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Describe your first ever ride on your current number 1 coaster

Matt N

CF Legend
Hi guys. Sorry if there's already a topic like this, but as the title implies, this topic is to describe your first ever ride on your present number 1. You can even include the buildup to it if you want! Or if not your first ever ride, then maybe your most memorable. I'm sure that you guys have all had a special experience on a special coaster some time in your lives. Anyway, I'll get the ball rolling with my description:
My first ever ride on Mako (23rd August 2016)
Right, so my first ever experience of Mako started the second I entered SeaWorld Orlando that day. I could see posters at the park entrance, and these really built up my anticipation for the ride that had undeniably been my most anticipated of our 2016 Florida trip. Anyway, my parents had already said to me prior to our arrival at SeaWorld that it would be a day more focused around looking at SeaWorld's wide array of animals, as the rest of my family had absolutely loathed Busch Gardens Tampa the previous day. So I had little hope of getting on Mako that day.

The ride teased me for the whole day while I was walking around the rest of SeaWorld; it loomed directly over the Sea Lion Stadium, there was a promo video shown in the Shamu Stadium for it and we even nearly got in line in the middle of the day when it had a 30 minute wait. But alas, we never did.

However, towards the end of the day, Mako had just a 10 minute wait as we were passing by, so my family decided to get in line. As we wound our way through the shipwreck theming, my anticipation was building. The moment I had been waiting for since Mako was first announced in May 2015 was finally about to come. As we neared the station after barely any wait at all, I caught my first ever glimpse of a B&M hyper train, and my excitement levels went up a lot. Now bear in mind that I had never ridden anything like Mako before; the closest I had ever ridden to it was Megafobia at Oakwood, and that was only due to its airtime! Anyway, as I got into row 2 of the train and pulled down my clamshell lap bar, (which was extremely comfortable, might I add!), I knew I was in for something quite special. However, an apprehensive part of me thought "What if this airtime that the other enthusiasts keep raving about isn't as good as it sounds? Then it'll literally just be some ups and downs without any inversions to make it interesting!"

But that part of me was hastily silenced as we crested the lift hill and descended down the first drop... because I literally flew out of my seat for what felt like an eternity. Then, as I was blinded by the on-ride photo camera, our Mako train ascended into a large overbank that sent me flying to the left! Then, it plunged downwards and started gaining speed before it ascended into a huge airtime hill, where I floated quite a way above my seat for a good couple of seconds! As my bottom came back down into my seat, our Mako train snaked its way through a hammerhead turn before ascending another airtime hill... and another one... and another one! The airtime just kept on coming, and I was loving it! Might I add that as we were careening through a variety of overbanks and airtime hills, the ride showed no signs of rattle or roughness whatsoever. It glided along as smoothly as butter. As we hit the MCBR, my bottom very briefly met the seat again before flying back out of it during the next moment of airtime! After that, there was another wonderfully floaty hill before our Mako train negotiated what is arguably the most iconic part of the ride. It soared to the right, and then plunged downwards to the left so that it could fly up against the lake. Finally, the train ascended a small bunny hop which I could have sworn provided another small pop of airtime, before hitting the brake run.

As we came to a halt, I had a huge grin on my face. I looked around at my family, and they shared my huge grins. As our train waited for the next one to leave the station, I pondered over how amazing the past 2 minutes had been. As soon as I entered the brake run, I knew that there was only one place in my coaster count that this beautiful ride would fit, and that was the very top. I'm sure you guys have felt the same way about a different ride some time in your lives. So, as my clamshell lap bar came up, I wandered down the exit stairs with a spring in my step, as Mako had not only met my lofty expectations, but it had also exceeded them somehow. Those 2 minutes were some of the most amazing I've ever spent doing something. Mako had redefined what I liked in a coaster; before that day, inversions were still my preference, but Mako won me over to the airtime camp instantly. I knew that it was far ahead of anything else I had ever ridden prior both in terms of airtime and as an overall coaster. In terms of airtime, Mako stormed way ahead of Megafobia as the best airtime I'd ever experienced; Megafobia still has excellent airtime, but Mako is a whole league above it! In terms of a coaster, while I had adored Montu the day before at Busch Gardens Tampa, Mako had definitely beaten it! I wondered how it could ever be beaten, and as of July 2018, nearly 2 years after that first ride, it still hasn't been beaten!

