Monthly Archives: August 2011

For the past two weeks we asked you what was your favorite Gravity Group coaster? However since not all of the company’s 2011 additions are quite open yet, I decided to exclude the 2011 additions and save those for later. As a result the options included: Hades, The Voyage, Boardwalk Bullet, the Ravine Flyer II, and Fireball.

Emerging the clear victor with 53% of the votes was Holiday World with The Voyage. Often receiving the title of the world’s best wooden coaster, the Gravity Group’s 2nd creation opened in 2006 and has been delighting thrill seekers ever since with it’s massive amounts of airtime as well as forceful turns.  It’s no surprise with such a variety of elements that The Voyage wins our poll.

In second was Hades at Mt Olympus taking riders to hell and back under the parking lot, followed by the Ravine Flyer II at Waldameer, Kemah Boardwalk’s Boardwalk Bullet came in 4th, and rounding out with just one vote is the very distant (but just as fun) Fireball Wooden Coaster in China.

For the next two weeks we want you to choose your favorite Busch Gardens Bolliger & Mabillard coaster. Both Busch Gardens Tampa and Busch Gardens Williamsburg hit a bit of a high with their favorite manufacturer Bolliger and Mabillard. The high capacity and reliable coasters also provide for some nice thrills and unique experiences.  Each park, Busch Gardens Tampa and Williamsburg, have a total of 3 B&M coasters (for now), which is your favorite?

Representing Williamsburg is the super-model destroyer: Apollo’s Chariot, a terrain hyper coaster with some serious airtime.  Followed by the menacing and massive Alpengeist, the world’s largest B&M Inverted coaster.  Lastly, Williamsburg pulls out the big guns with Griffon, the world’s largest Dive Machine.

And in the south-eastern corner of the ring we have Busch Gardens Tampa’s 3 killer B&Ms.  Kumba is one of only 4 standard sit down B&M coasters on the planet and has an impressive 7 inversions, over it’s enviornment twisting layout. The egyptian themed Montu, while not as tall as it’s Virginian cousin boasts more inversions and a series of below the ground trenches. Finally, SheiKra, the original Busch Gardens Dive Machine dominates it’s surroundings including a splash down that drenches near by guests.

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Even if you haven’t ridden all these coasters, or any of them for that matter, vote for what you think is the best B&M at a Busch Gardens park.  Poll is open for the next two weeks. Let’s see if we can break 50 votes!

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Despite seemingly countless delays, it appears Cedar Fair has decided to move forward with adding more “Windseeker“‘s to their parks in 2012.  Carowinds, being the first to announce. With the Wright Brothers creating the first successful airplane in the Carolinas, it is natural that the park will continue the theme of flight with Windseeker.

Reaching a maximum height 301 feet, Windseeker will become the talest ride in Carowinds.  Other facts about the ride include: 32 arms with 2 passenger swings for an hourly capcacity of approximately 960 guests an hour, the arms will reach an angle of 45 degrees at a top speed of 30 mph, an onboard audio system playing more than 18 different tracks, and the Windseeker’s now trademark LED light show on the ride’s structure all for a cost of $6.5 million.

Unfortunately Carowinds has appeared to have gone with the ugly and typical grey-blue-red color scheme used at the northern parks.  However, when Knott’s announced their Windseeker it also showed the same color scheme which was later changed to a far more attractive Orange, blue, purple and red color scheme.  Hopefully Carowinds also finds a more attractive color appropriate for the park.

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Speaking of Knott’s Berry Farm’s Windseeker, the first (and so-far only) Windseeker on the west coast is finally open.  After changing locations, and the prototype nature of the ride, Windseeker was greatly set-back from it’s original early summer planned opening.  While the 3 other other Windseekers opened in late May or early June, Knott’s officially debuted their Windseeker early last week.

Windseeker is certainly not revolutionary for neither Carowinds or Knotts however, it’s a solid family ride addition that brings another ride to the park’s line up.  Nothing to complain about there.  If anything, Windseeker will create a more exciting skyline for each of the parks.

So far Windseekers are or are planned to be installed at Cedar Point, Kings Island, Canada’s Wonderland, Knott’s Berry Farm, and Carowinds.  Is this the end for Windseekers? I highly doubt it. Rumored parks to soon add Windseekers include both King’s Dominion and Worlds of Fun.

Have you ridden a Windseeker? Is it at your local park? Will it be at your local park? Leave a comment with your Thoughts below.

After much anticipation, Canada’s Wonderland has pulled back the curtain on the park’s 2012 project: Leviathan. The 306 ft B&M giga coaster will reach speeds of over 90 mph, feature over 1 mile of track, and boast an L-shaped layout which will extend out to the park’s main entrance.

Unlike most other B&M hyper coasters, this Giga coaster will emphasize on...

Today, I’m happy to announce that a Disney Park staple has been returned to it’s former glory and is now open to guests: Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room has now reopened at the Magic Kingdom.  After a fire in January of this year, Disney has been refurbishing the attraction to restore it to it’s original show.

Many amusement park enthusiasts may not...

In March of 2007, SeaWorld Orlando officially announced that they would be building an adjacent water park called Aquatica. With a South-Pacific theme, the water park which would open one year later would feature  36 water slides, a wave pool, animal encounters, and instantly become a huge success. Let’s Time Warp through the construction process of SeaWorld’s first water park: Aquatica.

March 2006 –...

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The 2011 summer season is hitting it’s final stretch over these next few weeks, and while most parks are contiuing to coast on their 2012 additions, some parks are just finally opening their new rides. Two parks in particular, Knott’s Berry Farm and Busch Gardens Williamsburg, have had their fair share of problems.

Knott’s announced their Windseeker the same day as...