Most anticipated ride for 2013

OK, Mike, if you say so! I just don't expect Boulder Dash to compare favorably with El Toro or The Voyage but will be happy to be proven wrong. At least I won't be spending a fortune to ride it. Just checked the ticket prices and because I'm over 60, I can get into the park for $19.99. Can't beat that!

Bobbie1951 said:

I just don't expect Boulder Dash to compare favorably with El Toro or The Voyage but will be happy to be proven wrong.

The folks at CoasterBuzz seem to think you'll be proven wrong. :)

Ranked the 4th highest wooden coaster. Only behind Voyage, Toro and Ravine Flyer II.

Boulder Dash is like a Mini-Voyage. It's great. I was way surprised. Love that park too. Has a great classic feel. Boulder Dash will impress, I think.

My first laps on B-Dash about a decade ago were somewhat lackluster. Since then, a few subsequent visits have proven that the first trip was an aberration....that thing is NUTS!

ApolloAndy said:
Yeah. I never understood what the benefit of waiting until Memorial Day or whatever was. Is it cheaper if the construction schedule is planned to be longer? Do you get to avoid certain weather ?

I can see unexpected delays, but why schedule a ride to open memorial day instead of opening day?

Well So - Cal parks don't have opening days. But they do have peak parts of the season which usually start in May.

I do think other parts of the country do try to open their new rides earlier, unless for weather reasons they can't.

I disagree with Raptor being the first thing they will see, with Gatekeeper flying over the main entrance, people are going to hang a right real quick to go line up for that ride. Raptor, being on the Left side of the midway may be forgotten.

I still think MF and TTD will be the big night time rides though. Everyone wants to ride one of these two after dark it seems (I love MF in the dark, TTD I dont get.)

In regards to project timelines, one of the biggest X factors is getting permission from the appropriate government agencies to start construction. Every local government has different requirements. Some are hands off, and others want you to document seemingly trivial details, like every square foot of green space you plan on touching.

SFNE's Dark Knight fubar is just an example of how getting through the red tape can hold up progress. They apparently took the risk and started construction instead of waiting for everyone to sign off, and they paid dearly for that decision.

Touchdown said:

I disagree with Raptor being the first thing they will see, with Gatekeeper flying over the main entrance, people are going to hang a right real quick to go line up for that ride. Raptor, being on the Left side of the midway may be forgotten.

I think you grossly overestimate the public. Mark my words, a lot of people will think it's the same ride.

^^ That could be a very good thing for enthusiasts who know better.

Seems to be the GP only gets smarter and smarter every year...which could be both a good and bad thing.

I always thought Six Flags' delay on opening rides was to get people to buy season passes. They advertise the heck out of the "upgrade your one-day ticket to a season pass" throughout the spring, hoping people who were planning on a one-day trip on a not so crowded day early in the season will want to come back in June when the new ride opens. There sure as hell is no other reason for the SFStL boomerang to not be ready early in the season. I remember reading somewhere that the average passholder visits only two or three times a summer.

And as for the thread topic, I would think Outlaw Run is the most anticipated ride in this area of the country. I hope Silver Dollar City has record attendance this year thanks to the new coaster.

Boulder Dash, especially in front at night, as every bit as good as Toro or Voyage. In fact, I'm pretty sure I ranked it above Voyage in all my polls this year, just behind Phoenix and Toro.

Regarding ride building timelines - yes, there are X factors and unknowns, but the it seems like the parks are actively planning to open the ride around memorial day. It's not like every ride in the last decade had some unexpected delay which pushed it back from opening day to memorial day.

I'm looking forward to that drop tower at Knoebels... probably the only new ride I am going to get on this year, unless Dorney gets another hand me down.

^^ Only if it's another inverted hand me down. *snicker*

Boulder Dash is second only to The Voyage on my list. PRAY FOR RAIN when you visit Lake Compounce, because rain is 'ROIDS for this Coaster!!!

That's unfortunate. Does it hurt your ass more when it rains?

I think that the best rain ride is raven at holiday world. It's even better in the rain than voyage. It feels so out of control in the rain.

Don't get as much choice in the UK as you guys over there - will have to make do with Alton Towers Secret Weapon 7 this year. It's being marketed as "The Smiler", that has a world's first, but info is mega tight at the moment. Best rumour is 14 inversions.....

The Smiler's "World's First" is a very poorly-kept secret. lol SPOILER AHEAD: You roll into a tunnel and stop, and then the tunnel flips your car upside-down however many times it takes to achieve the record for the most inversions, complete with a light show.

Sounds awesome, in my opinion. That's before even the awesome looking coaster with two lifts.

It is not my most anticipated ride because I do not plan to go too far outside of my good ol' U.S. of A in this lifetime. Not saying that I am not cultured. I've been around. :)

My most anticipated new coaster this year is Gatekeeper. It looks at least as good as Wild Eagle, which was a lot fo fun! I am also pretty excited to ride Verbolten and I-305, two "new to me" coasters, this year. :)

Personally I'm a little confused about what is going on with The Smiler. I read the rumor on scape that talked about the funhouse-like barrel roll between the two lifts, and now people are counting 14 possible track inversions. I would think The Brainwasher would be a more appropriate name for this ride now.