Thanks!

Totals were Screamer 5 times, Little Dipper-3, since the ride op let us keep going around without stopping the ride, Viking Ship (dragon swing)-1, Nordic Spaceship (Gravitron)-1, Olga's Tilt-A-Whirl-1, Stockholm Raceway (go-karts)-1. All rides were walk ons or a 2-3 cycle wait at the most. They also had a "winter special" going in which an all-day pass was only $19.95, instead of the normal $22.95. Free parking was also nice. The all-day pass was well worth it. With ride tickets, my 5 rides on the Screamer alone would have been $37.50.

The main thing I wanted to talk about was how awesome the Screamer was. It is pretty intense, had great air-time on almost every drop and takes those sharp, flat turns at very high speed. I enjoyed it very much and now wish I would have rode it sooner than this. Also, the ride-op on this ride was very polite, and thanked me for buckling the seatbelt next to me the couple times my dad did not ride.

I arrived at the park around 7:45pm and the park was packed! The entire lot was full. The cars were parked up to the toll booths, along the fences around the entire park, and even out on the road by the golf course across from the park! I was happy to see that they finally had a huge crowd. The good news was that most people were leaving after a long day at the water park. It also turns out that this was the first truly hot day in west Michigan all summer.

I managed four rides in the 2hrs and 15minutes. I took a trip on Thunderhawk. About a thirty minute wait. For some reason I like this ride better at MiAdventure. It seems a little different here. I am not sure why. But its nice to have two "must ride" coasters in the park. I give it a 4 out of 5. After the ride I took the train over to Shivering Timbers.

I was in line at 8:50. Waited about 25 minutes. Got a ride in the second row. A nice air time filled ride. Bumpy as hell but a fun ride. I was able to get back in line by 9:30. Shortly after that the ride line was closed. The second ride was also a 30 minute wait. I was happy with this because I finally got a true night ride on Shivering Timbers. I waited for the front seat. The ride in front was very smooth, fast, and had a lot of pop. The ride is not nearly as bumpy in the front seat. I would give that night ride 5 out of 5!

I was just happy that I finally got my night ride after failing to get one two weeks ago. It was defintely worth the return trip.

It was cloudy all day, with rain expected late. I wasn't sure how cold it would be, but since I'd be riding coasters and flyers, I decided to wear several layers and took along a pair of gloves and 180s (the ear muff that go around the back of the head). I figure the temps stayed in the low 50s all evening, so it wasn't too cold. Certainly no reason to believe that the park would stop running either coaster.

I arrived at the park around 6:15, just as it was getting dark, and was directed to a front row parking space by the lone parking attendant. This year the park is using its regular lot instead of campground for event parking, because the campgrounds were open for the weekend. The park was shuttling people via tram from the parking lot to the campground turnaround. The tram was decorated with orange lights and corn stalks.

All of the attractions open are on the far side of the creek from the parking lot. I chose to walk in from the lot, and noticed many of the rides along the main midway are already put away or in the process of being put away for the winter. This includes the Ferris Wheel, Downdraft, Balloon Race, and Merry Mixer.

The park has benches lined up along the midway to keep people from straying into closed areas of the park, such as where the original Knoebels sign is. As I walked past the train, and then the flyers, I noticed they were all lit up and ready to go, except there were no ops to be seen. I noticed a crowd of people gathered near the handstamp booth. It turned out they were employees being given last minute instructions. I also heard something about "a quarter to seven," so I figured we were a few minutes from anything starting.

The park didn't seem to be very populated yet, but I soon saw that 90% of the people there went straight to Phoenix Junction for food. Last year, that's where they also sold tickets, but it didn't look like anything was set up there this year. I asked the young lady at the Kettle Korn booth where tickets would be sold. She directed me to the Dippin Dots stand by Fandango, and told me that the trolley car stand in front of Phoenix and the handstamp booth would also be selling tickets.

They were selling the $5 books of tickets only (the ones without the 50 cent tickets). Most rides were only slightly higher than the regular season prices. The coasters for example were both $2.50. The largest differences I noticed were for the "Haunted Train" ($2.00), and Haunted Cars ($2.50 a person, drivers AND passengers alike).

Phoenix Junction was the only stand selling refreshments. The game across from there were open as was the hillbilly themed shooting gallery, though I didn't notice too many people playing anytime I passed by. The Chalet and Christmas Shop were also open.

I noticed they had set up a few kiddie rides and attractions in the open space in front of Phoenix, notably the Helicopter and Fire Engine rides. They also set up a ball crawl with hay bales for outside walls, and a hay bale maze. The maze was only about waist high, so parents and kids could pretty much see each other at all times.

I could also "hear" Phoenix being tested (single train) and saw people starting to gather in front of the still closed gate. Within minutes, the gate was opened, and up the ramp we all went. At both coasters, tickets were being collected at the platform, rather than the beginning of the queue. Since the first two rows were already occupied, I grabbed the Schmeck seat, and our not quite full train was on its way. Not quite as fantastic a ride as at PPP, but fun and air-filled nonetheless. We returned to a totally empty station, so what else could the op do but ask if we wanted another lap? Nobody objected (duh!), so off we went again. Awesome.

I got right back in line, and went for 4-2 (row 11) since hardly anybody was going toward the back of the train. I love the different feel going through the double up/down toward the back of the train and being pulled into the drops. Still not as much as I like the second seat though.

Next I headed toward the Flyers and ran through the queue to catch the ride that was about to start. I made sure to pull my 180s over my ears (they came in handy tonight) and the ride started. Cool operator, gave long cycles tonight. I don't know if it was wind direction or what, but it seemed difficult to snap tonight. I got a few, but it wasn't a snap-fest like PPP was. But the tubs were swinging wildly. I know on several occasions, I went over the "infield," even as the ride was stopping.

After that ride, everyone else walked away, and there was nobody in line, so I gave the op my tickets and asked for another ride. Is this like the Holy Grail for flyers fans-- having a solo ride, especially a 5-6 minute ride?

In between all this, I was exchanging text messages w/ Phoenixphan, who told me he'd be at the park tonight with his partner. We finally spoke directly, and agreed to meet at the Train. For this event, the train doesn't load in the station. Instead you must follow the walkway past Twister toward the campground. The train loads just before the tunnel under the campground roads.

Although, more family friendly and not very "haunted," the train was still an entertaining ride. They had a few tableaus set up in the woods, including most of the "amusement park" that was previously in the Haunted Car ride. One new feature that I thought was creative was a set up of the kiddie hand cars that had a reclining skeleton operating the car with his feet. Of course, the train goes right through the decorated station and returns to its unloading point. I tried to get pictures of the various scenes, but didn't have too much luck between the train moving, and the shutter speed slowed down because of the darkness. I think the train could have run a bit slower to allow riders to take in more of the scenes.

After that, we rode Twister. 2 train wait, only because they wanted first row. I had row 2. I was surprised that the ride wasn't overly rough because of the cool temps. I wouldn't say it was smooth; it was rough, but in a good wooden coaster way. The other guys rode Looper while I waited out. I had enough on my one lap at PPP-- I think we went over 60 times.

I finally rode the Haunted Cars, which I passed on at PPP because of the long line. This was our longest wait of the night, but still not unreasonable. The line didn't extend beyond the queue at all. We did notice there were a few long delays between cars. I joked that maybe the people were all dead, but the truth was that some drivers just decided to go extra slow to take everything in. That's all well and good, but the problem was that bunched up traffic and probably ruined some of the effects for the cars who were riding 5 feet behind the one in front of them. Somewhat surprisingly was the number of really little kids that parents took on the ride.

I will say this ride is done extremely well. Seems like more live actors mixed in with the scenery than in past years, and they're really located well. They come out at you when your eye is directed toward something else. There are a lot of scenes and all are done really well, especially with sound and motion this year.

After that, we grabbed a quick bite @ Phoenix Junction. I went for chicken fingers, 3 pc, and hot apple cider for $5.75. Can't argue with those prices. While Phan and his partner went to Fandango, I went back to Phoenix and got my ride on 1-2. They wanted to end with Phoenix, and I didn't need my arm twisted to ride again. For my 5th and final ride, it was back to the gator, er, Schmeck seat.

With exactly $1.50 left in tickets, which was coincidentally the price of a Flyers ride, I don't need to tell you how I ended my season at Knoebels.

As a postscript, it seemed like about cars were about 3-4 double rows deep in the parking lot. Not as many people as were at PPP, but I'd say maybe half that, which isn't too bad for a limited event. I also drove past the Elysburg fire co. haunted house on my way home, and their parking lot looked full at 10:30.

