Six Flags Great Adventure (SFGAdv) Discussion Thread

[FaithPlus1]

okay thanks!

[coasterbill]

The thing with standup coasters is that depending on your height you usually either love them or hate them. I agree about it being more intense than Bizarro and Superman but both of those coasters are still better because they're much more enjoyable (though Superman is very overrated). Green Lantern is pretty rough.

[Password121]

I will never understand the hate for GL. Last I checked it's about 200x more intense and exciting than either Bizarro or Superman.

I STRONGLY prefer Bizarro over Green Lantern. I consider Bizarro moderately intense- it was built during the time B&M still designed intense rides. Green Lantern isn't the worst stand up I've ridden, but it is still a stand up and I consider it uneventful. On top of that, Bizarro is in a much better location in the park (not in the parking lot), sits on grass, and has decent theming. I also really like the floorless effect in the front row- standing up on the other hand does nothing for me.

 

Superman, on the other hand, is slow and boring. The pretzel loop is the only reason it's worth a ride at all.

[JonnyRCT3]

Uneventful? At least it does something different, Bizarro has a very cut and dry layout.

[yankeeman311]

To pile on Green Lantern more, I think it's by far the worst major coaster in the park. It's the only coaster I would have no objection to get rid of. It just does nothing for me but headbanging and/or below the belt pain. Bizarro is a solid ride with multiple thrilling elements and Superman's pretzel loop is the best loop in the park. Even Batman has at least something to offer.

[neil009]

GL takes its ending corkscrews faster than Bizarro does, plus the standing position makes the inversions feel much more intense because of your higher center of gravity. True it's a parking lot coaster but I'll still take it over almost any other B&M that's not an invert or hyper coaster.

[Password121]

Uneventful? At least it does something different, Bizarro has a very cut and dry layout.

There aren't really any elements that stand out to me. To me it's just three glorified loops taken too slowly to be intense, but fast enough to produce head banging. The mid course leads to some corkscrews and a lot of meandering.

I'm not saying Bizarro's layout is miles ahead, but it has some interaction with the midway in the cobra roll, a fantastic zero-g, and other relatively intense inversions with minimal headbanging and a far better gimmick than standing up. Everyone's opinion is different though, I'm not saying you're wrong, just explaining my opinion.

[coasterbill]

Even Batman has at least something to offer.

 

So much hate... lol. Batman is probably the best looping coaster in the park in my opinion. So intense. So incredibly smooth. So awesome...

[boldikus]

Oh is this the weekly "whats the worst B&M in the park" debate?

[coasterbill]

Oh is this the weekly "whats the worst B&M in the park" debate?

 

Well when you have nothing but B&M's it's bound to happen.

[boldikus]

Oh is this the weekly "whats the worst B&M in the park" debate?

 

Well when you have nothing but B&M's it's bound to happen.

 

LOL can't argue with that.

[yankeeman311]

Even Batman has at least something to offer.

 

So much hate... lol. Batman is probably the best looping coaster in the park in my opinion. So intense. So incredibly smooth. So awesome...

 

Not gonna lie I tend to hate on B&M Inverts. They're the type of rides that do the job but have nothing about them that stand out for me. Plus I always come off Batman with a lot of foot numbness.

 

I tend to be in the minority for enthusiasts but Superman's pretzel loop stands out so much for me that it makes up for the rest of the ride and makes it ahead of Bizarro and Batman on my list. I prefer Bizarro over it as well since the ride lasts longer, has more memorable elements and is more comftorable of a ride.

[ScreaminNewEngland]

Nitro is the worst B&M, obviously.

[Koasterking48]

Haha, I love that there is an arguement for "worst B&M's." Even a bad B&M is still better than many other coasters out there.

[coasterbill]

I like Superman but I rarely ride it because it always has an insane line. The only coaster in the park I don't enjoy is Green Lantern (that even includes the mine train). I think I might make it a point to ride Superman next time we visit the park actually just because we never do.

 

I feel like it's a really lame B&M flyer but even a lame B&M flyer is still a good ride.

[boldikus]

I will say I do like the wobbly turnaround, the first drop, and the drop out of the MCBR on Lantern. Otherwise, the ride is PAIN.

[glouthan]

The brake run!

[DevilsFlight]

GL takes its ending corkscrews faster than Bizarro does, plus the standing position makes the inversions feel much more intense because of your higher center of gravity. True it's a parking lot coaster but I'll still take it over almost any other B&M that's not an invert or hyper coaster.

It doesn't feel intense they just crush any manhood you have left from the inclined loop

[Rotura Violenta]

I was going to do a more comprehensive trip report (I visited SFGA, Hershey, and Knoebels), but I think I'll just post a few thoughts here and in threads devoted to the other parks. Also, I didn't take many pictures as I was mainly there to ride but if I find some good ones, I'll add them later.

