After the Cars and the Kissing Tower, it was time to ride the park's B&M inverted coaster, Great Bear. I forgot to mention before that the ride had broken down earlier in the day, and I watched it do some test runs while on the Kissing Tower. By the time we were off both the Kissing Tower and Cars, the ride was open and ready to go. So, we made our way over to Great Bear's entrance to find an empty switchback, as viewable from the path in-between Wok and Roll and GB's entrance. Anyway, before we rode GB, we stopped at a near-by Coca-Cola cart for a few bottles of Dasani. Ah, water. It felt so refreshing when it was just blistering hot outside. I quickly took a few sips and then made my way over to the Great Bear entrance. Before I start with Bear though, I have to tell you about a very strange occurrence. While sitting on a park bench taking a few sips of water, I viewed Great Bear's entrance. I was just sitting there, relaxing, waiting for everyone to finish so we could ride. And then, out of no where, I'd say a mob of about 100 people come along and go straight the GB's entrance. I just watched with a puzzled look on my face. How were this many people coming at this certain point in time!? People just kept swarming in for a good couple of minutes. After watching this extremely odd occurrence, which really reminded me of running of the bulls, I quickly made my way over to the entrance before another mob came and the line got even longer! Fortunately, before the mob arrived, there wasn't really anyone on line waiting for the ride. However, after the mob showed up, the line stopped at the vending machines by the small "shower" in the queue line. As I stopped in the line by the vending machines, I was still in awe at this extremely strange occurrence. Oh well, good thing the operators on this ride were absolutely excellent. I said the line was out to the "shower" correct? Well, because of the awesome operators, I was IN the station in only 10 minutes. I was amazed at how well the operations were on this ride, especially with only 2 trains. Our wait really went by in no time. We just kept moving and moving and moving...we would really only stop for a few moments at a time. Finally, we arrived in the very nice looking station. The interior of the station itself is very nice, and I love the blue windows at the top. Anyway, we decided to look for the shortest row to ride, and it ended up being row number 2, surprisingly. Well, row numbers 2 and 3 had about the same wait, so we opted for row 2. The wait itself was only about a 2 train wait. Since again, the operators were doing an AWESOME job, I knew we would be on in no time.

