Delirium_Guy

Well, I can vouch that indeed there was a crane up yesterday, I happened to drive by the Park around 130PM or so. Never really did think much of it. If I recall correctly too, during construction, NEITHER of the two LARGE cranes that were built were used to build the loop. I have pictures showing a much smaller crane that was used to lift the sections of track into place, much like a steel coaster. So I don't think he can be shot down completely. What an interesting off season, eh? Rumors of X-Flight, rumors of losing the Loop, interesting.... - Todd

Hey all! I've decided its time to clear out some stuff that I've been hanging onto for a while! I have a ton of press kits and other fun industry items that I am putting up on Ebay. Here are a few that may be of interest to you guys...... Arrow Dynamics - http://cgi.ebay.com/Arrow-Dynamics-Brochur...1QQcmdZViewItem PKI 1999 - http://cgi.ebay.com/1999-Paramounts-Kings-...1QQcmdZViewItem Millennium Force Press Kit - http://cgi.ebay.com/Cedar-Point-Millennium...1QQcmdZViewItem Holiday World Legend Press Kit - http://cgi.ebay.com/2000-Holiday-World-Pre...1QQcmdZViewItem SFKK 1998 Kit - http://cgi.ebay.com/Six-Flags-Kentucky-Kin...1QQcmdZViewItem SFKK 1999 Kit - http://cgi.ebay.com/Six-Flags-Kentucky-Kin...1QQcmdZViewItem PKD Hurler Press Kit - http://cgi.ebay.com/1994-Paramounts-Kings-...1QQcmdZViewItem PKD Volcano Press Kit - http://cgi.ebay.com/1998-Paramounts-Kings-...1QQcmdZViewItem - Todd

LOL, I realized that after I posted that! Tomb Raider is such a low key ride and has had such a negative response to it. But yeah, no need for TWO Flying Coasters :-) Seriously, I honestly believe that IF X-Flight were to make a reappearance in 2007, PKI certainly seems to be the most likely recipient. I think its a great move on Cedar Fair's part. While it sucks for Geauga Lake to be losing such a major attraction, I think in the long run people will realize it will be for the best. I also don't think this is the last we hear of attractions moving from that park to others. - Todd

Well lets see who can be eliminated..... Knotts -- new spinning coaster coming & confirmed at IAAPA to be from MACK Rides Valleyfair -- Renegade GCI wood coaster Cedar Point - Maverick Carowinds - Borg already in operation Kings Dominion - Waterpark Expansion Dorney - new slide for Wild Water Kingdom Great America - Guess anything is possible but why re-install a ride that never went over well in the first place So that would leave Canada's Wonderland, Kings Island, Michigan's Adventure and Worlds of Fun Worlds of Fun just received Patriot for 2006, a hefty investment. Its certainly possible, but doesn't seem likely that they would follow that up with another major coaster addition such as X-Flight Michigan's Adventure hasn't received a major coaster addition since Shivering Timbers in 1998. While it seems logical that they would be the perfect choice, I keep thinking about one thing. X-Flight is being removed essentially because the attendance the Lake is getting does not support the cost of maintaining rides such as that. Michigan's Adventure, if I recall correctly, may possibly attract around a million visitors a year, but I think it may be lower around 800,000 to 900,000. Can THEY support a ride like X-Flight, I think the answer is no, but again we just don't know! Canada's Wonderland certainly could use the ride, but there have always been rumors circulating since the takeover that CF is not interested in Wonderland and has been looking to unload the Park. Crazy rumor, yes, but makes you wonder how much they will invest in the park. Kings Island honestly seems like the most logical choice. No MAJOR coaster addition since Son of Beast and NO I don't consider IJ a major coaster. The thrill ride department has certainly been much neglected over the past several years. Kings Island certainly could support the ride and majority of the people who visit will have never even known X-Flight existed at Geauga Lake. Its fun to speculate, hopefully not much longer until the truth comes out. - Todd

I will agree 100% Disney is a fantastic experience for ANYONE. I practically turn into a two year old when I'm running around Magic Kingdom. Your Disney perception does certainly change as you get older. For example, Epcot. I *hated* Epcot growing up and dreaded having my parents drag me there. Now, its quite possibly my favorite park down there. Getting back on subject, Animal Kingdom is a spectacular park. Before I made my first visit back in 2004, I had also heard that it was a half day park. Thats quickly changing. We pretty much spent from open-close there back in September and even made a few repeat visits to catch the Festival of the Lion King Show (another MUST do) and some more Everest. What impresses me the most about Animal Kingdom, much like the other Disney parks, is that you feel as if you are in a different world. The intricate details that are in place from the midways to the landscaping to the Tree of Life are unbelievable! Kilimanjaro Safari is pretty amazing, even more so when you think of the incredible amount of work Disney put in to create the entire thing. As Avatar stated, its a must do! Hey, was Finding Nemo: The Musical in soft opening mode yet? I've seen some early pictures of the stage sets and costumes and it looks like it'll be another hit like Festival of the Lion King. darn, now I'm dying to go back to Disney! Only one more month......

Its not about getting rid of one of their best coasters, its about what the focus is going to be at Geauga Lake in the future. Kinzel's statement has been stated several times already here about the footprint being too large for the crowds that they get. Call me crazy, but I honestly believe that we WILL see some attractions removed and sent to other parks. It makes perfectly good sense. X-Flight certainly didn't bring in the crowds the year it was introduced at the Park and nearly 6 years later they still aren't coming. I think it'd be a great addition to PKI's somewhat lacking collection of thrill rides. Lets face it, FoF was really the last GREAT coaster addition to PKI. Face/Off is fun, but nothing extraordinary and we don't even want to get into that big SBNO piece of garbage on the other side of Action Zone :-) I happen to really enjoy the Vekoma flying coasters.....most impressed with how Borg turned out at Carowinds. The big draw at Geauga though IS the water park there, I believe thats where the area of focus will be for some time to come. I know no official announcement has been made, but I do believe I read that they would be expanding the water park again this coming season. These new additions are the remaining parts of what was suppose to be installed THIS year. In any event, if X-Flight is truly coming to PKI, the truth will be out soon. - Todd

