Hi y'all! I generally don't log my trips like this, but I figured why not for this one.
A buddy and myself have KD Gold passes this year and made plans to attend 2 concerts at The Stone Pony this weekend (Streetlight Manifesto [halfway album release show] with The Aquabats [featuring El Jefe from NOFX on trumpet with Dicky Barrett being a normie and in the crowd, according someone on social media having spotted the Bosstonian] for Friday night and Bouncing Souls with Less Than Jake on Saturday, and decided it would be a great time to first grab Taliercio's sandwiches (I got a No Name and still have half that's larger than my head - good stuff!) then head to the park for both of our first visits.
The night before, we were chatting with a lovely couple at a brewery that happened to be both thoosies and heading to the same concert (if either of those folks are on here, it was good to meet you!), and had mentioned to us that we didn't need to worry about getting a Fast Lane pass between the weather and that school has just gotten out for the year (families usually aren't yet used to the freedom and it usually takes a few weeks to ramp up). This turned out to be a fair assessment. They also gave us a general idea of a gameplan for ride order just in case it did get crowded later in the day.
First impressions
Pulling into the parking lot reminds me that I'm in New Jersey - coming from 195, you have to take a jug-handle to get on the road to the park. Once in the lot, it seemed pretty free-for-all to find a spot, and it wasn't immediately clear where the entrance gate actually is. You could see Project Purple, and Superman was right on top of the walkway to the entrance. It felt like things were just haphazardly plopped into various infill lots within the park.
Entrance gate
Thanks to Six Flags' desire to boost app adoption and usage, I had to use my phone to scan into the park - there was barely anyone coming in, and the gates seemed to be fully staffed so it was a breeze to get in. However, I was planning on running my phone back out to my car and get a re-entry pass like they do at Cedar Fair parks only for the security guard at the exit to mention that they would re-scan my app to get back in, thus defeating the purpose. Oh well, at least I was wearing shorts with a decently sized zipper pocket.
Based on the advice we were given, we went to Superman first since that could be a long wait later in the day. Not staring at a park map, it wasn't clear exactly how to get there but we eventually figured it out with wayfinding signs.
Boardwalk/Games area
It was definitely different to see the games booths fully staffed and a few attendants attempting to engage the scant passers-by; it reminds me of the heyday of games at BGW and KD. When we got to the Boardwalk area just past the games, Project Purple took up most of the space so it was hard to get a sense of the area's theme outside of a few building facades and signage. It seemed all the smaller rides including Barrels O'Fun were not operating, though it may have been that we were there early enough in the day they simply didn't have staffing yet.
Superman
It was a walk-on; my buddy and I got in the front row. There was 1-train ops, but that didn't seem to matter. I was particularly intrigued by how large the queue was and how far away the ride entrance gate was from the actual platform.
As for the ride experience itself - I've been on Manta a few times at SWO, so this felt like a bit more rattlier, shorter version with no mystery of the course - no hidden elements. The pretzel loop was the best element and highlight, the inline twist before the brake run was the second best element, and the rest was just ok. It was a decent ride, but nothing spectacular.
Since we went left, we figured it'd be best to do rides in a loop instead of criss-crossing the park. Therefore, next up was:
El Toro
I had seen on here some discussion about ride refurbishments but didn't really pay attention to it; I had just seen enough YouTube videos and thus had it as a bucket-list ride regardless of running conditions.
This ride too was a walk-on - the seatbelts were latched when I followed a ride attendant's gestures to another group to get on board as the air gates were about to close, so I guess that confused my buddy so he stayed behind the gate and thus walked over towards a front car row while the train was dispatching; I was near the back. I was curious how the cable lift felt on a woody - it was faster than expected. The first two hills were awesome; then came a bump somewhere at the bottom of the second hill. The whole ride was pretty rattly, though it's a woody so that was to be somewhat expected. There were a few more jolts entering into the rose bowl, but that section must be how peeps in RCT2 feel when you do high-speed tight banked turns - it was interesting.
