steel

Okay, every coaster has its off days. All of them. I know that personally. I almost blacked out on Talon. I also had a headache for the next two days because of it. I didn't like it as much as I probably would have because it wasn't running well. Same thing with Prowler. I'm sorry, but I just cannot believe that it was running normally if it's being called similar to "a GCI Mini-Family sized coaster." You should have heard what people were saying about it at Coaster Con: "This is the best GCI I've ever been on," "Better than Thunderhead," "That was completely amazing." It's like calling Hades a junior woodie. It's so far off from everything else that's been said about it (and it certainly isn't on par with my own experience), that I have to assume that he probably got it on an off day. WHICH IS FINE. I'm NOT saying there's anything wrong with that. And I realize he didn't hate it or even dislike it. ALL I AM SAYING is that based on his description, I would be amazed if he didn't ride it on an off day. And that is not an unbiased rating, even if Erik was as unbiased as he could be about it. In other words, I absolutely do not think that anyone is required to like or dislike any coaster, BUT, based on this review, I'm relatively sure that the coaster was running slowly the day they rode it, so the rating simply cannot be accurate. That has nothing to do with the competence of the person who rated it or with the quality of the ride to begin with. All it means is that every coaster has bad days (and I'm sure Erik would be the first to tell you that) and that Prowler is a lot more intense than what I saw in this TR.

Looks awesome, but I agree with nin (^^), you should add guard rails in there. Never seen a rapids ride without them.

Woah dang, this is really good. Keep it up.

^Lol, classic GP. This is so sad. BBW was my second favorite at BGE after Apollo. I'm just sad that I never got to ride it in good weather (it was pouring rain when I was there).

Oh yes, because I consider WoF my home park and because I really like it, I'm labeled a fanboy. It's awesome that you are friends and everything, I'm not saying there's anything wrong with that, but your friend got an outstanding ride on an off day, and, like it or not, the nature of this website is to believe pretty much all of what you and your group of friends say. And that is usually fine. I don't want a huge meltdown or anything like that, please. If we need to continue this via private message, I'm fine with that. I just wanted to make it clear that this is not what Prowler is at all. Read any of the other reviews of it, on this site, even, or better yet, ride it yourself. I don't want such an outstanding coaster to be labeled how it was (even if it's a pretty positive label) on a high-quality, high-traffic site like TPR. Because that just is not what Prowler is. It doesn't normally feel like a junior woodie, ask anyone who's ridden it. Please don't bite my head off for that.

Wow, I'm not calling anyone out. Excuse me for disagreeing. I don't know where you got that. I'm just saying that this is the only even kind of negative review I've seen of Prowler, and also that it is not accurate according to my experience with the ride, which, TBQH, is a little more extensive than Erik's, as nice and honest and unbiased as I'm sure he is. I'm sorry, you run a great site, and 99% of the time, you're all wonderful, but you really can be a little cliquey sometimes. And if that means I get banned or suspended or something, so be it. I'm not sure I want to be associated with this website if it behaves that way. I don't want to offend anyone or start a huge fight, I'm just saying, there's no reason to get upset.

Honestly, you just have to ride it. The drops are both really good, the theming is excellent, and you get to wave at people eating lunch. It's impossible to describe how awesome it is.

Prowler is easily and without any question whatsoever the most intense GCI I have ridden. It's tons and tons more intense than both Evel and Rumbler without trying. I don't know if it was just running badly when you were there, or what, but normally, it absolutely hurtles through the course. This is the first review I've ever seen of Prowler that's even mildly negative. Maybe it actually was running slowly (it has done that before), or maybe you were just expecting the worst, but it is miles and miles and miles better than you described it. (Incidentally, I'm thinking you probably weren't as impressed by Worlds of Fun because you went there right after SDC - that wouldn't surprise me at all). So I was pretty disappointed with the WoF section (mostly because now everyone on this site is going to think that Prowler is lame), but the rest of the TR was great. I agree, SFSL's Freeze is less intense than SFOT's. And SFOT is themed better, even if the color doesn't make sense.

