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Lake Compounce Discussion Thread


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Nice report! Glad you enjoyed Ghost Hunt, it’s one of my favorites. My high score is slightly over 400k ( have to go solo and spam the purple targets) but it’s a lot of fun trying to break high scores.

 

Wildcat is a lot smoother than it was, but it should have been fully re-tracked before given new trains. Lots of odd bouncy spots and shakiness. At least you don’t get a headache like you did on the old ones. And they only run one train because that’s what they do.

 

On BD I find any of the front cars to be ride-able but the front is the smoothest and probably my favorite. I can tolorate 6-1 and I really like the airtime back there. The ride usually runs very fast in October and in the dark it is insane. The green train is supposed to be going on within the next three weeks, so hopefully they will run two for those busy Graveyard weekends in October. They do want to fix up a few spots on the ride before October and I think they are planning to do the rough spot during the off-season.

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Nice report! Glad you enjoyed Ghost Hunt, it’s one of my favorites. My high score is slightly over 400k ( have to go solo and spam the purple targets) but it’s a lot of fun trying to break high scores.

 

Wildcat is a lot smoother than it was, but it should have been fully re-tracked before given new trains. Lots of odd bouncy spots and shakiness. At least you don’t get a headache like you did on the old ones. And they only run one train because that’s what they do.

 

On BD I find any of the front cars to be ride-able but the front is the smoothest and probably my favorite. I can tolorate 6-1 and I really like the airtime back there. The ride usually runs very fast in October and in the dark it is insane. The green train is supposed to be going on within the next three weeks, so hopefully they will run two for those busy Graveyard weekends in October. They do want to fix up a few spots on the ride before October and I think they are planning to do the rough spot during the off-season.

 

I didn't see any sign of the green train, but they did have a crane nearby, so maybe? I would have loved some rides after dark, but the park was only open till 8. Maybe someday...

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  • 1 month later...

I have no clue what just happened at Boulder Dash.

 

The entire queue was filled so if Lake Compounce were ever going to retry two train operations on Boulder Dash, tonight would be the night. I saw a parade of employees come up the exit. Could it be, two train operations?

 

"Attention those queuing for Boulder Dash, there will be a brief delay in operations but you're in for a treat. Boulder Dash is going into two train mode!"

 

They dispatched an empty train and I anxiously waited to see if they'd stop it on the lift or brake run after last year's mishap. Sure enough they stopped it on the lift. An employee went over to the transfer track. After 5 minutes, the lift restarted. The same empty train returned. Another guest asked what was going on.

 

"Change of plans."

 

I say this half joking, but does the park not know how to add a second train?

 

On the bright side, Boulder Dash was absolutely hauling and pitch black Haunted Graveyard rides are one of the best coaster experiences out there.

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Good to know Boulder Dash is still running well at night.

 

I really wish I had the time to make it up there as October is the only time entering the park is worth the admission price as you get Boulder Dash at night and Haunted Graveyard.

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^^^That is interesting, I wish I was there to see it. I am crossing my fingers for next Saturday for two train ops or this will probably be the first season since the ride opened where one train has ran all season. The green train ran fine all day Friday so it is good to go (first time it ran with guests all season).

 

I am guessing the protocol for transferring a train now requires an army of employees to make sure the transfer is successful, unlike past attempts.

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FYI to anyone possibly going tonight- Lake Compounce had a power outage.

 

Edit- Everything on the left side of the park is closed. That includes Boulder Dash. They are no longer selling ride tickets but honoring season passes and pre-purchased tickets. They had to turn the Potato Patch fry stand into the Haunted Graveyard ticket booth.

 

Phobia is running at least. Unfortunately they do not expect to regain power to the left side for the rest of the night.

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Made it to the park for a few hours for the Haunted Graveyard last night.

 

The haunt itself has always been great, and still is now. I don't think it's the Graveyard's best year; there's nothing really new except that I think the zombie hospital at the end might have been very slightly expanded on, and at least last night, they seemed understaffed; there were more empty rooms than I'm used to. Still very well done overall with a good 45 minute walk through the entire thing, a lot of great themeing and environments, and some actors very much getting into their roles.

