Cedar Point (CP) Discussion Thread

[prozach626]

I would personally go directly to SV. Then, I'd go to Maverick. After that, depending on how close it would be to 10, I'd go wait at Dragster entrance until opening if it looks like it's testing

[operative_me]

What the others have said is correct, get SV and Maverick out of the way early. If you get really lucky you can make it over to Millennium Force for a little magic gate time.

 

Another trick I use is if I see Dragster is down, but maintenance is working on it or it is cycling empties, I go hit up Magnum a ride that for awhile until I see TTD is open. Granted the second it starts cycling a line will form (hell it might have a line before that), but if you can get over quick enough the line will be minimal compared to what it will be later. You DO NOT want the fun experience of waiting 90 minutes for Dragster just to have it go down while you are in the station.

[coasterbill]

You DO NOT want the fun experience of waiting 90 minutes for Dragster just to have it go down while you are in the station.

 

I don't even know the last time we rode Dragster where we didn't have to wait through a 30ish minute breakdown in the station. I'm not even joking, it’s probably been like 5 years.

[Canobie Coaster]

Same. It breaks down so often that the queue often empties. Once I see it test, I head on over.

[qwimjim]

You DO NOT want the fun experience of waiting 90 minutes for Dragster just to have it go down while you are in the station.

 

I don't even know the last time we rode Dragster where we didn't have to wait through a 30ish minute breakdown in the station. I'm not even joking, it’s probably been like 5 years.

 

Wow.. so I should expect a very difference from Great Adventure? the two times i've been to Gadv, both times on a late April weekend I went straight for KK and the station was empty for the first half hour of the day at least.. I got 5 front row rides in a row just last week, most I had to wait was one train to get the front.. and we had to wait for people to fill the train up, a half hour after opening. Then went to Toro and it was running trains half full for at least an hour after opening, probably longer but I left the area.

 

I was hoping maybe by going to CP midweek in early June it would be a similar experience But I guess it's a different beast, more like Disney where there's always a minimum "crowdedness"?

[coasterbill]

Yeah, Dragster is more popular and it breaks down a lot more often so when it’s actually open or even testing people flock to it. Kingda Ka at this point is amazingly reliable considering the fact that it’s a 400 foot launched Intamin. Dragster breaks down constantly every single day.

 

That said, I think part of the reason for this is that Dragster runs 2 load platforms and 2 unload platforms, has 5 trains on at once and probably launches at least twice as many trains per hour which gives it way more opportunity to break down. Kingda Ka runs between 2 and 3 trains and only uses one platform for both load and unload (even though they have 4) and they have to wait for the drop tower to cycle before they can launch trains.

Edited April 27, 2019 by coasterbill

[AndrewA86]

You DO NOT want the fun experience of waiting 90 minutes for Dragster just to have it go down while you are in the station.

 

I don't even know the last time we rode Dragster where we didn't have to wait through a 30ish minute breakdown in the station. I'm not even joking, it’s probably been like 5 years.

 

Wow.. so I should expect a very difference from Great Adventure? the two times i've been to Gadv, both times on a late April weekend I went straight for KK and the station was empty for the first half hour of the day at least.. I got 5 front row rides in a row just last week, most I had to wait was one train to get the front.. and we had to wait for people to fill the train up, a half hour after opening. Then went to Toro and it was running trains half full for at least an hour after opening, probably longer but I left the area.

 

I was hoping maybe by going to CP midweek in early June it would be a similar experience But I guess it's a different beast, more like Disney where there's always a minimum "crowdedness"?

 

Last year on the 3 or 4 days that I went in early June on weekdays the park wasn't all that crowded at all. Before noon Dragster was basically a walk on for the regular line. 5-10 minutes at the most. And during the last 3 hours I would say that the park was dead. Everything was no more than a 5-10 minute wait except for Steel Vengeance, which was 45-90 minutes.

