The Knott's Berry Farm (KBF) Discussion Thread

[Blue Fire Guy]

New Boardwalk is now open to the public and also Ghostrider has been reopened after a long rehab. Now Knott's Berry Farm is ready for busy summer season.

Any reports on if (or if not) this rehab (looking at the "long" in the rehab here) has made a difference to how Ghostrider is running right now? If anybody has ridden in the front seat lately (where you can see light brownish-yellow track if there is any), how much retracking has there been done during this long rehab?

[Nyteowl]

Just got back from a long day at the Farm. The KTLA shoot in the morning was a blast, and I had a really good time. Spent the rest of the day at the park hanging out with friends and doing other rides. Funny thing happened on Xcelerator around 5:30 P.M.. We had just gotten in line and a huge swarm of bees flew over the track after the tophat. Many people were exiting the line out of fear but we stayed in for a bit. The Train got sent and we watched in horror as the train flew directly through the massive bee swarm at high speeds. Luckily, only one ride op ended up getting stung and they closed down the ride until further notice. We exited the line and saw a huge bee pile on top of the track and the mechanics were looking on in aw. After about 30 minutes, they decided to just send the train empty a few times to clear up the bees. It was a pretty gruesome display to say the least .

[rcdude]

I have a quick question about Surfside Gliders, once the ride is over are you able to unbuckle the seat belt your self or does the ride operator need to unbuckle them with a push key? Only reason why I ask this is at CGA they have the same Flying Scooters model (ours has the pyramid) but the ride op has to come around with this push key to unbuckle the seat belt.

 

Same on Surfside Gliders: a key is required to unlock the seatbelts. An operator also has to unlock every seat manually on Pacific Scrambler by means of a pedal under the seat. Today, they had two or three operators stationed at each attraction as the queues were overflowing, but I could see both having incredibly slow loading cycles with only a single operator.

[kbfbest]

I have to ask was it someone from here that asked me were Xcel was then tried to tell me that Jag was xcel? lol

 

 

Just got back from a long day at the Farm. The KTLA shoot in the morning was a blast, and I had a really good time. Spent the rest of the day at the park hanging out with friends and doing other rides. Funny thing happened on Xcelerator around 5:30 P.M.. We had just gotten in line and a huge swarm of bees flew over the track after the tophat. Many people were exiting the line out of fear but we stayed in for a bit. The Train got sent and we watched in horror as the train flew directly through the massive bee swarm at high speeds. Luckily, only one ride op ended up getting stung and they closed down the ride until further notice. We exited the line and saw a huge bee pile on top of the track and the mechanics were looking on in aw. After about 30 minutes, they decided to just send the train empty a few times to clear up the bees. It was a pretty gruesome display to say the least .

 

^the same thing happened on Ghostrider last month just outside the station.

[Mechanic]

Time to call in Dale.

[thrillseeker4552]

New Boardwalk is now open to the public and also Ghostrider has been reopened after a long rehab. Now Knott's Berry Farm is ready for busy summer season.

Any reports on if (or if not) this rehab (looking at the "long" in the rehab here) has made a difference to how Ghostrider is running right now? If anybody has ridden in the front seat lately (where you can see light brownish-yellow track if there is any), how much retracking has there been done during this long rehab?

 

I haven't ridden it since it re-opened this weekend, but you can see some light brown track on some spots throughout the course, notably on the first turn directly after the first drop. I rode it during Spring Break and I was pleasantly surprised at how it was running, so hopefully this rehab has helped it even more! It really is a great ride!

 

NOTE-POV Link removed. TPR does not condone videos shot without park permission.

Edited May 28, 2013 by Jew

[Sir Clinksalot]

Had a good time at the KTLA film shoot today followed by a decent time in the park during normal hours. The new area is great, possibly the best thing that has been added since Cedar Fair took over. All three rides will be excellent for families and will give them something to do in an area that has been dominated by thrill rides since the 90s. Knott's also knows how to run a wild mouse right...I rode Coast Rider around 11 and even with a full queue the wait was below 30 minutes. 8 cars running with zero stacking! In case anyone was wondering, Coast Rider does NOT have seatbelts, just lapbars.

 

The park overall was pretty good today, other than a few rides with one train (Jaguar, Pony Express, and Xcelerator). Not as busy as I expected for a holiday (most attractions were 30-45 minute waits). Also, based on the current state of the attraction I am a little worried that the Timber Mountain Log Ride could be delayed, but I'm guessing they'll work around the clock if necessary to get it open on time.

