Six Flags Great Adventure (SFGAdv) Discussion Thread

[larrygator]

Being as it's off season and gadv has not gotten a brand new coaster in a few years...

 

I keep thinking about an awesome spot gadv could put a coaster.It would require removing the flat next to skull mountain, and the boat driving attraction. But I think it would be awesome if gadv added an intamin giga coaster that went around switlik lake. It could be a cross between millennium force and i305 with tons of twisties, low lying air time, and a crazy fast run through those woods. Maybe even call it the Jersey Devil. Nitro and El Toro are the air time machines of gadv, and this would be an intense run through the forest. This is just me dreaming though. Is there anthing preventing gadv from building back here? They built on similar land when they built nitro.

 

The park has a lot to fix before they should even consider a new coaster. The park IS NOT lacking in large coasters.

[DevilsFlight]

I agree but we need a headliner to compete with other parks in the east. Hershey and Carowinds have more coasters than we do. Hershey is a great experience without rides but Carowinds getting Fury could potentially cause people to go there instead of here. While the park needs improvement it needs to get a new headliner as well

[larrygator]

I agree but we need a headliner to compete with other parks in the east. Hershey and Carowinds have more coasters than we do. Hershey is a great experience without rides but Carowinds getting Fury could potentially cause people to go there instead of here. While the park needs improvement it needs to get a new headliner as well

 

The grand total of people who will choose to visit Carowinds instead of SFGadv in 2015 will less than 100. Not a good reason to invest $10-20 million dollars.

[DevilsFlight]

I agree but we need a headliner to compete with other parks in the east. Hershey and Carowinds have more coasters than we do. Hershey is a great experience without rides but Carowinds getting Fury could potentially cause people to go there instead of here. While the park needs improvement it needs to get a new headliner as well

 

The grand total of people who will choose to visit Carowinds instead of SFGadv in 2015 will less than 100. Not a good reason to invest $10-20 million dollars.

Highly doubtful. If I lived somewhere other than the east coast, I would spend money to go to a park getting a giga coaster, not a carnival ride

[coasterbill]

While the park needs improvement it needs to get a new headliner as well

 

We just got the tallest drop tower in the world... like 6 months ago.

 

People who know nothing about coasters have been sharing pictures of it on social media ever since. Great Adventure doesn't need anything except small improvements to what they already have (like small aesthetic improvements, new paint and making sure Zumanjaro and Kingda Ka can run together).

[boldikus]

For Xmas I bought myself and my fiancee 6F season passes. She did not have one last year but since I had to buy the two 2015 passes in order to get the cheap ass discount, I grabbed one for her figuring if she goes once its paid for, not to mention I plan to go a bunch so I'll definitely get my monies worth.

 

The reason I mention this is after I gave her the pass, we were talking about how its actually kind of nice that the park is getting something smaller in 2015 that will not cause as much of a buzz and attract a ton of people who go just for the new, flashy big thing the park just got.

 

Also, I live an hour from the park and consider it my home park, but I'm also an hour from Dorney, two hours from Hershey, Knoebels, Moreys, Coney/Luna, and 2.5 hrs from SFA. While none of those parks are getting a "big deal" ride for 2015, I'm most excited for GAdv to open in April. Why? El Toro, Nitro, Zumanjaro, Sky Screamer, Ultimate Flight, KK, Batman, Bizarro, Skull Mountain, the Safari, the water rides, etc etc etc etc etc.

 

Would I love a new giga? Sure! But my point is: the park, while, as mentioned, could use some infrastructure improvement and whatnot, boasts a pretty amazing collection of rides. We really don't *need* a big new ride right now to compete with the other regional parks. There is still a buzz re: Zumanjaro around these parts. I see the new addition as a way for one of the chains flagship parks to hold back this year and invest in something "next level" within the next few years.

 

(I am hoping for and predicting a custom RMC ala Goliath in 2016 but if that doesnt happen its fine because we still have El Toro)

[larrygator]

(I am hoping for and predicting a custom RMC ala Goliath in 2016 but if that doesnt happen its fine because we still have El Toro)

 

[terdferg]

Everyone is talking about a new headlining coaster, and I would just like movie town to come back.

[necoastergp]

Everyone is talking about a new headlining coaster, and I would just like movie town to come back.

 

Old country, movie town is technically still there.

[Mega_Coaster_77]

I honestly don't want to see a new coaster until we see the improvements made around the park. (fixing of old queue lines, paint, etc.)

