Knott's Berry Farm

[Freak]

Never thought I would see the day when SFMM would be in better shape than Knott’s.

I’m also boardline angry to hear about Monty just getting scrapped altogether. Between Xcellerator happening (Which I get) but more so Monty, I almost don’t want to renew my pass at all. How can they screw up Monty this bad!? We didn’t want that in the first place and now we’re paying for their dumb decision.

Man it’s heartbreaking that when we got our last rides on Monty, we all thought it would be back in a year. Now they were our last rides period. This is unacceptable.

 

[Tobias]

Reached out to some folks regarding Monty...

Short of the long, it's not dead...but it's paused with its fate is very much hanging in the balance right now. I must stress the park itself does NOT want to abandon the ride, they truly don't. But what has gotten to the current state of things is a very unfortunate series of events that goes beyond Knott's themselves.

There are definitely options where Monty can stay alive, but all of those options heavily depend on various things, and Xcelerator's issues aren't helping the matter one bit. All we can do at this point is wait and see what actions are taken.

 

[Jerroddragon]

Reached out to some folks regarding Monty...

Short of the long, it's not dead...but it's paused with its fate is very much hanging in the balance right now. I must stress the park itself does NOT want to abandon the ride, they truly don't. But what has gotten to the current state of things is a very unfortunate series of events that goes beyond Knott's themselves.

There are definitely options where Monty can stay alive, but all of those options heavily depend on various things, and Xcelerator's issues aren't helping the matter one bit. All we can do at this point is wait and see what actions are taken.

I doubt they want to spend the money....but why not in a year or two build a new coaster there and it would be a new ride to drive people in the parks?

If I'm not wrong it seems like Monty is "too" old and its hard to get parts for....so build a new ride with a similar gimmick and open it in 2025 as the big new ride with a new show in Fiesta Village

Just what I would do as the park if they want to "keep" the ride but this version cost too much to keep up

 

[Tobias]

I doubt they want to spend the money....but why not in a year or two build a new coaster there and it would be a new ride to drive people in the parks?

If I'm not wrong it seems like Monty is "too" old and its hard to get parts for....so build a new ride with a similar gimmick and open it in 2025 as the big new ride with a new show in Fiesta Village

Just what I would do as the park if they want to "keep" the ride but this version cost too much to keep up

That was the whole purpose of the planned refurbishment, keeping the ride which they know is iconic and beloved (hence why they don't want to abandon it), while replacing the older tech and components so they could have something for years to come.

 

[Freak]

Reached out to some folks regarding Monty...

Short of the long, it's not dead...but it's paused with its fate is very much hanging in the balance right now. I must stress the park itself does NOT want to abandon the ride, they truly don't. But what has gotten to the current state of things is a very unfortunate series of events that goes beyond Knott's themselves.

There are definitely options where Monty can stay alive, but all of those options heavily depend on various things, and Xcelerator's issues aren't helping the matter one bit. All we can do at this point is wait and see what actions are taken.

Well I’m glad that at the very least, the park really wants to keep Monty. I know the GP won’t see it this way but I would MUCH rather keep Monty over Xcellerator.

 

[AlexanderMBush]

From Screamscape: Monty has concisely been deemed for them as dead.

As we’ve heard before… keep an ear open for Knott’s Berry Farm to make an announcement sometime towards the later half of the month regarding their plans for Camp Snoopy for 2024. According to the rumors, it is at this time we should learn the final fate of the Montezooma’s Revenge project, which many now believe to be dead in the water.
This could end up being a double-announcement of sorts however, as Knott’s isn’t going to want to blend their Camp Snoopy announcement with the loss of Monty, without trying to give us something else to look forward to. If the rumors continue to hold true, there is a chance Knott’s could announce some kind of new multi-launch coaster that could be added as early as 2025, that very likely could come from Zamperla.
Depending on how the announcement goes, another project is also said to be in the pipeline for the park, which would see an expansion brought to the Calico Ghost Town that would add a few flat rides and some sort of themed mid-level coaster project. From what I’m told, back when Monty was expected to successfully re-open in 2023, and Camp Snoopy was planned for 2024, the Ghost Town expansion project was supposed to be the next project to follow. But all the problems with Monty as well as the ongoing issues with Xcelerator may have thrown a monkey-wrench into these plans, as clearly a new high thrill coaster would be needed sooner than expected.

 

[Freak]

From Screamscape: Monty has concisely been deemed for them as dead.

I hate this. I REALLY freaking hate this.

 

[chris.g]

LOL

 

[Tobias]

Reached out to folks yet again, at the moment Monty is still paused. They're still figuring out what's the best action to take from here, and they're looking at it from all angles. At the same time, they're also trying to figure out what to do with Xcelerator, making this overall a not very fun situation.

As it stands, the fates of these coasters have yet to be decided, so once again all we can really do is wait and see what happens.

 

[Michael S]

Reached out to folks yet again, at the moment Monty is still paused. They're still figuring out what's the best action to take from here, and they're looking at it from all angles. At the same time, they're also trying to figure out what to do with Xcelerator, making this overall a not very fun situation.

As it stands, the fates of these coasters have yet to be decided, so once again all we can really do is wait and see what happens.

That’s all kinds of unfortunate.

 

[SkiBum]

Reached out to folks yet again, at the moment Monty is still paused. They're still figuring out what's the best action to take from here, and they're looking at it from all angles. At the same time, they're also trying to figure out what to do with Xcelerator, making this overall a not very fun situation.

