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Trip #4--THURSDAY, JUNE 26, 2003
1:30pm to 8:30pm
RIDES RIDDEN--10-Georgia
Cyclone, Acrophobia, Ninja, The Great American Scream Machine, Superman: Ultimate Flight, Mindbender, Batman: The Ride, Georgia
Cyclone, The Georgia Scorcher, Déjà Vu, The Great American Scream Machine, Dahlonega Mine Train, Acrophobia, Georgia Cyclone,
Batman: The Ride, Mindbender, Georgia Cyclone
Wow,
three trips to Six Flags in a week! Thats what Im talking about. Since the trip was long, and I have a lot on my mind with
me leaving to go to Costa
Rica Saturday morning, I
will only give a brief report and key points throughout the day.
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Got there at 1:30pm, and the crowds were not bad. It was a little partly cloudy all day, but rain never threatened.
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Naturally, the first ride was on Georgia Cyclone
and we had a 10-minute wait. Acrophobia was next with a 20-minute wait. I had a friend with me that hadnt been to the park
since 1997, so he was eager to ride some of the new things. He liked Acro, but said it really, really scared him and he didnt
ride it again later in the day.
·
Heading to Cotton States, we noticed Déjà Vu
was operating, but had a long line, so we decided to op for that later. We took a quick spin on Ninja, walking-on the ride
with no wait. We then headed to Scream Machine, which had a 10-minute wait. I couldnt tell anything was going on at the park
tomorrow with Scream Machine. Superman was next, and I was eager to see what my friend would say about this one. We waited
25-minutes and he approved of it, and of course really liked the loop thingy.
·
We headed back towards Lickskillet, up through
USA, and down the hill to Gotham
City. There werent a lot of people in Gotham, surprisingly,
and Mindbender had only a 5-minute wait, with the line starting just outside the station. Quick, pleasurable, and smooth ride
on a great classic. We headed across the section to Batman, which my friend said was the new ride when he came here, but didnt
get to ride it. He did this time, after we waited 20-minutes. He liked it a lot, but Superman was better, he said. I agreed!
·
We headed to the pizza place before Lickskillet
and had lunch. There pizza is very good, but naturally expensive!
·
After we ate, we decided to head back towards
the front of the park and passed through Confederate to the British section, and had our first re-ride of the day on Georgia
Cyclone. Only a 5-minute wait, and was a nice and quick ride. We went to Georgia section and took a spin on The Georgia Scorcher. We waited just over 5-minutes, and my friend didnt like
it at all. He said it was very lame and short, and I agreed. The ride just doesnt pack a punch anymore. We went back to Gotham to have a quick ride on Mindbender and Batman, but Mindbender was closed for some reason. Batman had a 15-minute wait,
and we jumped on that for another ride.
·
We decided to go back and wait for Déjà Vu
which had a ¾ full queue house. It was just an hour wait, but the line went fast, with the Vu having no problems. We got row
5A, and my friend was very nervous getting on the ride. It was a great ride (as always) and though scared him to death, my
friend really enjoyed it.
·
Headed to our last trip to Cotton States for
the day, and took another spin on Scream Machine, which had a 10-minute wait. We passed on Superman, which had a pretty long
line.
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After our trip through Cotton States, we walked
casually through Carousel Hill and headed to the Dahlonega Mine Train, so we could finish our coaster count of the day. It
was a walk-on for the back, and a short, but rough ride. Next was Acrophobia, which my friend said decided against and just
watched me. Had a 20-minute wait, and had another good ride on the gyro drop.
·
It was about 8pm now, and we wanted to leave by 8:30, so we had to hurry to get as much rides
as we could in. We again did Cyclone, after a 5-minute wait. We passed Scorcher, for better thrills, and headed back to Gotham City for our third trip down there. The place was deserted, and Mindbender
was still closed. So we went to Batman, which we noticed was running trains with nobody on them. I knew somebody would be riding them, so I assumed they were testing after breakdown. I was right. We had just gotten
in line, and someone said it was closed. A lot of people left, but when we got back to the shop, we saw the trains had people
on them. Us and some other guys went back in the line, which was now only in the station, and we had a walk-on ride. We got
off of it, and saw that Mindbender was testing, and just opened. There was no one in the station and we got the very back.
