The Coaster Critic's Blog

Class of 2008 - Roller Coasters That Debuted This Year
As predicted in my Top 10 New Roller Coasters for 2008, my top pick Ravine Flyer 2 opened to many positive reviews and it landed at 8 on my Top 10. Read my full review. I'm looking forward to seeing how it fairs in Mitch's '08 Coaster Poll next month. Canada's Wonderland's Behemoth also received a lot of props on the Web and some even hailed it as the best B&M hyper coaster to date. Fahrenheit's reception was mostly positive, but its opening wasn't the smoothest including a session where it valleyed back in May.

Also, a couple of family launch coasters opened. I rode both the Pony Express at Knott's Berry Farm and OCC MotoCoaster at Darien Lake and they were pretty fun. Here's my review of the MotoCoaster. X2 was reborn, but I can't really compare it to its former self. Supposedly, it was smoother. The schizophrenic music was more weird and annoying and done much better on Led Zeppelin. The only special effect that I remember was the super hot flame which was okay. Here's my X2 review.

Dark Knight Movie = A+, Dark Knight Coasters.....
On the far other end of the spectrum, the Dark Knight coasters at Great America (Chicago) and Great Adventure (New Jersey) were slammed with bad reviews and comments. Like this 40 comment post where angry readers left reviews that included words like: 'lame', 'terrible', 'wack', and 'horrible.' Even though they were based on a run-of-the-mill wild mouse, I thought these coasters had potential. Allegedly, I was wrong. SF New England lost their Dark Knight clone due to planning mishaps. They may have actually dodged a bullet. The Dark Knight coaster that was coming to New England is now being built at Six Flag Mexico.

Theme Park Accidents
Like 2007, we saw another high profile, gruesome theme park accident in June. Last year there was a teen girl whose feet were severed while on a drop ride at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom. This year, a teen was beheaded by one of Batman: The Ride's trains. Read the full story including a video of CNN coverage. Since the incident, Six Flags has increased the presence of warning "Do Not Enter" signs around their coasters. Aside from signs and the 6-foot fences there isn't a whole lot Six Flags can really do with incident like this and another one at Magic Mountain where a man was hit by Ninja. For more, read all of my roller coaster accident posts from this year and years past.

Troubled Economy Strikes Amusement Park Industry
One of the biggest stories of the year was the opening, and premature closing, of the brand new $400 million Hard Rock Park. The park sited insufficient marketing funds and Myrtle Beach guests taking shorter trips. As I've said before, I wonder how the park would have done if its first year would have been in a better economy. Read about all things Hard Rock Park including my park and coaster reviews.

Herschend closed Celebration City and canceled Adventure Montain at Dollywood. Cypress Gardens will no longer be a theme park and is selling its theme park rides. And somehow, after talks of being de-listed from the stock exchange, Six Flags faired relatively well according to their latest earnings release. They definitely took noticeable action to combat the down economy with the "everyone pays kids price promotion"
running for much of the summer.

Amusement Industry Continues to Consolidate
PARC Management who also acquired seven former Six Flags parks in 2007, bought Arkansas park Magic Springs, several Family Entertainment Centers and NASCAR Speed Parks. InBev bought American brewing stalwart Anheuser Busch which has major implications for the Busch Entertainment Group which runs the SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, and Discovery Cove parks. Still no word yet on the fate of the parks, but all signs are pointing to the new owners selling off the amusement park arm of the business as InBev likes to stick to their core competencies. I for one think beer and theme parks co-exist beautifully. Well, not really, I just don't want anything to happen to my favorite park chain.

Dubai Explodes with Future Theme Parks Planned
Suddenly Dubai, a city that's literally rising from the desert overnight, is the place to be for the amusement industry. Everyone's looking to or already has planted their flags there. A large Busch multi-park on an island shaped like Shamu was just the beginning. There will be a Universal Studios Dubai, a Six Flags Dubailand (2011), Legoland Dubailand (2011), a Marvel Theme Park (2012), and a Dreamworks Dubailand (2012). I'm sure there are more as well. I might have to find myself a plane ticket to the United Arab Emirates in 5 years or so.

