What has become of the Beast?
Mooshland. ;)
Seriously though - my opinion of Beast has nothing to do with any other coaster I've ridden, classic or modern. I judge each coaster based on it's own merits. Is it fun? Sure. Do I ride it each time I'm at PKI? You bethca. But it's neither a great nor a horrible ride. For me, it's MOR.
To those of you who are Beast fans: great! I'm glad it brings you joy. But please stop acting personally offended when someone says its not their favorite. I know plenty of people who prefer other wooden coasters over my current #1, Voyage. I feel no need to defend Voyage or why I like it because I know we all have different likes and dislikes.
Just think of me as one less person in line for Beast, thus getting you in the train that much faster ;-)
*** Edited 6/18/2007 11:54:54 PM UTC by Mamoosh***
I’ve always felt the opposite perspective was more prevalent…the perspective of those who never rode the ride at peak condition and their propensity to belittle those who fondly remember the experience as exaggerators. There is no doubt that memory-inflation is possible. But I’ve always felt that if I were to opine about how “good” Pamela Anderson really is…Tommy Lee’s perspective would trump mine. It is rather difficult to hold an informed opinion if you’ve never sampled the goods. Even should I be lucky enough to cross Pamela Anderson’s path in the hepatitis wing of a Vegas Nursing Home 30 years from now…I hope I’m “with it” enough to understand that my experience circa 2047 is no reflection of Tommy Lee’s experience on the Theater of Pain tour. ;)
This subject got me thinking... The Beast debut was in 1979. What other coaster from the decade following The Beast debut (1979-1989) is STILL top 10, top 20...etc? Magnum is the only one I can think of off the top of my head as a possibility. I consider Magnum the second most influential coaster built in the modern era... My point...coasters are generally a "what have you done for me lately" investment. Many top five or top ten coasters of today (note I never vote any poll because I find rating coasters a fruitless venture and have about 15 woodies in my top five) may not even exist 25-30 years from now. And those that do have small chance of generating discussion like The Beast does today (though Voyage seems promising). Call it over-hype if you must...but there is no denying that in terms of influence...there is only one ride consistently discussed.
A few people who post on CB don't even know that opinion is a word. I just expected better from you seeing that you are one of the most vocal and more respected posters here.
I still feel that Beast may have lost some of it's popularity because of all of the other great coasters built after it...and because it's not the new thing anymore.
I do have a personal attachment to the Beast because it was one of the rides that got me so excited about coasters. My Sis and I still talk about the first time we rode. She was brave in line and I was scared. During the ride she turned green and passed out and I had a blast and rerode over and over all day. I brought home a pin-on that advertised Beast's 10th anniversary. The coaster holds a special place in my heart.
dexter said:
I was offended that you of all people stated your opinion as fact.
An opinion is an opinion, it's subjective.
Saying "The Beast doesn't live up to it's myth" is a totally subjective statement, there is no way to state that as "fact."
Saying "The Beast is 200 feet tall" is an objective statement, in this case, a wrong one. It's either true or it's not, it's quantifiable. If there's a dispute there's a way to go over to The Beast and measure.
If Moosh had put "In my opinion" at the end of his statement you wouldn't have had a problem with it, but if every subjective opinion posted on CBuzz included the "IMO" disclaimer, Coasterbuzz would literally be covered in "IMO"'s everywhere. Thousands of them. Hundreds of thousands of them.
I don't doubt that it gave a better ride back in the day, but I do question the design choices. The length never impressed me. It's two coasters stuck together. Suppose you only had the first half. I think a lot of people would be disappointed with it (even when it was in top form, so much of that half was nothing but skid brakes!). And suppose you only had the second part. That section would really only be half a coaster. Sticking both pieces together helps to make a "complete" ride experience but the lift hill in the middle interrupts the flow of the ride.
Uniqueness, novelty, and a huge dose of marketing hype built the reputation. It could have (should have) been so much more.
Remember all the signs in the que lines,beware of the beast,ect.,ect.
For those who wonder how braking has impacted the ride. When the ride first opened it was advertised as 3 minutes and 40 seconds longs. Now, ride times are well over 4 minutes. The ride is slower than when it opened. One way I've noted the decrease in speed is how far we go up the second lift hill before the chains kick in.
