liftsifter Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 I love Goliath too. It was a crowd favorite at Great America as Deja Vu. But I question why the chain would take it out of three parks and gift it to a fourth, given the headaches it causes. SFNE surely had to spend money on it and I am pleased to see they are giving it new trains. Hopefully you guys will be able to enjoy it longer than we did, but to be safe, enjoy it while it lasts. The Great America Deja Vu is now at Silverwood in Idaho. This is Deja Vu from Magic Mountain, and even Deja Vu at Magic Mountain was one of the most reliable of the three that were originally manufactured. If Six Flags would have just let Vekoma come and install the new software they created and re-marketed in 2009, then these problems wouldn't be occurring at all. Either way, it's a very popular coaster at SFNE, and yes, I'd say it was my favorite at the park. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Password121 Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 ^^^Bizarro seems much slower than it used to be for some reason. It also rattles quite a bit. Really though the big problem with Bizarro now is the new trains. For taller people, the trains are very uncomfortable and the lap bar is very thick and awkward. The headrests also take away from the ride if you're not in the front row, though this is a minor issue. I used to list Superman as my favorite coaster, but now it's barely in my top 20 and dropping fast. It's a very good ride but it's not what it used to be for a lot of different reasons. There's no one thing that makes the ride worse than it used to be, it's a combination of things... the biggest of which is that the ride just feels sluggish now. I agree 100% at the end of last season it was awful at certain points in the spaghetti bowel the train would randomly shift to the right to left. That sounds like an interesting element Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boldikus Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 So I'm in the early stages on planning a solo trip up to SFNE sometime this summer (maybe with my fiance if I can convince her to go). As I don't drive (before you ask, I live and work in center city Philly, my wife drives, so no need for one) I would be taking Amtrak to Springfield and staying in a (hopefully reasonably priced) hotel. Just wondering if anyone can provide insight into close/cheap places to stay somewhat close to the park in a somewhat decent area of Springfield. Will it be a pain to get cabs to and from the park from Springfield? It doesn't look like its too far (10-20 minutes). Planning to hopefully do a Thursday-Sunday trip so I could get a weekday and weekend day in. Any insight/suggestions would be much appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TroyWD98 Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 I had the chance to visit SFNE this past Sunday for my first time (just having the chance to post this since I just got home from visiting my friend in Connecticut). The weather was really nice all day and we stayed there from about 1pm - 7pm. Even though it was opening weekend, the crowds were light as we were able to get on 20+ rides in just 6 hours. It would've even been more but ride ops are some of the slowest I've ever seen. hah But anyway, Bizarro x8 Pandemonium x2 Batman: Dark Knight x2 Thunderbolt x2 Cyclone x1 Gotham City Gauntlet x2 Mind Eraser x1 Catwoman's Whip x1 Buzzsaw x1 Flashback x1 Goliath - closed Gondola ride (don't remember the exact name) x2 - Bizarro was super fun, the ride has a great layout and never got old. I could've ridden it all day. The music was playing on every ride we had on it except the first one but the fire/mist effects were absent. My favorite part of the ride was the hill right after the one that takes your picture since you get some serious ejector air from it. I never got to ride Bizarro as Superman so I can't relate to what people say when they've say it has gotten worse but it seemed pretty amazing to me. I'd put it equal to MF and Maverick for coasters I've been on. - Pandemonium was way better than I expected. I actually liked it more than Sierra Sidewinder at Knott's. Our second ride, we got a super unbalanced ride that spun like a crazy which was super fun. I liked the two airtime hills at the end of the ride a lot. - Batman had a really great first drop and felt more forceful than Scream at SFMM. - Thunderbolt felt like a fun little ride when I rode it in the front but the second time in the back, it was extremely jerky and unpleasant. I don't really know what to make of this one, had a good ride and a bad ride pretty much. - Cyclone has such an awkward layout and makes this ear-piercing screeching noise the whole time. Only rode it once since it was one of the worst coasters I've ever ridden. - Gotham City Gauntlet was a fun little mouse coaster with good theming for a Six Flags ride. It 180 degree turns were much more intense than Coast Rider at Knott's or Technic Coaster at Legoland. - Mind Eraser was my first SLC. Man, these things are so uncomfortable. I definitely banged my head a couple of times on those quick corkscrews and had no desire to ride it again. I'm glad I can say I've been on one of these now though so I can relate to all the horrible things people say about them. - Catwoman's Whip had the longest train I've ever seen on such a small ride. I rode in the very back car and the people at the front were already at the bottom of the drop while I was still going up the chain lift. Because of this, it yanked me down pretty fast and I slammed into the side of the train. Strange ride. - Buzzsaw was interesting how it kept doing circular rotations but you never went upside down. I had never been on a thrill ride comparable to it before. - Flashback was uncomfortable and terrible just like the Boomerang at Knott's. - Didn't get to ride Goliath but I rode it at SFMM a few times and always found it to be a fun and a bit terrifying ride. It's a shame I didn't get to ride the sky screamer either since I've never been on those but I didn't expect it to be open at all. And that's pretty much it. One last thing, I would like to mention that the kids areas in the park seemed pretty nice and were also the most crowded areas of the park. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScreaminNewEngland Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 ^ Cyclone is a very good ride, it can beat you up in some seats but that's the beauty of it. My favorite spot on it is the front. Some awesome air and it's much smoother. As for flashback, it really isn't that bad. The only place where you may hit your head is on the first loop of the cobra roll. The ride is quite smoother than most boomerangs. Thunderbolt's back seat it pretty rough, just like most wooden coasters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Generational Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 ^^ Sounds like a good time! Any particular reason for skipping over Scream? Was it not working or open? Or just a time constraint. Definitely wouldn't be one to choose CWW over Scream. