California Great America (CGA) Discussion Thread

[ideanj]

The radio advertisements for Patriot are so over the top "Patriot couldn't be farther from a daydream!" "Make sure you check out CGA'S BRAND NEW ROLLER COASTER where you drop a total of 9 STORIES! YOU WON'T BELIEVE IT!"

[rolercstrluvr]

The radio advertisements for Patriot are so over the top "Patriot couldn't be farther from a daydream!" "Make sure you check out CGA'S BRAND NEW ROLLER COASTER where you drop a total of 9 STORIES! YOU WON'T BELIEVE IT!"

 

Just the other day I heard two different ads on the radio back to back. First one was just the station promoting it and then it was the real one after. It was almost too much, I'm looking forward to both the passholder preview and doing the media day as well for patriot. Tomorrow is going to be a fun filled day.

[rolercstrluvr]

So here's the moment that you've all been waiting for, the Patriot media day report. So starts out by them giving us our lanyards as well as a patriot bag with a mystery box in it. (you'll find out whats in it later) Anyways, they let us into the park and were then greeted by an enthusiastic snoopy decked out in an american flag vest. As we're walking to the stage they're in the middle of testing the ride getting it ready for us and the 28 servicemen who joined us today as well. (National Guard, Army, Marines, and Coast Guard) One of them sings the national anthem before some announcements from Roger, Raul, and the Mayor of Santa Clara. After that, they got escorted up to the station to be the first riders after the ribbon cutting. After we got our first ride in, which completely blew me away, trust me the floorless trains make a HUGE difference. (No more ball busting guys) You can actually sit and enjoy this ride now, CGA knocked this one out of the park, it'll be a huge hit with everybody tomorrow. Now, onto the food, They had all the new stuff from the smokehouse for us to try. They had the tri-tip, pulled pork, and spicy chicken sandwiches. They also had some sides like coleslaw and bbq beans. Now enough of me rambling, lets get onto the pictures and let them do some talking.

Excited and eager to get in.

Media check-in, well the sign says it.

Here's where the stage was setup for us

Mayor of Santa Clara was saying that she's really excited for the future of CGA

And theres the ribbon cutting with Raul, Snoopy, and the Mayor

Fireworks as they drop down 9 stories

Even more fireworks, more is always better

They really couldn't get enough fireworks could they, they were everywhere

We finally have shade on the station

Heres som patriot gear for you guys

Sandwiches from top to bottom-Tri tip, pulled pork, and kicking chicken

Hopefully we'll get to see this part of the queue used for once

here's a group of happy riders coming back

And heres what was in the mystery box, A Patriot clock

Edited March 31, 2017 by robbalvey

[Canobie Coaster]

Thanks for the report!

 

Patriot sure looks great in the blue and I'm glad the uncomfortable parts were solved by the floorless trains. Rougarou was a really enjoyable coaster when I rode it and that's something most people didn't say about Mantis.

[ThemeParkJunkie51290]

Great report! I never had issues with stand-up coasters *all the males throw popcorn at me*,but I'm sure Patriot is better!

[sfkk]

Hey guys, I was not sure where to ask this but does a Cedar Fair platinum dining pass work at Gilroy Gardens? I know the pass works for entry as per the website, but I could not find any information about the dining pass. Thanks

[Canobie Coaster]

The problem I have with the B&M stand-ups has nothing to do with being a guy. It's how close those OSTRs are to your head and the amount of headbanging it results in.

[tanthonyam]

I really cannot get excited for that ride at all.

[Mater]

Some serious airtime in the corkscrew, no joke.

[rolercstrluvr]

Some serious airtime in the corkscrew, no joke.

 

I second this, after riding at both the media day and he passholder event, there really is airtime in the corkscrew. Of all places you wouldn't expect it.

[thrillseeker4552]

Looks good. This ride will never make anyone's top 10 list, but it sure seems better than Vortex (and looks WAY better... that yellow and purple was ugly). It looks like it could be a perfect "first looping" coaster for kids due to the mild height, speed, and number of inversions. Although I guess the 54" height requirement refutes that idea...

 

Super excited about the future at CGA. Patriot looks like the first step! Thanks for the report.

[Mater]

I think it's also worthy to note that they noticeably cranked up the lift hill speed and added a set of magnetic brakes at the end.

[cfc]

I was never a fan of the B&M stand-up coasters (Georgia Scorcher and Riddler's Revenge were the best of the lot), so I'm in favor of these floorless conversions. Looks like a good way to improve a mediocre (at best) ride.

[sirloindude]

I'm interested to experience these conversions, having only experienced both this and Mantis in stand-up form. I never much minded the stand-ups, although the Vortex duo never did much for me one way or the other (Mantis, on the other hand, was my favorite B&M at the park).

