Comet Review, Six Flags Great Escape Relocated PTC Wood Coaster | Is This Ride Still Elite?
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- čas přidán 31. 10. 2021
- Comet is the signature attraction at Six Flags Great Escape. This PTC wood coaster was designed by Herb Schmeck and it is a very historic ride. Comet was relocated to Great Escape in 1994 after running at Crystal Beach from 1948-1989. And the support structure used to build Comet was originally used on the legendary Crystal Beach Cyclone. While this ride once won awards for the world's best wood coaster, it has faded somewhat into obscurity in recent years. So what happened? Find out in this review!
Video Credits
Comet POV (The Great Escape)- • Great Escape Comet POV
Crystal Beach Cyclone (Lock 52 Historical Society)- • Crystal Beach, the Cyc...
Background Music
Mysterious Space Music
Gravity Sound - Portal
Creative Commons BY 4.0
Link- • "Portal" Mysterious Sp...
I last rode the Comet in 1987, when it was still at Crystal Beach.....God how i miss those days..! Crossing the border into Canada was easy, and we did it regularly! Made new friends everytine we went. As high school kids we were able to do that!! How times have changed, and not for the better, kids today almost don't know how to have good fun...
It's sad really....I will ride the comet again, and soon!
I have a feeling a lot of enthusiasts will head to this park this year since they're getting the new roller coaster.
I love the clip of around the world mini-golf! I used to go there as a kid and have fond memories of it!
I go annually.
I used to go to Crystal Beach every summer. I LOVED The Comet. I'll have to go to Great Escape next time I go back home to NY. I didn't realize it had a second life!
I'm glad it lived on.
This was my first coaster and this is my home park 💖 it started my love for coasters, it will always be #1 in my heart 🎢
Nice!
this ride is so smooth for it's age. and gives some nice floter air.
Yes it does!
very smooth i agree
I grew up riding this 20 times every year from 2007-now and I totally agree with everything you said. It’s definitely slowed down which really pains me to see. I’m glad Six Flags has managed to keep it smooth at least, but I wish they could do something to it to make it run fast again. You’re right, used to be near ejector on basically every hill, but this past year it was floated on nearly every hill but I rode on an 85° summer day. I came back a couple weeks later in the rain and it just wasn’t as strong. It’s a tremendous ride though and I wish more people knew it in its prime.
I also want to say that although the restraints aren’t buzz bars, for me (5’5”) they never touch my legs throughout the entire ride and I mean you fly on some of the hills. When I was younger and smaller and I remember getting some of the strongest air time that would rival Superman at SFNEs hills on this tiny wood coaster
I really wish the ride could run as fast as it once did. The layout is clearly still there.
I grew up not too far from Crystal Beach, and we used to go there for a visit or two each summer. It was a wonderful park - really casual in a way you don't get from big corporate parks, charmingly careworn. Almost every ride or attraction had places where there was a hint of rust, chipped paint, old neon and the occasional cobweb - with signage and structures still existing from just after the first world war.
After getting in the gate and visiting 'The Magic Palace' (a half-decrepit, half-amazing funhouse), we'd ride The Giant Coaster, built in 1916. It was suprisingly good. One of the most unique things about it were the boards that ran parallel to the rails on each side - to keep the coaster train from flying up off the track, from an age when they weren't equipped with safety 'under the track' wheels.
The Comet, though, was the main attraction. Part of the thrill of it was it's position in the park.
The park had an older concrete promenade - a straight-edged line right up against against the waves of Lake Erie, not unlike a breakwater. The Comet was built right up against the railing of this walkway in a straight line - with one full side (to the right of the lift hill as you were going up) flat against the lake. The coaster itself wasn't painted white as it is now - it was a greyish exposed steel - and somewhat rusty and stained to boot. Rattling up the lift hill, with the waves pounding below you on the right was quite the experience.
It's sad to hear it may be running more slowly now. That doesn't do the ride justice. It lived up to it's name - thought the old-looking steel rattled like crazy, it was smooth and lightning fast with airtime drops aplenty. The bends in the track were totally paid off, and even the last turnaround before the station threw you into a hard lateral press. One thing that's missing from the reconstruction is a steel beam that extended from the back of the station to the coaster structure. It was hung quite low to the track, though high enough that even anyone who was unfortunate enough to be standing up wouldn't have been able to touch it. Maybe twelve feet? Anyway, it was situated two thirds of the way down the first return drop behind the station, and when you were barreling over the crest, it flew towards you at an oblique angle that made it look like it was going to take your head off. Heee!
