Cedar Point Announces New Water Ride for 2010 Season

Break Trims said:
Instead, ratings like "3" encompass everything from the turnpike cars to Calypso, and nearly every roller coaster gets a "5."

I noticed the "3" on turnpike cars on Sunday. The most thrilling part of that ride is me trying to get my 6' 4" frame in and out of the little Corvette without hurting myself or becoming the comic relief for everyone in line. :)

I'm sorry Kyle but DJ is right in every manner. You WILL have to accept that he was pointing out some minor negative points while simultaneously pointing out why it's a success. That's what the normal person world call a REAL review. If you want a truthful, honest review, you get it from someone who's not going to take things personal but rather looks at the ride from the perspective of the GP. You can do this easily by looking at guest reactions both on ride and off ride. But if you want to base the rides success on you're views as an enthusiast (and others that agree with your criteria) then you're not going anywhere.

So far from reviews (not solely from here), the ride is a hit and nothing you or any negative enthusiast can say will prove otherwise. And if you want to use the small percent of people that might not like the ride (again GP not enthusiast) to argue why it's a "failure" then there's no helping you.

And if you're going to resort to pointing out every negative word/sentence he utters and backlash him for using those words while claiming you're joking when it's not apparent then you need to man up. Doing that and anything in that manner will not be taken kindly around here and you're credibility thusly weakens. You may not notice it but it does.

Is it just me or did they make the wall higher on STR according to the webcam? Makes sense I guess because that water was splashing out onto those plants and most likely killing them.

Yeah, I noticed the retrofitted wall extension last week, and it was clear that it was indeed needed to keep water from spilling over the wall on that section of the trough.

TTD 120mph said:
I'm sorry Kyle but DJ is right in every manner. You WILL have to accept that he was pointing out some minor negative points while simultaneously pointing out why it's a success.

But what makes it a success? There has been a whole bunch of arguing as to how successful the ride is and how unsuccessful the ride is. Obviously success means different things to different people, but in the context of the park, how do they define it as being successful or not?

I'm sure CP has a cost-per-rider target, that takes into account the cost of the ride, in addition to maintenance and so on.

And on top of that, I'd bet that there are other considerations as well. A less popular ride that is considered a "staple" at amusement parks may have a lower cost-per-rider target than a marquee ride.

When did they open up the back seats?

Maybe few weeks ago +/-. At the time it happened, I believe the 3rd row was ropped off. I'm not sure if that is still the case or not.

Judging from the webcam, it looks like the middle seats are still roped off.

Third row was still roped off on Sunday.

Does anyone know if there are any aerial views of this ride yet?

Ok, I'm definitely NOT a fanboy. I've bashed Cedar Point and Big Dick Kinzel mercilessly since WWL was dismantled. Over the years I've hated with a passion the gaudy concrete and steel mess made out of the park I loved as a kid. I've hoped the rumors about Disney (or anyone else for that matter) taking CP over were true. As a guy built like an offensive tackle, I've hated the Intimin restraints and the fact that many rides were inaccessible to a large portion of us because of them.
With five years of malice and frustration built up, I rode STR tonight for the first time and I LOVE THIS RIDE! I ended up re-riding three times in a row. The fog in the tunnel, the still and the rapids were great effects. (Since when does CP care about theming???) The speed of the ride was terrific and allowed us to enjoy some of the great theming and scenery elements. The canyons and waterfalls were unexpected and fun. The course was original and well-thought out. The fact that we didn't get drowned, even after riding 3 times in the front row was a definite plus. The hills were smooth and exciting. The restraints were unobtrusive and comfortable, even for a big guy like me. Did I mention the theming was by far the best CP has done in a long time?

In short, I began to fall in love with CP again for the first time since my beloved WWL was razed to make room for yet another fricking roller coaster. Everyone around us loved the ride as well (A number of adults, kids and a few teens), and most of us were getting off and going right back into the queue again. The fact that there was NO LINE WHATSOEVER made me very happy. Perhaps this is a true "niche ride" which will bore the tiresome and annoying"ride warriors" enough to allow easy access to those of us who appreciate it. Why should a flume ride need to go faster? Almost like a Disney ride, this provides a fun, re-ridable experience without needing to go 500 feet in the air (and require multiple harnesses and stitched-up orange seat belts) to do so. This gives me another reason to buy my annual pass.

