ThrillNetwork Boards

Holiday World announces Pilgrims Plunge!

kcar713 — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 16:25:47 GMT

Opening in 2009, Pilgrims Plunge will debut as the world's tallest water ride! It uses an elevator lift to bring the boats to a height of 135 feet. Then, a drop of 131 feet at a 45-degree angle will create a wall of water 90 feet wide and 45 feet tall. Go to their website for pictures and videos: New in '09!

Holiday Experience

CatCheung — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 08:18:26 GMT

Have you ever had a nice family holiday experience !!! My family would found very helpful information while we were searching details of China and discovered a website. It helped me to choose my hotel easily for making our trip absolutely wonderful.

You get to erase five bands from music history

Brian F — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 18:16:16 GMT

Which five bands/artists do you pick?

Magnum rocks

markscns — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 14:03:08 GMT

Back in May I made a post about how rough Magnum really is. I have been on Wild Thing at ValleyFair, but never tried Magnum. When we went to to the CP in May, the kids rode it, but not me (I was not convinced yet).

We went back this weekend, and I wish I would have tried it a long time ago. I rode Magnum 3 times this weekend. Awesome ride, and in fact, it now ranks above Shivering Timbers as my favorite coaster now. I must say from the seat I was in, it was not what I would consider rough at all (at least compared to ST). Magnum was a walk on all weekend, never had to wait in line.

I have pictures from CP over the weekend on my blog.

MiaBlogOnline.com

Robb Alvey's South Korea Update!

robbalvey — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 22:42:12 GMT

Hey everyone!

We have finally finished our long overdue massive update from South Korea. This update includes over 500 photos from all the major parks (and some small little places) in S. Korea.

We also have 5 brand new POV videos from some pretty "rare" coasters:
- Atlantis Adventure POV (AquaTrax)
- Eagle Fortress (Crazy Arrow Suspended)
- Phaethon (Newish B&M Invert)
- Fantasia Special (Arrow looper with *three* corkscrews)
- Horror Express (this crazy Vekoma looper!)

Here are a few photos and some videos from that update:

Mmm...AquaTrax...yummy!

An Arrow looper with *THREE* Corkscrews??? OMG!

A nearly brand new B&M invert in Korea! Who knew?

Woah! What's this crazy through the trees bunny hop coaster?

Would you believe the world's tallest looping Vekoma?

An Arrow suspended in the top ten? YES!

Joey! Did YOU write all that graffiti???

Yup, there was some credit whoring too!

And I'm not even sure what this is...but we rode it...and come out alive!

And yes, all the crazy TPR antics are included also!

And for a couple of awesome POV videos download these NOW:
Lotte World's Atlantis Adventure (AquaTrax!!!)

And...

Everland's Eagle Fortress (OMFG SO GOOD!)

The entire update of 500+ photos and 5 POV videos can be found here:
TPR's South Korea Massive Update

I hope you enjoy reading!

--Robb Alvey

Hersheypark 2009

CHILLERLC1 — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 14:24:07 GMT

A waterpark is not my cup of tea but the Canyon River Rapids was closed 8/17/08. I was on the ride the very last day. The signage has been removed from the Intamin River Rapids ride and demo work has started. They plan to put a wave pool and lazy river in its place. :mad:

SF Great America 2009

CHILLERLC1 — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 14:22:09 GMT

It's good to see there were clues of pirates over by the old Deja Vu site. It extends over the former shoot the chutes ride site as well? It would be cool if they get a river battle ride.

Myrtle Beach 8/21+22 (Family Kingdom and Hard Rock Park)

PANTSFREE — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 16:33:10 GMT

I traveled down to Myrtle Beach for a couple days to see the beach and the amusement parks. We arrived late Wednesday at our hotel across the street from the beach. We spent the first day hanging around the beach and the pool relaxing. Unfortunately the ocean was pretty rough so the lifeguards weren’t allowing any swimming. We were only a couple blocks down from Family Kingdom amusement park, so I was getting antsy all day looking down the street waiting for the park to open so I could finally get on Swamp Fox.

Finally it got to be 5 o clock and after getting some food at the Friendly’s next door to the park (literally only a few feet away from the log flume), we got in and purchased our all day ride bracelets. I was really surprised at how packed the place was. People were everywhere and it was an exciting, bustling atmosphere.

First up was Swamp Fox; we waited a couple trains to get on in the front seat. There was only one train operating, but the crew was running it pretty well. This ride was fantastic. There was a lot of floater air, very smooth from beginning to end. Swamp Fox is a really fun classic wooden coaster.

