Living in the deep south, winter is definitely not coaster riding season. However, this year I have been extremely blessed to visit Dollywood (trip report forthcoming), Knotts Berry Farm back in October and a couple of weeks ago I long drive down to Miami to ride with of the only coaster in Florida that I had not ridden: the Dania Beach Hurricane. I have to say the the trip was worth it.
Boomers is a medium-sized family fun center offering a number of arcade games, a few different go-kart tacks (including the longest one in the world which is over a mile in length), a couple of mini-golf courses and finally the coaster itself. The coaster is a separate attraction not included in the other entertainment packages. You actually even have to by your tickets at the coaster itself and not inside where the games are. Obviously the best deal is the 12 dollar all you can ride wristband.
We arrived when the park opened and were the first in line for the coaster. We took three rides on it riding in the front, back and middle of the train. There was no line at all, however the park policy is to make each guest get up and walk around the que for a re-ride. This is necessitated by having to re-scan your wristband each time at the entrance to the line. That is a pain, but is still no overly inconvenient since it is a very short walk.
We left the park, (no desire to ride go-karts or play mini-golf and arcade games are not our thing) visited a few sites around Miami, drove a ways our toward the Key West, and then came back that night for another 7 rides. I was really looking forward to night rides, however the coaster is so well lit that there are no dark sections. There is virtually no difference from riding at night time or in the daylight hours.
Now, onto the ride itself. The Hurricane is one of the most underrated woodies I have ridden. Surprisingly, the front set offers the most air with five moments of serious ejector airtime and a number of floater moments. The back is almost as good well the middle part of the train only offers two moments of air. The track offers an out-and-back design with twister elements leading to a very fun and unique ride. The first big drop and the final bunny hills are definitely the best parts of the ride.
Even that night, there was virtually no one riding the coaster. I think 8 people was the most we ever had on a train. I imagine the ride would be much better with a full train, but I will not complain about the short lines. Overall, I will give the Hurricane a very solid 8 and place right up there the Starliner (formerly at Cypress Gardens) as the best woodies south of Thunderhead. Boomers itself looks like a great place to take the kids for a half a day or so with short lines, lots of games and some unique mini-gold courses and go-kart tracks. If you are a coaster enthusiast, the coaster is well worth the drive south from Orlando.
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