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Dorney Park PTR - My First Time - 7/1/14


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Every time we go to my grandparents' house at the Jersey shore, we drive right past Dorney. We see it from the freeway and I've always wanted to stop along the way. Well, my family finally decided that this would be the year we would go. It would just require us leaving in the morning so we'd have enough time to spend the afternoon at the park before continuing on to vacation. We were also taking my 12 year old cousin Mackenzie with us, and thankfully she loved roller coasters and she couldn't wait too.

So on Tuesday the 1st, we ended up leaving our house around 7/7:30 in the morning. We stopped for lunch about an hour away from Dorney and arrived at the park around 2:30 in the afternoon. I couldn't wait to finally get to visit the park that I'd always wanted to try out. I knew it would be a small park, but I had heard good things about it. My mom and I have Platinum Passes so we got free parking and free admission, and my aunt had already bought my cousin her ticket. Then I used my Platinum Pass to get my dad a reduced ticket at the gate, and we ended up saving a lot of money. With the Platinum ticket discount, his ticket only cost $30-something which was a nice surprise. We were greeted with a nice front entrance. It doesn't have the wow factor like Cedar Point's but it was clean and had charm. There was also security we had to go through.

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Upon entering the park, it automatically gave off a "small yet nice" park feel. For a little park, I could tell it is fairly well maintained. First up, Talon. I was excited about getting on this coaster since I heard it was supposed to be pretty good. We got to the line and I was so happy to see that it had zero wait. We walked right on into the station. We could have walked right on but decided to wait just a few minutes for the front row. It was very smooth, definitely without the bumpiness so many newer B&Ms have. It wasn't extremely forceful, but just enough. It also has a good mix of elements, speed, and thrill which make it a fun, re-ridable coaster. One of my favorite parts was actually the small dive down under the lift hill where the camera is. It's unique for an invert. Overall the whole ride is just enjoyable.

Something I really love about Talong that wasn't even part of the actual ride itself was that you can walk right under and around the ride, both in the queue and the exit. There are several supports you can easily reach (and hug, if you so desire :)). It's watching the trains soar above and all around you.

Also, before the Immelman there is a cool little trench you go through. Espcially when sitting in the front, it provides a nice foot chopper effect.

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We then decided to go on it again, this time in the back row. The first drop was really fun in the back, and like with any invert, the entire ride was a little more intense. My favorite spot to ride though would be the front for this coaster.

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Next up, since it was really close to Talon, was Wild Mouse. Call me crazy, but I was actually really, really excited to go on it. I know this might sound crazy, but before this ride, my old Wild Mouse-esque coaster was WildCat at Cedar Point. I loved its laterals, quick turns, and little hills, so I couldn't wait to try this one out. I absolutely loved it! The laterals are super intense, and I was laughing for the entire ride. It also had a fun fun little bunny hills. It may just be a wild mouse coaster, but it is extremely fun. I love these types of coasters. A note about the ride, though. I'm sure it's for car balancing reasons, but only 2 adults could ride in a car, even though there are 4 seats. 4 kids can ride together but not older people. I'm not sure if this is common among mild mouse coasters but I thought it was weird. We only waited a few minutes.

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My cousin ans I rode first, and I got a great action shot of my parents riding it.

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Our next ride was Hydra: The Revenge. This ride was pleasing and disappointing at the same time. There was no wait, and I wanted to ride in the back for my first time on it. Let me just say that the jojo roll that starts the ride off right out of the station is AMAZING. It sort of reminded me of the wingover drop on Gatekeeper and the inline twist in Banshee. The train is going really slow, so you are hanging upside down, butt out of your seat, for a long duration of time. It is such a crazy feeling, with your entire weight being held up by the OTSRs. By far, this was actually the best part of the entire coaster. I don't get why more coasters don't have these slow inline twitsts/jojo rolls. They are one of my all time favorite coaster elements.

Right after the jojo roll as the trained gained a little more momentum into the turn before the lift, I started to get worried and confused. The ride was rough. And we were only going maybe 5-10 mph. This wasn't just the typical B&M bumpiness, but actual roughness. I hoped the rest of the ride would be better, but I sure was wrong. I will say that the back has awesome airtime over the first drop. I was out of my seat the entire time, which was a nice surprise. However, despite the ride having fun elements, the roughness really detracted from the ride experience. It was unfortunate that it was so rough, since it would've been a super great coaster without it. It would be better than Talon if it was as smooth as Talon. Well, due to no lines, we decided to ride it again, this time in the front. We waited 1 or 2 trains then got on, and we actually had the entire train to ourselves. Nobody else got on. The jojo roll lasts even longer in the front, which I loved, but surprisingly the ride was even rougher in the front than it was in the back. It even gave me a little headache when I got off. I don't know if it was because of bad wheels or what, or if it's just a rough ride, but for a B&M I was very surprised by how uncomfortable it was. Usually B&Ms are either bumpy or glass smooth, but not Hydra. However, roughness aside, it really is a great coaster. Again, the jojo roll is so much fun and needs to be incorporated into more coasters.