Only 12 people were on the train. It was nearing 8:30 so we quickly ran over to
Cyclone for our last ride of the day. It was a walk-on.
So,
we had a great day. The weather was perfect, and so were the crowds, especially later in the day. We got to ride ALL coasters,
and I got to ride Acro twice and had plenty of re-rides on the other coasters. Overall, a very good day, for it is my last
trip for at least three weeks.
Trip #3--SUNDAY, JUNE 22, 2003
9:30pm to 4:30pm
RIDES RIDDEN--11-The
Georgia Cyclone, Acrophobia (3), The Great American Scream Machine, Superman: Ultimate Flight, Mindbender, Batman: The Ride,
Ninja, Hanson Cars, Six Flags Railroad (Rabun Gap Station), Dahlonega Mine Train, Confederate Sky Buckets
SHOWS--1-Red Hot Country (Crystal Pistol Music Hall)
Never
before had I done two trips to SFoG in the same week, but I have now. Just came off a great trip on Thursday to a less than
thrilling, but still solid day at the park on a beautiful, hot Sunday. Two of my friends (huge coaster fans and father/son)
invited me to go to the park with them, first time they were going this year.
With them, they like to get out there
when the park opens and we got there about 9:20. The line for the gates was
huge, the longest I had ever seen it. By the time they had gotten there tickets (first time since 94 they didn't get
SP) the gate lines were backed up all the way to the middle of The Georgia Scorcher. No big deal, as the line moved swiftly
as the gates were opened at 9:45.
First ride of the day, traditionally was
The Georgia Cyclone, which I really like as the first coaster of the day. I really like this ride sometimes, then sometimes
it is awful. Today, it was great. We got the back car, with me in the back row. We waited only 10 minutes for it.
Next,
naturally, was the no-wait Acrophobia. We got on and naturally had a good ride. We got to ride 2 times afterwards with no
wait also, and also very good rides.
After our pleasing trips on Acrophobia, we headed to Deja Vu, which I knew opened
at 11. It was 10:45 and we thought we were in good shape.
It
wasn't testing but there were about 25 people in front of the 11am ride opening sign. We waited, and the ride still didn't test, although they moved the train slowly up the
first tower and then stopped it. A rude supervisor came out and told us to come back in an hour. So after a great ride on
it Thursday, this garbage again.
We then head over to Cotton States and ride The Great American Scream Machine, which
had a 5 minute wait for the back. This was the only coaster that I didn't ride Thursday, but was pleased with it today. Very
fun, and had great airtime. But still, too ordinary, and too short.
Headed to Superman next, which had a 20 minute
wait. Still don't understand why that the left station isn't working. Naturally, we got the back and again had a pleasing,
but short ride on it. I love this ride, but after I timed it, from the time you leave the station and hit the first brakes
your on the track for only a minute and thirty one seconds exactly. Oh, well, still thrilling none the less.
About
this time it was nearing 12 so we decided to head on back to Deja Vu to see if it was running, but it wasn't. Not even testing.
Figures.
After that we head on through USA to Gotham City, where Mindbender had a 15 minute wait. This ride
had a little more punch to it than it did Thursday, one of the few rides I liked better today than I did Thursday. Probably
because this was in the very back. (Im obsessed with the back, if you couldn't tell). Just packed a stronger punch this time.
Headed
across Gotham, to the Bat and waited a solid 20 minutes. Very good ride, but and I
think is the "strongest" ride in the park, in terms of forces and even speed, even though it is said to go on 50.
We
were getting a little hungry, so we headed over to the pizza place just in front of the Lickskillet sign. I think it's good
food if you don't want to sit in a good restaurant like Miner's Cookhouse or Miss Dixie's Buffet.
