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2018: Carowinds NC/SC
175. Intimidator – Carowinds, NC/SC
176. Nighthawk - Carowinds, NC/SC
177. Afterburn - Carowinds, NC/SC
178. The Flying Cobras - Carowinds, NC/SC
179. Carolina Goldrusher - Carowinds, NC/SC
180. Carolina Cyclone - Carowinds, NC/SC
181. Ricochet - Carowinds, NC/SC
182. Vortex - Carowinds, NC/SC
183. Hurler - Carowinds, NC/SC
184. Kiddyhawk - Carowinds, NC/SC
185. Woodstock Express - Carowinds, NC/SC
186. Fury 325 - Carowinds, NC/SC
Nighthawk is a Vekoma flyer. I walked away disoriented and once again reminded why Vekoma is nowhere near the quality of B&M. KiddieHawk was even worse, it's a Vekoma family coaster--and everyone on the train I was on smacked our heads on the restraints. Vekoma is just years behind, imho. Woodstock Express reminded me of Beastie at Kings Island more than anything. Kid-sized wooden coaster. Nothing truly special. The Flying Cobras is a Vekoma boomerang; if you've ridden one of them, you've pretty much ridden them all. Hurler is one of the rapidly disappearing old-school wooden coasters. It does feature the MUCH improved, heavily padded seats which greatly improve the ride experience. Its twin at Kings Dominion is already closed and being retrofitted with new track. Ricochet is a standard-fare wild-mouse coaster, but it is one of the better ones I've been on and nowhere near as rough as ones that have been poorly maintained. Caroline Cyclone is an Arrow classic and the first coaster anywhere with 4 inversions. It reminds me very much of Corkscrew at Cedar Point--and understandably so. Carolina Goldrusher is a mine-train, albeit a bit more intense than most mine-trains I've ridden. More like a mini "The Beast".
B&M coasters live up to their name. Intimidator was great. Almost had the feel of a gigacoaster even though it's only a hypercoaster. Closest sibling is probably Apollo's Chariot. Vortex feels very similar to what Mantis was at Cedar Point. Stand-up coasters are a dying breed, so I would NOT be surprised to see this coaster closed & retrofitted with sit-down (especially floorless) cars in the near future. It doesn't have the appeal of Riddler's Revenge--which is the gold-standard of stand-up coasters. Afterburn is an invert, and among the best of the B&M inverts I've ridden. (Unfortunately I had an off-day, so I only rode each of the coasters once each, but this one definitely deserved another ride--along with Fury 325 & Intimidator). Fury 325 is B&M's masterpiece as of yet. Whereas Millennium Force and Intimidator 305 are Intamin coasters, Fury 325 is a B&M coaster. I have to admit, I'm impressed. It's a bit more intense than Millennium Force. While I personally prefer Millennium Force a bit more, Fury 325 is a fantastic coaster in its own right, and probably superior to Intimidator 305. The drawback to this coaster is that for some inane, money-grubbing reason, there are no station lockers. Riders have to purchase lockers pre-queue (for pay) in order to store their belongings. Every other coaster in the park has lockers at the ride station which makes it quite easy/convenient. I only hope this changes in the future.
I would love to have re-ridden a few rides, but it just wasn't meant to be. It was a blistering hot day (over 96 F), I was apparently already dehydrated. I had some nausea after Nighthawk, and it stuck with me through most of the rest of my day. For a completionist such as myself, trying to sandwich the good coasters with the bad is difficult to do in such a way as to still leave myself eager/willing to ride more. Vekomas tend to take the wind out of my sails. If you're a casual rider, my advice still stands--avoid the Vekomas; take the Gerstlauers' and Arrows with a grain of salt; ride virtually all of the B&M and Intamin's.
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So....what park should me and the missus go to next year? I'd love to hear recommendations. Offhand, I'm considering flying out to Long Beach to visit Universal Studios and Knott's Berry Farm. We could also go to Hershey Park, Universal Florida, or any of the Six-Flags parks we haven't been to yet. Might be nice to double-tap a couple parks in 1 visit, so if there's some located within an hour or two of each other (eg. Disneyland/Magic Mountain/Knott's Berry Farm/Universal)--that would be great.
