Worst "Shot" ever fired into the coaster "War"

I was still shocked when I heard about Canada's first "flying" coaster.

:(

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Mamoosh said:

Sorry, DB. While I have not ridden it I know plenty of people who were at ACE's Summer Con in Denver. I can't recall one positive comment. Seems to me the folks at PCW didn't head over to SFEG to ride one first.

mOOSH

The scary thing is I've heard the PCW execs *did* go ride the one at SFEG - and they still bought one......

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Ken

You're locked and ready to fly!

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*** This post was edited by TopGunKen 8/28/2003 10:06:55 PM ***

Mean Streak couldn't be a worst shot ride, because when it was built it was better without trims and crap. It may suck now but back then...

What about any of Vekoma's Hang and bangs, i mean SLC's?
*** This post was edited by Long Burn Drachen 8/28/2003 10:28:52 PM ***

Boomerangs, yes they were sort of cool when they came out, but wtf are parks still building them.

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SWOOSH
MidwestInfoGuide.COM

"You can't expect to wield supreme executive power just 'cause some watery tart threw a sword at you!"

Although I haven't ridden it, I'd say the Rattler is a 'bad shot' of sorts. According to most reviews, it's a shadow of what it was when it first opened, but for good reason. There were too many design flaws when the plans were revised in order for the coaster to break Mean Streak's height and drop records, and the trains were designed based on the original plans, not the revised ones. All of this resulted in over 250 reported injuries from July to October of its inaugural year.

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-Mike B.
Son of Hulk
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My answer is easy: Top Thrill Dragster.

TTD is a dud, in my opinion, and that's completely aside from all the problems and downtime. It's a one trick pony (okay, maybe two...maybe) and its popularity is based only on the fact that it is the tallest and fastest. Other tallest and fastest rides offer some substance, while TTD just offers 15 seconds of speed. It's a completely soulless coaster. And, let's face it, is it really much different than S:TE? Sure, the launch is faster (technology improves) and it's actually a full circuit, but the same basic concept (launch, up a tower, down a tower, brakes) is the exact same on both rides, right down to ride time and the fact that both are/were "tallest and fastest."

Now, does that mean S:TE was a "poor shot" as well? No, because in 1997, S:TE was very never-before-seen. S:TE premiered at almost *twice* as tall as the tallest coaster at that time, and it broke a barrier (100mph) nobody would have predicted. The "height wars" really only began in the early 90's, and S:TE blew that away.

Just as SFMM has seen decreased popularity in S:TE, CP will most definitely see that with TTD in a few years (and possibly sooner), especially with coasters with far more to them in the park. $25 million for the ride probably did get people through the gate this year, but that doesn't mean it's going to be a good long-term investment. High and fast have been done (again, see S:TE) and TTD just isn't unique, or original. Instead, it's a fifteen second one-trick pony. It's tall and fast, sure, but where is the feeling??

-Nate

(sarcasm warning) Wow, lets build a tower 400 ft in the air and then launch a coaster only 300ft.

Now lets be serious, if you are going to diss Dragster then you have to kill Superman: The Escape. At least Dragster goes the full length up and the rider actually hit 400ft.

And nothing at the time was built that high? What about Fujiyama which was built a year before and went up 260ft. That's only 40ft short Superman: TE.

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"Do what you believe in and believe in what you do," Jeffrey E. McCants
*** This post was edited by Jephry 8/29/2003 1:39:19 AM ***
*** This post was edited by Jephry 8/29/2003 1:40:04 AM ***

Did you bother to read what I wrote?

S:TE was built in 1996...*seven years* ago. A ride like that was fine seven years ago. A ride like that *isn't* fine now. Yes, S:TE is lame now. I'll be the first to admit that. But I'll also argue that Dragster is just about as lame.

Fujiyama is 260, yes, but drops just 230. S:TE stands 415' high (and, when it opened, the car *did* just about reach that 400' level). Those are not *nearly* as close as you claim. Heck, take a look at the speed of the rides (100ph vs 80mph) and it's obvious that there is a much larger difference between those rides than 40'.

-Nate

There never was a 400' level for S:TE!

While it may stand 415' when measured from its peak to the ground below, the maximum drop is under 330'.

In other words, today's average rider may not even top MF...

-'Playa

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The CPlaya 100--6 days, 9 parks, 47 coasters, 2037 miles and a winner.....LoCoSuMo.

Nate, I see your point if you relegate S:TE and TTD to their lowest common denominators - giant steel towers sticking out of the ground whose only purpose is to achieve a certain height. But S:TE and TTD actually provide rides while being giant steel towers sticking out of the ground, and pretty unique rides at that.

