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Cedar Fair

6/14/2016

Ghost Town 75 at Knott's Berry Farm a smash hit

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Last week was the grand opening and media day for the all new Ghostrider at Knott's Berry Farm as well as Ghost Town Alive and the Chicken Dinner Restaurant. . 

All are AMAZING additions to this already amazing theme park. Be sure to check out all of our pictures, video and reviews of Ghostrider. 

Pictures and Video by Matt Nelson and Gregg Condon (additional pictures by Knott's)
Written by Gregg Condon 

Oddly enough, we didn't get too many pictures of Ghostrider as we were busy riding and making sure we had a decent review of the ride. Yeah, that's it. =) 
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Photo: Knott's Berry Farm
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Photo: Knott's Berry Farm
We'll start off with some amazing POV provided by the park. 
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And of course our reverse POV of Ghostrider that we posted last week. 
Gregg's review of Ghostrider 2.0: 
Let's travel back to 1999. A new wooden beast opens at one of the best theme parks in Southern California. At the time I had only ridden coasters in Southern California. And no wooden coaster (even mid-80's Colossus) could live up to the amazing ride's you could have on Ghostrider. Even after travelling in subsequent years and riding coasters in parks like Knoebels (Phoenix) and Six Flags Great Adventure (El Toro) wouldn't compare to the amazing rides on Ghostrider the first few years it was open. It would have still been my #1 woodie. 
Unfortunately the ride was tearing itself apart. The park did everything it could to continue to provide a solid ride, but through the years the ride greatly deteriorated to the point where it was all but un-rideable. 
For the past few years there had been rumors about a makeover to the ride. Would it be RMC? In House? GCI? Last year we got the answer, GCI would come in and not just re-track the ride, but reprofile the ride along with new trains. While many were upset it wouldn't be an RMC those of us who still enjoy classic woodies were ecstatic. 
Still, we wondered if the ride could live up to the amazing ride Ghostrider once was. 

So how is the ride? It's amazing. Is it as insane and intense as it was in 1999? No. This is very much a GCI coaster, with a CCI layout. The ride has been reprofiled to give it a smooth and exciting ride. So while the original Ghostrider would still be my #1 coaster, Ghostrider 2.0 would probably rank #3 behind the aforementioned Phoenix and El Toro. 

That's not a dig at Ghostrider, not by a long shot. That's high praise and that's what this ride deserves. A ride that ranked at the very back of wood coaster polls in 2015 should be back in the top 5 or 10 in 2016. THAT is how much work has gone into this ride, how much they have improved it, how much they have made it amazing. 

So go, ride, have fun. You won't regret it. We rode in every section of the train and it gives a great ride all around. We also were riding in the morning when it was in the mid-60's. We can't wait to get to the park on one of those hot summer nights, when the ride is broken in, warmed up and see just how awesome it can really be. 

The day also marked the re-opening of the Chicken Dinner Restaurant which recently reopened after a major refurbishment. 

Unfortunately some of the earlier reports coming out about the makeover compared it to a Cracker Barrel or other similar restaurant. We didn't get that impression AT ALL. They've done a great job preserving the history of the restaurant while giving it a much needed makeover. 
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The original dining room still looks amazing and has a very homely feel
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And of course, the awesome new bar
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If that wasn't enough, it was also our first time to check out "Ghost Town Alive" and let us tell you, it's absolutely amazing and charming and totally works. 
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Don't be an ass ... =) 
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Beautiful ... 
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Some of the citizens of Ghost Town 
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Lots of great little details 
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The all new Town Hall 
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And the Fire Dept ... 
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The new stage is also done and looks amazing!! 
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In a kind of unexpected development, the amazing locomotive "Green River" came out from it's 5 year refurbishment (yes, 5 years) and is now on the tracks. It's absolutely gorgeous. 

And with that, Engine 41 is now undergoing a 5 year refurbishment. Love the attention and care Knott's gives their trains. 
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We are going back to the park this Sunday for Fathers Day and we're very much looking forward to spending more time in Ghost Town and experiencing all of Ghost Town Alive. 

In addition to Ghost Town Alive we were able to get some video of The Log Ride, our first attempt at a 360 video and an HD POV of the Log Ride. Enjoy and let us know what you think of the 360 video, and if we should try and do more. 

Lastly, there was a re-dedication of the Chicken Dinner Restaurant attended by the parks former and new GM and members of the Knott's family. 
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Our day wrapped up with a great presentation by Charles Phoenix about the history of Knott's and a panel discussion with some Knott's historians. 
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Last but certainly not least, a new piece of original artwork was unveiled for the 50th which you can purchase at the park or at the Marketplace. 
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As you can see it was a pretty packed day full of events, which is what you'll have at Knott's 75th anniversary of Ghost Town. 

Have you experienced Knott's 75 or the new Ghostrider yet? If so let us know your thoughts below. 

Related Updates: 
  • CA Great America's Mass Effect New Earth Review
  • Knott's Berry Farm: Ghostrider, Ghost Town and Chickens
  • Media Preview of Skyhawk and Flying Eagles at Canada's Wonderland
  • Opening Day of the Knott's Boysenberry Festival 2016


If you enjoyed this update please share with your friends and make sure you "like" us on Facebook and "follow" us on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. 