For the first time in a long time, Cedar Fair seems to have gotten it 100% right. A true grand slam. Now, if they can keep up the maintenance and effects over the years, all will be well. Nice to see that people like me still matter to Cedar Fair. I never, ever thought I'd say it, but "Nice job Big Dick!"

cptedsdisciple2 I would love to agree with you but I couldnt disagree more. Went to the park in early August and rode STR with my 16 year old niece. After all the build up we could not believe what a boring ride it truly was. When you hear the word rapids you expect the water to move faster then one mile an hour. Even the old water rides 30 years ago had water that moved faster then this ride does. This ride is like Splash mountain at Disney World without all the fun extra effects

Yesterday we went back to the park and were going to give the ride another chance. It was hot a sunny all day so conditions were perfect for a water ride. We went to check the ride out in the afternoon and there was a sign that said the ride was closed. We rode Snave River Falls instead and had a blast. We came back much later in the day and when we were within 15 people of getting on I noticed they were sending empty boats through the ride. After a few minutes an employeee announced to the people in line that the ride was closed and they did not know when or if it was going to reopen. We left and rode Snake River Falls two more times instead.

What I noticed in line might tell the biggest story. While we were waiting in line and watching all the boats reach the end of the ride I said to my niece "Do you notice there is not one happy person finishing this ride?" I am not kidding you when I say that every person in every boat had no expression on their face at all and they werent even talking to each other. They were just waiting for the ride to end so they could leave. Watch people reaching the station on virtually any other ride and the majority of them are smiling or laughing or cheering. I fully understand the need for family rides but in my opinion and I have been going to Cedar Point for close to 40 years this ride is a bust.

Steve1984 said:
Watch people reaching the station on virtually any other ride and the majority of them are smiling or laughing or cheering.

Well, by this measure, it's crystal clear that Maverick is one of the worst rides in the park. Along with MF, Raptor, Magnum, etc.

Guest reactions/attitudes/whatever when reaching the station has everything to do with how long ago the ride ended. When you sit on the brake run for a while, or casually meander through an admittedly-slow trough in a boat, you're not going to be as excited as you were just after the most exciting parts of the ride.

Besides, when I was there a couple weeks back, I saw almost universally positive reactions from StR riders. Sort of makes that "metric" irrelevant, doesn't it?

All that said, the amount of downtime on this ride, this late in the season, is quite troubling indeed.

I see a lot of happy people returning to the station after that second drop. Many go back in the line to ride again. I like the ride. People like to stand there and blast riders with the water cannons.

The down time is a problem. Saturday morning it was down when we went to ride STR. Another family approaching the ride told me this was the sixth day they've tried to ride STR and it was closed each time. CP has to finally work out the bugs. Hopefully, sooner rather than later.

djDaemon said:

Steve1984 said:
Watch people reaching the station on virtually any other ride and the majority of them are smiling or laughing or cheering.

Well, by this measure, it's crystal clear that Maverick is one of the worst rides in the park. Along with MF, Raptor, Magnum, etc.

Guest reactions/attitudes/whatever when reaching the station has everything to do with how long ago the ride ended. When you sit on the brake run for a while, or casually meander through an admittedly-slow trough in a boat, you're not going to be as excited as you were just after the most exciting parts of the ride.

Besides, when I was there a couple weeks back, I saw almost universally positive reactions from StR riders. Sort of makes that "metric" irrelevant, doesn't it?

All that said, the amount of downtime on this ride, this late in the season, is quite troubling indeed.

I am not talking about the point where you are waiting to get off the boat and might have been sitting there for 5 minutes I am talking about the point between the last drop and where you get off. At that point the boats are still moving. When people reach the stopping point on any of the rides you mentioned they are in a very good mood. If people like the ride thats great but besides the hill which obviously is going to be fun on any ride I just dont see anything special about this ride. Seems like a water ride built in 2009 should be a lot better then this.

