Son Of Beast

---

coastingohio said:
It has its ups and downs.

---

Most coasters do!

Sorry, couldn't resist :)

------------------
-
http://www.bannister.org/coasters/

Considering the amount of money PKI has *poured* into Sonny trying to make it into a good ride, I wouldn't be too surprised if the price tag has finally exceeded that of Millie...

The one thing they've yet to try that might really help is some nice new Gerstlauer trains...;)
------------------
Contents sold by humor, not volume. Some settling of contents may occur during translation...

SOB ties with Magnum and Screechin' Eagle as my favorite coaster in Ohio and the rides I've had on it this year confirms that over and over again. And I felt at least 3-4 spots of airtime each time. I don't think I would visit a park for only one coaster to make the decision on whether or not to visit, so you have the criminally underrated Adventure Express and Top Gun to look forward to as well (plus many, many more coaster and non-coaster must-ride attractions).

*Oh, The Raven and The Legend kick arse, but you'll be done with the whole park in a few hours. If you didn't want several rerides on R&L, you'll be done a bit earlier (I recommend the SFKK morning/HW afternoon plan anyways). Stay with PKI unless you're in the "all corporate parks are the devil" club. ;)

-Danny, waterpark not included*
------------------
Coaster Insomniacs- Coastin' the Night Away

*sighs*

If you cant handle a little pain, your probably wont like SOB. I loved it. The roughness made it all the more exciting I thought. And the loop is silky-smooth. Where else can you go over a loop with only a lap bar?(even if it is so tight-fitting) I would say you have got to at least try SOB. If you dont like it, dont to it again, but for me it was my second favorite ride at the park, surpassed only by the Beast itself.

------------------
Kennywood Park, America's finest traditional amusement park.

To answer your question about SOB, here's the skinny in my humble OPINION...

Airtime:
NONE. The only thing even close is on the last hill, and all that does is merely give some butterflys. I've ridden this piece of crap a couple times, front and back, hoping I would find something to like. But to no avail.

Roughness:
When people complain about the roughness of SOB, they mean it. I'm usually not one to complain about a rough ride; in fact, I enjoy a bumpy woody. There are many who consider the original Beast a painful experience, but it doesn't bother me any. But SOB is horrible. Bring some Aleve.

Speed:
78 MPH? Sure doesn't feel like it. They designed the hills way too high, it's a wonder there hasn't been a roll back yet. This ride does not maintain speed well at all, and the midcourse brakes are to strong and too early. This ride looks impressive, that's about it.

The Loop:
This is a great loop, but it's the only enjoyable part of the entire ride. All you need is a lap bar.

Overall:
Bad. If there is a short line, go on it just to do it. Otherwise, skip it. You aren't missing much.

The rest of the park:
Not spectacular, but pretty good. They have some other coasters that are very fun, a nice assortment of flat rides, and the water park is included in admission and can be a lot of fun.

Coaster Advice:
Vortex-Back seat. Serious ejector air on the first drop

Beast-Front Seat, at night, in the dark. 'nuf said

SOB-Already done that.

The rest you should have fun on, but those are my opinions for the best rides on Vortex and Beast. You'll have a good time there.

Where else can you go over a loop with only a lap bar?

In the US alone: Both Flight of Fear, Laser, Sooperdooperlooper, Joxer's Jinx, Poltergeist, Mindbender, Montezooma's Revenge, Greased Lightning, Greezed Lightnin, Viper, Scorpion, Shockwave, Silver Bullet...did I miss any?

------------------
"I don't like poop singers." Peabody, discussing American Idol.

---

nasai said:
Mike, ever the trouble maker, and cynic.
-----------------
Holy crapola! Sony might be the ultimate destination!

---

Actually, I wasn't being a trouble maker or a cynic with this reply...I do REALLY like SOB, and I <love> PKI.

SOB is truly a one-of-a-kind ride (to which Moosh will no doubt reply "Thank God!") with a great first drop, an awesomely huge tilted helix, a good drop off of the brake run, and one of the best loops ever. SOB was in my top 10 wood (out of 38 woodies) until my trip to Silverwood bumped it down a notch.

PKI is also one of my favorite parks. The Beast, despite being "neutered", is one of my favorite rides, currently tied for #2 with Tremors and Ghostrider. Just the scenery and locale would be enough to place it there, add in the big drops, fast speed and the crazy final helix and you have a world-class, unique coaster. recaR is also a LOT of fun, especially in seat 1.3. I also really enjoyed Top Gun, Flight O'Fear, Adventure Express, Womb Raider, and the INCREDIBLE Drop Zone. Add in a great kiddy area, some good food, a beautiful locale, and the new Delirium, and you have one hell of a park.

------------------
Mike Miller - SFMM: We don't care. We don't have to. You all keep coming back anyways, no matter how bad we treat you.

Of course you like SOB...how many coasters have you ridden again? ;)

mOOSH - relax, people...I'm teasing!