After one ride on Swamp Fox we made our way all over the park getting on all the flat rides and other big attractions. I ended up skipping the Sun Shot tower ride because it had a pretty long line and after watching it a couple times, it just seemed like a pretty uninteresting ride that wasn’t worth the time.

By the end of our stay we had been on Swamp Fox three times and just about everything else at least once. I was really pleasantly surprised by Family Kingdom, the employees were very friendly and the rides were operated very efficiently. At night the park really looked awesome with all the lights turned on, and the location right across from the beach was really great. All in all I have to suggest anyone heading down around Myrtle Beach to check it out. I had a great time.

After Family Kingdom we drove down to Broadway at the Beach to get some drinks at Margaritaville. Broadway at the Beach is massive, it was an impressive complex with great theming and a lot of neat places to check out. The Pavilion Nostalgia park was nice to see, I didn’t bother getting on any of the rides, though.

The next day we left early in the morning for Hard Rock Park, we arrived a bit after opening. The weather was a bit rainy all day which definitely helped keep the crowds away. There was hardly anyone in the park early on. The staff was very friendly and helpful all day, definitely helped make the day even more enjoyable.

We started out on Led Zeppelin, which was running two trains to start the day (later on only one). This is a very impressive looking ride, the first half especially. The pre-ride show was pretty neat and helped add a bit to the ride. We were able to walk right on the front row and had the whole train to ourselves. The lift is incredibly steep which caught me off guard. The first drop was a lot of fun and gave a bit of weightlessness. The first four inversions were very smooth and had nice pacing. The zero-g roll was pretty interesting, it was taken at such a slow pace I got a good bit of hang time at the top. Unfortunately after the second vertical loop things get kind of ugly on Led Zeppelin. I found the helix to be downright rough and uncomfortable, there was a whole lot of vibrating and bouncing around happening. You get a nice little pop of airtime going onto the mid-course break before a slow turn, a decent corkscrew, and one final turn onto the breaks. All in all I thought Led Zeppelin was a good ride. It starts out really strong, but unfortunately after those first few inversions it gets pretty bumpy and the layout gets kind of uninteresting. For a B&M I really felt it could have been a lot smoother. The on-board sound system was ok, but I prefer coasters to not have stuff like that. I’d rather just have the sound of the lift, the breaks, the wind flying by, and of course other riders yelling.

For a little while after we got off Led Zeppelin it was pouring (the rain was off and on pretty much all day), but it only took a couple minutes to pass. Next up was Maximum RPM, unfortunately the rain temporarily closed the ride, and so we had to head over to Nights in White Satin instead. There was no wait. The pre-ride walk through part was awesome, especially the spinning tunnel. The ride itself was… interesting. It was really just a bizarre ride. Not bad, or particularly great, just bizarre.

Maximum RPM had reopened, so we went over there. Once again there was no line. The Ferris wheel lift was pretty neat. The ride itself was pretty entertaining, especially the first half. But it is really short, I feel like if it was a bit longer, maybe had an additional helix or hill or two it would have been a much better ride. All in all it was a good time, though.

Next up we made our way over to Slippery When Wet. We didn’t have to wait at all for a ride facing backwards. This is a decent ride; I thought it was better then Super Saturator at Carowinds and Roller Soaker at HP. The theming and scenery around it is pretty neat and it gives a good smooth ride although the breaks are pretty harsh.

Next we went over to Shake Rattle and Roller Coaster… It’s an ok little kiddy coaster with no wait.

Next up was the fifth and final credit of the day, Eagles: Life in the Fast Lane. This was a fun little mine train ride that also had no wait. It gave a fun, smooth ride.

After this we got some food and got a couple more rides on all the coasters and other attractions. We even stopped to check out a couple shows, which were surprisingly good (I normally loathe theme park shows and avoid them at all costs). As the day went on it got a bit more crowded, but all the coasters always had no wait with one train operation. By around 5:30 we had gotten everything done (most things a couple times over) and felt ready to head out. All in all I thought Hard Rock Park was a fine place with a great staff. All they need is a few more rides and they’ll be set. I hope the park can continue to be successful for years to come and I’ll be sure to come back at some point in the future after they add some new attractions.

edit: I was trying to update my ride count and noticed that Maximum RPM is still listed as not being open. When will that get changed?

