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Busch Gardens Williamsburg - Day 2, Monday May 29th. Would this park be packed on Memorial Day Monday with stellar weather? Nope! Reasonable waits for everything (at least as long as I was there!) I arrived at the park shortly after opening, and headed first for Apollo's Chariot, where I met a 12-minute wait for front row. This was really a one-train wait though, since most of it was waiting for the crew to finish up their morning checks. Solid ride, a great mid-tier B&M hyper. 7/10. Next up was another lap on Pantheon, this time in the front row! Three-and-a-half train wait. This is definitely a front row ride...wow this ride is pretty good! It squeezed into my Top 10 Steel at #6, between Millennium Force and Banshee. I'm still not a huge fan of the backwards launch sequence, but holy shit is the airtime coming over the tophat after the final forwards launch is nuts. 11/10. Now it was back to Verbolten - 9 minutes locker to locker for back row; amusingly they forced me to put my bag into a locker this time, when they didn't on the previous day (it was the same exact bag). Yeah, still not as good as Big Bad Wolf. And what a waste of a first-generation 911! Next up was Alpengeist, which is always a spectacular ride (22 minutes locker-to-locker for back row, right edge). With the removal of BBW, this is easily the second best ride at the park. 10/10. I then gave InvadR another shot, this time in the front row (forgot to note the wait time). Up there, it's a much better ride...still a weaker GCI, but a lot better than my experience the previous day. 7/10. Thought about giving the Le Scoot log flume a go, but for some reason didn't. I always remember from my childood the actual sawblade right before the final drop (I think), which freaked me out as a kid. Now it was time for one my favorite features of this park: The numerous transport rides! This time it was the Skyride (Germany to England, 2-car-wait), on my way to my next destination. Any guesses what it was? That's right, it's Loch Ness Monster! How does this classic Arrow hold up after all these years? Unfortunately not all that well (walk-on front row), as it gave me quite the headache. Super excited for the renovations that are happening for next year. I then took a ride on the train to attempt to relax and soothe the headache, snapping a bunch of pictures of things that I saw. RIP Drachen Fire....you were taken before your time. What is this building back in the old Drachen Fire area? Next up was a ride on the Skyrdie England to France (17 minute wait), and of course more pictures! That brought me to around 2:00, and unfortunately my Loch Ness Monster induced headache hadn't really gone away, and knowing I had a long drive ahead of me the next day, I headed out. Oh, and at some point I rode Grover's Alpine Express just for the credit, but I guess it was so forgettable that I didn't even make a notes video or take a picture. This park really is beautiful, and offers plenty of shade in most areas, and I will be back in a few weeks to experience their Halloween event for the first time (along with processing my pass for next year - my first time having a BGW pass!). Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for some adventures in the Atlanta area up next!

That looks amazing. Lou Malnatis in Chicagoland does this great. It goes well with their cornmeal based crust, which gets really crispy. It almost has like a glazed over butter crust on the bottom. Even better, they layer the bottom with sausage on their most popular classic style. I look forward to that more than I do dealing with the shit bums at SFGam, when head up that way.

Yeah, same here. I think the texture of the pizza is better for it as there is less moisture directly on the dough... So you get better crisp and the sauce tends to be brighter and more 'punchy'. Love it! Now my latest... Two pies from this past weekend, both NY style, a plain cheese and a supreme (with sauce dolloped on top!).

