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The Great Escape (TGE) Discussion Thread

p. 34 - Bobcat wooden coaster announced for 2024!

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It seems like they may have expected some pushback and a longer approval process as they haven't gone to the board for approval before Jan 1st in some time. I'd be surprised if they end up moving the ride or changing plans, as the residents come out in full force to argue against anything the park adds.

 

Here's the link to the site plans for the ride (confirming it will go next to Desperado Plunge and the old Red Garter Saloon will be torn down), along with documents that actually show that even though the ride is 160 feet, if you combine the ride height with the ground elevation, it will still sit lower than Sasquatch. And I'm pretty sure Sasquatch is pretty much unseen from the Glen Lake area.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Great Escape flew a height balloon and the ride would be very visible from Glen Lake. Six Flags was arguing that the 2001 height limit in Ghost Town was outdated since the trees had grown in the past 18 years. I'll be interested to see if Six Flags tries to move the ride's location, change the ride size, or continue to fight it.

 

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Photo from Post Star (article below)

 

For comparison, you can't see any of the park's other rides including the Sky Coaster or Sasquatch since they sit in the lower areas of the park.

 

Link to Post Star

 

QUEENSBURY — Great Escape floated a balloon Thursday morning to show town officials what a new ride would look like from Glen Lake.

 

Great Escape officials had described the 165-foot-tall ride as “minimal, not substantial, not material.” They also said trees have grown and the ride would likely not be noticeable.

 

But from Glen Lake, the balloon and much of the crane that held it could both be seen. The crane lifted the balloon to 165 feet.

 

Residents reacted with shock and anger after seeing it from their windows Thursday morning. They had expected to be able to see only “a red dot” for the balloon.

 

“It is much more egregious,” said Linda Clark, a lake resident and secretary of the Glen Lake Protective Association. “Even the crane is seen from the lake.”

 

Paul McPhillips, president of the Glen Lake Protective Association, was one of many who went to multiple locations to see how much of the ride would be visible.

 

“They’re not edging over the limit. They are busting over the limit,” he said. “It will be very visible.”

 

Others began passing photos of the balloon to those who were working during the event and asked everyone to come to the Nov. 26 meeting of the Queensbury Planning Board to object to the location of the ride.

 

They want it placed in another part of the park.

 

In 2001, as Great Escape sought approval to expand, the company floated balloons to determine how high new rides could be without disturbing the view for its neighbors.

 

In the area for the proposed ride — in Ghost Town — the company agreed to place rides no taller than 135 feet. That’s because balloons showed that taller rides could be seen from the lake and from residential roads around the lake. The rules that the town, residents and company agreed to are codified as the 2001 Environmental Impact Statement.

 

Great Escape officials acknowledged last month they could place the ride in other places, but said they want to draw more customers to Ghost Town and prefer a tall ride so it can be seen from Route 9. That might pull in more customers, they said.

 

Residents stressed they aren’t opposed to Great Escape or new rides.

 

“We just want them to follow the rules so we can all live in the same neighborhood,” Clark said.

 

She noted that when she recently put in a porch, she had to follow town rules.

 

“Granted, it’s just one ride. But when you open the door, the door becomes wide open. It sets a precedent,” she said.

 

She doesn’t want views from the lake to become views of an amusement park. Even one ride seen above the trees could hurt the view, she said.

 

“This is going to impact home values, desirability on this lake,” she said. “We are not saying Great Escape should not exist. But it’s not a good neighbor to not stay within the Environmental Impact Statement.”

 

The engineer who organized the balloon test did not return calls seeking comment.

 

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^It seems like there is a model available that is 40 meters high (roughly 130 feets), which would respect the height limit. Vomatron on the manufacturer's website. If it isn't too late for TGE to modify their order maybe this could be a good compromise.

 

They should get the bell instead. Would go kinda with a ghost town theme. I also want to see one in person so.

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  • 4 weeks later...

