11 Temmuz 2012 Çarşamba
10 Temmuz 2012 Salı
9 Temmuz 2012 Pazartesi
Updated Top 20
To start out the New Year, I always like to re-evaluate my favorite coasters based on rides from the past year. I have made some slight changes for this year with the most notable being a bump up of Ravine Flyer II and Goliath to the Top 10 as well as an addition of The Beast in place of the now defunct Ozark Wildcat. You can see the upated list on the left side of the screen as well as on coastergrotto.com by clicking on any of the pics on the left. For February, we are looking at a trip to Knotts, Magic Mountain, and the Santa Monica Pier as well as Six Flags Over Georgia's opening day on the 28th. I think coaster season has officially begun.
Trip report - Indiana Beach on Labor Day Weekend of 2008
I'm still getting around to posting some of my trip reports from last year. I have reviewed a large majority of the more well-known coasters I have ridden and am now trying to focus on some of the parks themselves as well as the smaller coasters at those parks. Indiana Beach was a wonderful little park that I had listed as must visit destination due to the famous Cornball Express wooden coaster. In addition to their signature ride, IB has two other woodies (The Hoosier Hurricane and The Lost Coaster of Superititous Mountain), a couple of small steel coasters (Tig'r and Galaxi) and a radical new steel coaster called Steel Hawg which features the steepest first in the U.S. I have reviewed it and Cornball already on this site so if they interest you, feel free to scroll down and read the reviews. Cornball was by far the best ride in the park with a solid 9 rating while Steel Hawg garnered a very high 7 due to uncomfortable trains. The Hoosier Hurricane is an fun little out and back design which goes out over the lake. It was great fun to ride at night but is more of a family oriented type ride than a true thrill machine. I still scored it as a solid 8 which is about a point higher than most enthusiasts would probably score it. However, I am a sucker for the forces provided by fun little wooden coasters and this one was lots of fun.
The other three coasters were well below average although for different reason. The Lost Coaster of Superstitious Mountain was a unique ride offering both forwards and backwards facing seats and a strange feel vertical lift. The problem was that we waited 45 minutes on a day in which the park was virtually empty. Terrible capacity makes this average ride lose a point or so. The other two steel coasters are simply for those who want to get the coaster credits. Tig'r is a bobsled type right without any restraints....just a lap belt and Galaxi is a typical carnival type ride with normally a long line. All three of those rides score in the 5 to 6 range as being nothing really special although the Lost Coaster is a must-ride due to the unique features it possesses.
Other rides in the park include one of the most awesome walk-through spookhouses called Dr Frankenstein's Castle. It has a slight upcharge (about 4 bucks a piece) to keep teens from tearing the place apart. The gags inside are great and the path is very long. There are no live people inside to jump out and scare you, just little gags and lots of darkness.
There is also a drop ride which overlooks the lake, a pretty fun shoot-em up ride called Den of Thieves and a beach type area with lifeguards. We paid a little of 20 bucks for an unlimited ride wristband for the late ride session and had no problems doing everything we wanted to do. We also had a great meal at the restaurant overlooking the lake.
Overall, Indiana Beach was a blast. While definitely not dirty, the park was not as neat Holiday World or Beech Bend and lacked a little in atmosphere due to all the rides being lumped together. There is very little walking necessary to get from one area to the next which is another plus. The park itself scores in the high 7 to low 8 range with it being equally good for thrill seekers and families. The Cornball Express is good enough itself for a visit.
A New Series.........
I think most of you know that I like to count stuff. It has been documented in earlier posts about how the staff here at CoasterReviews keeps up with their rides, their books read, and so on. If there is a site to count stuff, we are members.
In light of that, over the next few weeks, I will be counting down the best coaster rides I have ever taken. I received lots of positive feedback from our "Year in Review" post, so it gave me the idea of listing my ten best rides. Now, please understand this is not simply a list of top coasters. Anyone who visits the site can click on the links to the left and see out Top 20 list. No, this is something more......this is the cream of the crop (I hate cliches....sic) as far as solitary rides taken over the past 3 years. There is a wide variety in the types of coasters. They range from sleek, new scream machines to old fashioned woodies. The one thing they all have in common was that they delivered unbelievable rides.
