Have You Been On Both TTD & Kingda Ka?

I didn't get to ride KK the first year it opened becuase it was busted. But, I did ride it this year, and TTD wins hands down. Here are my thoughts.

Location: TTD has a far superior location in the park. The launch, tower and station are all very close to the guests. I love that you can walk up and down the launch and watch the whole process. You can even stand by the tower and watch it, etc... KK's launch and tower are all basically outside of the park. So, the guest can't interact with the ride at all. Plus, the station is very tall, so you can't even see in it. That's the one thing I LOVE about TTD. Having the station practically at ground level is hot.

Line: In true SF fashion, their queue is horrible. They've integrated the lockers into the line, so after you ride and need to get your stuff back, you basically have the opportunity to cut in line and get back on. Awful design.

Landscaping: Sure, KK wins this hands down. They really have done an amazing job with the landscaping of the surrounding area. It feels like you're in a totally different park. Hopefully over time the rest of Great Adventure will catch up. TTD doesn't have any landscaping to speak of really.

Station: The dual-loading station on KK seemed pointless to me. They only have three trains, and they have the ability to load four. Since they were only using one side when I was there, I didn't get the whole station concept. The station itself was pretty cool on KK. I liked the design of it. But, I'm a modern guy, so I personally liked TTD's better.

Trains: I like the look of the TTD trains better. I liked them even better before they stripped off the engine and wheels. I like the restraint on TTD because its more "open", but I have to say, the OTSR on KK weren't bad at all. The seats I have to give to KK though. I think they're shorter in height, so you can see way more. I was quite impressed with those.

Launch: I rode in the second row on KK and I must say it was INTENSE. VERY strong. I could barely keep my eyes open. But, it was rough as hell. Its sorta a toss up on the launch, but I think I'd take TTD because it was smoother. he he he!!

Ride: The rest of the ride was about the same. I do prefer the view on TTD, but KK has an ok view too. You definitely get a great sense of height on that ride because theirs nothing around you. The bunny hill was pointless I thought. The brakes start at the crest of the hill, so it didn't make any sense to me.

So yeah, I'd say I prefer TTD. Just overall, its a more fun experience. Definitely more fitting to the area its in too. There's excitement surrounding TTD because of all the people waiting, riding AND watching.

When you go on other forums, many people have said the same thing halltd did. The roughness of KK, the OTSR, and the pointless bunny hill, are what make TTD a little more superior.

could not agree more... and btw those lockers in line do suck and people cut all the tim. at least the 1 time i was there.

I plan to go to SFGADV either next year or 2 years from now because I'm hittin the Florida parks and Dollywood next year. The best advice I can give you is get there early or on time and get your butt over to the TTD line especially if it's a weekend. I got in 30 minutes early and we were going to get on Millenium Force because they were having the cable lift problems then and it was opening back up that day. But when we were getting close to TTD we saw a line already forming so we just went ahead and waited in the line for a good 20 minutes before the rides opened. We were at the benches in front of the station but the line grew all the way past Corkscrew.

I think TTD is way better than KK, and I'm not just saying that because I work Dragster. KK was really rough and the spurts of acceleration and difference in controlling the launch and speed at the top of the top hat. thats the only reason KK has brakes up there, and the "air time" hill was lame and there was none at all, but i did like hte fact that gravity pulled you back into hte station instead of a million drive wheels. too bad their block resets are in horrible places and hte crew were all assy to me and my friends when we were there.

Hey vikefantam & halltd & JackLovesTTD I really appreciate all the info you gave me - a lot of great insight there to think about.

It will help me out a great deal. I think JackLovesTTD is right about hitting TTD first thing in the morning. We are staying at the Breakers so we can take advantage of the 30 min before the park opens to line up instead of walking all the way over to Millenium.

Just on a side note, is Mean Streak still opening late (around 11:00) or something? Does anyone know?

Thanks!

Yes, MS is still opening at 11am

Have a great trip!

Thanks JW!!

We sure plan on having a blast that's for sure!!

Just saw a report on the tv show 'inside edition'. They claimed that Tatsu at SFMM is the tallest, fastest, and longest coaster in the world. They need to do a little more research! Though it probably is that for flyer coasters.

Does this mean that they have 17 coasters now, thus the record for 8 more months??

Boofly said:
I think JackLovesTTD is right about hitting TTD first thing in the morning.

He is right. TTD is the kind of ride that if you dont hit it early in the morning before the public gets in at 9:30, you'll end up waiting a good deal in line(I call it a EMC "early morning coaster";)). Yesturday was one of the longest backed up lines I've ever seen. It went from the enterance all the way to Coasters!! Luckily I only ended up waiting 3 minutes to get on since I got a really good place in line. I mean I really waited an hour since it didnt open till around 10 but when it opened, it was a straight walk all the way to the station.:)

Ok I officially love this site now. I joined other coaster sites and the only thing I get is harrassed and cussed at for stupid stuff. So I just wanna say than you all for letting me fit right in :). And trust me if it is a weekend you will wanna hit it first. It was my first time at the Point and I just went with my instinct and went right for it. I only had to wait 30 minutes... including a kid passing out because his blood sugar was too low.

When did that happen jack? (time and day)

It was on May 27th and I was waiting in line for TTD until the rides opened around 9:30 so I'd say about 10 o' clock or so. And for anyone that was there that day, I don't think you would have spotted me very well as I was wearing a TTD shirt. That day we had to leave early to make the 6 hour trip back home so we could find our way before night. So I made 6 rides in 5 hours

This past weekend I was at CP for the first time! It was totally awesome. Of course I rode TTD, and I have ridden KK as well. I would have to say that I actually liked TTD better, even though I wasn't expecting to. The thing I noticed was that TTD's launch was more intense for me because it seemed longer. After I got home I checked the stats on both coasters, and I see that TTD's is around a half second longer. You wouldn't think it matters, but it was enough that I noticed it.

Also, the TTD crew blows the KK crew out of the water. The way they launch those cars off is like one a minute. KK takes FOREVER.

Plus the first time I got on KK (two weeks after it's grand openeing) I waited in line 5 hours. It broke down three times during those five hours, and as I watched it for the rest of the day I don't think it ran for more than half an hour at a time. Was TTD like that when it opened too?

It still breaks down often. You must have gotten it on a good day.

Thats funny Ben, you make it sound like Dragsters running badly. It's having good days up the yin yang.:) All of my trips (with the exception of the may 11th trip) have had awsome Dragster uptime.

*** Edited 8/20/2006 1:35:40 AM UTC by TTD 120mph***

Well, any uptime is good... compared to being closed all day... ;)

OH sure! But just how has this year been so far compared to last year, 2004 and 03?
HU??........yeah that's what I thought.:)

Adam, I'm just joking with you... :) I'd be the first one to agree that it's been doing quite well so far this season.

Oh I knew you were. I was just being funny.:)