Hutch
Strata Poster
Part 1 – Carowinds
My family and I usually do a major coaster trip (usually a few parks) around this time in June, so this time it we visited Carowinds, Dollywood, and Six Flags Over Georgia for the first time. Nice way to kick off the 2018 season.
On Friday, June 8th, we got up at an early morning goon time at 4 AM for a 6 AM flight out of Boston to Charlotte. We didn’t want to fly the previous night and spend an extra night at a hotel, and of course we chose an early flight which allowed us to get to Carowinds by its 10 AM opening.
Despite trying to go to bed at around 11:30 the previous night, I don’t think I fell asleep until after 1. I was still able to doze off on the plane, but even with that I still only had about 4-5 hours of sleep upon arrival.
After arriving, we picked up our rental car and made the short drive to Carowinds. We got to the parking a lot about 10 minutes before opening.
It's quite a sight to see two massive B&Ms greeting you at the front of the park. Fury in particular is a beast of a coaster, we first caught a glimpse of it miles from the park.
They park opened up by the time we hit the security line (staff had to pause to let the National Anthem play), so it was time for business. Leading up to the trip I expected some crowds for today, even wondered Fast Lane was necessary. We didn't use Fast Lane, and I'm glad we didn't because it was still a weekday and queues weren't too bad. I don't remember waiting longer than 10 minutes for anything.
As tempting as it was to ride one of the B&Ms first, the smart thing to do was to take out the low capacity crap first. We did Nighthawk first, which doesn't have low capacity but has a rather cumbersome loading process.
I was really happy that we did this first. I saw the line later in the day and it was pretty long, and the Carowinds app said it was 45 min. It wasn't a complete walk on when we did it, others filed into the line and it quickly started extending outside the station. We only had to wait for a few trains, but loading each train took a little while and the ops didn't seem the most efficient.
I did Firehawk a couple years ago and thought it was decent but uncomfortable. I was expecting something similar for Nighthawk but it was actually good! The restraints were actually comfortable throughout the ride and it was pretty smooth, except for the barrel rolls which were a little shaky. The loop is clearly the highlight with some pretty good forces on par with the B&M pretzel loop, and the transitions between the lying/flying positions were funky but fun. Even going up the lift hill was fine, and it gave good views of the early construction for their Mack launched coaster (I didn't spot any footers or track or anything, just a big patch of dirt with a lot of vehicles and work being done).
I liked it, and definitely prefer it over Firehawk. On top of that, it looks pretty decent over the little pond and trees. Solid way to start off the day.
With that out of the way we looped around and found Flying Cobra, the park's boomerang. It is what it is.
To be fair though, the park seems to have been paying attention to it. It got a rename and a new paint job, so it looks kinda nice, especially with the multicolored cars. It also uses the newer Vekoma trains with the vest restraints, so at least there's no headbanging.
Next up was Ricochet. It had been a couple years years since I had done a wild mouse, and they're silly rides. I think they're more fun when you're with people, so we had a fun time on this (but I think part of that was because I hadn't done one in a while).
Before trying out the other crap I decided to have my 150th coaster on Fury 325. Yeah, I know 150 shouldn't be special milestone but I still think it's a nice round number so might as well.
Most of the peeps had rushed over to Fury at opening but thankfully due to better operations, high capacity, and three trains running we were on no problem. It was pretty sweet to be able to have a walk on for a coaster that many rate very highly of. What was really nice was that we were able to choose our row, despite signs indicating outside that rows were assigned for you. The ride op that checked my seat called me out for wearing a Skyrush shirt, claiming that the ride is boring and that Fury was the best ride in the world. Some people really are crazy, huh?
I remember there was a lot of hype for this when it was brand new (probably too much hype?). Leading up to the trip I had almost forgotten that this was the top steel coaster on my bucket list for some time.
And the immediate area looks rather nice too.
As for the ride? It's one of the most powerful B&Ms I've done, if not the most. We sat second to the last row for our first ride. The chain lift was a lot quicker than I expected, but still left plenty of time to take in the views. The first drop is incredible, it goes on for a good while. For me the drop is up there with Millennium Force, Skyrush, and Mako.