After we ate, we
went back to Lickskillet and Deja Vu still wasn't operating. We headed back to Cotton States, and took a spin on the Ninja.
5 minute wait, no biggie. After that Scream Machine and Superman lines were getting a little bigger and we didn't feel like
waiting for something we had already done right then.
Surprisingly, the next ride we rode was the Hanson Cars, one
of the few ride I had never ridden at SFoG. So I got a new experience and they weren't bad actually. Line, which always seems
long, was 20 minutes, and I got to drive. Slow and hard to turn but nice to take a twril around the beautiful and peaceful
Carousel Hill.
After that, we did something a little weird (for us), and ride the train. We waited 10 minutes for it
at Rabun Gap and rode naturally in the back. Very good train, though sound is awful. We went around the whole park, and since
I hadn't ridden the train in about 6 years, it was a good experience and relaxing.
It was now around 2:15, and it was getting hotter and the park was getting more crowded. I felt like a watching
a show (something we also rarely do at SFoG) and we decided to catch the 3:00 showing of "Red Hot Country" in the Crystal Pistol. I had never been in the Crystal Pistol and I was tired,
so I wanted to rest. But, we had to kill some time first, as it was 30 minutes to showtime and took a quick twirl on Dahlonega
Mine Train. Wait was a decent 10 minutes.
We got in the Pistol at 5 till and we sat up in the balcony on the right
middle. It was about 3/4 full downstairs, and not even 1/3 full upstairs. I was impressed at the Crystal Pistol, as I always
liked the outside of the building, but never went in there. The show was necessarily my genre, but was my friends. I'm not
a huge country music fan, but Its tolerable. The show though was very impressive and all the performers were young and very
charismatic. They had good voices, considering the genre and the set and lighting was very good. Overall, a very pleasant
show that I would see again, unlike the It's Magic show.
After a stop by the bathroom, we were kinda getting a
little tired of the park then, tired and hot, and the park kept getting hotter. Still, we waited 20 minutes for the Sky Buckets
to take us back to Lickskillet. Deja Vu wasn't running, and we were really over there to see if there were in short lines,
as we could all tell we all kinda wanted to leave. We got in line for Wheelie, but got out after we decided to ride one more
thing then leave and have a good dinner at Buffalo's. We went back up to Cotton States and saw no line worth standing in that would have been less than thirty minutes.
We walked back toward Lickskillet and then towards Confederate. Acrophobia had a 30 minute wait, and we passed, and
then we decided in all the leave about 4:30. I had had
enough, and so did they.
Overall, certainly not one of the best trips, and was one of the those "just another trip
to Six Flags." Still thrilling for the day. Disappointed that Deja Vu wasn't operating but happy we did get three early rides
on Acrophobia. We rode, in general, a lot of other great rides, and did some new things we don't regulary do in riding the
Hanson Cars, riding the train, and seeing a show, and it was a solid day at the park.
Also, I'm planning on going
back to the park this week before I leave for my 3rd vacation down to the beautiful Costa Rica for three weeks. I'm going to have a blast, but there won't be any SFoG talk. But in a
way that doesn't sadden me!
Trip #2--THURSDAY, JUNE 19, 2003
3:10pm to 9:00pm
RIDES RIDDEN--10-The
Georgia Cyclone, Acrophobia, Ninja, Superman: Ultimate Flight, Mindbender, Batman: The Ride (3), Déjà Vu, The Monster Plantation,
Acrophobia, The Georgia Scorcher Went on Thursday, June 19th and had a very good day. I learn if you
have a casual day and don't rush to get out there, you will have a great day.
Me and my friend got there at 3:10 and the parking was moderate-to-light,
as I would expect for mid-June Thursday. We knew it could shower, but we didn't really expect it, as the skies looked just
partly cloudy. We both had season passes, and not many people were at the gates. We headed to The Georgia Cyclone first off
where the line was a very good 10-minute wait. We noticed it had started to drizzle when we had gotten into the station, but
they were still running the ride.