I also like how this coaster utilizes the terrain. It does down a little hill into a small valley area. Plus in many areas in the ride there is gravel underneath the ride, and it surprised me by providing some unexpected near miss/foot chopper effects.

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Thanks! My cousin thought I was crazy that I kept stopping for photo ops but I guess I got a few good shots haha.

Also, I'll add that originally I had thought the day might be pretty miserable. The forecast was calling for it to be humid and in the 90s, with a chance of storms. It turns out that no storms came through while we were there, and for the majority of the time it was sunny. Despite the heat, it actually wasn't bad at all since there was a great breeze all day that kept us cool. The water park was packed but the park was pretty much dead the entire time we were there.

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My cousin and I wanted to go on White Water Landing next. Usually I hate going on rides that get you soaked, but I was actually getting a little hot and thought, hey, why not. Might as well try it, especially since it's been several years since I've done Snake River Falls at CP and this was pretty much identical. We waited about 5 minutes for the front row and had a fun, wet ride. Then, of course, we had to stand on the bridge after the exit to get soaked again. We got wetter standing on the bridge than we did on the ride itself. It felt good to cool off and we dried pretty fast.

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While we were on it, my mom got a bunch of series action pics that turned out pretty cool.

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And here's a zoomed in version of the first serires picture. My hands blocking my face but my cousin's face and some of the other peoples' on the boat are pretty funny.

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My mom did the same thing with the series shots when we were standing on the bridge.

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We were soaked but it was worth it!

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Time for a couple general park shots on our way to Demon Drop. To get to the left side of the park, you have to go down this tree lined hill. It's actually sort of pretty, and a view of Dominator greets you. Their Planet Snoopy was pretty nice too.

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This may look like it's a cut through the Hydra, but it's not. I wish it was. It's sort of pain having to go all the way around.

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There were some good views of Steel Force from this area of the park.

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On our way to Demon Drop we decided to ride Thunder Creek Mountain, a log flume. It was sort of short but was fun. I really love log flumes and wish Cedar Point still had theirs. I love it that you don't get soaked but get just wet enough.

Then it was time for Demon Drop! It's weird thinking that this ride used to be at CP. I still remember it there. I'm glad I got to ride it in its new home. It was full of freefall fun!

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Next up: Dominator. We first did the drop side, then the launch side. Power Tower is way better since it's taller and more intense, but it was still fun. My dad was hilarious and was screaming really loud, which isn't like him. We were laughing the whole ride on both towers just because of him!

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It was time to head to Possessed.

A little creek and bridge:

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Possessed (AKA Voodoo AKA Superman: Ultimate Escape)!

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My cousin was actually sort of nervous about this one since I don't think she's ever been on a launching coaster before. She and my mom sat in the front row while I sat in the back row. We just waited 1 cycle. Unlike Wicked Twister, you don't get a countdown before you launch, which I love. You have no clue when it's coming. The ride op just says "Ready," but you don't know exactly when you'll take off. Plus the straight track on the back spike is interesting, especially with the holding break. It only holds one time for about 2 seconds, but it is so crazy just hanging in there looking straight down, pushing entirely against the OTSRs. It's such a cool experience.

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My cousin ended up absolutely loving it and wanted to go on again right away. She wanted to ride in the front again and I rode up there with her.

I do think it's a tiny bit rougher than Wicked Twister, but I honestly can't pick a favorite between it and WT. I love sitting in the back in WT and going up high on the back spiral, but I love the holding brake on the back spiral on Possessed. They're both fun coasters.

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Next, we had to head back around to go the Thunderhawk. I wish there was a direct cut through from the are near Possessed and Stinger (which was still closed due to its incident) that leads back to Thunderhawk and Steel Force, so that was you don't have to make the loop back and around. Oh, well.

I was excited for Thunderhawk since it would be the oldest coaster I've ever been on since it was built in the 1920s. There was no wait. My mom and cousin sat in the front, but I made sure to sit in the 2nd to last row, not on a wheel seat. I had heard this ride was rough and due to its 3 rows per car, the middle seat was a no brainer for me. I really loved it. It's a great, classic wooden coaster. By not sitting on a wheel, it was also very smooth for me. Everything about it was all that I would ask for with a classic woodie and even more. It had some great laterals, fun airtime, and an out of control feel like a classic woodie should have. It was perfect. However, it gave my mom a headache since she rode in the front (on a wheel) and was really rough for her. We sat down and rested for a little while. So definitely be sure to ride in the middle of a car, and I thought the back was a lot of fun.

