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Best way to watch a parade is to power walk the opposite way it’s traveling and see the entire thing in 5 minutes.

OMG. . this is *so* freaking awesome. Park President Jeffrey Siebert just shared this on his twitter. 1st piece of track for 2022's "Dr Diabolical's Cliffhanger" is on it's way to San Antonio! how cool is this?

Yeah, I can't think of a place I wouldn't really go back to. I mean, even some of the worst parks I've been to I would give a second chance for one reason or another.

I don't think there is any park that I will refuse to visit again. Some parks are very far down my priority list to visit again until something major and significant comes along (such as Six Flags America), but that doesn't mean I would *refuse* a visit if presented the opportunity. Parks are constantly changing and evolving and always deserve another chance in my opinion.

Jersey Devil is running today.

One of the weird things about this hobby is how very difficult it is to get the same experience as someone else. If we were all super-into movies, for example, even if maybe I saw it in a better theater than you did, we still basically saw the same movie. Of course we might have different reactions to it, but we wouldn't have to figure out which day the other person saw it on, what year, where they started, where they ate, what row they sat in, which employees they encountered, how the projector was running that day, their weight, height, and age, and a million other variables. We could just say, "Oh, you like different movies than I do." (And then we could have a knife fight about it.) But I've had vastly different enjoyment levels myself at the same park on different visits, and I'm sure most of you all have too. So how do you know the next one won't be better? Of course, I'm not advocating repeated visits to a park you hate. But I've personally never been to a park that was so bad that it couldn't possibly improve.

Let’s have some fun and see how much it costs to buy a day ticket and a skip the line pass at a variety of parks on a random day. Let’s say... tomorrow. Of course, Disney isn’t offering this tomorrow so we’ll just tack $15 onto whatever the price is. Also, we’ll go with the lowest level of skip-the-line pass at every other park since Disney’s pass doesn’t include every ride, sort of like regular Cedar Fair Fastlane. Also, we’re assuming a one day one park ticket at all parks. Sound fair? Alright, let’s go... Disney (after taxes and fees) and plus the $15 is $155.58. Compared to: Millennium Force, Steel Vengeance and Maverick not included. Dragster wouldn’t be included if it was open. It’s an upcharge too. This skip-the-line pass also isn’t good. You’ll probably wait 45 minutes with Fastlane for Millennium Force. Orion, Flight of Fear, Beast and Antique Autos not included. Busch Williamsburg, and this is just the one time per ride Quick Queue Universal is more than double the price. This is also just an awful ticket. It’s “unlimited express” but this is only good for admission to Islands of Adventure. Express doesn’t include Velocicoaster or Hagrid’s and you can’t ride the Hogwarts Express at all because it’s not a park hopper. If you wanted the express pass that wasn’t unlimited and still didn’t include those rides then here... this is way, way worse than what you get at Disney and it’s STILL MORE EXPENSIVE. TWICE AS EXPENSIVE. Who’s ready to get Hersheypark Happy? Keep in mind, this skip the line pass is terrible. It’s single issue per ride and it only includes the coasters, a dark ride, a flat ride and 2 water slides. You can’t mix-and-match either. You can’t go and ride Skyrush twice and use your Boomerang pass. Nope. Enjoy your Boomerang. ... are we done here? They’re within $20 of basically every park, even crap like Valleyfair, Dorney and the American Dream Mall.

Why is everyone discussing CP potentially changing of the launch on Dragster when that had nothing to do with something coming off the train when it hit the brake run?

This came up in my Facebook memories today. 5 years ago, my son (4 at the time) was standing in line for the kiddie swings and dancing around like he had to pee. He insisted he didnt have to. I took his word for it and sat down on a bench. A minute later, I hear him crying on the ride, and this is what I found when I got up to check on him.

