MannekenPis
Roller Poster
Inspired me to book a cheap Phantasialand ticket for my birthday, since it's just about still open.
FORUMS - COASTERFORCE
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Last Cred Review
- Thread starter Snoo
- Start date
Eyebrows
Hyper Poster
A bit late to my write-up as ever, but in December I took an impulsive trip to Six Flags Mexico! I was originally supposed to run off to Six Flags Magic Mountain as I was worried about X2 potentially being closed for my visit this summer, but a couple weeks out they suddenly changed their calendar on me and closed altogether the day I'd been planning to go (though I did end up successfully rescheduling that trip for January, and you might hear more about that in this thread later if the mood strikes me)! Not wanting to waste a day off, I dug around and found that the only other open park I could use my soon-to-expire Six Flags pass on was Six Flags Mexico. I moved flights around and soon enough (and with shockingly minimal passport faff) there I was! I thought that the front end of the park, especially the stuff that predates Six Flags' ownership of the place, was really nice to be in. The rest of the park, though, was typical Six Flags fare. What struck me most about this park's lineup was just how few worthwhile original attractions there were. Nine coasters (I went before the famerang opened) doesn't sound too bad, but seven of them are cloned layouts, and almost none of those were particularly pleasant ones. Dark Knight, Wonder Woman, Batman the Ride, Batgirl Batarang, and Superman Krypton Coaster all slotted right by their clones in my list, with minor differences like the surprising amount of outdoor theming on Dark Knight, and the novelty of an invert named Batman the Ride that wasn't a B&M. Reliability issues plagued the park throughout my visit, having to leave multiple queues because of rides going down, with some downtimes lasting multiple hours. Nothing closed all day besides a couple water rides, which were understandably closed for the season.
With those out of the way, the favorite of the trip (to no one's surprise) was by far Medusa Steel Coaster. This ride blew me away at just how different it was from other RMCs while still maintaining all the goodness that one can expect from an IBox conversion. Even the queue was stellar, with a funhouse section tilted in all sorts of funny ways marking the start of the line, and an extensive winding path through the ride's plot that effectively constituted an infield tour with amazing views of practically all angles of the ride. As for the ride itself, it's chock full of wonderful airtime moments and satisfying maneuvers. Highlights include both the entry into and the drop off of the first turnaroud, the drop out of the elevated turn next to the lift, the outerbank in the lower section, and of course the crazy slow roll at the end of the ride. Whenever the train is negotiating an element with some roll and yaw to it, the profiling provides some interesting lateral pumps that give it some texture instead of being perfectly profiled like newer RMCs. I loved how even in such a tight plot with a shorter track length than most rides it managed to have a section in the second half that felt secluded (the aforementioned lower section) using terrain and foliage to its advantage. The sole straight camelback on the ride underdelivers somewhat, feeling more like strong flojector than the crazy RMC air one is used to over those kinds of hills, but is still pleasant and adds to the ride once your expectations are set. The one real negative about the ride is the notable jolt/pothole at the bottom of the first drop, which feels like something off of a Topper Track installation. Beyond that, though, I thought Medusa was superb from start to finish, earning a high spot in my list at 9/10, #23. Now, Six Flags Mexico's maintenance team takes an odd approach to keeping Medusa open and on two trains year round. Instead of having a third train to sub in when one of the others needs maintenance, the park will take one car off of each train for maintenance at a time during off-peak days, running it with two five-car trains instead. Obviously, I was hoping for the as-designed six-car configuration, and Six Flags thankfully came through with full capacity for their Christmas in the Park event, which turned out to be popular enough to warrant it. The extra inertia from a sixth car definitely helps the ride keep its speed through the whole layout, and the second half would have suffered if it ran any slower than it did.
Another highlight was Superman el Último Escape. Initially, I was sorely disappointed by the ride, as it was consistently slamming to a full stop on the midcourse every cycle, resulting in a comically slow second half in which none of the famed bunny hills even broke 0g in the back row. I chalked it up to the park deciding to run three trains that day, which ordinarily would be a godsend but in this case was a curse, as on three trains the ride seems to prefer stacking a train on the midcourse to stacking it in the first block of the final brake run. Later in the day, while queueing for the SLC, I noticed a train fly through the midcourse without so much as a scrape from the friction brakes. Then a second train did the same, and a third. They were running three trains still, no doubt of that, and nothing about the weather changed that would have put it into or taken it out of a hypothetical rain mode. There was but one explanation - the ride crew had simply locked the f*ck in. I remained in line for the SLC, being almost on it by that point, and prayed that whatever group of herculean athletes was currently on platform checking those 18 rows would still be there in twenty minutes. One sh*tty credit and a half mile walk later, I was there. Sure enough, those operators were running that station like the navy. On my second ride, my opinion on Supes changed entirely. Having a functional second half really saved the ride, and even made me appreciate the first half more too. The drop is typical of a Morgan hypercoaster drop, with a nice pop of air followed by a confusing bit of straight track as it transitions into the valley. The first half is nice and unique as Morgans go, being composed of a cool twister section with a nice airtime moment at the crest of the hill before the midcourse. The second half, when running properly, features good floater coming down the bunny hills and an interesting return to the station, marking the end of a pleasant ride that marks the pinnacle of the traditional Morgan hyper (excluding their absolute monster in Pittsburgh). I'm glad I made the effort to reride, as I got to upgrade my laughable initial experience to one worthy of an 8/10, #98.