From when we boarded the separate queue for our row to the time we boarded our train, it was a whopping 5 minutes. The operators were cranking out trains in no time, luckily for us. So, we were on the ride in no time. Our air-gate finally opened, and I made my way all the way down to right-hand seat. I always try to get the end seat on all B&M's. I love how you have much more space and a much better view than sitting in the middle. Anyway, I pulled down my restraint and made sure it was nice and comfortable, then secured the seat belt. I was ready to go as the operators quickly made their way around and checked all the restraints. Wow, they were fast. They were in and out of there before you knew it. After they quickly checked the train, it was now time to ride the Bear. we proceeded towards the lift as we made our way our of the station. We soon got hit with sunlight, which is almost completed blocked in Bear's station. We continued to pull up the lift, and as we got higher, we received more of an amazing view of the area. You notice the surrounding Coal Cracker flume, the classic Sooperdooperlooper coaster, and basically all of the Comet Hollow section of the park. However, this excellent view is soon over, as before you know it, you're at the top of the lift and getting ready for the ride to really begin. The first element on the ride is a very nice starting helix. I love the placement of this element. It really gives the ride a nice, strong start and can really grab you by surprise. Down and around we went, through the ride's first element. I found some decent forces towards the mid-point of the helix, which felt great as we continued our way towards the first major drop. We now went into a curved straightaway, moving along towards the first drop. Closer and closer we traveled, until we finally got pulled to the right and down the first very nice first drop. I felt a nice breeze as we made our way down towards the small little river in the park's Comet Hollow section of the park. Even though most of the ride itself is in the Comet Hollow part of the park, the entrance is in Minetown. It would be a better fit in Comet Hollow, but since most of the ride goes through that section, it doesn't much matter. Anyway, we traveled down to the ground below in a very nice, relaxing drop. GB's drop is very nice and enjoyable, and you gain some nice speed that carries you through the rest of the course. After a nice first drop, we sped into the first inversion the ride had to offer us, a nice vertical loop. Even though the element is forceless, you have to love the feeling the vertical loop gives you. No inverted coaster would be complete without a sweet vertical loop. We quickly went up, around, and back down again. As I said before, the element is very nice and relaxing, but shows no force. We continued to travel adjacent to Comet Hollow's stream until we came to the next inversion on our journey, a pretty strong Immelman. Since the ride had been pretty forceless so far, this element was a nice surprise. We came right up into the sky just like a regular vertical loop, but then flipped over and came falling back to earth. As we reached the element's apex, the forces were moderately strong, which was a nice surprise. What I love about the Immelman is how it really whips you back to earth. You go straight up, thinking your going to come right back down again like a regular loop, but no! The Immelman flips you over and sends you flying in a whole new direction. After a very nice Immelman inversion, you encounter one of my favorite inversions of all time and one of my favorite parts of this ride, the Zero-G roll. Before I continue, let just say that I love the feeling this inversion creates. I simply love the execution of this inversion, and it's definitely one of my personal favorites. After the Immelman, that ride throws us down and back up again into the 3rd inversion, the Zero-G roll, right over the Comet Hollow midway. We soon encountered the inversion, which really whips you 360 degrees around just like that. Before you know it you're in and out of the element. Since you have some very nice speed before entering the element, you quickly complete it in no time. Once again, the feeling the element creates is just awesome. I can't even begin to describe this feeling. All I'll say is that is unique and awesome. Anyway, after the Zero-G, we continued on our journey on Great Bear. We soon encountered a sharp left-hand turn, and we swooped over the river below. Now we would continue our journey on the other side of the river, with the water RIGHT below us. After the nice, sharp turn, we went into a straightaway along the river before going on to the ride's final inversion, a flat spin/corkscrew. After the straightaway, and upon entering the corkscrew, the ride quickly throws you to the left in a sharp turn. Then, out of no where, you speed into the final inversion. I love how they throw you to one side and then the other, which creates a really cool effect IMO. This corkscrew is like any other corkscrew. It quickly whips you around the bend, and sends you flying into the ride's last element, a slow S-Bend. The ride finishes off slow unfortunately, as you complete an S-Bend up above in the skies of Minetown. By the end of the S-bend you crawl into the station, and encounter the ride's on-ride photo. I still don't understand why Hershey decided to place the on-ride photo right here, but the only thing coming into my mind is to see the people's expressions as they slam into the brakes. And yes, after the S-Bend, the ride is complete. We slammed into the brakes and make our way around a sharp right-hand turn and back towards the station. As we waited in the brake run waiting to get off, I thought about the ride I had just ridden. Overall, Great Bear, to me, is a solid invert, and perfect for this park. The ride isn't about being tall and high or giving extreme G-forces. It's about giving an enjoyable and fun ride in a great location, and it does that well. I really like the ride and love the experience it gives. With that said, I'll give this ride a rating of 8.5/10. (Yes, I will be doing ratings for now on!)

We finally returned to the station after our long journey above Hersheypark. The train soon came to a halt and the floor came up. Our harnesses unlocked and we got out of the train. We continued down the exit ramp right by the Coal Cracker, the park's great log flume, which we unfortunately didn't ride during this trip. Anyway, we proceeded to the photo booth, and I just went straight through. I had no intention of buying a photo, plus I didn't have my glasses on me. Anyway, we went back up towards the Boardwalk Fries stall and met back up with the others. They had bought some Boardwalk Fries, which are so freaking good! All of us had some as a snack as it was around noon now. I also went to near-by Nathan's to pick up an RXCC souvenir cup which was only 6 bucks, with 99 cent refills of course! (What a bargain!) You have to love those on a hot day like that one! Anyway, after we finished up a quick snack (we would be going to the BBQ place by Trailblazer for sandwiches later...they are so good!), we headed back out to the midway. What would be our next destination? It would be the only part of the park with two woodies and current construction going on...Midway America!