Hello! Like a lot of folks, Erik & Smisty haven't traveled a lot since 2019. So, a few months back, on the theory that as vaccines rolled out, built-up desire for leisure travel would result in booked up airlines and expensive flights, we sort of speculatively bought tickets for an August trip to Denver. Well, my theories didn't quite pan out, but it didn't seem so bad that we should cancel the trip or anything. And we still had fun. But, as the title suggests, there were some let downs. But, actually, not so much because of Covid. Because of climate change. Speaking of disappointment... Elitch Gardens Okay, to be fair, even though we'd never been to this park, Denver, or even the state of Colorado, we knew exactly what to expect from Elitch Gardens. It's reputation suggests that it's one of the worst parks in the country. And...it's not great. But we knew that going in, so with lowered expectations we still had a good time at what was, after all, a new-to-us amusement park. The following attractions will not be operating today. As well as a bunch of other attractions not listed on this sign. Note also that this includes both of the park's water rides during a heatwave in early August. I did enjoy the covered mini main street entrance. I think there's a lot to be said for this design. Actually, that brings up one of the most interesting things about Elitch, as this is a park that completely relocated back in 1995. So, sure, that was 26 years ago--but, still, this place is an answer to the question: What if you were redesigning an existing theme park from scratch? What would you do differently? How would you rearrange the rides that you already had? And viewed through that lens, everything about the layout of this park, good and bad, is absolutely fascinating to me. After the mini main street (or, er, teeny tiny CityWalk?) there's a carousel and the ghost of an observation tower on the right... ...the entrance to the included water park straight ahead (which includes this baffling sign)... ...and a second, uncovered "main street" leading to the park proper. We entered the park midday, and headed for the Ferris wheel, only to have unexpected lightning move into the area while we were in line. So, off we went to the park's only dark ride. This is an interesting set up. It's sort of a covered midway that connects what would otherwise be two dead ends, and contains the entrance to the dark ride, a gift shop, some vending and game machines, and a small food stand. Also there's an SLC in this photo. If you don't know already, model coasters are very much Elitch's thing. The nice thing about Denver is that Covid isn't a thing there. Apparently. I joke, but it's not lost on me that I may be part of the problem. I mean, we are fully vaccinated, but still, should we have done any of this stuff? Traveling right now is weird. Not as weird as this dark ride, though. (How's that for neck-snapping transition?) Well, you can't take pictures inside, but here's the animatronic robot barker and a ride vehicle for Meow Wolf's Kaleidoscape, a Scooby-Doo Ghostblasters dark ride rethemed to...um, interdimensional travel via splitting doughnut eggs or something? It's low-budget psychedelic weirdness and I am here for it. By which I mean, I primarily came to Elitch Gardens for this weird-ass dark ride. and it was almost worth it. Elitch has some nicely themed buildings that reminded me just a bit of Frontier City. The "one big food court" building probably helped with that impression, also. Not one ride in this photo was open this day. Not one ride in this photo was on the closed sign out front. In fact, the observation tower has apparently not been open for multiple years now, which I can find no kinder word for than "offensive." Luckily, I already knew that going in, or I would've been quite upset. (What can I say? I know myself.) The games were all open. When Elitch says something isn't opening today, they are serious. I couldn't think of a good caption for this weird sign, so I googled "wears like a pig's nose" only discover that this was probably a real sign (or at least a copy of a real sign) as Finks really did make overalls and used both of these slogans. Brain Drain did run that day, though it was down for lightning at the time this photo was taken. I can't blame the park for lightning, though. Seems like they handled that about as well as they could've. (And, as someone who's worked in rides at several different parks, including ones in Florida, this is a subject I know a tiny bit about.) I want to say this was the first Half Pipe...? The park doesn't really invest in new rides anymore, though--and I don't think that's going to change any time soon, since the land it sits on has already been sold. Will Elitch Gardens move again, or just close for good this time? And does anyone care? Actually, I think Denverites care. We talked to a few fellow park-goers (there was a lot of lightning) who seemed to really love the place. I guess the most important thing about a theme park is its location. Because this place would be absolutely buried by any kind of competent competition. I can't imagine it surviving long in the same market as, say, a Cedar Fair park. Elitch has one non-model coaster: Twister II. "Built wilder the second time," is its slogan, and while I never got to ride the original Mr. Twister, I can only imagine that's a lie to shake the heavens. Having said that, Twister II wasn't bad. I mean, there was no airtime or anything, but it was fast and fun and not too rough for a 26-year wooden coaster at a park that can't even keep track which rides are temporally closed, which rides are closed for the day, and which rides are completely abandoned. It's quite an attractive ride. Actually, most of the park *looks* pretty good, and is well upkept in terms of paint and such. But yeah, Twister II's lines are very appealing. I'm not saying that I want to have sex with a roller coaster. That's not what I'm saying. And even if I hypothetically did, looks aren't everything, you know. Emotional attachment is important. Shared interests. A better park to have it in, maybe. Besides, Lech Coaster has my heart, currently. This kiddie ride had a nice theme. One thing worth noting is that most of the kids rides didn't have queue, nor did the carousel. Just entrance and exit gates and maybe three pair of foot prints to indicate where you should start lining up. A bit unstructured for my taste, but an interesting choice. I also think that the blue arch in the background is a perfect encapsulation of this park. The front of it says "Kiddy Land," which it is the entrance to. But the back is just blank, even though that's also the exit. It just says nothing. Not goodbye, thanks for visiting, now leaving kiddy land, buy a season pass, nothing. It's like they couldn't immediately decide what it should say, so they just gave up forever. We tried again to get on the Ferris wheel, but again lightning came while we were in line. And again, the park is not unattractive. Not that anyone is suggesting sleeping with it. Geez, would you stop that already? The park's main gift shop is themed to a carousel building. So that's arousing. What? If you look closely, you can see that this awful shirt is actually three different awful shirts. And, what's more, they don't say Busch Gardens on them! The entirety of Elitch's covid response is not allowing returns. I feel so much safer. Is this a good time to mention that Denver was enveloped in smoke from Oregon and California wildfires the entire time we were there? I mean, that's not Denver's fault, but if I sound a little gruff it's only because I was smoking the equivalent of two cigarettes a day and I've never smoked before. Anyway, Elitch Gardens has potential. But it's potential that this version of the park will almost certainly never reach. Still, I'm glad we visited. Stay tuned for more complaining, coming soon-ish-ly!

A nice addition to any park's SBNO collection!

I did! Great to meet you @Kyndmusic. So I'll post my full report when I get home, but here's some bullet notes on Mindbender. Keep in mind, that I never rode it in its previous iteration. -The whole operating system has been replaced. Brakes, sensors, drive tires, lift chain, presumably the PLC, basically everything except the track itself appeared to me to be brand new. Even the track *appears* brand new, because of the paint, but we all know its not. -Capacity was great. They were chugging through the trains, and the ride ops here actually seemed to have some enthusiasm for the job (can't say the same for the rest of the park). Since it was just preview, Flash Pass wasn't an option, but I waited 26 minutes for the front row, with about 4-5 trains where I didn't move since exit-pass people jumped to the front. Probably would have been under 10 minutes had I gone for any other row. Notably, I entered the line maybe 10 feet out of the station. SFOG's lack of groupers didn't help here, so the station got very crowded and at one point a group of people waiting for the front blocked the entire line and some empty rows went out before they made an announcement to fill in the station. -The trains: Yes, they are lab-bar only. Yes, there are seat belts. Yes, there are carve outs for your butt with the little bit that goes between your thighs. I have to imagine it was better with the original Schwarzkopf trains, but as it stands these trains were not bad at all. Yes, there are only 5 cars, but there are 3 trains (though they double-stacked every cycle I saw). -The ride itself: It's a Schwarzkopf, which means positive Gs. And you get them in the loops here, even the "non-loop" in the middle of the ride. No grey-outs for me, but it did force my arms down at the entry to the two true loops and at the bottom of the non-loop. That said, it is what I believe to be tamer than it once was (entirely speculating here); the lift slows considerably before cresting, and each of the trim/block brakes at the start of the turns definitely took off some some speed. Without those, this ride would be absolutely insane, but even with them it was still pretty damnned good. and the fact that they chose to invest so much into this instead of just scrapping it wins a lot of points me with. This was my first trip ever to SFoG, and rode all of the coasters, but Mindbender is a solid #2 or #3 at this park for me. I've gotta review my notes for a full coaster ranking, that's just off the top of my head.

Here’s the clip that WESH 2 News in Orlando ran about the new Walt Disney World passes featuring Theme Park Review! https://www.facebook.com/themeparkreview/videos/144799674482567

I just cleaned up some of this thread. Good people of TPR, let's restrict ourselves to discussing Cedar Point--cut out the personal attacks. If you have a personal beef with someone, take it to private messages. Theme parks are supposed to be about fun, remember? Thank you.

Pro tip: Please make sure that you and the others are not reading my upcoming Phantasialand trip report. I really don't want to cause any exhaustment on anyones side because of photos I took. I for myself liked @Mike240SXs complete post as I am not able to go to CP in the forseeable time and I didn't mind to see some photos that are similar to each other.

I shall call this still life: "people shitting on plastic toilets on the beach" It can be the title of the debut album by Murderous Steel.