The turns in the first half of the ride have more positive g-forces than I was expecting, and the transitions in the banking are fun and floaty.
What was easily a highlight of the ride was the treble clef. The train pins you in a tight turn with the most intense forces, before flinging you out of your seat on top and going underneath the bridge. The exit is taken at an angle too, so the airtime kind of throws you sideways, especially if you sit on the very left. Great mix of positives/laterals/negatives.
Then of course you have the airtime hills at the end, and surprisingly they were more sustained ejector than your typical B&M floater. The helix in between is easily the weakest part of the ride. The only thing it has it going for is a decent head chopper with the supports. Honestly, I imagine the only reason it's there is break the longest steel coaster record in North America ("We haven't broken the record yet? Quick, add a helix!").
It's quite a remarkable coaster, but it didn't quite live up to my expectations. The thing is, it actually did everything I expected it to do: fantastic first drop, great sense of speed throughout, fun banking transitions, great airtime. I think for me the positive g forces were a lot to handle. They're not nearly as bad as say, the rattle of Banshee, or the discomfort from Rita. Fury is perfectly smooth and the gs aren't extreme but they're quite consistent throughout the ride, even in between the airtime hills at the end. Another reason why I wasn't a huge fan of the positive forces was because I had a slight headache throughout the day, probably due to a lack of sleep. It's a very long and powerful ride, and after three back to back rides I needed a break! I think if this were toned down a bit I would've ranked it a bit higher, possibly creeping into my Top 10. Instead, I have it sitting at #17. Favorite moments were the first drop, treble clef exit, and final airtime hills.
Going in, I was expecting Fury to be a mix of Millennium Force and a B&M hyper. It has everything I love about Millennium Force and more, but it's not as gentle as a B&M hyper. I think if this had less turns and more airtime, or maybe even end sooner, it would've placed higher for me? I know Intimidator is across the park and is supposed to focus on airtime, but honestly, Fury has just as much airtime moments, possibly more (will talk about that later).
This has also gotten me thinking about Leviathan, which I haven't done. I always thought that Fury looked better due to the length, but after riding it, I think Leviathan could actually be more fun. I know it's shorter, but the bigger airtime hills look more appealing and I think the length could leave you wanting more, whereas Fury is just a lot. Maybe less is more?
So that's my review for Fury. We got three quick rides before moving onto the rest of the park.
We cleaned up the rest of the creds in the area, starting with Hurler. Pretty sure this a a mirror image of Thunder Run at Kentucky Kingdom. That thing was pretty brutal, despite getting some TLC at the time. So with Hurler I was expecting something similar if not worse.
It was fine, actually better than Thunder Run. There's a trim immediately after the drop, but it made the first turn more bearable and the rest of the ride a bit smoother than Thunder Run. Unfortunately there was basically no airtime on any of the hills. In theory the hills looked small enough to give some decent airtime but no, didn't rise out of the seat at all. I'm hoping they RMC this soon, Twisted Timbers clone or anything, but with the Mack coaster coming next year, this will probably be around for at least a few more years.
Carolina Cobra was next. The queue barely extended out of the station but the rides ops were taking their sweet ass time dispatching the trains. They had two trains running, which was impressive as it's just a typical Arrow double loopscrew, but that didn't really matter because it would take quite a few minutes for them to load and dispatch a train. During our ride we sat on the brake run for what seemed like a few minutes. I actually hoped there was a technical error because there was no way they ops should be taking that long, but no, they were still checking restrains. I didn't know what **** they were doing.
The ride was okay though. The loops were forceful and the corkscrews surprisingly had no head banging, and there was a "fun" helix at the end that surprised me. The transitions were a a bit uncomfortable though.
The track had an interesting color scheme, but it had some dirty spots. I think if they gave the ride more attention and actually discipline the ride ops it could be a little nicer.
Been a few years since I had done a stand-up, but Vortex was going to be extra special since I'd heard vile things about it.
