Ultimate Rollercoaster

It's been three years since I last visited the park and I had been wanting to get back there as I ususally make bi-annual visits to SFDL. I left Cleveland about a quarter to six in the morning and arrived at SFDL around ten o'clock and was surprised by the amount of cars waiting for the parking lot to open. I was also surprised that parking was only $7.00 (ahem, Geauga Lake) and I was able to park close to the entrance.

Without a discount I paid my admission, walked through the metal detectors, and made my way up to where the rope was. I got to see bits and pieces of the little pre-show with the Looney Tunes characters as there were quite a few people in front of me. 10:30 came, the rope dropped, and I made a beeline to Superman, just like almost everyone around me.

Superman was not open yet but a good sized line was forming at the entrance. In fact by the time the ride opened the line stretched all the way back through the Predator's arch. They tested both trains (blue twice and red once) which I didn't understand as shouldn't the rides have been tested BEFORE the park opened? Even Predator was testing both of its trains at this time.

Thankfully my wait for S:RoS was not a long one. I noticed the skinny Intamin belts were gone and replaced by the wide orange belts like on CP's Gemini. My first thought was that maybe these belts would offer a bit more room - WRONG! They were just as snug as the belts on Millennium Force. The T-bar restraints aren't exactly a "T" shape anymore with the addition of two narrow bars that hold ankle restraints. Seemed kind of awkward at first. Then we were off on our ride.

Superman has always been an okay ride for me and I guess it's because I'm spoiled with having MF so close by. The helices don't do anything for me and I swear I wanted to bust through the lap belt as I felt the toned-down air time on the return leg of the trip due to the tight belts. I only rode S:RoS once due to the length of line and slow dispatching.

One of the allures of SFDL for me (as well as PCW) is the wide array of unique flat rides you don't find at your typical theme parks today. Having said that, after S:RoS, I quickly made my way to my favorite flat ride in the park, Raging Seas. This MACK Sea Storm ride has seen better days and it seemed to be running a bit slower than I remember. Please Six Flags, give this ride some love and get it looking and running better than ever.

I had been to SFDL twice before but I never had the chance to ride their landmark Giant Wheel. I like huge Ferris Wheels and this was my chance to ride theirs so I headed over to ride this Vekoma ride. What a great view of the park from up there.

I headed towards their classic Arrow looper, Viper and entered one of the longest queue lines I've ever experienced. Fortunately the line wasn't too bad and I decided to sit towards the back. It wasn't a bad ride actually as I didn't experience any headbanging. I only rode this one once.

Headed over to my second favorite flat ride in the park, the Sleigh Ride. This is an actual MACK Petersburger Schlitfenfahrt swing bob and I really like the decor on this ride. I also like the fact that it has a rather dark tunnel in the rear of the ride. But compared to other MACK swing bobs like CP's Matterhorn and GL's Hay Baler, this one seemed to run rather slow.

I walked around the corner and I wanted to ride something I had never ridden before - the Huss UFO. I have never ridden a Round-Up ride so this would be a new experience for me. I entered my cage and noticed no restraint whatsoever. The ride began to spin and my back slowly was forced into the ultra-soft "seat cushion" behind me. Then the ride began to lift. This ride is AWESOME and I will make sure I will not miss it again when I come back next time.

Since I didn't venture to the area where Twister was yet, that was where I was headed to next. I saw that Twister wasn't open yet (would open later on) and since I was in the vicinity of the Batman Thrill Spectacular with a few minutes before the show, I got in line. It was an okay show but you would think that after four/five years the show would have changed. It was still Batman versus Joker. I think it's still a big crowd pleaser, judging by the large audience and their enthusiasm with the show. I was just happy to be in some air-conditioning at this point.

After Batman, I found myself walking back towards Predator so I got in line. This is the first time I actually had to wait in line for this ride, albeit a short one. Stacking was very bad as I found out the reason why as I hopped in the front seat (the only seat I will sit in on Predator). First they check the seat belts. Then they lower the lap bars and the ride ops have to check the lap bars. It's as if they are doing double duty on this ride.

