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Wicked Twister Review
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May 3rd,
2002
Wicked
Twister - perhaps one of the most controversial rides out there because
everyone seems to have a different view on it: before the
ride even went vertical some people loved it and some flat out hated it.
When it was announced back on the early Tuesday morning of November 20,
2001, some thought "It's going to suck - its not the 500 foot
roller coaster that I wanted". I myself was quite pumped up about
the ride. And so the winter has come and gone - and so has many people views
on the ride. When the ride was topped off in February many people
started to think "This just might be a pretty good ride" and
in the beginning of April you had people staring at the web cam all day
long hoping to catch a test run.
THE RIDE:
Arriving at Cedar Point, I will admit
I was quite nervous - not really about the height or speed of Wicked
Twister, but to tell you the truth I was nervous because I didn't know what
to expect. Upon arriving to the lovely Oceana Midway, I gave Wicked
Twister a good look and one of the things that made me even more nervous
was the top of the towers swaying about in the wind (yeah its supposed
to happen but still its scary to look at!). After watching the ride get
ready and go through a test, it was my turn. Getting on the ride is
the first thing many people will start to notice about the ride. The
seats are quite high off the ground and to get up in the seat most will
have to kind of jump up into them (but there is a plus to this - more on
that later). The seats themselves are EXTREMELY comfortable - instead of
hard plastic seats they are nice and soft. Before I knew it (and before
I was ready) the voice of a worker comes over the mic "60 seconds
to launch". What seemed like 20 minutes later, the
"voice" said "20 seconds to launch" then 10 seconds.
Then the death words were read out loud: "Launch in 5,4,3,2,1" (According to Cedar Point, a countdown will take place
for each ride). BOOM - and off I went - getting shot from 0-55 mph in
just 2 seconds. Sailing along the horizontal track (which is all over
sand), you have the midway on one side, and the beach on the other
(quite a nice view for the short time you can enjoy it). And before I
knew it I was getting turned 90 degrees for the vertical ascent on the
forword
tower. Twisting about half-way about the tower provided some unbelievable
foot-chopper effects. A small amount of airtime is present before flying
back down the tower. Back on the horizontal section of track the train
picks up speed - flying through the station - and up the back tower. One
of the biggest debates about Wicked Twister is "Would a back
twist be better than the other impulses' holding brake?" To me the
answer is simply - the back twist! Easily it is one of the best roller
coaster elements out there. Flying up vertically, rider's are pinned to
the back of their seat but slowly gravity takes over and extreme airtime
is present - and to top the whole backwards experience you are twisted!
Flying down the back tower is an extreme experience - you start off with
some intense airtime - speed picks up and you fall 215 feet while twist
450 degrees, all over the beach - a disorientating
rush experience! After flying back through the station, you fly up the
front spike - this time twisting all the way up! Sitting towards the
front of the train gives you the view of your life- your just feet away
from the top of the tower. Twisting back down is amazing - though you
twist 450 degrees its seems like you twist several thousands degrees -
one heck of a disorienting experience. After flying back and forth
several times - the train rolls a quarter of the way up the front tower
- rolls back down - and is bought to a smooth stop before rolling back
into the station.
Jurisdiction:
The ride is amazing, truly like nothing else and one of the best at
the park. Pack your car, make your
hotel reservation because this ride is not to be missed. Perhaps what
makes the ride wonderful is the elements - it takes the best of
different rides and puts them together: speed, height, launch, twists,
and inverted seats. Not-to-mention the location is
wonderful - right near the place of Cedar Point's first roller coaster,
on the world famous Cedar Point's beach. Way to go Cedar Point - you
have yourself a winner.
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PHOTOS
Click
Here To Visit Our Wicked Twister Gallery
The
front tower
Back
Tower
Entrance plaza
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