Since it was one-train ops, I was able to walk up the train to go sit next to my buddy for my second ride. All the same jolts/potholes were there, but I think it was a little less rattly. I took more time to look over at the adjacent Safari park, and couldn't see many animals out - it looked like a really lame bare-bones set of exhibits that clearly several tour trucks run through on a regular basis. Since we didn't have time, I didn't get a chance to experience it for myself to find out though.
With our brains being somewhat scrambled, we made our way to:
Medusa
It took a moment to figure out which way to walk from El Toro's exit to get there, but it's probably one of the best framed ride entrances with the cobra roll. There was practically nobody on the train when we got onto the platform, so we took front row.
I found it interesting that the OTSRs had a bit more room than what I was expecting, the bottom was sitting maybe an inch or two higher than I usually get when on most other rides - I don't think my proportions have changed all that much in the last several years. I dediced to pull it in a bit more after the attendant checked it, and ended up stapling myself.
The ride was rough - I'm not sure if it was due to being in front or being stapled or both that I could really feel every vibration; it also felt like the train was hunting. I'm aware that apparently this train is up for refurbishment soon though, so hooray for locals and others who happen to get the other train.
Though it was also one-train ops, we were the only people in the station when it came back so the ride op on the panel suggested we change rows and go again - we took back seats. I was not stapled this time. I felt that while it was still a bit rattly, it was a much better experience back there. I particularly liked the theming element the interlocking corkscrews go around; it was a cool head-chopper.
After a quick rest stop, it was time to go to:
Runaway Mine Train
It was a less janky Arrow mine train - not much to say about it but it did offer a few pops of forces throughout that was nice.
Walking down the Lakefront to the next ride, I was wondering what those structures in the water are - I was guessing that it may have been either a swimming hole dock, or something for maintanence of the waterway.
The Joker
We initially were turned away because apparently zippered pockets didn't matter - nothing could be in pockets. Figuring it's just a larger version of Tumbili, no big deal. We did eventually get a locker after being turned away at Jersey Devil, then got a ride.
It's a bigger version of Tumbili, with a lot of flip potential. Fun stuff.
We skipped Harley Quinn because it's a kiddie coaster and neither of us are credit hounds anyways.
Skull Mountain
It's a coaster in a box - without the building, I think the ride would be mediocre at best, but with the darkness it had a few good elements of surprise drops and turns; otherwise it wasn't anything spectacular.
Jersey Devil
The loading system was bit confusing since I was first in line; I didn't realize I was supposed to just walk straight onto it instead of walking forward a bit; then once on I was informed I had to let the ride op lower the restraint. This ride is yet more proof that RMC can't figure out how to make a comfy seat design with restraints - my legs had to splay out at a somewhat unnatural angle, thus preventing some of my bracing efforts to be all that effective against the lap bar's thigh crushing effects during the ride.
Otherwise, it was one hell of a ride - great forces and fun elements; I especially liked the dive turn and stalls.
We got off and made our way to:
Nitro
By the time we got on, the light sprinkle had intensified a slight bit to larger drops. This ride had a little bit more people waiting, so we rode near the front for the first ride. It's a B&M hyper, known for crowd-pleasing and graceful drops and turns - it didn't disappoint even with the rattles. I wasn't a huge fan of the simplistic turnaround near Roarin Rapids having grown up with AC's cobra tail, but I did like the giant helix up to the MCBR. I did think it was an interesting choice to have it so close to the end of the ride yet far enough away to have another drop or two between brake runs - I imagine evacs from that location must take some time to get to.
When we pulled into the station, we were given the opportunity to go again; we walked and got into one of the rear rows in front of some rowdy kids who were taking the idea of going hands up pretty seriously - all in good fun it seems. Maybe it's just a preference, but I think further towards the back of the train gave a better ride.
