Coasters that dissapointed you

coasterdude318

"-Nitro. *yawn* Beautiful location, sleepy and forceless ride."

Thought I was one of the few. I must say I really enjoyed the first time I rode it, but now I come off more and more disappointed. I wanna know where all the air is everyone speaks off. I know I sure havent found it.

My current list of disapointments is:

WildCat - CP
Judge Roy Scream - SFOT (it just didn't meet my expectations)
Power Tower (both sides) - CP (I'm sticking with 1st gen towers)
Scooby Goaster Coaster - PKI (What in the heck is this?)
Adventure Express - PKI (bad ending lift-final brake)
Raging Wolf Bobs - SFWoA (I wanted lateral gs in the front)
Blazing Fury - Dollywood (I did have a problem with a Fire in the Hole being cloned down to the last detail)

Here is my list of coasters that did disapoint me at first but I soon fell in love with.:

Magnum XL-200 - CP
Millennium Force - CP (Front seat cured me)
Iron Dragon - CP (I suddenly fell in love with suspendeds)
Ricer King Mine Train - SFStL (At first I didn't care for it but I got to sitting in the back and I had loads of fun.)
Gemini - CP (Something has gotta be done to time those trains better to race.)

Here's my list of coasters that just really exceeded my expectations.:

Diamond Back - FC (I never thought that an Arrow Shuttle Loop can be so awesome with Air time)
Mean Streak - CP (After hearing so much MS bashing I wouldn't think I would like it. After I rode it I fell in love with it, it is a preaty big and awesome wooden coaster.)
Texas Cyclone - SFAW (I never thought a wooden coaster this twisted can be so smooth.)
Rattler - SFFT (Another really big wooden coaster that seemed to run smooth for me)
Arkansas Twister - Magic Springs (I was surprised on how awesome and smooth this coaster can be even though it has Gerstlauer trains on it, also those G-Trains on it blew me away with the roaring sound of the upstops wheels. Because of the great Air Time, Nice Lateral G's, and the surprisingly smooth G-Trains I personally ranked this coaster #1 in my wooden coaster book.)

This is all I have to list about these coasters. Please note that I don't bash coasters for being too rough.

------------------
Chris Knight
Who is hoping to make it to his first SRM.
Bird Watching is Awesome I spoted this awesome bird of prey
*** This post was edited by Sawblade5 4/6/2003 1:04:17 AM ***
*** This post was edited by Sawblade5 4/6/2003 1:05:13 AM ***

Oh, please. There are plenty of people who feel Magnum is grossly overrated. I happen to think it's just plain bad. The first drop is a bore - a complete ramp with no airtime no matter where I sit. The second hill isn't half bad - this one is actually nicely rounded - but there *still* is no airtime here, nor is there any on the third. Then (and this is where the "laughable" part comes in) you fly through a set of no less than *eight* trim brakes, bang around a crappy turnaround, and then make your way back over a path that looks something like this: /\/\/\/\/\/\. The airtime on the back run is painful and, IMO, cheap. There's hardly any curvature to the hills; rather, it's just ramp after ramp. This all results in a laughly bad coaster for being over 200' tall. And I'll say that about *any* ride that needs eight trim brakes. That's what the hell that is all about.

Nitro is smooth, and is in a gorgeous location (better than the overrated one mentioned above too!). However, the ride is forceless (save for the very nice helix) and the airtime, when present, is way tyoo light and fluffy for me. I need some forces and intensity to remind me I'm riding a hypercoaster, not those I can find on a kiddie ride.

The Lost Coaster is downright terrible. I don't hate Nitro, nor do I hate Magnum (I just think it's awfully overrated). But I absolutely *do* hate the Lost Coaster. Taking a baseball bat to the head would be more pleasant, I think - certainly the beating would be shorter in duration. But hey, if you're actually interested in what I thought of the ride (in detail), check out my review: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RollerCoasterTalk/message/9633

And TTDTom, coaster companies make money when they build coasters no matter how bad they are, provided they operate. Just because CP paid for the ride they got doesn't mean it isn't a bad ride.

-Nate

My only two let downs are SoB and Alpie, I think Mean Streak is smoother and more fun then SoB, and riding Raptor well over 300 times means Alpies is just goingto feel lame (good lokking and greatly themed as it is), although sitting in the back improved the ride vastily, odd for an inverted B&M.

---

TTDTom said:
I could not agree with you more on DT and Raging Wolf Bobs.

---

WHAT? Disaster Transport was one of the rides on my Ohio trip that surprised me! Other "surprises" or "above my expectations" were Iron Dragon, Magnum XL-200 (so much to a point that it became my #1 steel), Wildcat, and Mantis.

8? What are you smoking boy? 1 trim on the entire ride

------------------
It's like a Whirlwind inside of my head!

I was pretty let down by Raging Wolf Bobs @ SFWOA, and Wilde Beast @ PCW.

So painful I forgot where I was at.

------------------
Your Park only has 1 good coaster! That's too bad!

