Coaster reviews

Capacity Pace Disappointing! Dead spots

Dominator is a well-crafted coaster, but as with most of its floorless kin (that are not named Kraken) it doesn’t deliver much of the intensity from classic B&M creations. I don’t remember much of my experience on Dominator, but the first loop did deliver some good hangtime and the whole ride had a consistent pace to it.

Airtimes Comfort Fun

Mako is one of the best B&M hyper coasters ever built. It’s my 2nd favorite, just behind Goliath at Six Flags Over Georgia.

Theming Rattle Too short Disappointing!

I was told the Mummy was a great coaster, with a thrilling experience and spectacular theming merged into one. The latter was absolutely true, but the former... not so much. The darkride segment in the beginning of the Mummy is a great introduction to what I expected to be an even greater ride. Unfortunately, after the turntable segment and uphill launch, I felt a noticeable rattle on Revenge of the Mummy’s circuit — right up until the actual ending brakes. The abrupt coaster sections made the ride feel incomplete, and when we hit the brake run I couldn’t believe that the Mummy had ended its terror on me — and I’m not talking about the fake ending either, as creative as it was. Revenge of the Mummy may have amazing theming, but at the end of the day it is merely a family coaster in the dark.

First Drop Theming Dead spots

The theming is really what makes Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts such a good ride. In terms of a coaster, it’s a very unique but forceless ride; but in terms of a darkride, it is one of the best in the world! The short tilt track segment is the only one of its kind in America and starts this coaster off with a bang, although the rest of Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts feels hardly like a coaster and more-so like a darkride with rotating seats. I used to be a huge fan of Harry Potter around 5 years ago, so I’m glad to having recognized who and what was going on at the Gringotts bank during my ride. Overall, this is my 2nd favorite ride at Universal Orlando Resort (just behind Harry Potter and Forbidden Journey) and absolutely worth an hour’s wait!

Comfort Intensity Rattle Capacity

Scorpion was my 150th coaster credit, chosen by me for my love of Schwarzkopf’s classic coasters and this model’s rareness. It did somewhat deliver that hallmark Schwarzkopf intensity in the vertical loop and bizarre but awesome 900° helix, however, there was a very prevalent rattle throughout the entire ride. The train seemed to be frantically shuffling about as soon as it hit that loop, resulting in some awkward jolts and bounces from side to side. Putting this con aside, Scorpion is a solid family looping coaster that delivers a reasonably fun introduction to going upside down for coasterfans in training.

Location

The interactions with Runaway Mine Train and the park railroad made this a bit more interesting than your usual kids coaster.

Airtimes Comfort Pace Intensity

New Texas Giant was the first RMC, and it’s not half bad! I really enjoyed the first half — the awesome first drop, step up into the series of enjoyable high-flying overbanked turns combined with the mental bunny hill before the mid-course brake run just keeps getting better and better. Unfortunately, after the mid-course New Texas Giant feels much less like an RMC and a lot more like a family ride with airtimeless hill after airtimeless hill. Only the last three or four hills just before the final brake run give airtime, and it’s floater at that. Still, New Texas Giant is very long when compared to the other two RMC’s I’ve ridden — Twisted Cyclone and Lightning Rod — but everything before the mid-course is awesome, yet everything after it... not so much.

Location Fun Too short Dead spots

Trailblazer is a decent mine train that I rode back in the summer of 2014 during my first visit at Hersheypark. It’s a relaxing family coaster featuring cool interactions with Storm Runner, the railroad and the monorail and has a nice ending.

Pace Intensity Hangtime Too short Capacity

I’ve had two rides on Fahrenheit, my first being on an overcast day in June 2016 — unfortunately for me, rain started pouring down just as Fahrenheit ascended the vertical lift. But after a reride in July 2018, I had a much better experience on it. Fahrenheit provides both hangtime, good pacing and intensity in the same ride — it even throws ejector airtime at you just before the brakes! My favorite moment on Fahrenheit had to be the Norweigan loop or the airtime surprise finale. But unfortunately, this coaster’s poor capacity means that its line is regularly in excess of 30 minutes. Fahrenheit is ultimately my 3rd favorite coaster at Hersheypark, behind Storm Runner and the absolutely mental Skyrush. It’s a great multi-looping coaster that makes me wish Intamin made more like it.