Joker, though first appearing to be simply the next conquest in my slog through Six Flags' cloned Gerstlauer spinning coaster catalog, quickly identified itself as something a little different. This was no common Pandemonium clone, but rather an identical twin of Han-Katten at the famous BonBon-Land in Denmark, relocated from Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. This layout is actually a mirror image of a layout designed for the Bobsled Coaster model, making it more of a spinning wild mouse than the regular semi-compact spinning coaster I was expecting. And, consistent with reviews of Han-Katten, this thing spun like a top! As with any of these spinning coasters, your mileage may vary, but even with the somewhat-balanced car I was batched into it spun more than any Pandemonium I've done. I honestly wish this model had been the one purchased in bulk for the chain, as I thought Joker was worthy of a score a whole point higher than the other layout, netting it a 6/10, #230. The queue on this one contains a carnival-style funhouse leading to the load platform, which was much more claustrophobic than similar installations such as the one at Six Flags Fiesta Texas, and featured an actual rotating stripper pole.
Finally, the Zierer Tivoli Large Tsunami felt worth mentioning, as its extensive-for-Six-Flags albeit strange theming elevated it above other Tivolis with identical layouts. It's got a sort of lattice pyramid overtop of it, making it look like a Gyro Swing at first glance on satellite imagery and from a distance within the park. Rockwork and foliage populate the ride area, and the train's reduced 15-car length alleviates some of the awkward forces that come from the ordinarily unnecessarily long train negotiating multiple elements at the same time, though at the cost of some capacity. I ended up giving it a score of 5/10, #306 which puts it in the top half of this park's lineup. This can be seen as both a credit towards this funky little thing and a slight against the park's lineup of attractions.
Overall, the star attractions of Six Flags Mexico make it worth a visit, but if you're not a fan of riding bullsh*t then you can be in and out of the park in two or three hours and without leaving the nice areas at the front of the park. I really enjoyed the food at the al pastor place by the front of the park, too. If you can string together some other attractions in Mexico City (I was unable to due to my schedule, unfortunately) it seems to be a very valuable cred run spot for someone looking to hit a milestone. I'm somewhat glad I didn't get to do the other things, actually, as it gives me an excuse to come back to the area and mop up the new famerang while I'm there, and of course spend an afternoon riding Medusa some more. Cheers!
With those out of the way, the favorite of the trip (to no one's surprise) was by far Medusa Steel Coaster. This ride blew me away at just how different it was from other RMCs while still maintaining all the goodness that one can expect from an IBox conversion. Even the queue was stellar, with a funhouse section tilted in all sorts of funny ways marking the start of the line, and an extensive winding path through the ride's plot that effectively constituted an infield tour with amazing views of practically all angles of the ride. As for the ride itself, it's chock full of wonderful airtime moments and satisfying maneuvers. Highlights include both the entry into and the drop off of the first turnaroud, the drop out of the elevated turn next to the lift, the outerbank in the lower section, and of course the crazy slow roll at the end of the ride. Whenever the train is negotiating an element with some roll and yaw to it, the profiling provides some interesting lateral pumps that give it some texture instead of being perfectly profiled like newer RMCs. I loved how even in such a tight plot with a shorter track length than most rides it managed to have a section in the second half that felt secluded (the aforementioned lower section) using terrain and foliage to its advantage. The sole straight camelback on the ride underdelivers somewhat, feeling more like strong flojector than the crazy RMC air one is used to over those kinds of hills, but is still pleasant and adds to the ride once your expectations are set. The one real negative about the ride is the notable jolt/pothole at the bottom of the first drop, which feels like something off of a Topper Track installation. Beyond that, though, I thought Medusa was superb from start to finish, earning a high spot in my list at 9/10, #23. Now, Six Flags Mexico's maintenance team takes an odd approach to keeping Medusa open and on two trains year round. Instead of having a third train to sub in when one of the others needs maintenance, the park will take one car off of each train for maintenance at a time during off-peak days, running it with two five-car trains instead. Obviously, I was hoping for the as-designed six-car configuration, and Six Flags thankfully came through with full capacity for their Christmas in the Park event, which turned out to be popular enough to warrant it. The extra inertia from a sixth car definitely helps the ride keep its speed through the whole layout, and the second half would have suffered if it ran any slower than it did.
Another highlight was Superman el Último Escape. Initially, I was sorely disappointed by the ride, as it was consistently slamming to a full stop on the midcourse every cycle, resulting in a comically slow second half in which none of the famed bunny hills even broke 0g in the back row. I chalked it up to the park deciding to run three trains that day, which ordinarily would be a godsend but in this case was a curse, as on three trains the ride seems to prefer stacking a train on the midcourse to stacking it in the first block of the final brake run. Later in the day, while queueing for the SLC, I noticed a train fly through the midcourse without so much as a scrape from the friction brakes. Then a second train did the same, and a third. They were running three trains still, no doubt of that, and nothing about the weather changed that would have put it into or taken it out of a hypothetical rain mode. There was but one explanation - the ride crew had simply locked the f*ck in. I remained in line for the SLC, being almost on it by that point, and prayed that whatever group of herculean athletes was currently on platform checking those 18 rows would still be there in twenty minutes. One sh*tty credit and a half mile walk later, I was there. Sure enough, those operators were running that station like the navy. On my second ride, my opinion on Supes changed entirely. Having a functional second half really saved the ride, and even made me appreciate the first half more too. The drop is typical of a Morgan hypercoaster drop, with a nice pop of air followed by a confusing bit of straight track as it transitions into the valley. The first half is nice and unique as Morgans go, being composed of a cool twister section with a nice airtime moment at the crest of the hill before the midcourse. The second half, when running properly, features good floater coming down the bunny hills and an interesting return to the station, marking the end of a pleasant ride that marks the pinnacle of the traditional Morgan hyper (excluding their absolute monster in Pittsburgh). I'm glad I made the effort to reride, as I got to upgrade my laughable initial experience to one worthy of an 8/10, #98.
