coasterrider1998 Posted January 2, 2007 Share Posted January 2, 2007 My firend Steve (KKAddict127) wrote this but I have the pics. I am uploading them for your enjoyment. We started the 3.5 hour drive, and were there after going through never-ending cornfileds. The HP arena is right next to our parking lot, and we walk over to the entrance. The entrance area looks to be moderately crowded. Being only the morning (about 10:30), things didn't look good. We started off with a bathroom stop, and then it was off to Storm Runner. We got in line, to find it to be a pleasent 15 minute wait for front row. I had been on front row Ka, and I can tell you that this doesn't have the acceleration that Ka does. Still, it was very fun. The flying snake dive thingy had to be the best part, there are no comparisons. The twisty part at the end had more lats than I was expecting. Add all of the trees around that area and you feel like you are going twice as fast as you really are. Overall, a very awesome ride. It takes spot number 4 on my list, behind ROTM:Orlando and in front of Xcelerator (whose launch can't be compared to anything). We weren't particularly interested in the Sidewinder (Vekoma Boomerang for those who don't know), so, taking coasterking1's advice, we went over to Midway America. The first thing we saw over a fence was some construction for next year, and that play area looks huge...but onto coasters. Wildcat was next. Before the ride, I was doing some comparisons to another pre-Mill. flyer GCI, Gwazi, which pretty much sucked if you had your hands up. If you held on tightly, most of the vibrations went away. That is what I planned on doing for this. There was a short 7 minute wait, and we were on in the 2nd row, with the stupid headrests on the new PTC trains blocking our view completely. This wasn't as bad as Gwazi, and it did have it's light airtime moments. There was this one crazy bump that brought you lateral airtime, it was insane. Next door was Lightning Racer. We decide the red side first, and from the looks of things, that side is pretty much winning all the time now. There was a short 3-train wait for the 2nd row. While not smooth as glass, it was definitely smoother than Wildcat, and the Milly flyer trains were awesome as usual, except for the lapbar, which got rather uncomfortable and has a tendency to staple you in during the ride. My side won, and while the ride isn't a huge adrenaline rush and not the most thrilling coaster on the planet, the racing aspect made it pretty fun...especially seeing some idiots taunting other people once they won...welcome to America. We subsequently went on the green side next with aobut the same wait, and we lost. Pretty much the same layout, almost, and the same can be said for this as said above. Well, we were done with Midway America, so now it was time to head over to the other coaster-populated area, Comet Hollow. Coming down the stairs in the area, the view with the river and Great Bear is picturesque. I loved it. The sight I didn't love, however, came when we got to the GB entrance. Almost a full queue. The good thing was, they were doing very good dispatch times with little to no stacking. We were in the station within 50 minutes. The front row queue was insane, so we opted for second. I'm a whole-hearted B&M fan, and I must say, this ranks up there wth their best. The way it mangles around and interacts with the river, terrain and other rides is just amazing. I can see why B&M has called this their toughest project. The pre-drop helix didn't look like much from the ground, but wow, it had it's g's. There is a short straight part where you get to look down at your shoes and see that the next thing down is the ground, approximately 124 feet below. Then the rest is history. The loop was great, as well as the immelman (and I love the straight part between them, really gives you a chance to feel the speed). The zero-g was glass smooth, bo jerking at all, unlike some other ones on B&M inverts. You then cross the river, and go parralel to the SooperDooperLooper. And then on one of my favorite parts, there is a slight twist to the right, and suddenly you get slammed into a left cork going the opposite direction. That was insanely fun. The only part I was dissappointed with was after the cork, there is just 20 minutes of meaningless straight track to get you over to the brakerun. They could've done something better there, but that is about my only complaint. I love how this ride interacts with everything around it, and it goes great with the river. This is a perfect coaster for this park. Next up was SDL, right next door to the GB. The wait was about 15 minutes, running two trains with no stacking, however the op at the booth was looking like she got wasted the night before. I got a seat in the second row, pulled down my lap bar (did I say shoulder restraint?) and we were off. This ride is a pretty fun, if not relaxing one. THe only intense part was around the loop, you pull a good amount of g's. After that, it is just a leisure ride. Just make sure you don't get kicked by the oncoming Great Bear! Next up, we wanted to ride Comet, but we checked out the line and the queue was pretty much full. We opted to go back over to Storm Runner. We encountered a longer wait than before, but it was bearable. During the wait, I was impressed once again with how HP crammed this ride inbetween SideWinder and Trailblazer, I mean TB goes a full circle around the queue...now that is space-crunching. I'm very impressed with HP. After the 30 minute wait, we went for back row, to see how much more airtime was offered up. We were a bit disappointed on the tophat in the first row, it went over a bit slower than I was expecting. However, the back row didn't disappoint. There was huge ejector going down the tophat, and once again, the rest of the ride