So, when you count up the 334 coasters I have been on and multiply them by 5 (which is the approximate number of total rides I have) you end up with over 1500 total journeys on roller coasters. Of that massive number, the ten that follow are best. Number 10 should be posted later this week. Thanks for reading and Happy Blogging!!
# 10 - A Night Ride on the Boardwalk
The specific ride I am thinking of took place in the summer of 2006. This was my first summer of obsessive coaster riding and the Dipper was actually an afterthought on a day we visited what was then Six Flags Marine World. The day was ridiculously hot as California can be in the middle of the summer, and we were finished a little after lunch. To kill the rest of the day, Julia told me of an old wooden coaster in the area that she remembered riding as a little girl. We googled directions and headed off.
Once we pulled up, I immediately fell in love with the place. It reminded me so much of all those countless hours spent riding the Cannon Ball at Lake Winnie when I was young. We took a ride on the Dipper as well as the other two coasters in the park, the sky ride, and took a stroll down the boardwalk. We saved enough tickets for one more ride on the Dipper and waited until it was completely dark. That is the ride that makes the top 10 of my greatest coaster rides ever.
The station was rocking as the coaster would pull in and the riders would reach up to high five those in line as the train pulled into the station. We ended up sitting somewhere toward the middle of the train since preferential seating is not allowed and rolled into the tunnel heading up to the track. The coaster itself is totally gorgeous at night with running lights along the rails, the beautifully lit up boardwalk, and the sounds of the Pacific Ocean off to your right. I do not remember a lot about the ride, only the sense of serenity this quaint old woodie offered me during a very chaotic time of my life. It seemed that ride lasted for hours (actually only a couple of minutes) with the wind blowing through our hair, the smell of cotton candy, and the typical amusement park sounds not often heard at larger parks. It was simply a great ride and one that I will always remember and cherish as the Dipper sits rock solidly in my overall Top 20.
Now, here is the good news. During Spring Break, we are headed back out there to stay at the Carousel Hotel with the intention of spending a couple of days in the park itself. On our only two visits so far, we have only stayed for a few hours and not really enjoyed all the park has to offer. This year I am going to ride the carousel and toss the rings in the clown's mouth and put up double digits on the Dipper itself. I can only hope that we receive another ride as great as that one on my first visit to Santa Cruz.
# 2 - The World's Most Famous Roller Coaster
The Coney Island Cyclone is not simply a roller coaster. It is an American Icon and a total experience that no enthusiast (or common rider for that matter) should ever miss.
Without a doubt, it is one of the most famous coasters of all time located in one of the greatest cities in the world. The experience is like no other ride in the world today. Despite being among the most cloned coasters of all time, the original is still unique and ranked way above the others. You can read my very lengthy and detailed review as one of the first posts on this site. If you want a better account of this ride, I recommend that you go there. However, for the purpose of this post, keep in mind that my solitary ride back on July 3rd of 2008 was one of my best total experiences (not just at theme parks) ever.
I will never forget it.
8 Temmuz 2012 Pazar
# 9 - Volcano-The Blast Coaster (Spring of 2007)
Continuing on with this series, which is very enjoyable to look back on by the way, I decided on Volcano as my 9th greatest ride of all time.
Back in 2007, Julia came out for a couple of weeks during her track break and we took two outstanding trips. The first was to Virgina and back down through the Carolinas to visit King's Dominion and Carowinds. We processed our season passes at King's Dominion and had a great time there. We rode everything in the park, starting off with the now defunct Hypersonic XLC. By mid-afternoon, we had ridden everything with the exception of the Grizzly which had been down due to problems with one of the trains. We had gotten one ride in on Volcano and it instantly became one of our favorite rides. We decided to leave and go grab a bite to eat and then return that night with the intent to finish the park and get a night ride on Volcano.......on the front.
Up until this point in my coaster riding career (I was at a little over 100 total coasters), I really did not prefer one seat to another. I liked the front seat better but was really not that obsessed with waiting the extra time that a preferred seat requires. I had read on a web site however that a front seat night ride on this monster was not to be missed. We decided when we returned we would ride the Grizzly and then wait the extra time for the front seat on Volcano.
The plan went to perfection as the Grizzly was back running and we walked right on it. We then busted it across the park to Volcano and after about a 30 minute wait, we were rolling around the turn about to have one of the best rides I have ever had.
