Mitch Hawker's Coaster Poll 2009!

[cal1br3tto]

I always love going over the rankings. No matter where a coaster is ranked, there's always something to make me feel good about seeing it there.

 

If it's ranked highly, I'm glad because I look forward to riding it or because I love it.

 

If it's ranked low, I'm glad because I appreciate the consensus that there are many better coasters out there for me to discover. And if I've ridden it and I don't think it's that bad, that makes the low ranking even more reassuring in that regard.

 

If it's ranked differently than where I'd put it, it makes me wonder about what other "surprise" coasters might be out there. It just shows how many different opinions go into this. I mean, even if two people have the same general mindset, they're still going to apply it differently.

 

On next year's poll I might actually put Tremors above Timber Terror, as my opinions on them have shifted recently. Maybe another visit will help set that straight.

[ginzo]

GG has built what, 4 coasters? and 3 of them are in the top 10.

 

Great Job.

 

Five and one more is on the way.

[jray21]

Looks like the Masochist's made a good showing this year with Rampage being in the top 20!

[robbalvey]

GG has built what, 4 coasters? and 3 of them are in the top 10. Great Job.

Agreed! It's also worth pointing out that Intamin has only made 4 of their plug & play woodies and they are all in the top 15!

 

--Robb

[snowboard83]

Anyone else think The Big Bad Wolf's rank will shoot way up in the steel poll? It was a personal favorite of mine, but most suspendeds just aren't for everyone. Last year it ranked just under 200 around 199 or so. With it's demise I can see it getting quite a boost.

 

Anyone know when the full steel results get posted (not to rush Mitch)

 

EDIT: Oh HA, nevermind. I was way off with the rank of Big Bad Wolf in the poll... it was 111.

[CreditCrazy]

GG has built what, 4 coasters? and 3 of them are in the top 10.

 

Great Job.

 

Five and one more is on the way.

 

I'm more worried about the GG's falling than the GCI's.

 

Gravity Group reminds me a lot of CCI (wonder why?). Their coasters are great at first (Ghostrider is a perfect example) and then they just get rougher and rougher. I understand that some people like to get the $h!t beat out of them on a coaster, and some of their rides may not have gotten to that point quite yet (although it looks like Hades and Bullet have) but at the moment it looks like they are all aging poorly.

 

We'll see how the Timberliners do. Hopefully they will help and GG will get them on all of their coasters ASAP because their rides really do have amazing layouts.

[PKI Jizzman]

I think Terminator was only at #22 because SFMM has a lot more well traveled enthusiasts visiting so Terminator's rank is not as skewed. I expect to see Terminator slide a little with the new coaster smell wearing off in 2011.

 

Thinking more about it, I think you're exactly right. That also explains why rides like Troy and Prowler start off so high, then quickly drop off as more well traveled people eventually make their way to ride them.

 

Pretty much everyone went out this year and got on Terminator...many less people bothered to get to Prowler.

 

I believe this is the case with Diamondback, too. Though quite a few did go out of their way to ride it, but I'm sure many didn't vote. That's another thing, trying to figure out who did/didn't vote. 730 ballots is a lot, but at the same time not that many.

 

I can't wait to see where it places after the next few years when enough enthusiasts have gotten around to ride it.

 

Also, the 'charm' of the park might come into play with Dollywood's Thunderhead. It's such a nice, beautiful park...not to mention friendly staff, most people probably rate it highly because of that, too! I don't see Dollywood's charm wearing off anytime soon, so neither do I see Thunderhead's ranking leaving the top 20. Also it's a 'older' GCI, I think that's why its ranking is different than the others.

 

Go Rumbler!

[Guy T. Koepp]

^They also maintain their rides very well.

 

Guy "Riding T-head tomorrow morning." Koepp

[Devious]

I'm surprised that Beast keeps getting such a low rank. With all the people obsessed with the ride at night (including me) I would think it'd be a lot higher.

