Shavethewhales Posted January 18, 2011 Posted January 18, 2011 Alright, so I'm quite a bit late in getting this TR posted, but since it's the off-season and there's not a whole lot else to look at, I'd figured I'd go ahead and put it up. My family makes an annual trip to SDC on the weekend after Thanksgiving. The two things that really stood out this year were the abhorid parking situation and the outstanding food. The parking situation at SDC is a hot mess, plain and simple. However, almost all of it is completely free, and includes free shuttle rides on some fairly nice vehicles all day long. Going in on Saturday, we had to follow a line of cars about a mile and half long that stretched all the way from the turnoff for SDC's parking lots, through the upper lots, down under the overpass, up and over the hill past Deer Run motel, down the highway that goes past SDC, and into an elongated gravel parking lot that hugs a hillside by the highway. All along the way we saw cars mutiny and pull off into the empty lots closer to the gates. People just didn't understand why they were being parked miles away from the park in the boonies. There is, of course, a good reason why SDC does all this - if they fill the inner lots first, the lots become an absolute gridlock and people and trolleys can't get through to the outer lots. I just wish they had a better way of communicating to guests about this, because a lot of first time guests were somewhat upset at first. Once we were in the park though, everything was pretty smooth and wonderful all around. Lots of craftsmen putting on excellent demonstrations, lots of GREAT food at fair prices, and the rides were pretty swell too. SDC and DW are both known for their excellent food offerings, but I have to say it seems like they upped their game this year even more. We had dinner at the mine restaurant, which is an all you can eat buffet off the main square. They had great chicken, sausage, and brisket with traditional sides such as sweet and mashed potatoes, cranberries, ocra, and some other good stuff, plus desert and salad bar. It wasn't terribly expensive either. Later on I stopped by one of the booths by the entrance to TNT and had some baked apple dumplings with ice cream. Holy crap it was good. It was like a lightly cinnamoned cookie shell surrounding a ball of hot baked apples in cinnamon saunce, with a heap of this awesome vanilla/cinnamon ice cream that really set it off. It was a big helping too, and it only cost like $4. The wassail was really good too. As far as rides go, everything was pretty great as usual. The rides were running great, they tried to run multiple trains on everything, and the ride ops did a good job of keeping everything running smoothly. The only sore spot was the fact that PK kept breaking down, and TGS was either closed or running one arm most of the time. At one point I had waited in line for PK for about half an hour and was a car away from riding when something happened and they made everyone leave the queue. Apparently with the way the sensors are set up, the computer locks the trains in positions on the break run, and sometimes they actually have to evacuate riders from there - but they wait until no one is in sight. Everything that S&S wasn't involved in ran beautifully though. I have yet to see Wildfire EVER break down in any way, but I think PK has been closed at least once every time I've visited. And Finally, the craftsmen were all great. As usual, I probably spent a third to a half of my time just wandering around seeing demonstrations and shopping, which I actually enjoy at SDC. I also got a few photos of them marking the area for the new Half Dollar Holler kids area. Construction has actually started on it now that the park is closed. You can find a few photos of that posted by a park employee on SDCFans Anyway, photos: Obligatory entrance wreath shot Trying to cram into the Homestead. There's a great old-timey/bluegrass band that plays in here several times a day, but good luck getting in unless you get there way in advance. SDC's line of butters and jams are amazing. We usually buy a case of the apple butters each year. Once you try it, you can't go back. Fooooooood Obligatory shot of PK launching This is my favorite angle of Wildfire People always underestimate just how big this ride is. The angle of the hillside helps hide how long the drop is. The view isn't what it used to be, but it's still a good one. This is the apple dumpling thing I was talking about before. Awesome. Time for some lights Part of the light parade that runs twice daily during Christmas. SDC really puts an emphasis on the gospel in just about every presentation the park does during OTC. AP got it's lift control booth struck by lightning the weekend before this visit. Luckily the damage wasn't widespread. Just a guy making hay brooms. Making bread Chirstmas store, one of two large one's SDC has during OTC. I'm not sure what was going on here Looks like TGS managed to get both arms going at one point. They actually had River Blast running, but with all the water effects turned off. Not many people were riding though. Two guys making glass stuff. Can you spot the coaster in this picture? Tree goodness
Shavethewhales Posted January 18, 2011 Author Posted January 18, 2011 Here's the area were the new kid's area will be, plus a few more random photos. Looking down the side of the bridge from the mill side, you could just barely make out some markings from here. Standing on that little abutment you get an overview of the whole area. If you look close you can see the big circle where the carousel will presumably go. One of the circles closest to the mill Closeup of the carousel area That's the old smoking area up by the fence. More tree goodness SDC's somewhat forgotten Disko One of SDC's originals, the Flooded Mine It was just a bit crowded at some points. One more shot of the lights to finish
DJeXeL Posted January 19, 2011 Posted January 19, 2011 I don't hear much about Powder Keg. How is it?
Ed Farmer Posted January 19, 2011 Posted January 19, 2011 Powder Keg is a hidden gem. I can't say enough about it. If I ranked my coasters it would probably be in the top 5, maybe even 3 (out of about 200 give or take a few).
Moose Posted January 19, 2011 Posted January 19, 2011 I absolutely love this park. Thanks for sharing your photos with us.
DJeXeL Posted January 19, 2011 Posted January 19, 2011 What makes it in your top 5? Pacing? Intensity?
Shavethewhales Posted January 19, 2011 Author Posted January 19, 2011 PK is definitely among my top favorites as well, though I've only been on about 50 or so coasters to compare it with. The reason it's so great is that the first part of the ride is chock full of crazy airtime, and the open cars/restrains really allow you to enjoy it. The second part dives under a canopy of trees and has a great feeling of speed. Then you get a slow climb up a lift hill right in the middle of the ride which provides some great views of the surrounding scenery and the adjacent Wildfire. The last portion is a little disappointingly short, but surprisingly strong with the drop off the lift being really sharp and you get another pop of air just before heading into an intense helix. It's not a big ride, but for what it is it offers more than a lot of larger coasters. Another huge plus about the restraints is that they allow kids as small as 42" to ride, though that is also what leads to it having a much larger line than any other ride in the park. It's clearly a hit, but the slew of mechanical issues that it still suffers from 5 years into it's life are what has kept them from building more, I'm sure.
DJeXeL Posted January 19, 2011 Posted January 19, 2011 Thank you for that. Time to pay my family in Missouri a visit I've heard from multiple people that the downtime is almost guaranteed every time you visit the park.
Ed Farmer Posted January 19, 2011 Posted January 19, 2011 It's been fine both days I've been, but I'm sure I can chalk that up to luck. Reliability is the only thing I can see counting against this ride. China appears to be recieving the next installations of this type. Just to add to Savethewhale's post- can't forget the ride's incredible setting.
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