 

Had to miss the KTLA shoot due to the flu, sounds like I missed a good time. The new additions look great.

 

Still don't see how they are running 1 train on 3 of their coasters during Memorial Weekend.

[SoCalCoasters]

^The park wasn't overly crowded in the Morning. I was actually pretty surprised. We waited around 30 min for both Silver Bullet and Supreme Scream around noontime. It may have gotten more crowded as the day went on, but the crowds were pretty spread out.

 

Here's the video of them craning in some of the final props:

 

They finished this up around 30 minutes after the park opened. There were staff standing by to prevent people from passing as the props were lifted into place and the crane was taken back across the street. They must really be in a time crunch if they were doing stuff during park hours and on Memorial Day.

 

[MylesG4L]

New Boardwalk is now open to the public and also Ghostrider has been reopened after a long rehab. Now Knott's Berry Farm is ready for busy summer season.

Any reports on if (or if not) this rehab (looking at the "long" in the rehab here) has made a difference to how Ghostrider is running right now? If anybody has ridden in the front seat lately (where you can see light brownish-yellow track if there is any), how much retracking has there been done during this long rehab?

 

 

I rode the first train of the day on GR. My friend and I sat in the front car but during the ride I couldn't tell/see if there was retracking done. And yes, there's a huge difference from the front and back seats. I'd say the last 3 cars are death, but the ejector airtime was great

 

And btw, all 3 trains were running, gold, copper, and silver.

[Top Thrill Dragster]

New Boardwalk is now open to the public and also Ghostrider has been reopened after a long rehab. Now Knott's Berry Farm is ready for busy summer season.

Any reports on if (or if not) this rehab (looking at the "long" in the rehab here) has made a difference to how Ghostrider is running right now? If anybody has ridden in the front seat lately (where you can see light brownish-yellow track if there is any), how much retracking has there been done during this long rehab?

 

 

I rode the first train of the day on GR. My friend and I sat in the front car but during the ride I couldn't tell/see if there was retracking done. And yes, there's a huge difference from the front and back seats. I'd say the last 3 cars are death, but the ejector airtime was great

 

And btw, all 3 trains were running, gold, copper, and silver.

 

 

They were running all three trains at the same time?

[DJeXeL]

^If this is true then it'll be the first time since it opened.

Edited May 28, 2013 by DJeXeL

[disney4me2001]

New Boardwalk is now open to the public and also Ghostrider has been reopened after a long rehab. Now Knott's Berry Farm is ready for busy summer season.

Any reports on if (or if not) this rehab (looking at the "long" in the rehab here) has made a difference to how Ghostrider is running right now? If anybody has ridden in the front seat lately (where you can see light brownish-yellow track if there is any), how much retracking has there been done during this long rehab?

 

 

I rode the first train of the day on GR. My friend and I sat in the front car but during the ride I couldn't tell/see if there was retracking done. And yes, there's a huge difference from the front and back seats. I'd say the last 3 cars are death, but the ejector airtime was great

 

And btw, all 3 trains were running, gold, copper, and silver.

 

 

They were running all three trains at the same time?

 

I was there yesterday as well...when I went on it (maybe about an hour or so after park opening), only gold and copper were running. There was a temporary delay while I was in line (I was downstairs), so it's possible that they may have pulled silver at that time. But I know for a fact that when I rode only 2 trains were running.

[Rocket Rodder]

Coastrider looks awesome.

 

Leave it to the passholes to complain about SOMETHING though. So many people complain about the HR yet it's under 48". Be glad it's under 48". Your kid will grow into it. Plus more ride time for me

[MylesG4L]

I'm positive, because one train got stuck for like 2 minutes on the chain lift.1 train was in the station while the other was on the brakes, So after they came back they closed it and had them testing. Don't forget this was when it first opened yesterday.

[DJeXeL]

So were there guests on the ride? They might have been removing a train which would explain why a train was stopped on the lift. Keep in mind GR's transfer track is below the station.

[yomadduh]

And, it seems to me, that Surfside Gliders doesn't have a lighting package?

[MylesG4L]

So were there guests on the ride? They might have been removing a train which would explain why a train was stopped on the lift. Keep in mind GR's transfer track is below the station.

