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bert425

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bert425 last won the day on March 17

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About bert425

  • Birthday 04/25/1967

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    bertimus-maximus-mermaidus

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  1. I first rode this at the end of 2022. the launch slowed to almost a stop at the top of the lift. It was underwhelming. there was NO "pop of air" at the top of the lift hill - and anyone saying there was, and the ride is now "neutered" is simply not telling the truth. the ride is EXACTLY the same after the 1st hill, no difference at all.
  2. I'll believe it when I see it. the main source for this has been saying they're shutting down every year for a while now, and he's always been wrong.
  3. and it's finished. . .and it's a Non-Specific to a specific GL: Planet Oa I'm assuming signage will go up explaining the Home planet of the Guardians in the Queue Line (and yes, it's 100% "Planet Oa". . it's how Jeffrey just introduced it on Twitter)
  4. Day 19: Wednesday, June 21st - Travel day! From Sweden to Finland, were we were gonna spend a couple of days at the Northernmost Theme Park in the world. And have the TPR Grand Prix! it was sad saying goodbye to Stockholm, as I'd really enjoyed our time here, and what I'd seen of the City. (and I LOVED Grona Lund). but it was time to move on. before heading down to the lobby to meet everyone and head to the airport - we were flying today from Sweden to Finland - I finally DID remember to get a pic of the room at the hotel we stayed at. (this is after Hans and I pushed the beds together. .for our stay we had separated them with the little tables in between). not neat, but at least can see the room pretty good size. but with one of those annoying 1/2 showers, that this American always has trouble figuring out, and get a flood in the bathroom. eventually I'll figure out how to use the hand shower without spraying all over everything. waiting for our bus - we were saying goodbye to Didier today too, as he was leaving us at the airport - one final peek into the coffeshop/cafe connected to the hotel & ABBA museum. I recall this being a good size airport (pretty crowded too) with plenty of shops to explore while waiting for our flight to be called. I knew it was gonna be a small plane, as luggage for carry-on was really restricted. but I was surprised. I think this is the first plane I've ever been in with Propellers. Snug fit. . but we all were on the flight - spaced out here and there in seats thruout the plane. I ended up with a window seat, not my usual choice, but I didn't mind as was interested in looking out the window. ok. .that's gonna freak me out a little. not sure if this is leaving Sweden, or going into Finland. . . .but it sure is pretty. landing in Finland. Can you tell??? this was hysterically a big, one room Airport. with the bag claim and arrival on one side, and the "lobby" for departures on the other. I'm in Finland. yay! no worries about which luggage carousel our bags would be on. . .there was only one. and I think we were the only arriving flight anyways. Our new bus driver was waiting for us, and very quickly we were on our way. the country side in Finland looks a lot like many of the other Scandi Countrysides I'd seen. . and very much like mid America as well. for the most part. some houses stood out. many of them were painted Red with Yellow Door. (I did ask about that, and was told that painting your home Red was a sign of Finnish Pride, as it was reflective of the Copper Mining the area was first known for). the many fields of Finland but then, seemingly in the middle of no where, this appeared on the horizon. The Power Park complex (depending which sign you looked at in the park) all owned by the same folks - including that Road House, the complex contains a theme park, a big event center, a big 5D Cinema, a big Race Track - that can be configured for professional racing, as well as for full size go karts, mini-Golf course, and probably more! the owner collects all kinds of stuff (I didn't go into the Road House during our visit, but those that did have pics of some of the James Bond Movie vehicles from in there). like this plane. just displayed there, for some reason. not sure if it's from a film? but I'd assume it IS, and I should know that? yes, one of the configurations of the Track DOES go around one of the coasters. NEVER in America. and look at the