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day 4 continued. . . after a quick nap, and a slight change in outfit (rain was forecast, and it had gotten chilly), several of us met back up in the lobby of the hotel and headed back to the fair. it started to drizzle on the way, and by the time we got to the fair, it was a pretty steady rain. we ducked underneath one of the overhangs, and the chocolate dipped stuff caught my eye. I *really* was curious about that dipped pepper, but was afraid to try it. so instead went for dipped Pineapple which I enjoyed while standing underneath the covering of one of the bumper cars. yum! this I do remember, was so good! on the bumper cars were these guys, who were driving around with a flower clutched in one's mouth. I dunno. . . Oktoberfest!! the rain really started coming down, so we decided to check out if there was any "stand by" room in one of the nearby tents. as you can imagine, it was PACKED. .. tho I was able to charm one of the sales girls via chatting with her to pose for a picture with me. and she was able to find a spot for us to hang out for a little while (and use the restrooms) don't recall which tent this was, but the decor in here was great as well. what a sexy, sexy piggie! it had been a few hours since eating in the Lowenbrau tent, and several of us really wanted to try out this Truffle pasta place that everyone had been talking about. we tracked it down and found Andy there getting some. . . so we joined him in line. this is what Andy got (and I appreciate him letting me snap a pic of it) the rest of us got the truffle pasta that was getting raved about. and yes. . it deserved every rave. damn, this was good. I think I even went back and had it again the next night! while we were chatting and eating our pasta, the chat thread for the trip started to blow up as someone in the group who had been hanging with some folks (and had had quite a bit to drink thruout the day) had given someone his glasses to hold, and then disappeared. no one had any idea where he went, and honestly, several of us were very concerned about him. he's a very happy drunk, but he also managed to lose his wallet, his phone, and his hat too. he did eventually turn up (much later in the night) and insisted he was fine and had been riding things - tho how one could do that with no wallet? LOL. . I suspect someone had a "passout nap" underneath one of the ride trailers and just dreamed about riding things. . .LOL. . . but at the end of day they were fine, and for the final night at the fair, we took turns hanging with them to make sure they didn't disappear again. so all worked out just fine. Andy was still hanging with us when we decided it was time to ride Predator, so I am lucky enough to snag his long exposure pic of it. he takes SUCH good pics. Predator is this crazy gyroscope thing, but I had promised I'd ride it, so it was time. umm. .. . what did I get myself into it actually was REALLY fun. . but damn was that a long cycle! we rode a bunch of other things, including Olympia Looping, Alpina Bahn, a frying pan ride (that almost made me vomit, as the operator kept it going trying to make someone else sick!), and even went back over to that fantastic haunted ghost train attraction "Geister Pasast" these are the "admission tickets" for that ride. would have loved to have kept one, but after paying to ride, I wanted to ride, so just took a pic of it, as found it kinda neat and one of the multiple fun houses at the fair. Andrew and Jon took a ride on the Tagada (I chose to watch) and we bumped into Barry, Andy, and Colin over at my favorite ride at the fair: Voodoo Jumper. turned out that Barry did not care for spinning rides, and had gotten talked into riding it. Colin looks concerned funny thing tho? he LOVED it. .and got right back in line and rode it with me next. . . . so many things going on during this ride. . and animatronics all over the place too. thanks Andy for this wonderful pic! and with that, it was late, and we were semi-officially done with Oktoberfest. the next day was a "free day" to do some sightseeing or go back to the fair if we wanted to. Andrew and I had planned to spend the day at the German Science Museum (and spoiler - we did end up going back to the fair the next night) - but if this turned out to be the end of the Oktoberfest faire portion of the trip? Today had been a brilliant day, and the trip had totally been worth it. (there was SO much more yet to come on this trip tho). so we headed back to the hotel as the fair shut down for the night, took a nice long, hot shower, did a bit of packing (even tho not leaving until the day after, but since I had napped, I was up), read a little bit, and called it a night. tomorrow? Culture at the Munich Science Museum.