No. The train stopped with passengers on it and the operators had to call the mechanic. Then all 3 tested and then it opened back up again.

[rcdude]

I didn't ride GhostRider so I can't confirm or deny anything, but I seem to remember hearing that the ride can no longer operate with all three trains simultaneously during normal operations. I certainly never saw more than two, and when it seemed to be a couple minutes between trains I can't imagine using three would be any more efficient than two. I do know that when I got back to the park around 9:20 A.M., GhostRider had a train sitting at the bottom of the lift (copper or gold...don't remember which) and another in the station (silver...definitely silver) and there was an alarm going off repeatedly followed by an announcement about the ride starting, so perhaps they had all three for testing purposes and removed one very early in the day. The ride did have a posted 90 minute wait yesterday, with the line spilling about halfway to the entrance tunnel, so if they can run three trains still that would have been a day to do so.

 

And, it seems to me, that Surfside Gliders doesn't have a lighting package?

 

There are some lights on it, but they appear to just be simple fluorescent tubes. They were never on while I was there (even in the early morning), but I'd be surprised if they were anything different.

 

Leave it to the passholes to complain about SOMETHING though. So many people complain about the HR yet it's under 48". Be glad it's under 48". Your kid will grow into it.

 

I believe all the wild mouse coasters in the Cedar Fair chain (or at least the Mack models) have the same 44" if accompanied, 54" alone restricton Coast Rider has. Yes, I do think it would be nice if it was 42" since Sierra Sidewinder (a more intense coaster by the same manufacturer with a similar restraint system) is 42", but it's not a big deal. I think it's much, MUCH worse that Pony Express and especially Jaguar have 48" height restrictions than it is that Coast Rider is 44" instead of 42".

[Intimidator305]

Knott's and Cedar Fair did a nice job on the new Boardwalk. I hope to see equivalent level of theming put into other parks across the chain in the near future. The first thing that comes to mind is an overhaul of Action Zone at Kings Island when their new coaster in that area arrives next season.

[DJCallDubstep]

Little late, but I had a blast at the shoot as well. Walked the park a good hour before it opened and had myself quite the amount of stares, especially walking by the entrance with little eager children glaring at me in awe, LOL! I can't thank Robb enough for giving us the opportunity to do this. It was a real treat, and free park admission afterwards couldn't have been better. I did all the large attractions within the first 45 minutes the park was open. This was the true way to beat the crowds.

 

As for the shoot itself, I wish I knew when they were airing before hand. If you who were there remember the segments every hour from 5:20 to 8:20, those were when they actually went live! I honestly thought they were recording for a later! Who has the TV on KTLA at 5AM? Plus, the signs of stress and frustration on the anchorwoman were hilarious! As for the rides, I loved Coast Rider and the scenery surrounding it. It involves Riptide and Boomerang in for the "Boardwalk" theme and that's an experience on it's own; better than anything you'd get from the Santa Monica Pier, if we're comparing boardwalks.

 

I didn't seem to mind Pacific Scramblers during the repetitive cycle, but I started feeling a little nauseous on Surfside Gliders on the five minutes we were on it. Saw some other TPR members enjoying it, but I did NOT go back to that one on the next two film cycles. Probably just me, but man! I'm not fond of unpredictability on attractions. I knew what Pacific Scramblers was doing and as long as I can see the track in front of me on coasters, I'm fine, but on Surfside Gliders, although in somewhat controls of my movements, it was like dangling on a park tire swing (kind of).

 

Overall, this was awesome, and I REALLY HOPE I can make it to West Coast Bash! I'm starting college next year, and if the two days land during the week like Robb was proposing, I might not make it. Once again, thanks for the experience Robb! You rock, dude.

[SmokiesFriend]

I have a some mementos from KBF that I would like to give away. Anyone interested in nostalgia, pm me. They are of great interest.

[Dinnwitted]

Side note question here: On Wikipedia, it says that the observation tower used to have a parachute drop. Is this true? If so, are there any images of it?

[Top Thrill Dragster]

^

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Dinnwitted]

Thanks. I did not realize that Sky Cabin and the Sky Drop were on the same tower. Why did they take it out, just wondering.

Also, great image of the original Corkscrew entrance.

[cfc]

I liked the baskets you stood in for the Sky Jump (rather than the usual seats)--it was a great ride.