Dorney Park and Wildwater Kingdom Discussion Thread

[Physical]

Squandered potential. Steel Force was /huge/ in 1997, then they just... didn't do anything else.

[Genx24]

They added Talon in 01 and Hydra in 05, and then CF bought the Paramount parks. That acquisition sent Dorney by the wayside, with a few token relocations and water park improvements that are lost on me because I dislike water parks.

[Physical]

Compare 97 through 05 at Dorney with Great Adventure. 3 new coasters, and many water park expansions at Dorney, compared to Nitro, Chiller, Ka, Medusa, water park addition, large flat expansion (Even if the "War on Lines" ended up being a failure, at least they tried)

 

The more research I do into this kind of thing the more it feels like CF didn't want Dorney to succeed.

[Josh Linn]

It is very obvious that the waterpark is the big draw. The amusement side is sadly not bring any interest, even on "insanely crowed days", half the coasters are walk on.

 

Also I don't get those magnetic gates. This is the only park that I was so confused as what to do. Those need to go.

 

I feel for Dorney because in my thinking is it did not jump to the expansion idea quick enough and Hershey, Knoebels, and SFGA all beat Dorney to the punch. Now Dorney is this smaller middle man. I don't know, just spit balling.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

You could even argue that Dorney was ahead of Hershey in '97 when Steel Force opened; Hershey's marquee coaster at the time was probably Wildcat, but matching the rate at which Hershey was/is expanding would've been a huge ask. It's really impressive how much Hershey has grown since the late 90's. They've had:

 

98: Great Bear

00: Lightning Racer

02: Roller Soaker

04: Storm Runner

08: Fahrenheit

12: SkyRush

15: Laff Trakk

 

Not many parks out there have churned out major attractions that frequently.

 

Hershey also had two huge advantages over Dorney: a crap ton of land for expansion and the lack of resistance from residential neighbors.

[I Like Theme Parks.]

98: Great Bear

00: Lightning Racer

02: Roller Soaker

04: Storm Runner

08: Fahrenheit

12: SkyRush

15: Laff Trakk

That's insane! And at this rate Hershey would probably have another coaster by 2019, maybe 2018 or if it's just a family coaster.

[Jcoaster]

Don't forget a crap ton of funding. Hershey financially is way ahead of Dorney.

[Iby coaster]

Sorry to go off topic but today I was talking to a worker who worked for Dinosaurs Alive. He said Dinosaurs Alive will only stay 2 more years which means it's last year is in 2018. So for 2019 and beyond is when you should suspect another coaster...... if they get one.

[thrillseeker4552]

Dorney fans are delusional. It would be funny if it wasn't so sad. "Something with ejector airtime", if you want ejector airtime close to Dorney I suggest you get in the car and gun it over a few hills on the way to Knoebels. That way maybe you won't have to wait until you get to the Phoenix to experience actual airtime.

 

Reports from Dorney yesterday pointed to people parking in the grass lot and "insane" crowds but this was the line for Talon in the middle of the day despite them filling the overflow lot on an overcast (so not obvious water park) day. Coasters aren't the major draw no matter how much you want them to be.

 

I went to Dorney two weeks ago for the first time (it was Wednesday the 22nd) and Talon was closed. Anybody know how long it was closed and when it reopened?

 

It looks like one of the best, if not the best, coaster in the park. Bummed I couldn't ride it.

[SteelForceless]

I went to Dorney two weeks ago for the first time (it was Wednesday the 22nd) and Talon was closed. Anybody know how long it was closed and when it reopened?

 

It looks like one of the best, if not the best, coaster in the park. Bummed I couldn't ride it.

I've been to the park between then and now and then, and it was open then (closed later for weather) so I guess you got unlucky. Ride back left if you get the chance again.

[DorneyKid14]

Dorney fans are delusional. It would be funny if it wasn't so sad. "Something with ejector airtime", if you want ejector airtime close to Dorney I suggest you get in the car and gun it over a few hills on the way to Knoebels. That way maybe you won't have to wait until you get to the Phoenix to experience actual airtime.

 

Reports from Dorney yesterday pointed to people parking in the grass lot and "insane" crowds but this was the line for Talon in the middle of the day despite them filling the overflow lot on an overcast (so not obvious water park) day. Coasters aren't the major draw no matter how much you want them to be.

 

I went to Dorney two weeks ago for the first time (it was Wednesday the 22nd) and Talon was closed. Anybody know how long it was closed and when it reopened?

 

It looks like one of the best, if not the best, coaster in the park. Bummed I couldn't ride it.

 

 

For about a week, talon closed around 12 and then reopened around 3 due to maintainance. Following that on again off again it closed for good for about three or four days due to a maintainance failure.

