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Taron vs FLY; which Phantasialand launch coaster do you prefer?

Taron or FLY?


  • Total voters
    69

Nicky Borrill

Strata Poster
I think the way in which people on here always described Taron as "glorified Rita" was "Rita done gloriously". I seem to remember the person who started it saying that it's because they both have non-inverting layouts mostly comprising of twists, turns and the odd pop of airtime, but Taron manages to make a lot more of it.

Through that lens, I could also see Galactica and FLY having a similar relationship.
Through that lens almost any 2 coasters can be paired up ;)
 

Matt N

CF Legend
Through that lens almost any 2 coasters can be paired up ;)
I guess so, but I definitely seem to remember someone comparing Taron and Rita in that vein on here and everyone else then cottoning on... trouble is, I now can't remember where or who started it!
 

Will

Strata Poster
I seem to remember the person who started it saying that it's because they both have non-inverting layouts mostly comprising of twists, turns and the odd pop of airtime, but Taron manages to make a lot more of it.
This is an accurate description, to be fair - plus both coasters being a short walk from a better one ;)
 

Matt N

CF Legend
Just found the post by @Pokemaniac that better explains what I'm trying to say: https://coasterforce.com/forums/thr...intamin-blitz-2021.42627/page-18#post-1086974
I think you are misremembering the statement I often like to make: Taron is a glorious Rita. They both feature a launch (two, in Taron's case), some twisting hills, and no inversions, while having roughly the same footprint. But Rita was designed back when the only important thing about a launch coaster was the launch itself, and the rest of the layout was merely a detour to shed some speed on the way back to the station. By the time Taron was designed, the focus of such coasters shifted into the layout itself, with the launch being merely a way to get up to speed. Rita effectively ends after the launch, but in Taron's case that's where the fun begins.

Taron and Rita do the same things, when you boil it down to the most basic elements, but Taron pulls everything off a hundred times better. It is an evolution of the concept, and gloriously so. So in other words, Alton and Heide should look into a like-for-like-ish replacement of those rides ASAP.
So in a similar regard, I'd like to argue that FLY is a glorious Galactica (apologies, glorified was the wrong word).
 

Nicky Borrill

Strata Poster
This is an accurate description, to be fair - plus both coasters being a short walk from a better one ;)
My main issue with this statement is your use of the term 'short walk!'

Just found the post by @Pokemaniac that better explains what I'm trying to say: https://coasterforce.com/forums/thr...intamin-blitz-2021.42627/page-18#post-1086974

So in a similar regard, I'd like to argue that FLY is a glorious Galactica (apologies, glorified was the wrong word).
Glorious is a better term, but I still think it's a completely pointless comparison.

There is another regularly used quote on here, though I can't be bothered to find it...

Rita is a launch coaster, the launch is centre stage, and the main element of the ride... The rest feels like, and probably is, just there to kill off speed (especially since a top hat was impossible.)

Taron is a coaster that launches. The layout is the main event, the launches are secondary. Although it could be argued that the second launch is a highlight, and I would not disagree. The point is, the launches are not the primary purpose of the ride, they exist to bring the trains up to speed, with the layout being the main event.
 
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Heth

Mega Poster
I see a lot of people talking about queasiness of FLY. I get motion sick on some rides, which is a bummer as an enthusiast, however I really want to try FLY. Is it really that bad? Are any rows better to avoid queasiness (e.g. Black Mamba in the back row made me slightly queasy - but not in a day ruining way- , but I was fine in the front row).

Taron didn't make me feel ill in the slightest. I tend to find forces and sudden stops are the problem, so rides that are just fast or have air time are rarely the issue.
 

Nicky Borrill

Strata Poster
I see a lot of people talking about queasiness of FLY. I get motion sick on some rides, which is a bummer as an enthusiast, however I really want to try FLY. Is it really that bad? Are any rows better to avoid queasiness (e.g. Black Mamba in the back row made me slightly queasy - but not in a day ruining way- , but I was fine in the front row).

Taron didn't make me feel ill in the slightest. I tend to find forces and sudden stops are the problem, so rides that are just fast or have air time are rarely the issue.
Depends on the person…

But it also can vary from day to day. I don’t generally get ‘queasy’ but I don’t find it’s sometimes uncomfortable depending how I drop into the restraints.

That being said, I do find the position and restraints more comfortable than a B&M flying coaster. The problem is it’s a lot more intense than any B&M I’ve ridden, so if you’re not in a comfortable position when you transition to the flying position, it is later amplified on some of the more intense elements.
 

JoshC.