So TGE is now proposing a new Ghost Town location for Adirondack Outlaw which they are saying will meet the requirements. Will be interesting to see the full plans and if approval is given.

 

https://poststar.com/news/local/tall-great-escape-ride-to-be-placed-next-to-condor/article_081a337a-906c-5639-8fb9-274537ccf802.html

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At this point a new location elsewhere in the park seems like a better alternative and a new theme if they were to do that. It seems strange that they would try to put such a tall ride in the highest elevated section of the park in the first place. Not sure how they will shoe horn this into that space, it will also be sad if they have to remove some of the themed buildings just to fit it in.

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The problem with any location in Ghost Town is that it's on that hill. The area by Condor is further back, but I'm skeptical that'll make much of a difference.

 

I understand why the park wants it in Ghost Town so it's highly visible from the road. But this seems like a tough battle.

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  • 1 month later...

I hate every single person that they interviewed in that article. Imagine having that much free time that you go to a meeting and demand to know the age and health of every tree between you and a ride on the opposite side of Ghost Town because if any of them die then you might sort of kind of see part of the ride sometimes.

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^After reading the article, I am under the impression that they will let the park build the ride but they will have to do a bunch of studies afterwards to check for noise and environment.

 

Now I don't live in the area, but how loud can (maximum) 8 people scream for Glen Lake residents to be able to hear them? Sounds like these guys weren't against the location of the ride, they just hate the ride in general.

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^ Right? They chose to live there, if they didn't know they were moving near a theme park then they're oblivious and should've looked into that more.

 

He suggested Great Escape remove something noisy each time it builds a new noisy new ride.

 

This man is joking, right..?

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As coaster enthusiasts we should do our fellow enthusiasts with Great Escape as their home park a solid and just agree to not scream on any of the rides there. Maybe those idiots are the reason it has been more than 15 years since the park got a new coaster. Actually, maybe we should just scream extra loud instead so they will move voluntarily.

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  • 1 month later...

Some notes from the ACE Great Nor'Easter:

 

- Adirondack Outlaw will be located in the open space next to Steamin' Demon and Condor, so I believe that would be the below location. The ride will have a 50" height requirement and a 1.5 minute long cycle.

 

1347318332_Screenshot_20200314-0946362.thumb.png.41c68a5122805d0eeaf92703d63ccd74.png

 

- Raging River is getting a new lift chain.

 

- Desperado Plunge is having the animatronics updated along with some work to the through, lifts, and pumps.

 

- Comet is getting some minor trackwork in spots.

 

- Blizzard's dome is being painted.

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^Nice to have a confirmation of Outlaw's location, up until now I couldn't see where they would fit it in.

 

I'm also glad that they'll fix the animatronics in the Plunge, they all seemed to be broken in the last few years and it looked pretty depressing. Blizzard's dome being repainted is great news as well.

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  • 7 months later...

Minor tidbit from the SF's HITP/Holiday Lights press release.  The Great Escape (Holiday in the Park at the Lodge) is listed.  Maybe it's been other years but don't remember.  Only a couple of things are even open at the lodge thanks to NY but TGE getting a little mention none the less.

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I

13 hours ago, Charles Wagor III said:

Minor tidbit from the SF's HITP/Holiday Lights press release.  The Great Escape (Holiday in the Park at the Lodge) is listed.  Maybe it's been other years but don't remember.  Only a couple of things are even open at the lodge thanks to NY but TGE getting a little mention none the less.

I saw this and I will potentially head down depending on what they open. We only live about two hours away and occasionally head that way for shopping anyway. I just don't see Cuomo letting major rides open up and attracting crowds at this point, as much as I'd love a Comet ride. I doubt it would move well in the cold anyway. The event also might be a bit cold for anyone in the area for Christmas. I mean Lake George/Queensbury are pretty balmy compared to areas north and closer to the high peaks, but the people that would travel to Lake George for Christmas and New Years are from the southern parts of the state and it will be pretty cold for them.

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