WI Dells 9/25/04 - "Almost no Avalanche"

My sister and I planned on going to WI Dells on Saturday 9/25/04 to go to Kalahari "worlds largest indoor waterpark". I also wanted to ride the coasters there, so I called ahead to make sure they would be open.

Mt. Olympus was going to be open, but when I called Timber Falls, they said only the go-karts and mini-golf would be open, NOT Avalanche. I was bummed.

Anyway, we went to the waterpark first and had a blast. I was not very crowded and the selection is good. Master Blaster is just that, a blast. Fast and fun. They have what I like to call the toilet bowl which was also a lot of fun. Serveral other good slides and a lazy river made for a fun morning. Definitely not just a kids place, although there was plenty for the kids too.

We then moved on to Mt. Olympus. Only Zeus and Pegasus were open, so I bought enough tickets to ride Zeus twice and Pegasus once. (my sister did not ride with me) After reading much about Zeus I was excited to ride and was thoroughly disappointed. Short and not offering much except a pop of air in one or two places. I rode both front and back and had the same experience. Just didn't do it for me - but was much better than Pegasus, which was a joke. I rode the front and the train moved so slowly through the course I thought I might have to get out and give it a push. Glad I only bought one ticket for it.

I did see the construction for Hades though, the drop and most of the lift hill complete. The drop looks insanely steep and to see it go right into the tunnel that travel underground through the whole parking lot looks cool. The track comes out on the other side of the parking lot only to go up, turn and dive back down into another tunnel and travel under the parking lot again. LOOKS VERY COOL! I will go back next year to ride this, but will skip the others.

Even though I was told Avalanche would be closed, I wanted to drive by and see it anyway. As we approached, I saw the track and was surprised to see a train go by, with people on it. YEAH! Went up and bought tickets for two rides. (again my sister did not ride) I was the only person on the train, front row. This ride ROCKS! Great first drop, great air and laterals and very fast. I was the only person on the train again for my back seat ride and it proved just as good. I will definitely go back and ride again.

I'm glad I went to the Dells in Sept as I can't imagine driving through there with all the tourist during summer. Must be a nightmare.

Looking forward to next year - bring on Hades!!!!

Any reason why Cyclops wasn't operating?

You missed out on one the greatest moments of ejector airtime in existence.

Chitown - No reason was given, they just said it wasn't open today.

Keep in mind that Pegasus is a kiddie coaster.

Chi, I hope it was closed for repairs. When we were there in Aug. I thought the ride was in pretty bad shape.

Frank, who would take Avalanche's 11 moments of air over Cyclops' one anyday :)

I have to say that I've never been overly impressed with "maintenance reports" from the Dells....being a woodie FREAK, maintenance is right up there with mom and apple pie (ok, just a notch or so above apple pie).

Gotta wonder what condition Mt Olympus' coasters will be in come Con next year. I don't mind being "jostled" one bit, but HATE being beaten up (Sonny, Psucklone)...while M-V and other do an excellent job *rehabbing* a coaster, seems MUCH better to keep up with good DAILY maintenance, sort of like preventative medicine, cheaper AND more effective (and produces better rides for your guests)...;)

Frank...I'll take 11(!) moments of airtime over anything but a great meal, LOL....:)

Crowds weren't bad in the summer. Coaster's hardly ever have a line at Mt. Olympus. Go-Karts have long annoying lines though.

Glad you had fun. Did ya try the surfing machine at Kalahari? I almost broke my ass trying to surf on it. lol :)

Thanks Kyle - and no, I completely forgot about it until after we left - the line for that was pretty long when we first arrived and we only stayed an hour or so..... I will definitely try it next time.

Hmmmm wood coasters or apple pie. That's a tough one.

The reports on Avalanche and Tsunami seem to prove that SF *was* looking for a more "family-style" coaster in Timberhawk at Enchanted Village. I can't wait to get to the Dells for the first time next season... 5 woodies in one area sounds joygasmic!

+Danny

Most amusement ride suppliers will build you any kind of ride you want. I don't know why people got "down" on S&S when Timberhawk debuted- it was their first coaster and one destined for a family park. CCI got started with the Sky Princess at Dutch Wonderland and look at the rides they built only a few years later!

I dunno Rob, when I got rides on Sky Princess, I thought it was quite *aggressvie* for the park it's in...

Timberhawk, while I'm sure it's what the park ordered, is *tame* comapred to the quarter horsey rides at the mall. ;)

The last time I rode Sky Princess was the year it opened and my memory is very hazy. But going by what some people say of it, I may have to head back there next year!

I was at Mount Olympus the same weekend. The reason Cyclops, as well as many of their go-kart tracks were closed was because they had no one to staff them. They were short handed as it was. To compensate, they were offering discounted ride tix. I think with the two dollar ride tix that it might have been cheaper to buy individual ride tix instead of the wrist bands.

As for your ride on Avalanche, Carl, it is a very amazing ride, but it is even more amazing with the weight of a full train. That thing just flies when it's full and you get massive ejector air on several of the hills. I saw it running last weekend but didnt stop. I was with a crowd that liked go-karts more than coasters (i.e. my parents and their racing friends. It's real embarassing when your 55 year old mother gets kicked out of Mount Olympus ;), normally it's my 62 year old Dad).

Bob,

Your mom got kicked out? That is too funny, when we went for the honeymoon, I thought there was going to be a kid getting kicked out. We were on the Trojan Horse waiting in line and the guy was having everyone come in, but this kid just sped through like he didn't hear him. The attendants were screaming and whistling and they finally caught him going up the first hill. Boy did he get a butt chewing and then to see his dad get on him after that (he looked like an Italian mob boss) OUCH!!!!!

^^ crazyforcoasters, my parents have been racing for about thirty years, and when they get out on the go-karts they tend to get a bit aggressive and blow off some steam, something they cannot do when racing real cars. For the record, though, we saw several people getting kicked out during the course of the day, not just people from our group.

Yeah they are pretty strict about no bumping there.

I think there is more to Cyclops being closed because when I went, the train was not even on site.

My guess is that the coaster is already in winter rehab. With the lack of employees, they just chose to shut down Cyclops for the year and get an early start on rehabing the train.