Carowinds Discussion Thread

[AndrewA86]

I think Cheetah Hunt sh!ts on Copperhead. I prefer Sky Rocket at Kennywood over it as well..

[JJLehto]

Well I found Cheetah Hunt pretty mild, basically CS but even less...there was just the 1 airtime moment (maybe 2 depending on seat) and even less force and inversions. It was fun dont get me wrong. But yeah Copperhead was a let down.

[AndrewA86]

Cheetah hunt is pretty mild but seemed to be a lot faster than CS. I’m not exactly sure how fast either is but CH seemed a lot faster.

 

 

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[prozach626]

How were the lines? Copperhead Strike seems like something park guests would love, which is why I'm asking.

[JJLehto]

You're right about that, and it doesn't just seem it IS faster. 60mph I think? Not positive but I think its 60. Helluva lot faster than CS I mean 50 mph is already slow but after such a mild launch... Shame, the idea of accelerating over an airtime hill seemed awesome, but yeah I barely noticed.

 

That said the ride was still my #4 at the park. Honestly after that it's a big drop off. Everything else was meh at best. So I deff feel CS was a great addition. They needed something else outside their strong top 3. Even Intimidator surprised me. I generally didn't hear much about it and when so people seemed dismissive, I got lots of solid air, even a moment or two where I "felt" the ride! Low expectations, but I enjoyed it. Afterburn was great as I heard. Only reason I didn't ride it a ton more was 1 train ops and the line while small was always like 30 mins. Fury was often 5 at tops so it was more worth marathoning that!

 

But I always make a layover in Charlotte when going north, I will surely stop by here next year on my way to CP or wherever. On a weekday it was dead, and made for a great few hours.

[AndrewA86]

How were the lines? Copperhead Strike seems like something park guests would love, which is why I'm asking.

 

No lines. At it's busiest it was a station wait. The longest I waited all day was 20 min for Afterburn. Intimidator was walk on and Fury was about 10 min up until the last couple hours where it was walk on.

[AndrewA86]

 

That said the ride was still my #4 at the park. Honestly after that it's a big drop off. Everything else was meh at best. So I deff feel CS was a great addition. They needed something else outside their strong top 3. Even Intimidator surprised me. I generally didn't hear much about it and when so people seemed dismissive, I got lots of solid air, even a moment or two where I "felt" the ride! Low expectations, but I enjoyed it. Afterburn was great as I heard. Only reason I didn't ride it a ton more was 1 train ops and the line while small was always like 30 mins. Fury was often 5 at tops so it was more worth marathoning that!

 

Yeah CS is definitely #4 in the park because of the huge drop off. And when I go back I'll ride it as long as the line isn't longer than 15 min. I'm just really curious as to what the park was trying to accomplish with CS. Was it intended to be a high thrill coaster or a mild coaster? Seems to me it was the former. If true IMO it's not a good addition.

[prozach626]

Sounds like it was just intended to be a fun coaster to fill the void between the garbage coasters and their three great intense coasters. Seems like it did the trick, honestly.

[carowindsman]

 

That said the ride was still my #4 at the park. Honestly after that it's a big drop off. Everything else was meh at best. So I deff feel CS was a great addition. They needed something else outside their strong top 3. Even Intimidator surprised me. I generally didn't hear much about it and when so people seemed dismissive, I got lots of solid air, even a moment or two where I "felt" the ride! Low expectations, but I enjoyed it. Afterburn was great as I heard. Only reason I didn't ride it a ton more was 1 train ops and the line while small was always like 30 mins. Fury was often 5 at tops so it was more worth marathoning that!

 

Yeah CS is definitely #4 in the park because of the huge drop off. And when I go back I'll ride it as long as the line isn't longer than 15 min. I'm just really curious as to what the park was trying to accomplish with CS. Was it intended to be a high thrill coaster or a mild coaster? Seems to me it was the former. If true IMO it's not a good addition.

 

Copperhead was never meant to be a thrill/intense ride it is has always been a family thrill coaster. It fills a void that Vortex, Cyclone, Hurler and Flying Cobra can not.

[DILinator]

Sounds like it was just intended to be a fun coaster to fill the void between the garbage coasters and their three great intense coasters. Seems like it did the trick, honestly.

 

Yeah, I have not personally been on it, but from afar, this is my take on it as well. I think it looks fun, and I look forward to riding it whenever I get back out there! But my expectations have also been managed, and I'll appreciate it for what it is. I think the issue is that when it was announced, a lot of enthusiasts thought it looked more intense, and were maybe expecting something like Helix or Maverick. Instead, they got a much milder coaster, leading to anticipointment. That's on them, not the park, and I agree that it was a great addition for the park, and complements their top 3 well. Heck, personally, it may still be as high as #2 in the park for me when I get around to riding it, since Intimidator is my least favorite B&M Hyper, and while I enjoy Afterburn, I don't like it nearly as much as most enthusiasts it seems. CS looks fun, and honestly, having fun, not craving intensity, is why I ride coasters!