So, what were you guys' first rides on your top coasters like?
P.S. Sorry for the long, in-depth description.
 
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hendrixmarshall

Roller Poster
We were at Holiwood Nights about a month ago. After we ate, we got corralled into the picnic pavillion and couldn't leave to go ride some more. This went on until 9:15. Just enough time for thunderclouds to move in. Weather.com put them 42 miles away. I was first in line for the back seat on Voyage, first train was loaded. BRAKES WERE OFF, made sure to ask. Dark out. They shut it down. Turkey Gobbler thing doors were shut. No where to go. We waited for about an hour. Headed to the front to just leave. Shuttles to go back to Lake Rudolph (4 mile hike to where we were staying) - ran @ 11:00 pm only. No cabs, either.

I had a hard time swallowing this. We walked back to Lake Rudolph and hitched a ride with one of the camp attendants thankfully. Got a bunch of hot beer, and did the saltwater and ice trick. Made fun of Holiday World's coasters for about 3 hours. Around 1 am, blurted out -"let's bail completely and go to Carowinds"

Keep in mind that we had paid for an extra night, and 2 extra days for HW's 4 ride lineup. So I got up early the next morning, hungover, and drove to Carowinds. We got to Charlotte fairly late, but the next morning we got to ride Fury (present number 1), and Lightning Rod (present number 2) in the same day. It cost us quite a bit in time and money...and it was soooo worth it! It was kinda hot, so both Fury and Intimidator were literally flying through the track. No lines, either.
 

Pokemaniac

Mountain monkey
Staff member
Administrator
Moderator
P.S. Sorry for the long, in-depth description.

No need to be sorry for its length, be sorry for its lack of paragraphs instead! You've made a textbook example of a so-called "wall of text", which makes it harder to read than it needs to be. Try to edit in a line shift here and there, and see how much easier it makes it to read!


Anyway, for me, I suppose my number one ride is Helix at Liseberg. I first rode it during a CF Live in the park, in 2014 I believe. The Live was a multi-day affair involving a lot of CF-ers travelling between various parks together, but as I neither had the time nor budget to participate in the whole trip, I only came to visit them the day they were at Liseberg.

There is a train line from Oslo to Gothenburg, but it's not exactly modern, so the trip down takes some 4 hours. I left Oslo at 7 in the morning, while the Live, if I recall correctly, kicked off with some ERT at around 9. As such, I didn't arrive at the park until after everybody had ridden Helix and found it rather average. The consensus of the group, which I met just outside Helix' exit, was that it was okay, but not world class. As the line for Helix was more than an hour long, there was no time for me to try it just yet. Instead, the group went around the park doing the other rides: Balder, Kanonen, the kiddie coasters, and a couple of flat rides. The day passed with great fun and only a minimum of language problems.

Eventually, somebody decided to take on the ghost house, Spökhotellet Gasten, which is an up-charge attraction. Not everybody wanted to join in, so I got a couple of others with me to go back to Helix again. It just barely beat out sitting around and waiting for the ghost-house-goers to come back. It still had a line of 45 minutes or so, even though it was later in the afternoon and some big purple clouds started building up over the park.

I think it was @Serena who joined me in the back row of the coaster. I remember not pulling the lap bar all the way down at first, until I realized that this was the only thing holding me in place on a slow-ish ride with seven inversions. Better tighten it up, even though I didn't fear being flung out...

...until the ride began and it became crystal clear that the lap bar was there for a good reason. Helix had definitely warmed up throughout the day, it hauled through the layout with a speed and snappiness I hadn't experienced since before Thundercoaster was reprofiled, but it was also silky smooth unlike the latter. It had speed, it had airtime, it had inversions and desorienting changes of direction, and a split second or two of great views over Gothenburg as well. It was a thoroughly enjoyable ride experience, and I walked off it wondering what kind of coasters the other CF-ers had ridden before if this was to be considered average.

It turned out that Helix really needed that warm-up, because according to the others, it was a much greater ride now than it had been in the morning. When we met up with the group again, it was quickly decided to spend the evening re-riding Helix, and after the trip it flew right into most participants' top 5. Apparently, it was even better in the evening after dark. Unfortunately, I couldn't join in, as I had to take the train back to Oslo again. Even if I didn't experience Helix at its very best, it still unquestionably claimed my number one spot. This was probably helped by my coaster count at the time being around 15, though.
 

