Busch Gardens Williamsburg (BGW BGE) Discussion Thread

[DirkFunk]

FWIW laying blame on GCI for the height requirement sounds bogus to me. If BGW wanted to pay extra for insurance, I'm sure they could get it worked down to 42". Disney's low height requirements have more to do with a willingness for more spend on guests than magic restraints.

[Jcoaster]

Great trip report CFC. The new Marco Polo Marketplace looks pretty legit. Very nice, can't wait to see it.

[cfc]

More stuff at the park from Passholder Preview Day.

On my way to join the Stein Club. I failed.

At least I can take in a new show.

"Ziggy zagi ziggy zagi oi oi oi!" Or something like that.

Oh boy! New beer joint!

Oh joy! Giant line. I came back later when the hoo-hah died down.

Maybe I should just have them fill a growler.

Ah, beer at last! The room is really nice . . .

. . . and the beer selection is huge. Lots of Virginia breweries are represented (including Center of the Universe in Ashland and, of course, Williamsburg Alewerks).

This area is going to look a lot different in 2017. The coaster will go over the flume at some point, which should be pretty cool, and under the service road.

The flume got a nifty new entrance this year. Should make it a bit easier to find.

Yeah, I can see a wooden coaster working here. We'll see how it turns out.

OK, evil Smokehouse . . .

. . . you talked me into it.

Got any leftover lock box tokens from last year? Well, you might well make them into cufflinks now, as the entire system has been changed from tokens to PINs. I had no problem with these by Griffon, but it was a different story at Apollo's Chariot.

So, I locked my stuff up and took a spin on Griffon . . .

. . . and Alpengeist. It was fun, if a bit chilly.

The park had to remove a bunch of trees this year due to a petroleum pipeline under the property. The pipeline's path had to be visible from the air, so bye-bye trees and bushes. It's only noticeable in two spots from what I could see--by the train tracks in France . . .

. . . and by the Loch Ness Monster. The park is working on new landscaping for this area.

The return of the Big Bad Wolf . . . sort of.

Can you spot the wolf's butt in this photo?

Too late! Here he is.

"Yes, we are majestic, aren't we?"

In honor of Ireland's 15th Anniversary, an Irish band from Virginia Beach, the Fighting Jamesons, put on some concerts--which were also broadcast outside the Abbeystone Theatre.

I see you Verbolten! But when the leaves return, I won't be able to.

That's all. The great god Apollo bids you "good day."

[StarWars]

Do you think things would be different if A-B did not sell off the parks, or was this something that even they had problems with?

Edited March 21, 2016 by robbalvey

[robbalvey]

FWIW laying blame on GCI for the height requirement sounds bogus to me. If BGW wanted to pay extra for insurance, I'm sure they could get it worked down to 42"

I know for a fact the ride manufacturer sets the height restrictions. You are right that a park *could* negotiate with them to create a solution for a lower height restriction, but it's up to the ride manufacturer to decide if that's something they are willing to do or not.

 

And yes, I do blame the park somewhat as well, as they could have gone with another ride to deliver a 42" ride, but they chose not to. More reasons why I feel this ride just makes no sense to me. Even BGT has a much better balance of coasters in their collection with rides for 38", 42", 46", 48", and 54".

 

But this wouldn't be the first time a park in the chain has oddly unbalanced attractions for their guests. Explain to me why a park like SeaWorld Orlando, aimed almost entirely to families and younger kids, has three giant 54" B&Ms that younger kids can't ride. To a coaster nerd that's a dream, but as a regular visitor to that park, I can't tell you how many times I've seen parents go measure their younger kids there only to find out they are several inches too short.

 

You know, the more I think about it, this ride doesn't really affect me personally since my daughter is now tall enough to ride and it's not a coaster I will go out of my way to ride anyway, it's just disappointing to me because I feel the Busch/SeaWorld parks are smarter than this yet they've been making some really odd decisions lately.

 

I can't be the only who thinks that Mako/Cobra's Curse somehow got switched at birth and should be swapped back, right?

[robbalvey]

Do you think things would be different if A-B did not sell off the parks, or was this something that even they had problems with?

I don't think that had anything to do with it at all. I mean, I don't see how something that happened in 2009 is really affecting decisions made in 2015/16.

[thrillseeker4552]

This is definitely an odd decision by Busch, but we'll see. I still find it hilarious how Tempesto, a large thrilling coaster, was literally announced at the last minute, and this tiny wanna-be family coaster has been hyped up this early.

