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Knoebels Discussion Thread


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I visited Knoebels for the time first this past June, we legitimately used this map to find the pirogies and didn't have any issue finding them. Just kinda let the image burn a print in your brain, then when you come across Power Surge, just slowly turn around in place. You should start to see other features from the map and instantly know where to go, that worked for us at least. Go ahead and order double when you find it, one batch will just piss you off enough to want more, "they kinda work lack crack in that way". They are quite delicious, however our favorite food we got on our trip was a hoagie pizza from Cesari's, this thing was massive and was only like 16 bucks, truly tasted more like a hoagie than pizza, and was most likely the best individual theme park food item i have ever had (next to Dollywood's cinnamon bread of course). We ate on it for 3 days, that place should start a national chain with that pizza, papa john would have to cry himself to sleep nightly if that were to happen.

Edited by mordecai-75
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Sorry for the double post but I just wanted to share a few thoughts from PPP yesterday.

 

1) This park continues to amaze. The threat of rain kept crowds manageable which was nice when compared to last year's event. It drizzled a little early in the day and again around 9:00 but at no point did it become an issue. We had an awesome time.

 

2) Phoenix and Twister are both absolutely killing it. Our ride on Twister last night was legendary. If this ride was in just about any other park people would flat out gush over it. It's overshadowed by Phoenix but it's really an absolutely spectacular coaster. We rode Phoenix in the front for the first time and holy sh*t. The airtime on this ride is unreal. Ops were obviously ridiculous, they often had the chain checked and clear so fast that the op had to wait almost 30 seconds before dispatch so it wouldn't block stop on top of the lift.

 

3) We rode the boats for the first time and that was a super cool old ride. That's a must ride for sure on every visit. Also, it's come to my attention that adults can ride the slide so that's absolutely happening today.

 

4) We did the haunted antique cars for the first time and were really surprised at how good they were. We had a couple of good scares. The line always kept us away in the last but it was only about 30 minutes last night. We did the train also which we'd never done at night during PPP. That was a lot of fun too though unlike the car ride it wasn't supposed to be scary.

 

5) Impulse was almost a walk on all day with 2 trains. We rode it 3 times and never waited more than 5 minutes. Phoenix and Twister were pulling longer lines than Impulse all day which is strange given the capacity.

 

6) The new Galleon looks great, we rode it and weren't blown away but kids seemed to like it and that's all that matters.

 

7) Sky Wheel is still in pieces but they said they expect it to be open next weekend.

 

We'll be back today for the festival and for a few rides. Come and say hi if you see us!

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I am now officially on the Knoebles band wagon

 

I went to the Phoenix Phall Phunfest in part to see the people at CoasterRadio but mainly to see what all the the hype was about with Knoebles. On paper I was never very impressed with the park. Now I see why so many people love the park-- its the little things.

 

1. Great Operations- My longest wait was Flying Turns and I had no complaints, because the ride ops keep things rolling. On the roller coasters the ride ops were running to quickly check restraints and get people sent out, I felt like I was at Cedar Point at times. My last independent park was Kennywood so maybe my view is skewed. Kennywood could learn a thing or two from Knoebles.

 

As an aside, Ive never seen a park with kid booster seats on roller coaster until until yesterday. I thought it was a wonderful accommodation, and speaks to the park's commitment to families.

 

2. Great rides- Personally, my favorite roller coaster of the day was Twister. Coming to the park all the hype was built up around Pheonix. While the Phenoix is good, to me, Twister is just better. I tend to like more intense roller coaster so I understand why I may be in the minority. I loved the pre-lift and pre-drop surprises. The head choppers were so well placed, and the ride reminded me of El Toro because it never lets up until the break run.

 

As far as other rides, the Haunted Mansion was my favorite. I knew it was going to be good b/c it was not on the ride all day plan. I am not sure if they enhance the ride for the Halloween season, but there were many times where I truly scared. I won't spoil it, but it was a great ride.

 

3. Great Atmosphere- It was strange to go to a park, park my car and walk in-- no lines to park or security check points. I was never quite sure when I was in the park or not. It was kinda cool to see people with the dogs walking around the park. My friend is a military vet and appreciated the monuments to military service. Even the guest were nice. I met a women who saw me standing in front of one of the large park maps and she came up to me and just asked if I needed help. Finally I like their nod to traditional GOOD rides, not just traditional rides that are just old.

 

The rain did not dampen my view of this park at all. I for sure will be back!

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Glad to hear everyone had just as great of a time as we did.