Location Comfort Fun Dead spots Intensity

Great Bear is one of the better coasters at Hersheypark. It’s not on the level of Skyrush, Storm Runner or Fahrenheit, but this coaster is definitely not a bad one. It’s one of the weakest B&M inverted coasters that I have ever ridden, placing around Raptor at Cedar Point (in dead last) and Batman: The Ride (Six Flags Over Texas). Needless to say however, Great Bear has a very unique layout with an interesting location at the edge of Kissing Tower Hill. The helix pre-drop is an enjoyable, swooping maneuver that leads into the actual curved drop. The trio of inversions that follow provide some nice forces, most notably the Immelmann. A powerful overbanked turn over Spring Creek ensues just before a whippy corkscrew — but unfortunately, Great Bear peters out from here. The train rises up into a drawn-out, forceless S-bend running right above Coal Cracker leads into the final brake run. All in all, Great Bear is a somewhat short but still fun B&M inverted coaster, bar the last ten seconds of it or so.

Theming Fun Layout Too short Intensity

While not on the same thrill scale as its amazing next door neighbor Montu, Cobra’s Curse does what it can to provide an enjoyable family coaster experience. While I can imagine the queue is not fun on crowded days, I enjoyed its tight, winding passages that evoke feelings of being inside an old Egyptian tomb. I didn’t get to watch much of the preshow, as my wait was only around 5 minutes, but what I could see was an interesting projection sequence of dramatic music and blinking lights. The ride operators kept capacity up for sure; as when I got to the station, there was constant movement! Whether it be the creatively engineered dual elevator lift, moving station or even a train whizzing over our heads, Cobra’s Curse never seemed to stop and breathe. Before the elevator lift, there’s a clever show scene that is making reference to “reawakening him” and rows of statues with glowing red eyes. At the top of the elevator, the train tips out towards the Cobra statue but quickly dives down and takes a turn into a helix. This part had a bit of a rattle to it, unfortunately, but it all comes to a head as you hit a mid-course brake run that turns the train backwards! Another helix ensues, this time with some bunny hops injected into the curvature; and then, you hit the zippy second lift hill. This part is definitely my favorite segment of Cobra’s Curse, as the constant slalom-style overbanked turns made for an oddly satisfying, repetitive sensation — but it ends all too soon as the train dives under the train tracks and hops into the final brake run. All in all, Cobra’s Curse is a very solid family coaster. It has some great theming with an in-depth backstory, great interaction with the railroad and surrounding pathways, and the ending section was so much fun; however, I can’t help but point out that when Cobra’s Curse was announced I expected it to have a more twisted and long layout than it actually ended up being. This is a good coaster for everyone in the family, as it’s not too intense like Montu, Kumba or SheiKra are but provides a decent enough thrill to warrant children begging their parents for another re-ride.

First Drop Capacity Fun Too short

SheiKra was one of the first coasters I ever rode as an official enthusiast, just the visit after I braved my fears of going upside down on Kumba. I rode Griffon at Busch Gardens Williamsburg just the month before; and while I slightly prefer Griffon due to its great location along the Rhine coupled with more airtime, SheiKra is still a very good ride. SheiKra’s iconic first drop never ceases to thrill me, giving quite a lot of good floater air; the rise up into the Immelmann and swoop around into the mid-course is certainly an exciting yet more relaxed manuever; and the mid-course brake run provides a nice pause just before that great second drop into the tunnel. From the lift hill, my eyes were constantly on the humongous structure of RMC Gwazi, watching for any sort of movement or maybe that photographed purple track from a few weeks ago. I pointed out to my best friend (who was at the park with me, also riding SheiKra) that “There’s RMC Gwazi,” and it turns out that a coaster enthusiast from New Jersey was sitting right next to me. We struck up a conversation about Rocky Mountain Construction during the lift hill, and on the final brake run we began discussing Intamin — interestingly enough, he was a ride operator for Kingda Ka so this guy mentioned quite a bit about the unreliability of their creations — but, I’m getting ahead of myself. After the tunnel dive, the train soars right over the Zambia Smokehouse — a place I’d had meals at during a few of my many Busch Gardens Tampa visits when I used to live in the area — and hits the splashdown. I may or may not have gotten hit by a few droplets of water at this time. After a large rise, the train spiraled into the final helix. It was here that I caught a distinct view of RMC Gwazi’s purple track with my own eyes, albeit for a split second as we hit the final brake run. SheiKra is definitely the 3rd best coaster at Busch Gardens Tampa, merely behind the sheer greatness of Kumba and Montu but ahead of Cheetah Hunt, Scorpion, Cobra’s Curse and Sand Serpent. It is a thrilling ride with some great views and good floater airtime. It’s definitely worth your time, if you happen to be at Busch Gardens Tampa.