One or two summers, the cars were hooked up so that the first half of the train rode backwards, and the back half faced the front. That was nifty. By far though, my best experience on it was with my brother: we were just coming to the top of the lift hill when, sudddenly, the lap bar popped out of lock. It was flappably loose, and it wouldn't re-lock. So. I yelled "hang on!" and we got low in the seat, dug our heels into opposite corners of the car, interlocked our arms, held on for dear life...and had the ride of our lives. Happily it was civilized enough a coaster that at no point did we get close to flying out. But damn, that extra bit of adrenaline (and just the knowledge the bar was loose) made for a ride I'll never forget.
Thanks for sharing what Crystal Beach was like! I have heard Comet is running faster again this year.
I had the Pleasure of Riding the Comet at Crystal Beach MANY times as we had a Summer Place 10 Minutes away for 27 Years. I am 68 yrs old now but the First time on the Comet, I was 5 yrs old before Age & Size Restrictions were in place!
Nice!
I visited on a warm Saturday in June 2019. Comet was running quite well for me, but I now wish I could've ridden it when the airtime was even better, because I loved it as it is. Despite the big Saturday crowd, the wait for Comet was quite minimal, and I got 10 laps, despite me leaving early & them opening Comet late. This park was my stop inbetween SFNE & Seabreeze/Darien Lake, so the detour wasn't too big.
Pretty much going from Six Flags New England to either La Ronde or Seabreeze is the only way to avoid a big detour for this park.
Or great adventure to la ronde because you'll be on 87 N to travel from one to the other
Definitely the highlight of Great Escape. For me it wasn't actually a detour as I could squeeze it in between La Ronde and Six Flags New England on my 2016 cross country trip.
La Ronde is one of the few parks where this can be added without being a detour.
@@CanobieCoaster a bit off topic, but since this is a classic wood coaster, will you do a review on Screamin' Eagle at Six Flags St. Louis?
The name Cyclone was as popular in the 20s as the name Goliath was 10-20 years ago. Thanks for citing one of three extreme "Cyclones" with the high banked and jazz track elements; one in New Jersey, One in New York and one in Toronto. (BTW I saw a history of coaster drops: Thunderbolt at Kenneywood was the biggest record breaker in 1924. with a 90' drop. That park regained the same record in 1991 with Steel Phantom @ 225') But I digress. Thanks for posting!
The Crystal Beach Cyclone always fascinated me for how twisty it was for the time period.
@@CanobieCoaster I forgot to say the three I mentioned were clones.
Very smooth and rides well for its age, especially as a wooden coaster at a Six Flags Park. Not the most Intense but fun and has some good airtime. The park could use a better standout though as this would just be a filler ride at a normal park.
I agree.
That one hill in the front is wild asf
Which one?
@@CanobieCoaster the one after the fist turn around that you said was an ejection airtime moment
Imagine riding again a wooden coaster in New York that Canobie Coaster would say:
In its prime, this coaster would have been in my top wooden coasters. Every single hill used to give great airtime throughout the train. The ride had me bouncing out of my seat like a Mexican jumping bean. However, over the years it was running slow. The ride still has some airtime and laterals, it is just a shelf of its former self. That being said, it's still a fun ride. It is...
A) easily the best ride at the park.
B) probably the best ride at the park.
A (as of 2023)
Just rode this beautiful coaster on Saturday in the back it so awesome they kept this coaster alive like Phoenix its such a fun ride reminds me of Phoenix a lot I hope they keep it still alive for years to come
I don't see a scenario where they get rid of this.
I can tell just from your footage that it is running slower. I 1st road this coaster in 1974 when I was 16. It's been my favorite hybrid wooden coaster ever since. It was one of the tallest when it was rebuilt in 1948. Both front and back had a great smooth ride. My guess would be they replaced the wheels with different material and bearings. Same thing happen to the Jack Rabbit at Seabreeze on the lake north of Rochester, NY after they rebuilt the track and trains. It was more fun when the cars wobbled from side to side on the lift hill from the warped wood. A bit scary but fast.