[thrillseeker4552]

Ya'll are crazy. Copperhead Strike is totally awesome and fits in Carowinds' lineup absolutely perfectly. It's smooth, it has some surprisingly strong airtime, great hang time, comfortable restraints, a very well-themed ride area and queue line, and great operations (when I was there in late June). I cannot imagine how somebody can complain about this ride and how it fits in at Carowinds.

[JJLehto]

Sounds like it was just intended to be a fun coaster to fill the void between the garbage coasters and their three great intense coasters. Seems like it did the trick, honestly.

 

For sure, and no doubt it does exactly that.

 

Still doesn't mean some of us can't be a little let down/found it lackluster, but true it does what it was intended do and superbly. I wasn't being sarcastic, it deff was needed for the park. There's such a steep drop between those 3 and the rest. So it's a great filler no doubt. I don't dispute its fit for the park, and I agree it's extremely comfy and yes it does have some strong ejector moments. It aint bad, quite the opposite it's a fun good ride. Just eh...thank goodness it does have all those upsides, otherwise it'd be very disappointing

[boldikus]

I cannot imagine how somebody can complain about this ride and how it fits in at Carowinds.

 

Have you considered the fact that you're on a roller coaster enthusiast website?

[WolfBobs]

I cannot imagine how somebody can complain about this ride and how it fits in at Carowinds.

 

Have you considered the fact that you're on a roller coaster enthusiast website?

 

A hobby full of people who complain about rides that haven't even been officially announced or built yet...

[prozach626]

Yep. At least it won't suck as bad as KI's giga will.

[AndrewA86]

 

Copperhead was never meant to be a thrill/intense ride it is has always been a family thrill coaster. It fills a void that Vortex, Cyclone, Hurler and Flying Cobra can not.

 

That's not exactly how they were promoting it.

 

https://www.carowinds.com/media-center/083018-carowinds-makes-bold-strike-with-biggest-investment-to-date

 

From the article...

 

"Copperhead Strike simulates the harrowing chase of getaway cars racing through rolling farmland, sending riders on two launches through a relentless winding ride over half a mile of steel."

 

"in this innovative ride, the coaster dynamics are carefully crafted to offer a thrilling and intense low-to-the-ground experience."

 

"They then go into a lightning fast launch to a 360° loop, the second of five inversions, moving into a series of near-miss twists, turns and flips. Without slowing down, the ride launches a second time to accelerate into a memorable hang time loop, leaving passengers breathless and wondering which way is up."

 

They use the words: relentless, thrilling, intense, lightning fast, and breathless. So it sounds like they were trying to sell us on a thrill/intense ride to me

[PKI Jizzman]

 

They use the words: relentless, thrilling, intense, lightning fast, and breathless. So it sounds like they were trying to sell us on a thrill/intense ride to me

 

Guy, it's all subjective. To the vast majority of theme park goers Copperhead fits that to a tea. If you're a well traveled park visitor and you took that literally expecting i305 or Skyrush you played yourself.

 

Also you're quoting a press release. They're not going to say 'This coaster has decent speed, gives you mild tummy tickles, and goes upside down and has 2 launches but don't let that trick you into thinking it's our Maverick'

[AndrewA86]

If you read my initial comments you would see that my expectations were quite low. Of course I did not expect I305 (haven't been on Skyrush) or Maverick. But I expected better than Cheetah Hunt, or Rougarou, or Sky Rocket at Kennywood. I couldn't care less about the majority of theme park guests. Personally I will always judge parks, rides, manufacturers, etc.. based on the same criteria.

 

I wasn't bitter, or disappointed that I made the trip or anything. Just think CS missed the bullseye, or the whole target for that matter...

[pǝʇɹǝʌuı]

Ya'll are crazy. Copperhead Strike is totally awesome and fits in Carowinds' lineup absolutely perfectly. It's smooth, it has some surprisingly strong airtime, great hang time, comfortable restraints, a very well-themed ride area and queue line, and great operations (when I was there in late June). I cannot imagine how somebody can complain about this ride and how it fits in at Carowinds.

 

I agree 100%

 

As soon as you roll out of the station into the jojo roll you know you're in for a treat. The loops and the inverted top hat (really more of a stall) are absolutely nuts with the hangtime, and the Mack restraints certainly add to that experience.

