Cyclonic
Posts: 2636
Registered: 7/19/2002
Rank: Experiment 626
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 5/18/2003 7:57:00 PM
Lake Compounce
Saturday, May 17, 2003
I hit the road at about seven in the morning. I had a few goals in mind, first of which was check out the New England Carousel Museum, just five minutes from the park. I actual got there just after ten, not to bad considering I stopped for gas and food.
I walked into the museum and found no one there. I waited for a few minutes, and still, not a soul, not even the sound of anyone around. OK, so I walk into the museum. The collection is very nice, and well displayed. They do not have a carousel at the location of the museum, but they do upkeep the carousel at Bushnell Park in Hartford, CT. I was disappointed because I did not realize they did not have a carousel right there. Anyway, the displays were informative, but I was a little confused by the display of the Derby Racer horse. It stated it was from a Prior and Church derby, but then went on to describe a steeplechase ride. Did P&C make steeplechases too? Still, no one around, so I left, heading for Lake Compounce.
I got the The Lake at about 11, just at opening. Now my rant, a little one, but am I the only one that thinks parking is a rip off? I mean, five bucks to park in a lousy gravel lot, it isn't even paved, that is ridiculous. OK, rant off. I did get a close spot, and headed through the tunnel to the park.
The entrance is kind of neat, you go into the tunnel, not seeing any of the park, then on the other side, bam, it is all there. The gates are backed by a main street type of area, which have the lift hill of the Wildcat roller coaster behind them. It is very visually appealing. I pay and head in.
First up in the Zoomerang. It is a typical Vekoma Boomabang. I actually feel that the boomarangs are fun rides, with the exception of the head banging. I managed to advoid this by pressing up against the restraints, keeping my head out of harm's way, and had a good ride.
Next, I checked out the American Flyers, their set of flying skooters. This is a portable set, and so while it still has ten cars, it is lower to the ground, making snapping impossible. That didn't stop me from trying, with no luck of course.
Ghost Hunt was next. This interactive dark ride had some of the longest lines. It is an enjoyable ride, but not at all scary, something a dark ride should at least try to do. All of the gags were just painted onto the walls or pop-up boards, making everything two dimensional. I still had fun with it, and the mist filled tunnel mid way is neat, thought I bet it really is cool at night.
I could not longer resist, and headed for Boulder Dash. Dash was running just one train all day, but I never waited more then ten minutes for it, and my first ride was a walk-on. Seems everyone wanted to ride in the front. Fine by me, I headed for the back and enjoyed airtime galore. It really is an outstanding ride, with lots of airtime and some vicious laterals, something CCI seemed to be fond of. The first drop is phenomenal, a steep, fast, swooping drop through the trees down the mountain side. The speed does not let up through the rest of the ride either, tossing you up and down the ridge. The only downside of the coaster is something that I am sure will be fixed as the season progresses, and that is operations. It seems to take forever to load and dispatch a train. This, of coarse will improve as the ride ops get their jobs down and get in to a groove. At least they were not stapling riders in, and pulled on the lapbars to check them. I got two click rides all day, with my belt very loose.
I was next going to check out the carousel, but ended up running into the Wildcat's entrance. It is hidden behind a gift shop, I think if I did not chance upon it I would have had trouble finding it. No one else did, as the queue was pretty full. No matter, they were looking for a single rider, and I ended up waiting only about two trains. It is a fun ride, but not one of Herbert Schmeck's m
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bb_dg
Posts: 3568
Registered: 7/31/2001
Rank: Site Moderator
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5/18/2003 8:11:00 PM
great TR. i look forward to getting up there sometime this summer. so what did you think was the best seat on boulder dash? did you get a chance to ride front seat?
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Cyclonic
Posts: 2636
Registered: 7/19/2002
Rank: Experiment 626
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5/18/2003 9:06:00 PM
I did not ride the front seat. The line for it was long all day, and I was short on time, so I oped to catch back seat rides. Next time, it is really only a three hour drive, not too bad.
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bb_dg
Posts: 3568
Registered: 7/31/2001
Rank: Site Moderator
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5/18/2003 9:46:00 PM
thats it! i could have sworn it was more. LC is below SFNE right
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mrceagle
Posts: 13804
Registered: 6/9/2001
Rank: TPC News Minister
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5/19/2003 12:17:00 AM
Quote:
bb_dg said:
thats it! i could have sworn it was more. LC is below SFNE right |
ya its below. just a five-ten minute drive away from hartford. took me 2 hours to get there and 3 to get home. to to will have a trip reprt posted soom. and on canobie.
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Miracles can be made with a rock!
"Get a good idea and stay with it. dog it and work at it untile it's done, and don right." Walt Disney
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Cyclonic
Posts: 2636
Registered: 7/19/2002
Rank: Experiment 626
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5/19/2003 5:37:00 PM
Quote:
bb_dg said:
thats it! i could have sworn it was more. LC is below SFNE right |
Yeah, that's it. I was surprised too.
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ILoveWood
Posts: 114
Registered: 7/22/2002
Rank: Bronze Critic
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5/21/2003 11:44:00 AM
Glad to hear you had such a great day at the lake. Does anyone know, are the Flying Scooters new? I don't remember them from last year.
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mrceagle
Posts: 13804
Registered: 6/9/2001
Rank: TPC News Minister
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5/22/2003 12:44:00 AM
Quote:
ILoveWood said:
Glad to hear you had such a great day at the lake. Does anyone know, are the Flying Scooters new? I don't remember them from last year. |
They arn't knw they have had then since the 30s. they used to be over by the train. they were removed and put in storage when they got Mamoth falls. they repainted them and put them back out this year.
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mrceagle
Posts: 13804
Registered: 6/9/2001
Rank: TPC News Minister
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5/22/2003 11:00:00 PM
update/Addition
I had forgotten one major thing one a good note for the park. Flashback is running fantastically. They have replaced all the train’s wheels with brand new ones. They also have reset the brake to not go off. This removes the jerkiness of the ride. it now slows down and lightly catches the second lift chain. This decision was a good one. This coaster is now the best boomerang you can ride in the area.
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Cyclonic
Posts: 2636
Registered: 7/19/2002
Rank: Experiment 626
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 5/26/2003 9:55:00 PM
Got you boomarangs mixed up there, Flashback is at SFNE, and unfortunately is running with that brake. To aleviate the confusion, you mean Zoomarang.
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Got Constitution? I don't think Democrats know what it is.
Coaster Count: 112
First: Jack Rabbit - Clementon Park
Most recent: Boulder Dash - Lake Compounce
The Winner: Phoenix - Knoebel's
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mrceagle
Posts: 13804
Registered: 6/9/2001
Rank: TPC News Minister
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5/27/2003 3:24:00 PM
Quote:
Black7 said:
Got you boomarangs mixed up there, Flashback is at SFNE, and unfortunately is running with that brake. To aleviate the confusion, you mean Zoomarang. |
yes I ment Zoomerange.
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