First Time Evah in Florida - DAY 12 BUSCH GARDENS TAMPA BAY!
- Thread starter Ollie
- Start date
Gazza
Giga Poster
Re: First Time Evah in Florida - DAY 9 (PART 2) EPCOT!
This epcot TR sounds like it was somebody from the GP visiting, bumbling around, riding what they came across, rather than having a stratergy to get the E tickets ridden.
Yeah Mission Space is awesome.... I do like soarin too, but of the 10 or so times I've ridden it between FL and CA I've never queued for it due to using FP or SRQ.
This epcot TR sounds like it was somebody from the GP visiting, bumbling around, riding what they came across, rather than having a stratergy to get the E tickets ridden.
Yeah Mission Space is awesome.... I do like soarin too, but of the 10 or so times I've ridden it between FL and CA I've never queued for it due to using FP or SRQ.
Ollie
CF Legend
Re: First Time Evah in Florida - DAY 9 (PART 2) EPCOT!
^^Haha we were like the normal GP. Before we went my dad asked me and my brother to plan out everything from what the main rides were to what order to do things in and what parks to do on what days.
After spending days making a plan we didn't do any of it. The day we were going to go to Busch got moved at least 4 times. And that was with my dad saying "we'll go to Busch tomorrow so we'll get an early night tonight so we can leave early as it's a long drive" and then the plan would always change and we'd end up somewhere local.
So yeah. In the end the planning was a mess. I tried to make sure we went round the park in order so we weren't going backwards and forwards all over the place but then I got accused of 'choosing' all the rides when I wasn't. We were just riding things as we came to them.
And we were going to get fast passes for Soarin' but it had all gone by the time we got there. Having seen how boring the queue is, if I ever ride it again I know to get it early lol.
And Marc I did like all of it. It's just I was pointing out what bits weren't that great. Im saying it so it makes the views of the rides slightly more balanced and hoping that some people will go "oh yeah I guess that's true" lol. But I did enjoy all the rides I went on. It's just that they're not all 'amazing'.
I did watch a few POV's years ago. But as soon as I found out I was going I think I only watched 1 video so it wasn't too bad. And I dunno why we didn't do Mission Space. I think we underestimated how big Epcot is as there's more there than it first appears. By the second week of the holiday we seemed to slow down even more and Epcot just became a half day thing so we didn't have time for everything.
Anyway don't worry. The next day is a lot happier. Planet Hollywood. Yummy.
I'll try and get it up tomorrow if I can. So much for one trip report for day lol.
^^Haha we were like the normal GP. Before we went my dad asked me and my brother to plan out everything from what the main rides were to what order to do things in and what parks to do on what days.
After spending days making a plan we didn't do any of it. The day we were going to go to Busch got moved at least 4 times. And that was with my dad saying "we'll go to Busch tomorrow so we'll get an early night tonight so we can leave early as it's a long drive" and then the plan would always change and we'd end up somewhere local.
So yeah. In the end the planning was a mess. I tried to make sure we went round the park in order so we weren't going backwards and forwards all over the place but then I got accused of 'choosing' all the rides when I wasn't. We were just riding things as we came to them.
And we were going to get fast passes for Soarin' but it had all gone by the time we got there. Having seen how boring the queue is, if I ever ride it again I know to get it early lol.
And Marc I did like all of it. It's just I was pointing out what bits weren't that great. Im saying it so it makes the views of the rides slightly more balanced and hoping that some people will go "oh yeah I guess that's true" lol. But I did enjoy all the rides I went on. It's just that they're not all 'amazing'.
I did watch a few POV's years ago. But as soon as I found out I was going I think I only watched 1 video so it wasn't too bad. And I dunno why we didn't do Mission Space. I think we underestimated how big Epcot is as there's more there than it first appears. By the second week of the holiday we seemed to slow down even more and Epcot just became a half day thing so we didn't have time for everything.
Anyway don't worry. The next day is a lot happier.
Planet Hollywood. Yummy. I'll try and get it up tomorrow if I can. So much for one trip report for day lol.
Ollie
CF Legend
Re: First Time Evah in Florida - DAY 9 (PART 2) EPCOT!
Lets crack on then.
Day 10:
Boggy Creek Airboat Ride
We did get tickets for this before we came out but then a couple of months before we left I checked the website where we got all our tickets from again. Turns out they were doing a deal where if you buy Disney tickets (the 14 day ones I think) then you get tickets to the airboat for free. So my dad went in to their offices and managed to get them to add it on for free as we had already got the Disney tickets.
Anyway all 8 of us headed down there in the morning. It wasn't too far. Just a couple of roads from the villa. Just one of them was pretty long. We got there in good time but as soon as we got out the car it started raining. The views were pretty nice though.
The place looks like a run down caravan park. Looked very dusty and worn down in some areas.
Anyway we headed into the shop to sort our tickets. We were told we had an hour to kill so we just waited around the shop for a bit.
This was quite amusing.
Alligator meat.
We then got taken outside where we had to sit on some benches in front of green screen while someone took a picture on a digital camera on a tripod. Then they make it look like you're on the airboat and getting attack by an alligator. We don't usually get silly photos like this but we decided to get one for our grandparents as they helped pay towards the holiday.
I know I said the place looked a bit run down but I didn't get any photos of those bits. Although I did get a few photos of the waiting area which looks quite nice.
It was finally our turn to get on. We only had a half hour tour I think which is more than enough to have a fun ride and see some of the wildlife.
We were given ear protectors to wear and I sat on the edge of the bench as I wanted to get some pictures without people getting in the way.
It was a lot smoother than I thought it'd be. But then I guess the creek/lake water is pretty still. It was weird when you went over the water plants as you kept expecting it to skim something underneath but you didn't feel a thing.
After a while the driver (if that's what you call them lol) slowed the boat down and turned into this little side bit.
He then pulled right up to the edge and walked to the front to move some branches out the way.
Then pointed out the alligator next to the boat.
As the fan/engine at the back of the boat were off we were slowly floating forwards so I ended up going through the branch and getting a face full of leaves.
After everyone had taken pictures of the gator we moved on. The whole time we were going round loads of birds were having to fly out of the way of the boat. I think it was around here where he hit one as I saw it start to take off but it didn't appear. Poor birdie.
He stopped at another point to point out something in the trees. I can't remember what it was but I think it was some bald eagles. It took everyone ages to spot them and I think everyone managed to apart from me as I couldn't see them at all. I took a picture so if you spot them then circle them for me please.