We're not water park people. I mean, we've been to a small handful, but it really needs to be something special to get us to deal with all the inherent inconvenience of the general water park experience. (And also, many water slides are terrifying.) However, Denver is home to a place with something that, to my knowledge, no other water park really has: "dark ride" water slides. So, we decided to check it out: Water World Their slogan is, "America's Largest Water Park." Is it actually true? Who the hell knows? It is pretty big, though. Okay, so, as I mentioned at the top, we haven't been to a whole lot of water parks. But none of the ones we had been to had the system that Water World largely employs. Basically, there's a line at the bottom of the slide, where you wait to get a tube form someone getting off of the ride. You then carry that tube up the hill to the top of the slide, where you wait in another line to actually go down the slide--but in this line, you're constantly having to wait longer as people who paid for "tube valet" cut in front of you. I say "you" because that wasn't me. We paid for tube valet. We also sprung for a little bungalow thing because I wanted to make our water park experience as pleasant as possible. I did see one complaint. But it was from a guest with tube valet who was upset that some regular guests had been allowed to go in front of her. Have I mentioned that that Denverites are very confrontational? The park is very relaxed about what guests can bring in. I mean, okay, they won't let you bring glass jars and the like, but you want to bring some chairs and a tent and a cooler the size of small car? Sure, just camp anywhere! What I'd heard (or maybe just assumed?) was that these "dark rides" were lazy rivers. But not so much. There are calm sections (where most of the scenery is), but there are also some pretty wild sections. This is a good photo. Relatively. At this point, I was using a cheap waterproof camera that, you guessed it, doesn't do so well in low-lighting conditions. It seems like the whole "theming" thing is doing well for them, so they're trying to incorporate more and more. Glacier Run. Did we ride it, or did we just take photos of it? You decide! Best ride in the park. Safety is for grownups. Also, Water World has a sky ride! This sky ride consists of two "trains" worth of gondolas that run in opposite directions. No turning in the station, though, they just reverse. Sort of like a funicular. From our vantage point high in the sky, we can see some peasants carrying their own inner tubes. I'm actually really against "fast pass" systems. All the more so because opting out just gets you screwed over. Still, having said all that, I was quite happy to not have to carry my own inner tubes up long winding uphill pathways. But, I now realize having typed all that, that it misses the real issue entirely. Put in some conveyor belts, you d*ickhe@d water park! I don't get this one. They just go along the outside. What's the point of the swirly bit? Well, it's not available, it's ours. Or, it was. I guess it could be available now. Anyway, here's lunch. Pretty standard stuff, but not horrible. Colorado is super-into its flag. Like, more than Texas. (To be fair, it's a nice flag. Who wants to cornhole Colorado's flag?) Schlubs carrying their own tubes up to The Storm. Actually, even people *with* tube valet have to carry their own tubes for this last bit. (Tube valet tubes are red.) The Storm's exit theming. Voyage to the Center of the Earth Again, this one is fairly wild in parts. Which I don't mind. What I was less fond of is that we kept getting stuck on, like, ridges on the bottom? We weren't the only ones, I don't think. And we sort of had to shimmy our way off of them to continue. Maybe weight was a factor, though we certainly didn't exceed any posted weight limits. At one one point, there was a backup that resulted in the tube behind ours slipping under the back end of our tube in a way that I would describe as alarmingly-about-to-capsize-we're-all-going-to-die. Still, we didn't. And I don't know if these "stalls" are a purposeful part of the design or not. We're not water park people. I mean, it didn't *feel* entirely safe. But what do I know? I can only apologize for the quality of this photo. Is it worse than no photo? If so, well, just don't look at it. STOP LOOKING AT IT! I'M SORRY! A lazy river. Of the type I would've preferred the "dark rides" to be. Still, they're unique and (mostly) pretty fun. But I'm still going to label them as a... *takes off sunglasses* ...disappointment. I believe this is called a Butt Bouncer. Or possibly an Aqua Scoot. Butt Scoot? Aqua Bounce? All of those are fine. They also have a couple of water coasters. So, certainly, they have a lot of stuff. And it takes up a lot of room. Of course, a quick internet search reveals that Noah's Ark in the Wisconsin Dells also claims to be the largest water park in the US. Neither of them have Commerson's Dolphins though, so whatever. On the other hand. What does Smisty have to say? So there you have it. Two people who have no business at a water park judging it as okay-ish. Stay tuned for more hot smoky Denver fun!

SeaWorld San Antonio has announced Tidal Surge, the largest installation of an S&S Screamin' Swing! SeaWorld San Antonio Welcomes World's Tallest and Fastest Screaming Swing https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/seaworld-san-antonio-welcomes-worlds-tallest-and-fastest-screaming-swing-301360640.html SeaWorld San Antonio is proud to announce the all-new, world record breaking, high-thrill attraction – Tidal Surge. Opening in Spring 2022, Tidal Surge will be the World's Tallest and Fastest Screaming Swing and will take riders on a journey above the clouds to feel the sensation of flying high above the park. Tidal Surge will seat 40 riders and feature two pendulum-like arms that will soar progressively higher to a staggering height of 135 feet at its peak. The dueling arms will alternate sides and sway back-and-forth at 68 mph, creating multiple airtime moments that levitate guests out of their seats with each heart stopping swing. Riders' legs will dangle and hang as they soar over the waterski lake and take in the beautiful views of the park, while reaching multiple negative G moments before plunging back towards the earth. The colossal Tidal Surge will mark a major addition to SeaWorld San Antonio's thrill ride portfolio, which currently includes four thrilling rollercoasters, a high swing, two animal rescue adventure experiences and a fun-filled family coaster perfect for families with younger children. With this new addition, SeaWorld San Antonio will feature even more adrenaline-pumping experiences, spanning a range of ages and thrills.

Lines, yeah..

Local parks? Pretty much never. Parks I'm traveling to and only have a day or two at? Abso-f*ckin-lutely.

Interrupting this Trip Report to show that the science works. . .as does Masking up and taking the damn Vaccine. around 42K people for ~6 days, and negative PCR result. yay science!

Not yet but the boy is mostly working SkyScreamer now that Eagle is closed so I will tell him to try to get some info out of the supervisors. Of course he is 18 so he's not very talented at spying yet.

