Volcano at KD?

[CoasterT98]

Hello,

 

I think I am going to Kings Dominion this summer, and their coasters look amazing! Especially I305, Volcano, and Dominator. I cannot wait. But I havent heard a lot about Volcano lately, and I was just wondering what are some of your opinions on it? It looks like a fantastic ride, with an amazing launch. And I don't mind the shortness of rides, as long as the ride delivers.

 

Thank You!

[cfc]

^Get there early. Ride it first. That is all you need to know.

 

It's a short, but fun ride. The two launches are great.

[kunpc1]

I thought it was a fun ride. Love the double launch. As mentioned, get on it first thing in the morning. Depending on when you go, end of the day may be okay as well.

[QueerRudie]

Volcano is a great ride- but as the others have said: DO IT FIRST. The dreadful capacity of the ride can lead to long, long line later in the day. The experience is of course one-of-a-kind, and wonderfully smooth and thrilling- and a must-ride for KD.

[vacoaster09]

Awesome ride, fast rush, two lauches, straight up out the volcano but I cannot stand waiting for this ride. If you don't hit this ride first you will regret it.

 

I always wished I could get a roll back on this ride.

[blade1]

I 305, Volcano, and Dominator are the 3 longest lines. Volcano can be a fun ride. Just make sure you don't pull your harness down too tight or you will squish the jewels! I made this mistake the second time I rode it. Would suggest doing Volcano first.

[netdvn]

Volcano was one of the coasters that really got me into coasters. Not very long, but a really fun ride.

 

Definitely planning on heading up to Doswell again to catch up on KD this summer.

[Werner]

Last summer i rode Vulcano for the first time, and it's a great ride. Not Worldclass great but a really fun and a one of a kind ride! And like everybody said: Hit it firstthing in the morning, that saved us a lot of time later on the day, so we could ride I305 some more.

 

I'll explain, Vulcano 1,5 hour wait! I305 30 min! It just has no capacity of any sort

[KDCOASTERFAN]

I 305, Volcano, and Dominator are the 3 longest lines. Volcano can be a fun ride. Just make sure you don't pull your harness down too tight or you will squish the jewels! I made this mistake the second time I rode it. Would suggest doing Volcano first.

 

I305's line moves much faster than volcano's does....that's why the park needs a B&M invert to replace it or at least compliment it.

[Skycoastin Steve]

^It's been a while since you mentioned a B&M invert at KD, thanks for bringing this board back to normalcy!

[Intimidator305]

^ Agreed! He's been worried about how Fast Lane is going to ruin KD lately.

 

Anyways, as everyone else has said: Get there at opening and ride it first! If you are one of the first ones there you can ride it one or two more times after that before the line gets insane.

 

As for my opinions of the ride, I absolutely love it! Many of you all probably consider me biased because it's at KD, but it is a coaster that I can ride all the time and I always have a rush unlike a lot of other coasters. 2nd best coaster at the park behind Intimidator 305 of course.

[Hilltopper39]

Will there be Fast Lane at KD this year? I was considering a quick KD/BGW Verbolten weekend trip and a Fast Lane would help a lot!

[cfc]

^Yes: http://www.kingsdominion.com/what-s-new/new-fast-lane.

 

For those of you who live under rocks during the off-season. Volcano is part of Fast Lane.

[Hilltopper39]

Awesome, I could have sworn I looked for that a couple of months ago but there wasn't any information on the KD website, and it's much more comfortable under this rock than you would think.

[rcdude]

Like others have said, Volcano is a very good, very unique ride that is definitely a must ride at the park. In my opinion, it is the second best coaster there, and I actually preferred it to Intimidator 305 (note: I only rode I305 with the trim brake). Also, you definitely want to ride early. When I visited, I did a quick run on I305 before going to Volcano, and by the time I got there the line was already 20 minutes. By the time I got off, it was over a half hour, and this was a day where almost everything was in the 15-20 minute range (only other ride I waited more than 20 minutes for was Avalanche). I don't know the exact numbers, but I'm guessing Volcano with two trains has about the same capacity as I305 or Dominator with one train.

[CoasterBill04]

You think waiting 1.5 hrs for Volcano is bad?! I waited for it during its initial year of operation and the wait was apprx 3 hrs! 1.5 hrs is nothing.

[rosscoe]

Loved Volcano, night rides are great.

[ILoveRides]

I guess I really lucked out. I went labor day weekend a few years ago and there was no line on this coaster at all. I spent the last hour or two of the day just staying on the train and watching the beautiful sun set while repeatedly being blasted out of the volcano - I loved every minute of it. To date it's still one of my favorite rides.

[ILoveRides]

Here's a pic the ride operator took from the last train of the night... totally empty! The ride crew was awesome and hilarious too. It's probably the closest thing I've had to a TPR ERT session outside of TPR.

So much fun!

[Werner]

That's just great David, some little night time ERT only for you

[GigaG]

I went in October of 2010. Volcano usually had a longer line than I305. Volcano is a pretty unique ride, but unlike most inverts it does not have a dropping floor, so you have to jump or climb a bit to get in the seat. The actual ride experience is fun, but it is a short ride. After the 3rd barrel roll - the 4th inversion, the ride is not even half way down the mountain, but it goes down a large drop that goes right into the brakes. That seems like a waste to me, but still, the ride is fun and has some great scenery.

[imawesome1124]

Volcano is a blast, but IMO it is completely eclipsed by I305. Definitely ride it first, like everyone else has said. Also ride it at night if the line is short enough. I remember riding it at ECB 10 during night ERT and it seemed to go noticeably faster than in the day.

[MrSum1_55]

As pretty much everyone has said, ride it first (get to the park early if you are going on a peak day), and head directly for it after opening. Once you have ridden, get in as many rides as possible on I305. On my last visit, Volcano had the longest wait in the park, about a 30 minute wait with 2 trains running, while, a few feet away, I305 had about a 5 minute wait, with 1 train running.

 

Volcano is not only popular, but suffers from low capacity (About 800 per hour at the most). Each train only holds 16 riders, and crews are generally quite slow, managing to stack the trains on most cycles. Still, it is worth a ride for its novelty factor alone; it is the only continuous circuit Intamin inverted coaster in the US. Technically, it has the highest inversion in the world, but it is difficult to notice how night you are with the volcano right under you.

[cfc]

I think KD runs Volcano as well as they can. It was a protoype to begin with, as I recall, and was nothing but trouble during its first season (well, still is, really).

[Synshine]

It was nothing but trouble for the first couple of seasons. And I will say it's line isn't anywhere near as bad as Hypersonic was, but it's nearly always the worst line in the park these days. It's a good ride, and an experience not to pass up. It is really only my 4th or 5th favorite coaster in the park these days, however.

 

It is neat to ride Volcano and I-305 in close succession, just to see how Intamin has progressed (and what delicious madness they created) in over a decade.