wild Adventures.