CoasterFanatic Posted July 3, 2006 Posted July 3, 2006 With a planned trip to Tampa falling through the cracks at the last minute, Catrina and I hopped in the car for a quick 2 day trip. With reservations for the Days Inn in Batavia in hand, we drove to upstate Western New York for a coaster weekend. Conneaut Lake Park Ok ... so it isn't in Western New York, but our first trip of the tour was Conneaut. Upon entering the park, we ran into Pittsburgh native Tim Melago and walked back to Kiddieland. Back in Kiddieland, we found Kenny Jones (kidcoaster) and talked for a short while and made some introductions. The first ride of the day was the Little Dipper. Oh, who am I kidding, I was shot down before I even made it within 3 step of the ride. Looks like this credit will elude me again. Maybe, I will finally get a chance to ride it if an event is back there one day. After an embarrasing moment in Kiddieland, we headed to the Devils Den to pay our respects to the infamous "Wall of Gum". The wall itself was not quite up to the standards I have come to expect as some of the collection had been scraped off. Even with the recent cleaning, there was more than enough of the gooey stuff left for the all to retain this title. Now it was time for some "real" coaster action, as we headed to the Bluestreak. With our tickets in hand (except for Tim. He is the biggest supporter and purchased the season pass earlier this year.), we boarded the train and headed to the lifthill. The Bluestreak is looking pretty much the way I remember it from two years ago, but the train seemed to fight the course a little more than before. I am sure it is nothing major, but I just remembered a little smoother ride. One thing of note, was some new wood on the turnaround. Overall, the ride was in pretty fair condition considering the park's financial woes. Rides on the Flyers (with moderate snapping) and Carousel were also had before leaving for our next destination. Martin's Fantasy Island After visiting Conneaut Lake Park, we hopped back in the car and headed up 79 and over 90 before taking 190 up to Martin's. Over the years, I must have passed Martin's a half dozen times, but never stopped. This would change today, as we parked the car and headed into the gates. Opting for the after 5 option, the admission was only $9.95. Even though the ride selection was far from spectacular, Martin's was a nice little park. Many of the parks structures were permanent, but most of the flat rides were portable. The most important ride, however, was not portable at all. It was a fixed ride ... a coaster to be exact ... by the name of Silver Comet. Over the last couple of years, I have had heard some good things about this CCI creation. They turned out to be very true. This ride may not be the most thrilling thing on the planet, but it is a BLAST! Even at it's modest height, it delivers good air, some suprising laterals, and one of the best opening series of hills that I have encountered on any woodie. The Crazy Mouse was a different story all together. After having been on a dozen of these, I thought that I had sampled just about every variation there was. I was wrong. The Crazy Mouse at Martin's just didn't do much at all. The ride itself was slow through the entire top tier and the spinning action was pathetic. A real snoozer if there ever was one. We headed back to the Silver Comet and grabbed a couple more rides before leaving the park. I opted to get a last row ride just to get the whole picture, but it wasn't much different than the front. The ride is pretty consistent in every row. Six Flags Darien Lake Two years since my last visit, but I could still notice the Shapiro era changes that were taking place. Even before entering the park, we were given a souvenier map. A pretty nice souvenier, but I imagine that the $10 parking charge may have helped pay for it Around the park, the employees were very kind and helpful. Most would greet you with a "have a nice day" without any type of invitation. I was actually very impressed with the condition of the park. We rode every coaster with the exception of Predator. The boomerang was smoother than any other boomerang experience I can remember and the SLC was not nearly as punishing as some of the others out there. Viper was even running very well with the only real "rough spot" being the transtition into the heart-shaped loop. I would have probably been happy to just chill out at Darien all day, but we had one more park to complete our trip. Seabreeze Near Rochester, NY is a small park alongside the lake. Seabreeze may not be the biggest of the lakefront parks, but it is a gem. You will find all kinds of unique attractions here. The first ride was the new Maurer spinner. With a identical layout to Waldameer's ride, this one wasn't much of a mystery, but it was still a lot of fun. I would like to see some of the parks in the US look into the custom version of this ride. I recently rode the custom one at Chessington in the UK, and was one of the best coasters of the trip. Another ride at Seabreeze is a little more unique. The Bobsleds, is a junior woodie that retained it's wooden structure in 1968, but had the whole of it's track replaced with steel tubular track. The result is a really bizarre ride that reminds me a little bit of Blackpool's mouse, but much ... much smoother. It was definately one of those WTF moments. Seabreeze also has a classic with the Jack Rabbit on the other side of the park near the entrance. The Jack Rabbit is not the most thrilling ride, but it is a classic and there is a lot to be said for that fact alone. I hope you enjoyed the report and