GigaG Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 How did the ride get so bad with new trains and a partial redo? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
medoman Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 I was wondering the same thing, It does look pretty rough on the reverse POV video. Â Glad El Torro won and also good to see coaster express near where it should be Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beatle11 Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 The 64 people who had ridden both "El Toro" and "Outlaw Run" were evenly split with 32 preferring each coaster. Â This is not surprising at all. Definitely glad to see Outlaw Run up so highly and even gladder to see Hades 360 near the bottom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.J. Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 How did the ride get so bad with new trains and a partial redo? The keyword here is "partial". The majority of people have said that the corkscrew and overbank are fine but that the rest of the ride is still super-rough. New trains won't do anything for a wooden coaster unless you retrack it as well. Â In other news - Phoenix at #5! Yahoo! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperShawn Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 How did the ride get so bad with new trains and a partial redo? Â Because all of the ride is still rough as heck and needs a lot more TLC than what they gave it. The new section was so short in comparison to the full ride it still all just hurt like hell and you wanted the ride to just be over. Â Â Â Looking forward to finally riding a few more of the top 20 this spring and summer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GigaG Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 How did the ride get so bad with new trains and a partial redo? Â Because all of the ride is still rough as heck and needs a lot more TLC than what they gave it. The new section was so short in comparison to the full ride it still all just hurt like hell and you wanted the ride to just be over. Â Â Â Looking forward to finally riding a few more of the top 20 this spring and summer. Â But why was it 30-so before - even last year - but 168 or whatever this year? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperShawn Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 (edited) ^ That has to do with riders and when they had ridden Hades and took that into their votes vs those who had ridden Hades 360 this year. From the sounds of things the people ranking it at 30ish rode the ride more than one or two years ago and are remembering better experiences than those of us who rode and got the crap beat out of us this year. Someone quoted Mitch a few posts back for the explanation, but here it is again. Â You may notice that there are two entries for Hades: Hades and Hades 360. Only "Hades" was on the ballot as I had neglected to change the name to "Hades 360" before the poll started. It seemed that since the poll was under way, the easiest fix would be to wait and change the name after all ballots had been received. Not wanting to waste the ranking by people who had not ridden it this year, I left those as Hades, and changed the votes for all who had ridden it this year to Hades 360. The interesting result is that the 70 voters who had ridden Hades but not this year ranked it very close to where it finished last year at #31 whereas the 44 voters who had ridden it this year placed Hades 360 near the bottom of the poll at #168. Hopefully, it can someday run again like the Top 10 ride it was in 2005, 2006, and 2007. Edited January 31, 2014 by SuperShawn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfc Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 (edited) ^The original Hades was always near the bottom for me--absolutely hated that ride (and the park it was in). Â Seeing how well Outlaw Run did really makes me want to experience it myself; it's also made me even more excited about Great America's Goliath, which I'll be riding on the Mini New Hotness trip. Edited January 31, 2014 by cfc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SharkTums Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Very smart of Mitch to do that. And yes, it deserved to be at the very bottom. It was criminal that they allowed that ride to be open this season and to put 7 year old children on it!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Cow Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Nice to see Woodan getting some belated love. It was really top notch when I rode it over this summer, considering I was expecting mediocrity given its early reviews. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meteornotes Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Balder below Voyage?!? Um, no. Â dt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 (edited) I feel like we take Phoenix for granted. At this point we all expect it to finish in the top 5 or 6 and we're so used to it we don't even think about how amazing that really is. As Mitch said... Â #5 "Phoenix" continues to defy time. It finished #4 in 1994, when only three of the 2013 top 48 were yet built! Â In the last few years wood coasters have made amazing advances. Now they can go upside down, track can be pre-fabricated and they can be as tall and fast as the elite steel coasters can without being rough. Even GCI and the Gravity Group have come up with great new technology including wood shuttle coasters and wood coasters with 90 degree banking. Because of this the wood coasters built prior to the new millennium have been pushed out of the top 20 and while they're still enjoyable rides they've been completely overshadowed by newer, faster and by all accounts better wood coasters. (Tremors is hanging on at #20 but dropping fast and Goliath will probably kick it out of the top 20 next year. It's not exactly old but technically it was built in the last year of the last millennium). Â The number one wood coaster in 1994 and 1995 is now at #41 (Comet). The number one wood coaster in 1996 and 1997 (Megaphobia) is now sitting at #34. The number one coaster in 1998 is now at #23 (Shivering Timbers) and the number one coaster in 1999, 2000 and 2001 is now at #32 (Tonnerre de Zeus). These coasters were once at the top of their class, and while they're still popular they can't compete with the new breed of wood coasters. Â None of the coasters in the top 19 existed before the new millennium... except one. The Phoenix, a coaster built 66 years ago that was almost demolished, moved to Pennsylvania (which was unheard of at the time) and is listed ahead of countless world class, "new age" wood coasters. It's not that tall, it's not that fast, it doesn't have any gimmicks and it looks unassuming but it's perfect design has stood the test of time in a way that no other coaster has come close to doing. Â With Outlaw Run making it's debut I think we all expected it to drop a spot, but it didn't thanks to the Voyage falling below it. The Phoenix's incredible "defiance of age" as Mitch Hawker puts it is a testament to Knoebels and their remarkable maintenance team keeping the coaster in pristine condition while other parks let their top coasters get rough and fall down the charts (Ghostrider, Voyage, Hades). It's also a testament to it's design. For some reason coasters like the Great Escape Comet which are running as well as they ever have just haven't stood the test