In Memorium
This year, we said goodbye to a few roller coasters. One of the most missed will be Dorney's Schwarzkopf designed looper the Laser. I never heard any official word on why it was sold, but I would assume low ridership or to make room for something new. Super Saturator's gone from Carowinds to make room for the Carolina Cobra. Thankfully, Hypersonic XLC was removed from my old home park, Kings Dominion. I can't say that I'm sad to see it go. Read my Hypersonic XLC review to see why. Six Flags America is selling Two Face after many breakdowns leaving riders stranded. A landmark coaster in the UK was recently removed from Alton Towers. The Corkscrew, was one of the first double-looping coasters in Europe.

What's Your Take on 2008?
Did I miss anything? What do you think was the biggest story of the year? Did you have a favorite ride or really memorable trip to a park? Leave a comment below.

Loyal reader Judy P in Pgh, sent in these photos from her trip to Michigan's Adventure in Muskegon. New for 2008, the park unveiled the relocated inverted coaster Thunderhawk from Geauga Lake. Michigan's Adventures' signature ride is Shivering Timbers. It's a massive wooden coaster that boasts almost 5,400 feet of track.

Check out these photos that Judy took on her trip:

Ravine Flyer II An Impressive World-Class Wooden Coaster
I'd been excited for Ravine Flyer II since I learned about it last winter. It's the product of 15 years of work, planning, and local politics. The Gravity Group designed hybrid woodie was my top pick for the new coasters opening in 2008. The New York Times even quoted me when I dubbed it the "Sleeper Hit of 2008". So needless to say I was looking forward to getting to Waldameer Park in Erie, PA to see if Ravine Flyer II was as good as expected. Ravine Flyer's climb seems exceptionally slow, which is by no means a negative. This gives riders time to take in the breath-taking view of Lake Erie towards the top. I felt like I was looking out onto an ocean. You can even make out waves breaking on the coast. Park owner Paul Nelson told me that at dusk a mist comes in off the lake that greases the tracks making Ravine Flyer II even faster. Just as riders admire the view with 'oohs and ahhs' their attention is snapped back to the drop below as the trains dives down off of the hill its situated on. The train just rose 80 feet, but the opening hill is a 115 foot drop that banks gently at the bottom. There's a great pull over the crest in the back seat and the hill feels much longer back there.

Out and Back - Down the Ravine & Over the Highway
At the bottom, the train immediately flies through the first tunnel with surprising speed. Then up into the arched bridge over the highway with a short pop of air. In the banked, twisted turn around (similar to a section on Hades) the train climbs a hill that seems to momentarily sap some of the rides energy, but its followed by another great drop and a trip back across the highway.

The Twisted Section - Speed, Airtime, & 90-Degrees!
The rest of the ride is non-stop speed and thrills with no letting up whatsoever. Much like Gravity Group's Voyage, Ravine Flyer II is seemingly possessed or like the energizer bunny for a nicer analogy. It's jam-packed with pops of air and banked turns. Nelson explained that this is Gravity Group's secret to success as it keeps the rides initial energy going. There are nearly no sections of just flat track anywhere. The highlight of the second half is the 90-degree banked turn to the right. It's shorter than sections on The Voyage, but still exciting. The train seems like it could've continued on for longer, but the brake run finally puts the beast to rest.

Early videos of Ravine Flyer II looked fun, but they don't really do the speed and intensity of this ride justice. It's much faster than it looks on video. And though you get thrown around a bit on the turns, I couldn't find a moment of roughness on the whole ride. Gravity Group has done it again. Congratulations to Waldameer Park! For their persistence they've got a world-class woodie that's built to last and will thrill thousands for years to come.

RFII flies its way into my Top Ten landing as the 8th best of the nearly 160 roller coasters I've ridden and the 5th best wooden coaster. It has also received my 7th '10'. If you're anywhere near Erie, get to Waldameer. Final Rating 10 (Superior)

Robb Alvey from ThemeParkReview has made a great video covering this amazing ride. Check out this great video of Ravine Flyer II at Waldameer Park:

MotoCoaster Marks New Era for De-Flagged Darien Lake

On my recent trip to Darien Lake, near Buffalo, NY, I was happy to see that the park is thriving post-Six Flags. PARC Management, the new operators, have the park hitting on all cylinders. They even invested in a first-of-its kind motorcycle-themed launch coaster in the Orange County Choppers MotoCoaster.

Darien Lake did a great job tying in the "Orange County Choppers" TV show. The souvenir shop had the custom chopper that the Tuetuls built for the ride on display. If you've never seen the Discovery Channel show it's pretty cool. It follows a family of custom bike makers in Orange County, New York. It's an enjoyable show even if you're like me and have no interest in bikes.

