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Odd for TN Tornado to be closed. Mystery Mine and Dragonflier as well? Dang that a bummer. Wild Eagle is one of my (now 20) daughters favorites. Fits the theme well, a gentle soaring flight. No scare elements like head choppers or key holes. Just an fun ride with great scenery. LR is 3800 ft, Steel Vengeance is 5740, not double the length (that'd be 7600). LR comes at you so fast that you don't get to reflect on the elements as they happen because the next one is starting. Granted the new track sections and loss of the LSM launch change it a bit, but the elements are all still great and the integration with the landscape is unique. I've ridden ArieForce One and the quad down on it is not as fun as LR. And the wave turn has a lot more hang time than others RMC has done Guess it depends on what you are looking for. It's a theme park, if you don't like the theme it won't do a lot for you. It not an amusement park like SF. As for why people like it, it's a different experience than amusement parks like SF. At SF it's just getting from one ride to the next and waiting in line. DW, take your time and enjoy the journey. Stop at a show or demonstration. Look around a shop. DW has 9 coasters now, though 4 are family rides not thrill rides. But those are only part of the experience. There's a lot more to DW than just the rides. I spend as much time at shows as I do riding rides. While it's been a while (2022) since I was there the food used to be much better then other parks (I think even better than SDC). Guess it depends on where you went. I tend to visit the restaurants like Aunt Granny's, Ham 'n Beans, Front Porch (though I liked more when it was Backstage), and Miss Lillian's (again, liked the Chicken House better). Also like when Aunt Granny's and Miss Lillian's were buffets and you served yourself. Not sure what you mean by healthy stuff. Aunt Granny's and Ham 'n Beans are basically home-style meals similar to what I eat most nights. Pot roast, meatloaf, catfish, fried/baked chicken, chicken pot pie, pinto beans, mashed potatoes, creamed corn, roasted potatoes, carrots, green beans, turnip greens, cabbage. And the Front porch has fried cauliflower, fried green tomatoes, fried chicken (w/ mashed potatoes, gravy, pickled tomato & collard greens), shrimp and grits with sausage, pork loin chop (with potatoes, gravy, and collard greens), even a past dish (rigatoni, basil oil, tomato sauce, parmesan)

My wife and I ended up going and had a decent time. We got Fast Lane and Fright Lane. We only had a couple train wait during our daytime rides. Our first ride was Diamondback. My personal opinion is it's still the best piece of steel in the park. It kicks ass all the way into the MCBR, and still packs more excitement than usual for a 2nd half B&M hyper. Diamondback offers a ton of negative forces with a good mixture of positive forces. My favorite part is the low left bank into the second airtime hill. It hauls. I also love the unintentional rattling on the first drop, which fits with the theme, including the great looking new paint job. The drop over the midway, the nearby helix, and the splashdown led by long trains offer some of my favorite visuals. Row 2 is a great place to be, because you're basically in the front, but you don't have the front seat wait. We lucked out with this seat, since more often than not we do not request seats, anymore. We then rode Mystic Timbers, which is highly underrated. The mix of jostling transitions with low floater airtime is perfect. Night rides are great, as well. After that, we rode The Beast. I missed out on this over the past few visits, because the wait is crazy near the end of the night. That's with, or without Fast Lane. We weren't going to miss it this year, whether it was during the night or day. Daylight rides are nearly just as fun. Flying into the final helix still makes me nervous, even more so that I don't ride roller coasters nearly as much. We spent a decent amount of time sharing a cheat soda sitting in front of the Troika and talking. We took advantage of non-parent moments when we have our chances to do so. Watching Orion trains cycle over the antique cars and racer makes for a great spot to relax and enjoy the view. No regrets. We went on Flight of Fear. Holy shit this thing sucks. It beat the absolute fuck out of us. We won't ride it again. Ever. We went for a ride on Orion. This time, we did request a front row seat. We only had about a ten minute wait in total. The feeling of speed in the front