XGatorHead 8904

Match 1 The Beast (6) vs. Raptor (2) Match 2 Firehawk (3) vs. Magnum XL-200 (5) Match 3 Top Thrill Dragster (8) vs. Gemini (0) Match 4 Maverick (1) vs. Millennium Force (7) Match 5 Diamondback (6) vs. Flight of Fear (2) Match 6 Iron Dragon (0) vs. The Racer (8) Match 7 Vortex (8) vs. Mean Streak (0) Match 8 Blue Streak (1) vs. Flight Deck (7) Match 8 was a very tough one for me! I decided to show Blue Streak some love in the end though since it was sitting there without any votes.

^Break a leg! Well, not literally, but you know what I mean!

^Yikes! 90 in the back row... It helps that you're young, I'd be banged up! Kudos to all that participated at KI and other parks. Hopefully I'll be able to join you next year. This year and last Coasting for Kids fell during my vacations.

Interesting... seating like DB, but the even numbered rows are floorless... I'm up for another trip there. It's a nice park and after all, I've been there twice already and have yet to ride Fahrenheit! Doin' anything Easter weekend next year, Dave?

I've had a number of good friends ask me, and I've told them all the same thing: "I don't say anything until the park officially announces what the haunts will be. I don't want any leaks to be traced back to me." I feel bad saying that because these are very good friends, and I trust them, but I don't want anything to accidentally slip from them and get to someone less reliable, so I just cut it off at the main source, which would be me. I've seen the effects of leaks before involving other people and I just like my Haunt job too much to jeopardize it in any way. If I'm in a new haunt that's just not smart of me to say, and if I'm in a returning one I don't even want to say that because that would be unofficial confirmation that that haunt is back. Right now very few people know where I'll be... the returning scareactors that were there the same time as me on Saturday, and of course Mrs. Gator & GatorGirl. It's always hard this time of year because of course I want to talk about it! I'll just have to wait a little while!

I love this video! I got placed this past Saturday and I'm happy with where I'll be lurking this year!

This was posted a few years ago (http://www.KICentral...ndpost&p=317202) but it's fun to see it again!

