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 Review of Volcano, The Blast Coaster @ Kings Dominion
0 Rating Posted by: fergusonat on 5/3/2005 11:42:00 AM
Im rewriting my review of this ride:

After a season of disappointing rides on Volcano the Blast Coaster, I have chosen to lower my rating from a 9 to a 7. The launches are good, yes, but what comes next? A quick ascent through the top of the volcano and then 3 monotonous, repetitive, uncomfortable motions. I simply do not get the rush out of this ride as I used to. The spark has been lost. It is a repetitive, and dare I say, boring ride. It sucks that this is PKDs excuse for not getting a B&M invert themed to Top Gun, because there is simply no comparison. Stay tuned! I may decide to lower the rating to 6! :o
 

Review Comments

Godsentone on 5/3/2005 12:50:52 PM said:
Yeah, but until I ride something that thrills me more than this did, it will remain my number 2 ride that I have ridden. If it wasnt for the things that make it so good, it wouldnt be worth more than a 6, IMO!
WAR2174 on 5/3/2005 3:26:33 PM said:
Very true fergusonat, once you have been ejected throught the top it just isnt that exciting. My opinion here, this is one of the most overrated coasters.
fergusonat on 5/3/2005 5:00:56 PM said:
^Well, I wouldnt go so far as that, lol...I still love the ride
coaster05 on 5/3/2005 5:55:42 PM said:
I wouldnt say overrated since it is pretty unique. Another element would have really helped also.
Hercules on 5/3/2005 6:10:44 PM said:
Just by looking at it, I dont really think it looks like anything great. I think it looks like something special. It is definately different. I wouldnt even call it overrated either. I never hear that much about the thing and I hear mixed reviews about it too.
fergusonat on 5/3/2005 8:15:15 PM said:
^exactly...people have conflicting views on this ride. There are those who love it and praise it, and there are people who think its boring. Its not overrated unless almost everybody loves it and it still sucks
Godsentone on 5/3/2005 11:31:53 PM said:
It also depends on the types of coasters you have ridden before as well. Those who have ridden TTD may find it tame in comparison, but since I havent ridden anything faster than Millennium Force, thats why I have it so high in regards. Even Hypersonic which is faster than Volcano, didnt thrill me like this one did.
WAR2174 on 5/4/2005 7:29:37 AM said:
That is why I put in "My opinion". I personally felt that it is overrated because once you launch it is basically over. At least Flight of Fear has quite a few more inversions. People seem to give it good reviews, I just didnt have the same experience.
Godsentone on 5/4/2005 9:03:28 AM said:
Well actually if you check out RCDB, they both have the same amount of inversions. V:TBC is longer, taller, & faster, while FOF is enclosed with 3 different types of inversions as opposed to V:TBCs 2. Not much difference in launches, except the 2 launches of V:TBC. You are right though, it is based on your opinion and preference.
larrygator on 5/4/2005 9:46:58 AM said:
Granted V:TBC is monotonous and repetitive but the theming is cool. They kept it simple and found three things they could do an kept it simple: launches, zero-g rolls and left turns. LOL
WAR2174 on 5/4/2005 12:40:58 PM said:
I guess you are right, they have the same. I guess because you are inside it feels different. Plus, I didnt really count the roll out from the top as an inversion, even if it is. Doing 3 barrell rolls just isnt that fun. I will give Volcano props for it themeing. Very original.
coaster05 on 5/4/2005 2:22:22 PM said:
I find Volcano to be A LOT smoother then FoF. Both have good theming though.