 

Because Rampage at night Kicks the unholy crap out of it, and is also a better ride during the day

 

I find beast to be Rough and annoying, if it had a decent layout the roughness wouldn't bother me (rampage has this) but it's just big long painful straights and curves, followed by pointless helixcurves

 

Nice to see voyage at #1 though, it'll be curious to see how it does next year with new trains, i know i'm REALLY looking forward to that

 

Edit:

 

^@guy, VERY true, Dollywood maintenance takes everything very seriously

[spaceace12]

I rode Beast this year and I thought it sucked. IT is trimmed to the point any speed that is built up, is killed when there might be air. Also has a bunch of flat and slow parts.

 

I do imagine Beast pre trim was pretty awesome though.

[CorkscrewFoley]

GG has built what, 4 coasters? and 3 of them are in the top 10.

 

Great Job.

 

Five and one more is on the way.

 

I'm more worried about the GG's falling than the GCI's.

 

Gravity Group reminds me a lot of CCI (wonder why?). Their coasters are great at first (Ghostrider is a perfect example) and then they just get rougher and rougher. I understand that some people like to get the $h!t beat out of them on a coaster, and some of their rides may not have gotten to that point quite yet (although it looks like Hades and Bullet have) but at the moment it looks like they are all aging poorly.

 

We'll see how the Timberliners do. Hopefully they will help and GG will get them on all of their coasters ASAP because their rides really do have amazing layouts.

 

I remember hearing this same thing about Villain before I rode it for the first time in '05. Coming from Cedar Point wood I didn't find it rough at all, and after it rained, it was even better.

 

Sorry for going off topic...

[ohiocoasters]

What happened to Shivering Timbers? I mean in 2004 it was #1 and then has slid since to #24. I kinda feel bad for it because ST is all MA has.

[themeparkologist]

Elissa-

Not to be rude but you said that GCI coasters are all the same but from the three I have ridden, I'd say that each is unique up to a point, but Prowler is a terrain coaster and an awesome one at that. It's one of very few new terrain coasters in the U.S. and I think that It will fall slower than other GCIs because of this fact.

 

Please dont hurt me.

[robbalvey]

Oh dear...

[SharkTums]

^^Obviously most of them are different, but they all produce the exact same feelings, even in the same order. I swear if I close my eyes on one of them I could be riding like 10 different ones and wouldn't even know the difference.

 

Again, this isn't a bad thing. Most of the B&M's are all exactly the same as well.

 

Finally though, for the umpteenth time, I'm not talking about the ride itself. I'm talking about statistically the ride is going to drop. Look at the previous GCI's year to year in the poll and you'll see what I mean.

[downunder]

^And aren't a lot of people who have ridden Balder, El Toro, T-Express, Boulder Dash and so on going to ride Prowler next year, so the mutual rider comparison might go down a bit.

[ginzo]

^^^^From another point of view, most of the top 10 woodies have extreme forces, something that GCII is not really known for. Not that I don't like GCII, they just don't kick your ass like some other rides do.

 

I think the comparison to B&M is apt. Both firms make coasters that are very solid and loved by GP, enthusiasts, and parks alike. But they don't go to 11.

 

Well, B&M used to go to 11, but that's another topic.

[robbalvey]

Also looking at the statistics of GCI coasters, since Elissa wasn't actually judging Prowler as some totally insane, whacked out midwest nutjobs seem to be trying to convice her of, there is something very interesting about their rides that I notice.

 

It almost seems like whatever "last year's higher ranking GCI coaster was" is getting cannibalized by "this year's higher ranking GCI."

 

It's almost like a new one opens, everyone rides it, loves it, but then seems to forget that they loved it by the next year when they've ridden the new one.

 

I'm not sure I'm explaining this well, but just look at the rankings of coasters like Kentucky Rumbler, Troy, Thunderbird, Renegade, Lightning Racer, and even Ozark Wildcat.

 

They all started out in the top 20 and then dropped. But to be honest, I think most of those coasters ride just as good as they do today and they did when they were built.

 

So why the drop in ranking?

 

The only one that seems to have had staying power is Thunderhead.

