McSalsa Posted June 1, 2013 Author Share Posted June 1, 2013 I actually was planning on riding Mean Streak, as it is one of the more...interesting, shall we say...coasters at Cedar Point. Is it really as bad as it is made out to be, or do people simply bash it 'cause it's "cool"? Mantis has a bit of the same problem...my sister, who has been to Cedar Point, did not really enjoy Mean Streak (though she did not hate it completely) but she LOATHED Mantis... Granted, I have had an experience on The Voyage @ Holiday World in 2011...it was an uber-rough ride, but in a strange twist, I got off feeling OK and could have gone again in spite of the fact everyone else in my group hated that particular ride, which has me wondering if I can handle rough woodies...with SOB dead, Mean Streak is the closet thing to "ultimate test of how much wooden pain you can take"...granted, I have also read recent reviews that suggest the re-tracking done in 2011 & 2012 has paid off, and Mean Streak is supposedly running well (so far as smoothness goes) in the last few years...though I am considering saving it for Friday, as I don't exactly want it possibly ruining a good chunk of the trip should it be as bad as claimed... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Creed Bratton Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 Mean Streak isn't like SOB painful. I think a lot of people bash it just because that's what everyone else does. Especially if they haven't been on it in the past few years. Yeah there are point where it does hurt but it's not a pain that would keep you in pain the rest of the trip. Suggestion: sit in the front seat of the train. 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McSalsa Posted June 1, 2013 Author Share Posted June 1, 2013 ^Never got to ride Son of Beast, so I don't know what "SOB Painful" is, tragically...I only visited KI twice when SOB was open, as a 10-year-old kid afraid of roller coasters in 2000, and then when I broke my fear in 2009, SOB broke down and did not re-open that day. I thought I could get it on my next visit, which came in 2010...boy was I wrong there. Therefore, all I really have to compare Mean Streak to would be "Holiday World's Voyage on a bad day" painful...and that I could see, given that the height and speed stats for both are fairly close to each other, and both coasters run 2-row PTC trains with 7 cars...(granted Voyage had always been running only 6 cars when I rode it in 2010 and 2011 for some reason) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Creed Bratton Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 I'm not a fan of Voyage (so sue me! haha) but I'd rather ride Mean Streak than Voyage. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kblanken Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 Mean Streak wasn't rough last year when I rode it. I'm not a fan of the coasters like this that are mostly long straight-track sections which are nothing but slight downward slopes followed by slow turnarounds with a few big drops mixed in at random. It has some speedy moments though, so you might enjoy it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McSalsa Posted June 1, 2013 Author Share Posted June 1, 2013 I actually did enjoy Voyage, though, even the uber-rough ride I got in 2011...and my rides I had on it in 2010 were amazing. (Then again, I hit the woodies on a bad day in 2011, because NONE of them were running at their best...Legend was by far the closest, running at around 85% of its potential...although only Voyage was truly painful at all due to roughness) As for Mean Streak's layout, it looks...ok. Not the best layout in the world, but it does seem to have a few cool moments...I think the part where you go under a ton of the structure near the end, for example, looks cool... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 Mean Streak looks wonderful. Mean Streak takes up a lot of space. It's an okay ride, in the very front row. Like Maverick, I will not ride it anywhere else. I will wait what it takes to ride there. Or, I won't ride it at all. It's not that it's that horrible elsewhere. It's just that at my age and in my perspective, a front seat ride is worth the wait. Riding it anywhere else isn't worth my time. Not even if the other seats are walk ons. I'll wait. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhantomTheater Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 A little hidden gem for you; take a spin on Cedar Downs Raceway (it's a "fast" merry go round)...it's a little known flat, and I've honestly never seen one outside Cedar Point. Thats because there are 3 racing derbies left. The others are located in Rye, NY and Blackpool, England. Don't forget about Blue Streak, it may be little but packs a punch. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 It was billed as the tallest coaster in the world when it opened in 1964! (It wasn't) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dr_humor Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 Mean Streak...where to begin? First, I rode it back when it opened after a 3 hour wait in 1991. CP built this for one reason: to have the tallest, fastest wooden coaster on the planet. It was an intense fun ride that never let up. That experience lasted a couple seasons, when the maintenence costs skyrocketed as it was literally tearing itself apart. CP's answer? Trimming the first drop. To death. Yes...as you fall down the first hill, your journey is immediately halted (literally) by a powerful trim that slows the entire train to a crawl down the first drop. The result is that the train is slowed so much, it has just enough momentum to get you over the first banked turn, but it's going so slow it jackhammers and also loses any hope of giving you any airtime. I would not say it's as painful as it is boring, but it is certainly uncomfortable. The retracking has actually done nothing for the ride (I gave it a couple whirls as late as 2 weeks ago just to see). Honestly, Mean Streak just stands a symbol of failure, much like SOB did for me at KI. It's a neutered version of itself with the trim on the drop, and belongs to a family of coasters that were all doomed; the Dinns. If I were you, go ahead and ride it just so you don't leave not knowing. As much as I complain about it, I still ride it once a year "just to see", but then go home saying "ok, never again". The bottom line? Just not a good ride whose time is limited at the point. And no, I don't dislike it because I think it's the "thing to do"; I wish it was a worthwhile ride, but it's simply not....in my opinion. Thats because there are 3 racing derbies left. The others are located in Rye, NY and Blackpool, England. Great trivia. A must ride. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 Charlie Dinn built Beast. And I mentioned Cedar Downs in my first post in this thread! It's well worth riding. Terp, just sayin', 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dr_humor Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 But his corporation built Hercules But hey...you can't hit a home run if you're scared to strike out, right? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterfanatic83 Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 In terms of food, make sure you try a Pink's hot dog. They're very good. And don't skip the Dodgem! You'll notice a difference between CP's and KI's pretty quickly. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TTD-120-420 Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 ^^Right. Just ask Adam Dunn. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 Hercules had an incredible first drop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dr_humor Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 From a distance, yes. I think I saw a test dummy cry once. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 I LOVED it. But, I'm odd. Others called it Jerk-Your-Knees. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McSalsa Posted June 1, 2013 Author Share Posted June 1, 2013 In terms of food, make sure you try a Pink's hot dog. They're very good. And don't skip the Dodgem! You'll notice a difference between CP's and KI's pretty quickly. Oh boy...umm..I hath never been on KI's Dodgems before. It's one of the few flats I have never really gotten around to. Heck, I did not even ride Viking Fury until my 1 visit last season (May 5th, 2012)! I'm also missing a coaster credit @ KI, for Flying Ace...and have never ridden any of the pay-per-ride attractions either...and have never been to Soak City...dang, here I am going to Cedar Point when I still have so much left undone at Kings Island... As for Hercules, while I never rode it, based on POVs and pictures I have seen...it looks like it was an awesome ride that, if it got an iron horse makeover like NTG did, would have been by far Dorney Park's star attraction. Alas, RMC came along a few years too late too save Hercules... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dr_humor Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 I only rode Hercules once, but I often wonder if my memory is tainted...it was still new (1990) when we were there. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 RMC could not have saved Hercules. "Give me land, lots of land..." Terp, bordering on saying too much. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McSalsa Posted June 1, 2013 Author Share Posted June 1, 2013 ^Sorry Terp, but you have confused me...how would Hercules exactly have been un-saveable for RMC? They were able to save Texas Giant (a Dinn wooden coaster that was tearing itself apart) and early reviews of Iron Rattler (a former RCCA coaster) have been positive... I would imagine with that epic first drop and that terrain that a Iron-Horse'd Hercules would have been very possible, and perhaps an awesome ride to boot... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 Coasters are demolished for more than one reason. If Hercules today faced the same situation it did then, it would be removed. I've said enough already. Others can interpret if they wish. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheCrypt Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 Make sure you don't miss their smaller flat rides like Calypso, Tilt-A-Whirl, Matterhorn, and Witch's Wheel. I skipped over the flats by Blue Streak mistakenly because I didn't know they existed! Their Skyride is nice, too. If you've been on your feet all day, it might be a nice way to get closer to the front gate. One more thing: DON'T RUSH. Many of my park visits have been soiled because of me trying to rush from one ride to the next. Just take your time, take in your surroundings, and have fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McSalsa Posted June 1, 2013 Author Share Posted June 1, 2013 Hmm...I see, so it was something far worse than anything "Old" Texas Giant or Rattler had...quite sad then. I guess there's a good reason Hercules was dead by 2003, when Texas Giant, a ride only 1 year younger, was still doing OK until around the time it got the RMC treatment... Also, out of curiosity...I am comparing...Mean Streak pre-trim brakes... ...to 2012 Mean Streak... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPQ4AusAgqU ...wow, they nerfed it. It's not even like Beast, where the different brakes are hardly noticeable (at least to me)...in addition to the 2 trims on the first drop, the MCBR's brake settings seem to have been raised as well...then again, you can blame poor design for these rides. Giant turns way up in the air don't work on massive wooden coasters...unless it's prefab. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CedarPointer Posted June 2, 2013 Share Posted June 2, 2013 I kind of like Mean Streak... *dodges tomatoes* 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McSalsa Posted June 7, 2013 Author Share Posted June 7, 2013 Well, I'm bumping this again...I hath questions. Weather-related ones. I checked www.weather.com, and using their 10-day forecast, to get some idea what is expected for our trip to Cedar Point. They are saying there is a 40% chance of scattered thunderstorms (not constant) on Thursday, dropping to 10% later in the day (does not sound like a complete wash-out thankfully). Friday should be clear. My questions are, assuming this weather stays like this: #1-I have heard horror stories about Cedar Point going paranoid and shutting every roller coaster down, even if all that's happening is a light drizzle. Is there any truth to this, or does Cedar Point run in any way similar to what Kings Island does on rainy days (ie, runs the rides but with only 1 train, etc etc.)? #2-How will this weather affect crowds on both days? I'm assuming Thursday will have light crowds, due to the threat of rain and the fact it is a mid-week weekday, but am expecting a decent crowd come Friday because all the people who were going Thursday who didn't because of rain will bump their trip back one day. Any answers are welcome. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTW Posted June 7, 2013 Share Posted June 7, 2013 That explains a lot in regards to why I was quite disappointed with Mean Streak when I rode it for the first time in 2012. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silver2005 Posted June 7, 2013 Share Posted June 7, 2013 I admit, I'm on the fence with Mean Streak. It looks like a nice layout and is impressive to look at, but as said before, the trims kind of ruin it. There is silver lining on it, at least for me. The 2nd half is pretty awesome and is truly where the ride sings. It may not have a lot of air time, but it really gives nice laterals in the 2nd half. Also, the re-tracking they've done has improved it a bit. Also, as many have said before, I will only sit in the front of the train (either the first or 2nd cars of the train). As for other underrated rides at Cedar Point worth mentioning, I can't help but mention Gemini. The design is pretty much an Arrow mine train on steroids, but the racing aspect plus the surprising amount of air it has definitely make it worth a ride or two. Gemini and Iron Dragon are 2 of my favorite stations as well. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheCrypt Posted June 7, 2013 Share Posted June 7, 2013 Kings Island does not run one train operations on any of their roller coasters when it rains and I believe Cedar Point is the same way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted June 7, 2013 Share Posted June 7, 2013 Kings Island does not run one train operations on any of their roller coasters and I believe Cedar Point is the same way. I have never seen two train operation on Wicked Twister at Cedar Point. Not even on the busiest of days. Same for Invertigo at Kings Island. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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