row is incredible. I like Orion, but I think a giga coaster shouldn't be overshadowed like it is. I really wish KI could have packed more ride time into it, but the economic timing was unfortunate. As great of a ride as it is, I think it's a missed opportunity. I much prefer Diamondback, Mystic Timbers, The Beast, and possibly even Banshee over it. My optimistic hopes for a multi-launch or a dive coaster in Vortex's prior location will hopefully also overshadow Orion. (my money is on the multi-launch) We left the park to get chicken wings and crush beers at BT Roosters, which is our KI tradition. We took an Uber from our hotel back to the park, and we got there around 5. We killed some time with a beer and grabbed our Fright Lane passes after 6. The park was absolutely packed. Fast Lane is no longer a value during Haunt evenings, and they're doing the same fucking thing CP is. Some of the Fast Lane queues were out past the entrances. The add-on seems more profit driven than ever. They could easily raise the prices enough to keep consumer volume down and offering a better up-charge experience. But, I'm sure the numbers don't work out as well. It's disappointing to know that Fast Lane (plus) used to be such a perk, but now it's more of a necessity. Anything longer than fifteen minutes used to be taboo even despite being on Haunt nights. With our limited visits to parks, I'd be willing to pay $200 - $300 per Fast Lane pass in order to be as good of an experience as it used to be. We went through all of the haunted houses. They were fun and all, but I just don't know how adults can be intimidated. They're more laughable entertainment than anything, which is not a complaint. As an 80's/90's kid, Kill Mart still takes the cake for me. The nostalgia is hilarious. I don't even think it was 9 PM yet when we decided to queue up for our last ride. We waited about 40 minutes for Orion. It was the only Fast Lane queue we could find that wasn't out to the entrance. I think we were seated in row 3. Compared to the front, it felt neutered We went to Corn Stalkers, which was our last haunted attraction. After that, as per usual, we found a nice looking family and gave them our Fight Lane passes with the bonus selection remaining. It took about 30 minutes to wait for our Uber. Just like last year, my feelings were mixed. I genuinely wish I had the same interest as a I used to, but it just seems to be drastically diminished. We set our expectations appropriately compared to last year, so it wasn't a disappointment. We still decided the trip was worth it. However, in the end we both think we could have had just as much fun, if not more, by watching and riding all of the bullshit rides with our daughter. For us, sharing new experiences with her is an irreplaceable feeling compared to trying to relive our past.

as part of Fright Bash, we had reserved seating for several shows - and although Fiesta is well known for their shows, I had seen versions of the evening ones, and so was most excited about "Haunted Hollywood" - a Halloween version of the excellent Hollywood thru the years show the park had new for 2024. it's mostly the same cast (a few new faces) performing "spooky" or "scary" songs. . .y'all. .it's SO good. highly, highly recommended: wish I could remember all the songs. . but they were mostly of the Halloween variety. . . really talented cast tho. (the only one I didn't care for was "Feed My Frankenstein" - as the guy was way out of key (and that's hard to do on an Alice Cooper song). . but huge props to him for making it down all those stairs in the giant Frankenstein boots). the Count with the puppet Dracula was hysterical. . and the song was so good too (even if I can't recall it right now) this one I remember, as it truly is a show standout: "Psycho Killer". . featuring little Vignettes of each victim being chased by their killer. . . before all joining up in the center stage for some great choreography. and HUGE points to the park for staying in true character - the "bad guys" all run. . . except for Michael Myers. . he just slowly walks after his victim. perfection! the Addams Family theme song a kinda cringy "dancing pillowcases" number for Casper the Friendly ghost. but I mean. . it was amusing. and of course, the show ender/ show stopper, is a full performance of "Thriller" after the show, the organizers asked all attendees on the stage for a group picture (I kept my hat on, so a bit noticeable) and then we got a meet and greet with the cast. . these 3 are among my favorite performers at SFFT, and