 

Then look at some of the older CCI's and a few other coasters - Rampage, Phoenix, The Raven, Tremors, and even a coaster like Timber Terror.

 

While they too have also slipped, some of them have slipped, come back up again, and held onto their ranking.

 

I can't imagine that a coaster like Kentucky Rumbler has gone down in quality. That ride is awesome! It's not like GCI has had a GhostRider where a once great coaster has turned into a rough pile of crap.

 

I too expect a drop in Prowler next year (and probably Plohn's El Toro too) but I figure their spots will be replaced by Efteling's new woodie...

 

--Robb

[themeparkologist]

^Forgive my ignorance but I had no clue Ozark Wildcat (RIP) was ever a top 20. Was it in its opening year?

[RailBlazer]

I can certainly see the points about coasters dropping. Most of the coasters on the list have dropped. I think using the phrase "Prowler fanboys" in the original post wasn't necessary and now "midwest nutjobs"?

 

That said, I think Prowler will be one of the CGII coasters that will have a chance at staying high on the list as long as Worlds Of Fun keeps it up. It is an outstanding ride, especially at night. It also is not your average GCII coaster. It IS different and I think most people who ride it will find it to be one of, if not the best CGII coaster.

[robbalvey]

^Forgive my ignorance but I had no clue Ozark Wildcat (RIP) was ever a top 20. Was it in its opening year?

Here are the past few years' rankings for OzCat:

 

21 16 16 15 14 14 9

[Erik Johnson]

I really do love GCI and I especially love terrain coasters. With that said Prowler ranked #24 out of 83 coasters that I rated in this year's poll. Next to SFOT's Shockwave, Prowler was my most anticipated coaster to ride in 2009. I visited Worlds of Fun this past July where I rode the coaster a total of 6 times. Two rides were in the morning, while the other four were late in the afternoon. While I found to be a lot of fun, I still have to say that I was slightly disappointed in it. While it is true that the overall layout is a bit different than a conventinal GCI coaster, it still produces that familiar fast/smooth/out of control with a few short pops of air experience. For the record I ranked Prowler behind Kentucky Rumbler (8), Lightning Racers (12/13), Thunderhead (17), and Evil Knievel (18).

 

Voyage gets my, "most improved coaster" award this year. In the last two polls it was in my lower 20's, but this year it jumped up to #7. Overall, Holiday World was my favorite park experience/visit I had all year.

 

I am happy to see Boulder Dash (my all time favorite) and Ravine Flyer II (5) ranked so high. Those are simply amazing.

[downunder]

^Ravine Flyer II is a funny one, I rode it in the afternoon and I was very disappointed but we all know what happened that night - my life flashed past my eyes at least a dozen times - ninety degrees!

[cfc]

Voyage gets my, "most improved coaster" award this year. In the last two polls it was in my lower 20's, but this year it jumped up to #7. Overall, Holiday World was my favorite park experience/visit I had all year.

 

Proof that great minds think alike, Erik. I ranked Voyage 7th, too (Raven was 5th).

[coastersrule85]

All of the Prowler fanboys should enjoy this while it lasts. I have a strong feeling it will not even be in the top 10 next year.

 

...okay, informative simple statement...not condescending in any way, just establishing a point based on obvious expertise on a given topic... Diagnosis = Sane

 

I'm sorry, but WTF. How many times have you told people off for rating or judging coasters they haven't ridden? Yet here you are doing exactly that. You have not ridden Prowler. You clearly have been paying very selective attention and are extremely biased against it if you are still unwilling to consider that maybe it might be worth something. Listen, I'm sorry you think I'm such an idiot, I'm sorry that I'm happy because a completely deserving coaster did way better than I thought it would, and I'm sorry that I'm going to get screamed at for saying this, but your comment comes off as pretty snarky and a little mean. No offense meant in any of this, of course.

 

...okay...interesting, interesting...blatent overreaction to statement made by another person possibly produced by feelings of coaster envy...I'm not a doctor, but I must concur - Diagnosis=Certified Midwest Nutjob.