Busch Gardens Tampa Bay (BGT Discussion Thread)

[DarienLaker]

*facepalm* Who am I kidding, maybe Busch Gardens/SeaWorld think that "traditional" wooden coaster made from all wood and no steel are "obsolete". Wooden coasters are here to stay weather or not they have steel tracks or supports along with the wood.

[GCI Wooden]

GCI, The Gravity Group, and RMC are actively proving that wooden coasters are not obsolete. However, they are more expensive to maintain than steel coasters, and they are louder (I believe that is an issue at BGW). I would love to see more wooden coasters (who wouldn't), but I don't see any wood coasters going into Seaworld parks until they start acting like theme parks again, and if BGW has an issue with noise, there isn't really a way to fix that. I hope that BGT can get a woodie to replace Gwazi. Anything is possible, right?

[megametal]

I think it's purely budgetary. They're closing Gwazi and BGW is apparently going to send some of it's animals elsewhere. Man, that INBEV deal really did harm to these parks. (Actually, it was them going public a few years after that.) I'm sort of hoping that the parks can find some way to become privately operated again.

[Meteornotes]

Good move, BGT. My spine still hurts from my last ride. Which was about seven years ago...

 

dt

[MrSum1_55]

This seems to be a pattern with GCI. Their coasters hold up very well for a while, but once they do get bad, they never go back. While Gwazi was probably the worst GCI, Roar West and Wildcat are not much better. Even Apocalypse has already begun to show some age. I think that the other GCI's that are as bad are probably here to stay, though.

[PeoplemoverMatt]

I never had the amazing experience on Roar at SFDK that Gwazi provided. Never. Gwazi was laughably terrible out of the station. Roar was on the rough side, but nowhere close to the incredible amount of pain and fail that is/was Gwazi.

 

Gwazi even made Millennium Flyer trains give a painful ride. That's how awful it was.

[loop-de-loop]

Bring in an RMC in its place. Sounds like a good trade off to me.

[Nrthwnd]

 

Bwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah.

 

 

I'm over it.

[coasterfreak101]

I actually always liked Gwazi, but I totally support this decision - time to open up that plot of land for an Intamin!

[coastercoaster5]

I was at the park yesterday, and on Falcons, One of the seats would not fold back. the entire night, they were running falcons fury furious with one of the seats not pulling back.

[Hilltopper39]

I loved Gwazi in it's first couple of years but yeah recently it was pretty brutal, even with the trains. I always hated waiting for that ride because of thir operations policy to check all the seat belts first then to re check the lap bars, a station wait always felt like it took forever.

 

BGT's last couple of installations (Jungala, Falcons Fury, Pantopia, Cheetah Hunt) have all been spectacular so I'm excited to see what they do with the space. That park always felt kinda weird to me with the huge chunk of open land in the middle, maybe they'll find a way to connect the front of the park to the Stanleyville area.

[GwaziBSRider1]

^ That's a really good idea! Depending on what ends up replacing Gwazi, there's probably enough space there to even build a new themed area to connect the existing ones.

[djcoastermark]

Was at the park today (christmas eve ) and boy ,was it slow, despite the warm temperatures. All the coasters were walk on and never did I see a full train at all on Montu, Kumba or Shiekra. Of course we had to be gluttons for punishment and rode Gwazi twice. Once in front and once in back, ' cause hey, there was no line. Gwazi was running, well, like Gwazi. I would really like to know where they got the square wheels for those trains ? No pictures today, but we are going again tomorrow with more family and will try to get some pics.

[Superbatboy]

Does Six Flags still have a lock on Iron Horse treatment in 2015-2016?? This whole ride closure just screams RMC iron horse to me.

 

Alan Schilke did say they had 3 projects lined up for '16, we already know about Wildfire could this be one of the other 2? I hope so. And with a ride the size of Gwazi, maybe they'd need a year to complete it since it's two seperate structures, unlike Colossus where it's two tracks on one big structure.

 

We can dream cant we?

[canadianparkfan]

^Maybe... I've got a feeling the three projects are wildfire, this (BGT installation), and finally, a six flags park, either SFSTL with the Boss, or La Ronde with Le Monstre.

[chargersmichael]

I thought they said that it wasn't going to be demolished YET because of money and because they have YET to develop future projects for the site. So...I doubt RMC would be coming since they haven't really developed future projects for Gwazi at all YET.

[Password121]

Very doubtful of Gwazi getting the Iron Horse treatment. I got the impression it would be SBNO to save some cash until they have the capital to do so.

I would bet on two Six Flags RMC projects in 2016, which is never a bad thing.

[Superbatboy]

^True and ^^True but Busch seem to be a little secretive as of late with future expansions (see BGW)

[jynx242]

The last few times (yes, few times - I'm a glutton for punishment I guess) I've ridden Gwazi, it has only succeeded in pissing me off. It should still be an awesome ride, but it is just unacceptably rough. I would get off the ride, and while taking an aspirin, think to myself "what a waste."

 

I've been hoping for RMC lovin' for it, but really, closing it as it is is not a loss....at all. It's been REALLY bad for the last couple of years and something has to change. If not being re-built and overhauled - it needs to go.

[Josh Linn]

Rode each side once in 2003...Tiger was mediocre, Lion was one of the worst wooden coasters I've ever been on.

[Rollercoaster Rider]

I would be more OK with the announcement if they announced what was going there. Even vague terms like "A Roller Coaster more exciting than Gwazi times 10" or something like "The most incredible coaster to hit Florida."

[Comeagain?]

I would be more OK with the announcement if they announced what was going there. Even vague terms like "A Roller Coaster more exciting than Gwazi times 10" or something like "The most incredible coaster to hit Florida."

 

Didn't they pretty much say what was going there? Gwazi is staying there SBNO for the foreseeable future due to budgetary constraints.

[Nrthwnd]

^ That's what they said, as far as I could figure out...

[buck funny]

It just so happens I am going to the park in 2 weeks, just before Gwazi closes. I am not really a credit nerd, but may as well ride it for the first and last time.

 

I gather it may be a bit rough... Is there a seat that is less chiropractor visit inducing? I found last year riding wilde beast that the front car was less rough, probably because it didn't have cars in front and behind pulling it back and forth from side to side.

 

Reading this, i heard several people say they like it in the back (don't take that the wrong way).

[jedimaster1227]

^By sitting down in the train, you pretty much acknowledge that there is no guarantee of a good ride, no matter where you sit! Honestly, it isn't the worst wooden coaster I've been on but it is down there on the list after years of wear and tear from the PTCs and later the Millennium Flyers. Go in with an open mind and brace yourself--there's no seat that will particularly prevent it from being a rough experience, but it is an experience that is worth having at least once.