Hersheypark Trip Report 3

After a ride on Trailblazer, we went on to the Minetown section of the park. So, to do so, we needed to climb the big, steep ascent right below SR's Zero-G and Flying Snake Dive. Climbing these large, steep hills can take a lot out of you, and the "older" part of Hersheypark has a lot of them. However, the rides in the "older" sections of the park (Comet Hollow and Minetown, mainly) use this special terrain to their advantage, which really adds more to the attraction. Anyway, I power-walked up the large hill as I looked up at SR, seeing trains whiz by overhead as I made my way to the top. Once we all got to the top of the large hill, we decided to spend some time in this section of the park, that being Minetown. We passed the Flying Falcon, which had just gone under a large rehab. The ride wasn't open yet, but it would later on in the day. I heard some rumors that the Falcon was on its way out, but I think those rumors have been put to rest now that the ride is back open. We passed the Falcon and made our way to the little section of the park that holds the Kissing Tower and the Antique Cars. Both of these attractions are great classics, and both would end up being next on our hit list. We soon came into a nice, shady plaza at the top of Minetown. This section of the park is a great area to relax. The area is basically covered in trees, and there are many tables around for sitting opportunities. We made our way over to the Kissing Tower first to see if we could grab a quick ride. When we encountered the entrance, there was no one in line, but we just missed the ride going up, which was only a few feet off the ground. Oh well, we would be first on the next ride. I love this old classic ride. It is gives an excellent view of not only the park, but the entire town. While we waited for the other guests to complete their ride, I looked around the queue line. As I said before, I love this section of the park because it is FULL of trees and shrubbery. Also, they have the classic signs hanging up in the station, saying "No eating, drinking, or smoking...only smooching!" or something along those lines. Anyway, we waited less than 5 minutes for the cabin to return to the station. Those few minutes went by in no time, and now it was our time to ride. The ride operator lifted the chain and I was the first one to go into the A/C blasted Kissing Tower :P. Ah, it felt so amazing and refreshing just to be in the air conditioning on such a hot day. I followed the operator's instructions and walked all the way around the ride capsule, finally ending up basically where I entered. Since there weren't many people waiting in line, and on the ride in general, we had lots of room to enjoy the sights through the unique Kiss-shaped windows. Once all of the other guests took their seat, it was time to enjoy our ride on the Kissing Tower. Once we started to lift off the ground, we started to rotate and the classic recording started to play. Once we reached the tops of all the trees, we received an amazing view of the park. As we rotated around, we could see the park from Founder's Circle all the way back to Midway America and everything in-between. It really is spectacular how great the views are from the tower. Anyway, we rotated around and found ourselves now looking at the town of Hershey, PA. We received a great view of the town, including the factory, and I even spotted the classic Kiss shaped lamp posts. It really is remarkable how far you are able to see from this classic tower. In no time, we found ourselves at the top of tower, looking down at the central area of town of Hershey. Once you're finally at the top of the tower, you rotate quite a few times, giving some amazing views of the entire area. I really think that if you're in Hershey, you shouldn't miss this attraction. The views are simply stunning, plus there really isn't much of a wait for the ride. I'd say it's worth a cycle or two to enjoy the views of Hershey, PA. Anyway, we enjoyed the excellent views some more as we rotated at the top of the tower. After taking in the excellent views, it was time to make our way back down again unfortunately. However, it was an excellent break and offered an excellent experience, especially with the air conditioning! Definitely a great way to take a break from the other bigger rides. Anyway, we enjoyed the last few moment we had inside the amazing air conditioned cabin before finally coming to a complete halt back on the ground. Ah, what a relaxing ride the Kissing Tower was. However, it was time to get off now, and head to our next attraction. We slowly exited and headed back into the extreme heat, which was much different from what we just experienced on the Kissing Tower.

