This, my friend, is the greatest ride that was EVER BUILT!! Usually, these days, newer, more high-tech rides are being built with theming, extreme height, and cool machinery. Take DisneyWorld for example. That place is so popular (unfortunately, I havent visited there), probably because of its 21st century-like attractions. But its always good to scream the old fashioned way. Phoenix is a classic which was built in 1947 at some other park. The great, non-racheting lapbars provide the extraordinary airtime. You get to see people get flung above their seats because of the lack of headrests. Even the beggining of the ride is excellent. You know, going through the pitch black tunnel. Theres always screaming in there. Every drop after the lift is an experience, especially the extreme bunny hops. Relax on the ride, because its very smooth for a 40s coaster.Thats kind of odd. I dont know what Id do without this. Knoebels, NEVER tear this down, period. If you dont ride this, go to the helicopter ride, Ill be eating popcorn. Nice phrase, jdale.

This was a great roller coaster, but the bunny hops... Well they seem to be overdiong the ride a little much. Anyway, this is what happens in the ride if youve never been on it: you sit down and the car goes into one of those "so-dark-you-cant-see-your-hand-in-front-of-your-face tunnels". Then you turn in the tunnel and start going up the lift hill. You drop down the 72 foot drop and back up, then back down into a way smaller drop than the first one. Bunny hops, then you do the up and down thing again (out and back coaster), then even more bunny hops, then its over. Sorry I know that wasnt too detailed but I dont want to make this review uber-long. If you put your e-mail address in a review comment Ill e-mail you the personal narrative about this coaster that I did in school that has much more detail.

The Phoenix is an excellent woody. The ride is great, and even kids will enjoy it-if they meet the height requirement. It does somewhat ruin the effect to be able to hear the Wurlitzer 165 Band Organ located in a niche near the ride, though.

Three words: size isnt everything. Like other people have said, this is one of the greatest woodies EVER! For a woodie, its very smooth and not rough like Rolling Thunder at Great Adventure. Best air time on any coaster (next to El Toro) and has the best ejector air on any coaster. Its sad how some people underestimate the ride and they head over for Twister or something. Well, I didnt underestimate--I rode it. Its only 78 feet tall but this ride is wild intensity from the dark tunnel to the final dip. If you dont ride this, go to the helicopter ride--Ill be eating popcorn.

The Phoenix is my 3rd favorite wooden roller coaster. It is a historical roller coaster because of its history as the Rocket, and being restored by Knoebels. The ride fits Knoebels perfectly and has a dazzling location next to trees in the very back of the park. Costing $2 per ride, the Phoenix is well-worth the price. The ride has a decent model near the entrance and has a wonderful station. With brown track and supports, the Phoenix fits in with its woodsy setting. You can see the lift hill from the queue line. The golden trains are wonderfully detailed and beautiful. Each train seats 24 people. The ride loads quickly and has no seatbelts. It only has a black buzz-bar. Because of quick loading, the Phoenixs wait is generally under 10 minutes and it has a very good capacity. Any seat is a great seat, but my favorite seat was the front seat because of the view. First, the ride journeys through a dark tunnel, and heads towards the lift hill. The ride may be small, but is big on fun. The Phoenix has a quick lift hill. The Phoenixs first drop was small, but satisfying. You then surge up a large turn-around hill providing a good burst of air-time. Then you travel over a few bunny hills again providing great air-time over each one. Afterwards is another turnaround hill providing a heavenly burst of air-time, followed by a quick air-time hill. Then theres the air-time filled double-up, double-down followed by another turnaround. Then comes the best part of the Phoenix, the outstanding bunny hill finale. 4 consecutive bunny hills launched me out of my seat and into the lap bar, which was an excellent moment. You then hit the brake run ending the marvelous ride. I highly recommend this classic coaster to anyone who enjoys air-time filled wooden coasters.

