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 Review of El Toro @ Six Flags Great Adventure
2 Rating Posted by: larrygator on 6/25/2006 7:53:00 PM
just rode it today as my 96th wooden coaster. This is a great addition for SFGAdv to fill a much needed niche in the wood department. It seems like two different rides with the front half providing air and the last third acting like a twister.

This ride falls just short of a 10 for a couple of reasons. While there is airtime you are stapled in too tight to enjoy it. Also, the change of directions in the last third just doesnt feel right. If they are there for you to enjoy the overbanked turns they do it too quickly but if it is meant to feel like a trick-track it is done too slowly.

This is a new generation woodie that provides air, speed and overbanked turns after the 76 degree drop. It should be a big favorite with the general public.

Before anyone gets all over me for "only" a 9, please keep in mind I think it is very close and the rating may go up as I ride it more. Im trying to limit my ratings of 10 to only the 10% of my wooden coasters and there are at least 9 other wooden coasters I prefer over El Toro.

Edit: 9/11/06 Ater riding two more times yesterday I have increased the rating to a 10. While the operations still have room for improvement it is a vast step forward from the rest of the summer. The transitions in the last third seem crisper and more fun than earlier in the season.
 

Review Comments

Timberman on 6/26/2006 12:55:30 AM said:
lg, what did you think of "the ride"? Was it woody? Steely? Something new and entirely different? (Im guessing youve been on Intamin wooden coasters before; I mean new and different to the rest of us). Would you say it improves on the wood and steel paradigms in terms of ride quality or does it just do its own thing, no better, no worse? I know. Ive become sort of stupidly fascinated with the El Toro phenomenon. Also, and I have to ask, how does El Toro stack up to Hades?
larrygator on 6/26/2006 12:41:01 PM said:
Well I just rode Balder 6 days prior so I was hoping for something similar. Balder was just spectacular.

Most of the ride was smooth like a steel coaster, but a lot of that is the function of overbanked turns to reduce the rattling.

El Toro is in a similar class to the new breed of woodies Thunderhead, Kentucky Rumbler, Hades, J2 from GCI and Gravity Group.

Right now I would say El Toro is high on my list of faves behind only: Cyclone, Phoenix, Avalanche, Vovage, Balder, Thunderhead, Shivering Timbers, Boulder Dash, Thunderhead, Cornball Express, Hades and Silver Comet
adriahna on 6/26/2006 10:00:17 PM said:
Great review, larry - I especially like it, in that you take something of a neutral stance throughout the review - you clearly make the point that youve enjoyed the coaster, but arent afraid to mention the flaws, too. Its good, honest, and well-written. Youve got some serious woodie experience (sorry, that sounded all wrong, but hey), and it shows in your review of Toro. Well done.
larrygator on 7/5/2006 11:46:47 AM said:
rode it July 4th and it was running even better than before and they werent stapling us in, although people riding earlier in the day said the stapling was even worse. ??????? Operations are still horrible and they cant seem to get the second train running consistently and the well they run the Flash Pass system is messed up for the non users. This could possibly be bumped up to a 10 but Im going to wait until I see how it runs in 3 weeks
BobFunland on 8/2/2006 5:34:44 PM said:
I know where the 9 came from, but now that you have placed El Toro in your top 10, I was wondering if its still a 9 or now a 10? edit - I totally missed that last comment, has your opinion changed at all?
larrygator on 8/2/2006 10:34:36 PM said:
yes, BFL i see your point - I will change it to a 10 if it runs well this Friday and if the operations are at a satisfactory level. The ride itself was a ten the last time i rode, but the operations are a 7 at best. At this point my average ride experience on those other coasters mentioned is better than my average ride to date on El Toro. I hope to have fun on Friday with better operations because you are correct, this rating is inconsistent with other coasters in my Top 10.
larrygator on 8/4/2006 4:42:50 PM said:
OK, after riding again today my rating stays a 9, even though the ride is in my Top 10. The ride itself deserves a 10 but the operations are still abysmal. On my 3 trips to SFGAdv since the park has opened, the ride has never been open prior to 10:30, two train operation rarely occurs, and dispatching is super slow. The waiting is made worse by the sheer number of people using Flash Pass. The ride ops also make no attempt to fill empty seats with single riders that are waiting. The only improvement is that you are not completely stapled in if you of average size. And yes, you can now expand you body before the restraints come down to gain a little my slack.
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