The Knott's Berry Farm (KBF) Discussion Thread

[joelwee]

I'm planning on going Saturday; I'll post a TR, as well.

[Mr. Corn]

in perfect timing, me and my twin will be headed to check out passholder preview tomorrow!!

 

Be sure to come back and post a review of the ride. I'm really anxious to read people's thoughts on this coaster. It looks like a home run for the park, but I'm interested to see what the actual ride experience is like.

 

absolutely!! if anyone here has anything in particular you want me to take photos of (queue, station, anything) just lemme know!!

[coasterlvr]

in perfect timing, me and my twin will be headed to check out passholder preview tomorrow!!

 

Be sure to come back and post a review of the ride. I'm really anxious to read people's thoughts on this coaster. It looks like a home run for the park, but I'm interested to see what the actual ride experience is like.

 

it's pretty awesome. the seats are comfortable like B&M clamshells. the drop is cool. it releases then kind of slowly slides through the brakes. i'd rather it just drop quickly, but, you get a good pop in the back. the rest is going through a bunch of hanging moments. it kind of seems just the right length. (insert joke here)

 

the little double down is a fun pop of air and the pop into the brakes is cool, too. there are a couple jerky moments if you want to be real critical, but nothing horrid. night ride is about the same since it's not a ride where sense of speed matters, imo. i think i prefer the day actually because of the visuals.

 

i like the 4 major coasters all about the same. i wouldn't be surprised by anyone who puts Hangtime first, or last. it's a winner in my book.

 

i'll probably go tomorrow morning for some more rides.

[Arthur_Seaton]

Just rode Hang Time right now (it broke down there for a while). It’s fun, sort of cute, and fits the scale of the park well. The restraints are tight and really staple you in, but I think that’s expected because of the amount of time spent at weird angles. Despite it crawling over the drop, it packs a punch when it does actually drop. The rest is a mix of disorienting inversions and, surprise surprise, hang time. The lift is the part that people seem to be enjoying the most as it makes the blood rush to your head. Three-train operations right now, but the line does move kind of slow.

 

EDIT: In case anyone was planning on checking out the ride tonight, the park’s busy and the line for Hang Time looks to be quite long now. It was spilling out of the entrance until they opened up additional switchbacks. Got two rides in, front and back. The front’s got some rattle, but nothing too bad.

Edited May 12, 2018 by Arthur_Seaton

[CedarFlags]

Re: Hangtime.... I got invited to the employee party on Thursday night by a friend and was able to ride.

 

Seats are super comfortable and surprisingly spacious. One comment I heard from some people who were under 6ft is that their feet didn't touch the floor of the train. So, that's kind of a fun extra.

 

Trying not to judge too harshly, but the ride isn't really what gets me excited... I'm more of a sustained speed kind of guy. The drop is great, the airtime hill before the cobra roll is great, and the rest was a little blah for me. There is a very slight rattle on that weird nameless inversion in the middle of the course. But, because you're traveling so slowly through the inversion, it's not uncomfortable at all.

 

Two surprises:

 

#1. The seat backs aren't perfectly straight, but slightly reclined. When you go vertical on the lift hill, your seat back is actually on a slight downward angle and you get the sensation of sliding backward out of the seat. It's very weird.

 

#2. There is an insane head chopper at the bottom of the first drop, going underneath the cobra roll. I know things always seem closer than they really are, but when you're sitting on the further right side seat (from rider's pov), it seems reeeeeally close.

 

Verdict: I feel like it's kind of like Silver Bullet (which I think doesn't get enough credit)... maybe not the wildest or more exhilarating, but definitely fun, enjoyable, and comfortable.

[Shut It Down]

Re: Hangtime.... I got invited to the employee party on Thursday night by a friend and was able to ride.

 

Seats are super comfortable and surprisingly spacious. One comment I heard from some people who were under 6ft is that their feet didn't touch the floor of the train. So, that's kind of a fun extra.

 

Trying not to judge too harshly, but the ride isn't really what gets me excited... I'm more of a sustained speed kind of guy. The drop is great, the airtime hill before the cobra roll is great, and the rest was a little blah for me. There is a very slight rattle on that weird nameless inversion in the middle of the course. But, because you're traveling so slowly through the inversion, it's not uncomfortable at all.

 

Two surprises:

 

#1. The seat backs aren't perfectly straight, but slightly reclined. When you go vertical on the lift hill, your seat back is actually on a slight downward angle and you get the sensation of sliding backward out of the seat. It's very weird.

 

#2. There is an insane head chopper at the bottom of the first drop, going underneath the cobra roll. I know things always seem closer than they really are, but when you're sitting on the further right side seat (from rider's pov), it seems reeeeeally close.

