Mitch's coaster poll

Heck yes 305!!

I didn't vote... again... because it's a headache and I haven't ridden my #1 steel (Nemesis) since 06. I've decided I'll vote next year and only vote on things I've ridden in the past couple of years.

I think Dave nailed it with the part about people disliking it for the same reasons as Magnum. Magnum is just behind Phantom for me and sometimes surpasses it. The violent airtime is what I like in my rides--not being pinned to the seat with a strong "up-lift force" ala all of the Intamin faves. You won't find any Intamins in my top 10 wood or steel.

I will admit that there is one place on Phantom that keeps it from being amazing, and that's the hump near the end of the ride. After an awesome pop of air, it unnaturally and violently punches my butt upwards with the seat. It hurts.

But Magnum's entire trip back to the station affects me differently. it doesn't punch me in the butt, my legs hit the lap bar on the crests of the hills. I love it.

Acoustic Viscosity said:
--not being pinned to the seat with a strong "up-lift force" ala all of the Intamin faves.

+1

I love PR and greatly dislike Magnum. I think it's the restraints or something, but getting slammed by Magnum is much less enjoyable to me than getting slammed by PR.

I also think the S:RoS twins wasted a ton of track doing nothing interesting, but the magic third hill and the ending series of bunnies makes up for it. I'm much more of a "give me 1 good moment and I'll forgive you for a whole lot of crap" type of rider. That said, I still don't understand how either of them could be *that* much better or worse than the other. I rode SFA's on 3 separate trips 2000-2005 and DL's on one trip in 07 and didn't notice a significant difference at all.

LostKause said:
punches my butt

doesn't punch me in the butt

hehe :)

LostKause said:
I will admit that there is one place on Phantom that keeps it from being amazing, and that's the hump near the end of the ride. After an awesome pop of air, it unnaturally and violently punches my butt upwards with the seat. It hurts.

And that violent double-down is exactly why I have the Phantom as #2 instead of #1. You're right, it hurts.

If that double down could somehow be taken at about 15 mph slower -- but without resorting to the sin of a trim -- that by itself would improve the ride by 20% or more, easily. Of course, the only way to do this would be to somehow extend the ride length significantly.

I am so surprised that the ride still has that element. I would have thought that it would have been removed the moment they realized how intense it was. I'm also surprised that it was designed that way to begin with.

NO!

I'd love for the center of that hump to be removed and converted to just a parabolic curve. Kind of like a dive, if you will. Anybody got a pipe bender and some torches?

What Clint said! The Double-Down was perfect to begin with then Kennywood trimmed it. Don't F with it anymore!

I too find the double down to be the crowning moment of that ride, especially in the back. It's violent rodeo air and it never fails to put a smile on my face.

I wouldn't want every hill to have that much bite to it, but one crazy good hill like that is always welcome by me. It's akin to the double-down on Phoenix where you get absolutely slammed in the back of the train.

I love the ejection part of that element, I just don't like getting my back slammed into the back rest when I come back down. Hence, I ride it like I ride Mean Streak...leaning forward with my back away from the seat.

NO parabolic stuff, please :) We have enough new designers that over use that stuff.... circles and lines are the way to go for kick butt rides :)

Acoustic Viscosity said:
I wouldn't want every hill to have that much bite to it, but one crazy good hill like that is always welcome by me. It's akin to the double-down on Phoenix where you get absolutely slammed in the back of the train.

Agreed, although I liken it to Jack Rabbit's double-down, one of the single craziest moments of air in existence (if you're lucky enough to get a back-seat ride). The rest of the coaster is fun, but that one moment is the reason JR was in my top 10 for years.

obxKevin said:
I just don't like getting my back slammed into the back rest when I come back down.

Ok, so add more padding to the backrest. Don't mess with the track. But personally I've never felt any pain in my back from that element and I almost always ride in the last two rows with my hands up and leaning back against the seat, unbraced.