[thrillseeker4552]

Dorney fans are delusional. It would be funny if it wasn't so sad. "Something with ejector airtime", if you want ejector airtime close to Dorney I suggest you get in the car and gun it over a few hills on the way to Knoebels. That way maybe you won't have to wait until you get to the Phoenix to experience actual airtime.

 

Reports from Dorney yesterday pointed to people parking in the grass lot and "insane" crowds but this was the line for Talon in the middle of the day despite them filling the overflow lot on an overcast (so not obvious water park) day. Coasters aren't the major draw no matter how much you want them to be.

 

I went to Dorney two weeks ago for the first time (it was Wednesday the 22nd) and Talon was closed. Anybody know how long it was closed and when it reopened?

 

It looks like one of the best, if not the best, coaster in the park. Bummed I couldn't ride it.

 

 

For about a week, talon closed around 12 and then reopened around 3 due to maintainance. Following that on again off again it closed for good for about three or four days due to a maintainance failure.

 

I guess my visit was during those 3-4 days. The employee guarding the ride didn't speak English very well, so I didn't bother asking several questions. Some lady (a guest) near the ride said it was closed the last couple days as well.

 

Still bummed I missed it, but oh well, it's just a B&M Invert. I can't imagine it being very different than Great Bear, which I rode the day before.

[boldikus]

Talon is very different than Great Bear.

[thrillseeker4552]

Talon is very different than Great Bear.

 

Better or worse? I'm curious since it's a 2001 Invert--a little past B&M's "prime time" but a little before their "new generation" coasters.

[Genx24]

Talon blows Great Bear away. Much better of the two Pennsylvania inverts

[boldikus]

I like Great Bear but I rate Talon very highly. The layouts couldn't be more different.

[I Like Theme Parks.]

Still bummed I missed it, but oh well, it's just a B&M Invert.

Whatever, just one of the most consistently amazing coaster types out there.

 

I rank Great Bear slightly above Talon, but they are pretty different rides. Talon is a more compact and forceful coaster, while Great Bear is more graceful with some intense parts here and there. It focuses more on scenery and uniqueness.

[coasterbill]

I consider them both to be average inverts (though all inverts are awesome). I might prefer Great Bear but not by much.

[michaellynn4]

Count me in the "Talon > Great Bear" camp. I happen to like Talon's layout more. Great Bear is still a fun ride, but its second half is a bit too much of a dud for me.

[Password121]

I won't get my first ride for about another month so I can't compare the two but Talon's layout looks really appealing to me. It seems to flow really nicely from three large elements of intensity, a short break to catch your breath high up in the air, then a quick snap back into a low to the ground intense finish.

[bert425]

Talon is intense, and feels much faster than it is.

 

but I loved Great Bear too.

[SteelForceless]

The reason I prefer Talon over Great Bear is because its ending is intense, or at least more intense than Great Bear's ending. After the corkscrew on GB, it feels they just used auto-complete on it and called it a day. Both are great rides though. It all comes down to your personal preference.

[boldikus]

I've ridden 5 B&M inverts - 2 Batman clones, Raptor, Great Bear and Talon and they are all great, amazing coasters and make me want to ride every single last B&M invert. The thing is the Batmans and Raptor are balls-to-the-wall intense from start to finish (I actually had a moment on Raptor where I wondered if it was going to end), Great Bear has a really unique start some great elements and then the end is like uhhhhh... ok, but Talon just hits that sweet spot in the middle for me. Its intense but not too intense, has a perfect flow of elements, and is easily marathonable (is that a word?). I love the layout, especially the 2nd drop into that fantastic finish. I'm not sure I could marathon Batman or Raptor. I think I've only ridden Batman 2xs consecutively on one occasion and that was it. I did Talon 8xs in a hour and could have kept going.

[I Like Theme Parks.]

I definitely agree that Talon is perfect for re-rides. I could handle around 3-5 consecutive rides on Batman, Alpengeist and Raptor. Great Bear is nice, but it's not quite forceful enough to keep you entertained despite the incredible location and (IMO) genius pacing and unique layout. Talon is very forceful, and there's a nice calm break in the middle to give you a breather.

 

Out of the 5 B&M inverts I've been on, I have noticed 3 main tiers the rides fall into.

 

Top Tier: ALPENGEIST, Raptor. (I'd imagine that Banshee, Montu, Nemesis, etc. would be here.)

Average Tier: Great Bear, Talon. (I'd imagine that Patriot, Dragon Challenge, Afterburn, etc. would be here.)

Lowest Tier (still awesome): Batman: The Ride, mainly because it's short and cloned so much. (I'd imagine that Silver Bullet would be in this category.)

[Password121]

Never understood the idea that amazing rides are somehow "not as good" because they're cloned. If El Toro was cloned like Batman is the world would be a better place.

[SteelForceless]

Does anyone know if you get in the waterpark early with a season pass, and at what time?