 

Verdict: I feel like it's kind of like Silver Bullet (which I think doesn't get enough credit)... maybe not the wildest or more exhilarating, but definitely fun, enjoyable, and comfortable.

 

The most important question is, is it better than boomerang?

[Xcelerator4]

The most important question is, is it better than boomerang?

Let's be honest, is that really a question?

[Shut It Down]

The most important question is, is it better than boomerang?

Let's be honest, is that really a question?

 

No not at all! Lol

[Arthur_Seaton]

Ha! Its a major step up from Boomerang, and a fun ride overall. If you love back-to-back inversions like cobra rolls and corkscrews and whatnot, it’ll be right up your alley. I think it’ll appeal to families and kids who aren’t quite sold on the bigger coasters as the drop’s small, and the ride’s not a particularly fast or intense ride. I’d hoped to ride it at night, but the park was getting progressively packed so i’ll just revisit on a quiet day.

 

I missed the headchopper mentioned above, but the vertical lift reminded me of other vertical lift coasters I've ridden in that you're tipped back more than 90 degrees, so there’s a bit of a headrush on the lift. I didn’t expect that little airtime hill to have of an effect, but it’s great — especially in the front.

Edited May 12, 2018 by Arthur_Seaton

[thrillseeker4552]

I don't think anyone is expecting this ride to crack top 10, 20, or even 50 lists, but it's definitely a helluva lot better than Boomerang and that's all that matters to me. Plus it looks fantastic and appeals to lots of people. Can't wait to ride!

[X2coasterfreak]

Just got to Knott’s for the passholder preview of Hangtime! Also rode Electric Eel at SWSD earlier today, I’m stoked to be riding both these new SoCal coasters in the same day!

[SoCalJasonland]

Wow! Hangtime is by a small margin, my favorite coaster at Knott's. The entire coaster is exciting from the lift hill to the brake run. I thought Xcelerator made lift hills unnecessary, but leaning back on a 90-degree incline without shoulder restraints is kind of insane in a good way. I managed to get in 15 rides on it during the day without any type of a headache, soreness or bruising from the restraints. I didn't get bored on it either.

 

The only negatives are assigned seating and that I previously overestimated the hourly capacity at 640 people per hour based upon 90-second dispatches. I timed the dispatches when I waited in line once in the morning and again in the afternoon. The best dispatch time was 1 min 56 secs and the worst was over 4 minutes when they had an issue with the restraints. The hourly capacity on this ride will be closer to 400 - 480 per hour. This coaster will probably match Ghostrider for 2 plus hour lines all summer.

 

Boardwalk BBQ changed its menu. The combos only come with one side now instead of two. They did add ribs to the meal plan and the chicken lovers now get a half-chicken instead of one-quarter chicken. Tri-tip increased from 1/4 lb to 1/3 lb. Pulled pork and smoked sausage portions remain the same, so they just pretty much lost a side and gained a dollar in price without gaining anything else.

Hangtime dispatch times in the morning - see right column

Hangtime dispatch times in the early afternoon - it was only about a 5 train wait until 2 pm

Hangtime

Hangtime

Hangtime

Boardwalk BBQ platters lost a side

Boardwalk BBQ new menu boards

Boardwalk BBQ new menu boards

[Arthur_Seaton]

^ Yeah, I noticed the dispatches were weirdly slow as well, but figured it was the staff just breaking the ride in. I saw several walks of shame, and one person trying to ride with a backpack around their chest, and so those kinds of things tended to hold the ride up a bit. Good thing they have three trains, though, as the lines are going to be rough for this one!

 

It's kind of hard to photograph because of the support that run all over the layout, but it's a fun ride to watch fall from the drop.

 

Wow! Hangtime is by a small margin, my favorite coaster at Knott's.

Wow, really? That's cool! It's certainly a fun ride, but Xcelerator, Silver Bullet, Ghost Rider, and Montezooma are still my favorites, but I've always loved those rides. The summer crowds are going to eat this one up.

 

One of the hang time moments.

A lot of pass holders here today, it seems!

The drop's fun to watch from down below, and it's better than it looks on the ride itself

Wasn't expecting much from this little hill, but it's great. It feels like the track's been pulled out from under you.

[clem2754]

Just rode Hang Time right now (it broke down there for a while). It’s fun, sort of cute, and fits the scale of the park well. The restraints are tight and really staple you in, but I think that’s expected because of the amount of time spent at weird angles. Despite it crawling over the drop, it packs a punch when it does actually drop. The rest is a mix of disorienting inversions and, surprise surprise, hang time. The lift is the part that people seem to be enjoying the most as it makes the blood rush to your head. Three-train operations right now, but the line does move kind of slow.