Waldameer 8.22.08

amnesiac — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 15:09:09 GMT

My girlfriend and I visited Waldameer Park this past week on our way back to Ohio from Niagara Falls. I wasn't too impressed with the park overall. There were a lot of people smoking in queue lines right next to the big red no smoking signs which was a big turnoff for me. We bought wristbands which were $19 a piece and parking was free. Whacky Shack was a pretty lame dark ride, although some people might describe it as "classic." Steel Dragon is the first Maurer Sohne spinning coaster I have been on. I was a little nervous because I don't do spin and puke rides. I get dizzy pretty easily. We when we loaded the ride we were in the front seat and no one was in the back so I thought we were in for a crazy ride. To my surprise we didn't really spin all that much. I had a lot of fun and didn't get dizzy at all. I like this model a lot better than the Zamperla spinning models like the one at Beech Bend.

We did the sky ride and ferris wheel for the great views of the park and the surrounding area. I had read some really positive reviews of the Comet roller coaster so I was pretty disappointed after we rode. It was pretty lame and we didn't get anytime at all. There might have been more in the back of the train, or maybe we didn't have enough weight. Whatever the reason I was disappointed with that one.

The whole reason for visiting the park definitely lived up to expectations and reviews and even surpassed them. Ravine Flyer II was incredible. My girlfriend and I weren't expecting how intense and fast the ride is. It was flying and there was airtime all over the place. RFII could quite possibly be my second favorite wooden coaster after the Voyage. It is hard to measure it against rides that I haven't ridden in years. I also hesitate to name it one of the best coaster just because of the park it is at. I think one of the reasons I hold the Voyage so high is because I love Holiday World. Waldameer is only a few steps above Beech Bend in my book. RFII makes it worth the trip.

Photo album here: Nick Weisenberger's Photos - Waldameer | Facebook

Wicked Twister Theme Song.

raptorpoint93 — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 14:51:49 GMT

As you all may know I went to cedar point 1 week ago. I know Wicked Twisters theme song is "The Winner" By The Crystal Method. I know that becuase the repeat the beginning over and over when you are waiting to get on the ride. But does any one know in any other rides have theme songs besides TTD, MF and Maverick.

No Limits Tools questions

coastergeek25 — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 23:17:18 GMT

I have recently found some No Limits tool programs and have no idea what they do. I got the construction kit, and the track packager.

Can some one help me please?

8/17- HP - Rapids Close - Fahrenheit

CHILLERLC1 — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 00:54:31 GMT

A coworker told me that he and his gf were going to Hershey this past Tuesday, the 19th. I told them to ride the Canyon River Rapids, which were about to close. Then I remembered that they were going to close that past Sunday the 17th. I had just received a ticket from my uncle and realized there was little time left to get my last ride on the Rapids. I went Sunday after church and arrived at the park by 1. The parking lot was crowded past the last tram point near the GIANT Center.

The first attraction I visited was the Reese's Extreme Cup Challenge. This was a new atttraction for me and I guess it wasn't a Sally Ride. The cars were coupled in two's and traveled up and down rollercoaster style track and hills. It took me awhile to figure out the targets weren't the typical Sally ones but yellow ones. Therefore as a first timer I got a terrible score. Next I walked to the Rodeo flat ride. I heard that ride was going to exit as well. It galloped like a bronco but was tame. It was not as wild as the former El Sombrero at SFGADV. The ride was a classic though with its lighting.

After taking a couple pics of Canyon River Rapids I had to decide between that and Fahrenheit. The line at the rapids was already long so I waited for Fahrenheit first. My wait was about 2 hours 15 minutes long, with just two trains running! We all knew capacity was going to be bad. They didn't have the third train running. :( Obviously there would have been horrendous stacking with 3 but with train just carrying 12 people, come on. The ride had downtime at least twice during my wait, needing to be reset and the brakes run a few times before relaunching trains.

The nice thing about this ride is the comfort of the trains. The restraints didn't feel as heavy and I didn't have to crouch to get in like on Kingda Ka. A welcoming sight was a new lip of padding :) added to thin ends of the padded OTSR's that we're used to seeing on KA, Stormy and Maverick. I guess Intamin heard enough complaining about the pain on Maverick from the likes of myself and other enthusiasts and guests. The vertical lift was pretty cool but I felt in no time we were about to be thrown over the edge. On the original Ultra Twister they had to be off the vertical lift in no time. I had a back row seat so as the train went over the beyond vertical first drop I either felt extreme airtime or hangtime. I lifted off my seat and my shoulders had rest on the tops of the restraints. The fun was ready to begin. The twist into the top of the Norwegian loop has a little bit of a trick to it. The straight track up goes to a slight right and then begins the twist left. It's like that short bit of airtime awkward pop hill on Stormrunner before it does its rolls. In the valleys I was experiencing extreme jitters, a little more extreme than what I felt on first year B&Ms. The cobra roll felt fast enough. With the way it's shaped I'd hate it like Hydra's if it had B&M track but it's okay with me as an Intamin.