Check out this comparison of my force recordings of the second half! It's almost hard to believe how bad it was on my first go around. (Recordings uploaded to and viewed on rideforcesdb.com)
Joker, though first appearing to be simply the next conquest in my slog through Six Flags' cloned Gerstlauer spinning coaster catalog, quickly identified itself as something a little different. This was no common Pandemonium clone, but rather an identical twin of Han-Katten at the famous BonBon-Land in Denmark, relocated from Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. This layout is actually a mirror image of a layout designed for the Bobsled Coaster model, making it more of a spinning wild mouse than the regular semi-compact spinning coaster I was expecting. And, consistent with reviews of Han-Katten, this thing spun like a top! As with any of these spinning coasters, your mileage may vary, but even with the somewhat-balanced car I was batched into it spun more than any Pandemonium I've done. I honestly wish this model had been the one purchased in bulk for the chain, as I thought Joker was worthy of a score a whole point higher than the other layout, netting it a 6/10, #230. The queue on this one contains a carnival-style funhouse leading to the load platform, which was much more claustrophobic than similar installations such as the one at Six Flags Fiesta Texas, and featured an actual rotating stripper pole.
Finally, the Zierer Tivoli Large Tsunami felt worth mentioning, as its extensive-for-Six-Flags albeit strange theming elevated it above other Tivolis with identical layouts. It's got a sort of lattice pyramid overtop of it, making it look like a Gyro Swing at first glance on satellite imagery and from a distance within the park. Rockwork and foliage populate the ride area, and the train's reduced 15-car length alleviates some of the awkward forces that come from the ordinarily unnecessarily long train negotiating multiple elements at the same time, though at the cost of some capacity. I ended up giving it a score of 5/10, #306 which puts it in the top half of this park's lineup. This can be seen as both a credit towards this funky little thing and a slight against the park's lineup of attractions.
Overall, the star attractions of Six Flags Mexico make it worth a visit, but if you're not a fan of riding bullsh*t then you can be in and out of the park in two or three hours and without leaving the nice areas at the front of the park. I really enjoyed the food at the al pastor place by the front of the park, too. If you can string together some other attractions in Mexico City (I was unable to due to my schedule, unfortunately) it seems to be a very valuable cred run spot for someone looking to hit a milestone. I'm somewhat glad I didn't get to do the other things, actually, as it gives me an excuse to come back to the area and mop up the new famerang while I'm there, and of course spend an afternoon riding Medusa some more. Cheers!
MarineWorldResident
Roller Poster
Giant Dipper at Belmont Park in San Diego.
I was genuinely shocked at how good it was. I kept being told it was inferior to the Giant Dipper at Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, but no, those laterals were no joke. It was bordering on Coney Island Cyclone (prior to 2014 retracking) levels of brutal. I was impressed. Sadly, it has since been retracked, which is a bummer for me, because I loved the roughness, and thought it added to the experience. I am all for maintaining 1920's wooden coasters by any means, though, so I will take it.
I was genuinely shocked at how good it was. I kept being told it was inferior to the Giant Dipper at Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, but no, those laterals were no joke. It was bordering on Coney Island Cyclone (prior to 2014 retracking) levels of brutal. I was impressed. Sadly, it has since been retracked, which is a bummer for me, because I loved the roughness, and thought it added to the experience. I am all for maintaining 1920's wooden coasters by any means, though, so I will take it.
Projektion
Mega Poster
Duelling Dragons (invert side) @ Guangzhou Sunac Land: The ride overall is pretty good. The spike is great in the back, it has great inversions, the speed hill gives a nice pop of airtime, the bigger air hill towards the end could have been great but it gets trimmed pretty badly.
Biggest highlight of the ride is the weird corkscrew/zero-g roll maneuver in the last pic. The shaping on it is ****ed in the best way possible. It's like it starts off as an overbank that then decides to become a zero-g roll, before going "oh ****, we need to turn to the left" halfway through.
As far as I know, the park alternates operating 1 side of Duelling Dragons each day. While it does suck a bit I'm missing the sit down side, I would argue the invert is the more unique side, so I'm at least happy I got on that.
Biggest highlight of the ride is the weird corkscrew/zero-g roll maneuver in the last pic. The shaping on it is ****ed in the best way possible. It's like it starts off as an overbank that then decides to become a zero-g roll, before going "oh ****, we need to turn to the left" halfway through.
As far as I know, the park alternates operating 1 side of Duelling Dragons each day. While it does suck a bit I'm missing the sit down side, I would argue the invert is the more unique side, so I'm at least happy I got on that.
HeartlineCoaster
Theme Park Superhero
At least there's a certain logic there that guests can react to, if true. More inclined to believe they just do whatever they want though, so I'm still pessimistic about going back for just the sit down some day.
Niles
Giga Poster
Happy birthday
i also just happened to ride a coaster on my birthday which just so turned out to be at a Babylon park in Madrid.
Thankfully the minimum spend was 10€ in which i got four laps on the coaster and was not offered to be let off, operator let more people on and just redid our seats and around we went again four times. Cool a free ride, but she then went to do it again and we had to ask to be let off, odd as there was a queue
Still just a basic SBF spinner but with the credits left on our card we did some air hockey, basketball and some claw machines, for the price pretty decent
MannekenPis
Roller Poster
Luge des Cimes, Metabief, Jura, France
Wiegand Alpine Coaster
I booked a ski holiday in the Jura a couple of weeks ago when the forecast looked good, not perfect, but some snow and cold enough to make top up snow overnight, almost immediately after booking the forecast jumped by about 8 degrees, meaning snow melting and too warm for snow cannons. Lesson learned, book the Jura even later than you think!