As for the ride, I'm not sure if they've done any work on the track (I saw some piles of wood inside the structure) as the PTC trailer trains just bounced around. There were some hints of air time in spots. RWB used to have these types of trains and I do not miss them one bit. I will gladly take a Gerstlauer over these any day. If Predator had better PTC's this would be one very good coaster. I only rode this once.

After Predator I got something to drink and just walked around a bit. I found myself over by the Huss Ranger and I decided to get a ride on it. This is another ride I have never ridden before and I thought it wasn't too bad. With the slow rotation there was plenty of air time as you inverted but I would rather have a Zamperla Hawk over this.

The rest of my time I spent walking around, getting a second ride on Raging Seas, UFO, and Sleigh Ride by the time I left the park at 5:00. I did walk through their water park to check out the new Tornado and I want to thank GL's Bill Spehn for adding the conveyor belt to ours. Those poor folks had to carry those huge tubs up the stairs themselves.

I like SFDL, it has a lot going for it. Unfortunately Six Flags does not realize this and I feel bad for the park. With the hotel, campground, theme park/water park, and performing arts center, SFDL could be one of the major players in the chain alongside SFGAm and SFGAdv.

Thanks for reading.

G-Dog

Thanks for th TR, G-Dog
> Superman was not open yet but a good sized line was forming
> at the entrance. In fact by the time the ride opened the
> line stretched all the way back through the Predator's
> arch. They tested both trains (blue twice and red once)
> which I didn't understand as shouldn't the rides have been
> tested BEFORE the park opened? Even Predator was testing
> both of its trains at this time.

Gee, you mean a Six Flags park wasn't testing its rides early? What a surprise...

> One of the allures of SFDL for me (as well as PCW) is the
> wide array of unique flat rides you don't find at your
> typical theme parks today. Having said that, after S:RoS, I
> quickly made my way to my favorite flat ride in the park,
> Raging Seas. This MACK Sea Storm ride has seen better days
> and it seemed to be running a bit slower than I remember.
> Please Six Flags, give this ride some love and get it
> looking and running better than ever.

Maybe Six Flags could get this one going as well as the Conquistador at SFoT runs. That is still the best swinging ship I have ever been on. ALthough KBF's is a close second.

> Headed over to my second favorite flat ride in the park,
> the Sleigh Ride. This is an actual MACK Petersburger
> Schlitfenfahrt swing bob and I really like the decor on
> this ride. I also like the fact that it has a rather dark
> tunnel in the rear of the ride. But compared to other MACK
> swing bobs like CP's Matterhorn and GL's Hay Baler, this
> one seemed to run rather slow.

Love the Matterhorn!

> I walked around the corner and I wanted to ride something I
> had never ridden before - the Huss UFO. I have never ridden
> a Round-Up ride so this would be a new experience for me. I
> entered my cage and noticed no restraint whatsoever. The
> ride began to spin and my back slowly was forced into the
> ultra-soft "seat cushion" behind me. Then the
> ride began to lift. This ride is AWESOME and I will make
> sure I will not miss it again when I come back next time.

These rides do rock. Unfortunately, many friends of mine have motion problems and can't hand the spin-and-pukes when we visit some parks and fairs.

> I like SFDL, it has a lot going for it. Unfortunately Six
> Flags does not realize this and I feel bad for the park.
> With the hotel, campground, theme park/water park, and
> performing arts center, SFDL could be one of the major
> players in the chain alongside SFGAm and SFGAdv.

I hope I can make it to DL when I go to the New York area next summer. Thanks again, and come visit some parks in Texas some time.

- Pat-O

> I hope I can make it to DL when I go to the New York area
> next summer. Thanks again, and come visit some parks in
> Texas some time.

I definitely want to hit the Texas parks soon it's just that I've put it on the back burner for now. That'll be my next major trip.

One thing I didn't mention was that Boomerang was closed and I didn't ride Mind Eraser, which I've read is one of the worst SLC's out there. I did walk by the ride and overheard people say it should be called the "Ear Eraser". I think I'll stick with GL's much more tolerable Thunderhawk.

G-Dog