While we were interested in riding Batman, it was closed up - I didn't even see a train in the station indicating there may have been some remote chance (though reading the forum later, it was obviously still down for maintenance/refurb).
Therefore, we ventured through MovieTown, and hit up:
Justice League
There was a short queue wait for this shooter - I was impressed with the Cyborg animatronic being fully functional; I did find the Lex Luthor/Joker interludes played heavy on Joker lines but such is the nature of the franchise. I was actually curious about the safety mechanisms in place for the animatronic - it seemed to be really close to guests without any barriers preventing a mischievous or overly curious person to go right on up to it on its dais. I'm guessing it's a mix of honor system and e-stop triggers nearby.
The storyline was a bit whacky, which was to be expected - but the hard part was figuring out what you were supposed to aim at as there was mostly screens but some physical sets too - also with a lack of a laser site, it's hard to know what you were aiming at. I decided the best course of action was to go in Time Crisis style (minus the need to reload) - hold the gun with one hand and rapid fire the trigger with the other while attempting to aim at the high value targets. This seemed to work as I had the high score in my car by a long shot (the monitor at the exit indicated I'm in the top 5% of players - not sure how that's calculated).
This ride was fun, but it was time for the last coaster on the agenda:
The Flash
It looked as if Vekoma saw the Premier SRIIs and said 'hold my beer'.
There was a short wait; a guy in front of us had his way too small kids with him I guess as some sort of parent exchange and it was not clear that he needed to go through the exit instead of the queue - the attendant at the lockers fortunately got him straightened out quickly. We were fortunate that there simply wasn't that many people in the park, otherwise the capacity discussion would have been far more germane to our experience - I'd hate to have to wait more than a few cycles for such a short ride.
The ride was incredibly smooth (as expected for a new non-B&M), and sitting near the back was fun - the inverted stall was probably the best part. I found it interesting that Vekoma had their own logos in the vest collars instead of any park/ride logo or not having any. I figured I was probably one of the few guests in the park that day that had any idea who the logo was for, whatever that means about me.
Just to get at least one flat in, we ended our day with:
Sky Screamer
I was intrigued by this ride design since I'm used to WindSeeker (which absolutely scare the hell out of me because of how high and fast they go, though I know I'm secure with the lap bar restraints), and wanted to try it out. The end result was it didn't feel like we went nearly as fast as the 40 mph the ride op mentioned in their spiel, and obviously didn't go nearly as high. The more-secure versions of wave swinger seats also didn't really seem to affect my perception of the ride either - it was a fun yet kinda gently swing ride. I did like how it went up and down a couple of times instead of just up and down once.
With that, we had done everything we set out to do in about 4-5ish hours and it was time to go get ready for the show.
Final Thoughts
This is the first truly Six Flags park I've visited, and based on the brand's reputation it was roughly what I expected to get - it's definitely not AB's BGW levels of presentation, but it's a decent park. However, I noticed a good level of staffing for what was shaping up to be a slow day due to weather, staff generally seemed attentive and helpful, the amount of visible security staff present was not something I'm used to but happy to see, and the ride crews generally worked hard at pumping out trains.
I'm incredibly grateful for the weather working in our favor, as well as the advice that couple gave us.
I'd put Flash, Nitro, and Jersey Devil in my top rides at the park, with the rest being background support thanks to the roughness - I'd otherwise want to put El Toro and Medusa higher up but they were just too rough for me. It also didn't help that many of the rides are versions of ride models I've been on similar and/or better versions of elsewhere that set a bar for me.
I recall seeing several posts over time lamenting that the park is really spread out and it's a long hike between sections. While this may be somewhat true given it's flattened loop setup, I didn't find it was especially exhausting going from any one section to the others - keeping in mind that while I may not have been standing in line for long periods of time thus fatiguing my body, I was pretty sore from being in the circle/mosh pit the night before.
Overall, it was a fun visit and if there's another show in the future where I have time to visit, I may come back and also take in some of the smaller rides we skipped - by that point, Project Purple may be open too.
