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On the way to The Fair, Day 3... When I catch the bus to go to the PNE, I see some interesting stuff along the one street (Victoria Dr) I walk. Here's a few photos of them... Starting from our house, on William St. Pardon the fuzziness. Across the street from us, there's a great pizza restaurant. Pricey, but good stuff. I've never seen a hedge, locally, trimmed this precisely. I mean, REALLY trimmed! Nice to see a rainbow here and there, along the way. Now, is this Cobalt Blue, or what?!! "I'll buy a "K". And I think I can solve the phrase!" It's a pretty messed up front yard, too. Made with drift wood, this is a nice rest spot. This is one of The Best Italian Grocery Stores in the city! Their Olive Oil section is a - may - zing! And as well, Bosa Foods has an 'Olive Bar,' big Deli, and just rows and rows of Italian foods. I always love this corner of Ferndale and Victoria Drive. Finally, another (of several) house with a lot of stuff in front. And greenery, too!

Last Friday I had the chance to attend one of two "UOAP Nights" at Universal Studios Florida, hosted for annual passholders at no additional cost (though reservations were required and did "sell out"). The event featured a significantly reduced capacity in the park, resulting in shorter wait times for the rides that were open. Also included was a pre-party event, a number of surprise meet and greets, speciality food and beverage options, a private showing of the Cinesational nighttime spectacular and a party atmosphere throughout the park. It was also notable that these two event nights took place during the last two days of operation for Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit before its permanent closure. Not previously announced or included in past events was this "pre-party" offering... At first glance this looks a little overwhelming but to Universal's credit, it is a well thought-out queue that leads guests to a number of neat meet and greets and other offerings to enjoy inside. Plus we were given a free UOAP button to commemorate attending the night's event. Beyond the special meet and greets in the pre-party, there were additional meet and greet options available throughout the park. In addition to many of the normal dining venues being open with their normal menus served, the event had a few special tastes available to order at key locations in the park. The pre-party featured a DJ playing lively music to keep the vibes going. While Doc Brown isn't uncommon to still find roaming Universal Studios Florida, it is incredibly rare to see him accompanied by Einstein! John Hammond was another rare character brought out for the event. The Ecto-1 from the Universal Mega Movie Parade was parked in the pre-party studio and served as a backdrop for a rare meet and greet with the Spenglers from Ghostbusters: Afterlife and Frozen Empire. It's easier to appreciate the little details on this float when it isn't in motion. This was a nice surprise and delight moment for the event. Woody and Winnie Woodpecker were available for meet and greets as well. The UOAP Nights event was presented by Coca-Cola and as such, they had a free sample bar for Coca-Cola Orange Cream as well as the zero sugar version. While not my favorite flavor, it was still a delicious and refreshing Coca-Cola. There was special event merchandise available to purchase as well. After the pre-party it was time to head back out into the park to enjoy all that was available to us. The app featured a narrowed filter on the offerings exclusive to the event. Exiting the pre-party studio presented me with a chance to snag a few more photos of Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit operating during the daytime. Only a few more drops left in this one... Edgy angles for an edgy coaster. Given that we had our five year old with us for the event, our priorities were clear. I'm not going to complain that my son loves Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon. A look at the event's exclusive cupcakes. A must-do, especially when the queue is short. A pretty sunset and a reminder that there would be an exclusive showing of Cinesational later in the evening. A photo op for those who really wanted to flaunt their status as passholders. I went to go ride Rockit for the last time, only to find that it was temporarily closed with riders stuck in recline on the lift hill. On the other side of the park it was time to wait for something out of this world... \ When it comes to special meet and greets, I'm easy to please. I mean, this is awesome. "The world is a carousel of color..." Cinesational features a combination of water fountains, lasers, projections (on water and on buildings), fireworks and drones. Being totally honest it isn't my favorite show. The projected visuals are nearly impossible to make out clearly and the choice of segments is odd. That said, the fountains, drones and lasers paired with the fireworks make for an enjoyable spectacle. I just wish the content was more in line with the Universal Cinematic Spectacular--a show that highlighted some of Universal most iconic scenes and sounds on the lagoon. The show has a few highlights. A fun little nod to the event at the end of the night. Over in the Music Plaza there was a DJ playing the Cha Cha Slide for those who wished to dance along. Now it's time to say goodbye... After about a 35 minute wait, I hit it one more time with a final "Hasta!" in the front row. I'll give them credit... This shirt plays to my local nostalgia. This UOAP Nights was quite possibly the best passholder event I've attended at Universal to date. The unique pre-party, the extra meet and greets, the short wait times and the event showing of Cinesational really made for a great evening in the park... Not realizing the significance of the date, I got this souvenir to close out my saga with Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit. While I didn’t plan it this way, it was kind of fitting that my last ride on Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit was exactly 16 years to the date from my first, during its first day of soft opening guest previews. I watched the track arrive in the staging land that now is Volcano Bay as I took the bus to high school every day. And at least once a week I’d visit Universal to document the construction progress, including the installation (and in some cases, removal and reinstallation) of each section of track. It wasn’t a particularly great coaster but it also wasn’t the worst. Some unique elements, and in the right seats, great airtime, all with the added benefit of a solid selection of default songs and a plentiful set list of hidden songs to Rockit through. The ride had a troubled start and a rocky lifespan but it was memorable enough. My favorite songs to listen to onboard were: Kickstart My Heart by Motley Crue Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger by Daft Punk Float On by Modest Mouse Moving Right Along by The Muppets Crocodile Rock by Elton John Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger was the first song I ever experienced while riding and Float On closed out my final ride at the UOAP Nights event. Something bigger, better, more reliable is coming in to replace Rockit and I’m fine to see it go. I’m thankful for the memories (rocky at times as they may have been) and ready for something new to take a spin in its place…