Godsentone on 5/4/2005 3:45:38 PM said:
You know why, right? V:TBC was made by Intamin and FOF was made by Premier. Go Figure!
larrygator on 5/4/2005 11:25:48 PM said:
Oh I love zero-g rolls and V:TBC but its not a coaster that Ill be surprised on. Its not like you are going to say "oh I forgot about that last left hand turn" LOL
coaster05 on 5/4/2005 11:31:38 PM said:
I said it felt like a NASCAR race with all the lefts. I still really liked it though and its my second favorite launch coaster behind storm runner.
fergusonat on 5/5/2005 11:02:20 AM said:
Its a good ride, but I dont think it can uphold the title as being PKDs premier roller coaster attraction anymore. Hypersonic fell flat on its face, and though Drop-Zone and Tomb-Raider were awesome additions, you cant expect them to draw the same crowds as a coaster would. The ride itself is very unique, but the variety in elements and forces exerted is severely lacking. Nonetheless, it retains #5 in my Top 10 Steel Coasters and is #7 in my Top 10 Rides
Godsentone on 5/5/2005 11:07:43 AM said:
Im confused! If V:TBC is not the premier coaster, which one is in your opinion?
Hercules on 5/5/2005 11:24:01 AM said:
From the outside looking in, it doesnt look to me that they have a premier coaster. I think they are all just role players and they dont have one that sticks out. That is one reason why Im not overly interested in the park. If I were to choose though, it would probably have to be Grizzly.
fergusonat on 5/5/2005 11:28:28 AM said:
^I dont know, when I think PKD, I think Volcano... And to Godsentone, I meant that PKD needs a new coaster. Volcano is still good and all, but it is too old to still be considered their "centerpiece ride."
Hercules on 5/5/2005 11:36:43 AM said:
Well, even if you consider that to be the big name ride there that is cool. However, I dont think that age has anything to do with it being the "centerpiece ride." I personally think that Grizzly still is, but going by Volcano, it was built in 1998. Look at other parks. I consider Millenium Force to be the "centerpiece" at Cedar Point and it was built in 2000. That depends on your opinion between TTD and Millenium Force. There are other examples. BGW has what I see to be 4 "centerpiece" coasters. I have a hard time choosing there. Im sorry, but just from the outside looking in, like I said, Im not overly attracted to what PKD has to over. I see them all as role players.
Godsentone on 5/5/2005 11:52:02 AM said:
When I think BGW, I think Alpengeist or Apollos Chariot and if you really want to know what PKD markets around, its anything Nickelodeon, which is true for all Paramount parks!
coaster05 on 5/5/2005 12:58:41 PM said:
BGW IMO only has two dominat coasters, I could easily go without LNM or BBW.
Godsentone on 5/5/2005 1:02:12 PM said:
Yeah, but when I go I am going for all 4 credits!
coaster05 on 5/5/2005 11:11:19 PM said:
So did I and they are solid, but not like unbelievable.
Godsentone on 5/5/2005 11:36:29 PM said:
Yeah, I dont know of any park that has all unbelievable coasters. Can you guys think of one?
Hercules on 5/6/2005 12:27:28 AM said:
I can think of one... Dorney Park LOL Not really, but you can make a pretty decent argument about it. They only have 5 major coasters (4 if you drop the Wild Mouse) but they are diverse and very solid. Well, I dont know about Hydra yet, but as far as Im concerned, they are all beyond solid.
coaster05 on 5/6/2005 8:17:34 AM said:
No everypark has a couple coasters that dont make the grade its impossible not to because one will probably always stand apart from the rest, making those seem average. The closest for me is SFGAM since I feel they only have one really bad coaster, but several are like BGW and are solid, but not spectacular.
Godsentone on 5/6/2005 11:27:51 AM said:
Hmm you know who could make a park with all spectacular coasters? Disney, Universal, and Cedar Fair. Maybe even Busch.
coaster05 on 5/6/2005 2:32:45 PM said:
Anyone could but it just wont happen. The more you make the more chance to mess up. IOA is the closest right now because all three adult coasters rock, but think how people rate the dragons always saying this one is better so then you start thinking this is not as good as that then you are like this one is ok the other is awesome. At on time in my life Iron Dragon was the best ride now I skip it sometimes even with no line.
Godsentone on 5/6/2005 2:44:44 PM said:
Awww the times have definitely changed if you used to think Iron Dragon was great. I feel you though. I guess thats why a lot of rides come and go. Peoples interest is just not there anymore.