after a bit of a break (apologies - travel, illness, and injury got in the way) I'm back to continue the Oktoberfest trip report! on day 4 (a Monday if I'm not mistaken), it was our full day at Oktoberfest! With a 4 hour reservation / tables in the Lowenbrau tent that included multiple drinks and food. to spoil, it was an experience I'll never forget, and will always be one of the highlights of my lifetime. let's get to a crapton of pics, shall we? Our reservation was, I believe, at noon. so not an early morning. Several of us met up in front of the hotel and walked down to the fair together to meet up with everyone at the Lowenbrau tent. this pic at the main gate is courtesy of Doug, I believe. LtR Me, Doug, Andrew, Jon, and Hawk. it was fairly quiet, as things hadn't really kicked off today. . but the booth that sells the grilled fish from an open flame, was already working ahead to get some ready for hungry diners. I decided to dress "traditional" and had even purchased the correct socks several in the TPR group decided to dress the Oktoberfest experience. Our meet up point, and where we'd be hanging out for the next 4-5 hours. most of the tables are reservation only (for 4 hour increments) and TPR had 5 tables reserved. . .but most of the Beer Halls also have a section for walk in just to hang out and drink. the reservations are the way to go tho - you end up in the middle of everything, and it's a wonderful kind of senses overload! Myself and Sarah I decided I needed to eat something before drinking, so grabbed a giant (the only kind, really) pretzel and snapped a pic with Andrew while waiting to go in for our seating, I checked out the souvenir stand that was closeby. . LOL. . loved these socks, but where would I ever wear them??? a postcard I picked up for a friend, which the vendor told me "gives all the Oktoberfest Experience" I think these guys were to bring some kegs to one of the branded beer tents. but not 100% sure. I do know they weren't out and about at night when it was really crowded Myself and Christopher just a glimpse of the types of food that would be offered inside and at the stands surrounding the outer edges of the beerhalle Group photo by Robb, before TPR headed into our reservation first look at the inside of this huge hall. it looked so roomy, but it filled up so fast, and got so raucous and packed! you can see how closely the tables are to each other. . the benches literally touch each other to cram everyone in. the table I got to sit at. . . we only had 6 at our table, most tables had 7 or 8 ! Bob, Jere, Hanno, Chuck, and Erik great table tho. . . right next to one of the "server runs" and just in front of the main stage where the band would be playing Jere and I with our 1st (giant) beers. I believe this pic is courtesy of Robb? he took a video too: IMZP6605.MOV starting to really fill up! the lady on the right was our VERY German waitress, and she was a real hoot. (she's standing in the "server run" I mentioned, and boy did they get annoyed if ANYONE other than a server used that aisle) as the tables next to us filled up, you can see how close everything is. (the table behind me was 8 folks, as was the table next to theirs). sneaking the camera down, you can see we are butt to butt, and using each other as back rests Luckily I had my Covid update and my flu shot, and amazingly did not get sick at all from being crammed in here so closely with folks. I'm not sure anyone on our trip got sick. these were the food and drink "coupons" that we traded in, but could also order and pay for stuff from the menu, or from the folks walking around selling (as at a sports game) I did think to snap a pic of the menu) yes, I had a beer. yes, it was big. . . way big. yes, it got me drunk, and no, I didn't finish it. one of the folks walking around selling stuff that I mentioned. This guy was Pretzels (duh) ] stretching my legs a bit, wandered down to a TPR table where most were in Lederhosen and someone took this pic of our table (maybe Elissa? or perhaps it's Erik taking a selfie of us?) the food came. it was good. I'm not sure if it was good because it really was good? or because I was already a bit buzzed. but this white sausage was soo good, I recall. and the 1/2 chicken was good too. and yes, that one on the left is my Beer, that I drank about 1/2 of - then discovered they had an offering that was 1/2 beer and 1/2 tea, so switched to that (on the right), and ended up drinking about 1/2 of that one too. Music hasn't started playing yet, really, but the band is getting ready. I now have a 1/2 drunk stein of beer, a 1/3rd drunk stein of 1/2 Beer-1/2 Tea, and a new glass of 1/2 beer-1/2 lemonade! LOL and yeah, was starting to feel it a bit. PROST!!! *(this pic might be borrowed from Doug) Yup. . Jere and I were feeling it a bit People were starting to climb up on the benches and attempt chugging a stein of beer. everyone would get into the chanting and encouraging them. . .but most of them failed, ending in a big "awwwwwww" from the whole tent. "Awwwwwwwwwww" another attempt! awwwwwwwwww Table behind me. . success!!! and then they got in trouble for standing on the table and not on the benches. . Security was pretty dang strict. at the entrance to the tent, and drawing everyones attention - the brass came out and kicked off the music with a wonderful performance, and a sing-a-long of the drinking song (which I sang along with - as