As it stands, the fates of these coasters have yet to be decided, so once again all we can really do is wait and see what happens.

I've not kept up on this but what is the problem with each? I know Xcelerator was being tested with some updates but did the launch not work as expected? Is Monty in too rough of shpae to keep or can they not retrofit the launch system to an LSM?

 

[Tobias]

I've not kept up on this but what is the problem with each? I know Xcelerator was being tested with some updates but did the launch not work as expected? Is Monty in too rough of shpae to keep or can they not retrofit the launch system to an LSM?

With Xcelerator, not too long ago when they were testing to get it back up and running...it broke again. So you're right on the money that the launch did not work as expected!

As for Monty, it's a longer story which I'll probably tell once we actually know what its fate is, but a big issue lies with Kumbak and the company they've subcontracted. Missed deadlines and pieces fabricated the wrong size so they can't fit with whatever elements are being reused...and asking for more money on top of that.

 

[chris.g]

I have NO insight but I am willing to bet that monty's days are over.

 

[Jake S]

I have NO insight but I am willing to bet that monty's days are over.

This is my guess as well.

Can’t wait for the Montezooma’s Revenge maze at Scary Farm in 2033!

 

[Disneyland/DCA]

Can't Cedar Fair just sue Kumbak out of business like they did with Togo and Windjammer?

 

[SkiBum]

With Xcelerator, not too long ago when they were testing to get it back up and running...it broke again. So you're right on the money that the launch did not work as expected!

As for Monty, it's a longer story which I'll probably tell once we actually know what its fate is, but a big issue lies with Kumbak and the company they've subcontracted. Missed deadlines and pieces fabricated the wrong size so they can't fit with whatever elements are being reused...and asking for more money on top of that.

While short, Xcelerator seems like a fun coaster. I wonder if Cedar Fair will go the LSM route if TTD 2.0 works out.

 

[Stryker]

Can't Cedar Fair just sue Kumbak out of business like they did with Togo and Windjammer?

From Historic Coaster Foundation on FB. Not sure how reliable they are, but they mentioned a potential lawsuit.

My fellow coaster enthusiasts. We have good reason to believe that the historic Montezooma's Revenge at Knott's Berry Farm is in grave danger of being scrapped and lost forever. Montezooma's Revenge which is a shuttle loop model built by Anton Schwarzkopf in 1978 and a designated ACE Coaster Landmark has been closed since February 2022 for renovation. Knott's Berry Farm announced that the ride would be renovated and reimagined and would reopen in the summer of 2023 and renamed Montezooma: The Forbidden Fortress. More than a year later, our faith has not been returned. The ride's loop and a few small sections of track were removed in the summer of 2022. Since then, there has been no progress made on the ride's renovation and besides a quick announcement saying that the ride was delayed, the park was remained silent. No updates whatsoever. We have heard that the company doing the renovation bowed out and potential lawsuit against them made by the park. We cannot confirm or deny that. Now that brings us to today. We have heard from various sources that Knott's Berry Farm has silently given up on the renovation of Montezooma's Revenge and are planning to scrap the ride altogether. If this is indeed true, this would be the third ACE Coaster Landmark in a year's time to be destroyed. The other two being the Blue Streak at Conneaut Lake Park and the Montana Rusa at La Feria de Chapultepec. This would also be the second ACE Coaster Landmark to be destroyed by the leadership of Cedar Fair. The other being the Big Dipper at Geauga Lake. We can't confirm or deny any of these rumors, but the signs are there and word is going around. Why has there not been any more progress of the renovation and why has there been no mention or update on the project recently? These are very bad signs. The potential loss of this ride would be a huge blow to the park that I don't think can ever be forgiven no matter how good its replacement is, and it would be a huge tragedy in roller coaster preservation. I can't speak for Anton Schwarzkopf but if I was him, I wouldn't want this ride to fade into history in such a way. At this time, I am asking you, the dedicated fans of Knott's Berry Farm, members of the HCF, and ACE to join us and we'll do our part. We will deliver both public and private messages urging Knott's Berry Farm to continue the renovation of Montezooma's Revenge so it can reopen in its reimagined form in 2024 or as soon as possible. I also humbly encourage Schwarzkopf's son, Wieland Schwarzkopf to join us as well and write to the park and urge them to preserve the ride. At least for his father's sake who is responsible for so many legendary coasters. If you comment down below or send me a private message, I will give you the contact information that you need to spread your message. This is an important piece of Knott's history and I should know. I was there for the official designation of the ride's ACE Coaster Landmark status. So please take this message to heart and realize the importance of this ride and how it must be preserved for future generations. Thank you and best wishes.

 

[Ron101]

Seeing how packed the park gets for scary farm, do they ever run out of parking? What’s the fallout plan if they still have cars to park? Have they ever contracted with the mall across from the main lot and do a split revenue type deal for every car parked on their property?

 

[Rideguy70]

Between the main lot by Independence Hall, the lot by the Hotel, the Western lot (which is fairly large), and the northern overflow lot--all of which they open for Haunt--I've never heard of them running out of parking.

That said, between all those different lots, and their very different locations, traffic getting to them can be a huge pain, because you never really quite know which lot you'll be ending up at. We've been arriving at around 5:30 to try to beat as much of the traffic and parking ordeals as we can, and so far it's been working.

 

[MikePat]