First Drop Duration Harness Disappointing! Dead spots

Admittedly, I used to loathe this ride very much. This is because I thought it was very overrated for a long time; I still do, but to a lesser extent. Cheetah Hunt is a pretty good launch coaster, albeit lacking the snappy transitions, wild airtime and insane G’s of its Ohioan cousin (Maverick, my 3rd favorite coaster). The first boost of acceleration into that overbanked turn is nothing much, merely a slight kick to start things off. The dive into the second launch provides some laterals and then you are pushed back into your seat, only to be lifted out of it at the top of that figure-8 hill. I remembered floater airtime being there, but I got some pretty substantially sustained airtime at that part of Cheetah Hunt to my surprise. The winding part at the top of the hill gives a nice panoramic view of Busch Garden Tampa, but you are lifted out of your seat once more as the train dives into a trench. An awkward straight section ensues as Cheetah Hunt clears the railroad tracks, followed by a gently twisting airtime hill over the skyride. The heartline roll provides a split second of hangtime, but it is interrupted by a mid course brake run. You’re whipped to the side as the train dives into the quarry that Rhino Rally — As a young one, this was my favorite ride at Busch Gardens; it was a jeep tour ride with an awesome collapsing bridge scene and enjoyable narrative — used to travel through. After some trim brakes and a sharp turn, Cheetah Hunt zigzags between the rocks in a thrilling series of back-and-forth S-curves — my personal favorite moment on the ride — and curves around into the third and final launch. The Maverick-esque airtime hill immediately following it provides a great pop of ejector airtime, followed up by another awkward section — a series of S-curve hills with no reminiscence of force, airtime or whip whatsoever. And at long last, Cheetah Hunt ends with a hop into the final brake run. All in all, Cheetah Hunt is a very solid ride. It straddles the line between a family-thrill coaster and an all-out thrill machine carefully, meaning that this coaster has much inconsistence in its layout — some moments, like the rise up the first hill with sustained floater airtime, heartline roll, S-curves in the rockwork and sharp airtime hill after the third launch are flat-out awesome, and more what you’d expect from an amazing ride like Maverick or Storm Runner — however, other parts of Cheetah Hunt appear much more tailored to the families; some that come to mind are the figure-8 element at the top of the first hill, the pointless meandering sections just before the second launch and final brake run, as well as the gently twisted hill that hops over the skyride. Cheetah Hunt is definitely far from being a bad coaster; however, when one inevitably associates it with top-tier Intamin rides like Maverick, Storm Runner, Skyrush and Intimidator 305, it pales in comparison.

Comfort Pace Fun Dead spots

Autosled is a solid family coaster that provides some great and close interactions to other attractions at Galaxyland — the new for 2018 HAVOC, Galaxy Orbiter, the kid’s play area and even the park’s train ride! This coaster can be somewhat jerky at points, most notably the part just after the lift hill; however, it delivers a mostly smooth and very relaxing experience that families will love. Autosled is the only Zierer Tivoli I have ever ridden.

Airtimes Theming Discomfort Dead spots

Gemini is a solid coaster with some decent pops of airtime. However, the transitions are a bit jarring and the majority of the layout is your generic ‘70s wooden coaster flair — lots of outs & backs in a row. I think some theming, even putting some decor in the center of Gemini (around where the ending helix is) would do this coaster a lot of good.

