Tips for SFA?

I'll be going to SFA on April 17, and I was wondering if there is anything in that park that I should absolutely do, or not do. Any strategies, or tips would be very helpful so I can make my trip better.

If you're going to be there all day, there are no 'strategies' I can suggest. It's a Thursday, so the park will not be at all crowded, and it will be open from 10:30am to 8:00pm. That will be plenty of time to accomplish everything you want to accomplish. SFA really isn't that big. The highlights of the park are S:ROS, Batwing, Wild One, and Roar. If you like flats, hit Iron Eagle (if it's open). The waterpark is pretty decent. Typhoon SeaCoaster (when it works) is unique, but as water rides go, it's extremely mediocre. And don't expect much as far as atmosphere.

Hope you have a better time than I always do. ;)

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-Vater
'These pretzels are making me thirsty.'
Take a ride...
*** This post was edited by Vater 4/11/2003 5:31:25 PM ***

Thank you very much, I'll be going early afternoon until its closed, so that'll give me plenty of time to ride what I want.

Vater said: And don't expect much as far as atmosphere.

What, you mean you didnt like the barren wasteland that is Gotham City, totally devoid of trees and theming...Well I never!

Anyway, a ride I absolutely enjoyed at SFA was Two Face: the flipside believe it or not. You will like the gray-out sensation on the return trip.

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Krimson n' Kream, Spr 98
*** This post was edited by Antuan 4/11/2003 6:32:15 PM ***
*** This post was edited by Antuan 4/11/2003 9:51:32 PM ***

"I'll be going to SFA on April 17, and I was wondering if there is anything in that park that I should absolutely do, or not do."

Don't place your finger in any of their light sockets after you get wet.

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"God bless Atheists!" - Homer Simpson

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Antuan said:
Vater said: And don't expect much as far as atmosphere.

What, you mean you didnt like the barren wasteland that is Gotham City, totally devoid of trees and theming...Well I never!

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I know, I'm a little eccentric... ;)

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Anyway, a ride I absolutely enjoyed at SFA was Face Off believe it or not. You will like the gray-out sensation on the return trip.

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I like Two-Face ok, but I prefer standard boomerangs, believe it or not. Oh, and I also really dig Mind Eraser, but I wasn't about to call it a 'highlight' since most enthusiasses seem to despise SLCs.

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-Vater
'These pretzels are making me thirsty.'
Take a ride...
*** This post was edited by Vater 4/11/2003 6:45:23 PM ***

How is Wild One and Joker's Jinx? I haven't really heard any good or bad things from them. Worth riding?

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crookedcoaster said:
How is Wild One and Joker's Jinx? I haven't really heard any good or bad things from them. Worth riding?

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Wild One surprised the hell out of me and is still in my Top 10 wood. It has some great airtime pops and threads some of the other rides in a neat way.

Joker's Jinx was down when I was there, I'm looking forward to hitting it when I visit again in June.

Oh, and S:ROS rocks hard, especially at night.

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Mike Miller - Harbinger Of Doom - Killer Of Threads - Cheap Rates, Ask About Our Special!

The waterpark & water rides aren't open in april,most water rides in the park open on or after memorial day.

Crooked coaster: Wild One is ok as far as out & backs go(it would've been better if they hadn't butchered it) but for really good wood there's just no substitute for Roar,that thing hauls from start to finish & along with S:ROS is a killer night ride.

Two face is ok,but the long lines & slow dispatch times make it rank low on my list of favorites but it is smoother then Mind Eraser any day & JJ is just killer as well now that it's gone topless,as for flats you should defenitely hit Iron Eagle if it's running,it's my favorite flat in the park unless a KMG Tango ever shows up in the future.

SEE y'all at SFA on sunday! :)

I was also surprised by both Face-Off and Wild One.

Face-Off was my first boomerrang, and happened to be the face to face ones. I really enjoyed. I guess going through 6 inversions in a minute isn't bad. I haven't tried it in the front of back yet, but I want to!

Wild One, hmm, there is something special about it to me. I was constantly thrown about, in and out of my seat. Its just a fulfilling ride, and I always come off with a smile. Its something that many people overlook, because its old, but that just means more rides for ME! :) (or you)

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Drop Oup at PKD in 2003!
OoOoOo...Rolley Coaster!

Judging by the long & slow lines Wild One is hardly overlooked,on an average day it can have a 45 minute to 1 hour line even with both trains running.

