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WindSeeker thrill rating


Lakota88
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Hi, all. My daughter is a big chicken when it comes to thrill rides (just like I was at her age) but she is very curious about the WindSeeker. We watched some POV videos of it on YouTube, and aside from the height of the ride it doesn't seem that scary. I know videos can be deceiving so I compared its thrill rating to other rides that I've been on, and I was surprised that it is a 4 compared to the Zephyr's 3. I found the Zephyr to be pretty agressive for a 3, and it looks like the WindSeeker is slower and without the tilting.

 

Is the WindSeeker worthy of the 4 rating? Is it faster than it looks?

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Its thrill rating is higher because of its extreme height.

Personally, I have to say that it is the most secure you can feel at that height, though. The very first time I rode it, it felt like being swept up there by magic. Exhilarating and not at all frightening. I find the Eiffel Tower more scary.

If your daughter is ok going up in the Eiffel Tower, and especially since she's showing interest, I think she would enjoy WindSeeker.

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I am petrified of heights...and I find WindSeeker easy, though it makes me very, very nervous just due to the height.

 

Short of that, very good ride, smooth as silk, and great views if you're lucky to get a fireworks ride!

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I'm a big chicken too, and I actually haven't ridden it yet due to the fear of getting stuck up there. I also have had a hard time with spinning rides, so if anyone else has that issue, have you ridden it? I just don't want to vomit from that height.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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^^I cannot ride anything that spins.  Rides that spin make me extremely dizzy and sick to my stomach.  That being said, I rode WindSeeker without having any problems with motions sickness.  However, the ride is extremely high up and that was the only problem I had with the ride.  It was a little unnerving to look down and see how high up you are and in nothing but a little seat.  I can say that you probably won't get motion sickness from this ride (at least I didn't) and it doesn't really spin all that fast.  As long as you're ok with heights, you should be good to go.

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Heights dont scare me, they used to when I was little but not anymore. I feel quite secure on WindSeeker especially when the ride plays inspirational music (Ric Flairs theme song.) Its a wonderful scenery when you can go above Coney Mall ( and the rest of the park for that matter.) Overall I love WindSeeker just like all the other rides at Kings Island.

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If you aren't absolutely petrified of heights, and if you don't have a background in mechanical engineering, then WindSeeker is a very pleasant ride with an incredible view and a touch of excitement due to the height.

 

However it scares the living daylights out of me.  I am petrified of heights, and I have a BSME degree so I can't help but think about dynamic stress equations and metal fatigue failure modes and 9.8m/s^2 (acceleration due to gravity)... lol... yeah it's pretty difficult for me to enjoy WindSeeker the way it's intended to be enjoyed.  For me, it's a 4 or maybe even a 5.  But I'm in the minority.  Most people are fine riding it.

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Personally I think that either 3 or 4 would fit it, but 5 is too much.

 

Cedar Fair's thrill rating system lost all meaning to me when I saw that Kings Dominion's Blue Ridge Tollway (their antique cars) has a rating of 3. Out of five?!

 

By that logic, a nearby bench ought to be a 2, breathing ought to be 1, Cirque Imagine should be a 5, and Intimidator 305 should fall somewhere in the range of 20 to 40.

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I think that the fact that the ride tilts away from the center adds a little more thrill to the experience. 

 

I, too, think of metal stresses, etc., but I also notice the visible safety redundancies built into the various fastenings and connections all over the ride system, that put my mind more at ease.

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Look at the Guest Assistance Guide.

 

The rating 1 - 5 isn't just one person's arbitrary numerical score of how "scary" a ride is. It describes forces, heights, changes in elevation, changes in direction, etc. 