The Beast is still one of the favorite coasters but I also know some of that is sentimental. It was the first "big" coaster I had ridden back in 1981 or 1982.
Jeremy
millrace said:
My problem with The Beast is it is such a strange design. It is hard for me to fathom that what they built is the best thing they could have done with that amount of space and track length.
This is my experience on the Beast as well, that ride is so terribly vexing. When I realize it has gone on past the point most coasters stop, I also become so worried, anxious, confused. I ask myself, why hasn't the ride stopped? What about all this unused land? Why didn't they carve this up into two coasters and add another loading station? And then the lift hill shows up in the middle of the ride and I'm lost. Who the hell builds a lift in the middle of coasters any more? Were these designers insane?
I have a similar experience on the Voyage. Every wood coaster element one can imagine is thrown into that ride, excessive to say the least. It goes on forever and the most vexing part of it is that the Voyage just gets more intense as the ride progresses, while most others just slow down. It makes me anxious just talking about it. Fortunately, most designers choose not to through these curve balls at unsuspecting guest who just want a predictable coaster experience. As we all know it's the normal coasters that end up being the best.
Freakin' weird coasters...
Mamoosh said:
Nothing has become of the Beast. I(t) was a mediocre ride when I rode it in 1984, 1999, and 2000; it was a mediocre ride when I last rode it in 2003; its probably a mediocre ride today.It's myth and hype doesn't live up to reality.
That's the post I am talking about. Moosh might as well had put "as a matter of fact" somewhere in the statement.
I always put "to me", "I feel", or "imo" when I am dishing out a strong opinions because I want to be clear that I respect other people's opinions when they differ from mine. I feel that words are very powerful.
...
Good points on the Beast's odd design. Even though some see it as a flaw, I think maybe that's why other people like it so much. You think it's over and then you climb up yet another lift. I also agree that the ride should have done a little more after the helix. There is so much potential energy wasted at the end of the ride.
Beast is closest to my dream coaster. I want someone to build a terrain coaster that is always traveling downhill and gets faster and faster throughout the ride. Sometimes this coaster would hit drops with speed all ready built up to create airtime. No one's built it yet though.
dexter said:
I just expected better from you seeing that you are one of the most vocal and more respected posters here.
^HAHA! Moosh....respected? Don't make me laugh...;)
dexter said:
I always put "to me", "I feel", or "imo" when I am dishing out a strong opinions because I want to be clear that I respect other people's opinions when they differ from mine.
But you don't always do that. Every post you've made in this thread has expressed an opinion (a strong one or not, I'm not sure - another subjective call!) and you haven't always put those disclaimers in.
I'm really really honestly not trying to nitpick here but it seems like it would be very difficult to navigate a message board like this and not be able to tell what's an opinion and what's not.
That was all my opinion, by the way.
I thought I was missing something the Beast had to offer until reading this site. Now I realize it was once a fun ride before the breaks and still offers thrills at night when you can't see where you're going. I love indoor dark rides, so I will make a point to ride the Beast at night when I return to King's Island, probably after they add a few more coasters.
My first couple dozen Beast rides (spanning two visits) were only in the dark. Only on my third visit did I even realize what it looked like. But dark doesn't help much if you're not already a fan.
-CO
PS - Those are not my opinions at all. They are FACTS!
*pounds fist on desk*
NOTE: Severe fecal impaction may render the above words highly debatable.
"Beast is the worst ride ever designed."
or
"I have felt for a long time that Beast is the worst ride ever designed."
See that?
When an opinion is worded as factual, if only in the posters reality, it really needs some short worded explanation of being an opinion, imo. LOL
It's just my style of writing. It my way of letting everyone know that I am aware that my opinions and experiences can differ from another person's.
Whoever wants the last word from now on can have it. I just hope my respectful writing style rubs off on some of you and you don't start mimicking some of my least favorite posters here.
I will take more notice as to if I do not do this sometimes as well. I would hope that I do always imply that I am aware of my opinions being opinions and not factual. I'm not attacking anyone (not directly anyways), not even my least favorite poster (of whom I never named). It's more of an observation that has been bugging me a little the last few years.
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