On July 7th, we got up early yet again, got in the car, and began our two hour drive to Carowinds. We went to Carowinds to ride its newest creation, the Fury 325 gigacoaster. We also went to ride one of the park to ride one of its oldest creations, Thunder Road, which will be closing soon. While we were there I took over one hundred photos of the rides, and here they are! So sit back, relax, and enjoy our photos of Carowinds!
As we began our drive, the sunrise was beautiful over the Greenville, South Carolina area!
A couple hours of driving later, we were greeted by Fury 325 as we pulled up to the entrance of Carowinds!
Since we arrived at the gates before they opened, I got out of the car and took some shots of Fury 325 and its amazing looking twists and turns!
There’s so many over-banked turns on Fury 325!
Intimidator was looking picture perfect too!
Intimidator is one of too many great B&Ms at Carowinds. It was my 100th roller coaster when I rode it last year!
Carowinds’s skyline is getting more and more crowded. The Slingshot is another new ride that debuted this year, further crowding the Carowinds skyline.
While we waited, Fury 325 began its morning test runs!
Watching the car go through the banked turns and airtime hills made me even more excited to ride Fury 325!
Airtime+Crazy Banked Turns+Clamshell Restraints=Awesome Looking Gigacoaster!
They opened the gate and we pulled into Carowinds’s new toll plaza. It looked very nice!
Here’s a shot of Fury 325’s lift hill and first turn.
It’s hard not to be impressed with this as your view when you enter the parking lot!
The 90 degree banking over the entrance is pretty awesome too!
This turn just looks fantastic!
Who doesn’t love the view of a B&M flying around you?
I hadn’t even rode this ride yet and I already knew it was going to be fantastic!
I just love seeing a roller coaster car hanging sideways!
Beautiful, just beautiful.
The new entrance plaza looked great! It was modern, clean, and had a roller coaster flying over it. What’s not to love about that!
Hanging over the drop.
We waited for the park to open and went in at 9:20ish. After a bathroom break, we made our way back towards Fury 325 for Season Passholder ERT!
Since I took most of my pictures before I rode it, here’s my review. Fury 325 is the BEST roller coaster that I’ve ever been on. I love the mix of banked turns and airtime hills. The best moments were the 90 degree banging above the park’s entrance and the banked turn into the drop under the entry pathway. They were my favorite parts of a great ride. Stalling sideways over people and looking out into the world sideways is a sensation only found on Fury 325. The smooth, fast, and fun Fury 325 narrowly edged out Millennium Force and I-305 for my new favorite coaster!
Here’s another shot before we rode Fury 325. The park was empty as we entered!
After riding the fantastic Fury 325 twice, one time in the front and one time in the back, we decided to go to Thunder Road. The back part of the park was still closed, so I took some shots of the surrounding rides. Here’s Ricochet!
Here’s Hurler, which is a better ride at Carowinds than at Kings Dominion.
Here’s Vortex, Carowinds’s stand-up coaster.
There it goes!
Into the vertical loop!
The Carolina Skytower was shooting above the park!
Carolina Goldrusher Nerd Shot!
Here’s Carolina Cobra, which is a very good Vekoma Boomerang!
Carowinds definitely has a naming theme, Carolina ________. 🙂
This crate, which is under a waterslide in Carowinds’s waterpark, has something to do with their 2016 “Big Splash.” What do you think it could be?
Thunder Road was closed, so we ventured over to Flying Ace Aerial Chase, which was a quick little credit for me! 🙂
Flying Ace Aerial Chase was a nice family coaster, which was fun for all ages!
Although it is a little rough, I had fun on it!
It was right next to the Xtreme Skyflyer, but I wasn’t in the mood for that!
Here’s one more shot of Flying Ace Aerial Chase!
Next, it was time for Intimidator!
It was a great ride, and with the stadium seating on the cars, which makes them heavier, the back row feels very fast on the first drop!
After Intimidator, we decided to see if Thunder Road was open. We began our walk back towards Thunder Road and passed by Nighthawk on the way.
Here’s one more shot of Flying Ace Aerial Chase.
And another of Nighthawk’s corkscrew ending.
We passed by Boo Blasters, which is a great shooting ride, which we would ride later.
We also passed by Afterburn, which is one of so many fantastic B&Ms at Carowinds.
It was time to ride Thunder Road and get our commemorative buttons. I’m sorry for the picture that cuts of half the sign!
Thunder Road is closing later in the month after giving millions of rides over the last few decades. The ride has become a favorite for Carowinds visitors. Are you sad to see it close or are you excited for the “Big Splash” that will replace it in 2016?