First of all, something needs to be said... ***** WARNING / CAUTION / DANGER / TRIGGER WARNING***** This thread will feature a lot of very similar looking pictures. It's not my fault that all of these boardwalk parks happen to have similar if not identical rides. If seeing such imagery will cause you offense, to feel distressed, or to become exhausted from having to scroll through them, please do not continue in this thread. I'm also not a professional photographer, nor does my phone have the best camera in the world. My intent was to document every single ride at these rarely-discussed parks. Thank you and have a nice day. Okay, with that out of the way, we can begin! Stop #1 - Keansburg Amusement Park, Keansburg How this place continues to exist boggles the mind.... But first, a side note about my personal history with this town: I was born here, and lived there from age 0 to 6, from 1983 to the summer of 1989. My house was in bicycle-distance from the amusement park, and I distinctly recall riding there with my friends the last summer we lived there, without parents. Did I mention the route passes by a (now-defunct) strip club called Chasers (as in "chubby chasers")? Man, was it a different time back then. Not only that, but my father lived in that town since he was born, and was actually a games attendant at the park when he was a teenager, so yeah, my family has quite a bit of history there. Why did we move? Because the town was apparently a shithole then and has only gotten worse. The value of my old house, even with the new second story addition, is around $300k. "Wow, that's not cheap," you might say, but when you consider that the average home price in Monmouth County, NJ, is $550,000, yeah not looking so good anymore. Median household income? $39,000 Monmouth County as a whole is $65,000. My parents didn't want me going to school there, and I struggle to think what might have come of me had we stayed. Anyway, here's a picture of that old house of mine, mind you back then it didn't have that second story on it. Anyway, enough personal nonsense, on to the park! Just outside the gates, there's some batting cages, that most definitely haven't changed in 30 years. A little food stand, not open...a trend you'll see throughout this section. Many of these rides (you'll probably be able to tell which) actually date all the way back to the 1930s. Which is pretty impressive in my book. The park itself traces its history back to 1904. Classic train ride, has seen better days. Car ride, was operating. Planes, were operating. Kiddie drop tower, was operating. Kiddie Ferris wheel, was operating. Kiddie carousel, was operating. Motorcycles, were operating. \ Boats, were operating. Roto Jets....definitely have seen better days. This looks like a Whip, but is actually just a circle, so I'm not really sure the purpose other than just go 'round in circles. Was operating. Yet another "various vehicles rotate" ride. Was operating. Classic fire trucks, one of the older rides at the park. Was operating. One of the newer additions, was operating. Original Loop-o-Plane! Not operating. Adult, mini-double-shot tower. Not operating. Also not the smallest adult drop tower you'll see in this thread. Tornado, operating. The Haunted Manor. No, this is not the famous Spook House, which opened in 1931, which I'll talk about later, but instead a formerly-travelling haunted house that first opened in 1995, and then settled at this park in 2002. Sadly, not open (this was one of my reasons for visiting). Bumper cars, operating. Moby Dick, not operating. It may look like it, but it was just sitting there in that position. "Thriller," a Gravitron. Not operating. Tilt a Whirl, not operating. Zamperla flyer, was operating. Chance Chaos, the ultra-rare. You guessed it, not operating. Yep, they even have one of these things. If you've never seen it in action, as it rotates around, it rises and falls on eccentricly-mounted wheels. That's how they got their fun back in the day! Yes, not operating, of course. Basically, this entire half of the park was not operating. Including all of the following: Aww, cute little baby teacups! I think someone forgot to put the wheels back on LOL. None of them had wheels. They do have an actual Whip, albeit kiddie-sized. Red Baron (rotating/elevating planes), under construction. Kiddie train, under repairs. Yes, that is how decorated it is normally. They also have two Go-Kart tracks. And a boardwalk park staple, the burlap sack slide. Ah. Bev and Wally's arcade. How I so remember dropping dollars and dollars of quaters into the arcade games here....Outrun, Donkey Kong, Hang-On...the list goes on and on. Alas, now reduced to 100% redemption games. Sad, sad indeed. Another arcade, the Game Room. Do you think they paid the appropriate royalties for the artwork? At least this one had a tiny, tiny section of non-redemption games! And a full-size carousel, which did not appear to be operating. Back to the rides of the park, they've got pirate ship that is super-well themed, and totally stands out from the rest of this abandoned-looking place. A Wave Swinger, that looks kinda new. Sea Serpent, their kiddie coaster, which looks a lot older than it is (it's a 1998 Miler model). Which is right next to the world's tiniest and worst decorated log flume ever. And finally, the star of the show, Looping Star, a Pinfari looking Zylkon, that has been at this park since 2015 but has been operating and traveling since the mid '80s or '90s. Of course, it's closed. So yeah, about what I expected from coming here. Oh, and all of those kiddie rides I mentioned as operating? Yeah, they only had about 4 ride operators shuffling around to the different rides. Which was fine, because there was like 3 families there, and me, and that's it. You might say "well, it's a Monday at the end of August, lots of kids are back in school, etc. etc." You will see from my later parks on this blitz road trip, yeah that didn't matter. All of the others were packed. They also have a tiny water park, that similarly appeared not that populated. Oh, I almost forgot, the Spook House! Some history: This dark ride, built by the Pretzel Company (famous for Devil's Den at Conneaut, Haunted House at Camden Park, Spook-a-rama at Deno's in NY, and the original Dante's Inferno at Morey's, to name a few), opened in 1931 as the "Mystery Ride," seen here in a photo provided by the park's website: Those cars, and the track, continued to operate all the way up to 2012, albeit with some changes to the scenery inside and out. Here's a couple of photos showing the ride over the years. 1970s, from Pintrest. 1992, from Wordpress. Mid-2000s, from Patch.com The park's website says the following: "One of Keansburg Amusement Park’s oldest rides and seen on History Channel’s American Restoration, is undergoing a complete restoration!" Yeah, not so much. There is zero sign of the ride anywhere in the park; the old location it used to be at is now (presumably, based on the sign overhead) a games stand. I asked the guy selling tickets about it, and he had never heard of it. A manager standing behind him said "You mean the ride that got destroyed by (sic) Hurricane (sic) Sandy? It's never coming back." Major, MAJOR bummer. I'll continue to hold out hope that it one day returns, but I'm not holding my breath. So, I left this place with zero credits and zero dark rides. On the plus side, I only spent like $3 for parking plus an extra hour out of my day to get here. I honestly don't know how this park survives. The area is majorly depressed, there are tons of better park options around, many rides appeared to be in a state of disrepair that couldn't have been new, it's not supported by any government or historical preservation society. Because of my memories here, I'll really be sad if it ever closes down, but the logical part of me thinks that would be a better fate for the park than continuing to putter along the way it is. Next up: Jenkinson's Boardwalk in Point Pleasant. Which probably won't get posted until next week sometime (work the next two days then a SFoG/Carowinds trip over the long weekend). I just really wanted to get this one up first since I had so much to say about this place. Thanks for reading!

Sure wish SeaWorld Orlando had gotten this instead of Ice Breaker!!!!