I couldn't find any feelings about the corkscrews. I don't think they were extreme. The tight turnaround after the screws under the lift was fun as was that following little pop hill. What was questionable was the transition after the pop hill into the long turnaround into the brake run. My head touched the restraint in the transition but I don't think it was a true headbang. It definitely wasn't a Maverick style blow to the neck.

Into the brakes I came to realize that what I felt while in the Intamin brake run would be really telling about the past ride. I didn't feel the "wooZe" of a train coming to a smooth stop after an tremendous journey, like on Kingda Ka and Stormrunner. The feeling just wasn't there, that same feeling I felt on the flat brake runs even on SFNE's SROS and TTD. It just wasn't there. :( It was the first Intamin slanted brake run to not deliver for me. With all those blue supports next to the slanted run I was reminded of Australia's Superman: Escape coaster. I really want that one. I think I'll still take the Fahrenheit-Stormrunner combo over Maverick. I got my Intamin corkscrews. I can survive now without going back to the Point.

Next up I weighed what I wanted to do next. I wanted to get Wildcat with its new trains in before I would wait over a hour for the Rapids. I was never into Wildcat but willing to give it a chance with the new trains. I don't like the turnaround after the first drop but I found that I do like the midcourse area of the layout. The ride shook too much rode rough still. The brakes on the final brake run sounded like elephants when the train would pass. I prefer any of the Roar! coasters over this layout still. I guess with Lightning Racer, the premier coaster with Comet in the lineup as well a coaster has to get blipped on, be the whipping boy. That would be Wildcat. I didn't sense any major improvement for the ride. :(

After Wildcat it was 5pm. I wanted to get home to catch most of my Sunday night baseball with the Phillies so Canyon River Rapids would be my last ride. I waited a hour and a half to get on. I took plenty of pictures for the ride's final day. What a big mistake to get rid of one of the more modern smaller boat Intamin river rapids! This is better than the concrete jungle rides at SFNE, the Great Escape, Geauga Lake. Like I noticed with the Intamin at Kennywood, the troughs that go through a snaking layout are close together and there is an apparent difference in height through the run. I was eluding rushes of water pretty well but the waterfalls walls of water in the lower section of the ride near Rollersoaker provided plopping heavy sheets of falling water over our ring boat. Wow, I was drenched! This ride gets the job done. There's no way I want to arrive at the park with an extra bag, extra weight of a swimsuit and towel to go on a lazy river. I've never been in a wave pool, which is the second attraction they want to put in place of the rapids in its reservoir pool. Big Mistake! I guess that's why there's mom or lockers. They're departing from me and going for the familie$.

I finally found where I could get the Navy Blue Hershey's hoodie: Chocolate World. I felt it was a coat of arms I finally earned from the place but I would have rather earned it at a more innocent time for the park, by 2001 when Lightning Racer first arrived. I never liked the idea of The Boardwalk. I wonder what was Hershey's first idea was that was rejected by the Township board before they came to that. I'm starting to distance myself from the park. Feeling inspired by Knoebel's has pushed that. I know my homepark, come to understand Dorney, and just when I felt I was getting to know Hershey I was being pushed away. Maybe I'll now classify Hershey as a non local park to me like SFA. Who knows? Win me back Hershey.

I never had such a constricted visit at Hershey before but 1-6pm on a crowded August Sunday would do that. I never walked by Sidewinder or Stormrunner's station even. My coworker who went Tuesday said his experience was much better. The midweek crowd seems to be better. He agrees Stormrunner is the best coaster at the park but wonders what it would be if it was more closer to the Kingda Ka range. Great Bear delivered (as usual). He wasn't able to ride Comet or Wild Mouse(outdoor Dark Knight mirror.) He agreed Wildcat wasn't so great.

08 College Football Thread

89magnumxl200 — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 19:14:36 GMT

So, what do you guys all think of the upcoming year?

I think (and hope) that ND will be much better this year. The less Chuck has to do with the game management the better, I say. And now that I'm at Kent, I can't wait for the games here. They actually look to have a pretty competetive team this year. Maybe they'll even upset BC.