 

I visited SFGA for the first time last week. It was actually my first theme park in a few years, and my first one out of Southern California for a very long time. Overall, I found it to be a reasonably sized park that felt a little over-crowded on the day I was there, but I think that's due to the layout of the place. Nitro was consistently stacking 3 trains, so maybe it was a busy day? Anyhow, a few thoughts:

 

El Toro (4 rides): Not what I expected. Aggressively intense, bordering on brutal. First drop was out-of-this-world good, and the two camelbacks were equally good. I did find that it took those camelbacks so fast though, that if you blinked you'd miss them. Airtime was more violent than enjoyable for me on this part of the ride, however, and the turnaround was simply rough with some serious jack-hammering going on midway through it. The drop prior to the curvy finale was laughably aggressive—as though the train had been yanked out from underneath you. And the final curves were a tad too crazed, bordering on grey-out inducing. I dug it and rode it four times, but I actually expected something much smoother and I'd hoped the airtime would be, I guess, more graceful? Fantastic first drop, though. 7/10.

 

EDIT: Having since ridden some of the woodies at Hershey (including Skyrush), I’d elevate El Toro a little higher. That first drop is really memorable—as are the camel backs. For as rough as I found that turn around, and how unnecessarily aggressive I found that last twisty section, overall it was excellent. 8/10.

 

Nitro (5 rides): B&M usually bore me to tears, and I actually expected this to be a sort of meandering waste of time, but perhaps a scenic waste all the same. This blew me away. Whereas El Toro was just overly aggressive to the point where it detracted from the experience, the airtime on this was so well-calibrated that it made for a far more fulfilling ride. I guess this is floater air? I was my out of my seat for almost every hill—for multiple seconds. (I did find that when the op stapled me, it was less enjoyable, though.) Also found the helixes on this to be borderline grey-out inducing. Great ride that got me to reconsider my B&M hatred. 9/10.

 

Dark Knight (1 ride): A waste of a perfectly fine warehouse. 3/10.

 

Skull Mountain (2 rides): I'll probably get laughed off the boards for saying this, but I prefer compact and immersive coasters to the hugest, most fastest, most whateverest stuff that gets built these days. I was genuinely interested in this one as I love enclosed dark rides. This has the cheese-ball gimmicky effects down well: bad fiberglass cave design with weird puddles everywhere, cheesy sound effects, cheap halloween-store stye props inside. Track-wise, it's kind of crap and rough and insipid, but I enjoyed it more than the other warehouse ride. 5/10.

 

Bizzaro (1 ride): SFMM's Scream in a better setting. I've always enjoyed this layout on Scream (it's one of the few B&Ms I like), and it's the same here. It does a bunch of maneuvers without requiring much from you. It's like perfectly functional, stock ride that does the job of looking good, keeping thrill-seekers moderately pacified, and (I assume), is easy to run—it's essentially a B&M showcase of everything they do. Nothing standout, but a solid large-scale enjoyable coaster all the same. 7/10.

 

Superman (1 ride): I'm not a fan of Tatsu, and, one of my gripes with B&M (aside from making meandering, plodding coasters) is their privileging of gimmicky ride vehicles over design innovation. I kind of hate these flier style coasters, and while Tatsu somewhat redeems itself with that pretzel loop drop, this was absolute crap from start to finish. Uncomfortable, awkward, boring. 4/10.

 

Green Lantern (1 ride): Again with the gimmicky vehicles! I dislike Riddler's Revenge, partly because of the standing position (which adds nothing for me, personally), but also because that ride really meanders around some of its elements. This felt more forceful as the elements seemed perhaps more tightly constructed and sequenced. Not my cup of tea, but I could see why others would like it. 7/10.

 

Mine Train (1 ride): Weird layout—a confused custom endeavor, I assume? Kind of fun, I guess. It struck me as a sprinkling of prefab sections connected by awkward up-and-down stretches that weren't really drops, but more like slopes. 5/10.

 

Batman (1 ride): Same as all the rest: super intense and forceful—makes your blood rush to your feet. I like the Batman rides, but find them a little too punishingly in their sequence. Great if you've never ridden one before, but I was perfectly prepared to skip it (I don't count credits). It had broken down, and I walked by just as they were re-opening it, so that's really the only reason I bothered to ride. 7/10.

 

SkyScreamer (1 ride): Obviously it's safe, and there's little danger involved, really, but it felt unsafe in a way the diminished my enjoyment of it. I don't know, it was okay, but I found myself somewhere between "this is kind of boring" and "this is an accident waiting to happen." Worth the experience, but I wouldn't get on one again, I don't think. No need, really. 5/10.

 

Houdini's Great Escape (1 ride): A very convincing twist on the old haunted swing motif with enough humor and effects to keep it from being some d-list affair. Not as dizzying as I'd expected, either. Very well done indeed. 6/10.

 

Kingda Ka was obviously down, but it holds little appeal to me. Sure, I would have ridden it (if the line had been reasonable), but I'm hardly seduced by what it does. Even its visual presence in the park speaks more to the silly "size matters" aesthetic than it does to a good, well thought out ride. Not even remotely bummed to have missed this one.

