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Hersheypark (HP) Discussion Thread


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^Unless Hershey expands it's borders, I very highly doubt we'll ever see another coaster anywhere near 200 feet there.

 

But its Hershey, they build coasters on top of coasters. So they can build as high as they like.

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^Good thing they are planning to re-route the perimeter road to make the old golf course adjoin with the rest of the park effectively giving them quite a few new acres!

 

I didn't know if this was a sure thing, if it is than that's awesome.

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^Good thing they are planning to re-route the perimeter road to make the old golf course adjoin with the rest of the park effectively giving them quite a few new acres!

 

I didn't know if this was a sure thing, if it is than that's awesome.

I would say 90% sure thing. They are suppose to start soon on the project.

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Thought I'd post a trip report from my day yesterday here. I apologize for no pictures but I kept my phone in my friend's bag most of the day. I met up with my friend Emily (RidetheEdge) from TPR for the third time this year (which we were both surprised to accomplish) and her boyfriend Brendan. Brendan was able to get an exit pass which allowed us to basically cut the lines for free so I knew this would be a great day.

 

I came to the park mainly to get Skyrush and Storm Runner on my credit list since I didn't have those 2 yet. Emily is a huge Skyrush fan so she wanted to save that for last. I had ridden half the coasters before yesterday but had changed opinions on a lot of them. For instance Great Bear was not as good as I remembered it being. I think I only like it in the back but it might be out of the top 10 although I still consider it a solid coaster. Comet also wasn't as good as I remembered though I don't think I sat in the best seat for it. Lightning Racer was better than I remembered and may move up a couple spots in my wooden rankings. I'm personally a big fan of racers because of the atmosphere and laid back attitude people have on them.

 

Sidewinder was my first boomerang and I have to say it's really not a bad coaster. The restraints were very comftorable and it made for a pain free ride that I could have fun on. Wildcat on the other hand was as bad as I remembered. The restraints aren't friendly for me and the coaster definitely tossed me around a little too much for my liking. I have to say the seats were very comftorable though. Wildcat and Lightning Racer have very nice cushion seats that are very relaxing.

 

Onto the Intamin 3. I would make an argument that the Intamin 3 are the best trio of roller coasters I have ever ridden that reside in the same park. I honestly can't even think of a trio that could be better that I haven't been on. Each ride is so unique and have a ton of thrilling elements that keep you out of your seat and coming back for more. Fahrenheit had a little more airtime and thrilling elements than I remembered. It's very close between that and Storm Runner for which I like better. Storm Runner was my first vertical launch coaster so I was nervous about it going in because I usually don't like the vertical position. Turned out not to bother me. The launch and drop are definitely the 2 best parts of the ride but the rest of the ride is still very thrilling and keeps you entertained for double the time other launch coasters do. Storm Runner will most likely be a new member of my steel and overall top 10. At first I was actually disappointed by it but then I had a great 2nd and 3rd run on it which completely changed my opinion of it. In fact it was so forceful that Brendan lost his necklace on it.

 

Now for anybody that knows me well, I preach about how awesome El Toro is on a regular basis and how I would probably never find a coaster better than that. Well, what I thought was impossible happened yesterday. After a 5 year reign as my #1 overall coaster, El Toro finally had to hand the crown over to SKYRUSH! Never in my life have I experienced a ride like this. It had the most extreme ejector airtime I have ever experienced and it had really tight turns that throw you around in a good way. To the people that can't enjoy this coaster because of the restraints I have to say shame on you. That should not prevent you from enjoying all the positives this ride offers. They really didn't bother me until after the ride was over and we were waiting for the next train to leave but that's not a big deal at all. When I told Emily this would be the ride that knocked El Toro out of the top seat, she was so proud that I understood her love for this ride. Skyrush was probably the 2nd most hyped up coaster I've been on so the fact that it exceeded my expectations was a huge testiment to how great the coaster is.

 

All in all a great 10.5 hour day at Hersheypark! Thanks Brendan and Emily for giving me a reason to come out there, having one last summer adventure, the exit pass and the discount for lunch and dinner from Brendan's sisters (they work there). Ride count:

 

Skyrush 16x (Emily wanted to get 50 runs but this still wasn't bad)

Storm Runner 3x

Fahrenheit 2x

Great Bear 1x

Comet 1x

SDL 1x

Lightning Racer 1x

Wildcat 1x

Sidewinder 1x

Wild Mouse 1x

Trailblazer 1x

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Anyone have any idea what Hersheypark could have up their sleeves for next year? It seems like every time we get to this time of year, there are some kind of rumors going around, even if it's just about general improvements. I know they experienced a nice attendance boost with Skyrush so I'd be very surprised if we didn't see anything at all, even if it's one or two new flats. So... anyone hear anything?

