Need help with CoasterCon trip

Trying to plan our CoasterCon trip and I was wondering about the add on day at SFA on Sat. the 21st. Do you think it's worth the extra $35 a piece (three of us) for an hour ERT on S:RoS?

We all have season passes and were thinking about taking a day during the week and running up there and saving the $105 (I'm paying for all). Then we could hit an extra park on the way home. Maybe Hershey on Sat. and Kennywood on Sunday?

I haven't been to SFA yet and will be doing the add-on day, even though I have a season pass too. It should be a blast!

Then again since you have tentative plans to hit Hershey and'or Kennywood, I would not spend the whole day at SFA. From what I hear the park is not that big, and you could easily do the morning ERT and spend a little time at the park and then start to head to Hershey. I am not sure how far Hershey is from the DC area mile-wise but I don't think it's that bad.

Good luck!

-Tina

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Feel The Adrenaline....
www.intenserides.com
*** This post was edited by coasterqueenTRN 4/22/2003 6:02:19 AM ***

I think you have the right idea with skipping the add-on for Hershey and Kennywood. Hitting SFA on a weekday shouldn't be too busy. If you are a big wooden coaster fan, then you need to do the Hershey/Kennywood plan, since each park has three top notch woodies.

Personally, if I were going, there is no way I'd pay $35 for an hour of ERT. Especially when it's a Saturday and the park is going to be outrageously busy the rest of the day.

I buy a season pass to a park for one main reason and that is to save money. Paying $35 for an hour of ERT (on top of already paying $50+ for a season pass) is not saving money in my book. Now if you don't have a season pass then $35 is a good deal. Just the way I look at it.

See, I have a *slightly* different view, but it comes to the same conclusion. For me, if I'm outside "driving range" from home, then I'd be way more willing to spend extra money to get more done. Vacation time, flights, hotels, rental cars....these things come with a price as well, so when we're *miles from our home*, then the extra dollars spent seem WELL worth it.

Since SFA is readily do-able for you at another time, and you can hit one of two "can't miss" parks on THAT trip, I'll go with the majority and say skipping an otherwise-busy Saturday at SFA might not be that big of a loss....
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"Brian, there's a message in my AlphaBits, it says 'ooooooo'"
"Peter, those are Cheerios"....Family Guy is BACK!!!

If you really want to maximize your coasters on the trip do this:

Pay the $35 and do the morning ERT on Superman. When the rest of the park opens you'll be next to Batwing and can grab the first or second train on it. Then head towards the front catching rides on Jokers Jinx, Two Face and Wild One in that order. Cut across the park to Roar and Mind Eraser both of which almost always have short lines. By noon or shortly after you will have ridden every coaster in the park.

Then hop in you car and drive north to Hershey. With luck you'll be there by 3 and be able to spend the evening catching all of the coasters there.

I'd skip the add-on day, and hit SFA during the week.

The Hershey and Kennywood plan sounds great to me.

Wish I could go to Con this year. :(
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'The sickest thoughts I ever had make my day less of a drag.' - We Regazzi

sparks, if the ERT were @ NIGHT, I would tell you to go to the ERT. However, since the ERT is in the day, it's not that serious. If *I* were *you* (which, BTW, I am not :)) I would cut out of the Con on Thursday 6-19 after the H:XLC/Ricochet ERT and spend the rest of the day SFA. Even summer weekdays @ SFA are notoriously peaceful. Most of the people that are even in the park are going to be in the waterpark. Even not getting to the park until about noon will give you PLENTY of time to get in re-rides and even catch shows if that is your bag.

Now the one caveat I have for you is driving up to Hershey on Saturday. If you will be staying near PKD on Friday night, be forewarned that you have about a 4 hour drive ahead of you just to get to Hershey. And trust me, you will want to be at Hershey the longest you can because it really is "That Damn Good" (tm).

As for Kennywood, stick to the Kangaroo and Phantom's Revenge. Everything else is just there for the credit!

lata, jeremy

--who notes that he did not ride T-bolt

The Bassistisit/Moosh/Rollergator/Schnaaps party will be skipping the Add-on day and hitting SFA on Tuesday, June 17th in lieu of a third day at BGW. It means we'll miss ERT on Nessie but I'm sure we'll get our fill on Monday.

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Don't believe everything you think. - bumper sticker seen on 4/19/03

*** This post was edited by Mamoosh 4/22/2003 2:49:20 PM ***

What Moosh said. No offense to the organizers, but the schedule and price for the add-on is pretty d@mn lame. Plus Saturday is reportedly NOT the best day to enjoy SFA. Looking forward to a hassle-free Tuesday at this outstanding SF park.

Mmmmm, Wild One... <drools>

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Mike Miller - SFMM: We have fewer flat rides than a bad church carnival.

As a "local", I'll add that SFA is usually pretty quiet on weekdays, and I'd advise skipping a Con day and heading to SFA if you want to experience the park. And if you haven't been to the park, I'd advise going, as it has a pretty good collection of rides. Don't forget to ride the Typhoon Sea Coaster if it's running (I've only managed to get one ride on it, after visiting the park 20+ times, though to be fair, the majority of my visits have been in the Spring/Fall and/or early morning).

Do be advised that SFA has one of the strictest bag policies I've ever seen at a park, and you won't be able to wear even a small bag around you on almost any ride. So if you're one of those people that likes to photograph/videotape the park, you may want to store it in your car or a locker and then spend some specific photography time in the park.

I thought about attending the add-on day, as a way to see people from the con (I'm not going to the con, I can't justify that many vacation days for two parks that I can drive to almost whenever I want, and the ERT schedule was less than impressive), but the price, coupled with morning ERT turned me off. I have no idea if they're going to do it this year, but Coaster Zombies usually has an SFA event in the fall, and if it features evening ERT on S:ROS (which it has for two out of the last three years), I stronly advise attending that event.

dt