After the Kissing Tower, since we were literally right there, we decide to do the driving cars. Since I wanted to drive my own car, we decided to do the Sport Cars instead of the Antique Cars. If we wanted to do the Antique Cars after the Sport Cars, that would be possible, considering there was no line for either of the attractions. We walked straight through the switchback, which was empty, and up on to the bridge. There was just a bit of a line on the stairs leading down to the loading section. It would only be about a 5 minute wait or most likely less. As we waited, I looked down from above at the cars below. I thought to myself that I would be starting driving in only a few months, and this would be at least some sort of practice for that occasion coming up :lol: We quickly made our way down the stairs in about 5 minutes, which wasn't a bad waiting time, mainly because the lines for the Cars can be HUGE at times. Anyway, I finally stepped on to the yellow "A" and waited for my car to arrive. Sure enough, it did within a matter of moments. Once my car came to a halt, I quickly hopped in and buckled the seat belt. The ride operator finally told me to go, and I was on my way. I hit the gas hard and pulled away from the station on my short little excursion through Pennsylvania, as the signs indicate. I hit the gas and first encountered a nice short straightaway before the first big turn. I noticed a small replica of a Sunoco station to the right-side of me, which is actually very nice looking and realistic. However, I didn't have much time to look around. I had to keep my eyes on the road! I soon encountered the first turn, it being a long U-turn to the right. I tried my best for my car not to hit the railing in the middle, and actually did very well as I rounded the bend. About half-way through, I encountered the almost pointless on-ride photo. I'm not exactly sure why they have an on-ride photo for this ride, but hey, it's one ride of few where you can basically control the expression on your face. So, I guess it really could add some more fun to the ride. I really wasn't even paying attention to it as I completed the turn and saw the flash. When I rode, and really forgot all about the camera being there. Oh well, I needed to keep my eyes on the road! After the nice U-turn, I went straight into a nice, long straightaway. I kept my car nice and straight, not touching the railing in the middle of the track. I kept my foot steady on the gas as I quickly went down the straightaway. I noticed the small green signs by the track noting all of the different towns inside Pennsylvania, which are a nice small touch to the ride. Anyway, I completed the very long straightaway and went right into a small left-hand turn. I perfectly kept my car in line with the railing in the middle of the track as I successfully completed the turn. Now it was time for yet again another straightaway. This one was shorter, but during it, I noticed the cramping of my foot/leg from keeping my foot on the petal. Since the car is pretty small, I had to bend my knee just to get my foot under the "hood" and on to the petal. Since my leg was really getting cramped up as I made my way down the straightaway, I took my foot off the petal and rested for a few seconds. I stretched out my leg and then finally get my foot back on the gas. Ah, that felt better. However, I knew that pain would be back. After completing this straightaway, I again headed into a small left-hand turn. I successfully completed it, and headed down a very short straightaway. It was time for the sharp U-turn to return back to the station. I tried my hardest to successfully complete the turn as best as I could. However, the pain was soon back. I went through about have of the turn and then lost control. I tried to straighten out my leg, which didn't work at all. So, I switched to my other leg just to complete the very sharp turn. By doing this, I couldn't keep my car in line, thus slamming it into the railing in the middle. However, I kept going, until the turn finally ended and I encountered one final straightaway before arriving back at the station. I did my best to keep my car in line with the track, which I now did. After a small turn to the right, I crawled up a small hill and saw the traffic light sign telling me to "slow down". I came down off of the small hill and returned to the station area. I slowly crawled up to the ride operator, who finally told me to stop. Since the pain was starting to come back yet again, I quickly hopped out of the car and proceeded to the steps so I could exit. I climbed the stairs and proceeded to exit. Overall, the Sports Cars are very relaxing, except for the leg cramps. The ride itself is very nice and is right in the trees, creating an excellent atmosphere. And, as I said before, it would have even been better if my leg kept cramping up. At the top of the bridge, I waited for everyone else to finish, who weren't that far behind me. Once they all came up, we headed down to the photo booth to check out our pictures. Since I didn't have my glasses, I really couldn't see my picture :rolleyes: Oh well, I didn't even know they were taking it! After everyone looked at their pictures, we proceeded through the exit and back into the nice little plaza.

After the Cars, I was really craving to get on a coaster again, and you all know what coaster is right in that area. Yes, it was time to conquer the unique B&M invert, Great Bear!

