Hersheypark (HP) Discussion Thread

[rollin_n_coastin]

Wow, restraints are still being discussed--there must be something there

 

I've personally never had an issue on El Toro. Bizarro is more uncomfortable than El Toro but manageable. It goes to show that our body types are all different enough to find certain restraints and riding positions more comfortable than others. When it comes to Skyrush, it seems that a lot of people don’t find it to be particularly easy or enjoyable to ride given how often the restraint issue come up.

 

Skyrush pretty much destroyed me after three rides. It was honestly the most pain I’ve ever experienced on a coaster. I’m assuming that it’s got to be my fault somewhat and that I’m not riding it right. I don’t want to really complain because the ride is full of so much awesome over all. When I rode it late in the season in 2013, the only line all day was for the front row. I tried to marathon it with our group but gave up after the third ride. At that point I would have been happier having my head bashed while marathoning a Vekoma looper all day. Maybe it’s my “leg type”? lol

 

Honestly, trying to enjoy the forces of being thrown violently forward over so many incredible elements with nothing but a chisel on your legs holding you in your seat was not at all fun. Unless it’s easy to eventually “learn how to ride”, I would not be opposed at all to a Furious Baco/ Zac Spin style restraint on it. I can understand why KD put those on I305, to an extent.

[TyRush]

I can't really speak on behalf of those who feel pain but I do have a question! For those who feel pain (and I'm not attempting to make fun of or anything) but what type of leg(s) do you guys have. This might be an awkward question, maybe not but I play a high level of hockey so my legs are very strong and I have a few friends in the area who play other various leg related sports who don't have a problem on the ride. Then I have a few skinnier or "weaker" friends who absolutely won't ride it because they feel like their legs "are going to snap in half".

 

Either way it's such a great ride, if only everyone wouldn't feel the pain!

 

On a side note I was at the park last night for five hours and rode Wildcat just to see if there were any markings around the Midway Tent and I could not find any such thing. Only thing notable to me if anything is two blue "X's" on the outside of the fence behind the tent/whip.

[rramstad]

^ I am just under 6 feet and weigh 220. Thick arms, thick legs, thick chest. Wrestled and played offensive and defensive line in high school. I routinely do hot yoga now, so I'm in decently good shape, usually walk two miles every weekday as well. The issue with the restraints is not something as simple as people in good shape aren't bothered by it and people in bad shape are... and similarly with size of legs, my son plays on various select and elite lacrosse teams, he's 14, and so smaller than me but with strong legs, and he had more issue with the restraints than I did... he refused to reride at one point.

 

I'm kind of baffled as to what is going on in that I know they've got great engineers working on these sorts of things and have to imagine that there's a way to make the restraints more comfortable, spreading out the area. It has been four days now and I still have red marks, about two to three inches across, on my thighs, about halfway between the waist and the knee, from the Skyrush restraints. I've marathoned the Coney Island Cyclone (forty rides in three hours) in the back seat and didn't have any discomfort like this...

[rollin_n_coastin]

^^It is definitely an awesome ride. I'm really glad that an intense ride like Skyrush exists in the USA, without a doubt. Your friends' description of a feeling of legs snapping sounds just about right, though lol

 

^Definitely agree with this. Leg type could definitely be part if it but I don't think it has a lot to do with strength though. I leg press between 410 to 450 lbs, used to swim a lot but still bike and jog.

Edited July 18, 2014 by rollin_n_coastin

[bert425]

without OTR restraints?. . . I'll never get on Skyrush again.

 

I did not feel in the least bit "safe" and I hated my one ride on it.

[rcjp]

I can't really speak on behalf of those who feel pain but I do have a question! For those who feel pain (and I'm not attempting to make fun of or anything) but what type of leg(s) do you guys have. This might be an awkward question, maybe not but I play a high level of hockey so my legs are very strong and I have a few friends in the area who play other various leg related sports who don't have a problem on the ride. Then I have a few skinnier or "weaker" friends who absolutely won't ride it because they feel like their legs "are going to snap in half".

Ha! I knew this would come up. Not trying to show off but me legs are pretty muscled as I do lot's of cycling and other types of exercise that focus on them (more than any other part of my body) and I did feel a lot of pain. In fact I even wondered if it would be the other way round: if somehow having thinner legs would make it less painful, but then I realised that didn't' make sense. Obviously the leg shape (no matter how strong it is) and even its sensitivity play a big role but for me it's a simple matter of the are of the restraints - way to small - and the part of your legs where they lie - way too far from the hips.