size of those grandstands. . they must draw quite the crowd for some races. on the far right in the back, is our hotel (my room would end up at the farthest right, upper corner - overlooking the turns of the track, and what looked like no-longer-used grandstands). Kinda spooky, but all kinds of weird too. the front of the onsite Hotel. There were other guests here, but mostly it was the TPR group. kinda funky design, and the truck in front says "Power Park" so we're in the right spot. one side of the hotel - there are apparently more buldings around the corner too (near the abandoned grandstands), but they weren't in use, I was told. this hotel (called "Park Hotel" based on the name over the door on this side, has two entrances. . but the lobby is only on the other side, and the two sides connect via the Dining Room - which is only open for Breakfast and Dinner. funky, and I liked that it looked like we were gonna be staying inside a Koo Koo Clock. large Pool (but not for swimming.. tho we did see a drunk guy get naked and jump in on the 2nd night), with Stingray sculptures (for some reason), surrounded by that building that was a sauna/bar/ snacks area. it DID get rowdy at night, even with not many folks in the hotel. I remembered to take a pic of our room as soon as we got in it this time. the "info about the hotel" booklet. our room - with Hans enjoying the balcony the view down from said balcony. . . there were folks racing. we were planned to race tomorrow. the TPR Grand Prix. but the weather forecast wasn't looking great. I was looking forward to a nap before dinner, as it had been a really long day and I was exhausted. (I can't remember why I was so tired. .maybe it was an early morning check out after closing out Grona Lund with ERT and so my adrenaline made it hard to sleep? Or it could have just been the travel day - flights always stress me out a bit). . but when the park worked with Robb & Elissa to let us do our races this afternoon instead of possibly being rained out tomorrow? I got perky again and we all headed over to the Race Track area of Power Park. "Pit Lane Cafe" wasn't crowded at all. . .but the had some snacks to purchase if anyone was hungry, while we filled out all the forms and insurance things before we could race. this..did NOT make me want to eat one of the ice creams. . It's the Leif Garrett Smile and the Ascot/Pink Hanky that does it, I think. . . .LOL I was in Group 2 racing, so I stepped out front to get some pics of the park. I actually rode everything here. . including that Orange and Yellow thing that really scared the crap out of me. but I rode it. (I guess that's the same ride as Catwoman's Whip at SFStL ?) the starflyer runs in two modes, slow spinning for "observation" or fast spinning for "thrill". . you can line up for which one you want, and the operator sets the cycle based on which line she's loading from. Rather cool, I thought. (this might be another restaurant on the left, below. . .wasn't open that I saw, but probably most of their business comes during races. stepping out on the other side of the cafe over the track. you can see one of the Grandstands by our room over there in the distance, as well as some of the ones that looked abandoned, and the other hotel buildings on the left back there. as noted, there were other folks there racing, so snapped pics of them while waiting for our turn and the coasters running in the background. as mentioned by (I think) both Chuck and Erik in their reports - that tangled mess of track back there is actually TWO Gerstlauer Eurofighters, that are next to each other (one launch, one vertical lift) that the park painted the exact same color. . so it looks like one giant coaster. HAH! and then it was our time to go down to the lockers and get dressed for the TPR Grand Prix! they are serious.. as these are almost full size carts, with high speeds. Can be dangerous, so you must wear protective suit, and headgear, and glasses, etc. I'm ready to go tho! so is Hans. damn..everyone looks good in their suits. Except me. I look like a potato taking pics of Group 1 racing while waiting for our race. which car is Robb? the one with the Go-pro attached! a pic of Elissa taking pics of the group racing. Each Group got two races. a first race, and then a 2nd race depending on your placement - with the top speeds, or the lower speeds. so here you can see who is who based on the car numbers at the top. all these pics are, I believe, from Elissa, or possibly Chuck. 