 

Don't go in expecting a good launch, because honestly you barely feel either of them. Do go in expecting some cool and wacky elements, especially if you've never ridden a Mack before.

[JG-77]

Visited the park for the first time this past Sunday, had a great time!

 

We spent the whole day there, and even tried out the water park! Operations were overall solid, with some hiccups. I love how you can see the park from miles away!

 

I won't do a full TR, but here's my main takeaways:

 

Vortex/Nighthawk: Fun rides, nothing special. Glad I took Boldikus's tip to knock them out first. Those nighthawk corkscrews are awkward, but it's otherwise fun and smooth enough

 

Fury: Absolutely awesome! The speed is insane, the intensity is there, and the airtime is way stronger than I thought it would be. Even running just 2 trains, the ops were very efficient, and I got 4 rides.

 

Hurler: Met my expectations, which was dull yet painless. Honestly the most fun part was being jostled around at the rough patches. There were also some OK laterals. What was odd is that despite a whopping 4 other people waiting to get on the train, they had a grouper giving people row assignments, though luckily he was taking requests. Probably my least favorite wooden coaster of the 15-ish I've ridden, though I don't hate it or anything.

 

Huss Enterprise (forget what the park calls it): I've always liked enterprises, and I was surprised to find this park has one. Cycle was quite short, but still fun. Glad I got to ride it before it likely gets removed in the coming years if Cedar Fair's other Enterprises are any indication.

 

Carolina Cyclone: Fun arrow looper, nice pop of air on the drop in the back row, didn't get too much headbanging.

 

Goldrusher: We accidentally made huge mistake on this one: we (my siblings and I) waited for rows that one train had out of commission, so our lines moved half as fast as the other already slow moving lines. There was only one guy doing all the restraint work (why don't you move the Hurler grouper here?!), so we wound up waiting like 40 minutes for a mine train. Ugh. It was a ok ride, but not worth much more than a 5 minute wait. Thank goodness this was the worst line of the day.

 

Copperhead Strike: This was my first Mack (aside from Wild Mice). I don't know what you guys are all talking about - this ride's a ton of fun! Whippy, strong airtime, fantastic airtime, solid pacing. The launches were weak as expected, but the rest of the ride absolutely delivers IMO. This is my 2nd favorite ride in the park. I tried 1st and 7th rows, preferred 1st. Waited ~25 min both times.

 

Top scan: This was my first top scan and honestly it was a blast! Fun flips, funky forces, and there's no way to predict where you'll move next. The cycle was just the right length.

 

I did not ride any of the other coasters, but that means I have stuff to look forward to for next time!

 

Carolina Harbor: I don't remember any of the slide names, but I enjoyed everything I rode. The park was fairly crowded, but I never had to wait much more than 15min for any slides. The one slide that stuck out the most was the blue (I think - I'm colorblind so it might be purple) body slide on the tower toward the back of the park, it lasted surprisingly long while holding great speed, constantly getting faster and faster until the end.

 

Afterburn: Very good invert. Only got one ride in the 5th row, but the speed was there, the intensity was there, the pacing was there, and the whip was there. Gave me what I expected, and I wish I could have gotten another ride. Probably my favorite of the 4 (remaining) B&M inverts I've ridden.

 

Intimidator: Pleasantly surprised with this one. Not intense, but strong floater airtime in the back seat on every hill, some of it borderline ejector. Would have been happy to ride this one again had I had more time.

 

Plants vs. Zombies: I knew literally nothing about this ride going in except that it was indoors. Turned out to be fairly fun, but it's not really accurate to call it a ride, since the vehicles barely move. We won though!

[prozach626]

Glad you had a good time. It seems like you got quite a bit done without having a fastlane.

[thrillseeker4552]

I would also like to add that riding in the front row and going through the stengel dive (the element after the second vertical loop) is probably in my top 3 strongest airtime moments I've ever experienced.

[pryonisys]

Turns out there's a 2% (or so) chance I may make it back down to Carowinds this fall. If I happen to I would be very happy to get back on Fury again.

As others here have said this park has a great top 3 (I haven't been on Copperhead Strike yet) and I'll be happy to get back on those again.

[tndank]

The ACE event next month sounds pretty good. I might have to sneak over for another visit.

[bgtlover]

Visited the park for the first time this past Sunday, had a great time!...

 

Huss Enterprise (forget what the park calls it): I've always liked enterprises, and I was surprised to find this park has one. Cycle was quite short, but still fun. Glad I got to ride it before it likely gets removed in the coming years if Cedar Fair's other Enterprises are any indication.

It's a Schwarzkopf Enterprise, not Huss. It's called Scream Weaver.