Hey Everyone! A few weeks ago I managed to escape the coaster desert to the east coast and visited three parks (In case you couldn't tell that's a big deal for me...)! Unfortunately, I've been kinda busy lately so I'm just getting around to the trip reports so there a little old but still good! The first park we visited (if you haven't already guessed) was Knoebels!! Now, this was my second visit to the park so I knew what to expect but Knoebels seems to be a place that surprises you even when you know what to expect... Last time we came on a weekday, but were forced into a weekend this time around. We got out tickets at a Weis grocery store on the way, which I highly recommend to anyone visiting on a weekend to do. Although (as I feared) the park WAS PACKED, and I mean PACKED with people, this place must have a magic recipe for making people disappear because I don't think I waited more than 15 minutes for anything, and this was with like 10 rides closed! Knoebels operations truly are world class. I was legit worried that the park wouldn't be able to handle the big crowds but handle it they did! Now on to the pictures (and my thoughts...)! First off I'm gonna address the elephant in the room...is Phoenix the best wooden coaster in the world? When I first visited a couple years ago, the answer would have been yes. But since that time I have ridden more rides, and have really refined what (in my mind) should be the best coaster in the world, and...I don't think Phoenix fits that bill at all. Don't get me wrong, Phoenix is still an amazing ride, but I don't think it should be a "Top Wooden Coaster in the World". Heck I'm not even sure it's the best coaster in the park, but more on that later... For me, while Phoenix's accurately legendary almost semi-scary airtime is great, where the ride suffers is in it's layout. Drop, turn, drop, airtime hill, turn, drop, airtime hill, etc. just doesn't interest me. I've found that I really enjoy unique layouts, and while Phoenix is a good wooden coaster, I wouldn't call it the best simply because I find the layout to be a little on the boring and uninspired side. Also, is it just me or does the new station look just scream "OVERRATED!!"? I think I really liked the old unassuming station better, but I digress. All that being said, I do enjoy Phoenix, it is smooth (although admittedly not as smooth as I remember), and it's fun, but not necessarily deserving of the title of the Best Wooden Coaster in the World. Next, up is Impulse! Since both Flying Turns (which I knew about) and Black Diamond (Dang it! I LOVE that ride!! Grrrr!!) were closed, I was left to ride the 3D motion simulator...I mean lone large steel roller coaster at the park. I actually skipped Impulse last time due to my enumeration with Phoenix (which is a theme for a certain other ride at this park...what was it called again....???...can't remember now....), so this was a new experience for me. And...I'm gonna be honest...this poor ride... Not only does it have to compete against 3 incredible/unique wooden coasters, two good dark rides, fun tasty food, and a bunch of classic or rare flats, it also has THE WORST RESTRAINT THAT I'VE EVER EXPERIENCED ON A ROLLER COASTER...so far...(which by my coaster count isn't saying TOO much). I didn't experience the ride with the old trains, but I was very disappointed with the restraint on the new ones. It kinda felt like someone was pushing a cafeteria tray down on my lap the whole ride. Yeah...not good... It didn't even hurt that much it was just very uncomfortable, and made what I would otherwise consider a fun and unique ride, into something that wasn't very fun at all. Other than the bad restraint, I thought the ride was fun. It just seems a little bizarrely out of place at a park full of so many unique rides, to have a modern Eurofighter knock off. I almost wish that Knoebels would replace or supplement it with a relocated Schwarzkopf or something along those lines. I think that would be a far better (and more fun) fit for this park. Last...but certainly not least...was Twister! Like Impulse, I was so entranced by Phoenix that I didn't give it a try the first time I visited Knoebels...and man I am disappointed I did. THIS RIDE IS FUN!!!! I wouldn't call it the best wooden coaster in the world by any means, but after riding it several times this visit I think I might be in the "Twister is better than Phoenix crowd". And I think that's for the exact reason that I don't think that Phoenix is the best wooden coaster in the world, Twister had a VERY unique layout. From that weird split lift hill, to the slightly awkward transitions, to the random (and noticeably cold) tunnel this thing fits the "unique layout" bill almost perfectly. It doesn't have the amount of airtime that I would prefer, which is mainly why I don't think it's a best in the world or a top 10 necessarily, but it hands down is the best coaster in the park for me! Also, a night ride on this thing is where it's at! If I ever came on a weekday that the park was open late one, you'd find me lapping night rides on this thing all night long, it's just an incredible night ride hands down! Flying Turns (and Black Diamond, BOO!!! If you couldn't tell I love that ride!) were both closed on the days we went, but that was it as far as rides that I would have wanted to ride that were closed. And too be honest, I think Flying Turns is gonna be closed for the rest of this season, it just ain't gonna happen at this point I think. Some other tidbits... This was my first time riding the Haunted Mansion...which was good??? (I think) I wouldn't call it my favorite regional park dark ride, in fact I think Black Diamond might actually be better in my opinion. (Which, I can't confirm because it wasn't open! Sorry I'm just bummed that Black Diamond wasn't open.) I realized and enjoy that it's a classic ride, but I don't know, I think it just wasn't quite my style. I was impressed with how well maintained it was, and I enjoyed that they still had many of the classic effects (and a few modern ones) sprinkled in there. Rode the bumper cars, which were fun, but I think I actually prefer the RDC bumper cars more. The Lusse ones are great, but I just find the RDC one's more fun all around. Finished on the Pioneer Train, which I thought was cool. I like trains (it's my other passion besides theme/amusement parks), so the journey through the woods was fun, and I enjoyed the uniqueness. For food: OH MY GOODNESS KNOEBELS FOOD IS SO GOOD!!!! We had the pierogi's from the oasis, which I thought were good...but the winner for me is the Boom-Shak-A-Lak burger from the Phoenix Junction Steakhouse. This thing is soo good! I would highly recommend it to everyone who visits the park! It was so good in fact that I copied Coaster Bill (Thanks for the inspiration!) and made a "Boom-Shak-A-Lak Burger Map" so you don't miss it! Also had a sundae at the Old Mill, and that was AMAZING!!! Although it also destroyed any desire for me to have ice cream for the rest of the trip...(Cinnamon Bread to the Rescue!) Also, fun fact...Dick Knoebels has been at the helm of Knoebels for as long as my home park has been around...which is either amazing or embarrassing depending on who you ask... All in all I think Knoebels is an amazing park, and if you're anywhere near the area you HAVE to go check it out. Definitely an "A list park" for me, and I can't wait to go again. I don't know when I'll be able to escape the coaster desert to that part of the country again, but something tells me that a Knoebels 100th Anniversary Celebration might give me all the reasons I need. Looking to the future for the park, I know that they have the Bayern Curve (Any word on where that project is at?), but I would personally love to see them either relocate Blue Streak from Conneaut Lake (Because let's face it, at this rate that ride is doomed...) or attempt to resurrect like an old school Virginia Reel coaster, like they did with Flying Turns. Now that would be fun! Alright, enough about Knoebels. Thanks for reading, I have two more of these reports in the works that I hope to put out soon! See you then!

Just to help some people out...Robb and I just got back from a quick visit to IOA. Got there at 11:30am, Velocicoaster was a WALK ON! Like, sending empty seats every train walk on! Yay for midweek September!

^God, I'll soon miss those days when parades and shows weren't our thing.