------------------
"I don't like poop singers." Peabody, discussing American Idol.

Womb Raider? lol

I like Son of Beast and I think there are things that you can do to enjoy the ride. First, brace yourself. The ride is rough and intense, but you know that going in because all wooden coasters are like that. The worst part is at the bottom of the first helix. Second, ride in a car close to the front and ride in the middle seat of each car. This way you aren't sitting on top of the wheels and you won't absorb as much shock. To answer you question, Son of Beast isn't worth a 12 hour drive, but The Beast is. Son of Beast is a great coasters, you just have to understand what you're in for before you get on.

"Brace yourself"...."avoid wheel seats"...yep, them's the making of a good coaster.

mOOSH - prefers a coaster where I don't have to ride defensively and can sit anywhere without problems.

------------------
"I don't like poop singers." Peabody, discussing American Idol.

Danny- prefers parks where he isn't *virtually required* to stay more than one day just to ride everything he wants at least once. Thanks mOOSE for allowing me to get that out of my system. ;)- teasing too!

------------------
Coaster Insomniacs- Coastin' the Night Away

I'm in complete agreement with you, Danny. I'll only stay a second day if I'm enjoying myself...like I do at Holiday World, Indiana Beach, Kennywood, or Knoebels.

------------------
"I don't like poop singers." Peabody, discussing American Idol.

*** This post was edited by Mamoosh 5/20/2003 5:57:58 PM ***

I like parks where I am not claustrophobic......

And I have never had to stay 2 days at that particular park Danny ;)

I could stay a month at Knoebel's

------------------
God bless Intamin, Company that I love. Stand beside her, and ride her, from the opening to the closing of the day.

Ive been on Son of Beast a couple of times, and since im small enough not to get hurt on the ride, its fun. But my boyfriend on the other hand is tall and he hates that ride with a passion cause he comes off the ride all beat up. I guess it all depends on peoples sizes. IMO- its too huge to be a wooden coaster and should have been made into a steel coaster.

------------------
Millennium Force-52 rides
Wicked Twister-16rides
Drag Races-
MF/MS/Cad Cars Crew 2002

It definitely is a rough ride, probably one of the roughest I've been on. It does give a pretty solid ride and the loop is great. PKI is definitely worth the drive. I would drive that far just to get one more night ride on the Beast.

------------------
All who think Mean Streak needs a match taken to it say I.

I enjoy Son of Beast and would probably enjoy it more if I wasnt so tall. My legs just squeeze in to the lapbar so they get jarred around quite a bit, it actually is quite painful. Plus my knees hit the handlebar in the front of your seat, i always end up with two bruises on each knee after riding. I bet if you are small frame, the ride will be pretty cool! I still am in the process of trying to find the best place to ride it, any tall people have any riding tips?

This ride by far was the roughest I have been on. My biggest problem was with my legs smacking into the metal bars of the restraints. That was extremely painful, not sure if it was do to height because no one else in this topic has mentioned this. The loop itself was decent, but in some of the turns I was just in way too much pain to enjoy the ride. The Beast will shake you for all it's worth in the back seat at night, but that is the good kind of pain.

For me, height had nothing to do with my most painful experience on a coaster to date. I'm 5'9", and the discomfort I felt was not at all attributed to the lapbar or the way I was sitting. At the bottom of every drop--especially the first drop and the first helix (twice)--my head was shaking so much that I could literally feel my brain bouncing around inside my skull. It was awful. I haven't experienced pain like that since the sinus infection I had as a teenager.

And believe me, I'm no wuss. I usually bash other people (in jest, of course ;) ) for being wusses when they speak of a coaster being too rough. I have not ridden a coaster that I felt was 'too rough'--at all--except for Son of Beast.

This part of Danimales' post sums up exactly how I feel about this coaster:

---

Roughness:
When people complain about the roughness of SOB, they mean it. I'm usually not one to complain about a rough ride; in fact, I enjoy a bumpy woody. There are many who consider the original Beast a painful experience, but it doesn't bother me any. But SOB is horrible. Bring some Aleve.

---

I couldn't have said it better. Beast, in fact, is my very favorite wooden coaster.

I realize there are many who like Son of Beast, and have had really good rides on it. Believe me when I say I'm quite envious. I sincerely want to like it, and will probably ride it again the next time I visit PKI, in hopes that I will have that good ride on it. However, even if I can put the pain behind me, what I can remember from my one ride on it is that the pacing was weak.

The loop was nice, though, but certainly not worth putting up with the excruciating remainder of the ride. I'll stick with Sooperdooperlooper, thanks.

------------------
-Vater
Have you ridden a Toboggan?

I have never been so afraid of being injured on a coaster as I was on Son of Beast. During the midcourse brakes, I remember looking over at my friend and we were both still getting rattled, during the slowest part! I wanted to love Sonny, but I didn't even like it. On a brighter note it definitely made me appreciate Mean Streak in a whole new way.

------------------
Millennium Force Laps-103
**Vertigo Launches-21**