As PKIBeast said, it was a combination of both rider error and ride itself. Yes, she was heavily intoxicated during the ride. Due to the lack of a seat divider in the capsule, when she went to flip it upside down, she slid right over to the other side and out she came. Sad, I actually enjoyed Flight Commander. I was fortunate to get to ride the version out at PGA before they got rid of it. Yet another PKI flat ride to bite the dust. - Todd

I gotta agree about Scream Machine. Having just ridden it a few weeks ago, I loved it actually! You'll remember, Interpreter, that I used to adore the darn thing back in the days when we'd hit Coaster Celebration. While the rest of my group had it beat the hell out of them, I enjoyed a pretty smooth ride. The brake was off coming out of the first loop and the thing was hauling serious ass. Definitely my preference to Vortex, outside the fantastic first drop that Vortex has. Oddly enough Shockwave, identical in layout to Scream Machine, WAS a piece of crap. Go figure. I never had the problems that you did with the Phantom either. Its funny how everyone has a different ride experience. - Todd

Actually, the soul got sucked out of the Park by Six Flags. I gotta agree with what others said, the Park operated just fine before the Six Flags umbrella was extended. Seeing the numbers the Park has had the past few seasons, the conference call that just took place, I strongly believe that big changes are on the way to Geauga Lake. I think its days as a big player are over, afterall, where is the need to compete now? The bigger competition, actually, is Kennywood. Kennywood has a very loyal fan base. Thats not going to change. Why NOT just operate the Park as mostly a water park? Afterall, the water park is what drew most of the crowds in this season anyway. It would make perfect sense for Cedar Fair to downsize the dry park, but continue to develope the water park aspect of the property. With such a short drive to Sandusky, the majority of those people already make their trip to Cedar Point anyway. As for X-Flight moving. Yes, its by the road. So if actual removal of the structure is taking place, yes you will be able to see it. What was said that the electrical components were being removed at this point. I highly doubt that needs to take place just to add an on-ride photo system. But, one never knows. Sure will be an interesting off season......

I'm not usually one to spread rumors or start them, but this one particularly caught my attention. I was talking to a friend of mine in the Park who is an electrician. He was discussing some of the changes for next season. At random, he mentioned that they were told that X-Flight from Geauga Lake was being moved to the Park. I thought that was quite silly and not even a remote possibility at first. I later hopped on CoasterBuzz. Ironically enough, a new topic had been started stating that the demolition of X-Flight has begun with the electrical components already in the process of being removed. Don't know if its meant for next season, stranger things have happened and a late May / early June opening wouldn't be out of the question at this point. Just thought I'd pass it along, definitely was a fun rumor!

Ahhh.....Volcano roll backs are loads of fun! I've been on two, one of which was when it opened and was only running with 8 passenger trains :-) To the original poster, I was there on Saturday night. We hopped on IJ right as the Park was closing. I noticed the train in question. The one time it almost rolled back, it stalled for several seconds at the top of the helix. We ended up on that train. It was definitely VERY slow at the top, which resulted in a slow ride after and pretty eventless. Anyone know why the fire wasn't working Saturday? Thats the first time I've ever seen it not in operation? - Todd

I, too, attended the preview night on Thursday. I'll agree that some things have improved vastly, but I will also hold my position that NOTHING has came even remotely close to what it was the FIRST season. As some have mentioned, I think my favorite thing was the host at the entrance of the Park. Very nice touch, very Universalish. The fog around the gate area was awesome, unfortunately it didn't trail very far down International Street. Once again, for me, fog is the biggest complaint.....or lack thereof I should say. Cowboy Carnage was a surprise. It had a lot going on. There really weren't any dull moments. Nicely done! Personally, I thought the scare zones were lame with the exception of Corn Stalkers. The Worksite was a joke. Perhaps some fog or something MAY spruce it up a bit, but in general its a waste. I'm still out on Holiday Horror. Upon initial thought, tackiest attraction ever! I'll give them props for not wasting the Winterfest garb and as Uncle Henry mentioned, Santa was a riot. While I think the setting still lacks a lot at FearFest, it is vastly improved over the past few years! I think this has been the best year yet for the scareactors. Everyone seemed to be genuinely into their roles, I was very pleased! Come on PKI, crank up the fog! - Todd

I have never felt that PKI's decorations were cheesy, only that they were a bit lacking. It was OK when FearFest was in its first season and only certain areas were open. Now the entire park is used resulting in a lot of bare areas in terms of decorations. This is an area that Cedar Point shines in. All areas of the park are decorated in some form or another. The fog during the first season of FearFest was phenominal, it was a super event. The past few seasons, I personally haven't felt that there was that much fog at all. Your mileage may vary :-) Oh, jzarley, I agree that I don't think Magnum is rough at all. Its an agressive ride with very extreme forces in the airtime department as we both know. Not rough at all for me, no matter where I ride. It was running great this past Sunday, but two Sundays ago it was a freak show. The trims were off and the breeze from the lake was very very light. The thing was hauling through the turnaround and dishing up some serious laterals. The breeze was a bit heavier on Sunday, but it didn't detract too much from it! Maggie will always be a personal favorite for me. I'll never forget seeing it on the horizon on my first visit back in 1992. Man what a sight. None the less, as Snapper said, my heart belongs to Superman at Six Flags New England. IMHO, its perfect. Not a dull spot on the ride. Perfection I tell you! - Todd, who's last visit to PKI may actually be on Thursday for the FearFest preview