If you have any comments, please share them below

5/2/2016

May 2, 2016 - Knott's 75, Ghostrider and Chicken Dinner Restaurant

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Today we have a LONG overdue update from Knott's Berry Farm where a lot of work has been going on in preparation for the 75th Anniversary of Ghost Town and of course the major refurb of Ghostrider. 

There's also lots more going on around the area including the reopening of the Chicken Dinner Restaurant which looks AMAZING. 

Written by Gregg Condon
It was a beautiful spring day at the park. Sadly two of the major coasters were closed during our visit. 
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Let's start off with a look at the Wagon Camp and all the work going on. 
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Lots of work going on for the Wild West Stuntshow. 
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Ghostrider looks closer and closer to being done and the trains should be on-site by now. 
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A peek in the station, no sign of trains. 
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Some kind of platform has been added beneath the turnaround. 
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Still working on stuff
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Pan For Gold is back at the front of the park where it belongs and it looks great!!! 
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Should be much more popular in a more visible location. 
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A look at the previous location. 
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Last week the Chicken Dinner Restaurant reopened and it looks amazing!!! 
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Lots of outside seating towards the back, will be a nice spot to spend some summer evenings. 
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A peek inside
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We've seen a lot of complaints about the restaurant looking too "modern" or non-original, we didn't get that impression at all. It looks amazing in person. 
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One of the more popular locations is going to be the bar of course. 
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Lots of work still going on for the 75th Anniversary of Ghost Town
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Work going on for the living peek-in's
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The Barn is getting set to host live animals
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The new stage is springing up rather quickly
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The show area for the new stage is supposedly going to be bigger which will be nice
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No word on how Pony Express is going to impact the shows
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Lots of random things going on at the park as well. 

​Some work in the games area near The Log Ride
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Xcelerator was closed, the purple train was on the break run so not sure if it was just down for the day or is in refurb. 
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Jaguar is also getting some TLC as the supports have been repainted to their original color. 
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From the lift hill of Sierra Sidewinder it looked like the 2nd train for Jaguar was receiving a pretty extensive refurb, but of course we can't take pictures from the ride. 
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New Guest Relations area is open near Ghostrider. 
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The area where Riptide was has now been redone to a nice park. It looks really nice but hopefully a new ride will return to this area for 2017. 
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Alright, that's going to wrap it up for this update. We had lots of stuff to cover so we apologize for it being a bit too long. We do hope you enjoyed it though. 

Once we get word of testing going on with Ghostrider we will for sure be doing another update. 

Related Updates: 
  • Knott's Ghostrider update and opening day of the Boysenberry Festival
  • Knott's Tours of Ghost Town, Ghostrider and more
  • Knott's Ghostrider and Ghost Town update


If you enjoyed this update please share with your friends and make sure you "like" us on Facebook and "follow" us on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. 

If you have any comments, please share them below

3/21/2016

Knott's Ghostrider update and opening day of the Boysenberry Festival

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This past Saturday was the opening day of the Boysenberry Festival so we were of course out at Knott's to partake in all the boysenberry goodness. 
It was a pretty busy day at the park since along with media day for the festival it was a Saturday, the start of Spring Break and there was some kind of Cheerleader event going on. 

​Even with the crowds we had an amazing time at the park as always. 

Written by Gregg Condon
Welcome to Knott's Berry Farm!! 
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Knott's always puts on great media events
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Did you know that Knott's now has park-wide free WiFi? We used it all day on Saturday and even with the large crowds had no issues at all. 
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We'll start off the update with a quick look at Ghostrider. We also have a quick video update below. 
Even from outside the park you can see the difference between the old and new wood.

Not too many changes from our tours a few weeks ago. If you missed that update you can see it here.  
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Inside the park, not a whole lot has changed since our tour a few weeks ago. 
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As you may have heard last week the opening has been pushed back from Memorial Weekend until sometime in June. As soon as we get a specific date we will let you know. 
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The MCBR-less turnaround. 
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Even though it was a Saturday they were still working on the ride to get it ready. 

You can see below they are starting to put the lighting back on the pre-lift. 
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The pan for gold is looking great and it will be nice to see this back at the front of the park. 
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But of course the main reason for our visit was the Boysenberry Festival. 

​If you missed our preview of the festival from last week be sure to check it out here. 
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Boysenberry Trifle. 
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Panna Cotta and Cannoli 
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The Alligator Bites were back this year. And we have to say, these were great the first year but the last two years they just haven't done it for us. I think it's time for them to retire this item after this year. 
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Of course, no Boysenberry Festival is complete without yummy beer and wine. For a real tasty treat have them mix the Boysenberry Beer with the Berry Cider. Very refreshing. 
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Also new this year the Cinnamon Chips with Boysenberry Dip. Really nice treat. 
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Hot Dog with Boysenberry Relish. You can get it on the side too. 
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The Fun Stick and Boysenberry Flautas. 
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The Boysenberry Festival runs through April 3 so be sure you check it out. It's a lot of fun. 

The Calico Saloon also reopened from it's refurb and it looks absolutely fantastic!!! 
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We'll get back in with the good camera soon to get some better pictures to share. 
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So much more room up here now which is awesome. 
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The new chandelier's look great!!! 
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Just a couple of quick notes: 

Anybody know what's up with the crane backstage? This was from the Mystery Lodge line. 
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Love spending the evening in Ghost Town
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Until our next Knott's update ... moo. 
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If you enjoyed this update please share with your friends and make sure you "like" us on Facebook and "follow" us on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. 

If you have any comments, please share them below
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