Cedar Point Trip Report August 9th - August 12th I picked that week since it was the last week of daily operations where the park was open 'till 10pm and they had the CP 150 festivities going on. As scary as it was to think about exploring hotel options that aren't Breakers/Lighthouse/Breakers Express, my choice of Cedar Cove (right across from Thirsty Pony) ended up being a delight. I used my Chase points, but rooms start at $87 a night. That's nothing compared to the $350-$400 CP wanted for Breakers Express and LH. Breakers wasn't even available. Cedar Cove will definitely be my spot from here on out. Rooms were clean, bed was fine, you got free bottles of water daily and breakfast. Thirsty Pony has always been the loveable cheesy bar with decent food and they still have a solid offering of beer and food. Prices are just up a bit, but Sandusky is really trying to make that area "Cedar Corner" into a nicer offering. Cedar Cove is refreshed, the old Rain hotel is a horse themed boutique (LOL) hotel, and there's a new Holiday Inn to give CP Express some competition. Monday was the best looking weather day, so I made sure to get there at opening and make the most of the day. I arrived around 915am and parked in the 2nd row, got in no problem. Okay this is where you need to take note if you're visiting CP this year: Monday I was able to purchase fast pass + for the FP price with my platinum pass discount in park at opening. Amazing. Tuesday I was able to purchase fast pass + for the FP price with my platinum pass discount in park at opening. Amazing. Wednesday, upon going right to the FP store at opening, FP+ was sold out already, so to have FP+ you must have had to buy it the night before. You could still buy FP. No discounts of FP though. The same thing happened on Thursday. So if you really want FP+, make sure you get it while it's available because there's no guarantee it will be there to purchase in park. Monday and Tuesday with FP+ were amazing, Dragster had the most uptime of all the coasters and had short waits. Millennium was have major issues and I only rode on Monday, sadly. It was down Tuesday, Wednesday, and maybe ran an hour or two on Thursday. After riding Sheikra, all of the other dive coasters are a big step down in my opinion. Raptor still kicks so much ass. Magnum was running great, I had a lot more fun on it than I remembered. Wicked Twister is leaving and that's just fine. I like these coasters and they're really strange, but I do agree the twists and pull out are a bit jerky. Gatekeeper has grown on me and I really enjoy the front seat. Windseeker at Cedar Point is a must ride. I never rode Rougarou or Iron Dragon, huh. Power Tower provides such a great view and it's bad for an S&S tower, I ride it every time I walk by. Maverick, Dragster, and Steel Vengeance are all incredible, but when you're missing a long relaxing Millennium Force, you're gonna end up leaving the park with bruised thighs due to so many extreme airtime filled rides on those 3 haha. Maverick is still my pick for best coaster at CP, it's one of my favorite coasters of all time. I had visited Japan and Velocicoaster since my last Maverick rides but it still holds up. The airtime hill is so so good, the launch is forceful, the stengel dives and long airtime hill finale are epic. What more do you want?! Steel Vengeance's new locker system for this year is fine, and you can store your beer in it! It just fits, haha. But the 2 split lines make no sense to me. They were never even. Why have 2? Just have one or make 1 FL and the other regular? Anyways, Steel Vengeance is such a beast. If you got off Maverick wanting more, this coaster has more. I love love love the mini wave turns in the 2nd half of the ride, the inversions are a complete WTF, but I think my favorite moment is sitting front seat for the airtime hill up, turn, up into the MCBR. Wow what an insane moment of airtime. Food - I stuck to Melt and Famous Daves. The bartenders were really friendly, attentive, and there's HAPPY HOUR DEALS!!! at both!!! Why eat anywhere else? I gave Chickie & Pete's one shot and that place was a shitshow. Messy, sold out of standard items, and staff arguing with guests over seating/meal plans, it was a disaster. Somehow this place continues to provide good service, food, drinks, and timely delivery even in 2021. Sadly this 'ol Intamin was only up for probably 10 hours during my 4 day trip. It's still a legend. Theme park accidents suck, but I was shocked to hear about Dragster after it was running like a gem during my visit. Being a single rider + FL+ holder gives you many opportunities. I rode Dragster front row 3x, and 11x overall on that Monday. What a day. After being down the entire weekend of my last visit, Maverick was Mr. Consistent during each of my 4 days. This coaster is perfection, even without the botched heartline roll. Glad they got it right on Veloci! This airtime hill is one of the best ejector moments anywhere on the planet. But those stengel dives are just something else. So unique! So Maverick and Steel Vengeance ran in the rain on Monday and Tuesday. It wasn't heavy rain, but holy crap they kept running them!!! Are we finally creeping back into normal rain policies at CP?! Ya hate to see it. Wednesday and Thursday were pretty stormy, but the park does an okay job getting things back up once lightning is out of the way. The new queue layout does allow you to get some cool photos! Honestly I didn't mind just sipping on my beer and watching the coaster fly all around you. Hidden barrel roll a bit more exposed now, so cool to get up and close to the ride!

I didn't realize how similar some of the Windseeker and Ferris Wheel pictures were; I'll edit them down. Sorry that you had to scroll through 5 "duplicates" at most. When you're putting up a ton of pics you don't really pay attention. If you notice in the Valravn pictures, they're actually all kinda different, following the train through the course. @prozach626Thanks for the backup brother.

Erik!! You forgot the best part: the water park didn't sell or rent towels. It was just, "Good luck, travelers." I also bought the best generic shirt here. It just says Water World at the bottom. Am I a fan of the movie? Did I go to an aquarium? Does the water park have sharks? So many questions....

Wow. That is definitely not a park I thought would pop up in this thread. Crazy talk.

I heard that someone at Cedar Point had looked into a crystal ball and knew that the CP TTD accident was going to happen. They told Tony and he thought it would make sense to close down Wicked Twister because they could use the existing hardware to launch Top Thrill Dragster, save some money, and to please coaster enthusiasts which want the change for no apparent reason. PROBLEM SOLVED

Considering that's mostly locals who do nothing but add to the congestion in the parks, screw 'em!

New motor installed on Skyrush last night. Park is hoping to have it open in the next week or two.