I got to the park just before 5, well I should say I got to the intersection of Hersheypark Drive and Park Road. Driving along Hersheypark Drive, I noticed lights were on in the stadium and dozens of buses in the parking lot. Looked like there was some sort of band competition or show tonight, and the bands were using the section of the parking lot closest to the stadium as a staging and practice area. That meant no parking close to the park entrance, and I'd be taking the tram. Luckily I found a parking spot only a few rows from the tram stop and hopped on the tram that was waiting there. I rushed to get there, but we ended up waiting another 10 minutes or so as people came in by dribs and drabs. I figure I could have walked to the entrance quicker. Oh well.

I had brought along a camera thinking I could get some pics, then return the camera to the car. But since I wasn't parked that close, I decided against it. And I didn't want to take the camera on any of the rides with inversions or risk getting it crushed by a restraint. So no pics of the Halloween decorations or night scenes.

After maneuvering past a family who decided to block the security check for a gab fest, I got into the gate just before 5:30. At that time, far more people were leaving than entering, so while there was a decent crowd, it wouldn't be wall to wall people. I decided to make the circuit starting in Comet Hollow. There were only a few people on the ramp of Comet, to I decided to head there first. I got the next to last row. Even though the brakes were on, the ride was still pretty good. Two trains were running, but stacking wasn't that bad at all. The usual problems with all the belts and bars didn't seem as bad as usual.

Next up was SDL, which was running only one train. I went right up to the platform, and only had a 2 train wait for the back seat. I was mildly amused at all the people who didn't know which was the front and back. The 6 year old who asked was cute, the 20-something guy who didn't know, not so much. This was a fun ride, and the usual jolt at the brakes wasn't there.

After that, I headed up the hil toward Great Bear. There was a band playing Halloween themed music in the amphitheatre across from the flume. Again, no line beyond the station. I figured I might need the big boy seat because I was wearing 3 layers, including a jacket. To my dismay, rows 4 and 5 were closed off, which is where the bigger seat is located. I decided to go for Row 8, since there were only 2 young guys waiting there. To my surprise, the restraint buckled with hardly any pushing down at all. I know a lot of people prefer the front row, but I love the way you get pulled through the elements in the back row. Night rides on Great Bear rock.

Next was the downhill and up toward Storm Runner. Actually, I hadn't noticed whether it was running, not that I was closely watching. While walking down the hill I heard the familiar noise of the launch and screams, so I figured it was running. Actually, it was half running, as they were only loading from the left side of the station. Even so, the line extended only to the bottom of the stairs. It took maybe 10 minutes to go across the bridge and down into the station. As usually happens, people congregate at the bottom of the steps or wait for the front row, so they don't notice that rows 2-4 have hardly anyone in them. I ducked into Row 3 with only two people ahead of me.

One funny thing was on the train before mine, in the last row was a kid dressed like a banana. I guess Hershey has no issues with people in costume. Even the crew on the platform had to stand and watch that train get launched. I saw this same kid after my ride. There was a little girl being carried by her father walking in front of me, and when she saw this kid, she pointed at him and started singing "Peanut Butter Jelly Time."

Anyway, my ride on SR was great. Made even better by the fact that I had no issue with headbanging (which I usually never do anyway), and didn't get hit in the face with a stray broken cable.

The short lines continued at Fahrenheit. The queues closest to the stairway were maybe 1/3 full. With two trains running pretty efficiently, the wait wasn't long at all. The guy ahead of me in Row 5 let me in front of him so he could ride the same time as his friends, so my wait was even shorter. The lift is still a bit unnerving, and I like the Norwegian Loop element. The cobra still has the rattle, and the bunny hop just before the brakes still catches people off guard after all the other elements.

In previous years, the trick or treating event was held in the area around Canyon River. Since that's gone, I wondered where they had it now. Turns out it's in the area of Tidal Force and Wildcat Catering. Doesn't seem like it's as much of a walk-through as it was before, but I guess as long as the kids get candy, they don't care. They'd probably prefer just getting it all in one shot anyway with as little walking as possible.

Wildcat was rough, but not uncomfortably so. I rode toward the front for the first time in awhile (2nd row), so I noticed the air you get at the top of all of the hills. They only had 2 rows closed off, and other than the first seat, the wait was minimal.

I took 3 laps on Lightning Racer; Lightning (row 10), Thunder (Row 3), and Lightning (Row 2). Lightning won each race, but all were surprising very close. If Lightning had lost the last time, I would have blamed it on the two girls behind me who screamed the whole time. I figured the wide open mouths would increase air resistance. There's also nothing like climbing the lift hill of LR with a view of a full moon.

After my third lap, I figured I was done and started heading toward the front of the park. It wasn't even 8:00, but of course it seemed later since it was the first night after turning clocks back, and it was pitch dark by 6:00. I hadn't eaten since I had an order of fries at the hockey game, so I was getting hungry. But when I got to Fahrenheit and saw the line was only into the 4th row, I couldn't pass up another ride. This time last row. There is a noticeable difference in the airtime on the 97 degree drop just from the 5th to 6th row. I guess that's why the last row is my favorite. Altogether, I got 10 coaster rides in just over 2 1/2 hours.

I decided to eat outside the park, but get some hot chocolate and kettle corn on the way out. The kettle corn line turned out to be the longest wait of the night. There were only 2 people working the stand instead of the usual 3 or 4. While one guy popped the corn and ran for more ingredients, the woman had to fill the bags and also run back to the register to take orders. And of course toward the end of the night, a lot of people have to stop for it on their way out of the park. That mix of salty and sweet is well worth the wait though.

While it was a cool night, temps were never an issue, and everything was running except for Sidewinder, which I didn't intend to ride anyway. I like my vertebrae where they are, thank you. So now I can say I rode coasters in in November in PA, and that will hold me over until opening day next year.

On Friday 10/30, I got to the park at 9:15, it didn't seem too crowded at first with Talon being a 1 train wait but I saw it was only the top part of the park that wasn't crowded. Hydra looked to have a long line so I went to the bottom of the park going through Pirate's Passage. It was on the tamer side which I thought was good for people who didn't want to be scared too much.

Both sides of Dominator had a huge line, so I stopped at the Whip with a 1 cycle wait. Possessed was into the first switchback which looked to be around 30 minutes so I went to Steel Force. The entire set of 1st switchbacks were filled. I have never seen that long of a line except when the ride first opened. It was a 25 minute wait with 2 trains running. I also noticed there was a guard watching the line the entire time looking for line cutters whichwas great.

Walking back I went through the Gauntlet which was also tame like Pirate's Passage, again not a bad thing. Dominator's Space Shot line was down to a little under 10 minutes so I stopped there and went to Hydra which was a 2 train wait.

I had only planned to spend a little over an hour in the park since I knew I was going back Sunday and possibly Saturday, and left with spending around75 minutes in the park.

Saturday had bad weather and I figured it might be crowded anyway since it was Halloween so decided to skip it and go back on Sunday. I went to the park with my sister and got there around 3:45. The first thing I noticed was only 1 train running on Talon but it was only a 2 train wait. We walked onto Cedar Creek Cannonball and it was cool to see Thunder Canyon without water. I think Hydra was also only running 1 train because it looked to have a line past the stairs and the train was going through the circuit not enough to make it looks like 2 trains were running.

We stopped at the Whip, 1 cycle wait and Krazy Kars, 2 cycle wait. Thunderhawk also had 1 train running with a 2 train wait.

While riding Thunderhawk I saw Steel Force was running 1 train with a huge line. It looked to be at least 30 minutes. We both decided it wasn't worth the wait and skipped it this trip. It was a shame to see no coasters running 2 trains, especially since I have only seen Steel Force run 1 train on one visit, closing day 2006 which was due to weather. Possessed was a 2 cycle wait so I stopped for a ride there and we finished the day at the Carousel. It was another short trip at around 75 minutes again because we didn't have the time for a longer visit.

I was glad to get to the park twice this weekend to end the season and look forward to next season.

Ride Count for the weekend:
Talon, 2x
Hydra, 1x
Steel Force, 1x
Possessed, 1x
Thunderhawk, 1x
Dominator, 1x
Cedar Creek Cannonball, 1x
Whip, 2x
Krazy Kars, 1x

Does anyone no whats going on with Six Flags Great Adventure for next season if its going to close down or not because I'm hearing from many people that theres a good chance that the park is going to close. I'm planning to get a season ticket if it dosen't close but I would like to find out first whats going on if its going to stay open or not. Thanks.

