Mitch Hawker's Internet Poll

I've been visiting the website and haven't seen any updates in a while. Usually, by now, the poll (at least for wooden coasters) is very much underway, or at least the preliminary ballot has been posted. Has anyone heard if Mitch is going to be running the poll this year?

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-Rob
A.C.E. member since 1990
Posting @ Coasterbuzz since 2000
E.C.C. member since 2002

I would assume so, yes.

mOOSH [tries never to assume]

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Holiday cards, All-Occasion cards, 2004 Wood Coaster Calendar now available atS&D Greetings.

The wood coaster poll has been conducted every year for the entire month of NOVEMBER. At least for the past five years.

Chuck, who kinda liked the fact that you didn't have to remain annonoumous last year.

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Charles Nungester.
It's official Lesourdsville Lake is closed for 2003

I could sworn it was held in October, but I'm sure you're right.

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-Rob
A.C.E. member since 1990
Posting @ Coasterbuzz since 2000
E.C.C. member since 2002

I don't really bother with the steel rankings....too many rides, and they're not made of WOOD...;)

When the wooden poll comes out, I'm going to have to pull some magic out of my (gator) hat to figure out how to fit 25 woodies into my top 10....what a quandary!
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We're whalers on the moon, we carry a harpoon, but there ain't no whales so we tell tall tales and sing a whaling tune...

This year's poll will be really tough for me. I didn't get on many of my favorites this year (about half of last year's top ten), and some others [Beast (yes, the Beast) and Twister] really impressed me this year. Ranking old faves by memory vs. new stand-outs is really hard.

I think I may just go with the bASS 'tiered ranking scale' this year.

All I know is that Mean Streak won't be my dead last woodie anymore after sitting there for three polls. Coming into the poll at dead last...Psyclone!

Seriously though, I got a lot of new wood in this year so this years poll is going to be a challenge.

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Bob Hansen
Operation Wicked Twister 2 - Goal: Lose 100 pounds by next season so I will DEFINATELY be able to ride Wicked Twister. Progress: 14 pounds. Doin' the Atkins!

Yeah, this year's poll will be fun, I've got a lot of new wood to rank! Phoenix is way up, Boulderdash is in there now, and I have to find a high spot for Leap-The-Dips!

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Mike Miller - The CPG: The ORIGINAL flash mob

I rode quite a few new wooden coasters and am looking forward to ranking them (the Dania Beach Hurricane is definitely going in my Top 5). And with so few new wooden coasters opening this year, I'm curious to see how all the existing ones rank in relation to how they ranked in years past.

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-Rob
A.C.E. member since 1990
Posting @ Coasterbuzz since 2000
E.C.C. member since 2002

Echoing the sentiment, I'm really looking forward to participating in this year's polls. This past weekend trip made me do some major personal top 10 re-evaluation.

On a side note, I looked back at the 2002 results and noticed some interesting trends....

Wood

- CCI's hold the top 4, 7 of the top 10, and 12 of the top 20 spots. Maybe they're doing something right.....:)

- CCI has held the top spot since 1996 (Megafobia, Timbers, or Tonnere de Zeus), and the top three since 1998.

- Historic rides hold 3 of the top 10 spots (Comet, Phoenix, and Coaster @ PNE)

- Hercules was second to last. Maybe "taer"ing it down is a good idea...

Steel

- Intamin hypers sit at 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, and 16. Perhaps they too are doing something right:)

- However, B&M hypers are at 4, 8, 12, and 86 (SilverStar). What's wrong with the German speed-coaster?

- While we all respect Anton, he only has 4 rides in the top 50, and three of those are in the forties.

- Togo is truly the company we love to hate, not Vekoma. While the Dutchmen had a ride place as high as 52 (R'n'RC), Togo's highest was 185! (UltraTwister)

Ahh, the data tells us interesting things, doesn't it? (In case you were wondering, interpreting customer survey data ranking to determine engineering projects is part of my job.)

Later,
EV
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"Everybody has desperate days of quiet questioning.
Everybody has times when they feel like they don't fit in."
- Color Theory, So Many Ways, 2001

I don't think it GETS any more right than CCI woodies and Intamin hypers. That's all that's in my overall top 10, except for one Arrow hyper (X) and one Dinn woodie (Da Beast).