Possible stupid question

Katie — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 22:09:15 GMT

I just noticed as I tried to send my coaster draft votes to Andrew and Jimmy that I am only allowed to send a PM to one person at a time.

Is there any reason behind the change? I know I used to be able to send to five people before. Has it been changed since we got an update?

Just curious.

Cedar Point - August 12 & 13

Venom Thing — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 23:39:29 GMT

My vacation this year was my first trip to Cedar Point. I have been wanting to go for the last few years now and finally planned a visit there! I stayed at Sandcastle Suites which was a pretty decent deal for my group of 6. The rooms were a little smaller than I expected but no big deal! Anyway onto the reason I drove 850 miles one way..the coasters!

Ranking Order/Opinion:
1.) Millenium Force - Lived upto every expectation I had! The speed of this ride was amazing and the airtime of the two hills over to the island were very thrilling! This was my whole groups favorite ride minus my mom who doesn't go on larger coasters. Ride Count: 2

2.) Magnum XL-200 - I almost had to rank Magnum over Millenium Force but I just couldn't do it! I should call it a tie but oh well! Magnum impressed me more than I thought it would. The bunny hills at the end where worth the visit alone! I see why this coaster still has rave reviews after all these years! Ride Count: 5

3.) Maverick - Maverick's fast pace and quick turns is what made the ride high for me! I read reviews about it and some people talked it down, but I honestly cannot find a reason why..besides the longest lines in the park i guess.. Ride Count: 2

4.) Raptor - The first ride I got a chance to ride during my visit and it really set the tone for my visit. B&M inverted coasters are my favorite types of rides and every park should have one! The cobra rolls intensity caught me off guard a bit. Would have rode it a second time and many more but lines exceeded over an hour. Ride Count: 1

5.) Top Thrill Dragster - Anticipation is the best thing about this ride. I would have ranked it higher after only one time riding, but having rode it a second time really showed me that the ride overall is not as great as the anticipation of your first launch. Ride count: 2

6.) Wicked Twister - Having rode Steel Venom before at my homepark Valleyfair I knew the experience of riding an impulse coaster, infact I debated about even riding WT. I'm glad I did though and the double twisted spike is better than just the single twisted spike. Ride Count: 1

7.) Blue Streak - Old fella packed a new thrill punch! I basically hopped on Blue Streak for a credit and was amazed by the ride! Being use to the over-braked High Roller I guess I wasn't expecting much out of an old wooden Cedar Fair roller coaster but I was showed quite a good ride! Ride Count: 1

8.) Gemini - Sort of a surprise coaster! I think the racing makes it a tad more exciting..Does the blue train ever win though? Ride Count: 3

9.) Mantis - Having never rode a stand-up coaster before I was interested in Mantis quite a bit, but I walked away not that big of fan. It's an ok ride, but not fantastic..headbanging on the quick turns is a turn-off.. Ride Count: 2

10.) Wildcat - I like these older versions of a mad mouse type ride better than the arrow versions..not quite as good as the spinning mouse rides though! Ride Count: 1

11.) Iron Dragon - My mom loved this ride and I don't know why! Ended up riding it more for her. It was ok but not really exciting for a coaster enthusiast! Ride Count: 3

12.) Corkscrew - This coaster was surprisingly rough. Headbanging really caught me off guard after being use to the Corkscrew at VFair. It was beautiful in how it ties in with the midway! Ride Count: 1

13.) Cedar Creek Mine Ride - Another ride my mom enjoyed, shes not much of a drop lady so she digs the shorter, less steep drops on coasters. My opinion..its just an old family coaster..Ride Count: 2

14.) Disaster Transport - Very boring and short. The lift hill made me feel quite sick! Terrible ride..tear it down along with its pathetic themeing! Ride Count: 1

15.) Mean Streak - What a rough piece of *****! First coaster I have ever walked away with a sore neck and back! And having Excalibur at my homepark thats saying something! If I had a match with some gasoline..I know what I would do! Ride Count: 1

I didn't feel the need to ride the two kiddie coasters, i'm not that much of a credit whore..

Besides coasters I also hopped on MaXair, Sky Ride, and their train. Skipped Skyhawk due to Xtreme Swing is pretty much the same ride. I was very happy with our stay there! Everything was the best i've ever seen at an amusement park! The value is pretty amazing for an amusement park and I took full advantage of the early entry resort rule! The employees were amazing except for on Wildcat where they seemed hung-over, but we've all been there before..Anyway, I have a feeling I will be back there soon!

Overall visit - 11/10!!!!!