New Entries in the CoasterBuzz Top 100

A few thoughts to tie together rankings and nostalgia with parks-in-earlier-era being reminisced in the Halloween Covid thread.

• I always had a hard time reconciling and ranking coasters within an all encompassing list. Comparing apples to oranges. It being easier to rank my feelings of rides with a certain subset. (RMCs, B&M speed hyper giga). If I go to an all-encompassing favorite ride list, it leans into nostalgia atop actual ride quality. Rides like Magnum, Beast, TTD, HP Wildcat, Great Adventure Scream Machine would all get under-deserved high marks.

• While I get the highly differentiating opinions on the polarizing rides (I305, Skyrush, every RMC) based on intensity preference: What I find more interesting and seems like should be more apples to apples is ranking among subset. I am puzzled to see Banshee before Raptor, BTR, Alpengeist, both Dragons, Montu, etc... Or Diamondback before every other B&M hyper besides maybe Raging Bull. Is there anyone here that would actually say Mako is the #1 B&M hyper? Or that Banshee is the #1 B&M invert? (I know I am ignoring Nemesis' position for purposes of the majority discussion and America F*ck yeah)

• It seems like rides pull a bit of new shiny-object inflation in CB rankings. Banshee, Twisted and Mystic Timbers, Mako, maybe those top 10 RMCs

• Regarding my previous post lamenting about the good-old-days, I gotta add that WDW parks consistently bring that same feels of nostalgia now as they did at 5 or 25. A lot has changed in their parks too obviously, so curation and immersion influences the nostalgia factor.

• Which brings me to Europa Park (wait, what?). I’ve found interesting that the past half-decade it has consistently beat CP as best park in the Golden Tickets. It makes me very curious to go there, if it truly is the best in the world. Otherwise the park spec sheet (and kind of remote location if I’m going to go to Europe) doesn’t really interest me. On paper, I don’t understand the match-up outcome. CP looks to beat Europa on impressive scale, setting and definitely rides. Europa Park to me looks more like Busch then Epcot in offering. Say what you will, Cedar Fair operations are pretty stellar by industry standard too, so even Europa slightly outweighs there, it shouldn’t tip . I know it’s not this site's ranking… but for a group that appears to lean heavy on new and ride quality itself: Anyone care to opine? Is there a more atmosphere (nostalgia) multiplier coming into play in the Golden Ticket? (Or does Mack just have some inside track with AT).

Kstr 737 said:

• I am puzzled to see Banshee before Raptor, BTR, Alpengeist, both Dragons, Montu, etc... Or Diamondback before every other B&M hyper besides maybe Raging Bull. Is there anyone here that would actually say Mako is the #1 B&M hyper? Or that Banshee is the #1 B&M invert?

Um...Yes? I mean, Banshee vs. Raptor isn't exactly apples to oranges, but to suggest you can't differentiate between them and prefer one to the other because they're both B&M inverts is hard to accept as genuine. I've ridden all but one of the inverts mentioned and Banshee clearly stands out to me, having nothing to do with newness or recency bias. I'd prefer to prefer Raptor for sentimental reasons (first invert), but it feels kind of old and busted when compared to Banshee.

I don't know why I responded to this given that I never respond to anything. It kind of tugs at the string of what we do as coaster enthusiasts, I guess. If all are the same, why bother visiting other parks or the hassle of a track record at all? B&M Invert: Check. Intamin Hyper: Check (Bonus: Not ejected)....

Nah, I was differentiating by subset. Maybe it's the Banshee restraints. Though I didn't keep a track record, until this site made it easy to quickly generate! though not rank.

Different opinions are different.