Then the rain thickened and lightning popped a few times. Phone rings, attendant answers,
and then the ride closes.
My friend now is flaming, as are a lot of other people in the house, and a lot of people
leave. We were next in line when they closed it. My friend has no patience and was already contemplating leaving. I, on the
other hand, am calm in these situations, and knew it would blow over. After about 15 minutes, it started to let up, and the
sun came out. Testing begun and we were on The Georgia Cyclone. Very good ride, considering it just rained. We had noticed
that a lot of people had left, as it was after 4 now.
Next ride was Acrophobia, which had a casual 15-minute wait.
All I can say is that the ride is awesome.
And is so much better when you can see 75% of the queue house empty. My friend
will tolerate Acro, but doesn't really like it. Does something to her stomach she said. But she loves Deja Vu. Strange.
She
wanted to go check out Deja Vu and really so did I, and we did. A 2 and half hour wait, not surprising, but we did get to
see the awesome beast run, which is entertaining.
We headed to the more crowded part of the park, Cotton States, and
waited 10 minutes for Ninja. Tolerable ride now, but just not entertaining. Very slow ride and you really can't tell the inversions.
A shame since it has 5.
We decided to pass on Scream Machine. She's not a big fan of it, and I didn't feel like it
either. It also had what looked like a big line. We headed to Superman, where we were still waiting to get our first rides
on it since November! It was closed but we noticed a group of people waiting in front of where the queue line starts. It started
testing, and by luck they opened the gates. We waited less than 10 minutes overall for SUF, and had a great ride in the very
back. Very, very good ride.
After that, we headed back toward Lickskillet and she wanted to see Deja Vu again. It
was broke down, but only for a couple of minutes, and the line was still very big. I did not want to wait.
We took
a casual walk over to USA and then Gotham City, and noticed that the
day was turning into a very good one.
Gotham City was deserted. Literally.
I was stunned at how little people was in this place. We took a little rest near UltraZone, and then headed to Mindbender.
To our astonishment and everybody elses, there was about 15 people in the queue house. Basically walk-on. I had never done
this on a ride like this at SFoG on a regular operating day, so Im stunned. We wait 2 minutes, and the ride was good, but
is kinda losing some punch. But still a great classic, both of us agreed. Now the next thing, I was even more stunned. We
went to Batman, and there was a small line, just beginning where the police car used to be. We were in that line only about
15 minutes, but I must have gotten hit by a basketball at least 5 times from this little kid who was trying to be Allen Iverson
in front of us. My friend, as I said, has no patience and almost exploded. But at that time we were ready to board. Since
nobody was in the Lo-Q lane, we got to get in the back, after everyone in front of us got a seat. Batman is the only ride
I blackout on, and I do it every time. After the first loop, and I don't know why. This ride is just great, and has great
speed and forces. A very powerful coaster. We got back to the station, and saw no one was in the last 5 rows. We got to stay
on for another ride. Awesome. Never had I gotten to do that with a ride like Batman. We came back in, and they said we could
stay on again. Even more awesome! I wasn't ready to do a fourth ride, and even so the Lo-Q lane was filled. Even though, great
experience on a very good coaster.
It was now 7 and we headed over to Deja Vu again. She was going to ride this ride,
and I really wanted to too. The ride was operating and the line was half full in the queue house. Better than a full house.
Still, the line went swiftly and we had good people around us. It did breakdown for about 10 minutes, and a lot of regretful
people left the line. We waited and hour and was in row 4B. Wow, had I forgotten how much I love this ride. Unbelievable.
Especially on outside. More importantly, she rode it and again loved it. She said it was easily the best ride out here, and
made everything else look lame. Kinda have to agree with her on that, though the park does have great rides.
After
that, we didn't really know what we wanted to do. We had just under an hour until the park closed. We headed back to USA and were debating on going back
to Gotham. We both said no, and
headed back towards The Monster Plantation. Had no wait, so we decided to hop on for a nice, relaxing ride.