A pretty view on our way to the coaster:

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I love these old chain lifts. I love the sound, the look, and the smell.

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Old and new:

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Some people would probably think this coaster in unsafe just by taking one glance at it, but I know otherwise. Plus, I think its old, natural distressed looks gives it tons of character and charm. I love how the peeling paint and worn wood looks.

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I thought this was a cool perspective.

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A close up of the track:

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At one point, the midway goes directly underneath the track. The enthusiast in me was yelling "Way cool!" Everyone around me was probably giving me strange looks, since I just stood underneath it for a while in the middle of the midway staring straight up at it. #coasterenthusiastprobz

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Big trees and a classic woodie. What else could you ask for???

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There were some cool views looking up at Steel Force from this area.

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My last coaster credit of the day (and the last ride I had hoped to get on at the park), Steel Force.

At first it may just looks like Magnum at CP, but once you ride it, it is anything but. Yes, its structure is similar. Yes, its trains look similar. Yes, it's red and silver, Yes, it's a hyper coaster, and has airtime hills and tunnels. But Steel Force is waaaaaaay better than Magnum.

For one thing, it is one of the smoothest coasters I've ever been on. Not rough at all. Add in the incredible airtime (especially in the back) and it's truly an incredible coaster. I'd definitely recommend the back for this ride. The airtime on the first drop alone in the back is worth sitting there, but the rest of hills are the sprinkles on top.

The best way to describe this coaster is a non-painful Magnum. It's my favorite coaster at Dorney.

I rode in the back, then the front, and then the back again. Did I mention the back is awesome????

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A fun pic I got of random people. I love their faces.

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I was the only one of us to ride it a 3rd time in a row, so my mom got some pictures of me on it!

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You can still see me in the very back:

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Almost at the top...

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Notice me in the back row...

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Zoomed in...

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Unfortunately for some reason, the camera never takes pictures of the very last row, so I never got to see my picture 2 out of the 3 times I rode. But that doesn't take away from the ride experience at all. This coaster really blew me away and was a lot better than i expected.

Before leaving, we made sure to get some ice cream as a good treat to end out day at the park.

Overall I really like Dorney. It's a quaint park with a nice variety of coasters, kids rides, and flats. I'd like to go to the water park sometime too.

My biggest complaint is that the employees were horrible. Only one girl working Dominator seemed happy and not completely bored out of her mind. Every other employee all day was not portraying good customer service. I was not impressed at all with the staff. They were just blah.

But besides that, it's a really nice park. I would definitely go back.

To wrap up, we were only in the park for 4 and 1/2 hours, which is hard to believe. We got in 16 rides during that short amount of time thanks to the nonexistent lines at the park.

-Talon (front)
-Talon (back)
-Wild Mouse
-White Water Landing (front)
-Hydra (back)
-Hydra (front; only people on the train)
-Thunder Creek Mountain
-Demon Drop
-Dominator (drop)
-Dominator (launch)
-Possessed (back)
-Possessed (front)
-Thunderhawk (2nd to back)
-Steel Force (back)
-Steel Force (front)
-Steel Force (back)

Dorney was a success, and we arrived at the Jersey Shore later than night!

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Great report. It's funny how you were experiencing a hot day there. We were there on July 4 and it was raining upon arrival (Hurricane Arthur related I was told) and we were wearing jackets.

We experienced the same low crowds, too. However, I did not really notice any kind of poor customer service.

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I always loved the holding brake on Superman back at Geauga Lake. It's so cool and unexpected. Thanks for reminding me of it! These photos are so great. Talon is one photogenic coaster... For a smaller, family park, Dorney sure has some unique rides / elements!

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Some other things I noticed that forgot to include earlier...most rides had auto spiels, which I really didn't like. I know some people on here are all for them, but I find them to take away from the fun atmosphere and character the ride ops can give the ride. Plus, I noticed something else that seemed very odd and that I really didn't like: Not a single ride had "welcome back riders, how was your ride?" The train just pulled back into the station, the ride ops stared at you as bored as ever, and you quietly got off. No excitement at all. I know this sentence is just a minor detail, but I think it makes a huge difference.

But enough with the negative criticisms. Dorney really is a nice park and I'd definitely go back again. I want to try Wildwater Kingdom too.

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