Rollercoaster Advice | Summer 2022 Amusement Park Review and Ideas

[D Hulk]

OK, change of plans pt 2.

Tomorrow's my drive to Carowinds, but since I'm a platinum passholder for Cedar Fair, I'm going an hour the wrong direction to stop by Kings Dominion for a few hours. The plan is to get some unique rides like Intimidator 305, reptilian, anaconda, grizzly, and tumbili if I can. We'll see what happens!

Also, this brings the total park count on this trip to 8. I'm a bit of a maniac

You’ll have quite the respectable coaster count when this mighty trip is in the rear view. After you’ve had a chance to finally catch your breath, I’d be very interested in your overall thoughts. Coaster and park rankings (from both this trip and your lifetime of experiences), a Top Five or Top Ten.

 

[Mickeynerd17]

Currently at KD with all coasters ridden except anaconda, dominator, and tumbili.. grizzly was horrible. Intimidator awesome!

 

[Disney Dad 3000]

OK, change of plans pt 2.

Tomorrow's my drive to Carowinds, but since I'm a platinum passholder for Cedar Fair, I'm going an hour the wrong direction to stop by Kings Dominion for a few hours. The plan is to get some unique rides like Intimidator 305, reptilian, anaconda, grizzly, and tumbili if I can. We'll see what happens!

Also, this brings the total park count on this trip to 8. I'm a bit of a maniac

If you need anything when you get to Carowinds this weekend, don't hesitate to reach out!

 

[Mickeynerd17]

Well, all major coasters (except flight of fear) done, totalling 10 coasters in 3.5 hours with water breaks and shopping included! Way better than I thought I would do this morning.

Heading to Carowinds for my final stop on this long journey. I'll compile more rankings when I get back.

 

[Mickeynerd17]

You’ll have quite the respectable coaster count when this mighty trip is in the rear view. After you’ve had a chance to finally catch your breath, I’d be very interested in your overall thoughts. Coaster and park rankings (from both this trip and your lifetime of experiences), a Top Five or Top Ten.

Oh yes! I'm definitely going to compile some lists.

I most likely won't put Disney with the major coasters because they have two completely different strengths. I'll compare the coasters I rode across parks this trip instead.

 

[spacemt354]

Was Intimidator as intense as they say?

 

[Mickeynerd17]

Was Intimidator as intense as they say?

I was definitely blacking out at the first curve, but not fully. Rest of the ride was a smoother millennium force.

 

[Mickeynerd17]

 

[Mickeynerd17]

It. Is. Finished.

8 parks.

Well over 100 coaster rides.

I'm pooped.

In all seriousness, I thought I needed two days at Carowinds but I didn't. I actually did the fast lane thinking crowds would be insane, but I walked on everything that was open (hurler, gold rusher, and nighthawk were closed today). I had 5 rides on Fury, copperhead, and Intimidator with both front and back row rides. Essentially, I obliterated this park and really don't need to return.

 

[spacemt354]

Congrats! Fury 325, Intimidator, Steel Vengeance, Lightning Rod, etc - you hit some top-tier coasters!

 

[D Hulk]

 

[Disney Dad 3000]

It. Is. Finished.

8 parks.

Well over 100 coaster rides.

I'm pooped.

In all seriousness, I thought I needed two days at Carowinds but I didn't. I actually did the fast lane thinking crowds would be insane, but I walked on everything that was open (hurler, gold rusher, and nighthawk were closed today). I had 5 rides on Fury, copperhead, and Intimidator with both front and back row rides. Essentially, I obliterated this park and really don't need to return.

Glad you enjoyed Carowinds! 4th of July weekend is usually nutso, so happy it worked out. My old job we had a building on the other side of I77 and our windows looked directly across the interstate towards Carowinds so we could easily see the top half of the coasters and watch them run all day.

 

[Mickeynerd17]

Alrighty, I'm going to start sharing some pictures while complete rankings get formed starting with SFOG.

Fun fact: my grandfather rode the Riverview Carousel as a kid all the time at its original Chicago location.

 

[Mickeynerd17]

Dollywood:

 

[spacemt354]

Just made it home from my first visit to this park! - if it's okay I'd like to give a full review to keep in the spirit of the summer coaster festivities!

 

[spacemt354]

Thanks mostly to @D Hulk combined with the insane rides on Velocicoaster (plus Disney's insane prices) - a spark lit back up inside of me for roller-coasters. With the great deals for a Six Flags Season Pass and a few parks around me currently, it seemed like a great opportunity to try something new and venture north to Six Flags New England.

With Six Flags Great Adventure being me 'home' park - I immediately noticed a difference upon entry to SFNE. It was much more quaint and full of foliage. Parking on the opposite side of the street which would be mistaken for a street from anytown USA, you cross the overpass and get a glistening view of Superman - The Ride off in the distance.

From prior research of this park - Superman and Wicked Cyclone were the one-two much I was most ecstatic for. The crowds were mild-moderate, growing throughout the day, but a line did form as we queued to enter the park slightly early than park opening time in order to allow folks to choose which way to 'run' - I mean, briskly walk, to.

Our brisk walk to Superman allowed us to be on the 2nd train of the day - not too shabby.

