Carowinds 7/10-7/11

I just got home from spending two very hot, fun days at Carowinds...This was my first time at Carowinds since about 1986, so I didn't really remember the park that much, but I found it to be fairly nice, altough it was overly packed on Saturday.
On Saturday the park was to crowded to hit most of the major rides, but we did manage to hit most of the smaller ones, despite leving for about 3 hours to explore Charlotte. So in order of appearance, here are the coasters from Saturday...

Ricochet: My first mouse, I really did enjoy it, especially because my girlfriend was absolutely terrified and was about to rip my arm off the whole ride. It suprised me because it did turn much faster than I thought it would. 6/10

Carolina Cyclone: We rode the old arrow in the front, and although it is a bit rough, I thought it was a pretty good ride. You get a pretty good pop of air right before the corkscrews, and the you get a nice little surprise at the end via a well hidden helix. Rode in the back on Sunday, a little rougher, especially in the corkscrews, but still fun. 6/10

Hurler: Simply the best...if you're into that whole pain and abuse thing, that is! Rode in the very front, and the ride tracks horribly, and I came off of it with a verrry sore left thigh. For some reason, I decided to hit it in the back on Sunday, and it was a huge mistake! There is a huge bump athe bottom of the first drop that jammmed the lap bar into me with enough force to knock the breath out of me. I was unable to breath until we were sitting on the brakes at the end...FUN STUFF! The layout is nice though, and you get some pretty decent air on a couple of the hills though. 2/10

Goldrusher: CRAP!! Hated it! By far the leat fun mine train I have been on. 1/10

Scooby Doo's Ghoster Coaster: Good for a family coaster, it was a bit rough, but overall it was fun. 3/10

Thunder Road: Over the two days, we road this more than any other caoster in the park. Riding forwards it is a descent ride, not much air, but still fun. Riding backwards it is a much more fun ride with some pretty good pops of air. 7/10

Top Gun: We waited until Sunday to ride this one do to the crowds. A fun ride, with a nice tunnel on the batwing. Not quite as forceful as the B:TR's, but still well worth the time spent. 8/10

Vortex: From the time it left the lift, I was praying that I would come back in one piece. Alot of headbanging left me with a headache, and the seat left me bowlegged. The need to make a video of Vortex and put it on MTV2's Headbangers Ball! 1/10

Runaway Reptar: Mini hang-and-bang...third most painful coaster at the park...2/10

Super Saturator: I had a absolute blast with this ride, whether it be riding it, or aoking the people that were. It feels alot faster than it looks, and it is entertaining to try to bomb the people in line or at the cannons. 7/10

BORG (aka the one that got away): The line was up over two hours on Saturday, compounded by the long wait while one of the trains wouldn't engage the lift, and it ran one train the rest of the day. We decided to wait until Saturday to ride, and when we got there it was closed. It finally opened at about 1 and by the time we got to it, the wait was over two hours, as they were only running one train and taking an average of 8 minutes to load the thing, so we decided to wait until later in the day. They close the line at 7, so we made sure to get back over before then, but the wait was up to about 2 1/2 hours, we were tired, and we finally just said srew it and head back to Bristol.

I like the park, despite the mediocre coasters and ride, and I will probably go back some time in September just so that I can try to get my ride on BORG!!

Good TR. Come see us again when you get the chance.

I like Carowinds, and I think they have potentially a great coaster lineup, but I consider theirs the roughest collection of coasters in America. I don't know why. Hurler is a mirror image clone of Thunder Run (except the loop is tucked under the structure instead of being out in the open), but TR is smooth and Hurler is abusive. Reptar is a clone of the one at PKI, but PKI's is smooth and CW's is a mini headbanger. Ghoster Coaster is the roughest compact I've ever been on, but its brother Beastie is smooth as silk. Racers at PKI are smooth; Thunder Road beats you up. Even the log flume, boat plunge and ricochet are jolting, jarring, bruising rides. On and on. What's the deal here? Poor engineering? Poor maintenance? I don't know. I need an ergonomicist to study this and explain it to me.

Yeah, and watch the second turnaround on SDGC(the one right in front of the loading platform.) You can see several badly cracked boards and watch it move 2-3 feet every time the train comes around...doesn't look very safe or well maintained to me!