coasterbill Posted December 19, 2015 Share Posted December 19, 2015 The keep calm and dispatch on policy is in full effect. Nitro is running and only loading the first half of the trains, most of the time the ops watch the trains in amazement hoping the ride doesn't valley, then when it comes back they dispatch the next one. I love this park, they're insane! Sometimes it goes through the course at a decent clip but when the wind picks up as it heads down the drop it really struggles. We got 6 rides already, still great air on the return run. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strz Posted December 19, 2015 Share Posted December 19, 2015 The keep calm and dispatch on policy is in full effect. Nitro is running and only loading the first half of the trains, most of the time the ops watch the trains in amazement hoping the ride doesn't valley, then when it comes back they dispatch the next one. I love this park, they're insane! Sometimes it goes through the course at a decent clip but when the wind picks up as it heads down the drop it really struggles. We got 6 rides already, still great air on the return run. Ok, good- it is not just me! When we were on it last night (Friday), it was so sloooooow, especially heading towards the helix! For a moment- I didn't think we'd get over one of the hills! Regardless- I still enjoyed my coasters in December! Enjoy it too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highridin Posted December 20, 2015 Share Posted December 20, 2015 Ride wise or crowd wise? I don't think the event needs to be tested crowd-wise after the last 2 weekends. Yeah, talking about how many would not just come out, but stay. Pretty cold this weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted December 20, 2015 Share Posted December 20, 2015 Alright, so yesterday we went to Holiday in the Park not sure what to expect. We weren't sure if Nitro would run and we weren't sure if anyone would show up but it turned out to be another awesome day! Since it's come up, let's talk about crowds. I expected the weather to keep people away yesterday. 40 degree highs aren't unusual for this time of year but when you mix in 40 MPH gusts that makes for a really cold day. "Feels Like" temperatures were in the 20's and I did think that would keep people away but the turnout wasn't bad at all. I was impressed. Were they packed? No. But they weren't dead either and the cold weather forced people into gift shops, restaurants, arcades, the fire pit areas and the hot chocolate stands... basically any place where the park would make money. As always the atmosphere was awesome and people all seemed to be having a great time. Now let's talk about rides. Despite the high winds and temps below 40 degrees as soon as we pulled in at 1:00 we saw those crazy lunatics sending Nitro trains up the lift. I often joke that the weather policy is "run it until it valleys" but it's not a joke anymore. That's really the policy. We immediately booked it to Nitro knowing it might not be long before they had to bring out a cherry picker and saw them only loading the first 4 rows of the train (not a bad idea). A few times we had slow, but normal-ish rides. The trims never kicked on at all but that made for some great air on the return run. Sometimes though when a gust hit the ride crawled. A few times we barely made it over the hill before the swooping drop into the helix. On the helix itself there was one ride where it couldn't have even been going 5mph when it got to the mid course. At one point we were all waiting to ride and everyone on the train (instead of sitting down) was turned around watching the other train try to make it through the course on a particularly windy ride. Security and the ride ops were all watching it too, the op at the panel had her faced covered because I guess it got to the point where she couldn't even watch it any more it was so close to valleying. I know it sounds like I'm exaggerating but trust me, it was nuts and I wish I took video. It can't have gone through the turn before the helix at more than a few MPH. Once the train came back somehow we expected them to tell us to exit to our right but no... they checked the train and sent it. lol I love them. To their credit by the end of the night Nitro was running great as the wheels warmed up and the winds died down a bit, they opened all rows and we could go back to enjoying our rides instead of just rooting for the ride to make it back to the station. They took a train off at one point, probably to ensure that they wouldn't have to send an empty one at the end of the night as it probably wouldn't have come back if they did. They left the train in the station after the last ride, they didn't worry about sending it to transfer off. The other coasters didn't seem to be having any issues. At one point we rode Batman near the end of the night and we had to wait a few minutes for people to show up (after about 8 it got really cold and the ride lines really emptied out). They said that due to low temps they had to have a certain amount of riders. Of course we figured it would crawl but when they finally sent a train with only 3 rows full in high winds, in near freezing temps Batman proceeded to do what it always does and blow through the course at such ridiculous speeds that it felt like a summertime night ride. Interestingly enough when we got back we couldn't even re-ride because there were people waiting for every row... go figure lol. Overall we had an amazing time. The atmosphere of Holiday in the Park really makes it seem like an entirely different park. It's a great event and everyone needs to go check it out. I know I've said this before but this event has really changed our opinions of Six Flags. They did an absolutely amazing job with this event. I still can't get over those blue lights in Polar Point. And hats off to them for working miracles to get Nitro running. