Squirt Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 Hi there... just found this website as I'm trying to decide which park I want to go to. PLEASE HELP!!! I'm looking for great, fun, thrilling roller coasters, water rides would be a nice bonus... mostly great roller coasters. (I'm from So Cal, and am used to SFMM)... any advice is greatly appreciated! Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Johnson Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 Welcome to the web site. If you are looking for good parks to visit I suggest you look at the other members TR (Trip Reports). You can find them in this forum as well as the Past TR forum. There are plenty of great park videos you can check out on this site as well. Have fun! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Clinksalot Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 If I had to choose I would go with PGA. I did like alot of the coasters at SFMW (Roar, V2 and Medusa) but PGA is more of a "complete" park IMO. Top Gun is not to be missed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phazan Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 hmmm okay well they are both tied for me as which one i like better. here are a list of the ride and short little ride reviews. okay first sfmw... zonga, is a shwarzkopf (if thats how you spell it!) it is slow bangy, and it just isnt fun at all! medusa, is a b&m floorless. it is very fun, however it doesnt seem as intense as other coasters are. it doesnt pull much gs and by the time it is at the top of the inversion it seems like you are going very slow. however, medusa to me is still very fun. vertical velocity, is an intamin inverted impulse coaster. v2 has a fun launch, and i like how it stalls out the first time on the inversion. however, it doesnt look like you are going to fall off the edge when your in front. on v2 it is very fun to sit in the back. in the back you go up on the back spike higher and thats fun. kong, is a vecoma inverted coaster. its pretty self explanitory... however it isnt too bad. boomerang...you probably have been on one of these, but if you havent its a vecoma and its okay. roar, is a very fun wooden coaster. it is intense and the trains are padded and they have a divider in between you and the person next to you so its not too painful. but dont expect any air time. okay here are pga's coasters top gun is a b&m invert coaster. it is intense and it has a helix over the water. top gun pulls a lot of gs. however, top gun isnt as long as medusa. demon, is an arrow coaster. it is old and rough. it is fun, but not as good as the other coasters. invertigo, is the same as boomerang only its inverted and the cars are facing eacthother. it is also taller and faster. grizzly, is a rough old wooden coaster that is not nearly as good as roar. it has no aritime and it has a lot of flat parts. i dont want to say i dont like a coaster but it is one of the bottom of my favorite list. vortex, is a fun b&m stand up coaster. it is smooth,fun, and all around a good coaster. just dont be fooling around and jumping on the seats before the ride starts! drop zone, isnt a coaster but it is a drop tower which is very fun! okay so thats my review on the parks. i am pretty sure i got all the coasters. overall i like them both the same. have fun! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skyscraper Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 You really should go to Six Flags Marine World ! Paramount great america is not fun at all... The inverted suspended coaster Top Gun, has only one loop, the ride is very short, too short ! The standUp coaster is very very short too, and it hurts ! It's not even fun. Their log flume is a concrete log flume with no theme, it goes slow and it's rather boring. The wooden coaster, Grizzly, is know for being the slowest wooden coaster ever, the trains almost stop in the curves ! They have a good mouse coaster, but nothing extraordinary. They got an inverted shuttle coaster, but you're from SoCal and deja vu is way better.... And there isn't great shows... you can ride every coaster in 2 hours... Don't waste your day, go to Six Flags marine world... Kong is an excellent SLC, maybe the smoothest of them. (take the first row and take your head as far as possible of the restraints) Medusa is a really great floorless, the first drop is breathtaking. (first and last row are different, try both) The boomerang is a good one. (first row is better i think) The wooden coaster Roar, is awesome..it's not ghostrider but it's the second best wooden of California I would say. (last row got really great airtime) V2 is a unique lim launch coaster, funner than the vertical ones. Be sure to try the first and last row ! The have really great shows, don't miss the Shouka show, this killer whale is incredible. The dolphins shows are really awesome too. The got a really great river rapid boats ride (white water safari), you can soak the people in the boats for 25cent, very funny.... There's a lot more to do in this park than Great America... It's up to you ... By the way, zonga is SBNO (standing but not operating).... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benzo41190 Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 I would agree with PGA. When i went there in late June it was pretty good. But yeah, it is more complete and themed than SFMW. I mean SFMW has no atmosphere and the rides are just okay and not themed. Plus SFMW has 2 Vekomas, so if you dont like to ride another Boomerang and a SLC, then go to PGA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arrowfanman Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 Lol...I actually prefered SFMW. The rides were much more fun, and they have some pretty good shows there too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WalrusMan Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 I'd prefer, PGA. Top Gun is a coaster you can't miss, Medusa in my opinion you can. And Medusa is really the only stand out coaster to me. Top Gun is a better Kong. Roar I thought was boring, better than Grizzly but still. PGA's got Top Gun, Demon (people don't give it the full appriciation), Vortex (just put your head forward), and some fun water rides. And, if I were you, I'd hit PGA until you're tired then head over to SCBB. Just a 40 min drive from PGA and you get to ride the Giant Dipper, which I now think is the ride not to miss in Nor Cal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