30: Kristen 3: me 11: dunno who that is. . maybe Hans? 23: Brad 1: Ryan 7: Brayden 9: Big Mike 5: Stephen 3: Me Big Mike & me yeah. . after seeing some of the others "spin out" and realizing these go REALLY fast - and I don't recall there being a great seatbelt! - I decided to just enjoy my driving, and take my time. So I came in last. but I had a great time regardless. Park employees were out on the track too helping with wrecks, as there were a few big ones (but no injuries). after both groups raced, the losers got to race again, with the winner of this group getting to run in the final laps with the winners. as you can see, I still came in last, but at least I had fun! (and Robb, who was filming everyone, had slower average than me. . so yay! I wasn't the slowest!. . LOL). I think this is courtesy of Chuck. it's a picture of Elissa, taking a picture of Robb, while Robb is filming, and I'm just happily puttering along enjoying my ride. Jon in 24, me in 8 oh well! the "safety" signs down in the pit. . . and this wonderful mural they had painted on the wall of one of the garages. Racing done, it was time to eat. (by the way the inside of the Koo Koo Clock hotel facade? the inside was SUPER weird. . designed and themed like a 1940's passenger ship. it was so funky). heading into the dining room (after showering and changing), you can see the breakfast buffet area. Only used in the morning, the rest is table service. a player piano, up on the stage. for some reason. mixed in with the lighting and instruments. . and yes, it was playing while we were there. closer look at the dining room. you can see how "non busy" it was. . . but dinner did still take about 2 hours. That seemed to be the custom, really long waits between courses, and taking the time to enjoy. not really an issue, but once we realized that every meal with a server would be that way, at least knew what to expect. the food was great tho. . . 1st course, Escargot Andrew had this (he was sitting next to me) yeah. . doesn't look appetizing, I know. I mean. .it LOOKS really bad, but it was very, very good. a non-super sweet desert. I think it was a Mousse over a Panna Cotta? I do remember liking it, but noting it wasn't sweet. Cheating a little, as Elissa didn't hand these out until the next night's dinner. but we all got a participation medal! how cool is that? then as I was totally exhausted, and dinner took so long, it was actually pretty late.. like almost 10pm. So I headed up to the room, while others headed over to the bar, or over to the Road House, or just to relax. I was asleep, so I DO believe these next few pics are from Brad or Chuck - who shared to the trip group, so I swiped them and have them on my camera roll. the sun setting. .probably around 1am. as noted, i was already well crashed. . . we had a FULL day tomorrow at Power Park. but the travel day was good, and Grand Prix was a blast. This kind of day is another reason why I love going on TPR trips.
  5. wish we had a "hug" reaction. ..
  6. he wasn't mentioned (or shown). . but since they are naming a ride after him (it's a Nebulaz). . .and all other "named" rides have statues of the characters in front of them (even Kid Flash). . . I'd expect we'll get a statue, and a character meet opportunity. (pic from yesterday)
  7. I REALLY think this is a Generic GL ride. why I think this? Here's the slide Jeffery shared in Jan. at Winterfest for the new Character interactions in the DC Universe when the new sections open: Jessica Cruz, Hal Jordan, and John Stewart are all walk around GL's
  8. ^ I think the GL ride is not specific to WHICH GL. . . so that will count to cover all. (unless they slap a giant Hal Jordan on top - currently it's just the pole, so I'm assuming a big GL Logo symbol will go there)
  9. SFFT is currently spending a huge amount of $$ retheming the Kid's area into a huge expansion of the "DC Universe" including naming the new dueling racing coaster, Kid Flash. Repainting (awesomely, by the way, it looks AMAZING) zoom jets, into Green Lantern. And Skyscreamer into "Supergirl" and the new area will have the "Metropolis Railway" monorail. the DC characters are not going anywhere.
  10. so. . I just got an alert thru the Six Flags app. . the Speedy Parking is now FREE for my level pass (Diamond). all I had to do was sign up for it, and I have it for free for the rest of the year (thru Jan 1st 2025). I have to assume that the upcharge pricing for it was a big flop. . . but hey, I'll take it! was super easy to sign up, just need to give them your license plate, and good to go. tho it means less folks at the booths when coming in. . .
