Dvo

While they're neat effects, they're not necessary for the ride. It's added cost for something that's not worth buying. The average rider isn't going to care whether or not there is fog in the line or "mist" in the AE tunnels. At least that's my opinion.

^Exactly. I think its a good idea to make it absolutely as clear as possible when dealing with large groups of people. It doesn't cost them anything to do it, and it saves them a lot of hassle later on.

Wait, wait, wait... The Crypt's program was "enhanced?!" Au contraire, I know 0 people who will agree that the program was enhanced. It was enhanced in the fact that it had far less downtime, but that's about it. Unless they recently changed the definition of "enhanced" to be "made incredibly boring."

I certainly hope you've been to both parks. Magic Mountain only has a few clones... and the custom rides they do have are almost all fantastic. Terminator is a wonderful woodie, Colossus is a great out-and-back, Tatsu is just awesome, and X2... well. It's best to look at my TR for that. Unbelievable. And that's just the really good ones. Not to mention they make fantastic use of the terrain of the park. However just so you know, I still like Cedar Point just a little better. Back on topic... I think if you want to be technical you can argue that there are many many roller coasters that aren't credited as such. But using common sense, there's no way that Shoot the Rapids is a roller coaster. If that's a coaster, so is White Water canyon, right? It's got a water trough, and a lift at the end with a "drop". Granted you don't freely go down it, but you nonetheless drop.

Starting and stopping the chain isn't what puts load in the chain. It's the weight of the train. I think the primary issue is start-up torque. Every motor has a "start-up" torque that it must overcome in order to begin rotating. In the case of a lift chain, if it stops, the motor must overcome its start-up torque plus the weight of a chain, PLUS the weight of a train in some cases, which in turn draws more power. However if you can justify the additional drawn power by being more efficient via shutting the motors down between dispatches, then it's obviously worth while. I'm not sure this is 100% correct, but that's the first thing I thought of. Also, as said above, some rides don't "stop" their lift chains, but they do slow them down dramatically when there is no train on the lift, thus eliminating the need to overcome the start-up torque.

^Im not laughing. I remember the first time I rode (then) Top Gun.. I thought the cars were going to flip over the track. That's a pretty wicked final turn. And as for Voyage with your eyes closed.. I can attest to that. I rode it in a downpour, so keeping the eyes open was not an option haha. And WOW that thing is crazy when you don't know where you're going. I think TTD is still the fastest feeling I've ever felt though. After comparing Superman: The Escape at SFMM, it's amazing how much more powerful TTD feels. Superman was borderline boring, and I was really looking forward to that!

^^Whoa there.. I'd be careful throwin that around. Not too many people think highly of that term used that way. Back on topic.. When I'm waiting in line at fast food restaurants with coaster buddies, I often ask where the single rider line is.

Ok I'm with you terp... after this post. I wasn't there so this is the first I've heard of him. And after looking at the JOKE that is his web site.. wow. I can only imagine what this guy is like in person. And with that I commence my ignoring of Mr. Stoneking.

Just got a text from Angie. The tax was voted down! Way to go Mason City Council!

I'm surprised they went with Tatsu from SFMM, as opposed to X2. Granted Tatsu really is an incredible flyer, but X2 is quite literally, a unique and incredible experience.

Ok.. so here's a wild idea. Let's have the City of Cincinnati put a tax in place for all non-residents that would make them pay more for all entertainment and city fees, such as Bengals/Reds tickets, museum tickets, alcohol prices, and parking rates. I'd love to see Mr. Bradburn's reaction to that.

Yeah that's a slap in the face in my mind. As the key point here is that tourism is such an immense part of the business in Mason, it seems like they should realize that Mason residents aren't the people that will be hurt the most. Not to mention, it feels like one of those situations where Mason residents would get their credit, and then laugh at the "lowly" other people that have to pay the higher costs with the tax. Bogus.

So... now my question for those of you who normally would buy a Six Flags season pass, but haven't yet... are you still going to buy one? And if so, what park will you be going to?

Wow. Honestly, I'm not too surprised. I didn't exactly see it coming just yet, but in my eyes the park was going downhill, and they removed their biggest attraction. Usually that's a tell-tale sign of what's coming..

I really need to get back to BGW. I've been twice in my life.. once about 16 years ago, and once about 7 years ago. Griffon and DarKastle alone are worthy of a trip in my mind, as I haven't been on either of them yet. And now the new stuff just adds more value. Not to mention how beautiful the park is.

I got on it a few times. When I rode on opening day it had a pretty intense cycle. And then a few months later I got on and it was changed to basically a slightly intense ferris wheel. So... Congrats on the added ridership? But I ask you this, Kings Island... AT WHAT COST?! On a side note, I rode the top spin at Knott's when I was out there, and while it wasn't really "themed," the ride operator kind of narrated the ride as you went along, and it was really funny. Not to mention the several-in-a-row backflips that conclude the ride. It was pretty fun.

This sounds like a kind of fun idea. I would be interested in seeing how this goes. As far as prizes go, maybe some sort of merchandise.. like a hoodie.

^I agree. Granted I don't really like "The Fun and Only" at all, but it could be worse. How 'bout "Kings Island: Where we really don't care about Flight Deck."

^Basically, they have a small "waterfall" which creates a wall of water through which you pass. And they project an animated dragon on the water so it looks like you're going to crash right into its head. A very cool effect.

Haha wow that's hilarious. I had to look again to see that. I can just picture the park saying "This ride is fun! Look at all the people enjoying themselves!"

I grew up 16 miles south of the park, and I rarely went out past it, so I definitely got excited when I did see it.

^^Wow, I had no idea about the Times Square office.. I retract my previous statement

While the article is indeed a farce, with all the factual mistakes, I mostly agree with the list. I don't know much about the park in Germany, but I'd say the other 4 are 4 premier parks in the world. I think you can make a case for SFGAd and SFOG, but I like the list. Magic Mountain blew me away a few weeks ago. I'm definitely going to plan on going back sometime. X2 alone makes it worth while. And no park that I know of comes remotely close to the hospitality and quality of experience that Holiday World gives.

"The Six Flags Lease shows the value in an exceptional building" More like "Shows that Six Flags, despite still struggling, doesn't mind spending a VERY pretty penny on items of luxury."

Google is starting to do street view "maps" of amusement parks, so you can virtually walk around a park and see a human vantage point of what the park looks like. For instance, here's Busch Gardens Williamsburg. Apollo's Chariot Midway I think this is fantastic! Especially for parks that I've never been to and always wanted to see. Not to mention the great quality of the images.