Moving this to the appropriate thread:
I realize people have different opinions on this, but I have to say Finnegan’s location and appearance still make me a little sad each time I see it. I might feel differently if I had never known the beautiful setting the park substantially destroyed to place the ride in that location.
It’s an entertaining ride and the elevation is nice. Actually checking out the elevation, though... so much plain gravel, it conjures shades of the back side of Invadr. Even with the park’s transition from corporate crown jewel to publicly traded profit generating entity, I’ll never really accept that the location and visual state of Finnegan’s had to turn out the way they did. The cost of that ride, as built, was substantially greater than just the financial outlay to build and operate it.
I couldn't have said this better myself. I love Screamin' Swings and I love that BGW has one now, but I
hate, hate, hate where BGW put it and its visual impact. The lush serenity of the old entrance to Killarney - with the lush ravine below the bridge and the castle structure deeply embedded in foliage - was one of the most beautiful areas of the park. That feeling of isolation in nature was a large part of what gave Killarney its charm.
The industrial appearance of Finnegan's Flyer just doesn't compare. With the exposed air tanks in the ride's "basement," the shoddy paint job that only emphasizes the hulking metal supports, the complete lack of foliage planted around the ride, and the Backlot Stunt Coaster-esque swaths of bare, gray gravel dumped around the ravine, the appearance is a disgrace to the beauty that was there before. Just contrast this view to the view on the right-hand side of the bridge, where the ravine was untouched. It's day and night.
I will say, the sensation of swinging past the Killarney Crossing bridge and looking down the ravine into the water is really cool... while you're on the ride. It's a neat, unique sensation and I get why the park wanted to put the ride over a ravine. But why
there, at
that ravine? The park is filled with ravines. Why couldn't they have built the ride behind the buildings on Killarney's right-hand side, like behind O'Tator's? If they'd put it there, not only the park still have achieved the "flying over a ravine" sensation, but there would hardly be any loss of foliage that guests see, since the ride would be in a previously backstage area. Plus, there would be the added benefit of swinging over a totally isolated waterway, completely secluded from the rest of the park.
That seems cool.
In any case, the execution of Finnegan's Flyer feels so poorly done. There's still plenty of things they can do to fix it. All they have to do is remove the excess gravel (or, if the gravel is needed to control the waterway or prevent erosion, at least mix some larger, more natural rocks in) and plant bushes and trees
everywhere that the plants wouldn't interfere with the ride's path or access to the ride, and the entire thing would look so much better than it does now.
Until then, Finnegan's Flyer goes down in my mind as a fun ride with a terrible impact on the park.
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