Kennywood 6/21/08

Well this was my first time to Kennywood, so I really didn't know what to expect. Only things I did think I would see were the non-SF/CF way of running things, i.e. a bit more "down home".

After parking in the free lot and walking quite a distance got inside the park. First off was the Cosmic Chaos. I have been on the Survivor ride at California's Great America, so I thought I'd be ready for this. woah! The spinning was much much faster than I was prepared for. Was a good ride, even though I was a bit freaked out.

Next up was Phantom's Revenge. W O W This sucker packed a punch. The coaster cars were a bit odd to me. They were the same cars from when this was the Phantom. They just refitted the restraints. I just assumed they'd be newer cars. But no matter! This thing was very fast. And I didn't know that the 2nd hill had a bigger drop than the first...and utilized the hillside. The bunny drops were great except the 2nd one had an extra little bump after that I didn't care for.

Thunderbolt. Very cool. Had a few hills BEFORE the lift. Nice. Then into the "not-very-banked helices in front of the station. Quite a fun coaster.

Exterminator. Fun ride, but man this one hurt. My buddy sat on one side and myself on the other. Since I'm a little guy, I got thrown all over the car and surprised I didn't get any bruised elbows. But the theming and the idea of the ride, very cool.

Racer. Ride got a bit delayed due to the severe storms in the area, but if not for the rain, the wait wasn't long. Apparently this is the only "mobius" racing coaster in the U.S. This means that you end on the opposite side that you start. I know sometimes I'm not the brightest, but i'm still trying to figure out how we got there. There was no switching or anything. Perhaps there's an odd number of turnarounds and that's how we got there. -shrug- It was fun.

Jack Rabbit. This was a quick and fun coaster. It as a double dip drop. Made for some nice air. Would have enjoyed it had the ride not lasted less than a minute.

Noah's Ark. I MISS THIS KIND OF RIDE! It's a fun house kind of ride in the dark through most of it. Reminded me alot of the old Funhouse at Cedar Point.

Ghostwood Estate. This is a new ride this year. This was easily the longest wait of the day. Your vehicle is guided along without a track through the ride. You then have to shoot up the ghosts and get points along the way. My complaint was this. A> My gun didnt shoot very fast, had to wait like 3 secs between shots. and B> I had to spend so much time shooting that I couldn't pay attention to the ride itself! I have no idea what I saw! Better idea for the kids than the adults, not worth the wait in line.

I really liked this park. Wasn't overrun with people, prices inside were cheap, for everything. I would definitely go back if I have the chance.

I haven't been to this park for years, but what I remember about it was 1.) the free parking; 2.) the great food (and great prices) and 3.) the obvious non-corporate atmosphere. I hope none of these things change.

Chicago..how the mobius part works...

Its done with a "reverse curve",in the beginning of the ride.To explain..instead of the curve of the track being parallel they split,thats how you end up on the opposite side.

Well, since someone already posted a topic on Kennywood 6/21, I guess I'll tag along for my trip report. Got to the park about 5:15 after a day of business work in Pittsburgh. Headed straight for Phantom's Revenge. First time in the back seat. Wow! What a ride.

Headed from there to Racer. Just as much fun as I remember it. Next was JackRabbit. It's always fun when the 5 - 6 year old in front and behind you has never ridden it before but has a ball! Then it was over to Ghostwood Estate. While I miss the older ride, this has to be one of the better interactive dark rides that I have been on. And the guns are real reliable relative to others.

While over in the area, I thought I'd see about Thunderbolt. Being a single rider, I knew they had a two person per seat rule, but I wasn't sure how they handled single riders. It was perfectly smoothly.

From there, went over to Cosmic Chaos. Neat new addition (though I am struggling to remember what sued to be there before CC. Then it was over to the Swings. Wanted another ride on Phantom's Revenge, but it had close due to technical difficulties and then was shut down due to incoming weather. So, I went over to Racer, and the skies opened up. But, we still rode. It's as much fun as a water ride... Hit the carousel and grabbed an ice cream cone before the logn walk to the topmost parking lot (ski-lift was shut down due to lightening...)

Overall, a good night, even if it ended a bit early due to rain.

^Walt...the (powerful) Flying Carpet used to sit in CC's spot... ;)

There were some trees and charm over there too. :)

^I also believe that there was some grass there to, but maybe I am just imagining things ;)

Guess I can tag on this one as well. We were there the next day. Seems like whenever we come there is always severe storms. Yet on Sunday they held out till late.

Phantom - I rode this version 1 the year it opened and I think I liked it better then. Not a looper kind of person lately but the original was great. Agree about the bunny hops on this version.

Thunderbolt - Still a great ride with wonderful lateral forces.

Noah's Ark - Agree that they need more rides like this. Too bad only one other exists in the world. Would love to experience that one.

Ghostwood Estates - Was a fun and busy ride. Agree that the guns need to work faster and that there are so many targets that it is hard to watch and play at same time.

Racer - Always a good ride and a smooth fun one. My daughter loves it.

Jack Rabbit - My favorite. I do miss the old lap belts but now they just make sure it is locked. As long as it is locked you can leave it loose as needed. Helps in the air time. Our last ride was at 9:45 PM during the Sunday night thunderstorm. That was exciting!

Glad to hear everybody had a good time at Kennywood. It is my favorite park because of the old time charm that it still has. I grew up going to Idora Park in Youngstown and Geauga Lake in the 70's and 80's. Kennywood still has that feel to it like those parks did. I hope to get down this summer but since my fiance broke her foot in six places last night it might make it kind of tough. She loves to go to the parks as much as I do and I wouldn't feel right going without her knowing whe would be at home suffering. Once we talk to the Orthopedic doctor and see what they are going to do we hope they can put her in a walking cast and then I can atleast push her around the park in a wheel chair and she would be able to ride some.

Kennywood certainly has charm. Although I think it could use a few more trees.

One thing with an injury though: Make sure you get a note. I know it sounds ridiculous, but I had a broken foot once and ops at Dorney wouldn't let me ride some of the rides because of my cast. It was apparently a liability. They told me next time I came, if I still had my cast on, I needed a note from the doc to state it was okay to ride the rides.

Thanks for the advise bunky.