A buddy and myself have KD Gold passes this year and made plans to attend 2 concerts at The Stone Pony this weekend (Streetlight Manifesto [halfway album release show] with The Aquabats [featuring El Jefe from NOFX on trumpet with Dicky Barrett being a normie and in the crowd, according someone on social media having spotted the Bosstonian] for Friday night and Bouncing Souls with Less Than Jake on Saturday, and decided it would be a great time to first grab Taliercio's sandwiches (I got a No Name and still have half that's larger than my head - good stuff!) then head to the park for both of our first visits.
The night before, we were chatting with a lovely couple at a brewery that happened to be both thoosies and heading to the same concert (if either of those folks are on here, it was good to meet you!), and had mentioned to us that we didn't need to worry about getting a Fast Lane pass between the weather and that school has just gotten out for the year (families usually aren't yet used to the freedom and it usually takes a few weeks to ramp up). This turned out to be a fair assessment. They also gave us a general idea of a gameplan for ride order just in case it did get crowded later in the day.
First impressions
Pulling into the parking lot reminds me that I'm in New Jersey - coming from 195, you have to take a jug-handle to get on the road to the park. Once in the lot, it seemed pretty free-for-all to find a spot, and it wasn't immediately clear where the entrance gate actually is. You could see Project Purple, and Superman was right on top of the walkway to the entrance. It felt like things were just haphazardly plopped into various infill lots within the park.
Entrance gate
Thanks to Six Flags' desire to boost app adoption and usage, I had to use my phone to scan into the park - there was barely anyone coming in, and the gates seemed to be fully staffed so it was a breeze to get in. However, I was planning on running my phone back out to my car and get a re-entry pass like they do at Cedar Fair parks only for the security guard at the exit to mention that they would re-scan my app to get back in, thus defeating the purpose. Oh well, at least I was wearing shorts with a decently sized zipper pocket.
Based on the advice we were given, we went to Superman first since that could be a long wait later in the day. Not staring at a park map, it wasn't clear exactly how to get there but we eventually figured it out with wayfinding signs.
Boardwalk/Games area
It was definitely different to see the games booths fully staffed and a few attendants attempting to engage the scant passers-by; it reminds me of the heyday of games at BGW and KD. When we got to the Boardwalk area just past the games, Project Purple took up most of the space so it was hard to get a sense of the area's theme outside of a few building facades and signage. It seemed all the smaller rides including Barrels O'Fun were not operating, though it may have been that we were there early enough in the day they simply didn't have staffing yet.
Superman
It was a walk-on; my buddy and I got in the front row. There was 1-train ops, but that didn't seem to matter. I was particularly intrigued by how large the queue was and how far away the ride entrance gate was from the actual platform.
As for the ride experience itself - I've been on Manta a few times at SWO, so this felt like a bit more rattlier, shorter version with no mystery of the course - no hidden elements. The pretzel loop was the best element and highlight, the inline twist before the brake run was the second best element, and the rest was just ok. It was a decent ride, but nothing spectacular.
Since we went left, we figured it'd be best to do rides in a loop instead of criss-crossing the park. Therefore, next up was:
El Toro
I had seen on here some discussion about ride refurbishments but didn't really pay attention to it; I had just seen enough YouTube videos and thus had it as a bucket-list ride regardless of running conditions.
This ride too was a walk-on - the seatbelts were latched when I followed a ride attendant's gestures to another group to get on board as the air gates were about to close, so I guess that confused my buddy so he stayed behind the gate and thus walked over towards a front car row while the train was dispatching; I was near the back. I was curious how the cable lift felt on a woody - it was faster than expected. The first two hills were awesome; then came a bump somewhere at the bottom of the second hill. The whole ride was pretty rattly, though it's a woody so that was to be somewhat expected. There were a few more jolts entering into the rose bowl, but that section must be how peeps in RCT2 feel when you do high-speed tight banked turns - it was interesting.