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Simply put, the speed on some of these launched coasters is unbelievable when riding the front. Since Volcano is an invert (the track is above the train) then our view was totally unobstructed. We tore out into the night at over 70 MPH, turned the curve around the mountain and then were launched straight up the volcano itself with fire bursting out everywhere. The ride was totally insane through the inversions on its way back into the mountain where we de-boarded. We were both laughing hysterically the entire time.
Our ride on Volcano was silky smooth with the huge adrenaline rush of being launched out of the station, down the dark tunnel, around the bend and then blasted straight up and out of the top of the mountain. Everything else was just gravy after that unbelievable start.
In summary, riding this coaster at night is a must for every coaster enthusiast. The launches, the special effects, the super-slow inversions, and the smoothness make this a unique experience for even the most veteran coaster rider. The good thing is that the next year I got to experience this same identical ride with Guy under the same circumstances. And just like my previous ride, this one was also a "blast".
#8 - Top Thrill Dragster - The Bug Ride (Fall of 2008)
Wow. It has been a while since I have posted anything. Hopefully, the consistent readers we have did not totally desert our site. Thanks to running races on two of the past three weekends and traveling to CA on the other, I have not been on here in a long time. In addition with fantasy basketball season ending and fantasy baseball beginning, my computer time has been spent on Yahoo Sports and CBS Sportsline. Yes, I have more than just one nerd activity; I have multiples!
Anyway, thinking back to my 8th greatest ride of all time brought back an actual audible stream of laughter. The ride took place late one night at the Coaster Capital (Cedar Point) when Guy and myself decided to wait the extra time for a front seat ride on TTD. This is normally an extra 30 minutes or so since the front has a huge line due to the nature of the ride. Out of over 10 rides we had never waited the extra time before so on this particular night we decided that the time had finally come.
Neither of us were prepared for what followed. Being that the ride is only 20 seconds or so, I personally did not think a front seat ride would offer that much more. I was wrong. While the ride goes over 120 MPH, the front seat seems much faster due to the unimpeded air that is totally slamming into your face. That, along with the intense 420 foot 90 degree drop made this a very memorable ride. However, it was the choice I made in choosing my seat that was the key decision that night. For some reason, Guy got in first. I normally enter the trains first while he goes last but on this occasion our roles reversed. By entering first he rode on the side of the train that had lights the length of the track......and bugs!
When we exited, I had maybe 5 or 6 plastered on my shirt due to our high rate of velocity. Guy had hundreds! He had bugs on his face, his glasses, and both arms. It was hilarious and he spent the next 5 minutes trying to clean bug stuff off himself.
Once this task was completed, we decided that we just had one of our greatest ride experiences. TTD is a great ride on any seat but the front takes the intensity up another level. Just don't forget to send your buddy in first!!
# 7 - Magnum XL200 - NO BRAKES!!!
I feel that as far as steel coasters go, Cedar Point is the best park in the world. Magnum XL-200 is the ride that started it all back in 1989 as the first ever coaster to crack the 200 foot barrier. It is still a great ride as evidenced by its current top 5 ranking in the Golden Tickets.
I have continued to keep this coaster in my top 20 due to a number of great rides I have taken, the best which was in the fall of 2007. This specific ride took place directly before the park was about to close. For those of you unaware, the ride operators begin to close down certain seats in the middle of the train at the end of the day. They keep the front seats and back seats open in order to keep the weight balanced and each train at least half full.
When this happens, the lower weight on the train allows the mid-course brakes at the turnaround point to not kick in which leads to an insane second half of the ride along the bunny hills. This actually happened to us on this ride (we were toward the front) and the coaster was totally out of control. My legs were actually sore from being forcefully thrown into the lap bar going over each and every hill. It was totally dark, the breeze was nice and cool, the view looking out over Lake Erie was great, and the airtime was some of the most intense I have ever had on a coaster.
That adds up to the #7 ranked ride of my life…..so far.
# 6 - Raven - Labor Day 2007
I will not go into too many details since this ride has been discussed in my review of The Raven. I will say that this little coaster does indeed pack a wallop no matter where you ride it. I actually prefer the back seat because the surprise 60 foot drop in the middle of the course is much more intense back there. However, the ride that falls #6 on the overall greatest rides of all time was our front seat night ride during Labor Day Weekend of 2007.
