Home > Ohio > Geauga Lake > X-Flight

X-Flight
Website: Geauga Lake Homepage
Ride Type: Flying Coaster
Ride Status: Defunct
Average Rating: 3.8491
TPC Overall Rank: #208 out of 2933 rides.
Reviews: 61
Last Review: 12/1/2006 11:03:00 AM
In User Top 10: 44 times.
User Tracker Count: 175 times.
 


X-FLIGHT
    
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4 Rating
+2 Rating Rate Down Rate Up PhantomNik on 12/1/2006 11:03:00 AM
Well, seeing as this coaster is now being dismantled and removed from Geauga Lake, I figured I had better get my review in on it before it’s too late! It is sad to see it leaving, but it is understandable considering the direction the park is heading towards. I will always have a fondness for this coaster, as it was the first flying coaster I had experienced. May you find a great new home, X-Flight, one that sees you being appreciated and taken care of (hopefully with more efficient ride crews as well). You served Geauga Lake well, and any true fans of the park will miss you. Now then, on to my review!

When coaster experts and enthusiasts talk of coasters and their manufacturers, one company that occasionally gets drudged through the mud is Vekoma. Many complain that their offerings to the coaster landscape are boring and rough. I will grant you the fact that some of their coasters are not the smoothest to grace the land, and I do realize that the clones of some of their coasters have infiltrated so many parks that sometimes it’s like a virus you cannot escape – another boomerang?? Nooooooooo!! However, I must contend that their offerings are far from boring. In fact, I happen to think that some of their ideas, albeit overused, were at the time quite revolutionary. There’s of course the boomerang, which was pretty landmark and then expanded upon to give us inverted boomerangs and the rare (and stubbornly unreliable) giant inverted boomerangs (the Déjà Vu’s, if you will, which to this day I would love to climb aboard). They’ve also introduced the "poor man’s inverted coaster" (the SLC), and more recently introduced the motorbike coaster, which has yet to grace us here in the states. But one of their most revolutionary ideas, one which B&M ran with and attempted afterwards, was the flying coaster. How would you like to fly through the air like a bird? Well, on coasters like this you get the chance! I’ve ridden both companies’ flyer models, and although B&M has that one unbeatable element in the pretzel loop, overall I give the nod to Vekoma. X-Flight, their flyer installation in Ohio, was unique, comfortable, and extremely enjoyable. I would love to combine the two flyer types into one massively awesome coaster, but until then, if I see the 2 choices side by side, I will head towards the Vekomas, like X-Flight.

X-Flight, sitting outside the park right along the parking lot, looks visually stunning with its twisted track and vibrant color scheme. The neon green against black supports looks very good! Probably one of the biggest weaknesses this coaster has is the wait time that is associated due to the unique (and strange) restraining system, which makes load times long and wait times even longer. Geauga never seemed apt to run both of the trains, which hurt capacity on this beast. My point being that if you’re going to pony up the dough for a revolutionary ride concept, then you should be staffed well enough to run it at optimum capacity. This could have been one of the issues that led to X-Flight’s eventual demise at the Lake. Once you are strapped in and secured, the train’s seats recline backwards, placing all riders on their backs. Then, off you go towards the lift hill.

Going up the lift hill on your back is really disorienting and builds the anticipation. Cresting over, the track inverts and suddenly you’re staring straight down at the ground below! Awesome!! To heighten the effect (or just because I’m a big dork), I stretched out my arms and really felt like I was flying as the train plummeted down the first drop and then flew into the excellent horseshoe element, which is incredible when navigated in this coaster riding position! At this point you invert onto your back again to hit the highlight of the ride for me – the vertical loop taken while on your back! This element is incredible and very forceful, although just a shade less intense than B&M’s pretzel loop. Upon exiting the loop, you flip back over

3 Rating
0 Rating Rate Down Rate Up sowinski on 10/9/2006 4:57:00 PM
This is my first flying coaster and I liked it quite a bit. However, since this ride, I have ridden other flyers and better steel coasters, so I feel that I cant give it any higher than a 7, but it is really closer to a 7.5. A good style of coaster with comfortable restraints, but a little slow loading. It is most fun at the front.

3 Rating
0 Rating Rate Down Rate Up fergusonat on 8/16/2006 4:44:00 PM
Personally, I am just not a huge fan of Vekoma Flying Dutchmen. I have ridden two of them, and both left a lot to be desired. The restraints are just far too awkward for the ride to be anything special and the ride layout is just not all that thrilling. Then insert a horrendous paintjob like X-Flight has, and you just have a barely-above-average coaster. The vertical loop was a very cool element as always, however

4 Rating
+1 Rating Rate Down Rate Up cjeagle35 on 7/31/2006 8:02:00 PM
This ride was a pleasent suprise. I never felt that anything built by Vekoma could be so smooth. It offers a cool ride experiance, with the flying sensation. The loop is also cool as you can wave at the other people when going through. The helixs and inline twists are great.

4 Rating
0 Rating Rate Down Rate Up Raptor on 7/19/2006 1:01:00 AM
Honestly, I dont see why anyone has a problem with this ride. It was almost as comfortable as Superman: Ultimate Flight, and the experience was MUCH better. It had nice elements throughout and had a great pace. I dont care if its a Vekoma... its so much better than Superman: Ultimate Flight.

4 Rating
0 Rating Rate Down Rate Up calla999 on 10/25/2005 8:33:00 PM
I think that this ride is grossly underrated. First, the seats were quite comfortable considering the flying position you are in for most of the ride. Next, the harness has you very well secured and there really is no way of getting out of it. I feel very safe putting my arms over my head and flying. It is a short ride time, but it gets may good elements in with the huge vertical loop, tight quick turns, the inline twists, and the final helix. If you are a coaster lover like me, you are going to like this one.

3 Rating
-3 Rating Rate Down Rate Up Predator on 9/7/2005 5:48:00 PM
I dont think Vekoma exactly knows what they are doing. This was a disappointment.

4 Rating
0 Rating Rate Down Rate Up mobdick on 8/9/2005 1:38:00 PM
This was actually a pretty good ride. It was somewhat hum-drum from a twists and turns standpoint, but the dangling was a lot more frightening than I would have thought, and it made it a nice suprise. I never got around to riding it twice, so who knows how well it holds up, but it was cool.

4 Rating
0 Rating Rate Down Rate Up gyk182 on 7/3/2005 11:20:00 PM
I very much enjoyed this ride. The layout is wonderful and I love the flying design. On the downside, however, loading takes ages and a short line can be a 20 minute wait, especially when only one train is running, which is often the case. I remember feeling so awesome at the top of the hill where you flip over and suddenly face the ground. I also like how you cant see the track in front of you at all and how you go up the hill backwards facing the sky. It all adds to the thrill. Recommended, for sure.

4 Rating
0 Rating Rate Down Rate Up SLFAKE on 6/25/2005 10:51:00 PM
Im going to give this on a 9. Its actually scarier and more painful to hold on to the resraints tightly than it is to let go and put your arms out like you are flying.

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