If you continue to violate Cedar Point rules, continue to do things that endanger other riders' safety, berate and badger employees with questions that have no answers, and complain about needing to pay to use lockers......you WILL continue to get the TSA treatment!
Even though it does seem like that - I fully understand the reasoning for it and wish the park was a bit more strict with loose articles on other rides. IMO you should get kicked out of the park if you try to take your phone out for a video - could really hurt someone
@@rparqer I’d say if you take it a step further and really crack down on line jumpers, you’d be eliminating the people that have the gall to knowingly break the rules before the can even get on the ride.
@@timk987 That's a good point too... but I think this mostly comes down to the other people in line alerting staff of the jumpers. I had two people line cut waiting for TTD and not a single person around me told the ride ops. I did, and they got kicked off the ride (not sure about the park or not tho)
As someone who worked at raptor this summer, the only reason we told one person per row to go to the bins was so there weren't so many people getting on the ride putting stuff away while everyone else was grabbing their stuff out of the bins, which led to faster and more efficient ops. Also thanks for finally putting Raptor over Banshee!
I was there in 2021 and Gemini is NOT smooth 😆 I don't really mind the SteVe article policy, but it would be good if it was made clear that the lockers in the queue are free, or just make all the lockers free. I had one ride on Valravn (in the rain) and really liked it. I'd say it's my #4 in Cedar. Point.
I'm very annoyed they won't let you have small fanny packs in the SV queue. The lockers will obviously fit my gf's Coaster Crew fanny pack. We only keep our car keys, our credit cards, ID, and our phones in there.
I'm pretty sure that it was the half-capacity trains last year that had it running weak. It was clearly better this year, but I still think summer 2018 was at it's absolute best.
I visited Cedar Point for the first time back in early June. Another thing to add for Steel Vengeance is that if you wear glasses, it’s required that they’re held on with a strap, or you have to put them in a locker.
Knott’s Berry Farm has this policy on their coasters, and were super strict about it on my last visit. I’m super blind so I have to admit that once I left the station I just put them back on. I’ve been wearing glasses for 20 years and not once have they ever even come close to falling off on a coaster or any ride for that matter
I always recommend getting straps for eye glasses and have em for every ride you go on. You never know when the Coaster will try to steal em. I almost lost a pair on the Beast in the helix before I invested in them.
the thing that frustrated my wife and I when we visited this year was not articles policy but that Fast Lane was overpriced and underwhelming. Waiting 45 mins for elite rides is way better than 90+ minutes, but I think they should be selling fewer passes each day if they're charging so much. We actually ended up having more fun at King's Island this year because we got many more rides in on the elite coasters.
How about waiting 75 minutes in fast lane while the regular line is 45 minutes. That was my experience with fast lane, which is why I refused to buy it the 2nd day, and I got on the rides quicker. So many people had fast lane, that it's line was longer than the regular line in many cases.
I’m not gonna lie, I underestimated these Arrow coasters. They made a couple of good, smooth airtime machines. If only they focused on those more than their loopers.
Well unfortunately, the Corkscrew model was just too easy to keep manufacturing. Plus, they had to build Vortex for free for Kings Island after they screwed up on The Bat.
In regards to the pain on the Magic Seat, I'm quoting Hellraiser when I say 'pain and pleasure, indivisible as one.' As for Maverick, I don't have the same issues you talk about with the restraints.
Rode the "magic seat" early this year and folks waiting for the two rows in front of me weren't paying attention. The gate opened and closed and they didn't get through. It was the worst ride in the 32 years I've been riding Magnum - painfully bouncing over every hill only to get slammed in the back by the rest of the train as we hit the bottom. Horrible ride for me there. I'll take row 15 or 12 now every day. A great ride every time, and no thigh crushing on the home stretch.
You got lucky getting on Top Thrill Dragster as its future is unknown now, lol...i rode it in 2005 (front row) and I thought it was amazing! Just incredible speed and acceleration. But i was also able to ride Mantis and Mean Streak, lol, so even though they both sucked, it makes it more special when they go defunct.
Though I live a ways away from Cedar Point, it will always be my honorary “home park.” Magnum was my first large coaster ever and after that, I was hooked. I try to get back when I can. But I agree Cedar Point needs uniform carry on policies.
Man CP is having so many issues this year between staffing issues, bad ops, a broken chain on Gatekeeper, and the Dragster accident. They really need to get it together
It seems to be a bad year for theme parks in general, every big one and even some minor ones have had problems. Part of it is because they're just not willing to meet job seekers where they are, and part of it is probably because parks differed maintenance during the pandemic and it's a gamble that turned out to be a bad idea.
I visited for the first time at the beginning of July. Amen on Magnum. I absolutely loved it and you can marathon it super easily. It was a station wait both days I went in July. I really enjoyed raptor, that helix at the end is sooooo forceful. Maverick and Steel Vengeance were my other favorites. I thought Millenium Force was just kinda meh.
I laughed way too hard at "going through the colonoscopy & root canal" to ride SV🤣🤣🤣 so true though, I'm just glad it's no longer an upcharge attraction thanks to the free lockers. I think if parks are going to force lockers, they should go the route of Hersheypark and make them free.
It’s still a $2 up charge if you go after a heavy rain and the free lockers get flooded. The funny thing is that CP pays a couple workers $20 an hour to squeegee water off the concrete pad only to watch it flow right back at them. What’s annoying is that I remember the fast lane queue flooding in years past, so they had to know this could/ would happen.
I was there a couple weeks after you and everything was running. Millennium always runs well for me, and Magnum is still one of my favorite rides in the park. Maverick was kicking ass when I rode 3 times. And Steel Vengeance doesn't even need a description. They had gatekeeper going and I find it to be quite pleasant. Raptor was kicking serious ass
Just got back from my 2 day visit there. Easily the most fun I've had in a long time. My favorites were easily Maverick, Steel Vengeance, Gatekeeper, and Millennium Force 😍 and SURPRISINGLY got a pretty decent ride on corkscrew with no headbanging haha
Those are my 4 favorites at the park as well. Corkscrew rode well for me too, no headbanging as long as I leaned my head forward, and it had some shocking airtime. I do remember Steamin Demon, the loop-corkscrew model at Great Escape, being very shaky with a lot of headbanging, but Cedar Point's rides much better.
Honestly happy you called out Cedar Point’s on ride items policies here. Had my first ever trip a month ago and had an incredible time discovering my new favorite coasters, but the multiple policies were weird and the strictness on Steel Vengeance was a little annoying, like props to the team members for doing their jobs thoroughly, but I couldn’t even have my tiny hand sanitizer in my tight shorts that wasn’t gonna go anywhere. Thankfully the ride experience was top tier and still immediately became my favorite coaster, but eventually Millie took the top spot, SteVe’s seriousness was only a minor contributor to that. Maverick had my favorite policy with the buckets and how organized they were with them.
Wow. First minutes of the video really make it clear what a mess their loose article policies are now. I’m all about keeping everything in zippered pockets and really hate it when I can’t travel simply like that. At least a place like Universal is really organized and efficient when they force you to empty your pockets. At the very least, I’m glad SV is no longer a de facto upcharge ride with the lockers.
Unfortunately the park basically forces folks to buy an all day locker for 7 out of 10 of the most popular rides. So when you visit, count on adding another $8 to your budget if you carry more then a phone, car keys, cards, and IDs
@@queerandpleasantdanger3103 I always carry very little to parks - just phone, keys, cards. But even then on my last visit to SFGAdv I got an all-day locker just to avoid the hassle of their ride policies.
I went at the end of July and only had a day and a half so I got the fast pass for my full day there. This was my first time here since 2014 so this was my first time getting to ride Rougarou (I rode Mantis previously), Valravn and Steel Vengeance. I got at least one ride on every coaster apart from the kiddie coasters. First off, Steel Vengeance is absolutely insane. I got 3 rides on this, including a night ride in the back row (this was my first ever ride on an RMC) . Even with all the hype and expectation going into it, this is still easily the best coaster I've ever been on. Maverick - amazing as always. I don't really mind the restraints though. Only got 1 ride in the morning because it was closed pretty much the whole time I was there. Millennium Force - I had previously loved this coaster and it was actually my 100th credit. The 2 rides I got on it this summer were just meh :/ Rougarou - People say this is the most underrated coaster in the park and I would heavily disagree. I rode in the front row and I swear I had a rougher ride on this than I did on Corkscrew. Don't know if it's just that way in the front, or if I just got a rarely bad ride, but based on that ride I have no desire to ever ride it again. Iron Dragon - This was more fun than I remembered it being, but I agree that it isn't forceful at all. Valravn - This is easily the most overrated coaster in the park. The drops were meh, the inversions forceless and pointless, the "airtime" had no airtime. I don't really understand how this ride always has a 90 minute wait with all the other amazing rides in this park (Magnum always is a walk on wtf). Granted, I feel like if this ride was at a smaller park this would probably stand out a bit more. Raptor - Absolutely awesome ride, got a back row ride with no trims. Those last corkscrews and helix are so intense. I don't remember if I rode this in 2014 or not (I'm guessing not) Blue Steak - Okay as always. CP desperately needs a better woodie. Gatekeeper - This was fun, but not as good as I remembered it being in 2014, plus it also seems to have a pretty noticeable rattle now. Wicked Twister - Great in the back and was nice to get another ride before it closes but yea, I'm not too sad to see it go. Another park would appreciate it much more. Corkscrew - Boring and rough but still not as rough as Rougarou. Top Thrill - This was one of the main reasons I went to CP in the past, and it was a bit underwhelming. The launch is fantastic, but the drop doesn't really do much for me; especially after waiting for 30-60min (with FLP). This also shut down 4 times right before I was about to hop in line (I guess it beats being in line) Magnum - Such a good ride and is by far the most underrated coaster in the park. I have no idea how this only ever gets a 10 minute wait. Gemini - This ride always surprises me with how great the airtime on those drops are. I will be sad to see it go, but yea it likely will be gone soonish. Cedar Creek Mine Ride - Tear this down, this ride sucks. PLEASE PUT A GCI HERE
It sounds like you had FLP the same day I did, since you mentioned Maverick going down after the morning. It stayed down until late Thursday. My wait for Dragster was literally 75 minutes with FLP, while people in the regular line had waited less than 45 minutes.
@@rparqer I was there those days. I had FLP on the 27th, and Maverick went down late morning. I didn't realize it operated the first hour on the 28th. I went to shows and rode less popular rides that day, since that day was busier than I've seen it on Saturdays.
It's back to normal now basically minus the shitty hours. I don't think Mike Dewine is going to lockdown or mandate masks again, not with the legislature on his ass
Me & my family went (we were there the day of the dragster accident). Between the four of us we hit pretty much everything, my older daughter didn’t like magnum at all. We liked the usual (m. Force, steel vengeance, maverick, etc.). The two rides all four of us agreed on were gatekeeper and raptor (my younger daughter didn’t ride the bigger ones I mentioned).