 

Even the ops on the Flyers were letting people get away with murder, sometimes they'd warn people to "get it under control" but as long as you actually listened, and proved you could still control it, they wouldn't cut the cycle.

 

We actually ran into ElToro_Ryan on Power Surge, nice surprise to see him there.

 

I enjoyed how manageable crowds were, but I think I had a better time last year. Met some really awesome people and got some amazing rides on the Flyers and Skooters.

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Ugh. Too crowded today. The queues were manageable but getting into the park was a pain thanks to backed up traffic on PA-487.

 

Phoenix, unparalleled magnificence, no surprises there. Impulse is still rough if you keep your back and head against the seat like you're supposed to. Twister was giving some of the best rides I've ever had this year.

 

I really wish the crowds had been lighter, I would have planned to drive in earlier today. I only spent $20 on a single book of tickets but I barely used them all once 5 PM rolled around. But, for the time I was there, I was at Knoebels, and that's all that really needs to be said.

 

Oh, also, the Phoenix air gates mean absolutely NOTHING. Great work as always by the crew.

Edited by A.J.
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Phoenix, unparalleled magnificence, no surprises there. Impulse is still rough if you keep your back and head against the seat like you're supposed to.

Now this is interesting. What's the right way to ride Impulse to get the best experience? I will be visiting soon, so I'm interested to know.

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I tend to ride Impulse like I ride in a car, with my back on the seat but my head away from the headrest, and it's generally fine apart from occasional light-headedness, which is understandable on this kind of coaster.

 

Impulse has a lot of "kicks", or sudden G-force transitions, that can really drag your body forward and down. Normally you'd keep your back and head plastered on the seat back to make sure your body stays upright during those transitions, but since it opened I've felt noticeable vibrations when I put my head back. It's not jostling and it's not head-banging, so it's more uncomfortable than it is painful. Even then, I seem to be the only one with that sort of problem so maybe I'm over-exaggerating. I certainly don't feel like I have to ride defensively by any standard, especially through everything after the vertical loop, which is smooth and graceful.

 

The ride itself is not bad by any means, it's incredibly wacky and it completes Knoebels "G-force trifecta" (Impulse positives, Phoenix airtime and Twister laterals).

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Phoenix, unparalleled magnificence, no surprises there. Impulse is still rough if you keep your back and head against the seat like you're supposed to.

Now this is interesting. What's the right way to ride Impulse to get the best experience? I will be visiting soon, so I'm interested to know.

 

Impulse is fine but it's smoother if you don't keep your head against the headrest (then again that goes for just about every coaster with a headrest). It's not exactly rough but it's not exactly smooth either (if that makes sense). I like Impulse, we rode it a lot this weekend and that barrel roll is awesomeness but it's the weakest coaster in the park by a mile.

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I tend to ride Impulse like I ride in a car, with my back on the seat but my head away from the headrest, and it's generally fine apart from occasional light-headedness, which is understandable on this kind of coaster.

 

Impulse has a lot of "kicks", or sudden G-force transitions, that can really drag your body forward and down. Normally you'd keep your back and head plastered on the seat back to make sure your body stays upright during those transitions, but since it opened I've felt noticeable vibrations when I put my head back. It's not jostling and it's not head-banging, so it's more uncomfortable than it is painful. Even then, I seem to be the only one with that sort of problem so maybe I'm over-exaggerating. I certainly don't feel like I have to ride defensively by any standard, especially through everything after the vertical loop, which is smooth and graceful.

 

The ride itself is not bad by any means, it's incredibly wacky and it completes Knoebels "G-force trifecta" (Impulse positives, Phoenix airtime and Twister laterals).

That's good to know; thank you!

 

Phoenix, unparalleled magnificence, no surprises there. Impulse is still rough if you keep your back and head against the seat like you're supposed to.

Now this is interesting. What's the right way to ride Impulse to get the best experience? I will be visiting soon, so I'm interested to know.

 

Impulse is fine but it's smoother if you don't keep your head against the headrest (then again that goes for just about every coaster with a headrest). It's not exactly rough but it's not exactly smooth either (if that makes sense). I like Impulse, we rode it a lot this weekend and that barrel roll is awesomeness but it's the weakest coaster in the park by a mile.

That definitely does make sense. Very much looking forward to a park where this is their weakest coaster!

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Sorry for the double post but I just wanted to share a few thoughts from PPP yesterday.

 

1) This park continues to amaze. The threat of rain kept crowds manageable which was nice when compared to last year's event. It drizzled a little early in the day and again around 9:00 but at no point did it become an issue. We had an awesome time.