Magnum has one set of (I believe) eight trim brakes. You'd think you'd be more familiar with the ride you're so in love with.

-Nate

Allright folks I need to get somethings off my cheast, I did not ride Magnum until 99 and I fell in love with her, the best hyper out there, period. Sorry but now that that is done.

Phenoix and Twister-must have been a bad day but I was not impressed at all.

American Eagle-allmost met my death on the helix due to a "train" problem, dont ask.

Texas Giant-did not live up to the hype

Comet (HP)-so much potential to turn this coaster into an airtime machine but the trims kill it

------------------
Summer 03-CP, HP, Canobie, SFNE, SFWOA, and SFGAm.

Oh geez, it's one trim that just happens to be set over 5 sets of calipers so you don't go slamming into the trim brakes all that terribly hard(if you have rode Raging Bull you know what I am talking about), as it is now you barely slow down. With the trms off as you usually get for the first train of the day and last train of the day the air is quite viscous and many love it. But those more accustomed to the gentler air or a Beemer or Millie likely wont like it. It is forceful, not rough, people really confuse the two.

The trim is there for timing purposes and was added early in 1989 but at that time was located at the top of the third hill. It was moved to its current location at the entrance to the pretzel when that valley was reprofiled.

Here is a pic of the trims

Any other issues you have?

------------------
It's like a Whirlwind inside of my head!
*** This post was edited by MagnumForce 4/6/2003 4:37:36 AM ***
*** This post was edited by MagnumForce 4/6/2003 4:41:32 AM ***

Okay, coasterdue, I understand that you don't like my personal favorite coaster. I have no problem with that. I will never understand it, but I can accept it. What I can't accept is you saying there's no airtime on the first drop!! Were you stapled, or something? My lap and my toes have been the only parts of me touching any part of the train, the whole way down, on pretty much every ride I've had!

Methinks you either need to try her out in the back seat... or get a new definition of "floater air." Not that you'll ever like the gal. I understand that. But from where I'm sitting, you seem to be contradicting the very rules of physics...

------------------
I hear America screaming...

I've ridden Magnum in the back seat several times, and the first drop has never done much for me. Out of the six hypers I've ridden, I feel pretty positive saying it had the least amount of airtime. It's also the least steep. The curve into the drop is too gradual, and then it's a straight ramp to the bottom. My lapbar wasn't seventeen clicks off my lap, but I wasn't stapled either. Not that it matters, though, because there's just no feeling of airtime whatsoever. The first time I rode Magnum I said it had one of the worst drops on *any* coaster. Looking back at my first review, I wrote, "Even on the first drop in the back seat, I experienced very minimal airtime. It's a complete ramp." In my review from last summer, things had improved, but only slightly: "Magnum's first drop wasn't as bad as I emembered (though it's still very laughable!) and I actually felt some speed at the bottom this time." So while it's not the sluggish bore I felt the first time I rode it, it's still the worst of the hypercoaster drops. There isn't even any floater air (or if there is, it's not nearly enough to notice). Thanks for respecting my opinion on the ride, btw. If it's any consolation, I won't ever understand how anyone can actually like Magnum for the ride itself. Sentimental reasons, sure. But not that bore of a ride. :)

MagnumForce: Six trim brakes (I checked!) are six trim brakes, plain and simple. I don't know what "slamming" you're referring to on Raging Bull, as all of the trims on that ride feel very light (I've ridden it hundreds of times). Bull's brakes grab just as hard as Magnum's, only Magnum is trimmed six times longer. I'm no expert on the ride, but trimming for "timing purposes" sounds suspicious to me, especially when the trims originally existed before a problem section in the ride. It's much more plausable, IMO, that Magnum is just too rough to run unbraked all day.

That said, Magnum's air doesn't even come close to the intensity of Intamin's (found on S:ROS). But whereas Intamin has perfected the "throw you into the bar and hold you there", Magnum just launches you straight up into the bar and then back down into your seat (hard). It's hard to describe the differences in words, but it's very clear when you ride them both. Perhaps it's just a comfort issue, but Intamin also has an ejector-air-into-floater-air combo, while Magnum's is just a repetitious banging up and down. The "intensity" of the ejector air, though, is definitely weaker than that of S:ROS. I'll agree that it's not Magnum's airtime that's rough, it's just every part of the track work of that ride. ;)

-Nate (who is also severely disappointed in Twister and, if I go back to PPP this year, will spend the night on Phoenix)

I take the topic to mean 'coasters that one had high expectations of, but they were not met'. So I'm a bit confused how someone could be disappointed with something like Wildcat at CP (which does what it does very well imo) because surely no one goes onto that with high expectations; or MS, which is wildely and quite rightly criticized for it's roughness.

When it comes to expectations not being met, I don't think you can underestimate the role of inflated expectations in the first place. Typically, certain coasters get way over-hyped on the net and in magazines meaning the reality can not possibly live up to the superlative experience of that coaster that one has naturally created in the mind. At the extreme, one may have sort of ridden a coaster in their mind (based on reviews and pictures) before doing so in reality.

