Superbatboy Posted August 23, 2015 Share Posted August 23, 2015 (edited) Just got back from the first of 5 parks I plan to visit in the next 5 days, SFNE!! Arrived at the park about 12pm after taking a red eye from Los Angeles and driving straight to the park from Logan airport. My first impression was the park looked decent, a relatively small footprint but I felt the rides were nicely spaced out for a park of it's size. Now the rides... Wicked Cyclone-It was my very first ride of the day and I was initially under-whelmed. The ride seemed to meander around the course, especially the second half. Came back a few hours later and man was it hauling ass. The airtime was insane, actually hurt the thighs a bit, a good hurt though. I got the best ride on the blue train (which vibrates like a norelco) in row 4. Great ride, I want more. Bizarro-My first ride was towards the back on a "wheel seat" and it rattled like crazy. My immeduate first thoughts were "get rid of those God-awful trains". I came back later and sat in row 3, a non wheel seat, and had an AMAZING ride!! That ride in row 3 showed me why it won so many golden tickets for best steel. I hope the rumors of new trains are true, the ride deserves to run at an optimal level. Batman-What a cute little compact B&M!! Definitely one of the better floorless coasters I've ridden, my only gripe was a very noticeable trim brake right before the zero g, and the fact that the ride tricks you into thinking there will be no headbaning, until the very last inversion then BAM, instant headache. Gotham City Gauntlet-I love wild maus coasters, however this one was pretty raggedy. Very uncomfortable and rough around the edges. Thundebolt-The pleasant surprise of my visit!!! What a fun, old school woodie!!! Great pops of ejector in the front seat!! Only gripe was one train operations, was about a 45 min wait!! Still fun nonetheless. I'm not one to inflict pain on myself for the sake of a credit, so I skipped Mind Eraser and Flashback. I planned to credit whore Catwoman's whip but there was a delay on my final Bizarro ride and I had to get going to try and stay on schedule to make all five parks. Took a few photos, I'm not a great photographer and they were taken on a smartphone. Just a disclaimer lol Classy entrance, I like *crickets* #nopecoaster I got goosebumps entering Wicky's queue Wicky has a pretty neat queue More WC Sky Screamer and WC compliment each other well Love the setting next to water, definitely reminiscent of MF especially going up the lift Edited August 26, 2015 by Superbatboy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted August 23, 2015 Author Share Posted August 23, 2015 A few more pics... Bizarrrrrro Amazing how some people walk right passed this and have to do the WOS I'm sorry Great Adventure, but OUR Bizarro is in another castle Just massive Such a WINNER!! Gauntlet is correct #nopecoaster part deaux Cute little B&M lol Never knew this became an actual arcade game A gem Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coastercrazi Posted August 23, 2015 Share Posted August 23, 2015 Lovely TR! looking forward to the rest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ioio Posted August 24, 2015 Share Posted August 24, 2015 Was it crowded? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted August 24, 2015 Author Share Posted August 24, 2015 Hershey Park 8-23-2015 Day 2 of my 5 parks in 5 days landed me at Hershey Park. Got there around 10am and it was already packed with families and such. I decided to head straight for Skyrush because it's been on my bucket list for some time now and the anticipation was killing me. There was virtually no wait, the line started at the stairs. WHAT AN INSANE RIDE!!!! Literally the most intense thing I've ever ridden. All I could do was laugh while riding because the ride is THAT ridiculous. Perfect 10, probably my new #1!! Next up was Great Bear. Nothing like the sound of an old school B&M roar, it literally commands guests attention when it zooms by. I enjoyed the ride, very different layout...very smooth and forceful as expected from a 90's B&M. Walked over towards Storm Runner, and was immediately taken by how gorgeous the ride is. Looks like it's been painted recently and the red really pops. The ride was great, a lot more intense than I had anticipated. The launch wasnt as forceful as Xcelerator's, but the overall ride experience of Storm Runner is much much better. Decided to hop next door to Fahrenheit, the queue moves quite snail like so I only got one ride in. It's a great ride!!! Very underrated IMO. Probably my 2nd fave ride in the park. I thought the pacing was great, it was smooth, only a couple moments of headbaning, but the restraints didnt hurt the head one but. Oh and that first drop is insane!! Lightning Racer Is a great family ride, the guests really get into the whole racing thing. Is it me, or does Thunder win everytime?? Any way, the ride was fun, I much prefer the thunder side as it was a little more intense IMO. Something I found interesting was that LR sits directly across the street from single family homes. Talk about understanding neighbors!! Laff Trakk Was the longest wait in the park, about 1 hour. It was interesting watching guests get a kick out of the mirrors inside the queue. The ride was much better than I expected, very smooth and it didnt spin too much where the ride then becomes pukey. Great addition for Hershey, do wish the capacity was a bit better though. Took a spin on Wild Mouse, one of the better Wild Mice I've ridden. My fave is still Psycho Mouse at California's Great America. Decided that it was time for Wildcat, while it's a fun ride, the roughness is pretty palpable. I wonder if Hershey would ever let Alan Schilke put his hands on it. Couldnt pass up a credit on Trailblazer, so decided to give that a go. Nice, smooth, albeit short, mine train. The helix at the end was fantastic. Superdooperlooper was decent, after the first drop and loop, the ride kinda just chugs around the course. A great starter coaster for