TBF they did an amazing job of keeping slopes open in exceptionally warm conditions, and it's so much cheaper than the alps, still a good place for my daughter to learn.
I'm sure I would have done the mountain coaster anyway, but with ever decreasing snow but glorious sunshine I definitely wasn't missing it.
The views are beautiful (you know what a mountain coaster looks like, so some pictures of the views as well below). However, it is quite short. It also has a lot of automatic braking, which is more coaster like I guess, but takes away some of the joy of going full gas. Nice turns in a beautiful landscape, but too short and too much braking.
I still enjoyed it, if you're in Metabief for skiing or mountain biking or walking you are going to ride it anyway, and it's good fun. Not worth driving from far in its own right.
Wiegand Alpine Coaster
I booked a ski holiday in the Jura a couple of weeks ago when the forecast looked good, not perfect, but some snow and cold enough to make top up snow overnight, almost immediately after booking the forecast jumped by about 8 degrees, meaning snow melting and too warm for snow cannons. Lesson learned, book the Jura even later than you think!
TBF they did an amazing job of keeping slopes open in exceptionally warm conditions, and it's so much cheaper than the alps, still a good place for my daughter to learn.
I'm sure I would have done the mountain coaster anyway, but with ever decreasing snow but glorious sunshine I definitely wasn't missing it.
The views are beautiful (you know what a mountain coaster looks like, so some pictures of the views as well below). However, it is quite short. It also has a lot of automatic braking, which is more coaster like I guess, but takes away some of the joy of going full gas. Nice turns in a beautiful landscape, but too short and too much braking.
I still enjoyed it, if you're in Metabief for skiing or mountain biking or walking you are going to ride it anyway, and it's good fun. Not worth driving from far in its own right.
MannekenPis
Roller Poster
Kinderstad Heerlen
An indoor theme park/soft play in Holland nr border of Belgium and Germany. More soft play than theme park in feel, big warehouse, not much theming. But bright including natural light, clean, doesn't have the strange soft play smell, has good 80s music at not hideous volume. Also low entry prices and very reasonable food and drink prices. A perfectly good place to spend an afternoon with a 6 year old. Big soft play, lots of bouncy things and a fair amount of rides, including a small sbf visa drop tower and small log flume. Both good fun. My daughter had a great afternoon and it was good value.Obviously I'd chosen this particular soft play for a couple of off season credits, that looked like they wouldn't intimidate my daughter.
Achtban A Preston & Barbieri family coaster. Very smooth for a portable family Coaster. Train comfortable enough for adults. Fun first drop and nice banked turns. Could be elevated with more theming, but bright and jolly, can't complain for the price. Enjoyed it. More importantly so did my daughter, going on it a 2nd time.
(Sorry as ever for the sideways photo, no idea why that happens. Slide in above photo actually the most fun thing here, I mean that in a good way!)
Spinning Coaster Not a lot of imagination in the names here, I think the log flume was also called log flume. SBF Visa spinner. Figure of 8, low track. No theming. Nice and non intimidating height for my daughter who is slowly coming round to rollercoasters. Aided in this case by her like of things that spin. The seats a bit tight but comfortable enough once in, it spun plenty. My daughter loved it, asked to go on it again, then asked to stay on, then said it was her favourite ride. A roller coaster my daughter loved: could be my favourite roller coaster in the world.
(Context is everything: If I can get her to like roller coasters I should get another decade of theme parks!)
An indoor theme park/soft play in Holland nr border of Belgium and Germany. More soft play than theme park in feel, big warehouse, not much theming. But bright including natural light, clean, doesn't have the strange soft play smell, has good 80s music at not hideous volume. Also low entry prices and very reasonable food and drink prices. A perfectly good place to spend an afternoon with a 6 year old. Big soft play, lots of bouncy things and a fair amount of rides, including a small sbf visa drop tower and small log flume. Both good fun. My daughter had a great afternoon and it was good value.Obviously I'd chosen this particular soft play for a couple of off season credits, that looked like they wouldn't intimidate my daughter.
Achtban A Preston & Barbieri family coaster. Very smooth for a portable family Coaster. Train comfortable enough for adults. Fun first drop and nice banked turns. Could be elevated with more theming, but bright and jolly, can't complain for the price. Enjoyed it. More importantly so did my daughter, going on it a 2nd time.
(Sorry as ever for the sideways photo, no idea why that happens. Slide in above photo actually the most fun thing here, I mean that in a good way!)
Spinning Coaster Not a lot of imagination in the names here, I think the log flume was also called log flume. SBF Visa spinner. Figure of 8, low track. No theming. Nice and non intimidating height for my daughter who is slowly coming round to rollercoasters. Aided in this case by her like of things that spin. The seats a bit tight but comfortable enough once in, it spun plenty. My daughter loved it, asked to go on it again, then asked to stay on, then said it was her favourite ride. A roller coaster my daughter loved: could be my favourite roller coaster in the world.
(Context is everything: If I can get her to like roller coasters I should get another decade of theme parks!)
Dan Nguyen
Mega Poster
My last credit was
Takabisha - this ride runs way better than the one in Jersey. That being said, front row still has a few rough spots. I can appreciate the layout more when the ride isn't giving me a headache, but based on my front row ride, I can really only ride this twice before tapping out. Back row is smooth as glass though
Some others
Zokkon - is a fantastic family coaster. They really pulled out all the stops with this one. Killer onboard audio, super fun layout, heavily Tron inspired. Disney take notes. This is how Tron should've been
Raging Spirits - came up clutch this past visit. While everything at TDS was posting 100+ mins, single rider got me onto this in 30 mins or less. This ride isn't as janky as it looks, which came as a pleasant surprise. Its a shame they didn't go with a more substantial layout though.