Fear the Five: Howl-o-Scream 2023 Begins Maniacs, swamp people, chainsaw-wielding clowns, and more took over Busch Gardens during the opening weekend of Howl-o-Scream 2023. Theme Park Review was invited to the Media Night on Friday, September 8 for a reception and a chance to experience this year's fiendish goings on. So, what's new for Howl-o-Scream this year? Lost Mines: The Descent (new maze, Escape from Pompeii building)--a group of miners are possessed with desire for the gems they unearth and become freaky mutants with bad attitudes. The park did a good job redressing last year's somewhat generic Inferno maze with claustrophobic earth-and-rock walls and shored-up tunnels. As usual, some of Howl-o-Scream's best sets are in this building. Fest-Evil (new TERROR-tory, that is, "scare zone," Festa Italia)--this party of fiendish, soul-stealing Mardi Gras revelers ties into the Death Water Bayou maze nearby. Watch out for evil harlequins, gator people, and voodoo masters. The returning four mazes have been "revamped," as Busch Gardens likes to say--that is, they've been tweaked and reworked a bit. Death Water Bayou: Full Moon (Festa Italia near the Roman Rapids)--I don't think this voodoo maze has changed all that much from last year, although that's OK, because it's still the best one. I did notice some more blacklight effects, so this indoor/outdoor maze is best experienced after dark. It's the best haunt they've put in this space since the original Ripper Row maze. KILLarney DIEner: Infested (Ireland, Battle for Eire building)--looks like the cannibal diner has a bug problem, so pest control been called in. But be careful. They're not too picky about who or what they exterminate. Nice sets and creatures, but there's still that long exit walk where nothing happens. Nevermore: Chapter 3 (Germany, old Drachen Fire station)--more creepiness courtesy of the stories of Poe. There are a few slightly different scenes, and I think they made the maze a bit more disorienting than last year (more twists and turns). I'm a fan of Poe, so I always enjoy this one. Witch of the Woods: Scorched (Germany, entrance on the left of the Festhaus)--the local villages tried burning the woods to get rid of the witch with predictable results; that is, they just ticked her off. The maze does have a scorched look and smell to it now, although it really hasn't changed much otherwise. This outdoor maze is best after dark. But be warned--it's a bit of a hike from the Festhaus to the entrance, which is behind Verbolten. You can still run from fiendish childhood characters on Scary Tale Road (Germany); be served up on a platter in the Meat Market (New France); get stoned in Gorgon Gardens (Italy); and survive being harassed or offered a "good time, dearie" by the denizens of London's Whitechapel at Ripper Row (England). The Terror-tories were pretty active last weekend, and there was a roving Hack Pack of chiansaw-carrying clowns. These "scare zones" used to be a weak spot for Howl-o-Scream, but they've been improving over the last few years. All rides, with the exception of water attractions, are running during Howl-o-Scream (including Verbolten, which had been closed for over a month). The kiddie rides and Forest of Fun shut down at 5:00 pm, though. Three Howl-o-Scream shows are currently running all day: Jack Is Back (of course) in Ireland, Phantoms of the Festhaus (Germany), and Skeletones (Italy). Monster Stomp on Ripper Row opens on September 28 in the Globe Theatre. The mazes and TERROR-tories usually open at 6:00 pm. My Media Night experience was disrupted by a thunderstorm. I was waiting for it get darker for the outdoor mazes and ran out of luck, so I went back Sunday night to check out the rest of Howl-o-Scream. Despite the stormy weather, they're off to a good start. My thanks to Busch Gardens Williamsburg for having TPR at this event. I look forward to Howl-o-Scream each year. "Fear the Five" . . . what? There are five mazes and five TERROR-tories, which makes 10. Just pick the five you're most afraid of, I guess. The Virginia Beer Company strikes again! This time, it's a nice cream ale. The park put out a good spread that night. All this terrifying merch can be yours if the price is right! "Oh, I made them some lovely finger food, but was it good enough for their high-toned reception? Bah! They can be yours for a few shillings, dearie." "You! Seen any signs of the Ripper about?" "Ripper? Why no . . . no Ripper here. Why do you ask, officer?" Do I need one of those helmets with a lamp on it? A candle? Maybe a canary to check for poison gas? "Don't go in there! They ain't got no workin' toilets! Why, I barely made it out before . . . well, maybe you don't want to hear the end of that story." "We dig, dig, dig, dig, dig, dig dig! We did the whole day through!" "Yeah, it's hard work, but you meet all sorts of interesting people . . . who you get to eat!" Whew! After being stuck in that mine all day, I'm ready for something more festive, like Mardi Gras. Yessir, I just want to . . . er . . . let the good times roll? "Hey, you got just the soul I'm lookin' for!" "Yes, you'll hope this party will never end . . . and it won't!" "Helluva a party, eh?" Maybe I can lose them in the fog. "Oh, did you come from the Fest-Evil party? We know how to have a good time here, too. Just remember: . . . . . . Don't look into her eyes!" Busch Gardens has been renovating the Italy/Germany bridge all year. It's looking good. Damn! I am sick of all these @!$%!! phantoms in this @!$%!! festhaus! Shall we ponder a quaint and curious volume of long forgotten lore? "Could someone get me some Neosporin and perhaps a bandage? Thank you," Wow! Tempesto must be a really dangerous ride! "Yeah! When they tell ya to keep your hands, arms, and legs in the ride vehicle at all times. you best pay attention!" I think I would've gone with a closed casket, but maybe that's just me. They're still partying on at Fest-Evil. I think I'll peacefully commune with nature in this fetid, evil swamp. What the hell. Hmm--when pumpkins start dismembering people, the party is getting a bit out of hand. "Gimme a shilling or I'll sic the Ripper on ya!" Somehow, I got out alive. Thanks for reading!

Power Surge is gone, apparently, and the Rock-O-Plane is going in. Power Surge was one of my favorite flats, and it's not one I've seen many other places, but even after all the money and time the park's spent trying to get it working properly, it seems like it's down more than it's up, so this isn't really much of a surprise. Kinda thought the Bayern Kurve would be in before the Rock-O-Plane, but cool to see either way! Power Surge apparently is sitting in the parking lot no, so no official word on its final fate yet, but I don't expect much but the scrapheap with how rarely it's run lately...