Knott's Berry Farm/ Magic Mountain 1/15 & 1/16

This is my first post, so here it goes.

To begin with, why we were going to California. My brother needed to go to Oakland
to pick up his girlfriend who is moving to Ohio. He needed someone to drive out
with him, so we decided to make a trip out of it. It ended up being myself, my
brother Kevin, and my other brother Keith. Originally it was supposed to be only
Magic Mountain, but after leaving a day early, we decided to hit Knott's as well.
After the parks, Keith and I were to fly out of Bakersfield, back to Columbus, Ohio.
Kevin would go on by himself to Oakland.

After 38 hours of driving, and a nights sleep, we arrived at the park right at
opening, 10:00 AM. Kevin and I filled out the form for complimentary tickets for
Cedar Point season pass holders, and met back up with my other brother who had to buy
a ticket.

First off, the important stuff.
Coasters closed- None
One train op.- Xcelerator, Jaguar
Two train op.- Silver Bullet, Ghostrider

Ghostrider (Walk-on)

It was nearly a walk-on since it was so early in the day. This ride reminded
me a lot of the New Mexico Rattler, and was relatively smooth compared to a lot
of woodies we have back in Ohio. I didnt get much air time, but the lateral
forces were great. The only thing that disappointed me about it was that the
ride photo was taken as we pulled back into the station, so it wasn't worth the
price. Overall, the ride was one of my favorite woodies, behind the Boss and
Son of Beast. 7/10

Xcelerator (Walk-on all but front)

This is the one Kevin was looking forward to the most, since he loves
launching coasters. It was a walk-on for any seat but the front, but we decided
to wait for it. Two rides later we were on. I thought the launch on the ride
did feel a bit more intense than that of Dragster, but obviously for a shorter
period of time. The ride after the top hat seemed to be a bit of a bore, so I
prefer Dragster over it, but still a great ride. 8.5/10

Montezooma's Revenge (Walk-on)

Not surprisingly, this was also a walk-on. We got the front seat, and headed off.
I have never ridden one of these types of rides, so I had no expectations. The
launch on it wasn't too bad, and the loop was great. I had no idea what I had
missed out on during my trip to Kentucky Kingdom last year. It was a lot better
than any Boomerang. 6/10

Boomerang (Walk-on)

What is there to say. It was a credit. 3/10

Jaguar (30 minute wait)

We ended up waiting a long time for this ride. It had some great theming, with
the pyramid station and all. It was a pretty good ride for its size as well. 4/10

Silver Bullet (2 train wait)

Last, but certainly not least, was Silver Bullet. This was the one I had came to
ride. First off, it had a beautiful setting above the lake, and it was EXTREMELY
quiet. We had to wait for two trains, and then we were on. It was weird being able
to hear people talking going up the hill, which in my mind hurt it slightly. I like
the loud lifts on these types of rides, it gets my nerves going a bit, no matter how
many times I ride them. The inversions were paced a bit fast, since I like to have
short breaks in between, so I feel each better. The helix at the end was great, my
favorite part of the ride, just like on Raptor. This was my third favorite invert,
behind Top Gun: The Jet Coaster and Raptor. 8.5/10

Everyone at the park was very friendly, and it was extremely clean. Knott's was
definitely one of the nicest parks I have ever been to, and was completely worth the
trip, since originally we were only going to go to Magic Mountain.

We drove up to Valencia, and got a hotel. It was only 4:00 so we decided to go that
night and get our season pass stuff done, even if we had to pay for parking twice.
We parked, hopped on the shuttle and headed to the entrance. I still can't believe
they only charge $59.99 for a season pass. They had the season pass processing set
up really well, I have to give them credit for that.

