Mitch's Wooden coaster poll

A poll can never be taken too seriously! But if there was one to be taken without a grain or two of salt, Mitch's would be the one. As far as I'm concerned, its better than the usual polls where the majority of voters live in Ohio and vote the Beast into the #1 spot, over and over again. How long has it been since the Beast was REALLY number one?

---

Charles Nungester said:
However seeing how coasters I haven't ridden rate is a factor in the coasters I seek out so I can compare for myself.

Also a factor is one visit is often not enough to get a true view of how good a coaster really is.

---

Agreed, and agreed, Chuck. The highly-rated coasters *definitely* have an impact when I'm planning coaster trips, so they get priority in terms of where to travel...not that I won't visit a park without a "top-tier" coaster, but those that DO have 'em will likely get a visit sooner on average than those that don't...

One visit CANNOT give an accurate depiction as to how a coaster performs in general....unfortunately, one day is all that we have sometimes, so that's the *one chance* that a coaster may have to impress me....

Finally, to all who aren't happy with the ratings, consider that the enthusiasts voting in Mitch's poll have LOADS of riding experience, and within the guidelines of necessarily subjective OPINIONS, this poll gives the BEST representation of an "average, experienced, rider"...

How very true, but consider this: parks with "average" coasters could benefit from being around parks with better coasters. When I planned a trip to SFOG and Visionland, we also hit Lake Winnie. Not a great coaster (but not a bad one, either), but it wound up on our itinerary because it was in the same area as parks with top tier woodies.

---

rollergator said:
The highly-rated coasters *definitely* have an impact when I'm planning coaster trips, so they get priority in terms of where to travel...not that I won't visit a park without a "top-tier" coaster, but those that DO have 'em will likely get a visit sooner on average than those that don't...

---

Gator,

I highly agree with rankings affecting where I look towards when scheduling a "coaster" trip. That's why the 1-2 punch of SFNE and Lake Compounce is probably going to be my next excursion.

In addition, doesn't the #1 ranking of Expedition Ge Force in the 2002 Steel poll make one consider traveling there rather than, say, the #86 ranking of Silver Star?

---

EchoVictor said:

In addition, doesn't the #1 ranking of Expedition Ge Force in the 2002 Steel poll make one consider traveling there rather than, say, the #86 ranking of Silver Star?

---

If you just go by coaster rankings you are going to miss out on a lot. Europa park is the best park I've ever been to.