FeelTheFORCE

What do they honestly expect when they dock their boat at an amusement park with 17 roller coasters?

SFOG did just fine with building Goliath over a road and outside the park. I think if something similar were done, Cedar Point could easily pull it off and have little effect on that area. Building a ride there also doesn't mean they are running out of room, it just means they came across a great plot of land that could very well be a perfect fit for what they might be planning on adding. Similar to Universal and Jaws. I don't see how building a ride in a wide open, uninhabited area would "cause more problems." There are safety nets all over rides nowadays anyway, so would it be any different? Also, are we seriously concerned that CEDAR POINT won't build a coaster TALL ENOUGH for trucks to clear? Really?

Damn, that almost doubles the already-big potential open area of land. I think it's very possible they have something big up their sleeve. That's good to hear about the dorms for the employees' sake also, in my opinion. With all the horror stories about how bad they are/were, better living quarters equals happier employees, and happier employees equals a better experience for us.

Add Whitney Houston to the list. She was only 48, sad.

Yes, that's what I implied. That viewing area took up a fairly large chunk, and (obviously) had to be kept open and free from obstructions due to the show. I believe Iron Dragon, for whatever reason, even had to temporarily shut down during the show as well? Now the entire area from the train station clear to the Sky Ride's station (plus Wildcat's area if need be) is all open and fair game with no restrictions because of a laser show. Also, weren't there rumors that the car ride behind Raptor's cobra roll (I want to say the Cadillac one, but I can't remember which one was rumored...maybe both?) might be on the way out? If so, that only extends the portion of land, opening up a whole hell of a lot more.

It makes me wonder if this is part one of a multi-year or multi-phase plan, which also involves eventually removing Wildcat to add something in that area...a family coaster, or 'updated' wild mouse coaster perhaps. Removing that screen opens up a lot of space, and a move like that wouldn't surprise me at all considering Wildcat's recent track record.

People in robot suits reminds me of: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqNtsQebyuA

Nice! I like the look of the 2011's headlights more than the 2012's, but you definitely can't go wrong with a WRX! I hope to upgrade to one someday from my 2.5i. I hope you enjoy, they are really fun cars, as I'm sure you know.

My vote goes to anything and everything Arrow. They just seem to be too much of maintenance nightmares as time goes on, and aren't necessarily as popular as they used to be. Now, coasters like Magnum, Gemini, and X2 will probably stay for a while, but with coasters like BBW, GASM, and Eagle's Fortress being removed, and Kennywood re-doing phantom's first drop, nothing Arrow is safe, in my opinion.

I am all for any type of Fast Lane system. Working 50+ hours a week makes it difficult to plan around the crowds, and it would make going on a Saturday completely doable, instead of out of the question.

In my opinion, if you are forced to completely drop something you love doing and change your entire lifestyle, then that person was never meant for you. If someone doesn't like you for who you are then it's time to move on. In which case I agree about the first part, but disagree about the second. Regarding the topic's original question, I think there is no better way than just facing your fear and doing it. You can watch all the Youtube videos and play all the games, but none of them are going to have as big of an impact than simply just riding the ride, instead of forever cowering in fear over it. I had a friend that would not ride ANYTHING, but I was persistent and kept telling him how much he would like the rides. In short, now there isn't a ride that he WON'T ride.

While Matt is the President and CEO, people fail to realize that Cedar Point still has its own team of management and execs (which have probably been the same for years) that will most likely be the ones making all of these decisions (not Matt), along with every other Cedar Fair park. People acted the same way when Kennywood was purchased by a corporate entity, like everything was going to be paved and multiple B&Ms and Intamins were on their way, yet nothing much has changed and it is still the same park with the same outlook and values. In short, I don't see much changing unless a complete management overhaul is performed. Cedar Point will still be the same "Cedar Point, America's Rockin' Roller Coast" we all know. Edit: And looking at Cedar Fair's website, Kinzel still remains on the board of directors anyway, albeit not as CEO and/or chairman of the board.

The LA Noire Wiki helped me a ton, if you don't mind a little assistance.

From what I understand, Impulses have a laser beam on each side, directly in front of the gates and in front of the exit, that will E-stop the ride if anything crosses it's path during the ride cycle. Invertigos must not have this feature, instead they have the prison gates. My guess is they are a safety precaution to prevent anyone from going into the train's path while it is flying through the station.

Or the fact that it is simply more economical right now to just leave it standing, rather than to pay an absurd amount of money to dismantle it (i.e. Son of Beast).

Mean Streak is going to "improve" the same amount it did last year. It's the same routine maintenance that has been done over the past X amount of years, and it rides the same every year. Nothing is going to change with Mean Streak unless something astronomical is done, like an NTAG makeover. Sure it will be "less jerky" in some spots here and there, but it's still the same Mean Streak as last year. My point is, some are acting as if it is getting this new revolutionary "retracking" that is going to drastically change the ride, when in reality it's just the same routine maintenance that has been done every offseason for probably the past 10 years, if not more. This retracking is just as significant as seeing someone welding the track on one of Cedar Point's steel coasters.

They are doing some re-tracking on a few parts of Mean Streak. In that case, that is nothing more than routine maintenance done every off season as part of Mean Streak's yearly upkeep. As is the replacement of any other structural supports wherever needed. I highly doubt anything noticeable will be performed, and Mean Streak will ride exactly the same in 2012 as it did in 2011.

Did I miss something?

If I ever went to Dubai then maybe, MAYBE I'd wait that long to ride Formula Rossa. That is, if I knew it wasn't going to break down. Knowing I probably would never visit there more than once, I wouldn't want to miss my opportunity. Other than that, it would probably be the current tallest and/or fastest coaster at the time.

Exactly what I was thinking. I love how one person makes some off the wall comment about how a floorless and stand-up can't exist in the same park, and an entire debate breaks out on whether Mantis (and even Raptor) will/should be removed, like it's a done deal.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKoYw8SZO-Y

^ Don't tell me you're one of those people who also thinks Cedar Point should build multiple flats in TTD's infield. I just don't view Kennywood as a park that would cram flats in a spot like that particular one.

This picture is so full of win.

Some people just like to take on new challenges also. He has already accomplished basically all there is to accomplish with the Cardinals, so he deemed it time to move on and help a different franchise reach the ultimate goal.

Wideman was the one that brought attention to it. But anyway, I thought this video was pretty funny. http://video.nhl.com/videocenter/console?id=141219&cmpid=nhl-rxl-fb