There was also these weird pink things. Forgotten what they were. I think they were some sort of pink snail eggs.
From memory here, the plants you see in the water are actually part of the roots for the trees along the edges. So it allows them to get more sunlight and water and stuff. Someone else here will probably know more about it than me lol.
It was around here that we started to head back. The sun had come out a bit more and made some nice reflections.
In America they expect tips EVERYWHERE. I remember when someone took us out to find our hire car when we arrived in the states and you could tell he was desperate for a tip. He even had his hand out waiting. Completely different to what we're used to here where we usually just tip in restaurants.
As we got off it started to rain again and a big cloud appeared.
Then a member of staff came over to us and asked if we wanted to find out a bit more about alligators and have the chance to hold one.
We were slightly undercover by this weird tree so we didn't get too wet.
The facts he said were really interesting and he said things I never knew about. Like how gators can retract their eyes into their skulls to protect them. The alligator I held was much lighter than I thought it would be (it was almost 2 years old I think) and it was really soft and it was cool how you could feel it breathing in your hands.
You weren't allowed to take your own pictures of this as they take them and they encourage people to buy them as the proceeds go towards a gator charity or something to help protect them.
We went out via the shop where I got a few things, then got in the cars and headed too...
Planet Hollywood
The rain now was HEAVING it down. Was really heavy and was bouncing off the ground. So much for sunny Florida.
These pictures still don't give off how heavy it was.
We waited in the car park for a bit to see if it the rain would slow down a bit but it didn't so we made a run for it.
We got SOAKED. I was covering my pockets to try and protect things like my phone and camera. At one point I ended up stepping in a massive puddle that went above my ankle. Usually it's cold but the rain is warm in Florida so my foot didn't actually feel like I had just dunked it in water.
Me and Andrew made it to the entrance of the restaurant so waited under cover for my dad and Richard who decided to walk.
We went inside and waited around 5 mins for my aunt and co to arrive. We were lucky we didn't have to wait too long to get a table as the place seemed packed.
As you can tell it's all fairly cheap.
The food portions didn't make sense here though. Me and my dad had the Chicken Crunch for the starter and Andrew and Richard had Potato Skins. The Chicken crunch was the size you'd expect a starter to be (sorry for the dark image).
But potato skins were HUGE. It was like the size of a large main course. They couldn't finish it all in the end. The Chicken Crunch I had though was AMAZING! The sauce. <3
Going onto the main course me and my dad had the cheeseburger which was massive. But Andrew and Richards main course (forgotten what they had) was smaller than their starter.
Once we'd all finished and paid we left.
My aunt and co went back to the villa (I think) but we went to go check out one of the mini golf course we saw while we got lost a couple of nights before.
Anyway...
Pirates Cove Mini Golf
We decided to do both courses as we didn't have anything else planned for the evening.
I wont bore you with too much here. The courses were pretty good and was layed out well. Lots of caves, hills, waterfalls and tunnels etc. Was good fun to play.
Here's some pictures.
There was lots of these lizard things crawling around the rocks.
Oh and I just remembered. After this we went back to Islands of Adventure quickly to get some shopping done and got some gifts etc.
We skipped the queue for the wand shop by missing out on the show bit before it. We just went in the back door. I wanted another butterbeer but the queue for it was long and slow moving so had to pass.
We did do Posiedons Fury while we were there. It was alright. There was no queue but it took almost 20 minutes to get in. The actor we had was quite good and funny. Only downsides to the attraction is most the bits where you stand to watch stuff you can't see much if you're stuck at the back (remember we always end up at the back somehow in group things like this). Also the effects in the last room weren't anything special. Just a couple of water bursts and a flame machine lol. I liked the effect with you changing rooms though. That was clever although it was obvious how it was done.
By the time we got out it was dark so we headed back to the villa.
Anyway that's it for another day. Next up is Busch Gardens.
Lets crack on then.
Day 10:
Boggy Creek Airboat Ride
We did get tickets for this before we came out but then a couple of months before we left I checked the website where we got all our tickets from again. Turns out they were doing a deal where if you buy Disney tickets (the 14 day ones I think) then you get tickets to the airboat for free. So my dad went in to their offices and managed to get them to add it on for free as we had already got the Disney tickets.
Anyway all 8 of us headed down there in the morning. It wasn't too far. Just a couple of roads from the villa. Just one of them was pretty long. We got there in good time but as soon as we got out the car it started raining. The views were pretty nice though.
The place looks like a run down caravan park. Looked very dusty and worn down in some areas.
Anyway we headed into the shop to sort our tickets. We were told we had an hour to kill so we just waited around the shop for a bit.
This was quite amusing.
Alligator meat.
We then got taken outside where we had to sit on some benches in front of green screen while someone took a picture on a digital camera on a tripod. Then they make it look like you're on the airboat and getting attack by an alligator. We don't usually get silly photos like this but we decided to get one for our grandparents as they helped pay towards the holiday.
I know I said the place looked a bit run down but I didn't get any photos of those bits. Although I did get a few photos of the waiting area which looks quite nice.
It was finally our turn to get on. We only had a half hour tour I think which is more than enough to have a fun ride and see some of the wildlife.
We were given ear protectors to wear and I sat on the edge of the bench as I wanted to get some pictures without people getting in the way.
It was a lot smoother than I thought it'd be. But then I guess the creek/lake water is pretty still. It was weird when you went over the water plants as you kept expecting it to skim something underneath but you didn't feel a thing.
After a while the driver (if that's what you call them lol) slowed the boat down and turned into this little side bit.
He then pulled right up to the edge and walked to the front to move some branches out the way.
Then pointed out the alligator next to the boat.
As the fan/engine at the back of the boat were off we were slowly floating forwards so I ended up going through the branch and getting a face full of leaves.
After everyone had taken pictures of the gator we moved on. The whole time we were going round loads of birds were having to fly out of the way of the boat. I think it was around here where he hit one as I saw it start to take off but it didn't appear. Poor birdie.
He stopped at another point to point out something in the trees. I can't remember what it was but I think it was some bald eagles. It took everyone ages to spot them and I think everyone managed to apart from me as I couldn't see them at all. I took a picture so if you spot them then circle them for me please.
There was also these weird pink things. Forgotten what they were. I think they were some sort of pink snail eggs.
From memory here, the plants you see in the water are actually part of the roots for the trees along the edges. So it allows them to get more sunlight and water and stuff. Someone else here will probably know more about it than me lol.