I apologize ahead of time for the length of this post, but I've been away from KIC more than usual lately, and I'm just now catching up on a lot. I noticed a difference on a few rides at IoA last week. I'll explain further below. You may consider it awesome, but if they did that there would be no way that I can think of to limit the number of Fast Lane passes per day, since SP holders with a FL add on could come any day they want, causing major line backups. KI's gate pricing is comparable to other regional parks. I'm not sure how they could make any substantial increases, unless they intend to try to regain some pricing integrity. $19 admission for a world record attempt anyone? Very true. KI SP holders tend to be a fickle bunch. I kind of agree with you. I like WDW FastPasses and DW's Q-bots, but I'm not really a fan of this type of system either. I've read this whole topic, given it some thought, now here's my two cents on this whole thing... I was just down in Orlando last week. On Saturday the 16th I had dinner with a couple of former KI Admissions co-workers of mine, one of which is now an engineer for Disney who's job it is to work on ways to optimize the FastPass system at WDW. We started talking about Mr. Ouimet, and how his reputation at Disney was a positive one. I brought up the article that said he wanted to implement a FastPass type system at KI, and I told my friends that for the most part KI does not really need one. The lines are typically nowhere near the length of the lines at WDW or Universal. Two days later I get the text from KIC that this was happening and just laughed. I absolutely love FastPass and Q-Bots. I view those systems as pretty fair since you're given a time to come back, basically putting you in a virtual queue. I used FP 3 times this past visit on 7/17 at MK for Peter Pan, Space Mountain & Splash Mountain. I've used DW's Q-Bots the past two trips there in November of last year and the year before. Like kifan1980 a few posts ago, it greatly helped me get on Mystery Mine and Thunderhead with little wait while Mrs. Gator & GatorGirl did other things, and I could quickly rejoin them. It was also great to have guaranteed seats for shows without having to wait in the long lines that tend to develop for them during their Christmas event. When I went to Universal & IoA on Monday & Tuesday of last week, it was the first time I had been to a park that utilized this "jump to the front of the line" system rather than a virtual queueing system. Yes, I was annoyed at seeing other people jump ahead of me, but on a majority of attractions I didn't really notice that much of a difference in wait time. There were a few attractions however where it was quite noticeable. Disaster was the first of these. The Express Plus people (and there were A LOT of them our two days at the Universal parks) got to go right into the attraction. The wait time sign outside said 25 minutes, but with all the Express Plus people that showed up it was 45 minutes. The other two rides were low capacity rides at IoA: One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish and Storm Force Accelatron. For 1F2FRFBF about 4-5 fish worth of people showed up each cycle, making the wait time MUCH longer for us regular folks. Storm Force was just as bad if not worse. It was staffed by only one ride op who would open the Express Plus Line until it emptied, then open the regular line. About 3/4 of the pods would be filled with Express Plus people. To make matters worse, he wouldn't stand there and count the appropriate number of people for the remaining pods... he opened up the regular lane and went off to do something else (close the exit gate perhaps, I didn't watch to see where he went). We entered the ride area twice to find not enough pods for us, and eventually got on the third time we entered the ride area. With all the Express Plus people that showed up for Storm Force, I estimate that we waited an additional four to five ride cycles because of Express Pass people. With the large number of people I saw using Express Plus, it seemed that Universal doesn't limit the number they sell per day. Either that or their limit is a very high number. They had kiosks set up inside the entrance to each park where you could buy them. There was no way that we could afford it. For my family of 3 for two days, it would have been an additional $319.44 with tax ($39.99 each for our day at USF, $59.99 each for our day at IoA)... on top of the $366.39 I had already paid for two days admission. No thank you! Luckily even without them, we were still able to ride everything that we wanted to ride (well, almost in the case of IoA, but we had an event occur that kind of put a wrench in our whole day, I'll go into that when I do the PTR... or if you're friends with me on FB just look at my post from the other day and you'll get an idea). Now in regards to KI, I'm not too happy that it's there, but I also realize that I most likely won't notice that much of a difference in my wait times. I think $50 is a fair price, enough to deter a lot of people from purchasing it. Most of the rides that they chose are pretty good, higher capacity rides unlike our experience with the two rides at IoA. My main point of contention is that I just don't think the average wait times for rides at KI make it a necessity. But the flip side of that is that it may be a good way to raise some extra revenue. And we all know that's good for the park.

Ro, I think you already know my answer... Hell yes I'd ride it! Now whether I could handle it is another question...

I am referring to Paramount who installed that separate entrance when Boomerang Bay opened. I understand your argument about the separate season pass entrance, but I am fairly sure that the waterpark will have it's own admission in the next couple of years. I would certainly hope that CF would not be idiotic enough to make BB a separate admission. It's been included for 23 seasons now. Can you imagine the damage that would do to season pass sales? Much like when they did away with the free parking... sales took a dive, then lo and behold parking was included again. The first few years of FearFest, separate admission was required even if you had a season pass. Why then was the decision made to include it with a season pass? And when CF made the decision a few years ago to not include Haunt with a season pass, that decision was reversed before it was actually put into effect. Season Pass holders feel a right of entitlement. 23 years of something being included is a huge hurdle to overcome. Even if they did offer a pass at a higher price that included BB, I feel many SP holders would balk at having to pay more for something that was once "free". It basically comes down to staffing. In the '80s all season pass holders entered through that gate. In the middle of the day, that gate would be dead. Why pay someone to sit there and do nothing, especially when the regular turnstiles were also not very busy at that time of day? Even in the busy time in the mornings, they must have determined that the regular turnstiles could handle the additional season pass traffic as well. By the time I started working Admissions in '95, the building that once sat there was long gone. The area had been covered by a roof, and there was still an iron gate with a padlock which could be opened if needed. In my last few years in Admissions, we actually did use that gate on several occasions, using handheld ticket scanners, when crowds were extremely heavy to alleviate the strain on the regular turnstiles. I imagine they still have the capability to use it if needed.