Hercules on 5/7/2005 2:41:47 AM said:
I was actually thinking about this tonight and having a conversation with someone about it. I took Cedar Point as an example. Sure, they have a lot of coasters, but not all of them are super. Maybe they used to be back in the day, but now compared to some of the rides they have now, they just arent that great. All places have that. With my Dorney comment, Steel Force doesnt look as great as it did now that there are two (three counting Wild Mouse) newer coasters at the park now. Going back to Cedar Point, all parks are going to have a Disaster Transport or Mean Streak thrown into the mix too. You cant have all spectacular rides because they are either going to cancel eachother out like coaster05 said, or one of them is just going to suck along the way. At BGW, Loch Ness Monster and Big Bad Wold were big name coasters back in the day, but now with Alpengeist and Apollos Chariot, people dont consider them to be top coasters anymore. That is just how it goes. I think that it sucks, but that is what happens. Magnum XL-200 got overshadowed by the newer coasters that the park opened, especially Millenium Force. Thats just how it goes I guess. It stinks because a park could have a great collection of coasters and rides, like IOA, and then they are constantly compared. The rides at all parks are all at competition with eachother. I think of it like a baseball teams starting rotation. There are 5 starters, all of which are very good, but only one can be the ace that gets the ball in a big game. They are constantly compared to eachother because they are on the same team. They can all put up good numbers, but compared to the ace or other top guys, the lower part of the group looks a little worse eventhough they would be an ace on another team. Surroundings kill. A ride that could be the best ride at a park could be surrounded by a Top Thrill Dragster, a Millenium Force and a Raptor and just look like the little guy on the block. That is one thing that really stinks. Whenever I hear the Dueling Dragons debate, I hear more about how Fire is better than Ice. I just automatically assume that Ice is bad. That is totally ludacris, but that is how I automatically think. Its pretty bad. I just have to step back and get ride of others opinions and realize that it is not a bad ride, just a comparison.
Godsentone on 5/7/2005 3:55:41 AM said:
Wheww! Now you can breath, Hercules, lol. No, but seriously you made several great points. I still hold Magnum in high regards though. It will always be a great coaster, IMO. Just like all the other coasters out there. Just because a coaster gets older or is not the #1 coaster on peoples minds, still doesnt take away the greatness of that ride experience. With that being said, you can make a claim for V:TBCs greatness as being one that will leave a stamp on the coaster revolution for quite some time now.
Hercules on 5/7/2005 4:00:23 AM said:
Well, I dont know about that, but if you want to think that way about Volcano, be my guest. Anyway, sure the Magnum thing is a good point, but it is a matter of the general public too. Once the lines the start to die down, you have to wonder. Im not saying that that rides lines are going to die anytime soon, but with all of these new rides poping up, anything is possible. There are a lot of rides out there the we would consider good, but dont get the ridership that other rides get.
Godsentone on 5/7/2005 4:31:54 AM said:
You know what else is a factor? The marketing of the rides. Will the park continue to market each record-breaking ride so that ridership is constant? Cedar Point is one that will make sure you know how they feel about their coasters. They deem everything as the best this and the best that on the planet.

I wonder is Paramount, even still holds V:TBC in high regards.
Hercules on 5/7/2005 4:38:49 AM said:
Right, but of course any park is going to market their newer coasters more. That is one thing that kills the other ones. You dont hear that much from Cedar Point about Magnum anymore. The only thing that I heard was the ACE award that the ride got. They have anniversary things and stuff, but they are just like anyother park when it comes to that. Parks market the new stuff more.
Godsentone on 5/7/2005 4:44:00 AM said:
Well, I disagree with them not marketing Magnum, they have consistently kept it on the front page or at least in the brochures every season since its debut.

I agree that parks tend to market their newer stuff more, but I hope that my home park, Visionland, continues to market Rampage right along with the Next Best Thing so that people will continue to come to the park for that particular ride. I dont think Visionland will have to worry about this for at least the next 10 years though.