It was around here that we started to head back. The sun had come out a bit more and made some nice reflections.
In America they expect tips EVERYWHERE. I remember when someone took us out to find our hire car when we arrived in the states and you could tell he was desperate for a tip. He even had his hand out waiting. Completely different to what we're used to here where we usually just tip in restaurants.
As we got off it started to rain again and a big cloud appeared.
Then a member of staff came over to us and asked if we wanted to find out a bit more about alligators and have the chance to hold one.
We were slightly undercover by this weird tree so we didn't get too wet.
The facts he said were really interesting and he said things I never knew about. Like how gators can retract their eyes into their skulls to protect them. The alligator I held was much lighter than I thought it would be (it was almost 2 years old I think) and it was really soft and it was cool how you could feel it breathing in your hands.
You weren't allowed to take your own pictures of this as they take them and they encourage people to buy them as the proceeds go towards a gator charity or something to help protect them.
We went out via the shop where I got a few things, then got in the cars and headed too...
Planet Hollywood
The rain now was HEAVING it down. Was really heavy and was bouncing off the ground. So much for sunny Florida.
These pictures still don't give off how heavy it was.
We waited in the car park for a bit to see if it the rain would slow down a bit but it didn't so we made a run for it.
We got SOAKED. I was covering my pockets to try and protect things like my phone and camera. At one point I ended up stepping in a massive puddle that went above my ankle. Usually it's cold but the rain is warm in Florida so my foot didn't actually feel like I had just dunked it in water.
Me and Andrew made it to the entrance of the restaurant so waited under cover for my dad and Richard who decided to walk.
We went inside and waited around 5 mins for my aunt and co to arrive. We were lucky we didn't have to wait too long to get a table as the place seemed packed.
As you can tell it's all fairly cheap.
The food portions didn't make sense here though. Me and my dad had the Chicken Crunch for the starter and Andrew and Richard had Potato Skins. The Chicken crunch was the size you'd expect a starter to be (sorry for the dark image).
But potato skins were HUGE. It was like the size of a large main course. They couldn't finish it all in the end. The Chicken Crunch I had though was AMAZING! The sauce. <3
Going onto the main course me and my dad had the cheeseburger which was massive. But Andrew and Richards main course (forgotten what they had) was smaller than their starter.
Once we'd all finished and paid we left.
My aunt and co went back to the villa (I think) but we went to go check out one of the mini golf course we saw while we got lost a couple of nights before.
Anyway...
Pirates Cove Mini Golf
We decided to do both courses as we didn't have anything else planned for the evening.
I wont bore you with too much here. The courses were pretty good and was layed out well. Lots of caves, hills, waterfalls and tunnels etc. Was good fun to play.
Here's some pictures.
There was lots of these lizard things crawling around the rocks.
Oh and I just remembered. After this we went back to Islands of Adventure quickly to get some shopping done and got some gifts etc.
We skipped the queue for the wand shop by missing out on the show bit before it. We just went in the back door. I wanted another butterbeer but the queue for it was long and slow moving so had to pass.
We did do Posiedons Fury while we were there. It was alright. There was no queue but it took almost 20 minutes to get in. The actor we had was quite good and funny. Only downsides to the attraction is most the bits where you stand to watch stuff you can't see much if you're stuck at the back (remember we always end up at the back somehow in group things like this). Also the effects in the last room weren't anything special. Just a couple of water bursts and a flame machine lol. I liked the effect with you changing rooms though. That was clever although it was obvious how it was done.
By the time we got out it was dark so we headed back to the villa.
Anyway that's it for another day. Next up is Busch Gardens.
walker1104
Mega Poster
Re: First Time Evah in Florida - DAY 10 AIRBOAT, PH & MINI G
Nice report! I only got back from Orlando on Saturday, so it's all still fresh in my mind. It's nice to see another persons view on it, especially when it's their first time.
The queues didn't seem, too bad this year. Well Disney always seemed to be really busy, but I don't think I queued more than about 20 minutes for anything at any of the other parks (well with the exception of Pteradon Flyers and Ripsaw Falls). Especially at the Universal parks in the last week, pretty much everything was walk on! I loved butterbeer too and was sick of waiting in the massive line for it, but I discovered that they sell it in the Hogs Head pub aswel. I never saw a queue in there, so that's where I got mine from in the end.
Oh and my family is just as bad for getting to the parks, if not worse. It was pretty rare for us to be in a park before about 12! :lol:
Nice report! I only got back from Orlando on Saturday, so it's all still fresh in my mind. It's nice to see another persons view on it, especially when it's their first time.
The queues didn't seem, too bad this year. Well Disney always seemed to be really busy, but I don't think I queued more than about 20 minutes for anything at any of the other parks (well with the exception of Pteradon Flyers and Ripsaw Falls). Especially at the Universal parks in the last week, pretty much everything was walk on! I loved butterbeer too and was sick of waiting in the massive line for it, but I discovered that they sell it in the Hogs Head pub aswel. I never saw a queue in there, so that's where I got mine from in the end.
Oh and my family is just as bad for getting to the parks, if not worse. It was pretty rare for us to be in a park before about 12! :lol:
Ollie
CF Legend
Re: First Time Evah in Florida - DAY 12 BUSCH GARDENS TAMPA
Day 11: Busch Gardens Tampa Bay
We'd kept putting the day off but today we finally managed to get our arses down to Busch Gardens.
My dad thought it was going to take about 4 hours to get there because it took him twice as long to get to the space center. So we all had to pack clothes as he said if the park is busy and it's a long drive we may stay over in a motel in Tampa overnight.
Anyway we got there in under an hour and a half in the end (I did tell him it wasn't that far). All we had to do was drive down the Interstate 4 until we got to Tampa then it was just a right and a left and we were there.
The car park is the opposite site of a busy road to the park. The parking here was the cheapest we'd had so far though.
The first ride most people will be able to see is Montu.
We applied suncream and I took a picture of where we'd parked to remember it later.
We walked up to the tram stop and took the short ride under the road to the park.
#
As soon as we got in the park it started raining. First of all everyone wanted a toilet so we had to try and find them. Then we had to go back to the entrance as my dad wanted to put his bum bag in a locker so it didn't get wet (it had all our passports and stuff in it). The lockers were quite expensive so next time people moan that you have to pay £1 to use them in the UK, just be glad it's not the $15 (ish) like it is in the parks in Orlando.
First up was Chunt.