A couple of tips for u. I'd head to the back and try for Batwing and S: RoS first, as they tend to have the longest lines, aside from 2face, which I would hit next. Roar has been a walk-on for me, as well as Minderaser(not a bad little SLC), with Wild one and Joker's Jinx having small lines(sometimes none) on weekdays. I went last on a Friday after I had been to D.C. for a Janet Jackson Concert, and the only things I actually waited for were Batwing, S: RoS, and 2face, as the others are walkons!

I've you need a rest, the Batman Stunt show is descent for a break, and the park is small, so that helps you out with walking distances, which aren't bad.

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Yeah, if coasters WEREN'T men we'd have Raging Cow instead!;)

Be prepared for the worst employees at an amusement park, period. The security guards sit in raised lifeguard chairs inside coaster stations to "watch". They just looked like lazy bastaurds. The Batwing crew was the best of the bunch, working with the best they could (I worked X-Flight alot this last summer, so I would know.) They certainly ran a respectable operation.

Everyone else however, well, I was just completely shocked. Absololutely no regard for safety whatsoever. I was in the park for no more than an hour before some dumbass operator on Superman would dispatch the train, jump on to the back of the train and ride it up to the front of the station, and then jump off. Absoloutely horrifying. A couple rides later, when I realized these operators weren't physically checking the lap bars, I decided to see how much they would let me get away with... again, I was horrified as the operator lightly touched my lap bar, and continued "checking" seats. I truly believe I would have been ejected from the ride with that much space had I left it as it was. Had I leaned forward, I could have easily lifted my butt off of the seat and worked my kneecaps out from under the lap bar. Honest to God, I don't understand how someone hasn't been brutally killed at this park already with the way theose operators ran their rides.

I watched the operators on every ride to look for the basic hand signals. I didn't know the middle finger was an acceptable dispatch signal! That, and they seemed to have replaced the "Permission to cross? / Clear to cross train!" dialogue with "When is my break? / Why ain't it my break yet?!". I didn't appreciate being stepped on when operator walked across my row.

Everyone's uniform looked wrinkled and worn out, like a cheap t-shirt that you might use for painting. The food was pretty bad tasting, and almost every restroom had "water" all over the floor. Let's just hope it was from the leaky sink, and not the overflowing toilet. And don't expcet to find any water fountains to drink from, unless you can manage your lips to within a quarter of inch of the faucet to actually touch any flowing water.

The whole general mood of the park was pissy. I did not find one pleasent employee, not even in the management level. None of the park's employees looked as though they really gave a damn about the guests, and their actions only verified it.

Good golly, I did not enjoy Six Flags America very much, but of course, the coasters were really fun, and made the trip worth it. But for the love of God, check your own lap bar!

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Jes
Jes's Roller Coasters DJ Jes
Six Flags Worlds Of Adventure Ride-Ops Crew 2002-2003(Find Me, Win a prize!)
*** This post was edited by Zero-G 4/12/2003 1:16:46 AM ***

Fully agree Zero-G, if not for the fastlane tickets we bought last summer, would have had horrendous waits. We used Qbot at SFWOA, I prefer the fastlane ticket method. Roar was great, so is S:ROS and Wild One.

This park along with SFKK sticks out as having employees that go out of their way (sometimes way out) to make you feel hated and unwelcome, like how dare we expect ops attentive to safety and efficiency, how dare you step into my queue line, how dare you ask for a cup of water! How about for once having some pride in your job, and appreciating people supporting and attending your place of employment instead of acting as if you were forced into doing your job. This is work, not a place to socialize with all your heathen and/or hoochie pallies, you chose to work here, make good on your end of the agreement with some enthusiasm and interest in your position (this goes for mgmt also). rant off.

BW

Oh my, Brian you are too funny, but the sad thing is that you really aren't stretching it. I love my job and I know that there are some guests that are just going to push your buttons no matter what you do, but your right, this is a service based industry, and I actually expect some service with my coasters!

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Jes
Jes's Roller Coasters DJ Jes
Six Flags Worlds Of Adventure Ride-Ops Crew 2002-2003(Find Me, Win a prize!)

Okay, I will agree with others that the service has been among the worst of any part that I have been to, but this is a new year and until I go later today (opening day) and see how things are, I will give them the benefit of the doubt. Who knows, maybe they worked hard on improving customer relations in the offseason.

Yes the food is bad. The best place for food is the Crazy Horse Saloon or one of the Subway stands (there is one by Shipwreck Falls, one by the Wild One entrance, and one in the waterpark...although the one in the waterpark will not be open this thursday).

Yes, there is also a lack of trees, especially in Gotham City. And if you are not a fan of parks with dead end paths, prepare for a miserable day...just about every path leads to a dead end.