It was absolutely disgusting. Failed to live up to my low expectations. I was already done with it by the first loop. The forces in it were so bad and I greyed out until the top of the next hill. The second half of the layout wasn't as bad as the loop but I was already having a bad time couldn't wait to get off. Not to mention the layout is pretty uninspiring with most of the elements being turns or helices.
I was even limping on my right leg as soon as I got off. I was fine in the long run, but these rides are just uncomfortable, sometimes painful, and not fun at all. Really glad that parks were smart enough not to invest in these anymore and that Cedar Fair took the hint and started converting some of them to floorless. Hopefully they'll convert this as well at some point, would be a HUGE improvement.
I needed a break after that. We had lunch at the place near Hurler and Fury and had some chicken tenders. Overpriced as expected, but the food was enjoyable. Actually, they let you have free cups of water, which is really nice. It was nice to sit down and relax for a bit. Thanks to the light crowds, we were being pretty leisurely.
After that we continued on with the rest of the creds. I actually looking forward to Carolina Goldrusher, mainly because all the crap we were doing earlier was starting to add up, especially after the unpleasantries of the boomerang, Hurler, Cyclone, and Vortex.
I kind of like these Arrow mine trains. I think they're pretty fun even if they don't always do much. This one was smooth and had some nice turns and helices in trenches. There was even a fab underground tunnel at the very end, which caught me by surprise.
That brought us over to the Windseeker. I really like these kinds of rides. I always try to do them whenever they're at a park, mainly for the views, but the breeze was refreshing as well. Don't have a picture of it unfortunately.
And of course, we eventually reached one of the better rides at the park, Afterburn.
It was a walk on, so we did two quick rides (unfortunately in the same seats as they were assigning rows). It was pretty good! It's crazy to believe that I've done about a dozen of these B&M inverts now, and they're all solid rides. I like how this one has no MCBR and just flows through the entire layout and ends when it needs to. The inversions were good, highlight for me was of course the batwing, and the zero g was great too. There was a slight rattle throughout the ride, so it wasn't quite as great as I was hoping but still a very solid and intense ride. I thought it had potential to be very good, based on how others rate it and how it has a similar flow of inversions to Montu (which itself is an amazing ride). I think I have it ranked in the middle of all the B&M inverts I've done. It's good stuff.
I had a few more creds to get, so we wandered into the kiddy area.
We did the family woodie Woodstock Express. Pretty sure this is a clone of the one at Kings Island and they're both actually pretty fun. The drops are sudden and there's some sharp transitions. On top of that you have one lap bar for the entire row, which is quite nice. Good kids ride.
And then there's Kiddyhawk, the Vekoma suspended family coaster.
This was the least memorable ride of the day (perhaps even the entire trip). I think this had OTSRs, which was kind of disappointing but it didn't ruin the ride. And I think the first helix after the lift hill had a little bit of force? I only rode this a few days ago but I'm already struggling remember! The one at Fun Spot Orlando is much better.
Last cred of the day and I wanted it to be a good one: Intimidator.
This ride seemed to get mixed reviews, and while I thought it was one of the lower tier B&M hypers I've done, I still thought it was great. It was very smooth, I think one of the smoother hypers I've done. The first drop is fun as always and the floater airtime is fantastic as expected. The trims on the airtime hills weren't a problem, and I actually stayed toward the front of the train because I thought that could be a problem in the back.
The big thing that keeps me from rating it higher is that the layout is rather poor compared to other hyper coasters I've done. There's only three traditional airtime hills. While the first hill/turn after the drop and the turnaround halfway through are fine, the ride is basically over by the time the MCBR comes. Yeah there's still some solid floater before/after the MCBR and entering the helix, but the ride could use some more straight airtime hills in the layout.
At first, I was actually debating whether I liked this or Fury more. I decided that Intimidator is more re rideable, but Fury is the better coaster. Each has three traditional airtime hills, but Fury has the treble clef and better first drop. Both coasters could really use some more airtime hills though.