Lived in the Twin Cities for years, still go back all the time... Como Town - you NEED to go and check out Drop Zone. Seriously, I'm not even joking, this has to be one of the best drop rides in the country. Not kidding. It's really small, so people pass it by, but it is so much fun. Nick Universe - IMO, Camp Snoopy was a way better theme, but NU has some good new rides. Spongebob is not the most exciting or forceful coaster on the planet, but it's worth a ride. Avatar is a lot of fun, but the wait is brutal. Ripsaw is a great way to see the park. And Fairly Odd Coaster is your standard spinning family coaster. Definitely also check out Tak Attack (I think that's what it's called now) and the Jimmy Neutron ride. And DO NOT LEAVE, I repeat, DO NOT LEAVE without riding Log Chute, even if you don't like getting wet! It is the best log flume in the Midwest, without question, and one of the best in the country. Valleyfair - This was my first permanent amusement park, so I have a lot of fond memories of it. Steel Venom is a good way to kick off your visit. Wild Thing is tall and fast, but very boring. You can't ride Mild Thing, so don't worry about it. Excalibur is terrible - worth skipping if you don't care about credits. Corkscrew is photogenic, and that's about it. High Roller has good air and a terrible finale, but it's historic. Renegade is the jewel of the park. Ride many times and in both the back and the front. Other rides you should do - Xtreme Swing and Flying Trapeze are both a lot of fun. Riptide is good if you're into that kind of ride. Definitely do RipCord if you are willing to pay for it. My suggestion would be to Como Town, then go over to the Mall of America and explore (do the park, but explore the mall as well). Then the next day, do Valleyfair in the morning and explore the city in the afternoon and evening (it's kind of a trek to get to Valleyfair, but it isn't bad). If you have time, I highly, highly recommend the Mill City Museum It's right by the river, near the bridge that collapsed a couple years back, you can't miss it. If you like theatre, the Guthrie is outstanding. The Cities have a really nice art scene and there is a lot to do. P.S. OMG, holyblakbelt, I love your avatar.

Even considering Mitch Hawker's poll, I wouldn't be surprised if Afterburn is sort of under-rated. Patriot is the same way. It got all this talk early on about how it looks a clone of Talon, so you would think they would be closer together on the poll, but Patriot has been behind Talon since it opened (something that baffles me, since Patriot is rated very well everywhere else, and I cannot imagine Talon ever having been better). The Hawker poll is accurate, but there is always room for improvement.

I've been on the three Cedar Fair hypers (Wild Thing, Mamba, and Steel Force, in that order). Mamba and Steel Force are very similar, but I think Mamba gets the edge for me because of the enormous airtime on the second hill and for the headchopper in the helix. Steel Force is more visually pleasing, though. Wild Thing is just a forceless bore, and the MCBR essentially stops the train. It's okay in the front, but it goes so.... slow..... through the turnaround and the floater "air" on the second hill is barely noticeable. 1. Mamba 2. Steel Force 3. Wild Thing OH! And I've also been on the Santa Monica Pier coaster, which I'm pretty sure is Morgen. Photogenic, but very boring. EDIT: Someone asked - yes, both times I've been at WoF this season, Mamba has been speeding through the MCBR. Lot's of fun.

I would very much like to ride Montu. But I was way disappointed by Alpengeist (and Talon, for that matter), so who knows?

Aw... I have very fond memories of riding Avalanche 40 times in under three hours. That's too bad.

However, you don't have to hold on to anything during the initial freefall if you're by yourself. Incidentally, Valleyfair occasionally has $10- or $15-per-flyer discounts, which are awesome. I rode twice in one day once (one of those times at night)

Of those I've ridden: 1. Patriot (crazy under-rated) 2. Raptor 3. Alpengeist 4. Great Bear 5. Batman 6. Talon (in italics because I'm 99% sure I got it on a very bad day, so I can't rate it fairly)

At first I thought you were talking about the park IN Deadwood, SD. But obviously not. Looks like a fun little park. Nice job.

I was just in New Orleans for the ELCA National Youth Gathering last week. In their huge interaction center, they had sort of a mini skycoaster. It was really cool. It was like a skycoaster made from a zipline kit. I didn't do it (the line was too long and we had to go), but it was fun to see.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1h3Tf26TcA Well, here it is. The coolest thing that has happened to the internet in years.

^Quick summary: First launch-forward, not very fast, gets about halfway up the spike, if that Second launch-backward, faster, gets pretty much all the way up the spike Third launch-forward, very fast, gets all the way up the spike Fourth launch-backward, very fast, gets all the way up the spike, holding brake if in use Fifth launch-forward, slower than the third and fourth launches, gets about two thirds of the way up the spike That's how it's always been. I've never seen anything else on any impulse.

I've been on four: VF Steel Venom, Wicked Twister, GL Steel Venom/VooDoo, and V2. The train never gets to the top of the spike on the first launch. The second launch is the highest.

Disneyland Opening Day Part 1 - goes on from there. Fascinating stuff.

...Cedar Fair wasn't really into having more than two parks until the '90s. I would suggest having this start as an independent park and be purchased by Cedar Fair later. But the park looks good.

Renegade... by a lot... Nothing else even comes close.

Prowler is simply a better ride. EK is a lot of fun, but it just is not in the same league as Prowler. Evel is a great ride. Prowler is an outstanding ride.

Two questions: I recently installed RCT2 on a new computer. I played all the easy scenarios, then I got to Amity Airfield, which always depresses me, and gave up. I downloaded clocked (finished) scenarios for the rest. My first question is this: Where can I download clocked games for Build Your Own Six Flags Holland and Build Your Own Six Flags Over Texas? Those are the only two I couldn't find. Second, I want to get started on a new park soon, but, as I just installed RCT2 on this computer, I no longer have custom scenery or rides. What parks should I download that will give me the best selection of scenery and rides? Thanks in advance.