[netdvn]

without OTR restraints?. . . I'll never get on Skyrush again.

 

No... The ride throws you around way too much to be rideable with OTSRs. You'll literally be banging your head in every turn.

 

I did not feel in the least bit "safe"

 

I actually love how Skyrush makes you feel vulnerable. It adds to the thrill factor, something most coasters just don't do well anymore. Most coasters now feel too controlled, so the thrill factor is lost.

[rcjp]

I actually love how Skyrush makes you feel vulnerable. It adds to the thrill factor, something most coasters just don't do well anymore. Most coasters now feel too controlled, so the thrill factor is lost.

Me too. I knew the ride would be brutal (although it was even more intense) and sitting in the station made me feel anxious in a way I hadn't felt for a long time. It was the ride I had been looking forward to the most since the year it opened (well, only waited one year, really) and finally being there are realising the freedom the restraint gave me really build up the anticipation.

[Jcoaster]

I actually love how Skyrush makes you feel vulnerable. It adds to the thrill factor, something most coasters just don't do well anymore. Most coasters now feel too controlled, so the thrill factor is lost.

Me too. I knew the ride would be brutal (although it was even more intense) and sitting in the station made me feel anxious in a way I hadn't felt for a long time. It was the ride I had been looking forward to the most since the year it opened (well, only waited one year, really) and finally being there are realising the freedom the restraint gave me really build up the anticipation.

 

I can't wait for next weekend, I too have been looking forward to this coaster since it has opened. It is so unique and I love a good intense, ass kicking ride. "Pain" doesn't really bother me considering I was a huge fan of GASM as SFGAdv. I can easily see this coaster catapulting itself into my top 5 coasters.

[chargersmichael]

^It went immediately to my Top 5! I thought it was amazing! Back Row was amazing! I didn't get to ride the front but I'm sure it was amazing

[rcjp]

^I didn't get to ride the front either, thanks to a terrible night operation which made me stay on the exact same step of the stairs (into the station) for 20 minutes while they were still dispatching trains. I seriously have no idea how they did that as I was really close to the end of the line at didn't see it moving at all. Anyway, I had a great time at the park and really liked it, overall (one of my favorites, has my second and third coasters).

[EastCoastKid]

For all of you complaining about leg pain on Skyrush, there is a way to ride it without any pain at all.

I used to be in AGONY after every ride before I discovered how to do this.

 

TIP: When you sit down in your seat, DO NOT sit all the way back, but instead SCOOT UP a few inches from the back of the seat so the restraint, when pulled down, meets your hips/waist and not your thighs.

 

Works every time!

[rollin_n_coastin]

^I can't wait to give that a try and really hope it works--a friend told me about this this past week and it makes sense, even if going against "proper riding position". At least it sounds like doing that will get the restraint pad on your lap/ hips instead of the middle of the legs. There's no way that I'm giving up on Skyrush without a fight lol.

 

I really enjoyed my last visit to Hershey, maybe because it wasn't that busy and our group got to marathon the coasters. Fahrenheit and Storm Runner are still huge favourites. Really looking forward to the 2015 announcement at Hershey. It's looking to be a great year in the industry with cool attractions coming....that aren't at a Six Flags Park

[neil009]

For all of you complaining about leg pain on Skyrush, there is a way to ride it without any pain at all.

I used to be in AGONY after every ride before I discovered how to do this.

 

TIP: When you sit down in your seat, DO NOT sit all the way back, but instead SCOOT UP a few inches from the back of the seat so the restraint, when pulled down, meets your hips/waist and not your thighs.

 

Works every time!

 

I'm pretty sure all you're doing is keeping the ride op from stapling you. My theory is that how stapled you are at the beginning of the ride vastly effects the amount of leg pain you end up with, because the forces at the bottom of the first hill pulls the lap bar further down a set amount regardless of how much puny leg flesh is in the way.

 

I'm dubious that you can STAY scooched forward the entire ride, because someone from Intamin said in an interview that the lift hill was intentionally designed steep and fast to push everyone back in the seat as far as possible, to keep scalawags such as yourself from intentionally riding incorrectly and undermining the restraint system.

[seasonic]

For all of you complaining about leg pain on Skyrush, there is a way to ride it without any pain at all.

I used to be in AGONY after every ride before I discovered how to do this.