I am just trying to keep forums alive. #old.

At a minimum, let's hope for a few things for 2026 - Finish the Titan Track upgrade for the Boss - Get a Flat from SFA installed in Excalibur's old spot - Give the Screamin' Eagle a complete Face-Lift, Re-tracking... the 'Works' for its 50th Birthday. If the Screamin' Eagle's Bday is an after-thought or completely ignored, then I will believe Corp will never go that extra mile for our Park, installing a major attraction. ie. an iconic Coaster.

Opening Day at the PNE Aug.16th It was reported that we were going to get as much rain as we did, the day before, which was a monsoon of wetness! So I packed a small umbrella, and hoped for the best. It didn't rain,. though. At - all. And the sun came out when I was leaving the fair. <sighs> Oh well. Opening Day was just a walk through for myself. Didn't see any shows or go through any buildings, with displays, etc. And I finished it up by having my first corn dog of The Fair. Whole visit took me just over an hour, which was fine. This is a main entrance into The Fair, which I would normally go through.... But I had to turn left and head way down to the other end of the fairgrounds, to pick up my tickets. "The BIG Backyard". Well, okay then! Had a lot of sports stuff for the kids - including an ice rink for hockey! I was impressed. After getting my tickets (long story not worth telling), I was headed for the BLUE GATE entry. Like last year's Fair. Met with a sort of 'mall of stalls' with Indigenous made things to buy. And opposite this... Was the Roadhouse Patio & Bar.... ...Where these two shows were playing. I'm so glad that the PNE is supporting the drag community, here. While the new amphitheatre is going up (opening next summer) the Nightly Concerts are here in the Coliseum. Noted. Looking down the Main Entry path. And the start of many, many food trucks! The main entry into The BIG Backyard. And with it, the Italian Gardens in the back, there. Our fave BBQ spot for ribs, etc. We will be getting some of it all, eventually. Back end corner of The Marketplace building. I'll probably go through it this coming Tuesday. Tuesday. The Metro Vancouver display. An annual thing at The Fair. Worth checking out what's what in the city. The main stage for Cultural Showcase stuff. along with special event things. Always gets a big crowd thru the day. Where the dog show moved to, the Agrodome. It's sad that equestrian competitions, the knights show, and other "country related" stuff has been dropped, just for the dog show. Hopefully, when the new amphitheatre opens next year, these things will come back, and the other stuff move back to where they originally were. Ooooooo. Last year this ribs place was selling from their food truck. Now they've gotten 'a bit bigger.' The "barns" are still there, with the Pig Races, honey displays, and a lot of farm stuff 'games' for the kids. More and more food trucks down this corridoor . Where I saw this... Yep. Complete with Takoyaki: squid balls - how Japanese of them. But no. Not for myself. Just before I reached Playland. Here is the PNE EXPRESS train that travels in and around our green space, the Sanctuary. I'll be riding it another day. A Fairs-Eye view of the amphitheatre. And in front, the high dive water tank, for shows during the day. Good to see that Keepers Doll Factory haunt house will be open again. Along with Playland's Haunted Mansion, these are two pretty good haunt houses at The Fair. Here we are. Coaster in action. The Beast attacking Coaster. My first corn dog, of The Fair. What one can buy here at Coaster Dogs. What I got. A plain old corn dog, with a nice cold beer from one of the Drink Huts in Playland. And they were both great! After my little snack, I left the PNE through the Playland gate. Till Tuesday, then!

On weekdays, there's a sign that the queue closes as early as 9pm. For my 2 days at the park this week, it closed at 9 on Tuesday, about 9:30 on Wednesday. Standby hovered around 2 hours all day. FL+ 30-45 minutes. And standby is mostly uncovered. Side note: AlpenFury was my 300th coaster.