On a Thursday, we waited about 5 minutes before boarding the 'crotch-rocket' like cars. You straddle them just like a real bike. After boarding, a restraint bar slowly rises up until it reaches your back. The bar doesn't smash you into the bike, it still allows you to sit up, but at the same time won't allow you to fall out. The ride starts with a quick right hand turn out of the station. Then the train, with 6 rows of two bikes across, creeps to the starting line and then stops. The racing lights switch to green and you're off.

The train thrusts forward at a fun, but not too intense, 0 to 38 mph in 3 seconds. The launch is generated via a flywheel unlike the LIMs found on most launch coasters. It felt much faster than I expected. Part of that might have been the seating position, I'm not sure. After the launch the train climbs up and into the contained twisted layout. I would've preferred a more open layout that would've traveled around that section of Darien Lake, like Knott's Berry Farm's Pony Express, or just had a larger footprint like the Italian Job coasters, but Darien was probably a little short on space.

The layout was still fun. I found myself through my hands up and then holding on for the tighter turns. The idea of a bike-themed coaster may seem a little gimmicky, but I prefer the seating position over stand-up coasters. (I smell another coasterology 101 posts.) Overall, the OCC MotoCoaster is a fun ride with surprising speed, some fun momentary g-forces, and a unique (or at least pretty new) seating position. This is the perfect coaster to re-launch a theme park and hopefully bring the masses back. A new launch coaster for a park this size is a strong addition. Final Rating - 7.5 (Good Approaching Great)

Check out this onride video of the OCC MotoCoaster at Darien Lake:Have you ridden the OCC MotoCoaster? What did you think? Leave a comment below.

Daring New GCI Woodie Debuts at Six Flags St. Louis
Today, Six Flags St. Louis' opened its ninth roller coaster with the debut of Evel Knievel. The Great Coaster International woodie was my #4 pick for the Top New Roller Coasters of 2008. Knievel's a clone, but in this case that's a good thing.

It's based on Thunderbird at PowerPark in Finland, which came ranked 10th on the 2007 Internet Coaster Poll. If this design was a success once, it should be again. Six Flags could have another world-class wooden coaster. For more, check out the propaganda, I mean press release.

Until there's an onride video of Evel Knievel, (probably being uploaded to YouTube as you're reading this) check out this press video of Evel Knievel coaster:

El Loco Indeed | Indiana Beach's Steel Hawg Takes Shape
One of the most anticipated roller coasters of the year is taking form in Indiana. As I said shortly after the initial announcement, Indiana Beach's Steel Hawg has eye-popping inversions that border on "I didn't know that was possible." If they can pull it off, Indiana Beach may just have a landmark roller coaster. Check out that 120 degree first drop!

A Walk in the Park Blog has some great shots of Steel Hawg's insanely twisted track. While not a powerhouse in the industry, S&S has a pretty good track record. They created the popular compressed air launch coasters, Doponda and Hypersonic XLC . They're also behind 'the other' 4th dimension coaster, Eejanaika and the wooden gem, Avalanche in the Wisconsin Dells. Steel Hawg is based on the appropriately named 'El Loco' prototype.

The inversions and elements look so intense that you'd think the ride will have to be ultra-rough. But there's really no telling how this coaster will ride until it opens and reviews start to circle around the 'Net. Hopefully, S&S knows something that we don't and they've figured out a way to deliver these unbelievable elements without giving riders concussions.

Check out this video from S&S of their 'El Loco' prototype:

Hard Rock Park's Headliner Doesn't Disappoint
Led Zeppelin: The Ride is the headliner in Hard Rock Park's ride lineup. Creating a great new rock-themed park is a draw, but nothing catches the eye of would-be visitors like a flashy new looping roller coaster. To that end, Led Zeppelin delivers a thrilling roller coaster that does an excellent job incorporating the music of a legendary rock band.

As you approach the ride, you notice the huge steel zeppelin-shaped station with the band member's respective symbols on the side. In the queue, there are large mural sized representations of their album covers and flat panel T.V.s featuring concert footage. At the end of the queue there's a room with five doors.

The Pre-Ride Experience
According to the Chief Creative Officer, Jon Binkowski, it took years to convince Led Zeppelin to lend their name and music to the ride. A condition of the agreement was that their entire song had to be played from start to finish. Zeppelin's catalog is filled with some pretty long songs. A coaster would have a ride time as long as Kings Island's Beast and obviously Hard Rock Park didn't have that kind of space.