Hersheypark Trip Report 2

So, after two excellent, excellent rides on Storm Runner, we made our way back to RXCC and the Music Box Way section of the park. While walking through Pioneer Frontier, we received a call from the others. They said that they got on RXCC! They also said that the ride opened up basically 30 seconds after we left for SR :rolleyes: After hearing the ride was open and running with passengers, we power-walked our way back to the ride to find the others and try to receive our first ride on the RXCC. We approached the ride's entrance and saw the others waiting in line for RXCC...which was already out of the only switchback. Ugh, we missed our chance. The wait would be at least 30 minutes from here. We decided to wait for a bit and see how much we would move. We waited, and waited, and waited some more. 5 minutes went by and we hadn't moved in line at all, so we decided to ditch it and come back later. So, we decided to walk down back towards Pioneer Frontier and decide what attraction to hit next. We decided to hit the Trailblazer for no particular reason. Since we knew Midway America never had any lines, it didn't matter when we hit that. So, we decided to back-track through the park and hit all of the attractions in the front of the park first before the heavy crowds would come in. You may say that all of the people do that, but we did it in a different fashion. We started at the back of the park, and would make our way towards the front eventually. Seemed like a good plan. So, we made our way through Pioneer Frontier and down the HUGE hill near SR. This thing sucks to walk up, and is even hard to walk down because it's so steep. As soon as we reached the bottom of the valley, we made our way towards Trailblazer's entrance. The ride's sign is actually pretty hidden all the way back towards the station, but a sign points the way to the station and entrance. We approached the brand new sign (well, not that new anymore) which looks great. We made our way up the stairs and into the station. Trailblazer's station is actually very large, as it holds two big switchbacks. However, those weren't being used. We saw that some rows in the middle didn't have any wait, so we immediately went for those. They were only using one train, so we had to wait until the one on the course came back to ride. I'm surprising they weren't using two, considering it was a weekend. However, it wasn't that much needed, considering the ride itself isn't very long. So, after about two minutes, our train finally arrived in the station. It was time to ride.

The train came to a halt and the current passengers made their way to the exit. After they all left the station, our very tiny air gates opened and we jumped in our train for our voyage. I love the new restraints they have on this ride. They are extremely comfortable and really help older people ride, not just the kiddies. I pulled my restraint down and released it in a comfortable spot. Ah, very, very comfortable. The operators quickly checked the rest of our train, and we got ready to ride. We finally heard the "dispatch", and moved slowly out of the station. We were first greeted by a small, 5 foot dip before entering a sharp left-hand turn. We made our way through the ride's car shed before finally encountering the lift hill. the lift hill isn't very large on the ride, but there are things to look at, the most notable SR's twisted finale just on top of us. As we made our way to the top, we spotted a train full of screaming riders passing by. What a great ride SR was. Anyway, the top of the lift hill comes all too fast on this ride. While your glaring up at SR or the looking around the surrounding area, your at the top of the lift hill and finally starting your ride. The ride starts off with a small slanted straightaway, which eventually ends up being the ride's first element, a nice helix. The turn into the first helix is nice and strong. It really whips you to the side before making your way downward in a very fun helix. What I love about this part of the ride is that you just keep on getting lower and lower, until you find yourself in a trench! While in this trench, if you have your hands up, you can almost touch the ground! I expect that a person with long arms can easily touch the ground, considering you are just that close to it. The helix is in its strongest part here, and I'll just say it was pretty strong here for a kiddie/family coaster. Anyway, we finally parted out of the first helix, and into a short straightaway right by a fence. This fence happens to be the same fence that separates SR's queue and the Trailblazer itself! Anyway, after a nice tame left hand turn, you fly right up into a not-needed MCBR. I still don't quite understand why they have a MCBR on this ride, but whatever. It is actually quite long, and slows down most of your speed unfortunately. However, the ride goes on, with a nice curving drop to the left, which follows that very steel path we went down to get to the ride. After a nice relaxing drop, we come back up a few more feet and into a small straightaway. Then, after that, the ride enters its strongest point, a sweet double helix. We quickly turned to the right and entered the ride's strongest point. Around and around we went, circling the trees inside the ride's double loop. The first helix is a little slow, but then you continue to pick up more and more speed, leading into, as I said before, strong second helix for a kiddie/family coaster. Finally we gained the most speed we would ever get during the the ride, and unfortunately, it was time to move out of the very fun double helix. We climbed another ascent and went into what seems to be an old mine shaft with again, some good speed. Unfortunately, once entering the building we saw that our ride was unfortunately over. We hit the brakes, and shortly came to a complete stop. The ride ends so quickly! Before you know it, it's over. Overall, Trailblazer is a very fun coaster, and excellent for the kids. Also, it offers a nice break from all the bigger rides in the park, and even a nice breeze :B

Finally we arrived back in the station after our very fun excursion on the Trailblazer. We waited for the train to come to a halt and then released our restraints. Then we followed the exit stairs and path back into the midway. Ah, the Trailblazer is such a fun ride and very relaxing. After the great small coaster, it was time to go up yet another huge hill and into the Minetown section of the park, where we would find the Kissing Tower, Antique Cars, and the most unique B&M invert, Great Bear. All of these rides would be our next hits as we nicely strolled through the great park!