I did one re ride by myself. The queue had extended outside the station, but it moved pretty quickly. They had three trains running, but for some reason they weren't using one of them and kept sending it through the circuit by itself. Not sure why they just put it away in the garage? I was able to find another single rider who was already waiting for the front, so I saved a couple minutes of waiting. And that ride was really fun!
Despite only getting two rides on Intimidator, we wanted to hit the road to Dollywood soon. I did grab one last ride on Fury by myself, and I was able to join a family of three waiting for the front row, and that was an awesome way to end the day. The young kid I sat with must've got the sense that I was a coaster enthusiast. "How many giga coasters have you ridden?"
And with that we were on our way out. I spent a few minutes taking some pictures of Fury outside the park and we got on the road by 3 PM. It was really nice that I was able to get all the creds in that time. Honestly, if we really wanted to we could have gotten all the creds in about three hours.
I know Carowinds seems to get mixed or poor reviews on here, but I enjoyed it. The park was clean some of of the areas look nice, with little ponds and trees sprinkled throughout the park. The "big three" B&Ms are great as expected, and Nighthawk is a surprisingly solid supporting ride.
Thee coaster selection has a lot of crap, but they have some potential to greatly improve that. The new Mack coaster, whatever it is, will be a huge gain for the park. RMCing Hurler is a no brainer and Vortex needs to be a floorless. Carolina Cyclone and Flying Cobras are meh, and the rest of the family coasters are fine.
The operations were also pretty inconsistent. The big three were all taken care of well, which is unsurprising as those are the biggest draws. The operations on stuff like Cyclone, Hurler, and Cobra weren't great, I know Cedar Fair is better than that.
One thing I don't really like is how they have people trying to take your picture at the front of the park. They did this at Kings Island as well. I wonder what the ratio is for photos sold to photos taken.
Just to compare to the other Cedar Fair parks I've done, I prefer Cedar Point and Kings Island over Carowinds, but we had a nice time. Don't know when I'll be back, that probably depends on when I'll return to Dollywood!
Speaking of which, next up... Dollywood!
My family and I usually do a major coaster trip (usually a few parks) around this time in June, so this time it we visited Carowinds, Dollywood, and Six Flags Over Georgia for the first time. Nice way to kick off the 2018 season.
On Friday, June 8th, we got up at an early morning goon time at 4 AM for a 6 AM flight out of Boston to Charlotte. We didn’t want to fly the previous night and spend an extra night at a hotel, and of course we chose an early flight which allowed us to get to Carowinds by its 10 AM opening.
Despite trying to go to bed at around 11:30 the previous night, I don’t think I fell asleep until after 1. I was still able to doze off on the plane, but even with that I still only had about 4-5 hours of sleep upon arrival.
After arriving, we picked up our rental car and made the short drive to Carowinds. We got to the parking a lot about 10 minutes before opening.
It's quite a sight to see two massive B&Ms greeting you at the front of the park. Fury in particular is a beast of a coaster, we first caught a glimpse of it miles from the park.
They park opened up by the time we hit the security line (staff had to pause to let the National Anthem play), so it was time for business. Leading up to the trip I expected some crowds for today, even wondered Fast Lane was necessary. We didn't use Fast Lane, and I'm glad we didn't because it was still a weekday and queues weren't too bad. I don't remember waiting longer than 10 minutes for anything.
As tempting as it was to ride one of the B&Ms first, the smart thing to do was to take out the low capacity crap first. We did Nighthawk first, which doesn't have low capacity but has a rather cumbersome loading process.
I was really happy that we did this first. I saw the line later in the day and it was pretty long, and the Carowinds app said it was 45 min. It wasn't a complete walk on when we did it, others filed into the line and it quickly started extending outside the station. We only had to wait for a few trains, but loading each train took a little while and the ops didn't seem the most efficient.
