Kings Dominion to retire Shockwave stand-up roller coaster this summer

Maybe they will add a launched coaster of some sort to replace Shockwave. That park definitely needs a launched coaster... 😜

Small footprint, so I doubt it...especially with Volcano several hundred yards away. I'm hoping for one of those new Enterprises.

Someone inquired on FB yesterday about Shockwave getting "the Rougarou treatment."

I was polite, but strongly suggested HOW unlikely that was...i.e., infinitely.

I think this is the last Togo Stand Up in the U.S.? After Skyrider was removed at the end of last year, I'm sure the writing was somewhat on the wall for Shockwave.

I'm kinda sorta bummed, but at the same time this was expected. While I preferred the standard Togo stand-up layout to Shockwave's modified one, I still liked having a Togo nearby since I like them more than the B&M stand-ups. It'd be nice if another coaster replaces it, since that part of the midway has always had a coaster (except for the three years between Galaxi's removal and Shockwave's installation).

(P)KI's King Cobra was my favorite stand up. Strangely, Shockwave was one of my absolute least favorite coasters. The modified ending killed it - that sharp 180 at the end was just a brutal neck beater for me. And it just didn't seem to track as well as Cobra. Sorry I never rode Skyrider but I'm not losing sleep over it.

I never rode the coaster but somehow I think I might get the chance next year in Allentown.

Allentown? Damn... I was hoping to ride it at Michigan's Adventure in 2016.

Interesting that Ride Entertainment Group posted a farewell video on their Facebook page today.

The ride was okay, but my god those restraints were a nightmare. Hard to use and incredibly uncomfortable. And I thought the B&M standup restraining system was bad...

I thought the restraints were impractical when entering/exiting the vehicle, but didn't find them any more uncomfortable than the B&Ms. In fact I always found them a bit less restrictive...though the two-across seating and more open trains certainly helped with that.

Sucks.

We rode Shockwave when it was fairly new and then again toward the end. In my memory the early rides were better than the later ones. I originally thought the weird ending was nice, but now not so much. Plus, it has the slowest lift hill ever.

I did love the Togo rides for that near horizontal helix, and I always thought the Togo standup trains with the-around-the-arm loop restraints were the best on any standup. Much better than the horse collar, especially the early ones.

I guess I should be sad that the last ride of it's kind (here) will be gone, but I'm not. I wonder what expansion to Candy Apple Grove will take place? There's a small hill behind the ride and behind that is the nice wooded path straight back from the Eiffel Tower, so I'm not sure how much room there is to gain.

RCMAC said:

slowest lift hill ever.

Yes, yes, and yes. Years ago while waiting in the insufferable line for Shockwave, I timed the entire ride. It took one minute to get from the bottom of the lift to the top, and right around 45 seconds from top of lift to brakes. Long lines weren't a first- or second-year thing only, either. That thing had long lines until maybe the last 10 or 15 years. The train in the station would inevitably be loaded and ready to dispatch before the train before it hit the top of the lift hill. It was impossible not to stack trains.

Pity. I've wanted to try one of the togo stand ups to see if they really are better than B&M stand ups. oh well : P

I'll save you the effort, they really aren't.

The first drop and loop were just fine. The helix would have been fine except for the speedbump midway through, everything after the helix was terrible.

I'll take the SLC any day.

</shockwave>

I would put King Cobra up against the B&M Vortex rides, and even prefer Skyrider over the horrible contraption that was Iron Wolf. Shockwave was as rough as Iron Wolf, but even less fun.

To me this move helps PD's line-up even if there were no replacement at all.

I found the Togo Stand Ups to be the most comfortable to ride over the B&M and Intamins that I've experienced. Sad to see these going extinct.

Considering that King Cobra was one of my favorite coasters back in the day (for sheer fun factor and wasn't horribly uncomfortable), I'm sad to see Shockwave retire.

Obviously from what's reflected in this thread, the ride wasn't as great as some other Togo stand ups, but I'm making my first trip to KD in late September. Sad that I'll miss a relative stroll down memory lane.