Fedor
Posts: 59
Registered: 5/5/2006
Rank: Senior Critic
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 5/10/2006 8:41:49 PM
This is my home park. I had one really awful day here. Heres my review of that day. LET ME NOTE THAT THIS ISN'T MY REVIEW OF THE PARK, JUST THAT BAD DAY!
This was season passholders day. Every season passholder can bring a friend for free.
When I got there before the park opened, the line was approximately a quarter mile long then the finally opened the gates. They usually let people in 30 minutes before the park opens and then open the rides at park opening time. This was a bad idea for them.
I went to Volcano. The ride wasn't open yet. There was a line of about 100 people outside the Volcano entrance. Not a good idea. When we got to the queue line. My friend decided to ride a random seat and wait 18 minutes afterwards rather than wait with me to ride the front seat. My friend is just a dumbass though so thats his fault.
I went to Rebel Yell. What the hell? One train? One Direction? 40 minute wait for REBEL YELL? Inexcusable, forget that, I went to Anaconda.
20 minute wait for Anaconda, one train running. That might not sound too long but for Anaconda, thats very long wait.
We went to check out some of the other rides. Hypersonic? Forget about it, not that day.
Grizzly, the hell? The line actually extended about 25 feet past the queue area with only one train running yet again? You gotta be kidding me? I've never seen Grizzly have a line past the queue area. This was about a 35-40 minute wait FOR GRIZZLY! Thats rediculous.
Then my buddy and I decided to go back to Rebel Yell. He decided he wanted to wait forever to ride it. I didn't care at this point, we'd have to wait forever to ride anything. I met a nice old couple there. We talked while two people decided to cut the line. Lines are never cut unless theres something wrong with the park. I hated that and I'll tell you more about that later. The couple was nice to talk to and made the wait seem not as bad. There was only one train though and the wait was about 45 minutes for fucking Rebel Yell. Thats absolutely rediculous.
I managed to get a ride before my buddies did. When I was waiting for them at the exit, I noticed that they FINALLY decided to test another train and add it. Well geez? If so many people were at the damn park, isn't it common sense to put 2 trains on every ride first thing? That extended my wait at the exit for about 15 minutes. LOL, people had to wait over an hour to ride Rebel Yell, gosh thats just inexcusable.
Then one of my buddies didn't feel like riding Tomb Raider Firefall so me and my other buddy rode it. Cool, it was fun.
Afterwards, I went up to the customer service area at the entrance of the park and asked for who I should speak to regarding my bad experience at the park that day.
I called them and they said they weren't prepared for the capacity of 12,000 people. I'm sorry, but they coulda done a way better job of DOING THEIR JOB that day and it doesn't have to be like that. Theme parks shouldn't have to have the attitude "This is what you have to deal with if you come here". Nope, if I know that people can do their job better and operate the park better and they didn't. I'm gonna complain. Thats how it will improve and if enough people do it, they'll fix it next time.
Luckily, I went again 4 days later, my experience was much better.
Thats it for my worst day at Kings Dominion.
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CoastrGlxy
Posts: 358
Registered: 5/23/2005
Rank: Silver Critic
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5/11/2006 8:35:24 AM
So was it a weekday when you had your bad experience? What day of the week was your good experience?
I would be pretty annoyed if every ride was running one train. I've seen older rides do that, but every coasters is nuts. Do they save money somehow running only one train??
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Fedor
Posts: 59
Registered: 5/5/2006
Rank: Senior Critic
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5/11/2006 10:50:24 AM
My bad experience was season passholder day monday. I went again on Friday when the park was much better.
Really, until they open up Hurler and Italian Job, there won't be any walk-ons. When they open up those rides again, then there would be enough rides for everybody making the waits shorter. And CoasterGalaxy, you live in VA? Wanna meet at a park and hang out?
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Fedor
Posts: 59
Registered: 5/5/2006
Rank: Senior Critic
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5/11/2006 10:52:53 AM
Oh, Volcano and Hypersonic always runs 2 trains. Anaconda got an extra train pretty quick. It took longer than necessary for them to put another train on Rebel Yell and Grizzly, that was just uncalled for. Having everyone wait forever for any coaster. For a theme park, thats a disaster.
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ABR
Posts: 277
Registered: 3/22/2003
Rank: Silver Critic
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5/13/2006 8:57:23 PM
Dang. Let me tell you something, I get extemely annoied when I have to wait anything more than 10 minutes for a coaster when it's only running one train. And I don't think "one train saves money". I always thought it was because the employees wanted to take a break between trains and having only one train means breaks that last longer. One time at Six Flags America on the Joker's Jinx and Roar there were 2 trains on the tracks, and they would send every other one through the circuit EMPTY. They wouldn't do that if it costs extra to run a 2nd train. Then again, maybe that's why they are in debt. The problem with having only one train is the fact that if they have to add another one, it takes forever to test. I know this might seem unbelievable, but this happened on Volcano. Really it did, we were in line for it first thing in the morning and they had to shut it down to add a 2nd train.