Goliath (2 or 3 train wait)

With only an hour, we decided to get a ride on Goliath. Walking through the queue,
we were passed by a group of about 7 or 8 teenagers on the outside, so that was not
a good start for the park. The ride was still only a 2 or 3 car wait with 2 train
operation. We got into the back row of the first car and headed up the hill. The first
drop into the tunnel was fantastic, and the first turn was cool. The helix is as
great as everyone talks about, and my brother nearly blacked out on it. Goliath ended
up being my second favorite hyper, behind only Phantom's Revenge, which I can't see
ever being topped. 8/10

We walked around the park for the rest of the time, finding out where everything was, so
we would be ready the next day. The next morning, we got there for opening, and
didn't see much of a crowd.

Coasters closed: Revolution, Flashback, Riddler's Revenge, Ninja
One train op.: Batman, Superman, Colossus, Psyclone, X
Two train op.: Scream!, Goliath

Scream! (Walk-on)

The first ride we headed for was Scream!, which is one I was really looking forward to,
since I love Dominator, especially the front seat. We got the front seat, and the
rest of the train was nearly empty. You definitely notice that this ride sits on top
of the parking lot, which sucks, because it was a great ride. The layout was not as
good as Dominators, but was still one of the best overall rides at the park. 8.5/10

Colossus (30 minute wait)

They really needed to put a second train on track, because the line got pretty long.
We ended up waiting over a half hour for it, which I wouldn't have done if one of Keith
didn't like wooden coasters so much. I used it to check and see if X was running,
because up till then I hadn't seen a train go. Colossus was actually pretty fun, but
not as much as it looks like it could be from the parking lot. 5/10

Batman the Ride (2 train wait)

We now headed along the north side of the park, which started with Batman. I have ridden
the one at St. Louis, and was completely disappointed by it, so I had no expectations. We
had to wait 2 trains for the front seat. Once again I was totally unimpressed by this
ride. I will take Raptor, Silver Bullet, and Top Gun before Batman any day. When I get off
those rides, I am dizzy and my feet tingle, and you just don't get that on Batman. 4/10

We had to walk right by Riddler since it was closed, which disappointed me. Mantis and
Chang are two of my favorite rides, and I was looking so forward to it.

Deja Vu (Walk-on)

So next up was Deja Vu. This one made my brother a little nervous, since Face/Off really
shook him up. It was a walk-on in almost every seat, so we headed for the back. There
are a lot of restraints on this ride, which we found out were for a reason. Being lifted
up the back post is a sweet feeling, and the first drop is quite intense. By the time we
were heading up the second post, I had decided that this was a GREAT ride. Combining
an impulse and an invertigo was a great idea. This was easily the most intense ride I
have ever been on. 9/10

Psyclone (Walk-on)

When we entered the station, the train had about ten people on it, and they started to cheer.
They needed a certain number of riders to send it off, and they had been sitting there for
a while. We strapped in and waited about five minutes for 2 more riders, then we were off.
We were kind of nervous, because we weren't sure what was keeping people away. It ended
up being a little rough, but it wasn't too bad. I liked the layout of the ride, and enjoyed
it more than Colossus. 5.5/10

Superman (Walk-on)

After a hike up the mountain, we were able to walk right into the back seat without stopping.
If it wasn't a credit, I wouldn't have bothered walking so much. The launch was unbelievably
weak, and obviously there isn't anything else to the ride. 3/10

Gold Rusher (Walk-on)

We always ride the mine rides at every park we go to so we hit this one. It was one of the
better mine rides that I have been on, since it used the hillside very well. 4/10

We walked back around the mountain, since the pathway by Revolution was closed for Tatsu
construction. When we neared the entrance, we saw X going up the hill for the first time,
and I was ecstatic. I was going to ride it no matter how long the wait was. I drove 38 hours,
and I was not going to go home without that credit.