The queue was coming out the entrance for this but it's because the queue wasn't fully opened. We managed to shuffle forwards to get out the rain though. We couldn't hear it running so Richard went to ask the member of staff at the ride entrance what was happening and they said it's stopped because of the rain.
We decided to wait it out in the end and a few minutes after, it opened again.
The queue coveres two floors. It's pretty long when fully opened (they opened more while we were queueing) but there's a few signs to look at and a Cheetah made of stone.
Those are all the coaster fact ones. There were some with facts about Cheetahs as well.
Anyway here's some more pictures of the queue.
The cars look amazing. <3
ORP thief.
In the end the queue took about 45 minutes (said 40 in the board).
My thoughts...
Cheetah Hunt:
I'd been following the construction of this excited that I was actually going to ride something in America in it's opening year. The ride looks visually amazing. Cannot fault it. The colours are amazing, the trains look awesome and the ride is sooooo photogenic.
The ride itself it glass smooth (so it should be). It's a decent length and it takes you down the whole length of the park. The launches are pathetic though. For a coaster advertised as a 'new breed of speed' it certainly didn't live up to it. The first 'launch' is about the same as Th13teen does when you switch from backwards to forwards and you barely make it round the first corner. The main launch is a bit better but it just feels so weak. And the third one just feels like it's there to help it round the circuit rather than another thrilling launch.
The coaster is good fun though and I enjoyed the way it went over the skyride and weaved in-between the rocks above the water.
Overall it's a fun coaster. It's not intense at all and the pace of it is pretty crap although it's glass smooth and has a decent layout and lasts quite a good length as well.
Anyway I'm going to post all my photos of the ride from the day now to avoid random pics later.
Next we headed to Montu.
The queue said 5 minutes. But it was walk on.
My thoughts...
Montu
I'm usually not too keen on B&M inverts. I find most are too forceful and make me quite dizzy. However this was AMAZING. Really enjoyed it. The first drop was great and it had a good layout with plenty of inversions.
What's weird though is noone else seemed to like it. My dad wasn't too keen on it (he reckons he's starting to get too old for coasters now) and Richard usually copies everything my dad says. Andrew said it wasn't that good but I really enjoyed it. :lol:
It's definitely in my top 3 favourite inverts. Not sure whether it's better than Nemesis or not (it probably is). So yeah It's my second favourite invert after Black Mamba.
The shop was pretty cool.
Next we decided to have a small break from the coasters so went into Tut's Tomb.
From the outside the attraction sounds really good and quite interesting.
Yet inside it's really crap. It's just two small rooms and then you go into a shop.
Next we decided to walk round to Sheikra.
What I really like about Busch is how it's all very open and green and there's loads of wildlife around the park. It's what Chessington need to do rather than have the zoo separated from the park.
Never seen a squirrel hang from a tree by just it's back feet before.
On the way there the rain started again so we went to find some cover.
We were there for about 10/15 mins waiting for it to die down a bit before moving on.
The park is MASSIVE and it takes ages to walk between rides. The distance from Montu to Sheikra was like walking from the Entrance of Alton, up to Air then back down to Towers Street and then up to Hex.
We finally saw the ride in the distance. It looks much taller in real life.
When we got there it was shut because of the rain. But we joined the queue anyway.
It wasn't to long before they got it going again.
The stairs going up to station level reminds me of the sort of stairs you get in secondary schools.
Going along the bridges to the platform my dad spotted this so told me to grab it.
But when we unfolded it we found out it was religious so put it back for someone else to fall for it (no wonder it was still there when we saw it).
Anyway I chose the bridge to make sure we got front row. The queue wasn't too bad in the end. Got on within 20 minutes.
The exit of the ride was flooded with about 3 inches of water.
My thoughts...
Sheikra
Enjoyed this ride quite a bit. I've never really seen why everyone loves Oblivion so much.posting.php Yes it's good but it's not 'that' good. Even though this was really short as well I enjoyed it a lot more as it did more. It had inversions, 2 vertical drops and a water-splash. I prefer dropping into a hole like Oblivion as it builds up to that moment, although the drop on this is really good as well. My dads favourite ride has always been Oblivion since we first went to Alton in 2002. His first comment after this was "I think Oblivion is going to have to move down a place. I think it's been beaten".
But yeah this ride is really good. Having no floor is cool as well but as with all floorless coasters you forget about it within a few seconds and it doesn't really change the ride much at all.
By now we were feeling pretty hungry so headed back to the Pizza and Pasta Buffet we saw as we were walking to Sheikra. We ended up at the back door first of all so had to walk all the way round the pond to get to the other side.
The prices weren't too bad.
I'm a fan of the PPB's in the UK parks but the one here was LOADS better. There was much more choice of pizza, it was easier to move round and get in and get your food, the drinks were quicker to get as the staff filled them ready so you just pick it up.
But yeah it was amazing and tasted so much nicer as well. I had loads of the BBQ Chicken pizza with the sauce.
They also had deserts.
But they were presented amazingly.
(Yes that's pudding made to look like a pizza).
It was really nice.
Also there was a group of people on the table next to us who were in hysterics. I dont know what they were laughing at but they were all crying with laughter and couldn't stop and it went on for about 10 minutes. Then when it died down they started again. It was really infectious as Andrew found it hilarious and kept laughing and when the group saw he was laughing as well they laughed harder. Then within 15 minutes half the restaurant was in a fit of laughter. It was really bizarre as noone knew why they were laughing. :lol:
There was still lots of wildlife walking around outside while were eating.
Anyway once we were full we headed out the back door and went back to the area where Sheikra was to get the Serengetti Express (the train that goes round the park) to Kumba. The train left as we got there so we had to wait for the next one (about 10/15 minutes).
Once on it takes you round past all the big rides, past loads of animals, down to Montu and Cheetah Hunt (where the one of the other stations is) then it comes up past the animals again and across the top of the park to Kumba and the rapids (where we got off).
Passing the other train.
Once we were off the train we headed to Kumba.
The shot everyone gets.
The ride was broken when we first got there but it didn't take long before they got it working again and we were on in 5 minutes.
My thoughts...
Kumba
I don't remember much about this ride which means it didn't really leave a lasting impression with me. It was good but pretty forceful in places which I wasn't too keen on. The layout was nice and twisty and it went through the inversions nicely. So good overall but it's not a top ten ride for me.
Next up was the Congo River Rapids (seriously how many rapids are there in the world with that name?)