This is for one peak-season day for a family of four at Universal. One day... Disney is charging $15 "BUT IT DOESN'T INCLUDE THE MOST POPULAR RIDES!!!!" ...oh, how terrible

Dang, what's going on with you? If an over 18 year old car would drive next to you and lose a part, would you really blame the manufacturer of the car? Wouldn't there be other people to talk to first? You are writing that you don't know who is to blame for the defect, but start your post with "what is going on with Intamin these days?"? How can you do that if you don't know when the part was built, when it was security checked for last time, and, the most important, why it came loose? Would you really blame Intamin, Cedar Fair or a technician if the train hit a bird while descending causing the part to come loose? You don't know nothing - as much as I and the most other of us do - and go for a full rant on everybody including the argument diligence in your first post here? Cedar Fair disassembles all of their coaster trains of all their coasters every offseason to every nut and bolt. Everybody following them on socials or going to Winter Chill Out knows that. Perhaps you can explain to us how they can work even better and how you can prevent loose parts months later. The only correct thing you wrote is the fact that it should be unacceptable that guests are hurt in amusement parks. And I'm pretty sure that Intamin, Cedar Fair and the TTD technicians agree on that without a beep. I even would include the riding guests, too - which you excluded. I'm also sure that they act and think before they write. Because of this, they will make sure to exactly know why which part came loose because of which reason before they talk to the people. And even then, the involved people are the first ones to talk to. Not the ones unaffected by the accident.

So I actually made it out to White Water on Sunday 8/15. I haven't been in about 10 years so it felt great to be back in the park. The app was correct with ride closures. The area where bermuda triangle / gulf screamer and black river falls was all closed off, as well as the lazy river and dive bomber. It appears that the new 2022 slide will be going between dragon tail falls and take over the old Rapids area. Even though I've read horror stories about the summer reviews with slide closures and crowds, we had a great time! The place was fairly empty in the afternoon and we rode everything within an hour, with the longest wait to be around 10 minutes or so for run away river. Most rides were nearly walk on with under 5 minute waits! Then on Monday 8/16 we ventured out to SFoG. Got a few rides in before the tropical storm approached. Crowds were also non existent with no waits. Most of the big coasters were open with one train ops, as well as Pandemonium and Justice League. I highly recommend the weekdays when they are open in August from 5:00pm to 10:00 pm for minimal crowds. Even got to see some 2 train testing on Mindbender. Looks like they were working on some programming in the station. New trains look really nice. The trains still haul through the loops. One train had weights while the other was empty. Based on where the trains were stopping at the end of the ride, I could easily see them running up to 3 trains now that they are shorter than before, breaking up that long brake run into more block sections.

