The Knott's Berry Farm (KBF) Discussion Thread

[coasternut]

I was at the park today, and much to my surprise it wasn't too crowded. Maybe that Sky-cabin incident the other day kept people away. I'm still appalled at their ride operations. The ride-ops on every ride were in slow motion. I spent most of my time at Xcelerator, and they were pitiful! Someone needs to teach them about customer service... Good thing the lines were short.

[thrillseeker4552]

I was at the park today, and much to my surprise it wasn't too crowded. Maybe that Sky-cabin incident the other day kept people away. I'm still appalled at their ride operations. The ride-ops on every ride were in slow motion. I spent most of my time at Xcelerator, and they were pitiful! Someone needs to teach them about customer service... Good thing the lines were short.

 

Do you happen to know if GhostRider is running two trains? I'll be heading to the park tomorrow and am curious to know.

[Live 4 Coasters]

Funny that this "incident" should happen, considering the Sky Cabin spot is where Windseeker was originally planned to be. As far as removing the Sky Cabin, I remember reading that the "K" on top has been designated a local landmark and cannot be moved in anyway, that's why Windseeker moved location within the park. Should it be closed, it could remain as a new park icon and be used as a focal point for a new coaster helixing around the tower, just thinking aloud.

[CaptainUnknown]

Hey Knotts fans, you jealous?

They see me tumbling, they be hating

[SoCalJasonland]

Hey Knotts fans, you jealous?

 

Does it magically not break down anymore since it moved there? Is is still Tampico Tumbler?

[Superbatboy]

Hey Knotts fans, you jealous?

Yes!

[CaptainUnknown]

Tampico Tumbler was scrapped/something along those lines. Though I cannot speak for the maintenance issues of the Mall of America specimen.

[Arthur_Seaton]

^^^^ I remember riding that thing at Knott's and remember it looking really cool but not being too thrilling of a ride. Granted, many years have passed since I rode it, but I just remember it as feeling like you were accelerating and braking over and over.

[Nrthwnd]

I remember us riding the Tumbler back in 1996, and we kept laughing, and laughing...

One of these would be great in Playland(PNE) right about now.

 

And we always called it Tapioca Tumbler at the time.

[SoCalJasonland]

After watching the video, I am a little jelly. The ride is psycho though with crazy torque on those gears; no wonder it broke.

 

[wmay]

I remember Tampico Tumbler! I recall loving it but I was also like 12 the last time I rode it. The next time we went to California was 2004 and they had already removed it by then.

[Koasterking48]

Had the chance to visit Knotts for the first time this week and I really loved the park. It really felt more family-owned park than other Cedar Fair parks. The dark rides were great, Ghost Town looked fantastic, and the well-balanced coaster collection meant there's something for everyone in the family. It quickly became one of my favorite Cedar Fair parks!

 

Xcelerator was a lot of fun and is a great Intamin launcher (a nice "in-between" from Storm Runner and Dragster). GhostRider was running like a new GCI and had some good pops of airtime, though operations were pretty slow. Sierra Sidewinder and Montezuma's Revenge were a real blast, and just stupidly fun coasters! I wasn't blown away by Silver Bullet, but it still delivered an enjoyable ride and had a unique layout going for it. The rest of the collection was mostly forgettable clones, though Jaguar had a cool, weaving layout and was a good family coaster.

 

Overall, I really had a great time at Knotts, and with low crowds, was able to reride man god the coasters over and over (I believe we rode Xcelerator over 15 times!). I can't wait to visit again!

Arriving to Knotts, it was strange to not have a "Main Street" area inside the gates, and instead, being outside for non-guests to use as well.

What a great entrance!

Our first stop was GhostRider, which already had a 20 minute wait right at park opening due to slow ops. :/

Pony Express was okay, but obviously suffers from a short layout.

I really liked how the boardwalk area looked, with a subtle, yet classic look.

Anyone who says you can't snap new Larsons flyers is lying. Definitely doable.

Probably the worst/most boring mouse in existence. Waayyy too many magnetic trims.

We hit up Xcelerator quickly thinking that it was going to gather a long line.

However, that was never the case as it was a station wait all day!

Also it ran two trains for some reason this day, which apparently is a very rare occurrence!

I am apparently impatient and never waited for a train to show up in these pictures ¯_(ツ)_/¯

Timber Mountain was really good! The ride had a nice classic, nostalgic feel to it.

Calico Mine Ride was a neat dark ride that was something unique to the park. The show scenes were very large and detailed!

A wild Silver Bullet appears.

Lower end B&M, but still a fun ride

Of course, we had stopped for some famous fried chicken. Delicious as expected!

