Birthday Coastering Trip to New England

To see all the coaster photos from this trip (about 75 or so), check out my Coaster Photos website and look under Lake Compounce, Six Flags New England, Whalom Park and Rye.

To celebrate my 36th birthday, my wife Deb, our friend Joe and I headed up to New England to ride some roller coasters. The weather was predicted to be awful (rain, rain, rain), but we decided to take the chance. We left Friday morning and arrived at Lake Compounce at 5 for their discounted evening admission plan. This was the first time I've been here since Kennywood took it over, and the changes are obvious and for the better. The park is clean, there's lots of new rides, and the employees are generally helpful and friendly. As for the coasters...

Lake Compounce

We left Friday morning and arrived at Lake Compounce at 5 for their discounted evening admission plan. This was the first time I've been here since Kennywood took it over, and the changes are obvious and for the better. The park is clean, there's lots of new rides, and the employees are generally helpful and friendly. As for the coasters...

Boulder Dash (Rating , 4 out of 4) It doesn't get much better than this. Boulder Dash now resides in my #3 spot on my Top10 list, right behind the Comet and the Phoenix. This CCI terrain coaster is fast, smoother-than-smooth, and packed with action. Your first ride is always a surprise because most of the coaster is hidden from view in the trees and on the mountain. The first drop is good, not great, but it gives you the speed you need for the breakneck rest of the ride. We rode in the front, back and most seats in-between. A dark ride in the front seat is not to be missed. Wildcat (Rating , 3 out of 4) A very rough-and-tumble ride in the back seat, this is a peppy little coaster that harkens back to the wild-and-woolly days of the golden age of coasters. There was no line, so we got a bunch of rides in, and for one ride a nice introduction on the P.A. by the ride operator, a fellow ACEr. Zoomerang (Rating , 1out of 4) Standard Vekoma boomerang, but with wicked brakes in the station on the return leg	Boulder Dash's ascent into the trees	A train heads out into the mountain
	Some obviously happy riders on the return trip	Lake Compounce as seen from the park's train ride
	The 1927 Herb Schmeck-designed Wildcat	1st drop on the Wildcat
	A lot of the structure as seen from the 1st turn	I took this on the Zoomerang

Six Flags New England

Stayed in Springfield, MA Friday night and got to SFNE about 5 minutes after opening. Big mistake, should have been there 30 minutes earlier. We walked immediately to Superman:Ride of Steel and waited an hour and a half for the front seat. By the time we got off the ride the wait must have been at least 2.5 or 3 hours - the queue was full and there was about a 50-yard line to get into the queue. Ouch. Everything was packed, long lines for most rides. Waited about 45 minutes for Mind Eraser, 45 minutes for the S&S tower, 45 minutes for the Riverside Cyclone. Left at 3:00 to make the trip to Whalom Park.

Superman: Ride of Steel (Rating , 4 out of 4)

Wow! I rode the S:ROS at Six Flags America last week, and that was nowhere near as good as this one. Incredible 1st drop into the tiniest mist-filled tunnel, loads of airtime, great turns, and another misty tunnel. Steel coasters don't get any better than this, which is why it is now my #1 steelie.

Riverside Cyclone (Rating , 3 out of 4)

This was my 3rd visit to Riverside in 7 years, and my first ride on the Cyclone with PTC trains. The ride is mostly how I remember it, really wicked and out of control. Some airtime, but mostly its appeal is its violence. Someone on rec.roller-coaster described a back seat ride as "the Cyclone grabbing you and declaring 'You Are Now My Bitch'". I couldn't agree more. We were only able to get one front seat ride.

Poison Ivy's Twisted Coaster (Rating , 2 out of 4)

Fun small coaster

Mind Eraser (Rating , 1 out of 4)

Yet another Vekoma Hang-and-Bang.

Superman as seen from
the S&S tower ride

Back half of Superman

1st drop POV on
Superman. Best tunnel
drop ever.

Entering another
mist-filled tunnel

1st drop on the Riverside
Cyclone - amazing!

A lot of the layout is
visible from the 2nd
turnaround

Whalom Park

Arrived at Whalom in time for their discounted evening admission, $5.95. This was my 3rd time to Whalom, and I had never ridden the Flyer Comet. The first time was back in 1993 when the park was going to celebrate its centennial by hosting the Whalom 100, with an ACE event featuring 100 laps on the coaster. Unfortunately it poured that day, and we spent the day in Riverside instead. The next time was in 1994 as part of a New England motorcycling trip, but the coaster was down for maintenance. Third time was the charm. Debbi even got on 2 rides, the ferris wheel and the Tumble Bug. We had a ball on the Tumble Bug (one of 4 left in the world).

Flyer Comet (Rating , 2 out of 4)

Certainly an attractive ride, run almost completely manually. One train, skid brakes, non-ratcheting lap bars. Not much of a thriller though. The tunnel was a nice touch. Probably the best part of the ride was the incredible flex in the trains.

1st drop on the Flyer
Comet

Entering the Black Hole

From the 2nd turn

The Flyer Comet from
across the lake

After the 4th turn

Layered turns

Joe and I trying in vain
to flip on the hamster
wheels

An 8-month pregnant Deb
in an old Traver Circle
Swing car

Rye Playland

Sunday brought some rain into the trip, but it cleared up by the time we stopped at Rye on the way home. We had hoped to get a ride on the Derby Racer and the Hurricane, but both were closed because of the previous rain. We got a couple of rides on the Dragon Coaster and headed home.

Dragon Coaster (Rating , 2 out of 4)

I wish I could have ridden this with the original Prior & Church trains. Without that going for it, this is a gently ride through some turns and hills. Dull. For the ride alone I wouldn't give it more than , but its age and looks give it an extra .