So a pre-ride experience was created to solve the issue. In the station there are five small dark multimedia rooms like standing theaters. Inside, riders are treated to a video that includes a short interview and a live performance of the band's hit 'Whole Lotta Love'. Click here to watch the video. The performance pauses about midway through and the doors in front of you swing open. The station ride ops cheer as they direct you to the empty train that's waiting for your group. The enthusiastic ride ops do a great job of keeping the excitement going as you board.

The Rockin' Ride
The train dispatches from the station and immediately begins its ascent over the pond. Closer to the 15-story crest, 'Whole Lotta Love' picks back up in via the onboard speakers. And then it really kicks in as the train plummets to the pond below. Next, the train travels directly into a large 120' tall vertical loop with some great g-forces. Then the train maneuvers through a cobra roll with two quick inversions. The rock really adds to the ride as the train traverses the highlight. The signature B&M zero-g roll over the pond is excellent. (Pictured left)

Another smaller vertical loop follows and then the trains takes a large swooping turn and does a flyby near the station. Next, the train passes through a short brake run and then drops into a corkscrew. (Pictured below) Your ride finishes strong with an upward helix and then the final station brakes.

As a total experience, Led Zepellin The Ride is a great attraction. The roller coaster truly delivers and 'Whole Lotta Love' blasting away as you perform these acrobatic maneuvers is a pretty memorable experience. While the lengthy pre-ride experience may deter some coaster enthusiasts who are likely to want several re-rides, it does add authenticity and theming. Plus, as the C.C.O. shared with me, most guests will only ride Led Zepellin once. So, for the general public Led Zepellin will satisfy with a thrilling and somewhat unique experience. Final Rating - 8.5 (Great Approaching Excellent)

Want to know how good an 8.5 is? Check out my rating scale. Also, here's an onride roller coaster video of Led Zeppelin - The Ride:
Have you ridden Led Zepellin - The Ride? What did you think? Leave a comment below.

X2 Officially (Re)Opens at Six Flags Magic Mountain

Slippery When Wet at Hard Rock Park | Coaster Reviews
In the heart of Hard Rock Park lies one the park's few attractions that incorporate water. Slippery When Wet (likely named after the Bon Jovi album) is a suspended coaster designed by Premier Rides. It is similar to Carowinds Flying Super Saturator and Hersheypark's Roller Soaker. Each car holds four riders, two facing frontward and two facing backward. Unique to Slippery, the ride begins with a hydraulic elevator lift. After the four or five story climb, the car begins its winding path.

Meanwhile, onlookers can man large water canons and take aim at the riders flying overhead. It's almost certain that you will get wet. Aside from the canons, the train passes through a wall of sprinkling water towards the end. As with most attractions, Hard Rock Park, adds an innovative spin to this concept. While riders are in danger of getting sprayed, they do have a way to retaliate. Every car features a green button that sends a radio signal to shower heads above the people that are using the canons. The buttons weren't operational when I was there, but it sounds like revenge will be sweet.

Located in the Born in the USA section, Slippery When Wet is a great attraction for kids and even adults that want to cool off. Adjacent to the coaster is Kids Rock! State Park. It's a camp-themed area that includes rock climbing, rope bridges, forts and water play areas. Obviously, Slippery can't compare to some of the other more thrilling rides, but it does play a nice support role and helps to round out the park's lineup. Final Rating - 6.0 (Above Average) See the rest of my rating scale here.

Listen to what Chief Creative Officer, Jon Binkowski & General Manager Dale Kaetzel had to say about Slippery When Wet during the tour:

Dominator Reigns Over Kings Dominion
Recently Dominator opened at Kings Dominion. ThemeParkReview has a message board thread with photos from media day. Check out the photos here.

I'm glad Dominator found a new home at my old home park. All those Northern Virginians that I couldn't convince to travel the extra hour south to Busch Gardens will finally get to experience some B&M greatness. Part of the appeal for the Dominator when it was at Geauga was its marshy setting next to the lake. I was afraid this would be an ugly parking lot coaster, but it's good to see that the park is trying to landscape the area.

