Dorney or SFA?

So far, by my calculations, the suggestions are...

Dorney 8
SFA 3

(That is counting B&M Rocks comment as a Dorney endorsement though it was never really said)

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"I wasn't always this cynical, but then I started kindergarden..."

I have never been to SFA, but judging from what I have heard of that park, I can't imagine it being anything nearly as good as Dorney.  I have been to Dorney three times this year (after not going at all since 1997) and I have been nothing but impressed with each visit.
Talon is a fantastic ride, simply the best invert I have ever been on, and Steel Force would be my favorite hyper had Nitro not been built.  If they are not in my steel coaster Top 10 (I have never really come up with an official steel coaster Top 10), they definitely place in my Top 20.  Thunderhawk, while braked too much, is still a great woodie, and you could do a lot worse than Lazer for a standard looping coaster.
The thing that has impressed me most about Dorney is how well the park is run.  My three visits all took place on Saturdays, and all the coasters were being run to capacity. Furthermore, I never once came across a rude employee or an overflowing trash can or a line jumping situation.  The prices are no more outrageous than those at other them parks, the food is decent, and the atmosphere is one that is quite modern yet still manages to retain a little of Dorney's long-lost traditional charm.
Can any of those things be said of SFA?

*** This post was edited by Rob Ascough on 8/30/2001. ***


Rob Ascough said:
The prices are no more outrageous than those at other them parks, the food is decent, and the atmosphere is one that is quite modern yet still manages to retain a little of Dorney's long-lost traditional charm."

Two comments... one a direct comparrison between Dorney and one not.

The food prices vs quality:
At Dorney, my wife and I paid $17 for 2 large Pepsi's (or cokes or whatever Dorney sells) and 2 shrimp baskets (fried shrimp and french fries). The shrimp were pretty good and they gave plenty of them. The french fries were good, but nothing out of the ordinary, but we had plenty of them.

At SFA we paid $21 for 2 large Sierra Mists, 2 orders of chicken nuggets, and 2 orders of fries. We had wanted pepsi, but the place we ate at (Boardwalk Fries, on the boundary of Coyote Creek and Skull Island, right next to Roar) was out of Pepsi, so we had to settle for this. Each order was 10 tiny "chicken" nuggets. I call them "chicken" because that is what they called them. It is simply amazing how lots of things "taste just like chicken" except for these "chicken" nuggets. (Since Coyote Creek was right next door and we saw no coyote's roaming around, we really started to get worried what exactly they were using to make the nuggets). The fries could have been good except for the fact that they were a little on the cold side.

All in all... more value and better food for the $17 at Dorney than the $21 at SFA.

As for the last part of the quote... You are right, and I never could put my finger on it. Dorney has modonerized greatly between my first visit in 1980 and my second visit last month. However somehow they have managed to keep a bit of an old time feel in some sections of the park (especially the older section in the valley by the creek). Something about the planning of Dorney makes it seems like it fits its surroundings... even the new areas. Even in the new areas this is evident... Talon is brand new this year but yet it feels like it belongs there... fully landscaped etc. As for SFA... some of the older sections (as evident from old park maps and pictures) seem to feel like they belong there, but the rest just seems "mass produced". The area of Gotham City suffers from this greatly. I can picture the designers saying... "Okay, it will fit there... it may look ugly, but it will fit..." and they construct the new attraction in an open spot of land, do hardly any landscaping, and just move on to the next project.

Oh well... enough of this. Time to sign off of here for a 4 day weekend... including a trip to Hersheypark tomorrow. (I need an antidote to get last Friday's trip to SFA out of my system, and Hershey will do the trick).

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"I wasn't always this cynical, but then I started kindergarden..."

I've already rode X-Flight so I know how Batwing would be. Is S:ROS that good? And also how is Two-Face:The Flipside?

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"Oncoming riders, please stand behind the red safety line and wait for the train to come to a complete stop."
-Phantom's Revenge Laps:12-

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