Snoo

The Legend
Rode Steel Vengeance the day after opening day, around 11am. Waited around 4 hours due to break downs. Rode 2nd from last row. Absolutely blew my mind. However, as there was a LOT to unpack as I've mentioned, I needed a few more rides to get the full scope (as in the next ride.. lol) before I knew 100% that it was my #1.
 

Matt N

CF Legend
Loving the descriptions so far, guys!
No need to be sorry for its length, be sorry for its lack of paragraphs instead! You've made a textbook example of a so-called "wall of text", which makes it harder to read than it needs to be. Try to edit in a line shift here and there, and see how much easier it makes it to read!
Thanks for the constructive criticism @Pokemaniac; essay-style posts are not my strong point. I've now split the text up a bit; is it any easier to read now?
 

Pokemaniac

Mountain monkey
Staff member
Administrator
Moderator
Thanks for the constructive criticism @Pokemaniac; essay-style posts are not my strong point. I've now split the text up a bit; is it any easier to read now?

Lots easier! Great story, too!

Essay-style forum posts are a little like pizza. They're easier to ingest if they're carved into smaller pieces. Come to think of it, that goes for regular essays too.
 

Howie

Donkey in a hat
I rode Steel Vengeance. ‘Nuff said.

Yep, what Ed said.

You want more detail? Ok, it was late afternoon, just over 3 weeks ago now. A bit grey and drizzly but not cold. I was in the 2nd row. Lord Morton was sat next to me, Delly P was in the row behind. Some other US goons were dotted about the train too, including Ed^.
And it was Steel Vengeance.
Steel Vengeance!
You've seen the POV, right? Yeah. Steel Vengeance. We did that.
 

HeartlineCoaster

Theme Park Superhero
Wish I could remember it that clearly.
It was August. It was Liseberg. It was a mandatory 2 day stint of 3pm-11pm opening.
I didn't know a huge amount about it before I got on (which is how I tend to like it).
All that comes to mind is sitting on the brake run thinking 'that's just redefined the word rollercoaster'.
 

Will

Strata Poster
It's getting on for ten years, so I struggle to remember a lot now - only that it happened during what (as far as I was concerned at the time) was one of the best months of my life.

We'd been to Fiabilandia and somewhere else the day before, then bought cheap drink in San Marino - I'd drunk far too much of it and was quite likely still drunk during breakfast the next morning. We'd already seen Katun while we were driving the evening before and there was a lot of excitement between us as that had been the main reason for the trip. In retrospect, it's surprising I enjoyed the ride as much as I did, considering how delicate I was probably feeling but I suspect I absorbed a fair bit of the enthusiasm from Richard, John and Lain who were all thoroughly impressed. We had a lot of re-rides, but I think I spent a fair amount of the rest of the day lying in the shade.

I've found John's TR that might shed some light on it: http://coasterforce.com/forums/threads/italy-september-2009.27070/#post-626448
 
Yep, what Ed said.

You want more detail? Ok, it was late afternoon, just over 3 weeks ago now. A bit grey and drizzly but not cold. I was in the 2nd row. Lord Morton was sat next to me, Delly P was in the row behind. Some other US goons were dotted about the train too, including Ed^.
And it was Steel Vengeance.
Steel Vengeance!
You've seen the POV, right? Yeah. Steel Vengeance. We did that.

And then there was Taylor, who had to ride all alone because @Youngster Joey is a dbag that switched rows. :p

Basically my first ride on Eejanaika was waiting for our fastpass ride time with @Ben and @Jake on a bench with sake. Then our ride time came, and I laughed the entire way through the ride as I had never experienced anything so ****ing insane but blissful all at once.
 

Jarrett

Most Obnoxious Member 2016
Well my number one is Steel Vengeance, I'm such a special snowflake. :p

I went into my first ride with a very deliberate point to rank the ride fairly. Regardless of how it rode, I knew because it was at Cedar Point it would get tons of extreme reactions. CP and RMC fanboys had already decided it was the best thing since sliced bread, there were stuck up enthusiasts and bigtime RMC haters deciding how it rode before it had even sent a test train. I like Cedar Point, I'm probably the poster child for nutty RMC fanboys everywhere, I knew I was exactly the type of enthusiast to get way too excited about this ride and go talking it up when it didn't deserve it. I didn't want to do that. If it wanted a decent ranking, it was going to have to wow me and earn it like the rest of my top ten.