Must do's: Certainly Batwing, Superman, Wild One, and Roar. Batwing has been known to be tempermental at times, so if you see it open, hop on. Roar is non-stop action. Wild One is a great out and back with an awesome helix at the end (HOLD ON!). Superman is an awesome display of airtime.

Other Coasters: MindEraser is your standard Vekoma SLC (a real headbanging treat). Two/Face-if you like boomerangs this one is okay...I myself am not a fan of them, especially for the long wait that is often associated with them. Jokers Jinx..a lot of people praise this ride now that it has removed the OTSR's, but I still don't like it. Looking at that twisted pile of steel is awesome, but the ride doesn't deliver much more. There is just no pacing to this ride...and the train almost feels like it is going to come to a stop about halfway through the ride..That's just my opinion though..try it out for yourself.

Other Must do's: If Typhoon:Sea Coaster is open, ride it for the uniqueness alone. Although I have a feeling that it won't be open this early in the season. I know a lot of enthusiasts don't get into watching shows, but the Wild Wild West show is always funny, so give it a go. If you like flats, Iron Eagle is a good one.

That's about all of the must do attractions...there are other attractions that are worthwhile depending on your tastes.

Rides to avoid: If it is open, don't bother with Renegade Rapids. It is probably the weakest rapids ride that I have ever been on.

Hope that helps. Have fun.

Sean

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"Ever hear of Plato, Aristotle, Socrates...Morons!"

First off, dont expect much from the park at all. It really is a load of crap...i only go there for the rides.

Must rides: Superman: RoS, Batwing, JJ, Wild One. Roar isnt that great IMO...just really throws you around a bit. Then again, the last time i rode it was after a VERY long day at the park and it was the last ride. So try roar as well.

Dont bother with: Typhoon SeaCoaster, Two Face, Mind Eraser. Mind Eraser and Two Face are real head bangers, and the sea coaster isnt very reliable at all. Plus when it really is working, the capacity is lacking.

I dont have any recomendations for food...just the standard stuff...only worse.

Despite all the 'Bad' stuff, if you can get constant re-rides on the fun stuff you should still enjoy your day. On good days i have gotten about 10 rides on superman in only an hour.

Enjoy your day!

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G-Forces: The only positive addiction out there!
CoasterCount: 42

Umm Two face is nowhere near the headbanging piece of crap that Mind Eraser is,so if you wish to ride it just be prepared for a long line,I do agree that Renegade rapids is a complete waste of time(as well as space) & the sooner that ride goes the better that section might be.

Freakylick,I didn't find JJ to be slow at all last year,noisy yes,slow no & the lateral G's especially now that it has gone topless are pretty strong too but everyone's entitled to their opinions,as for Batwing last year the crew was no better than in 01,if they can just get more than one train,or even both stations running on a daily basis then it would really smoothen things out.

S:ROS had the worst crew last year,especially allowing a trainload of fastlaners on board not once but twice on two sperate visits! & management was less than helpful when I complained to them about it,along with the complaint about Mind eraser's lack of new paint as well as malfunctioning safety retraints(I nearly got thrown from that thing twice last year) but it is a new season so you've at least gotta give them a chance.

Maybe things will improve over last year so don't assume that because you had a bad experience in 02 that you'll have one in 03.

They don't deserve another chance. I live in Ohio, and I'm not going back. The fact of the matter is they have had plenty of chances... every single guest is a new chance. One day when they f~ck good, those guests are going to stop coming, and they won't have any more chances. In this industry you either do it right the first time or you don't get it right at all. And as far as I'm concerned, the dangerous situations they put themselves and their guests in is no game of chance. They blew it.

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Jes
Jes's Roller Coasters DJ Jes
Six Flags Worlds Of Adventure Ride-Ops Crew 2002-2003(Find Me, Win a prize!)

While some of the points on safety are good & must be addressed most of the other things listed are not as much of a problem & if they are doing things as poorly as you said then how do you explain the 9% rise in park attendance last year? in order for the attendance to go up they must've been doing something right.

Perhaps if SFI would stop spoiling the big 4 & put a bit more effort into some of the parks like SFA (new rides as well as better management) then things can improve,& the park just opened today so we shouldn't be so quick to judge their 2003 performance just yet.

If you don't plan on visiting the SFA in the future that doesn't bother me one bit,it just means one less person in front of me while in line,I take it that SFWOA is your homepark Zero-G,no offense but SFWOA could sure use some help to but it isn't their fault,nor is it SFA's,instead you can blame it all on SFI..