SeaWorld Orlando (SWO) Discussion Thread

[KarlaKoaster]

I wasn't keen at first but really like it now. Not sure if I prefer it, but it seems quite Krakeny to me and not as unattractive/generic as some of the other repaints I've seen recently.

[JJLehto]

Yeah to each their own color is always a very personal preference thing, I do like it seem more sea monster-y but as long as it still rides good. I've heard in recent years its gotten a bit rough (though I never know what that means, sometimes one area w/ some rattle = this thing is death...and we all have different tolerances). I recall it was fairly forceful and intense but its been like 15 years lol 

And I do agree Ice Breaker looks superb. Its color, but layout! I know it's getting the "cool but..." to VC but it's not VC and never was, kinda unfair to even bother comparing. I am still stoked for it. (Bracing for probable let down XD)

[Garet]

Considering Antarctica isn't that old so presumably, the cars haven't been scrapped, I wonder if we'll see them repurposed for a new ride somewhere either here or at another park in the chain.

[boldikus]

10 hours ago, JJLehto said:

but it's not VC and never was, kinda unfair to even bother comparing.

They're both multi-launch coasters with top hats and twisty layouts, both right next to the water, installed at the same time, opened not even a year apart and they're less than 10 minutes down the street from each other.

I don't know if there is a more fair pair of coasters to compare outside of Skyrush/Candymonium.

 

[Garet]

^ Honestly, I think this ride should never have been aimed at the thrill seeking crowd with the marketing focusing on the steepest drop even if it was planned before VelociCoaster.  With just a normal back-spike and potentially a different manufacturer you could have had a much lower height restriction and focused on the 4 potentially slow accelerating launches aiming to pull in groups of families with younger kids as a gap between the smallest coasters and the bigger launch rides of Cheetah Hunt and Hagrids.

[JJLehto]

7 hours ago, boldikus said:

They're both multi-launch coasters with top hats and twisty layouts, both right next to the water, installed at the same time, opened not even a year apart and they're less than 10 minutes down the street from each other.

I don't know if there is a more fair pair of coasters to compare outside of Skyrush/Candymonium.

 

Yes, that is all true lol 

But also like...the community is making the comparison, which is fine just seems a tad silly to me...They are clearly not the same league and (as we pride ourselves) we're not "GP" like...we're not supposed to be the "THIS IS A CLONE OF X" "This is just like Y but worse" clearly they are two different tiers of ride, similar but ya know just seems silly to compare. 

At least I get Skyrush/Candymonium as they're both hypers at the same park, though still a tad silly to me we all kinda know a B&M standard hyper is not an Intamin. But yeah to each their own, just I see no need to compare these two especially when it always ends with "VC is so clearly superior" duh, we all knew that XD

Unrelated, I am now front loading my vaca much as possible due to a possible lead in the employment area, so I am now gunna do Sea World in Feb, day before I do universal. This will be Feb 20 so I can just squeeze it in! 

[YoshiFan]

If anyone is going to the Ice Breaker Passport to Thrills event on Friday - Sunday, they changed the event time from 5 to 10, now it’s 3-8. Platinum pass previews on Sunday are now 12-3 instead of 12-4.

[thepoint4life23]

When did Empire of the Penguin Close?

[YoshiFan]

It closed when the parks shutdown for Covid and never reopened.

[anonymouscactus]

I was in the control room frequently as oceaneering was programming the ride. It's not just the guests that hated it. lol.

Really cool computer software, though. It was also fun watching the trackless vehicles play "bumper cars" and "crash through the scenery"

R.I.P. Puck.

Edited January 27, 2022 by anonymouscactus

[coasternut]

On 1/26/2022 at 3:22 PM, YoshiFan said:

If anyone is going to the Ice Breaker Passport to Thrills event on Friday - Sunday, they changed the event time from 5 to 10, now it’s 3-8. Platinum pass previews on Sunday are now 12-3 instead of 12-4.

I'm coming for the Iron Gwazi pass preview in Feb. What are the days for Ice Breaker pass preview? Are they listed on their site like Busch did?

[YoshiFan]

Here are the days and time from yesterday's e-mail:

"

CAN’T MAKE IT TO THE CELEBRATION?