suggested by William - as "I'm Frozen, I'm Frozen". . . because it fit the tune). attempt again from the table behind me (but this time on the bench) Success! the place erupted in cheers! this was someone's desert (Erik ?). . I believe it was a warm bread pudding with vanilla sauce. I do think I tried a bite, but can't recall if I liked it? our waitress - whom I said was a hoot .. . .just came over and pushed Bob down, and then plopped down and took her lunch break with us. she didn't talk to us or interact. . she just grabbed a seat and started eating her salad. it was great! the photographers came around and sold these pics inside giant fake cookies. . .very touristy. . so of COURSE I bought one. so did Erik a great mix of early 70's American easy listening hits, and drinking songs. . . . with the Prost drinking song getting played about every 20 minutes for the audience participation and everyone drinking. they really seemed to love John Denver too. . every tent I went into I heard John Denver songs. . with lots of folks singing along. Jere "fixed" our picture so I could post it without getting in trouble for being drunk on a Monday really, the band was quite good (and loud) possibly my most *favorite* picture from this day. Johnathan was feeling NO pain. .. neither was the guy who was passed out at the table in front of us and the bandstand. hot German tourists in Lederhosen dancing? sure, I'll take pictures. not sure what everyone is looking at. . .either there is a dance going on, or someone is chugging a stein of beer back to the dancing Germans with their beers. (and I got hit on - a LOT - by the pretty blondes. . not sure what was up with that, but Hans witnessed it, so i have proof it happened ) Jonathan and I both feeling pretty happy a group of TPR folks, dressed for Oktoberfest! 40 minutes later and that guy is still passed out, tho now his friends aren't even checking on him anymore. it was so damn fun! hey, lookie that. . . I almost finished the one that was 1/2 beer- 1/2 tea! Should I have? nope.. but I did. . . LOL look at all these happy TPR faces! Hans, Nick, Eric, Barry, Ryan, and Shane all having a blast PROST! PROST! PROST!!! "I'm frozen, I'm frooooozen. . . ." and with that, our 4 hours were approx, up, and the group started to break up to head out into the fair. it had started to drizzle, and some of us wanted to go back to the hotel for a little bit of rest (not used to drinking this much) or work for a couple of hours. so a handful of us headed back - I can't recall if we walked back or took the train, but I do remember taking a short nap, before meeting back in the lobby ~6pm to head back to the fair for evening fun. to be continued. . .

So, I was able to ride Georgia Gold Rusher today. While it was a decent ride, the water seems to be pointless. just a small Geyser of water. has some decent speed with the drop but could be better. The wait wasn't too bad with the first 3 hours being exclusive to season pass holders. I think we waited about 20 mins from two thirds in to the queue. Needs more Scenery as well. We did enjoy the ride enough to wanna ride again later when it's had time to run for at least a couple more months.

The Mecalodon trains have begun to arrive at Wailibi Belgium and they look great! https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1LX6yuinPS/ Mecalodon is here! The brand new Walibi coaster will soon come to life! What do you think of the train design? We are fans!

Prowler is receiving about 400ft of Titan Track too. I'm guessing The Boss will get more than that but not sure how much more.

Day 2 (1st official day of trip) - daytime at Skyline Park I'd never even heard of this park - which is not surprising, as I'd never been to Munich before. this is a very, very large park. Super spread out, with a LOT of walking between attractions. And while it does have a lot of attractions, the space could hold at least 4 times as many. the park reminded me very much of Marineland in Canada, with how much space there is between things, and open areas. and also important to mention, while there are a bunch of very unique attractions? they are mostly extremely low capacity rides (the Skycoaster only ran one car - so two riders per cycle. Same with the Slingshot - tho this one was included in park entry, so no upcharge. and the Skyrider gyro-suspended only had two operating trains, so total capacity of 8). luckily, we were there on a very overcast day where rain was forecast, and there were not a lot of folks in the park (and we had ERT on two of the lowest capacity rides). so for the most part, the capacity issues did not affect us. I do really like how they incorporate some old coaster track into the entrance. . . but I don't think this is from any coasters they have removed in the past (they used to have a Schwarzkopf wildcat, a Schwarzkopf katapult, and a couple of self operating "butterfly" coasters, but those are all gone. . . some of the pads are still visible where it looks like something used to be - and apparently the Wildcat left in 2022 as the most recent removal. photo ops everywhere. . . but we were headed deep into the park for our ERT, so just snapped this one as passing by. a petting zoo, I believe. . and I think this mountain of candy is over a candy shoppe - tho not sure as there was a candy shop really near to this too. slide complex short water obstacle course among the lilly ponds you can