kids trying to transition to Skyrush. Speaking of Skyrush, at the end of my day I was able to marathon it about 10 times since there was no line. I'm sure my legs will thank me in the morning haha. All in all Hershey is an AMAZING park, with a great atmosphere, great layout, and awesome staff. I hope to definitely visit again soon. KD tomorrow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jcoaster Posted August 24, 2015 Share Posted August 24, 2015 ^ I saw lightening win about once in 10 laps last week. Love how there is no qeue for this ride. So much fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted August 24, 2015 Author Share Posted August 24, 2015 A few pics from Hershey today Such an odd support Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted August 24, 2015 Author Share Posted August 24, 2015 (edited) Was it crowded? Not too bad, the only long lines were for WC, Bizarro, and Thunderbolt. Edited August 24, 2015 by Superbatboy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted August 24, 2015 Author Share Posted August 24, 2015 ^ I saw lightening win about once in 10 laps last week. Love how there is no qeue for this ride. So much fun. 1 out of 10?!?! Haha!! If only the GP knew this!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted August 24, 2015 Author Share Posted August 24, 2015 Lovely TR! looking forward to the rest Thank you!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardyloo! Posted August 24, 2015 Share Posted August 24, 2015 Hershey Park has been on my bucket list for so long! Great to see no line at Skyrush . Hopefully the next ride hershey park will install, will have a higher capacity. Because for a park with such high attendance, they have quite a few low capacity rides. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBpony414 Posted August 24, 2015 Share Posted August 24, 2015 Storm Runner is possibly my favorite ride of all time and I LOVE Great Bear! It really moves and I love the interesting layout for it. Doesn't whip me around like some of the others so I can reride it without getting sick. Lightning Racer really depends on the day and who is riding where. On my last two visits, Lightning won the majority of the rides and Thunder lagged way behind. They'll close off rows to make it more even when this happens which is really cool. It's a great ride and unfortunate it's tucked way in the back of the park where it doesn't get as much love as it should. Oh well, that means less wait for me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted August 25, 2015 Author Share Posted August 25, 2015 King's Dominion 8-24-2015 I was excited for my inaugural visit to King's Dominion. Got to the park around 10am and was greeted with a pretty desolate parking lot, literally parked feet away from the entrance. I just want to say the front gate is very nice, much like King's Island from what I remember. Gorgeous fountain, and of course the giant tower staring right down at you. I decided to hit Volcano first since I've read a lot about how long the lines can get. The ride is very fun, loved the forceful launches at the beginning as well as the first inversion. I've only seen Volcano in POVs and pictures, never really paid much attention to how well themed it is. What a great, unique ride!! Navigated my way (i hate maps, more on that later) to i305, nestled tightly in a corner. It is such a beautiful sight up close!! There was absolutely no line, despite the fact they were only running one train. The ride is as intense as they come, I literally felt like I had offended the ride, the way it was throwing me around like a wrestling match. I greyed out each of my 7 rides, the last time being the severest...where I literally could only open one eye. I can see why the GP arent really fans of the ride, but I love it. Flight of Fear was temporarily down so I trekked over to Stunt Coaster, which I had ridden last year at Kings Island and loved. Same great ride, I wish more parks installed rides like these. Decided to walk back to the front of the park to try and find Dominator, which took me about 20mins because KD (like KI) has a very awkward layout with extremely non-sensical pathways. Any how, finally found Dominator and it's probably my 2nd favorite floorless after Bizarro at Gradv. After that decided to get the woodies out of the way... First was Rebel Yell, which wasnt racing, only the right side was going. I enjoyed the ride, wasnt rough or rickety like I expected. Hurler was next, and dont get me wrong...it isnt a bad ride. I found it really odd that certain sections of the ride were really smooth and enjoyable, while others hurt like a @&$€@. Grizzly was pretty decent, a little rough in some sections but not too bad. I much prefer the layout of this Grizzly than the one we have back in California at Great America. Richochet was temporarily closed the first time I attempted to ride, but was back open so I took a spin. Another great Wild Mouse, feels like I've ridden a million of these by now. Felt really smooth and well-taken care of. Anaconda was by far the most painful ride of the day. I previously thought Demon at CGA was the worst Arrow I've ridden, but Anaconda snatches that title, along with all my vertebrae. As beautiful as the coaster is, over the lake, with fresh paint...I hope KD rips it out. Flight of Fear was also back open so I couldnt wait to ride, as I missed out on FoF at KI last year. I must say, I love how well themed the ride is. It really adds that extra element that the guests appear to find highly appealing. The ride was great, I have ridden Joker's Jinx in the past and even though the layouts are the same, the indoor element really takes it to another level. Like Space Mountain on crack. All in all the park is great, friendly staff, clean, and well taken care of. My only gripe is the PATHWAYS!!! I can usually get around parks with no problem, but today I kept getting "lost or stuck". Pictures to follow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted August 25, 2015 Author Share Posted August 25, 2015 Some pics... They weren't operating today Missed this credit by a week lol Exit path of Grizzly Hurley is so pretty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted August 25, 2015 Author Share Posted August 25, 2015 Unfortunately I wont be visiting Carowinds tomorrow like I originally had planned. Didn't realize the park wouldn't be operating daily this week when I planned my trip. Huge oversight on my part, totally bummed I won't be riding Fury 325 Looking forward to Busch Gardens tomorrow instead Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 Great updates so far! Sorry you're missing out on Fury though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted August 25, 2015 Author Share Posted August 25, 2015 Great updates so far! Sorry you're missing out on Fury though. Thank you, I'm kinda bummed but next time!