Hersheypark Trip Report

After an unbelieveable first ride on SR front row, I was craving another ride, especially since the line was so short. We decided to skip looking at our picture and got right back in the queue. Once again, nothing had changed from before. It was still COMPLETELY empty, which how all queues should be :P We continued our way through the queue and up into the station, which was still empty. I really couldn't believe how uncrowded the station was. Anyway, I opted to go on the right side of the station, since as I observed before, operations were running more smoothly on this side. I found every row to have a only about a one or two train wait, which was excellent. I quickly spotted that the 3rd and 4th rows only had a one train wait. It was closest to the front I could get with a minimal wait, so I quickly made my way over and got in the line. Better yet, as we entered the separate queue for our row, the train was boarding. So, as soon as the train returned, it would be our turn to ride. I was very happy at the moment with the 2 minimal waits for SR. I just thought to myself how nice it would be if the lines stayed like this all day. I would simply love it, but since it was a weekend, I knew the lines would get longer as the day went on. Hopefully not by much, though. Anyway, in no time, our train was back in the station after about 3 minutes of waiting. Excellent. I was ready for another ride on my favorite steel coaster in the world, Storm Runner.

The air gates soon opened and we proceeded into our seats. We quickly sat down and continued to pull down our OTSR's. I really like this type of OTSR on SR as well as other Intamin Rockets (Ka for example) mainly because it is very open, and gives you some nice room to move around with your upper body. I continued to secure the restraint in a good spot and buckled the seat belt. I was ready to ride. The operators, as I've said, were great on this side of the station, so we were out of there before we knew it. We made our way from the transfer track to the launch track, and got ready for the amazing ride ahead. As you sit there, the launch track intimates you, with the large straightaway in front of you as well as the large top hat. You sit there, waiting, waiting, waiting to be launched. And as soon as you move back so the catch car can attach, you know it's any minute now that you'll be launching at 72 MPH. Before long, that classic ride recording plays, and you know it's now a matter of seconds before you're out of there. You hear over the loudspeaker....

"Now get ready, here we go!"

Then, just like that, you're gone, speeding down the launch track gaining speed by the second. Faster, faster, faster you go, with the forces pushing you back into your seat. Your arms up in the air begin to feel the strength of the launch as you speed down the straightaway. SR's launch is more powerful than it would seem. It really packs a punch and slams you hard into your seat. That best thing though is that it never lets up. You continued at full force down the extremely powerful launch track and move on to the first element, the top hat. After the powerful launch, you get for first experience of vertical horsepower. The top hat sends you straight up into the sky, 150 feet up to be exact. Higher, higher you get into the Hersheypark skyline you get, until you finally reach the top. Then, it's time to be ejected. SR's top hat offers plenty of sweet ejector air as you slowly crest the top hat and enjoy a quick view of the park in front of you. For the few seconds it lasts, the air on the top hat is very, very enjoyable. No one can hate the sensation ejector air brings to the table. Anyway, after cresting the top hat, you're on your way back down into the valley below. The vertical drop into the valley is excellent, but it just seems to be over so fast unfortunately. The 180 foot drop is great, and the pull-out into the valley is very strong and forceful. After finally exiting the top hat, it's time to head into the ride's next element and first inversion, the cobra loop. This inversion is very interesting and unique. At first, it feels like a regular loop, but then pulls out at the top in a cobra roll like fashion. We made our way through the valley and back up into the sky. As I said, we went straight up into the sky, just like entering a regular old vertical loop. However, this thing is completely different. Once we finally reached the top of the inversion, we enjoyed some sweet, sweet hang time. After a moment or two of nice this great feeling, it was time to fall back down to earth in a cobra roll-like fashion. Even though the pull-out of this inversion is quite odd, I love the uniqueness of it. After the unique cobra loop, we charged back down towards the river below, only to come up yet again and into the ride's next two inversions, those being the Zero-G Roll and the Flying Snake Dive. To enter these inversions, we must climb yet another ascent. And, as a sweet surprise at the top of this ascent, we were greeted with another great sensation of ejector air. Ah, what a great way to start the next few elements. As soon as the moment of great ejector air is over, you're immediately thrown into the Zero-G. The Zero-G roll is always one of my favorite elements on inverting coasters, and this one is no different. Around and around you go, creating an amazing sensation as you complete the 360 degree horizantal twist. This element creates a feeling like no other, which is why I really love it. After the amazing Zero-G, you go directly into the next inversion. This ride doesn't waste anytime. The next and final inversion is the Flying Snake Dive, which again, is a unique element. The Flying Snake Dive throws you upside-down just like a Zero-G at first, before pulling out and heading straight down to earth. As soon as you exit the Zero-G roll, you enter the Flying Snake Dive, which seems to be just another Zero-G, but it isn't. It's a whole new kind of inversion. The uniqueness of the element is excellent, and really provides a different experience. The pull-out of the element is very strong, and before you know it, you're back towards the ground and heading into the ride's twisted finale. Banked turns are left and right as you make your way upwards in this again, unique ride finale. You really speed through this element FAST, and soon, unfortunately, you find yourself in the downward brakes and heading back into the station. It all seems so fast, but it's one of the best minutes you'll ever have riding a roller coaster. Storm Runner overall is just a spectacular ride, and has everything a coaster really should have. However, it is it's uniqueness that really stands out. This ride is basically the definition of the word unique, which I love as well. When you're at Hersheypark, make sure you don't miss this excellent coaster.