any show they are in? I'll be there! back out into the heat, we had a couple of hours until dinner. . so it was time to ride some stuff! pic by my friend Belinda - who's in the very front. SO many characters out during the day (I would guess many of them change outfits to be ghouls at night). . but so many photo ops, and this is a lovely park anyways! Supergirl retheme completely done, and the Starflyer looks great. after a bunch of riding (I had my camera put away, so not many pics) it was time for dinner, and some Q&A with park folks. I didn't take a pic of my dinner, but did bump into the Quirky Coaster Couple (who had changed from Luigi/Mario for a "nighttime" look). Glad I snapped this pic, as you can get a look at the food. the chicken schnitzel on a stick was incredible, as were the ribs, and the german potato salad (and potato pancakes with applesauce). as a group of 17 strong (!) we decided to hit some of the houses that opened at 6.. as most folks were heading over to the Crackaxle train station for the Arrival (where the scarezone actors arrive by train and pour out into their own scare zones thruout the park). it was SO crowded that day, that I didn't want to be anywhere near Crackaxle - so instead we hit the Stranger Things House (yawn), the Conjuring House (excellent!!), Slaughterhouse (very good), the Voodoo House (which during the day is a kid friendly "tour of the collector's store" walkthru, but at night is filled with scare actors and low lights), Trapped (way better than in previous years, as they took some of the props from the discontinued Buried Alive house). the Voodoo house let us out right into the scare zone in Spassburg, so we decided it was close enough to the Arrival, that we would wait for the characters to arrive in the Scarezone before continuing onto the boardwalk - as the big outdoor maze (Hell Cemetery) is staffed by some of the ghouls on the train. it was a perfect spot to get some pics as they slowly made their way into the park, from a PACKED (so I was told) Crackaxle train stop. once they scare actors were out and about in the park, we headed to the boardwalk for the last House, Twisted, and the large (free) outdoor maze Hell Acres: the clown zone had filled up with scare actors from the Arrival. I think people don't realize this is a house here, and they think it's a queue for Pandemonium. but it never really has a line, even without the skip the line, we wouldn't have had to wait very long in the regular pass line. but it's a great house, with some really good animatronics in it. it had gotten a bit too stuffy, so had put the hat in the car after dinner. . . loved Twisted, but then down the steps to the Cemetery. Excellent. Large. and Free (as it's considered a Scare Zone, not a house) SUCH atmosphere down here. and some wonderfully spooky pics of the boardwalk due to the lights and fog. this one also benefited from reuse of props from the closed Buried Alive and Rockkill High houses. after this, we walked across the park to the other outdoor walkthru "Scarezone" - "Fear Acres" - which takes over a pretty good chunk of the waterpark, and has historically been SO packed, that I've never even gone thru the whole thing. Surprisingly as packed as the park was? "Fear Acres" had no line to get in, and the crowds were moving pretty well thru this large, and very well staffed haunt zone. crazy farmers, scarecrows, pig masks, machetes and chainsaws. . . check. very good, and for free too. . even if the makeups were mainly greasepaint and not as intricate as in the houses. we had reserved seating for two more shows, and the fireworkds "Frightful Finale" - followed by an hour + ERT on Dr. Diabolical and Iron Rattler. . . . but doing the math in my head, I said to my friend (who had driven). . if we stay for the fireworks, we're not getting home until 2am. as even if we dont' stay for ERT, we'll be stuck in the parking lot. I was exhausted - having been to a late concert the night before, and still not recovered from Germany late nights. . . so I told him I'm ok with whatever he wants to do. His son had come with us and he also works nights and he had gotten off work and immediately got in the car with us to San Antonio. . so I know he was tired too. so Russell asked him, and he was ok with leaving, so we called it a night, and left before the fireworks. . but it got me home by 11:45, so that was nice - even if I did need to stop and get a slurpee so the sugar would keep me up on my drive home. all in all? a great event, and FrightFest at SFFT is highly recommended.