probably see why it reminded me so much of Marineland. . . big areas of greenery. . and then suddenly a ride. such as this suspended Carousel. there were installations (similar to this one) all over the park too. . . I think perhaps they are used to disguise mechanical/electrical boxes? and a giant Ferris Wheel (which I didn't see operating this day. . but as noted, it started off nice, but got very overcast as the day went, and I believe we only stayed until 3pm) paddle boats in a lake. . and some more rides way off in the distance. as we kept walking. . yeah. . BIG park, landwise, it seemed. the Slingshot had a Spiderman statue watching over it. not really sure why, but Spidey had a big ol ba-donk-a-donk. (so of course I took a pic) Sky Spin, the park's Maurer Spinning coaster - and at 4 people per car, and running 3 cars? the highest capacity coaster in the park. that's a starflyer tower there. . and what I had thought was a construction truck was actually a firetruck. and was theming for the Splash Battle boat ride (also not operating today) from the other side , you can see the splash battle boats. and coming into view was the ride I was terrified of - the Mauer Skyloop. I did NOT ride it in Helsinki, but I had promised I'd get on this one. . . luckily we weren't headed to this first thing. passing under the Splash Battle theming. . . I'm only guessing, but I'd assume the fireman on the lift sprays the folks walking by when the ride is operating. as well as the "big", permanent rides, this park also has some "traveling carnival" type rides, in some area. this was a funhouse. I BELIEVE that's a Frisbee (but I don't recall ever getting close enough to it to see), and the one behind it is a "spinning crane" type ride (capacity 8 per cycle) similar to the Catwoman ride at SFStL. you can also see a peek of the blue flume from the spinning rafts ride, and the only pic I have of the newest powered coaster, just to the right of the crane ride speaking of traveling carnival rides? this is a traveling Flume ride. Elissa told us that last year, the park had brought this to the Oktoberfest Fair. eventually we made it back over to what we had ERT on this morning: Sky Dragster. This is a Maurer Dragster coaster - and I believe we were told this is the prototype for the one they added to the Carnival Cruise ship. there were warnings that "if you don't win, you get wet" as there's a button to control a spray at the finish line. But for that there needs to be more than one car in operation, I suppose. .and as you control the speed with the handles in the front seat, I'm not really sure how that would work anyways. it was a fun ride, but not something I felt the need to back and ride again later after our ride on it in the morning. But really cool that we were able to get in the lowest capacity ride in the park before it opened to the public. Yet another reason to love TPR! and hey, look! not only did I get a pic of Hanno (and William in the front seat), but smiling too. Andrew and I rode together. . . whee! (thanks Elissa for this pic) and I believe these are from Andy. and then we headed over to the other morning ERT ride. . the one I had been dreading: yup. .this thing. . a Maurer Skyloop it's similar to the launched looping coasters, but this one slowly goes up the vertical lift via chain, and does not release until well after you are hanging upside down (with only a lap bar restraint). I am not a fan of heights, and terrified of looking down with nothing underneath me (which is why I can have no problems riding a tall coaster, or doing the tower free fall I did in Denmark (I was on my back facing upwards when we fell). yeah. .I was NOT ready. . but I had promised myself I'd ride, so I nervously got in line. I don't' look excited on this train full of TPR folks. (and thanks to Christopher for the pic) and yeah. . I hated - I mean HATED it. . . . I got off the thing shaking for a good 5-10 minutes, and I had gripped the lap bar so tightly I broke some blood vessels in my fingers. oh, and as a nice "fuck you" from the ride? it overshot the station after the two loops, so they had to send it for a 3rd time. Some were jealous that we got the rare 3 loop cycle. . I was gritting my teeth and muttering "get me out get me out get me out" yeah. .hated. done it once, and good for me. never, EVER again. at this point in the pic? it's still on the chain lift. huh. . I lied, I did get another pic of the new coaster. . well, the sign at least. I think I called it a powered coaster, but RCDB says it's a "Family Launch" coaster. I just know that I kept reading that as "Big and Tall" Hans told me that translates to "Hills and Valleys" a nice, family coaster. the spinning raft ride, had some effects that would get one a little moist. . we didn't get too wet when we rode it a bit later in the day. but you can see from the sky it was starting to get very overcast quickly. I was still pretty shaken from the skyloop, so chose to sit out the next coaster, "Kids Spin" - an SBF Spinning coaster. So I did "bench: the ride" while others got on it. it gave me a perfect view/picture opportunity of the train as it passed by. well. . more of a tram that's designed like a train. but I loved the park had it, and it made several stops thruout the park. We rode it later on to get back to the front gate. Rawrrrrrr this is the parks defined "kiddie coaster" - called "Flotter Otto" it's an SBF double