Ride total

Nitro- 14x

El Toro- 12x

Superman- 3x

Scream Machine- 2x

Bizarro- 3x

King Da Ka- 3x

4D ride- 1x

Batman- 3x

Skull Mountain- 1x

Total- 42 rides

I had checked the closed-rides list on http://mobile.hersheypark.com as late as noon and they had everything listed as open. But when I got to the park, I saw that they had Stormrunner posted as closed. So instead of making that my first stop, I went to Great Bear. The line wasn't even out to the switchbacks in front of the station, and proved to be only about 15 minutes long for anything but the front seat. (The front seat queue, as usual, had about 10 cycles worth of people in it.) They weren't stacking trains as bad as usual, so the line stayed the same size and I took a second ride. I just don't get why people say this ride is boring. It's not tightly-wound like other B&Ms, but the openness works so well with the terrain.

Since Stormrunner was closed, the next stop, after a quick bumper-car ride (wait time 1 cycle) was Fahrenheit, which I had planned on skipping because it always has a huge line. This time the front switchbacks were only about half filled. I didn't time it, but I heard someone say they thought it was about 45 minutes. It didn't seem quite that bad, but maybe it was because it was the first time I've been in Fahrenheit's line when it wasn't unbearably hot and humid. Someone was smoking in line though, and nobody said anything. It was also the first time that I didn't notice any long pauses between dispatches. They were only running two trains though, in fact the third train wasn't even in the station. Is it out for maintenance already? The ride itself was typical. It still rattles like crazy, but since for once my brain wasn't dehydrated I didn't mind the rattling this time.

Next was Wildcat. The line was only down the final ramp into the station, so the wait wasn't too bad. The track had obviously just been greased, and the ride was the fastest I've had in a long time. Even the roll-around into the lift was flying, and took the train a long way up before it caught the chain in a way I normally only see on Twister. The shaking was tolerable for a wood fan, so I had to take a second ride.

While I was in the station waiting for my first ride, someone shot a front-seat video in full view of the operators. They weren't really paying attention, but I don't know how they could've missed it.

On to the mouse next. Again a shorter line than normal. A little more braking than normal too though.

From the mouse I went to Lightning Racer. The line was down about two ramps because they were only using one train per side, but it still moved decently. At first Lightning was winning as usual, but then Thunder got into a winning streak the likes of which I've never seen before.

After a few rides on LR, it was time to decide how to close out not just the night, but my year. Stormrunner never opened, so maybe Great Bear? But I didn't really want to walk up the hill. But what's this? There's half an hour left, but people are leaving in droves. Hmmm, maybe check Fahrenheit's line?

It turned out to be only through the tapered switchbacks at the bottom of the stairs. So not only was it my shortest Fahrenheit wait ever, but also my first night ride. Going up the lift into a starry sky was a very cool experience!

Phoenix was running exceptionally well, smooth, and just got better as the day grew longer. Some Halloween decor in the tunnel, but its all about the airtime. Twister was running very fast and furious as well, and there was never more than a wait of one or two trains.

It was nice to have a Knoebels first timer, and we all hope Carrie had a great evening, as I know it was fun to hang out in our little CB crowd. Though next time, we will get you on those flyers!

Lastly, comes the important end of night address by Dick Knoebel. It was started out by a presentation by ACE, a lifetime membership awarded to Mike Boodley. It was nice to hear a bit about his career and acheivements. This was followed by the announcement that Mike has taken on the project of finnishing the trains for Flying Turns, and that the first train is about two to three weeks out from being delivered. Dick joked that if the coaster is ready December 15th we are all welcome, but may have to shovel some snow.

In addition we heard about Black Diamond, and got to see one of the original cars on display. They are awaiting final approval on the plans, and the ground will start to move. Black Diamond is planned to be open in 2010, and they seem very excited about finnishing both coasters.

It was a great time as always, and I am looking forward to 2010!

Diamondback crew was their usual excited fun selves. I had made them FFO buttons and brought a bag of Tootsie Rolls for them and they themselves mentioned they had NO idea about the event. I suppose I shouldnt be surprised by that since apparently neither did the front gate crew. We rode 2x before heading to the Beast where we enjoyed 2 rerides, one in the front and one in the back. I must say I was dreading the back seat ride but honestly it wasnt that bad at all! It was actually alot of fun.
We decided we had better head back to GR to get our envelopes before park opened to GP. We were walking along the fountain and were no less than 20' from Skyline when a security guy came running to us telling us that side of the park was closed till 11. WTF? First off, we walked past 3 security people standing by the tower who said NOTHING to us. I stood in front of the Phantom Theater display taking pictures, nothing. Yet this other guy walks ALL the way to us to tell us that side closed? He was obviously pissed at US like we should have known that side closed? In every other "forbidden till opening" area there is a tape sign hanging-and a security guard standing right there, and as I said there were 3 security people standing under the fountain in front of Starbucks we walked right past who said NADDA. This guy made us walk all the way back to tower to other side of fountain, by now it was 10:56. We waited till the running of the bulls to go back into GR only to be told there werent any registration envelopes for either one of us, so no walk back or any of the other goodies. We did however already have our lunch E-tiks that I had purchased online when we (I thought) registered for the event

Missing the walk back was no biggie for me anyway. Besides the sucky weather making for lousy pictures, truth be known the walk backs suck since CF took over park. Give me the days it was a REAL walk back clear to the turn before the 2nd lift hill. Give me the days someone from KI talked to you during the tour giving interesting facts and information about the Beast and being happy to answer questions. Apparently those days left around the same time Maureen left
I later heard that only 14 people did the walkback anyway.

Before lunch we rode FOF, Racer, BSC, Scoobys Haunted Mansion. I took tons of pictures of anything Nick related. I didnt take alot of coaster pics except for a couple of SOB (please tell me RIP).

Lunch was at 2 at the International Restaurant. Needless to say there wasn't anyone there at 2 but more like 2:15 or so. It was without the doubt the least amount of ACEers I have ever seen eating. There was a microphone but no speaker(s) it was almost scary it was so surreal. The lunch crew that was there were great, getting the dirty plates immediately and making sure the food was all stocked up. Lunch was Skyline and maybe it's me but I cant stand that stuff and think LaRosas would have been a better idea. Naturally, hubby ate enough food to justify the 24.00 it cost us

Their PR person showed up around 2:30 or so to pass out extra perks tickets we didnt get earlier. So we did get to do the lights on tour of Carnevil and Trail of Terror. That would be the ONLY way you would get me into either one of those things!! We also had front of the line passes to a couple of the other haunts for later which we passed off to a couple of GP guests when we left.

The crowd seemed to pick up after 3pm. I jumped back on DB for one more ride. Used the single rider line (since it was just ME) but was surrounded by obvious groups who became obviously pissed when they were separated on the platform. TOUGH! I was thrilled to see my buttons on all the ops. I have always thought that the crews during events should get something to thank them for the extra hours which is why starting this year I make buttons for them. It's not much but at least it's something.

Unlike KI events of the past (Beast Bash anyone?) there was no PM ERT on anything.

Around 5:30 hubby wanted to leave and it was around that same time Mother Nature decided to shine the sun, some warmth and break out the blue skies. I was so pissed. Then I wanted to stay till closing but hubby didn't. Said he didnt feel like riding any more so we headed home.

I am far fetched to call this event an event. We could have just as easily just gone on our own any other day, not to mention using the $24.00 to get a semi-nice lunch or dinner in a restaurant away from park. I was honestly expecting the same fun we've had at other KI ACE events (yes even without Jeff or Maureen)
I know some ACEers can be Aceholes but I still dont understand why the obvious lack of communication as well as the obvious lack of respect for the group as a whole. The sad thing was I saw many ACEers with their kids whom this was their 1st KI event and they were not happy nor impressed, I felt badly for them. Again I know how some ACEers are and I am in no way defending them, but not all ACEers are like that so why make an event miserable for all?

It just seemed like a crappy final KI trip of the season for me
And for some reason Maureen was BADLY missed Saturday

Jo
Lifetime Raptor flights: 2169

Date: 10-15-09
Weather: Cold and cloudy most of the day, with temps in the upper fifties and lower sixties. A little drizzly.
Crowds: Moderate

This tr is purely academic, as this is the last weekend of the fair. It will end on Sunday, October 18. Rather than give you a blow-by-blow account like I used to do, I’ll give you each ride I rode and my thoughts on it, as well as some observations.