The queue for this was 30 minutes (said 35 on the board).
The monkey enclosure at the start of the queue was quite cool.
The rest of the queue was a boring cattle pen though.
The loading was REALLY slow. Instead of a constant stream of boats they stopped each one, let people in, checked the seatbelts, then they had to wait for a gap to send it out. Took ages.
My thoughts...
Rapids with the same name as 90% of the others
It was crap. Putting it simply.
The layout was boring and just went round in a circle, it wasn't very 'rapidy' and was really tame, and I got off bone dry. It was pretty short and wasn't worth the queue or the slow batching. Plus it takes 5 minutes to get back into the station once you've got to the end because it takes them so long to load the boats. You're just stuck on the lift hill for ages.
So yeah. Not very good rapids at all.
After the dry water ride we headed to the middle of the park to get some more credits.
I got more wet walking through here than I did on the rapids.
First up in the area was Sand Serpent (standard Wild Mouse coaster).
QUESTION: Does anyone know what this black think to the side here is with the brush on it?
Only me and Andrew queued to go on this. Took about 25 minutes in the end.
We started going round. Got to the hairpins at the top and stopped.
Well it's not like we had any choice.
Took the time to take some nerdy photos.
After TWENTY FIVE MINUTES. Someone appeared below us.
Andrew wanted to get evacuated. I did too but I also wanted the credit.
Anyway we started moving again.
I took some more nerdy pics.
After being stuck in the sun for half an hour I was obviously feeling really hot and went red.
When we got off they gave us all a bottle of water and a fast pass which you couldn't use on Cheetah Hunt which was stupid as that was the only ride that had a queue.
Turns out it was because of my dad we all got water. He saw he saw we had broken down on it and said to a member of staff "I hope you're going to get them all some water after being in the sun that long" and they went and got some. :lol:
I won't do a 'my thoughts' for this as it's just a standard wild mouse. It didn't seem as rough as some of the others though.
Anyway after riding the coaster with the longest duration ever we headed over to Scorpion.
Look at all those faces of people who obviously loved it.
The queue was only 10 minutes which wasn't bad as they only had one train running.
I don't know why but I always like the thought of going on a coaster that loops with just a lap bar. It makes it seem more thrilling.
My thoughts...
Scorpion
Quite a fun ride. It's quite forceful and it's got quite strong laterals in places. It wasn't amazing but I came off not hating it and thought it was good fun. Not worth queueing more than 15 minutes for though.
We headed down toward Rhino Rally but stopped to look at the Elephants on the way.
First the keeper made the elephant pick up a handkerchief on the floor and pass it back to him. Then he threw some fruit for the elephant to catch in it's mouth.
Then they sprayed the hose for them to have a drink.
Which went straight in one end and out the other. [/elephantporn]
(I know what Ciall's doing tonight. ).
Anyway, enough of the Elephants.
This disgusting thing was on the floor in the queue.
The bit with the river here is what they took out to make Cheetah Hunt.
The jeep used to go on a bridge which then floated down the river.
The driver picks a navigator (he picked Richard) to sit in the front with him. All they do is answer questions like what animal so and so is. :lol:
My thoughts...
Rhino Rally
Was really boring. Was really short and the driver was boring as well. It's hard to ride it without comparing it to the one at Animal Kingdom which is LOADS better. Here there doesn't seem to be as many animals, they don't get as close and the whole ride is pretty boring and as soon as you feel it starts to pick up pace it ends. So yeah. Not that great so won't bother with it again if I go back. Good job the queue was only 25 minutes.
We headed back down to the front of the park next to ride Gwazi.
Biggest. Lie. EVER!
We rode Lion first.
Then Tiger.
My thoughts...
Gwazi
If this new train is the smoothest way to experience a wooden coaster I'd HATE to see what it was like before the new trains.
Before you'd even got to the lift hill the train was rattling and bouncing all over the place. It was like it had square wheels. The ride was really rough and bouncy and it felt like the floor was going to give way beneath you because it was shaking so much. The seats were well padded but it was still really rough and hard to enjoy. It didn't really duel/race very well either. You only passed the other car twice I think.
But yeah. Even with the new cars (which do look nice) it's still really rough. I don't know where they got the whole "smoothest way to experience a wooden coaster" from. Good job it was walk on for both sides because I wouldn't queue for it.
We had a look round the shop and got an ice cream. The t-shirts here were pretty cool.
This is the one I got.
There was only one credit left after this so me and Andrew ran round to it while my dad and Richard went to sit down for a bit.
Cba to do a 'my thoughts'. As Air Grover was just a kids credit for the +1. Not very thrilling, super short and you only get one lap. That's all I needed for it to count though so didn't mind waiting 5 minutes to do it.
On the way back to my dad and Richard I took a few more quick animal photos.
Once we'd all met up again we decided to head out the park. On the way out we popped back to the Chunt shop to look for a magnet and then we went to get our stuff from the locker. We'd got all the rides done that we had wanted so we got the tram back to the car and planned to stop to eat on the way back.
We stopped at a Waffle House. It was proper dingy and diner-like inside. You could see all the regulars as they all knew each other and were all talking. While we were eating the staff sat down with them and they were all talking about things like abortion and how much time they'd done in prison. Obviously we'd picked a rough area to eat.
Also does anyone know what this is? I couldn't get a clear picture of it but it looks like a power line pole but shaped like mickey mouse.
When we got back we were told by our aunt and co that it was madness at Disney Studios. They went back to see Fantasmic but it started pouring down with rain and they cancelled the show. But everyone was rushing like a stampede to get out and loads of people were getting crushed as they had the big wooden gate shut and were making everyone go out a small gate and down a path.
My cousin said at one point she saw someone in a wheelchair and people were literally climbing over her to get out and there were kids getting dragged away from their parents in the crowds.
Sounded mental and they all came back absolutely drenched.
Overall we had a really good day. Busch was easily the best park of the trip and we were lucky the park was so empty when we went.
Anyway day 12 will be on Typhoon Lagoon, we also go back to have one more go at getting on Summit Plummet and we also go to see Fantasmic.
Day 11: Busch Gardens Tampa Bay
We'd kept putting the day off but today we finally managed to get our arses down to Busch Gardens.
My dad thought it was going to take about 4 hours to get there because it took him twice as long to get to the space center. So we all had to pack clothes as he said if the park is busy and it's a long drive we may stay over in a motel in Tampa overnight.