Sierra Sidewinder was a surprise hit for me. Makes me wonder why Cedar Fair didn't purchase more of these.

Montezuma was another underdog in the park.

Really hope the rumors of it's removal stay as rumors...

Knotts has a nice skyline. Also, we visited after the Sky Cabin incident.

I do agree with those who say Silver Bullet feels out of place. It definitely is just shoehorned into a small space.

Calico at night is a sight to behold.

We finished the day with a lap on GhostRider and then marathoned Xcelerator until closing. Knotts is definitely one of my favorite parks, and I really hope I'll get to revisit in the near future!

As is Timber Mountain...

[Nrthwnd]

I think that, with what space they had, they did pretty good in fitting Silver Bullet into their park.

 

And that final little helix is really great! I really want to go back there, myself.

 

Thanks for sharing your visit, there.

One of my own fave shots of SB. Taken Sept.09, 2016.

[thrillseeker4552]

Nice report! I visited last Tuesday and also found it odd that Xcelerator was running two trains. Capacity is essentially the same whether one train or two, but it's odd that they run both trains in the off-season and only one train during the summer.

 

On another note, I really hope that Monte and Xcelerator (especially Monte) get a fresh coat of paint sometime relatively soon. Every other coaster in the park has been repainted in the last 5 years.

[wmay]

Speaking of Monte and paint, is anyone else hoping that they'll go back to painting the track yellow? I'm in CA once like every 2-3 years but I still can't get over that Montezuma's Revenge is now mint green!

[CaptainUnknown]

Does Knotts allow snapping on their flyers? I know that most CF parks/those that own Larson models don't allow it due to maintenance issues.

[SoCalJasonland]

Knott's is having an auction of some older items from their warehouses. Even if you can't afford the stuff, OC Register has a slideshow of some of the items. I need some bears in my foyer.

 

www.ocregister.com/articles/knott-740497-park-auction.html

[Nrthwnd]

^ The raccoon looks like he's on something.

 

I'll take him.

[sfriday1998]

Hey, I might be going to Knotts in June for about a 6-7 hour visit. Is a Fast Lane worth it? I want to get all the coaster credits, and the park closes at 8 after I get there at about 1:30ish

[thrillseeker4552]

Hey, I might be going to Knotts in June for about a 6-7 hour visit. Is a Fast Lane worth it? I want to get all the coaster credits, and the park closes at 8 after I get there at about 1:30ish

 

You could probably get away without a FastLane, but it makes your day far more enjoyable, so I highly recommend it. GhostRider and Xcelerator will likely have the longest lines. Silver Bullet is usually manageable if both trains are running.

[monty1998]

According to the Orange County Register article, Raffi "decided to hold the auction to make room at the park."

 

As part of the plan for the never-built 2012 Intamin coaster at the park, the old preserving kitchen and canning buildings back stage were to be removed. It's possible that there are once again plans to expand the park into this area, although I wouldn't expect to see a massive coaster project due to the current focus of the park, aesthetics, and neighbor concerns. A smaller scale coaster, a dark rides, or perhaps even a new themed area would be possible however.

 

Any project of this scope, if it is indeed in the works, would take quite awhile to complete, given the complexities of relocating utilities and moving various backstage offices, etc., so 2018 would be the earliest anything would be completed, although 2020 (Knott's 100th birthday) would probably be more realistic.

[BWYuko]

Anyone been to the park on an MLK Day? Thinking of taking my GF on Monday if people's experiences suggest it's not too busy.

Haven't been since 2001, so I have a lot to catch up on. Looks like ride closures will be minimal right now too.

[CaptainUnknown]

never-built 2012 Intamin coaster at the park (yada yada that leads to that coaster being built in) 2018 would be the earliest anything would be completed, although 2020 (Knott's 100th birthday) would probably be more realistic.

 

Repeat after me...

 

Theme

Parks

Do

Not

Give

A

Single

Sh*t

About

Wood

To

Steel

Coaster

Ratios,

Anniversaries

Or

Bull***

Coaster

Feature

Quotas

Like

Number

Of

Inverting

Coasters

Or

Stupid

Sh*t

Like

That

 

... God damn

[JeromyL]

According to the Orange County Register article, Raffi "decided to hold the auction to make room at the park."

 

As part of the plan for the never-built 2012 Intamin coaster at the park.

 

Does anyone know what this was supposed to be?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[monty1998]

The 2012 coaster was similar in scale (not layout) to Intiminator 305, but design problems with that ride combined with aesthetic concerns about a massive ride looming over much of the park killed the project.

 

In other, somewhat ironic news, the fire station behind the park burned down last week. Luckily no one was hurt and a new structure on LA Palma was already slated to start construction later this year.