Day 2 (part 2): Thorpe Park! We also went and did the "Ghost Train" - which I knew nothing about, but had been recommended by several park employees I had talked to. It's not really a "ride" but rather an experience - an interactive show, with some brilliant special effects and a set that "moves". . so it feels like you trapped on a train that's moving as crazy things happen. It was very cool and I loved it so much I bought multiple Magnets from it. . and was looking to buy a shirt for it (but they didn't have anything I really loved). for some strange reason, I don't have ANY pictures of this ride - I'm shocked myself. I know I was incredibly distracted (or as my friends call it "dickstracted") by a cute bear couple that was in the queue with us - which would explain why I have no pics of the outside of the ride. And you couldn't take pics during the experience. but still. . I'm truly surprised I don't have any pics. . LOL I think it was around this time, that (*I think) we got a message from Robb asking who wanted to ride the Tidal Wave as a group, and if so, meet by the ride. So a whole bunch of TPR folks got together, and our park guild got them to set aside a boat for TPR (plus one family who were added to the back row not realizing a completely full TPR boat was gonna be heavy and get a bigger splash) and off we went. COMPLETELY soaked. . like being dipped into a bathtub. . and I loved it. the following pics are all from either Robb or Andy, I believe: the aftermath. . posing in front of the next boat's splash. with time in the day running out, several of us headed to the last section of the park - seemed to be themed to a lost Jungle/ruins, to ride the flats over there: a giant swing, an Enterprise, a Flying Carpet, and a "claw" the swing was ok, but kind of underwhelming to me because a) the cycle was so short, and b) I've been on the tallest one at SWSA here in Texas. it was fun, but not exciting, if that makes sense. loved the theming over here tho. . .very, very green and "overgrown" looking, but with rides just popping up in the center of it. Zodiac is the Enterprise. the Flying Carpet went down while we were in queue for the Enterprise (had to wait for next cycle), so didn't get to ride that - think it was just too close to end of day for Maintenance to mess with it today . . but it framed Swarm very nicely for a picture I thought and the claw was also over here. see? I LOVE Enterprises (Robb just asked about who loves them on the TPR Facebook page) . . . this one didn't run a great cycle. . and it was really quick considering how long it took the one operator to get it loaded. . but any Enterprise is a fun Enterprise. it was so close to the end of night, that Stacey and I hit a store for shopping before heading back to the Pavilion to meet up with the group. no, I didn't buy this. . but I was VERY tempted. LOL.. if it hadn't been at the start of the trip and I was already worrying about suitcase space, prolly would have grabbed it. as we waited for the park to clear (and more importantly the Hyperia line to clear thru), we headed over to Swarm for our 1st ERT. apparently the theming is an alien invasion. . tho Thorpe park does seem to have a thing for wrecked planes (there were several of them thruout the park as theming. . LOL). but I loved this. and I was actually sorry I hadn't gone over here during the daytime, as I absolutely LOVED this B&M Flyer. my favorite ride in the park, and I think I rode every cycle of our ERT. glass smooth with an amazing diving first drop, and an inversion over/thru the station - which is themed to a bombed out Church. the inversion I mentioned, from inside the station the design of the trains is SO good. . this is the back of the row in front of us! Pic courtesy of Elissa, I believe (or possibly Robb) following pics courtesy of Elissa, Robb, or Andy: whee. . . front row! after 25 minutes or so at Swarm (and I think 9 rides), we headed as a group over to Hyperia. HAHAHAHAHA. . and I actually *did* get a pic of the front of Ghost Train as we walked past it. so good on me. . tho all closed up, doesn't look too exciting. and here is the main course. . ERT on Hyperia. after it had warmed up and was running amazing. Edit: D'oh!!! that's Kristen with her Dad (Robb) in the seats behind me in this pic! She looks so much like her Mom! So this pic must be courtesy of Elissa. I couldn't ride Hyperia over and over, as by the end of the day, it was a wee bit too intense for me (I kept having to tuck my shirt back in after riding)! . . . so I didn't do every cycle, but I did ride 2, then rest, then 2 then rest, then 2 - including last ride. so I THINK I got six rides on it at end of night during our ERT? but some in the group ride every dispatch. . . more power to em! and they look like they are having a blast! end of night pic with our park guides, and the crew. . thank you to Thorpe Park for an amazing day! Pic by Robb and then it was time to head back to the bus for the ride back to the hotel. I *believe* this stunning pic of Stealth during sunset is from Brad. and back on the bus. .everyone is happy. . . except for Robb's plushie. getting back to the hotel, several of us headed back over to WagaMama for dinner. . . not really recalling what this is, but I think Firecracker chicken & pasta? and Gyoza. . so good. and after filling up on Wagamama? back to the room to shower, and crash. we had another busy day tomorrow - checking out of Hotel and off to the next hotel. but along the way? Suprise Park! we were gonna visit LegoLand Windsor for a few hours, and ride their brand new "mini figure speedway" dueling coaster. hopefully won't take me a month for that next update!