 

All in all, a good visit. I was mainly going for El Toro and Nitro, and they indeed proved to be the pinnacles. Nitro surprised me in that it exceeded my expectations, and El Toro met my expectations, but it was far more violent than I expected it to be. The park was reflective of Six Flags in general—crowded, erring on poorly managed and organized, but a solid enough environment to showcase some world-class attractions.

 

P.S. Although I got a discounted ticket from some boyscout organization, $25 parking is obscene.

Edited June 26, 2014 by Rotura Violenta

[rcjp]

GL takes its ending corkscrews faster than Bizarro does, plus the standing position makes the inversions feel much more intense because of your higher center of gravity. True it's a parking lot coaster but I'll still take it over almost any other B&M that's not an invert or hyper coaster.

It doesn't feel intense they just crush any manhood you have left from the inclined loop

I actually didn't have any problems with that and while my legs did hurt a bit what I don't really like about the ride is its roughness. Not terrible, but I still can't get a smooth ride where I know I can be relaxed and not worry about having to stick my head out of the restraint once in a while.

But, overall, I do enjoy it and would really like to see new ones built, especially as this type of ride WOULD benefit from more forceless layouts.

[El Toro_Ryan]

All in all, a solid visit. I was mainly going for El Toro and Nitro, and they indeed proved to be the pinnacles. Nitro surprised me in that it exceeded my expectations, and El Toro met my expectations, but it was far more violent than I expected it to be. The park was reflective of Six Flags in general—crowded, erring on poorly managed and organized, but a solid enough environment to showcase some world-class attractions.

 

Yeah Toro has gotten more aggressive lately since it's a bit more bumpier than it used to be and it feels like it runs a little faster than it should. Personally, I love it even more now because it feels much more like a wooden coaster, but everyone has their own opinions on that. When the ride was glass smooth, it literally felt like a steel coaster made of wood but now it definitely feels much more wooden. I still wouldn't consider it rough though. Nitro's C train also feels very wooden (but not in a good way lol) I'm guessing you didn't ride the C train. (You don't want to haha)

[Rotura Violenta]

Yeah Toro has gotten more aggressive lately since it's a bit more bumpier than it used to be and it feels like it runs a little faster than it should. Personally, I love it even more now because it feels much more like a wooden coaster, but everyone has their own opinions on that. When the ride was glass smooth, it literally felt like a steel coaster made of wood but now it definitely feels much more wooden. I still wouldn't consider it rough though. Nitro's C train also feels very wooden (but not in a good way lol) I'm guessing you didn't ride the C train. (You don't want to haha)

 

It was mainly on that big turn around that it jack-hammered, and it was no worse than something like Ghost Rider (although the added speed probably made it feel worse than it is, too). I would actually have loved to try it when it felt more like a steel coaster as the concept and design are brilliant, but its woodyness doesn't quite allow for it to reach its potential. Although I'm sure it's heretical to complain of such things around these parts, but it really does feel like it's going too fast for the track—especially toward the end. I'm surprised it doesn't have any block segments on it, actually.

 

Nitro was very smooth every time I rode it, but one ride felt like it didn't quiet get the air of the others. The coaster struck me as so well-engineered that it felt like even if you had no restraints, you'd leave your seat on the hills, but it'd catch you again on the other side as opposed to El Toro that would launch you to your death without even blinking an eye.

[ScreaminNewEngland]

Negative Nancy.

[El Toro_Ryan]

Nitro was very smooth every time I rode it, but one ride felt like it didn't quiet get the air of the others. The coaster struck me as so well-engineered that it felt like even if you had no restraints, you'd leave your seat on the hills, but it'd catch you again on the other side as opposed to El Toro that would launch you to your death without even blinking an eye.

 

Well what kind of bull would El Toro be if it didn't try to launch you across the park? haha

[jetsplumber]

All in all, a solid visit. I was mainly going for El Toro and Nitro, and they indeed proved to be the pinnacles. Nitro surprised me in that it exceeded my expectations, and El Toro met my expectations, but it was far more violent than I expected it to be. The park was reflective of Six Flags in general—crowded, erring on poorly managed and organized, but a solid enough environment to showcase some world-class attractions.

 

Yeah Toro has gotten more aggressive lately since it's a bit more bumpier than it used to be and it feels like it runs a little faster than it should. Personally, I love it even more now because it feels much more like a wooden coaster, but everyone has their own opinions on that. When the ride was glass smooth, it literally felt like a steel coaster made of wood but now it definitely feels much more wooden. I still wouldn't consider it rough though. Nitro's C train also feels very wooden (but not in a good way lol) I'm guessing you didn't ride the C train. (You don't want to haha)

 

Have they fixed the C train on nitro yet? I take it SFGADv maintenance dodnt do test runs on it, because it has been horrible since opening day.