Newsgroups: rec.roller-coaster
Date: Tue, 28 Jul 1992 14:11:43 -0400 
From: Jennifer Brodt <jb8o+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: Re: Busch Gardens v Kings Dom


I received such great information in response
to my question on BG and KD.  Many thanks to
all who responded.  I've summarized the information
below for anyone else who might be interested:

****************************************************

Here's a rundown of what coasters are at each park:
 
Kings Dominion
--------------
 
  Anaconda -- It puts you upside down about 4 times and takes you through
              an underwater tunnel.
 
  Rebel Yell -- Standard woodie with parallel tracks.  One track rides the
                train forward and the other is backwards.
 
  Shockwave --  A single looping stand-up coaster
 
  The Grizzly -- Another standard woodie built in the woods.  Most of the track
                 is hidden from view from the rest of the park.
 
Busch Gardens -- The Old Country
--------------------------------
 
  Loch Ness Monster --  Double interlocking loop coaster
 
  Big Bad Wolf -- Great suspended coaster
 
  Drachen Fire -- I remember being upside down at least 6 times on this one.
 
If I were to rank the coasters from best to worst, I'd say: Big Bad Wolf,
Drachen Fire, Anaconda, Loch Ness Monster, Grizzly, Shockwave, Rebel Yell.
Considering 3 of the top 4 are from Busch, I'd recommend going there.  Besides,
the atmosphere at Busch is 100% awesome.  It put KD to shame.  However, if 
you've got time, I would recommend both.  Neither was a waste of time.

**********************************************************************

Busch Gardens has three roller-coasters:
Loch Ness Monster
Big Bad Wolf
Drachen Fire
 
Kings Dominon has several small coasters and three major coasters:
Grizzly
Rebel Yell (they have turned the cars arounds so trip is in reverse)
Anaconda
 
I personally prefer the Drachen Fire and Loch Ness above Anaconda, but
they are all great coasters.  The Drachen Fire alone is worth the trip,
so if you can only go to one, I'd suggest Busch.

**********************************************************************

Haven't been on Drachen Fire (Busch Gardens), but I was on The Loch Ness
Monster and The Big Bad Wolf about five years ago.  In fact, I spent all
day that I was there riding these two and at the water park.  At least I
think there was a water park, I can't quite remember.  But, I was blown
away by BBW, and Nessie was excellent as well.  I don't want to spoil
them for you, but Nessie has two loops where the trains pass each other
at the loop, and BBW is suspended from the rails, which makes for quite
a thrlling ride.  Personally, I enjoyed KD _much_ better.  I was there
last summer, when they had just opened The Anaconda, which has a tunnel
that goes under the water, which I think is the home of their new water
park...  I rode Anaconda 7 times that day, and still had time for the
two or three other coasters there, one of which is an old woody called
The Grizzly.  I was thrown out of my seat more times than I can count!
It was amazing.  I would definietly recommend KD over BG, because there
is other stuff to do there too (although I only go for the coasters).
BTW, Virginia is bigger than you think.  I think that BG & KD are more
than 1 hr. apart, more like 2-3.  Enjoy!
 
>I'd love to hit both places but I don't know if
>I have the time.  
 
You probably don't, but don't take my word for it.  I hated Busch Gardens
(except for Nessie and BBW).  I would go to KD over BG any day.

**********************************************************************

If you like rollercoasters, so I'd hit KD if you had
only one to pick. Here are the rollercoasters:
 
Grizzly - wooden roller coaster. Very enjoyable.
Anaconda - goes underwater. *Lots* of twists, turns,
	and loops. (They had to slow it down,
	because it was going too fast.) My personal
	favorite.
Shockwave - you ride while standing up. Too short,
	but still good.
Rebel Yell - straight; just ups and downs. But you
	can ride backwards.
Avalanche - European-style. No track once you get
	to the top - the cars flow in what could
	be described as a half-tube. Pretty fun.
 
We just went there this past Wednesday. They also have
a water park, so you can cool off during the day.
 
Some notes if you go: Show up early (about 10ish).
Also, there isn't a lot of shade, so you might
want to wear a hat.
I wouldn't eat in the park; the food is pretty poor.
There's a Denny's across the street, so it might be
a good idea to eat there instead.
 
Busch Garden's has a few roller coasters; I haven't
been there in a few years. I remember:
Loch Ness Monster - tons o' loops; has a big drop.
	Definitely the best in Va until Anaconda
	showed up. Not sure now.
Big Bad Wolf - The rail is *above* you; you hang from
	it. Apparently, it's a lot like riding in
	a helicopter.
DrachenFire - not sure; supposed to be pretty good.
 