JOIN US FOR PASS MEMBER PREVIEWS!

Even if you can’t make it for Passport to Thrills, you can still ride the all-new Ice Breaker early! Pass Member previews will be available from 12 p.m. – 4 p.m. on select dates based on your tier:

Jan. 30 – 31: Platinum Pass Members
Feb. 1 – 6: Platinum and Gold Pass Members
Feb. 7 – 13*: Platinum, Gold, and Silver Pass Members
Feb. 14 – 15: All Pass Members plus Fun Card holders

*Note: Ice Breaker preview times
on Feb. 12 will be 12 p.m. - 3 p.m."

[thrillseeker4552]

Can't wait to ride it on Sunday. I think the airtime is surprising people, especially the jump into the top hat. Can't wait!

[tndank]

1 hour ago, thrillseeker4552 said:

Can't wait to ride it on Sunday. I think the airtime is surprising people, especially the jump into the top hat. Can't wait!

Can I borrow your plat pass for a lap on Sunday if crowds are light?  And if it's even possible?  Pretty please? Maybe just print another out front at the self service machines?  

 

[SharkTums]

Rode Ice Breaker a couple of times today.  I think it's a solid ride for the park and fits a well needed 48" height requirement demographic.  If you want airtime, the back seemed to deliver better than the front.  We'll have more video and photos up tomorrow!  I still maintain the ride would be a lot better without the "Comfort Collars" which serve no restraint purpose. 

[robbalvey]

Take a ride on the new Ice Breaker roller coaster at SeaWorld Orlando! 4K Multi-Angle POV!

 

[coasternut]

^ Looks like fun guys. I'll be there in a few weeks after my Platinum rides on Iron Gwazi at Busch.

[JJLehto]

I think my faith was right, seeing both that POV some rider cam vids looks like some more airtime than expected and both reactions and comments so far have been nothing but "that was really good!" Also wasn't someone saying that top hat was pointless/terrible? Looks to fly pretty quick over it

I am waiting for all the enthusiasts that were meh on this to suddenly start gushing now lol 

But yeah I am pretty excited

[Nrthwnd]

The ride looks great.

From the front, AND from the back!

Thanks for the video Robb and Elissa.

[SharkTums]

The air time in the back car was a little better in my opinion, but yes, there are surprising pops in both the back and front. 

[thrillseeker4552]

Managed to get 3 rides on Ice Breaker today - in the front, middle, and back. I will say that all seats have strong airtime. I think I preferred the front seat almost only because of the step-up into the top hat (VERY strong airtime), but the back was better for the spike and the pull down the top hat. I would say the back half of the layout is pretty similar in all seats. The turnaround is quite good too. It's a fun ride that fits very well into the park's lineup. I personally still prefer all 3 B&Ms in the park but Ice Breaker is a pretty high-thrill family coaster, I think it will surprise a lot of people who don't know much about the ride. They were also pumping out trains pretty well. Not perfect but it has a much better capacity than the single-train Sky Rocket IIs. The line was always moving at a pretty steady pace, and at least from my observations it is quite reliable too - no breakdowns that I noticed for the several hours I was in the area waiting/riding.

Happy to finally have this open and if nothing else, it also looks great and is fun to watch.

[coasterbill]

24 minutes ago, thrillseeker4552 said:

no breakdowns that I noticed for the several hours I was in the area waiting/riding.

Well it should be broken in by now considering it’s a two-year-old ride…

[IronWolfman]

.

Edited February 21, 2022 by IronWolfman
Outdated info.

[teacherkim]

Just catching up on news here since we will be coming back to the park for the first time in about 4 years. Had no idea Antarctica closed down, that's interesting. I take it from a few of the comments that there were a lot of tech issues? I see on the website it is now listed as a walk through animal experience. We were in Orlando in Dec but didn't take the time to go to SWO since IB wasn't open yet and we already knew we would be back in May. 

[jedimaster1227]

^Antartica has been the exhibit-only experience for a few years now. You queue in the same way you did before, and you experience the first and second pre-shows that you would have seen before riding, but now you are sent directly into the open air animal exhibit.