Strata Poster
Anybody who says ‘Taron is a glorified Rita’ is talking out of their @r$3… Coasters are only subjective in a sense of how much you enjoy them… In no way whatsoever, other than manufacturer, is Taron even similar to Rita…

Hydraulic vs LSM
Single vs Multi Launch
OTSR vs Lap
Short mundane layout vs extremely long, airtime filled layout.

I literally could go on and on, but honestly it’d just be feeding the trolls, so I’ll leave it there.

I see the points you have made. But I still, in my own words, would call Rita a "baby Taron".

The rides are different, yes, in many ways. And the "launch coaster" vs "coaster with launch(es)" argument fits as well.

But for me, Rita and Taron have the same core aim: a fast coaster which focuses on twists and turns. For what it's worth, I quite like Rita's layout for what it is; certainly wouldn't call it mundane.

Taron and Rita are definitely coasters of their times too, which might be why a comparison between the two is a bit of a mute point.

In any case, I still would see Rita as a baby Taron, and feel like they can be lumped together in the same conversation under the right context.
 

Nicky Borrill

Strata Poster
I see the points you have made. But I still, in my own words, would call Rita a "baby Taron".

The rides are different, yes, in many ways. And the "launch coaster" vs "coaster with launch(es)" argument fits as well.

But for me, Rita and Taron have the same core aim: a fast coaster which focuses on twists and turns. For what it's worth, I quite like Rita's layout for what it is; certainly wouldn't call it mundane.

Taron and Rita are definitely coasters of their times too, which might be why a comparison between the two is a bit of a mute point.

In any case, I still would see Rita as a baby Taron, and feel like they can be lumped together in the same conversation under the right context.
I just don’t see the point in comparisons like that… Any similarities are way too ‘loose’ for it to have any meaningful purpose.

For example, by that standard, we could say Nemesis is a baby Odyssey, or the Big one is a baby Fury… (Again, we could do comparisons with such loose similarities all day, but it would be a waste of time.)

Most of these comparisons would actually share more similarities than Rita and Taron.

Each to their own I guess… But I’ll always think these kind of comparisons are basic as hell… Just like the None-thoosie who thinks a B&M invert and SLC are the same thing… (And for the record I hate the phrase ‘basic.’ Probably because it more often than not describes me!!! But it was the most fitting way to describe my feelings towards this kind of thing.)
 

Nitefly

Hyper Poster
Saying “Taron is a glorified Rita” is a phrase that puts both rides down. As in, Taron is nothing more than a ‘dressed up’ Rita.

Saying “Taron is a better version of Rita” is I think what was intended. To me, that makes sense contextually. I also see the similarities.

To me, Rita is a naff ‘budget equivalent’ of Taron - considerably worse in pretty much every way imaginable (theme, speed, launches, length, duration, restraints, airtime, near misses, queue etc).
 

Sandman

Giga Poster
Rita is/was nothing more than a slapdash attempt to get a launch coaster in the UK as quickly as possible. It came off the back of the success of its bigger Intamin Acceletaror counterparts in the US, except Alton couldn't use height as the main marketing point like TTD. The whole name and theme felt a bit perplexing and naff; borrowing heavily from Dragster for style and aesthetic. Nothing wildly imaginative like Oblivion and Nemesis were.

Come to think of it, Taron is more comparable to Nemesis than Rita in that context. The launches are of course the star feature, so at surface level, you'd naturally compare it to another launch coaster. But Taron is designed to be a whole coaster experience, bobbing and weaving through a well designed environment like Nemesis. The twists and turns are intentionally designed to whip you around like a rag doll whereas Rita's turns are literally just a figure 8; a design that isn't, and never was, unique to Rita.
 
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TechnToddler

Roller Poster
Just got home from a mini trip that included Phantasialand (first visit since 2009) and wow... both FLY and Taron are really good. And the the theming on top of that! I managed to get on the front row on FLY for my first ride of the day and that experience was awesome. Taron is very close but i have to put FLY as my number one after that front row ride.

As i haven't found any stats for FLYs height i tried to estimate it by compare the highest point with the building just close to it. My guess is around 17 m and it's probably somewhere between 15 and 20. What do you guys say?
 

Jamesss

Hyper Poster
I can answer this poll now after a recent trip.

I definitely prefer Taron, but that's sort of by default because it didn't make me ill.

Reading this thread, I'm pleased to see I wasn't the only one who found that F.L.Y. made them queasy. I thought I was getting old.

I absolutely adored the Rookburgh area though. It's one of the most visually impressive theme park areas in the world.

As a coaster though, Taron is more fun and rerideable.
 