helix mine train. not sure who took this, perhaps Christopher? but he sent out a video too GRFZ8400.MOV a beautiful Condor (called "Sky Twister" here) either relatively new, or they just take excellent care of it. as it looked pristine. the places where the park does do theming are quite well done (such as the firetruck splash battle) and this short drop tower, that was themed to farm area after a tornado. the tower itself is themed to a windmill and I get the idea - from the reaction of the operator when the ride just sat at the top for a few moments, then slowly lowered - that this is the type of tower that Tripsdrill and BonBon Land have. where it's supposed to tilt forward like it's collapsing, before dropping. (it certainly looked like the tilt mechanism was there). but it didn't work on the cycle prior to our ride, and then it seemed as if the operator shut it down and went into the maintenance shed to try and figure out what was up. we gave it 5-10 minutes then decided it probably wasn't a good idea to get stuck up on a ride if it was about to pour, and moved on without waiting for it to come back up instead we headed over to: "Sky Rider" a Gyro Flyer (I think it's a Vekoma?). it seemed a bit bumpy, and had a line as they only had two trains operating. . but we discovered from talking to other adults in our group who had ridden that it seemed the heavier the train was, the smoother the ride. we still didn't get a bunch of spinning - tho we got some - but it was a nice ride. and another rare credit to get. these pics might be courtesy of Jere and then we headed over to the final coaster we'd yet to go on today: "Sky Spin" - the Maurer spinner. it was a ride. and it was really rough - I think the roughest coaster here. but at least we knocked out all the coasters before the sky opened up and it started to pour. it was starting to mist, so we figured we'd head over to something indoors, just in case, and ended up at the park's Ghost Train: it has some really nice design work and theming, and I really did love the look of it. and while it does have an outdoor section, there was really no line, so we figured we'd get right on. this big sign is at the loading platform. . and we said to the guy manning the console: we're 4 adults, should we split up and do 2 & 2 ? and he insisted that no, we should all ride together, so we got in, and the ride didnt' seem to like that much LOL. .in fact, we got stuck on the lift hill. For probably a good 10 minutes. the lights came on. .and Jon and I did our best to not burst out in hysterical laughter as two men came up behind us and tried to push the car forward - to shove the car back into the chain to continue us up the lift (the only thing moving was the back seat and Jon and I just kept looking at each other). eventually the lights went off. . and we didn't move. then they came back on again. . the guys again came up and tried to push us. . . .. and then evacced us from the train back to the main entrance. yup. . we got evacced from a GHOST train we stood at the front as we watched on the monitors as the guys pushed the empty car we were in thru the course, and then moved it off the tracks. then sent the next car as if nothing had happened (hey guys!). and then? he put all four of us back into the next car to try again. there were cheers when we made it up the lift hill. the eyes and head move on the main skull. there WAS an actual storyline in the ghost train. . but heck if I can recall what it was. I do remember it had something to do with an expedition to the lost continent. . which puts the stuff outside into perspective. another look at my hated nemesis. . from a side angle as we passed by (deciding it was time to eat something) we ended up in this great restaurant that had some really good currywurst. and the sky just opened up and it POURED for a bit while we were in here, so it filled up as folks rushed to get out of the rain. the park did have a small, self operated, carousel. but there were too many children playing on it for me to bother, and honestly? I found it a tad bit "problematic" the rain stopped, so we rode the train, and continued wandering until it was time to head out. Stopping to watch the Slingshot operate and luckily Robb had told everyone not to miss "Zero Gravity" . . .which I must say, was possibly my favorite ride in the park. it's a SUPER intense Rotor ride. . .with heavy theming, and a funhouse like queue. It really felt like it was liquefying my insides, and I loved every moment of it. the pre-show room. . .but had to put camera away so no pics of the actual ride, that looks like a giant green blender. it reminded me of Riddler's hat from Batman and Robin. I didn't ride the small carousel, but of course I made sure and rode this one. Love these, and wish there were more / any of them in the States. taking a break in the pizza place near the front gate, I found a throne. and if you know me? I'll always take a throne pic. everything was moist, but at least the rain had stopped. this was a kiddie driving area but right next to the bigger oval track for the adults. and then it was time to head back to the bus and back to the hotel to enjoy the rest of the afternoon/evening as we so chose. pic by Robb getting back onto the bus, Shane and I posed for a pic too. and with that we headed back to the hotel to get ready for this evening. . .I was planning on going to the fair with a group.