until next time ... enjoy the photos. Welcome to Conneaut Lake Park. The parking is now $2, but the entry is still FREE! A fountain at the entrance greets all visitors. The Blue Streak was running good. For a park of limited means, they do a good job of keeping it up. John (forget the last name, but he was on the UK trip) was on sight with some friends doing so ground maintenance. This classic band organ was filling the midway with some wonderful sounds. Even on my knees, I found out that I am just too tall for the Little Dipper. Hopefully the park puts some eyes in those clowns one day. These things have to scare the hell out of the kids. He I am on Conneaut's classic carousel Yay! Flying Scooters. Take that Southport. Welcome to Martin's Fantasy Island. The after 5pm admission is under $10. Some of Tommy and James' peeps were chilling outside the gates. Posing next to some scenery. Hey Catrina! Pose next to this groovy scenery. Note to self: Don't eat at Fat Phil's. Fingers? EWWWWW. Boo to lame no-spinning mouses. This is pretty much the reason we are here today. I love how this turn goes right down to the ground. This is one of the bigger surprises of the ride. Heading back for the station. Six Flags Darien Lake. (chances are that this park might just be called Darien Lake sooner than anybody thinks) Catrina poses for a shot with Sylvester and Bugs We will let you in soon enough but first .... ... a little song and dance! Crazy airtime on Superman: Ride of Steel. The ride was great, but like many of the other Intamins, it is starting to really rattle A brake shot for all you real geeks out there. (Don't take it personally. Afterall, I did take the picture) Down the first drop In my experiences, this is the world's SMOOTHEST boomerang Catrina's third boomerang, and she still doesn't get what everyone is talking about. I always thought that Wonderwoman had bigger boobs, but at least she didn't have a visable nipple ring (liek Robin!). It just wouldn't be a park photo TR without a silly hat photo. The country show was pretty interesting. I will leave it at that. Catrina has finally rode a READ SLC! Not that custom crap. That is for those soft people. Shipwreck Falls had a short line, but no thanks, I'll pass. The lifthill on the Jack Rabbit at Seabreeze. Down the first drop, you can see where you parked. Heading back to the station. Seabreeze is also home to a Maurer Sohne spinning coaster. More parks in the US need to wake up and install one of these great rides. They are just so much fun. Down the twisting first drop. The Maurer 2000 unlocks right before the horseshoe. A shot of Whirlwinds twisted layout. The biggest WTF ride in the park ... the Bobsleds. Climbing the lifthill Down one of the dips. This ride is just bizarre, but a lot of fun. One of Seabreezes best attractions is their "Classic" carousel. After their original burnt to the ground, they created this fine wood-carved master piece. This carousel is filled with many beautiful horses. The band organ is in tip-top shape and sounds great. It is really powerful and it's music can be heard all over the far end of the park. All around the carousel are rocking chairs where people can just relax and watch the ride. The carousel building is also full of these wonderful historical images. One of the carousel's beautiful horses. Another fine example Detail Detail Thanks for reading! Next park .... Kennywood.
Rugged One Posted July 3, 2006 Posted July 3, 2006 Nice pics Ted! I'm glad to got to experience, what is in my opinion, the most underrated woodie in the country. The Silver Comet. The opening hills and wild finally on that thing are great!
niiicolaaah Posted July 3, 2006 Posted July 3, 2006 DUDES, you went to Fantasy Island and didn't tell ME??! I'm so insulted!
CoasterFanatic Posted July 3, 2006 Author Posted July 3, 2006 ^ Many apologies. We wanted to hang out, but we weren't in the area too long at all. I would like to get back that way and do Wonderland and make another stop at Martin's. I liked the Silver Comet that much. See you in less than two weeks
niiicolaaah Posted July 3, 2006 Posted July 3, 2006 ^LOL, I know, I'm only kidding. Hence the wink. Glad you liked Silver Comet! I'll be riding it tomorrow!
trustkill22 Posted July 3, 2006 Posted July 3, 2006 I think im going to have to goto Martins Fantasy Island since lots of people talk good about it and also I pass it all the time to goto SFDL. I was at SFDL last week and all I have to say is that it changed so much with the people randomly greeting you and also there is nothing better than walking in the park and the first thing I did was walk to the bathroom and be greeted by a nice smelling clean bathroom with hanging planters on the ceiling. That was one of the Biggest WTF moments. And ya S:ROS is starting to get that rattle and also you get a good view of Batman in the Parking Lot on Superman.
Shockwave Posted July 4, 2006 Posted July 4, 2006 DUDES, you went to Fantasy Island and didn't tell ME??! I'm so insulted! Don't worry Nicole, I'll ring you up if I'm out that way! Silver Streak looks like a lot of fun, and I hope the Spinning Coaster at Seabreeze is smoother than the one at Camelot!
ParkTrips Posted July 4, 2006 Posted July 4, 2006 DUDES, you went to Fantasy Island and didn't tell ME??! I'm so insulted! says the girl who will only go to the park when its free tomorrow
Carnage Posted July 4, 2006 Posted July 4, 2006 Imagine that, MFI was actually open? It wasn't too sunny?
okinawaboy11 Posted July 4, 2006 Posted July 4, 2006 Wow, I've always wanted to ride Jack Rabbit. It seemed very...classic. And that detail on the carousel is amazing.
