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-5 Rating Posted by: beastfello on 8/25/2005 10:42:00 AM

I dont visit the site or rank rides often, but felt I oughta in light of the creation of Top Thrill Dragster and Kingda Ka.

Now, before you move to chop off my head for giving the ride an 8 rating, please do your best to read dispassionately (is that possible to do in considering such a raucous machine?). Heres my basic take on the ride: Yeah, its hardcore and unprecedented in the coaster world. However, this ride indicates only the beginning. Thats why I give it an 8.

I believe that there will come a day when this ride will seem dated, a fate which a true classic never meets. Itll remain important in its role as one of the first, but may not retain its unique fun factor in the way that the great ones do (Beast, Cyclone, probably Millenium Force). I remember when XL-200 was lauded as the greatest. Where does it rank today?

Essentially, the recent marriage of computer modeling and advanced steel construction has unleashed a whole new realm of possibilities. As I mentioned in my review of Millenium Force, speed and glass-like smoothness are on offer in previously unimaginable magnitude. It just plain rocks!

Anyway, while I dig 0 to 128 in 3.5 seconds and 455 feet, theres certainly room for much, much more. This is just scratching the surface.

I didnt find my first ride on Dragster to be overwhelming. I can understand where many people would, but I view this ride in the broad scope of human experiments with speed and height. At a personal level, Ive driven a car as fast as this coaster and know folks whove eclipsed 200mph on motorcycles. More objectively speaking, drag racing cars hit 350mph in short time and weve built steel towers which exceed 2,000 feet.

Granted, these towers arent load bearing, and 350mph is absurd to ask of a coaster...today. However, 200+mph at around 700 feet seems quite possible. This seems especially reasonable if designers keep in mind one of the most historically beneficial tenets in building better coasters: Use the surrounding topography to advantage. Can you imagine a coaster 700 feet tall whose support structure is affixed to a mountain face? I sure can. Sounds like fun, eh?

Still, mountains arent even necessary. They might just help alleviate some of the cost of free-standing structures. Maybe Las Vegas could build one up the side of a sky scraper...yeah, I know, Im letting my daydreams get the best of me. Still, I can somehow imagine it in a place like Vegas.

On another point related to Great Adventure and Kingda Ka, I cant help but feel really annoyed by the Kingda Ka t-shirts with "This Breaks All Records" printed on the back. What a bogus and ahistoric claim. The ride breaks 2, maybe 3 records (e.g. speed, height and, if you wish, acceleration). The coaster doesnt break ALL records. Its not the longest, doesnt flip (wouldnt THAT be fun...how bout a 30 degree incline, 60 wide by 160 long double corkscrew on the come down from, say, 760 feet?), etc. This rides a blast, but it doesnt break all records. I kind of hate that t-shirt, actually.

No doubt, this ride and the Top Thrill Dragster ROCK! Ill hold back on giving a 9 until they break 550 feet or so at 160+mph. The 10 will come when 200mph is broken. I feel the wind in my chest already. Well need protective goggles when this monster arrives.

I dont mind the rating considering I also gave it an 8, but I dont really agree with the way you came up with that rating. I wouldnt give it that rating on the fact that it is the "beginning". Are speed and height really that important that all of those crazy things have to be in a ride to make it a 10 for you? I just dont agree with your sense of thinking at all.

Well, I wonder how objectively you read my comments. I ranked and reviewed this ride according to its particular strengths and nothing more or less. If youll read any of my other reviews, youll see that Im actually more impressed by graceful flow, interesting line, etc.

In fact, you dont even have to go further than a close read of this review to see that Im impressed by elements outside of speed, height and acceleration. I simply reviewed Kingda Ka on its particular strengths.

Oh dear God, here were go with the Anonymous comments. Yup, 21 is so old

beastfello, sure you did, but if you reviewed it on it strengths you have something weird going on there inbetween. I just dont see how a good portion of your comments are at all objective and really give the ride a true rating based on what the ride is, has to offer, and what is around NOW and not the future.

All I can really contribute to this is that, possibly, fello feels that Ka (and Dragster) wont have great lasting power in the end - Dragster pushed the envelope to say the least, and Ka followed along - but although each provides a huge thrill, I can see how they dont really have the grace, flow, thought and such that make a ride experience truly memorable. Dont get me wrong, Ka is incredible. But I can see where fello sees it as a step towards greater things, rather than a classic in the making.

Oooh someone has guts to insult anonymously

Idiot.

Yup - and hell just continue to get deleted, until he finds the balls to set up an account...

Is it beastfello that is doing that, because that would be pretty funny. I think I have stated my points. I just dont think you can look into the future like that. It is your opinion fello, but I really think it is a dumb way of looking at it. You might be very disappointed if you think crazy things like 200mph are going to be coming.

Im amazed at the way people rate rides. I can totally understand people giving the ride an 8 or even a lower rating. Hercules, for example, gave a decent review because he had a good explanation for the rating. However, this review says almost nothing about the ride. Its a bunch of comparisons to unrelated things like motorcycles, dragsters and buildings with a few negative comments thrown in about the KK t-shirts. If you liked the ride, tell us why. If you didnt, tell us why. Of course there are taller structures than 456 feet. Those structures also serve a different person than sending a train of 20 screaming people up and down. Sure, your motorcycle or car can do over 128MPH. But, I dont see it scaling a 90 degree wall to a height of 456 feet. Its comparing apples to oranges. This review is nonsense. Its just a bunch of speculating about what COULD be in the future. Exactly HOW does that relate to the enjoyment of this ride ?? Unreal !