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcjp Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 The only place where you may hit your head is on the first loop of the cobra roll. Is this common for boomerangs? Because I've only ridden one (at Hershey) and did find quite a big jolt during that very same transition. Nothing apart from that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TroyWD98 Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 ^^ Sounds like a good time! Any particular reason for skipping over Scream? Was it not working or open? Or just a time constraint. Definitely wouldn't be one to choose CWW over Scream. I definitely wanted to ride it but my friend is scared of drop towers so he wouldn't go on it and I didn't want to make him wait for me. x) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 (edited) Gondola ride (don't remember the exact name) x2 That would be the New England Skyway... the world's saddest excuse for a skyride and the proud recipient of the not so coveted Six Flags plaque for some reason. Sadly the plaque doesn't mention the fact that the ride is internationally recognized as being Von Roll's saddest skyway, it chooses to focus on the fact that it "delights" guests with it's ridiculously short journey over a few buildings, giving guests a great alternative to walking a few hundred feet (I'm paraphrasing here but I'm sure it's something like that). ** Okay so here's the thing, I love Von Roll skyways... including this one. But let's be honest, I think Von Roll kind of phoned it in when they built it. I love this ride but only because I feel bad for it because it's just so sad and pathetic. Also, I can't believe how few cars it runs. I've never seen a von roll skyride operate with one operator at each station... responsible for catching the cars, pushing them over to the load /unload position, opening and closing the door, loading guests and dispatching the car... all while still being able to slowly walk back to the catch position and still having to wait for the next flying purple bird cage (I mean car) to show up. Edited April 17, 2014 by coasterbill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dschu Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 Bizarro's fire was removed many years ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DirkFunk Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 Uhhh, I'm pretty sure ACE doesn't give out plaques for Sky rides. I think Six Flags did that themselves. As for the Skyride, it, like the Monorail that used to be in the same rough area, was purchased by Riverside's prior ownership (who was horrible) because, I dunno, it looked nice. IIRC, that ownership also had designs for expanding the park out past where the rapids ride presently sits, and I think the transportation rides were to play a part in that...though that fell through and they put these up anyways. Just think: the management who screwed up the signs for Time Warp and Double Trouble and thus had to name the wrong rides that (seriously) was a drastic improvement over those guys. Also; I blame Six Flags more than Von Roll for the lack of cabins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Generational Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 Just found out I have not one, but two trips already lined up before June. I like the pacing on this year already. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 Uhhh, I'm pretty sure ACE doesn't give out plaques for Sky rides. I think Six Flags did that themselves. As for the Skyride, it, like the Monorail that used to be in the same rough area, was purchased by Riverside's prior ownership (who was horrible) because, I dunno, it looked nice. IIRC, that ownership also had designs for expanding the park out past where the rapids ride presently sits, and I think the transportation rides were to play a part in that...though that fell through and they put these up anyways. Just think: the management who screwed up the signs for Time Warp and Double Trouble and thus had to name the wrong rides that (seriously) was a drastic improvement over those guys. Also; I blame Six Flags more than Von Roll for the lack of cabins. You're right about the plaque, I thought it was an ACE plaque since it looks just like the one near Thunderbolt. Oops I never knew that about Time Warp and Double Trouble. Thanks for the insight. And I agree with you blaming Six Flags for the lack of Cabins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rai Fox Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 That would be the New England Skyway... the world's saddest excuse for a skyride Oh, I'm not sure about that. Canobie might edge that one out. I love Canobie but I've just never figured out the purpose of that tiny little skyride. Nice, if brief, view of the lake, I guess... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 I actually didn't mind that ride but I was really talking more about Von Roll skyrides than those Hopkins things. I expect better from Von Roll than the New England Skyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timetrial3141592 Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 That would be the New England Skyway... the world's saddest excuse for a skyride Oh, I'm not sure about that. Canobie might edge that one out. I love Canobie but I've just never figured out the purpose of that tiny little skyride. Nice, if brief, view of the lake, I guess... I completely agree. It doesn't even have a second station; it just goes out a bit and comes back. I have no idea what it's for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cmbgo12 Posted April 18, 2014 Share Posted April 18, 2014 I'm still mad that they got rid of the Sky Swat for NESS... That ride was probably one of my favorite flat rides ever Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Generational Posted April 18, 2014 Share Posted April 18, 2014 And the thing is, is that they didn't HAVE to get rid of it. Since they took Twister out, there was a perfect spot for it to go, with a little reconfiguration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devins3 Posted April 18, 2014 Share Posted April 18, 2014 Does anyone know what six flags policy is on the temperature they start the rides is? I was thinking of taking a trip out to SFNE tommorow morning but it looks to be around 45 at 11 am so I am hesitant to get there for opening. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ECZenith Posted April 18, 2014 Share Posted April 18, 2014 I'll be at the park tomorrow with Jessica. Any chance NESS will be open? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dschu Posted April 18, 2014 Share Posted April 18, 2014 I'll be at the park tomorrow with Jessica. Any chance NESS will be open? No Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScreaminNewEngland Posted April 18, 2014 Share Posted April 18, 2014 NESS opens May 15th but you're in luck. Goliath is planned to open with it's brand new trains tomorrow! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Generational Posted April 18, 2014 Share Posted April 18, 2014 NESS opens May 15th but you're in luck. Goliath is planned to open with it's brand new trains tomorrow! "Planned" But that's good news, because I am going next Sunday, and would have been less than pleased if Goliath wasn't running. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devins3 Posted April 19, 2014 Share Posted April 19, 2014 I was there for a couple hours today and Goliath was testing the entire time I was there and seemed to be running fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Generational Posted April 19, 2014 Share Posted April 19, 2014 ^ Good good. Now if we could just get rid of Flashback, I think we'd be all set. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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