Sunday, 1/16/05

Light crowds meant walk-ons and re-rides (on Silver Bullet). If Silver
Bullet was my first inverted I would think it's a neat coaster, but
unfortunately with those B:TR forces in my mind it's hard not to feel
that it could be more. After 6 or 7 different days of riding it my
opinion is not that it's "forceless" but that it's "forceful-less."
Swooping through its layout is fun, not thrilling. So, yes, Knott's
got what they wanted out of it and I will ride it in the same spirit
that I ride other coasters that I "like."

BUT . . .

.. . . then I got on GhostRider which I hadn't been on in months and,
HOLY SUGAR, it was flying and then I remembered what kind of coaster
experience I'm really after. Woah, Nellie! Flying and floating on the
first half, full-tilt bucking bronco on the second half. And all the
while with that delicious, angry roar that it makes in my ears. Even
the hop into the helix was delivering. I got on towards the end of the
day when I was feeling tired but was so invigorated I had to run around
and do it another few times. Roller coasters are awesome!

Rik

From:	Iain Hendry
Subject:	Re: Silver Bullet-again. GhostRider - Holy Sugar!
Date:	Mon, 17 Jan 2005 11:50:29 -0500

Rik wrote:

> that it could be more. After 6 or 7 different days of riding it my
> opinion is not that it's "forceless" but that it's "forceful-less."

I really like that term, Rik! The term "forceless" always irked me, beacuse
it's so untrue. If a coaster was forceless, it wouldn't work! :)

I have a feeling I'd really, really enjoy Silver Bullet. It looks fast,
relaxing, and smooth. Do you ever hear the public commenting on how smooth
it is?

Iain

From:	Coasterbuf
Subject:	Re: Silver Bullet-again. GhostRider - Holy Sugar!
Date:	Mon, 17 Jan 2005 18:07:45 -0800

Iain Hendry wrote:
> Rik wrote:
>
>
>>that it could be more. After 6 or 7 different days of riding it my
>>opinion is not that it's "forceless" but that it's "forceful-less."
>
>
> I really like that term, Rik! The term "forceless" always irked me, beacuse
> it's so untrue. If a coaster was forceless, it wouldn't work! :)
>
> I have a feeling I'd really, really enjoy Silver Bullet. It looks fast,
> relaxing, and smooth. Do you ever hear the public commenting on how smooth
> it is?
>
> Iain
>
>

Yes...so far I've only been to the park one time for SB, but I heard
LOTS of comments that day from the GP on how smooth it was. (Mostly
families with younger childern). So I think Knott's got the ride they
were looking for, even if a lot of enthusiast will be underwelmed.

I personally like it. It's not the best ride in the world but it is fun.
And not every ride has to be a S:ROS or an Expedition Geforce. Though it
sure would be nice to have one of those types in Southern California.
But with our legal system and Knott's gunshy-ness (understandably) over
airtime and SFMM's pathetic operation of their coasters I doubt I will
ever see that kind of ride here. (sigh)

Coasterbuf

From:	Brad D
Subject:	Re: Silver Bullet-again. GhostRider - Holy Sugar!
Date:	Wed, 19 Jan 2005 00:36:26 GMT

Man! Are you sure that heart-felt disappointment is called for? SFMM and
SOCAL in general has some nice coasters. That's nothing to sulk over. Come
on now.

Brad D.