I did Firehawk a couple years ago and thought it was decent but uncomfortable. I was expecting something similar for Nighthawk but it was actually good! The restraints were actually comfortable throughout the ride and it was pretty smooth, except for the barrel rolls which were a little shaky. The loop is clearly the highlight with some pretty good forces on par with the B&M pretzel loop, and the transitions between the lying/flying positions were funky but fun. Even going up the lift hill was fine, and it gave good views of the early construction for their Mack launched coaster (I didn't spot any footers or track or anything, just a big patch of dirt with a lot of vehicles and work being done).
I liked it, and definitely prefer it over Firehawk. On top of that, it looks pretty decent over the little pond and trees. Solid way to start off the day.
With that out of the way we looped around and found Flying Cobra, the park's boomerang. It is what it is.
To be fair though, the park seems to have been paying attention to it. It got a rename and a new paint job, so it looks kinda nice, especially with the multicolored cars. It also uses the newer Vekoma trains with the vest restraints, so at least there's no headbanging.
Next up was Ricochet. It had been a couple years years since I had done a wild mouse, and they're silly rides. I think they're more fun when you're with people, so we had a fun time on this (but I think part of that was because I hadn't done one in a while).
Before trying out the other crap I decided to have my 150th coaster on Fury 325. Yeah, I know 150 shouldn't be special milestone but I still think it's a nice round number so might as well.
Most of the peeps had rushed over to Fury at opening but thankfully due to better operations, high capacity, and three trains running we were on no problem. It was pretty sweet to be able to have a walk on for a coaster that many rate very highly of. What was really nice was that we were able to choose our row, despite signs indicating outside that rows were assigned for you. The ride op that checked my seat called me out for wearing a Skyrush shirt, claiming that the ride is boring and that Fury was the best ride in the world. Some people really are crazy, huh?
I remember there was a lot of hype for this when it was brand new (probably too much hype?). Leading up to the trip I had almost forgotten that this was the top steel coaster on my bucket list for some time.
And the immediate area looks rather nice too.
As for the ride? It's one of the most powerful B&Ms I've done, if not the most. We sat second to the last row for our first ride. The chain lift was a lot quicker than I expected, but still left plenty of time to take in the views. The first drop is incredible, it goes on for a good while. For me the drop is up there with Millennium Force, Skyrush, and Mako.
The turns in the first half of the ride have more positive g-forces than I was expecting, and the transitions in the banking are fun and floaty.
What was easily a highlight of the ride was the treble clef. The train pins you in a tight turn with the most intense forces, before flinging you out of your seat on top and going underneath the bridge. The exit is taken at an angle too, so the airtime kind of throws you sideways, especially if you sit on the very left. Great mix of positives/laterals/negatives.
Then of course you have the airtime hills at the end, and surprisingly they were more sustained ejector than your typical B&M floater. The helix in between is easily the weakest part of the ride. The only thing it has it going for is a decent head chopper with the supports. Honestly, I imagine the only reason it's there is break the longest steel coaster record in North America ("We haven't broken the record yet? Quick, add a helix!").
It's quite a remarkable coaster, but it didn't quite live up to my expectations. The thing is, it actually did everything I expected it to do: fantastic first drop, great sense of speed throughout, fun banking transitions, great airtime. I think for me the positive g forces were a lot to handle. They're not nearly as bad as say, the rattle of Banshee, or the discomfort from Rita. Fury is perfectly smooth and the gs aren't extreme but they're quite consistent throughout the ride, even in between the airtime hills at the end. Another reason why I wasn't a huge fan of the positive forces was because I had a slight headache throughout the day, probably due to a lack of sleep. It's a very long and powerful ride, and after three back to back rides I needed a break! I think if this were toned down a bit I would've ranked it a bit higher, possibly creeping into my Top 10. Instead, I have it sitting at #17. Favorite moments were the first drop, treble clef exit, and final airtime hills.
Going in, I was expecting Fury to be a mix of Millennium Force and a B&M hyper. It has everything I love about Millennium Force and more, but it's not as gentle as a B&M hyper. I think if this had less turns and more airtime, or maybe even end sooner, it would've placed higher for me? I know Intimidator is across the park and is supposed to focus on airtime, but honestly, Fury has just as much airtime moments, possibly more (will talk about that later).