Well, last Sunday Robb and I randomly decided that we wanted to hit Cedar Point. We got a late start, 3PM, ended up at the Park at 645PM with an 8PM close. Crazy, I know, but thats how we do things. Although we only had an hour, EVERYTHING was a walk-on.....including Millennium Force and Dragster. We got around 7 rides in the hour we were there. Fantastic. We knew we had to try this again. So yesterday, Robb, James and myself took off for the Point once again. We arrived around 2PM. Once again, WALK ON everything. * Magnum was running like a champ yesterday, perhaps some of the best rides I've had. The trims were off before entering the turn around. It was very very agressive and the airtime was even more off the charts on the return run. Ended up with 4 Maggie rides yesterday. * Dragster was bringing it yesterday. Ran reliably all day, no down time, except a short 10 minute delay while they had to reset the blocks. 5 minute wait for our first ride, after that we literally walked right on the trains! Ended up with 4 rides. * Millennium was running a bit on the slow side. It was kinda chilly yesterday and the wind was definitely a factor. Still fun. 4 rides again. We ended the night with a front seat ride (which was only a 2 train wait, BTW). Superb! Not my favorite coaster by a long shot, Superman at SFNE still holds that one, but it was a brilliant ride. The drop was a trip in the front seat after dark. The lights on the structure really screw with you with the way they flash as the train drops down. Brrrrr, it was freezing up there though :-) * Through out the day we rode Raptor 2 times, Wicked Twister, Blue Streak, Disaster Transport, maXair, Skyhawk, Gemini plus did the two haunted houses that were open. Combine those with 4 rides each on the 3 most popular coasters in the park in just over 5 hours. Amazing day at the Point. * Gotta back back to HalloWeekends on a Saturday. The scare zones they have set up look super. The haunted houses themselves weren't half bad this year, definitley improved over the years. Definitely enjoyed the one back in Frontier Town. In general, the Park looks fantastic as it always does for Halloween. They've always paid much more attention to actually decorating the park than Kings Island ever has for FearFest. I especially love the crashed SkyRide cabin located directly underneath the Sky Ride :-) I missed the Iron Dragon car this year though, not sure if I just passed by or what. * Maverick is looking better by the day. I was looking at the webcam on Friday. At 3PM, they had the pond drained as they were constructing the turn that travels over it. By 6PM, when the Park opened, it was filled again. I LOVE the fact that they were concerned with the cosmetic appearance of the area, covering up the muck and mud before guests made it back. With that said, as fun as Maverick looks, it looks sooo outta place. After seeing the giants that have been built in recent years, Maverick barely pokes above the tree line :-) I'm stoked about it though, I'm sure its going to be one hell of a fun ride! We're definitely headed back to Point a few more times this season. Is it sad that we've been there more than KI this year? Our next big adventure is next weekend though. Dorney Park, Phoenix Phall Phun Phest @ Knoebels, Six Flags New England and Six Flags Great Adventure! Looking forward to it! Are you ready Brandon?!?!?! - Todd

Ahh, I remember that video shoot! Didn't you do Tomb Raider? I think I did Delirium. Good times :-) But yeah, I've wanted to move to Florida for a few years now. An opportunity has finally presented itself, so I'm going to jump on it! Just think though, now you can come hit the Florida parks but have a free place to crash! And CoastersNSich, I'm sure I'll make it to PKI one more time before the season ends, so I'm sure we'll bump into each other. - Todd