If you think the Valravn policy was weird, I rode Backlot Stunt Coaster holding my dads backpack, because we asked to put it in the bins on the unload platform, and they said “those bins are for stuffed animals only”.
I ran into so many stupid policies on my first trip ever there this year It absolutely ruined every morning at the park for the first hour entry. I got on more rides at kings island for there 30 minute early entry than I did for an hour at cedar point. Cedar point not allowing fast lane for the first hour frustrated me. Kings Island allows you to use fast lane in early entry still so was expecting this at cedar point. Also staying on site hotel spending 600 for 2 nights and finding out I can't enter the valraven gate for early entry 5 minutes before it started (no sign postage anywhere) and an old grouchy Landy pulling the sign out 5 minutes before and yelling at us that we cant enter if we arnt staying in the marina or something. So we had to walk all the way back around and miss out on getting in line early for millennium force. Yeah I was pretty pissed the first hour of the day at cedar point. Shortly after tho the coasters made me forget.
That’s interesting. I didn’t know that about the Valravn gate. You’re right that is not posted anywhere other than it being known over the year as the marina entrance. I almost dropped my daughter and 3 of her friends there, but the elected to go around to the back to the Magnum gate and wait 5 minutes (10am) when they allow non hotel guest in that gate.
Perfect upload timing, I'm heading there this weekend for the first time in 4 years. Excited to finally ride SV but those loose article policies sound confusing.
Chris, I wasn't going to say this but I got mad. I visited Cedar Point and Kings Island three weeks ago. I spent three days at each park and observed standby lines crowding. At Cedar Point this year the only people that could come intro the park at the Magnum entrance were hotel guests and campground guests for early ride time. That meant that by the time I got to the back of the park (Entered at the front gate) to ride the best rides the lines were unreal and I have a Platinum Pass. One day I finished riding Millennium Force and Maverick and walked to Steel Vengeance. The ride was still testing but the lines were out of this world. The troubling part of this was the Fastlane + line was as long as the standby line. I observed the same problem at King's Island. How many Fastlane passes are these parks selling in a day? My answer is too many. I'm just not going to pay and extra $85 to $125 per day to ride. Another day visit to Millennium Force I noticed that Fastlane purchasers were riding and re-riding so often it was really slowing down the standby lanes. I know the parks need to make money but the Fastlane system is making line waits longer and longer in the regular line.
This is exactly why Fast Lane *Passes* don't work, and should be replaced with Fast Lane *TICKETS* in which you only get to jump the line to ride *once* . As for the Magnum entrance, the park is in the business of making money, and if you help them by spending your money at Breakers and the campgrounds you should get perks associated with it.
I've only managed to get one visit in this year. Dragster was closed due to The Incident, I didn't ride SteVe or Millennium due to crowds, and I almost alwasy skip Maverick anyway due to even more severe problems with the restraints. It was rainy when I went, too, but that didn't seem to keep the crowds away, and it also wreaked havoc on operations all morning, resulting in a 30-minute wait for Magnum turning into an hour or two due to a closure that greatly outlasted the rain itself. Still, I had a good time. Got good rides in on Gatekeeper, Wicked Twister, Magnum, and Gemini, along with a couple rides with family & friends on WindSeeker, Cedar Downs, the new boat ride, and the train. Biggest takeaway: Gemini is _severely_ underrated. It's incredibly smooth for an Arrow of any age, let alone one that opened in 1979, and it gives good airtime throughout. I had forgotten how fun it is with two full trains, too, with the excitement of competition and the high fives on the turns, and getting a ride in right as the park closed (a little early for my taste, tbh) was even better. Also, shout-out to the crew, who was hauling ass all night _and_ hyping up both trains like crazy at the same time.
Just had a trip up. Maverick has been my #1 since it opened. Sadly that had to come to an end with my first ride on steel vengeance. Absolutely blown away. That thing is pure coaster insanity from start to finish. Maverick is now #2 for me. Crazy how my top two rides sit right new to each other.
Interesting! Sounds like I need another trip out there soon. Haven’t been since 2019. My opinions on the coasters might change. As always great video Chris!
I’m sorry, but I don’t believe you. There is no way anyone can do that. I didn’t feel any pain from the restraints. No thighcrush pain. I’ve ridden it in row 3. However, the ride is bumpy. Even in a non wheel seat. You don’t have any proof that you marathoned Magnum xl 200 for hours.
I went to cedar point on August first and it was awesome. I rode SteVe five times that day, (including one night ride), Maverick twice (with my favorite night ride ever and I have the Beast at my home park), GateKeplar twice, Top Thrill Dragster twice, Valravn twice (first dive coaster for me), Millennium Force twice, and Raptor once. Having Banshee as my home park made me dislike Raptor because of the headbanging, I can deal with the pelvis crusher that is Banshee but the headbanging gave me a headache. Also, that launch on Top Thrill is crazy, you feel all of that 120 mph. Millenium force was my first giga (with me getting on Orion a week later, I prefer Orion). Also, I couldnt find how to get to Magnum or Gemini so I didnt get to ride those. All in all, great experience plus first time ever to Cedar Point. (Plus SteVe was my 25th coaster) Please fix Maverick’s restraints CP.
I was in Park Services at Cedar Point this summer. I had an awesome ride in Row 6 on Raptor and a rough one in row 4, a dude ride on Iron Dragon and another where the second half slapped, either I’ve only had good rides on Millie or just like the speed, I’ve only ridden Valravn in the middle (once in 2016 and twice over the summer) and the last time I rode all the B&M’s-it was the only one that was smooth: I had a smooth as glass evening ride on Rou and a row six stuck next to a dad with head banging, I had 3 awesome night rides as my first rides on Gatekeeper during an associate night (and I still waited longer for my sole back row ride on Wicked Twister. Front row twice and all rides only this season)-then a painful back row right wing during normal hours.
Each of my rides on Wicked Twister was better than the last (my last one was a rainy National Roller Coaster Day and you could hear the screech as the train stalled out before plunging backwards at high speed). I could watch the break system for hours if I had nothing better to do and I don’t know why. El Toro Ryan should do a Problematic Roller Coasters on the Intimin Impulse.
For Steel Vengeance, like Gatekeeper, my first rides were at an associate ride night-but were only in front half due to high demand and a noble sacrifice deciding to ride with a girl who looks like Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn. My row 10 morning ride was more forceful and maybe a little much for me (when the queue actually opened to getting off was 45mins-got off just after 11, but had been like 2hrs since I had breakfast and I felt like I was going to throw up). Can’t knock the forces, I see why it is and deserves to be a god tier coaster, it’s just a front row ride for me I guess).
I have a video from the 16th releasing on September 16th and somehow my ride in the back car of the blue train was smooth, might have been the rain, might be because I was leaning into the corkscrews, might be train IDK. I was hoping an evening ride on Cedar Creek would be more forceful than a morning ride, but it’s a dude. I think I got Whiplash on my first night ride in the magic seat and my last ride on Magnum was actually not bad in terms of jackhammering into the final hills. I also got a row 13 ride on 8/16 (which was a Magnum/Gemini ride night)
I must say it's very interesting how much flip-flopping you seem to have with your opinion on coasters! Sure I can have bad rides on some of my favorites (2012 voyage roughness, the rough trains on banshee) But I've never had anything totally change my love for them... yet :p
There's a tremendous change in audio quality when you start talking about Wicked Twister... totally understandable tho, having to chop in to the already edited video to add fresh news... makes the vid seem less outdated! Also seems like Steel Vengeance will never run the same as it did in 2018
You nailed it, CP might be the Biggest and might have more Coasters than any other CF Park but Kings Island is hands down CF's best park. You didn't miss anything by not riding the ones you didn't this time. Tip for SV because I had a staple issue with an Op too, went back the next day ironically TTD's D-Day and spoke to the Op. He said instead of trying to force getting space just to request it. I did let him know that I wasn't trying to force it but was needing it due to recovering from sore ribs, dunno if you had the same experience but it sounds like they're lenient if you communicate beforehand.
During my last trip to KI at the beginning of August I finally got a front seat ride on Banshee and it was AMAZING! Way better than the back row. I could finally feel the forces of the ride up there and nothing beats a night ride where you can feel the difference in air temperature when it dips down close to the ground and the fog starts rolling in. Perfection. My friend and I were even able to marathon it at the end of the night since by then it was a walk-on. A great experience.
6:18 that headchopper drop is my favourite part of the coaster when I rode it in 2018. You are literally the first person who I heard talk about it after 3 years.
That hot take about Magnum being #1 Arrow in the world brought joy to my heart. Even though the best coaster over ever ridden is currently SteVe, Magnum will always have a special place in my heart as my OG favorite coaster.
In 2019 I thought raptor was overrated and not that forceful. But in 2021 I got a back row trims off ride that was tearing through its layout. I definitely understand the hype with the ride
Your right about steel vengeance being a mess. I went during the summer with my friend and in the line there were lockers for free to put stuff in. Literally just a week after that, I went with my family and they made us put the stuff in the lockers outside the line that cost money? I don’t get it lol
Something I've noticed with Steel Vengeance is that as the day goes on, the midcourse seems to matter less and less when it comes to the pacing of the second half. In June this year, it honestly felt like the pacing was on par with 2018 even with a slight trim on the midcourse even at mid-day
I disagree with that since most of my rides on Steel Vengeance were either in the evening or at night, and the midcourse was still trimming really hard
I was at Cedar Point yesterday. My husband and I waited 30 minutes or less for every coaster we rode. We skipped Steel Vengeance because it was the only one that had a 2 hour wait, and we are planning at least 3 or 4 more trips before the year ends. We got 4 rides of Maverick, and I figured out the best way to handle it is to keep the back of your head against the seat. That way the laterals don't give you whiplash. We got a decent ride on Valravn, but it's just too short of a ride for me to really love it. As for the locker situation, the best thing to do is just pay the 10 bucks for multi use. All the big coasters have lockers nearby, and you can simply move your rental from one to another, then end it before you leave the park. Gatekeeper was better before the chain broke. They were running it much faster and I liked it better than Valravn at that point. Now they are being overly cautious and it's super slow. Next time you come, go on a weekday just after school starts. You can easily get multiple rides on just about everything.
I was there for four full days of coasters. I agree with you on most parts, especially the spotty loose articles policies. The only things I disagree were with the ride experiences on Rougarou and Valravn. I rode Valravn twice and had good experiences both times and rode Rougarou once and it was only a mild improvement over Mantis. I absolutely loved MF, SV, and Magnum. I even got the 7th row on the black train which was amazing.
Blue streak always holds a special place for its sentimental value. My grandparents were among the first of the general public that got to ride it the day it opened in 1964. It’s always the first coaster I hit on arrival due to its location and the fact it has no shade (at least until 2019 when I last visited the park), making waiting in line uncomfortably hot in the afternoon sun.
