planning a trip to Kennywood (questions)

Thus concludes a series of verbose, rambling posts by kpjb. Thank you very much.

Oh, and Phantom remains top ten steel for me. And I love Log Jammer.

Vague possibility I'll go in the fall..haven't been since '09.

Log Jammer rolls more than it floats and that big drop is a real back rattler.

Forgot to mention to ride The Whip. I am not sure how common they are, but it's the only one I've seen. But another cool classic ride.

Also, the Exterminator is underappreciated coaster. I didn't even knew it existed before my visit. It's an indoor spinning mouse section. It's well themed, perhaps the best themed coaster outside of Disney.

For food, there was an ice cream bar that was pretty good. The ice cream was hand craved from a huge block. Then it was dipped in chocolate and sprinkles (?). I can't rememeber actually were this was. Can anyone help me out this?

Exterminator remains my favorite indoor coaster. It has very heavy spinning action and is very disorienting. I like that in a coaster.

Dorney still has the Whip. It's been a few years since I went to Playland in Rye, but you get AIRTIME on that Whip. I dunno if it's still there.

My ex- girlfriend's great-grand-uncle, William Mangels, invented the Whip. He also designed the original Tickler coaster at Coney Island, and patented the device that creates the waves in the wave pools..originally, the one at Palisades Park.

I love, love, love me some phantom. Still top two or three steel for me (most recent rides in June). I never experienced the awkward transition in the past and didn't have any notion of it when I went. And personally, I miss the spine busting air on the double down. It felt like riding a bucking bronco and was one of my favorite moments on any coaster. (Still is, but just slightly less so, now.) I also get a kick out of the S&S swings if you have never done one and I second the woodies. Especially if you get to ride them at night, all three are fantastic. We also really enjoyed Ghostwood Estates.

ApolloAndy said:

And personally, I miss the spine busting air on the double down. It felt like riding a bucking bronco and was one of my favorite moments on any coaster.

Somewhat surprised to see this from you, Andy. I'd +1 it twice if I could.

In a way, I just did.... ;~P

I absolutely love intense straight air. It's any other kind of intensity that I don't like (positive or lateral or "wooden" ala Voyage).

I have longed to go to Kennywood for many years, but have been kinda reluctant because it is at the end of the reasonable driving time spectrum, but it really sounds like I gotta suck it up and get out there.

thanks everyone for all your comments!

bunky - think of it this way. In the 1920s, we had over 1500 wooden coasters operating in the US. There's about a dozen of those left (several have gone away since I started in 1999). No park has more than one "First Golden Age" wooden coaster...except KW. KW has three...

I went to Kennywood for the first time about 8 years ago. My son wasn't ready for Phantom so I didn't ride it. I am going to a wedding in August in the Pittsburgh area so we are going back. Definitely will ride Phantom this trip. I liked a lot of the old time rides they have (in addition to the coasters). The Whip, Kangaroo and the umbrella ride are fun rides that you don't see often anymore. Gives me a chance to ride some rides with my daughter who won't ride the big rides.

Rollergator, I knew about the awesome classic wooden coasters and Phantom, but the amount of driving it takes was concerning to me. Plus, every damn time I try and go on a trip this year, another event comes up (was gonna go on Saturday and found out that Musikfest starts Friday night...it is a tradition that my friends and I go to the microbrewery at Musikfest and drink gallons of Blueberry Belch beer, get our faces painted, and even sometimes polka). Hopefully next Saturday will be good for it. Don't have another weekend off until September then. Wish my grandmother still was living and living out near Kennywood so I could stay somewhere overnight and make a weekend of it.

LOL, somewhere in the archives is a tale of my first trip to KW. Jill's friend got married in Charlotte. When the reception ended, we drove directly to the park, arriving just before 2am. Taking pics of Steel Phantom from the parking lot when a local policeman decided to at least move us along. The next day, we rode the Old Mill, Auto Race, Noah's Ark, pretty much all the classics. Alas, I was still new to the hobby, and missed one ride that I never got another chance to ride....the Circle Swing. Gone by the next visit.

Short version: New stuff is cool and all, but rides that have thrilled generations are timeless. Sometimes they leave without any warning. Make the effort - it's worth it.

P.S. It's just gator - we're all friends here. (Except for Jerry sometimes...and occasionally Kozmo).

The Steel Phantom and Circle Swing were never at the park at the same time... the phantom was built in '91 and the swing removed in '78.

Still your friend, though.

Oh, that's actually good news in a way. I was pretty sure someone had mentioned that the dive-show location had previously been home to the Swing, but I must have gotten the time-frame confused. I had no chance at a Traver Swing....feel somewhat relieved, LOL.

Does make me want to ask what was on the dive-show spot in the '98-'99 seasons...I'm thinking that was the location of whatever ride it was I missed and was later told I should have made sure to have ridden. Those wooden coasters were just SO addictive... ;~)

I pretty sure the Swing Around was on top of the stage where the dive show is now for many many seasons.

Ooh, it is another one of the Apollo 2000 rides! Wish that was still there. I love those, especially the unneutered ones.

Gonch is correct.

It was the Circle Swing until the late 70s, then the Monongahela Monster until the late 80s, then the Swing Around until the mid-2000s, then a series of shows until now.

I miss that ride and its location above the stage.