 

The 5 rating describes "rides that generally have one or more of the following: high speeds and/or heights, aggressive and unexpected forces, and rapid directional or elevation change. Riders will encounter many unexpected rapid changes in speed, direction and/or elevation." The Beast? Yep. Backlot Stunt Coaster? Also yep. Are they equivalent ride experiences? No. Is one "scarier" than the other? Yes. But they both meet the qualifications of a 5. (You wouldn't, after all, tell me that Backlot Stunt Coaster does NOT have aggressive and unexpected forces, rapid directional and elevation changes, and rapid changes in speed?) 

 

WindSeeker (also, Woodstock Express, Surf Dog, Drop Tower, etc) is a 4, or "rides that generally have medium to high speeds and/or heights with moderate to rapid braking. Riders may encounter unexpected changes in speed, direction and/or elevation." 

 

So it's not like a guy working for Cedar Fair got on, was afraid of heights and went "Oh, that's a 4!" There actually is a basis for the rating a ride is given. 

 

As for the Blue Ridge Tollway, I'm surprised it's a 3. It almost PERFECTLY matches the description for a 2. I'm sure examples like that abound. Just trying to offer some new evidence to the conversation re: ride ratings.

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Interestingly, Boo Blasters is a 1 (again, because the ride experience itself merits a 1. If the "scariness" of it mattered, it would be a 2, I bet).

 

But I found this in the Guest Assistance Guide (linked to in my post above). 

 

"WARNING: This ride contains strobe lighting. Riders will experience theatrical lighting, loud noises, and dark rooms themed to a haunted house."

 

Can we find an old version of the guide to determine if it used to include "theatrical fog" in that description? :P Maybe they gave up SO completely on the fog screen that they edited it out of the guest guide. Why warn people about it if it's not there? 

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Thanks for the advice, all! The thing that bothers me most about it is how long the ride is. If we get half way up and she (or I) gets scared there's nothing we can do about it.  She loves the Zephyr, though, so based on the comments here I don't think she'd have trouble with the WindSeeker. She rode the Zephyr last year for the first time and it became her favorite ride. It wasn't very crowded when we were there, so I think she rode the Zephyr over 20 times that day.

 

 

I think I'll try it Sunday if it's open. The last two times I've been, it's been closed. 

 

If you try it let me know what you think of it!

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To me, it is the most terrifying ride in the park.  It depends on what is scary to your child.  Although the ride is very calm, you are very high for "an eternity."  With roller coasters, you are up/down...up/down...constantly moving quickly.  With Drop Tower, there is the short wait at the top and then a wonderful free-fall.  

 

Just think about what scares your little one the most.  Make your decision based upon her.  

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I struggle with this and Drop Tower because of the heights. I get extremely anxiety on both, though I have only ridden once each. I'm afraid my nephew is going to want to ride Drop Tower when he visits in July so I better get more comfortable quick. Lol

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  • 1 month later...

Based on all of your input I decided to let my daughter try the WindSeeker. I went up with her, of course. She loved it! I, not so much. Heh. As soon as we landed she said asked to ride it again. We ended up riding it at least five times that day.

 

On the first ride I was so concerned about her that I wasn't really thinking about my reaction to the ride, as strange as that sounds. For some reason it got worse for me with each subsequent ride. There is no reason for a human being to be up that high without an aircraft. :) As some of you mentioned the ride isn't physically uncomfortable at all, but the height is very unsettling. If the ride were only a few feet off the ground it would be a Planet Snoopy attraction. As it is it gave me the major willies, especially when the wind picked up and gusts hit us. Gulp.

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I've ridden the WindSeeker many times.  Always freaks me out a bit.  I can't explain it, but I'm never comfortable when at the top in full spin.  But what really freaks me out the most is the thought of getting stuck up there.  Fire department has no equipment to get that high.  So in the worst-case scenario you're at the mercy of the technicians to fix whatever problem exists.  I hope they have lots of parts on-hand.  I don't worry about dying, but I can't imagine being stuck up there 12-24 hours till they can bring me down.  Hasn't happened yet, but totally could.  Drop Tower goes just as high, but is a lot more simple from a mechanical perspective.  Not as scary.  :-)

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