Soo....... Somewhere between our Sea World, Busch Gardens and Universal visits, we spent 4 fantastic days at Disney. The past few visits that I've had to Florida have included a one day visit to Disney. I have a good friend that works there that usually hooks us all up with one day park hoppers. The result is a big group of us frantically hopping between the 4 Parks trying to hit as many of the big E-Ticket attractions as possible. I'm tired of doing that. Its fun. Its challenging. Its exhausting. This time, I wanted to spend some time at Disney. It had been probably 10 years or so since I last visited and spent more than a day on property. Both Robb and James had both only spent one day. There were so many things that they had yet to experience and see. Keeping up with the theme of our entire vacation, Disney was empty. Labor signals the beginning of a ramp down period before things crank back up for the Christmas holiday. Good for us. No joke, we never waited more than 10 minutes for ANYTHING during our visit! We started off Monday by hitting up Animal Kingdom first, since they closed the earliest of all the parks at 5PM. We pulled in promptly at opening, following my friend Matt through the lot for complimentary parking! I've always been a fan of Animal Kingdom. While it certainly lacked attractions upon its opening year, it has really started to develope nicely. With walk-ons for ALL attractions, we still spent 5 hours or so in the Park. It is fast becoming a park that you CAN spend the day there, if you want. The first thing that grabs your attention from the Parking lot now is no longer the Tree of Life, but rather the icy slopes and peaks of Expedition Everest. The thing is huge. Seeing this thing under construction on my past few visits then finally seeing the finished product is amazing! Obviously, this was our first stop of the day. The queue line itself is an attraction as far as I'm concerned. Fortunately, Matt was with us so he gave a pretty detailed report of the story that the queue tells. The detail is unbelievable here. The different ancient yeti shrines and statues, the shop to purchase all of your gear, the museum all leads up to the loading station. The very first thing that you can't help but notice are the trains as they barrell back in the station. Upon stopping, a huge release of steam comes out from underneath the engine. It also releases again once the train is dispatched. After a 10 minute wait we were on board. My one complaint are the abnormally high seat backs on the trains, but other than that they were super comfy with a nice pouch to secure loose articles as you ride (think Tomb Raider). The train rolls out of the station and up a short lift. A few small dips and turns quickly leads the train to climb the main lift hill. Quickly the train ascends, traveling through the temple that is located about halfway up. The view is spectacular, with ALL the theme parks easily in view. Once at the top, the train dips down and makes a quick turn into a cave before heading up an incline propelled by drive tires. You stop. From the front, you can look past the end of the track, straight down. Over head a bird swoops by. Then you are released backwards and into the cave. I *still* can't get my bearings straight here. I'm pretty sure it just does a helix, but god does it ever screw with you. Super. Another quick stop on an upward incline. A projection of the Yeti is seen on the cavern wall ripping up the tracks in front of you. The track ahead flips over and off you go to the big drop out of the mountain. The last half of the ride is much faster than I anticipated and surprisingly has some kick with it. The final tunnel is quite the shock as the ENORMOUS Yeti animatronic swipes his claw just above your head. This is no normal animatronic. This is so large that an entirely seperate structure was constructed within the mountain to hold it. Its unbelievably realistic! Overall, Everest is fantastic! Its a great family ride, but it has enough thrills to satisfy everyone. Its a much welcomed addition to DAK and really has helped to round out the Parks collection of attractions. Just a few notes from DAK: *Finally saw the Festival of the Lion King show. Superb. Funny, Disney rounded up 4 old Lion King floats from a parade at Disneyland and turned them into one hell of a show. Saw this one three times over our trip. Its that good. * Dinosaur is still hella fun. Its a lot jerkier than I remember, not a bad thing though. I still prefer the amazing Indiana Jones attraction at Disneyland. * Primevil Whirl. Ya know, I hated this area when I first saw it a few years ago. Now I get it though. The area looks like a cheap carnival, completed with cracked asphalt. But thats exactly what its supposed to be. The coaster is your normal Reverchon spinning mouse. Nothing out of the norm. * Tough To Be A Bug -- Super 4d film inside the tree of life. Some hysterical effects get me everytime.....especially the beetles who must exit the theater before everyone else :-) It feels like they are crawling right underneath ya. Nicely done. * Kilamanjaro Safari -- Again, to think that Disney built this from scratch. You truly have to experience it to appreciate it. THanks to the short lines, were soon on our way to Epcot. We decided to park at Magic Kingdom though and ride the monorail over. Again, Epcot is one of those places that grows on you. When I was a kid, I hated it. Now, its probably my favorite of the 4 parks. Its not necessarily about the rides, but more about the atmosphere. Anyone who knows me well knows that plays a huge factor for me. The World Showcase is a beauty. I can easily spend hours there walking around and just taking in all the different smells and sounds from each of the countries. Again just some highlights. No lines either. * Test Track -- ran very reliably the whole trip. Seems like they have finally gotten this thing to run at an acceptable pace. Fun ride, though I still miss the old World of Motion attraction * Mission Space -- Perhaps one of the most intense attractions I've been one. Its not one that I can re-ride. I need a spacer between spins. We never did try the new Green Team side, which doesn't involve the spinning centrifuge. The ride itself is amazing and just a blast to experience. You can't help but play with all the gadgets and buttons inside your capsule :-) * Soarin' -- Hands down the best new attraction since Tower of Terror. A simple IMAX-esq film taken to the next level. The smells that are piped through from the various scenes, the wind blowing in your face all combined with the fact that you are dangling about 70 feet in the air. Its beautifully done. We probably rode about 15 times total. Couldn't get enough. Once again, we did EVERY attraction in the Park in just a few hours. We couldn't have closed the night at Epcot with no worries at all. However, Magic Kingdom was open until 10PM, so off we went. Magic Kingdom We arrived back to the Transportation around 6, then hopped the express monorail over to the Kingdom. With 4 hours to spare and no waits once again.......plenty of rides were had. We managed to hit every attraction except Philharmagic, Jungle Cruise and the Tiki Room. * Space Mountain -- Never have I walked on to this before! At one point, there were only about 15 people in the building. We took 4 spins. Can't help but love this thing. While it only goes about 25mph, it sure gives the illusion of so much more. Honestly, it still reigns as the best indoor coaster out there for me. FoF is the more thrilling ride obviously, not saying that. Space is just so much fun though. Especially with the stars and meteors flying over head. Atmosphere once again prevails. * Pirates of the Carribbean -- I was a tad worried about what I'd think of the newly updated version. Pirates has always held a soft spot for me. Its a brilliantly done attraction for its time. It didn't need to be changed. And it didn't. Its the same old ride, just with some new pirates joining the crew. Davy Jones, Captain Barbosa and Jack Sparrow have taken over. The Davy Jones effect is superb, I really wasn't expecting it. Basically before the boat drops down into the ride itself and fog curtain looms ahead giving the appearance of going through the middle of a water fall. Davy Jones is projected on this giving warning of what lies ahead. The first change you will notice is the Ship scene. Barbosa has now taken over. I miss the canon shots that hit the water, but the bursts of air that gave the illusion of the shots flying over you was a VERY nice touch. The most impressive additions are the Jack Sparrow animatronics. Easily the most life-like you've seen. You'd swear that Johnny Depp was standing there himself. The best was the final scene. Jack is sitting in a chair. His motions rock it back and forth. Meanwhile, his hands are full of treasure as he lassos and twirls it around in the air. Props to Disney for keeping the old Pirates pretty much intact. I think that speaks volumes for the popularity of the original attraction.....soon to be 40 years old! Through out the next couple days, we did everything multiple times. We saw Spectromagic (the night-time electrical parade) and Wishes two times each. Wishes gives me chills. Everytime. My favorite night time show on property, followed closely by Fantasmic at the Disney Studios. Disney Studios was fun as ever. Tower of Terror still ranks highly for me as one of the best attractions ever developed. The random programs it features make you guess every time which way you are going to go first......up or down? Just when you think its over, it either drops again or goes flying back up to the top of the tower. Again, we did every attraction and show in the Park. Multiple rides on Tower and Rock 'n' Roller Coaster. This was the best trip to Disney I've ever had. We did everything we possibly wanted to as many time as we wanted. Leaving was very hard to do. I don't know how anyone can NOT enjoy themselves here? Yeah, they don't have record breaking thrill rides, but so what? The attractions that they build are among the best anywhere. All are very thorough and well through out. They tell a story. They put the guest in the middle of the story. They are ALL an EXPERIENCE. Disney does so many things right. Its amazing to see a project the size of Everest. The amount of detail and time they put into it blows my mind. In general, the entire property is a sight. 4 theme parks, 2 water parks, Pleasure Island, DIsney Quest, Downtown Disney, all the hotels. Its like a different world. Its also very easy to see why people can come down and easily spend 7 to 10 days on property. Theres just that much to do. That pretty much wraps up our trip. I could go on for hours about Disney. The good news is though, Robb and I will be moving to Orlando in November! Its a big move to make, but an opportunity has presented itself and I can't just pass it up. It'll be wierd to consider parks like Disney and Universal as our home parks, but freaking awesome at the same time! Can't wait! Thanks for reading! - Todd

Nah, but having season passes to all these parks make the investment more than worthwhile. It was a relatively in expensive trip, considering my best friend lives there so we stay for free :-) - Todd