That's not at all what you indicated in your original post, when you said things like "end" and "finishing". I absolutely don't believe that, immediately following the second drop, no one was smiling or laughing. Sorry, but that doesn't jive with what I've seen at any ride, no matter how tame.

I can't even count how many times, after sitting on Maverick's brake run for a few minutes, we've rolled into the station and nary a mouse fart is heard when the operator says "welcome back riders, how was that ride?" I know this because my wife and I give out a little "woo hoo" or whatever, and always feel awkward being one of the very few who do so.

On StR, it takes a couple minutes to get back to the station after the second drop, and that time is admittedly very boring and slow, so any excitement from the more exciting parts of the ride has understandably dwindled, just as it does after several minutes of sitting on MF's/Maverick's/etc. brake run before rolling back into the station.

Steve1984 said:

What I noticed in line might tell the biggest story. While we were waiting in line and watching all the boats reach the end of the ride I said to my niece "Do you notice there is not one happy person finishing this ride?" I am not kidding you when I say that every person in every boat had no expression on their face at all and they werent even talking to each other. They were just waiting for the ride to end so they could leave. Watch people reaching the station on virtually any other ride and the majority of them are smiling or laughing or cheering. I fully understand the need for family rides but in my opinion and I have been going to Cedar Point for close to 40 years this ride is a bust.

I felt the same way. The times we have ridden the ride (that is when I don't have my niece and nephews with me who are too short for this "family" ride) I noticed this blank stare coming off the guests who appear to be above the age of 15 or so. I went back and rode the ride on at least 5 different trips this year and after number 5, I gave up entirely. I just can't find any fun in this ride and to me, its as useless as Snake River Falls. At least Snake River Falls has a purpose of getting you soaked instead of pissing water on you in a canyon.

Thats why some people like it. Most people don't want to be soaked. Enough to keep them cool for an hour is what most people look for.

I finally went on STR this past weekend, when I went to the park with two cousins from out of town. Even though it was hot, the ride didn't appeal to them, so they waited with my shoes while I rode. Because of this, I could use the single rider line, and my wait was about 10 minutes.

First, I have to say that both drops are fun. The larger drop had a little more bite than I was expecting, and the second drop was somewhat thrilling in that you appear to be plunging into a chaotic area. The mist in the tunnel was enjoyable, and this seemed to be the only portion of the ride in which the slow speed felt right.

Which leads me to the pacing. This is a problem with this ride, as most of the sections are just flat-out boring. The waterfall area was alright, but most of the vaunted "theming" seemed to consist of a wooden fence with periodic antique signs on it. It looks like they just tore some stuff off the wall of a TGI Friday's. The other passengers in the boat were noticeably quiet on all sections, save for the drops. The worst bit of pacing was at the end, which had an excitement level that just barely rose above the thrill of waiting to be unloaded on the Monster.

So, I guess it's a success in that people wait in line for it, and the boats make it through the course without incident (although I got the nasty jolt previously described as the boat hitched to the chain of the first hill). However, this summer, I've had the opportunity to go on a few other flumes: Frightful Falls and Pilgrims' Plunge at Holiday World; and Thunder River at Waldameer. I have to say that all were superior to STR in the thrills and fun they delivered.

If the ground-level troughs were anything like the ride to the lift on PP, I'd be very happy with the ride. I'm at a total loss to see how Intamin failed to recreate that feel in a later ride, and I'd be at a bigger loss if I were to find that the ride's glacial pace was intentional. With the two large drops, a little bit more action in the troughs wouldn't have upped the overall intensity and taken the ride out of the family category. Again it kind of boggles the mind.

So, I'd give it a 5/10, which I think is fair. It gives two nice drops, but in between them is a whole bunch of nothing. I guess if I had never ridden a flume before, this might be acceptable, but having grown up on the two original flumes at Kings Island, STR just doesn't cut the mustard for me, especially considering the era in which it was built and its price tag.