Starting off with pics of myself and friends, but I promise will get to the costume stuff. . and to SFOG so. . . after Covid killed off so many plans in 2020, Dragon*con 2021 was actually gonna happen. Dragon*con is a unique convention in that unlike bigger Conventions (like San Diego ComicCon), Dragon*con is "hosted" by 5 hotels in downtown Atlanta, + 4 levels of the Expo Center, 2 levels of the Merchandise Mart, and even takes over the Georgia Aquarium for one night. Because it is hosted by the hotels tho (utilizing multiple grand ballrooms, conference rooms, and event areas), unlike other conventions? Dragon*con runs 24 hours from start on Thursday at 10am until close on Monday at 4pm. That means that at 2am, 3am, 4am, 5am, etc. . there will be multiple things to do: panel, concert, drum circle, dance, rave, performance, anime/video rooms, etc. . . .something that isn't' true of other cons - where once the dealers room closes ~7pm? the con is done for the night unless you've made your own plans to do something away from the convention hall. In 2020, due to the unprecedented health crisis, the State of Georgia issued restrictions that forced cancellation of Dragon*con. DCon actually ignored the "all sales final and non-refundable" fine print, and offered roll-over or refund to those who had purchased badges in 2020. Absolutely not getting political here, but just stating fact, that because Governor Kemp in Georgia refused to issue any mandates as Delta began to surge? Dragon*con was gonna happen this year - even as multiple other conventions/concerts/events around the country started cancelling again. Without any legal shutdown mandate to point to? I believe that if DC did cancel, then likely insurance would not cover them. note: I don't know this, but I do believe it to be true. Anyways, so con was gonna happen. Precautions were put in place: Proof of Vaccine, or neg Covid test (within 72 hours), Masks required at all times in official con spaces (meaning all hotels, exhibitor/vendor hall, gaming halls), reduced capacity (con capped at ~42K instead of the over 85K from 2019), reduced room capacity (chairs spaced out, and only 2/3rds crowd allowed into concerts, dances, dealers room, etc). Less overnight programming (only a couple of things offered instead of many options). They also did not sell 1 day tickets this year, only Thurs/Fri or Sun/Mon. . so no Sat 1 day, which *greatly* would reduce crowding thruout the con on Saturday - which tends to be the day that all the locals swarm DC, due to the Parade Sat morning. I also knew that I have a lovely group of friends, most of them members of a group called "Digitribe" who every year set up the Digitribe Dungeon of Doom - a con-suite that's invite only, where I typically spend a portion of the con, relaxing, drinking, game playing with friends. This year, the head of the group asked that Digisuite be restricted to members only (no guests), and that everyone be vaccinated - meaning that masks could be less restrictive if in Digi. So that made me feel much safer, and I figured I'd be spending way more time in Digi than roaming around the con all hours of the night (as usual) with these precautions in place, and feeling safe enough? I took a deep breath and set off for Atlanta. --> I'm gonna cliff's notes over the horrific week/weekend prior to leaving on Wednesday - when we got a call from my Spouse's Oncologist telling us we needed to rush him to the hospital *NOW* and she had secured him a bed (which was very difficult to do with the hospitals overwhelmed with Covid patients). So he was in Hospital from Friday night until late Monday afternoon.. and was finally able to get him released (with Picc line and daily antibiotic infusiions for the next 8 weeks) on Monday evening. If we hadn't been able to get him out of the hospital? I would not have gone to Atlanta. . but since he was home? I felt ok to leave, and had multiple friends checking up on him while I was gone - as well as talking to him every day multiple times. So the 6 days prior to my leaving were a horror show that left us both stressed the hell out, and concerned, and I didn't' really pack until the day before I left. "Pack" is being kind. . really it was just throwing things into a suitcase, and I figured I'd make "outfits" out of what I ended up bringing. (it did work out OK tho). on Wed I had an early direct flight from Austin and my Spouse insisted on dropping me off at the airport. Really the plane was not full and no issues with Mask compliance at all. We made great time, and I got to Atlanta almost an hour before I had expected to, and before I knew it was off the MARTA and meeting my friends at the hotel (we always stay in a Host hotel. . makes the con so much more enjoyable). Every Year DC chooses a charity, and this year was Big Brothers/Big Sisters Atlanta. One of the events added this year for Charity was a "virtual marathon" where everyone who signed up and donated, would get a virtual runners bib, and an actual "trophy medallion" in the mail. It's a great cause, and a great idea, because with so many unable to attend (due to travel restrictions, or simply feeling unsafe in a crowd of 42K) quite a few folks were going to be experiencing the con thru the virtual streaming option. . and this gave them (and attendees as well) another way to participate. They only wanted 3500 steps tho.. LOL. .we did that the 1st day! we could create our own virtual bib. . so here's mine: Austin airport was dead: and before I knew it? was in Atlanta and in the MARTA on the way to Peachtree Plaza - where the Dragon*con Host Hotels are (Hyatt, Marriott Marquis, Hilton, Sheraton, Westin). Such an easy ride from the airport, and only cost $2.50 (vs an expensive cab ride) a quick check in at the front desk (and some schmoozing to get the "special" stuff we like to have. . a benefit of getting there on Tues or Wed before con? the desk clerks are not frazzled from dealing with so many demands and if you're nice to them (and tip them) you can get all kinds of bonus stuff that others don't end up with access to here's the view of the Hyatt Lobby looking up in the main atrium. . . kinda schmaltzy. . but really. . I took this pic, and felt. . "home" (I've been coming to DC since 1997) I quickly made my way up to the room and my friends Marce & Neal - that would be my home and family for the next 7 days and sent "proof of life" pic home to Nick: it was really early (I think maybe 11), so our first course of business was to head down to the mall (that's between all the hotels) and get some coffee from Caribou Coffee. There's a Starbucks across the street, but for Dragon*con? ONLY Caribou Coffee. .they have some amazing flavors on the menu, do special drinks just for Con, and best part? the owner is a big ol nerd, and each day of con there will be a nerdy trivia question that can save you 10cents off your coffee price..LOL. (on the 2nd day he handed me the ring and told me it was "so heavy" and could I carry it for him? Then he kept track of the answers, and I was one of only 6 that kept the ring for myself. . the others carried it to Mordor to toss in Mt. Doom. . LOL. . he showed me the results the next day) coffee secured, we headed back up to the room so I could unpack, relax, update them on what was going on with my spouse, and plan out the rest of the day. some errands had to be run to fix a phone card (since Marce and Neal are Canadian and she needed to go to a Tmobile store to activate something here in the US). And of course, we had the important need to go hit the Vortex for lunch (a tradition), and by coincidence (LOL) go to the Liquor Store and the Publix next door to stock up the room for the next 6 days. Marce brought along an empty Carryon with wheels - which was perfect for transporting way too much liquor back to the room. a hop on MARTA - 3 stops up at Midtown, and we were at the Vortex. another tradition.. the Phallus shrine. Rub on it for luck. (hey, there's a sign right there explaining it :P) I ignored Marce's advice, and went with what my belly was telling me and got my favorite: Hell's Fury (as described on the menu: Pepper jack cheese, Atomic Death Sauce, habanero relish, and a roasted jalapeño. Not for sissies. ) So good, but boy did it burn (going in and going out if ya know what I mean. . . :P) luckily the Acid Trip (a rum / blue curacao drink I love at the Vortex) helps calm the heat. liquor and snacks bought, we headed back to hotel to relax a bit until Marce reminded us there was a BSG (BattleStar Galactica) meetup at Trader Vics at 5:30. I'm not into that fandom, but I had friends who had been pinging me to see when I'd be in and if I'd be at Trader Vic's on Wed night. There was a big meet up from members of the Queerios Group there too, but I didn't want to eat, having just gotten stuffed at Vortex. . but we changed and headed over that way, and I messaged my friend David & Jesse that we were headed that way. we were on 22nd floor of International tower. . and on the way down, the elevator stopped at 10, and who gets on? David and Jesse. Just the kind of stuff that ALWAYS happens at DragonCon. here was are at Trader Vics and here's how "not crowded" it was on this night. . which is HIGHLY unusual. . this bar area is typically *packed* the night before con start. they had removed many of the tables, but didn't seem to be restricting entry. (tho the lack of tables kept people from standing around long, since not anyplace to put down your drink). Marce & Neal visited with the BSG group, and David and I talked. . but Jesse had disappeared. So I asked eventually where he had gone, and David said he had a group he was meeting on the 5th floor of the Hilton (Trader Vics is in the basement). . . so after a while, I said, let's go up and see if we can find him? so we headed up there and found a small group of nerd-ish guys hanging out. . which eventually turned into a group of about 40 guys, an organizer (she was very nice), and one very pretty goth girl. I whispered to David - it's like an Incel meeting! and it turned out? it was one of the DragonCon singles groups that were meeting up. . . BWAAAA-HAAAA-HAAAAAAA boy. . did *I* stand out among the introverts. I think I kinda maybe took control, and started talking to the goth girl (as guy after guy came over and awkwardly said hello to her). . . LOL. . I got an IM later thanking me for crashing the meetup and saving her from being bombarded by horny boys who didn't know how to express that they were horny. . . . eventually I decided I was tired (and pretty buzzed. . those Mai Tais at Trader Vic are strong), but swung by the atrium of the Hilton - which was themed to Stranger Things (I have pics later on coming up of that) - to see if the traditional "inflatable Dinosaur Dance Party" that happens in the Hilton on Wed night before the con really starts on Thurs was happening. Disappointingly, there was only 1 or two in the atrium. . but then I heard music, and followed it. . to find they had moved the party outside i guess to make it safer - even tho, yes, most of the participants are sealed within their own inflatable dinosaurs. LOL they were having a good time tho: and then it was time to go back to the room and crash hard. . . it was only ~10:30, but I'd been up since 3am. Tomorrow things would really start with the con, and we'd see how weird things were going to feel this year. to be continued. (with some costume pics coming if not in the next update, then soon after)

I didn't know they sold turkey legs over there.

"If you're watching a parade, don't follow it. It never changes. If the parade is boring, run in the opposite direction. You will fast-forward the parade." - Mitch Hedberg

^My favorite Fuji Q moment was being told to put my wristwatch in a locker, only to attach the locker key to the same wrist with an elastic band.

Username checks out.

The dumbest feuds are Twitter feuds. I'm simply tired of the attitude, but I guess many people find it entertaining.

^They can mean only one thing, your "New For 2022" Tilt-O-Whirl is going in that spot.

Absolute savagery

La Ronde but I blame @coasterbill because his trip reports and all his talk about the place made me curious lol I thought there's no way it could really be thatttt bad and we already had six flags season passes so it wasn't costing us anything so we figured why not go see for ourselves. I have no problems admitting when I'm wrong. Bill was 100% correct lol

Park President Jeffrey Siebert just shared these Poltergeist update pics - reopening to the public in two weeks! I asked for, and got, his permission to share here: here are the ongoing upgrades to the queue and station building (including the work we can see being done on the new indoor section on the "porch":

I will pay whatever it cost to NOT wait in line at any park. Ever.

Park probably has the best location of any in the country (actually in downtown right off a metro station) and is just left to rot. I went mainly because it was convenient to do before catching dodgers at rockies and I had never been. Will never go back, but your TR sums up the place perfectly. I’m also not expecting a replacement whenever it closes. Stan kroenke just spent a metric ton of money on sofi stadium, so he’ll probably sell off the rides…