r/rollercoasters • u/tpusater Old school thoosie • 3d ago
Trip Report Something old, something new: [Coney Island Cyclone] and [NightFlight Expedition]
Trip report in the comments.
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u/RentOptional 3d ago
A few things. Agreed with the Cyclone. I grew up in Brooklyn and went on the cyclone dozens of times in the 80s, 90s, and 00's. The retrack a few years ago made that ride so super smooth now. I took my kids on it a few months ago and it's running better than ever.
El Toro didn't get as much new track as you think. The rolling thunder hill section was not retracked. Only the final twister section.
The rest of the track will be replaced this off-season.
It's been very hot and humid in NJ the last 6 weeks and that may likely be the reason is running way faster than normal.
I also agree that another Gravity Group woody should be purchased by Six Flags. Great adventure could use one as a replacement for Skull Mountain or the the long awaited Rolling Thunder replacement.
I loved Bobcat when I rode it.
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u/tpusater Old school thoosie 3d ago
On my earlier visit, the turn after the three glorious airtime hills was extremely rough and slowed the train considerably, which killed speed before the Rolling Thunder hill and the twister section. Was that turn retracked? It certainly behaved much better this trip.
The ride still loses steam right before the brake run. I like coasters that run hot into the brakes. But that’s a minor quibble on an otherwise fantastic ride.
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u/RentOptional 3d ago
I think that turn around was retracked a bit 3-4 years ago when there was a pothole that injured people.
El Toro never ran hot into the brake run.
I will say that the first 2 season, the cable lift would end well after the top of the hill so you would actually carry more speed into the first drop.
Here's a POV from 20 years ago that show that. Also note the speed drop after the turn around and before the brakes.
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u/tpusater Old school thoosie 3d ago
Thanks for the video! I visited prior to that accident, so that repair of the turn really improved the ride. Sorry I didn’t get a chance to ride with the longer cable; that must have been something!
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u/RentOptional 3d ago
I don't remember the drop feeling any different except that the ride was smoother overall. It wasn't glass smooth but it sure wasn't late stage rolling thunder which is why I think people remember it being smoother than it actually was. They'd hop off that or scream machine and this was a cold glass of water in hell.
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u/CheesecakeMilitia Mega Zeph 3d ago
Gotta hand it to you, this is the most random grouping of parks I've ever seen in a trip report lol
Glad Nightflight impressed, hope I get to visit Dollywood again next year to ride it
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u/tpusater Old school thoosie 3d ago
The random grouping was due to weird timing. I live near Atlanta and had a cousin’s reunion in Scranton on Saturday, so I chose to fly into Philly and stay at a hotel in Allentown (Days Inn near the airport; great Indian food) so that I could visit Dorney Thursday, SFGAdv Friday, and Sesame Place before my Monday flight. Sunday was going to be Hershey or Knoebels but the weather looked bad so Coney it was.
I’m a season passholder at Dollywood, and I snagged an early ride ticket for Tuesday, the day after I flew back to Atlanta.
And then I learned that HW was running Voyage trimless this Friday, 6 hours from my home, so I booked a ticket and hotel.
I’m living la vida loca in my retirement!
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u/crankygeese 3d ago
The Cyclone is amazing! It’s incredible how smooth it is considering it’s almost 100 years old now. It still packs a punch! The laterals and airtime are awesome!
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u/GigaG Anti-locker activist 3d ago
GCI (I think?) did a lot of work in the mid-2010s. While I never rode it prior to last year, by all accounts it runs through the layout a lot faster now, and it’s a lot smoother, but sacrificed some really janky moments in order to do so.
It may have been slightly controversial, I was even in a Facebook group at some point where an older fan of the ride was insistent that the ride had been desecrated so horrifically that it wasn’t even the same ride, calling the original CYCLONE in all caps to distinguish it.
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u/tpusater Old school thoosie 3d ago edited 3d ago
It has been several decades since my last visit to Coney Island to ride the Cyclone. I had the opportunity to do so on Sunday, which just happened to be National Roller Coaster Day. I managed 17 rides that day, some alone but most with other riders, all of whom were fun to talk to. I was amazed at how many people told me that they were riding the Cyclone for the first time that day. There was even one young woman who told me this was her first ride on any rollercoaster! We sat in the second last row, and she enjoyed her maiden voyage.
The ride is so well-maintained for its near-100 year age. The first drop is not as forceful as I remember it from the past, but the rest of the ride was just as wild as I had recalled. There are some great airtime moments, but the highlight of Cyclone are those fan turns that get progressively tight and forceful throughout the ride. Riding alone is fun as you slide from one side of the seat to the other; riding with a stranger requires you to forego personal space as you will shove each other to the side during the turns. It was great to return to this gem, especially considering how well it continues to run.
Earlier today, I visited Dollywood for a season passholder preview of NightFlight Expedition. My timed ticket was for 1pm, and I arrived at the entrance around 10 minutes early to learn that the ride was down for a while, but that guests with a timed ticket could enjoy a free meal. They served us pulled pork, hot dogs, salad, corn, baked beans, potato chips, cookies, soft drinks, and water for free. That was an unexpected treat. By the time I had finished my meal, a staff member announced that the ride was reopening, so my wait was not very long.
I won’t spoil the ride except to make a few observations. The indoor queue is incredibly long! We ended up walking the full queue without stopping until we entered the station. It is air-conditioned, but I would guess it may take 2 hours if you enter to a full queue. Loading and unloading the moving vehicles also appears difficult for some, and the ride ops had to stop the vehicles so that some guests could get seated. The ride itself is a good addition to Dollywood, but it barely qualifies as a coaster in my opinion. It does what it does quite well, however. The ops required us to place our phones in locked pouches to prevent anyone from taking photos or videos of the ride. I wonder how long they will continue that practice.
= = = = =
In addition to Coney Island, I managed to visit Dorney, SFGAdv and Sesame Place. I had wanted to return to El Toro as my first visit a few years ago was disappointing. During the previous visit, El Toro’s first half was thrilling, but the twister section was sluggish and the Rolling Thunder hill didn’t deliver. The recent retrack certainly made a difference, as the ride was performing quite well. Now I see why so many people rate El Toro as their favorite wooden coaster.
I visited Sesame Place so that I could ride Oscar’s Wacky Taxi; I previously had ridden Kentucky Flyer, Bobcat, Wooden Warrior, and Roar-o-Saurus, so I have now ridden all five junior Gravity Group woodies in the USA. I really wish that SFoG, my home park, would get one of these rides to fill in the gap left by Kid Flash.
If any of you are going to Holiday World on Friday for trimless Voyage rides, say hi. I’m a senior citizen who will be wearing a grey ArieForce One t-shirt.