29yrswithaGApass Posted June 11, 2009 Report Share Posted June 11, 2009 Click here to see the whole Spotlight! Comments and discussions welcomed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GAcoaster Posted June 11, 2009 Report Share Posted June 11, 2009 It was the best of coasters, it was the worst of coasters... BEST DROP on any coaster (except Ultra Twister which was even better), but most awkward looking! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoasterPrince Posted June 11, 2009 Report Share Posted June 11, 2009 I wish they kept Rodeo Stampede and put it somewhere else. That and Tango would make the perfect pair teaming up with Toro. I miss Tango! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
29yrswithaGApass Posted June 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 11, 2009 Having loved the heartline rolls of the Ultra Twister, I was really excited when Great Adventure announced that we were getting a full circuit heartline coaster. Roughness and short length aside, Viper's rolls never seemed to be as impressive as the Ultra Twister's rolls. I think the side rails of the Ultra Twister helped generate truer heartline rolls than the rails below the cars on Viper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Great Adventurer Posted June 11, 2009 Report Share Posted June 11, 2009 What an exciting spotlight! Great job! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Master Posted June 12, 2009 Report Share Posted June 12, 2009 Very nice spotlight, I only rode Viper once near the end of it's life and it did suck. In fact everyone on the same train that I rode complained how rough it was and how it hurt their necks. Viper did have a very nice queue which sadly could not be reused. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CycloneMan Posted June 13, 2009 Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 I had a weird relationship with this ride. I absolutely loved the theming and the look of the ride. The ride itself, I could only take so much. When it was new, and I was little, I loved it. I could tolerate the pain. As I got older I couldn't ride it as much. Though the drop ALWAYS caught me off guard. Getting rid of it was the right choice. And the ride is still notorious amongst guests. In fact, this is me in the second row -Dainan "Would like to ride it one more time" Rafferty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Master Posted June 14, 2009 Report Share Posted June 14, 2009 I rode Ultra Twister at SFAW and it was much better than Viper. Still Viper did have nice theming but it was a very rough ride and was all about deep hurting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
29yrswithaGApass Posted June 14, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2009 I am not sure who these people are but this photo pretty much says it all. (Photo Source: UNKNOWN) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarkKnight Posted June 14, 2009 Report Share Posted June 14, 2009 ive never been on it and i am kind of glad i didn't lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Railer Posted June 14, 2009 Report Share Posted June 14, 2009 I went on Viper the last Season it was running for my only ride on it. My Wife waited in line with me but when we got into the Station she just had a "bad feeling" about it and didn't come on it with me. I didn't think it was that bad, it was rough, but nothing too extreme. It was fun though, it was just a Ride that ran it's course and it's time had passed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warnerleroy Posted June 15, 2009 Report Share Posted June 15, 2009 Why is the theming accredited to Six Flags in Parsippany,NJ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GAcoaster Posted June 15, 2009 Report Share Posted June 15, 2009 Under Time Warner the corporate headquarters was in Parsippany, with additional offices in Arlington, TX. When Premier took over they closed the Parsippany office and moved HQ to Oklahoma City. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truepolak90 Posted June 15, 2009 Report Share Posted June 15, 2009 As always, awsome spotlight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulieGBones Posted June 17, 2009 Report Share Posted June 17, 2009 Although it got rough over the years I always liked Viper. The ride was short but the drop and elements were great. If it were able to be reworked I would love to see a version of this layout running again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CablesEric Posted June 17, 2009 Report Share Posted June 17, 2009 Viper was a unique ride for many reasons. It was not the greatest ride, but one of my favorites in the park to ride and work. The first drop, as we can all agree with, was intense and then crawling into the dive loop was insane. My favorite thing about Viper was it's visual impact. The ride looked incredible with the rings and elaborate station and queue. The reason I will always remember Viper is because it was a constant part of the Frontier Section skyline while I worked at the park and I would see it every morning. I guess I am just being sentimental, but then again, that is why we are at GAH, right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
29yrswithaGApass Posted June 17, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 17, 2009 I was happy when they installed Viper. The old Ultra Twister site always seemed like such an abandoned area of the park during the years between Ultra Twister and Viper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarioSonic94 Posted June 18, 2009 Report Share Posted June 18, 2009 Great spotlight as always In 2004, I wanted to ride Viper, but it was closed. In fact, the Viper area really felt like a ghost town. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gafreak Posted June 19, 2009 Report Share Posted June 19, 2009 as an operator for this ride in its early years, i was sad to see it go, i will always love this ride as i was one of the operators for the opening season and next. i think ive ridden viper well over 500 times in its life, and it was rough. i bid the farewell! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lightnin78nic Posted June 20, 2009 Report Share Posted June 20, 2009 Very awsome spotlight! I rode Viper 3 or 4 times while it was there. Racing through the rings were just like no other coaster (except Ultra Twister) experience.I had to ride it once every time we visted just to zoom through those rings.It was rough but so are some wooden coasters.Last I road it was 98 or 99.So I didn't ride it at its worst and when we went in 01 it was closed so I bought a Viper T-shirt and post card just in case they were to remove it in the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gafreak Posted August 22, 2009 Report Share Posted August 22, 2009 one thing that i noticed you didnt mention in the spotlight,and you may not have known, was that viper went through rollers on a regular basis, there were days when we would transfer cars 3-4 times a day for wheels. as an operator we didnt mind the down time, it was a hectic ride to operatte, the load and unload zones were confusing to the guests because they would leave itewms up near the load area then get off in the back of the station not realizing that they loaded in the front, people were constantly where they shouldnt be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gafreak Posted January 27, 2010 Report Share Posted January 27, 2010 (edited) I miss viper it was a good ride even though it beat the out of you, would have been even better if it was a little longer! Edited January 27, 2010 by gafreak Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoasterPrince Posted January 27, 2010 Report Share Posted January 27, 2010 Never even got to ride. I was first introduced to Gadv in 2006 because that is when I hit 54". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GAThriller Posted February 16, 2010 Report Share Posted February 16, 2010 I hit 54" in 2001. But, I never went to Great Adventure until 2009. The funny thing I really liked on this spotlight is the little statement "Viper, which many coaster enthusiasts considered one of the worst coasters ever built". That made me laugh! Another coaster which many coaster enthusiasts was considered one of the worst ever built was Windjammer Surf Racers, also built by TOGO, at Knott's Berry Farm in California. Known to be a mechanical nightmare, this small racing coaster replaced the popular Wacky Soap Box Racers (a Steeplechase-like roller coaster, only with soap box cars) in 1997. Windjammer has good theme (along with remote control boats underneath the attraction) and logo, but poorly designed restraints, trains that stall at the slightest breeze, and a special effect that sounded good on paper, but never worked in reality. Most of the time during the coaster's short life, only the red track operated, with the yellow suffering greater mechanical problems. The coaster closed for good in March 2000 and demolished in 2001 to make way for a bigger, better improvement: Xcelerator, the world's first hydraulically launched roller coaster designed by Intamin and opened in June 2002. Picture copyrighted by Chris Morano and RCDB. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GAcoaster Posted February 16, 2010 Report Share Posted February 16, 2010 I think the only other coaster more reviled by enthusiasts is Manhattan Express, yet another Togo torture device: It's those same awful restraints on all of them: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.