Unpopular?

For a new ride, I have never seen such sort lines. To get an idea, MF sold out of freeway before 2:00pm today. Twister around 6:30pm still had stamps out to give and was around a 15 minute wait. It was a bit crowded today too. 15 minute wait, new ride, 6:30, crowded.c -mon!

The park capacity is huge now granted, but I would think for a new ride it would have the longest line. MF's line looked like at least an hour all day and WT's and Raptors line seemed comparable. AS a few have said it does not look like there may be many repeat riders, something peeps will just ride once in there day and go on to other things. So later in the night there has never been a line longer than 15 minutes when I went. Mille Force still looks like the place to be.

I think people still love the ride though, they just don't get in line twice it seems.

Good thinking. I don't know if FreeWay stamps are the best way to compare WT's popularity with MF's... people would only need FreeWay if there was a long wait, like there was for MF. They obviously wouldn't even need it on WT with such a short wait. I wonder if WT capacity beats the recent MF capacity... hmmmm... who would have ever guessed...

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Break the scream barrier NOW!
Wicked twists: 3
Danger: Hgih Voltage!
*** This post was edited by Majin Heero 5/19/2002 10:43:27 PM ***

MF with 2 trains is about 900 PPH. Wicked Twister is up there, but the crew would have to hit a 60 second load time every time to exceed MF with 2 trains. With all the rechecks and stuff, I would be surprised if they got over 900 yet this year. It could hapen though.

I think it doesn't have a very big line because people look at it and think it's too intense. They're right, it's one of the most intense rides I've ever been on. A lot of people I have talked to are like, "You are NEVER going to see me on that ride!" I think they're just intimidated by the straight up and down spiraling.

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Brent Haley
Gemini Crew '02

I know nobody is going to believe me, but here goes...
I think part of the reason for the short lines on Wicked Twister is that people haven't figured out how to get to the thing yet. Think about it...The park is basically a huge figure-8 from the main midway, past Corkscrew, Magnum, Gemini, back down the Frontier Trail, down the midway past Wildcat and Iron Dragon, and back down the main midway. Anything not on that loop is sort of out of the way...that means Mean Streak, White Water Landing, Ocean Motion, Schwabinchen, and Wicked Twister. People are making it back to that midway, but there isn't a particular timing to it.
People tend to come in the front gate and pile up on Raptor and Millennium Force, then later on Magnum. But there doesn't seem to be any pattern to when people turn down the games midway or cut past Peanuts Playground to Wicked Twister. People are eventually getting over there, but they're not all arriving at once. So the line for Wicked Twister isn't getting terribly long.

Well, it makes sense to me, anyway!

--Dave Althoff, Jr.
*** This post was edited by RideMan 5/20/2002 8:25:29 AM ***

WT always seems to have a lot of spectators. I think Brent is right, it just looks too scary for some people. I've sat and watched riders, nothing but happy people at the end of the ride. The ride is a winner to people who decide to ride it.

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It's very hard to drink all day...
Unless you start first thing in the morning.

I was thinking about that, too, Dave. Actually first I was questioning whether people knew it was actually at CP or not, but of course it didn't take long to realize that it's hard to miss (if not in real life, then at least in some marketing fashion). So maybe you are right, at least partly...

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Break the scream barrier NOW!
Wicked twists: 3
Danger: Hgih Voltage!
*** This post was edited by Majin Heero 5/19/2002 11:49:08 PM ***

I wonder if SUE has had any impact? Might people be saying "I've ridden a ride like that at Six Flags and didn't care for it much, so I'm not going to ride WT"??

Also, it's only been open for three weekends. The real test is to see what the line will be like this weekend.

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Scott W. Short, Rail Junkie
mailto:scott@midwestcoastercentral.com
http://www.midwestcoastercentral.com

Let's not forget the weather, either. I know from experience that WT is the coldest waiting line at the Point, being right on the beach like that. Last Monday, my friend and I waited three trains to ride but it was the longest three trains I've ever waited and easily the most miserable wait of the day... That may be driving people away.

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Signature Under Construction...

I agree, Tim. I think it's going to ber very interesting to see how the attendance changes from last year. The promos that I have seen and heard are awesome, but I wonder how many people will say "it's just like SUE, why bother going to CP?"

-mikey
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If you're like me and you think Cedar Point should get the B/M Flyer in 2004, give me a "Hell Yeah!"

There is another factor too. Some people simply do not fit into the restraints. Sure, it's probably a small percentage, but my husband can ride anything in the park, including Raptor and MF, but he does not fit in WT. And it's not a weight issue...it's his height and shoulders. He's tall, but not outrageously so at 6'5".

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I'd rather die living than live like I'm dead

I don't think that the a comparison has anything to do with it, nor do I expect that it will have any negative impact on attendance. Look at prom season... not a single school my volleyball kids are affiliated with went to SFWoA.

SUE doesn't pack in the people either. Regardless of where the ride is it's not the type of thing people will get right on. OTT's wife was a little apprehensive last year at SF, and I consider her to be an enthusiast.