Moving along...... Sunday ended up being a washed out day at Sea World, with only a handful of rides on Kraken and Journey to Atlantis. On Monday, we decided to use a day of our Disney Park Hopper pass. It was a tremendous day, but I'll go into more details about that when I get to Disney. On Tuesday, we got up and decided to head over to Busch Gardens Tampa. I've always had mixed impressions of this park. For me, it is no where near the caliber that Busch Williamsburg is. I think what detracts from my experience here is just where its located. The Williamsburg park is so spread out and has an isolated type of feeling with it. You feel like you are truly in another country. The Tampa park is the extreme opposite. Landlocked on all sides by bustling streets, residential areas, etc, it just doesn't create the same atmosphere. With that sad, its still a gorgeous park. While its no where near as big as Williamsburg, it gives the impression that it is. There really are no short cuts. The paths to the back of the park are long and winding, making the trek to Kumba seem like its a mile back! We pulled into the lot, flashed our Sea World season passes to get our free Preferred Parking and parked right next to the front gate. Upon arriving, the park was DEAD. Not exactly a huge surprise. We were stoked, hoping to get a ton of rides in before the weather turned. The forecast was severe thunderstorms and torrential rains developing right around lunch time. We were on a time crunch to hit the coasters, so the lack of lines worked for our favor.....or so we thought. Where Busch Williamsburg normally shines in their ride operations, Busch Tampa certainly was having a tough day. First ride of the day was Montu. One train running, no line, no big deal. Rode twice in the back seat, thanks to our Platinum Pass that allows one re-ride. I enjoyed the ride a lot more than I have in the past. Braking was definitely less on the mid-course brake. The first half of Montu is terrific, its very powerful....especially the Batwing element. Unforunately as soon as the the train hits the block, it is essentially brought to a halt. It completely kills the second half of the ride. Still, I give it points for the setting. The second half is totally buried in underground trenches and such. The line was starting to build up after our two rides, so we decided to make the trek to the others. We passed by Gwazi, which was closed. We knew the Lion side wasn't going to run today, but Gwazi Tiger was suppose to be open. They were cycling trains all day, but by the time we left it still had yet to open. NO big deal, I don't particularly care for the ride, though it would have been nice for James and Robb to take a spin. So we moved on around to SheiKra SheiKra Robb and I visited BGT last September, but we were only able to ride SheiKra once. That day, also, was filled with storms and showers which shut the rides down all day. I wasn't sure what to think of it. It was fun, but I didn't really get to appreciate any of the ride. The line was about 40 minutes long this time around, they were only running two out of five cars! Not sure what was going on there, but the line was definitely a slow mover....despite the speedy dispatches from the crew working. Finally we boarded the front row, again flashing our Platinum Pass. So we ended up riding the front row twice without getting out, very cool! Its not until you are climbing the lift hill that you can appreciate the sheer SIZE of this ride. The track is so much larger than that of a typical B&M. The lift is steeply angled at 45 degrees (see Millennium Force) and takes little time to reach the top. A gorgeous view of the tampa skyline greets you as you crest. Slowly, the train moves around the 180 degree turn at the top, then slowly lowers you into position to stop. Definitely a different experience in the front seat. It was somewhat awkward because you could feel the structure swaying a bit, actually it was pretty unnerving! Loved it though. Without warning, you drop. Nice floatage all the way down before you climb high into the Immelman. This element, while nothing out of the ordinary, just flows so well. There is no snap at the top, like some of the others out there, instead the train just gently flips over before diving down into the helix. I definitely did not remember the ride being as powerful as it was running! Next up was the mid-course brake. Slowing to a crawl, no time as wasted as the train dumps over the 2nd vertical drop and down into the tunnel. Nice banked turn over the Smokehouse leads to the splash down ending, which doesn't really slow the train at all. Overall, definitely fell more this ride as we rode it! Makes me look forward to the arrival of Griffon next spring at Busch Williamsburg. ONe very cool feature that has been added since my last visit is the video that you can purchase. There are 3 cameras placed along the ride. One positioned to view the first drop, a second that shows the second vertical drop and one on the final brake run. You can purchase a video of your ride experience. The video is slowed down, allowing a crystal clear view of everyone on the train at the time. Very easy to see yourself and your expressions as you experience those different elements. It also includes some stock footage of the ride as well as a POV. Shockingly, it was only $20 for the DVD. I found that to be reasonable considering how darn expensive some other on-ride photos can be! We then made our way back to the Congo section. Python was up next, just because James wanted the credit :-) It was cool to take a final spin, as it will be coming out VERY soon as they prepare to rennovate the entire Congo area of the park. Cha-ching. Kumba was calling our name. It received a fresh coat of paint since our last visit and my god it was looking beautiful! I've always loved the colors chosen for the ride, especially the yellow trains. They are very striking against the turquoise track. Again, only running one train. This was aggravating simply because the line was starting to spill out of the queue line by the time we rode! Again, we took advantage of the double ride perk from our Platinum Pass. darn. This ride just delivers EVERY time. It makes me miss the old school days of B&M, when every ride they built was balls to the wall intensity. The inversions are rapid fire with no time to catch your breath! I've always loved the Zero-G roll, although Kraken seems to be the slightly more powerful element in this case. The ride has developed some minor head banging, but nothing too serious to detract from the experience.....especially for a 13 year old coaster. We were so frustrated by the line that had developed and the fact that they were only running one train, we decided that our day at Busch wasn't going to be as fabulous as hoped. Very quickly, we hopped on the two remaining coasters. Cheetah Chase and Scorpion. Cheetah Chase was just the standard mouse, but way over braked. It never ran that way at Williamsburg, so I was a bit disappointed. Scorpion is still just a hella fun ride. I'm always amazed at the smaller Schwarzkopf coasters. They pack quite a punch, while taking up very small foot prints. The man was brilliant, may he RIP. The small crowd had turned into a problem due to the one train operations on everything. So, we did the only logical thing......hopped in the car the drove back to Orlando to renew our Universal Annual Passes :-) Universal Orlando A little over an hour later, we were parking and walking into CityWalk. We decided to head to the Studios first to renew our passes and take a few spins on Mummy. Definitely LOVED what we saw. An empty park with a 5 minute wait for ALL attractions! Sweet!!! First stop was Revenge of the Mummy Revenge of the Mummy This ride will never get old for me. I recently read a TR on here about someone stating that Italian Job was the superior ride? I'm not sure how anyone could possibly come to that conclusion. The storyline completely sucks and lacks any creativity, but the actual ride experience makes up for that. All the theming and effects were working, including the beetle scene. I still love the rotating table with Imotep watching and following the car as it spins around! The ride itself is surprising powerful. We rode the front seat on our first ride. I forgot the spots of EJECTOR air that this ride has! The helices are speedy and pretty forceful. My one complaint is the sudden stop for the show scene. While I like the effects and the scene itself, it totally ruins the pacing of the ride. Minor gripe though. I do wish the ending were a tad longer and it certainly lacks the intensity that the first half does. Overall, LOVE LOVE LOVE this ride. We probably ended up with 20 rides or so throughout our two days or so that we spent on property at Universal. Men In Black: Alien Attack No line. They even had the pre-show turned off so it was just a straight shot into the loading area. Again, a ride that never gets old for me. The gun system works flawlessly. Very easy to hit the targets, better yet is the fact that the aliens shoot back at you. The spinning action combined with the great theming and interaction with the other cars all add up to make this a fantastic attraction. I still screw up everytime and forget to "Hit the Red Button" to get the 100,000 point bonus near the end. James and Robb had it down to an art by the end of the trip though. darn them! None the less, we always trumped the other cars and rightly earned our Galaxy Defender status :-) A quick spin on the E.T Adventure and we decided to go check out Islands of Adventure! Since the lines at the Studios were 5 minutes, perhaps the same would be true of Islands. It was. We got in the Park around 5PM, with a 6PM close fast approaching we decided to just make the loop and see what we could ride. All was good. Hulk was running the best I've ever seen, even the second half (which I normally despise) was bringing it this trip! Spiderman continues to amaze me. The effects and how the 3D intereacts with the actual theming is super. Again, one attraction that never gets old for me. On through Toon Lagoon, we hopped on for a quick spin on Ripsaw Falls. This is where our first Universal hiccupp occurred. No grouper near the end of the line, so people were lining themselves up in all 3 loading areas. Problem was, they were only using ONE. This led to mass confusion in the station. Definitely frustrating, but all was forgotten as we got our soaking ride! Ripsaw is crazy. The final drop is phenominal, it always surprises me with the steepness and the speed that the logs careen over it. Gotta love the speed hill that follows right before the splash down. We skipped Jurassic Park and made our way on over to Lost Continent. Now would be the perfect time for a few Dragons rides. NOT. 5 minute wait time posted. We had 30 minutes to spare, so we figured we could ride both sides then head back over for one more Hulk ride. Unfortunately, Universal wasn't going to have that. One train running on both sides. The thinking is that its ONE attraction, so we both sides open they are running two trains. Somedays I'm sure thats ok. There were 3 trains in front of us. Not a big deal, except the painfully slow crews. It took 35 minutes for us to get our ONE ride on Fire Dragon. While the ride was fantastic as always, the operations were so poor that it just totally ****ed us off. We left feeling aggrevated. Even more, a 6PM close while the Disney Parks were staying open until 8 or 9PM. We were out of the parking lot by 630, with no desire to spend any time at CityWalk. Nor did anyone else, as people were flooding out to their cars. We ended up spending two more days at the end of the trip at Universal. Tried out the new High In The Sky Seuss Trolley ride at IOA. I'm glad they made use of the ride system that was put in place, oh, SEVEN years ago. Sadly, the attraction isn't much of one. Short ride cycle with just an automated segement. Four different stores are reported to be there. My friend Michelle had ridden earlier in the summer. Her story was nothing but sound effects. our ride was the Alphabet being sang to us in rhyme. I normally can appreciate a ride for what it is, even if its a kid ride, but if I waited anymore than 15 minutes for this, I'd be ****ED. I can't believe this was Universals idea for a new attraction at IOA. I'm not sure if it was the fact that we went back to Universal AFTER Disney or what, but it was obvious to me after this trip why Universal NEVER will beat out Disney. In general, Islands of Adventure is showing its age. Sad since its only 7 years old. No major attractions have been added to the Park to give it any life. Rides are faded and in need of paint jobs BADLY. Perhaps the worse is Ripsaw Falls. Some rides like Hulk are great with operations. Others, like Dueling Dragons are pathetic and remind me more of an old Six Flags experience. The Studios park is in far better shape and has had several major additions since IOA came to be. Still, some of the operational nightmares continue there as well. In general, this was a bad Universal experience for us. Its sad, because i've always been a proponent for them. Again, some of this could have been the fact that we had just spent 4 wonderful days at Disney. Still, its clear why Disney is number one in Orlando and will most likely always be. Is it any surprise that Universals numbers are going down the tubes if they are running the Parks like they were this week? None the less, plenty of rides were still taken! We waited no more than 10 minutes for anything there, so guess we can't complain too much. I just hope they make some changes and get the parks back to the level that they need to be. They seriously have made some serious cuts and its starting to show. The fact they closed at 6PM every night last week, while the Disney Parks were closing anywhere from 830PM until 10PM, I can't help but to ask why? How much money are they losing by not keeping people there longer? CityWalk has no luster at 6PM with a beautiful sunny sky. Its all about the night time atmosphere, music and bright lights. It sets a tone and makes people wanna party and stick around. Instead, we found ourselves headed to the lights, smells and tackyness known as Old Town. Spent a few hours there. They were more than happy to take our money, as we were more than happy to give it. We rode the Windstorm coaster, fun as always, but ended the night on this crazy little ride by Moser rides. It was a bicycle gone wild. Two people per bike, strapped in with an OTSR. The ride would start swinging back and forth by you pedaling forward. After a certain point, as you pedaled, you would be quickly accelerated ALL the way around. You could keep going upside down or stop pedaling and suspend yourself upside down. It was sweet. She let all 3 of us ride for $3, as opposed to $3 per person per ride. We also snagged a second ride for free. Definitely a disorienting way to end a so-so day. Next up, our 4 days at Disney. - Todd