 

Any word on if the park is trying to put nets around Ka to try to let both Zumie and Ka run together?

 

And will we likely see the path between Toro and Ka reopened next year with Looping Dragon coming in?

[Woodie Warrior]

I agree but we need a headliner to compete with other parks in the east. Hershey and Carowinds have more coasters than we do. Hershey is a great experience without rides but Carowinds getting Fury could potentially cause people to go there instead of here. While the park needs improvement it needs to get a new headliner as well

You guys have what is often regarded as the #1 wooden coaster in the world plus the worlds tallest and 2nd fastest coaster. You already have your headliners.

 

I swear SFGAD fanboys are some of the greediest out there.

[DevilsFlight]

I agree but we need a headliner to compete with other parks in the east. Hershey and Carowinds have more coasters than we do. Hershey is a great experience without rides but Carowinds getting Fury could potentially cause people to go there instead of here. While the park needs improvement it needs to get a new headliner as well

You guys have what is often regarded as the #1 wooden coaster in the world plus the worlds tallest and 2nd fastest coaster. You already have your headliners.

 

I swear SFGAD fanboys are some of the greediest out there.

I was only trying to say that some parks in the northeast are getting new coasters and we haven't got a coaster in a few years. Yes we do need work on the park. Hopefully some things can be done over the off season. We have great coasters already too but recently some additions (and removals) haven't been smart. A new coaster can help bring profits to the park and more refurbishments can be done. It's not greed as much as killing two birds with one stone. A new coaster to compete with other parks. And more profits for fixing up the park in the near future.

[ajfelice]

I honestly don't want to see a new coaster until we see the improvements made around the park. (fixing of old queue lines, paint, etc.)

 

I agree wholeheartedly. When I visited the park in 2012, I absolutely loved SFGAdv's offering of rides and coasters overall. What I felt hindered my overall feel for the park was the feeling of wear. Faded paint, bent fences and queues, cracked pathways, and messy landscaping were common across the park. The park was clean with mostly friendly employees, but it just looked worn. With a little paint and a few other supplies, this park could look as impressive as it's attractions offering.

[Lightnin Loops]

This year was a pretty good year for ride crews. One thing that always bothers me is at the Nitro station the line at the gates gets so long and over crowded its crazy. They need someone there to limit it like at superman kingda ka and El Toro.

 

Nitro's station is a flat out disaster on busy days. Last year during Fright Fest we waited 3 hours and the line was only as few hundred people beyond the entrance sign (near Batman's drop). We had a Flash Pass but we had reserved El Toro so we figured we'd go ride Nitro since it's a people eater but that station is horrible and the line didn't move at all.

 

The Flash Pass line was all the way down the stairs, the amount of exit passes on that ride is insane so the exit path had a huge line too which was blocking people from walking down the stairs when they got off the ride and the stand by line wasn't moving. On busy days they need to do a better job managing that line because it's insanely crowded with people trying to force their way by the Flash Pass people.

 

This is never a real issue except during Fright Fest though but with the boatloads of money they make on Fright Fest Saturdays I agree that they can pay someone a few bucks an hour to make that line flow a little better.

 

god forbid the park hires a few more employees for betting staffing.

[Lightnin Loops]

Being as it's off season and gadv has not gotten a brand new coaster in a few years...

 

I keep thinking about an awesome spot gadv could put a coaster.It would require removing the flat next to skull mountain, and the boat driving attraction. But I think it would be awesome if gadv added an intamin giga coaster that went around switlik lake. It could be a cross between millennium force and i305 with tons of twisties, low lying air time, and a crazy fast run through those woods. Maybe even call it the Jersey Devil. Nitro and El Toro are the air time machines of gadv, and this would be an intense run through the forest. This is just me dreaming though. Is there anthing preventing gadv from building back here? They built on similar land when they built nitro.

 

The park has a lot to fix before they should even consider a new coaster. The park IS NOT lacking in large coasters.

 

the park hasnt added a worthwhile coaster since 2006. They need something. Hershey Park is a much better park for coasters. Only worthwhile coasters to ride are Nitro, El Toro, and BTR

[Lightnin Loops]

I honestly don't want to see a new coaster until we see the improvements made around the park. (fixing of old queue lines, paint, etc.)

 

Any word on if the park is trying to put nets around Ka to try to let both Zumie and Ka run together?

