Kennywood Swingshot/SkyHawk comparison

I was really excited to get back to Kennywood yesterday, and even more excited when there was a 2 cycle wait for the new 32-seat screamin' swing most of the day. (It looked longer than that, but Kennywood's queues are really small so they always look packed) - The first thing I noticed when I rode is the absence of the strap and carabiner combo, which is a little bit unsettling, but I got over it.

Now, for my thoughts on it vs. SkyHawk.

First off, 1:30 load times - Incredible. Kennywood has always been laid back when it comes to the efficiency of their rides, unlike CP. This one, for some reason, was a different story. They got everybody in and checked within a minute and a half or so. The lack of jamming the bar down further than it wanted to go was pretty nice, too.

The ride? 6 full swings. Yes, I said 6. The ride gets going a little bit faster, probably due to its small size, and it performs a little more like the 8-seater screamin' swings I have been on. It was a little less gentle than SkyHawk. Also it doesn't have that "Chirp/squeal/screech" when the air releases.

My feeling is if SkyHawk ran like Swingshot, it would definitely be of benefit, because I absolutely LOVE SkyHawk for its impressive size and everything, but Singshot wins in the overall ride category.

In case anyone was curious.

-Josh

Anyone else been on Swingshot yet and care to chime in?

Unfortunately it was down the day I was there. I saw it running when we were walking down from the parking lot at the start of the day and couldn't believe how long it ran for.

If CP could lessen the load times they might be able to get in a few more swings...just a thought.

^ Yeah, that's what I'm thinking - I just couldn't believe how fast they loaded it at KW. And those 6 swings make a difference. They make me not care so much about waiting in a line for the ride.

Load time is very fast at KW for Swing Shot.

We got in line for it the second ride of the day and would have been next on but my daughter chickened out while watching it run. Unfortunately it was down pretty much the rest of the day after that. We went to get in line at the end of the night since we saw it running then it broke again with riders getting stuck in the restraints.

Overall though from what i've seen the ride time is great and loading time is above what i've seen from KW before.

Yes, one thing I did notice is that it's not just SkyHawk, it's S&S screamin' swings in general have those issues with restraints. I still wonder why KW's doesn't have the strap and carabiner, though. I realize it doesn't need it, but its just that extra little sense of security.

I know there were a few times I grabbed on to my bar for dear life because Swingshot's airtime is that much more powerful. Another thing I observed is that while SkyHawk seems to blast the air out when the swing is in the bottom position, Swingshot blasts it out when it's up at the top, and it seems to yank back down a lot more.

-Josh

Cedar Point has to come up with a better solution than the secondary restraint they're using now. It's too awkward to get your hand, and someone else's, in there, not to mention check it. I don't see any reason why they couldn't do crotch straps like those on Power Tower, also with the buckle on the bar and the strap coming from the seat. Those would be much easier for the ride ops to check without any arms in the way.

^ I was thinking that, too. The system that's on there at this point seems to work out fine for the upcharge version of the ride, but when trying to cycle people through at a rate of over 800 pph, it just doesn't seem to make sense.

I'm prolly gonna be headin to BOTH parks eventually this Summer, so I'm excited to make the comparison.

We always make a trip to Kennywood, as we only live about an hour and 20 minutes out of Pittsburgh, but this will be the first Summer we take a family trip to the Point. I made my frist trip there last Summer with my youth group and LOVED it. Now I convined my parents to go! haha

I rode Swingshot at the GOCC Spring Fling last week and I didn't think it was as intense or as much fun as SkyHawk is to me.

But, that's just me!! :)

Jo
Lifetime Raptor flights: 1081 :)

The park has changed the ride time on the site from 2 minutes to 1 minute... so I guess we won't be seeing the longer ride anytime soon...

http://www.cedarpoint.com/public/park/rides/thrill/skyhawk/

I went to Kennywood two weeks ago and rode Swingshot. I screamed my head off and my sisters laughed at me. My 6 year old neice rode next to me and rode like a champ. I really liked it. Great thrills.

Last Friday, went to CP and rode Skyhawk. Wow!! It was way higher and with the extra lock on the restraint, I felt safer. I perfer CP's, for now.

Shari

here is a good video that shows how long Swingshots cycles are. http://kdka.com/video/?id=15833@kdka.dayport.com

At Coastermania the load time seemed better. Still not very efficient, but better.

Retro fit the seats and I agree, the load times will decrease dramatically. Even the unload will be quicker. There have been a few times where I stand there, waiting for someone to get out of my assigned seat.

I agree as well on the restraints - keep something, but not that dreaded setup they have now. Its awkward trying to maneuver those things on and off from the near-fetal position, at your side and over or under someone else's caribiner.

Would CP simply be able to add a couple more ops once the park is fully staffed? It would seem that if they doubled them from 2 to 4, the check-double check time would be cut in half. If they could do that, and add two more full swings, it would add a lot to the whole experience, in my opinion.

Edited for lack-of-coffee errors.
*** Edited 6/8/2006 11:13:36 AM UTC by djDaemon***

I didn't want to start a new topic on this, and it sort of fits here, so this will work. Today at the park I noticed Skyhawk was down for about the first half of the day. I went to ride in the evening after it opened back up, and was pleasantly suprised to find it now has 4 full powered swings in a cycle. It's definately a better, much more complete ride than what it has been. Load times are down a bit too, which is a plus.

All this talk about skyhawk and the cycles is making me want to ride even more, won't get that chance for another month or so :(

djDaemon said:

Would CP simply be able to add a couple more ops once the park is fully staffed? It would seem that if they doubled them from 2 to 4, the check-double check time would be cut in half. If they could do that, and add two more full swings, it would add a lot to the whole experience, in my opinion.

A few years back, I would have said for sure they will, but I think what we're seeing now is the way its going to be. Positions have been cut all over the park. I've never walked up to so many rides and seen no entrance person as I did last weekend. Mean Streak, Magnum, Mantis, Gemini, all with no entrance person. Most of them did have a turnstile person at least.

Also, they have run Maxair with two people all along and they both go around the entire gondola. It still seems weird to me why double checking is necessary on certain rides, but not others.

I'd rather see someone at the station entrance than the queue anyhow - though it seems strange that someone who doesn't meet the height requirements could presumably wait through the entire line only to be turned away at the station.

As for Maxair, I was under the impression that the load time for it was considerably longer than that of Skyhawk. This, of course, is only what I have heard, having never been on the ride myself. And I do agree that staffing is an issue, however it seems logical that with the load times that have been observed, some solution is necessary.

Why is double checking restraints necessary on Gemini? (For a ride that operated for over 20 years only checking one lap bar per row...)

The MaXair double checking should not take extra time. They seem to start at opposite ends of the gondola, so they can start checking at the same time. One trip around the gondola for one person takes the same time as one trip around the gondola for two people, provided they start at the same time.