Goliath La Ronde, Opening Day

We got to La Ronde at around 12:30. Even though the park had opened @ 10, many people were leaving due to the rainy weather. We had already decided that no matter what, we would go and stay out the weather. We bought our passes and decided to process them later on in the day, when another friend would meet us and develops his as well. Right away, we headed to GOLIATH. The beast is in the back of the park, a usually deserted section.

However today, the whole park was on that ride. The station area is so well designed and creative. The ride was running two trains, and most of the row line-ups were empty. The wait was no more than 10 mins for front. We didn’t go right away (I promised my other friend/enthusiast we’d do it together).

We hit up the Monster twice. We rode both sides and they seemed as great as always. We were about to go to the other side of the park when we met up with my friend in front of: Goliath.

The Station:

To enter the line you have to go under this great medieval looking sign. It is a large arch with GOLIATH on it (which seems to be carved out of wood) (http://laronde.com/en/virtuel/album.asp?album=7&photo=P5040806.jpg). The line starts out as straight lines but works its way on the lift, under the lift hill, where there is one switch back, then you cross under the lift hill, then another switchback, then another straight segment, a switchback, and finally the stairs that lead up to the station. All this to say, on the days with large crowds, this line will be loooooooooooong. There a lot of plants/trees throughout the line which don’t make it boring at all. And “Telus” advertising everywhere.

The Trains:

So comfortable, so unrestrictive and so simple. They take no time to load up the train. I put my harness down to offer a good amount of space (This was the furthest it would go). I felt very safe, but very liberated as well. The openness was great, too. The Lift: Once out of the station, the train goes up the lift. The first few cars take it slowly, but once the whole train is on the chain, it speeds up a lot. The lift takes about 15 seconds max, its smooth and VERY quiet.

The Drop:

WOW. This drop is intense. The front has a great drop, but the back is crazy. The train begins the 70* so quickly that you fly out of your seat and then hang mid-air until the base of the drop. The g’s are very strong, and force you into your seat until you are ejected out of it. Don’t look too petrified, there’s an on-ride camera!

The Course:

Goliath seems to never let up. The first hill is awesome; it really gives you a lot of air (ejector). The second is great too, more floater air. The third is more floater air. Then the turnaround begins. It is pretty high, smooth and fun. It takes the initial twist wickedly, but then seems a bit slow doing the turn. The final twist out of the turnaround gives you a nice ejection. The hill after this has the trim brake. It was working… The front still gets some ejection with it on. The middle: not much. Back: some floater air. The next two hills are fun, filled with floater air. The drop before the “s” is great. It really ejects you out of your seat and plummets you right to the ground. The “s” turn is fast, smooth and fun. (http://laronde.com/en/virtuel/album.asp?album=7&photo=P3240660.jpg) Then the final turn to the breaks happens. It is really angled, and you ask yourself if your going to fallout. It takes it at good speed. Then it is up the tiny bunny hop before the brakes. This gives you a little ejection (front) or floater (back). The brakes slow the train down quickly, either smoothly or bluntly (I wondered why it was changing through the day).

Overall:

GREAT ride. The front is the best, in my opinion. The back has a great first drop but then the front kills the course ( it has great hanging time and air on the drop). It is so smooth, and really fast. It was painful with rain pellets on your face, but I was willing to sacrifice. The airtime is unbelievable. I’ve ridden S:RoS (SFDL) and Goliath (SFMM) and I like La Ronde’s the best. The ride never gives up and the views during the ride are great. We rode it eight times, in all rows except 2 and 6, but we did the back twice. All I can say is that La Ronde has a definite winner in this beast.

On Ride Video (not mine) : http://www.megaupload.com/fr/?d=BI1TAYO7

Thanks! *** Edited 5/14/2006 4:45:10 PM UTC by Canadian Dude***

Great report, thanks! Would be easier to read if it was broken into paragraphs...try the 'edit' feature just to the right of your screen name ;)

I really enjoyed reading your report. very informative, I liked how you described where the trim brakes is, the line and the trains. I hope to ride it this summer and visit the park for the first time.

Cannot wait to ride this next week!