Nice sign of spring: Griffon's trackwork is complete

I think I saw somewhere on the web that said it was going to "officially" open sometime in May but having "soft" openings during the month of April.

Is it Orange or Red?

Oh wait, wrong coaster. At least it's not sinking

*rolls eyes* Does it really matter what color the ride is?

:)

^ Sometimes you have to ask yourself, is there a coaster that is more intense or fun to ride for yourself because of its color?

If your in the park walking towards giffon, you could easily be confused with the color of alpie and Griff, they are so simular. Some might mistake them for the same ride. Maybe I'm wrong.

*** Edited 2/22/2007 8:09:47 PM UTC by CoasterDiscern***

We may not be confused, but some will. At Great Adventure I have heard guests who believed that Nitro and Batman were the same ride. The color schemes are not that close, yet it never fails that someone will think they are the same thing.

Having recently made a trip to FL and riding Sheikra multiple times, I can honestly say that from an enthusiast's perspective, the ride is fairly mild. The G forces don't feel extremely strong, and the ride doesn't do a whole lot.

However, it is a fun ride, both to ride and to watch. I do think, though, that the floorless aspect will add to the ride, as well as the extra 2 seats per row. I'm thinking the front outside seats will be the best ones :)

Griffon also looks to be a little better of a layout than Sheikra, and the placement looks great, so it should turn out to be a good ride, even if it doesn't blow us, as enthusiasts, away. I'm glad that we are getting it--it should be enjoyable and fun.

Gotta say that I hope that the finished product turns out to be just as good as "Sheikra" or better, because right now it seems like they did so much more with "Shreikra" than on this new ride.

^How do you figure that? Griffon seems to have more elements to it then Sheikra.

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rablat5 said:
Griffon also looks to be a little better of a layout than Sheikra, and the placement looks great, so it should turn out to be a good ride, even if it doesn't blow us, as enthusiasts, away. I'm glad that we are getting it--it should be enjoyable and fun.

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http://www.ushsho.com/detailedsteelrollercoasterpollresults2006.htm

Sheikra's ranked #11 here so I think you're selling it a bit short. Surely it's blowing *someone* away if it's beating perennial favorites like SFA's and SFDL's Supermen, Montu, Apollo's Chariot, etc.

^ Well, myself and my enthusiast friend who took the trip didn't feel blown away by it, and he felt somewhat let down, though maybe he was expecting too much.

Having ridden a fair share of coasters in the past 21 years (over 200), I can say from personal experience and preference that the ride (Sheikra) doesn't do a whole lot. Compared to the 2 dive machines before it, it is a definite improvement. But, personally, I would rank all of the coasters you just listed as better than Sheikra--but that's just my opinion.

Sheikra isn't a bad ride--it is fun and different--but it doesn't do a whole lot, and it doesn't have extreme-feeling forces. I enjoyed all of my rides on it--don't get me wrong--but it didn't blow me away. As far as BGA is concerned, Kumba is their most solid coaster.

As for Griffon, it looks like an even better itteration of the dive machine, and the location is great. I'm glad that they are improving the ride further and not just going for a different track layout. I guess being second in line for some of the Busch Gardens coasters pays off sometimes (i.e. Alpengeist and Griffon).

^Right, I was just saying the collective "us" does indeed seem to be pretty impressed by the ride even if you aren't quite as much.

Any word if the building process of griffon on schedule?