I went with my grandfather as usual, and took my new in-ear microphones and one of my portable recorders. I wasn’t asked about what I had on me one time, even though I had cables sticking out of my pocket and going up to my ears. Prices have gone up this year on a lot of the big-ticket rides, but down on others. The Skyway is now only 12 coupons one-way; I think it was 14 last year. The carnies were awesome as usual and there were a lot of great rides. I was not feeling good yesterday, and I am recovering from a horrible cough I’ve had for the past two weeks. I only rode one ride that flipped as well as spun, even though the Zamperla Backflash and the Kamikaze looked awesome. I love the Backflash (Wind Surf) but I didn’t feel like riding it this year as my stomach was irritating me at the time. Anyway, onto the rides.

Texas Skyway: Doppelmayer Skyway: I rode this twice round-trip. It was a great ride. Even though I’m totally blind, I still ride it. This Skyride is positioned such that you fly over every concession on the midway, and you can literally hear everything, even from a fully enclosed gondola 60 feet up. I rode it first to record the sounds, and then I rode it again later to soak up the atmosphere.

Cliffhanger: Dartron Cliffhanger. This was awesome as usual. I hadn’t ridden one of these in a few years, so it was nice to get on one. This also hasn’t been at the state fair for a few years either.

Carousel: 1914 Dentzel Carousel. This still has a fully functional band organ, which is why I rode it. Nice nostalgic experience. I rode this twice, riding free the second time because I didn’t get a jumping horse the first time.

Zero Gravity: Dartron Zero Gravity. I love this thing. It always provides a good ride. It was strange to see a bay with the strap across it and yet not have anyone in it. Wonder what was wrong with it.

Windsurfer: Wisdom Windsurfer. This is Wisdom’s version of the Flying Scooters, and my first Flyer ride. I got on with high hopes. I’d heard how a lot of you guys snap cables, and I wanted to try it. I thought you did it by making quick movements with the rudder, so I did that. Well, I hardly got anything, not even movement from the wings. These are unsnappable. I did my best too; my arms were sore for a bit afterword. Never again. I need to get out to Knoebel’s Grove some time soon so someone can show me how to snap. Maybe I’m doing it wrong, or this ride is just crap. It moved at a good speed though.

Space Roller: Mondial Top Scan. And now we come to the reason I come to this fair every year. This is my all-time favorite carnival ride, and my favorite flat ride. There is really nothing else quite like it. Sure, Power Surge is a good ride, but it pales in comparison. I always try to ride this twice. The carnie this year was an absolute maniac. I don’t think I have ever ridden this ride when it was run as crazily as it was this day. It was a nonstop assault for at least 5 minutes. I was terrified for my recording equipment. I told the attendants that this was my favorite carnival ride, and they told the op. As we were being lifted to run mode, he said, “See that guy on the end? THis is his favorite ride here.” It was cool. The poor girl on one of the other arms was screaming with terror the whole way through. Hilarious. He offered me a free second ride, but I actually turned him down. I didn’t think I could stand another assault like that. It was that good. I’d love to see how those maniacal German showmen run the Top Scan rides they have. If it is anything like this, well, it’ll be awesome. I didn’t make it back there, even though I told him I would. Until next year, guys. That was the best Top Scan ride I have ever had. Keep up the good work.

Lumalusion: Bill Tracy darkride. I always ride this when I go. It has a special place for me, as back in 1996, I rode it after getting off the Huss Pirat andn I continue to ride it, even though it doesn’t do anything for me, as I can’t see the stunts. The AC wasn’t on in all the rooms this year, which I found odd. But then again I don’t think it was needed.

King’s Circus: This is my favorite funhouse. This is really the best one there is anywhere. It is 4 stories of good clean fun. I just wish that the conveyor belt on the second floor was working. It never is. We had an incident at the end where I got the rolling barrel illusion confused with the actual rolling barrel. I had forgotten that the “hamster wheel” was after the slide and I had bypassed it. I hate those stupid barrels; I always try to bypass them whenever possible.

Skycoaster: a partial ride. I chickened out on this one. This was one of the 180-foot ones, transplanted from Six Flags Fiesta Texas. I have done two different Skycoasters seven different times, and when you’ve done one, you’ve done them all. I feel the novelty has worn off for me somewhat. Plus, they still scare me even though I know what to expect by now. I had forgotten what these things felt like and how scary it was to get suited up. I got suited up and decided to go ahead and go solo. Then I got terrified when I was led up the rolling stairs to meet the cables. He had me hooked up to the hoist cables before I decided to back out. Even though the two pretty girls in front of me offered to let me ride with them, I turned them down. Plus, I didn’t feel safe with that crew, as they did not follow standard Skycoaster protocol. “When you get to the top, you will feel yourself stop. Then we’ll yell at you to pull the ripcord from down here. If you don’t hear us, wait 5 seconds.” No, guys, I’d rather you say “3 2 1 fly” over a loudspeaker like you’re supposed too. That’s it; I’m getting out of here. A small bonus is that I got to touch the cables, which was a neat thing to do. I still have a goal of getting to Old Town one day to ride the 300-foot Skycoaster, though I don’t see how I can ride it if I got scared of this one. Plus, there is to me an extra element of scariness added when you can’t see what’s happening. Luckily, they gave me my coupons back. I have a hearing disability as well, and that’s part of why I freaked out. Being yelled at to pull the ripcord with no amplification is ridiculous. How are people supposed to hear you even if they have all of their hearing? Sure, they tell you to wait 5 seconds, but how do you know they are still doing the final checks? I didn’t like the way this was run at all. At least they were nice about it.

Sparkletts Splash: Arrow log flume. Yes, there is an Arrow log flume on the fairgrounds. And they open it even in cold weather. Luckily, it usually is not a very wet flume. I got wetter than usual this year for some reason. There was no sun out until we were leaving, so I was a little cold after that one. I rode it twice. My mics survived, lucky for me. I got sprayed right in the face with one of the misters, and I got water in the log on the drop, so I got my feet wet. This is still the only log ride I know of where you can get a log to yourself on a slow day. They will also stop the conveyor for you so you can get into a log if they don’t have many riders.

Flying Carpet: Now here’s something one-of-a-kind. This is one of those old little classic funhouses that still has a flying carpet slide at the end. You know, the one where the bench you sit on collapses and you bounce between conveyor belts. I wonder where the state fair got this from, as it is now a permanent ride there.

Indiago: Mondial Supernova. I hadn’t ridden this thing in a few years, so decided to give it a go. I forgot how wild this could get. The sensations are great, and the rotations are unpredictable. I liked it a lot, though it agitated my stomach a bit.

Crazy Mouse: Reverchon Crazy Mouse. Enough said. Standard ride with good spinning.

Zillerator: Pinfari Zyklon. This is Rye Playland’s old Zyklin, now traveling with Butler Amusements. This year it was running above average with only a few jolts. A huge pet peeve I have with this ride is that it has single-position buzz bars, which I don’t think are necessary. Seatbelts seem to be fine for other shows; why can’t these people put seatbelts on this one? It also makes for a tight fit, even for a skinny person like myself.

Mega Drop: Fabbri drop tower. This ride is always great. Great airtime in a small package. And if you ride with your arms and legs straight out, it is even better. One of my mics flew out of my ear on this one. Luckily, the mic cables are connected to each other so there was nothing lost. I have to commend the Sound Professionals for sticking them together. I don’t know where the other one would be otherwise.

Overall, this was a great trip as usual. I always love going to this fair. There were a lot of rides that I chose not to ride, as they will be at a carnival I will be going too in about 3 months. The Fabbri Hard Rock just doesn’t sound appealing to me. I wonder why there were only two ever made. Grandpa kept trying to convince me to ride it, but I chose not too. I didn’t feel like riding the Mondial Shake though I love it. If I was feeling fine, I would have. There was also just too much there for me to ride in one day. I hate Musik Express-style rides, so of course I didn’t do the Love Bugs, Sleighride, or Alpine Bobs. Wind Surf is a good ride, but I didn’t feel like riding it. However, I felt like I got a lot done, and I rode some good rides. I really want to get out to the Florida State Fair some time in the future as that looks like one of the best midways in the country. There was also both a Gravity Works Skyscraper and a Fabbri Booster together on the Thrillway. Capriolo wasn’t there this year, and let’s face it, the Mondial Capriolo is the only good ride in that genre. Once you’ve ridden one of those, you’ll see what I mean. Booster is an abomination. I chose not to ride the Gravity Works one. It was the newer model with the ots restraints. I figured I wasn’t missing anything.

Thanks for reading.

John Moore

I got to the park at 5:15, and saw there were maybe 200 cars. Kingda Ka was either testing so even though it and Scream Machine (which was running with riders) were on the closed rides board I went there first. It was closed because of the weather (it was drizzling a little).

Rolling Thunder ended up being the first ride of the day. Only the right side was open with just the red train running but it was still a walk on. From Rolling Thunder I saw El Toro was running 1 train with a station wait.

