BBH
Giga Poster
Before I get into the park itself, let me walk you through the day's events yesterday.
I woke up at 6 A.M. and had a Long John and Hot Chocolate Coolata for breakfast. We set out for Branson on I-55 and once we hit Decatur, IL (around 3.5-ish hours in) a gigantic storm washed over us, with some rotation. After 15 or so minutes of a torrential downpour with ridiculously large raindrops, it let up. Then we hit St. Louis, and when I saw the Arch, that's when I truly got the feeling that we were going somewhere. Also, you see the Arch in pictures, and you think, "Oh, that looks cool." But it doesn't really hit you until you see it in person:
You can see my beautiful arms in the mirror.
We passed through Eureka and by SFStL, which we are not able to stop at. I did get a look at Boss, American Thunder, Freeze and Batman from the side of I-44, though. (No pictures.) And then we saw the bluffs, which...
Wow.
At our hotel in Branson, we were greeted by a swan fabricated from a pristine white towel. (RIP)
So we set out early for Silver Dollar City. We wove through the Ozarks, and I found Ozark Wildcat, an old GCI at Celebration City that closed five years ago and is currently SBNO. (No pictures.) After we parked and were shuttled for free, we came upon the entrance of the park. What struck me immediately was the immersing themeing: it felt like the 1880's. It was incredibly well done, too, it wasn't cheesy or overkill.
First, we waited for the gates to open and got on Thunderation's first train. The coat hanger physics are pronounced, the ride is very rough but weirdly and insanely fun. It's one of the most odd coaster experiences I've ever had. After that, we went to Outlaw, where...
Sign hotness!
Stagecoach hotness!
We came to the queue of Outlaw, and we got about halfway through (not even 10 minutes in) and they stopped the ride. (It only had one train operating at the time.) They said they heard something abnormal coming from the train, and after running it through a couple of times, they added a second train, and I finally got onto the RMC masterpiece after a half-an-hour pushback.
And then we rode Outlaw, which... wow. Favorite coaster by a longshot. The first drop is amazing, it feels like it never ends, and then it's over. The 153 is disorientating yet extraordinarily fun, and it leads into the following screams: "AIRTIME! AIRTIME! AIRTIME! THROUGH THE LIFT! AIRTIME! AIRTIME! LAAATTERRALL AIRTIME! AIRTIME! AND... CRAAAZZYYY!" Yes, I scream like a madman on coasters. The airtime is fantastic, the G's are just mind-boggling, and the double barrel roll is magnificent.
After that I split up with the group, and I went off alone to do a credit run while getting the only major flat at the park, the S&S "Giant Barn Swing." I expected it to be waaay worse, but the airtime was brilliant cresting the top, may be something I do again when I go on Wednesday. After walking around for a bit, I came upon Wildfire, and I prepared myself for some B&M hotness by removing my Blackhawks cap and replacing it with my coonskin I had purchased the day before. Wildfire was a walk-on all day long, I got on it twice in a span of five minutes and rerode it about an hour and a half later again.
Wildfire begins with a standard B&M dip out of the station, but this one is FAST! I hadn't ridden a B&M (or any coaster, for that matter) since September, and this was the closest I'd came to the actual track, and you can't grasp how wide the gauge is until you actually see the coaster in real life. So after cresting the lift fairly quickly, you go into one of the best backseat drops of any coaster I've ridden. After an Immelmann (<<<<3) and a vertical loop, I experienced my first cobra roll, which was absolutely superb. What struck me about this ride was the great positive G's and the pop of airtime going into the brake run. It was great, I rode it twice in the very front and once in the back. I took a quick off-ride of it...
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69MYCoCYEjU[/youtube]
As you can see in the video and the picture above, I am, unsurprisingly, white.
Then, I rode Powder Keg, my first actual launched coaster. (V2 being a shuttle.) The elevator system is unique and a little bit perplexing, but not as perplexing as the launch, which just BLASTS you away! *forced laughter* It's very loud from both on the train (I rode second row.) and from the observation area. (I elected not to stay long enough to take any pictures because there was a designated smoking area right there, and, yuck.) The airtime, however, is fabulous, despite the horrid S&S restraints.
After some very delectable nachos and a satisfying root beer, we went on a cave tour of Marvel Cave. After a 45-minute delay because of reasons, we moved on through the tour and were taken back to the real world by a cable car. My mother took the following pictures:
After the conclusion of the cave tour, we departed Silver Dollar City at around 4:00, heading back through the Ozarks again. My brother got a YOLO t-shirt, and I refuse to be seen in public with him while he wears it. What did I get? A decompressed spine! The coasters were superb, all had at least one moment of air time, even the mine train. The themeing was excellent across the board, though I didn't get to really appreciate Wildfire's, as I walked right through the station without a second thought. I am definitely looking forward to going back on Wednesday, and I will be sure to ride the log flume (Which, I might add, has a true wooden support structure, so that means RCT3 was right.) and the Intamin Rapids after going on the others a couple of more times.
I realized after I split off that SDC is not a credit run park. You get through all of the coasters so quickly and you begin to feel disappointed that you didn't truly take in the scenery, which is excellent all throughout the park. The dispatch teams are incredibly efficient (Or maybe it's just that the rides are so short that they give off that illusion.) and the park staff is friendly. The only thing separating this park from being my favorite is a map that's easier to follow, but that's a minor thing, and it's incredibly close to Great America. This park is easily a 9.5/10 and well worth your time and money to get down to Branson.