 

And will we likely see the path between Toro and Ka reopened next year with Looping Dragon coming in?

 

good luck, the reason SF doesn't fix many things is because of $$$$$. The new ownership is more concerned with pocketing the money for shareholders. Plus, selling SP's at 61.99, does not help. all the other parks in the area are over $100. That is also why they run every coaster at min staffing minus GL and Ka. Go to a cedar fair park or hersehy, just look how much more staffing they have on coasters.

[coasterbill]

the park hasnt added a worthwhile coaster since 2006. They need something. Hershey Park is a much better park for coasters. Only worthwhile coasters to ride are Nitro, El Toro, and BTR

 

To each his own but I would think very few people would agree with you on this. Hershey is a better park overall but Great Adventure is way ahead of almost every other park in the country in the coaster department.

 

The idea that Great Adventure needs a new coaster is insane. I'd love one but they don't need one. They've made some great improvements in the rides department in the last few years. What I'd love to see now is for them to take some time off from adding rides and just improve what they already have. Updated landscaping, new paint, stop closing rides early and get Kingda Ka and Zumanjaro to run together. I'd rather they spend a few years doing things like this with small additions like the Super Loop. Sure we'd be deprived (lol) in the coaster department but I guess I can make due with the tallest coaster in the world (and the fastest in North America), The #1 coaster in the world, a 7 looping B&M floorless, a super intense, snappy and awesome invert, an 80 MPH hypercoaster with floater air on every hill, 2 fun indoor coasters, a B&M flyer, a few other supporting coasters, a huge Safari, a great log flume, a 200+ foot sky screamer, the tallest drop tower in the world, the world's only operating double von roll skyride, the only parachute drop in America, a new looping flat ride and a ton of other supporting rides.

 

Of all the things this park needs new rides (especially thrill rides) are at the bottom of the list.

 

*I left Green Lantern out because it's a terrible coaster, but it's really the only bad coaster in the park.

[njcoasterguy34]

the park hasnt added a worthwhile coaster since 2006. They need something. Hershey Park is a much better park for coasters. Only worthwhile coasters to ride are Nitro, El Toro, and BTR

 

To each his own but I would think very few people would agree with you on this. Hershey is a better park overall but Great Adventure is way ahead of almost every other park in the country in the coaster department.

 

The idea that Great Adventure needs a new coaster is insane. I'd love one but they don't need one. They've made some great improvements in the rides department in the last few years. What I'd love to see now is for them to take some time off from adding rides and just improve what they already have. Updated landscaping, new paint, stop closing rides early and get Kingda Ka and Zumanjaro to run together. I'd rather they spend a few years doing things like this with small additions like the Super Loop. Sure we'd be deprived (lol) in the coaster department but I guess I can make due with the tallest coaster in the world (and the fastest in North America), The #1 coaster in the world, a 7 looping B&M floorless, a super intense, snappy and awesome invert, an 80 MPH hypercoaster with floater air on every hill, 2 fun indoor coasters, a B&M flyer, a few other supporting coasters, a huge Safari, a great log flume, a 200+ foot sky screamer, the tallest drop tower in the world, the world's only operating double von roll skyride, the only parachute drop in America, a new looping flat ride and a ton of other supporting rides.

 

Of all the things this park needs new rides (especially thrill rides) are at the bottom of the list.

 

*I left Green Lantern out because it's a terrible coaster, but it's really the only bad coaster in the park.

 

[woolandmammoth]

This has been bothering me for a while. This is the answer to this debate.

 

If you live by the park, your pretty sick of all the gimmick rides (SUF, Kingda Ka, TDK, GL). Take of the family coasters (Blackbeards, skully, RMT), and your left with Bizzaro, Nitro, Batman, and El Toro. The three B&Ms are getting into their 20s now.

 

No matter how amazing El Toro is, you can only ride it so many times. Since a majority of park guests are locals (proof: closest hotel is 20 minutes away), they've been riding the same coasters for 9 years.

 

If your an enthusiast living elsewhere, GADV has tons of major credits that you havent ridden many times or at all. From an outside point of view, GADV looks stacked, but from a local perspective, GADV is a stale shell of something that used to be.

 

Source: Ive had a season pass every year since 1998.

[Brassinthegrass]

I agree with you, it's all about perspective. As a local enthusiast, I've taken this chance to go explore other parks in the greater region. Last year we went to SFNE, Knobles, Hershey, Dorney and Coney Island. Next year were doing a massive 9 Day tour spanning most of the eastern half of the U.S. while SFGAdv gets act together... Hopefully by 2016, they'll have done some nice work to the park and it will be worth visiting!