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Mike Miller - The CPG: The ORIGINAL flash mob

Just bring one of each (ok, GG instead of CCI;)) to our new reservation/casino up here. I have to have something to brag about.
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The end of an era has come. Ethyl is no more.

Well I guess Herc won't be among my least favorites anymore. RIP.

The only woodie I rode that cracked my top ten this year was lightning Racers with a slight edge going to Thunder. Coasters moving up IMHO will be Legend and Knoebels Twister which I got rain rides on and now know what the ride is capable of. I think in all honesty that Twister may have the same problem Legend had last year and thats over packing the bearings. Legend was definetley as good as ever this year after my two dissapointments in 2002. So much so it gets my #2

New for me woodies this year were Sky Princess, Williams Grove Cyclone, Hersheys three woodies and Idlewilds Rollo Coaster.

Chuck, who likes Mitches Poll and is still working to help make it even more fair such as my suggestions of not being able to view the results near the end of balloting to avoid partial voting.

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Charles Nungester.
It's official Lesourdsville Lake is closed for 2003

EchoVictor said:
- However, B&M hypers are at 4, 8, 12, and 86 (SilverStar). What's wrong with the German speed-coaster?

Maybe the trim on almost every hill has something to do with it. They put it on the worst possible location too (at the apex), right when the arse starts to leave the chair. Might I plug in that my fabulocious Nitro was #4 :)

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Lyrically, I'm supposed to represent
I'm not only a client, I'm the playa president!

Charles Nungester said:

New for me woodies this year were Sky Princess, Williams Grove Cyclone, Hersheys three woodies and Idlewilds Rollo Coaster.

Sky Princess is now in your Top 10, right? ;)

I have all the wooden coasters at PKD, SFA and SFOG to add, as well as the Dania Beach Hurricane, Rampage and Lake Winnie's Cannonball to figure into my rankings this year, which is definitely a record for me as far as new wooden coasters in concerned. Its gonna be tough...

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-Rob (can't tell Thunder from Lightning on Lightning Racer!)
A.C.E. member since 1990
Posting @ Coasterbuzz since 2000
E.C.C. member since 2002

Nope Sky Princess was not in my top ten, However I think it is a far better coaster than it gets credit for. In my 60 or so woodies I'd give it probably about a 31. It's not a kiddie coaster and has some quite forcefull latterals.

Of Course everyone has their prefferences and thats why the overal averages that Mitches poll is bassed on is much fairer.

Chuck, who loved the WIlliams Grove Cyclone but thinks most would not due to its almost brutal ride.

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Charles Nungester.
It's official Lesourdsville Lake is closed for 2003

Actually, I was just joking about the Sky Princess. But I do agree with you... it is a better ride than people say it is. While its been quite some time since I rode it, I remember it being a VERY good family ride, a perfect fit for the park. And in pictures, the ride is absolutely beautiful... I think that it has gorgeous lines, although the same can be said of all Boodley designs.

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-Rob
A.C.E. member since 1990
Posting @ Coasterbuzz since 2000
E.C.C. member since 2002

Rob, Sky Princess is almost %100 Larry Bill.

Mr. Boodley was hired to fix the lifthill which was severly engineered wrong somehow and actually split in two.

The only CCI Boodley designed was Outlaw and you can certainly tell it.

Chuck

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Charles Nungester.
It's official Lesourdsville Lake is closed for 2003

Really? I was always under the impression that Boodley had something to do with the design... some of the curves on that coaster definitely mimick those on his GCII coasters. I'm not doubting... just surprised.

Either way, its a beautiful coaster... but still far from "Top 10" material!

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-Rob
A.C.E. member since 1990
Posting @ Coasterbuzz since 2000
E.C.C. member since 2002

Boodley's Outlaw is an awesome ride. Great laterals and forces. I think it deserves to be in the top 20. Can't beat that first drop in the back with buzz bars.

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"If you're thirsty, it's too late to go get a drink." Chinese Proverb