X (2 hours 15 minutes)

We got in line, and at the entrance of the queue they had a sign stating that because of
maintenance, the wait was going to be even longer. I am guessing it was because they were
only able to run one train, and we did wait for a long time. After about 2 hours and 15
minutes, we were being strapped in. It did not seem like this ride could live up to that wait,
but it did on just the first hill. This ride is unbelievable. It seems like it is every
other type of coaster rolled up into one; flying, inverted, some impulse. I am most
definitely a Cedar Point fanboy, but X took over as my favorite coaster, unseating Millennium.
10/10

Viper (Walk-on)

Last up was Viper. Viper seems like the king of Magic Mountain, the way it sits so high up.
It was a rough like every ride of this type, but the view from the top of the hill is amazing.
5/10

That was the last ride for me, since we had to drive to Bakersfield, and get up and catch a
flight at 6:45 AM Pacific time, the next morning. We left the park with the same overall
feeling that most people do. It has so much potential. A lot of the rides are in dire need
of a coat of paint, and they have no flat rides. It has no atmosphere, unlike Knott's, and even
with all the awesome coasters, it wasn't as much fun as Knott's. The ride ops did seem
friendly and were helpful, even if most of the guests were quite rude. There was one thing
that I decided on this trip, and that is that you can't really choose one over the other.
They are two completely different types of parks, and you should do both if you can. We
enjoyed them both a lot.

-John

Thanks for the report. Sounds like SFMM is really changing the way they do things! :-(

Your assessment of Superman: the Ride cracks me up. When I first rode it in 1998, it was *amazing,* mainly because what other ride took you to 100mph? Then I rode again in 2001, and it was still good, but not great.

Now, apparently, in the days of Kingda Ka and TTD, it sucks. Ha. It certainly is the most outdated-looking ride I can think of... it takes up so much space and is as loud as a jet.

You are not kidding about it being loud. We made the mistake of walking under it and not realizing it was launching. OUCH!!

Welcome to the boards, excellent TR for a first timer! All I can say about GR is, you must have caught in on a bad day or early in the day. Come back sometime and ride it at night after it's been running all day, gives quite a different ride loaded with ejector air.

Too bad about Riddler, one of the top reasons to go to SFMM. I know recently it was reported that it vallyed due to the cold weather, that may have been the reason the otherwise reliable best stand up evah was closed.

And my condolences for having to go to Bakersfield ;o)

It's good to hear you had some fun out at the SoCal parks! I was wondering, did you ride Perilous Plunge?

You really had bad timing with your Magic Mountain visit. As explained a post before me, The Riddler's Revenge valleyed the day you visited (it was covered at the end of a Tatsu a photo update), but opened up the very next day. Revolution closed months ago because Tatsu's construction site is literally within Revolution's perimeter. Ninja closed a few days ago because Tatsu's construction has now begun into the first corkscrew, which is right outside Ninja's queue entry - you'll notice that you weren't allowed up the midway to the top of the hill past Superman The Escape...Other than that, if you had visited a week earlier, Revolution (closed for Tatsu construction) and Flashback (hasn't operated since '03) would've been the only rides down.

I'm surprised at your opinion on Batman! I get the dizzy/feet tingling sensation much more on the smaller inverts like Batman and Nemesis than the larger ones. Gotta attribute that to the quick pace and snappy inversions.

Great trip report, I don't know when I'll finally get there, but I will look forward to it. That sucks about Riddler, it has valleyed before, correct? Does anyone know if it was between the dive loops?

Glad X and Deja Vu were running. Now, for this summer let's all play tear down Flashback, reopen Sky Tower, and paint some rides. :)

/\ It valleyed inbetween the 90-degree banked curving hill and the mid-course block brakes.

We didn't get to ride Perilous Plunge since it was only 55 degrees outside. I don't know if it is, but it looks a lot steeper than all the other rides of its type out there. I wish it had been warmer, because Snake River Falls is always a must for us at CP.

^Yes, it is steeper than most. I think its 70 degrees or so for the angle of descent. And yes, it is a ride that will get you absolutely soaked. I can't blame you at all for not riding in 55 degree weather! I wouldn't either. :)

John, you should have just bought a poncho and stuck it out, that way you would be able to say you'd been on the tallest (121-feet with a 115-foot drop) and steepest (77.8 degrees) water ride in the world. :)