Invertalon Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 I like how in Rougarou's description, Cedar Point describes it as the park's "first floorless coaster" as if they plan to add more. I might just be reading too deep into that. Since when did Raptor, Gatekeeper and Wicked Twister receive floors?? On a side note, while very excited for this possible addition I can't help but wonder why Cedar Point has such a disinterest in adding a decent wood coaster to their already steel-impressive lineup. I am assuming Mean Streak's traditional days are numbered (If RMC steps in eventually), but even then, that basically becomes a steel coaster as well leaving only Blue Streak. Not that I care as long as the ride is good, but just thinking out loud. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kyleds108 Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 Look at the timeline B&M have said before they take 3 years to produce a coaster, from sketch to opening. The 2016 operating season is less than a year and a half from now, which means if true, CP is well past the selection stage. If CP said they were in the selection stage for 2016 (which probably isn't possible for a project this big), that would mean they were deliberately trying to be deceptive, which makes me inclined to think this is true:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 I really love this even though it's probably going to be totally forceless. I think it's a shame that Cedar Fair hasn't built many Intamin rides lately but Cedar Point already has 4 awesome Intamin coasters. They also have a forceful old school B&M in Raptor so even though the newer B&M coasters aren't overly forceful, Cedar Point isn't lacking in that department. Maverick and Dragster have that covered and Raptor, Wicked Twister and Magnum aren't far behind. Since they already have all that and this ride would be totally unique to the park and the area (thanks to that holding brake element especially) I think it's the perfect fit. Plus, forceless or not these rides are amazingly smooth and a ton of fun. I think that it will be more well-received than Gatekeeper. Gatekeeper seems to be an absolute home run. Everyone would agree that it improved the look of the front gate and the ride area exponentially and the ride itself is a highly popular, very reliable people-eater that did over 2 million guests in it's first year. It also provides a very smooth ride according to everyone except enthusiasts who complain about B&M rattle being rough and in the next breath tell you that Magnum Xl 200 is their favorite coaster. Some enthusiasts complain about it but they probably make up about 0.001% of the total attendance. The idea that Gatekeeper wasn't well received because enthusiasts don't think it's forceful or don't like the incredibly comfortable restraints because "they hurt" is insane. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JRice92 Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 Gatekeeper seems to be an absolute home run. Everyone would agree that it improved the look of the front gate and the ride area exponentially and the ride itself is a highly popular, very reliable people-eater that did over 2 million guests in it's first year. It also provides a very smooth ride according to everyone except enthusiasts who complain about B&M rattle being rough and in the next breath tell you that Magnum Xl 200 is their favorite coaster. Some enthusiasts complain about it but they probably make up about 0.001% of the total attendance. The idea that Gatekeeper wasn't well received because enthusiasts don't think it's forceful or don't like the incredibly comfortable restraints because "they hurt" is insane. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 When I was at the park this summer, I got the feeling the GP was very meh about GateKeeper. Over-hearing conversations, most people were talking about MF, Maverick, and TTD. I also noticed GK only had a line in the morning, while the big 3 maintained healthy lines throughout the day. Just my observation though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 Raptor has always been the same way because of the location in the park so it's not a shock to see Gatekeeper in the same boat. Both rides chew through their lines in no time with 3 32 passenger trains and really fast crews. Both rides can get down to 5-10 minute waits at night but location is the big reason why. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diamondbacker27 Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 Raptor has always been the same way because of the location in the park so it's not a shock to see Gatekeeper in the same boat. Both rides chew through their lines in no time with 3 32 passenger trains and really fast crews. Both rides can get down to 5-10 minute waits at night but location is the big reason why. I've rode Raptor at 9ish? It was a complete walk on. No waiting at all. It was also a Saturday in the summer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 Exactly... full queue in the morning (pushing 2 hours sometimes), 5 minute wait / walk on at night. It's pretty typical and not indicative of the ride's popularity. Raptor is one of the top 5 rides in the park based on the ridership stats they posted for 2013. By the end of the day everyone is tired of walking and the rides are isolated by themselves in the front of the park and a long walk from everything else. Combine that with the fact that everyone probably rode those rides