Capacity Location Dead spots Layout

It’s a fairly decent coaster as far as mine trains go. I didn’t loathe this one, but I didn’t particularly enjoy it either. I did it for the credit!

Pace Rattle Disappointing! Intensity

Raptor, from what I was told, was one of the best B&M inverts. However, this was not the case. Maybe it was that my 90 minute wait for this coaster was the longest I would endure on my 7 parks in 8 days road trip, or that Raptor wasn’t particularly forceful like other B&M inverts, or that it had a bit of a rattle? Either way, I wasn’t a big fan of this coaster.

Airtimes Location Comfort Intensity

If you are going in expecting an intense coaster — you will be disappointed. Apollo’s Chariot delivers superbly on the airtime scale, and nearly every hill on the second half (with at least some room) will throw you out of your seat! This coaster has a beautiful setting chasing right along the Rhine River, with the first three airtime hills that line it giving some very good floater airtime. The drop off the midcourse is taken quickly resulting in some pretty powerful ejector air, as is the 50ft ravine dive finale. This is my 2nd favorite coaster at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, second only to Alpengeist.

Location Fun Headbanging

Loch Ness Monster was the first coaster I rode at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. It’s the best Arrow looper I have ever ridden, beating Tennessee Tornado by a slim margin due to its surprisingly intense interlocking loops and the awesome helix-that-goes-on-forever in a faux cavern. However, the worst moment of the ride is the ascent just after the second loop; I hit my head pretty hard on the restraint, so thank goodness the ride hit the brake run right then and there. The hill and turn that wraps around the Land of the Dragons kids area is not super enjoyable either. All in all, the scenic setting along the Rhine river combined with aforementioned reasons above make Lochy a pretty fun classic coaster.

Airtimes Location Fun Lap Bar

Goliath is a top 10 coaster for me. It delivers great airtime on every hill (most notably, the hill that hops over the train tracks) and the helix delivers some decent intensity. I love how this coaster creatively goes outside the park and weaves its way back in. However... the ride operators are very strict on this coaster, and have stapled me on all but one time on Goliath (hence the 4.5-star rating, from that single outstanding lap)!

Airtimes First Drop Location Too short Intensity

Griffon is my new favorite dive coaster, besting both Valravn and SheiKra. It’s a floaty and fun coaster that doesn’t offer a lot in the way of intensty, but the two vertical drops and airtime hill into the splashdown provide some GREAT floater airtime! The first immelmann has some hangtime, and Griffon’s looming stature over the rest of the park makes this iconic coaster hard to miss. The location right along the Rhine river compliments this coaster, and makes for an even more thrilling second dive. Also, I got to ride Griffon with some Premier Rides employees! =)

First Drop Intensity Duration Dead spots

Titan is a pretty underrated coaster. The first drop is a fun moment that makes you realize how fast this coaster’s 85mph really is, and the “airtimeless hill” actually gave some good floater air. The helix following nearly made me black out, but I emerged victorious. Then the coaster went downhill from there, as the midcourse nearly stopped the train. The drop off of the midcourse is surprisingly tall and whippy, followed by a session of lateral-heavy and quick turns right into the brakes, which are certainly not as intense as the helix pre-midcourse but still good fun. Titan holds its own against the other hypercoasters I’ve ridden due to its intensity-focused layout and sheer size.

Theming Inversions Intensity

Alpengeist was my unexpected favorite out of the great collection of coasters Busch Gardens Williamsburg currently has on offer. I call it “Montu on terrain, but ALMOST as good” — an accurate depiction of this top 20 coaster for me. Nothing can beat the sheer intensity of Montu’s batwing and second half, but Alpie comes pretty darn close during its very snappy and G-heavy cobra roll! The headbanging can easily be avoided if you know where to brace for it (bottom of first drop, drop out of midcourse, cobra roll, generally the transitions out of all 6 inversions), and the chalets make for some great legchoppers as your train roars above or even through them. I adore the thematic touches to the ride; most notably including the detailed station, ski trough segment after the final inversion, ski boards latched onto Alpengeist’s trains, and obviously the chalets.