 

TIP: When you sit down in your seat, DO NOT sit all the way back, but instead SCOOT UP a few inches from the back of the seat so the restraint, when pulled down, meets your hips/waist and not your thighs.

 

Works every time!

 

I push on my restraint during the whole ride and it works for me. I also just make sure that it is only flush with my legs and not pressing on them.

[Brassinthegrass]

I also noticed they release them a little bit when you hit the final brake run before the station so your not uncomfortable waiting for the train ahead of you to dispatch.

[EastCoastKid]

I'm pretty sure all you're doing is keeping the ride op from stapling you. My theory is that how stapled you are at the beginning of the ride vastly effects the amount of leg pain you end up with, because the forces at the bottom of the first hill pulls the lap bar further down a set amount regardless of how much puny leg flesh is in the way.

 

I'm dubious that you can STAY scooched forward the entire ride, because someone from Intamin said in an interview that the lift hill was intentionally designed steep and fast to push everyone back in the seat as far as possible, to keep scalawags such as yourself from intentionally riding incorrectly and undermining the restraint system.

 

Aaaaaand you're wrong. It's impossible to prevent getting stapled on Skyrush. The bottom of the first hill staples riders regardless of how of they're positioned, but my way of riding prevents the lap bar from crushing my thighs, while stapling my waist/pelvis instead.

 

And you are damn right that if the restraint system sucks, I'm going to alter my way of riding to make it best for me.

 

Have a great day.

[neil009]

^I guess we should both be thankful Intamin made the restraints idiot-proof.

[A.J.]

I dunno - this may be unintentional but when the lap restraint pops open at the end of the ride I have the ability to move myself back in the seat a little bit. I think it's because I sit forward in the station so I can reach the overhead bar to pull down and just forget to sit back.

 

I'm a really tiny guy with a lot of leg muscle but the only time I've ever been super-uncomfortable in the seat was while sitting on the holding brake before they started letting the restraints release a little bit.

[Jcoaster]

How are the lines for Fahrenheit these days? I haven't been there since 2009 and it was the longest line in the park, I'm guessing it's still the same due to capacity?

[TyRush]

^Oh still has the longest lines in the park usually the whole day. Thus why you should go to it right at opening!

 

And as for mentioned above, I don't really think the hill was designed to push people back in their seats, but rather because of how the ride was designed in the small space provided. Honestly at this point with it being open for almost 3 years now I don't think they will ever change the restraints. Even tis year I have noticed in my back row left wing seat the foam seems to be EVEN softer as I can actually grab the foam and squeeze it with great leeway.

[rcjp]

For all of you complaining about leg pain on Skyrush, there is a way to ride it without any pain at all.

I used to be in AGONY after every ride before I discovered how to do this.

 

TIP: When you sit down in your seat, DO NOT sit all the way back, but instead SCOOT UP a few inches from the back of the seat so the restraint, when pulled down, meets your hips/waist and not your thighs.

 

Works every time!

I wish I could have thought of this while I was there. Makes sense and maybe it could just move the ride from third to first in my top coasters.

[JJLehto]

Oh snap, still complaints of Skyrush pain?

Honestly, I didn't find it that bad even on opening day...and it was better after the softer restraints (or whatever they did).

 

I haven't made it out to Hershey this year, hopefully will sneak it in, I was gunna ask if Skyrush still runs as great, but since it's causing pain still I take that a yes!

[ElJosho]

^^Yep, there's a link to the url I foolishly said was fake right at the bottom of the page I posted in my reply above, which I would have seen if I'd taken the time to scroll down and read it, so that's my bad on that element of the post for sure. In hindsight, airing my thoughts on the subject here - not as great an idea as I thought it was at the time. I've been here like two weeks and people probably saw a new topic in the main forum next to an almost non-existent post count and thought either, "Noob - please lock thread." or "Spammer - please ban." Also, this seems to me to be less a forum than a crazy-awesome, ever-growing, archive of personal trip reports and new ride reviews and theme park personal review threads that were started in 2005 and still live at the top of page 1 of the topics. But my post idea was none of that, so I could have found a more appropriate outlet - I'll just be glad it wasn't instantly deleted and move on. Even if every word I wrote turns out to be wrong, and it probably is, the endorphin high was totally worth it. That is all.

[EastCoastKid]

^I guess we should both be thankful Intamin made the restraints idiot-proof.

 

If Intamin took so much time out of their day to make the restraints idiot-proof, why couldn't they have just created a comfortable restraint in the first place? Mind boggling.