After our nearly one minute journey, we returned to the station. We finally came to a halt and proceeded to exit this excellent ride. Once we exited, we headed back to the midway and decided to meet up with the others and possibly try to get on the park's newest attraction, the Reese's Xtreme Cup Challenge. However, we knew that the ride would have a line if it was open, considering there were people waiting when we were there earlier in the morning. So, we headed back to the Music Box Way and check out what was going on, and to see if we could finally get on the RXCC!

Dorney Park Trip Report

After Laser, we made our way down the midway and back across the bridge over the little stream. Thunderhawk was the only coaster, besides Hydra (which wasn't open yet) that we hadn't hit yet, so we decided to make our way over there and check it out. As we walked to the ride's entrance, we looked up at the ride's structure as the train roared though the course. Now, I had ridden Thunderhawk the season before in HalloWeekends, and knew how rough it was. I warned my friend as we walked to the entrance that this was going to be one rough ride, and indeed it was very, very rough. Finally we made our way to the entrance, which is actually pretty hidden with all of the plants and the Scrambler in the way. However, the ride's sign displays the entrance, and without it, I'd have a very hard time finding the entrance to the ride. We passed the sign and walked through the yet again empty queue line. This day was shaping up to be better than I ever thought it would be. The back end of the park was still literally dead. What I didn't know was if the front part of the park would be crowded, but we would find that out later on. Anyway, we made our way into the station, which was yet again, completely dead. I was really starting to think that this day was unreal. Since it was only a one train wait, we opted for a front row ride. The year before I had ridden towards the back in the middle, so I wanted to see how the front was compared to the back. However, on T-hawk, wherever you sit, you WILL be bumped around, and there's nothing you can do to prevent it. As we waited for our ride, we saw some of the other kids from our school waiting for a few rows behind us. We talked about what we had already ridden so far. It seemed like they hadn't encountered any lines either, considering they got on quite a lot so far, as did we. When they said they went on Dominator, I questioned if it was opened, mainly because I hadn't seen it go up all day. Then again, I really hadn't been paying attention, considering I was running ride-to-ride. My friend and I decided while waited to hit up Dominator next, considering it was very close to T-hawk and also that the ride can take a while for loading times. Finally, after only a one train wait (the ride was running one train only), it was our time to ride. As soon as the other passengers exited, our air gate opened and I put my bag across the station and in one of the bins. Then, I came back down and took a seat in our row. We buckled our seat belts, and the lap bar soon came down. We were all ready to go, and the operators soon quickly checked the train. The operators on this ride were excellent again. Operations at Dorney had been excellent all day, and I've been impressed by them from both my visit last year and this year. Anyway, we were soon rolling out of the station and on our way on probably the most rickety and bumpy coaster I've ever been on.