Up until recently I never thought I'd say a ride like Raptor or Alpengeist feels outdated. I'm not quite ready to call it "old and busted" because it's still a super intense and great ride. But it definitely is starting to have that 90s/early 2000s nostalgia feel. It hardly feels as old and outdated at 26 as Corkscrew did in 2002, but it doesn't have that new and timeless feeling that Millennium Force still does. Banshee feels like an updated and modern version of a ride like Raptor or Alpengeist similar to a later year model of the same car, as that's essentially what it is. I also go through my track record and find that nostalgia does factor into certain ratings. I'm sure my relatively high ranking of the Geauga Lake collection wouldn't hold up if some of those rides were still around today. I'm not sure if Dominator at Kings Dominion would get a '5' from me (although it would definitely get a '4') if I hadn't grown up riding it as Batman at Worlds of Adventure. Rides like Trailblazer at Hersheypark, Mind Eraser/Head Spin and Serial Thriller/Thunderhawk at Geauga Lake (and heck, probably Big Dipper too), Vortex at Kings Island, or even Space Mountain at WDW rank higher for me based on nostalgia and warm memories rather than ride quality. But to suggest Magnum or Beast don't deserve a '5' - them's fightin' words :)

Kstr 737 said:

• CP looks to beat Europa on impressive scale, setting and definitely rides. Europa Park to me looks more like Busch then Epcot in offering.

As is always the case with these things, it depends on your preference. If you're only interested in roller coasters, then yes Cedar Point probably has the better collection. But Europa has a very good coaster collection and then adds in a whole bunch of interesting dark rides, family rides, and has theming, food, etc. on a whole different level than Cedar Point or even Busch.

Basically it doesn't have quite the coaster collection of a Cedar Point or quite the level of theming or quality of dark rides as a Disney park, but I don't believe any park bridges the gap between the two concepts as well as Europa.

I can certainly understand why some, particularly those who are really only interested in coasters, would prefer Cedar Point. However, I'm definitely in the camp of preferring Europa-Park and by a fair margin.

I think it's reasonable for newer rides to be "better" because presumably the designers have learned a lot from their experience and the preferences of riders. That's not to say that every new ride will be better, since I assume the aim is to satisfy a particular persona (fear not, Dragon Wagon fans!). I think Banshee is better than Raptor, but I still love Raptor.

I don’t have a dime in the Golden Ticket awards, but I am here to tell you that Europa is the better of the two.
First, the park is literally the Mack Rides catalogue. I can think of only one ride that they make that doesn’t appear. Otherwise it’s every coaster, every water ride, every flat, every dark ride, and every transportation conveyance. And none of those rides are plain Jane, straight off the shelf, carnival set ups. Instead real thought went into making each attraction as delightful as possible.
Second, there’s the matter of themeing. Over the years I’ve heard so many complaints over the theme (or lack thereof) of Cedar Point. And in spite of the fact that CP has never held itself out as a true theme park, to many enthusiasts it seems lacking in that regard. Europa covers 15 countries, 2 fantasy areas, and an adventure section in exquisite detail. Also there is a water park and beautiful themed hotels.
Third, there’s the food. None of it is bad, nor is it expensive. I had several sit-down meals in beautiful locations, and snacks, drinks, and beer that didn’t disappoint. Pricing was fair, too. Compare that to Cedar Point, a park that has taken it in the teeth for years from unhappy patrons who put up with poor quality, worse service, and high prices. I want to chuckle every time I read where someone says CP has really upped their game- I happen to know they have a long way to go yet and that improvement is achievable.
Finally, another topic that enthusiasts and fans like to bicker about, operations. During my visits to Europa I was constantly amazed at the throughput they manage to attain. The coasters, for instance, are engineered and blocked in such a way that there is very little perceived delay or waiting once it’s time to load. For all I know overall capacity may be the same, but it sure didn’t feel that way. And that’s the way it should be.
I don’t mean to knock Cedar Point- I love it there and it will always occupy a huge place in my heart. But if I’m asked to rate a park I tend to not just look at the coasters and make my decision from there. So if I was asked to fill out a Golden Ticket ballot (which I have done in the past) I wouldn’t treat the category of Best Park as Best Coaster Park. Instead I would consider all aspects of entertainment offered and put myself in the shoes of every type of patron.
And so now, having personally been to both parks, and all things considered, this Ohio boy still has to hand it to Europa.
In fact, it may be the thing I respect the most from those silly awards.