Anyway we got there in under an hour and a half in the end (I did tell him it wasn't that far). All we had to do was drive down the Interstate 4 until we got to Tampa then it was just a right and a left and we were there.
The car park is the opposite site of a busy road to the park. The parking here was the cheapest we'd had so far though.
The first ride most people will be able to see is Montu.
We applied suncream and I took a picture of where we'd parked to remember it later.
We walked up to the tram stop and took the short ride under the road to the park.
As soon as we got in the park it started raining. First of all everyone wanted a toilet so we had to try and find them. Then we had to go back to the entrance as my dad wanted to put his bum bag in a locker so it didn't get wet (it had all our passports and stuff in it). The lockers were quite expensive so next time people moan that you have to pay £1 to use them in the UK, just be glad it's not the $15 (ish) like it is in the parks in Orlando.
First up was Chunt.
The queue was coming out the entrance for this but it's because the queue wasn't fully opened. We managed to shuffle forwards to get out the rain though. We couldn't hear it running so Richard went to ask the member of staff at the ride entrance what was happening and they said it's stopped because of the rain.
We decided to wait it out in the end and a few minutes after, it opened again.
The queue coveres two floors. It's pretty long when fully opened (they opened more while we were queueing) but there's a few signs to look at and a Cheetah made of stone.
Those are all the coaster fact ones. There were some with facts about Cheetahs as well.
Anyway here's some more pictures of the queue.
The cars look amazing. <3
ORP thief.
In the end the queue took about 45 minutes (said 40 in the board).
My thoughts...
Cheetah Hunt:
I'd been following the construction of this excited that I was actually going to ride something in America in it's opening year. The ride looks visually amazing. Cannot fault it. The colours are amazing, the trains look awesome and the ride is sooooo photogenic.
The ride itself it glass smooth (so it should be
). It's a decent length and it takes you down the whole length of the park. The launches are pathetic though. For a coaster advertised as a 'new breed of speed' it certainly didn't live up to it. The first 'launch' is about the same as Th13teen does when you switch from backwards to forwards and you barely make it round the first corner. The main launch is a bit better but it just feels so weak. And the third one just feels like it's there to help it round the circuit rather than another thrilling launch. The coaster is good fun though and I enjoyed the way it went over the skyride and weaved in-between the rocks above the water.
Overall it's a fun coaster. It's not intense at all and the pace of it is pretty crap although it's glass smooth and has a decent layout and lasts quite a good length as well.
Anyway I'm going to post all my photos of the ride from the day now to avoid random pics later.
Next we headed to Montu.
The queue said 5 minutes. But it was walk on.
My thoughts...
Montu
I'm usually not too keen on B&M inverts. I find most are too forceful and make me quite dizzy. However this was AMAZING. Really enjoyed it. The first drop was great and it had a good layout with plenty of inversions.
What's weird though is noone else seemed to like it. My dad wasn't too keen on it (he reckons he's starting to get too old for coasters now) and Richard usually copies everything my dad says. Andrew said it wasn't that good but I really enjoyed it. :lol:
It's definitely in my top 3 favourite inverts. Not sure whether it's better than Nemesis or not (it probably is). So yeah It's my second favourite invert after Black Mamba.
The shop was pretty cool.
Next we decided to have a small break from the coasters so went into Tut's Tomb.
From the outside the attraction sounds really good and quite interesting.
Yet inside it's really crap. It's just two small rooms and then you go into a shop.
Next we decided to walk round to Sheikra.
What I really like about Busch is how it's all very open and green and there's loads of wildlife around the park. It's what Chessington need to do rather than have the zoo separated from the park.
Never seen a squirrel hang from a tree by just it's back feet before.
On the way there the rain started again so we went to find some cover.
We were there for about 10/15 mins waiting for it to die down a bit before moving on.
The park is MASSIVE and it takes ages to walk between rides. The distance from Montu to Sheikra was like walking from the Entrance of Alton, up to Air then back down to Towers Street and then up to Hex.
We finally saw the ride in the distance. It looks much taller in real life.
When we got there it was shut because of the rain. But we joined the queue anyway.
It wasn't to long before they got it going again.
The stairs going up to station level reminds me of the sort of stairs you get in secondary schools.
Going along the bridges to the platform my dad spotted this so told me to grab it.
But when we unfolded it we found out it was religious so put it back for someone else to fall for it (no wonder it was still there when we saw it).
Anyway I chose the bridge to make sure we got front row. The queue wasn't too bad in the end. Got on within 20 minutes.
The exit of the ride was flooded with about 3 inches of water.
My thoughts...
Sheikra
Enjoyed this ride quite a bit. I've never really seen why everyone loves Oblivion so much.posting.php Yes it's good but it's not 'that' good. Even though this was really short as well I enjoyed it a lot more as it did more. It had inversions, 2 vertical drops and a water-splash. I prefer dropping into a hole like Oblivion as it builds up to that moment, although the drop on this is really good as well. My dads favourite ride has always been Oblivion since we first went to Alton in 2002. His first comment after this was "I think Oblivion is going to have to move down a place. I think it's been beaten".
But yeah this ride is really good. Having no floor is cool as well but as with all floorless coasters you forget about it within a few seconds and it doesn't really change the ride much at all.
By now we were feeling pretty hungry so headed back to the Pizza and Pasta Buffet we saw as we were walking to Sheikra. We ended up at the back door first of all so had to walk all the way round the pond to get to the other side.
The prices weren't too bad.
I'm a fan of the PPB's in the UK parks but the one here was LOADS better. There was much more choice of pizza, it was easier to move round and get in and get your food, the drinks were quicker to get as the staff filled them ready so you just pick it up.
But yeah it was amazing and tasted so much nicer as well. I had loads of the BBQ Chicken pizza with the sauce.
They also had deserts.
But they were presented amazingly.
(Yes that's pudding made to look like a pizza).
It was really nice.
Also there was a group of people on the table next to us who were in hysterics. I dont know what they were laughing at but they were all crying with laughter and couldn't stop and it went on for about 10 minutes. Then when it died down they started again. It was really infectious as Andrew found it hilarious and kept laughing and when the group saw he was laughing as well they laughed harder. Then within 15 minutes half the restaurant was in a fit of laughter. It was really bizarre as noone knew why they were laughing. :lol:
There was still lots of wildlife walking around outside while were eating.
Anyway once we were full we headed out the back door and went back to the area where Sheikra was to get the Serengetti Express (the train that goes round the park) to Kumba. The train left as we got there so we had to wait for the next one (about 10/15 minutes).