Howie

Donkey in a hat
Confession time: I think it may well have been me who first applied the term 'Glorified Rita' to Taron, as evidenced by this lil' snippet here:

Post in thread 'Universal IoA | Jurassic World VelociCoaster | Intamin Blitz | 2021' https://coasterforce.com/forums/thr...coaster-intamin-blitz-2021.42627/post-1086957

Post in thread 'Universal IoA | Jurassic World VelociCoaster | Intamin Blitz | 2021' https://coasterforce.com/forums/thr...coaster-intamin-blitz-2021.42627/post-1087172

I've also used it to describe Maverick:

Post in thread 'Rides considered good that you don’t like' https://coasterforce.com/forums/threads/rides-considered-good-that-you-don’t-like.43501/post-1061135

Post in thread 'Rides considered good that you don’t like' https://coasterforce.com/forums/threads/rides-considered-good-that-you-don’t-like.43501/post-1061176

However, I can't take full credit unfortunately, as @furie seems to have coined the phrase waaaaay back in 2011 when talking about Storm Runner:

Post in thread 'Missed coasters' https://coasterforce.com/forums/threads/missed-coasters.32634/post-762969

And for the record, I wasn't being overly kind about Taron, not like 'Rita done gloriously', it was more of a damning-with-faint-praise kinda statement, as in it's only a glorified Rita.

Having said that, and to answer the OP, I still think it'll be better than FLY. I haven't ridden the new boy yet (January, hopefully 🤞) but I can't imagine it'll beat Taron. I may have dissed Taron slightly in the past, and I do think it's a tiny bit overrated... but it's still bloomin' good and sill sits comfortably in the top 10%.
Not convinced FLY will make the cut, somehow...
 

Nicky Borrill

Strata Poster
Confession time: I think it may well have been me who first applied the term 'Glorified Rita' to Taron, as evidenced by this lil' snippet here:

Post in thread 'Universal IoA | Jurassic World VelociCoaster | Intamin Blitz | 2021' https://coasterforce.com/forums/thr...coaster-intamin-blitz-2021.42627/post-1086957

Post in thread 'Universal IoA | Jurassic World VelociCoaster | Intamin Blitz | 2021' https://coasterforce.com/forums/thr...coaster-intamin-blitz-2021.42627/post-1087172

I've also used it to describe Maverick:

Post in thread 'Rides considered good that you don’t like' https://coasterforce.com/forums/threads/rides-considered-good-that-you-don’t-like.43501/post-1061135

Post in thread 'Rides considered good that you don’t like' https://coasterforce.com/forums/threads/rides-considered-good-that-you-don’t-like.43501/post-1061176

However, I can't take full credit unfortunately, as @furie seems to have coined the phrase waaaaay back in 2011 when talking about Storm Runner:

Post in thread 'Missed coasters' https://coasterforce.com/forums/threads/missed-coasters.32634/post-762969

And for the record, I wasn't being overly kind about Taron, not like 'Rita done gloriously', it was more of a damning-with-faint-praise kinda statement, as in it's only a glorified Rita.

Having said that, and to answer the OP, I still think it'll be better than FLY. I haven't ridden the new boy yet (January, hopefully 🤞) but I can't imagine it'll beat Taron. I may have dissed Taron slightly in the past, and I do think it's a tiny bit overrated... but it's still bloomin' good and sill sits comfortably in the top 10%.
Not convinced FLY will make the cut, somehow...
Ahhh but you’re on the dark side, a fully paid up member of the Helix fan club…

I jest of course, but for a few years It did seem as though it was almost a game of two teams… Team Helix and Team Taron. It did seem as though those who preferred one generally weren’t as keen on the other (myself included.)

I think it was because they were so often compared, but so completely different, that caused that rift. If you liked all the things that one does well, the other doesn’t do that, and vica versa. So for me, Taron had it’s theming, fast powerful launches, feeling of speed, twisted airtime… Helix doesn’t do any of these things well. Helix has it’s own strengths, like it’s hillside setting, inversions, the power of the straight airtime, that Taron doesn’t do well.

What I’m trying to say is that, if one set of assets was more important to you, it meant, because they were so often compared, that the other coaster’s assets didn’t stand out to you as much as the fact it didn’t do what the first coaster did. If that makes sense. When you stop comparing them side by side so much, it’s easier to point out the strengths of both!
 

Howie

Donkey in a hat
Now that you mention it, it was me who started the Helix vs Taron poll:


Sadly, Helix is still losing 😪
 
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Jamesss

Hyper Poster
Now that you mention it, it was me who started the Helix vs Taron poll:


Sadly, Helix is still losing 😪
Surprised that Helix is losing. Now that I've done Taron, for me Helix is the clear winner. I think both are a tad overrated though.
 

Nicky Borrill

Strata Poster
Now that you mention it, it was me who started the Helix vs Taron poll:


Sadly, Helix is still losing 😪
And I hadn't even voted!!! :eek:

They're both great!!! Sadly I won't be returning until my favourite woodie reopens.
 
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