David Parrett - Reviews

Comet isn’t the most intense coaster but I found it to be the most interesting ride at Great Escape with its old school steel structure and airtime hills. It’s a bit rough on my back on the low point ...

Comet isn’t the most intense coaster but I found it to be the most interesting ride at Great Escape with its old school steel structure and airtime hills. It’s a bit rough on my back on the low point of each drop so I just brace myself but it’s fairly minor for a wooden coaster. I noticed the lift hill had fresh lumber so I’m giving props to the park for maintaining this well.

This wasn’t really terrible for an SLC lol. I haven’t ridden one of these in many years so it was fun to revisit a clone type everyone loves to hate. My advice to SFNE is replace this with a new gener...

This wasn’t really terrible for an SLC lol. I haven’t ridden one of these in many years so it was fun to revisit a clone type everyone loves to hate. My advice to SFNE is replace this with a new generation Vekoma like Big Bear Mountain at Dollywood which is buttery smooth and fun for everyone.

Superman has excellent theming and I love the narrow-gauge Intamin track that sort of makes the ride more visually impressive than the wide B&M track. It has lots of airtime hills and swoops around qu...

Superman has excellent theming and I love the narrow-gauge Intamin track that sort of makes the ride more visually impressive than the wide B&M track. It has lots of airtime hills and swoops around quite a bit with two well placed tunnels. The river view is amazing going up that slow lift hill. For comparisons, this is like a slightly smaller Millenium Force with the overbanked turn after the first drop and the big airtime hills at high speed. The problem is that Millenium Force (and I305) is much longer and taller and absolutely blows this thing out of the water with its epic scale. I like Superman but there’s just no way it’s in the same league as the Intamin gigas. This was on my bucket list since it was built in 2000 and I’m so glad to finally ride it a bunch of times.

Wicked Cyclone was a solid ride and what struck me the most was how much it was trying to eject me out of my seat. It just doesn’t feel anywhere near as good as other RMCs I’ve been on. I much prefer ...

Wicked Cyclone was a solid ride and what struck me the most was how much it was trying to eject me out of my seat. It just doesn’t feel anywhere near as good as other RMCs I’ve been on. I much prefer Wildcat’s Revenge, Iron Gwazi, Arie Force One, Lightning Rod, and Hakugei to this. It sort of felt a bit too forced or crazy but lacked something in terms of timing.

Wildcat is slowly getting new lumber and it’s great in those new sections as of July 2024 but the end is where it really jackhammers around in the neglected parts. What was this park thinking just let...

Wildcat is slowly getting new lumber and it’s great in those new sections as of July 2024 but the end is where it really jackhammers around in the neglected parts. What was this park thinking just letting their coasters slowly rot? Thank goodness they are finally doing something about it. It’s really a gem of a layout.

Boulder Dash has a 5 star layout with absolutely stunning terrain climbing granite hillsides and flying through the forest, but it has a 1-star condition making it impossible to enjoy riding. Lake Com...

Boulder Dash has a 5 star layout with absolutely stunning terrain climbing granite hillsides and flying through the forest, but it has a 1-star condition making it impossible to enjoy riding. Lake Compounce just hasn’t replaced the lumber regularly and now they seem to have given up on basic wood coaster maintenance and are putting in the steel track. This is totally unnecessary and a shame. I guess better to ride a steel version of this than no coaster at all due to park mismanagement. Shame on this park’s owners.

Wooden Warrior was a fun and smooth experience for a smaller wood coaster that is well maintained. The thrill level is similar to the famous Cyclone at Coney Island in that it’s good for all ages. Rec...

Wooden Warrior was a fun and smooth experience for a smaller wood coaster that is well maintained. The thrill level is similar to the famous Cyclone at Coney Island in that it’s good for all ages. Recommend riding toward the back to get a bit more excitement.

I knew this would be peak jank when I saw the rotary lift and compact footprint for a flying coaster. It’s one of those experiences as an enthusiast that I think are really unique and worth having jus...

I knew this would be peak jank when I saw the rotary lift and compact footprint for a flying coaster. It’s one of those experiences as an enthusiast that I think are really unique and worth having just so you can tell the story how weird it was. I felt like I was clamped into a waffle iron which was then shaken and banged for a minute and then mercifully set free.

It’s a fun ride and of course it’s smooth but it was mostly ignored by the crowds for its neighbor Thunderbolt because this one just looks lame. There’s nothing really happening on it. It’s fine if yo...

It’s a fun ride and of course it’s smooth but it was mostly ignored by the crowds for its neighbor Thunderbolt because this one just looks lame. There’s nothing really happening on it. It’s fine if you just want to bring little kids on a transitional coaster though. I almost thought the layout was intended to be a mine train ride because of all the helices.

Cyclone is everything you hope and expect it to be. It’s utterly classic and old school with the huge floor lever brakes and weird old trains with lots of extra padding. The ride itself I was afraid o...

Cyclone is everything you hope and expect it to be. It’s utterly classic and old school with the huge floor lever brakes and weird old trains with lots of extra padding. The ride itself I was afraid of getting beaten up but actually found it to be quite tame except for a couple quick lateral turns that threw me sideways in my seat. It’s really a fun ride that anyone can enjoy. My one complaint is with the terrible ride ops. There’s no seat or rows marked so it’s chaos trying to get a seat and that’s completely unnecessary. Also the ops just keep packing people into the station to the point they are spilling out onto the track. I kept having people cutting in front of me so I had to wait several extra trains to get a seat.

New Vekoma coasters are amazing and nothing like their previous SLCs and Boomerangs. Phoenix is a really solid family invert that is smooth and even forceful at times. This is probably the most well-r...

New Vekoma coasters are amazing and nothing like their previous SLCs and Boomerangs. Phoenix is a really solid family invert that is smooth and even forceful at times. This is probably the most well-rounded and high quality ride in the Coney Island area with the exception of Cyclone which is classic.

I rode this back in high school trips to the park in the late 90s and I remember it being a lot of fun when it was new, not painful, maybe a bit dizzying. It's a tight layout of course but it was my f...

I rode this back in high school trips to the park in the late 90s and I remember it being a lot of fun when it was new, not painful, maybe a bit dizzying. It's a tight layout of course but it was my first invert where I was so nervous when the floor dropped away and we went up the lift hill with my feet dangling. I have some good memories of this one.

This coaster definitely merits a fresh ride and point of view with its re-theme. I recognized the old style Vekoma/Arrow track and its ride was a little bumpy but not bad. I felt dizziness during the ...

This coaster definitely merits a fresh ride and point of view with its re-theme. I recognized the old style Vekoma/Arrow track and its ride was a little bumpy but not bad. I felt dizziness during the ride but I enjoy these older ones. The new trains are comfortable.