I hope it runs faster again one day.
I just rode this for the first time and thought it was fun. I was getting airtime on nearly all of the hills. A lot of “standing airtime” Mostly floater, with one definite ejector moment. A great ride to me.
Nice!
Now the great escape is my home park so I vist here like 3 times per summer,and this ride is the best ride there,the back is my personal favorite with the first drop and the drop off the turn around being my favorite,I actually got a key chain of me and my mom on the comet so it one of my favorites
It's easily the highlight of the park.
I felt real lucky to get on Comet three times yesterday 8/13/23 throughout mechanical issues. The technical crew and main mechanic deserve a raise getting Comit up and running in no time! So, what was most impressive I felt was going into the last turnaround all the way to the end - it didn't seem to lose any steam and unlike most roller coasters that quit out on the adrenalin rush toward the end - it's not so on this amazing and historic gem. I was real eager to ride Comet, the 90 foot relic reminiscent of my childhood times on the 100-foot Cyclone coaster (1925-1968) at Revere Beach in MA - not that they had many similarities of design except for the similar relative size - the layouts were way different and tragically the Revere 100-footer burned and was destroyed. (A sin of sins!) Comet is a keeper though and worthy of its longevity. The quirky chain acceleration hurling you over the first hilltop makes this one stand out. Overall, it's got both a fine smoothness as well as moments of jarring snaps that keep riders on their toes at attention, and it is fast, so considering the review comparing its old speedier days, if that is true it must have been one amazing roller coaster - Still, I didn't feel it lacked any air time (riding first in the last row, then twice in the front row) it is exciting from beginning to end. It's history and allusion to our classic 'wooden' coasters makes Great Escape a rare and precious find. The Alpine Bobsled was down because of rain conditions that day so I'm chuffed, I'll have to return for that and the Comet again!
Usually Comet is reliable, so you got unlucky with it having downtime.
When this ride is at its best, this ride is a top 5 coaster for me. It sucks that it hasn't been running well these past few years. Last time I rode it was 3 years ago, so I still hold my really high opinion on it still. It was extremely rough that year, but I don't mind roughness if the ride delivers, and I got a lot of airtime everytime I rode it 3 years ago.
I'd prefer a rougher ride if I got the airtime it used to have.
I rode this great classic a number of times at Crystal Beach where it was also known as the "Lakeshore Legend" ( nick name ). It was in my top 5 for the longest time . Was so glad it was saved by Great Escape . The metal frame work is exactly the same so I'm guessing that the lift hill speed may be a culprit to the slower pacing . Night time ERT on the shores of Lake Erie was always a blast !
The lift hill still sped up towards the end like it always has in 2019 and 2021.
Ride this yesterday, while lots of weird rides closed at great escape, this ride never disappoints me. Was first “big” coaster for my kids, just as it was mine. Hopefully it stands tall for several years to come!!
This park can have some maintenance and staffing issues, but at least this is consistently open.
@@CanobieCoaster absolutely
Was surprised to see desperado’s plunge closed
Knew that alpine bobsled was closed and crack axle canyon was gone as well.
But all the memories from my childhood were there and was great to share them with my kids. That was important part
I rode this around opening day and I think it got some airtime back
It has a lot of airtime hills.
cool!
Yes
I just wrote a comment elsewhere wondering what you thought of this ride, and lo and behold you had a review all along!
I agree so much, and this has tons of potential, it's got a great layout and just needs a bit more speed and some rough patches cleaned up.
Personally, if I was going to titan track anything from A-Z, this and the Boss would be the two I would choose (and remove all trims on Boss of course, it would be insane, trust me, it was great in the opening year, top coaster). I'd love to go back to Great Escape JUST for this ride if they ever bring it to its potential. Would be amazing. I don't think Bobcat is enough of a draw for me to go back next year, and the Intamin Swiss Bob is now gone which was of course down the afternoon I visited, so that's that!
I don't think it needs Titan Track since it's still smooth. They just need to get it running faster like it did 10 years ago.