I went to Cedar Point in June and I have to agree with you on Millennium. It doesn’t have the most airtime nor does it have any over the top elements, but there’s something about the coaster that I love. I don’t know if it’s the speed or the tunnels or what, but I absolutely adore it. Steel Vengeance reigns supreme, but Millennium will always hold a very special place in my heart.
Besides the inconsistency of loose article policies, park management doesn't even explain to its own employees the further details, particularly about backpacks. The big issue with backpacks is that there are two types: *String* and *Hiking* , and with the latter you may notice them as guests are approaching the entrance, that they have to put them into a locker. But *String backpacks* , which are really bags draped on the back, the strings are so thin they're not noticeable, and when closed look like small shopping bags with the mouth closed hanging on peoples' back, it's so easy to slip by entrance hosts, until the moment a load host tells you you have to leave and should have know better when you entered the queue. There's also the issue of Food & Beverage selling souvenir bottles from Coca-Cola Freestyle stands right next to the entrances of these rides.
I just went for the first time a week ago, and my thoughts were practically identical to yours (Millennium Force was slow though). My favorite ended up being Magnum.
Man! Love your channel! Thanks because with top thrill dragster being closed for 2022, and that being the singular best coaster I've ridden in the 6 parks I've been to... my son and I will look for a few closer alternative parks like holiday world. 👍
They should be getting rid of bins on all of their major rides at this point. They slow operations by an insane amount. I am sure at some point in the future all rides at all parks will have a strict no phone policy like SteVe.
3 года назад
I went on Raptor twice during my visit and MAN! I love this ride as an opener. Skip the nearby starbucks and just ride that in the morning, much better than coffee. Also the main reason Maverick has large lines is simply because it accomidates larger riders; thus more people can and will ride it. If you are (like me) too big for SteVe or Millennium Force, Maverick is what you'll ride. Also highly recommend that you try out some night rides. A night ride on iron dragon is actually nice since it's got great views. Not much of a compliment for ID but it's actually worth it.
Cedar Point surely is like no other park that I've been to. My 1st experience was last year in the end of June right when they started the 150th anniversary party, which surprisingly wasn't too too crowded (probably because the pathways are so big especially on that midway lol) I spent 4 days there and I still feel like I didn't do everything, which is kinda true since I skipped the kiddie coasters and GateKeeper was down. I'm super excited to make this my new home park next year and to do everything they have to offer.
Something about the locker policy for Steel Vengeance. A ride attendant at the entrance did not let her in line because of her fanny pack. The ride attendant didn’t think the fanny pack would fit. Later on she got away with it. The fanny pack does fit in the small lockers.
As a cedar point ride operator I would like to clarify that the loose article policy is NOT up to cedar point. Each coaster has a different manufacturer and the manufacturer makes the rules for the ride. I understand your frustration as I operate several rides with different loose article policies, but that is something not under cedar points control☺️
I don't want to repeat the same comments so I'll say that the Millenium Force station music sounds like the WWE NXT theme song of Dexter Lumus. Good video homie
Other than being outside of TTD station during the incident a few weeks back, my experience was okay at CP. it was absurdly packed, SV is really like TSA, and magnum is amazing as always.
Visited CP on August 20 and 21 this year. The temperature hovered around 83° on both days. Here's a list of my thoughts on every ride I care enough to talk about: *Raptor:* Really smooth but it was way too snappy for me *Valravn:* Fun ride, that inversion is sick, but the vest restraints ruin the ride. I'm a skinny guy and my hip bones kind of stick out (like your elbow does). When the restraints tighten during the ride, they apply constant pressure to that area and it is painful. Imagine holding your arm at an angle and jamming your elbow into a table as hard as you physically can. Imagine that on both your hip bones from a vest restraint that applies way more force than you can. *GateKeeper:* Suffers from the same issue Valravn does with the vest restraints, although the ride is noticeably shaky at the bottom of the first drop. *Cedar Creek Mine Ride:* They ran 1 train with 4-minute dispatches. What should have been a 10-minute line turned into a 40-minute line. The ride was whatever, but those ops were horrible. *Magnum XL-200:* Not a fan of the ride, even in the magic seat. The ride is way too jerky and my back was being forcefully slammed into the back of the seat every time there was a weird transition or an airtime moment. *Blue Streak:* Suffers from the same thing Magnum does, except worse. *Rougarou:* Slight rattle (even in the front), decent ride, nothing special. Best B&M in the park for me because I don't like Raptor's snappiness and hate the vest restraints. *Gemini:* Was a whatever ride for me, same back slamming problem as Blue Streak and Magnum, but I stapled myself so it didn't hurt. *Steel Vengeance:* Best coaster in the world. Truly unbelievable ride. Airtime is the best in the world, the inversions are fun, the overbanked turns are awesome but no one talks about them. The double up before the mid-course will slam your armpit into the wall if your hands are up so be careful. *Wicked Twister:* Better than every B&M in the park. Super fun and smooth ride. *Maverick:* Was my #1 for 30 minutes until I rode Steel Vengeance and Millennium Force again. That drop and launch are nuts. Those twists in the first half are super fun and I love how low to the ground it stays. The Stengel Dives were too snappy for me, but the airtime hills gave the second-best airtime in the park (behind Steel Vengeance). *Millennium Force:* Awesome ride, it's my #2 behind Steel Vengeance. I love how it keeps its speed throughout the entire ride (I'm pretty sure it's the only trimless Giga). Every airtime hill was good, first drop was awesome, and a night ride in the back was seriously unbelievable.
What day were you there? Just curious if we crossed paths on our trip there 7/14-17. Thanks for all of your great content, and keep it up. I look forward to your new posts every time!
In what universe is Top Thrill Dragster underrated? The speed is incredible and you feel like you're out of your seat the whole time when you go over the top of the tower
My first ride on Valravn was middle row the year it opened. I had only been on one dive coaster (Griffon, front row) previously and I was so excited to have a dive in my home park because it was such a unique experience. That one middle row ride ruined the coaster for me and I refused to ride it until opening day this year when I brought my mother. Her last trip to CP was right before maverick was built so she had a lot of new things to experience in the park. We got a front row and it’s easily one of our favourite rides in the park now. Roller coasters are like real estate; it’s all about location, location, location.
I'm glad you made this video because I express a lot of the same views. I went on opening day and a 4 day breakers vacation in July. First of all, I think my views on the coasters change every year. Steel vengeance has been my favorite since the opening year. I've been to cedar point 20 times. This year surprisingly I got on all the main coasters multiple times and old school millenium force took the cake. it also was great running into another enthusiast that would ride magnum with me again after my wife chose not to do it again in the back row. We chose the front and that thing kicked serious ass! of course we rode everything multiple times but millenium and magnum took it this year. I am disappointed in the fastlane and hope hour long waits will not be the situation with kings island when I go in Oct staying at the new camp cedar. but I'm expecting the worst and praying for fastlane to come through there! after the last few years I think diamondback in the back row is now my favorite ride at both parks.
Got to go to CP Sunday evening through Tuesday afternoon my first ever visit, and I was told by many associates and regulars that I could not have picked a better time to come. Lines were almost non-existent on everything. It was absolutely magical. I was expecting it to be completely mobbed like SF Great America was on Saturday. The longest wait was for Steel Vengeance to open in the morning. No other rides took more than 15 minutes. At one point around 1:30 PM on Monday, my kids and I got 3 walk-on rides on Vengeance in a row. Being able to ride so quickly made the loose article policy a non-factor for us since we just left our stuff in the free locker and walked through the metal detector without issue. In two days (spanning one evening, one full day, and one morning) we rode Millennium and Magnum 5 times, SV and Maverick 4 times, Raptor, Rougarou, Iron Dragon, Corkscrew, and Gatekeeper twice each, plus Blue Streak, Gemini ( got to race!), Cedar Creek, Valravn, Wicked Twister once each. Also took my little ones for a ride on Pipe Scream and Woodstock express as well as several other kiddy rides. We even had time to spend an hour or two at the beach on Monday. Best time I have ever had at a theme park by a mile.
The weird policies got super annoying at Carowinds too. Newer rides like Fury and Copperhead will make you get to the back of the line if you bring anything in your pockets, while most of the other rides will just let you use the provided bins.
I went to Kings Dominion a few weeks ago and the loose article policy was just as bad there. Must be a Cedar Fair thing. Also, glad you mentioned the third hill on Magnum. I've been saying for years that's one of the highlights of the ride.
Visited Cedar Point in the 3rd week in June on a Sunday and Monday. Sadly not only did the park close at 8:00pm but they were closed on Tuesday and Wednesday due to staffing. I opted for Fast Lane plus on Monday which turned out to be a good decision and ended riding everything. Steel Vengeance is # 1 for sure. My experience for the two day trip was solid. I was unhappy to hear about the Wicked twister closing and after the sad accident that occured with Top Thrill there may be a chance that ride may not open in 2022. Next year I am kicking the summer off at Kings Island, Cedar Point, and Canada's Wonderland.
Millennium Force also redeemed itself for me on my visit. It sounds like you were there just before me, as I arrived on Monday July 26. Gatekeeper had just reopened. I have a few different takes compared to your experiences. Raptor: Just like my 2018 rides, it once again rode extremely rough with unavoidable headbanging, and it was quite slow. Valravn: Rode much better than my 2020 ride, very smooth, and strong forces. Steel Vengeance: also not as strong in the 2nd half as the 2020 rides. Top Thrill Dragster: biggest loser on the trip. First time dealing with constant breakdowns, plus experiencing Kingda Ka's far more powerful launch a few days earlier sent Dragster into a freefall in my rankings. Gemini: much smoother than my 2020 rides, totally redeemed, and I like it more now than ever. Magnum: magic seat is where it's at for me! I love that the grouper would usually let us pick our row. Gatekeeper: rode as awesome as ever, but the strict side-assignments and row-assignments from a few rude groupers was very frustrating, but a couple groupers were great. Corkscrew: very strict row assignments from extremely rude groupers. It actually rode good, but the entire staff there were awful. I'm getting quite sick of strict row assignments on rides that don't need it, here and at Carowinds & Kings Island. It makes me appreciate Kings Dominion and Six Flags parks even more, where we pretty much always get to pick our own rows on everything.
I couldn't agree more about Valravn. This was my first dive coaster so I was extremely nervous when we reached the top of the lift. But the drop and the rest of the ride were so underwhelming. Im not sure if its because of the large track or what but I was so disappointed, it felt like it was crawling through the track
The line for steel vengeance divides at the metal detector. I got to ride it three times. First two was no problem. The third time we were in the other lane and the guy was straight power tripping over my wallet in a zipped back packet and my fun pix lanyard. My buddy had to store his loose credit card and license. Both of which fell through the sides on the locker and disappeared entirely. Most employees are great and aren’t super strict, but some of them just hate their life and need to exercise their authority to feel better about themselves.