Superman debuted on May 5, 2000. Designed by the manufacturer Intamin, this steel coaster takes riders up to 208 feet before dropping 221 feet into a underpass below, reaching speeds of up to 77mph, with a lengthy ride-length of 2 min 35 seconds, with a good amount of airtime hills and positive G curves.

---------------------
The question is, did it live up to the hype?

An emphatic yes!!!

Superman easily became one of my top 5 coasters of all time, probably after some thought, still sitting behind Velocicoaster and El Toro, but honestly I might...might, put it in front of El Toro. It had the speed, the intensity, but was an all around smooth ride that allowed you to really take in the scenery of the park. Ended up marathoning it - a great start to the morning!

Next up on the agenda, Wicked Cyclone.

 

[spacemt354]

Wicked Cyclone was my other 'must-ride' - mostly so I could hold my own in a coaster enthusiast conversation, but also because it looks like an amazing ride.

Manufactured by Rocky Mountain Construction - this coaster takes rides up to 109 feet for a 78 degree drop, reaching speeds of 55 mph, with 3 inversions, and plenty of ejector air time.

It was such a rush - once the lift lets you go it's just straight adrenaline. It almost feels like you glide over RMC I box tracks, it's such a unique experience that is hard to describe.

However - this is a 'mild' RMC compared to some of the others around the country - this experience just makes me want to go ride things like Iron Gwazi right now! Because my gosh if this is a mild version, I could only imagine what that is like.



The other thing I noticed walking through the park - why is this park so much better themed than Great Adventure? As I'll so in some future pictures, while there's definitely a step down from Disney or something like that - for Six Flags and on this type of budget I was super impressed with the amount of theming this park has. Distinct lands, with distinct color palates and what not - it was very cool to see. The park is also very compact so it was easy to walk from one end to the other.

Next up... my surprise 'guilty' pleasure - Riddler Revenge!

 

[spacemt354]

No No No Nooooo.... I had it all planned out!

I had it all planned out that I was going to dislike this ride - I was only doing it for the credit, but it was the most intense ride of the day...and I actually kinda liked it!

This was formally Mind Eraser - rethemed to fit the DC Universe land that reminded me of Galaxy's Edge and Toy Story taking up a huge chunk of DHS.

It's a model of a suspended looping coaster - built by Vekoma, the double corkscrew at the end is really something I have not experienced before - I was definitely dizzy after this - but at least I was having a better day than the guy 2 rows in front of me threatening to puke

More scenery - honestly maybe my expectations were low - but there's a 50s themed area, a Western area, a DC area, a Bugs Bunny area - and a Hurricane Harbor - this is quite the park!

Next up was Thunderbolt - the oldest wooden coaster still in operation at a Six Flags park -- rough, but historically very cool!

Final Wrap up coming soon! Hope you enjoyed the pictures so far

 

[spacemt354]

Quick last few thoughts

Batman: The Dark Knight was a solid but predictable B&M floorless, probably my most underwhelming ride of the day

Catwoman's Whip is a Zierer whip coaster - it did its thing

Gotham City Gauntlet was a wild mouse attraction with a similar layout to other wild mouse coasters, no spinning on this one, it was merely a credit.

@ThemeParkPriest recommended Houdini, a Vekoma Madhouse - I wasn't able to get on it today but I can do it at Great Adventure as well!

The only 3 I wasn't able to do was The Joker (it's a clone from Great Adventure) Flashback, a Vekoma Boomerang (wasn't my cup of tea) Pandemonium, a Gerstlauer steel spinner

I instead used the extra time for re-rides on Superman and Wicked Cyclone before they both subsequently broke down - then grabbed some lunch at a nice Boston themed restaurant JB's Roadhouse - had a good pulled pork sandwich!

Coaster Rankings

1. Superman - The Ride
2. Wicked Cyclone
3. The Riddler Revenge
4. Thunderbolt
5. Batman: The Dark Knight
6. Catwoman's Whip
7. Gotham City Gauntlet

Overall - this park was such a pleasant surprise and if you're ever in the New England area - I would definitely try to make the trip as that's partly the issue is it's in western MA but within driving distance from cities like Boston, eastern NY, and CT!

It really felt like the 'Disneyland' of Six Flags Parks! Quaint, charming, and a lot of fun!

 

[JokersWild]

I grew up going to Six Flags New England so it’s great seeing someone discovering it and enjoying it as much as I do. Your rankings are mostly in line with mine, though I’d probably rank Thunderbolt above Riddler’s Revenge.

What they did to Catwoman’s Whip is a crime. Talk about theming, it used to be called Poison Ivy and was themed to an episode of Batman: The Animated Series. The coaster train was themed to Bruce Wayne’s limo (as I think it still is) and the track was made to look like Poison Ivy’s vines. That’s why the area surrounding the coaster is overgrown.

You weren’t missing much in not doing Houdini. Great Adventure absolutely has the superior version, though it’s interesting to see the stripped down version. And Pandemonium is a great spinning coaster. The queue is atrocious, but the ride is a lot of fun. Blizzard River is another thematic highlight. I don’t remember there being a ton on the ride itself, but the queue is pretty well themed for a Six Flags.

Glad you enjoyed the park!