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad - the weakest of the Thunder mine trains I've ridden. The unique layout was a nice touch, but it feels like Disney designed the ride to be as forceless as possible. No stand up ejector in the double up and the laterals were pretty mild across the board. The new Space Mountain has me hoping that'll have some force to it at least. Please? None of Tokyo Disney's thrill rides really impressed me, which is a shame because they're all great-looking on paper.
Back Daan - This might've been my favorite coaster at Tokyo Dome lol. The ride had a Detective Conan theme going, but I don't follow that show so it was a bit lost on me. Still a really fun and creative layout even if it's not very tall or fast.
Thunder Dolphin is pretty solid, but apart from two good airtime moments, the ride doesn't really do much. I do love the setting on top of the skyscrapers though. Night rides are peak for sure.
Takabisha - this ride runs way better than the one in Jersey. That being said, front row still has a few rough spots. I can appreciate the layout more when the ride isn't giving me a headache, but based on my front row ride, I can really only ride this twice before tapping out. Back row is smooth as glass though
Some others
Zokkon - is a fantastic family coaster. They really pulled out all the stops with this one. Killer onboard audio, super fun layout, heavily Tron inspired. Disney take notes. This is how Tron should've been
Raging Spirits - came up clutch this past visit. While everything at TDS was posting 100+ mins, single rider got me onto this in 30 mins or less. This ride isn't as janky as it looks, which came as a pleasant surprise. Its a shame they didn't go with a more substantial layout though.
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad - the weakest of the Thunder mine trains I've ridden. The unique layout was a nice touch, but it feels like Disney designed the ride to be as forceless as possible. No stand up ejector in the double up and the laterals were pretty mild across the board. The new Space Mountain has me hoping that'll have some force to it at least. Please? None of Tokyo Disney's thrill rides really impressed me, which is a shame because they're all great-looking on paper.
Back Daan - This might've been my favorite coaster at Tokyo Dome lol. The ride had a Detective Conan theme going, but I don't follow that show so it was a bit lost on me. Still a really fun and creative layout even if it's not very tall or fast.
Thunder Dolphin is pretty solid, but apart from two good airtime moments, the ride doesn't really do much. I do love the setting on top of the skyscrapers though. Night rides are peak for sure.
Cruisin@325
Roller Poster
InvadR: This thing just turned nine today? WTF?! My ride yesterday felt like it was 25. Size hurts it enough to where I start questioning its ranking compared to Roar. Still probably gonna ride it again today to wish it a happy birthday. 
JoshC.
Strata Poster
Was at Prater yesterday. Notable coasters worth mentioning...
Wiener Looping
Christ this is the definition of a ride of two halves. First half is fab; the double drop is cool, the banana roll and stall loop given great airtime / hangtime. Then after that, it becomes an uncomfortable, rattly mess. Possibly in part due to having to cram stuff into a small space. But yeah, just not enjoyable whatsoever when you hit that bit. Which is such a shame as the first half is decent.
Actually quite disappointed by it as a result.
Side note: This was also my 450th coaster (fake milestone I know)
Gesengte Sau
Decent Gerst bobsled. Good fun, nice lil pops of airtime, plus some quirky theming.
Insider
Indoor spinning coaster with a rave theme. Actually really enjoyed this and got some decent spinning. Music could be louder though.
Maskerade
Indoor spinning coaster with a music theme. Quirky, but not as good as Insider. You can tell that one operator has seen Insider and said "we could do that", and then didn't do it as well. Music could be A LOT louder.
Hochshaubahn
Wooden brakeman coaster; my third one now. Nice enough.
I did do all the creds except the kiddie ones, but everything else is cred counting garbage really so won't talk about here. Some of the Ghost Trains / Indoor attractions there are pretty cool (Hotel Psycho and Jack the Ripper stand out to me).
My wallet is now considerably lighter too.
Wiener Looping
Christ this is the definition of a ride of two halves. First half is fab; the double drop is cool, the banana roll and stall loop given great airtime / hangtime. Then after that, it becomes an uncomfortable, rattly mess. Possibly in part due to having to cram stuff into a small space. But yeah, just not enjoyable whatsoever when you hit that bit. Which is such a shame as the first half is decent.
Actually quite disappointed by it as a result.
Side note: This was also my 450th coaster (fake milestone I know)
Gesengte Sau
Decent Gerst bobsled. Good fun, nice lil pops of airtime, plus some quirky theming.
Insider
Indoor spinning coaster with a rave theme. Actually really enjoyed this and got some decent spinning. Music could be louder though.
Maskerade
Indoor spinning coaster with a music theme. Quirky, but not as good as Insider. You can tell that one operator has seen Insider and said "we could do that", and then didn't do it as well. Music could be A LOT louder.
Hochshaubahn
Wooden brakeman coaster; my third one now. Nice enough.
I did do all the creds except the kiddie ones, but everything else is cred counting garbage really so won't talk about here. Some of the Ghost Trains / Indoor attractions there are pretty cool (Hotel Psycho and Jack the Ripper stand out to me).
My wallet is now considerably lighter too.
Niles
Giga Poster
Alpine Coaster at Midlothian Snowsports Centre
Just had a wee little trip to Edinburgh and managed to squeeze this in.
I really like mountain coasters and its a shame we dont have more in the UK, this was my GF first and she went for one go and i three. Thankfully our first go the hill was clear and we flew down, while there is a bit of built in breaking its still fast enough and gives great views.
Before booking GF only wanted the one shot, after however she wanted to go again and its probably now in her top three coasters but sadly booking was full. Oddly however after my second go a nice lady gave her a one shot as she was to scared to go so she joined me on the third go. But like my second go people were filming themselves or taking pictures and it was rubbish, guy in front was yelling at them to hurry the f**k up and this is the big problem with the ride, they do say no cameras but they don't inforce it. So its a good ride but be careful of who you have in front.