"Coasterbuf" wrote in message
news:Cb_Gd.8129$nt.8097@fed1read06...
> Iain Hendry wrote:
>> Rik wrote:
>>
>>
>>>that it could be more. After 6 or 7 different days of riding it my
>>>opinion is not that it's "forceless" but that it's "forceful-less."
>>
>>
>> I really like that term, Rik! The term "forceless" always irked me,
>> beacuse
>> it's so untrue. If a coaster was forceless, it wouldn't work! :)
>>
>> I have a feeling I'd really, really enjoy Silver Bullet. It looks fast,
>> relaxing, and smooth. Do you ever hear the public commenting on how
>> smooth
>> it is?
>>
>> Iain
>>
>>
>
> Yes...so far I've only been to the park one time for SB, but I heard LOTS
> of comments that day from the GP on how smooth it was. (Mostly families
> with younger childern). So I think Knott's got the ride they were looking
> for, even if a lot of enthusiast will be underwelmed.
>
> I personally like it. It's not the best ride in the world but it is fun.
> And not every ride has to be a S:ROS or an Expedition Geforce. Though it
> sure would be nice to have one of those types in Southern California. But
> with our legal system and Knott's gunshy-ness (understandably) over
> airtime and SFMM's pathetic operation of their coasters I doubt I will
> ever see that kind of ride here. (sigh)
>
> Coasterbuf

From:	Ted Ansley
Subject:	Re: Silver Bullet-again. GhostRider - Holy Sugar!
Date:	Sat, 22 Jan 2005 22:22:40 GMT

On Wed, 19 Jan 2005 00:36:26 GMT, "Brad D" wrote:

>Man! Are you sure that heart-felt disappointment is called for? SFMM and
>SOCAL in general has some nice coasters. That's nothing to sulk over. Come
>on now.
>
>Brad D.
>

Granted I have not been on SB, X. or Sream, but I've ridden most of the big So
CA coasters, and at least for me only 1 is in my top 20 wood, and none are in
my top 20 steel so I'd say that they don't have very many great ones. Scream
might make my top 20 steel, or X, since I like floorless coasters and quite a
few are in my 10-20 range. With that said, I do love visiting Disneyland,
DCA, Knott's, Legoland, Univeral Studios, others, and even SFMM. However,
top caliber coasters are not the best reasons for visiting many of those parks.

--------------------------
Ted Ansley
ansley@usa.com
RollerCoaster Fan

From:	Mark Rosenzweig
Subject:	Re: Silver Bullet-again. GhostRider - Holy Sugar!
Date:	23 Jan 2005 08:47:14 -0800

You have a point in regards to traveling to Spain, but I don't think
many people will argue the fact that Southern California has a huge
collection of mostly crappy rides (save for maybe 3 or 4 of 'em).

With all the hype I read over the years regarding California Parks, I
was amazed when I returned from my first Cali trip with Disneyland as
my far and away favorite California Park (and SCBB a distant second).
I was particularly let down by KBF- to this day I think I was expecting
something that simply never was. Ghostrider was OK, Supreme Scream was
great, as was Monty. I also really enjoyed both the Mine and Log
Rides. Once I did these attractions once or twice, I found myself
standing around wondering how this land locked park earned all of its
praise.

Enough rambling- cabin fever sucks.

-Mark

From:	Mark Rosenzweig
Subject:	Re: Silver Bullet-again. GhostRider - Holy Sugar!
Date:	23 Jan 2005 17:26:00 -0800

Regarding the Shack, I'm sure fans of Old Knott's "Charm" have missed
the attraction greatly. Bottom line though, the attraction simply
lacked ridership over the years. That spot is just too *prime* in the
center of Ghost Town to have an attraction that the average guest may
do once or twice in their lifetime.

With that said, an upcharge extreme thrill machine has no place on the
Shack's old site. Old Threads on many boards had plenty of good
suggestions on what would have fit better- anything from a well themed
Vekoma Mad House to a dark ride of some sort (interactive perhaps?) to
an enclosed mouse/spinning coaster. Any of those could have been
themed perfectly for Ghost Town.

But giant white poles or an overgrown swing? Both decent rides in
their own right, but hardly fit for "Ghost Town".

