These lucky plastic dummies are often the first riders on the roller coasters that we’re itching to ride. I assume that they’re meant to simulate a weighted train packed with live riders. They’ve been featured in countless test videos on YouTube (like this one of the Battlestar Galactica coaster), but I never thought I’d get [...]

Canada’s Wonderland to Add Leviathan, A Giga Roller Coaster in 2012 Canada’s Wonderland will be going big for 2012 with Leviathan a 306-foot tall monster of a roller coaster. Leviathan joins the park’s 2008 hyper coaster Behemoth giving the park a 1-2 punch of extreme size and speed akin to Cedar Point’s Magnum XL-200 & [...]

Today Screamscape reported a survey marker sighting at Carowinds for a rumored 2012 ride near Intimidator, but no one had photos. So I went down to the park after work and saw a number of markers in the grassy field next to Intimidator. They have “HUSS GF” written on them which likely means the park [...]

This ho-hum looking ride found in the kiddie section at my home park, Carowinds has a wild alter-ego. I had always wondered about the interest hardcore theme park fans had in flying scooters or flyers as their called. Flyers can be flown with very little movement and taken as a nice, breezy ride. Or, riders [...]

Nighthawk & Batwing | Vekoma Flying Roller Coasters Flying roller coasters are about the closest thing to human flight that the amusement industry can offer. Riders are treated to a thrilling face down riding position with nothing between them and the ground, but the ride’s restraints. My first Vekoma flyer was Batwing at Six Flags America [...]

The Coaster Critic Joins Podcasts Based on the East Coast, West Coast, & Europe I’ve been lucky enough to join a few different podcasts this season. I joined The Season Pass Podcast while they were broadcasting live from Kings Dominion during the last leg of Theme Park Review’s East Coast Bash. I was invited to [...]

For my next and probably last trip of the season I’ll be headed back to my home state and former home park. Kings Dominion is where it all began for me. I had only ridden a few smaller roller coasters until I was coerced into riding Grizzly. Next thing I knew I was hooked. I’ve [...]

This is the final part of my coverage of Coaster Stock 2010 at Carowinds. After the Intimidator Tour, there was another break. Again, attendants dispersed throughout the park. I headed for the above average Arrow looper, Carolina Cyclone only to get caught by a thunder storm. All rides were halted for fear of lightning strikes. [...]

When we last left the Coaster Stock attendees they were enjoying lunch while being treated to a rare Q&A session with B&M rep Bob Mampe. Next, the attendees had a break for a few hours where they could enjoy the park at their leisure. Since I live about 30 minutes from the park, I headed home [...]

This is the continuation of my coverage of Coaster Stock 2010 at Carowinds. During lunch, we were treated to a Q&A session with Bob Mampe from Bolliger & Mabillard. I’ve paraphrased the questions and responses below. In hindsight, I should have video taped the session, but I think that I’ve been able to summarize the [...]