At Magic Kingdom last week, I was walking near a family that was complaining about the heat. The dad said, "Well, y'all ready to get on a ride then? Let's go!" and they headed straight for.... ...drum roll, please.... SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON TREEHOUSE! That's alright, I suspect quite a few of us may have danced in amusement parks before. I know I have!

I am one of many who would be absolutely thrilled if we were to get a doll/toy factory. Happy Jack's is by far my favorite haunt at CP. If we were to get one, I would love to work there! Of course, I should be finding out VERY soon where I'll be lurking this year. Just don't expect me to tell you until the park officially announces what haunts will be there. (The upcoming time of year is always hard... being placed and not talking about it!!!)

Thank you, Ringmaster, you are correct. I get it now. I was about to bust out the "This will be my 20th season working in the park, 4th season working Haunt" card to say I know what I'm talking about when I say the name is CornStalkers. Thanks for the clarification about it being your opinion!

It's too bad I never got to experience the park in its heyday. I only went during its last year and the experience was about as far as you can get from stellar, with the exception of Screechin' Eagle. In looking at the pictures, picture #39 of Pinocchio Land would nowadays be considered a pretty clear violation of copyright laws, and just look at that airtime in picture #42! The caption says the kids are enjoying the ride, but the one on the left doesn't look very joyful.

Thanks Dave for putting that image of you and KIfan in my head! Maybe all three of us should do it!

Holiday World does exactly that at the entrance/exit to Splashin' Safari. They even have someone staffed at the Pilgrim's Plunge area (which is accessible from both sections of the park) looking for dress code violations.

CornSTALKERS hang around Halloween Haunt, while CornHUSKERS can typically be found in Nebraska.

Of course, ET is the one that GatorGirl is most excited about at Studios! Especially after we told her about him saying everyone's name at the end. And I love that queue line!

Thanks for the tips! Keep 'em coming if you got 'em! We're not staying on property at WDW or Uni. We are staying on International Dr though, about 2.5 miles from Uni. We are HUGE fans of the nighttime parades. But since they'll be running twice, we'll see it once and hit rides during the other. Mrs. Gator wants to skip Celebrate a Dream Come True Parade, but GatorGirl and I may just overrule her on that! Do you know where in Frontierland you'll be working that day? Last time we went we did IoA in a circle, which is pretty easy because that's how the park's set up! That 10 minute timeframe seems a little harsh, but if it works for them... We're planning on skipping the shops, I've heard horrendous things about them and the crowds due to their size. GatorGirl's not really into HP so skipping them's not a big deal for her. I rode Dragon Challenge back in it's Dueling Dragons days, so it's not a must-ride for me, especially since GatorGirl's not tall enough for it. She will be wating in a few lines with us that she's not tall enough for, and I'd rather it be rides that I haven't experienced yet like Forbidden Journey and The Mummy. I'll ride Dragon if the line's short. When I went last in 1999 I was lucky enough to get it as a walk-on. Mummy is a must-ride for me, HRRR I'll ride only if I can get it when the line's not too long. Jaws is one of my favorite rides anywhere, Mrs. Gator & I love Twister, and Shrek, Simpsons and MiB are new to us so they're must-dos. We'll probably skip Terminator since Mrs. Gator & I have already done it twice and it doesn't interest GatorGirl. Jimmy Neutron we'll ride... as long as it's open. With the press release of the Despicable Me announcement, they said Jimmy Neutron would stay open until August 18th, but the ride is no longer on their website. When we go to parks on vacation, particularly the FL ones, we're not the type to go back to our hotel to relax. Since we typically only leave one day to do each park, we don't like taking the time to leave the park and come back. We do however take some time to relax inside the parks. We'll sit and have a Dole Whip Pineapple Float in Adventureland, sit in the rocking chairs near The Hall of Presidents, sit in Frontierland and watch the boat while having a frozen fruit bar, etc. I made a list of all the rides/attractions in the three parks we'll be visiting, and GatorGirl and I prioritized how important each one is to us so that we can make sure to hit the ones we REALLY want to do first. We each put a 1 next to the ones we definitely wanted to do, a 2 next to the ones that we'll do if we have time, and an X next to the ones that we're alright with skipping. Most of our priorities are the same, but she surprised me with a couple. She scared of BBoBH at KI, but she put a 1 next to Haunted Mansion (I've been preparing her for this and some of the other "scary" rides like Jaws and Jurassic Park), and she's VERY scared of storms, but she put a 1 next to Twister after I explained it to her. I think it helped that I stressed that everything... the ghosts, the tornado, the shark, the dinos, etc... are not real. Mrs. Gator is going to make her picks tonight. Animal Actors and Beetlejuice are musts, and surprisingly GatorGirl really wants to see the Horror Make-Up Show and Fear Factor Live. Last night I watched my first HP movie ever, Sorceror's Stone. I liked it, and I'm looking forward to seeing the others. I had always intended on watching them, but with visiting IoA now that kind of urged me to start!