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bert425 Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 shame you missed Woodstock Express at KD. . that was by far our fave woodie at the park, and a TON of airtime for a jr. coaster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coastercrazi Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 Yeah I agree, Woodstock express is INSANE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted August 26, 2015 Author Share Posted August 26, 2015 Busch Gardens Williamsburg 8-25-2015 Since I wasn't able to get to Carowinds today due to them being weekend operations only this week, I decided to make the trip to BGW. What a beautiful and amazing park BGW is!! I've heard many great things about the park, but nothing compares to being there and seeing everything in person. The theming is out of this world, and I love how each country has it's own authentic style. The park is HUGE, what's even more amazing is there are no dead spots anywhere. Every space has a purpose, amazing to see. I had no clue where to go when I entered, but somehow ended up in Fiesta Italia. Tempesto only had a station wait so I decided to give it a try. There was someone at the entrance handing out fanny packs? I thought this was interesting, I didnt take one as I always go to the park in cargo short will velcro pockets. Any how, Tempesto was fun and ride-wise wasn't any different than Superman at SFDK. I did find the 'comfort collar' a bit annoying to maneuver, but it didnt hampen the ride one bit. I know BGW got a lot of flack for installing this ride, but I think it's a great fit and the ops hussle to keep the line moving. Let me just say Apollo's Chariot is one great ride, especially in the very back seat. Definitely my favorite ride in the park, and probably my favorite B&M hyper. While the helix is pretty tame, the hills leading back to the station provide some crazy airtime. Also, shout out to that first drop whipping action in the back seat. Great ride!! Verbolten was much, much, much better than I had anticipated. Loved the theming, comfortable trains, four train operation, and that drop track in the dark. BGW and Zierrer did an amazing job, this replaces Stunt Coaster as my favorite family ride. After Verbolten, I decided to just walk and just take in the beautiful surroundings. I eventually ended up at Loch Ness Monster, and was taken by surprise how smooth it was. I kept waiting for the head banging and shaking but it never came. I was glad because my neck was still sore from riding Anaconda yesterday. I followed the signs to Griffon, and I love how the ride is visibly accessible to everyone. The GP really gets a kick out of watching ride. I found the ride to be enjoyable, the first drop of course was the highlight. I can see why CP is installing one, the GP really eats this up. I next conquered Alpengeist, the ride was very aggressive which I loved. Much of the is hidden behind trees, so I didnt really know what to expect which heightened the thrill. I also loved the skiis attached to the train. BGW's attention to detail is amazing. All in all, I had a great time at BGW...the park has awesome theming and a great atmosphere. My visit more than made up for the disappointment of not getting to Carowinds. Pictures to follow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted August 26, 2015 Author Share Posted August 26, 2015 shame you missed Woodstock Express at KD. . that was by far our fave woodie at the park, and a TON of airtime for a jr. coaster. Yeah I agree, Woodstock express is INSANE I thought about riding it, but I always feel awkward riding kiddie coasters lol. I've missed quite a few credits due to this awkwardness Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBpony414 Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 shame you missed Woodstock Express at KD. . that was by far our fave woodie at the park, and a TON of airtime for a jr. coaster. Yeah I agree, Woodstock express is INSANE I thought about riding it, but I always feel awkward riding kiddie coasters lol. I've missed quite a few credits due to this awkwardness Get over the awkwardness, Woodstock Express is awesome!!! We take up half the train when we're there with friends sometimes. Such a fun little ride. Sorry you weren't able to get to Carowinds but at least you got to experience BGW. I love Apollo and the park is a real nice way to spend the day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted August 26, 2015 Author Share Posted August 26, 2015 Pics...a few more to come View from the parking lot Much needed map Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted August 26, 2015 Author Share Posted August 26, 2015 Few more... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superbatboy Posted August 26, 2015 Author Share Posted August 26, 2015 Thanks for reading everyone, I had a great time visiting SFNE, Hershey, Kings Dominion, and Busch Gardens. Those of you who live in the mid-Atlantic region are extremely lucky to have so many great parks within driving distance. Back to California I go Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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