I went to Bizarro next, 2 trains running and it was a 1 train wait. The fire was on today and the shield mists either weren't on as strong or it was the wind blowing it away so it wasn't that bad today especially since it would have been horrible with it cold and windy out. I got 3 rides only having to walk around once.

Runaway Mine Train was running 1 train but was another walk on. The Skyway was closed but that was to be expected.

Nitro was going to be the next ride but it was closed and the excuse was weather. They said they weren't sure when it would re-open. That didn't sound good and I was really looking forward getting a lot of rides in.

I went to Skull Mountain, 2 trains running and just enough people that you had to change seats after each ride. I got 3 rides and saw Nitro was now running with 2 trains with a station wait. When I went back for a 2nd ride, the line was a little down the stairs and when I walked past the line after that ride the line was getting close to the 60 minute sign. I guess it may not have been open at all before that so everyone went to it when it opened.

The Dark Knight had a small wait outside but I got into the next pre-show. There was a small delay with the ride so the line after the pre-show had not moved and after it ended, the line was backed up not moving at all. After a few minutes it started moving but ended up being about a 20 minute total wait (5 minute pre-show, 15 minutes in line) which was the longest wait of the night.

I stopped at Blackbeard's which now has a permanent queue with 2 switchbacks and another set of switchbacks that can be used if necssary with rope. I got 1 ride in the front and another in the last row.

Scream Machine had 2 trains running with a completely empty station so I went for the front. Not rough at all today, so I moved to the 3rd row for a re-ride.

Superman also had 2 trains running, the line was 15 minutes. They weren't using the switchbacks but when the line got longer they decided to use them and this allowed a group of 7 or 8 to cut in line right near where I was. Another group of 3 confronted them and the cutters gave the excuse that they were from the hood in Philly and not to start up with them. The group of 3 told security what happened but the cutters weren't thrown out of line or even talked to.

I saw Kingda Ka was running and expected a huge line but was shocked to find a station with some empty rows. Only the right side was open. The back train only had a 3 train wait for the front but considering how much Scream Machine was annoying with rain in the front row and knowing if the rain picked up Kingda Ka would be closed, I decided to just take an empty row. I went back for another ride again picking an empty row.

I was going to go back to Nitro but saw the line was past the 60 minute sign. With 2 trains running that had to be around 30 minutes and it didn't seem worth it since I had already been on the ride today and went back to Skull Mountain which was still a walk on and got a re-ride. I went back to check Nitro's line and it was now up to the snack bar but saw that not 2 but 3 trains were running so the line would move fast. It was only 10 minutes. By the time I exited the ride, I saw the line was a little past the stairs a few minutes later was a station wait so I went for another ride.

It was almost 10:00 and even though the park was open another hour I was getting kind of tired so decided to leave. I'm glad the rain held off for the most part and crowds were very light.

Ride Count:
Nitro, 4x
Skull Mountain, 5x
Bizarro, 3x
Runaway Mine Train, 1x
Rolling Thunder Right, 1x
Superman, 1x
Blackbeard's, 2x
Scream Machine, 2x
The Dark Knight, 1x
Kingda Ka, 2x

I bought my dad a senior ticket on KBF's website for $15, which was actually $18 after fees. Still a good deal since it would have been $23.99 at the park. Also at the end of the day, two ride ops on the Silver Bullet were talking. One of them said that he asked to be transferred from the Pony Express to a different ride because he was sick of arguing with guests about the loose article policy and also because most of the people who ride PE get back to the station and start talking about how much they disliked the ride. I found this amusing because my dad and I were talking about PE earlier in the day after we rode it. Today was the first time my dad had ever rode it and I have been telling him how bad it was since I rode it last May. My dad agreed with everything I have been telling him about how it is the worst coaster I have ever rode and how unbelievable it is that PE and Terminator Salvation, which we love, cost the same amount of money. My dad also rode Sierra Sidewinder for the first time today. We both think that one is a lot of fun and rode it 8 times today.

We also took a look at the Xcelerator, but there isn't very much I can report. There was some kind of yellow brace on the track, near an area where some of the fins have been removed. There is also a long section of track which has been removed from the brake run. Also, the trains appear to have been partially dismantled.

Here is the day in order:

GhostRider: twice, walk ons. Only switched rows.

Sierra Sidewinder: 3 times, walk ons. Only switched rows. My dad first times riding it. He enjoyed it very much.

Silver Bullet: twice, walk ons. Only switched rows.

Jaguar: twice, walk ons. Stayed in our seats.

Montezooma's Revenge: twice, walk ons. Only switched rows.

La Revolucion: twice, walk ons. Stayed in our seats.

Waveswinger: once, walk on.

Dragon Swing: once, walk on.

Supreme Scream: twice, walk ons. Stayed in our seats.

Boomerang: twice, walk ons. Sat in back then moved to front row.

Timber Mountain Log Ride: once, walk on.

Calico Mine Ride: once, walk on.

GhostRider: twice, walk ons. Only switched rows.

Silver Bullet: 3 times. Twice without leaving our seats then moved to front row.

Sierra Sidewinder: twice, walk ons. Only switched rows.

Montezooma's Revenge: twice, walk ons. Front row then moved to back.

Jaguar: once, walk on.

La Revolucion: once, walk on.

Supreme Scream: twice, walk ons. Stayed in our seats.

Boomerang: once, walk on.

Pony Express: 3 times, walk ons. Stayed in our seats twice, then switched rows. My dad first times riding it and the park was deserted so might as well ride it, since it is a coaster. You probably already read what we think of it. Check out my ranked track record if you like. Hint: start at the bottom.

GhostRider: twice, walk ons. Only switched rows.

Silver Bullet: 3 times, walk ons. Stayed in our seats twice, then moved to front row.

Sierra Sidewinder: 3 times, walk ons. Stayed in our seats.

Montezooma's Revenge: twice, walk ons. Front row then moved to the back.

Jaguar: once, walk onto front row.

Supreme Scream: twice, walk ons. Stayed in our seats.

Boomerang: once, walk on.

Silver Bullet: once, walk on. Park closed while I was on the ride.

53 total rides: GhostRider-6, Sierra Sidewinder-8, Silver Bullet-9, Jaguar-4, Montezooma's Revenge-6, La Revolucion-3, Waveswinger-1, Dragon Swing-1, Supreme Scream-6, Boomerang-4, Timber Mountain Log Ride-1, Calico Mine Ride-1, Pony Express-3

I got to the park around 5:45 and saw Superman was a walk on from the lot so I knew unless it got a lot more crowded as the day went on, lines would not be an issue.

First ride of the day was Nitro. 3 trains running and a 1 train wait for the front row. After that I stayed on for 5 more rides only having to move seats a few times.

I got to the Dark Knight as they were letting people into the pre-show. The room has about half full. Since there was no one waiting, I got another re-ride.

Blackbeard's had 3 people in line and since I haven't ridden it in 3 months, I stopped for a ride.

Skull Mountain had a half empty station, no soundtrack today but the skull figure and pumpkin in the final helix are lit again. I guess they only shine light on them for Fright Fest now. I got 4 rides, changing seats once.

Before going to Skull Mountain I saw the Skyway had about a 15 minute wait, now it was only a 5 car wait so I took it over to Frontier Adventures. The Log Flume is done for the season which is understandable, it's just too bad it wasn't open tonight since it was around 75 out.

Runaway Mine Train was a walk on, 4 rides only having to walk around once. Bizarro had 3 trains running but was closed for a few minutes because someone got a nosebleed on the ride and they weren't letting anyone into the line. Around 5 minutes later it opened, and then it was a 5 minute wait in the station. The soundtrack sounded different today. I thought I heard "The Wheels On The Bus" near the corkscrews. The auger of doom looks cool lit up at night.

I walked by El Toro, saw it had a station wait and went to Rolling Thunder. Both sides were open until walking up the left side's line, they were about to close it down so I got on the last train of the night on the left side. No one was in the station so I grabbed the front row and almost had a solo ride until 3 or 4 other people entered. Then I went to the right side and walked onto the front row there as well. The op referred to the yellow and red trains as ketchup and mustard. I don't know if those are unofficial names like trains on Kingda Ka have or he just made up those names.

Kingda Ka only had the right side open and had a packed station. Just to get to the area to choose a row took a few minutes. The total wait was around 15 minutes which was the longest wait of the night. The front row lines looked to be at least 45 minutes. I was going to go back to the ride later in the night and see if it was shorter for re-rides, but I ran out of time.

Fly Me To The Moon is gone again for Elvira. 10 minute wait or so, it was a really good film and I hope they get rid of Fly Me To The Moon next season.

