SFGAm Coaster

Yeah definately keep shockwave I'm 5'11" and I used to think it was rough now it's my third favirote coaster there after B:TR and IW. And the next area they will develop in my opinion is probebly going to be where power dive and cajun cliff hanger are.

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Koaster King said:

The closest decent competition they have is Indiana Beach, Michigan's Adventure, and Big Chief's.

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LOL. Good one, Big Chief's is competition. That place takes 0 customers away from SFGAm, it only takes all of the people in the tourist trap town it's in. I'm willing to bet that almost all of the GP at SFGAm have never heard of Big Chief's, and probably only 1/2 of them have heard of WI Dells.
BandM3ever: I love your choice for favorite coasters there. IW is my favorite steel there (2nd favorte of all the coasters, Viper is the best).

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*music*It's the most commercialized time of the year!*music*

I had said it in another topic that got deleted.  Power Dive is still there with my recent parking lot visit last week.  The lot is empty (expect for storage) and no sign of new rides or any removal of them.
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"If two coaster trains almost hit each other, why is it called a near miss and not a near hit?"

I could easily see Shockwave being removed for an Arrow 4D coaster.  Shockwave may have a long line in the morning, but that's only because it's right near the entrance, and thus the first thing people see when entering the park.  The line is virtually non-existant for the rest of the day, probably because anyone who rides it once has no desire to ever ride the POS again.

Before that all happens, though, I'd almost be willing to bet money that we get our B&M flyer in '03 or '04.  Sadly, that probably means bye bye to Whizzer. 

-Nate

As much as I like whizzer, we can't take it out due to "technical" reasons, it is the only true family coaster in the park that everyone can go on, so if we take whizzer out, we have to get another family coaster.  And SFGAm talked to B&M and they wanted to design a flyer in a wooded area so unless we take out shockwave build it up to look nice then get a flyer maybe.  And yes, B&M did make us a flyer to fit in the footprint of whizzer, but SFoG got it instead of us.  Believe it or not, whizzer's footprint is actually kinda large compared to what you see on the ride.

*** This post was edited by ALF is cool on 12/31/2001. ***

I dont mind Shockwave, but I could easily do without it if there was a flyer in its place.  Or maybe Demon? That never has that big of a line and it is in a decently large area.  Is Demon too family friendly?

I have stated this several times on this forum and I will state it again.  SFGAm needs to get it's existing coaster collection up and running before it can even think of adding or subtracting other coasters.  That said, I have heard the large ferris wheel story quite a few times that I am actually starting to believe it. 

As for new coasters, if there isn't track already laying around in the parking lot of your favorite seasonal park, they arent getting diddly for 2002 in the ways of coasters.  The ground is hard in most places and placing foundation now is next to impossible.

I will be perfectly happy with them fixing, improving what they already have this off season.  In 10 visits this year, I did not get to ride V2 once!  It was either closed or had a four hour line that was really longer because it kept breaking down.  I dont wait in four hour lines myself.  They need to find a way to improve capacity because the crowds there are the worst.  Find a way to dispatch trains at the maximum allowable rate. 

Great America is the best Six Flags park IMHO.  They have wonderful service compared to other SF parks and their ride operations are better than the other SF parks I have been to.  I just wish something could be done to move the lines more.

Also, it would be nice if they could re-theme Demon back to the way it was.  I loved that ride in the 80's!

Cheers,

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Bob Hansen

"Excuse me while I kick the sky!"
kickthesky@hotmail.com

The queue line for v2 was never 4 hours long.  1.5hrs max if it didn't break down.  Breaking down obviously would add time to that, but the regular wait was never much beyond 1.5 hours.

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Kick The Sky said: I have stated this several times on this forum and I will state it again. SFGAm needs to get it's existing coaster collection up and running before it can even think of adding or subtracting other coasters.

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What coasters at SFGAm does the park need to get up and running?  If you're referring to V2 and Deja Vu, I would only agree to an extent.  Before the problem with V2 at the end of the season, it was running very well and quite reliably.  The same goes for Deja Vu; I visited twice during Fright Fest to ride and never saw it break down.  I am fairly sure that next season we won't see many problems with these rides at all.  Other than those two, I don't see a problem with any other coasters at SFGAm.  Every single one of them (except the big blue POS) runs in excellent condition.  The only problem I have is the fact that every time I go they only run one side of Eagle, but that's more of a staffing issue than anything, I believe.  Our coasters are certainly in much better health than those at SFGAdv and SFMM (Rolling Thunder, Flashback, Psyclone, Colossus, etc).
-Nate

How does Shockwave not run in excellent condition aside from you not liking it? I'll say this again. Just because you may not like a ride, doesn't mean others feel the same way. The ride is open, runs two or three trains (all the time) and doesn't break down often. I'd call that excellent condition for a ride thats going to be 14 years old in 2002.
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People think I'm insane because I am frowning all the time.-Paranoid

*** This post was edited by RagingBullGuy on 12/31/2001. ***

Shockwave does run great still and the GP does still like this coaster.  Just look at the poll on Great Americas web site, Shockwave has more votes than V2 and Deja Vu.  Personally I like Deja Vu and V2 better than Shockwave but I still love Shockwave.  Its a great ride and the GP still likes it so it will stick around for that reason. 