Since it was one-train ops, I was able to walk up the train to go sit next to my buddy for my second ride. All the same jolts/potholes were there, but I think it was a little less rattly. I took more time to look over at the adjacent Safari park, and couldn't see many animals out - it looked like a really lame bare-bones set of exhibits that clearly several tour trucks run through on a regular basis. Since we didn't have time, I didn't get a chance to experience it for myself to find out though.
With our brains being somewhat scrambled, we made our way to:
Medusa
It took a moment to figure out which way to walk from El Toro's exit to get there, but it's probably one of the best framed ride entrances with the cobra roll. There was practically nobody on the train when we got onto the platform, so we took front row.
I found it interesting that the OTSRs had a bit more room than what I was expecting, the bottom was sitting maybe an inch or two higher than I usually get when on most other rides - I don't think my proportions have changed all that much in the last several years. I dediced to pull it in a bit more after the attendant checked it, and ended up stapling myself.
The ride was rough - I'm not sure if it was due to being in front or being stapled or both that I could really feel every vibration; it also felt like the train was hunting. I'm aware that apparently this train is up for refurbishment soon though, so hooray for locals and others who happen to get the other train.
Though it was also one-train ops, we were the only people in the station when it came back so the ride op on the panel suggested we change rows and go again - we took back seats. I was not stapled this time. I felt that while it was still a bit rattly, it was a much better experience back there. I particularly liked the theming element the interlocking corkscrews go around; it was a cool head-chopper.
After a quick rest stop, it was time to go to:
Runaway Mine Train
It was a less janky Arrow mine train - not much to say about it but it did offer a few pops of forces throughout that was nice.
Walking down the Lakefront to the next ride, I was wondering what those structures in the water are - I was guessing that it may have been either a swimming hole dock, or something for maintanence of the waterway.
The Joker
We initially were turned away because apparently zippered pockets didn't matter - nothing could be in pockets. Figuring it's just a larger version of Tumbili, no big deal. We did eventually get a locker after being turned away at Jersey Devil, then got a ride.
It's a bigger version of Tumbili, with a lot of flip potential. Fun stuff.
We skipped Harley Quinn because it's a kiddie coaster and neither of us are credit hounds anyways.
Skull Mountain
It's a coaster in a box - without the building, I think the ride would be mediocre at best, but with the darkness it had a few good elements of surprise drops and turns; otherwise it wasn't anything spectacular.
Jersey Devil
The loading system was bit confusing since I was first in line; I didn't realize I was supposed to just walk straight onto it instead of walking forward a bit; then once on I was informed I had to let the ride op lower the restraint. This ride is yet more proof that RMC can't figure out how to make a comfy seat design with restraints - my legs had to splay out at a somewhat unnatural angle, thus preventing some of my bracing efforts to be all that effective against the lap bar's thigh crushing effects during the ride.
Otherwise, it was one hell of a ride - great forces and fun elements; I especially liked the dive turn and stalls.
We got off and made our way to:
Nitro
By the time we got on, the light sprinkle had intensified a slight bit to larger drops. This ride had a little bit more people waiting, so we rode near the front for the first ride. It's a B&M hyper, known for crowd-pleasing and graceful drops and turns - it didn't disappoint even with the rattles. I wasn't a huge fan of the simplistic turnaround near Roarin Rapids having grown up with AC's cobra tail, but I did like the giant helix up to the MCBR. I did think it was an interesting choice to have it so close to the end of the ride yet far enough away to have another drop or two between brake runs - I imagine evacs from that location must take some time to get to.
When we pulled into the station, we were given the opportunity to go again; we walked and got into one of the rear rows in front of some rowdy kids who were taking the idea of going hands up pretty seriously - all in good fun it seems. Maybe it's just a preference, but I think further towards the back of the train gave a better ride.
While we were interested in riding Batman, it was closed up - I didn't even see a train in the station indicating there may have been some remote chance (though reading the forum later, it was obviously still down for maintenance/refurb).
