Busch Gardens Update - May 2013 (PART 4)
Welcome to PART 4 of this new Busch Gardens photo-update (PART 3 can be found HERE).
We have never seen the Kariba Marketplace shop before. Is it new? Well, let's check it out:
Some more miscellaneous photos of Sheikra:
Nearby, one of the animal exhibits near Lori Landing seems to have been obscured by a new wall:
If you take a peek behind, you will notice that there is actually a very nice-looking bird:
There he is!:
The Sesame Street Safari of Fun area is very popular among kids:
The Bird Gardens area of the park:
Going toward Gwazi:
The plot behind Gwazi is being prepared for upcoming special events:
Gwazi:
Many rumors say that this may very well be the last season for this wooden roller coaster:
If that is indeed true, we are sure many will be disappointed. On the other side, we also know that quite a few people consider this coaster way too rough. What do you personally think? Share your comments with us.
Close-up shot. Did you know that the chain pulling the coaster cars are constantly lubricated? Take a look:
Some more photos of this very impressive coaster:
One of the sides of the attraction has been completely decommissioned:
They built a bridge on top of the track itself:
And that should be all for now. Thank you as always for reading, and have a great rest of your evening!
I will never, ever go on that coaster again. Roughest coaster I have ever been on by a LONG shot. Glad to hear that it is going to be closing down to make room for something else.
ReplyDeleteIt has a great design, and I love that it used to "race", but when you get off feeling like you just got out of a cage fighting match against a sumo wrestler, its not very fun. Maybe making the change to a hybrid like some of the Six Flags wooden coasters have been doing would be a great fix. Steel track (for a smooth ride) on the wooden frame.
Did you ride it before the millenium flyer trains were put in or after,I have to agree that right before they put them in I felt lucky to have not broken a rib on Gwazi.Then I rode it with the new trains and it was much improved,although I hear people still complain about the roughness.In my last couple of rides I didn't think it was that bad.I don't want the coaster to leave or be moved to the Virginia park so making another change to a hybrid would be fine by me.
ReplyDeletemy oppinion is that it is way too rough and for the amount of space/land that it takes they can build a steel roller coaster that will be loved by meny more.
ReplyDeleteI love Gwazi but I is a rough one. Could we possibly see something like a revamp of the ride like Texas Giant and Iron Rattler got? With the half steel half wood hybrid? Might be just to expensive though?
ReplyDeletemany*... also i dont think its the roughest i've been on.. as six flags over georgia great american wooden coaster has the number one spot for me but definitely rough. i also hope to see busch gardens change out the timbuktu fair rides takes the feeling away from the theme park experience
ReplyDeleteI'm not a huge fan of wooden roller coasters because they're so rough. The only one, which some argue isn't a true wooden roller coaster because of how it was manufactured and constructed is El Toro at Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey. It's extremely smooth. On the other end of the spectrum is Wildcat at Hershey Park, which is the roughest I've ever been on (think concussion!). Anyway, I'm fine if they remove this relic, but it would be great if they put something in like El Toro to replace it with something smooth that keeps the wooden coaster enthusiasts happy and coming to the park.
ReplyDeleteI've been on Gwazi with the PTC and Millenium Flyer trains. The PTC trains were horrid, and the Flyer trains were actually much smoother when it first opened. But after about a year, I rode it again to discover the ride had become almost as rough as with the PTC trains. As for receiving the Rocky Mountain treatment, I feel like the layout of this ride wouldn't get them a lot to work with, there is nothing that makes it stand out from other woodies that the Rattler and Texas Giant did before their retrackings. We'll see what BG wants to do, there's a rumor floating around they are looking to add another launch coaster.
ReplyDeleteI love wooden roller coasters because they are rough. I feel like it adds to the thrill even though sometimes it can give me a bad headache after. I think many people do not appreciate wooden roller coasters anymore because many have just learned to like only steel roller coasters. Either way, I am sad to see it go but at the same time it was hardly busy and it broke down way too many times.
ReplyDeleteThe new drop tower attraction for bgt will be 330 ft tall and with a late 2013/early 2014 opening possibility timeframe
ReplyDeletehttp://parkrumors.com/busch-gardens-drop-tower-to-be-330ft-tall/
Gwazi is rough compared to most steel roller coasters but is no rougher than many woodies and is tame compared to some of the classic woodies. If you want to know what REAL rough feels like, try the Grand National at Blackpool, UK!
ReplyDeleteAs a coaster addict with over 100 credits, I must say I prefer wooden roller coasters, with their roughness being a large part of the appeal (the Grand National is still my all time favourite) Gwazi is in my top 5, and my favourite coaster at BGT. I'd be absolutely gutted to see this coaster go. Woodies seem to be disappearing at an alarming rate (Starliner at Cypress Gardens / Legoland and the Dania Beach Hurricane in Florida alone)
Find me a "save Gwazi" website and sign me up!!!