of time like the Phoenix. Â I don't think the coaster is getting votes it doesn't deserve based on nostalgia (I'm looking at you Magnum XL 200). The Mitch Hawker poll seems to weed that out pretty well (which is why the Coney Island Cyclone is at #65 and dropping like a rock). The Phoenix is getting the votes because it's really as amazing as everyone says it is. I hate to say it, but I can see a day when Outlaw Run, El Toro and T Express are all down in the double digits because maintenance hasn't kept up with them or bigger and better coasters have taken their place, but if history is any judge we can still expect to see Phoenix in the top 10 when that happens. Edited January 31, 2014 by coasterbill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfc Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Balder below Voyage?!? Um, no. dt  Voyage in the top ten? Um, no, as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcjp Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 I'm kind of glad to see Coaster Express (my worst coaster ever) ranked second to last but also depressed to see I haven't been on any of the top 20 I have to get around more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moose Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Voyage in the top ten? Um, no, as well. Â At least it has slipped from the top five. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfc Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 ^Baby steps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RCjunkie Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 I feel like everyone loves GCI's when they are new, but none of them seem to ever hold onto those spots. Not sure why. And I rarely ever feel like going back to one of those GCI's from a few years ago, they ride much different or have dramatically dropped in quality. Â Unfortunately this seems to be true. Renegade was starting to ride rough in it's 7th year of operation last year. Still a solid ride but not as good as it was even 2 years ago. I am curious to see how it rides this year, maybe it will get some love in the off season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LiquidForce Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 I thought Renegade was great last fall during Valleyscare...It was fast and felt out of control...I love that ride! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 I feel like everyone loves GCI's when they are new, but none of them seem to ever hold onto those spots. Not sure why. And I rarely ever feel like going back to one of those GCI's from a few years ago, they ride much different or have dramatically dropped in quality. Â Out of curiosity, what are your thoughts on Thunderhead? It's dropped since it's opening with the addition of new coasters but it seems to be relatively steady now. I ask because I had my first rides on it a few months ago during their Christmas event and I loved it, but you're far more experienced than I am when it comes to GCI coasters. Is it above average or is it on part with the rest of their installations from the last 10 years or so? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_koppen Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Does anyone know if there will be a steel poll for this year, or if it will take a break? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbalvey Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 (edited) I feel like everyone loves GCI's when they are new, but none of them seem to ever hold onto those spots. Not sure why. And I rarely ever feel like going back to one of those GCI's from a few years ago, they ride much different or have dramatically dropped in quality. Â Out of curiosity, what are your thoughts on Thunderhead? It's dropped since it's opening with the addition of new coasters but it seems to be relatively steady now. I ask because I had my first rides on it a few months ago during their Christmas event and I loved it, but you're far more experienced than I am when it comes to GCI coasters. Is it above average or is it on part with the rest of their installations from the last 10 years or so? I have never met a GCI woodie that I didn't "like", but I've also never met a GCI woodie that I "loved." I personally feel they are great at making solid B+ rides. I'm an extreme airtime person and they don't deliver that. I love GCI's out-of-control and twisty feeling, and if they ever delivered a ride that had airtime like an Intamin, RMC, or TGG woodie, they would be a contender for my top list. Â And that feeling also applies with Thunderhead. I "like" it, quite a bit actually, but I don't "love" it. Edited January 31, 2014 by robbalvey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WildStangAlex Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 I'm not sure if I'm less surprised to see Outlaw Run so high or Hades 360 so low. Â I rode both this past year: Outlaw Run exceeded my expectations and is most deserving of its position. Hades 360 was worse than I could have imagined. I'm glad Timberliners will stay off Voyage. Â Congrats Silver Dollar City & Rocky Mountain Construction, you have a winner!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WildStangAlex Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 I have never met a GCI woodie that I didn't "like", but I've also never met a GCI woodie that I "loved." I personally feel they are great at making solid B+ rides. I'm an extreme airtime person and they don't deliver that. I love GCI's out-of-control and twisty feeling, and if they ever delivered a ride that had airtime like an Intamin, RMC, or TGG woodie, they would be a contender for my top list. Â And that feeling also applies with Thunderhead. I "like" it, quite a bit actually, but I don't "love" it. Â I would have to agree with you, Robb. While I enjoy GCI's rides and have fun while riding, none of their coasters stick out as memorable to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RCjunkie Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 I thought Renegade was great last fall during Valleyscare...It was fast and felt out of control...I love that ride! Â Like I said it's still a solid ride, I rode 50 plus laps last year and it's still my favorite ride in the park. But it started riding rougher than past years in 2013 and this may be one of the reasons GCI's fall in the poll after a few years. That and RMC keeps making new coasters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfc Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 I have never met a GCI woodie that I didn't "like", but I've also never met a GCI woodie that I "loved." I personally feel they are great at making solid B+ rides. I'm an extreme airtime person and they don't deliver that. I love GCI's out-of-control and twisty feeling, and if they ever delivered a ride that had airtime like an Intamin, RMC, or TGG woodie, they would be a contender for my top list. Â And that feeling also applies with Thunderhead. I "like" it, quite a bit actually, but I don't "love" it. Â I would have to agree with you, Robb. While I enjoy GCI's rides and have fun while riding, none of their coasters stick out as memorable to me. Â Wood Coaster and Thunderhead are the best of the GCI coasters, in my opinion--I like both of them quite a bit, although I think the setting has a lot to do with my opinion of Wood Coaster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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