After departing the station, we entered a strong U-turn to the right, throwing us to the side. After this, we went down a small drop and over a small bunny hill under the ride's exit stairs. After this small hill, we encountered the lift hill. The lift on T-hawk is probably the only part of the ride that is actually smooth. Even though I love the bumpiness and wickedness of a classic woodie, this ride goes a little too far in my book. A nice rehab would be great for the ride. While it wouldn't make the ride as smooth as steel, it would even out the ride's major problem areas, which right now, are pretty bad. Anyway, we made our way quickly up the lift hill. The lift hill on this ride is always over before you know it. You get a nice view of the surrounding area, especially the stream, for a few seconds and then that's it. You're gone. This same exact thing happened to me while riding T-hawk this time. I was looking around, enjoying the views, and then BAM! You're out of there and down the the first drop. I seriously didn't know we were at the top until we finally crested it and made our way down. As we plummeted down the first drop, the arms went up. The first drop on T-hawk is nice, and I found a nice pop of floater air as we made our way down. The first drop on T-hawk twists to the left, which evens you out for our first little hill. The first hill of the ride is completely a surprise, as it is only about 10 feet tall and you usually don't see coasters go from a 80 foot ascent to around a 10 foot hill. Anyway, this little surprising hill offered a nice pop of floater air before we entered the violent part of this ride. The bumpiness on the drop and little hill is nice bumpiness and good classic woodie bumpiness, but the bumpiness coming up is just insane. After the nice surprising hill, we made our way into the Figure 8 part of the ride, which is where the bumpiness is at its best. We made our way up our next ascent, and as soon as we crested it...holy crap. I got SLAMMED into that lap bar at full force. This was Mr. Ejector Air saying hello. However, this wasn't regular ejector air, this was ejector air that HURT! You really slam into that lap bar at full force, which is what makes this ride so crazy. After the moment of insanity, we completed a nice U-turn, which threw us to the side again. After a nice U-turn, we fell back down to earth which happened to be a surprisingly rough drop. After this, we made our way back up another ascent, just like the last one. However, this one is just even more insane. As we finally crested it, wham! My knee went STRAIGHT into a metal piece of the lap bar, which hurt for a while but eventually would wear off as the day went on. The ejection on this hill, just like the last, is crazy. I'm putting out a firm warning that this ride can be very extreme at parts, such as these hills. Anyway, after the moment of insanity, We made our next U-turn above the ground. This part was again nice, until we continued our path down our next drop. The ride continued to be bumpy, but this kind of bumpy was normal, and definitely not as bad as the extreme moments we had just witnessed. We made our way to the next hill, which again wasn't as bad as the others. This one offered a nice pop of air before twisting us down into the ride's final bunny hills. This may be my favorite part of the ride actually. This part of the ride has some tame bumpiness to it, which is great, and also offers some good floater on the hills. We entered the first one after coming down from the curved hill. Ah, floater air. This type of air feels so tame after we have just encountered. One, two, three bunny hills each offer a nice pop of floater air, which was nice as always. After the third hill, we came inside the structure and encountered one last bunny hill with a pop of air before slamming into the brakes. And you slam HARD into those brakes. We came to a complete stop before re-entering the station. As we did, I told my friend, "I told you it was rough". He seemed to agree. Overall, Thunderhawk is a good ride, but I think parts of the ride could be re-done. Some of the ride has that classic woodie bumpiness, and some of it does not. Some of it is just insane. Even though I love ejector air, DP should consider a small rehab on the ride, because IMO, it is definitely needed in some areas.

Finally we re-entered the station. I came to the conclusion that every row on this ride was going to be quite a bumpy ride. We came to a halt, unbuckled our seat belts, and lifted up the lap bar to exit the ride. We picked up my bag from the bin and made our way down the exit stairs. Ah Thunderhawk, DP's sole woodie. Let's hope you get a nice re-track sometime in the near future. After we exited and came back on to the midway, we knew what our next destination was. It was stared us in the face as it dominates over all of the rest of the park. You know what it is, the park's signature drop tower, Dominator.