Everything was well priced especially the ski slope, i have not skied in 10+ years but at £16.50 for an hour i gave it a go, other than one tumble into a shrub it was great, compared to anything near me its cheap but also a massive slope definitely a must do if you can.
Just had a wee little trip to Edinburgh and managed to squeeze this in.
I really like mountain coasters and its a shame we dont have more in the UK, this was my GF first and she went for one go and i three. Thankfully our first go the hill was clear and we flew down, while there is a bit of built in breaking its still fast enough and gives great views.
Before booking GF only wanted the one shot, after however she wanted to go again and its probably now in her top three coasters but sadly booking was full. Oddly however after my second go a nice lady gave her a one shot as she was to scared to go so she joined me on the third go. But like my second go people were filming themselves or taking pictures and it was rubbish, guy in front was yelling at them to hurry the f**k up and this is the big problem with the ride, they do say no cameras but they don't inforce it. So its a good ride but be careful of who you have in front.
Everything was well priced especially the ski slope, i have not skied in 10+ years but at £16.50 for an hour i gave it a go, other than one tumble into a shrub it was great, compared to anything near me its cheap but also a massive slope definitely a must do if you can.
TilenB
Strata Poster
Not sure if you've done Skull Rock or not, but that ride is also excellent. Same owners and same manufacturer as for Hotel Psycho, though with a bit less of a horror theme.
Shame about Wiener Looping, though that seems to be a bit of recurring theme with these new Macks. When I rode it, I didn't notice any rough bits, but I'm not surprised that you did, as I've found something like Voltron to be very rough on the two rides I've had.
Matt N
CF Legend
I went for my first ever visit to Adventure Island in Southend-on-Sea today, and I rode all 5 of their coasters for the first time!
Rage (#138)
For a park of this calibre, I think Rage is an impressive headline coaster. Compared to other Gerstlauer thrill coasters, I would say Rage might be the smoothest I’ve done (or on the smoother end, at least), but it still suffers a lot of the same flaws and is also more basic in terms of layout. As always with a Euro-Fighter, the beyond-vertical first drop is awesome and gives a nice jolt of airtime, and the loop and turnaround are also decent. However, I begin to lose interest when the ride goes into the slow hangtime sections at the end, and I do think the ride misses some of the surprising airtime that is often the saving grace of Speed, Saw and Smiler.
6/10, #61/142
Green Scream (#139)
I have a soft spot for a Tivoli, and Green Scream is probably the most substantial I’ve ridden! It picks up surprising speed in some of those helixes and has a nice, sprawling layout, which I like! It’s definitely a fun coaster overall!
5/10, #86/142
Barnstormer (#140)
Like Green Scream, I found this good fun, although it’s obviously less substantial. Even still, though, the main helix picks up some surprising speed, and I would say it holds its own against some of the standard Tivolis I’ve done!
4/10, #102/142
Mighty Mini Mega (#141)
I had low expectations given that this is a Pinfari, but I was coloured very surprised that it’s actually a pretty good, fun family coaster! The ride is smooth and the trains are comfortable, and the ride has a fun layout! I like the little dips it has, some of the helixes pick up good speed, and the ride actually packs a surprising punch for a family coaster of its size!
5/10, #83/142
Kiddi Koasta (#142)
This is what it is, really. It’s a perfectly adequate kiddie coaster, with some good moments of mild speed and force, but it’s not going to make any top coaster lists for adult riders. The most noteworthy aspects of it for me were the very jolty lift hill and the very sharp ending brake!
3/10, #119/142
Rage (#138)
For a park of this calibre, I think Rage is an impressive headline coaster. Compared to other Gerstlauer thrill coasters, I would say Rage might be the smoothest I’ve done (or on the smoother end, at least), but it still suffers a lot of the same flaws and is also more basic in terms of layout. As always with a Euro-Fighter, the beyond-vertical first drop is awesome and gives a nice jolt of airtime, and the loop and turnaround are also decent. However, I begin to lose interest when the ride goes into the slow hangtime sections at the end, and I do think the ride misses some of the surprising airtime that is often the saving grace of Speed, Saw and Smiler.
6/10, #61/142
Green Scream (#139)
I have a soft spot for a Tivoli, and Green Scream is probably the most substantial I’ve ridden! It picks up surprising speed in some of those helixes and has a nice, sprawling layout, which I like! It’s definitely a fun coaster overall!
5/10, #86/142
Barnstormer (#140)
Like Green Scream, I found this good fun, although it’s obviously less substantial. Even still, though, the main helix picks up some surprising speed, and I would say it holds its own against some of the standard Tivolis I’ve done!
4/10, #102/142
Mighty Mini Mega (#141)
I had low expectations given that this is a Pinfari, but I was coloured very surprised that it’s actually a pretty good, fun family coaster! The ride is smooth and the trains are comfortable, and the ride has a fun layout! I like the little dips it has, some of the helixes pick up good speed, and the ride actually packs a surprising punch for a family coaster of its size!
5/10, #83/142
Kiddi Koasta (#142)
This is what it is, really. It’s a perfectly adequate kiddie coaster, with some good moments of mild speed and force, but it’s not going to make any top coaster lists for adult riders. The most noteworthy aspects of it for me were the very jolty lift hill and the very sharp ending brake!
3/10, #119/142
MannekenPis
Roller Poster
Made the drive to Plopsaland Ardennes to tick off the last two permanent roller coasters in Belgium (aside from 1 Butterfly which I do count) I haven't ridden. It is also the last park with 2 or more coasters within 2 hours drive, so further credits will now be hard to come by (aside from the sad inevitability of that Butterfly) 
.