Check out this video of Dominator at Kings Dominion:

A First Look at Dark Knight @ Six Flags Great Adventure
Six Flags Great Adventure's Dark Knight coaster is open for business. After viewing the press video that Six Flags posted on YouTube, I have to say that my prediction was right! Dark Knight's not a groundbreaking, ultra thrill-ride, but it will be great for families and a wider age group than more intense coasters. Six Flags has refocused their attention on families because they bring in the most money. In that light, the Dark Knight coasters look to be a success.

For a Mack wild mouse, the ride looks like a lot of fun. The darkness and theming add a lot to a coaster that's a dime a dozen these days. Kudos to Six Flags for doing some real theming for a change. Also, I applaud them for their timing with the Dark Knight movie due out this summer. Great America's (Chicago, IL) is set to open on May 21st according to RCDB. More Dark Knight Coaster news...>>>

**UPDATE - 05-22** So I may be wrong on my prediction after all. While the video looks cool, Dark Knight's getting some pretty awful reviews on one of my older posts. Check out these reviews of Dark Knight.

Check out this Dark Knight coaster video:

Ravine Flyer II @ Waldameer Park | On Ride Video
Waldameer' Park's Ravine Flyer II is my pick for the sleeper hit of 2008. It was designed by the Gravity Group. They've produced the 2007 Golden Ticket winner Voyage as well as the greatly underrated Hades at Mount Olympus. Ravine Flyer II will feature a 120 foot first drop, 10 moments of air time, 6 tunnels, 10 cross overs, a 90 degree turn, a view of Lake Erie, and a 165 foot bridge over a highway. In my opinion, Ravine Flyer II is the coaster that's most likely to become a classic out of the class of '08.

Check out this onride video of Ravine Flyer II:

Maximum RPM Coaster Preview | Hard Rock Park - EXCLUSIVE!
On my recent media trip to Hard Rock Park I was lucky enough to become one of the first to get a tour of Maximum RPM. It's a first of its kind roller coaster with a unique lift mechanism. The six person cars will enter a ferris wheel-like hub that will rotate cars to the top. Once cars reach the top, the cars will drop into the ride's twisted layout.

As with the park's other attractions, music is infused into several aspects of the ride. Maximum RPM! is located in Hard Rock's British Invasion section with an 80's New Wave theme. Guests waiting in the air conditioned queue line will be treated to karaoke performances from volunteers in line. So, if by chance the ride capacity's not the greatest and the line moves slowly at least you'll get to hear some guy murder an old Duran Duran song. Once aboard the cars, riders will get to choose a song for their lift and for the actual ride.

Maximum RPM! is set to open in June and looks to be a quite a memorable ride. You have to tip your hat to the team behind HRP, for taking the chance on a completely new concept like this. Check out these photos of Maximum RPM:



UPDATE - Maximum RPM is now open! The first onride video of Maximum RPM! has surfaced on YouTube:

First Fahrenheit Video & An Early Incident | Hersheypark
YouTube strikes again! This time some coaster fans video taped Hershey's new Intamin looper with the beyond 90-degree drop, Fahrenheit. The ride's in its testing phase and won't open until late May. The women taping the video remark that Fahrenheit looks slow. It looks fine to me, but they may be on to something.

Apparently, Fahrenheit valleyed a week or so ago. A roller coaster valleys when it runs out of momentum and can not finish its circuit. I was thinking that this was ultra rare, but apparently it used to happen on Magic Mountain's X quite frequently. I guess that's what all that testing is for.

**Update** Fahrenheit's open!
Check out Coasterdom's video of Fahrenheit at Hersheypark:

T.P.S. Report | Theme Park News Headlines from the Theme Park Syndicate

Defunct Geauga Lake Park Auctioning Coasters, Rides, & More
On June 17th and 18th, Geauga Lake will be auctioning off roller coasters, adult & kiddie rides, paddle boats, memorabilia and more. So if you're in the market for a nice CCI woodie with not a lot of miles (Villain), or an older woodie with a new lease on life thanks to re-tracking (Raging Wolf Bobs) get on down to Geauga Lake and make a bid. Most of the other major coasters have been reborn at other Cedar Fair Parks. X-Flight became Firehawk, Steel Venom became Voodoo, Thunderhawk moved to Michigan's Adventure and Dominator moved to Kings Dominion. Hopefully these two woodies will find a new home that's not a scrap yard. For more on the Geauga Saga..>>>

Six Flags New England's Dark Knight Will Not Open in 2008
Six Flags New England announced that due to a series of unforeseen delays, The Dark Knight Coaster will not open in 2008.