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From what I have heard SFGAm will not be getting anythign new coaster wise this year. We should know something within the next couple of months but I wouldnt count on anything. Dont forget to get more information on SFGAm at www.rideop.com the new address for SFGAm Unofficial Guide.

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CoasterDude316 said:
Shockwave does run great still and the GP does still like this coaster.  Just look at the poll on Great Americas web site, Shockwave has more votes than V2 and Deja Vu.  Personally I like Deja Vu and V2 better than Shockwave but I still love Shockwave.  Its a great ride and the GP still likes it so it will stick around for that reason. 

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Okay, I agree that Shockwave is reliable. It is rarely closed and it rarely breaks down.  But the GP liking it? Uh uh. I personally like Shockwave, but I am one of few. Almost all of my friends have either never ridden Shockwave because of bad reviews, or have ridden it and don't like it. The only people I know that like it are younger people. I have never seen an adult say they like Shockwave. And the SFGAm poll is ridiculous. Take a look at some of the other parks' polls. Most of the people that voted for Shockwave probably haven't ridden V2 or Deja Vu. V2 and Deja Vu have barely been open less than one year each, I am sure many more people have ridden Shockwave than V2 and DV. I don't see Shockwave staying around for more than 3-5 years. What is the motivation for the park to keep it? It has low ridership and takes up valuable space that could be used for one or even two more popular rides.

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SFGA2001 said:

 And the SFGAm poll is ridiculous.

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I do agree with that, but still I do know alot of people who like Shockwave.  Mainly they like it because of the Walk ons at the end of the day.  I like Shockwave but wouldn't wait more than 10 min. for it since im so used to it being walk on at the end of the day.

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DA BEARS!
My Top 5 Coasters:
1. Raging Bull(SFGAm) 2.Millenium Force(CP) 3. Deja Vu(SFGAm) 4.V2(SFGAm) 5.Cornball Express(IB)

I like Shockwave, and most of the people I've gone with to SFGAm like this ride. I think that if any coaster is going to be removed, its Whizzer. It won't happen for next season, but it's years are definatly numbered.
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SDMF's everywhere, Unite!

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RagingBullGuy said:
How does Shockwave not run in excellent condition aside from you not liking it? I'll say this again. Just because you may not like a ride, doesn't mean others feel the same way. The ride is open, runs two or three trains (all the time) and doesn't break down often. I'd call that excellent condition...

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Though I'll admit I was completely surprised at the improvements in the first half of the ride, the second half of Shockwave is rough as heck and the turn into the midcourse is *extremely* painful, no matter where you sit.  It might have a high capacity and be very reliable, but that doesn't mean it runs in excellent condition when the ride itself bangs around like crazy.
-Nate

*** This post was edited by coasterdude318 on 1/1/2002. ***

Ozzy head you are right about the whizzers days being numbered, but since it is such a rare ride it will be dificult to get rid of there are many orginazed groups to keep the Whizzer alive I think if SFGAm tried to get rid of it any time soon they would hear from a lot of people.

Kick The Sky said:
As for new coasters, if there isn't track already laying around in the parking lot of your favorite seasonal park, they arent getting diddly for 2002 in the ways of coasters.  The ground is hard in most places and placing foundation now is next to impossible.

I was just looking at construction pics of Deja Vu and V2 and track didn't start arriving til February,  so it is still possible, although I doubt it, to get a new coaster.
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*** This post was edited by CoasterDude316 on 1/1/2002. ***

Kick The Sky said: Also, it would be nice if they could re-theme Demon back to the way it was. I loved that ride in the 80's!

Speaking of original Demon theming, I just came across the Demon theme song that was played in the lines, all 25 minutes of it on Audiogalaxy. After listening to that and looking at old demon pictures, I must say that I hope SFGAm restores the original theming. 

***I also found the Southwest Scare-itory music. Brings back nice memories of October.
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SDMF's everywhere, Unite!

*** This post was edited by Ozzyhead on 1/1/2002. ***

DejaVuV2, if they are going to get rid of Whizzer, they are going to get rid of Whizzer, no questions asked. Protest all you want, they are the owners of it, they can do what they want with it. Usually the only way protesting the removal or addition of anything anywhere would be if it effects the enviornment or neighbors. A good example of that would be the Stratosphere's fish hook. Neighbors thought it would reduce land value, and because it effected them, the tower can't build it.
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