 

On the days I went in early June I did very well getting on a majority of the bigger coasters before noon without FL+. If you follow this roadmap you should do pretty well... First of all get early entry access. That is key. At early entry I entered at the resort entrance. Walked, never ran towards SV. Did that, Maverick, and MF for early entry. By then early entry is over and the park has opened to the GP. I would head towards Valravn next which never had wait, and then while on Valravn I would look at Dragster and if operating I would do that next. It never had more than a 10 min wait. Then I would go to Gatekeeper which was never more than a 10-15 min wait. Then Wicked Twister with no wait. That's 7 coasters before noon. 8 if you want to make your way over to Blue Streak. It shouldn't have more than a 5-10 min wait. Then you can hit Magnum, Gemini, Corkscrew, Rougarou, Iron Dragon, Cedar Creek and any flats/water rides/ family rides. At about 5 make your way over to Raptor because the line will have calmed down, and you can do Blue Streak too if you didn't before. Then if it's anything like last year you should have minimal waits for anything you want to do until the park closes except Steel Vengeance. I would get in line for SV before the park closes it and make that the last ride of the day.

[Garet]

That said, I think part of the reason for this is that Kingda Ka runs 2 load platforms and 2 unload platforms, has 5 trains on at once and probably launches at least twice as many trains per hour which gives it way more opportunity to break down. Kingda Ka runs between 2 and 3 trains and only uses one platform for both load and unload (even though they have 4) and they have to wait for the drop tower to cycle before they can launch trains.

 

Took me a second to work out the typo. I've only been to CP once in my life when I visited some friends I made in Korea and since it was crazy packed from summer vacations (this was years ago before fast lane), we only got 1-2 rides on everything over the 2 days and yeah... even I ended up on stuck in a TTD break-down on each day.

[coasterbill]

Sorry about that. Fixed.

[anonymouscactus]

AndrewA86 is petty much spot on from my suggested route as well as being a regular. I would usually group in Gatekeeper to the "later in the day" with Raptor. (We go on Sundays and generally call this after 3p and are usually are last rides on the way out if we don't want to go back and do any rerides). The only thing different is when it is busier I always try to make Dragster the 10:00 ride vs Valravn. Other than that, this advice is solid.

 

Option 2, if it's busier, same thing but skip SV and just deal with the line later in the day because Maverick and Millennium CAN fill up quick starting at 10 so I usually get everything else out of the way. You will still be stuck with a long line at SV but that first hour is crucial and you don't want to waste the entire first hour in that line. Oftentimes they also couldn't get SV open on time, either.

 

Option 3: Marathon Millennium Force for a full hour of early entry.

 

Good luck!

[operative_me]

I also want to mention that a big part of riding TTD is preparation. I don't mean the wait, the breakdowns, or the launch. You have to be ready to endure hearing a snippet of Republica's "Ready To Go" roughly 3.2 billion times while waiting in the station.

 

The song will be in your dreams afterwards.

[AndrewA86]

). The only thing different is when it is busier I always try to make Dragster the 10:00 ride vs Valravn. Other than that, this advice is solid.

!

 

Yeah if it’s busier I would agree to make Dragster the 10:00 ride. But even on some busy days the dragster line did not get busy until after 12.

 

One day, which I believe was at the end of June, I marathoned Dragster for a whole hour before 12 with no more than a 5 min wait.

 

I think at least early in the day, Dragster benefits the most from the Steel Vengeance effect (everyone going there first, then probably Maverick). Most Everyone else from the front is going to Raptor because it’s in the front. Which leaves Dragster kind of caught in the middle. Valravn too if you get to it before 10:30. Valravn’s line was usually around 20-25 min at about 10:30. Most likely because that’s where the Raptor people go next. And Dragsters (if operating) is usually no more than 10 min. That’s why I would suggest doing Valravn at 10 and Dragster right after.

 

But if someone hasn’t been on Dragster before and they see it operating at 10 it might be a good idea to hit that then because it could break down at any moment and possibly never open back up.

 

 

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[anonymouscactus]

The other thing with Dragster is they sometimes only load the front few rows in the mornings. Then they will take off a chain a little later on. Then another a little later on. So they aren't loading full trains right away so capacity is down a little bit in the morning.

 

But you should be waiting for the front, regardless 8)

[Pedrinho]

Is it normal that they take away the bleachers from Luminosity in the offseason?

