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Rank the GCIs

Dan Nguyen said:
1. Thunderhead - Relentlessly long layout, incredibly smooth and great operations. Night rides are especially fun
2. Mystic Timbers - Pretty aggressive, but not as aggressive as Thunderhead. The shed is fine but when I was at KI, I was sitting on that brake run an awfully long time.
3. Texas Stingray - a tamed down version of the two above. I love the wave turn.
4. Gold Striker - There's a great ride underneath the rough exterior, but the shakes are a bit distracting. Still a solid ride. I'd love to ride it after a retrack, but I don't think that's gonna happen anytime soon.
5. Lightning Racer - you can tell this is an earlier GCI. Pacing isn't as refined as the newer GCI's I've ridden. The racing part is really fun.
6. Heide the Ride - I liked this ride more than White Lightning. The layout is similar but this ride is a bit smoother and has the little diorama at the end
7. White Lightning - fun coaster. The airtime is really neat. Great for rerides too, especially after a couple $2 beers from the Sky Bar
8. InvadR - this is one of those coasters that gets better and better the more you ride. It doesn't do much but it does pack a nice punch for something its size for sure. I do wish the station had more elaborate theming like Cobra's Curse and I wish BGW didn't clear cut the forest behind, but I'm glad to have this little coaster in my backyard.
9. Roar - much like Lightning Racer before it, Roar feels like an early GCI. The ride isn't bad by any means, but the layout does need some refining.
10. Wildcat - My first time riding this, there were potholes at the bottom of every hill. The ride doesn't really have many standout moments except for the seal brakes at the end. I remember the ride losing speed and meandering to the brakes. Wildcat's Revenge is a definite improvement over the original
11. Gwazi - Worst coaster I've ever ridden. I don't think the Flyers helped it much. I just remember getting rattled hard and hitting bad potholes at the bottom of most of the drops. I was happy to see it closed down as anything is better than this headache machine. Iron Gwazi is a massive improvement for sure.
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I had to chuckle that the GCI credits that you and I have in common are in the same order and your 4th and my 5th which appears to be the cutoff point between great and less than great are both there due to roughness. Probably not that uncommon, but I digress.
 
Added 2 more GCIs to the lineup last year, including my new favorite GCI of all time. There are now 4 GCIs left in North America that I need to ride.

1. Wicker Man - Basically take Thunderhead/Mystic Timbers and add some amazing theming, a preshow, and tuck it into the mountains so you can't really see anything from far away. Easily my favorite GCI of all time. Having the unbanked turn halfway through the ride is a real treat. You don't really see that on coasters as much anymore.
2. Thunderhead - Relentlessly long layout, incredibly smooth and great operations. Night rides are especially fun
3. Mystic Timbers - Pretty aggressive, but not as aggressive as Thunderhead. The shed is fine but when I was at KI, I was sitting on that brake run an awfully long time.
4. Texas Stingray - a tamed down version of the two above. I love the wave turn.
5. Kentucky Rumbler - Like Gold Striker but the turns were retracked with the new 208 track so they're smooth. The ride is pretty aggressive but doesn't have the quick pacing that Mystic or Thunderhead has. It does have a few rough patches but nothing deal breaking.
6. Gold Striker - There's a great ride underneath the rough exterior, but the shakes are a bit distracting. Still a solid ride. I'd love to ride it after a retrack, but I don't think that's gonna happen anytime soon.
7. Lightning Racer - you can tell this is an earlier GCI. Pacing isn't as refined as the newer GCI's I've ridden. The racing part is really fun.
8. Heide the Ride - I liked this ride more than White Lightning. The layout is similar but this ride is a bit smoother and has the little diorama at the end
9. White Lightning - fun coaster. The airtime is really neat. Great for rerides too, especially after a couple $2 beers from the Sky Bar
10. InvadR - this is one of those coasters that gets better and better the more you ride. It doesn't do much but it does pack a nice punch for something its size for sure. I do wish the station had more elaborate theming like Cobra's Curse and I wish BGW didn't clear cut the forest behind, but I'm glad to have this little coaster in my backyard.
11. Roar - much like Lightning Racer before it, Roar feels like an early GCI. The ride isn't bad by any means, but the layout does need some refining.
12. Wildcat - My first time riding this, there were potholes at the bottom of every hill. The ride doesn't really have many standout moments except for the seal brakes at the end. I remember the ride losing speed and meandering to the brakes. Wildcat's Revenge is a definite improvement over the original
13. Gwazi - Worst coaster I've ever ridden. I don't think the Flyers helped it much. I just remember getting rattled hard and hitting bad potholes at the bottom of most of the drops. I was happy to see it closed down as anything is better than this headache machine. Iron Gwazi is a massive improvement for sure.
 