 

I do wish they had kept the old colors, though. I liked that it was different and I thought that the colors were awesome.

[VegasBaby]

I was never a fan of the B&M stand-up coasters (Georgia Scorcher and Riddler's Revenge were the best of the lot), so I'm in favor of these floorless conversions. Looks like a good way to improve a mediocre (at best) ride.

 

Agreed, these floorless conversions by CF are a really smart way of getting a "new" coaster without dropping $10-20 million. I was really surprised by how great of a ride Rougarou is when I visited CP last summer. I think I only ever rode Mantis once or twice, but now Rougarou is a must ride every visit.

 

I will say that I hope Riddler remains a stand up though because it's a pretty awesome coaster and the stand up gimmick just works on it.

[thrillseeker4552]

I was never a fan of the B&M stand-up coasters (Georgia Scorcher and Riddler's Revenge were the best of the lot), so I'm in favor of these floorless conversions. Looks like a good way to improve a mediocre (at best) ride.

 

Agreed, these floorless conversions by CF are a really smart way of getting a "new" coaster without dropping $10-20 million. I was really surprised by how great of a ride Rougarou is when I visited CP last summer. I think I only ever rode Mantis once or twice, but now Rougarou is a must ride every visit.

 

I will say that I hope Riddler remains a stand up though because it's a pretty awesome coaster and the stand up gimmick just works on it.

 

I agree about Riddler. In my opinion, Riddler and Scorcher should stay stand-ups, and the rest can either go floorless or get scrapped lol

[RAWKIN_coaster38]

I just had a conversation with someone about how I'd still rate Vortex as my least favorite coaster even after riding T3. Stand-up coasters can all die, it's not just a male thing. Riddler's is somewhat tolerable for me and I'll probably get to ride Georgia Scorcher this summer so we'll see how that one fares.

 

Rougarou was an immense improvement on Mantis. Patriot is already a huge improvement on Vortex in many ways (trains, paint, shade), but I'm still curious to hear what more people think as they ride it. Maybe it really is the butterfly that emerged from its cocoon, I'll still be skeptical until I ride it for myself.

[DILinator]

Stand-up coasters can all die, it's not just a male thing.

 

Hear! Hear!

[XSupremacy]

Rode Patriot last night at Preview Night. Got a whole 21 rides on it with no line! It's a really fun ride, with just one rough moment in one train and none in the other. Corkscrew is surprisingly intense now.

[ABW]

I, obviously, enjoyed Patriot more than Vortex. It's a great improvement, and is basically a mini Medusa (SFDK) in many ways. I think it will be a huge hit with the local populace and is a great ride for those looking for a relatively tame roller coaster that goes upside-down. The transitions still have some whip, and the corkscrew has a lot of force (I personally love it), but it overall rides very smoothly. There are few things better than taking an unridable ride and turning it into something re-ridable, and fun. I rode it no less than six times, with no pain whatsoever.

 

Thank you to Great America for this welcomed change, and for last night's awesome pass holder event, this park is definitely going uphill.

Pretty Patriot

[jarmor]

Some serious airtime in the corkscrew, no joke.

 

I second this, after riding at both the media day and he passholder event, there really is airtime in the corkscrew. Of all places you wouldn't expect it.

Do you guys mean hang time? I just can't fathom airtime while upside down. Is it even possible?

[laqueefa]

Some serious airtime in the corkscrew, no joke.

 

I second this, after riding at both the media day and he passholder event, there really is airtime in the corkscrew. Of all places you wouldn't expect it.

Do you guys mean hang time? I just can't fathom airtime while upside down. Is it even possible?

No. They mean airtime. It's not like the slow paced roll that you get on say, SFDK's Superman ride. That transition feels like forever. This is tight singular corckscrew with enough force to give you a little pop. It was surprising to say the least. That element was always painful on the yarbles before.

[Mater]

The corkscrew has a noticeable snap in the middle of it, causing the entire left side of the train to have an airtime-y/flung-out-of-your-seat sensation.

 

I'm going to take a moment to randomly and blindly guess and say it may have something to do with the fact that the ride was designed for a different heartline?

[ImNotOneOfYou]

I'm going to take a moment to randomly and blindly guess and say it may have something to do with the fact that the ride was designed for a different heartline?

 

I'm sure all of the engineers on this site can confirm that for you. They really showed us when Rougarou was announced

[XSupremacy]

The corkscrew has a noticeable snap in the middle of it, causing the entire left side of the train to have an airtime-y/flung-out-of-your-seat sensation.

 

I'm going to take a moment to randomly and blindly guess and say it may have something to do with the fact that the ride was designed for a different heartline?

 

Agreed on the Corkscrew. It's so much more fun as Patriot than it was on Vortex. I love the snappiness of old B&M corkscrews