 

EDIT: In case anyone was planning on checking out the ride tonight, the park’s busy and the line for Hang Time looks to be quite long now. It was spilling out of the entrance until they opened up additional switchbacks. Got two rides in, front and back. The front’s got some rattle, but nothing too bad.

I got two rides in myself. The first one I was stapled, but the second I wasn't. I enjoyed the second one more. Also my second ride was at dusk and they turned on all of the lighting on the ride and the ride really looks great when they do this. Overall I enjoyed the ride. For me Ghost Rider is still the best ride in park. Silver Bullet is 4th. This ride and Xcelerator are pretty close for 2nd and 3rd. I need to ride it a little more.

 

The line was right around 1 hour for HangTime today both times I rode it. The park was busy but the problem was that Ghost Rider was closed and that brought more traffic over to the boardwalk area of the park. Silver Bullet was basically a walk on tonight and if you didn't want to sit in the front 2 rows on XCelerator, that line was about 15-20 minutes.

[clem2754]

Yeah the lift hill was a bit different. The seats do lean back so the first time up that lift hill I did start having that feeling like I was going to slide back. The dispatch felt like a military exercise. Everyone does their seat belts. They check the seat belts. Then the ops lowers the lap bars. And then they check those. I forget if they did a double check like they do on XCelerator. First dispatch was pretty quick. Second time someone was having issues and they had to go through everything twice. The top of the hill, you are hanging there for a longer time than a B&M dive coaster. You have a couple of air time moments including the drop. I like the inversions. I agree this isn't going to make someone's top 50 if they have rode 300 coasters, but it is a fun ride.

[Arthur_Seaton]

The line was right around 1 hour for HangTime today both times I rode it. The park was busy but the problem was that Ghost Rider was closed and that brought more traffic over to the boardwalk area of the park. Silver Bullet was basically a walk on tonight and if you didn't want to sit in the front 2 rows on XCelerator, that line was about 15-20 minutes.

I found it hard to gauge just how bad the lines were overall (the app was way off), but the place seemed swarmed with high schoolers who, I predict, were graduating or something. My first ride on Hang Time was about a 20-minute wait as it had just re-opened from a breakdown (around 3:30pm ish). I jumped straight back in line, but that one was much more like 45 mins. By the time I got to the station, they'd opened up the switchbacks that extended way down to the far end of the ride, so I guessed it would have been well over an hour.

 

I wandered into Xcelerator, only to find the line starting really close to the entrance of the queue. I figured that would have been at least an hour with a single train, so I walked right out again. I also looked at Silver Bullet and saw that the stairs were completely full, so I just left the park at that point. I really only went to ride Hang Time so it was no big deal, but I was hoping to marathon it a little more.

 

Yeah the lift hill was a bit different. The seats do lean back so the first time up that lift hill I did start having that feeling like I was going to slide back.

I'm guessing it'll be a first for many riders. I remember the first time I rode Fahrenheit, the vertical lift freaked me out as it does the same kind of thing. Also, for what it's worth, I thought the drop on this was better than some of the other beyond-vertical drops I've been on. It really does give you a sense of falling.

[CedarFlags]

Also.... she's so pretty at night

 

 

[viking86]

Yeah the lift hill was a bit different. The seats do lean back so the first time up that lift hill I did start having that feeling like I was going to slide back.

I'm guessing it'll be a first for many riders. I remember the first time I rode Fahrenheit, the vertical lift freaked me out as it does the same kind of thing. Also, for what it's worth, I thought the drop on this was better than some of the other beyond-vertical drops I've been on. It really does give you a sense of falling.

 

Vertical lifts are a bit freaky! When I went to Hansa Park last year the only part of Kärnan where I just could not get myself to let go of the restraint was the lift hill. The entire rest of the ride was hands up!

[edgeboy]

^Yes, I was thinking this is the only vertical lift hill is SoCal, so it'll be a first for many riders.

 

I only got one ride it, but found it enjoyable. Like took just under an hour when I got there (about 6:30pm), but seemed to be just over an hour when we left.

 

The pacing of the ride is unusual with fast and slow sections, but I liked that. For those who want a constant rush of speed, you'll be disappointed.

 

My problems are with the ops, which I hope will get worked out over time. The assigned seating is a bummer. The rows are not yet numbered, but I figure that'll happen before next week (I'd hope). The entire station and queue area are nicely done, but it's very quiet. Right now, no music is being piped through at all, and very little announcements (if any) from the station at all. It's eerily quiet. There's a recorded spiel at the end of the ride saying to exit to your left, etc., but it was mistimed, playing after a train had already left it's holding brake. Also, they need a test seat out front, because I caught a few walks of shame. Hopefully all that can be rather easily ironed out.

