Genx24 Posted April 29, 2015 Share Posted April 29, 2015 Definitely don't visit on July 4th if you want to avoid crowds. The 4th of July celebrations at Coney Island, especially the Nathan's Hot Dog eating contest are a huge draw. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gp1086 Posted May 31, 2015 Share Posted May 31, 2015 I was there two Sundays ago (5/17) and crowds were pretty light especially for Cyclone and Thunderbolt, both walk-ons. Is that normal? Waited 15 minutes or so for log flume ride. Thunderbolt has terrible restraints, no? Felt like I was seriously getting jerked around. (apologies if this has been covered before) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brassinthegrass Posted May 31, 2015 Share Posted May 31, 2015 Walk one for the two coasters before the main season is pretty usual... They are up charges from the POP wrist bands and are kind of expensive when you think about it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil009 Posted June 2, 2015 Share Posted June 2, 2015 I was there two Sundays ago (5/17) and crowds were pretty light especially for Cyclone and Thunderbolt, both walk-ons. Is that normal? Waited 15 minutes or so for log flume ride. Thunderbolt has terrible restraints, no? Felt like I was seriously getting jerked around. (apologies if this has been covered before) I went on a Saturday in August and the rides were all walk-ons until sunset (perfect weather). Something about charging $8 for a single ride keeps the lines pretty short. I didn't actually have a problem with TB's restraints. The hard plastic headrest, yes, the restraints, no. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glucky11801 Posted June 2, 2015 Share Posted June 2, 2015 For me the biggest problem with Thunderbolt was not necessarily the restraints, but how the train was tracking on the rails. It felt like it wasn't staying in close contact with them. Talk about jarring! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genx24 Posted June 6, 2015 Share Posted June 6, 2015 Got a quick ride on the Cyclone this afternoon, and the retracking is fantastic. Rode back row, and it was butter smooth, but it still gave me the classic Cyclone jostling and a few pops of air. I love this coaster. I hope it stands forever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jcoaster Posted June 7, 2015 Share Posted June 7, 2015 Genx24 and I were bored this afternoon so we decided to make a short visit to Luna Park for a lap on Thunderbolt and Cyclone since we only live 15 minutes away. The place was packed with people which isn't hard to believe seeing that it is an absolutely gorgeous afternoon. On to the rides: Thunderbolt: I've only ridden this coaster once which was last season when it first opened. I have to say I was quite underwhelmed with the ride last year. Although it had great airtime on the first drop and the return hills, it was rough and left much to be desired. It was disappointing wondering "what could have been with this coaster." That time I rode in the last row, this time I was able to ride in the front. I can say that this time around the ride left me stunned, laughing and wanting more. Padding was added to the headrest and the ride ran much smoother on top of that. Maybe it needed a year to be broken in because this thing was hauling today. From the first drop to the break run it did not let up. Now was it butter smooth? No not by any stretch of the imagination, but it was extremely re-ridable. The airtime on the hills and hang time on the inversions were absolutely insane. Im pleased knowing that we have a potential gem on our hands if this thing keeps running like this. My opinion has done a complete turnaround. 8/10 There is also a large lot next to Thunderbolt that is under construction. Anybody know what this is? My guess is more parking, which wouldn't be a bad idea in my opinion. Cyclone: What can I say? This thing is a classic and if it's possible it is actually running better than I could ever remember. GCI has done even more re-tracking in the off season. The coaster was running incredibly, very smooth with ejector air. Thats a winning combination to me. 10/10 Now on to the Photo's: Starting the photos off with a mandatory Nathan's shot. (I see you Joey Chestnut) First up was the Thunderbolt. I thought I knew to expect the second time around but boy was I wrong. The Loop was pretty damn forceful heading into it with some great hang time at the top. One of the "OMFG" ejector airtime hills on the way back to the station. Seriously, those flimsy shoulder restraints make this part of the ride 100x more terrifying. Some nice Signage. Our chariot awaits us. On our walk from Thunderbolt to Cyclone we noticed this huge construction lot next to the Thunderbolt. Anyone have any idea what this is? My guess is some much needed parking space, but who knows? Brooklyn's Finest Classic Trains. I liken the interior to an old fashioned couch. Some of the new re-tracking by GCI. Until next time folks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DoinItForTheFame Posted June 7, 2015 Share Posted June 7, 2015 Thanks for the report! Great photos! We will be in NYC next month, and plan on stopping by for a ride on Thunderbolt. Can't wait!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genx24 Posted June 7, 2015 Share Posted June 7, 2015 (edited) Awesome report my friend. As Jcoaster mentioned, I accompanied him to Coney this evening, and I have similar thoughts about Thunderbolt. It must be a front seat ride because it was beautiful compared to the nightmare ride I had last summer. Smooth through the inversions, no headbanging, and crazy scary ejector air. Not a bad coaster to have 20 mins away from my front door. Edited June 8, 2015 by Genx24 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil009 Posted June 7, 2015 Share Posted June 7, 2015 ^^Very glad to hear Thunderbolt is running better. I was so disappointed last year, the layout has such potential and I wanted so bad to like it, but it was just too rough. I'm looking forward to giving it another chance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jcoaster Posted June 7, 2015 Share Posted June 7, 2015 ^^Very glad to hear Thunderbolt is running better. I was so disappointed last year, the layout has such potential and I wanted so bad to like it, but it was just too rough. I'm looking forward to giving it another chance. Thats exactly how I felt. Give it another chance this season, I was left speechless. Couldn't believe it was the same ride. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJLehto Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 ^^Very glad to hear Thunderbolt is running better. I was so disappointed last year, the layout has such potential and I wanted so bad to like it, but it was just too rough. I'm looking forward to giving it another chance. Thats exactly how I felt. Give it another chance this season, I was left speechless. Couldn't believe it was the same ride. Oh wow! This is great news, I am finally going to Coney Island this year and was going to ride Thunderbolt regardless, but glad to know it won't give my brain trauma and a back re alignment now? I also liked the layout, but was kind of dreading it after hearing the complaints. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbucknyc Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 Zamperla did some track work for a few weeks in early May on the Thunderbolt to improve the ride, see below picture from May 10th. The lot between the Thunderbolt and the the baseball stadium is actually divided up into many parcels of land, most of which are privately owned by the daughter of the man who owned the original Thunderbolt when Giuliani had it torn down. What you see on that lot now is the NYC Parks Department turning trees it removes into fire wood and mulch. Some track work being done to improve Thunderbolts ride. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 Kinda curious as to what type of track work can be done to a steel coaster... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil009 Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 ^That inversion you see them working on had some of the harshest jolts to it, so whatever was wrong with it, here's hoping it's fixed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejot Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 ^^ One thing that can be done is grinding the track segment connections. All three joints in the pictured element appear to have scaffolding appropriately positioned for a worker to inspect/grind. Additional attention areas are probably for other various inspection/measurement/analysis: Weld integrity, signs of stress, warpage, surface characterization, etc. This picture is the "title image" from an easily-found youtube video of the ride during early 2014, look closely you can see there was already grinding work done at all three points. It stands to reason that further attention could make an improvement. It does seem a little surprising that such work alone could have such a great impact, given computer-controlled (presumably?) manufacturing, and self-centering segments as seen below (photocredit Scott Lynch flickr). On the other hand - Impulse at Knoebels (I know, different mfr) has had a huge amount of griding done, so it must be significant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swede Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 This is awesome news as I will be in New York riding it next week. Last year I visited it hadn't open yet. I was a little scared riding it after so many said how bad it was, but I was going to ride it once no the less, so hearing from a few different sources that it runs better this year is a relief. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larrygator Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 The lot between the Thunderbolt and the the baseball stadium is actually divided up into many parcels of land, most of which are privately owned by the daughter of the man who owned the original Thunderbolt when Giuliani had it torn down. What you see on that lot now is the NYC Parks Department turning trees it removes into fire wood and mulch. Are you sure? I was under the impression that the whole lot from the stadium to West 15th was owned by NYC but they only leased the footprint under Thunderbolt to Central Amusement. I honestly don't know and would love clarification on the ownership of this parcel of land Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbucknyc Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 Here is what I know, see below tax map of the lots. The Zamperla Thunderbolt is on lots 170 & 190, these are city lots. The original Thunderbolt stood on lot 105, it and lot 89, where the Playland Arcade stood, are owned by Jasmine Bullard. She inherited the land when her father Horace passed. The remaining lots I believe are all city owned. Also see link to Horace Obit, this says the lots are on the market for 90 million, but a later New York Times article notes that Jasmine took the property off the market. http://www.brooklyndaily.com/stories/2013/17/bn_bullardsidebar_2013_04_26_bk.html Tax Map Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larrygator Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 $90 million, that's a lot of crazy talk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donkey123 Posted June 14, 2015 Share Posted June 14, 2015 Isn't the land next to Thunderbolt the area that is rumored by Screamscape to be the up-coming waterpark. Maybe that's why there is construction going on there because that is pretty early to start construction, especially for Luna Park. I wouldn't think it would be parking with the expanding opportunities Zamperla has and they expect you to find a parking space somewhere in the city. A waterpark to me is a bad idea with how gross the beach gets in the summer, and in the new land they could put more fun new innovations that Zampela gets, like the new Windstarz attraction that's coming soon! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genx24 Posted June 14, 2015 Share Posted June 14, 2015 Probably not. That plot of land is way too small for a waterpark, and they were only working in one small portion of the entire lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donkey123 Posted June 15, 2015 Share Posted June 15, 2015 That's what I thought since it is only 5 acres, but they know how to cram stuff in and I heard that Zamperla was thinking about a waterpark. It doesn't sound like it could happen, but Zamperla has done some really interesting and creative ideas these last 5 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brent York Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 I was at Luna Park Sunday 6/7 and Thunderbolt was rough and very uncomfortable to me. It was a huge let down as I had high hopes for it. And they had stapled the restraint so hard that it was worse than Skyrush's. In fact, I was surprised that every single coaster at Luna Park was rough and I was glad that I was only riding them each once. Oddly enough, Cyclone was obviously still rough (though less than my last ride a few years ago) but was by far the most enjoyable of any coaster there. How is it that all six coasters are rough!? Also after scanning my pass for Thunderbolt, as I was putting it in my velcro'd cargo shorts pocket, the guy tried to accuse me of having a cell phone in my pocket. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donkey123 Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 That's odd I only think that Soarin Eagle is rough and The Tickler is slightly jerky other then that, all the other coasters are just fine. With the retracking of the Cyclone and Thunderbolt running well they are both not rough at all. Cyclone is literally sitting on a couch and Steeplechase it pretty smooth too. Go to SFA then you'll see what is rough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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