NoThrill,Maverick is just another So, So, coaster?

I rode Maverick five times (in three different visits) and I was completely comfortable riding each time. Do I get a special scented sticker star?

I rode it for the first time on closing day (hello Jason Hammond...my wife and I met you by the front seat).

I noticed zero head banging and zero discomfort, and I certainly didnt try to "ride it" in any particular way, I just sat there. Im not saying some of you havent experienced this, but rather I wonder why some do and some do not.

Im 6-2, 175...does height play a factor?

That said, the only part that I really disliked are the brakes just after the launch. That makes no sense, and I see no purpose for them. Why would you have a launch if it's going to be followed by brakes? Reminded me of going down Mean Streak's first hill.

*** Edited 10/31/2007 3:24:16 AM UTC by Kevinj***

Agreed with regards to the brakes after the tunnel. Do you think they were initially added because of the heartline? I wonder if they're still absolutely neccessary without it.

You know, I honestly don't feel those breaks anymore now that I think about. I know they are there, I just for some reason don't feel them like I did on my first few rides.

The Stengel dives are rather quick as they are with the brakes, and I think it may be too extreme on those two elements without them. That is the only part of the ride that is uncomfortable for me, the first Stengel dive.

halltd said:
Even if only 1/2 the people that ride Maverick experience discomfort, I'd want to fix it.

Based on the line this summer, I doubt anywhere close to 1/2 are experiencing discomfort.

I didn't realize you could measure rider discomfort by the length of the queue on a brand new coaster.

Of course people are going to flock to the new coaster. That's a given. Remember the lines for Wicked Twister the year it opened? But, unless you ask each and every person getting off the ride if they experienced head banging, you're not going to know. Even so, people have come to expect head banging on rides these days. So, if the rest of the ride is thrilling (like Maverick is), then people are still going to ride. But, that doesn't negate the fact that the ride could be even better without the restraints.

Well, it being better without the restraints is a given. What I'm questioning is why you seem to have so much luck getting the crap beat out of you, and that's even more concerning given you have a personal trainer. ;)

LOL!! There are definitely other coasters that beat me up more than Maverick. Corkscrew (CP) and Viper (SFMM) are the two that come to mind right off the bat. It's not that the ride injured me. It was just uncomfortable and detracted from my riding experience. For a brand new flagship coaster like Maverick, I didn't feel that was acceptable. Plus, it seems the tall people have more comfortable rides, so I think that's why I get it - I'm only 5'7". I'm coming from the perspective of if you can make it better, why not? I'm not sure what Intamin would charge to swap out the restraints for softies, but I can't imagine it being a monstrous expense - especially since CF is such a huge client. Would it cost money, yeah. But, would the coaster pretty much be perfection after the change - uh yeah. We're lucky because MF and TTD have the "good" restraints. It's just too bad we couldn't get the "good" restraints on Maverick too.

I wholeheartedly agree that it would be better with the soft restraints (or, better yet, with MF/TDD restraints), if only so it would be easier to look around.

And, for the record, I'm a similar size at 5'-7.7625". Not that I'm really counting. ;)

Mantis, Corkscrew, and Raptor can be far more painful for me.

Vince982 said:
Agreed with regards to the brakes after the tunnel. Do you think they were initially added because of the heartline? I wonder if they're still absolutely neccessary without it.

Not that I think they're needed, but they sure don't take away from the second part of the ride. The two steeply banked curves and final bunny hop are taken a very high speeds, I can't imagine taking those elements any faster.

And I wonder if simply "knowing they were there" played a factor. I certainly noticed them, but then again, I was waiting for them. They weren't terribly gripping, but they definitely slow down the train. My point is, I just don;t understand why one would design a coaster to have a launch that needs to be followed by brakes. I thought after MF that we would start to see more and more coasters with no brakes...just allowed to fly. I'm so inlove with that concept now that I despise any brake run mid course, even if it is for my safety ;)

I only rode Maverick once, and it's in my top 5, but somewhere near the bottom. I know it's all personal taste, but MF and El Toro still take the cake for me. Maverick was certainly non-stop fun from beginning to end.

I haven't been to the point since early June....was the fog issue in the tunnel ever resloved. Thought about this when I found this cool picture....

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kimluu/275767440/in/pool-rollercoasters/

The fog (it was actually mist) was on opening day for the ride, disappeared. It then came back at the end of June I believe, but another problem came about and it was turned off.

When I left in August, they were working on a new solution. We'll see come May if it ever returns.

I know the change from a light mist to an actual fogger (like the ones used for Halloweekends) was floating around.

Cool...Thanks for the update.

By no means do I think that the brakes after the tunnel take away from the second half of the ride, I was just throwing the heartline thing out there.

Gomez said:
Mantis, Corkscrew, and Raptor can be far more painful for me.

Me too. Especially Mantis. I only rode it once this year and will only ride the 1st row, less banging. Raptor is best in the middle seats, much less banging I noticed. Corkscrew is, well...is Corkscrew. It may have been a revolutionary coaster in the day, but it is in my opinion time to do something else with that area. I waited 1.5 hours in line to ride opening year and don't recall it being as uncomfortable to ride as it is now. But then again, I was 14 when it debuted, young and bullet proof. :)

I don't like restraints that cause head banging and I don't need to get coaster punch drunk at my age. :)

I love Corkscrew in the back. The way you get pulled over the hill before the loop is great. Most of my friends never want to ride but I always try and convince them to. I actually rode 3 times in a row one day this past season because it was a walk on and we really enjoyed it. As for doing something new with the area, I'm not sure what they could do better. With Coaster's, Power Tower, the Dragster 'plaza', and a roller coaster going over the midway right in the centre of the park, it looks pretty perfect to me.

^That's why we only test ride in the back. :)

Corkscrew takes up no space in the park other than the station and queue. Most of the ride is actually outside of the park and over the midway.

Regardless of space and location, It's still a head banger IMO. :)