Carowinds Officially Announces Vekoma Flyer

My question is what are the 8 inversions? I checked and stealth only has 4. Will they consider every time you flip over on your back and inversion? Anyone have a ride description to back up what is on their web site.

Hmmm. Makes you wonder. Even makes me wonder about PKI's 2004 expansion. See link below:

http://www.pgathrills.com/corpinfo_press_boomerang.jsp

It says on the press release that the seats will recline while in the station. Also, the PC version is about 20 ft longer than the one at PGA.

As stated on the PKI info:

If you enjoyed WaterWorks, you will LOVE what's in store for 2004! Get your swimsuits ready........

Oh no, please don't tell me they're gonna remove a water park to add a water park. :rolls eyes:

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SFoG Train Engineer since '03.
SFoG: Land of rides under 2 min.

Looks like PGA will have to wait another year for a coaster? There coaster count is dropping fast.

In order to make room for the new water park, Paramount's Great America is removing the Stealth roller coaster. Thrill seekers who haven't ridden Stealth have until Sept. 2 to come to the park and ride it before the ride closes and construction begins on "Boomerang Bay."

text from

http://www.pgathrills.com/corpinfo_press_boomerang.jsp

Coaster schmoaster! PGA's attendance will jump and you'll be too busy gawking to remember Stealth..

Replacing the Stealth after only 3 years?? Did they have that many problems with it?? I just rode x-flight at sfwoa last week, which is almost identical, and it was a great ride. Do all the vekoma flyers have problems that are severe enough to cause a park to remove the complete ride??

I think the reason lies not in what problems it had operationally (I hardly believe they'd relocate it knowing it was *THAT* problematic. Paramount Parks folk are smarter than that.) I think it has everything to do with both parks re-focusing their attention on their proper target audience.

It was a pretty easy solution.... PGA needed to capitalize on families which are the backbone of the park's success. They need expansion room for the waterpark, so they decided to remove an attraction that has not performed well for them.

Carowinds has gone a number of years without a major coaster install so it is a likely candidate for the ride. There, it can be billed as a new state of the art thrill attraction by the park. Outside of enthusiasts, Carowinds guests are not going to know it is not a *brand new* coaster. Also, most will not know, or care about the rides temperamental history at PGA... something PGA guests won't soon forget. Carowinds also can take a jab at SFOG, and their flyer. No doubt focusing on it's greater amount of inversions.

I doubt PKI and PKD were ever even considered. They, after all, declined their own versions of the ride shortly after Stealth was built for PGA. Thus the two follow-ups were installed at nearby SF parks.

I have mixed feelings. It makes complete sense from a business perspective. Smart move for both parks. However, from a ride enjoyment perspective, I am not impressed. I'll be anxious to see what, if any, modifications are made to the ride.

Actually, I am most concerned with the fate of the Carolina Sternwheeler. A unique and original attraction that, if removed, would make me terribly sad.

Shaggy
*** This post was edited by Shaggy 8/21/2003 2:00:36 PM ***

SO...I take it this means we have *quasi-official* confirmation that the new PCar attraction is in fact the old PGA one, huh? I have some serious reservations about the move, but for the most part Shaggy said everything I would have said, and more...;)

Who cares if it's Stealth or not. It kills me how people ***** about coaster preservation, etc, and when a park actually does save a coaster, by moving it to another park, on a completely different coast, people complain and say "I wish it was a new coaster...waaa waaa." The general public are morons, they have no idea where a coaster came from. The just see a new ride.

Im glad either way. It's a new ride for the park and a new flying coaster for the south. AND this WAS the very first flying coaster. Who knows the fate of the first STANDING coaster? blah blah blah blah blah

holla

Is Stealth being saved? Or is money?

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Come on fhqwhgads!

Before all this, who thought Stealth was going to be torn down?? Gimme a break. This has nothing to do with coaster CONSERVATION. This has to do with a park in need of a hyper getting a buggy, problem laden coaster that a park got RID of after only 3 years.

Show me the parallel, please?

Oh, and uh holla back, wrd homey. 5000, G.

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MORE than 50% of people like me.

Olsor: Lots and lots of money...especially with the dismantle-and-reassemble-for $14.99 coupon in this week's Lowe's flyer. Two parks get new stuff and every normal, functional human with a life in either town should be happy. Yeesh!

-CO

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The CPlaya 100--6 days, 9 parks, 47 coasters, 2037 miles and a winner.....LoCoSuMo.
*** This post was edited by CoastaPlaya 8/21/2003 2:28:10 PM ***

I may be in the minority, but having been on both a Vekoma flyer (Batwing) and a B&M (SUF at SFGAm), I prefer the former.

And I'll second Playa's comment about the wisdom of trading coasters for waterparks. If I had a nickel for each trip report with a variation on "the line for Coaster Foo was really short, but hoo-boy the waterpark was packed all day long" my kids would be set for college.

Finally, where's Moosh to respond to:

park in need of a hyper

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http://www.eecs.umich.edu/~bnoble/

*** This post was edited by Brian Noble 8/21/2003 2:36:15 PM ***

LOL,

"We dont need to West CoastER up in our hood on the EAST SIDE beeatch." Whatever, no matter what you do ,peeps be complaining and shizzznit.

It's about blah and blah blah blah..

BTW, word up Homey in SC....Cola here...hollaaaaaa

*** This post was edited by TheShizzznit 8/21/2003 2:36:52 PM ***

I guess I'm glad that I'm in the bay area these next few weeks to get a ride on Stealth before it goes away. Speaking of which, is it late season enough that a Sat. visit will not be terribly crowded? Haven't ridden to much in this neck of the woods.

It does seem a LOT more likely that Stealth is moving and maybe getting new trains in the process than that Paramount is buying a new Vekoma P.O.S. (Don't get me wrong, I like the ride, but it's reliability is right up there with the other Vekoma monstrosities).

My question: Why doesn't Paramount build a hyper? Anywhere? Ever? (unless you count SOB...) Seems like most SF and CF parks have made hypers a staple at their parks while Paramount builds flats and family rides.

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Be polite and ignore the idiots. - rollergator
"It's not a Toomer" - Arnold Schwartzenkoph
"Those who know don't talk and those who talk don't know." -Jeff

At the press conference it was said that the Carowinds flyer is *brand new,* so that was either a lie, or another Paramount park is getting the relocated Stealth. Who knows... As for the Carolina Sternwheeler: The river has been completely drained, but will be refilled next year, although the Sternwheeler will not run again. The Sternwheeler's dock area has already been destroyed for where the coaster station is going to go, but the Sternwheeler itself may end up being turned into a stationary restaurant.

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Jonathan Hawkins
Starcoasters.com | ThrillSpot
Carowinds Connection - Unofficial Carowinds Site

TheShizzznit said:
It says on the press release that the seats will recline while in the station. Also, the PC version is about 20 ft longer than the one at PGA.

This means nothing, as far as I'm concerned. Medusa E. and Scream are listed with different track lengths. V2 SFMW was announced with a 150' height and is now castrated.

Don't lose any sleep over the difference.

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Be polite and ignore the idiots. - rollergator
"It's not a Toomer" - Arnold Schwartzenkoph
"Those who know don't talk and those who talk don't know." -Jeff

TheShizzznit said:
The general public are morons, they have no idea where a coaster came from. The just see a new ride.

They are not "morons". They just have more important things going on in their lives. In fact, I've found that knowing too much about a coaster in advance of riding it can take away from the experience. I sometimes miss the days when I went on each ride with an open mind and didn't overanalize every detail of the experience.