Meteornotes Posted July 4, 2006 Posted July 4, 2006 MFI = godly tacos! OK, Silver Comet is kind of fun, too... dt
pete4winds Posted July 4, 2006 Posted July 4, 2006 Great PTR...always nice to get reports from some of the remaining classic parks of the Northeast (unlike my defunct local parks Lincoln, Whalom, and Rocky Point). But here's a philosophical question...does this qualify as "Parking Lot Theming?" Borrowed from this TR for reference.
CoasterFanatic Posted July 4, 2006 Author Posted July 4, 2006 ^ I just think that it is funny that nobody mentioned the kid in front of me yet. He is just kind of chilling out with his hands behind his head.
niiicolaaah Posted July 4, 2006 Posted July 4, 2006 Great Photo TR...always nice to get reports from some of the remaining classic parks of the Northeast (unlike my defunct local parks Lincoln, Whalom, and Rocky Point). But here's a philosophical question...does this qualify as "Parking Lot Theming?" No, because the coaster was built in the 1920s, I'm sure the parking lot came after that.
kidcoaster Posted July 4, 2006 Posted July 4, 2006 FYI I was not running the dipper to turn him down. I was not in kiddyland for long. I was go in to big rides. I arrived at the devils den when ted got of the sent to the tilt a whril.
CoasterFanatic Posted July 4, 2006 Author Posted July 4, 2006 The dipper story is kind of funny actually. I was standing by the gates waiting to get on and this kid came up and stood next to me on the platform. When the op came over, he took both of our tickets and the kid headed for one row and I headed for another. Everything looked golden, so I signaled for Tim and Catrina to come on up. At this point, the op just kind of laughed and said "no adults". The op must have thought that when I boarded with a younger fellow that I was with him, but didn't have the nerve to stop me once I split off and grabbed my own row. Calling up Tim and Catrina ended up being the dealbreaker. // I sooooo had that one.
SharkTums Posted July 4, 2006 Posted July 4, 2006 Was Predator down or were you just smart enough not to ride it? I always thought that SFDL's Superman was the worst of all the Intamin Hypers Intamin Rattlewise, and 2nd from the bottom ride wise (Stupid Thunder Dolphin!) Nice Report! Stupid elusive kiddie credits!
ECZenith Posted July 4, 2006 Posted July 4, 2006 I've gotta go check that Whirlwind out! I've yet to ride a Maurer spinning coaster and I believe the park i sabout 4 hours away.
Darien Laker Posted July 5, 2006 Posted July 5, 2006 It's really sad, S:ROS's rattle is getting worse and worse. I first noticed it a few years back and my friends would tell me I was crazy, now they can agree with me. That's going to get brutal in a few years, I bet people will come off with bruised ankles thanks to those restraints. And yeah, Viper's got one of those transitions where you can tell just by looking at it that it will jerk you to the side quite a bit. It's still a good ride, but that bend (more of a bend than a turn) after the loop is pretty annoying, especially with those "head rests" that go halfway down your back.
CoasterFanatic Posted July 5, 2006 Author Posted July 5, 2006 Was Predator down or were you just smart enough not to ride it? It was running one train at a VERY slow pace. I watched it cycle once and it was bouncing just as bad as I remembered. Catrina isn't the biggest woodie fan to begin with so we instead opted for the SLC. Of course ... she liked it! Go figure.
ParkTrips Posted July 5, 2006 Posted July 5, 2006 I think if you compain about the rattle on Superman at Darien Lake youve got serious problems. I mean, c'mon, a park with an SLC, Dinn/summers woodie, old Arrow looper and a Boomerang and yet people STILL bitch about ROS? You guys are panzies
Darien Laker Posted July 5, 2006 Posted July 5, 2006 As far as Old Arrow loopers and Vekoma Boomerangs, those two are great. Viper has only one spot of headbanging, the rest is like new. I can't believe the thing is almost 25 years old, it's such a good coaster. It's not that much rougher than Superman, but it is a much more mild ride. Boomerang: Coast to Coaster is the smoothest coaster in the park. No headbanging what-so-ever, and very comfortable modern trains. May not be as good as Superman, but yes, it IS smoother. Predator really does suck....yeah. Mind Eraser too.
ImAPrincess Posted July 5, 2006 Posted July 5, 2006 Give me the Boomerang and the SLC over Viper anyday! My ear still hurts from the beating I took on it!
Coaster Palooza Posted July 5, 2006 Posted July 5, 2006 Great report Ted! It's really impressive how you fit all that in in just 2 days. It must be great to live so close to so many parks. We just got back from our trip last night. I'm hoping to post some photos soon.
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