This has also gotten me thinking about Leviathan, which I haven't done. I always thought that Fury looked better due to the length, but after riding it, I think Leviathan could actually be more fun. I know it's shorter, but the bigger airtime hills look more appealing and I think the length could leave you wanting more, whereas Fury is just a lot. Maybe less is more?
So that's my review for Fury. We got three quick rides before moving onto the rest of the park.
We cleaned up the rest of the creds in the area, starting with Hurler. Pretty sure this a a mirror image of Thunder Run at Kentucky Kingdom. That thing was pretty brutal, despite getting some TLC at the time. So with Hurler I was expecting something similar if not worse.
It was fine, actually better than Thunder Run. There's a trim immediately after the drop, but it made the first turn more bearable and the rest of the ride a bit smoother than Thunder Run. Unfortunately there was basically no airtime on any of the hills. In theory the hills looked small enough to give some decent airtime but no, didn't rise out of the seat at all. I'm hoping they RMC this soon, Twisted Timbers clone or anything, but with the Mack coaster coming next year, this will probably be around for at least a few more years.
Carolina Cobra was next. The queue barely extended out of the station but the rides ops were taking their sweet ass time dispatching the trains. They had two trains running, which was impressive as it's just a typical Arrow double loopscrew, but that didn't really matter because it would take quite a few minutes for them to load and dispatch a train. During our ride we sat on the brake run for what seemed like a few minutes. I actually hoped there was a technical error because there was no way they ops should be taking that long, but no, they were still checking restrains. I didn't know what **** they were doing.
The ride was okay though. The loops were forceful and the corkscrews surprisingly had no head banging, and there was a "fun" helix at the end that surprised me. The transitions were a a bit uncomfortable though.
The track had an interesting color scheme, but it had some dirty spots. I think if they gave the ride more attention and actually discipline the ride ops it could be a little nicer.
Been a few years since I had done a stand-up, but Vortex was going to be extra special since I'd heard vile things about it.
It was absolutely disgusting. Failed to live up to my low expectations. I was already done with it by the first loop. The forces in it were so bad and I greyed out until the top of the next hill. The second half of the layout wasn't as bad as the loop but I was already having a bad time couldn't wait to get off. Not to mention the layout is pretty uninspiring with most of the elements being turns or helices.
I was even limping on my right leg as soon as I got off. I was fine in the long run, but these rides are just uncomfortable, sometimes painful, and not fun at all. Really glad that parks were smart enough not to invest in these anymore and that Cedar Fair took the hint and started converting some of them to floorless. Hopefully they'll convert this as well at some point, would be a HUGE improvement.
I needed a break after that. We had lunch at the place near Hurler and Fury and had some chicken tenders. Overpriced as expected, but the food was enjoyable. Actually, they let you have free cups of water, which is really nice. It was nice to sit down and relax for a bit. Thanks to the light crowds, we were being pretty leisurely.
After that we continued on with the rest of the creds. I actually looking forward to Carolina Goldrusher, mainly because all the crap we were doing earlier was starting to add up, especially after the unpleasantries of the boomerang, Hurler, Cyclone, and Vortex.
I kind of like these Arrow mine trains. I think they're pretty fun even if they don't always do much. This one was smooth and had some nice turns and helices in trenches. There was even a fab underground tunnel at the very end, which caught me by surprise.
That brought us over to the Windseeker. I really like these kinds of rides. I always try to do them whenever they're at a park, mainly for the views, but the breeze was refreshing as well. Don't have a picture of it unfortunately.
And of course, we eventually reached one of the better rides at the park, Afterburn.
It was a walk on, so we did two quick rides (unfortunately in the same seats as they were assigning rows). It was pretty good! It's crazy to believe that I've done about a dozen of these B&M inverts now, and they're all solid rides. I like how this one has no MCBR and just flows through the entire layout and ends when it needs to. The inversions were good, highlight for me was of course the batwing, and the zero g was great too. There was a slight rattle throughout the ride, so it wasn't quite as great as I was hoping but still a very solid and intense ride. I thought it had potential to be very good, based on how others rate it and how it has a similar flow of inversions to Montu (which itself is an amazing ride). I think I have it ranked in the middle of all the B&M inverts I've done. It's good stuff.