I went to Cedar Point just a few weeks ago, and was finally able to get all the front seat rides on every coaster in the park! It took me a year, but I finally got those last rides on Steel Vengeance, Top Thrill Dragster, and Valravn, the first two thanks to my mom winning us a VIP Experience for the day, which included four one-use fast passes (there were four of us together) one of which I somehow was able to use twice!
First time through Steel Vengeance and it was such a pain. They told my dad after waiting in line with his leg brace that he wasn't allowed on even after the entrance gate said he could. They then forced us to put it in a locker nearly breaking it and causing the locker to jam. The only redemption was the ride itself which was amazing. The workers almost ruined it especially since the lady in front of the metal detector didn't speak English so we didn't know what she was telling us
Great video, Chris, but saying 3 years without visiting Cedar Point is is long in coaster years isn't my "lived reality" and besides, it makes coaster enthusiasts look kinda spoiled, no? Besides that, I still LOVED this video! My 11 favourite coasters at Cedar Point are the following coasters in this order: Steel Vengeance, Millennium Force, Gatekeeper, TTD, Raptor, Maverick, Max XL 200, Rougarou, Valravn, Gemini and Wicked Twister, ALL in the back car (except Maverick which I prefer in the middle) I'm sure it's frustrating to be met with different policies within the same park; I hope Cedar Point will eventually get their policies to be cohesive. Great video, thanks for posting!
Well 3 years being long in coaster years just means your memory wanes, not necessarily like i was throwing a tantrum complaining that i NEED to get back there
@@AirtimeThrills fair enough. I've only been in May 2018 and got most of my coaster credits in Autumn 2019 but Cedar Point is still fresh for me; I might feel differently if I had hundreds more credits I'm sure. (I intend to get my 100th credit next week at Canada Wonderland)
So I went to Cedar Point for the first tine in 2021 and I definitely had a different experience than you. Let's start with the things we seem to think the same on. Raptor. The ride is absolutely INSANE. I loved how smooth it was and how graceful but forceful it can get. It was epic though Banshee does outrank it. Valravn. So those restraints REALLY hurt... I actually struggled to breath while on it which made it impossible to figure out how to feel. I was glad when it was over... Maverick. I appreciate it quite a bit since it reminds me of i305 just... smaller and has more for it. I say that and yet i305 is actually the young one here. :P Go figure. Yeah the restraints hurt anything it has going for it but I still like it. Magnum. Ok so I obviously picked the wrong seat for my 1 ride. I'll give it another go next time in the back. Magic seat is a little overrated. Millennium Force. YAY you still love it as do I! She's aged quite well and her speed was absolutely shocking! She got my most rides in my 2 days tied with one more... Steel Vengeance. Ok so my strat with loose stuff is leave them with a non rider (my mom) so I actually got a chuckle from the ops noticing my lack of pockets. Anyways, I didn't mind the situation since it didn't affect me. The ride? OH BOY it was a rush! Nirvana! You say the back row is everything, You're RIGHT! Dang I had hope Fury would stay at #1... XD Ah but Steel Vengeance deserves the top for giving me an absolute trip! Truly worth it. :) Oh and the other rides? Line was too long on all of them to get them. I did ride TTD twice though. SUPER rush! Oh and the 2nd time it broke down but the radio played CENTURIES so... that helped. XD
Oh yea, Also, Since Knott's Berry Farm is out of room for a new ride completely, They could possibly remove coast rider and replace it with wicked twisted if they decide to move it. That is where I would move wicked twister if I owned cedar fair but hey, that could work.
With Millennium Force you gotta try to get the first ride of the day after it's been pouring all morning. I know that's a lot to ask but the effect of the water in the floor of the train floating with you off the drop is my favorite coaster experience of all time.
I totally agree with the rules for storage being different for every ride. They spend millions on these rides and can't afford some simple boxes that might cost $100 to store hats, glasses, umbrellas, etc. while you ride? This is what makes Disney better. Just about every coaster has a storage space or there's a spot to store as you load. I know the rides are very different, but this is about guest experience, not about the ride. It just seems cheap and careless on their part.
I made it to CP quite a few times this summer and I agree with you on almost everything you had to say. -Raptor's been running great this year and is as intense as ever. -Millie has really benefitted from the hot weather and full trains after being so sluggish last year (I like the middle much more than the back though...better float time over the camelbacks). -Valraven (yawn) has never been a spectacular ride for me unless I get front row. -Magnum is a masterpiece that continues to thrill at 32 years old. -Wicked Twister is leaving. -SteVe is the best in the world, but the wait is ridiculous (I really like the small, free lockers though. I just wish they would communicate the policy better.) I never noticed the MCBR slowing the train enough to actually get floater and hangtime. I had both a front row and a back row ride a few weeks ago, and that makes a very noticeable difference. -Corkscrew is an uncomfortable stiff neck waiting to happen and I avoid it at all costs. Dragster is a blast, but not worth more than a 30 minute wait once you've ridden it a time or two. Blue Streak is fun, but the line can be oppressive - especially if the the sun is beating down on you for more than 15 minutes. I disagree on two of your takes though. First of all, I like Maverick a more than you do. Again, I enjoy the middle rows more than the back on this one and I love the out-of-control laterals from there. Second, Rougaru does have some great moments, but not so much in the back. Rows 1 and 2 are so much better in my opinion, and there is less headbanging if you actually allow yourself to get stapled. Crazy, isn't it? Thanks for an excellent video about my home park. I'm glad you had such a great day there.
Steel vengeance has no umbrella policy, it’s pretty much up to who’s working. I’m at cedar point weekly and it’s been different nearly every time. And I hate the lockers, as a season long fast lane holder I prefer kings island’s fast lanes to cedar point’s. Steel vengeance WAS one of the few coasters where the fast lane walked up to the station, now the lockers took that line so we’re stuck merging with the regular line. Just this past Thursday they changed things again, the workers are using the wand on EVERYONE, not just if you trigger the metal detectors. Trains were going out with empty rows because people weren’t making it through the checkpoint fast enough. I’d much prefer to get my fast lane back and just spend the $2 for a locker.
i went back in july around the same time, and i had the same issues with dragster and gatekeeper, however i got a ride on everything else (even woodstock express) i couldn’t do as much because i was with my family, but i still got two rides on maverick and in my opinion it was absolutely worth it. i could have ridden more but gemini’s blue train broke down while i was in line for the ride, ironically right after my dad mentioned how the blue car was always ahead. we ended up having to wait but i still love gemini and i think it was worth the wait
I was just at Cedar Point for the first time last week. It was great, but I totally agree with the random loose item policies! I’m used to valleyfair where every coaster has a bin or spot for things. I was very confused when they told me to just ride with my bag. What?! Also Steel Vengeance’s policy, lol, don’t get me started.
I've ridden them all this year at least once except Corksrew. My biggest surprise was Wicked Twister. I generally avoid this ride, maybe averaging one ride a year. For me, the rapid stop in reverse messes with my equilibrium. It doesn't make me sick, just not a pleasant feeling. Anyway, the other week I rode it toward the front, figuring the closer to the front the less reverse motion. It wasn't bad and the forces going into the spikes off the launces were better than I remembered. I immediately thought it would be a shame if they don't repurpose this at another park.
Magnum is the best coaster at the park when you consider the whole expereince. It never has a long line because it motors through people, and it has great moments of airtime.
The TSA system for Steel Vengeance is why I can't rank it higher than 7. It's an unbelievable ride, but the hassle just detracts from the experience. I have had my glasses pointed out, but I let the ops know I had a strap, so they let me through.
Nice Experience! Even though I never went to Cedar Point for my trip, I will say all of the theming on all roller coasters are awesome! Even the colors! It feels like 2021 is changing at Cedar Point! But the sadness part is, Wicked Twister is Closing and removing at the part Cedar Point. Which is sad. 😥😥😥
"Go through the colonoscopy and root canal", your best line ever! 😄
Next season, they're gonna strip search your asses!!
My statement at SteVe was but they can’t do this in schools…. During the whole interrogation process prior to riding
“It feels like going through TSA to get on Steel Vengeance”
Went for the first time earlier this year, my exact thoughts.
After a colonoscopy and root canal, of course 😂
If you continue to violate Cedar Point rules, continue to do things that endanger other riders' safety, berate and badger employees with questions that have no answers, and complain about needing to pay to use lockers......you WILL continue to get the TSA treatment!
Even though it does seem like that - I fully understand the reasoning for it and wish the park was a bit more strict with loose articles on other rides. IMO you should get kicked out of the park if you try to take your phone out for a video - could really hurt someone
@@rparqer I’d say if you take it a step further and really crack down on line jumpers, you’d be eliminating the people that have the gall to knowingly break the rules before the can even get on the ride.
@@timk987 That's a good point too... but I think this mostly comes down to the other people in line alerting staff of the jumpers. I had two people line cut waiting for TTD and not a single person around me told the ride ops. I did, and they got kicked off the ride (not sure about the park or not tho)
As someone who worked at raptor this summer, the only reason we told one person per row to go to the bins was so there weren't so many people getting on the ride putting stuff away while everyone else was grabbing their stuff out of the bins, which led to faster and more efficient ops. Also thanks for finally putting Raptor over Banshee!
No that policy totally makes sense, its just interesting that it has that policy and the other rides didnt seem to adopt it (as far as i could see)
I was there in 2021 and Gemini is NOT smooth 😆
I don't really mind the SteVe article policy, but it would be good if it was made clear that the lockers in the queue are free, or just make all the lockers free.
I had one ride on Valravn (in the rain) and really liked it. I'd say it's my #4 in Cedar. Point.
I'm very annoyed they won't let you have small fanny packs in the SV queue. The lockers will obviously fit my gf's Coaster Crew fanny pack. We only keep our car keys, our credit cards, ID, and our phones in there.
Gemini in the front row is smooth as silk I was there last week, I also rode it in the back and that was rough.
Rode in a wheel seat I bet
I don't like Gemini.
@@EchoBrick yeah i was there a few days ago and its smoother than maverick lol
Millennium has been so much better this year, probably the full trains, I just wish I was a little quicker up that lift like it was back in the day
i hope they fix whatever’s not letting it do that
@@justinraney1248 it’s the 20+ year old lift motor that has needed replaced for the last few years, so I hear…
I'm pretty sure that it was the half-capacity trains last year that had it running weak. It was clearly better this year, but I still think summer 2018 was at it's absolute best.
@@OklahomaCoasterFan I've never had a better ride on millennium than halloweekends 2003 personally
I had one ride this summer and I was really disappointed. It was certainly fun, but I had better rides on Titan at six flags over Texas
I visited Cedar Point for the first time back in early June. Another thing to add for Steel Vengeance is that if you wear glasses, it’s required that they’re held on with a strap, or you have to put them in a locker.
Knott’s Berry Farm has this policy on their coasters, and were super strict about it on my last visit. I’m super blind so I have to admit that once I left the station I just put them back on. I’ve been wearing glasses for 20 years and not once have they ever even come close to falling off on a coaster or any ride for that matter
I always recommend getting straps for eye glasses and have em for every ride you go on. You never know when the Coaster will try to steal em. I almost lost a pair on the Beast in the helix before I invested in them.