I woke up at 6 A.M. and had a Long John and Hot Chocolate Coolata for breakfast. We set out for Branson on I-55 and once we hit Decatur, IL (around 3.5-ish hours in) a gigantic storm washed over us, with some rotation. After 15 or so minutes of a torrential downpour with ridiculously large raindrops, it let up. Then we hit St. Louis, and when I saw the Arch, that's when I truly got the feeling that we were going somewhere. Also, you see the Arch in pictures, and you think, "Oh, that looks cool." But it doesn't really hit you until you see it in person:
You can see my beautiful arms in the mirror.
We passed through Eureka and by SFStL, which we are not able to stop at. I did get a look at Boss, American Thunder, Freeze and Batman from the side of I-44, though. (No pictures.) And then we saw the bluffs, which...
Wow.
At our hotel in Branson, we were greeted by a swan fabricated from a pristine white towel. (RIP)
So we set out early for Silver Dollar City. We wove through the Ozarks, and I found Ozark Wildcat, an old GCI at Celebration City that closed five years ago and is currently SBNO. (No pictures.) After we parked and were shuttled for free, we came upon the entrance of the park. What struck me immediately was the immersing themeing: it felt like the 1880's. It was incredibly well done, too, it wasn't cheesy or overkill.
First, we waited for the gates to open and got on Thunderation's first train. The coat hanger physics are pronounced, the ride is very rough but weirdly and insanely fun. It's one of the most odd coaster experiences I've ever had. After that, we went to Outlaw, where...
Sign hotness!
Stagecoach hotness!
We came to the queue of Outlaw, and we got about halfway through (not even 10 minutes in) and they stopped the ride. (It only had one train operating at the time.) They said they heard something abnormal coming from the train, and after running it through a couple of times, they added a second train, and I finally got onto the RMC masterpiece after a half-an-hour pushback.
And then we rode Outlaw, which... wow. Favorite coaster by a longshot. The first drop is amazing, it feels like it never ends, and then it's over. The 153 is disorientating yet extraordinarily fun, and it leads into the following screams: "AIRTIME! AIRTIME! AIRTIME! THROUGH THE LIFT! AIRTIME! AIRTIME! LAAATTERRALL AIRTIME! AIRTIME! AND... CRAAAZZYYY!" Yes, I scream like a madman on coasters. The airtime is fantastic, the G's are just mind-boggling, and the double barrel roll is magnificent.
After that I split up with the group, and I went off alone to do a credit run while getting the only major flat at the park, the S&S "Giant Barn Swing." I expected it to be waaay worse, but the airtime was brilliant cresting the top, may be something I do again when I go on Wednesday. After walking around for a bit, I came upon Wildfire, and I prepared myself for some B&M hotness by removing my Blackhawks cap and replacing it with my coonskin I had purchased the day before. Wildfire was a walk-on all day long, I got on it twice in a span of five minutes and rerode it about an hour and a half later again.
Wildfire begins with a standard B&M dip out of the station, but this one is FAST! I hadn't ridden a B&M (or any coaster, for that matter) since September, and this was the closest I'd came to the actual track, and you can't grasp how wide the gauge is until you actually see the coaster in real life. So after cresting the lift fairly quickly, you go into one of the best backseat drops of any coaster I've ridden. After an Immelmann (<<<<3) and a vertical loop, I experienced my first cobra roll, which was absolutely superb. What struck me about this ride was the great positive G's and the pop of airtime going into the brake run. It was great, I rode it twice in the very front and once in the back. I took a quick off-ride of it...
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69MYCoCYEjU[/youtube]
As you can see in the video and the picture above, I am, unsurprisingly, white.
Then, I rode Powder Keg, my first actual launched coaster. (V2 being a shuttle.) The elevator system is unique and a little bit perplexing, but not as perplexing as the launch, which just BLASTS you away! *forced laughter* It's very loud from both on the train (I rode second row.) and from the observation area. (I elected not to stay long enough to take any pictures because there was a designated smoking area right there, and, yuck.) The airtime, however, is fabulous, despite the horrid S&S restraints.
After some very delectable nachos and a satisfying root beer, we went on a cave tour of Marvel Cave. After a 45-minute delay because of reasons, we moved on through the tour and were taken back to the real world by a cable car. My mother took the following pictures:
After the conclusion of the cave tour, we departed Silver Dollar City at around 4:00, heading back through the Ozarks again. My brother got a YOLO t-shirt, and I refuse to be seen in public with him while he wears it. What did I get? A decompressed spine! The coasters were superb, all had at least one moment of air time, even the mine train. The themeing was excellent across the board, though I didn't get to really appreciate Wildfire's, as I walked right through the station without a second thought. I am definitely looking forward to going back on Wednesday, and I will be sure to ride the log flume (Which, I might add, has a true wooden support structure, so that means RCT3 was right.) and the Intamin Rapids after going on the others a couple of more times.
I realized after I split off that SDC is not a credit run park. You get through all of the coasters so quickly and you begin to feel disappointed that you didn't truly take in the scenery, which is excellent all throughout the park. The dispatch teams are incredibly efficient (Or maybe it's just that the rides are so short that they give off that illusion.) and the park staff is friendly. The only thing separating this park from being my favorite is a map that's easier to follow, but that's a minor thing, and it's incredibly close to Great America. This park is easily a 9.5/10 and well worth your time and money to get down to Branson.
