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Post by Bud Parsley on May 26, 2009 9:08:07 GMT -8
So I was in Portland this last weekend and along with an always enjoyable trip to Enchanted Forest, I finally made it to Oaks Amusement Park. I wasn't expecting much, and the visit pretty much lived up to those expectations.
I rode the two coasters, Zoooooom and Looping Thunder, and I thought both were decent rides. I also liked what I saw in terms of flat rides - it seemed they were relatively new (a couple I had never seen before) and well maintained.
The highlight to me was the dark ride Lewis & Clarks Big Adventure. I swear this thing was straight out of a Simpson's episode. This was the single most bizzare, weird, crazy ride I have ever been on in my life and I spent the entire ride laughing my head off. I can't believe this thing exists! HILARIOUS!!!!
Overall Oaks gets good marks from me for keeping their rides in decent shape and providing a nice assortment. And bonus points for the dark ride. Simply. Hilarious.
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Post by 65skylark on May 27, 2009 19:29:08 GMT -8
^ It was a haunted mansion dark ride for most of its life. They changed it to the Lewis and Clark theme probably 10 to 15 years ago. The haunted mansion was much better.
It kills me that a park like Oaks can have some high end flat rides but Silverwood can't. Oh well.
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Post by Roan on Jul 8, 2009 22:56:39 GMT -8
It was more like 5-10 years ago. xD I remember the haunted house thing... Was pretty funny. I don't remember going on the Lewis and Clark one.
For some reason no matter how old I get I always love the Enchanted Forest. xD Best place ever.
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Post by skinnyguy on Jun 1, 2010 10:24:39 GMT -8
So, I was in Portland yesterday, and decided to swing by Oaks to check it out...after reading Bud's post, I figured it would be worth it!
Ironically, this was also the weekend of the Multnomah(sp?) County Fair, which is held at Oaks Park, so it was pretty busy. Didn't affect the lines for the rides, though - we basically walked on everything we rode.
The coasters were okay - Looping Thunder was kind of painful, but not too bad. It was a little less than comforting to see the supports for the ride propped up by stacks of wooden planks! Coasters like that one are the kind that actually scare me a bit - they are so rickety and old that you just hope you get to the end of the ride without the entire thing falling apart! I think that makes it a little more exciting. One other thing that I found very interesting is that despite the short length of the ride, and the short line, there were still TWO TRAINS RUNNING!!! I swear, every theme park but Silverwood seems to get this concept.
I also liked the little train that went through the park and down by the river - that was fun and relaxing. And I, too, was surprised at how many good flat rides they had - I agree that a lot of them looked fairly new, and well kept up.
Overall, I'm with Bud - the highlight of this place was the Lewis and Clark ride - that was so ridiculous! The ending (not to mention the entire ride) was so bizarre and confusing - I didn't know what to think when we got off the ride! But it made the trip well worth it. I would go back to that place in a heartbeat just to go on that dark ride again and have a good laugh!
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Post by monkeybeast on Jun 25, 2010 22:25:42 GMT -8
there are two videos on You Tube about the L&C ride and they are a must see. This ride is sooooooooooooooo bad that it's laugh out loud good.
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Post by cadbug on Jul 6, 2010 15:19:37 GMT -8
One other thing that I found very interesting is that despite the short length of the ride, and the short line, there were still TWO TRAINS RUNNING!!! I swear, every theme park but Silverwood seems to get this concept. Silverwood used to have two trains for tremors.. and i believe two trains for timber terror.. but this was years ago when they had MORE people working... and MORE people at the park.. i love oaks. and i live in albany so i'm only about a hour drive away from it.. but oaks has a bit more people working and they are a smaller park.. It takes more then 2 people to work a rollercaoster with 2 trains. in oregon you can get away with it i guess. but you can go anywhere else like disneyland or knotts berry farm.. and if it has two trains there are like 4 or 6 people working the loading station to ensure everything goes smooth.. silverwood doesn't have that right now.. but i hope they get it back..
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Post by Bud Parsley on Jul 7, 2010 20:44:05 GMT -8
^Welcome to the forum cadbug.
Sorry to have to correct you, but Silverwood has NEVER had two trains on any coaster in the park. I've been going since before Timber Terror and Tremors were even there.
In fact, none of their coasters are even set up with the necessary systems to be able to run more than one trains. Which is why it isn't just as simple as "getting another train" to turn them into multiple-train coasters. I'm sure it could be done, but it would take quite a bit of work.
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Post by skinnyguy on Jul 8, 2010 13:02:14 GMT -8
^Yep - I haven't been going as many years as Bud, but I was there the first year Tremors was open, and I've been almost every year since - it's always just been the one blue train. And it's always made that line such a drag!! I think it'd be worth it on those extra crowded days to have second trains on the coasters, but I doubt it'll ever happen. They obviously aren't interested in that kind of an investment.
Still never ceases to amaze me that the only park I've ever heard of that has two wave pools (which they admitted was purely to help improve the guest experience, and I thought it was a great idea), doesn't have second trains on their coasters.
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Post by 65skylark on Jul 13, 2010 20:12:54 GMT -8
*hijacking of thread continued*
Skinnyguy, that is a GREAT point you make about the wave pool. I really have no idea how much a wave pool costs to install, but it seems to me it wouldn't be too much more than adding a second train to at least one of the woodies.
Bud, I think they actually did run two trains on Corkscrew for a very short period of time as that coaster IS set up to run two trains. I could be wrong about them actually running it with two, though. It just seems like I remember reading about them running both trains for a short period of time.
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Post by cadbug on Jul 17, 2010 9:52:04 GMT -8
Thanks. I dont think that its Silverwood doesnt think it would be a good investment. I think they might be looking at the reality of the situation.
A. they dont get alot of people in the park. -it makes sense yes on the busy days for them to have two trains on the coasters. but in reality, the second train wouldnt pay for itself, because it might not run for more than 3 days?
B. they flat out dont have enough workers. -Yes i wanted to work there, i filled out the application, however its a 7.5 hour drive from where i am at. it was a dream. but i cant afford it. HOWEVER. i've been called TWICE this summer saying that they're still hiring. yes they could turn that money to other things for the park.
i do think it would be nice if they had more than one trains on the coasters.. but i do have to admit, sometimes it is nice standing in line and getting to know people around you. I've met some really nice and cool people standing in line. I would rather have the people interaction then the speediness of rides.
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