The food is much better at BG; they have German
and Italian, plus other stuff. It's pretty well shaded,
and not as humid as KD. They also have lots of shows.
There is a water park in Williamsburg, but it's separate.
 
Both parks have the "Viking Ship" ride - the ship that
twirls around an axis. KD's goes all the way around a few
times, but I think BG's doesn't.
 
|> I'd love to hit both places but I don't know if
|> I have the time.
 
Try to hit both if you have the time. They are only about an
hour, hour-1/2 away from each other. Where are you staying?

**********************************************************************

We just got back from Busch Gardens today.  We had a great time.
As far as which park to visit, it really depends on what you
are looking for.  If you want wood coasters, you have to go to
King's Dominion.  If you want a standup coaster, a bobsled type
coaster, or a good kiddie coaster, you will still have to go to
King's Dominion.  If you want a suspended coaster, then you must
go to Busch Gardens.  Both parks have steel looping coasters.
 
King's Dominion
 
Grizzly - Wood -  This is the first real roller coaster that I
have ever ridden.  (And it was only 2 months ago.)  It was not
a good choice for a first coaster as it scared the hell out of
me.  It is really rough.  I think you'll either love it or hate
it.  It is the only coaster that I have ridden were I was more
scared halfway through the ride than I was going up the first
lift hill.
 
Scooby Doo - Wood with steel supports (I think) -  This is a
kiddie coaster, but it is still pretty good.  It's not worth
waiting in a long line, but if the line is short, or if you
have scared companions, this is a good ride.
 
Rebel Yell - Wood -  Racing style coaster with one side running
the train backwards.  Nice drops.  No side to side motion.  Only
two turns.
 
Avalanche - Bobsled -  This one is really different.  It's like
running a roller coaster train through a water slide.  There are
no real drops, and it is not at all scary, but it still a lot of
fun.
 
Anaconda - Steel Looping -  I didn't ride this one, since I was
still too afraid too go upside down that day.  I think it had one
drop and two corkscrew loops.  After the drop, the train goes
underwater.
 
Shockwave - Steel Standup -  Again, I was too afraid to ride this
one.  The track spirals down, with the riders body parallel to the
ground.  There is one inversion.
 
Busch Gardens
 
The Big Bad Wolf - Steel Suspended -  This swings you from side to
side, but it is very smooth.  It is pretty fast and forcefull,
especially after the last drop.  This was proabbly my favorite
ride at Busch Gardens.
 
The Loch Ness Monster - Steel Looping -  After the first drop this
on is pretty much over.  I can't believe I let those loops scare
me.  The two loops are straight up and over, so there isn't much
of a feeling of being upside down.  Maybe I'm being two hard on
this coaster because I really was afraid to ride it, and it turned
out to be much milder than I thought.  This was my wife's favorite
of the three.
 
Drachen Fire - Steel Looping -  This one is something to see.  It
stretches out over a good portion of the park, so you can get a good
look at it from the ground.  This one looks really scary.  But I
found it to be the least thrilling of the three coaster.  The only
real drop comes right out of an inversion, and while that may sound
exciting, the result is a slow moving train.  This thing never really
gets moving.  This is also the roughest of the three coasters, so
if you like being tossed from side to side, you may enjoy it.  But it
is not nearly as rough as the Grizzly.
 
I don't think you will be disappointed with either park.  Both are a
lot of fun.  The descriptions above may look like I'm leaning more
towards King's Dominion, but I'm still having a hard time picking
one over the other.  I think Busch Gardens had a better selection
of non coaster rides.  Both parks had a flume ride, but neither was
that great.  Busch Gardens tended to look better, while King's
Dominion had a better feel, perhaps do in part to the Hanna Barbera
characters.  

**********************************************************************

jennifer

ps  I think I've managed to convince my boyfriend to visit both
BG _and_ KD.  Now I don't have to decide between the two!!



--------------------------------------------------------
 <<<<<<<<  >>>>>        Jennifer Brodt
     <<<<  >>>>>>>        Office Coordinator
     <<<<  >>>>>>>        STUDIO for Creative Inquiry
     <<<<  >>>>>          College of Fine Arts
     <<<<  >>>>>>>      Carnegie Mellon University
  << <<<<  >>>>>>>        Pittsburgh, PA  15213
   <<<<<<  >>>>>        Internet:  jb8o+@andrew.cmu.edu
--------------------------------------------------------