TR: Great Adventure (4/29/07)
kip...@comcast.net
since '03. My dad and I hadn't been to a park together in some time,
so we trekked up to Jersey, hoping for the best. We couldn't have
dreamed of a better day--gorgeous weather and light crowds. My
opinion of GADV did a complete 180. I always used to go when it was
packed and scorching hot, and I always had the worst time. Most ride
lines where short, if not walk-ons. I got my hands on some exit
passes, so I used those for El Toro and Kingda Ka (those two did have
good-size lines). The only thing that annoyed me yesterday was at
different parts of the park, it was just *so* loud. At many places,
they have multiple (different) songs blasting at the same time. It's
just an obnoxious mess. I would also bitch about the food prices, but
I was fully aware before I entered the park, so whatev..
The place has changed drastically in four years. At many places in
the park, the scenery had changed so much, we didn't know where to go.
The Golden (Shower) Kingdom is just so beautiful. It really reminded
me of Disney's Animal Kingdom. First up was Kingda Ka.
Kingda Ka:: Used an exit pass. Walked up and hopped in the front car.
I asked that they find me an empty seat, as I didn't want to directly
take any persons' seat. The launch was weird. It felt like there
were specific "boosts" or "kicks" during the 3-4 seconds. It's an
amazing attraction. I don't understand when I hear enthusiasts
bitching about it being a one-trick pony? Well, no shit it's a
one-trick pony. You can *see* the entire coaster. Was this a
surprise? It's does one thing, that's all it was meant to do. Either
ride it and enjoy or don't get in line :)
El Toro:: I previously said that only one thing annoyed me yesterday.
Let me take that back and add one more thing. We approached ET and I
had heard it was a tight fight. Now, I'm a big guy, I'm definitely
not "skinny". So, I tried the test seat. I couldn't get the green
light to go on by myself, so I had my dad push down, and no.
Basically, I had my dad sitting on the bar and the m/f green light
would not go on! I was bummed. I was sad cuz I couldn't ride, and
even sadder cuz it made me feel like a whale. I came back later in
the day and tried the other test seat--no go either. Then, I
remembered a friend telling me to disregard the test seat and go up
and try in the station. I figured what the hell, I have another exit
pass. So I went up, got in the train, buckled the belt, and pulled
down the bar. The attendant made his way down, seat by seat, giving
everyone's bar a push. When he got to me, I'm thinking "Oh, damn,
here we go." He gave my bar a push (like everyone esle!) and moved
on. Next thing I know, we are rolling out of the station. WTF? On
to the ride..
El Toro can be summed up in just a few words:"Fantastic beginning,
good middle, terrible ending." The ending just baffled me. How could
a coaster that starts off with such raw power just slug out in the
end? The last two hills, you just crawl over. The first, I think,
five hills are pure genius. The sixth hill is this long, drawn out,
rampy bunny hill (Zzzz). The seventh hill is the last awesome hill on
the ride. The following zig zags were really cool! But, then the
last couple hills, like I said just crawl.
A friend of mine asked me how it compared to Voyage, and honestly, I
wasn't really sure. Voyage is much more complete. El Toro is shorter
and awkwardly paced, but it's just *so* amazingly powerful! They both
kick ass on different levels.
Superman Ultimate Flight:: Having ridden the one in Georgia, and not
really caring for it, I skipped the one in Illinois and the one in
Jersey last time I visited. This time, I wanted to ride it, just for
the hell of it; but the line was too long, and I wanted to save my
exit passes for other rides.
Great American Scream Machine:: Being a really big Arrow fan, I
couldn't wait to get back on GASM! It's a great ride, but still rough
as ever. Beautiful paint job, too.
Runaway Mine Train:: RMT is one of the more elongated mine trains.
It has a lot of large drops. The new paint job is pretty, but rather
out-of-place. Purple and orange don't exactly scream "MINE TRAIN" to
me. With only one train in operation, the short line took waaay too
long. And everyone in line wanted to strangle the ride op because he
was constantly screaming into the mic, "CHOO CHOOOOOOO!" It was
vicious and ear-piercing.
Nitro:: 20-30 minute wait, back seat, trims off, awesome layout.
Nitro was much better than I remembered, but the air wasn't as good as
SFoG's Goliath. I'm not really certain how I would rank the B&M
Speedcoasters. I know Raging Bull and Silver Star are at the bottom;
but, between Apollo's Chariot, Goliath, and Nitro, I just don't know
which is better.
Skull Mountain:: I've loved this ride since the first time I rode it.
The drop in the back seat is hellacious. I had totally forgotten the
layout, so this ride was exciting.
So, I think that just about wraps it up. I'm almost weary to go back
to Great Adventure because I don't want to ruin such a wonderful day
in my memory. Any questions? Thanks for reading!
-kip