Well, at the beginning of the summer, myself and my usual clan decided that we just HAD to do Disney. The past two times I"ve been there, I've only spent a day. Robb and James had not EVER spent more than a day, so they had so much that they had yet to experience. Labor Day weekend would set the trip off. Of course, no trip to Orlando would be complete without a stop by Universal, Sea World and Busch Tampa. We planned to stay with my best friend Michelle who lives in Kissimmee. Perfect. It was all set! We had planned on leaving on Saturday September 2nd. In my typical fashion though, my gears were grinding with other plans. Seeing as how Atlanta was on the way and about our halfway point of the drive, this was the perfect opportunity to get back over to SFoG and get some more rides on that fabulous new Goliath! The alarm sounded at 4AM. Shockingly, we all got up and were out the door on schedule. The adrenaline was high, especially since James almost didn't make the trip due to some scheduling issues at PKI. So we were pumped! Our first stop for gas ended up being in Chattanooga. Ironically enough, it was 11AM. As I filled the car up with gas, I happened to look up. What was this? A billboard advertising Lake Winnie! Uh oh. A few minutes later, we were pulling in the parking lot at Lake Winnie! Lake Winnie: I had visited this park before, several years ago. Tremendously enjoyed it. Just a small traditional park with lots of old school rides including a Chutes ride that empties out into the Parks lake. I called before we headed over and found out a pay per ride was optional and gate admission was only $5! It was a no brainer. We parked, purchased our gate admission and about 30 tickets. Unforuntately, since SfoG was still on the schedule for the day, it was going to be a quick in and out trip. A quick ride on one evil Wild Lightnin (L&T Wild Mouse) left me dizzy as hell for some reason. Right next door is the Parks John Allen out-n-nack Cannonball! This ride was cold on me the first time I rode, I was hoping for more this time. While its a zippy little ride and smooth as glass, it is still a bit lackluster. No real airtime for us. I rode the back seat, while Robb and James took the front. Eh. Its still a beautiful looking ride though and still utilizes its manual skid brake system. With the two coasters ridden, we had to split. The Park had a lot more rides than I remembered and I was sad that I didn't get a chance to ride the Chutes ride again. Back on to the interstate we were south bound for Atlanta. Just a little over an hour later we were pulling off at Six Flags over Georgia! Six Flags over Georgia: As some of you may remember, we hit SFoG back in the Spring. We hit up Goliath on opening weekend. It was a great trip and the experience at SFoG was TOP NOTCH! We left in amazement over the differences we had noticed in Six Flags. Was it a fluke? I'm very HAPPY to report that SFoG still has it going on! The Park was spotless, the employees were incredibly friendly and VERY efficient with the operations on the rides. ALL rides were up and running, including the elusive Deja Vu! Last time, Vu was closed as was Ninja which hadn't completed its new paint job yet. We had planned on just staying a few hours, since we still had another 6 hour stretch or so to get us to Michelle's apartment in Orlando. First up, Goliath! Two trains, no wait. darn. B&M simply created a winner with this one. Its broken in quite nicely with even more pronounced air than our visit in April. The downward spiral in the middle of the ride was powerful, my vision was blurring as we exited it every time we rode! I would KILL to have this ride closer to me. Its placement in the Park is perfect, with the crest of the lift hill placed appropriately on top of the hill the park is situated on. Its a very striking ride, visible for miles around. Top notch crew, no stacking of trains and very speedy! We wanted to hit up Mindbender but it was down at that moment. Batman was closed. Its open now, but it apparently had a pretty major issue which kept it closed for close to a month. Sad that we missed it this time around, but we got plenty of spins on it in April. On around the loop, we took our spin on Deja Vu. It was going down every 10 minutes or so, it kept stopping on the lift. Honestly, I think all three of these rides need to come out. They are fun, but nothing phenominal and I hardly see how they are worth the cost to maintain. Ninja was next up. I had ridden this one several years back, but as I mentioned it was closed on our visit in April. I actually enjoyed it. Its not too rough and has some amazing head choppers. Nice ride. Again, two trains running and no stacking of trains. We werent going to bother with Scream Machine or Superman. We all love Superman but we have the model at Six Flags Great Adventure to ride in a few weeks. So back around to Mindbender we went. As always a fun ride. Smooth, very powerful loops and some crazy ejector air on some of the drops. Gotta love that insane helix mid-ride also! We took a final spin on Goliath then headed up towards the gate. On the way out though, couldn't help but swing by Georgia Cyclone. A tad rougher than April, but still an awesome ride. Two trains, great crew. The Park was fantastic and it was a Saturday on top of that. It was pretty crowded, but the crews were working hard and the waits weren't more than about 10 minutes at most. Except for Deja Vu. Sadly, it was time to take off. Definitely gotta get back to SFoG for closing weekend, sorry PKI but you are losing out this year. Back in the car, we were off for Florida. Made excellent time on the way down, with one scary stop at a gas station in Valdosta.....some shady characters hanging out made it interesting :-) We rolled into Orlando around 11PM, greeted by the spotlights from Universal Orlando off in the distance as well as the Sky Tower at Sea World. We ended up going out to the club once we got to Michelles, so we finally landed in bed around 3AM, almost 24 hours after we first woke up. Great first day! :- Sea World Orlando Sunday brought us to Sea World. Michelle, her girlfriend and daughter were in tow for us. Sea World is one of those parks that I actually like to take my time in and enjoy the entire park. Sadly, mother nature wasn't on our side! It started to storm about 30 minutes after we got there and shut down Kraken and Journey to Atlantis. Bummer. We stuck it out though, watched a few shows. While watching Believe, we noticed a train cycling on Kraken. We sprinted over just in time to see them open both Atlantis and Kraken. Whoo hoo! Kraken is just as good as I remember. I'm still crazy over this ride. Smooth as glass, in typical B&M fashion, and surprising powerful! The Zero G roll surpasses Kumba's, IMHO. Not an easy task. Perhaps the best part of the ride comes after the block brake (which is always turns off, I may add). The train goes through a vertical loop and up a hill before diving underwater into Kraken's layer. A tight, heavily banked turn underneath leads back out into the sunlight with a corkscrew. Can't get enough! :-) Thanks to all of us having Busch Platinum passes, we were able to ride a second time without getting out of the train! This definitely would help us at Busch Tampa in a few days. We finally took a spin on Atlantis. OK theming, though I think not as good as Busch usually does. The ride is hella fun though and I love that twisting drop in the dark near the end. Thanks to the weather, it was closing time now. We only got a few rides on Kraken, but it was worth the wait. Kinda nice to have an early night, as the next day would begin our Disney Adventure :-) Thats it for now. Time for some sleep. Part 2 following shortly, thanks for reading! - Todd