Well, Im not in the practice of defending points which I feel are already well articulated. However, just a couple of quick points. Hercules suggests, "You might be very disappointed if you think crazy things like 200mph are going to be coming." Isnt it always the story of human endeavor? Naysayers always suggest that possibilities beyond the known are "crazy" and unrealistic. The idea of a coaster traveling 456 feet at 120mph was absurd 15 years ago or less. By the way, no, I havent left anonymous posts, definitely not my style.

To kowrip, speculation on what could be is native territory to the imaginative participant. I feel that there are a select few coasters that are either perfect or darn close. Most of the other coasters which arent near perfect kind of leave you hanging or considering how they might be better. Kingda Ka is one of the latter.

I mentioned what I liked about the ride, namely its sheer adrenalin rush. There just isnt much more to the ride than that. I dont care about who had the 1st of this type of ride or who has the faster/higher. Really, though, Kingda Ka represents an act in one-upmanship. The park and some fans are boasting of how this ride trumps the Top Thrill Dragster. Actually, Ka is just proof of my point that there are probably bigger things yet to come.

That is a very good point in your first paragraph. I am usually not one to naysay or anything. I think that anything is possible. I was just trying to state what kowrip said. I didnt explain myself very well at all. I just dont think it can be compared to the things that this reviewer compared it to and there is no reason to not like a ride just because of what could happen in the future. I dont like th review at all.

Beastfello: Your review didnt focus on what was or wasnt enjoyable about the ride. If you had said something like "This ride has no creativity and nothing to offer except the sheer adrenaline rush", then I wouldnt have had a problem with it. However, you just went off on some wild tangent about unrelated things and some things that COULD be cool if they used. 90% of your review has nothing to do with the ride itself. If you think its the type of ride whose novelty will quickly wear out (like Superman The Escape at SFMM) and it will no longer be interesting, then simply state this.

OK, Anonymous posters listen up. I know you guys read these threads day in and day out so you cant say you didnt hear this. If you are going to post over and over again, just go ahead and Sign up for an Account. We know who is posting over and over again anonymously. If this is you, then you need to grow up and be able to take responsiblity for your statements and opinions. Until then, certain posts will be deleted.

Also, some of you really need to learn what the difference between and opinion and a fact. Some of you are greatly confusing the two and speaking as if your opinion is fact, when it is not. There is no general consensus about things like roller coasters, so dont act like it is. Plenty of people like both Kingda Ka and Top Thrill Dragster, neither is a unanimous choice. Just learn to speak somewhat peacefully and with respect for the opinions of others. The more you insult or say that someone else is wrong (without solid facts, that is), the more immature you come across as and the less likely that anyone will care about your opinion.

Also, if you really want to call names, sign up and go to the forum where you can do that.

I havent rode Kingda Ka, but the way you chose your numbers are completely ridiculous, just because it doesnt go over 160 mph and doesnt top 500 feet has no reason to take numbers off, I respect the way you attempted to show how you took off points, but just because it isnt 500 feet is no good reasonto take off points. This is a retarted reason. There is a day when every ride will become outdated and when that day comes you can update your review. It isnt like this is a permanant review that people will read 15 years from now!

Anon, dont jump in and post comments, posing as beastfello. Hes my brother, and I know for a fact that at this moment, hes on a train headed south, without access to a computer. He doesnt need your help, nor anyone elses, to speak his mind.

Cant any of you all mods remove the anonymous post button?

Trust me coasterdad, Ive checked in with Mark about the issue, to see what we can do. It hasnt been all that big of a deal before, but this time its getting old...

Coasterdad states that "There is a day when every ride will become outdated". To this, all I can say is that many of the oldest extant coasters have not, and probably will never, meet such a day. Just look at the reviews on this site of such rides as the Thunderbolt, the Beast or the Cyclone.

I didnt intend to get people so hot and bothered, in the end were just giving opinions on rides. My point has been that I feel that Kingda Ka merely ups the ante on rides like Top Thrill Dragster and that this ride almost certainly represents a stepping stone. I feel its less an object of greatness so much as its an indication of what the future almost certainly will bring.

Reviews like this completely annoy me. They build the tallest fastest roller coaster in the world and this guy acts like he isnt impressed. I have never been to see Kingda Ka, but I have seen TTD. If you cannot say that just the size of it had you a little nervous the first time you looked at it then you are a liar. Making light of the speed and height of Kingda Ka is ridiculous. Asking for 700 foot 200+ MPH rides like they just make themselves. Let me guess dude, you are a physicist and can create this kind of structure with the speed and safety required to run a coaster on a daily basis. It is totally unappreciated when the rides that are built get insulted by people that claim that the ride is their third favorite.

this one letter post by sparky put this thread back on the home page, giving me a chance to reread it. i enjoyed reading beast-fellos ideas. like his sister, he seems like a cool person. the only issue i take with anything said is that a "review" is the wrong context for this type of discussion. this would have made a good forum topic. incidentally, beastfello, good idea about the vegas skyscraper, but it occurs to me that in vegas the skyscrapers are hotels. i dont think many guests at the "steve winn coaster palace" would appreciate the accelerator coaster buzzing their window while they commit naughty acts with a 1500$/night hooker or while they sob into a their pillow because their lovers hand is inextricably glued to a one-armed bandit downstairs.

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