Again, S:TE and TTD are similar rides if you break their concepts down to the lowest common denominator: train is launched, train goes up, train comes down, train returns to station. But their launches are different, their courses are different, their trains are different... their experiences are different.

Until getting lauched above 400 feet at over 100 mph becomes commonplace across the amusement park industry, I don't see TTD's popularity waning significantly.

P.S. "Soul" is not a pre-requisite of popularity. Just ask Britney... or Justin.

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Ask about my references

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Vater said:
Although I haven't ridden it, I'd say the Rattler is a 'bad shot' of sorts.

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Vater - The Rattler... well, The Rattler just plain sucks. But despite that, I'd still hesitate to call it a "bad shot" for one reason - it put Fiesta Texas on the map. I grew up outside of Chicago, and they did stories about it on the local news when it opened. That's some good press.

What happened to The Rattler subsequent to its opening is another story, though...

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Ask about my references
*** This post was edited by Olsor 8/29/2003 2:17:00 AM ***

Since when did coaster-related anything become a "war?" I don't even get the reference. Are you referring to parks competing with each other? Are you just asking what coasters you think are crappy? If so, isn't that a) against TOS and b) pointless? This topic makes no sense to me.

~me

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S:ROS; SFNE. Ride it, and you'll understand.

Playa' - the "400 foot" level I speek of is 400' above the ground, not 400' above the station level. I'm no physics expert, but *if* the ride travels at 100mph (which it did when it opened), then it *should* go much higher than MF.

Olser - you're right that soul is not a prerequisite for popularity...not initial popularity, anyway. But how many of those popular items without soul stay popular for long? Where's the fun in a "soulless" ride?

-Nate

You know, I knew, just knew someone would say TTD. It may be your honest opinion, but, it comes off very hater-ish. Just wanted to get that out.

Anyways, to tell the truth, I have yet to ride a coaster that I thought was a flat-out bad ride. Too hater-ish....;)
*** This post was edited by TweekRocks 8/29/2003 5:03:28 AM ***

Hi all,

I don't really think it's appropriate to denegrate a coaster on the basis of the simplicity its concept. Afterall, any coaster works on the simple principle of "What goes up must come down" :-) You can't always define the value of one ride over another by reference to their stats. I'm not sure how one would define the "soul of a coaster" but there is one very important difference between S:TE and TTD. One takes the massive drop back the station head first! Trust me, that makes a big difference to the ride experience! :-)

The point with "one trick pony" rides like S:TE and TTD is to increase the magnitude of the thrills experienced by the riders. S:TE and TTD may only be seperated by 100 feet in height and 40mph...or whatever the precise measurements are, but they provide a very different ride experience.

Regards.

I'd say Drachen Fire is the biggest loser. How many years was it open before it became SBNO? I never rode it, but any coaster that comes and goes as quickly as Drachen Fire did, most definately has something wrong with it. I'd consider the Bat for the honor also, but I consider that to have been built before the coaster wars. In my opinion, the current age of coaster building didn't begin until 1989 with the construction of Magnum. BTW, it appears that this streak has finished and it will be a couple years before the next round.

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Vater said:
All of this resulted in over 250 reported injuries from July to October of its inaugural year.

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250 injuries in 3 months? That's almost hard to believe, wow, I did not know that. That's incredible. No wonder it got reprofiled so many times.

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"You know its a good ride when you come into the final brake run wiping tears from your eyes."

I think Cedar Point only has about 4-5 good coasters, but let me tell you TTD IS one of them. One trick pony? Hardly, the launch is the BEST trick of them all and it takes place.. oh about a good 20 feet off the ground.

Lines will NEVER diminish for TTD even if every park installs one. The thrill of the launch is almost too mammoth to comprehend. Then of course, you go over 400 feet in the air.

I don't care how long it takes to get 100% reliable, and I will NEVER be a huge mark for Cedar Point, but BRAVO with Top Thrill Dragster.

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CCI Coasters!! The best rollercoasters WORLDWIDE!! **only applies in the state of Indiana**

I don't know about worst shot, since I think its a great ride, but Stealth seems to have taken a place among the "dog rides" (to pull a reference from another thread) of the coaster wars. The first large-scale flying coaster up and moving after 3 years and regarded by many as a p.o.s. (although I feel its the strongest entry by Vekoma in the wars, but again, I'm in the minority).

By the same token, Ultra Twister seems like it was a pretty big dud too. I define the worst shot in a war like this as anything that is highly touted and opens to great reviews based on pictures, but once it opens, its crap and no one likes it and people complain and it moves and or closes long before it was ever intended to. That kinda kills both the TTD and S:TE arguments right there. They are/were both quality shots in the war and we wouldn't have had TTD without S:TE.

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Brett
Resident Launch Whore