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TR: SOB Ride Report


AZ Kinda Guy
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If I do ever ride that POS again - it will not be until 2007. I'll stick with the good rides, like Vortex, Flight of Fear, Son of Beast, Drop Zone and Delirium.

Oh yeah, a top 10 wood coaster in the world is a POS. You just hatin The Beast cause you know it's the signature ride of the park. And Son of Beast, a good ride? Did you have some novacane before yor ride?

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Sorry, but I put no stock in enthusiast polls whatsoever. Here's why. I know that many enthusiasts think that the flying coasters are boring. Yet, when I go to the parks with said coasters, people are lined up for hours.

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I'm sorry, I was basing my ranking on a legitamite list, one that doesn't need google ads to run. And I'm talking of course about the Golden Ticket awards. It looks like thats just some list made up when asking some of his friends.

The Wood Coaster Poll is a legitimate poll. Many MANY enthusiasts took it. A lot of enthusiasts don't agree with you. Get over it. It is an opinion. I am not wrong for thinking Beast is the worst coaster ever - and you are not right for thinking it is the greatest.

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Any coaster poll, irregardless of whether enthusiasts or average guests take it, is flawed.

How so?

It's based on popularity of the park, not how good all the coasters are.

In order to be accurate... everyone would have to attend every park, and ride every coaster, every year.

No one can do that, thus polls represent the parks most frequently attended, and usually reflect the most recently ridden coasters.

For example... if I rode 20 coasters this year, I would be apt to pick a favorite out of that group. Or, if I had ridden, say, 300 coasters (I have) then I would rank my favorites according to what I have ridden. On the flip side, I have not yet made it to Michigan's Adventure to ride Shivering Timbers. It constantly ranks in the upper folds of wooden coaster polls. However because I have not ridden, I never rank it as a favorite.

Thus a poll is based on familiarity with rides/parks... not the overall quality of every single coaster.

If Castles and Coasters in Arizona put in the world's best Wooden Out and Back, do you think it would become #1? Nope... because it's hardly a park that people (enthusiasts or regular guests) seek to attend on a recurring basis.

Shaggy

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Simple... Holiday World stopped holding enthusiast events for a few seasons.

Again, enthusiasts... and guests... are fickle. Out of site, out of mind.

You'll see a change this year in coaster rankings because HW has added another, and has started holding enthusiast events again.

I guarantee you that not only will Voyage make a top ten list, but Raven and Legend will climb again as well.

HW recognizes that. It's ridiculously apparent to me that HW is very territorial when it comes to their rankings... it's in all their ads... so when their rankings dropped in recent years, they felt the need to get enthusiasts back in their park to help their cause.

Shaggy

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The Popularity argument still doesn't explain anything. I am sure Beast had ALOT more riders than Boulder Dash or Balder at Liseberg...

There will always be fanboys for certain rides. I am a Vortex fanboy. Alot of people think Vortex sucks. They have their right to think that. UncleHenry is a Beast fanboy...

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"The Popularity argument still doesn't explain anything. I am sure Beast had ALOT more riders than Boulder Dash or Balder at Liseberg..."

Well, you have to admit that it explains quite a bit.

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that actual ride quality doesn't affect the lists, I simply believe that they are flawed because there are too many things that factor into how the polls spell out... such as park popularity etc.

Heck, a great coaster can drop low in the rankings based simply on whether or not there's a mean ride op that staples enthusiasts on a routine basis. Or, it can raise high in the rankings because it was a part of a very fun enthusiast event where cookies and milk were served.

Bottom line, and I think we are agreed on this point, it's all subjective.

Polls don't form my opinions for me. I like what I like, I dislike what I don't. Differences of opinions are what make us grow and learn, they help us look at things through other eyes.

Shaggy

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True - I didn't even think about that. A ride can be great - but can be ruined by bad park atmosphere, poor maintenence on the rides appearance etc.

Theres some rides on there that are ranked really low - but that I hear are outstanding.

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There will always be fanboys for certain rides. I am a Vortex fanboy. Alot of people think Vortex sucks. They have their right to think that. UncleHenry is a Beast fanboy...