@@CanobieCoaster That was specifically why I said TT in this case, cause steel rides faster in wooder coasters that have had such changes
I saw a POV from six months ago and it looked like it was hauling. The POV was taken in the middle car but the airtime still looked incredible. It looked far faster than pov’s taken a year or two prior. Also people were wearing sweatshirts so it wasn’t an ultra hot day.
Interesting! Hopefully it is running faster.
Great video. I agree with all of your factors for its reduced reputation. And I definitely appreciated your experience riding it for two decades and your sense of it slowing down.
It's certainly a bummer it doesn't run like it once did, but at least it isn't rough.
@@CanobieCoaster And it’s still a fun coaster.
In the video of top wooden coasters (part 1) (2020) there was a quote that said:
Comet at Great Escape. Prior to 2019, this coaster would have placed in the top 10 or top 15.
Yes, it used to run better.
we'd buy rolls of tickets and ride the same seats all day. Definitely the best coaster by a beach. Sometimes, bruises are worth it? Glad it's still around, but saddened by Health & Safety removing all fun?
The ride is still fun.
it did feel a little sluggish this year especially and sitting a year probably didn't help... i actually believe though that the Comet and Phoenix are actually sisters with one other coaster all designed by Hurb Schmeck all at around the same time i believe he third is Comet at Hershey Park.with similar double out and back layouts no banking in the corners.
I got similar rides on this in 2019, but I agree sitting for a year may not have helped.
That's pretty cool. I knew that Cyclone was one of the Traver's Triplets but I didn't realize that when reborn as comet it was a sister coaster once again.
Riding this in July!
Enjoy!
@@CanobieCoaster Do they staple?
rode the comet with my cousins something like 6 times in a row when it opened in 94 and anytime i've been to the great escape i'd make a bee line to ride it. it's definitely not as fast as it was and idk if it's because i'm 52 now but especially in the back the ride is very jarring. i'm usually good having my arms up the whole ride but i'm now experiencing shoulder pain and quite honestly anyone i have been with has complained of the jarring nature as well. i understand it's a wooden coaster but it has plenty of steel to make it a smoother ride. one thing i can distinctly remember is every time the ride ended in the past, i'd be like 'that is so much fun!!!'. now, i'm more likely to say 'man i don't think i like this anymore'. by contrast, the 'supernova' which is a much smaller thrill ride right before the comet is my new favorite ride that i've had plenty of people say they hate hahaha i will also say with the comet, the lines aren't nearly what they used to be and it's nice and lenghty which is a huge plus. that first drop is always a blast and before the trees overgrew you could see my parents back yard from the top!!! hahaha
Comet is still my favorite there by far.
I rode this a week ago and it definitely felt a bit sluggish, particularly in the morning before the trains were full. I'm not sure what's causing it to run so much slower than it did before. It doesn't have any trims, and wooden coasters can't have their speed changed by swapping wheel compounds, since they all just have steel wheels. It's still the best ride at Great Escape by far.
And as far as I can tell, it didn't get a ton of trackwork. I've ridden it in the morning and afternoon. It didn't differ much.
@@CanobieCoaster If this were at a park like Knobels or Holiday World, I think this would still be elite!
I wish it had the buzz bars. It was more intense with those.
Me too.
Aye that's my brother
The better one.
Do you have any theories as for why it's running slower? Was there reprofiling like you described with your Yankee Cannonball review that took away airtime? I got my first rides in 2019 so I don't have prior rides to compare it to. Even so probably the best traditional wooden coaster in the Six Flags chain although it and Wild One are pretty close. The more restrictive lapbars actually don't bother me too much on Comet, I still have plenty of room even at their lowest point (not the case with most ratcheting lapbars) and with the seatbelt setup I find I'm able to jam the seatbelt between the bar and the divider to keep it even higher. I disagree on row preference, on my most recent ride I found there was more airtime in the front, cresting the hills.
I'm not sure with this one. It doesn't look like it was retracked. The lift hill is just as fast. And I rode it in ideal conditions. Maybe the lubrication changed?
@@CanobieCoaster Possible, I can certainly see Six Flags wanting it lubricated in a way to make it run slower, being that it means less maintainance.
@@CanobieCoaster I do remember seeing some blatantly retracked section a few years ago. If memory serves me correctly, it was like the valley and first bunny hill after the third turnaround. If I'm wrong on that, the retracked section is near that (meaning either the 2nd bunny hill after the third turnaround, or the kinked speed hill after the first turnaround).