I still don't see them using the DA area for a haunt, especially if they plan on keeping DA open during the day. A lot of the props used for Haunt are not exactly good for the kiddies' eyes. But who knows, they may surprise me. We'll find out soon enough.

Sorry, I'm not doing the express. It's just too much money per person for us. And there's no concerts when we're there.

It's been 12 long years, but next week I'm finally making it back to Universal and IoA. That's right, the last time I went was almost exactly 1 month after IoA first opened, June 1999. Now, I've read this topic which had a little advice about visiting IoA after the addition of Harry Potter, but that was back during the off-season. What I'm looking for are any tips anyone might have for visiting in the summer months, the peak season. I'm not a huge Harry Potter fan, in fact I've never seen any of the movies in it's entirety, but I plan on watching at least the first two this week. I do want to ride the HP ride at least once because of the glowing reviews, and possibly get some butterbeer, but the shops, wand selection, etc. hold little interest to us. I had checked on the parks' hours a few months ago, and then again this past Friday. IoA extended their hours in that time to open one hour earlier, at 8:00. We're going to Magic Kingdom on Sunday, and they also extended their hours, to close one hour later than originally scheduled. So this tells me one thing: they expect it to be busy! Magic Kingdom I have down since I've visited there more frequently, but any tips anyone has to help maximize my time at both Uni parks, IoA in particular since it's the one I'm most worried about with the HP addition driving crowds in, would be greatly appreciated. We're spending one day in each park, Uni on Monday and IoA on Tuesday. I have a 6 year old thrill seeker with us who's not 48" yet, and I've ridden all the coasters at IoA so I can skip them (if I have to! ) to make sure she gets to do some of the more kid oriented stuff. I would like to get a ride on The Mummy at least since it wasn't there last time, and possibly Rip Ride Rockit (but Mummy has priority between those two!). Thanks in advance for any help you can give!

And here comes the lawsuit: http://www.google.co...eafe10a89ab87c1 Interesting to note: It makes one wonder if there are other reasons besides that too.

Yes! Another Shaggy auction! I see some items I like. I never was able to get one of the SoB crates. There were plenty of them in Marketing when they were being sent out, and I might have been able to get one if I had asked, but I never did. I did get one off the SoB candy bars though. I ate the chocolate and I think I still have the wrapper somewhere. I'm still enjoying the IJST remote control car I got from Shaggy's EBay auction last year or the year before. It's in my living room but I haven't driven it in a while.

OK, so, yeah... you pretty much had to pause and advance frame by frame in order to see me blurry on The Voyage, and to see part of my head in the crowd shot in the station. But there were some good shots of other KICers. Unfortunately they didn't use any of our group's interviews. Oh well, it was a fun day and it was fun to see some of us on TV. I have the attitude of Mike Wazowski in Monster's Inc. when he sees himself on the commercial and he's covered up by the company's logo, he's not upset but instead goes "I WAS ON TV!!!"