A short list, but really easy to order...
1. Thunderhead @ Dollywood. My favourite woodie by some margin. Fast, twisty, packed with elements, FUN. I was able to re-ride without exiting, superb. The setting in my favourite park certainly helps, but this is just one top ride.
2. Wodan @ Europa Park. A good woodie with some interesting ideas, but just does not match Thunderhead.
3. Gwazi @ Busch Gardens Tampa. All I remember is lots and lots of rattle and side to side shaking.
 
Dan Nguyen said:
Added 2 more GCIs to the lineup last year, including my new favorite GCI of all time. There are now 4 GCIs left in North America that I need to ride.

1. Wicker Man - Basically take Thunderhead/Mystic Timbers and add some amazing theming, a preshow, and tuck it into the mountains so you can't really see anything from far away. Easily my favorite GCI of all time. Having the unbanked turn halfway through the ride is a real treat. You don't really see that on coasters as much anymore.
2. Thunderhead - Relentlessly long layout, incredibly smooth and great operations. Night rides are especially fun
3. Mystic Timbers - Pretty aggressive, but not as aggressive as Thunderhead. The shed is fine but when I was at KI, I was sitting on that brake run an awfully long time.
4. Texas Stingray - a tamed down version of the two above. I love the wave turn.
5. Kentucky Rumbler - Like Gold Striker but the turns were retracked with the new 208 track so they're smooth. The ride is pretty aggressive but doesn't have the quick pacing that Mystic or Thunderhead has. It does have a few rough patches but nothing deal breaking.
6. Gold Striker - There's a great ride underneath the rough exterior, but the shakes are a bit distracting. Still a solid ride. I'd love to ride it after a retrack, but I don't think that's gonna happen anytime soon.
7. Lightning Racer - you can tell this is an earlier GCI. Pacing isn't as refined as the newer GCI's I've ridden. The racing part is really fun.
8. Heide the Ride - I liked this ride more than White Lightning. The layout is similar but this ride is a bit smoother and has the little diorama at the end
9. White Lightning - fun coaster. The airtime is really neat. Great for rerides too, especially after a couple $2 beers from the Sky Bar
10. InvadR - this is one of those coasters that gets better and better the more you ride. It doesn't do much but it does pack a nice punch for something its size for sure. I do wish the station had more elaborate theming like Cobra's Curse and I wish BGW didn't clear cut the forest behind, but I'm glad to have this little coaster in my backyard.
11. Roar - much like Lightning Racer before it, Roar feels like an early GCI. The ride isn't bad by any means, but the layout does need some refining.
12. Wildcat - My first time riding this, there were potholes at the bottom of every hill. The ride doesn't really have many standout moments except for the seal brakes at the end. I remember the ride losing speed and meandering to the brakes. Wildcat's Revenge is a definite improvement over the original
13. Gwazi - Worst coaster I've ever ridden. I don't think the Flyers helped it much. I just remember getting rattled hard and hitting bad potholes at the bottom of most of the drops. I was happy to see it closed down as anything is better than this headache machine. Iron Gwazi is a massive improvement for sure.
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I think you might be the first person I‘ve ever seen place Wicker Man on top of a list of multiple GCIs! I absolutely love the ride, but most enthusiasts seem to see it as “so-so” or “good but not great” at best. Even for me who likes it more than most, it’s not my favoured GCI out of the two I’ve ridden (Wodan sits a little bit higher for me).

Out of curiosity, do you think Wicker Man would be your favourite GCI based purely on the track and train layout, or do the theming and surroundings largely contribute to your high ranking of it?
 
1.Troy - Toverland
2. Roar - Six Flags Discovery Kingdom
3. Heidi - Plopsaland de Panne
4. Joris en de Draak - Efteling
5. Gwazi - BGT

I will do Thunderbird at Powerpark (Finland) later this year. And also Wodan and Wicker Man are on my wishlist for the coming years.
 
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