I hope PKD still keeps V:TBC in the brochures main images.
Hercules on 5/7/2005 4:50:48 AM said:
Im just saying that they dont market it as much as they used to for obvious reasons. They still do, but just not as much because there are other rides that overshadow it. And I dont see why Rampage wouldnt be a top draw. It seems like a great ride and there are a lot of big name wooden coasters that get marketed even when they have been around for a while. Now, Rampage hasnt been around a while yet, but just look at Beast, and obviously the Cyclone. Grizzly is holding strong too.
Godsentone on 5/7/2005 5:02:37 AM said:
Yeah, Grizzly was cool. I particularly got a good ride because the gloominess of that day I visited. The trees seemed to sway right towards you. Didnt this ride have something unique about its station? I could have sworn it had a fly-over station feature or fly-under or something.
fergusonat on 5/7/2005 3:11:51 PM said:
^Well, Grizzlys track gets pretty close to the station, but it doesnt actually go over it But wow, my Volcano review sure did spur a lot of great debating! There have been some excellent points made by everyone. I for one think it is only natural that a park would market their new rides more fervently. We shouldnt really hold the parks to blame, theyre just trying to make money. They arent in business to make the older rides feel better about themselves
Godsentone on 5/7/2005 3:37:36 PM said:
I knew it was something like that. Anyway, yeah thats right about parks and how they market their rides. Anybody know if Intamin will ever make another ride like V:TBC or something along the same lines but better?
fergusonat on 11/16/2005 3:31:31 PM said:
Heheh, I rewrote my review if anybody cares to read...
coasterf42 on 3/14/2006 12:10:13 PM said:
Are you crazy?????? Uncomfortable motions!! They are the some of the smoothest, most unique inversions around! All I can say is perhaps you have ridden it too much and gotten used to the thrill. I dont know how you would want a normal B&M Invert besides this. Volcano is one of the most unique coasters in the world. You can ride a B&M Lift Hill Invert almost anywhere.
coasterf42 on 3/22/2006 10:08:35 PM said:
Well, we all have our stinkers I guess. I dont think Apollo is all that it is craked up to be. If everyone liked all rides, then this website wouldnt exist, I guess.
fergusonat on 3/23/2006 3:33:11 PM said:
Sorry for being a stinker, but I think Volcano is boring and uninventive: 4 inversions and 3 of them being exactly the same??? The idea was great...a coaster spouting out of a Volcano...but the rides layout displays PKDs poor execution of their ideas and dismal upkeep of theming.
fergusonat on 3/26/2006 9:35:42 PM said:
Alpengeist and Apollos Chariot are of a caliber PKD will never reach...
fergusonat on 3/29/2006 1:40:13 PM said:
^Uhhhh...Im 17 going on 18 in a few months, and Apollos Chariot still provides a thrill that no other ride even comes close to. And PKD isnt necessarily being bought by Cedar Fair...it could end up being bought by a private investment group who isnt much better than the current owners (CBS). Anyways, thats beside the point
fergusonat on 3/30/2006 8:29:51 AM said:
73 mph isnt speed? You sound like the genericly pathetic park-goer who looks no further than how tall or fast a ride is...
coasterf42 on 3/30/2006 8:40:44 PM said:
I like Volcano much better than Apollo or Alpie, but that is just me. Most people are opposite. But to say that PKD will never reach that level, I dont know about that. Are here any facts to support that, or is it just your opinion? Some Paramounts do have B&Ms, and I still think that if they have put in a ride as good as Volcano back in 98, then Im sure they could do a lot better in 07 or 08.
fergusonat on 3/31/2006 1:39:41 PM said:
I guess its mostly just my opinion, but Busch Gardens makes their rides so much higher in quality than the Paramount parks. The details in theming, planning of placement, and overall aesthetics is topped only by Universal and Disney, IMO.
coasterf42 on 3/31/2006 11:29:17 PM said:
The only things that pis me off about Paramount is all these stupid launchers going into KD and their strange removal of themeing on most of their well themed coasters. Two launches were enough at PKD and we havent gotten a minute long ride ever since Volcano. They remove themes to rides like Hurler, and somewhat to Volcano and FOF. It just makes no since to me. In a couple of years, they will probably have removed all the themes from the Italian Job Turbo Coasters. I just think PKD and a number of the other PPs just need one good steel hypercoaster, and then they will be on par with the top Six Flags parks, but much more taken care of and themed.

