Las Vegas- Desperado, Canyon B, & Speed 9/02
Associated parks:
None
Viva Las Vegas!
I was in town for the AMOA/Fun Expo 2002 trade show (which featured the RCT pinball game - Pat Lawlor did a nice job on this one!). Of course, I also took the opportunity to gamble on a few coasters that I knew nothing about, since I didn't look any of them up before going.
First off, bring some cash for these things. Prices ranged from $6 a ride to $12 a ride for the Manhattan Express! For the 3 coasters that I did ride, it cost $20 for a total of 4 rides (they MAKE you ride Speed twice!)
My first ride was at Circus Circus for the Canyon Blaster. This is the first time I had ridden a full-scale indoor coaster. The ride was a walk-on, as the indoor Adventuredome park was nearly empty. I took the front seat, and a little girl sat behind me. The rest of the train was empty. Think Corkscrew with a second vertical loop and a helix and that sums up the ride. The best part of the ride was how it came so close to its surroundings, like the roof, the mountain, and a Chaos ride. It gets a 6 on a 10-point scale- not world-class, but not too bad either.
My next ride was on Speed: The Ride at the Sahara. This is a launched ride which runs in front of the hotel (and no, it is not based on the movie about the bus that couldn't slow down). Not a full train on this one either, and it was quite a wait to ride - staring at an empty train. They may have been waiting on more passengers or the LIMs to cool down or something. The restraints are nice and snug, and they squeeze you in during the launch. Out of the launch, you make an immediate turn to the left and parallel Las Vegas Blvd (the Strip). Down through a tunnel and into the loop. From there, you pick up speed through a second set of LIMs, through the Sahara sign, turn, then up a vertical tower. Then you go through backwards back to the station. The crew rechecks the restraints, then you do the whole thing over again. This one gets a 3.5 - the restraints squeezed in rather tight and made the second trip most uncomfortable; plus, I think they could have done more with the ride.
Since I wasn't going to pay $12 for a ride that looked like it had poor transitions and lots of roughness (Manhattan Express at Mew York New York), my last LV coaster ride was 40 miles south in Primm, Nevada at Buffalo Bill's - Desperado. This is a nice, tall hypercoaster out in the middle of a desert. Once again, another long wait as we needed a minimum of 10 passengers. I took the front seat and chatted with a fellow enthusiast from LA about Knott's, SFMM, and CP. Finally, we got passenger #10 and were off. They warn you to keep your hands below head level and there's a reason why. The tunnel at the first drop is a handchopper - very, VERY close. There are a few bunny hills where you get some air, but that's about it. Sadly, this ride is aging very poorly and lloks like it suffers from a lack of upkeep. They have 3 trains, but they only run 1 at a time now, and it looks like they're cannibalizing one train for parts. The drop and bits of air give this one a 6.5 - this was probably a great coaster when it first opened.
Overall, I hope that the empty trains were an indication of the season, and not a total lack of popularity for LV coasters. It seems that the casinos have tried to add family entertainment, but may be finding out that ultimately, people still don't bring families to Las Vegas.
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My K'Nex Coasters - 2nd Coaster added
Coming to Wyandot Lake in 2003: Sea Dragon's Revenge
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My K'Nex Coasters - 2nd Coaster added
Coming to Wyandot Lake in 2003: Sea Dragon's Revenge
12 bones for Manhattan Express, now? Ouch! I remember when NYNY opened, it was only $5. I can't believe it is so popular, the ride is the roughest in Vegas.
3.5 rating for Speed? Harsh. I think it deserves at least a 7.5 or 8. But that's just my opinion.
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Nothing... NOTHING... can prepare you for... the Fourth Dimension!
Soggy, who also gets *points off* for not making the X-party...j/k. Have to agree there, Despy was worth riding multiple times...sure it was a *bit* rough, but nothing like that Togo. ME wasn't that popular in terms of riders, had alot more spectators than riders....but at $12, that was absurd, almost as bad as the ride itself, lol. Buffalo Bill's also had the shoot-em-up log flume, which was WAY cool. Gotta do that again someday! NYNY did have great old Coney/Luna Park stuff all over the place (more film, please)....the ride was the weak part.
On to the other tidbits: Stratosphere: $8 to ride to observation level, some 10M feet above the desert floor (ok, so I'm afraid of heights)....High Roller was an extra $5 to ride, Big Shot was $8...I think they had some sort of discounted re-rides, as well as a POP option - which doesn't include the elevator to the TOP. (I wanna say $3 to re-ride either ride, but it's a GUESS - I was sorta stressed out).
Adventuredome, I should've spent more time at, but my shoulders had taken a beating the day before. So I just got a ride, and was glad I did....CB was pretty rough. (just like this CB, lol).....
Speed: The Ride...certainly the best coaster in Vegas...by a considerable margin IMO....just remeber to lean WITH that curve right out of the launch, or you might get a beating from the OTSRs. the crew there was a great bunch, and we had a LOT of fun....they even went down the platform to get me a pic of the front of the train...thanks!
Soggy said:
I have a cpmpletely different opinion than kRaXLeRidAh, I love Desperado. Yeah, its rough, but no rougher than any other Arrow Hyper I've been on. The sweeping drop is awesome, great bunnyhop airtime and the indoor helix is a nice touch.12 bones for Manhattan Express, now? Ouch! I remember when NYNY opened, it was only $5. I can't believe it is so popular, the ride is the roughest in Vegas.
3.5 rating for Speed? Harsh. I think it deserves at least a 7.5 or 8. But that's just my opinion.
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Nothing... NOTHING... can prepare you for... the Fourth Dimension!
I don't know if you've ridden Magnum XL200 or not, but it doesn't come close to being as painful, shaky, not very fun than Desperado. DSPRDO was just simply put - HORRIBLE. And yes, I rode, just FYI. Multiple times too. Just to see if I was mistaking myself.
rollergator, I missed an X-party? Are you talking about the SFMM Platinum pass thing?
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Nothing... NOTHING... can prepare you for... the Fourth Dimension!
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