  11. and here's Swag from Grona Lund & ABBA museum Magnets from Grona Lund: Magnets from ABBA museum (and I bought sets for a friend too) stuffed monkey gift from Matthew and T-shirts from ABBA museum:
  12. Day 18: Tuesday, June 20th part 3 (of 3) - back to finish off the night at the fantastic Grona Lund On the way back in, stopping to snap a pic of the park map. it LOOKS way smaller than it is, because things are just piled up on top of each other. the big green area in the bottom right, is the parking lot the park announced plans in 2023 to expand into. of course, my first stop on the way in was the Carousel. . . Big Mike had other plans tho, he was missing the kiddie credit, "Tuff-Tuff TÃ¥get" (Choo-Choo Train). So while he went to do that. . . Didier and I rode the Carousel. my happy place. his too, apparently for such a small carousel, it's just lovely, and appears hand painted. after my Carousel ride, I went over to the coaster to get proof of Big Mike riding it, in talking to the ride op - who was a total hoot! - she said it's a ride that's way more fun than it looks, as the sharp turns give a "whip" effect. She encouraged us all to ride it. sooooooo. . . (and she was right, it was way more fun that I had looked. and she let us ring the bell as we exited the station). back over to Vilda Musen for a "water free" ride, and we bumped into Hans and Matthew walking along the outside of the park, to get a different view of Twister and a crane across the lake, painted like a Giraffe. for some reason. Sweden! by going around the outside, we were gonna end up in the "haunted" section. . . and had also bumped into Andrew, sMisty, and Erik. . so we all headed that way together. that's Kvasten ahead of us, the Vekoma suspended coaster. whee. . . in the SPOOKY section now.. had to stop for a photo op, tho apparently we were boiling nothing for dinner. the flying carpet ride (not operating today) is over here for some reason. . . maybe they are tying in the Genie in the center of it with the spook/magic vibe of the area? Gotta ride Blue Train. . this thing is SO messed up. insanely silly, and with some needless nudity, and scary pop ups. . I adored it. rode this sucker at least 4 times on our trip. the name is brilliant. it's BLUE. . and it's a Train. see???? ooo. .scary! that creature has got "lady parts" !!! Scary!!!! so silly, and so much fun. every park should have a ride like this. and Grona Lund has several! the Starflyer doing it's thing from underneath Kvasten. we were in line for the very well done walk thru Haunt. I do believe that this is an upcharge attraction, but Elissa had arranged for us to all get admission (hence most of the group showing up here at a certain time). they send you thru in groups of 6-8, and said pictures were ok, as long as it didn't hold up the flow. it's got an outdoor section. . that's a group going thru the house up there on the balcony. fly, bird, fly !!!! now that bird knows what Fabio felt like, I suppose. my group's turn. . . howdy! ready to be a scared. . . nice mix of props, and live actors in here. great effect. . . choose your door carefully! he's coming to get you, Barbara. . . time for a birds eye view of the park on the starflyer. they are VERY serious about no loose objects on this ride. so only got pics from the queue, and before the ride started (with permission) it really is in the middle of everything. . surrounded by Coaster track on all sides that's Icarus doing it's thing back there. . Jetstream ,the Bobsled, AND Insane, all with cars on the tracks in one pic. that's a huge win for me, as I usually end up with no trains on the tracks hard to see in this pic, but Icarus has now tilted at the top, and the riders are hanging face down. a stage for musical performances. . . but we next headed over to the dual drop tower: Frit Fall & Tilt Hans & Matthew (and a very intense man who was wondering why I was taking his picture) chose to ride the "tilt" seated sides. while Big Mike and I (and a terrified girl), chose the stand up "Fritt Fall" side. it truly IS rather terrifying. and of course they have a camera on this side to capture it. I bought a magnet version, that came with a digital copy. glad I did it, but never again. walk around entertainment as well in this park. Not a LOT of it, but we were there on a weekday. in addition to lunch, snack, and dinner coupons, the park had gone all out and also gave us booklets of game coupons. the games were mostly hard, but there were some easier ones, and I think most everyone won some sort of prize. while they played that ping-pong game, I went into the bathroom next to it. . .and made a discovery. down a dark, bricked pathway/tunnel. . . there's this. just lovely. and when you go to wash your hands? yup. . a haunted toidy! gah! different mirrors have different creatures. . . LOL I had waited long enough, I was ready for Ikaros - the face first drop tower. again, some lovely art deco designs all around it. all the way up to the top. . . then, tilt forward. . so you will be hurtling face first towards the ground! gahhhhhhhh. . . . .it truly is a terrifying experience. and I absolutely LOVED it. we got some ERT on it at the end of the night - along with the operator making us sing ABBA and other disco songs as we ascended - and I think I rode every cycle