Carowinds Photo TR

[Samuel]

I made my return to Carowinds last week after a hiatus of several years. I had some business and family obligations in the South, but I certainly wanted to stop and ride Fury. I only had a few hours available Thursday morning, but I arrived promptly at 10 a.m. and had what felt like a private park ERT session! I rode quickly, took pictures, and then hit the road shortly after noon.

 

Fury 325 (5 rides, total walk-on) My first ride of the morning and boy did I time things well! I got my rides in and then it broke down. I did see it testing empty trains when I left the park, but I’m glad I hauled to it first thing. I was bummed that the “How many?” assigned seating policy was in effect, given that each train was departing half-empty. I joined another party of three for the front row on my first ride (!), but was given rows 3 and 4 for the others. I lobbied for a back seat ride with no luck. So it goes.

 

Fury is extremely solid. The first drop is pure fun and the highlight for me – very long, steep, and floaty. The rest of the layout provides good airtime and fast, yet graceful banking. After my fifth straight ride, I was starting to feel a bit of g-force fatigue. While no one element ever felt too intense, the layout is packed with variety and is a testament to Fury being rightfully undeserving of the “forceless” label that gets pinned onto some newer B&Ms. I would describe the airtime as “strong sustained floater,” definitely powerful for B&M, but never harsh. As a whole, the ride is nearly impossible to dislike. It isn’t quite among my all-time favorites, but it’s thoroughly enjoyable. 9/10

 

Top Gun: The Jet Coaster (0 rides, RIP Paramount’s Carowinds), Afterburn (3 rides, total walk-on). Well, another empty station with an assigned seating attendant. Humph. I’ve always been a back seat guy on B&M inverts, but same deal here – front-to-back loading. I had one ride in the front and the others in row 2. Afterburn holds the nerdy distinction of having my favorite B&M wheel cap design – the bird and the shark. I’ve always liked the coaster’s overall color scheme, too.

 

I was singing this coaster’s praises for years when it was largely underrated and considered merely a mini-Montu. Now, I think enthusiasts are realizing that that isn’t a bad thing. The coaster’s element sequencing, pacing, and interesting location on a hill near the back entrance make for a good ride experience. It doesn’t feel as fast as its advertised 62 mph, but the elements are fun and quick-hitting. The B&M batwing is always better than the cobra roll, and the snappy corkscrew has serious old-school bite. 8.5/10

 

Intimidator (3 rides, total walk-on). To the station attendant’s credit, I was given the “any open row” directive, which is as flexible a policy as I was able to get all morning. I stuck to the back for my rides.

 

OK, if you look at my post history, I haven’t always been kind to Intimidator. I thought that it was boring, uninspired, and a parabolic trim-fest. I’m pleasantly surprised to report that I was giggling all over the ride this time around. The yank-air on the first drop and conventional hills was excellent. The first trim was light, and the second trim on the return trip didn’t seem to kick in at all. In dozens of rides over previous years, I had no idea that there can in fact be some major airtime on this thing! Post-MCBR still feels like B&M phoned in lazy filler, but I will give this ride a lot more credit than I had in the past. It was legitimately thrilling, and held its own quite well despite Fury being in the same park. 8.5/10

 

That’s all for the rides, folks! Sometimes, like with Intimidator, I’ll revisit a coaster and be taken by surprise, but I simply had no curiosity to re-ride the older, rougher coasters. I’ve been coming to Carowinds periodically since the Smurfs were around, so I have all of the other coasters under my belt. The coaster lineup speaks to the big disparity in eras between Paramount and Cedar Fair, and between technology from the 80’s/90’s compared to today: it’s very top-heavy. The good B&Ms almost disservice some of the other coasters by exposing how comparatively dated they are. I could see a quiet floorless transformation during the offseason for Vortex, perhaps with some fog effects to spice it up.

 

Overall, I had a nice morning at the park!

 

- I’m a Peanuts fan, so I enjoyed the atmosphere in the kids’ area near Intimidator. The Peanuts costumed characters must seriously roast in the summertime, but they did a great job at delighting me and the thin morning crowd.

 

-The coaster skyline looks colorful and vibrant from all over the park, and there were a few nice fountains and helpful shaded areas.

 

-It’s in no way the park’s fault, but getting only a few hours sleep + springtime allergies + high-humidity heat = low stamina! The Charlotte air can be thick and feel like a blow dryer when on coasters, and a high pollen count in said air set off a mid-morning sneeze-athon. It didn’t undermine my time in the park, but it’s interesting how much more considerate I’ve become of my “feel-good factors” at parks in recent years. I used to have one mode: “Run, run, run, ride, ride, ride.” Now, getting solid sleep, taking allergy meds, staying hydrated, packing the sunscreen, stopping to eat, relax, maybe have a beer, and just dropping that sense of constant urgency to be first in line for everything has allowed me to step back and enjoy myself at parks much more as an adult. Because I was bending my itinerary a bit to squeeze in Carowinds, this time I had to break a few of my own rules.

 

-I ate at the Panda Express across from Intimidator. I know it isn’t signature park food, but I was in the mood for the orange chicken and I have no complaints or regrets!

 

-I also thought that there were an abundance of restrooms that were generally clean, which is never a bad thing.

