Tr0y

Busch Gardens Williamsburg had their annual Food and Wine Festival event taking place, so naturally being that I attended last year. I purchased a sampler. The food was great as usual. The only disappointment I had was they brought back almost all of the previous menu options from last season which although was tasty, I was hoping to try some different things. The food portions are what you would expect for a sample, the real kicker is using the sampler for adult beverages, which they pour to the brim. I’m ranking BGW second out of the 3 parks I visited. Only because it is a Food Festival and not daily food ops.

From my 3 park trip this past weekend: Out of the 3 parks I visited, Carowinds by far was the worst food out of them all. Edible but definitely had a “People gotta eat.” Vibe going on. Portions were small and the food seemed old. First night I ate at Harmony Hall Markeplace. The Ribs were tough, but the Mac n cheese was decent. On the second day, I had lunch at Chickie’s & Pete’s got the Philly cheesesteak with crab fries. Carowind’s does not include dipping sauce with the meal unlike CP. Last meal I ate was at Blue Ridge Country Kitchen, got the half chicken (pigeon) and Mac n cheese which was not even close to what was served at Harmony Hall the previous night. The Mac n Cheese seemed like picked off the shelf, GFS brand. All I can say about that meal is wow, that was baddd. I did splurge a bit and treated myself to a Fury Freeze, it was good but I’ll probably stick with picking more traditional flavored dip n dots after trying it. The best meal out of the three meals I ate there was the Philly Cheesesteak with crab fries.

They have horrible capacity. At least for the ones I have ridden that are under Cedar Fair. (Steel Vengeance, Twisted Timbers) Not sure who thought it was a good idea to design a coaster that requires each rider to go through a TSA check before riding. Nothing like waiting for a locker computer that works, having to get everything out of my pockets and put into a locker only to be patted down and be caught with a small item that I forgot just so I have to go back to said locker and go through the whole motion again. Oh and don’t ever let go of the locked door while emptying your pockets. The doors automatically close and lock themselves therefor you have to start from the beginning getting a computer and such.. If they do happen to go with another RMC, Hopefully they take a hard look at Iron Gwazi which has no TSA check, and to me personally, is better than Steel Vengeance and Twister Timbers.

Honestly I think the park needs a good off-season for general maintenance to work out the kinks for some rides. I wouldn’t mind seeing theming enhancements like what the Adventure Express received be done to other rides / coasters such as The Beast. If they do go an addition route ride wise if anything the water park has been neglected.

Standing on the back of #17’s Caboose as “Der Hochbeinige” approaches Caribou station. IMG_1257.mov

Got to tour the BGW railroad today. The locomotive I got to tour up close and personal is the #17 “Alpen Express”. The Locomotive Engineer who gave me the tour, name is Scott. What I found incredible was when I got into the cab was how it was hot. At Busch Gardens, maintenance fires up a reserve engine in the morning in case the engine of the day goes down. The “Alpen Express” is also one of the rare crowns which coaches came with a caboose. I asked Scott about the snow plow and he told me it was added when the park acquired the Engine and is not functional. I did not get to tour any of #661 “Balmoral Castle” due to it being in the maintenance bay. From what I was told there is a strict line between maintenance and the Engineers at BGW. I got to stand next to #238 “Der Hochbeininge” and ride her around the park with Scott. He gave me a lesson on train signaling and what their whistle lingo was. There is no bells on any engine at BGW. I didn’t spend much time with this engine due to her working the main line. Overall the tour was fantastic! Scott showed me so much, He was very passionate about steam locomotives and Crown Engines in particular. He is definitely an expert in his craft. I learned a ton and had an awesome time! I definitely recommend anyone visiting Busch Gardens to sign up for the Railroad Steam Engine Tour.

They should include sunscreen lotion at the VIP lounge in Soak City.

Till our paths cross again.. I’m not crying, someone dropped a bunch of onions on the path.

Not 100 percent certain, but I’m pretty sure the Blue Ridge Country Kitchen at Carowinds served me pigeon, with GFS mac n cheese. Kings Island has much better food.