Once on it takes you round past all the big rides, past loads of animals, down to Montu and Cheetah Hunt (where the one of the other stations is) then it comes up past the animals again and across the top of the park to Kumba and the rapids (where we got off).
Passing the other train.
Once we were off the train we headed to Kumba.
The shot everyone gets.
The ride was broken when we first got there but it didn't take long before they got it working again and we were on in 5 minutes.
My thoughts...
Kumba
I don't remember much about this ride which means it didn't really leave a lasting impression with me. It was good but pretty forceful in places which I wasn't too keen on. The layout was nice and twisty and it went through the inversions nicely. So good overall but it's not a top ten ride for me.
Next up was the Congo River Rapids (seriously how many rapids are there in the world with that name?
)The queue for this was 30 minutes (said 35 on the board).
The monkey enclosure at the start of the queue was quite cool.
The rest of the queue was a boring cattle pen though.
The loading was REALLY slow. Instead of a constant stream of boats they stopped each one, let people in, checked the seatbelts, then they had to wait for a gap to send it out. Took ages.
My thoughts...
Rapids with the same name as 90% of the others
It was crap. Putting it simply.
The layout was boring and just went round in a circle, it wasn't very 'rapidy' and was really tame, and I got off bone dry. It was pretty short and wasn't worth the queue or the slow batching. Plus it takes 5 minutes to get back into the station once you've got to the end because it takes them so long to load the boats. You're just stuck on the lift hill for ages.
So yeah. Not very good rapids at all.
After the dry water ride we headed to the middle of the park to get some more credits.
I got more wet walking through here than I did on the rapids.
First up in the area was Sand Serpent (standard Wild Mouse coaster).
QUESTION: Does anyone know what this black think to the side here is with the brush on it?
Only me and Andrew queued to go on this. Took about 25 minutes in the end.
We started going round. Got to the hairpins at the top and stopped.
Well it's not like we had any choice.
Took the time to take some nerdy photos.
After TWENTY FIVE MINUTES. Someone appeared below us.
Andrew wanted to get evacuated. I did too but I also wanted the credit.
Anyway we started moving again.
I took some more nerdy pics.
After being stuck in the sun for half an hour I was obviously feeling really hot and went red.
When we got off they gave us all a bottle of water and a fast pass which you couldn't use on Cheetah Hunt which was stupid as that was the only ride that had a queue.
Turns out it was because of my dad we all got water. He saw he saw we had broken down on it and said to a member of staff "I hope you're going to get them all some water after being in the sun that long" and they went and got some. :lol:
I won't do a 'my thoughts' for this as it's just a standard wild mouse. It didn't seem as rough as some of the others though.
Anyway after riding the coaster with the longest duration ever we headed over to Scorpion.
Look at all those faces of people who obviously loved it.
The queue was only 10 minutes which wasn't bad as they only had one train running.
I don't know why but I always like the thought of going on a coaster that loops with just a lap bar. It makes it seem more thrilling.
My thoughts...
Scorpion
Quite a fun ride. It's quite forceful and it's got quite strong laterals in places. It wasn't amazing but I came off not hating it and thought it was good fun. Not worth queueing more than 15 minutes for though.
We headed down toward Rhino Rally but stopped to look at the Elephants on the way.
First the keeper made the elephant pick up a handkerchief on the floor and pass it back to him. Then he threw some fruit for the elephant to catch in it's mouth.
Then they sprayed the hose for them to have a drink.
Which went straight in one end and out the other. [/elephantporn]
(I know what Ciall's doing tonight.
).
Anyway, enough of the Elephants.
This disgusting thing was on the floor in the queue.
The bit with the river here is what they took out to make Cheetah Hunt.
The jeep used to go on a bridge which then floated down the river.
The driver picks a navigator (he picked Richard) to sit in the front with him. All they do is answer questions like what animal so and so is. :lol:
My thoughts...
Rhino Rally
Was really boring. Was really short and the driver was boring as well. It's hard to ride it without comparing it to the one at Animal Kingdom which is LOADS better. Here there doesn't seem to be as many animals, they don't get as close and the whole ride is pretty boring and as soon as you feel it starts to pick up pace it ends. So yeah. Not that great so won't bother with it again if I go back. Good job the queue was only 25 minutes.
We headed back down to the front of the park next to ride Gwazi.
Biggest. Lie. EVER!
We rode Lion first.
Then Tiger.
My thoughts...
Gwazi
If this new train is the smoothest way to experience a wooden coaster I'd HATE to see what it was like before the new trains.
Before you'd even got to the lift hill the train was rattling and bouncing all over the place. It was like it had square wheels. The ride was really rough and bouncy and it felt like the floor was going to give way beneath you because it was shaking so much. The seats were well padded but it was still really rough and hard to enjoy. It didn't really duel/race very well either. You only passed the other car twice I think.
But yeah. Even with the new cars (which do look nice) it's still really rough. I don't know where they got the whole "smoothest way to experience a wooden coaster" from. Good job it was walk on for both sides because I wouldn't queue for it.
We had a look round the shop and got an ice cream. The t-shirts here were pretty cool.
This is the one I got.
There was only one credit left after this so me and Andrew ran round to it while my dad and Richard went to sit down for a bit.
Cba to do a 'my thoughts'. As Air Grover was just a kids credit for the +1. Not very thrilling, super short and you only get one lap. That's all I needed for it to count though so didn't mind waiting 5 minutes to do it.
On the way back to my dad and Richard I took a few more quick animal photos.
Once we'd all met up again we decided to head out the park. On the way out we popped back to the Chunt shop to look for a magnet and then we went to get our stuff from the locker. We'd got all the rides done that we had wanted so we got the tram back to the car and planned to stop to eat on the way back.
We stopped at a Waffle House. It was proper dingy and diner-like inside. You could see all the regulars as they all knew each other and were all talking. While we were eating the staff sat down with them and they were all talking about things like abortion and how much time they'd done in prison. Obviously we'd picked a rough area to eat.
Also does anyone know what this is? I couldn't get a clear picture of it but it looks like a power line pole but shaped like mickey mouse.
When we got back we were told by our aunt and co that it was madness at Disney Studios. They went back to see Fantasmic but it started pouring down with rain and they cancelled the show. But everyone was rushing like a stampede to get out and loads of people were getting crushed as they had the big wooden gate shut and were making everyone go out a small gate and down a path.