-Mark

From:	Evil One
Subject:	Re: Silver Bullet-again. GhostRider - Holy Sugar!
Date:	23 Jan 2005 18:03:22 GMT

<many people will argue the fact that Southern California has a huge
collection of mostly crappy rides (save for maybe 3 or 4 of 'em).>>

Southern California is about my favorite place to vacation. That's the problem
with most ACEers- they ONLY see Roller Coasters. A majority of them do not
appreciate anything that is NOT a roller coaster, and thus they are never
happy. Disneyland is one of the best parks I've been to the world over, without
a doubt. In fact the only park that I'd ever say I like more than Disneyland is
Tokyo DisneySea. Knott's Berry Farm has also been at the top of my favorite
parks list for years. It has a certain charm that nearly all others fail to
come close to.

It's very sad what Cedar Fair has done to Knotts though. The quality has
steadily dropped over the past five or six years, and I'm sincerely afraid that
it will never make a turn for the better. Cedar Fair doesn't "get it". As long
as they add steel, they think the park is great. It's sad to see so many of the
park's original charming features destroyed to put in another steel machine
that is the next big thing until next month when something bigger comes out
elsewhere.

I don't have a problem with them adding if they do it right. Xcelerator is
probably my favorite steel coaster, and it works in it's location. There's
nothing wrong with it. Same can be said for Supreme Scream - it works where it
is. But then take Screamin' Swing, or Silver Bullet. Those rides make no sense
at all in their locations, and they ruined peaceful, charming and well themed
areas of the park to get there. My stomach still turns to this day when I walk
past the Swing and realize that IT is the justification for removing the
Haunted Shack.

Now - I'm certainly not going to defend SFMM in the least bit. The place looks
like a shithole, and it's run like a shithole. If you've been once, I would not
ever recommend the average traveler to return. In fact the only reason we went
on our last trip was to take my friend who had never been to California before,
and even still we split the day with more than half of it being spent at USH.

From:	tommy
Subject:	Re: Silver Bullet-again. GhostRider - Holy Sugar!
Date:	Sun, 23 Jan 2005 19:06:01 GMT

In article <20050123130322.14029.00000125@mb-m19.aol.com>,
montu@aol.com.is.evil (Evil One) wrote:

> My stomach still turns to this day when I walk
> past the Swing and realize that IT is the justification for removing the
> Haunted Shack.

wasn't that other S&S ride (the one they have at Magic Mountain) the
justification? ..I never rode it (probably never would since it would
scare the pee out of me).

I remember reading here at RRC that the Shack was going to be torn down
anyway. I find it hard to believe they couldn't rebuild that structure
using the old materials as a facade.

Removing it was Knott's biggest mistake ever, imo.

/tommy

From:	DSuperBee
Subject:	Re: Silver Bullet-again. GhostRider - Holy Sugar!
Date:	24 Jan 2005 02:28:34 GMT

>Removing it (the shack) was Knott's >biggest mistake ever, imo.

I disagree. I think removing the Wacky SoapBox Racers was the biggest mistake
ever, especially considering it's short-lived replacement.
Brian Kast, Aka DSuperBee@aol.com

Goofus deals crack.

Gallant deals coke since he knows he'll spend less time in jail if
caught.

From:	tommy
Subject:	Re: Silver Bullet-again. GhostRider - Holy Sugar!
Date:	Mon, 24 Jan 2005 06:14:04 GMT

In article <20050123212834.15478.00000193@mb-m02.aol.com>,
dsuperbee@aol.com (DSuperBee) wrote:

> I disagree. I think removing the Wacky SoapBox Racers was the biggest mistake
> ever, especially considering it's short-lived replacement.

are you joking?

I could never understand why they would replace the best ride in the
park (Motorcycle Chase) with those Soap Box Racers.

The queue for the Motorcycle Chase was full, but the there was never a
wait for the SBR's. It was fun, but not nearly as fun as the
Motorcycles.

Also, the SBR's & the car ride (what was the name of that car ride??),
with hardly any ridership, was taking up a HUGE chunk of property.

You know what I miss most at Knott's? The Loop Trainer. I was sooo
angry when they removed it for that terrible XK-1 ride.

/tommy

PS--I lost an entire pocketful of RedHots on that damn XK-1 ride!