is just awesome. It may be short, but it sure does pack a hugelly mean punch. We had roughly an hour left in the park, so it was decided rather than try out Comet, we went back to GB for our final ride of the day. We went in the area to find a huge line going into the amphitheater, apparently Petula Clark was playing there today...and the line pretty much consisted of elderly folk...I was hoping this might have at least put a dent in the GB line, but looking at the line for the concert, and who was in it, I was doubtful. However, the line looked to be much shorter once we got in. About half the switchbacks were filled. Unfortunately, it took about the same time, if not more than our previous ride. Operations had gotten pretty horrible, with one attendant chacking the whole train at some points, if I could see right. Seeing as it was the last rie of our day, and we were leaving right after it, we went for front row. We finally got on, and this time the ride was so much better, with a view. The straight segment before the drop was amazing, you could see so much. There were tears flowing on the side of my face between the loop and immelman, it was awesome. And the rest of the ride was just flat out exciting...except for the end, as I said before. Still, it is an awesome ride for 90% of the time. I loved it. Unfortunately, it just missed my top 10, with Hulk beating it out. We then exited, and took the tram back to our car, and ended a great day. Thanks for reading! I'll be happy to address any planning questions, driving questions, chocolate questions, etc. /Cr98\ Bye Bye Hershey Park! See Ya Next Year! The storm is coming! I tried to be fancy by tilting the camera. Strom Runner Launch. And more... More Storm Runner Shots! So... Much... Fun...! Ursa Major is right here guys. This part was pointless. Great Bear was not bad. At that part everyone is screaming..."We're gonna die" Lightning Racer is beast...! This thing is going to be gigantic. Boardwalk construction! Wildcat is pure hell... but so much fun. Hey look there waving! I think there going fast... Yes... Storm Runner! No not you Sidewinder. Ahhh what's that in the distance?? Biggest... Kiss... Ever! See we are here...the trashcan says so. Me: So... Steve I guess you like mirrors? We finally see the Kissing Tower after 3.5 hours. Early Rise at 6:00 A.M. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
christianscoasters Posted January 2, 2007 Share Posted January 2, 2007 Nice Photo TR! I especially like photos with the park in the distance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterrider1998 Posted January 2, 2007 Author Share Posted January 2, 2007 Thanks! I really like the tilted SR train shot. /Cr98\ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coastercrazy216 Posted January 2, 2007 Share Posted January 2, 2007 Man, tha park is getting better and better every year. What all is going into The Boardwalk? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterrider1998 Posted January 3, 2007 Author Share Posted January 3, 2007 Huge Kids Water Park Play Area, Wave Pool, some other stuff. /Cr98\ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pgathriller Posted January 3, 2007 Share Posted January 3, 2007 Nice photo trip report. Is Storm Runner as good as most people say it is? I have never been to Hershey Park but looking at pictures and reading reviews about Storm Runner, it sounds pretty good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterrider1998 Posted January 3, 2007 Author Share Posted January 3, 2007 Well if Storm Runner is number 3 out of my top ten then yeah! That was the first day I rode it. It was on e of the most unbelievable things I have been on. /Cr98\ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reon Posted January 3, 2007 Share Posted January 3, 2007 StormRunner is awesome! Its currently my 3rd favorite overall, and my favorite steel rollercoaster. Definately one of the best rides I have been on since they demolished King Cobra... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMAN962 Posted January 3, 2007 Share Posted January 3, 2007 Nice TR, I love the tilted Storm runner photo, it seems to make the trains look more slick, and aerodynamic. Glad you had fun! One of these years I have to get there during our yearly New York trip. Next year is....I hope Cedar Point. ~Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coastrfreak2000 Posted January 3, 2007 Share Posted January 3, 2007 The Boardwalk is under construction, but it still looks great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterrider1998 Posted January 3, 2007 Author Share Posted January 3, 2007 Nice TR, I love the tilted Storm runner photo, it seems to make the trains look more slick, and aerodynamic. Glad you had fun! One of these years I have to get there during our yearly New York trip. Next year is....I hope Cedar Point. ~Mike Thanks! Its just too cool...try taking one of every rocket you ride it will come out awesome. /Cr98\ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMAN962 Posted January 6, 2007 Share Posted January 6, 2007 I'll make sure to try it next time at Knott's.....won't be for a while though, several months. oh well! ~Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XII Posted January 6, 2007 Share Posted January 6, 2007 Only 7 more months until I'm at Hersheypark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fergusonat Posted January 6, 2007 Share Posted January 6, 2007 Nice trip report! Hershey Park is such a great park! And Storm Runner is definitely a solid rocket coaster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterdude5 Posted January 6, 2007 Share Posted January 6, 2007 Great photos, I've gotta make it out to Hersheypark someday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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