Definitely hope this guy starts running fast again. So many memories growing up and getting wild rides on this.
Also, shoutout to my New Englanders!
How come has it been running slower lately? I don't think that the pacing on the ride is bad, but in general why do coasters run slower overtime? Could reprofiling parts of the ride help this?
Two reasons can be due to wheels or reprofiling, but I don't think either of these things changed. Maybe lubrication?
I think it could just be the trains. i want to say they were new like 10yrs ago but not sure. they might not be aging well.
Still a great coaster!!! It's too bad that Great Escape hasn't gotten a new solid coaster in way too long...
I know!
Thinking about going here to ride this. Would it be worth the 3 hour drive?
Yes, this ride and the park is worth it if you're that close.
Imagine if this got a GCI or Gravity Group Retrack to make it great again just like Ghost Rider did.
What's shocking with this is that I can't pinpoint why it has slowed down. It's not rough.
@@CanobieCoaster I think it could just be the trains. i want to say they were new like 10yrs ago but not sure.
I believe I heard somebody say these are the same trains that they have since it’s reopening. Through I found a image back in 2002 with the sticker it has now
Am I the only one who've thought of the idea of RMC Comet? A lot of older fans will be disappointed, but would it be a decent business move?
I would prefer the park use money to build a new coaster since Comet is already a good ride.
It’s a shame that many old wooden coasters start slowing down
Not all do.
Is it maybe an easy fix, new wheels with new bearings -- a squirt of Lemon Fresh Pledge here and there on critical parts... ? Give it some love it might desperately deserve?? @@CanobieCoaster
Probably just a case of Six Flags not really maintaining it right. The reason it's so smooth is probably just because of its construction, and not necessarily because they take care of it. I'm thinking it's not just a change in lubrication like you said, but also a lack of general lubrication. That, and who knows how good the bearings are on the axles? My guess is that if you replaced them with some new trains and broke them in, it would just start flying through the course. It also doesn't help that this ride doesn't necessarily get filled up all the time. Something obviously isn't right if it isn't running at its designed speed WITHOUT trimming.
My recent visits have been on weekends with full trains, so it could be a lubrication/axle issue.
@CanobieCoaster well and if you think about it, this makes a lot of sense when you consider another Schmeck coaster you mentioned in this video; Phoenix at Knoebels. It's considered to be one of the more consistent wooden coasters in terms of the ride it gives. It's also well known that it's very well taken care of, whereas it's known that Six Flags is less than stellar with general upkeep of rides. Not saying it's safe, just saying it's the bare minimum.
Are you reviewing Steamin Demon tomorrow
No, that's a standard clone. It's a very rough Arrow looper.
@@CanobieCoaster ok
Honestly great escape deserves a new coaster
An RMC raptor would be a great fit to help make a one-two punch along with Comet
I agree. It has been 18 years since an adult coaster, but I have a few thoughts in my park review why there was such a long drought.
I feel the closest thing the great escape is going to get for a coaster is a water coaster. Not saying it’s a bad thing but it’s been 18 years and water park to me is the money maker during the summer
@@carsonmasoncole1840 the parks next five attractions should be a starflyer, a water coaster, a kiddie area revamp/expansion, a new coaster (most likely a single rail or a family coaster), and a family raft slide in the waterpark
im never going back to great mistake again
I enjoy the park for what it is.
I grew up riding this legend at Crystal Beach, and this video, while appreciated, is extremely depressing. Not your fault...
💔
I'm glad the coaster could live on in this form.
because six flags never learned how to maintain wooden coasters. they treated them as steel and thats why they are bankrupt and the coasters that were once masterpieces are the way they are. six flags deserved to be at the bottom of the pool along with a shatner wife. and yes, i know comet has a steel structure, but it is still wood above that.....i shudder to think of what condition it would be in if it had a wooden structure. six flags had the magic to turn anything into shyt.
This ride is in good shape at least.
They are adding helium to the wheel assemblies which can slow it down if not dosed properly.
Twister used this at Knoebels in it's early days when the entry into the rose bowl (Helix) was extremely aggressive. The more you add, plus the addition of wheel bearing grease can cause additional friction and slow the train down
Thanks for sharing!