Daredevil 'Kaptain' Robbie Knievel to Attempt Motorcycle Jump at Kings Island
'Kaptain' Robbie Knievel is going to jump 24 Coke Zero trucks on May 24th. Evel Knievel, father to Robbie Knievel, jumped 14 Greyhound buses in 1975. I wonder if this is a warm up for the same jump at Six Flags St. Louis were the new Evel Knievel coaster will be opening.

Hard Rock Park to Have Nightly Fireworks Set to Bohemian Rhapsody
Hard Rock Park is incorporating rock into every facet of the park. Check out this video of the night laser show and fireworks set to Bohemian Rhapsody. Click here to watch the video.

Theme Park Syndicate is a site where people can submit links to theme park news, videos, and more. Then they can vote on and discuss the news stories. This site's all about you. So join and start adding links and voting today!

What do you think of this news? Leave a comment below.

Darien Lake's MotoCoaster Gets a New Name
Darien Lake, near Buffalo, NY, is building the first Zamperla MotoCoaster. This week, the park announced a new name for its first new coaster in nine years. Named after the popular reality show, the ride will be known as the Orange County Choppers MotoCoaster. The partnership makes sense. Especially when you consider that the show is based in Orange County, upstate New York, not 'The OC' in Cali like many think. The Teutuls are even going to design a custom bike that will be on display at Darien Lake.

Instead of standard seats, the trains will contain rows of bikes. Aside from the interesting riding position, the OCC MotoCoaster will feature a 38 mph launch via a flywheel system. More on the OCC MotoCoaster including a video.

What do you think of the Orange County Chopper name change? Leave a comment below.

Tony Hawk's Big Spin Opening at Six Flags Over Texas
Last year, Six Flags Fiesta Texas and Six Flags St. Louis built two of these. They must have been successful because Six Flags Over Texas and Six Flags Discovery Kingdom will debut another Tony Hawk coaster this season. These are basically wild mouse coasters with more open layouts. They feature spinning coasters with four seats where riders will face each other. Big Spin will be a great installation. Thrill rides are essential, but so are attractions for families and kids.

I haven't ridden any of the Tony Hawk coasters, but they are similar to Mr. Six's Pandemonium at Six Flags New England. Check out this video of Tony Hawk's Big Spin at Fiesta Texas in San Antonio:

Fahrenheit Nears Completion at Hersheypark
Hersheypark's new Intamin looper Fahrenheit is nearing completion. Coasterdom has a ton of construction photos that can be found here. The 90-degree vertical lift and 97-degree beyond vertical drop can be seen in the picture to the left.

Part of me still questions Hershey's decision of adding another steel looper with a top hat shaped hill. But on the other hand, I'm a steel coaster enthusiasts so I'm excited to ride Fahrenheit. Here's a picture of Fahrenheit with Stormrunner in the background.

For more, see the rest of my Fahrenheit posts.

What do you think of Hershey's new Fahrenheit coaster? Leave a comment below.

More Batman Dark Knight Coaster Photos
NewsPlusNotes has some great photos that give us a behind-the-scenes look at the new Dark Knight coasters coming to Six Flags Great America, Great Adventure, & New England. There are even some real photos of the ride's cars from the Great America version.

















It's cool to see more photos emerge as specifics on the ride have been a little hard to come by.
UPDATE - Thanks to Trav for finding these construction photos posted by Great Adventure. More Dark Knight coaster news. Are you excited about the Dark Knight coasters? Leave a comment below.

Both Coasts Get Zamperla MotoCoasters in 2008
Zamperla will be bringing their motocoasters to the U.S. in two different installations. MotoCoaster at Darien Lake, near Buffalo, NY will be a stock installation with bikes that riders will mount. Staying in step with Knotts Berry Farm's western theme, the Pony Express will feature horses. ScreamScape has a real picture of the horse trains.

The rides will also have different layouts. Pony Express will zoom a path around Knotts Berry Farm while MotoCoaster will be a more contained ride as it is a clone of Zamperla's prototype. Both coasters will have launch speeds that will be fun, but nowhere near intense. While its only 40 mph, 0 - 40 in 2 seconds will be pretty exhilarating. Besides, both parks could use a ride that appeal to wider audience than those ultra-intense thrill machines.

Check out these construction photos of Pony Express.
Also, check out this video of a MotoCoaster: