Holiday World (HW) Discussion Thread

[SFOGdude25]

I was at the park today, and it was really busy. Lots of school groups, but still had a good day.

All 3 of the coasters were in pretty good shape. Raven and Legend were both a little on the rough side, but were fun as always.

Voyage had a good bit of track work done on the return stretch from the 3rd 90 degree turn onward, and last year's track work is still holding up pretty nicely. It made for some REALLY great rides. Plus, I got a good look at one of the timberliners in Voyage's maintenance shed. It appears much more solid than the first train they tested.

[netdvn]

Rare and cool Holiday World gear put up for auction to help tornado victims!

 

http://holidayworld.com/oklahoma

 

We’re all saddened by the devastation in Oklahoma following the May 20 tornado. Here’s a priceless package of Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari memorabilia – including some one-of-a-kind items – up for auction through Tuesday, May 28, 2013, at 12noon CDT. Proceeds will be donated to the American Red Cross.

 

You're bidding on:

 

• 8 one-day admission tickets for 2013

 

• First ride of the day on Mammoth (or other ride of your choice)

 

• Private Cabana in Splashin’ Safari

 

• Lunch served in your Cabana

 

• Dinner at Plymouth Rock Café, with table service and tour

 

• Holiday World Hard Hat, used, signed by our Coaster Cats

 

• Customized Coaster Art (you choose the photo) on Raven track wood

 

• Holiday World Logo Flag (flown at the front gate)

 

• Splashin' Safari Logo Flag (flown at the front gate)

 

• 3 Voyage Flags (flown at the top of the lift hill)

 

• Holiday World 60th Anniversary throw

 

• Roller Coaster Patches (Raven, Legend and Voyage)

 

• 2 Mammoth beach towels

 

• Family photo on the ride of your choice (posted on our Facebook page, if you’d like)

 

• Holiday World laminated trunk organizer

 

• Holidog Christmas ornament

 

Please review our HoliAuction Policies before bidding. Remember, placing a bid is an obligation to pay if you win. Must be at least 18 years old to place bid. Payment must be made online via credit card (Visa, MasterCard or Discover) within 24 hours of win. Please note: We will either ship the items to you or we can hold for pick-up when you visit in 2013.

This auction will only have one winner, of course. But there are countless ways to help the victims of the Oklahoma tornado. Donations may be made online to the America Red Cross and other agencies. Thank you for caring!

 

Stumbled across this cool article while browsing the web. Kudos to HW for doing this.

[Wingwright]

I visited Holiday World for the first time last Friday and was really impressed.

I loved the independent, family-run atmosphere. It reminded me of Knott's Berry Farm before it lost its charm.

 

Of course, with my luck I decide to visit on school day. Luckily the lines weren't long, although I had to share them with tons of teenagers

I didn't have much time at the park, so I didn't check out Splashin Safari. I would love to come back someday, because it really looked like fun (and I don't even like water parks that much).

 

Overall, I would rank the coasters like this...

1. Raven - Great! Short and sweet. The back seat is incredible.

2. Voyage - Great! I got on expecting it to beat the crap out of me, but it wasn't as bad as I expected. I loved the nonstop speed and intensity.

3. Legend - Good ride, but not as fun as the other two. Great first drop. The ride made me a little dizzy.

 

Oh, and the fried Oreos were amazing.

[GayCoasterGuy]

Legend is most people's least favorite at the park - but some of us prefer it over the other 2 Legend gets its love!

 

It's great they are doing another auction for disaster relief. They did a Katrina auction back in 2005 and I'm now the proud owner of Raven road and upstop wheels, and a Legend guide wheel (from the G-train). Those are some great souvenirs! And a flag from Legend's lift

[Raven Maven]

Ah, Legend; the middle child.

 

Leah Koch (Will & Lori's "middle child") wrote about her "sister coaster" on the HoliBlog a few years ago: https://www.holidayworld.com/holiblog/when-your-sister-roller-coaster

[cfc]

^Aw . . . I've always liked Legend.

[Wingwright]

"Least Favorite" doesn't mean "bad"!!! Especially in the company of two other great coasters!

[mikeykaise]

Legend is a really good coaster even though it can be a little brutal and throw you around a little. It just needs a little TLC to make it smooth and it'll be even better. I love all 3 coasters. My kids have told me they would like to see something in between the Holidog and the Raven size wise but I'd honestly would rather not go to a different theme par. Its not too big and not too small and the crowds on weekends are tolerable and the wait times aren't bad.

[Koasterking48]

Love that Holiday World knows how to reach out to people in a time of need!

 

On a different note: To anyone who visited last year, did the 8-seat toboggans ever get put on Mammoth? I visited mid-June 2012 and they weren't ready yet. Did they even try it or was capacity a problem with two different rafts? (I'd assume people in line would want to choose one experience over the other because people can be picky )

[triggernel]

If I remember correctly, they decided against the 8 person rafts, though I can't remember if that was a logistics things, or if they were just satisfied with the absurd capacity they were already getting.

[nannerdw]

I wonder which will happen first, Timberliners on the Voyage or the opening of Flying Turns at Knoebels.

[triggernel]

I wonder which will happen first, Timberliners on the Voyage or the opening of Flying Turns at Knoebels.

[mikeykaise]

Love that Holiday World knows how to reach out to people in a time of need!

 

On a different note: To anyone who visited last year, did the 8-seat toboggans ever get put on Mammoth? I visited mid-June 2012 and they weren't ready yet. Did they even try it or was capacity a problem with two different rafts? (I'd assume people in line would want to choose one experience over the other because people can be picky )

 

I had asked about that too, and this is what Paula said about it:

 

did I also read or see somewhere that this year on Mammoth that they'll be adding the same type of straight rafts to it as well as the round ones?

 

That was the original plan - to have two types of boats. The concern was the size of the seats on the round boats. We worried about being able to accommodate "fluffy" guests (Dan's term). Turns out the round boats worked out fine and since the"forward" boats needed more design work, we decided to stick with just the round ones.

[Raven Maven]

If I remember correctly, they decided against the 8 person rafts, though I can't remember if that was a logistics things, or if they were just satisfied with the absurd capacity they were already getting.

 

Um ... neither. The second style of boat needed more design work before we could use them - so we just stuck with the round boats.

 

Thanks, Paula

[triggernel]

Sorry to misquote you. Guess I didn't "remember correctly," lol.

[Raven Maven]

No worries.

[Koasterking48]

Alright just got back from Holiday World and have quite a few interesting things to discuss (No pics, sorry!):

 

1. Hyena Falls was a great addition to the water park and I think families will like it, BUT it's a pretty far walk from the rest of the water park which may make people not even bother going to it.

 

2. On the subject of Hyena Falls, apparently the park has had quite a few problems with the middle slide (I believe it's called Chuckles?). According to staff members, a few injuries have been happening, one being a spinal injury. And these injuries all happened within the past few days, with the most recent one occurring yesterday. I also noticed scrap or spare slide pieces right behind Giraffica. Is HW going to rebuild the troublesome slide?

 

3. Quite a big plot of land north of HF is being cleared. New coaster maybe?

 

4. The park's train's track is apparently being replaced. I would highly doubt they are removing this historic ride, but you never know.

 

5. New lockers are neat and work better than the keyed ones. Nice addition!

 

6. The Voyage NEEDS some retracking in the spaghetti bowl and the finale. its getting pretty rough. Also, Timberliners were out of sight today. Not sure if they were sent back to GravityKraft or what.

 

Overall, it was a fantastic day. Ops were relatively smooth for a slow day. Looking forward to visiting again soon!

[ajfelice]

First visit ever at Holiday World on Tuesday May 21.

 

Holy Crap, Holiday World is in the middle of nowhere! I didn't expect it to be a dense city, but not as secluded as it is. However, the setting is absolutely perfect. Their atmosphere is to die for with the lush trees, beautiful gardens, winding paths, etc. Crowds were very low in which one lot was full of buses, but the "GP" lot used barely three rows. The weather was mostly cloudy, but warm with times of sun.

 

The Ultimate Trifecta of Wooden Coasters (as I put it) did not disappoint my high expectations. Starting with The Legend, I found this coaster to be a better version of Knoebel's Twister (which is also a great coaster). The lateral G's were absolutely nuts as I was forced to hang on for dear life on those turns. Before getting into the double helix, there was a nice pop of air going back towards the station. The helix towards the end was very intense and used tunnels effectively which capped off an easy Top 10 Woodie for me.

 

The Raven was a nice contrast to The Legend. The Raven starts out with some very good airtime hills which are nestled between some good lateral sections over the water and towards the end of the ride. After the famous "5th Drop" which didn't disappoint, the wild finale was a really nice surprise. Overall, a great airtime coaster with some good spots of laterals and twistiness. Another Top Ten Woodie here.

 

The Voyage is breathtaking. Walking up to the ride underneath its grand finale is more imposing than Mean Streak's queue line through the structure. Surprisingly, the line for The Voyage running only one train was only three cycles and a walk-on later in the day which was shorter than the other two coasters. I managed to take 5 rides in several different seats on this monster of a coaster. Every seat delivered in a huge way. The back two rows will whip you through the spaghetti bowl, triple down, and through the final twists relentlessly. However, towards the front in rows 2 and 3, the large airtime hills after the lift deliver the best. Also, the seats towards the front fill in the few blanks of amazing airtime the back didn't experience as strongly. The middle of the train was a nice all-around ride that was still more powerful than any coaster I have ever ridden. Overall, The Voyage shattered all of my wildest expectations. I used to think that El Toro was the most powerful coaster I have ridden, not anymore. The Voyage never lets up until the final brakes. I have never ridden a coaster that keeps it's pacing and intensity at such a high level as long as The Voyage does. The forces are physically grueling in the sense that you feel the G's in ways you never thought were possible. In terms of comfort, pain is not an issue by any means. The Voyage is without a doubt aggressive, but it's aggressive in the sense that the forces will cause you to hold on for dear life. No such thing as rattling, shuffling, or bouncing to be found. To sum this all up, The Voyage is the greatest coaster I have ever had the privilege to ride.

 

I did take the time to have some fun in Splashin' Safari at the recommendation of my managers at work. Thankfully, Splashin' Safari was pretty dead, as I find it hard to justify waiting in long lines at water parks. My first experiences with a water coaster were definitely very fun, but I would probably pass on them when their lines get over an hour like they have a tendency to do. Hyena Falls is a good family addition as they are not too imposing or forceful by waterslide standards. The halfpipe slide was unique, but nothing crazy. Hyena Falls is currently very isolated, but it looks pretty obvious that they are prepping the water park to expand in that direction to fill everything out. Giraffica was a great giant flume with a really neat lift and a very interesting run-out after the drop. Overall, Spashin' Safari is definitely my new favorite water park considering how it's built for decent capacity and very unique, but no water slide in any park has yet to wow me like even mediocre coasters. However, it's obvious that Splashin Safari is crucial to the overall progress of Holiday World as the GP can't get enough of it, so I appreciate what it does for the park as a whole.

 

That is my Holiday World experience in a very small nutshell. Holiday World is simply amazing.

[cal1br3tto]

^I used to rank Legend and Twister right up against each other, slightly out of my top 10. A disappointingly mediocre ride on Twister sent it way down my list last year, but I love the creatively...twisted layouts of both coasters.

 

Nice to see another fan of the first few hills on Voyage, which often seem to be a bit overlooked compared to the crazier parts that come soon after. I was majorly impressed by the ride in 2010.

[SFOGdude25]

^I have to agree about Voyage's first hills. When I was there a couple of weeks ago riding in the front seat and sailing over those hills, I was like "holy cow I am being launched out of my seat! How did I miss this??" The ride is absolutely nuts, and I love everything about it!

[triggernel]

Now correct me if I'm wrong, but my lord is Google Maps' view of Holiday World outdated. This has to be pre-2006. No Voyage, Wildebeest, Mammoth, or PP.

[GayCoasterGuy]

^I guess you really liked the unlimited pop included with price, then? haha! Great description of the park and especially, Voyage.

[_koppen]

Now correct me if I'm wrong, but my lord is Google Maps' view of Holiday World outdated. This has to be pre-2006. No Voyage, Wildebeest, Mammoth, or PP.

 

Use this one instead, it's updated.

Bing

[Raven Maven]

Alright just got back from Holiday World and have quite a few interesting things to discuss (No pics, sorry!):

 

Thanks for visiting!

 

A few notes ... apparently the Dippin' Dot Man flunked his medical exams - that was incorrect information. We have "Chuckles" on sabbatical while ProSlide adjusts the water flow.

 

Regarding Freedom Train, here's a recent HoliBlog post: https://www.holidayworld.com/holiblog/clickety-clack

 

Glad you like the new l-o-c-k-e-r-s.

 

Thanks, Paula

[Raven Maven]

Now correct me if I'm wrong, but my lord is Google Maps' view of Holiday World outdated. This has to be pre-2006. No Voyage, Wildebeest, Mammoth, or PP.

 

Oh, grrrrrrrrrrrrrr! You have NO IDEA how that drives me/us crazy!

 

That photo is from the year Bahari wave pool was built - 2005!

 

And the icing on the HoliCake is that when a Dollar General Store opened in town - that section of the map was updated within a month. (Maybe they sent a crate of Goo Goo Clusters?)

 

Sigh. Paula