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highridin Posted December 20, 2015 Share Posted December 20, 2015 I'm happy to hear this. Good results there could mean HITP next year down here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boldikus Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 ^^ Thanks for the report, sounds like you had a nice (cold) day! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strz Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 I agree that the park looks terrific during this time period! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoshiFan Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 Today was like the opposite of my trip to the park last Saturday. 30 degrees cooler and basically no one there. Nothing had more than a few minute wait except to see Santa (and that looked like it had 1/3 of the line it had last week). Superman and Sky Screamer were closed when I got there and Sky Screamer opened around 2:30 and Superman opened around 4:30 - 5:00. I wanted to keep riding but riding Nitro after when it was just above freezing really was uncomfortable and after that, I got 1 more re-ride and called it a night and I thought it was a very successful trip to the park getting 27 rides in less than 5 hours. This was also my 3rd trip in a row where they stopped Nitro on the lift while I was in line because someone had a phone out. All 3 times the person didn't get in trouble. On Sky Screamer they told someone 4 or 5 times to put their phone away and they refused. After the ride I saw a ride op go up to them to talk to them but they were able to exit the ride without being escorted out and it didn't look like security was called. In the ride stations they warn everyone if that if a phone is taken out then the person will be ejected from the park. I'd really like to see that start happening since anyone who gets caught knows they won't get in trouble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jray21 Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 27 rides in less than 5 hours, that's definitely a successful day! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highridin Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 To say the least. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixflagsgadv1000 Posted December 25, 2015 Share Posted December 25, 2015 (edited) I enjoyed Batman both forwards and backwards, as it delivers a unique experience each way. Both were forceful and felt how a good old school B&M should. Edited December 28, 2015 by sixflagsgadv1000 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixflagsgadv1000 Posted December 25, 2015 Share Posted December 25, 2015 I might be visiting Great Adventure sometime next week. Does anyone know if they are still running Batman backwards, or is it back to normal now. I was there for Fright Fest when they were running it backwards and was just curious if this was to be continued for Holiday in the Park. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strz Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 Any word on the crowds at the park yesterday? Anyone planning on hitting up the park one last time, this upcoming week? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 Based on the pictures I've seen yesterday's crowds seemed really solid. And yeah we're going to try to go again next weekend for closing weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DorneyKid14 Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 Could someone maybe get some construction photos while at the park? Or is that section of the park closed? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El Toro_Ryan Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 I might be visiting Great Adventure sometime next week. Does anyone know if they are still running Batman backwards, or is it back to normal now. I was there for Fright Fest when they were running it backwards and was just curious if this was to be continued for Holiday in the Park. I believe the ride is running forwards again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 ^^ It's easy to get construction photos but right now it's just a bunch of dirt and some foundation work. And yes Batman is forwards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DorneyKid14 Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 So they havent really started anything yet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 Yeah they technically started but it's Six Flags, what did you expect? They like to open their new rides in late spring and early summer, not on opening day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DorneyKid14 Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 Boo them Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 Okay now that I'm in front of a PC here are some construction photos from last week, you're welcome. From Great Adventure History ... exciting I know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DorneyKid14 Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 Thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michaellynn4 Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 At the park now, in line for SkyScreamer. There are pretty healthy crowds, decent lines on all rides. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolandmammoth Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 I'm shocked to see that much done by this point! Must be the nice weather. I imagine that once all the footer work is done the rest of the ride should go right up. I'm hoping that they learned their lesson with zoomie and are starting construction a little earlier. Perhaps they will still open the ride on memorial day weekend but have it ready to open much sooner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larrygator Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 Maybe I'll finally head out to the park tomorrow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now