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I haven't been to enough to make a good recommendation. Only ones I have been to are Kennywood near Pittsburgh, Kings Island near Cincinnati, and Idlewild also near Pittsburgh, but Idlewild is more of a kids ride park and waterpark to the best of my memory.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by
IPD
me and the missus
WAIT A SECOND, your married?
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Hit Universal Florida/DIsney
Universal has the better coasters.
Hulk and Rip Ride Rock'it are two of my all time favorites.
The harry potter rides while not "coasters" are a lot of fun. Several other good rides at universal sipderman, mummy, transformers
Everest in Animal Kingdom is IMO the best Disney has. Areosmith and big thunder mountain are good. I have not ridden the 7 dwarf's ride but I hear its very good. IMO space mountain is a skip just thrashes you around a lot.
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Went to Cedar Point this past weekend and rode the new Steel Vengeance (formerly Mean Streak, redesigned/revamped as a wood/steel hybrid). Gotta say, it was pretty awesome! Platinum passes came in handy to get the hour early entry into the park on Saturday, and we got to ride it twice in the hour. Unfortunately it was broken down Sunday morning, and we were not about to wait 2-3 hrs in 95 degree heat to ride that afternoon. Doesn't have the speed of Maverick, but makes up for it in air time, with all of the little hills and inverts. It has several blind turns as you crest hills and dip into the wooden structure (got a good neck cracking as I got caught off guard on one of 'em). I love the lack of shoulder restraints- only a lap bar on this one. Really makes for some great out-of-seat time!
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Yeah, haven't been back to Cedar Point in quite a while. Haven't been on Top Thrill, Maverick, Gatekeeper, etc.
If I hadn't already been to Disney World, Florida would be a no-brainer. Wasn't on the 7-dwarfs ride, but it's a Vekoma...so little incentive there.
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Interesting. By far the worst roller coaster I've ever ridden was a B&M: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_...eat_Adventure)
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That's easy to explain. Like Mantis was, it's a stand-up coaster. And also like mantis, the ride isn't terribly great/fun--especially with the blood-rush to your feet. I would also imagine that it doesn't weather well over time--considering how Six Flags operates in comparison to some other amusement parks. Last but not least, there's a reason why Mantis is no more--replaced by Rougarou; a floorless coaster. Vortex at California's Great America (another B&M stand-up) was converted into Patriot. I would NOT be surprised if Vortex at Carowinds is also converted in the near future (it was empty and felt quite similar to Chang/Mantis). Cedar Fair owns all 3 parks. To my knowledge this was done because of waning popularity due to ride feel--and as of yet, Six Flags has not seen fit to retrofit any of their stand-up coasters similarly. Riddler's Revenge is VASTLY different in feel to these earlier B&M stand-ups...and one I recommend. I wish I could remember Georgia Scorcher more. It's the last one B&M built...and probably similar in feel to Riddler's Revenge.
P.S.
Wow I got distracted typing up this response and wiki-surfing. I see a few distinct possibilities for future visits...but I'm probably missing quite a bit. I'd love your input:
-Valleyfair + Mt. Olympus + Nickelodean Universe
-Dorney Park + SF: Great Adventure + Hersheypark +Lake Compounce
-SF: St. Louis + Worlds of Fun + Silver Dollar City
-Darien Lake + Canada's Wonderland
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I've been to everything in your second option except for Lake Compounce, I'd never heard of it. Looks like a great wooden coaster. Dorney is ok, though I honestly can't keep track of everything they've dropped/replaced recently. SF: GA is good, I went on a rainy weekday and managed to get first in line for a lot of coasters, that was awesome. Hershey is pretty decent too, but I haven't been there since '07 or so. I'd recommend Knoebel's as well, I can't remember if you've been there or not. I haven't ridden their Flying Turns "coaster" yet so I really want to get up there this year.