Here’s another shot of Thunder Road. It definitely is getting old, but I’m kind of sad to see a classic like it go.
Here’s the special Thunder Road button that I got. The first 100 riders each day until it closes will get one of these.
After getting our commemorative buttons, it was time to go ride Afterburn!
Afterburn is a fun and intense B&M invert.
When I say intense, I also mean rough. It is a relatively rough roller coaster, even in the front row. Alpengeist at Busch Gardens Williamsburg is definitely smoother, although I’ve heard accounts saying otherwise.
I do love the fighter jet that stands in front of it!
The batwing element of Afterburn is one that’s not found on too many coasters.
I like the birds on the cars!
After riding Afterburn, we decided to get a good view of the park on Windseeker. On our way over, we passed the photogenic Carolina Goldrusher.
After Windseeker, we went over to Nighthawk.
Although some may disagree, the corkscrew ending on Nighthawk is more fun than the endings of the other Vekoma Flying Dutchmen coasters. I find it much more fun and intense, but not rough.
I love the look of the Flying Dutchman track!
These Vekoma flying coasters look so unique. Especially in these turns!
The loops on these are another intense and fun moment!
This one goes out to all the Flying Dutchman brake nerds out there!
And this one goes out to the Flying Dutchman wheel nerds out there!
If these two rides had a baby, it would be Skyhawk. Hey, isn’t that a ride? RIDE CONSPIRACY THEORY! 😉
Next, we ventured to the Carolina Skytower. From the tower, I got this shot of Vortex.
Carolina Cyclone was going in the distance!
Carowinds seems to have a big and nice waterpark. I wonder what they could add to it next year? Could it be a log flume? A slide? Let me know what you think on Twitter and Facebook!
Here’s another shot of Thunder Road, which is a beautiful coaster!
Nighthawk was looking good down there!
Afterburn was standing tall and proud!
And Flying Ace Aerial Chase stood out with its bright colors!
Those lucky riders were about to reach the peak of Intimidator!
Of course, I couldn’t leave Fury 325 out! Here’s a shot of one of the best elements of it!
That over-banked turn is so fun!
I have only one complaint about Fury 325, I wish I didn’t have to get off it!
This picture summarizes the best moment of Fury 325.
Here’s a shot of Hurler.
Let’s not forget about Fury’s airtime. I may talk about all of the banked turns and hills, but this is a great part of the ride too!
Vortex
Carolina Cobra
Windseeker
I just love seeing Carowinds from up high!
What’s a better view than a B&M?
They are clearly a bunch of satisfied riders!
Here’s some more Fury 325!
Ugh, I think my Fury Fever is coming back after looking at all of these photos!
Well, I guess I’ll have to come back to cure my Fury Fever! Oh No (I say like it’s a bad thing)!
The drop on Fury 325 is amazing too, the clamshell restraints allow you to fly out of your seat!
Once we were back on the ground, I took another picture of Nighthawk!
And on our way to lunch I couldn’t help but take pictures of Intimidator!
After eating a quick lunch at Chick-Fil-A, which is by far the best restaurant at any Cedar Fair park, we walked over to Planet Snoopy.
We rode the Woodstock Express, which was a good kiddie coaster!
Afterwards, we made our way around the back of Carowinds and rode the Carolina Cyclone.
Although it wasn’t my favorite ride, it was pretty good for an Arrow.
I kind of like how it changes colors through the course, It helps give the ride a unique look.
Finally, we walked back towards Hurler.
We decided to ride Scream Weaver, which is an enterprise ride.
Scream Weaver was my first Enterprise, and I loved the ride. I had a lot of fun riding it!
After riding Scream Weaver, we used our Fast Lane passes to ride Fury 325 three more times, two of which were in the front row.
After riding Fury 325, visiting the gift shops, and getting food and drinks for the car, we decided it was time to leave.
On my way out, I took some final shots of Fury 325.
This is what I love about it, leaning 90 degrees and looking at people below you. That doesn’t happen on any other ride!
We had another amazing visit to Carowinds. Fury 325 is a great new addition to the park and I’m sad to see Thunder Road going! Do you want to see even more updates from the parks? Check us out on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! You can also find us on YouTube, Google+, and Tumblr! Thank you for visiting Theme Parks and Travels! Be sure to follow us here on WordPress and share with the buttons below!
Want to use our pictures on your website? Go ahead, but please list us as the source!
2 Comments
GAD · July 21, 2015 at 12:16 pm
Excellent review of this park! Fury is absolutely amazing, and it’s going to take quite an effort to knock this coaster out of my #1 spot too.
Andy · July 21, 2015 at 1:45 pm
Thank You! 🙂