[DevilsFlight]

It's like things have gotten into a routine of which coasters to ride. It's gotten repetitive. It'll be nice to have a new coaster in the mix.

[coasterbill]

Of course everyone feels different but we've had season passes every year since 2000 and I couldn't disagree more.

 

If you live by the park, your pretty sick of all the gimmick rides (SUF, Kingda Ka, TDK, GL).

Superman is a good coaster and I'm not sick of it at all. The only reason I don't ride it much is because of the insane lines it gets (lines which kind of lead me to believe that nobody is sick of this ride). Kingda Ka is absolutely amazing and very smooth when you ride it in the front which we always do. I don't see how anyone can be sick of the tallest and fastest coaster in the country but again... to each his own. Personally I love Kingda Ka. Is it in my top 10? No. But it's an awesome experience. I don't care if it's rough / less interesting in every seat but the front because I don't ride in those seats.

 

Bizzaro, Nitro, Batman, and El Toro. The three B&Ms are getting into their 20s now.

Generally with B&M the older the coasters are, the better they are. I could ride Batman all day and Nitro and Bizarro are both great rides too. I don't care how old they are.

 

No matter how amazing El Toro is, you can only ride it so many times.

Is that a challenge?

 

Since a majority of park guests are locals (proof: closest hotel is 20 minutes away), they've been riding the same coasters for 9 years.

 

Yeah but they're awesome coasters. Everyone at Knoebels has been riding Phoenix for 30 years and so far nobody has gotten tired of it as it's still basically everyone's favorite coaster in the park. Enthusiast or otherwise...

 

GADV is a stale shell of something that used to be. Source: Ive had a season pass every year since 1998.

 

How? Do you remember how horribly run this park was from 1998 when you got your pass to about 2005? They added a ton of rides in 1999 as part of the "War on Lines" and they were ALWAYS, ALWAYS closed. Great Adventure was nothing but 2 good coasters, a ton of bad - mediocre coasters, and a TON of closed flat rides (and a few closed coasters). The rides that were open always had huge lines and there was no such thing as Fastlane so you were forced to wait in them while the park purposely avoided shade canopies so they could come by with those stupid popcorn buckets and icees to sell them to you for $4 a pop.

 

On a typical visit to the park, Viper was closed, Chiller was probably closed because of some catastrophic failure (like the time it caught on fire) and in the first few years you had a pass it had over the shoulder restraints and was terrible anyway. Pretty much every flat ride with a few exceptions like the 3d theater and Twister were closed almost every day. They had Evolution sitting in the middle of the park as the largest lawn ornament ever... Season Pass processing was a 4 hour long process every year back by the (of course closed) Double Trouble ride... the place was awful back then... really awful and the only reason anyone put up with it was because of Medusa and Batman.

 

Now they've removed the rides that were never open and you rarely see closed rides except the water rides when they're not scheduled to be open in the Spring or Fall or the Skyway or Parachutes when they have to close due to high winds (speaking of Skyway and Parachutes they NEVER used to be open between about 1999-2005... ever). Great Adventure used to have more closed rides than open rides and that's absolutely not an exaggeration. Even though the theming is basically non existent it's better now than it was then simply because of areas like Plaza De Carnival and Golden Kingdom.

 

Plus since you got the pass they added a ton of amazing rides and attractions (as I mentioned before) including the tallest and fastest coaster in the world (when it opened), an 80 MPH hypercoaster and the #1 coaster in the world with El Toro.

 

I guess you could argue that the park has gotten worse since about 2006 (you'd be wrong but you could argue it) but to say this park is a shell of what it used to be when you started going regularly in 1998 means you either forgot how much of a disaster this place was back then or you loved looking at 15 different versions of a scrambler that looked slightly different and having 14 of them be closed every visit (slight exaggeration but you get the point).

 

EDIT:

 

Last year we went to SFNE, Knobles, Hershey, Dorney and Coney Island. Next year were doing a massive 9 Day tour spanning most of the eastern half of the U.S. while SFGAdv gets act together... Hopefully by 2016, they'll have done some nice work to the park and it will be worth visiting!