 

2) Phoenix and Twister are both absolutely killing it. Our ride on Twister last night was legendary. If this ride was in just about any other park people would flat out gush over it. It's overshadowed by Phoenix but it's really an absolutely spectacular coaster. We rode Phoenix in the front for the first time and holy sh*t. The airtime on this ride is unreal. Ops were obviously ridiculous, they often had the chain checked and clear so fast that the op had to wait almost 30 seconds before dispatch so it wouldn't block stop on top of the lift.

 

3) We rode the boats for the first time and that was a super cool old ride. That's a must ride for sure on every visit. Also, it's come to my attention that adults can ride the slide so that's absolutely happening today.

 

4) We did the haunted antique cars for the first time and were really surprised at how good they were. We had a couple of good scares. The line always kept us away in the last but it was only about 30 minutes last night. We did the train also which we'd never done at night during PPP. That was a lot of fun too though unlike the car ride it wasn't supposed to be scary.

 

5) Impulse was almost a walk on all day with 2 trains. We rode it 3 times and never waited more than 5 minutes. Phoenix and Twister were pulling longer lines than Impulse all day which is strange given the capacity.

 

6) The new Galleon looks great, we rode it and weren't blown away but kids seemed to like it and that's all that matters.

 

7) Sky Wheel is still in pieces but they said they expect it to be open next weekend.

 

We'll be back today for the festival and for a few rides. Come and say hi if you see us!

You say in this that you had your first front row ride on Phoenix, that somewhat perplexes me as i assumed you were the Knoebels go to guy on the forum. Why so many visits without trying the front?

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You say in this that you had your first front row ride on Phoenix, that somewhat perplexes me as i assumed you were the Knoebels go to guy on the forum. Why so many visits without trying the front?

 

coasterbill is a poser - He has never even been to Knoebels. All photos of him at Knoebels are clearly photo shopped.

Edited by larrygator
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Random question when we were crossing the bridge to get to Twister I noticed there are homes in the middle of the park. Are those offices? Do people really live there?

 

They are private vacation cottages. Some are owned by the Knoebel family, but I don't think anyone lives there all year around. At least I think that is the info Rick Knoebel gave us when someone asked the same question during a TPR event.

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Sorry for the double post but I just wanted to share a few thoughts from PPP yesterday.

 

1) This park continues to amaze. The threat of rain kept crowds manageable which was nice when compared to last year's event. It drizzled a little early in the day and again around 9:00 but at no point did it become an issue. We had an awesome time.

 

2) Phoenix and Twister are both absolutely killing it. Our ride on Twister last night was legendary. If this ride was in just about any other park people would flat out gush over it. It's overshadowed by Phoenix but it's really an absolutely spectacular coaster. We rode Phoenix in the front for the first time and holy sh*t. The airtime on this ride is unreal. Ops were obviously ridiculous, they often had the chain checked and clear so fast that the op had to wait almost 30 seconds before dispatch so it wouldn't block stop on top of the lift.

 

3) We rode the boats for the first time and that was a super cool old ride. That's a must ride for sure on every visit. Also, it's come to my attention that adults can ride the slide so that's absolutely happening today.

 

4) We did the haunted antique cars for the first time and were really surprised at how good they were. We had a couple of good scares. The line always kept us away in the last but it was only about 30 minutes last night. We did the train also which we'd never done at night during PPP. That was a lot of fun too though unlike the car ride it wasn't supposed to be scary.

 

5) Impulse was almost a walk on all day with 2 trains. We rode it 3 times and never waited more than 5 minutes. Phoenix and Twister were pulling longer lines than Impulse all day which is strange given the capacity.

 

6) The new Galleon looks great, we rode it and weren't blown away but kids seemed to like it and that's all that matters.

 

7) Sky Wheel is still in pieces but they said they expect it to be open next weekend.

 

We'll be back today for the festival and for a few rides. Come and say hi if you see us!

You say in this that you had your first front row ride on Phoenix, that somewhat perplexes me as i assumed you were the Knoebels go to guy on the forum. Why so many visits without trying the front?

 

Lol I'm that guy who goes to a restaurant, finds something he likes and never bothers to order anything else ever. That's me with Phoenix. We rode in the back, loved it and never bothered to try anything different. Honestly I can't say for sure which seat I like better after having some awesome back seat rides this weekend too but I'm glad I finally tried something new.

 

coasterbill is a poser - He has never even been to Knoebels. All photos of him at Knoebels are clearly photo shopped.

 

Edited by coasterbill
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The back seat makes the double-down terrifyingly awesome, but the front gives you great airtime on the tops of the three turnarounds and right at the end.

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