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Anyone know what the weekends in Sept. are like at HP? I was hoping to have had a chance to go before now, but it looks like I will end up going the 2nd or 3rd weekend in Sept. I'm guessing Sunday would probably be the best of the two days, since it is often that way at many parks. I'm of course hoping to get as many rides as possible on Skyrush before the end of the season.

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Anyone have any idea what Hersheypark could have up their sleeves for next year? It seems like every time we get to this time of year, there are some kind of rumors going around, even if it's just about general improvements. I know they experienced a nice attendance boost with Skyrush so I'd be very surprised if we didn't see anything at all, even if it's one or two new flats. So... anyone hear anything?

I havent heard any rumors really regarding the future. Only hopes and wishes!

From a flat stand point I could see them getting a tower ride{Skyscreamer/drop tower} over by Lightning Racer. I don't think any coaster will appear till 2016 as that's the 4 year 'sequence' they had the last 3 coasters.

From a coaster standpoint, I really don't know what is in store there. I honestly think it will be something similar to Divertical using Roller Soakers station but who knows, Since they seem to have a relationship with Intamin they could create anything.

 

Id like to see a flying coaster once they expand across that road into the golf course. There is some wicked terrain over there

 

Anyone know what the weekends in Sept. are like at HP? I was hoping to have had a chance to go before now, but it looks like I will end up going the 2nd or 3rd weekend in Sept. I'm guessing Sunday would probably be the best of the two days, since it is often that way at many parks. I'm of course hoping to get as many rides as possible on Skyrush before the end of the season.

 

You should have no issues with crowds honestly. This weekend is probably the last with crazy crowds. You should look into going during HP in the Dark as crowds are very slim during that

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Went to Hershey for the first time around a week ago. Here are some of my reviews: (these are highly subjective, they are MY opinion only)

 

Wildcat: Extremely rough. I only got on one ride so I can't tell for sure that this ride is always like this but it was very very shaky. Gave me some rather unpleasant headache. Not a good experience even though the layout itself is interesting and it maintains some speed throughout the entire ride (so I guess re-tracking it or something that made it smoother would be great).

 

Lightning racer: Nice fun ride, got on both sides (which were rather similar) and, like wildcat, it has a nice pace while being much smoother. My first ever dueling ride and was a pleasant experience. The only thing I didn't like that much were the restraints (this was my first GCI) as they seemed to press on my bladder a bit. Apart from that, cool ride.

 

Fahrenheit: Great ride, very smooth and, so far, my only beyond vertical drop coaster. The airtime on the first drop is pretty intense and so is on that last hill after the tight overbank. Overall, nice forces, interesting layout. I was a bit surprised as I wasn't expecting that much because, for some reason, all the reviews I'd read or heard weren't that good. Really cute little compact ride.

 

Storm Runner: Awesome! One of my favourite coasters so far. Intense quick launch, loads of airtime on the tophat, a nice pop of ejector right before the heartline roll, incredible pace, smooth,.... The only thing that keeps it fro reaching my number 1 spot is the short length. Apart from that, it is nearly perfect for me.

 

Great Bear: So far, my least favourite B&M invert. Not necessarily bad (the other ones I've ridden were some of the batman clones, raptor and talon). It might have some old school B&m forces in some parts and that predrop helix is very unique, it's just that it has some pauses between elements like the straight after the loop but mainly the ones before and after the corkscrew which really make for a crappy ending. It's a rather good ride, don't get me wrong, but it just doesn't provide that nearly nonstop action I got on other B&M inverts.

 

Sooperdooperlooper: First Schwarzkopf and I know it's not one of the best. Still, the loop is forceful enough and the rest of the ride is very smooth and I love how it interacts with surrounding rides.

 

Comet: really fun classic woody with some nice pops of air and smoother than I thought it would be. Nice ride!

 

Skyrush: Just two words to describe it: Holy crap!!!! That thing is insane! I mean, I already knew it was going to be fast, intense and thrilling but only after riding it do you get the whole idea. It has mega ejector airtime, hight positive Gs (which made me grey out a bit on one of my rides) and an unbelievable pacing. It's just pure insanity the entire time! However, I do have to admit that the restraints do actually hurt. Not just at the end (like a few intamins I've ridden) but during all of the airtime moments, which is really a shame because that's what this ride is mostly about. The problem is not how hard they are neither how fast the ride is going (so if the reason why they slowed down the lift at the top was this, I think it is a shame) but mostly the shape of the restraints itself as, despite being quite large, the area that actually touches your legs is not so big. They should be more like B&M's ones which adapt really well to the shape of most legs. If they were like that, then this ride would be just perfect. This is the reason why it isn't my favourite ride so far, because, no matter how awesome it might be, I can't can't put a ride that causes quite a lot of pain during the airtime moments on my no 1 spot. Outrageously awesome insane, brutal,... ride, though.