So before it opened to the public, I show up at CP, event kicks off, and then after an agonizing wait, we all head back to Steel Vengeance for our first ride! I was towards the front of the crowd, so I managed to get all the way to the stairs when the queue was initially loaded. I was with my buddy Steve from Canada, and we decided to take our first ride together. We elected for a seat near the front, strapped in, and dispatched! I was riding Steel Vengeance after almost two years of waiting!

I thought it was pretty textbook RMC at first. Same pacing, same airtime magnitude, pretty much everything you would expect from an RMC. No surprises, just a standard, solid, but still amazing RMC ride. I decided I liked Wicked Cyclone better for the time being because of Wicked Cyclone's drivers ed turns, so after my first ride, Steel Vengeance was ranked at a solid #4. Steve said that Twisted Colossus had stronger airtime magnitude (I've yet to ride it to confirm), but he loved it too.

We went around for another lap, this time in the back. We ended up riding with this guy and his daughter that Steve had been talking to in the parking lot, with Steve and I taking the very back and them riding in front of us. And that did it. That ride absolutely blew me away. A few laps to warm up and a change of seat was all it took to take this RMC from standard to savage! The airtime magnitude over every hill was bonkers, like Skyrush "snap your legs off" bonkers. It tore right through that first half in a way that reminded me of Lightning Rod somewhat, but after that dive into the structure and subsequent overbank, it just goes nuts. I don't think I've ever seen element after element thrown at me in such a rapid succession. From snappy cartwheels to thigh-bruising ejector to merciless transitions into and out of that wave turn (which also rocks thigh-smashing ejector), I was floored. As someone who likes an irreverent, violent, fast-paced ride experience, I knew I had a new #1. I looked at Steve, he said the same, we both cracked up laughing and high fived over it, and as the train pulled back into the station I wagged my finger #1 to the ride ops as per new #1 tradition. The guy we rode with? It made his high school-aged daughter get off crying in terror. I could tell that this was no ordinary machine. Alan designed it to be as extreme as possible and like the awesome engineer he is, man oh man did he succeed! I'd say I don't see anything topping it...but I haven't ridden any of Mack or Vekoma's recent stuff, but I'm stoked to see if the other innovative manufacturers out there can top this as well as RMC!

Fh9PMPk.jpg
 
So Leviathan is my number 1 rollercoaster at the moment.
The first ever ride on it was in truth not as good as i thought it would. The drop was amazing and the ride was smooth. But I didn't get a lot of air-time and was unsure about the layout. The rollercoaster got better the more i rode it and finally i had some stunning end of day rides on it :)
 

FistedColossus

Hyper Poster
Taron.

Just walking into Klugheim is crazy enough, it overwhelmes your senses. And then as you get closer and hear the roar of that second launch you get the feeling it's going to be soecial.

Waited around 40 mins, an extra 5 for the front row. Even during the first half with the tameish launch I knew it was an incredible coaster, very fun and whippy. Then going into the second launch it goes from just 'fun' to out of control utter madness.

Came off with a beaming smile and absolutely high as a kite. Which I hadnt felt on a coaster probably since the first go on Stealth as a teenager 11 years ago.
 

TLARides

Hyper Poster
Storm Chaser...

Man, the excitement I had on the trip down to KK just to see what RMC was all about. I watched a POV of the ride just to see what I would look forward to.

First time ever riding it, I rode with my dad and sister. I said I'd ride front seat and immediately ran to the back seat thinking it was the front (I was obviously wrong).

The ride itself was absolutely amazing. Right after you come off that lift hill, it's non-stop, excitement and action all the way. The ride itself has given me a few ideas as to what to include in coasters I design in games (I really like the "Trick-Track-Double-Up" thing especially).

Sent from my LG-TP260 using Tapatalk
 

Y. Kim

Mega Poster
1st ride on Korean B&M Invert: Felt too intense but fun, comfy B&M seat, quite fast, intense
1st ride on T Express:"Where is the final brake run? too long ride!!!'
1st ride on Draken: Just fun drop, Immelman is smooth, and too short dive coaster...
 
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