Best and Worst Coaster to Marathon

I have done many marathon rides on Shivering Timbers at MA, rode 18 times in a row, in less than an hour. It's a great coaster, and rarely has a long line. The other would be Blue Streak at Cedar Point. I rode 5 times in a row, with little wait. Raptor would be another I like, and Batman the ride. Have also done marathon rides on Gemini.Worst, even if there is no wait. I would have to say Mean Streak at Cedar Point. Tried riding it 3 times in a row, and just couldn't do it. There was no wait at all, while Maverick had a 2 and half hour line. Also, I tried to do marathon rides on Mantis. Ended up with a huge headache.

My longest non-stop marathon was 40 laps on Steel Force during CFK 2010, but my all-time favorite marathon was probably the 21-lap nonstop Afterburn marathon this past September. I found it to be just like a running marathon. It took a short bit to get into a groove, but once I did, it got pretty easy. Were it not for a desire to get more Intimidator and WindSeeker laps, I'd have kept on trucking.

I did do 9 laps straight on KD's Anaconda once, and it wasn't terrible, but that was years ago when I actually really liked the ride.

I did Screechin' Eagle at American 64 times in one day, back in 1989. When I was 16. Of course, my thighs were bruised by the end of the day. I would do anything to ride that ride again - talk about kick booty.

My first boomerang was Flashback at SFOT in 1990. It was ERT and I stayed on it 6 times. The next morning, I was still dizzy. Wouldn't go back and do that if I could - and the days of 110 flips on a Zipper are over for me.

Yup, I can do the Zipper twice in a row and then I'm done for at least an hour before I can come back to it.

Timber-Rider, yeah, Mantis would never be a marathoner for me. Once EVER was enough. Loved Blue Streak though, and had it not broken down, I definitely wouldn't have minded riding again and again. It was a great little ride. Batman the Ride I made it through three cycles and started to feel sick (third one they couldn't get the seatbelt undone, so I said just leave it and I will ride one more time).

But best to marathon:

1. Phoenix at Knoebels: sit in the second seat from the front, right side, and you'll have a lot of trouble saying no to lap number 2. And 3. And.....(my total in one night: 11 laps).

2. El Toro at Six Flags Great Adventure: Back seat, right side (left side if Mike Gallagher is there or you be fightin'). Somehow this coaster manages to be super intense but completely re-rideable, and it never gets boring. My total laps in one day: 10.

3. Steel Force at Dorney Park: While at first glance, it looks like Magnum at Cedar Point, this ride is much more conducive to re-rides. Smoother, non-triangular hills (hehehe) and a little less forceful feeling than some of the B&M hypers, this is very fun to ride multiple times. Try the second car front seat for a super roomy and comfortable ride. I don't recommend heading towards the back though, or it gets very lurchy and rough. My total laps in one day: lost count after 8.

Picture it: Monday May 9th, 1994. RCMAC arrives for his week at Cedar Point to find an empty park, a beautiful day, and a brand new Raptor roller coaster, the largest of the B&M inverteds. He's so smitten with his good fortune that (in addition to lots of other rides) he manages a total of 22 laps on the exciting new coaster. He goes to bed that night with a smile on his face, sure of the fact that he had just completed the best coaster day in the history of his life.
Jump to Tuesday May 10th. He wakes up for his 2nd day of big fun to find that the entire Hotel Breakers is spinning and flipping uncontrollably. He tries to stand and practically falls down just trying to reach the bathroom. After an hour or so of unexplained sickness, he manages to dress himself and goes into the park. Not for a big day of rides, mind you, oh no. Just a day of soaking up spring sunshine from a bench while Raptor rules the sky from overhead somewhere. It's then and there he decides that in the future a day of marathoning will never be a good idea.

Sounds like you loosened some of the crystals inside your cochlea, and they swished around in your inner ear touching the tiny hairs inside that are connected to the vestibular nerve, causing your balance to get confused. I have a similar problem every once in a while, but it has more to do with caffeine overdose than movement.