Scream Machine was only running 1 train which was all that was needed. I stayed on for 2 rides and heard lots of negative comments some people saying they wish they hadn't even rode the coaster.

Superman was running 2 trains and was a walk on except for the front. I got the last row and stayed for a re-ride but at the end of the 2nd ride, before the seats lowered, an op took some kind of metal rod and had to go to the back of the train with it. I'm not sure what happened. Even though it only took 2 or 3 minutes, it was horrible with your head tilted down like that. It makes me wonder how horrible it would be to be on the ride like that when it has broken down for 15 - 20 minutes or longer.

With all the talk of Houdini opening up again, I decided to check out the ride. The garden queue was really nice and it was about 5 minutes to get into the pre-show room. That room was great and I thought it was up to Disney quality. The actual ride itself was too disorenting for me. I wasn't expecting that to happen since I had been on the similar ride at Dutch Wonderland but I guess because this was more "complex" compared to Dutch Wonderland's version I felt kind of strange afterwards.

It was 10:35 at this point and with only 25 minutes left I decided to finish the night at Nitro. 2 trains were running now but most of the rows were empty. I got 5 rides before the park closed.

It was a very exhausting trip to the park tonight getting so many rides in 5 1/4 hours but it was so much fun not dealing with lines. I just hope the next 2 Friday nights are just as empty.

Ride Count:
Nitro, 11x
Skull Mountain, 4x
Blackbeard's, 1x
Scream Machine, 2x
Superman, 2x
The Dark Knight, 2x
Runaway Mine Train, 4x
Rolling Thunder Right, 1x
Rolling Thunder Left, 1x
Elvira, 1x
Houdini, 1x
Skyway, 1x
Bizarro, 1x
Kingda Ka, 1x

My coaster enthusiast dad, who got me started riding when he took me to MM for the first time in 1983, went with me for the first time since 12/2/07. Due to a long line of serious health problems he had been taking care of my mom. My mother was never a coaster or park lover but she always liked to listen to me tell her my stories about my visits. I feel somewhat sad typing this right now because I normally tell her about my visits before I post them here, but after struggling with detioriating health since March, 06, she passed away on 9/27/09. My dad has been unable to visit MM with me because he was her primary caregiver. He is 65 years old and still riding everything that I do. I hope I can still do this when I am his age. He sat out a few here and there today, but still rode every coaster which I did.

OK, back to the fun stuff. I used the $9.99 friend admission ticket in my value back to get my dads ticket. We did not use a Q-bot, since the park was nearly empty. I also used my Xtreme pass to get 25% off of our meal. For 2 meals and 2 sodas it was only $20. Although food at a park is always expensive, I think that this is a relatively decent price for 2 people to eat. I also bought a X2 t-shirt and a Tatsu t-shirt, using the buy-one-get-one-free coupon in my value book. This made it only $16 for 2 shirts, which I think is a very good deal. It drizzled on our way there and a little bit during the day, but not enough for any ride closures, so no big deal. It started raining fairly hard around 6:30, while we were in the souvenir shop, but since the rides were closed and technically the park was too, it didn't matter. I always look at the shops after the park closes so that it doesn't cut into my ride time.

Here is the day in order:

Tatsu: once, walk on

Terminator Salvation: twice, walk ons. My dads first rides on TS. He loved the air-time, speed and banked turns. He said that the ride felt much faster than it actually is, which I have thought myself. He also liked the theming of the queue and the sound effects and flame effects very much.

Deja Vu: twice, walk ons. Front row 2nd time.

Terminator Salvation: once, walk on

Tatsu: once, 10 mins.

Superman: 3 times, walk ons. On 2nd and 3rd rides, didn't leave the train.

Tatsu: once, 10 mins.

Revolution: once, walk onto front row.

Viper: twice, walk ons. Only had to switch rows.

X2: 3 times. 10 mins, then 2 walk ons. My dads first rides since the remodel. Loved the new paint job, flame throwers and sound effects. Also thought the new trains looked "cool", and enjoyed the big video screen in the station. He said he wanted to get one to watch football on.

Canyon Blaster: twice, walk ons. Just for the heck of it.

Goliath: once, 20 mins. Longest line of the day.

Colossus: once, 5 mins. If anybody wants to know, they are running the backwards trains on the left track. Ride was not nearly as rough as when I rode it in August.

Scream: twice, 10 mins, then walk on.

Batman: 3 times, walk ons. Didn't leave the station.

Riddler's Revenge: twice, 5 mins, then walk on.

Gold Rusher: twice, didn't leave our seats.

Terminator Salvation: twice, walk ons.

X2: once, walk on.

Totals: X2, 4 times, Revolution-1, Viper-2, Tatsu-3, Superman-3, Terminator Salvation-5, Deja Vu-2, Gold Rusher-2, Riddler's Revenge-2, Batman-3, Scream-2, Colossus-1, Goliath-1, Canyon Blaster-2

This weekend was the start of Fall Break for my school system. My family didn't have anything planned for this week-off, so I convinced my dad to take my friend, Easton, and me on a 6-hour trip south to Six Flags Over Georgia. Dad's friend, Chris, came along, too--there was a baseball card show in Nashville that they were interesting in visiting on the way there.

While stopped outside of Nashville on Saturday, we caught a showing of Zombieland. Very good movie! I enjoyed almost every minute if it; there were many laugh-out-loud loud moments. However, it was a bit more gory than I was expecting (I know, I know...). There was a scene towards the beginning of the film involving a seatbelt and pavement that I was REALLY hoping they would cut off about ten seconds before it did...but that didn't happen. Besides that, I was really satisfied leaving the theater. I'm sure you all will think it's a lot of fun! Oh yeah...and Amber Heard is really hot. Even as a killer zombie.

We arrived in Austell/Atlanta around 1am EDT, and got a room at the Baymont Inn right up the hill from the park for around $70. (Goliath looked absolutely MASSIVE when driving by it). I would definitely recommend staying at the Baymont---the room was very clean, breakfast was nice and complimentary, and they offered a free shuttle to-and-from the park. We took the shuttle down to SFOG around 10am on Sunday morning, and arrived just as the gates opened. There were about 30 other people entering the park.

It was about 65-degrees out, and clouds filled most of the sky. Coasters were surrounding us before we even got inside. I hadn't visited the park since 2002, so with the addition of Goliath, the whole area looks completely different. All three rides in site (Cyclone, Goliath, and Scorcher) were already testing. We entered through the turnstiles and, immediately seeing that the path to the left side of the park was still roped off, headed right to the Georgia Cyclone.

Ride Reviews
Georgia Cyclone- This was my 3rd visit to SFOG, and 2nd time riding the Cyclone. The coaster opened about 15 minutes before the rest of the park, and since hardly anyone was there, we walked on to the second-to-last row of the train (my favorite place to sit on most coasters)...It was really good! While the coaster was fairly rough, and the trains shuffled like crazy through the turns, the airtime was consistently strong, and the layout was very long and unpredictable. I was shocked at the amount of time I spent out of my seat. There is one trim about midway through the ride, but it didn't effect the speed much. I was really impressed with the ride, especially after remembering hating it back in 2002. 7.5/10

Georgia Scorcher- I have always loved stand-up coasters, and this is definitely one my favorites (along with the TOGO stand-up at CW). We rode this right at park opening, and barely missed a walk-on to the last row. The trains were barely stacking all day. Airtime is really fun to experience while standing up, and the Scorcher provides plenty of it. I prefer it's first drop to Chang's and Mantis', even though it is quite a bit shorter. The layout is short but sweet---very fun and quite forceful, for a B&M. I really wish more of these would be made! 8.5/10

Goliath- Goliath was my second B&M hyper, the first being Diamondback, and I'm having a hard time desiding which one I liked more. I feel that Diamondback has a bit more and stronger airtime, but Goliath is more forceful and action-packed (especially that crazy helix!). Nevertheless, both are amazing coasters, and their trains/restraints are some of the best ever designed. There was never more than a station wait for our 3 rides. 10/10

Mind Bender- Though there are many great coasters at SFOG, this was definitely the one I was looking forward to the most. I fell in love with this coaster back in 1998, and it has been one of my favorites ever since. Sadly, they have plastered advertisements all over the ride, but that doesn't take away from it too much. We walked on to the back seat, pulled down our lap bars (the minimal restraints are great), and were off.