I had very high expectations of Magnum and Alpengeist, for example, but was disappointed. But when I rode Magnum a few years later there was no expectation and I enjoyed it a lot more. Of course it works conversely; Phoenix and Volcano far exceeded my expectations, for example. The point is though, these aren't the only examples and far from it, hence my point about inflated expectations being a huge factor on whether a ride is disappointing or the opposite. It's actually a fairly obvious point - if you expect a great deal, of course there is more chance that you'll be disappointed. Therefore, I try not to over-analyse a coaster before I've ridden it. Ideally I wouldn't look at pictures of a new ride before riding it, but that's not likely to happen.

And finally, a word about Magnum. I would say it is a good fun ride that is still remarkably popular. However, there is, and always has been a bias towards it from enthusiasts. Because it was the first hypercoaster, because it was such a groundbreaking coaster generally, because it's at such a popular park (with highly devoted fans), some enthusiasts don't seem to be able to 'let go', so to speak, and accept it's out-datedness. This has been shown over the years by it's continued high position in polls even after other obviously superior hypercoasters were built. The big comparison here for me is Steel Force. For me, SF does everything Magnum does but better - smooth, better airtime, better turnaround, better cars - but has rarely out done Magnum in the polls (although, of course more people have ridden Magnum).

Having said all that, there are obviously some people for whom Magnum is genuinely their no. 1. Also, when people rank it as their favourite, I suppose they are not necessarily saying it is the best in pure ride quality terms, but just that it is a personal favourite for whatever reason. For me, Viper at SFMM will always be a favourite, but unlike the case with some people and Magnum, that doesn't mean I am going to put in my top 5 when there're blatently superior multi-loopers out there.

Bottom line though, it's still a fun ride!, just quite out-dated.

*** This post was edited by Mr Rush 4/6/2003 7:33:57 AM ***

A few coasters that disappointed me: Steel Force, Desperado, Silver Comet (only got to ride it once so it could have been the seat I was in), & Goliath.

On the other hand, the following coasters just blew me away: MF, Phantom's Revenge, Nitro, Phoenix, Viper @ SfGAm, & Talon.

I would have to say The Texas Giant at SFOT, that ride hurt every time you went around the corner. The other coaster that i was not impressed with at all is Mad Mouse at VF.

------------------
420 ft. 120 mph twice, 270º twist, brakes. ONLY at cedar point.

Ones that were not what I expected are as follows:

B:TDK- SFNE / Viper- SFGAdv. / Nitro- SFGAdv.

Here are the one's that blew me away:

The Comet- The Great Escape / Twister II- SFEG / Top Gun- PGA / Boulder Dash- LC / Invertigo- PGA

The most suprising coaster I've ever ridden is of course:

S:ROS- SFNE. Incredible

------------------
"Life is like a roller coaster; there are ups and downs and it's over all too fast."

Fight Back at: www.realizethis.com

Ok people. get a grip! How can anyone crack on The Beast, its a great ride the whole time. Anyway some rides that let down were
Vortex-PKI
SOB-PKI(this ride was really good but the retraints really kill your ride expirience)
Some rides that suprised me were
Tornado-Adventureland
Whizzer-SFGAm
Mindbender-SFOG

Disappointments: MagnumXL-kinda boring, Mean Streak-rough and boring, DT-bad, MF-too many overbanks, B:TR-kinda boring, Goliath(SFMM)-I dunno just didn't kill me enough, Joker's Jinx-before lapbars were installed, SROS(SFDL)-kinda weak for a hyper.
------------------
A.K.A. Batman Bastard

Anticipointed by-

Georgia Cyclone-I've been told I rode it in the wrong seat, but it was just plain rough and bad.

American Eagle-Nothing to write home about.

Raptor-When it was the only invert I'd ridden, I thought it was fantastic. Now I find it to be my least favorite, and often skip it on CP trips.

Superman: Ultimate Flight (SFoG)- X-Flight ownz0rs this ride.

Surprised by-

Viper (SFGam)-Fantastic. Easily the equal of any CCI.

Ninja (SFoG)-This ride completely doesn't suck.

Demon (SFGam)-A nice bridge between the corkys and the mega-loopers.

Chang- At the time, my favorite stand-up (now second to Scorcher). Hard to believe anything that good could be stuck at SFKK.

Raven/Legend-I had no idea wooden coasters could be THAT good. I thought the Beast was the end all and be all of wood-SRM 2002 proved me way wrong.

------------------
SRM 2003-Look for the guy with my name on his chest

Magnum would have been great... if it didn't feel like it was trying to cut my legs off. And if it really DID have a 200 foot drop.

Mean Streak was 'ouchie'.... There just wasn't anything there.

Raging Bull is a very moody coaster.... and it's best experienced in back, no question. If you're ever at SFGAm, make it a point to ride in the back.

However, Viper at SFGAm is phenomenal.... I was at an advantage one time last year.... I couldn't quite get one more click out of the restraint, so I could practically stand up on it. Good times, good times.

------------------
« adix@nedesigns.com »