We then
headed to Acrophobia, and noticed it was becoming a gorgeous evening. Acro had a 10-minute wait, so we did it again. Riding
Deja Vu helped her do this easier, and she did with no hesitancy. Very good ride, especially at the evening, the only time
of day I had never done this ride. We had about 10 minutes until the park closed, and decided to take on The Georgia Scorcher
for our last ride of the day. Nobody was in line, and we got the back. Nice and short pleasant ride to cap off the day.
We
were both tired and very pleased with the day, considering it started with rain and my friend saying it was going to be like
this all day.
Summary
The Georgia Cyclone--Overall a 40 minute wait, but 30 because of rain.
Acrophobia--Overall
15-minute wait
Ninja--Overall 10-minute wait
Superman--Overall 10-minute wait.
Mindbender--Overall 2
minute wait.
Batman (3)--Overall 15-minute wait for first ride, then stayed on for next two times.
Deja Vu--Overall
60-minute wait, with 10-minute breakdown.
The Monster Plantation--Overall 1 minute wait.
Acrophobia--Overall
10 minute wait.
The Georgia Scorcher--Overall 1 minute wait.
Overall, a great day, after the rain, and crowds
were very minimal, partly because of the rain. Everything was working, although SUF and Deja Vu had problems during the day,
but were only temporary. Much better than first trip of the year and one of the
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Trip #1--SATURDAY, MAY 3, 2003
12:30pm to 9:30pm
RIDES RIDDEN--8-The Great American Scream Machine, The Georgia Cyclone, Ninja, Mindbender, The Georgia Scorcher, Batman: The Ride,
Ninja, Dahlonega Mine Train, Acrophobia
SHOWS--1-Wild
Wild West Comedy Gunfight Show
Well, what a way to start out the 2003 SFoG season
for me! Even though I knew the weather was awful Friday, all the meteorologists said it was supposed to be beautiful ALL weekend.
Well, were they wrong?
Since the park was open till 10pm, and me and my friend decided to go to the park around 12:30
and take it casual since it was going to be a crowded Saturday (I promised myself I would never go to SFoG on SAT, but this
was my only chance to go for a couple of weeks). So we left at about 1150 and got there at 1230, with the sky very overcast,
but hadn't rained. The park wasn't extremely crowded for a SAT, as I had seen worse, but still bad. We had to park near the
gas station in the back of the regular parking lot, which my friend, who has 0 patience, didn't like and was already saying
how bad a day this would be. This was our first trip to the park this year, so we would be getting our SP processed. The line
wasn't bad, just out the door. But after 10 mins of waiting, the printers went down, and we ended up waiting an hour. My friend
was ready to strangle the employees who were working there. So at about 200 we got the passes (which I like better than 02s).
Then the downpour came and came. It drenched the park. It hampered off a little bit for us to get in the park, but even at
200, a lot of people were heading for the exits. We got in and went to GR where a lot of people were standing under the shade.
There was only one window open, and my friend wanted her $ 10 parking back (she paid ).
With my SFoG expertise, I told her "No refund, no rain checks" the SFoG GR motto. With the rain now coming down (not a downpour,
but a good shower) and all rides closed we just walked around to Cyclone and hid under a lemonade stand. She wanted to leave,
I wanted to stay. So (even though we both felt bad for the situation) she left and I stayed. She said she would pick me up
at 10, and I agreed, but she had the look of "He's going to call in 1 hour for me to come pick him up" Thankfully I didn't.
She left and the rain stopped, but the ground and I were very wet. A lot of people had left, but a ton of people were
still there. So I casually strolled over to the Lickskillet area, where I noticed the WWW Comedy Show was just starting. I
watched the whole show, and I have to say it was great. I hadn't watched the whole show since about '95, but it was great!
I noticed the sun was trying to come out, and that Ninja was starting to test. End of TR-
Overall, not the best day to go, especially with
the rain and huge crowds. I did get my Season Pass processed, and that was probably the best thing of the day. The WW Show
was very entertaining and Acrophobia at night was very good. Other than that, nothing was really special. --- |
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