As I read all of the Knoebels and Phoenix reviews prior to my inaugural trip there in June, I tried oh so hard not to get myself too hyped up for this coaster. This was a coaster I have been wanting to ride for years at a park I have wanted to visit for years. The grand and wonderful Phoenix....often raved about and hardly ever criticized. Many have called it the "airtime king" of wooden coasters. But I couldnt help but wonder to myself, "would this thing live up to its hype and hefty praises?" Well, in a word, the answer was no. Thats right folks, the Phoenix just did not live up to the hype.....it SURPASSED it!!

With a mere 17 wooden coasters to my credit this may not sound like much, but as of now the Phoenix sits on a perch as the ultimate wooden coaster for me. This puppy, ladies and gents, is absolute world class! I could absolutely ride this thing all day and NOT grow tired of it, plain and simple. The Phoenix proves that in the great "coaster races" to have the biggest, fastest, or greatest coasters at their parks, these parks may not fully realize that height and speed dont always yield the best rides. Granted, TTD is still my #1 coaster overall (I am truly an adrenaline junkie), but I know great coasters when I ride them, and the Phoenix is exactly that. Looks can indeed deceive, and this coaster is a prime example of that fact. From the ground it doesnt appear to be much, but trust me, the pure genius parts of the ride lie in hiding waiting to pounce on you like a lion on a limping zebra.

If I had to choose 1 word to describe a ride on the Phoenix, it would simply be AIRTIME! That is what defines the Phoenix. I have honestly never experienced so much quality airtime in a single roller coaster ride! You feel like you are at a rodeo, and the Phoenix train is that angry bull trying desparately to launch you into space. I never once made it through a whole ride on it without beginning to laugh wildly! This coaster is just that much fun to ride!!

Ok, as for the ride itself, it is (in my view) the pinnacle of wooden coaster design. Simple in nature, but all elements work magnificently! I feel obligated to pass along the recommendation to ride in the front car, preferably in row 3. The best and wildest rides are found right there. The tunnel from the station is excellent and very dark. The first drop is great and as you crest from it to turn around you are (for the first of many times) launched from your seat! I mean, we are talking butt off of seat time here!! Through the remainder of the ride there are great hills and turnarounds that give good laterals and more insane air. In my view, though, it is the smaller hills that pack the biggest punches. The bunny hills on the Phoenix are just ridiculous in regards to their airtime! My favorite moment of the ride is the double-down followed by a double-up. That moment is very cool and just genius in design. Every hill on this ride is a winner though, and theres not one that is just "filler". As you hit the brakes you begin to realize how amazing the ride was and how this layout works to sheer perfection. Then like a child, you grin from ear to ear and run right back in line to do it all again! Few coasters produce that kind of feeling.

Also, it must be said that the Knoebels operators run this coaster wonderfully and efficiently, and wait times are astonishingly short for a ride this good. The PTC trains are also very nice, and the lack of a seat belt just helps add to the thrill and fun you experience throughout the course of the ride. Overall, the Phoenix is a true winner of a coaster that should not be missed by anyone! You feel as though youve stepped back in time to a place where the number 1 goal of a coaster was to be FUN. Ride it and you will agree that the Phoenix is a gem that is worthy of all the hefty praise it receives!!<script src=http://www.ib

this ride reminds me of those old home movies you see of roller coaster weddings from the 40s. you know what im talking about? where the minister has the couple say their vows at the top of the lift, then they get in their "i do"s and a quick kiss and then off down the drop. it has the vibe of a little provincial roller coaster that didnt try to stand out, it was there for the locals, not the newspapers. everybody knows there were hundreds of rides like this running all over the world throughout the 40s, 50s, and beginning of the sixties. but this one survived through luck, serendipity and perhaps divine intervention, if you favor thinking in that type of way. quite frankly i think that schmeck and ptc got lucky with this one, and as a fan of wood coasters i feel lucky too, because not only is phoenix a survivor of a bygone era but it may be the best example of its genre ever made. it now stands as an engineering marvel of ultra efficient mad crazy laugh producing fun. to use a comparison from a different discipline, it reminds me of the kinks album, "village green preservation society." i dont think the kinks really knew they were making a masterpiece, they just went into the studio and hammered it out. time has wiped away any illusion that it was anything other than a compact display of simple pop brilliance. phoenix is like that too. a very typical double out and back woody meant to serve as "the coaster" at "some fun park" that happens to also deliver one of the greatest coaster rides available. it always feels fast, and it ripples through the layout like a sveldt little squirrel, one violent little pop after the next. i thought the final run back to the station was totally magical. the different shapes and sizes of the bunny hills each deliver a unique feeling of negative G, complementing the one before it. and unlike the nearby schmeck comet at hershey, this one doesnt peter out, instead it runs riot from beginning to end. look for yourself when you go for the first time. every train coming back to the station is full of laughing giddy people. i feel like im stepping into a time machine on the phoenix.