Carowinds is not subjected to drinking just tap water.

Same, I had to ride a couple times to get back in the snapping groove with them.

Hello, old friend.

Not all theming has to be seen by everyone. The plumbing and electrical components are already in place, but to mitigate trash and mosquito control they can just make it a gravel fountain, with appropriate foliage around it, it would be nice. Example:

Just to piggyback off my post with the enhanced theming they could add claw marks inside the station on the walls, floor and ceiling. They can add broken chains to each side of the track at the front of the station. They can add red or orange led lighting that lights up the ceiling like in the Banshee station. They can re route the exit and fast pass to the front entrance area, and bring use to The Beast Canyon Drinks building by turning it into a Photo Booth / gift shop much like Diamondback. Also re routing would clear up a good amount of space for any potential expansion in The Vortex plot.

If I’m not mistaken nothing has taken the place of the Subway restaurant in Soak City. They could gut it and theme it into a train station. My take on redoing the path would keeping Pineapple Pipeline and removing Tropical Twister. As well as re doing the straw centerpiece.

Yeah that’s another thing that leads me to believe that things were rushed to get it opened . Adjustments won’t be made till the park gets some downtime when the regular season ends. I’m a little less critical now that this is an industry problem and not specifically KI related. I’m sure going forward in the seasons to come Cedar Fair will adjust its strategy to mitigate these delays.

That ship sailed a couple weeks ago. They desperately wanted it all open for Memorial Day weekend and they weren’t able to have it all ready. They were fortunate enough to manage to get Cargo Loco and AE opened tho. Even tho I don’t think they spent anytime to adjust Cargo Loco so that it would provide the desired ride experience.

That’s a good idea. They could probably just remove Tropical Twister and that would create enough space to re route the walkway to and from the water park as well as at the same time have enough space to add a station building with more shade and places to sit and wait for the train. …and finally hope this station isn’t built as a Coca-cola freestyle stand. Jeez that was such a boneheaded move by the park.

Not sure why specifically this part was not painted as everything else around was on Diamondback, but I’m willing to take bets it was missed and it never gets done. Any takers?

If you want faster lines at any restaurant at the park be sure to be wear a polo shirt and hat while wielding a clipboard, clicker counter, and stop watch. I’m not joking the line moved quick.

Another change I would like to see the park do is remove the water mist from the queue line fans. There is nothing worse than waiting in a long line and being stuck in front of one of those things. I didn’t plan on getting wet when I ride Mystic Timbers, but I have no choice waiting in line being in-front of one of those. It’s even worse later in the day, say 9pm when the temps drop from the high 80’s to the low 70’s because Ohio. Then the mist becomes unpleasantly chilly. Also from an OCD perspective after a while the fans start to look like crap from the hard water stains. The water also puddles in the queue, attracts a-lot of dirt and I noticed on Mystic Timbers one of the fans killed part of a tree from all the water. The park should opt for drinking fountains in the queue line instead. Water is better for us in our body on a hot day than it is outside of it. I think the park should opt for cool down zones next to the main paths for people who want to get a quick mist. They’re are plenty of blank concrete spots they could add these. Doesn’t have to be here exactly, but just an example of a waste of space:

That’s fine The Beast hibernates at the end of haunt. The water feature would only be running when The Beast is active.

I mean they keep the royal fountains running year long, surely they can manage a water pump. We’re not asking for a water show, just simply water running through the water chutes again.

I kinda wish The Beast got a theming enhancement much like The Adventure Express. Maybe add The Beast eyes in the tunnels. Add some sound effects such as adding a chain breaking noise when the train departs the station. Roaring and grunting noises throughout the ride and such, while also keeping the classic music that we have become accustomed to on the lift hills. Also if this horse hasn’t been beaten enough, BRING BACK THE WATER FEATURE! Reference noises:

Got to try the prestige infused cooler water. It’s sample size but it is free with any meal at Enrique’s.