It's a small park but what it does have is a stunning setting, lovely Ardennes views from the chairlift and powerful waterfalls. Theming is uneven but some is very good for a park this size, some good rides including a wild swing my daughter loved. Anyway not a full review, just last creds so:
Vicky the Ride: In very good looking condition, the track must have had a repaint. Standard of the theming in the lift station very good, and plenty of cartoon vikings around the track. A compact twisty layout using the space well. Plenty of eye appeal. We rode twice (at my daughter's request, hallelujah). I found it smooth, no 14 year old Gerstlauer roughness. Plenty of spinning, but quite controlled, ideal for a family ride. Not forceful at any point but just good sensations with the smooth spinning, good theming, beautiful backdrop. Would happily have ridden again but 2 goes on the wild swing did me in for any more spinning.
Schtroumpfer (Smurf Rollercoaster). Much older theming, but stood up really well. My daughter loved it, smurf models everywhere, she was warning them about Gargamel, very good station, lots of little detail. Really impressed. My daughter, the target audience, wanted to go again and again to see the smurfs. Everything was walk on so we ended up 4 times, 1 front, 2 back, 1 somewhere in the middle. Slightly better in the back, a little pop of air I didn't get at front but not much in it. Makes a bit of noise but surprisingly smooth for an old vekoma, no issues. Terrain coaster uses the terrain well, mainly turns and helixes, not too forceful but not bland. Good interaction with the log flume too. Genuinely fun and enjoyable.
Should you go? No one is going to treck that far for 2 family coasters in a small park, but if you have a young family and fancy walk on rides in the UK Easter holidays in a beautiful location added on to exploring the Ardennes? It shouldn't be the main reason for the trip but is a good addition. No jet fuel required!
.It's a small park but what it does have is a stunning setting, lovely Ardennes views from the chairlift and powerful waterfalls. Theming is uneven but some is very good for a park this size, some good rides including a wild swing my daughter loved. Anyway not a full review, just last creds so:
Vicky the Ride: In very good looking condition, the track must have had a repaint. Standard of the theming in the lift station very good, and plenty of cartoon vikings around the track. A compact twisty layout using the space well. Plenty of eye appeal. We rode twice (at my daughter's request, hallelujah). I found it smooth, no 14 year old Gerstlauer roughness. Plenty of spinning, but quite controlled, ideal for a family ride. Not forceful at any point but just good sensations with the smooth spinning, good theming, beautiful backdrop. Would happily have ridden again but 2 goes on the wild swing did me in for any more spinning.
Schtroumpfer (Smurf Rollercoaster). Much older theming, but stood up really well. My daughter loved it, smurf models everywhere, she was warning them about Gargamel, very good station, lots of little detail. Really impressed. My daughter, the target audience, wanted to go again and again to see the smurfs. Everything was walk on so we ended up 4 times, 1 front, 2 back, 1 somewhere in the middle. Slightly better in the back, a little pop of air I didn't get at front but not much in it. Makes a bit of noise but surprisingly smooth for an old vekoma, no issues. Terrain coaster uses the terrain well, mainly turns and helixes, not too forceful but not bland. Good interaction with the log flume too. Genuinely fun and enjoyable.
Should you go? No one is going to treck that far for 2 family coasters in a small park, but if you have a young family and fancy walk on rides in the UK Easter holidays in a beautiful location added on to exploring the Ardennes? It shouldn't be the main reason for the trip but is a good addition. No jet fuel required!
MannekenPis
Roller Poster
Have realised actually the theming on the smurf coaster was done quite recently as a retheme. Explains why it looks so good and it has a lot of lovely little details.
Matt N
CF Legend
While I’m sat in Bristol Airport awaiting another trip (no parks on this one, unfortunately!), I thought I’d take the opportunity to review the coasters I rode in Fantasy Island in Ingoldmells last week while they’re still (reasonably) fresh in my mind!
Millennium (#143)
I initially wasn’t that sold on this, but with some additional re-rides, I grew to quite like it for what it is! As much as it definitely isn’t the most intense of rides, it has its moments where it packs a punch; that helix at the end is quite good, and some of the inversions pack some good forces too! It’s also very smooth by older Vekoma standards, and I quite like how it feels like a bit of an adventure around the park; that makes it quite good fun! All in all, then, I grew to like Millennium more, and it’s definitely a fun ride!
7/10, #42/147
Rhombus Express (#144)
I often think powered coasters can be a bit hit or miss, but Rhombus Express is definitely a hit as the ride type goes! It absolutely flies through the layout, and it has its moments where it really packs a punch; I seem to remember a tight turn towards the end of the layout that packed surprising forces! As much as they’re family coasters, I do find a good powered coaster really good fun, and Rhombus is definitely one of the better ones, for my money!
5/10, #69/147
Apple Coaster (#145)
There isn’t a huge amount for me to say about this. A Big Apple is a Big Apple, I guess!
3/10, #127/147
Odyssey (#146)
I was hoping that Odyssey might be an underdog like Kumali as SLCs go, but a tall, fast SLC is sadly still an SLC, and Odyssey suffers from the same fundamental flaw as Infusion; it’s phenomenally rough and seems to bash you around ridiculously as soon as the ride pulls any forces. I found it rough and bouncy in a way that really made my stomach hurt, and I got some horrid ear bashings at parts of the ride. To its credit, the first drop is certainly impressive with good forces and speed, as are the first couple of big inversions, but later in the layout, it just seems to devolve into not doing much aside from beating you up high above the ground. The unique layout and size add some additional brownie points over the average SLC, but I didn’t rate Odyssey at all, unfortunately, and would say that it was not greatly superior to Infusion as a ride experience.
