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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