 

I'll save more of my thoughts for when we get more renderings and information, but for now, BGW is really confusing me with their actions.

[Vonni]

^ I completely agree. I am so confused by the marketing team. I'm sure they know what they are doing, but I certainly don't lol!

[KnoebelPrize]

BGE is my home park, and I agree that the decisions being made lately have been questionable at best (the Tempesto non-marketing was especially disheartening to me). That said, I think the height requirement is the only unfortunate aspect of this coaster. Other than that, I think the ride will be a solid fit. Here's why:

 

Verbolten is a huge step up from Grover. I still have a hard time understanding how anybody can call Verbolten a family coaster. The G-forces during the indoor helix, the multiple launches, 80 foot dive, and surprise drop track are not a logical step above the kiddie coaster at the front of the park. My impression of it, every time I ride, is that it is an intense ride that might be too much for smaller children (I personally love it though). This ride puts a logical stepping stone in place before taking on the multi-sensory barrage that is Verbolten.

 

However, all of this makes the height requirement more unfortunate...

 

As an aside: It's my hope that, after "testing the waters" with this smaller, GCI woodie, that BGE feels comfortable adding a headlining wooden coaster. Hopefully a few years down the road...No reason they couldn't put in 2 woodies without a steel in between.

[BlahBlahson]

 

I can't be the only who thinks that Mako/Cobra's Curse somehow got switched at birth and should be swapped back, right?

 

I've thought this since the instant the two coasters were announced. Each coaster fits perfectly into the other park's lineup.

 

Cheetah hunt was too expensive for essentially a mild thrill coaster and odd use of such powerful tech. Antarctica was a massive waste of expensive trackless vehicles. Tempesto is a clone and out of character for BGW (and I think it looks ugly as sin). Blackfish and its fallout was weak-handled in terms of PR. Viking raider is a very small and poor addition to this park, GCIs have zero airtime, and it does not increase my likelihood to visit in any capacity. The decision to close gwazi and do nothing with it was noticed...by everybody. Axing the creative guys behind howl o scream, the mime at Clyde and seymour, canceling allure have all decreased my overall enjoyment of the entertainment at those parks.

 

^Just some other opinions I hold of a brand that is really head-scratching this decade.

[Henry M]

I am happy it is not gravity group, although they are good, we are not getting enough new wooden coasters with character. I look forward to seeing the plans.

[skyrocket010]

It's going to be 56-58 degrees today in the park. Is it worth spending the $100 for Spring inclusive to go to the park today.

[Garet]

FWIW laying blame on GCI for the height requirement sounds bogus to me. If BGW wanted to pay extra for insurance, I'm sure they could get it worked down to 42"

I know for a fact the ride manufacturer sets the height restrictions. You are right that a park *could* negotiate with them to create a solution for a lower height restriction, but it's up to the ride manufacturer to decide if that's something they are willing to do or not.

 

Hopefully not going too much off topic but this is why I've always thought (as an opinion, before the pitchforks come out) there's never been another Aqua Trax. The height restriction that was set for it was 135cm, only a little bit lower than the biggest of B&M's and 13cm higher than Cheetah Hunt. It could be a case of Lotte World deciding that, but Galaxy Express 999 in Tokyo had similar restraints and was 130cm.

 

After the launch and top hat, I've never found Atlantis too thrilling.... it's an insane amount of fun and it's really high on my list but generally because of the amount of fun it is, not because of insane airtime or inversions or G forces which makes it a shame you can't take smaller kids onto it especially when it's advertised as "family thrill type roller coaster."

 

Considering the description on Intamin's site make it seem like it couldn't be a true water coaster either (water effects over actual water and Atlantis can't even run in the rain) and looking into why Lotte World hasn't had the water on in years, it seems it's only there for visual effect to create a "wave" and doesn't add to the ride. It just seems like high height restrictions can be a rides undoing. For that height limit there are so many other options in a space an aquatrax could go, or provide something similar but include people unter the 53" height limit with a cheaper price tag.

Edited March 21, 2016 by Garet

[The Geek Mojo]

BGW has coasters for 54", 52", 48", 38" and next year for 46". I say that's pretty good. Plus, they've added two coasters within 3 years, so that's super awesome in my book. Maybe the next coaster after "viking whatever" will be designed for 42" kids. I may be in the minority here, but I say give the park a break. I like what they're doing.