Finally! I meet a doctor! My mother would have been so happy!
:-)

That's the only "Doctor" thing I know. Because it happens to me, I researched the cause after my real Doctor told me what was happening. I don't even remember what it is called. I found it amazing that people have crystals inside their inner ear.

And I find it strange that we say "inner ear", and not "inner ears". Each ear has an inner ear.

It's called benign paroxysmal positional vertigo. I have a friend that has it all the time, just a quick head movement will cause it for her. She spent 3/4 of a day at Kings Island with me before she told me. I felt really bad, and wondered why she was running off to the bathroom all day...

My wife struggled with BPPV for much of a year. It sucks. Fortunately, one of the great experts on the condition works at Cleveland Clinic. He spent an hour with her, and diagnosed every connected issue like it was an episode of House. No recurrences in four years, but you don't really get cured of it.

I'm pretty scared that it might happen again. I was off of work for two weeks, and then I had to limit my work for a month and a half. I couldn't even drive while that was going on.

My Doc just called it Vertigo, but it's the same thing as BPPV.

Back to the topic, lol, I marathoned Mantis once for a photo shoot, and begged to be let off the ride after I believe nine cycles. I almost hurled.

I also got to marathon Magnum for a photo shoot for I believe 12 cycles. My legs hurt afterwards, but it was one of the best hours of my life.

^15 laps on Magnum for Joe Cool Night. Couldnt walk the next day but it was a blast.

As for best coasters to marathon, they should be airtime filled rides with little laterals and not rough. That is what makes them re-ridable, which means you can plop in most Out and Backs, Hypers and Gigas here.

After riding X2 last week, that would take my top spot... Amazing ride, but 2-3 laps at a time for me and I need a break. The day we went it was dead and you were able to ride without leaving the station and after 3 laps I was worn out.

ThatStrangeKid42 said:

But NOT a standup coaster...you would have the worst ache in your nuts after around the 3rd or 4th time.

Oh.

Word on the street is that you're not supposed to rest the weight of your body on your nuts when you ride these.

That said, I still think B&M standups and (most) B&M inverted coasters aren't ideal for multiple re-rides. They're too powerful. I can't imagine doing 6 or 7 laps in a row on the local Batman. I got a handful of rides in a row on Iron Wolf during Last Blast at SFGAm, right at closing time. It was on the verge of snowing, and as cold of a day as I've ever experienced at a park. It felt like 10 or 11 rides, but it was really probably 4 or 5. Closing time put an end to our little marathon, but I can't imagine I would have lasted too much longer anyway. One of my favorite coaster experiences.

Last year, I rode Goliath 35 straight times (at a special event), and I only stopped because the evening event was over. I've signed up for the Mind Bender Coasterthon (Children's Healthcare of Atlanta), so I will be on it for 9 hours this June! I've decided not to hit the park before the event, so it will be my first coaster of the year... should be fun!

I will say that I'd love to see how many Top Thrill Dragster or Millennium Force rides I could do in a row... I have a lot of confidence in my coaster abilities. For me, I think looping coasters gives you more difficulty... something like Superman Ultimate Flight at SFoG or even Wicked Twister at Cedar Point could be interesting... I'm anxious to give GateKeeper a few go's this summer when I FINALLY get back up to The Point!

What I really would like to do is a multi-day marathon... either the same ride each day until I couldn't go anymore or simply do EACH coaster in a given park for an entire day...

Example: SFoG would start with one coaster one day and go until I couldn't anymore... then hop on a different coaster the next day... wooden and looping coaster included!!

My personal favorite was Afterburn, though I acknowledge that Steel Force was a bit easier to pull off.

Edit: Shoot, I didn't realize this was a resurrected thread. Sorry for the redundant redundancy.

Best: Afterburn

Worst: Millennium Force