I have ridden Joker's Jinx at Six Flags America. I prefer that ride to FoF. As Interpreter said, the lack of a midcourse brake makes a difference. It was awesome when PKI wasn't using their brake. Yeah, the FoF queue is nice, but what about the ride itself? The building itself has ZERO theming, aside from the colored flood lights that shine up on the track. Sorry, that does nothing for me. The ride in general is so loud that the music, unless near the mid course brake, is pretty inaudible. If the trains had speakers on them or something else happened on the ride, then yeah I'd say the theming would make a difference.....please see Rock 'n' Roller Coaster at the Disney Studios. If that ride were outside, or just inside with no theming and speakers, it'd be a snoozer. Instead, its one hell of a fun experience. I agree with the Busch coasters and A LOT of European rides. They are innovative with layouts and theming. They are also thoughtfully planned out and integrated with the rest of the park. There is nothing at Kings Island such as those rides. You are entitled to your opinion about the Point. Of all 16 coasters they have, 3 would fall into my top tier of coasters.......Magnum, Raptor and Millennium Force. The rest of the colleciton is mediocre, but they are all super fun and I'd be happy to have ANY of them at PKI. I'm not in the camp that EVERY park needs a 300 foot coaster, I could care less about that. That is, however, what the Point is known for and they do it very very well. I just returned from the Point again yesterday, 3rd visit in 3 weeks. Looking at the little details like the landscaping around Skyhawk, the entry plaza to Wicked Twister, or the lighting packages found on both maXair and Skyhawk, I hardly think the Cedar Fair standards are at all as bad as you may think. For what its worth, I FINALLY got my first ride on maXair yesterday. We all preferred it to Delirium. Longer ride cycle and more swings makes a big difference. Also, it was super smooth.....much like Delirium USED to be when it opened. Sigh. - Todd, leaving for Disney tomorrow and finally getting to check out Everest!