Therefore, we ventured through MovieTown, and hit up:
Justice League
There was a short queue wait for this shooter - I was impressed with the Cyborg animatronic being fully functional; I did find the Lex Luthor/Joker interludes played heavy on Joker lines but such is the nature of the franchise. I was actually curious about the safety mechanisms in place for the animatronic - it seemed to be really close to guests without any barriers preventing a mischievous or overly curious person to go right on up to it on its dais. I'm guessing it's a mix of honor system and e-stop triggers nearby.
The storyline was a bit whacky, which was to be expected - but the hard part was figuring out what you were supposed to aim at as there was mostly screens but some physical sets too - also with a lack of a laser site, it's hard to know what you were aiming at. I decided the best course of action was to go in Time Crisis style (minus the need to reload) - hold the gun with one hand and rapid fire the trigger with the other while attempting to aim at the high value targets. This seemed to work as I had the high score in my car by a long shot (the monitor at the exit indicated I'm in the top 5% of players - not sure how that's calculated).
This ride was fun, but it was time for the last coaster on the agenda:
The Flash
It looked as if Vekoma saw the Premier SRIIs and said 'hold my beer'.
There was a short wait; a guy in front of us had his way too small kids with him I guess as some sort of parent exchange and it was not clear that he needed to go through the exit instead of the queue - the attendant at the lockers fortunately got him straightened out quickly. We were fortunate that there simply wasn't that many people in the park, otherwise the capacity discussion would have been far more germane to our experience - I'd hate to have to wait more than a few cycles for such a short ride.
The ride was incredibly smooth (as expected for a new non-B&M), and sitting near the back was fun - the inverted stall was probably the best part. I found it interesting that Vekoma had their own logos in the vest collars instead of any park/ride logo or not having any. I figured I was probably one of the few guests in the park that day that had any idea who the logo was for, whatever that means about me.
Just to get at least one flat in, we ended our day with:
Sky Screamer
I was intrigued by this ride design since I'm used to WindSeeker (which absolutely scare the hell out of me because of how high and fast they go, though I know I'm secure with the lap bar restraints), and wanted to try it out. The end result was it didn't feel like we went nearly as fast as the 40 mph the ride op mentioned in their spiel, and obviously didn't go nearly as high. The more-secure versions of wave swinger seats also didn't really seem to affect my perception of the ride either - it was a fun yet kinda gently swing ride. I did like how it went up and down a couple of times instead of just up and down once.
With that, we had done everything we set out to do in about 4-5ish hours and it was time to go get ready for the show.
Final Thoughts
This is the first truly Six Flags park I've visited, and based on the brand's reputation it was roughly what I expected to get - it's definitely not AB's BGW levels of presentation, but it's a decent park. However, I noticed a good level of staffing for what was shaping up to be a slow day due to weather, staff generally seemed attentive and helpful, the amount of visible security staff present was not something I'm used to but happy to see, and the ride crews generally worked hard at pumping out trains.
I'm incredibly grateful for the weather working in our favor, as well as the advice that couple gave us.
I'd put Flash, Nitro, and Jersey Devil in my top rides at the park, with the rest being background support thanks to the roughness - I'd otherwise want to put El Toro and Medusa higher up but they were just too rough for me. It also didn't help that many of the rides are versions of ride models I've been on similar and/or better versions of elsewhere that set a bar for me.
I recall seeing several posts over time lamenting that the park is really spread out and it's a long hike between sections. While this may be somewhat true given it's flattened loop setup, I didn't find it was especially exhausting going from any one section to the others - keeping in mind that while I may not have been standing in line for long periods of time thus fatiguing my body, I was pretty sore from being in the circle/mosh pit the night before.
Overall, it was a fun visit and if there's another show in the future where I have time to visit, I may come back and also take in some of the smaller rides we skipped - by that point, Project Purple may be open too.
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