But I do think that a number of people whine and whine that PP, SFI, and CF (not nessicarily you, fergusnat) that they are so dirty or unthemed or whatever. But you have to give them their credit to giving dozens of areas quality theme parks with good rides.
fergusonat on 4/1/2006 7:35:15 PM said:
Some of the greatest rides ever created are hypercoasters...will you please get off the MF bandwagon? I tend to complain about Kings Dominion a lot, coasterf42. Just go read the forums at PKDplace to get an idea of just how much I bitch about the park, lol. I still love the place, but its going downhill, and there doesnt seem to be any end in sight, at least until we find out who bought the park! I went today for opening day, and it was by far the worst visit Ive ever experienced there. Soooo depressing to see FoF closed, trees being ripped out next to Grizzly, the mess that is Italian Job, Hurler being closed for retracking, and both Volcano and Anaconda breaking down due to mechanical problems. And with all these rides being down, the lines for all the other big coasters were outrageous! And with one train operations, these lines became unbearable. I got so disgusted I left before 3:00. I regret buying a season pass to that hell-hole
coasterf42 on 4/2/2006 3:22:51 PM said:
Id say it is going down hill. But I still like it. Its more for themeing now. Just looka at the past 4 additions: Haunted Mansion, Tomb Raider, and Italian Job.
fergusonat on 4/4/2006 10:17:36 AM said:
Just wait for 2007, Anonymous...BGE is getting something huge PKD blows, plain and simple. Theres no way you can say Busch Gardens isnt as good. Im sorry, but quality always beats quantity
coaster05 on 4/4/2006 3:57:44 PM said:
Ferg and Coasterf42 dont even acknowledge Anonymous. He wont or probably cant get a membership here so he just posts about how much he wants to go "down" MF at CP. Even if you have rode all the rides he has talked about like myself he will then say you havent so it is not really worth discussing with him.
coaster05 on 4/5/2006 9:09:59 AM said:
They cant go over 300 ft there smart guy. They have height restrictions based on the area they are located in. I would think someone who seems to know so much would realize that.
fergusonat on 4/5/2006 2:51:46 PM said:
LOL ... and another SheiKra would be a bad thing???
coasterf42 on 4/5/2006 9:54:42 PM said:
Well, Id rather ride 8 major coasters and half with no line than ride 4 with half hour to hour waits, but thats just me. I am a minority amung enthusiests that I like PKD better. I always say that I dont go to an amusement park to look at flowers, I go to ride coasters. Plus, I feel Volcano is better than anything Busch has, and I also think that Loch Ness and Apollos Chariot are extremely overatted. But anyways, maybe the 2007 new BGE ride will change my mind.

But, dont count out PKD getting something big in 07. Look at this pattern:
2000 Nickelodean Central (family)
2001 XLC (big ride)
2002 Ricochet and Triple Spin (family)
2003 Drop Zone (big ride)
2004 Scooby Do (family)
2005 Tomb Raider (big ride)
2006 IJTC (family)

If the pattern holds true, hopefully 2007 will be a very competitive time for Virginia thrill rides!
coaster05 on 4/6/2006 10:52:20 AM said:
You two(or one) are absolute morons. They cant change the rules of the area that their park is in. If those two parks suck so bad move from the area or travel more. Get off your lazy ass and do something about it. Instead all you do is get on this site and post the same thing over and over. Get a job and go visit these better parks.
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