Bad day

[markr]

I have been examining some of the threads about past line wait times about CP and KI. Examples: 4-5 hours when ride snaked out from Beast to restrooms by BLSC, 2 hours for racer from the fudge shop,etc.

From my past experiences at both KI and CP, I find that waits for rides are highly exaggerated. For example, one time I was at CP waiting for Raptor when the queues were completely full. I had been in line for just 20 minutes and had already gotten through the first set of queues before the line turns to go under the structure. A teenage girl was on her cel phone behind me and said to her friend she had been in line for an hour. Excuse me, how can she have gotten in line at the same time as me and be in line 40 minutes longer? The total wait even with all the full queues was 1 hr 15 minutes. Yet, the girl behind me probably told everyone that Raptor was a 2 hour plus wait.

I have also timed the wait for Beast from the rest rooms by the BLSC with full queues. It is approximately 1 and a half hours, not the 2-3 plus hours people will quote.

Also I have waited in line for The Racer with full queues and have timed it at 45 minutes. The fudge shop is just across the midway so I would add maybe 5-10 minutes to the wait.

Even in the hayday when Vortex was the major anchor ride with Beast and the line was to dodgems, I have never, repeat, never waited longer than 1 hour for that ride. ( A long cry from the 2 hour plus horror stories people tell about that ride. ) Like DB, it was a "people eater", ie, huge capacity.

Often people will hear young children tell about how long a line is. Children, God love them, exaggerate horribly. Even a short wait to them is like an eternity. Yet their word gets out to others and it is passed around as the truth. Or people for whatever reason ( like that girl behind me at Raptor ) don't pay proper attention to the time when they are in line.

In conclusion, you just cannot rely on hearsay as to how long a line is. You have to actually wait in the ine. Even if you see long lines, don't be intimidated by them. If you have driven a long distance to the park, your choice is to either wait in the lines and ride or don't wait in the lines and not ride. I think you will be pleasantly surprised at how much shorter the waits are than you think.

[Touchdown]

I doubt your Beast time, as Ive waited from the Crypt and timed it and it was an hour and 45 minutes. That was during the Haunt, and the crew was cranking out the trains too.

You sure Raptor was a full queue, or was only the far left switchbacks open (without the right horizontal switchbacks open) because I also know from experience that that line, when totally full is a 2.5 hour line.

[markr]

I doubt your Beast time, as Ive waited from the Crypt and timed it and it was an hour and 45 minutes. That was during the Haunt, and the crew was cranking out the trains too.

You sure Raptor was a full queue, or was only the far left switchbacks open (without the right horizontal switchbacks open) because I also know from experience that that line, when totally full is a 2.5 hour line.

Yes, for Raptor the horizontal switchbacks were open. I am timing from the entrance to the ride without line snaking out onto Midway. And my timing for Beast was also based upon actual waits in line and timing by my watch.

[LongliveKingsCobra]

Why don't we just call the Top Scientists up in DC to come handle this? Im sure the tax payers would be thrilled!

lol

I mean really it's just wait times, and it's a fact you'll live with till the day you die...Just relax and start a convo with someone in line you don't know, cause two hours three hours? It's all the same...just walking then stopping...walking...stopping...standing...sitting on the rails...HEY GET OFF THE RAILS! getting off the rails....standing....RIDING, and then going back to a new line.

[markr]

Why don't we just call the Top Scientists up in DC to come handle this? Im sure the tax payers would be thrilled!

lol

I mean really it's just wait times, and it's a fact you'll live with till the day you die...Just relax and start a convo with someone in line you don't know, cause two hours three hours? It's all the same...just walking then stopping...walking...stopping...standing...sitting on the rails...HEY GET OFF THE RAILS! getting off the rails....standing....RIDING, and then going back to a new line.

Or as Spongebob says, " Movin on up."

[violakat03]

markr - Line length is dramatically different depending on how 'on' the crew is, don't forget. I have waited in line for The Beast when the queues before the ramp were filled but the first set (that are next to the exit) were not. I timed it from beginning to end and it was 1 hour and 45 minutes. I had honestly expected an hour or less! The line seemed to be barely moving. For BLSC in it's opening year, we waited 1 hour and 15 minutes with a completely full queue. For Diamondback on Thursday, the lower queues were filled and it should have been a 15-20 minute wait but it took us over a half hour.

If it's a slow crew, I could very easily see the wait times named being true. With the way some crews (such as Beast and Racer) have been moving trains this year, I'd say not. But we all know that crews have bad days (or even bad years) and that has a big effect.

[markr]

Good point Cat. I agree that if you have a slow ride crew or if they are short on staff or perhaps if they are not running all the trains, that will be a big difference. I still think for the reasons stated in my previous thread that ride waits are often exaggerated-not by you but by young children, people not keeping time properly, etc.

[The Interpreter]

Six Flags LOVES to overstate ride wait times. Much easier to sell Flash Passes that way, you see.

[pcc]

Today was much better. Unfortunately, we could only stay 3 hours, as my husband is back to work at 3am, and we had a long drive ahead.

We did Breakfast with the Characters, and we were the ONLY family up there. We had Spongebob to ourselves. My kids were in heaven. They said today made up for yesterday..but yes. Lesson learned. No more Saturdays in July.

[jondrewfoo]

one must also note, as much as people thinkCedar Fair doesnt do anything, they did get rid of bring a friend free days, for this very reason... and im pretty sure they wont be doing the bring people for 9.99 days anymore either...

also, you can call and find out when big groups are coming, i do this everytime i go, and they will tell you if there are big groups or if they expect it to be crowded due to some concert or event etc.

[rotag]

Today was much better. Unfortunately, we could only stay 3 hours, as my husband is back to work at 3am, and we had a long drive ahead.

We did Breakfast with the Characters, and we were the ONLY family up there. We had Spongebob to ourselves. My kids were in heaven. They said today made up for yesterday..but yes. Lesson learned. No more Saturdays in July.

you mean the griszwalds lied to me this mornin !!! thats okay they still made me luagh even if they didnt do b.w.t.c.

[The Interpreter]

one must also note, as much as people thinkCedar Fair doesnt do anything, they did get rid of bring a friend free days, for this very reason... and im pretty sure they wont be doing the bring people for 9.99 days anymore either...

The Bring a Friend for 9.99 days are on Mother's Day and Father's Day, historically among the least busy days for the park. I seriously doubt you see special promotions for those days go away.

[pcc]

Today was much better. Unfortunately, we could only stay 3 hours, as my husband is back to work at 3am, and we had a long drive ahead.

We did Breakfast with the Characters, and we were the ONLY family up there. We had Spongebob to ourselves. My kids were in heaven. They said today made up for yesterday..but yes. Lesson learned. No more Saturdays in July.

you mean the griszwalds lied to me this mornin !!! thats okay they still made me luagh even if they didnt do b.w.t.c.

We bought our tickets around 9:45am. The dude selling them was reluctant, but he went ahead. Got up there and it was just us. Everyone was so nice up there, so if you were working up there and are reading this..you made my kids summer. Thank you!

[jondrewfoo]

The Bring a Friend for 9.99 days are on Mother's Day and Father's Day, historically among the least busy days for the park. I seriously doubt you see special promotions for those days go away.

good point, i never realized that. i guess my point was that they arent going to make completely out of the blue days crowded simply due to a promotion. if anything, they would probably just give you a ticket that is good any day in july, or something like that instead of everyone showing up at once... although some days (like apparently yesterday) it simply will be crowded.