 

The graveyard really does have some great sets, too. There's one particular effect that has you walking down a slope into what looks to be a lake of fog that's incredibly effective; it's genuinely hard to make yourself take the step that "submerges" you. That hadn't been working properly the last couple years when I was there, with far too thin a fog to have any effect, but this year it was back to the way it was the first year they introduced it...and with a little extra surprise too that gave the best scare of the night for me personally. The Banshee Realm is simple but very spooky and atmospheric, the Vortex with the spinning tunnel is always such a fun effect, and the actors in the vampire and cannibal hillbilly areas were having a lot of fun with their jobs. Unfortunately the ending is something of a letdown now. The finale used to be the Reaper's Realm, which divides groups up and sends you down long, incredibly dark tunnels with absolutely no ability to see anything and, when it works properly, complete isolation. Unfortunately it usually turns into the person in front of you panicking and stopping, and you walking into them then shuffling down the blind hallway sandwiched between them and the person behind you...but it's still a very good room, and made for a great ending. Sadly instead of that being the end, it now deposits you in the Zombie Hospital, which is by far the worst part of the entire haunt. Plain white plywood walls and a few actors doing the "la la la I'm so insane won't you play with me la la la" act, it's just not at all up to the standards of the rest of the haunt, and a pretty sad way to end the whole thing.

 

Overall though, still a fantastic haunt, one of the best in New England, IMO.

 

Outside of the Graveyard, the park was...Lake Compounce 2018, meaning very up and down. Some of the extras for the season were very nice, especially the seasonal food and treats. The park has a stand set up with hot soups, in bread bowls if you want (the clam chower is very good!), lots of hot cider all over the place, apple fritters that were a bit more like a cider doughnut than what I think of as an apple fritter, but tasty all the same, and among a bunch of other nice treats, the halloween bubbling drinks have returned. They make them (four different kinds of vodka drinks) in special cups with a cage for dry ice at the bottom, so they bubble and smoke while you enjoy them. At $10 for a smallish drink, they're a little bit on the pricey side, but pretty tasty, and he bubbles on your tongue and the first time you realize you're blowing smoke out your nose are fun enough to go for once a year, at least.

 

We didn't have a ton of time for rides, but we got some of the important stuff in, anyway. Ghost Hunt was working well; the new guns make a huge difference, it's a lot more fun when you can actually hit a target. Phobia is still at the top of its game and running like a new coaster should. Wave Swinger continues to try its best to be a high end thrill instead of a family ride; I still have no idea how they can run theirs so much faster than anyone else. Looking great for the season with the custom LED lighting, too.

 

On the other side of things, because LC can't be all good things lately...Wildcat ran for a half hour or so then shut down and didn't reopen. This makes 5 trips to the park in a row over the last 3 years that WIldcat's been down when I tried to get on it. Maybe it's me. Downtime was also standing silent and making the most of its name all night again. The Ferris Wheel is looking absolute tragic right now with 60% of its lights burned out and missing; I'm really hoping the park just isn't replacing them because they're planning on giving it an LED upgrade in the off season. There's no excuse to let it get that bad otherwise.

 

And, of course, Boulder Dash. Running just the blue train tonight, but with crowds as low as they were, that was to be expected. It was much, much smoother than last year, definitely improved somewhat, but it still very like it was dragging quite badly to me. There was very little airtime on the out stretch at all, and halfway back on the return leg, the train picked up very nasty vibration and lost speed very quickly, just crawling over the top of the hill before the on-ride photo, so badly I thought something might be stuck under the train or a wheel. Apparently the group that rode the next train didn't get that at all, so I have no idea what it was. Still very much not the same Boulder Dash from a few years ago, though...

 

I don't regret going out to the park one bit, the Haunted Graveyard is well worth the trip, but there still seems to be a lot of work to be done on the park itself. It's really sad seeing all the problems they've been having lately. Here's hoping 2019 is the year everything turns back around for them.

Edited by Rai Fox
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I thought Boulder Dash was running very well at the beginning of October. It was absolutely flying. But I think it was 60 degrees the night I visited. Last night dipped into the 30s so I suspect that may have contributed to the ride running a bit sluggish.