While I'm definitely disappointed that the Nick Parade may not be returning, I hardly see this as a reason to see a drastic drop in Park attendance. Big deal? Why does the theming on ANY of those rides have to go away? Outside of the pre-show on Tomb Raider, the theming really doesn't have anything to do with the rides. Italian Job is just some mini coopers, street signs and a helicopter. Come on. Not like it matters anyway, none of the stuff works for the most part. As for ruining the skyline and destroying an entire forest? What are you smoking? Have you been living under a rock to NOT have noticed how much beauty PARAMOUNT destroyed with your beloved Italian Job? Paramount has done MORE in the past 10 years to destroy any beauty and atmosphere that Kings Island had left. I don't see 300 foot coasters as something to ruin the skyline. Quite honestly, its a beautiful beautiful sight to drive along the peninsula as you approach CP. What exactly are Cedar Fair's standards with theming? I didn't think they had any since they don't run theme parks...only amusement parks. Again, not like the theming on any of the rides you mentioned play a big factor into the ride experience these days.

Definitely a refreshing change seeing someone else compare PKD and PKI....and once again giving the nod to PKD. I'm telling you guys, PKD is a nice place. I'm a little confused about your take on Italian Job? I agree 100% that your version at PKD owns the one at PKI. The launches ARE more intense.....with the one out of your billboard providing a nice pop of ejector air! I guess I'm confused about the trees, LOL. Outside of the ones near the IJ plaza.......PKI pretty much rippped out every tree too. Definitely the ugliest ride ever, but it DOES fit nicer into PKD than where PKI placed their version. Drop Zone at PKD is BY FAR the SUPERIOR ride. PKI's is a nightmare for me. Slow, pointless spin, low capacity and a drop that is killed by an exceptionally long brake zone (shocking, brakes at PKI?). I'm sure your visit will make you go back and appreciate PKD a whole lot more :-) - Todd

To each their own, I suppose......still a hell of a lot better than Italian Job. Having ridden Sheikra at BGA, I'm definitely excited about this one. Sheikra isn't intense any stretch, its just FUN! The suspense of hanging over the drop is pretty sweet and the water splash is a nice effect as well. I'm glad both of these found their way to the new BGE ride. It will no doubt be a fun ride and fit in beautifully at the Park. As for why Busch didn' buy the parks, who knows, but there is one very very interesting rumor that I've kept hearing. They were interested, but after taking a look at the Parks they realized that they were by no means close to being up to the level of quality that the other two Busch Parks are. I'll agree with that 100%. Sounds like a nice theory, but we'll never really truly know the reason why.

Busch Gardens Europe has some high food prices, but the quality of the food is the best of any park I have been to with the excecption of Epcot (comparing Disney to another park is unfair). Nice trip report. I have also complained numerous times about the lack of a true sit-down restaurant at PKI. That will probably change in the next couple years. Agree that the food prices at Busch are higher than normal, but it is GOOD food and you get A LOT of it. I agree with Interpreter, the food experience at Paramount Parks this year leaves a lot to be desired. I'm still absolutely outraged at my experience at Potato Works.......$12 for a soda, fry and cup of cheese sauce. Way to go PKI! - Todd

They aren't really down though that much, at least from the Cedar Fair conference call and press releases. I think it was somewhere in the neighbor hood of 2%......but in park spending was up. In general, its a bad time for parks. PKI's season is far from spectacular, at least from what I've been told. It started out strong, but has turned dramatically. At least Cedar Fair was proactive in TRYING to find ways to get people in the gate. Sorry you had a bad visit to Geauga. I've been countless times in the past 8 years.....including when it was just Geauga, then Six Flags, and now under the Cedar Fair umbrella. I have to say that operations have been pretty consistent during all visits. Not the the best of the best, but still a nice park with a great collection of rides. Go to Cedar Point. I know you haven't been, GO! :-) You'll enjoy it. - Todd