 

Biggest issue I can possibly see is the need for a single rider line, especially if they plan to continue assigning rows. The grouper was constantly yelling for any single riders, and very few were replying, so there were a lot of empty seats on each train. It made me realize that Knott's is one of the only parks in SoCal that doesn't use Single Rider lines for any of their attractions, and with their AP base growing (because people can't afford Disneyland anymore), this is something they really need to start looking into.

[Arthur_Seaton]

Also, they need a test seat out front, because I caught a few walks of shame.

I swear I saw a test seat out front right next to the entrance? I wonder if test seats are even that useful in terms of people's size? It's kind of like having a scale out front where everyone can see the results, but I guess it's probably no worse than holding up a train in the station. I watched a few shame walks as well, and it certainly delayed dispatch. Can't blame people for trying though!

 

My problems are with the ops, which I hope will get worked out over time. The assigned seating is a bummer.

I was surprised to see this as well and I lucked out on my two rides (front and back), but the grouper was taking requests. I saw a couple ask if they could wait for the front and the grouper obliged, but the whole system fell apart minutes later, resulting in a half-empty train dispatch. I'm guessing that it'll be assigned seating for much of the summer at least. To be totally honest, I didn't notice a huge difference between front and back, aside from a better first-drop in the back and a better post-overbank drop in the front.

Edited May 12, 2018 by Arthur_Seaton

[coasterlvr]

Also, they need a test seat out front, because I caught a few walks of shame.

I swear I saw a test seat out front out front, right next to the entrance? I wonder if test seats are even that useful in terms of people's size? It's kind of like having a scale out front where everyone can see the results, but I guess it's probably no worse than holding up a train in the station. I watched a few shame walks as well, and it certainly delayed dispatch. Can't blame people for trying though!

 

My problems are with the ops, which I hope will get worked out over time. The assigned seating is a bummer.

I was surprised to see this as well and I lucked out on my two rides (front and back), but the grouper was taking requests. I saw a couple ask if they could wait for the front and the grouper obliged, but the whole system fell apart minutes later, resulting in a half-empty train dispatch. I'm guessing that it'll be assigned seating for much of the summer at least. To be totally honest, I didn't notice a huge difference between front and back, aside from a better first-drop in the back and a better post-overbank drop in the front.

 

 

there is a test seat. i heard they brought it out sometime yesterday. it wasn't there i the morning, but i've seen pictures of it. there's just a scale with an arrow that points to red or green to show if you are okay or not. i think most that are close, are still going to try. at the video shoot, there was one guy who was on the border every time. he'd get the green, ride ops would get in position, then they'd say, nope, not clear and have to go back and push on the lap bar. as the sun was going down, with minimal daylight left, and he wasn't getting the green light, the director told him he needed to replace him fast. then the guy argued. *facepalm*

 

i heard a ride op ask the op doing grouping how it was going. i think they are all learning on the fly, so i'm sure it will get better. i did see one grouper give requests, but it probably just depended on who it was, while others didn't.

 

there are distinct differences in all the rows, but there's not a bad seat on the train.

[edgeboy]

Yeah, I just returned from visiting again this morning, and I did see the test seat. But I think in light of the fact the employee at the front of the line is so busy checking for APs, they're not thinking to check and/or request people try out the test seat before getting in the line. Again, I feel/hope this is something that would get smoothed out in time.

 

But just as last night, the grouper is continuously yelling for single riders. Very few are volunteering. If they keep this up, they really just need to have a separate single rider line (probably just use the ADA/Fastlane line, and have SRs stay to one side, similar to how FotH does it at USH). There are so many seats going empty... with a long line, it's a bit infuriating. Something else to get ironed out, I hope.

 

And heads up to anyone visiting the park today... line for Hangtime seems to be over an hour. GhorstRider is down, and Xcelerator is only running one train.

[1FinalChance]

I came across a pov of Hangtime and figured a few of you might be interested... I also got to ride it twice yesterday. It ranks 3rd in the park for me behind Ghostrider and Xcelerator.

 

MOD EDIT: Link deleted. Please review our Terms of Service, especially item 14, before posting again.

Thank you.

Edited May 12, 2018 by cfc

[Arthur_Seaton]

But I think in light of the fact the employee at the front of the line is so busy checking for APs, they're not thinking to check and/or request people try out the test seat before getting in the line.

I'd assume there are all kinds of problems associated with staff members singling guests out for potentially being too big. My guess is that test seats are there to be optional more than anything. The Hang Time one was mainly being used as a photo op when I was there yesterday, and kids were climbing all over it and stuff. In fact, kids were climbing all over everything. One couple was taking pictures of their kid who'd jumped the queue railings and was trying stomp a plant to death. There was a lot of line-jumping going on when I was there, so hopefully they'll be able to station staff in the queue itself to help keep things orderly.

[Mr. Corn]

absolutely fantastic coaster!! i'll have a full TR/element by element review posted soon!!