Theming Nice surprise! Intensity

If it is considered for families, Verbolten just might be the most intense family coaster there ever was — definitely moreso than Copperhead Strike! Both launches push you back into your seat, and the respectively twisted segments following offer crazy laterals taken at a frantic speed. The indoor helix even made me start to grey out, from what I little could see! My favorite part on Verbolten has to be the indoor helix, or... the special part, which I kept secret from my father — he enjoyed it so much that he claims Verbolten was his favorite coaster at Busch Gardens Williamsburg! On the whole Verbolten is a shockingly intense “family” coaster that will absolutely not disappoint thrillseekers. FireChaser Express has just been one-upped. Auf wiedersehen! (I think I have that stuck in my head forever now...)

Launch Hangtime Too short Capacity Harness

Tempesto is an underrated coaster that offers a variety of sensations in one short ride. Whether it be hangtime in the slow twist up top, the forwards and backwards launch sequence, or the bizarrely whippy vertical transitions, Tempesto tries to hit all the marks — and it doesn’t do a half bad job at it. However, the real bad job on this coaster is its train. The “comfort” collars aren’t too terribly uncomfortable themselves; however, it is a huge pain to squeeze into and exit out of the EXTREMELY cramped cars. As for the poor capacity, I hurried to this coaster as soon as possible and secured the back row — all on the second public train of the day. Tempesto is a fun coaster, but the tight train and slightly detractive “comfort” collars ruin it somewhat.

Airtimes Theming Pace Too short Disappointing!

InvadR is a pretty good family coaster, but not much more. I was told from the getgo (and by the coaster’s announcement) that this was a disappointing ride in practically every seat. That was true, however, there are two decent moments of airtime along InvadR’s creatively interwoven layout; the first drop and the airtime hill just before the helix finale. The theming is pretty to look at, as it evokes a hand-carved Dollywood style feel — so is the entirety of New France — and the log flume, terrain and train track interactions add another level of excitement.

A cred’s a cred and that’s that.

Capacity Inversions Fun Harness

Gatekeeper surprised me with how much I enjoyed it, so much that I went back in line for a second ride! Its beautiful setting at the front gate of Cedar Point — which I disappointingly never used in any of my two-day stay — and along the beach only improves what is a very good coaster on its own. My favorite moment has to be the dive drop, because hanging upside down for what felt like an eternity ended up as a great start to an enjoyable ride. While it may not have many G forces, there is a decent moment of air on the so-called “airtimeless hill” before the massive corkscrew. However, after this ride, I began to garner a loathing of the B&M vest restraints which I had not understood others’ hatred for — until I rode Gatekeeper. Overall, though, this is a really fun coaster and for me it is my #3 at Cedar Point; just behind Millennium Force and Maverick.

Airtimes Nice surprise! Comfort Too short

For a 50 year old coaster, Blue Streak gave some unexpectedly good airtime. I was out of my seat during most of the first half, just before the turnaround, which caught me off guard — as I had not anticipated any reminiscence of airtime or G-forces. Controversially, I would rank this as my 5th favorite coaster at Cedar Point, ahead of rides like Raptor, Rougarou and Magnum XL-200. Blue Streak packs a punch for its older age!

Theming Fun Intensity Dead spots

While it may not be as intense as its Tampanian brother, Hulk still delivers in terms of theming, thrills and pacing... right up until you hit the mid-course. I wish Universal would’ve worked with B&M to redesign the entire second half, since they had gone through all the effort to rebuild the track; however, it’s not a major issue, as Hulk still warrants 4 stars from me. The zippy launch in the tunnel sequence never got old on all 5 of my rides, and the cobra roll over the water is a picturesque but nevertheless intense manuever. I surprisingly enjoyed the dive into the misty tunnel, which the water provided some relief from the heat of April in Orlando, and the second loop was decently intense. Overall this is tied with Rip Ride Rockit (a surprising candidate) for my favorite coaster at Universal Orlando Resort.