Combined with the hole in the fence and the cleared land from the dorms on the other side of the street it looks like clearing for something that connects both spaces.

[operative_me]

I assume that is for the Monster Truck attraction they are doing, which is supposed to take place in the Luminosity area and the old Cedars Dorm site.

[southpuddle]

I imagine there will be a bridge to connect the two areas? I’m finding it difficult to imagine how a level crossing with the road would work in terms of making sure no one sneaks into the park. Not to mention hoards of people stopping traffic all day to cross over.

[operative_me]

This is only a guess, but I think that is temporary while they move some things in and out. I heard that the actual ride in a monster truck course is going to be on the Cedars site. You would exit through the Marina gate to get to it. Where Luminosity is they will have displays for the trucks. At least, that's what the word on the street is.

[AndrewA86]

The other thing with Dragster is they sometimes only load the front few rows in the mornings. Then they will take off a chain a little later on. Then another a little later on. So they aren't loading full trains right away so capacity is down a little bit in the morning.

 

But you should be waiting for the front, regardless 8)

 

Right, they don’t load the full train right away but as the trains warm up they add the other rows. Not sure how long they take exactly but I feel like it’s 15 min or so. The best time to get a rollback is to be on one of the first full trains.

 

In fact, the last time I witnessed a rollback my friend and I were letting people in front of us trying to get on one of the first full trains. We got on the 2nd full train and the first one in front of us rolled back. If only the grouper told us to go to the first loading station...

 

 

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[JRice92]

Is it normal that they take away the bleachers from Luminosity in the offseason?

 

Yes, those bleachers leave every off season. That's nothing out of the ordinary.

[thrillrider]

2019 meal plan info has been released.

[coasterbill]

Cedar Point has posted some new information about Forbidden Frontier. It sort of seems like a modernized Tom Sawyer's Island on a budget.

 

Source: Cedar Point

I don't really get this at all but I feel like there's some potential for it to exceed expectations (even though I don't think we're the target market).

[coasterbill]

Sorry for the double post, but I have two more updates (both of which are budget cuts or signs of understaffing).

 

The following rides won't open until 11am this year:

 

Corkscrew

Flying Ace Balloon Race - Planet Snoopy

Gemini

Joe Cool's Dodgem School - Planet Snoopy

Kite Eating Tree - Planet Snoopy

Mine Ride

Peanuts Road Rally - Planet Snoopy

Power Tower

Professor Delbert's Frontier Fling

SlingShot

Snoopy's Deep Sea Divers - Planet Snoopy

Snoopy's Express Railroad - Planet Snoopy

Snoopy's Space Race - Planet Snoopy

Super Himalaya

Wicked Twister

WindSeeker

Woodstock's Whirlybirds - Planet Snoopy

 

Click on a ride, scroll down and then expand "Rides Opening at 11 AM" to see this list.

 

In addition to Windseeker, Sky Ride will also be closed for staffing during Halloweekends. It was never open anyway but in previous years they made an attempt to staff it and promoted that weird "Scareactors on the Sky Ride" thing.

 

I haven't found any other rides with that note though I fully expect them to totally give up on Antique Cars and the upcharge attractions too.

[RCjunkie]

Interesting. Makes you wonder how much is budget cuts for staffing vs the inability to hire staff. My home park VF has changed most weekday night closings this year to 9 pm closing instead of a 10 pm but this makes sense just due to overall traffic at that time but maybe it is driven by the same factors. Even though it only takes one person to operate I was surprised not to see Cedar Downs on the list.

[southpuddle]

The 11oclock openings really don’t bother me. The coasters on that list (Corkscrew, Gemini, WT) never have long lines and nobody rushes to them first thing in the morning anyway. Power Tower also is typically dead early morning. The biggest bummer is probably Windseeker. The rest are kiddy rides and flats that nobody is going to be devastated won’t be open for the first hour. Honestly, it’s always shocked me that Cedar Point opens (nearly) full force first thing in the morning since it’s such a gigantic park, when plenty of smaller parks have had staggered openings for decades now. It just makes financial sense for a lot of parks

[Pedrinho]

^^

Interesting that it is definitely for the whole year, not only for the first and last weeks of the season.