Raging Rapids at Kennywood Review (Early 2021)

In the Early 1980's, Kennywood removed a Roller Coaster called Dipper. This was a fan favorite attraction and the removal is still considered one of Kennywood's worst decisions. Eventually, they announced Dipper's replacement: Raging Rapids. Today, I wanted to give my review of Raging Rapids. I also want to see if it was a worthy replacement for Dipper.

Part 1: Restraints

Raging Rapids doesn't have bad restraints. It doesn't need restraints. It just has a seatbelt. The restraints aren't bad on this ride. Restraints get a 10/10.

Part 2: Forces

This ride is forceless. Let's give a bit of a reference, though. I rode this in June 2019 for the first time. Back then, I was still afraid of Amusement Rides, but I was also a Roller Coaster Enthusiast and I had a Kennywood Season Pass. At the end of June, I was going to go White Water Rafting in North Carolina, and I wanted to find similar experiences. Raging Rapids was one place I looked to.

At the end of June, I went on my trip to Charlotte. I went to the US National Whitewater Center. I liked parts of the trip, disliked others. One thing I wasn't a big fan of was the Whitewater Rafting. It was a lot of effort, but it was also thrilling. I didn't like Whitewater Rafting, but I preferred it over Raging Rapids. Whitewater Rafting isn't meant to pull strong G-Forces, but it was more forceful than Raging Rapids.

For forces, I am giving Raging Rapids a 2/10. It is practically forceful.

Part 3: Theming

From what I hear, this ride used to have some good theming. When I rode it in 2019, it had no theming, to be honest. Theming gets a 2/10.

Part 4: Operations

The operations on this ride are awful. I remember them being around 5 minute dispatches. At the end of the ride, you are stopped around a gate thing for around 10 minutes. The dispatches here get a 2/10. They aren't exactly the worst operations in the world, but they are really bad operations, especially considering that this can only fit around 8 people in the raft.

Part 5: Soaking

On a good water ride, you should be soaked. Raging Rapids doesn't do that. I was only able to get hit by any water because of the ending where water kept getting into the boat when we were at those gate things. Soaking gets a 2/10.

Final Score:

This gets a 28/50. That is a 5.6/10. The ride, in my eyes, should get something like a 4/10. This ride is very boring. It doesn't even do what it is meant to do. This ride, in my opinion, is a complete failure. I wish that they kept Dipper. Dipper would probably be more fun, considering it looked to provide some decent airtime and Kennywood knows how to take care of a wooden coaster.