When you said that Kings island was still better I yelled WOOHOO I’m not the only one. 😂👍
the thing that frustrated my wife and I when we visited this year was not articles policy but that Fast Lane was overpriced and underwhelming. Waiting 45 mins for elite rides is way better than 90+ minutes, but I think they should be selling fewer passes each day if they're charging so much. We actually ended up having more fun at King's Island this year because we got many more rides in on the elite coasters.
Yeah 45 minutes for fast lane was a little annoying. Also my first visit.
How about waiting 75 minutes in fast lane while the regular line is 45 minutes. That was my experience with fast lane, which is why I refused to buy it the 2nd day, and I got on the rides quicker. So many people had fast lane, that it's line was longer than the regular line in many cases.
With fast lane plus I never waited more than 20 min, and rode all the elites 3 times or more
My carowinds saturday was like that. Fast lane lines were insane
I’m not gonna lie, I underestimated these Arrow coasters. They made a couple of good, smooth airtime machines. If only they focused on those more than their loopers.
I agree, they had like 10 years where it was just them, Morgan, and Togo manufacturing them. Coulda made a lot more
And never made anaconda
Well unfortunately, the Corkscrew model was just too easy to keep manufacturing. Plus, they had to build Vortex for free for Kings Island after they screwed up on The Bat.
@@AirtimeThrills totally. Although my sister will tell you stories of her almost falling out numerous times on sky rider at wonderland.
In regards to the pain on the Magic Seat, I'm quoting Hellraiser when I say 'pain and pleasure, indivisible as one.'
As for Maverick, I don't have the same issues you talk about with the restraints.
The original restraints were godawful. Especially when you hit the Stengel dive in the dark!
@@scottyjbd I believe it! I actually find the current restraints comfortable AND I get airtime, as well as violently thrown about.
Rode the "magic seat" early this year and folks waiting for the two rows in front of me weren't paying attention. The gate opened and closed and they didn't get through. It was the worst ride in the 32 years I've been riding Magnum - painfully bouncing over every hill only to get slammed in the back by the rest of the train as we hit the bottom. Horrible ride for me there.
I'll take row 15 or 12 now every day. A great ride every time, and no thigh crushing on the home stretch.
That was a great experience for me in 2021, meeting you, getting on Steel Vengeance and especially Top Thrill Dragster the first time
Nice! :D
Dragster is amazing. Even though it's been closed on my last three visits to the park (I rode it once in 2014 and that's all I have)
You got lucky getting on Top Thrill Dragster as its future is unknown now, lol...i rode it in 2005 (front row) and I thought it was amazing! Just incredible speed and acceleration. But i was also able to ride Mantis and Mean Streak, lol, so even though they both sucked, it makes it more special when they go defunct.
@@floridamaddogg i got on top thrill dragster 9 times in the span of 2018, 2019, and 2021 lol
@@jakethecake6952 not to brag or anything but i've ridden dragster probably 30-40 times since 2017 (excluding 2020)
Though I live a ways away from Cedar Point, it will always be my honorary “home park.” Magnum was my first large coaster ever and after that, I was hooked. I try to get back when I can. But I agree Cedar Point needs uniform carry on policies.
Man CP is having so many issues this year between staffing issues, bad ops, a broken chain on Gatekeeper, and the Dragster accident. They really need to get it together
It seems to be a bad year for theme parks in general, every big one and even some minor ones have had problems. Part of it is because they're just not willing to meet job seekers where they are, and part of it is probably because parks differed maintenance during the pandemic and it's a gamble that turned out to be a bad idea.
@@JCBro-yg8vd not willing to meat job seeker, there offering 20 bucks an hour at one point
I visited for the first time at the beginning of July. Amen on Magnum. I absolutely loved it and you can marathon it super easily. It was a station wait both days I went in July. I really enjoyed raptor, that helix at the end is sooooo forceful. Maverick and Steel Vengeance were my other favorites. I thought Millenium Force was just kinda meh.
millennium force is nice and relaxing lol
Mangnum is criminly underrated, which is fine, less I have to wait.
I got to finally visit this park for the first time in 2021 and I definitely agree with everything you said!
I laughed way too hard at "going through the colonoscopy & root canal" to ride SV🤣🤣🤣 so true though, I'm just glad it's no longer an upcharge attraction thanks to the free lockers. I think if parks are going to force lockers, they should go the route of Hersheypark and make them free.
It’s still a $2 up charge if you go after a heavy rain and the free lockers get flooded. The funny thing is that CP pays a couple workers $20 an hour to squeegee water off the concrete pad only to watch it flow right back at them. What’s annoying is that I remember the fast lane queue flooding in years past, so they had to know this could/ would happen.
I was there a couple weeks after you and everything was running. Millennium always runs well for me, and Magnum is still one of my favorite rides in the park. Maverick was kicking ass when I rode 3 times. And Steel Vengeance doesn't even need a description. They had gatekeeper going and I find it to be quite pleasant. Raptor was kicking serious ass
Just got back from my 2 day visit there. Easily the most fun I've had in a long time. My favorites were easily Maverick, Steel Vengeance, Gatekeeper, and Millennium Force 😍 and SURPRISINGLY got a pretty decent ride on corkscrew with no headbanging haha
Wow you are lucky! On Steamin Demon at Great Escape I rode 4 times and pretty much had to lift myself out of my seat to avoid headbanging.
Those are my 4 favorites at the park as well. Corkscrew rode well for me too, no headbanging as long as I leaned my head forward, and it had some shocking airtime. I do remember Steamin Demon, the loop-corkscrew model at Great Escape, being very shaky with a lot of headbanging, but Cedar Point's rides much better.
@@OklahomaCoasterFan Yeah it’s pretty miserable.
Honestly happy you called out Cedar Point’s on ride items policies here. Had my first ever trip a month ago and had an incredible time discovering my new favorite coasters, but the multiple policies were weird and the strictness on Steel Vengeance was a little annoying, like props to the team members for doing their jobs thoroughly, but I couldn’t even have my tiny hand sanitizer in my tight shorts that wasn’t gonna go anywhere. Thankfully the ride experience was top tier and still immediately became my favorite coaster, but eventually Millie took the top spot, SteVe’s seriousness was only a minor contributor to that. Maverick had my favorite policy with the buckets and how organized they were with them.
Wow. First minutes of the video really make it clear what a mess their loose article policies are now. I’m all about keeping everything in zippered pockets and really hate it when I can’t travel simply like that. At least a place like Universal is really organized and efficient when they force you to empty your pockets. At the very least, I’m glad SV is no longer a de facto upcharge ride with the lockers.
Yeah i was thinking that universal basically has steel vengeance like policies but it seems so much more organized even though its still annoying
Unfortunately the park basically forces folks to buy an all day locker for 7 out of 10 of the most popular rides. So when you visit, count on adding another $8 to your budget if you carry more then a phone, car keys, cards, and IDs
@@queerandpleasantdanger3103 I always carry very little to parks - just phone, keys, cards. But even then on my last visit to SFGAdv I got an all-day locker just to avoid the hassle of their ride policies.
I always appreciate your love for both Raging Bull and Kings Island.
Oh I hate both of the those things
coolgamer17 😡😡😡😡😡😡😢👎👎👎
@@Starlit43 I don't hate them, but they are easily the most overrated things among enthusiasts.
I went at the end of July and only had a day and a half so I got the fast pass for my full day there. This was my first time here since 2014 so this was my first time getting to ride Rougarou (I rode Mantis previously), Valravn and Steel Vengeance.
I got at least one ride on every coaster apart from the kiddie coasters.
First off, Steel Vengeance is absolutely insane. I got 3 rides on this, including a night ride in the back row (this was my first ever ride on an RMC) . Even with all the hype and expectation going into it, this is still easily the best coaster I've ever been on.
Maverick - amazing as always. I don't really mind the restraints though. Only got 1 ride in the morning because it was closed pretty much the whole time I was there.
Millennium Force - I had previously loved this coaster and it was actually my 100th credit. The 2 rides I got on it this summer were just meh :/
Rougarou - People say this is the most underrated coaster in the park and I would heavily disagree. I rode in the front row and I swear I had a rougher ride on this than I did on Corkscrew. Don't know if it's just that way in the front, or if I just got a rarely bad ride, but based on that ride I have no desire to ever ride it again.
Iron Dragon - This was more fun than I remembered it being, but I agree that it isn't forceful at all.
Valravn - This is easily the most overrated coaster in the park. The drops were meh, the inversions forceless and pointless, the "airtime" had no airtime. I don't really understand how this ride always has a 90 minute wait with all the other amazing rides in this park (Magnum always is a walk on wtf). Granted, I feel like if this ride was at a smaller park this would probably stand out a bit more.
Raptor - Absolutely awesome ride, got a back row ride with no trims. Those last corkscrews and helix are so intense. I don't remember if I rode this in 2014 or not (I'm guessing not)
Blue Steak - Okay as always. CP desperately needs a better woodie.
Gatekeeper - This was fun, but not as good as I remembered it being in 2014, plus it also seems to have a pretty noticeable rattle now.
Wicked Twister - Great in the back and was nice to get another ride before it closes but yea, I'm not too sad to see it go. Another park would appreciate it much more.
Corkscrew - Boring and rough but still not as rough as Rougarou.
Top Thrill - This was one of the main reasons I went to CP in the past, and it was a bit underwhelming. The launch is fantastic, but the drop doesn't really do much for me; especially after waiting for 30-60min (with FLP). This also shut down 4 times right before I was about to hop in line (I guess it beats being in line)
Magnum - Such a good ride and is by far the most underrated coaster in the park. I have no idea how this only ever gets a 10 minute wait.
Gemini - This ride always surprises me with how great the airtime on those drops are. I will be sad to see it go, but yea it likely will be gone soonish.
Cedar Creek Mine Ride - Tear this down, this ride sucks. PLEASE PUT A GCI HERE
It sounds like you had FLP the same day I did, since you mentioned Maverick going down after the morning. It stayed down until late Thursday. My wait for Dragster was literally 75 minutes with FLP, while people in the regular line had waited less than 45 minutes.
@@OklahomaCoasterFan I went the 27/28th of July and yea Maverick was only open the first hour of the 28th :/ And dang thats a brutal wait for TTD
@@rparqer I was there those days. I had FLP on the 27th, and Maverick went down late morning. I didn't realize it operated the first hour on the 28th. I went to shows and rode less popular rides that day, since that day was busier than I've seen it on Saturdays.