 

I hope to be back and with more time in the not-too-distant future, perhaps in a package trip with Dollywood. Now on with some pictures:

Here's where they dipped! I thought this was a pretty little area for taking a break.

This family is getting ready to take a dip.

I'm glad that this now-older building is still here and looks really good. With respect to Cedar Fair, it's much more memorable than the uniform "plaza/shrubs/pavement" approach to everything.

Good ol' Charlie Brown. There are lots of lights in this area that I wish I could have seen at night, but the area still looks good in the daytime.

These rocking chairs are a really nice "Carolinian touch" that juxtaposes the modern plaza.

The entrance has been Cedar Fairified since my last visit.

Indeed, intimidation looms over the ticketing building.

One more for multiple train enthusiasts.

...just not quite THIS big!

First ride, front row! The anticipation builds...

The famous shot and first impression that you get walking up to the ride entrance.

I can't argue with these lines.

It's a beaut'

There's a glass pane here that's reflecting parts of the ghostly Intimidator & Fury -- the ol' Haunted Mansion trick.

I wonder if Ron Toomer ever made this with a clothes hanger?

Wrapping around to get to Fury, I was in serious awe of its scale.

Heading into the park, Fury is not shy about showing off!

Most of my dreams and notebook doodles look like this mosaic backdrop. Incidentally, anybody ever win at this game?

Even with Fury in the park, Intimidator has a big presence...

When I was very young, Cyclone was a huge deal! I like the color mix, but one more yellow coaster and the park has to move to a shoe.

The big hills were much better than I remember!

If you're a gentleman, go start your engine.

I appreciate a little thing like this -- it lets me know that the park is aware. Furthermore, I'll take this over police tape, traffic cones, and the "trash bag over the toilet" technique I've seen at other parks!

I've always loved Schulz's style of humor: perfect for all ages, simple, dry, smart, and likable.

Peanuts lore!

I feel like I've seen these big pencil prizes elsewhere. Are they part of a brand I don't know?

Patriotic Snoop with the classic Southern Star, one of my "no way, Jose" flat rides, in the background.

I stopped in the Snoopy Boutique and saw these hilariously adorable outfits. I know what Santa is getting my nieces for Christmas.

Planet Snoopy is my favorite area in the park. It has good aesthetics, and being a Peanuts fan, it made my expression turn into what's known in medical journals as "all smiles."

I'll end this TR with the classic shot: One pic, two states! Thanks, Carowinds & TPR readers!

There must've been a yellow paint deal at Lowe's. You can't fool me, Stealth, I know it's you!

Gentlemen, start your engines! Hold up, wrong ride. My mistake.

This is why I'm a coaster fan. This inconspicuous corkscrew just made me stop and say, "If this isn't nice, I don't know what is."

Zero-g-through-the-trees.

"You're a pilot" is a fairly generic theme, but everything works here.

My kind of line!

Afterburn is shrouded in trees and was built on a subtle hill with terraced walkways. It's easy to spot the coaster, but hard to capture it all in a single shot.

Certain angles let you appreciate that this coaster has some nice size to it!

I've always dug those shark wheel caps! I think the whole color scheme is cool and unique, too.

I haven't seen this gift shop underneath the station be open during my past several visits, but I remember buying a Top Gun shirt here when the coaster debuted. The shirt descriptively listed the first drop as a "space dive," and a friend of mine once brilliantly asked, "Whoa, so this ride is a NASA thing?"

Another point for yellow coasters! I think these Vekomas ride just a tad bit clunky -- not terrible, though, and they do look very nice.

Fun fact: When it opened, several members of my family waited two hours to ride Vortex, only to chicken out and take the walk of shame! Today, I hope we get some Rougarou action to make this into a Daemonen-style little floorless.

[coasterbill]

Great report!

 

By the way, is this an old Skyway station? It's disguised well but it sort of has that vibe to me.

Edited June 13, 2016 by coasterbill

[coastercrazi]

Great TR. It's always interesting to see what different people think of Carowinds.

[prozach626]

Nice TR. I hope we also luck out with the crowds on Wednesday night and Thursday.

[Firechaser]

Great report!

 

By the way, is this an old Skyway station? It's disguised well but it sort of has that vibe to me?

It was. This page has some good information on Carowinds' old days. http://www.carowindsearlyyears.com/skyway1.html

[RyanTPM]

Very nice pictures there, really liked seeing some different angles of the entrance area, thanks for that!

[jynx242]

Thanks for the report!! Looks like an awesome couple of hours for you.

[Intimidated305]

Nice report, but no Thunder Road?

[coasterbill]

...So who's going to have to break the news?

[Password121]

^I'm planning on waiting until the moment is less fragile

 

Excellent TR, by the way! I'd love to get to Carowinds this year but unfortunately I have no excuse to get down there.

[Intimidated305]

All jokes aside, this TR only makes me want to go to Carowinds even more. I'm planning on going in August, but that's if I'm not going to be too busy in Tennessee.

[TBpony414]

I'm still baffled by the front to back mandatory assigned seating on the rides but it's great to hear that you had an awesome time despite that! I'm no old maid by any stretch of the imagination but agree that making sure you are well rested, hydrated, medicated (dramamine, allegra, etc.), and the ability to relax are keys to a great day at any park.