I had a few more creds to get, so we wandered into the kiddy area.
We did the family woodie Woodstock Express. Pretty sure this is a clone of the one at Kings Island and they're both actually pretty fun. The drops are sudden and there's some sharp transitions. On top of that you have one lap bar for the entire row, which is quite nice. Good kids ride.
And then there's Kiddyhawk, the Vekoma suspended family coaster.
This was the least memorable ride of the day (perhaps even the entire trip). I think this had OTSRs, which was kind of disappointing but it didn't ruin the ride. And I think the first helix after the lift hill had a little bit of force? I only rode this a few days ago but I'm already struggling remember! The one at Fun Spot Orlando is much better.
Last cred of the day and I wanted it to be a good one: Intimidator.
This ride seemed to get mixed reviews, and while I thought it was one of the lower tier B&M hypers I've done, I still thought it was great. It was very smooth, I think one of the smoother hypers I've done. The first drop is fun as always and the floater airtime is fantastic as expected. The trims on the airtime hills weren't a problem, and I actually stayed toward the front of the train because I thought that could be a problem in the back.
The big thing that keeps me from rating it higher is that the layout is rather poor compared to other hyper coasters I've done. There's only three traditional airtime hills. While the first hill/turn after the drop and the turnaround halfway through are fine, the ride is basically over by the time the MCBR comes. Yeah there's still some solid floater before/after the MCBR and entering the helix, but the ride could use some more straight airtime hills in the layout.
At first, I was actually debating whether I liked this or Fury more. I decided that Intimidator is more re rideable, but Fury is the better coaster. Each has three traditional airtime hills, but Fury has the treble clef and better first drop. Both coasters could really use some more airtime hills though.
I did one re ride by myself. The queue had extended outside the station, but it moved pretty quickly. They had three trains running, but for some reason they weren't using one of them and kept sending it through the circuit by itself. Not sure why they just put it away in the garage? I was able to find another single rider who was already waiting for the front, so I saved a couple minutes of waiting. And that ride was really fun!
Despite only getting two rides on Intimidator, we wanted to hit the road to Dollywood soon. I did grab one last ride on Fury by myself, and I was able to join a family of three waiting for the front row, and that was an awesome way to end the day. The young kid I sat with must've got the sense that I was a coaster enthusiast. "How many giga coasters have you ridden?"
And with that we were on our way out. I spent a few minutes taking some pictures of Fury outside the park and we got on the road by 3 PM. It was really nice that I was able to get all the creds in that time. Honestly, if we really wanted to we could have gotten all the creds in about three hours.
I know Carowinds seems to get mixed or poor reviews on here, but I enjoyed it. The park was clean some of of the areas look nice, with little ponds and trees sprinkled throughout the park. The "big three" B&Ms are great as expected, and Nighthawk is a surprisingly solid supporting ride.
Thee coaster selection has a lot of crap, but they have some potential to greatly improve that. The new Mack coaster, whatever it is, will be a huge gain for the park. RMCing Hurler is a no brainer and Vortex needs to be a floorless. Carolina Cyclone and Flying Cobras are meh, and the rest of the family coasters are fine.
The operations were also pretty inconsistent. The big three were all taken care of well, which is unsurprising as those are the biggest draws. The operations on stuff like Cyclone, Hurler, and Cobra weren't great, I know Cedar Fair is better than that.
One thing I don't really like is how they have people trying to take your picture at the front of the park. They did this at Kings Island as well. I wonder what the ratio is for photos sold to photos taken.
Just to compare to the other Cedar Fair parks I've done, I prefer Cedar Point and Kings Island over Carowinds, but we had a nice time. Don't know when I'll be back, that probably depends on when I'll return to Dollywood!
Speaking of which, next up... Dollywood!
