Matt N
CF Legend
Hi guys. When talking about roller coasters, it’s quite easy to assume that a ride peaks when it’s brand new and goes downhill with age in terms of the quality of the ride experience. However, there do seem to have been some examples where the ride has defied logic and actually managed to get stronger with age, so my question to you today is; what coasters seem to have gotten better with age, in your opinion?
For me, one that sticks out to me is Wicker Man at Alton Towers. When I first rode it in March 2018, I really, really liked it, don’t get me wrong; in fact, it hugely exceeded my expectations! However, in spite of being a fun, fast, smooth ride that I really enjoyed, it wasn’t the most intense in terms of forces, and it also had little to no airtime, by my recollections, and what it did have wasn’t especially strong. At the time, it just about made my top 10, and I’d ridden considerably less coasters at the time (WM was my 40th coaster, and I think it ranked at #9 or #10 for me when I first came off it). However, both of these flaws seem to have resolved themselves as the ride has aged, as it has picked up considerable speed and intensity since the opening season, in my opinion, and in direct contrast to being relatively devoid of airtime in its opening year, ejector airtime is now practically the ride’s middle name, as it seems to fling you over every drop with phenomenally strong ejector airtime nowadays! Currently, the ride sits at #3 for me out of the 74 coasters I’ve ridden, so the fact that it’s actually gained ground within my rankings in spite of me having nearly doubled my coaster count since my first ride on it must be a good sign! Even though some of that change could be attributed to my coaster tastes changing (at the time, I valued solely intense rides more, whereas I think I value fun, rerideable things that have a nice balance between intensity & rerideability more these days), but I definitely feel as though the coaster itself has also gotten considerably faster & more forceful since my first ride; it seems to grow on me a little more every time I ride it!
But what coasters seem to have gotten better with age from your experience?
For me, one that sticks out to me is Wicker Man at Alton Towers. When I first rode it in March 2018, I really, really liked it, don’t get me wrong; in fact, it hugely exceeded my expectations! However, in spite of being a fun, fast, smooth ride that I really enjoyed, it wasn’t the most intense in terms of forces, and it also had little to no airtime, by my recollections, and what it did have wasn’t especially strong. At the time, it just about made my top 10, and I’d ridden considerably less coasters at the time (WM was my 40th coaster, and I think it ranked at #9 or #10 for me when I first came off it). However, both of these flaws seem to have resolved themselves as the ride has aged, as it has picked up considerable speed and intensity since the opening season, in my opinion, and in direct contrast to being relatively devoid of airtime in its opening year, ejector airtime is now practically the ride’s middle name, as it seems to fling you over every drop with phenomenally strong ejector airtime nowadays! Currently, the ride sits at #3 for me out of the 74 coasters I’ve ridden, so the fact that it’s actually gained ground within my rankings in spite of me having nearly doubled my coaster count since my first ride on it must be a good sign! Even though some of that change could be attributed to my coaster tastes changing (at the time, I valued solely intense rides more, whereas I think I value fun, rerideable things that have a nice balance between intensity & rerideability more these days), but I definitely feel as though the coaster itself has also gotten considerably faster & more forceful since my first ride; it seems to grow on me a little more every time I ride it!
But what coasters seem to have gotten better with age from your experience?