3/10, #117/147
Snow Drift (#147)
As someone who’s done a lot of spinning wild mice, there’s not an awful lot for me to say about this. I don’t like the ride type at all, and this wasn’t a particularly remarkable example on either end of the spectrum. I do question why Mellors built a clone of this layout, of all the layouts out there!
2/10, #134/147
Millennium (#143)
I initially wasn’t that sold on this, but with some additional re-rides, I grew to quite like it for what it is! As much as it definitely isn’t the most intense of rides, it has its moments where it packs a punch; that helix at the end is quite good, and some of the inversions pack some good forces too! It’s also very smooth by older Vekoma standards, and I quite like how it feels like a bit of an adventure around the park; that makes it quite good fun! All in all, then, I grew to like Millennium more, and it’s definitely a fun ride!
7/10, #42/147
Rhombus Express (#144)
I often think powered coasters can be a bit hit or miss, but Rhombus Express is definitely a hit as the ride type goes! It absolutely flies through the layout, and it has its moments where it really packs a punch; I seem to remember a tight turn towards the end of the layout that packed surprising forces! As much as they’re family coasters, I do find a good powered coaster really good fun, and Rhombus is definitely one of the better ones, for my money!
5/10, #69/147
Apple Coaster (#145)
There isn’t a huge amount for me to say about this. A Big Apple is a Big Apple, I guess!
3/10, #127/147
Odyssey (#146)
I was hoping that Odyssey might be an underdog like Kumali as SLCs go, but a tall, fast SLC is sadly still an SLC, and Odyssey suffers from the same fundamental flaw as Infusion; it’s phenomenally rough and seems to bash you around ridiculously as soon as the ride pulls any forces. I found it rough and bouncy in a way that really made my stomach hurt, and I got some horrid ear bashings at parts of the ride. To its credit, the first drop is certainly impressive with good forces and speed, as are the first couple of big inversions, but later in the layout, it just seems to devolve into not doing much aside from beating you up high above the ground. The unique layout and size add some additional brownie points over the average SLC, but I didn’t rate Odyssey at all, unfortunately, and would say that it was not greatly superior to Infusion as a ride experience.
3/10, #117/147
Snow Drift (#147)
As someone who’s done a lot of spinning wild mice, there’s not an awful lot for me to say about this. I don’t like the ride type at all, and this wasn’t a particularly remarkable example on either end of the spectrum. I do question why Mellors built a clone of this layout, of all the layouts out there!
2/10, #134/147
Stardust Racers - Epic Universe
I am still (honestly) recovering from a long Orlando visit, touring all Disney and Universal parks (and +1s at SeaWorld Orlando) over 8ish days - and to be honest am having a hard time figuring out if I liked Stardust or not. To be fair, Epic Universe was our last park visited (read as many rides ridden in that stead), so it could just be tiredness and dehydration kicking in. But, while I definitely enjoyed my time on Stardust, I didn't find the "moment" where it felt like it truly breaks into my Top 10.
Did it have airtime? Yes. Was the interplay of the coaster trains near perfect? Absolutely.
However, I'm finding myself not totally blown away by the still, simple layout. While Mack does good coaster design, a weaker launch and hangtime in the corners left more to be desired (versus Intamin's VC design).
I tentatively have Stardust in the lower teens of my current rankings. Still reflecting!
I am still (honestly) recovering from a long Orlando visit, touring all Disney and Universal parks (and +1s at SeaWorld Orlando) over 8ish days - and to be honest am having a hard time figuring out if I liked Stardust or not. To be fair, Epic Universe was our last park visited (read as many rides ridden in that stead), so it could just be tiredness and dehydration kicking in. But, while I definitely enjoyed my time on Stardust, I didn't find the "moment" where it felt like it truly breaks into my Top 10.
Did it have airtime? Yes. Was the interplay of the coaster trains near perfect? Absolutely.
However, I'm finding myself not totally blown away by the still, simple layout. While Mack does good coaster design, a weaker launch and hangtime in the corners left more to be desired (versus Intamin's VC design).
I tentatively have Stardust in the lower teens of my current rankings. Still reflecting!
Copperhead Strike:
It was fun. The roll out of the station tried to dump me out all 4 times I rode it. I'm not a huge fan of hang time, I prefer the G force to hold me comfortably in my seat in an inversion, but this ride never really did that, so it took some getting used to. Its seems like the pacing of every inversion is intentionally slow to give hang time. Not a huge fan of the layout, I prefer to be "going somewhere" instead of being constantly tied in a knot of twisted track. It's hard to not compare this to Maverick. The best part was being able to ride it 3 times in a row with no wait late in the day. Very smooth, fun ride, and it's not every day you get to marathon a ride of that caliber. Not a top 10 for me I don't think.
It was fun. The roll out of the station tried to dump me out all 4 times I rode it. I'm not a huge fan of hang time, I prefer the G force to hold me comfortably in my seat in an inversion, but this ride never really did that, so it took some getting used to. Its seems like the pacing of every inversion is intentionally slow to give hang time. Not a huge fan of the layout, I prefer to be "going somewhere" instead of being constantly tied in a knot of twisted track. It's hard to not compare this to Maverick. The best part was being able to ride it 3 times in a row with no wait late in the day. Very smooth, fun ride, and it's not every day you get to marathon a ride of that caliber. Not a top 10 for me I don't think.
Flash Shift
Mega Poster
Condor at Walibi Holland is now my most recent cred. It was condawful.
Least it has vests, cannot imagine how bad it would be with the original OTSRs...
Oh yeah and Untamed exists too. It is very good.
Least it has vests, cannot imagine how bad it would be with the original OTSRs...
Oh yeah and Untamed exists too. It is very good.