If this ride didn't have the downright awful-smack-in-your-face-absymally-slow ride operations and single train operations, it would be a 4, definitely.
It's a pain waiting to get on board, because at first, there is no way you can see how slow the line will move and how long it is gonna be, and then, it effectively moves extremely slow, and the line you're waiting in is extremely depressing, old and beat-up. It's just not a lot of fun to be standing there in this ugly concrete path full of trash for 2 HOURS AND A HALF.
The trains are strange as hell. They work so oddly it's actually displeasant to board them.
The lift hill is slow, dirty, noisy and the views it provides are simply awful. You feel stuck between the track and its uncombrant catwalks and the giant bridge right behind you.
The following first drop though really makes that painful climb worth it, since it feels pretty exciting when taken from such a position and it feels alot like falling down to Earth. Very exciting. The following loop is nothing amazing, but it is still tons of fun, just like the helix that follows. It turns very sharply and steeply, and it's taken at high speeds into a bunny hill that gives a cool airtime moment. A sharp turn up into the brakes follows and the drop right after is sudden and gets you out of your seat a little. Really good surprise element. I also like the twisty S-curve that follows. The changes of direction are a lot of fun.
All of this was just great and almost made up for half of the painful wait! This is amazing! No but seriously, all those parts of the ride are really underrated and a lot more fun than most people say. Too bad the rest is so bland. There's a 540 degree helix crossing in the loop that delivers no thrill until its ending that starts to bank right more and more (cool effect) but the thrill unfortunately lasts one second. The next 8 seconds however are really lame. They aren't there to thrill you, they're there to bring the train back to the station only.
Well, the standup itself is a 4. It is a lot of fun for the most part and smooth throughout (btw I never got any headbanging), but this never makes up for the 'sad' ending, the line that can possibly take you 2hrs 1/2, the disappointing landscaping and those odd trains.
This park really should get better staff for operating those rides.
-- So, one piece of advice if you're intrigued by Cobra and want to ride it bad: Check out the line from the walkway. If you can see the start of it, TURN AROUND: it indicates the presence of a 2 - 2 1/2 hours wait. If you don't see the edge of the line, come in to see where it starts. If it starts MAXIMUM right beside the end of the ending brakes and the point where the station begins, it's worth it. Though if it is any longer, turn around and leave the line: it wouldn't be worth it.
Have a nice day