Would a Beast fanboy say that Legend is better than Beast? Would he even say that Ghostrider is better than Beast? Well I have repeatedly. I don't think I've ever heard you say a ride is better than Vortex.

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If I do ever ride that POS again - it will not be until 2007.  I'll stick with the good rides, like Vortex, Flight of Fear, Son of Beast, Drop Zone and Delirium.

Oh yeah, a top 10 wood coaster in the world is a POS. You just hatin The Beast cause you know it's the signature ride of the park. And Son of Beast, a good ride? Did you have some novacane before yor ride?

Why does it matter that much what he thought?

Just because its rated well, dosnt mean it has to be thought of by everybody to be the best.

I think The Beast is pretty crappy too.

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There will always be fanboys for certain rides.  I am a Vortex fanboy.  Alot of people think Vortex sucks.  They have their right to think that.  UncleHenry is a Beast fanboy...

Would a Beast fanboy say that Legend is better than Beast? Would he even say that Ghostrider is better than Beast? Well I have repeatedly. I don't think I've ever heard you say a ride is better than Vortex.

Uh, Vortex is my number three coaster. Magnum XL 200 is my favorite, Raptor is my second favorite, Vortex is my third favorite. Flight of Fear is better than Vortex - but I like Vortex better than Flight of Fear for sentimental value.

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As of yesterday the Voyage is by far the most incredible wood roller coaster I have ever experienced. The ride is amazing, it never lets up. The ride is absolutely covered with air time no matter what seat you're in. We got to ride it 6 times in a row without getting off and LOVED it every single time. If KI had a wood coaster that was even half as good as the Voyage, it would definately still be a world class coaster.

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I'll be interested to see if Voyage retains a top spot in years to come. Maybe, hopefully. However, it's widely known that steel-structured woodies are terribly hard to maintain from a roughness standpoint.

I cite Villain at Geauga Lake and Twisted Twins as a prime examples. Terrific when they opened, but in subsequent years have become terribly painful to ride.

Granted, these have Gerstlauer trains. But overall, the rigidity of a steel-structured, wooden-track coaster causes a rougher ride. Traditional woodies can bend and give to help allieviate the rigidity of the track. Steel doesn't bend too much.

Shaggy

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Ghostrider at Knott's Berry Farm is probably my favorite wooden coaster to date. That ride never lets up from start to finish. Granted, I am yet to ride the Voyage, but I have to say that Ghostrider is awesome. It beats the heck out of you, but it's still incredible.

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Ghostrider at Knott's Berry Farm is probably my favorite wooden coaster to date. That ride never lets up from start to finish. Granted, I am yet to ride the Voyage, but I have to say that Ghostrider is awesome. It beats the heck out of you, but it's still incredible.

another good example. Due to making the coaster more earthquake resistant to meet building codes, I'd bet it is far more rigid than most wooden coasters...even though it does not have a steel frame.

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I'll be interested to see if Voyage retains a top spot in years to come. Maybe, hopefully. However, it's widely known that steel-structured woodies are terribly hard to maintain from a roughness standpoint.

I cite Villain at Geauga Lake and Twisted Twins as a prime examples. Terrific when they opened, but in subsequent years have become terribly painful to ride.

Granted, these have Gerstlauer trains. But overall, the rigidity of a steel-structured, wooden-track coaster causes a rougher ride. Traditional woodies can bend and give to help allieviate the rigidity of the track. Steel doesn't bend too much.

Shaggy

I can certainly see your point, Villain is FAR from the ride it was when it opened. I do feel that the majority of those problems are the trains on the two rides you mentioned. Last season, I made it back up to Martin's Fantasy Island to take a spin on the 1999 CCI built Silver Comet. Smooth as glass. Same was said for the Great White at Morey's when I rode it 2 seasons ago. I think the biggest problem is the park's ability or willingness to give it the TLC that it needs....I think Voyage is in good hands.

With that said, I was looking forward to trying out SOB in a few hours when I head up to the Park. Amazing, all that work and it still doesn't appear to have paid off. Personally, I hope Cedar Fair pulls a Hercules (Dorney Park mega wood coaster)....rip it out and put something in that is a worthwhile addition which isn't going to cost $$$$$$'s each year to keep it in a semi-rideable condition.

- Todd

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