The train made a loud, strange sound as it engaged the lift, and then continued VERY SLOWLY to the top, where we came to a near-complete stop. Soon enough though, the train crest the top, soared down around a swift turn, and then dropped into the first loop. There were lots of things that I noticed on the ride that I never had before. First of all, most of the drops offer a quick snap of ejector airtime, and then end in a long, drawn-out valley. It feels really strange going from such elongated pull-outs, straight into the quick, circular loops. Also, after the first loop, the track shifts to the left a bit, making for a very weird-feeling transition up into the second turnaround. The coaster seemed a bit rough in the back seat, too, but was much smoother on our second ride in the next-to-last row. Overall, we really enjoyed our rides, and it remains one of my Top Ten steel coasters. 9/10

Batman: The Ride- Though it is cloned at many parks, and I have ridden multiple versions of it, this one is my favorite of them, for some reason. The theming in the queue line/station is really cool, and Six Flags seems to be doing a fairly good job of maintaining it. Easton and I grabbed a seat in the front, after a one train wait, and quickly took off up the lift. I had forgotten how intense this thing was! The whole ride is so tightly packed and quickly paced, at times we couldn't see the track in front of us! My feet were actually tingling when we hit the brake-run, and Easton made the comment to me that he thought he had blacked out. (Luckily, it was just the darkness of the Batcave...) 8/10

Monster Mansion- After that non-stop string of coaster riding, both of us needed a bit of a break. I wasn't a big fan of the Monster Plantation back in 2002, but I had heard the remodeling was worth checking out, so we hopped in the 5 minute line. I ended up being completely blown away.

*SPOILER ALERT:* This instantly became my favorite dark ride of all time. I'm usually not a fan of these cheesy types of things, but this was excellent. The theming was great throughout, and the whole "Stay out of the Marsh!" storyline was really entertaining. There was a great combination of mist, lights, darkness, sound, and even bubbles that really made the ride a lot of fun.

No matter how old you are or who you are with, this is an instant classic that is not to be missed! 9/10

Acrophobia- That break didn't last long. After Monster Mansion, we headed to Acrophobia--one of my favorite drop towers. At only (yes, only) 200ft, this ride may not seem like much. However, there are a couple surprises in store for you that aren't evident from off the ride. I hate to spoil the fun for any of you who haven't ridden it, but I assure you, there is no way to imagine how scary this ride is until you actually ride and reach the top. At the highest point on the tower, your seat tips forward about 15*, which is a LOT steeper than it sounds. Now you are facing the ground, with literally nothing keeping you from plummeting into the concrete hundreds of feet below except for a shoulder harness and a thin seatbelt. I've never been so delightfully terrified in my entire life...and it was great! Oh yeah, and the drop was pretty scary, too. 9/10

Dahlonega Mine Train- I've ridden many mine trains, and compared to the others, this is a pretty decent one. It is no where near as intense as ThundeRation or Adventure Express, but it's still fun and mildly interesting. The ride's finale is good, sitting near the back of the train. 6/10

Superman: Ultimate Flight- This ended up being one of our favorite coasters of the trip! I rode this back when it first opened in the spring of 2002, but had completely forgotten how awesome of a ride it was. The first drop is great, the pretzel loop is very intense, and the whole Metropolis area is set up so that you have no idea the inline roll exists until you experience it. We rode this twice, waiting about 20 minutes both times (longest wait of the day). The ride truly is massive and towers over the surrounding area, and riding in the front row makes you feel like you are really flying. Great ride! 10/10

Great American Scream Machine- GASM used to be my #1 coaster, and I was reminded of why on Sunday. The buzzbars are great, and I spent much more time out of my seat than in it. There were even a couple instances of near-ejector air, which was really unexpected! Too bad the ride is so rough...it truly is a fun classic. 7.5/10

Ninja- The Ninja is my last coaster to review (sadly, Canyon Blaster was closed for our visit ). Now that I'm am tall enough so that my head rises far above the OTSR, I have a very high tolerance for Arrows and Vekomas. Riding in the back car of the train, the coaster wasn't too rough, the layout seemed pretty decent, and the headchoppers were INSANE! I had never felt so much fear of losing a limb on a coaster before. Overall, it really wasn't that bad---in fact, we ended up riding twice in a row. I just wish he would stop trying to dump me out of the train when entering the last three inversions... 6/10

Food
We only ate one meal while at the park. I paid a little over $14 for a large plate full of food and a regular Diet Coke at Panda Express. This Chinese restaurant is definitely becoming one of my favorites at amusement parks, because of the great amount and quality of the food you receive. Yes, it's expensive, but well worth it compared to anything else Six Flags has to offer. It does bother me that I could get the same thing at a Cedar Fair park for $2 less.

I also paid over $6 for a regular sized vanilla cone at Ben & Jerry's, which was really a rip-off. Luckily, it tasted really good, and I had saved quite a bit of money by drinking free ice water all day.

Overall Experience
Around 3:30, I got a really bad migraine headache that forced us to leave the park early. We got our hands stamped in hopes that I would get to feeling better, and be able come back that night to truly experience Frightfest. Sadly, that didn't happen, as I continued to get more and more sick as the night went on. I felt really bad about dragging Easton all the way down there for just 5 hours of riding, but we still had a great time, and he, Dad, and Chris went to see The Invention of Lying while I rested in the hotel room.

Besides that, I really enjoyed my visit to the park. GASM was the only coaster in the park that wasn't running multiple trains, and it never had more than a 10 minute wait, anyway. The park was completely decked-out in Frightfest scenery, and it looked to be a really good event. The pathways seemed really clean, and the entire park had a beautiful setting with great scenery and landscaping. For the most part, the employees were working swiftly and seemed to be focused on their jobs.

While the park could use more in the way of flat rides, the quality of attractions it does offer is very good. While there are things that could probably be improved, I didn't pick up on many of them. This visit reassured my feelings of SFOG being my favorite Six Flags park, and I will definitely be back next fall to give Frightfest another try.

Thanks for reading!

Arrived at about 3PM with a friend (coaster fan) and my b/f (coaster-phobe) to a largely empty park. This would not change throughout the day odd considering how absolutely beautiful its was all day (see also, YoshiFan post).

Every ride was a walk-on or a one train/cycle wait, except for the wild mouse, which we decided to ride when hydra was closed sometime around 430ish. Also, at one point we found completely empty stations for both Talon and Steel Force.

Ride Count:
Talon - 3x
Hydra - 1x
Steel Force - 3x
Possessed - 2x
Wild Mouse - 1x
Dominator (Upshot) - 1x
Revolution, Musik Express, Wave Swinger, Ferris Wheel, The Whip all - 1x

As for the Haunts, most were OK to good. Some had lines though the longest we waited was about 15 minutes for the first one (Asylum) and many others were also walk-right-in (after the standard disclaimer of not touching the actors.) Pirates Passage wasn't scary, but was so thick with fog that you kept just running into people and the actors were really having fun.

The Corn-Stalkers trail was quite good; plenty of hiding spots for the actors. And the Backwoods camp trail was fun (if somewhat short, i thought). Death Trap, was probably the most disappointing along with the Headstone Hollow (which just seemed under staffed and under fogged) As for the houses, Club Blood had the best atmosphere, though none were truly "scary" - or maybe i'm just old and jaded. Lots of strobe lights in mirrored rooms (standard but effective).

All in all, it was a pretty great day!

Talon was first, the trains were going out with single digit riders and no wait except for the front. I got 3 rides in and went to Hydra next, walking past the Wild Mouse seeing it was around a 10 - 15 minute wait.

Hydra was only running 1 train, and the line looked to be around 20 minutes. Not worth it so I skipped it for now and hoped the line would be shorter later.

Dominator (Turbo Drop) was a 1 cycle wait so I rode twice and was going to stop at Thunderhawk since it was closing soon (it closes at 5 along with a bunch of other rides). Only 1 train was running and it appeared it is going to be like that the rest of the season since the 2nd train wasn't on the transfer track and in past years that meant 1 train operations until next season. It looked to be around 15 minutes and I didn't feel like waiting and went to Steel Force.

On the way to Steel Force I looked at the new camp themed Haunt attraction that looked kind of cool (maybe on another trip I'll check it out). 2 trains running and most rows were a 1 train wait except for the front. Every time the train dispatched the op on the mic would say call it a different ride, saying "Enjoy your ride on Thunderhawk" for example. Some people took him seriously. From the helix I saw they had closed Hydra temporarily to add a 2nd train. I got 3 rides and went to Possessed.

The trains were going out 1/3 full, and stopped for 4 rides went back to Hydra which was now a walk on. 2 rides and I went back to Talon for 2 more rides. Even though it was 6:00 at this point, the park was still not crowded and not many people entering which made no sense as it was a really nice day with low 70's and sunny skies. I saw the Haunt attraction in the arcade had a long line so maybe the Haunt attractions later on had lines but the rides really didn't.