It was the final ride of the day and we were lucky enough to be in lap mode. We had sprinted around for one last ride and were at the head of the pack of people doing the same. We dove in the front seat line and had a total blast. There are no lights at all on the track so the entire ride was in total pitch black darkness. It was easily our best ride of the day. I only wish we would have had a opportunity to ride The Voyage at night. So far that feat has eluded us. As far as the Raven is concerned however, it is a proven fact that the woodies at Holiday World warm up as the day wears on and the best rides are given toward the end of the day. We can definitely attest to that fact thanks to this wonderful ride on a very well-respected coaster.
The Raven sits solidly at lucky number 13 in my Top 20 and this great Labor Day ride comes in at # 6 overall in my best rides ever.
# 2 - The World's Most Famous Roller Coaster
The Coney Island Cyclone is not simply a roller coaster. It is an American Icon and a total experience that no enthusiast (or common rider for that matter) should ever miss.
Without a doubt, it is one of the most famous coasters of all time located in one of the greatest cities in the world. The experience is like no other ride in the world today. Despite being among the most cloned coasters of all time, the original is still unique and ranked way above the others. You can read my very lengthy and detailed review as one of the first posts on this site. If you want a better account of this ride, I recommend that you go there. However, for the purpose of this post, keep in mind that my solitary ride back on July 3rd of 2008 was one of my best total experiences (not just at theme parks) ever.
I will never forget it.
7 Temmuz 2012 Cumartesi
Alyssa is walking
So mark it! 1st steps on March 21, 2012. Alyssa is 13 1/2 months old!
Kaitlyn's sleepover
The last Saturday in March Kaitlyn's school did a sleepover for the children who participated in the summer reading program at the public library. Her school had read the most and as a reward for that they let them have a fun evening of crafts, a movie, and a sleepover for those children who wanted to. Since last year Joe was the honored parent who got to sleep over (or rather not sleep) because I was 9 months pregnant this year was my turn. I almost dodged a bullet too because they weren't going to do the sleepover since too many children participated. But the 5th graders petitioned the principal and convinced her to do it. Honestly, I can't say I blame them. These kids are told every year that if they win (they win every year) then that's their prize. So good for those kids for standing up for what they believe in.
I have to say the whole thing wasn't quite as bad as I thought it would be. I didn't sleep great of course because I was on the floor, but I slept. And it was nice to get some time with just Kaitlyn and see her interact with her friends without any of her siblings around. She had fun and is already looking forward to next year when her brother will get to join her and Daddy gets to go back.
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| Getting all set up with her friends in the gym |
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| Reading a magazine before the fun begins |
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| Waiting for a story and some popcorn |
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| Listening intently to the "Man Team"! |
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| Getting ready to make slime |
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| Stirring her slime |
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| Kneading her slime! |
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| Stretching her slime |
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| That's some stretchy slime! |
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| 4th and 5th grade dance party before the movie |
We watched Dolphin Tale for a movie after all the story telling, slime making, and dancing was done. And then it was lights out. Kaitlyn and her friends stayed up pretty late. We got up early the next morning, had a lovely donut breakfast, and went home to see her siblings before we had to go back out for the Easter Gala. Pictures to come of that!
Kaitlyn's Clarinet Concert
Kaitlyn's 10th Birthday
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| Orange frosted cupcakes |
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| Cake |
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| Singing Happy Birthday |
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| Alyssa was singing too |
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| Blowing out the candles |
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| Reading her card |
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| I can't believe you got me this! |
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| Opening it up |
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| Her very own big girl camera! |
Natalie's 13th Birthday Party
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| cupcakes for the birthday girl |
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| After she blew out the candles |
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| Opening her gifts |
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| And she got some books |
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| And some cash |
5 Temmuz 2012 Perşembe
# 5 Boulder Dash (Lake Compounce) 7-3-2008
If there is a coaster that is completely designed to my preferences, it may be Boulder Dash located at Lake Compounce in Bristol, CT.