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Jeff
Webmaster/GTTP, Sillynonsense.com
"As far as I can tell it doesn't matter who you are. If you can believe, there's something worth fighting for..." - Garbage, "Parade"

Even after riding S-UE last year and watching WT being built this winter, when it came time for my 1st ride (at 5:45am on 05-02 :)) I was PETRIFIED! I don't know what exactly scard me, the anticipation of the launch or the shot backwards but I was definitely scard. Of course all that put aside after my 1st ride, and 23 rides later I just love it!!! :)
However the GP gets to watch WT run and run, to some that may scare them off because it does look scarier than it is. I have to agree that it is also not something someone would want to ride and ride so the (lack of) crowds may be due to people only riding 1x. I had stated on Media Day if I didnt get the chance to ride it again the rest of the season I was "set" with 20 laps and yet still managed 3 more laps on OD. I would say the "real" GP hasn't truly invaded the park yet so we have to wait and see till schools out and the vacas start to see how long the lines will get.
I'm NOT happy that the wait for my green baby seems to be just as long as always :(

Jo
2000 Raptor Crew
Gemini 100 "Survivor"
Next VP of GOCC?
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Cowboys dig cowgirls in trucks
Cowgirls dig cowboys in Wranglers! ;)

Jeff said:

SUE doesn't pack in the people either. Regardless of where the ride is it's not the type of thing people will get right on.

Then why last year at SFGAm did V2 have a full queue fifteen minutes after opening everyday it was operational (basically)? It was the first thing people ran to last year.

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#1 Steel -- Nitro
#1 Wood -- Legend
Track Record -- 353

Oh give me a freakin' break. There will always be exceptions to the rule, and I don't doubt CP will pack in a two hour line here and there. You're missing the point... in a general sense Impulses aren't a ride for everyone.

And for the record, SFGAm doesn't have Millennium Force or Raptor.

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Jeff
Webmaster/GTTP, Sillynonsense.com
"As far as I can tell it doesn't matter who you are. If you can believe, there's something worth fighting for..." - Garbage, "Parade"

I was at the park yesterday too, and I was also shocked by the VERY SHORT lines for WT. Everyone's theory about why the lines are so short are all possibilities, and each one is probably a factor. While I was waiting for the gates to open yesterday, I overheard two kids saying " I don't want to rush to WT or even ride it because it is just like SUE". Anyway, my first ride on WT was AWESOME!! Gotta love that screaming noise it makes as it launches out of the station! Shorter waits just make it all the better for us fans of WT!!
*** This post was edited by CP FANatic 5/20/2002 3:55:00 PM ***

Jeff yelled:

Oh give me a freakin' break. There will always be exceptions to the rule, and I don't doubt CP will pack in a two hour line here and there. You're missing the point... in a general sense Impulses aren't a ride for everyone.

Whoa Nellie, simmah down, bud. I was just responding to what you had previously wrote. I haven't been to SFMW to ride V2 there, maybe they all ran to that one first as well. I could see if there were like 50 Impulses to compare to, but there are 4 in this country. Out of the three mentioned, one has people flocking to it right away. I'm not quite sure I'd count that as "an exception" especially when I went to SFWoA in 2000 people ran to SUE right away (later in the day like was non-existent). Not to mention, *no* ride is "a ride for everyone."

And for the record, SFGAm doesn't have Millennium Force or Raptor.

Correct. And since we're stating the obvious, SFGAm has Raging Bull and Batman The Ride. Both monstrously popular rides for those over 54" tall! LOL.

What was I saying about "filler" ride back in November? ;)

--JC, who knows I'll hear an earful back about that last comment!

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#1 Steel -- Nitro
#1 Wood -- Legend
Track Record -- 353

Okay, I work in Park Services, so I am out and about talking to guests and all. No, all I know about Area 51 is that it is an area for future development. However, heres some feedback from the GP about WT:

"Did CP build that new ride this year?" (extremely common)

"How do you get to Wicked Twister?"

"Where is that twister thingy?"

"I froze my*****off on that ride!" (common)

"That thing is way too intense, I don't recommend it for anyone with even the slightest sign of back problems, heart problems, nausea problems, and anything else."

"My GOD! Those towers are going to snap right off!"

"I am very dissapointed with WT." (most common)

What I've heard a lot was, "I thought the new ride fell when they were building it and they tore it down." I can't tell you how many people have told me this, but maybe I just know a lot of really stupid people. Those news broadcasts did always mention WT under construction when talking about VertiGo however.

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-Chris Woodard
"Thank you for replacing Mean Streak's square wheels with round ones."
VertiGo: VertiGone but not forgotten.

Am I the the only one that thought that WT was a pretty kick @$$ coaster?I mean there are better coasters in the park but there are also far worse *cough* Disaster Transport *cough*.Don't get me wrong I like DT but I would rather ride WT becasue of the sheer intensity that it brings.Grabted WT is a short ride but a lot of people could not deal with being spiraled backwards and forwards 200+ feet in the air for more than a minute.But this is just my opinion of WT.