I was going to stop at the new shooting gallery but before I put $1 in the bill acceptor, I saw one of the stations had 3 credits in it and no one was around so I played on those credits instead. I'm glad I didn't have to pay because it was in horrible shape compared to earlier in the season. Only 1 or 2 of the targets worked and none of the targets registered as being hit (my accuracy % was 0%, 4% and 0% even though I had very few misses). Most of the targets did nothing when hit and didn't register as being hit. The cannons that spray mist had a little water drip out of it. I really hope they fix it since it basically unplayable now and was a lot of fun earlier in the season when it was working properly.

Ride Count:
Talon, 5x
Hydra, 2x
Dominator, 2x
Steel Force, 3x
Possessed, 4x

We got to the park at about 2pm, and along with some canned goods and my Knott's Platinum Pass, I got Mom in for only $16. The weather was absolutely gorgeous in the upper 70s with a beautiful blue sky full of sun and a nice, gentle breeze. The parking lot was not very full at all. There was a new woodie to ride and some of my local coaster friends were going to be there. It was going to be a great day.

We headed straight for Prowler and were greeted with 2-train operation and about a 10-minute wait. I had low expectations for the ride, as I find most GCI's to be rather tame, but I was really hoping this one would impress me and fill a void left ever since Zambezi Zinger was ripped out. I tend to be a backseat rider and expected that would deliver the most action on this ride, so we took our first ride in the final row. Little tidbit I noticed before the ride even began—Prowler has the only Millennium Flyer trains I know of that have individual seatbelts instead of the usual single belt across both riders on every other set of Millennium Flyer trains I’ve encountered. On to the ride…

Just as I predicted, the first drop kind of sucks. It’s short, drawn out and doesn’t really offer any airtime or lateral kick, but I like the turn at the bottom and you get a nice pop of air going up the second hill, another turn then it really picks up with the drop into the ravine, which is where the camera. After that, the ride is non-stop quick bursts of airtime and laterals and maintained speed. The turnaround is the only part that is kind of slow and that’s only by comparison to the rest of the ride, which is not slow by any means. In fact, the second half is just as good if not better than the first half. The final drop into the ravine followed by the twisting double-up is FANTASTIC and the train maintains good speed and laterals through the s-curve to the smooth magnetic brakes. It’s definitely one of the better endings on any coaster. I liked it a lot, but what about the trees?
Buried in the woods, the coaster is not. They did a better job than I expected of keeping trees, but the “forest” is a little thin and doesn’t really cover the ride the way Zinger was. The turnaround is kind of open to the back parking lot and most of the “out” run is along the railroad tracks which is next to some nice tree coverage, but a thick line of trees between the two would have really helped to give this ride a more woodsy feel. Oh well, the ride is still really good!

So we got right back in line and opted for the front row this time (my mother is a front seat enthusiast to the core). Having seen what it did in the back of the train, I didn’t expect as much craziness in the front. Man, was I wrong! It was just as good, maybe better. The already weak first drop and the two large drops into the ravine weren’t as good obviously, but all of the bunny hops and turns had a little more kick up there. Even in the daylight it was hard to prepare for every little directional change. That second ride really sold it for me. This may be the best GCI ever. I kept thinking about Thunderhead, OzCat and Gwazi as the only contenders, but Prowler just might edge them out.

So Mom took a break and caught a show and I met up with my local enthusiast friends, Chris and Jeanne Hinote from Kansas. We rode Prowler several more times and I was really getting to like it and couldn’t wait for nightfall. The only real negative of the day happened when I walked through the train to put my hat to the side and returned to find two people sitting in my seat. I told them they took my seat and they gave me attitude and said that I had gotten up and it was theirs now. I called a ride-op came over and the pair argued and played the race card. The ride op was asking them to get out, but I spotted an empty seat in the back and said to just forget about it and I rode in the back. Still, I was extremely pissed off about the whole situation and it took quite a while for me to calm down. But the rest of the night was a blast and I got over it.

After all that, we grabbed a ride on Spinning Dragons and Patriot. Our Dragons ride was ok, but certainly not the “spinniest” ever (two people per car is the only way to go for that), but Patriot was running better than ever. I’ve never found it to have much of any intensity, but it seems to have finally broken in and was pulling on my legs all the way. It’s still no Talon, but it’s good enough.

It was time to meet back up with Mom at Mamba, so we headed over there to find it shut down, then we headed back across the park to the coaster that started it all 20 years ago, Timber Wolf. Chris and Jeanne hadn’t ridden it all year as Prowler as they couldn’t pull themselves away from Prowler and the Wolf has certainly seen better days, but we found it be running pretty good this day. I headed for the back while they got in line for the front row. I hopped into an open 11th row seat and took off. The first drop trims were on, but the ride was still running pretty darn good with lots of airtime. The ride certainly wasn’t smooth like it was when it was young, but it wasn’t as bad as it’s been in recent years. All of the work they’ve done on it has helped. After my ride, I took the long walk from the exit to the entrance and hopped in line with Mom for a front seat ride. It was another good ride and certainly smoother, but you lose all of the big drop airtime up there. Mom prefers seeing the track in front of her though.

Next we all headed to Panda Express for dinner and had some very spicy Chinese food. Mmmm. And then it was time to meet up with another coaster friend who was visiting from out of state—Kelly Kraft from Tennessee. We had seen from Timber Wolf that Mamba was back up and running, so we headed back to the Cedar Point section of the park and got in line for Morgan Hyper Coaster #3. I have not cared much for this ride ever since they put the second train on and tightened the midcourse brake its opening year. Ever since the second half has been an absolute bore to me, but it was actually running above par tonight. Mom of course had to sit in the front row, so I reluctantly got in line with her while my friends got in line for the second and third rows along with a couple of Kelly’s friends that showed up, including Jeff Mast. Afterward they gave the whole speech about 1.3 is where it’s at and the front seat is a waste, but I told them that meant nothing to my mother who just loves to be in the front seat of every coaster regardless of the airtime.

It was now about 8pm (park would close at 10) and pretty dark out. We temporarily split up—Mom and I headed back to Timber Wolf to get a night ride while the others went straight to Prowler. Timber Wolf was down to loading only one train and sending the second one empty. They kept explaining to the crowd that, “there aren’t very many people in the station so we’re only filling one train”, despite the lines for each row being four or more people deep. I really wanted to shout out, “what they really mean is we’re lazy and don’t feel like buckling seat belts to empty seats once the line dies down,” but I resisted. Still what should have been a quick night ride took about 15 minutes. Oh well, off to Prowler…

It was close to 8:30 by the time we got back to Prowler and the line had doubled since earlier in the day. The secret was out. While in line I spotted another local Worlds of Fun regular, David (Railblazer is his online alias I believe) and he was very interested in what I had to say about his new ride. I told him I love it and feel it’s the best ride they’ve gotten since Timber Wolf. He told me I needed to write about it and get the word out. He’s right. There just doesn’t seem to be any buzz about this great ride. It’s a shame. Apparently it has been running kind of inconsistently, including during the Coaster Con, so that may be why it hasn’t gotten much praise, but David said he thought it was running really well tonight. Hopefully it continues to break in and they maintain it in top form. I’d love to ride it at the end of next season and see how it compares.

So come 9pm, the ride-op the microphone says it’s time for something special—Prowler in “TOTAL DARKNESS”. The rest of the night, he made a big deal about it as every train was dispatched, shouting at the top of his lungs, “Put your arms in the air ‘cause you’re well harnessed; you’re about to experience TOTAL DARKNESS!” It was kind of cheesy, but fun and nice to see so much enthusiasm in both the staff and the guests. To my eyes, it wasn’t totally dark back there (not even Voyage dark), but it was pretty dark. And the ride was off the hook. If you didn’t close your eyes for the camera flash on the second drop, you’d be blinded for the next 1000 feet or so of crazy trackage. While Voyage is unmatched in power and length, Prowler reminds me of it with rapid-fire elements with even less of a pause between them. Another friend of mine says the ride negatively suffers from ADD in that it doesn’t finish an element before switching to the next one, but I think there are several moments of sustained airtime and I rather like how rapid-fire the pacing is.

We ended up with about 10 laps on Prowler. It was a fantastic day at Worlds of Fun. They finally have a really great coaster again—something that has been lacking for about 10 years IMO. I still mourn the loss of Zambezi Zinger and Orient Express, and the neutering of my Timber Wolf, but Prowler makes it a lot easier to take. I look forward to going back to the park more now than I have in a long, long time. Thanks to my friends for being there and special thanks to the Prowler crew for a really great time.