Hersheypark - 7/17/23

We spent one day at Hersheypark last Monday (July 17th). I will cover a few highlights and rank and comment on each coaster.

First, we stayed at the Hersheypark campground, so we got to take the shuttle, get there early (we were the second family in line), and take advantage of the one-hour early open time, which helped us get on every coaster in one day.

Second, The Smokehouse does indeed have good food, thanks to everyone who suggested it.

Third, The app was mostly useless all day. I used it for a map 2 times, but wait times were never updated all day. This park has a unique layout that I have never seen before.

Fourth, we didn't bother with the zoo or water park since we just had one day, but we did hit the kisses tower, two of the drop towers, the Jolly Rancher Mixd (which was fun), plus several other flat rides.... ok, now onto the important stuff.

In reverse order:

13. Wild Mouse - There really isn't a bad ride here, but this is last mostly because it's the same at every other park. Just one ride.

12. Comet - Standard old (smaller) wooden coaster. A fun ride, but not worth the wait. Just one ride.

11. Jolly Rancher Remix - Again... nothing great, but the theming was fun. Low capacity too of course. Just one ride.

10. Trailblazer - Typical minecart coaster. My son really enjoys these. I do like how they are different everywhere you go. This one was longer than I expected which was nice. Just one ride on this one too though unfortunately.

9. Great Bear - Was hoping for more from this. Not sure if it seemed too short or if it was something else. Wanted to ride again in the front row, but never made it back for a second ride.

8. Sooperdooperlooper - I was really surprised by this one. Even though it just has the one inversion, it sort of takes you on a journey and was a longer and smoother ride than I anticipated. Also wanted to come back here for a second ride, but ran out of time.

7. Laff Trakk - This was a big hit with my family, even though the wait time was always longer for this, we rode it three times. It was a lot more fun than I thought it would be and it gives you a different experience with multiple rides sitting in different seats.

6. Lightning Racer - This one also surprised me. Nice long ride and pretty smooth for the age. Green always seemed to win, so we picked green when we rode so we could win too.

5. Wildcat's Revenge - This is a great ride, but a little disappointing to me. Maybe I went in with way too high expectations or maybe I was expecting another Steel Vengeance. Don't get me wrong, it was a heck of a ride both times we rode, but I agree with others when they say it felt like it was missing something. Plus, the jerking near the end was a bit much for a new ride.

4. Storm Runner - This could be in the 3 or 4 spot. I love that you get a launch sort of like Top Thrill Dragster, but it takes you on a longer ride instead of just the up and back down. Lines were slow for this since they only had one train operating, but we got to try the very back which was amazing and closer to the front as well.

3. Fahrenheit - I may be in the minority since I just noticed that this isn't even in the top 100, but I loved this ride. That 90-degree lift hill and 97-degree first drop were both phenomenal. This one was also a hit as we got three rides on it. This one is definitely underrated.

2. Skyrush - So, Storm Runner, Fahrenheit, and Skyrush could all three shuffle around depending on my mood and if I get to ride them again. But as of now, this is number two. The first ride was fun enough being in the middle seat, but on the second ride, I got on the outside and it was so much better. Being in the front and hanging over made this ride stand out for sure. I wanted to try one more from the back, but once again... time.

1. Candymonium - So, there isn't any question about what number one is. We opened the day with the early entry on this and closed the park down on this as well. It is a great long smooth ride with plenty of airtime and goes over the park so you can look down and wave at the people below. Riding it at night was even better with the night breeze and lights everywhere. I can see how this is number 26 on the top coaster list... hopefully, I can bump it up to 25 now.

I was just there yesterday, 7/23/23, and I was actually disappointed with Candymonium! The layout is better than Nitro (the only other B&M hyper I’ve ridden), and the hills absolutely felt steeper and more air filled, but the vibration was SO BAD. I noticed some slight differences in this train versus the Nitro train, but they’re so slight that I can’t imagine this being the issue. In any case though, it kind of ruined my first impression of the ride. Do you know which train you rode? I’m wondering if maybe it’s another “blue versus orange” or whatever colors like it is with many other coasters.

Good question.

I think we were on the orange one the first time... I'm thinking it was the brown one??? the other time, but we were front row both times as well.

I didn't notice any vibration at all until right at the end before the breaks.

Crazy how different our preferences are.

Wild Mouse - Best (modern) mouse. Were the trims on? They've never been on when I've ridden this, which typically results in taking the turns at breakneck speed.
Comet - Love this ride, but a lot of it is nostalgia for me, as well as a fondness for classic woodies.
Jolly Rancher Remix - Typical boomerang, although this one is probably the smoothest I've experienced (only rode as Sidewinder).
Trailblazer - Longer than you expected? This is probably the shortest mine train I've ever seen. I dig it though, but it was one of my very first coasters.
Great Bear - A great invert, but yeah, it's a little short. Does pack a lot in such a short layout, including the (in my opinion underrated) straight sections over the river.
Sooperdooperlooper - My favorite coaster for years as a kid, and one of the reasons I got into this hobby.
Laff Trakk - One and done. Kinda fun, but don't care much for spinny rides.
Lightning Racer - Definitely a top 3 or 4 coaster in this park.
Wildcat's Revenge - N/A
Storm Runner - Fantastic
Fahrenheit - Underwhelming...but I'm kind of over rides with as many inversions thrown at you as possible, unless there's something else that makes it worth the experience (the 97° drop isn't enough).
Skyrush - Love this one, probably my favorite in the park.
Candymonium - This is a fun one, but not sure I'd consider it better than Skyrush or even Storm Runner. Possibly even Lightning Racer.

Keep in mind I'm 50, so most rides are a once per day affair.

My interest in marathoning coasters isn't there anymore either. The me from 20 years ago is probably shaking his head.

Gotta agree with Vater - Trailblazer is basically one hill and a 360° turn. It makes that roller coaster on the Santa Monica Pier seem epic in comparison (and they send you around twice to justify the cost!)

'Insert roller coaster designer here', "Hey Hershey, here are the new blueprints for the coaster you are interested in."

Hersheypark: "That looks sweet! Now to make it even better, lop off the last 1500' and we have a deal!"

TheMillenniumRider, seems like it for sure! Or, “make the last 500 feet straight and meandering before necessary, and it’s perfect”.

My trip on Sunday was my first coastering since 2018, so I was very nervous I would suddenly not be able to handle coasting anymore. Turns out I still love it, but I’m much more sensitive to vibration than I used to be. The Fahrenheit vibration that used to only bother me at the end was significant and borderline nauseating throughout the whole ride. In fact, all the Intamins were way more vibrational than I remember and more forceful. Perhaps THAT’S where my 44 years is getting weak. I hope not. I still haven’t ridden an RMC, so I need to be toughened up for a little longer yet.

In any case, I hope you had a sweet day. Great report!