ThrillRide! Special Features

...and a Chance Aviator, which I'd never ridden; bonus!

They call it the Sky Rider. Joel and I rode this one together. It's sort of fun and you do get to control the roll and yaw a bit. Kind of tepid, though, compared to Flying Scooters. Maybe if it were taller.

And here's one more cute little brightly colored credit, if you are so inclined.

Well, I'm sorry to report that Thunderhead was, in the end, disappointing.

PSYCH!

It's actually super-freaking mega-awesome, like everyone says.

From the classic GCI spiraling first drop all the way to the very end, it's a rip-snorting, criss-crossing, hill-jumping, tree-dodging masterpiece. I haven't come close to riding everything in Great Coasters' glorious portfolio, but I am certain that Thunderhead has to be included in any discussion of their very best.

And yeah, at night? Forget about it. The lift hill roadbed rails are underlit, a dim orange radiating from beneath them. And at the top, that light, the only light on the entire ride, just stops, leaving only blackness beyond. From the front row, it appears that we are heading towards... nothing.

Ask me to describe the layout in any detail and the best I can offer after a handful of rides is: "There's the first drop, and then some turns and drops, and more turns and more drops, and then turns. And drops." In. Sane.