I was able to get in on. scary, but THAT good. and you get pretty close to the ground before the seats swing back out to "normal" position even tho I know I'm a klutz, and the funhouse is a disaster waiting to happen for klutz'. . .I went ahead and did it. it's a really good funhouse. .and really ways to hurt oneself. I didn't get a pic of the entrance, but it's a "moving" ladder, that you have to climb up. . potential for injury right from the start! but it's full of whimsical, and fun obstacles. . that one really can't go around. you MUST go thru. bouncing walkways. . pitch black infinity rooms. . . truly confusing mirror mazes. . . yeah, all in one funhouse! and this is how you exit (the only option). . . you get a mat. sit on the mat, on the platform. . and the platform tilts, and shoots your ass down the slide! um.. . . . whee ? the view from the bottom. . . and yes, that IS an airtime hill at the bottom of the slide. I told you, it's trying to kill you! some of the prizes offered at the games. . . .I sucked at most of them. but lots of people won. here are some of them. and Matthew ended up gifting me that pink monkey, and he hangs out in the comic room now I used a snack coupon for this ice cream. . but I was so full from lunch still (earlier I had sushi and Chinese food from a floating barge/restaurant on the side of the park). oh remember that rooftop Himalaya across from Jetline? yup, I did go back and ride it. very loud music, and fun. with some nice, views of the Twister refurb going on. ok then. not sorry I missed THIS boat. I mentioned some rides were on floating platforms connected to the park? the octopus is one of them. Blackfisken ? LOVE that name. and it looked amazing. . very steam punk. that it "rocked" along with the waves as the pier moved made it that much more fun. Erik & sMisty, goldballs, myself, and John say "wheeee!" I think this pic is courtesy of Big Mike perhaps? but he doesn't ride spinny stuff. . so maybe Matthew? a better view of Icarus doing it's tilt thing from the side and an offride pic of Fritt Fall / Tilt heading up with folks in the standing position. and yes, we did go back for the indoor Breakdance. not the most intense cycle on one of these I've ever been on (that would be the carnival in Belgium last year). . but inside, with loud music? it sure felt intense and fun. oooo..caught a "parade". . . at least rainbow mermaid bubble cart guy looks to be having fun! and was happy to see me this isn't the star flyer, but rather the flying Carousel that was on a floating pier. (see that fun ticket booth in the background). it's a nice pic, one of my faves from the trip. the dinner was also excellent, in a restaurant built next to / into Monster - the supports for Monster go thru the restaurant and the train zooms really closeby outside. wasn't super hungry, but what I had was good. couldn't finish it tho. after dinner another couple of rides on the relaxing "Blue Train" and the Tunnel of Love. . . or "Karleks Tunneln" freaky. . I imagine this is what a camera doing a Colonoscopy sees. . . . still naked. . still blurry. . LOL. .. you'll just have to imagine! hey..I found Gene Simmons in a stairwell. I guess KISS played the park at some point in the past? as evening set in, the dancehall started filling up. I swear this seemed to have the most people anywhere in the park this evening. another bathroom with theme. . this one seems to be people who played the park. seems someone tried to peel off Marilyn Manson, tho without much success hey! I finally won something!! I found a game that was relatively easy - guns shooting corks at targets. if you got a high enough score, you won a prize. Barry, Didier, and Big Mike also trying out the cork guns. makes sense, if Bert can win this one, must be fairly easy! see? LOL. . .Didier really wanted an animal to bring home, and was having no luck, so I gifted him my bear. (I think that's why Matthew offered me his pink monkey later). . . I didn't mind tho, as I didn't really need another bear stuffie, I already had one from this trip from Tusenfryd awwww. . . Barry and his bear. (totally should be his profile pic) and then it was time to meet up for evening ERT over at Jetline. (interesting, in this pic you can see the one drop tower I didnt' go on, operating. it was the shortest of the park's offerings, so I didnt' mind skipping it, but it hadn't been running earlier when I went by it). this made me laugh - especially since the "Knight Butt" painting was "backstage" earlier. this is a lenticular, and depending on where you stood, Adam & Eve were more or less naked. yup. .just on a wall in the middle of the park. would have bought this in a second if on a magnet. but made sure to snap a pic so I could print it out and make one. ending ERT on Jetline . . got another group pic (thanks Robb).. then we headed over to Ikaros for some ERT. (since I rode so much, my phone stayed put away in my bag. . so no pics) then on the way out of the now closed park, we stopped for a group pic in front of Monster. all in all, an EXCELLENT day. I was wiped out tho, in the morning we had to get up and would be traveling all day - including a flight to Finland. so we took the short walk across the street, and I showered and crashed hard.
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