Platinum Bass said:

As is always the case with these things, it depends on your preference. If you're only interested in roller coasters, then yes Cedar Point probably has the better collection.

I can't say I agree with that. Europa has a superb collection of coasters.

Sure, Cedar Point has faster and taller, but size doesn't matter that much – it's what you do with it that counts :)

Interesting, I feel my original statement was taken a bit CP should win CUZ COASTARZZ LOL. But I was considering more along the lines of the beautiful lakeside setting, the general great resort atmosphere improvements of the under Ouimet era and on the factor of sheer scale of it doesn’t have much competition north of Epcot Center. I consider the theme of the Point a 19th century lakeside resort.

Clearly Europa does compete. It will one day hit my bucket list. I mean, if it has a ride better then Banshee. 😜

Cedar Point will always be special to me but yeah, I visited Europa a couple years ago and man, I loved it. Definitely agree....rides, atmosphere, food, operations, it’s all fantastic. Shoutout to Euro-Mir and its boppin’ techno soundtrack. Heck yes.

But does Euro-Mir's techno soundtrack really deserve to rank higher then Millennium Force's techno soundtrack...

Actually yes, because you can hear it all the way up the lift.
Those clever Mack lift mechanisms are everything. I reckon expensive as hell, but as long as they’re buying...

Candymonium is #23 with 38 riders... Mako is 1 spot up at #22.

I rode and ranked Candymonium this past Thursday (#200! Much rejoicing.) Maybe I nudged it into the list?

I'd expect that ranking to come down over time as more people get on it and/or the newness wears off. It's a solid B&M hyper for sure, but better than Nitro? The third train also seems kind of pointless without a mid-course break.

I've yet to experience Steel Curtain, but it dropped a fair amount this week.

Anybody know who we lost to spot 101?

Why is it difficult to imagine it could be better than Nitro? I mean, it's been eons since I've ridden Nitro (or any B&M hyper) and I rode Candymonium two weeks ago, but really, they're all kind of similar. More similarities than differences, really. Buncha hills, turnaround, few more hills and a helix thrown in here or there. I've pretty much described every B&M hyper except maybe Raging Bull.

Honestly, I couldn't even tell you which one I prefer. Probably Candymonium because I got to ride it with my entire family. Last time I rode Nitro my son was 0 and my daughter hadn't been conceived yet.

I rode Candymonium on Sun and was impressed, probably top 2 or 3 of the 8 B&M hypers I’ve ridden, but they’re all more or less the same. Raging Bull is a bit worse, I was super impressed when I rode AC (the only time being 20 years ago), but I can’t tell you much about Nitro vs. Behemoth vs. Diamondback vs. Goliath oG. (Honestly, AC is probably in this group, but it was my first hyper.) Any distinction feels like splitting hairs.

But, if I’m going to split hairs, Canymonium seemed to have better air in general, but had two pretty strong trims (I know...). I gave it 4 *’s but the standout coaster in that park is still Storm Runner. The first 10 seconds of that ride are really world class. Skyrush was down with a broken cable and I’m honestly a little relieved that I don’t have to give it the chance to destroy my legs again.

I remember being impressed by Apollo's Chariot back in 2001. But after riding it again in 2019, it didn't hold up when compared with Fury, Diamondback, and Intimidator. Not that it was bad, but it definitely didn't have the intensity the newer ones do. Which is funny because it's the opposite trend with the B&M loopers.

ApolloAndy said:

... but the standout coaster in that park is still Storm Runner. The first 10 seconds of that ride are really world class.

Heh. lol.

ApolloAndy said:

The 10 seconds of that ride are really world class.

Fixed.