To begin with, it is a very smooth riding woodie. Secondly, it has a number of intense moments of airtime located throughout the course. And thirdly, it is build on the side of a mountain. That is not a typo. The lift hill actually takes the train up the mountain where it turns and plunges down toward the lake. On many rides, that contain an awesome first drop, that is the highlight of the ride and little else occurs. That is only the beginning of Boulder Dash.
The specific ride I am thinking of occurred on the night of July 4th in 2008. Julia and myself had already celebrated her birthday the day before by riding the Coney Island Cyclone and driven up to CT. We used the late entry to get in 3 rides on Boulder Dash including our final ride of the night on the very front car with fireworks going off in the background. There are no lights anywhere on the coaster so you are simply flying through the very length ride in the middle of the woods. The front seat of the coaster is by far the best on the train with wind hitting you in the face. The ride seems so much faster, as do most coasters, when riding the front car due to the lack of wind resistance.
In conclusion, the terrain coaster with a well-run station crew placed a ride in the top 5 of my all time rides. I will never forget it.
# 4 - The Beast (Kings Island) Fall of 2008
Some coasters have multiple personalities. They may be good on one, great another, and terrible on yet another. It may depend on the time of day the ride takes place, the seat on the train, or even the time of year. However, no coaster has more of a split personality than The Beast at King’s Island.
The Beast is legendary wooden coaster which is on many peoples Top 20 lists, including mine, due to its speed, length, and strong laterals in its famous double helix. It has also given me quite possible the worst ride of my life in October of 2007 on a cold day at the park’s opening. However, approximately one year later, the wooden legend delivered with a front seat night ride I will never forget.
This coaster has already been reviewed on this site and this particular ride has also been discussed. Let me add to that by saying that riding the Beast at night is an experience no coaster enthusiast should miss. There are no lights on the track and the coaster is almost two miles long. With over five minutes of ride time in the pitch black darkness in the woods of central Ohio, this coaster deserves its high ranking.
The Beast is a destination coaster that is well worth the drive and price of admission. And at night, it is almost unbeatable with my best ever ride that did not contain a lightning storm or a coaster with a soft spot in my heart. Those reviews are coming up but rest assured, I have never had a better coaster ride than this one in my life.
# 3 - The Storm Ride (Dueling Dragons) 2008
What a ride! I will not cover all of the outstanding details as this ride (as well as the next two) have been covered in my reviews of the coasters themselves. Needless to say, this particular ride (on the Ice Dragon) was as good as anything I have ever been on. The Dragons themselves ranked in my Top 20 for a while, in large part because of this ride. The outstanding woodies have taken their place and dropped them slightly out of my top ranked coasters but are still among my favorites. The storm ride was totally out of control with rain beating down me, the wind blowing and lightning flashing every few seconds. Once again for more details please read my ride review of Dueling Dragons.
# 2 - The World's Most Famous Roller Coaster
The Coney Island Cyclone is not simply a roller coaster. It is an American Icon and a total experience that no enthusiast (or common rider for that matter) should ever miss.
Without a doubt, it is one of the most famous coasters of all time located in one of the greatest cities in the world. The experience is like no other ride in the world today. Despite being among the most cloned coasters of all time, the original is still unique and ranked way above the others. You can read my very lengthy and detailed review as one of the first posts on this site. If you want a better account of this ride, I recommend that you go there. However, for the purpose of this post, keep in mind that my solitary ride back on July 3rd of 2008 was one of my best total experiences (not just at theme parks) ever.
I will never forget it.
# 1 - Millennium Force.....A Life Changing Experience
By now, regular readers of the site know that Millennium Force at Cedar Point was actually a life-changing experience for me.
Now I know those are very strong words considering that these are just roller coasters, but sometimes we have great experiences when we least expect them. I was simply getting away from some major problems in my life. I had never even heard of Cedar Point back in 2006 much less any of the specific coasters located there. Once I had my first ride on Millie, my life was forever changed and I became a coaster geek.
Please scroll down and read my Millennium Force review for more details of my favorite ride of all time. And there you have it, as I moved toward my favorite rides I discovered that many of these coasters already had detailed reviews leading to shortened down versions of my favorite rides.
Like always, thanks for checking out the site. With coaster riding season beginning again, look for more reviews, pictures, and tips in the upcoming months on coasterreviews.net.