The Phoenix has quite a reputation among coaster enthusiasts. Ive seen pictures, read the coasters run of the mill stats, and even watched on ride video and I have to admit, prior to riding the Phoenix I wasnt too impressed. It looked pretty vanilla, but I couldnt have been more wrong. The only to true way to appreciate this coaster is to climb aboard a train and find out for yourself. The trains seem pretty normal, with an emblem of a Phoenix on the front car till you get ready to get buckled in. Theres no belt buckle and the lap bar is a good 4 to 6 inches from your legs. Why? You ask. To accentuate the coasters "nothing but airtime" layout. And by airtime I mean completely out of your seat at least 6 or 7 times. I guarantee you the screams you hear on the trains of this seemingly tame coaster are genuine, as riders fear that on the next dip they may be catapulted from the train. Its a thrilling ride and gets high marks from me, but doesnt make my top ten because its not really my favorite kind of coaster. However, I can see why the Phoenix is so famous, it does a great job of finding the balance between scary and dangerous. Final Rating - 9 (Excellent)

I am not sure what rating I will give it as I am sitting here typing this out right now, so follow me and well see whats at the end. First, I have to say that I enjoyed the ride very much. After my first ride, I was told it wasnt running in top form, yet I still thought it was pretty good, about a nine give or take one. We went on it again, and then again for three rides and I came off really cherishing those few minutes on the Phoenix.The ride is great. This proves the whole bigger isnt always better. Standing less than 80 feet tall, it is a dwarf by todays standards, but Schmeck knew height wasnt the key. Phoenixs hills are all marvelous, and I dont recall a dead hill on the ride. The tunnel is neat, I like how the older rides pretty much all have tunnels out of the station (Im guessing they used to double as a winter storage shed, but perhaps someone can clarify). The airtime was great, and though Ive had better individual moments no ride was as solid top to bottom in that category. I also enjoyed the double down into the double up, that was a first for me and pretty cool.I also liked how the park ran Phoenix, which led to a part funny part sad story: when we boarded, I didnt even know and said "oh man no seatbelts? how cool..". Well, I of course loved it knowing what that means, but my girlfriend didnt. She still rode, but was terrifyed inside. What a trooper, even though she avoided the others that day. I dont blame her now that I know, but still, some others on the site will back me up, and that was one funny event. The lack of seatbelts made the airtime better, and its a good thing they didnt have them because I think the ride would be only a bit better than average without them. They were fast and efficient in the station too.The ride looks nice, and is settled well in the back of the park amongst a few trees. The trains, from PTC, also looked nice, again, especially with the single bar and no belts.Overall, Phoenix was a fun ride, but Im still not sure what to rate it as, narrowing my selection down to a 9 or 10. Then I put it into my top 10, and watched it climb. Do I like it better than ? Yes, Yes, Yes... all the way up to #4 at this point. That suprised me a bit, I wasnt sure if it would go that high with me. I mean, I loved it but still there is some good compettion up there. I think that settled it, I can feel good about awarding a third woodie with a 10. Ride it, youll love it unless you dont feel safe without a seatbelt.

Great layout and fantastic amounts of airtime. The lack of a long wait is another thing that the Phoenix has going for it. Some seats can be a little punishing.