My cousin said at one point she saw someone in a wheelchair and people were literally climbing over her to get out and there were kids getting dragged away from their parents in the crowds.
Sounded mental and they all came back absolutely drenched.
Overall we had a really good day. Busch was easily the best park of the trip and we were lucky the park was so empty when we went.
Anyway day 12 will be on Typhoon Lagoon, we also go back to have one more go at getting on Summit Plummet and we also go to see Fantasmic.
Re: First Time Evah in Florida - DAY 12 BUSCH GARDENS TAMPA
Been glancing over this every now and again. I'm interested to hear your thoughts on the rides. I really need to get back to Busch though, it all looks so good still! And I love the look of Chunt. Can't wait to ride it! <3
Been glancing over this every now and again. I'm interested to hear your thoughts on the rides. I really need to get back to Busch though, it all looks so good still! And I love the look of Chunt. Can't wait to ride it! <3
Yeah, it's exactly that. It's just a pylon in a funky shape. I remember seeing it, but I can't remember where it was exactly. It probably services some part of the Disney park and they kinda used it as advertising. After all, that's what Orlando is famous for!Ollie said:Also does anyone know what this is? I couldn't get a clear picture of it but it looks like a power line pole but shaped like mickey mouse.
Ollie
CF Legend
Re: First Time Evah in Florida - DAY 12 BUSCH GARDENS TAMPA
^Yeah, it's weird though as that Mickey thing doesn't seem to be anywhere near Disney.
I've missed out a couple of things in the report. It's not much. Just when we went back to Ponderosa to eat and look round the shop and stuff. We also had a Chinese one night which was crap but I can't remember which night we had it. :lol:
Oh and we went back to McDonalds twice as well but my memory is crap so I can't remember when. All I made a note off was ride order and queue times which I guess is the most important bits.
^Yeah, it's weird though as that Mickey thing doesn't seem to be anywhere near Disney.
Well seeing as it's a PIZZA & Pasta Buffet, there's a pretty good chance that we got Pizza. I even said I had loads of slices of the BBQ one in the report.Josh73 said:
I've missed out a couple of things in the report. It's not much. Just when we went back to Ponderosa to eat and look round the shop and stuff. We also had a Chinese one night which was crap but I can't remember which night we had it. :lol:
Oh and we went back to McDonalds twice as well but my memory is crap so I can't remember when. All I made a note off was ride order and queue times which I guess is the most important bits.
davidm
Strata Poster
Re: First Time Evah in Florida - DAY 12 BUSCH GARDENS TAMPA
See here;
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Celebrati ... ,,0,-14.02
...its between WDW and CelebrationHixee said:
See here;
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Celebrati ... ,,0,-14.02
Re: First Time Evah in Florida - DAY 12 BUSCH GARDENS TAMPA
I now have no respect for any of your opinions, Ollie. You seem to have had a completely different experience to the one I had.
Cheetah Hunt is amazing. The first launch, although not hugely forceful, is great fun, especially if you're in the second train. And the drop from the figure of eight is really good.
Montu was just too disorientating for me. Even though there was LITERALLY no one in the queue, I still didn't want to go again.
Sheikra was ok, but the holding only has an effect in the front row, and it generally didn't do anything for me.
The Rapids are great though. I'm convinced that the effects were all off when you went, because there is no way you could have come off that ride dry. It's the second wettest ride in Florida, easily.
I must have got lucky with my driver on Rhino Rally, because he was very entertaining, even if the ride itself can't compare with Kilamanjaro Safaris.
I now have no respect for any of your opinions, Ollie. You seem to have had a completely different experience to the one I had.
Cheetah Hunt is amazing. The first launch, although not hugely forceful, is great fun, especially if you're in the second train. And the drop from the figure of eight is really good.
Montu was just too disorientating for me. Even though there was LITERALLY no one in the queue, I still didn't want to go again.
Sheikra was ok, but the holding only has an effect in the front row, and it generally didn't do anything for me.
The Rapids are great though. I'm convinced that the effects were all off when you went, because there is no way you could have come off that ride dry. It's the second wettest ride in Florida, easily.
I must have got lucky with my driver on Rhino Rally, because he was very entertaining, even if the ride itself can't compare with Kilamanjaro Safaris.
michaellll
Mega Poster
Re: First Time Evah in Florida - DAY 12 BUSCH GARDENS TAMPA
^ Man, I'm with you on CHunt. The coaster is just mad fun. Not the most intense launcher out there, but definitely the best "mid-range" coaster I've ever ridden. Decent launches, decent airtime, beautiful scenery, smooth, great s-turns, flies through a creek. It's got a lot to offer imo.
And Montu is aight. I don't love it like the rest of the coaster community, but that's largely because B&Ms bore the hell out of me for whatever reason. It's just inversion after inversion, and sure it's forceful...but that's about it.
Gwazi can suck my.....
No. Really. I ****ing hate BGT for giving Florida such a crappy woodie... [-(
^ Man, I'm with you on CHunt. The coaster is just mad fun. Not the most intense launcher out there, but definitely the best "mid-range" coaster I've ever ridden. Decent launches, decent airtime, beautiful scenery, smooth, great s-turns, flies through a creek. It's got a lot to offer imo.
And Montu is aight. I don't love it like the rest of the coaster community, but that's largely because B&Ms bore the hell out of me for whatever reason. It's just inversion after inversion, and sure it's forceful...but that's about it.
Gwazi can suck my.....
No. Really. I ****ing hate BGT for giving Florida such a crappy woodie... [-(
Ollie
CF Legend
Re: First Time Evah in Florida - DAY 12 BUSCH GARDENS TAMPA
I said it was good fun and you agreed with me that the launches aren't that forceful. But I did say it's good fun to ride and it's glass smooth and had some nice airtime. I said the only problem with it was that it advertises itself about the speed when there really isn't much. It is a good ride though.jokerman said:
I usually find B&M's a bit boring and too forceful. But there's just something about Montu I really liked. It's a good coaster.
It wasn't OMG AMAZING. But it was a good ride. If I had the choice between this and Oblivion it'd be this easily.
Did we ride the same rapids? lol. They did have effects on like some hoses and I think there was a small waterfall in the tunnel. Just nothing got me. Some people got wet but I've got wetter on the rapids at Thorpe. The wettest rapids is EASILY the ones at IOA.
It wasn't just the driver though. It just wasn't that exciting or interesting. I know I'm not alone on this as most people I speak to about this ride told me how crap it is.