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Yeah, the cold last night definitely didn't help things. I've been doing the Haunted Graveyard for a good decade or so or more though, and I've been on even colder nights when it still seemed to be running as fast as ever. My friends that rode after me claimed it didn't seem slow at all for them, though so...who knows. Just as long as I can get some really good rides in next year, one way or another...

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BD was running two trains on 10/20, ops were amazing and were ready to dispatch before the other train was in-sight. Night rides were excellent and very fast. Not sure why Wildcat went down, it has actually been very reliable recently. Totally agree about Wave Swinger, it is awesome and is easily the best one iv'e been on. One of my favorite flats there along with Flyers and T&L.

 

I agree about the Zombie Hospital, it feels like it was rushed and not much thought was put into it. I liked how the ending was before without it, but I guess they wanted to add something afterwards. It is kinda cheap because it doesn't stay up all year and has easily movable walls. Wish there was something they could do to make it look better.

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  • 6 months later...

Some notes from today, the park's second weekend.

 

Boulder Dash is running really well for it being so early in the season. My gauge is usually if the boulder hill has air and it had it in droves today.

 

Phobia, Thunder Rapids (not surprised on this one), Saw Mill Plunge, and Revolution are closed.

 

Down Time now has a second seatbelt on all seats. I've heard SFNE's S&S tower now has the same. They were a pain to insert and remove since there wasn't a lot of clearance with the arm rests.

 

Also I could see the Sky Ride had been demolished (at least the station and first tower) from the far turnaround of Boulder Dash. RIP.

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  • 5 weeks later...

Here’s a quick park update, the park is off to a rocky start, but hopefully things improve soon.

 

-Boulder Dash is running great and the train finally feels broken in. It was flying today and was even crazier with some rain.

-Phobia, Revolution, Mammoth Falls, and Wave Swinger are down. I doubt the first two will open until July (haven’t opened all year), and the last two should be open soon.

-The Lights Out waterslide (lighthouse) is permanently closed. I was hoping the next bit of news would be positive, but I guess not.

-Metal detectors were added in the tunnel, things are still a little slow with them. If arriving at opening, I would suggest allowing some extra time to get through.

-The game attendants will do anything they can to try to get you to play a game. Even worse than Six Flags. Then people take the basketball they won and accidentally drop it into the station tracks on BD causing an E-stop. Seen that quite a few times already.

-In general the park does not feel like they are ready to handle large crowds and it seems like corners are being cut with ride maintenance. Hopefully things improve in the future.

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That's a bummer about Lights Out. It was the icon of the water park and the main reason to go to the wet side. However, it had a putrid capacity so I rarely rode it. Did you happen to hear why it was closed?

 

I'm surprised Phobia still hasn't opened this year since it's the main ride in all their marketing campaigns and has run reliably the past few years.

 

At least Boulder Dash is running great!

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I generally like it but our last rides on it a few years ago were atrocious. I believe the people who say it's running better now but I'm not about to drive over there and pay their inflated admission fee to find out. I enjoyed Phobia a lot more than Boulder Dash on our last visit but Phobia apparently hasn't opened for the season yet because it's at Lake Compounce and of course it hasn't.

Edited by coasterbill
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For those without season passes, Haunted Graveyard is the de facto time to visit. For one that haunt is awesome and two you can ride Boulder Dash at night. Plus I think the admission is $30-35 for Graveyard, which is very fair.

 

I've found Boulder Dash to be running faster than usual this early in the season, but it's no rougher/smoother than it has been the past few years.

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They used a different supplier to apply new polyurethane to the wheels and they have been delayed. I think it’s safe to say they won’t use that supplier again.

 

Lights Out needs a lot of work and there is lots of corrosion on the structure. Honestly I thought the slide hurt a little but it was the most extreme slide they had. I’m pretty sure they will be getting some new slides next year though.

 

I also watched security walking someone down from Saw Mill Plunge after they jumped out at the top before the drop. I’m sure that ride is next on the list for removal.

 

It’s clear that guests do not like the direction the park is going and there are multiple one star reviews on every review platform.

Edited by BoulderDash
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