selfyselfy Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 Went to both parks on my US trip a couple of weeks ago and to be honest I prefferred the coasters at Marine World but prefferred the park experience at PGA. Although Top Gun was the best coaster of the two parks by far I really enjoyed Kong and and although tamer than it should have been Medusa was still fun. I personally think V2.5 is more fun than the other impulse I have ridden (at SFGA) as I enjoy the slow inversion and it gives a different experience in different seats. Kong isnt too bad for an SLC and if you like animal shows then maybe it would be a good choice although be warned the animal shows are not in the same league as Sea Worlds (Orlando anyway!). Still enjoyable though. PGA is fun to be there, but apart from Top Gun and the great Intamin Drop Tower there isnt much else I really enjoyed coaster wise. Grizzly was my most boring and worst wooden coaster (Id prefer to be shaken to hell and be fast than have a woddy that slow and uneventful) and the Inverted boomerand and Demon were nothing special. Vortex is smoother than Iron Wolf at SFGA (the only other standup ive ridden) but still slightly painful and quite short. Overall though as others have said it depends what your looking for and what coasters you prefer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Palooza Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 Hey Squirt, Welcome! A few questions: Do you have to choose between the 2 parks? How much time to you have to visit? Do you have a SFMM season pass? If so, you might want to go to SFMW because you can use your pass there. I agree with the poster above about going to PGA (or SFMW) and then going to SCBB. Robb has some great TRs about coming up here and doing all 4 parks (PGA, SFMW, SCBB and Bonfante Gardens). It all depends on the time you have and what you want to accomplish. Both parks have their good coasters, bad coasters, and other rides/shows in the park. PGA is a good park, but on the weekends it gets really hectic. Get there before 10am on any day, and stay for a couple hours. Leave after that. If you don't get there early, then you will wait in long lines all day. Sundays are usually the best days to go to either park as long as you get there before they open. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterdude5 Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 By the way, zonga is SBNO (standing but not operating).... Sorry to change the topic, but does anybody know why it is closed? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
USCoaster Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 The short version... Six Flags is run by a bunch of loser idiots who think its funny to put in a potentially awesome coaster, ruin it with horrible restraints, and then close it because too many people complained about the roughness. I'm not 100% sure, but it sounds the most plausable. It looks like its just sitting there waiting for riders and someone to turn it on. The train sits in the station with the restraints up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
X Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 I'm excited for my Tahoe/SFMW vacation tomorrow! Hopefully it will be great when I go on Sunday! I'd say go to SFMW if you have a SFMM season pass. Otherwise it depends on what you like most at a theme park. Kevin"I was riding an Arrow last time was out of Southern California"Bujold Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
What Now Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 I'd personally recomend SCBB over either SFMW or PGA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SonOfBeastSucks Posted August 6, 2005 Share Posted August 6, 2005 I live for Paramount parks and from the short experences I had at both parks... PGA is a much nicer park and better all around, but SFMW has better rides. HOWEVER, PGA also has some decent rides and IMO, is in a better area. So, winning just slightly, I would say PGA. Its close though. Either one is acceptable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rollerholden Posted August 7, 2005 Share Posted August 7, 2005 I've had a season pass to SFMW for many years and I noticed an enormous improvement this year, it's a lot cleaner than in the past. SFMW has bigger and more thrilling roller coasters IMO. The only thing it's missing is a good free fall ride, which could be found at PGA, which has mostly older coasters that hurt really bad (especially Demon and Grizzly)...it's up to you though and I hope you have no regrets with what you choose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shepp Posted August 7, 2005 Share Posted August 7, 2005 In sorta fairness to SFMW...Zonga was not only rough, but from the first it was often closed because (I understand) of problems with the lift hill tire thingies. And PGA is no great champion of ride maintenance either, having yanked out a Schwartkopf shuttle loop and a Vekoma flyer within the last few years. Having said that...the choice really depends on what you're looking for. If you're just in it for coasters and prefer steel, I'd say it's pretty much a tie: Medusa vs. Top Gun, essentially. (PGA has more coasters, but a number of them are prototypes for rides later done bigger and better elsewhere.) If you prefer wood, no contest: SFMW. Theming? Paramount has pretty much undone most of the theming from Marriot days, and what's left is pretty weak. I find parts of SFMW very pleasant, especially around the animal areas, but Jesus, couldn't they at least paint over the parking lot lines beneath Medusa? The real difference is "other." I've had a SFMW pass for the past few years in part because I enjoy looking at animals more than watching bad shows at PGA. Once past the rides, SFMW has decent killer whale and dolphin shows, really cool walruses, a good tiger show, you can hand-feed giraffes and dolphins...stuff like that. But PGA has added an inpark waterpark, so if you prefer lazy rivers to elephants, go for it. (Another perk of my SFMW pass is free admission to SF's standalone waterparks. Tornado rocks.) Neither is an unmissable park, but - especially since the closing of SFWOA, which shipped a lot of its beasties to SFMW - MW's combination of rides, aquatic shows, and land animal attractions is pretty damn unusual. And, I think, nice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhishyBrewer Posted August 7, 2005 Share Posted August 7, 2005 I would say PGA... but SFMW is really growing on me. Maybe I need help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skyscraper Posted August 23, 2005 Share Posted August 23, 2005 I went to SFMW saturday and guess what... There was dummies in the red train of Zonga ! I didn't saw it being tested but it's a good sign... I hope it's gonna open soon... but i highly doubt it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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