[coasterkid124]

BGW has coasters for 54", 52", 48", 38" and next year for 46". I say that's pretty good. Plus, they've added two coasters within 3 years, so that's super awesome in my book. Maybe the next coaster after "viking whatever" will be designed for 42" kids. I may be in the minority here, but I say give the park a break. I like what they're doing.

 

Well anything that is 46"+ is pretty tall to market as a family addition, so I don't agree with you there. 38" is even tall for a kiddie coaster. Also, they may have added a couple of coasters now, but they aren't major investments. I don't have a problem with Tempesto; I like the Premier Sky Rockets. But I have to admit that I was expecting something larger this time.

[Jcoaster]

Everyone bashed Tempesto last year with how it wouldn't fit in the park with theming etc and after going there and seeing it in person it looked fine and actually fits in quite well. The daredevil theme worked fine since the ride looks kinda like a half pipe itself. The theming for this GCI is a bit off but I could see this being the beginning of a change from the area being New France to Scandinavia (especially if the name ends up being about the Vikings invading). As for the height restrictions this coaster is still a year off and a lot can change during that time.

[robbalvey]

BGW has coasters for 54", 52", 48", 38" and next year for 46". I say that's pretty good. Plus, they've added two coasters within 3 years, so that's super awesome in my book. Maybe the next coaster after "viking whatever" will be designed for 42" kids. I may be in the minority here, but I say give the park a break. I like what they're doing.

That's GREAT for your nerdy coaster geek and families with older kids. But leaves very little for your 4-7 year old age range. Sorry you don't understand this. Even more sorry the park doesn't understand this.

 

Take a look at a park like Six Flags Over Texas:

Shock Wave - 42"

Judge Roy Scream - 42"

La Vibora - 42"

Mine Train - 42"

Pandemonium - 42"

 

And that's not even including the "kiddie" rides. Thats a GREAT selection of rides for younger riders. It would be nice to see parks have more for smaller kids to do outside of "kiddie" rides.

[chadster]

When it comes to ride height I believe the considering factors are G Forces and restraint system. With GCI we can pretty much exclude G Forces. And their restraint system isn't terrible but I can see how a little guy *might* could slip out or at the least get banged around, the lap bars are quite heavy after all, not to mention tall.

 

So a 42" kid's head might rest on top of the lap bar, which wouldn't be cool when getting banged around (that is unless there was a pesky tooth that refused to come out on its own and then it would be useful).

 

I'm with Robb, if GCI wanted to make a system where 42" and above could ride, they could. And in turn would be able to market to wider audience, might even spark a few more builds in the US.

[jjzadero]

This new coaster sounds... meh. I used to hate that Dollywood was my home park. "Why do I have to live so far away from Busch Gardens?", I'd whine... Well, fast forward several years later and I take it all back.

 

ETA... I didn't mean to sound so harsh. I love BGW... I'm just ready for them to build something thrilling that will bring me back.

[ricklap77]

I think all GCI coasters are the most good looking wooden coasters. Aesthetically speaking it's like if all pieces of lumber were placed carefully in some arrangement that it looks good. But I still don't understand why they have to make them turn so much instead of going a little more straight. I think most riders will take airtime hills over powerful curves? I have never been a big fan of GCI. I still prefer an old Custom Coaster International than a GCI. I think BGW was due for a Rocky Mountain coaster. With all respect, with RMC around these days, I believe that GCI is more for the smaller parks wanting a wooden coasters. Too bad (actually good) but RMC is stealing the show now, just like B&M and Intamin did!

[dreynolds1982]

I knew with the viral buildup for the ride that it was setting up for an inevitable let down. While I'm sure the ride will be fun, it's just a bit meh. My wife is from Virginia so I've always considered BGW to be my home away from home park. They always do a great job with everything though *remembers Mach Tower* OK, maybe not everything, but still, I'm sure it will be a fun ride. Interested to see the layout and also who they incorporate the theming.

[Ape]

I will hope that it has a lower height restriction as we will probably visit next year and it would be cool to have something bigger for my 4 year old ( by the time we go) to ride.

[Jcoaster]

I believe that GCI said a little while back that they were able to put inversions on coasters now. Although I doubt this is what we're looking at here, it would be pretty cool to see a GCI inversion in person.

[pianojohn]

Please tell me Entwined in not coming back.

 

It was, by far, the worst theme park show I had ever seen. And I've been working in the industry for 30 years.

[Saldek]

^The park canned Entwined after the 2014 season.