 

You visited SFNE and Dorney while you were waiting for Great Adventure to "get it's act together" because Great Adventure hasn't added enough new coasters lately? Dorney? When I think of coasters that "have their act together" when it comes to adding new coasters I immediately think of Dorney.

 

I wonder how many people their relocated boomerang will send to the hospital next year. I wonder if it can make it through an entire day of operation this year before closing for the rest of the season (it didn't last year). I can't wait to find out.

 

And what new coasters did SFNE add in that same time period Great Adventure hasn't had it's act together? A huge relocated boomerang that has a new train that beats everyone to a pulp despite being on a perfectly straight section of track through the station? That's about it unless you count the relocated wild mouse.

 

There isn't a park out there that builds an awesome new coaster every few years. Even Cedar point doesn't do that. Enthusiasts are way too impatient... Great Adventure doesn't need a new coaster. Even if they removed everything except El Toro I'd still be perfectly happy to re-ride El Toro all day. Everything else is a bonus.

[loop-de-loop]

 

No matter how amazing El Toro is, you can only ride it so many times.

[larrygator]

GADV is a stale shell of something that used to be. Source: Ive had a season pass every year since 1998.

 

How? Do you remember how horribly run this park was from 1998 when you got your pass to about 2005? They added a ton of rides in 1999 as part of the "War on Lines" and they were ALWAYS, ALWAYS closed. Great Adventure was nothing but 2 good coasters, a ton of bad - mediocre coasters, and a TON of closed flat rides (and a few closed coasters). The rides that were open always had huge lines and there was no such thing as Fastlane so you were forced to wait in them while the park purposely avoided shade canopies so they could come by with those stupid popcorn buckets and icees to sell them to you for $4 a pop.

 

On a typical visit to the park, Viper was closed, Chiller was probably closed because of some catastrophic failure (like the time it caught on fire) and in the first few years you had a pass it had over the shoulder restraints and was terrible anyway. Pretty much every flat ride with a few exceptions like the 3d theater and Twister were closed almost every day. They had Evolution sitting in the middle of the park as the largest lawn ornament ever... Season Pass processing was a 4 hour long process every year back by the (of course closed) Double Trouble ride... the place was awful back then... really awful and the only reason anyone put up with it was because of Medusa and Batman.

 

Now they've removed the rides that were never open and you rarely see closed rides except the water rides when they're not scheduled to be open in the Spring or Fall or the Skyway or Parachutes when they have to close due to high winds (speaking of Skyway and Parachutes they NEVER used to be open between about 1999-2005... ever). Great Adventure used to have more closed rides than open rides and that's absolutely not an exaggeration. Even though the theming is basically non existent it's better now than it was then simply because of areas like Plaza De Carnival and Golden Kingdom.

 

Plus since you got the pass they added a ton of amazing rides and attractions (as I mentioned before) including the tallest and fastest coaster in the world (when it opened), an 80 MPH hypercoaster and the #1 coaster in the world with El Toro.

 

I guess you could argue that the park has gotten worse since about 2006 (you'd be wrong but you could argue it) but to say this park is a shell of what it used to be when you started going regularly in 1998 means you either forgot how much of a disaster this place was back then or you loved looking at 15 different versions of a scrambler that looked slightly different and having 14 of them be closed every visit (slight exaggeration but you get the point).

 

This is so true and some people really don't remember how it used to be in the 10 years prior to El Toro, walking past all the closed rides every visit.

 

The park has lost some flats since 1998, but that has been addressed in recent years. The only big decline I see is in the entertainment line-up through unused theaters and arenas, and the park does have a lot of them. 3D Theater, Showcase Theater, Movietown Arena, Lakefront Arena, Fort Independence, Golden Kingdom Stadium.

 

Other points to add:

Food prices have always been pricy and lines were always long, but at least there is variety now.

People complain about cleanliness, it was a disaster during those years, I know many people who refused to use the bathrooms.

Smoking in the queues was more prevalent.

Line cutting was an epidemic back then, it is still an issue but nothing like the good old days.

The price of a season pass has hardly increased over the past ten years.

Edited January 2, 2015 by larrygator

[DevilsFlight]

^^ Dorney hasn't got a band new coaster in a while but Stinger had a malfunction. You made it sound like it has an accident all the time. Dorney will probably get a coaster soon. As for SFNE they got Goliath, the wild mouse, and they're getting Wicked Cyclone next year. That's three coasters in the years since we got Green Lantern. We are overdue for a coaster. Especially since we are one of the major Six Flags park.