Hopefully America’s rockin roller coast will be back to normal next year, I still need 5 credits
It's back to normal now basically minus the shitty hours. I don't think Mike Dewine is going to lockdown or mandate masks again, not with the legislature on his ass
@@AdamSmith-gs2dv and the gold pass fiasco
@@Benny-hd7tz gold pass will be 99 bucks again next year AND comes with more perks
Me & my family went (we were there the day of the dragster accident). Between the four of us we hit pretty much everything, my older daughter didn’t like magnum at all. We liked the usual (m. Force, steel vengeance, maverick, etc.). The two rides all four of us agreed on were gatekeeper and raptor (my younger daughter didn’t ride the bigger ones I mentioned).
I'm glad your opinion on Raptor improved. Was hoping for a change on Maverick but I'll take what I can get.
If you think the Valravn policy was weird, I rode Backlot Stunt Coaster holding my dads backpack, because we asked to put it in the bins on the unload platform, and they said “those bins are for stuffed animals only”.
Yet, on Flight of Fear, they let us go through the small hallway in the back of the station to put our stuff in the cubbies
What a timely video. I'm about to leave for my trip, and will be at cedar point by Monday hopefully. Let's hope we only get the threat of rain!
I ran into so many stupid policies on my first trip ever there this year
It absolutely ruined every morning at the park for the first hour entry. I got on more rides at kings island for there 30 minute early entry than I did for an hour at cedar point. Cedar point not allowing fast lane for the first hour frustrated me. Kings Island allows you to use fast lane in early entry still so was expecting this at cedar point. Also staying on site hotel spending 600 for 2 nights and finding out I can't enter the valraven gate for early entry 5 minutes before it started (no sign postage anywhere) and an old grouchy Landy pulling the sign out 5 minutes before and yelling at us that we cant enter if we arnt staying in the marina or something. So we had to walk all the way back around and miss out on getting in line early for millennium force. Yeah I was pretty pissed the first hour of the day at cedar point. Shortly after tho the coasters made me forget.
Yeah CP is a complicated place, sometimes it just gets annoying
That’s interesting. I didn’t know that about the Valravn gate. You’re right that is not posted anywhere other than it being known over the year as the marina entrance. I almost dropped my daughter and 3 of her friends there, but the elected to go around to the back to the Magnum gate and wait 5 minutes (10am) when they allow non hotel guest in that gate.
Perfect upload timing, I'm heading there this weekend for the first time in 4 years. Excited to finally ride SV but those loose article policies sound confusing.
Chris, I wasn't going to say this but I got mad. I visited Cedar Point and Kings Island three weeks ago. I spent three days at each park and observed standby lines crowding. At Cedar Point this year the only people that could come intro the park at the Magnum entrance were hotel guests and campground guests for early ride time. That meant that by the time I got to the back of the park (Entered at the front gate) to ride the best rides the lines were unreal and I have a Platinum Pass. One day I finished riding Millennium Force and Maverick and walked to Steel Vengeance. The ride was still testing but the lines were out of this world. The troubling part of this was the Fastlane + line was as long as the standby line. I observed the same problem at King's Island. How many Fastlane passes are these parks selling in a day? My answer is too many. I'm just not going to pay and extra $85 to $125 per day to ride. Another day visit to Millennium Force I noticed that Fastlane purchasers were riding and re-riding so often it was really slowing down the standby lanes. I know the parks need to make money but the Fastlane system is making line waits longer and longer in the regular line.
This is exactly why Fast Lane *Passes* don't work, and should be replaced with Fast Lane *TICKETS* in which you only get to jump the line to ride *once* . As for the Magnum entrance, the park is in the business of making money, and if you help them by spending your money at Breakers and the campgrounds you should get perks associated with it.
I've only managed to get one visit in this year. Dragster was closed due to The Incident, I didn't ride SteVe or Millennium due to crowds, and I almost alwasy skip Maverick anyway due to even more severe problems with the restraints. It was rainy when I went, too, but that didn't seem to keep the crowds away, and it also wreaked havoc on operations all morning, resulting in a 30-minute wait for Magnum turning into an hour or two due to a closure that greatly outlasted the rain itself.
Still, I had a good time. Got good rides in on Gatekeeper, Wicked Twister, Magnum, and Gemini, along with a couple rides with family & friends on WindSeeker, Cedar Downs, the new boat ride, and the train. Biggest takeaway: Gemini is _severely_ underrated. It's incredibly smooth for an Arrow of any age, let alone one that opened in 1979, and it gives good airtime throughout. I had forgotten how fun it is with two full trains, too, with the excitement of competition and the high fives on the turns, and getting a ride in right as the park closed (a little early for my taste, tbh) was even better. Also, shout-out to the crew, who was hauling ass all night _and_ hyping up both trains like crazy at the same time.
Just had a trip up. Maverick has been my #1 since it opened. Sadly that had to come to an end with my first ride on steel vengeance. Absolutely blown away. That thing is pure coaster insanity from start to finish. Maverick is now #2 for me. Crazy how my top two rides sit right new to each other.
I AGREE.
AFTER ALL THESE YEARS MAGNUM IS STILL A TOP 10 COASTER.
GREATLY UNDERATED.
A top 10 coaster in the park? Sure. In the world? Not even close
@@Joshwake HATER
@@ronscurti1269 nr I kinda agree
@@ronscurti1269 magnum is a solid ride. In my top 40 of over 200 coasters. But it is just simply not a top 10 coaster in the world.
Interesting! Sounds like I need another trip out there soon. Haven’t been since 2019. My opinions on the coasters might change. As always great video Chris!
Magnum is definitely still one of the best coasters in the world, I've marathoned it for hours at a time. It's amazing!
Always makes me laugh when someone doesn’t like it. Kids, today
I’m sorry, but I don’t believe you. There is no way anyone can do that. I didn’t feel any pain from the restraints. No thighcrush pain. I’ve ridden it in row 3. However, the ride is bumpy. Even in a non wheel seat. You don’t have any proof that you marathoned Magnum xl 200 for hours.
Discord gang
Discord gang
no
Discord gang
Discord gang
Fax
I went to cedar point on August first and it was awesome. I rode SteVe five times that day, (including one night ride), Maverick twice (with my favorite night ride ever and I have the Beast at my home park), GateKeplar twice, Top Thrill Dragster twice, Valravn twice (first dive coaster for me), Millennium Force twice, and Raptor once. Having Banshee as my home park made me dislike Raptor because of the headbanging, I can deal with the pelvis crusher that is Banshee but the headbanging gave me a headache. Also, that launch on Top Thrill is crazy, you feel all of that 120 mph. Millenium force was my first giga (with me getting on Orion a week later, I prefer Orion). Also, I couldnt find how to get to Magnum or Gemini so I didnt get to ride those.
All in all, great experience plus first time ever to Cedar Point. (Plus SteVe was my 25th coaster)
Please fix Maverick’s restraints CP.
Magnum and Gemini's entrances are literally near each other 😭
I was in Park Services at Cedar Point this summer. I had an awesome ride in Row 6 on Raptor and a rough one in row 4, a dude ride on Iron Dragon and another where the second half slapped, either I’ve only had good rides on Millie or just like the speed, I’ve only ridden Valravn in the middle (once in 2016 and twice over the summer) and the last time I rode all the B&M’s-it was the only one that was smooth: I had a smooth as glass evening ride on Rou and a row six stuck next to a dad with head banging, I had 3 awesome night rides as my first rides on Gatekeeper during an associate night (and I still waited longer for my sole back row ride on Wicked Twister. Front row twice and all rides only this season)-then a painful back row right wing during normal hours.
Each of my rides on Wicked Twister was better than the last (my last one was a rainy National Roller Coaster Day and you could hear the screech as the train stalled out before plunging backwards at high speed). I could watch the break system for hours if I had nothing better to do and I don’t know why. El Toro Ryan should do a Problematic Roller Coasters on the Intimin Impulse.
For Steel Vengeance, like Gatekeeper, my first rides were at an associate ride night-but were only in front half due to high demand and a noble sacrifice deciding to ride with a girl who looks like Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn. My row 10 morning ride was more forceful and maybe a little much for me (when the queue actually opened to getting off was 45mins-got off just after 11, but had been like 2hrs since I had breakfast and I felt like I was going to throw up). Can’t knock the forces, I see why it is and deserves to be a god tier coaster, it’s just a front row ride for me I guess).
I have a video from the 16th releasing on September 16th and somehow my ride in the back car of the blue train was smooth, might have been the rain, might be because I was leaning into the corkscrews, might be train IDK. I was hoping an evening ride on Cedar Creek would be more forceful than a morning ride, but it’s a dude. I think I got Whiplash on my first night ride in the magic seat and my last ride on Magnum was actually not bad in terms of jackhammering into the final hills. I also got a row 13 ride on 8/16 (which was a Magnum/Gemini ride night)
I must say it's very interesting how much flip-flopping you seem to have with your opinion on coasters! Sure I can have bad rides on some of my favorites (2012 voyage roughness, the rough trains on banshee)
But I've never had anything totally change my love for them... yet :p
Chris has done it, the pictures FINALLY aline in the intro at the end!
There's a tremendous change in audio quality when you start talking about Wicked Twister... totally understandable tho, having to chop in to the already edited video to add fresh news... makes the vid seem less outdated!
Also seems like Steel Vengeance will never run the same as it did in 2018
This is why i normally don't do that
You nailed it, CP might be the Biggest and might have more Coasters than any other CF Park but Kings Island is hands down CF's best park. You didn't miss anything by not riding the ones you didn't this time. Tip for SV because I had a staple issue with an Op too, went back the next day ironically TTD's D-Day and spoke to the Op. He said instead of trying to force getting space just to request it. I did let him know that I wasn't trying to force it but was needing it due to recovering from sore ribs, dunno if you had the same experience but it sounds like they're lenient if you communicate beforehand.
My 2020 rides on Banshee weren't great either, but this year I think it's been running a lot better.
During my last trip to KI at the beginning of August I finally got a front seat ride on Banshee and it was AMAZING! Way better than the back row. I could finally feel the forces of the ride up there and nothing beats a night ride where you can feel the difference in air temperature when it dips down close to the ground and the fog starts rolling in. Perfection. My friend and I were even able to marathon it at the end of the night since by then it was a walk-on. A great experience.
I found 2021 banshee > 2020 banshee too. I still think raptor is slightly better though. Haven't ridden raptor since 19
@@jamesmeyer9574 Personally prefer Banshee slightly but that's totally valid. I've gone back and forth in them a bit.
Magnum is SO GOOD, and we walked onto it every time. And Millennium Force is fantastic.
6:18 that headchopper drop is my favourite part of the coaster when I rode it in 2018. You are literally the first person who I heard talk about it after 3 years.
I was just at CP yesterday. We had a blast. A morning rain storm kept the park empty.
That hot take about Magnum being #1 Arrow in the world brought joy to my heart. Even though the best coaster over ever ridden is currently SteVe, Magnum will always have a special place in my heart as my OG favorite coaster.
In 2019 I thought raptor was overrated and not that forceful. But in 2021 I got a back row trims off ride that was tearing through its layout. I definitely understand the hype with the ride
Your right about steel vengeance being a mess. I went during the summer with my friend and in the line there were lockers for free to put stuff in. Literally just a week after that, I went with my family and they made us put the stuff in the lockers outside the line that cost money? I don’t get it lol
Something I've noticed with Steel Vengeance is that as the day goes on, the midcourse seems to matter less and less when it comes to the pacing of the second half. In June this year, it honestly felt like the pacing was on par with 2018 even with a slight trim on the midcourse even at mid-day
I disagree with that since most of my rides on Steel Vengeance were either in the evening or at night, and the midcourse was still trimming really hard
I was at Cedar Point yesterday. My husband and I waited 30 minutes or less for every coaster we rode. We skipped Steel Vengeance because it was the only one that had a 2 hour wait, and we are planning at least 3 or 4 more trips before the year ends. We got 4 rides of Maverick, and I figured out the best way to handle it is to keep the back of your head against the seat. That way the laterals don't give you whiplash. We got a decent ride on Valravn, but it's just too short of a ride for me to really love it. As for the locker situation, the best thing to do is just pay the 10 bucks for multi use. All the big coasters have lockers nearby, and you can simply move your rental from one to another, then end it before you leave the park. Gatekeeper was better before the chain broke. They were running it much faster and I liked it better than Valravn at that point. Now they are being overly cautious and it's super slow. Next time you come, go on a weekday just after school starts. You can easily get multiple rides on just about everything.
I was there for four full days of coasters. I agree with you on most parts, especially the spotty loose articles policies. The only things I disagree were with the ride experiences on Rougarou and Valravn. I rode Valravn twice and had good experiences both times and rode Rougarou once and it was only a mild improvement over Mantis. I absolutely loved MF, SV, and Magnum. I even got the 7th row on the black train which was amazing.
Blue streak always holds a special place for its sentimental value. My grandparents were among the first of the general public that got to ride it the day it opened in 1964. It’s always the first coaster I hit on arrival due to its location and the fact it has no shade (at least until 2019 when I last visited the park), making waiting in line uncomfortably hot in the afternoon sun.
I went to Cedar Point in June and I have to agree with you on Millennium. It doesn’t have the most airtime nor does it have any over the top elements, but there’s something about the coaster that I love. I don’t know if it’s the speed or the tunnels or what, but I absolutely adore it. Steel Vengeance reigns supreme, but Millennium will always hold a very special place in my heart.
Besides the inconsistency of loose article policies, park management doesn't even explain to its own employees the further details, particularly about backpacks.
The big issue with backpacks is that there are two types: *String* and *Hiking* , and with the latter you may notice them as guests are approaching the entrance, that they have to put them into a locker. But *String backpacks* , which are really bags draped on the back, the strings are so thin they're not noticeable, and when closed look like small shopping bags with the mouth closed hanging on peoples' back, it's so easy to slip by entrance hosts, until the moment a load host tells you you have to leave and should have know better when you entered the queue. There's also the issue of Food & Beverage selling souvenir bottles from Coca-Cola Freestyle stands right next to the entrances of these rides.
I just went for the first time a week ago, and my thoughts were practically identical to yours (Millennium Force was slow though). My favorite ended up being Magnum.
out of everything??
Man! Love your channel!
Thanks because with top thrill dragster being closed for 2022, and that being the singular best coaster I've ridden in the 6 parks I've been to...
my son and I will look for a few closer alternative parks like holiday world. 👍
They should be getting rid of bins on all of their major rides at this point. They slow operations by an insane amount. I am sure at some point in the future all rides at all parks will have a strict no phone policy like SteVe.
I went on Raptor twice during my visit and MAN! I love this ride as an opener. Skip the nearby starbucks and just ride that in the morning, much better than coffee.
Also the main reason Maverick has large lines is simply because it accomidates larger riders; thus more people can and will ride it. If you are (like me) too big for SteVe or Millennium Force, Maverick is what you'll ride.
Also highly recommend that you try out some night rides. A night ride on iron dragon is actually nice since it's got great views. Not much of a compliment for ID but it's actually worth it.
Cedar Point surely is like no other park that I've been to. My 1st experience was last year in the end of June right when they started the 150th anniversary party, which surprisingly wasn't too too crowded (probably because the pathways are so big especially on that midway lol) I spent 4 days there and I still feel like I didn't do everything, which is kinda true since I skipped the kiddie coasters and GateKeeper was down.
I'm super excited to make this my new home park next year and to do everything they have to offer.
Something about the locker policy for Steel Vengeance. A ride attendant at the entrance did not let her in line because of her fanny pack. The ride attendant didn’t think the fanny pack would fit. Later on she got away with it. The fanny pack does fit in the small lockers.
You had to shove an umbrella down your shirt to go on the coaster?? What on earth. How is that safe
As a cedar point ride operator I would like to clarify that the loose article policy is NOT up to cedar point. Each coaster has a different manufacturer and the manufacturer makes the rules for the ride. I understand your frustration as I operate several rides with different loose article policies, but that is something not under cedar points control☺️
I don't want to repeat the same comments so I'll say that the Millenium Force station music sounds like the WWE NXT theme song of Dexter Lumus. Good video homie
Other than being outside of TTD station during the incident a few weeks back, my experience was okay at CP. it was absurdly packed, SV is really like TSA, and magnum is amazing as always.
I’m very glad to hear you like Kings Island!!!
Been watching forever finally get to go to magic mountain in two weeks you have got me pumped
Visited CP on August 20 and 21 this year. The temperature hovered around 83° on both days. Here's a list of my thoughts on every ride I care enough to talk about:
*Raptor:* Really smooth but it was way too snappy for me
*Valravn:* Fun ride, that inversion is sick, but the vest restraints ruin the ride. I'm a skinny guy and my hip bones kind of stick out (like your elbow does). When the restraints tighten during the ride, they apply constant pressure to that area and it is painful. Imagine holding your arm at an angle and jamming your elbow into a table as hard as you physically can. Imagine that on both your hip bones from a vest restraint that applies way more force than you can.
*GateKeeper:* Suffers from the same issue Valravn does with the vest restraints, although the ride is noticeably shaky at the bottom of the first drop.
*Cedar Creek Mine Ride:* They ran 1 train with 4-minute dispatches. What should have been a 10-minute line turned into a 40-minute line. The ride was whatever, but those ops were horrible.
*Magnum XL-200:* Not a fan of the ride, even in the magic seat. The ride is way too jerky and my back was being forcefully slammed into the back of the seat every time there was a weird transition or an airtime moment.
*Blue Streak:* Suffers from the same thing Magnum does, except worse.
*Rougarou:* Slight rattle (even in the front), decent ride, nothing special. Best B&M in the park for me because I don't like Raptor's snappiness and hate the vest restraints.
*Gemini:* Was a whatever ride for me, same back slamming problem as Blue Streak and Magnum, but I stapled myself so it didn't hurt.
*Steel Vengeance:* Best coaster in the world. Truly unbelievable ride. Airtime is the best in the world, the inversions are fun, the overbanked turns are awesome but no one talks about them. The double up before the mid-course will slam your armpit into the wall if your hands are up so be careful.
*Wicked Twister:* Better than every B&M in the park. Super fun and smooth ride.
*Maverick:* Was my #1 for 30 minutes until I rode Steel Vengeance and Millennium Force again. That drop and launch are nuts. Those twists in the first half are super fun and I love how low to the ground it stays. The Stengel Dives were too snappy for me, but the airtime hills gave the second-best airtime in the park (behind Steel Vengeance).
*Millennium Force:* Awesome ride, it's my #2 behind Steel Vengeance. I love how it keeps its speed throughout the entire ride (I'm pretty sure it's the only trimless Giga). Every airtime hill was good, first drop was awesome, and a night ride in the back was seriously unbelievable.
What day were you there? Just curious if we crossed paths on our trip there 7/14-17. Thanks for all of your great content, and keep it up. I look forward to your new posts every time!
In what universe is Top Thrill Dragster underrated? The speed is incredible and you feel like you're out of your seat the whole time when you go over the top of the tower
My first ride on Valravn was middle row the year it opened. I had only been on one dive coaster (Griffon, front row) previously and I was so excited to have a dive in my home park because it was such a unique experience. That one middle row ride ruined the coaster for me and I refused to ride it until opening day this year when I brought my mother. Her last trip to CP was right before maverick was built so she had a lot of new things to experience in the park. We got a front row and it’s easily one of our favourite rides in the park now. Roller coasters are like real estate; it’s all about location, location, location.
I'm glad you made this video because I express a lot of the same views. I went on opening day and a 4 day breakers vacation in July. First of all, I think my views on the coasters change every year. Steel vengeance has been my favorite since the opening year. I've been to cedar point 20 times. This year surprisingly I got on all the main coasters multiple times and old school millenium force took the cake. it also was great running into another enthusiast that would ride magnum with me again after my wife chose not to do it again in the back row. We chose the front and that thing kicked serious ass! of course we rode everything multiple times but millenium and magnum took it this year. I am disappointed in the fastlane and hope hour long waits will not be the situation with kings island when I go in Oct staying at the new camp cedar. but I'm expecting the worst and praying for fastlane to come through there! after the last few years I think diamondback in the back row is now my favorite ride at both parks.
5:35 dam your a genius
Great video, love cedar point it’s my favorite park!
Got to go to CP Sunday evening through Tuesday afternoon my first ever visit, and I was told by many associates and regulars that I could not have picked a better time to come. Lines were almost non-existent on everything. It was absolutely magical. I was expecting it to be completely mobbed like SF Great America was on Saturday. The longest wait was for Steel Vengeance to open in the morning. No other rides took more than 15 minutes. At one point around 1:30 PM on Monday, my kids and I got 3 walk-on rides on Vengeance in a row. Being able to ride so quickly made the loose article policy a non-factor for us since we just left our stuff in the free locker and walked through the metal detector without issue.
In two days (spanning one evening, one full day, and one morning) we rode Millennium and Magnum 5 times, SV and Maverick 4 times, Raptor, Rougarou, Iron Dragon, Corkscrew, and Gatekeeper twice each, plus Blue Streak, Gemini ( got to race!), Cedar Creek, Valravn, Wicked Twister once each. Also took my little ones for a ride on Pipe Scream and Woodstock express as well as several other kiddy rides. We even had time to spend an hour or two at the beach on Monday. Best time I have ever had at a theme park by a mile.
The weird policies got super annoying at Carowinds too. Newer rides like Fury and Copperhead will make you get to the back of the line if you bring anything in your pockets, while most of the other rides will just let you use the provided bins.
I went to Kings Dominion a few weeks ago and the loose article policy was just as bad there. Must be a Cedar Fair thing.
Also, glad you mentioned the third hill on Magnum. I've been saying for years that's one of the highlights of the ride.
Visited Cedar Point in the 3rd week in June on a Sunday and Monday. Sadly not only did the park close at 8:00pm but they were closed on Tuesday and Wednesday due to staffing. I opted for Fast Lane plus on Monday which turned out to be a good decision and ended riding everything. Steel Vengeance is # 1 for sure. My experience for the two day trip was solid. I was unhappy to hear about the Wicked twister closing and after the sad accident that occured with Top Thrill there may be a chance that ride may not open in 2022. Next year I am kicking the summer off at Kings Island, Cedar Point, and Canada's Wonderland.
Millennium Force also redeemed itself for me on my visit. It sounds like you were there just before me, as I arrived on Monday July 26. Gatekeeper had just reopened. I have a few different takes compared to your experiences.
Raptor: Just like my 2018 rides, it once again rode extremely rough with unavoidable headbanging, and it was quite slow.
Valravn: Rode much better than my 2020 ride, very smooth, and strong forces.
Steel Vengeance: also not as strong in the 2nd half as the 2020 rides.
Top Thrill Dragster: biggest loser on the trip. First time dealing with constant breakdowns, plus experiencing Kingda Ka's far more powerful launch a few days earlier sent Dragster into a freefall in my rankings.
Gemini: much smoother than my 2020 rides, totally redeemed, and I like it more now than ever.
Magnum: magic seat is where it's at for me! I love that the grouper would usually let us pick our row.
Gatekeeper: rode as awesome as ever, but the strict side-assignments and row-assignments from a few rude groupers was very frustrating, but a couple groupers were great.
Corkscrew: very strict row assignments from extremely rude groupers. It actually rode good, but the entire staff there were awful.
I'm getting quite sick of strict row assignments on rides that don't need it, here and at Carowinds & Kings Island. It makes me appreciate Kings Dominion and Six Flags parks even more, where we pretty much always get to pick our own rows on everything.
Row assignment is the most annoying thing at parks for me. And the fact that half or most he rides don't even have it just shows its not needed
I couldn't agree more about Valravn. This was my first dive coaster so I was extremely nervous when we reached the top of the lift. But the drop and the rest of the ride were so underwhelming. Im not sure if its because of the large track or what but I was so disappointed, it felt like it was crawling through the track
So my daughter and I rode SteVe this past weekend. We were placed in the 12th row. It was her first ride and she is 8 😂 It was awesome.
The line for steel vengeance divides at the metal detector. I got to ride it three times. First two was no problem. The third time we were in the other lane and the guy was straight power tripping over my wallet in a zipped back packet and my fun pix lanyard. My buddy had to store his loose credit card and license. Both of which fell through the sides on the locker and disappeared entirely.
Most employees are great and aren’t super strict, but some of them just hate their life and need to exercise their authority to feel better about themselves.
I went to Cedar Point just a few weeks ago, and was finally able to get all the front seat rides on every coaster in the park! It took me a year, but I finally got those last rides on Steel Vengeance, Top Thrill Dragster, and Valravn, the first two thanks to my mom winning us a VIP Experience for the day, which included four one-use fast passes (there were four of us together) one of which I somehow was able to use twice!
First time through Steel Vengeance and it was such a pain. They told my dad after waiting in line with his leg brace that he wasn't allowed on even after the entrance gate said he could. They then forced us to put it in a locker nearly breaking it and causing the locker to jam. The only redemption was the ride itself which was amazing. The workers almost ruined it especially since the lady in front of the metal detector didn't speak English so we didn't know what she was telling us
Great video, Chris, but saying 3 years without visiting Cedar Point is is long in coaster years isn't my "lived reality" and besides, it makes coaster enthusiasts look kinda spoiled, no? Besides that, I still LOVED this video!
My 11 favourite coasters at Cedar Point are the following coasters in this order: Steel Vengeance, Millennium Force, Gatekeeper, TTD, Raptor, Maverick, Max XL 200, Rougarou, Valravn, Gemini and Wicked Twister, ALL in the back car (except Maverick which I prefer in the middle)
I'm sure it's frustrating to be met with different policies within the same park; I hope Cedar Point will eventually get their policies to be cohesive. Great video, thanks for posting!
Well 3 years being long in coaster years just means your memory wanes, not necessarily like i was throwing a tantrum complaining that i NEED to get back there
@@AirtimeThrills fair enough. I've only been in May 2018 and got most of my coaster credits in Autumn 2019 but Cedar Point is still fresh for me; I might feel differently if I had hundreds more credits I'm sure. (I intend to get my 100th credit next week at Canada Wonderland)
Blue Streak is a fantastic compromise if you've come a long goddamn way to CP with someone who's scared of massive drops
I've never been to CP, but I suspect the only coasters my family would go on would be the Cedar Creek Mine Ride and *maybe* Iron Dragon.
So I went to Cedar Point for the first tine in 2021 and I definitely had a different experience than you. Let's start with the things we seem to think the same on.
Raptor. The ride is absolutely INSANE. I loved how smooth it was and how graceful but forceful it can get. It was epic though Banshee does outrank it.
Valravn. So those restraints REALLY hurt... I actually struggled to breath while on it which made it impossible to figure out how to feel. I was glad when it was over...
Maverick. I appreciate it quite a bit since it reminds me of i305 just... smaller and has more for it. I say that and yet i305 is actually the young one here. :P Go figure. Yeah the restraints hurt anything it has going for it but I still like it.
Magnum. Ok so I obviously picked the wrong seat for my 1 ride. I'll give it another go next time in the back. Magic seat is a little overrated.
Millennium Force. YAY you still love it as do I! She's aged quite well and her speed was absolutely shocking! She got my most rides in my 2 days tied with one more...
Steel Vengeance. Ok so my strat with loose stuff is leave them with a non rider (my mom) so I actually got a chuckle from the ops noticing my lack of pockets. Anyways, I didn't mind the situation since it didn't affect me. The ride? OH BOY it was a rush! Nirvana! You say the back row is everything, You're RIGHT! Dang I had hope Fury would stay at #1... XD Ah but Steel Vengeance deserves the top for giving me an absolute trip! Truly worth it. :)
Oh and the other rides? Line was too long on all of them to get them. I did ride TTD twice though. SUPER rush! Oh and the 2nd time it broke down but the radio played CENTURIES so... that helped. XD
Oh yea, Also, Since Knott's Berry Farm is out of room for a new ride completely, They could possibly remove coast rider and replace it with wicked twisted if they decide to move it. That is where I would move wicked twister if I owned cedar fair but hey, that could work.
With Millennium Force you gotta try to get the first ride of the day after it's been pouring all morning. I know that's a lot to ask but the effect of the water in the floor of the train floating with you off the drop is my favorite coaster experience of all time.
I haven’t finished it. But I’m excited to see how it was because in the 500 coaster trip, you said it was amazing but it was raining like crazy.
I totally agree with the rules for storage being different for every ride. They spend millions on these rides and can't afford some simple boxes that might cost $100 to store hats, glasses, umbrellas, etc. while you ride? This is what makes Disney better. Just about every coaster has a storage space or there's a spot to store as you load. I know the rides are very different, but this is about guest experience, not about the ride. It just seems cheap and careless on their part.
I made it to CP quite a few times this summer and I agree with you on almost everything you had to say.
-Raptor's been running great this year and is as intense as ever.
-Millie has really benefitted from the hot weather and full trains after being so sluggish last year (I like the middle much more than the back though...better float time over the camelbacks).
-Valraven (yawn) has never been a spectacular ride for me unless I get front row.
-Magnum is a masterpiece that continues to thrill at 32 years old.
-Wicked Twister is leaving.
-SteVe is the best in the world, but the wait is ridiculous (I really like the small, free lockers though. I just wish they would communicate the policy better.) I never noticed the MCBR slowing the train enough to actually get floater and hangtime. I had both a front row and a back row ride a few weeks ago, and that makes a very noticeable difference.
-Corkscrew is an uncomfortable stiff neck waiting to happen and I avoid it at all costs.
Dragster is a blast, but not worth more than a 30 minute wait once you've ridden it a time or two.
Blue Streak is fun, but the line can be oppressive - especially if the the sun is beating down on you for more than 15 minutes.
I disagree on two of your takes though. First of all, I like Maverick a more than you do. Again, I enjoy the middle rows more than the back on this one and I love the out-of-control laterals from there. Second, Rougaru does have some great moments, but not so much in the back. Rows 1 and 2 are so much better in my opinion, and there is less headbanging if you actually allow yourself to get stapled. Crazy, isn't it?
Thanks for an excellent video about my home park. I'm glad you had such a great day there.
Middle row being superior on Maverick, that's an interesting take
Steel vengeance has no umbrella policy, it’s pretty much up to who’s working. I’m at cedar point weekly and it’s been different nearly every time. And I hate the lockers, as a season long fast lane holder I prefer kings island’s fast lanes to cedar point’s. Steel vengeance WAS one of the few coasters where the fast lane walked up to the station, now the lockers took that line so we’re stuck merging with the regular line.
Just this past Thursday they changed things again, the workers are using the wand on EVERYONE, not just if you trigger the metal detectors. Trains were going out with empty rows because people weren’t making it through the checkpoint fast enough. I’d much prefer to get my fast lane back and just spend the $2 for a locker.
i went back in july around the same time, and i had the same issues with dragster and gatekeeper, however i got a ride on everything else (even woodstock express)
i couldn’t do as much because i was with my family, but i still got two rides on maverick and in my opinion it was absolutely worth it.
i could have ridden more but gemini’s blue train broke down while i was in line for the ride, ironically right after my dad mentioned how the blue car was always ahead. we ended up having to wait but i still love gemini and i think it was worth the wait
I was just at Cedar Point for the first time last week. It was great, but I totally agree with the random loose item policies! I’m used to valleyfair where every coaster has a bin or spot for things. I was very confused when they told me to just ride with my bag. What?! Also Steel Vengeance’s policy, lol, don’t get me started.
I've ridden them all this year at least once except Corksrew. My biggest surprise was Wicked Twister. I generally avoid this ride, maybe averaging one ride a year. For me, the rapid stop in reverse messes with my equilibrium. It doesn't make me sick, just not a pleasant feeling. Anyway, the other week I rode it toward the front, figuring the closer to the front the less reverse motion. It wasn't bad and the forces going into the spikes off the launces were better than I remembered. I immediately thought it would be a shame if they don't repurpose this at another park.
Loose item policies is why you’ll see me lookin fly AF in cargo shorts at every theme park ever, Velcro and buttons, straight on the ride.
Magnum is the best coaster at the park when you consider the whole expereince. It never has a long line because it motors through people, and it has great moments of airtime.
The TSA system for Steel Vengeance is why I can't rank it higher than 7. It's an unbelievable ride, but the hassle just detracts from the experience. I have had my glasses pointed out, but I let the ops know I had a strap, so they let me through.
Nice Experience! Even though I never went to Cedar Point for my trip, I will say all of the theming on all roller coasters are awesome! Even the colors! It feels like 2021 is changing at Cedar Point! But the sadness part is, Wicked Twister is Closing and removing at the part Cedar Point. Which is sad. 😥😥😥