already, there are a ton of other rides to ride and the fact that the rides chew through the lines in no time at all and you end up with short waits at night. We love riding Raptor and Gatekeeper at night... especially if the Sky Ride is running so we don't have to walk to them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gad198 Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 ^ Agree with everything posted here. I think that's one of the reasons that - if this dive coaster project is truly on the table - that it makes a ton of sense from a number of angles. (1) Tt would be another popular attraction towards the front of the park, which hopefully will help balance the crowds more than they currently are; (2) it's another high capacity coaster, which is something that Cedar Point still needs more of IMO. To coasterbill's point earlier, Gatekeeper sent through more than 2 million riders in each of its first two seasons. In 2013, Gatekeeper came up just short of giving as many rides as Top Thrill Dragster and Maverick combined. If you took the ride counts for the 3 highest capacity B&Ms in the state of Ohio (Gatekeeper, Banshee, Diamondback, in that order) you'd be able to absorb the capacity of Cedar Point's big 4 Intamin coasters (MF, TTD, Maverick, Wicked Twister) and still be able to absorb Iron Dragon's yearly throughput. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Intimidator305 Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 They better make this Dive Coaster red in Dick Kinzel's honor. Might as well name it DiveHawk 223 too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolandmammoth Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 The absolute worst part about this is that Divehawk 223 isn't too much of stretch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 If I were Tony Clark I would purposely "leak" hints about it being called Divehawk 223 for the next year or so (like with Centurion). Please do this... please. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Intimidator305 Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 ^ I'd be down. Hopefully we will see this being trademarked by Cedar Fair soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Farmer Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 When I was at the park this summer, I got the feeling the GP was very meh about GateKeeper. Over-hearing conversations, most people were talking about MF, Maverick, and TTD. I also noticed GK only had a line in the morning, while the big 3 maintained healthy lines throughout the day. Just my observation though. My one 2014 visit was during Halloweekends, so I can't judge it's popularity by wait times, but my own opinion of the ride was that it's surprisingly punch-less; and having already sampled the other 2 US Wing Coaster offerings prior to GateKeeper, I wasn't expecting it to be Winged-Kumba on Lake Erie to begin with... I mention this because I think B&M Winged Coasters offer a very similar ride experience to their Dive Coasters, the only difference being a rollover drop instead of a vertical drop once you get to the top of the lift- both of which are then followed by a few giant, drawn out elements that are admittedly impressive looking if you're watching it from the ground. On the plus side, both are monsters in terms of capacity- very important at a place like Cedar Point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texascoaster89 Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 Raptor has always been the same way because of the location in the park so it's not a shock to see Gatekeeper in the same boat. Both rides chew through their lines in no time with 3 32 passenger trains and really fast crews. Both rides can get down to 5-10 minute waits at night but location is the big reason why. I wish my home park SFOT could be this efficient. I visited Cedar Point for the first ever in September this past year, I had the time of my life! I did notice how quick and efficient the team members are and I appreciated it. SFOT crews...I could write and have a movie screenplay approved for theaters by the time I get to the station lines... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whatabeast Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 Maybe Centurion was filed for a Cedar Point dive machine. Also, I wouldn't be surprised with a new coaster so soon, considering how far behind Magic Mountain they are on their roller coaster count these days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrSum1_55 Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 ^Lately, it seems like CP has shown little interest in maintaining that record. They removed two coasters within a short amount of time. I am also perfectly ok with this, as CP has shown a tendency to build more complete attractions, while many SFMM rides in the last few years have seemed like quick grabs for a higher count. (With the exception of the very awesome looking Twisted Colossus) I hope that CP gets a bit more creative with a dive machine, though. What sets CP apart from other parks is that they like to build the largest and most complex of whatever type they buy. Despite Gatekeeper's reception, it is still the largest, longest, and most complex of all the wingriders (though maybe not the best, but I would be beating a dead horse to say that the opinion of enthusiasts is irrelevant). So, I hope that this one would be different enough from the Busch ones, as these are more or less the same rides. While I like Sheikra a bit better due to the views, the inclusion of tunnels, and the intense turnaround after the inversion, I would not call the experiences significantly different. (They are still both very good rides, though). I know that most GP would probably not take much notice if they were similar, but it would be cool if we could see an element that was new to this ride concept, like the heartline roll on the one at Gardaland. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Movieguy Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 ^ I agree. If they're going to put in a dive machine, I want to see something besides a simple clone of Sheikra. B&M builds too many clones already, and they need to challenge themselves a bit more, I think. Also, could they come up with a name that's not so generic and underwhelming? Gatekeeper was clever, initially, but I still think that even Cedarfair can do better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ferk60 Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 Cedar Point getting a dive machine would be great for a few reasons 1. Cedar Point does not really do anything half ass. A. They always try to make sure that they bring something unique to the table. I went to Cedar Point for my first time last summer and I was blown away as how every coaster was a full coaster. B. I know they do not have the roller coaster record anymore but it didn't matter because granted some coaster were older but I appreciated that at the time they were big deals. 2. B&M coasters normally are a pretty solid. B&M does not really build sub-par roller coasters and they are durable. I have been on Griffon. It is short but it was a blast and I love the floorless seats. Dive coasters can be one trick ponies but the new models do have inversions. Also depending on how it is built it will be a a definitely skyline changer with a killer drop! If it is 223 feet tall and it will have a tunnel it might be a 250-60 foot drop! Id love to see something really funky on the inversion side like what Intiamin did with storm runner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 B&M builds too many clones already, and they need to challenge themselves a bit more, I think. Why do they need to challenge themselves more? Every coaster they build lately is a massive home run with everyone except enthusiasts that make up .001% of park attendance and those people are already going to the parks anyway. B&M is doing just fine. Also, could they come up with a name that's not so generic and underwhelming? Gatekeeper was clever, initially, but I still think that even Cedarfair can do better. If they don't name this ride DiveHawk 223 then I'll be so disappointed. Cedar Point does not really do anything half A$$. And here comes the flood of people whining about Gatekeeper (the most popular ride in the park that came with a beautiful new entrance plaza and ride area and is amazingly reliable) in 3... 2.... 1... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SFOGdude25 Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 I really loved SheiKra at Busch Gardens. It was deceivingly intense and great fun. I would be very pleased if Cedar Point built a dive machine. They are really unique coasters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Movieguy Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 Why do they need to challenge themselves more? Every coaster they build lately is a massive home run with everyone except enthusiasts that make up .001% of park attendance and those people are already going to the parks anyway. B&M is doing just fine. So, you're basically saying it's OK for them to just sit on their laurels? Well, that's the business world today, I guess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Invertalon Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 I for one think Gatekeeper was the best addition in a VERY long time, Maverick included. I didn't care for it much opening year until they fixed the vests and changed the wheel combo which sped it up considerably about mid-way through the first season. Along with Raptor, I don't need to leave the front of the park very often and happy the lines stay short in the evenings... We have gone on full-lot days at 8pm or so and waited only 10-15mins for both GK and Raptor. I can see why people wouldn't care for GK, but to me it is just a solid, fun ride with great elements and visuals. Just a great experience, even if the ride itself is not the best if that makes sense... A dive coaster will be a great addition and was on my wishlist for their next steel coaster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 So, you're basically saying it's OK for them to just sit on their laurels? Well, that's the business world today, I guess. They're not resting on their laurels but they seem to be a conservative company. They've recently entered the world of Giga coasters and Banshee is a major step up from what they've been building lately in the intensity department. That being said their conservative approach has led to very reliable rides, very few delayed openings and very positive reviews from everyone besides enthusiasts. This seems to be working well for them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Movieguy Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 ^I'd forgotten about Banshee. Good point overall. It's working now, so don't rock the boat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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