How's Italian Job coming?
And where exactly is it. I saw pictures of it and it looks like it's located near the Candy Arcade, but my friend said it was going near the Grizzly, I thought Go-Karts went in there.
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Fedor
Posts: 59
Registered: 5/5/2006
Rank: Senior Critic
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5/13/2006 10:55:04 PM
When you go to Busch Gardens and they ALWAYS run 2 trains no matter how short the line is. It just feels like I'm getting robbed due to laziness at Kings Dominion. Running one train on Volcano or Hypersonic XLC though would be absolutely pathetic. I've never seen that happen.
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Fedor
Posts: 59
Registered: 5/5/2006
Rank: Senior Critic
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5/13/2006 10:57:10 PM
Unfortunately, I've read constantly that Six Flags has the tendency to run one train rollercoasters often. I won't believe it until I experience it, but it sounds really bad.
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Fedor
Posts: 59
Registered: 5/5/2006
Rank: Senior Critic
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5/13/2006 11:12:55 PM
As for Italian Job. Well, I vaguely remember thinking I saw the track right next to Anaconda.
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erinys
Posts: 230
Registered: 9/28/2005
Rank: Bronze Critic
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5/14/2006 12:50:58 PM
I believe under Shapiro SF is attempting to run multiple trains at all times. Only visited 4 times so far & always on the weekend, so can't swear to it, but I think every coaster I've been on has been running 2, possible exception of SFA Superman:ROS.
But wow! Even with 2 trains the SFA employees can be SO slow.
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ABR
Posts: 277
Registered: 3/22/2003
Rank: Silver Critic
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5/14/2006 9:22:51 PM
Fedor (and erinys), I visited Six Flags America today and am going to write a trip report about it after I post this message, you will get a kick out of what happened on Superman in the morning.
Message updated 5/14/2006 10:03:54 PM by ABR
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mrceagle
Posts: 13804
Registered: 6/9/2001
Rank: TPC News Minister
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5/16/2006 10:53:03 AM
It dosn't always make sence to run two trains. but in some cases it's out rigth stupidity to have only 1.
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Fedor
Posts: 59
Registered: 5/5/2006
Rank: Senior Critic
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5/16/2006 11:36:06 AM
It sucks. I have more fun at Kings Dominion when they operate it right, but Busch Gardens is always taken good care of, but theres only 4 coasters. They're great and all but 4 is 4, not a varied day for a coaster craving junkie fix.
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mrceagle
Posts: 13804
Registered: 6/9/2001
Rank: TPC News Minister
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5/16/2006 4:23:14 PM
No it's not Considerign how many they have at the other park. They have removed far more coaster then they have.
you seemed to not have to wait for the ocasters so The one train operation couldn't have been all bad.
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Fedor
Posts: 59
Registered: 5/5/2006
Rank: Senior Critic
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5/16/2006 5:56:10 PM
I do not understand anything you said or what parks you were refering to in your last comment, please restate it.
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mrceagle
Posts: 13804
Registered: 6/9/2001
Rank: TPC News Minister
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5/17/2006 9:57:22 AM
Sorry I was for some reason thinking of ABR's TR when it came to wait. he had the same complaints about Single trains but not the wait. I went back and reread the TR. They obviously dropped the ball. If they let cars in later then normal and Noticed that many cars they should have put the second trains on right off the bat.
12,000 sounds really high for this time a year. So they were likely caught off guard.
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Fedor
Posts: 59
Registered: 5/5/2006
Rank: Senior Critic
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5/17/2006 6:15:42 PM
Yeah, they were. But still, If all those people are gonna experience forever waits on ANY coaster, its bad.
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fergusonat
Posts: 813
Registered: 5/2/2005
Rank: Gold Critic
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5/17/2006 10:28:11 PM
It's funny how an overwhelming number of people report that their day was "bad" at PKD and yet turn around and defend it as a quality park 
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Fedor
Posts: 59
Registered: 5/5/2006
Rank: Senior Critic
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5/17/2006 10:51:09 PM
Defend? Well, I'm just telling it like it is and how I feel. If you're the type who like to attack and defend, thats just you.
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mrceagle
Posts: 13804
Registered: 6/9/2001
Rank: TPC News Minister
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5/19/2006 5:38:47 PM
A good park can have a bad day. SFNE isn't the worst park out there but I've had allot of bad days.
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