From:	BaSSiStiSt
Subject:	Re: Silver Bullet-again. GhostRider - Holy Sugar!
Date:	Mon, 24 Jan 2005 07:29:51 GMT

On Mon, 24 Jan 2005 06:14:04 GMT, tommy wrote:

>I could never understand why they would replace the best ride in the
>park (Motorcycle Chase) with those Soap Box Racers.

I would easily take either one over Windjammer. Not so sure what I
would pick between Xcel and an Arrow Steeplechase. Xcel has way more
thrills, but it would be nice to still have a Steeplechase in the U.S.

>The queue for the Motorcycle Chase was full, but the there was never a
>wait for the SBR's. It was fun, but not nearly as fun as the
>Motorcycles.

All I remember is that the Motorcyles were about 10X scarier. How in
the hell did no one ever fall off that ride? I used to hold on so
tight...my pansy young-boy self was actually relieved when the
more-secure SBR cars magically appeared one summer.

>Also, the SBR's & the car ride (what was the name of that car ride??),
>with hardly any ridership, was taking up a HUGE chunk of property.

Gasoline Alley was the name, I believe. That was such a neat section
of the park with those two intertwined and the Parachute
Tower/Corkscrew/Loop Trainer nearby. Miss those days. That part of the
park finally feels "whole" again, but they need to ditch Boomerang for
a Frequent Faller or something. And tear out Screamin' Shit for a
giant flat of some sort.

Mike Miller

OMG, I'm a CreHo

From:	Evil One
Subject:	Re: Silver Bullet-again. GhostRider - Holy Sugar!
Date:	23 Jan 2005 06:14:54 GMT

<top caliber coasters are not the best reasons for visiting many of those
parks.>>

Yeah - Ansley would never profess a coaster in an easy-to-get-to location as
his #1 anything. It's too easy to dispute.

Ted only claims rides in far off locations to be the best so no one could
possibly argue with him. Like when he said Superman Atraccion de Accero was his
#1 floorless, and when he said La Venganza del Engima was the best S&S towers
because who's been to Spain? It just doesn't work the same for California - a
heavily attended travel destination.

From:	rikp at aol.com
Subject:	Re: Silver Bullet-again. GhostRider - Holy Sugar!
Date:	17 Jan 2005 09:00:10 -0800

> Do you ever hear the public commenting
> on how smooth it is?

I would say it's as smooth as anything I've ever been on, but I don't
know if I've ever heard anyone mention that specifically. Once we've
hit the final brakes I've overheard "That wasn't as bad as it looked,"
"There's no line, let's do it again, " and "GhostRider is better."

Rik

From:	Locoboy
Subject:	Re: Silver Bullet-again. GhostRider - Holy Sugar!
Date:	Mon, 17 Jan 2005 18:09:09 GMT

wrote in message
news:1105978543.470658.16230@c13g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
> Sunday, 1/16/05
>
> . . . then I got on GhostRider which I hadn't been on in
> months and,
> HOLY SUGAR, it was flying and then I remembered what kind
> of coaster
> experience I'm really after. Woah, Nellie! Flying and
> floating on the
> first half, full-tilt bucking bronco on the second half.
> And all the
> while with that delicious, angry roar that it makes in my
> ears. Even
> the hop into the helix was delivering. I got on towards
> the end of the
> day when I was feeling tired but was so invigorated I had
> to run around
> and do it another few times. Roller coasters are awesome!
>
> Rik

It has been a long time since I last rode GhostRider. It
hasn't been operating like that lately?

From:	rikp at aol.com
Subject:	Re: Silver Bullet-again. GhostRider - Holy Sugar!
Date:	17 Jan 2005 10:22:48 -0800

> It has been a long time since I last rode GhostRider. It
> hasn't been operating like that lately?

In the excitement of the SB opening and the lines for Ghostie still
being long (in December) I had passed it by on recent visits. But
yesterday the lines were short and I made a conscious effort to ride
it. And was rewarded!!! It's a world-class coaster, after all.

Rik