 

 

All in all I had a great day at Hershey. Loads of top thrills (two of them are now my second (storm runner) and third (skyrush) favourite rides), really nice looking area and surroundings. Fantastic park and what a fantastic day!

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^Great report. I totally agree about Fahrenheit, it is really a great ride, but it is overshadowed by storm runner I think, since storm runner is just so outstanding.

 

It's a shame to hear wildcat has gotten rough; last year when I rode it I enjoyed it more than lightning racer and only found it to be mildly rougher. And the millennium flier restraints have always bothered me too. They need better springs to keep their weight from crushing you.

 

I also want to mention that even though Great bear is not quite as good as say alpengeist or raptor, i find it has enough character to compete with them. I personally fiind the section before the corkscrew to be one of my favorite parts on any b&m invert. The sequence of transitions as well as the bizarre support foot choppers make it really fun and interesting. Then the corkscrew really comes out of nowhere. I think its just that final straight track that gets to people.. But just think; its better than the brake run stretching out that far like some newer b&ms.

 

I also agree that skyrush has so much potential killed by the restraints. They are mildly painful over the hills, and even more so by the end of the ride. I feel like if they simply shortened the vertical bars a bit on either side, they would be perfect. Just so that they rest on your waist instead of your thighs.. Until then storm runner will remain my favorite coaster at the park.

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^^Nice trip report. I just want to add a few comments.

 

As stated in my trip report on the previous page, the restraints don't take away the thrill of extreme airtime on Skyrush for me. I didn't really feel it too much until it got to the brake run. Skyrush also jumped to my #1 overall spot because it's the most extreme airtime I've ever had. Plus I feel the restraints are necessary due to how extreme the airtime is.

 

I feel like Great Bear needs to be ridden in the back to really enjoy it because I didn't like it as much this year as I did 2 years ago and I sat in the middle this time. Also agree Storm Runner is a great ride but it's a close battle between that and Fahrenheit for 2nd best ride in the park but I think Storm Runner has a slight edge.

 

Glad to see you enjoyed your trip.

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Wildcat is not too bad near the front of the train. But other than that it is rough

Great Bear has its moments, the helix pulls some good g's, and the 3 in a row inversions are good, but the straight away and final s-curve is what takes away its full potential

 

My season laps!

Skyrush 46

Storm Runner 14

Great Bear 13

Lightning Racer 13

SDL 7

Fahrenheit 4

Wild Mouse 4

Comet 2

Wildcat 2

Trailblazer 2

Sidewinder 1

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^^ About skyrush's restraints: I guess the pain may depend on the person who is riding, their leg shape and weight. I don't usually complain if a coaster has a less pleasant part (like magum's restraints, they do hurt, but not that much) but these ones were quite painful. I like to go hands up the whole time but on skyrush I really couldn't as I was impelled to grab the bars on the side to relieve the pain a bit. I agree with you when you say it doesn't take away the thrill but I did feel them during all airtime moments (and so did my dad).

 

^^^About great bear, like I said, this is my opinion and I guess some people like that straight bit and other don't, it really depend's on tastes. I still find it a great ride, though, but I just found the other B&M inverts I've ridden even better. Oh, and I do like the way most coasters in that area travel around the place and interact with other rides. A really great park!

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I also agree that skyrush has so much potential killed by the restraints. They are mildly painful over the hills, and even more so by the end of the ride. I feel like if they simply shortened the vertical bars a bit on either side, they would be perfect. Just so that they rest on your waist instead of your thighs...

 

This is EXACTLY right. I've actually commented on that possible "fix" for the restraints in the past. It's a shame that it will probably remain how it is now forever.

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Hey guys I'm new and just wanted to comment:) ^ I for one think it's a good idea to stop cause this is like all we do in this forum just my opinion xD but I just wanted to put my input regarding the "future plans" of Hershey. I really don't think there will be anything new going into Hershey next year except for some much needed general improvements (hoping and praying for storm runner to be repainted ). Maybe will see some kinda drop ride/skyscreamer in a year or two but I don't think will see another coaster until as you guys think the four year cycle or the expansion when ever that's coming. Just my thoughts tho I'm probably totally wrong as always

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Replacing or redesigning Skyrush's restraints costs money. We can complain all we want, but unless the uncomfortable experience translates to a legitimate decrease in ridership or decrease in attendance, it probably isn't worth taking care of right away. They're probably more concerned with whatever will end up using Roller Soaker's old station building...

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Well, I'm psyched. I'll b going to Hershey next weekend and it will be my first visit since 2010. I meant to go last year for Skyrush, but you know, life and things.

I'm really looking forward to these restraints. As Dalton from the faux classic 80's movie Road House once said, "Pain don't hurt."

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