jmicha

I think the main issue has been that the weather in Ohio has not been too kind for the last couple months. Record breaking amounts of rain have made it so there have been hardly any days without rain since the end of March. I'm going to assume that this ride isn't capable of being tested during storms just like many other taller rides and this probably had some sort of effect on the delay. Regardless of the reason though, it's unfortunate it isn't opening with the park. Hopefully the general public won't remember that Shoot The Rapids opened late as well as Maverick as this could hurt their reputation. I have faith it will open relatively soon once proper testing shows everything is fine, but this may disappoint the customers too lazy to check the website to see that it will be delayed.

^I've only stayed at one hotel on site, and that's the Royal Pacific Hotel. Honestly unless you are looking to be in your room for any sort of extended period this is more than adequate. The interiors are quite nice as is the service and the hotel is a short walk to CityWalk and both parks (IoA is obviously the closer of the two). And as for pricing it is the cheapest which is always a good thing. The only complaint I have about it is the lack of free internet which I am unsure of whether or not this is common amongst the three hotels or not. I thoroughly enjoyed the two times I stayed at The Royal Pacific and DEFINITELY enjoyed the added perk of unlimited Express Pass. That alone is worth the added cost of staying onsite. If you can afford to do so I would seriously suggest doing so. Your vacation will be so much more fun and enjoyable not having to wait in any huge lines. This allows you to do things like ride Men In Black 70 times in four days But seriously, if it is in your budget, stay on site.

^I just watched it to see what all the fuss is about...it really isn't scary. Unless you consider a failed attempt at a jumpy end to the trailer scary... Just man up and watch it

The pacing appears to be pretty good. I didn't realize the 540 degree roll was so close to the lift hill. Offers a nice visual from the lift and the element itself. This ride seems like a nice departure from the Superman layouts of the past. I'm glad to see that it appears to be a success. Hopefully future flyers will incorporate some of these new ideas into their layouts.

^That disappointment is held by myself as well. I liked the first one a lot but have yet to actually get through the second one. Every time I try I get so bored with it about halfway through that I just shut it off. I'm feeling like the third will be a lot better than the second one based on what I've seen, but I am certainly not spending money to see it in theaters unless it gets amazing reviews. I just watched 2001: A Space Odyssey for the first time ever after years of meaning to. The visuals were amazing. The special effects were still impressive in this day and age. The story was interesting and made sense up until the last act. I got (if that's actually even possibly with this film) what the purpose of the monoliths was but was slightly confused by the quick progression of age in the last scene ending with the (quite creepy) fetus looking down at earth from space. I'm guessing that it was to remove Bowman's understanding of life and challenge his understanding of everything, but with a film like this I don't feel like there really is any correct interpretation. But that seems to follow what happened in the other acts whenever there was contact made with the monoliths. I'd be curious to hear others' interpretations of the film, specifically the ending.

^^^This Spring has been exceptionally wet. I can't count how many times it has rained over the last month or so. I've been soaked head to toe several times on the way to class in the last week alone. The storms are brining pretty high winds also which I'm sure aren't even possibly to test in. It doesn't surprise me that the ride isn't ready yet. Hopefully with the supposed upcoming clearer weather this week they will be able to get it fully ready.

Woah, I was not expecting that much lighting on these rides. This is going to look amazing when running at night.

I do now...lol. What I actually meant was that all of the normal shops other than the one that is designed to be an individual experience (the wand picking process or whatever it is) which would lend itself to lines regardless of the crowds. Anywho, I feel that losing the water vortex and Mythos would be a sad loss, but who knows, maybe the new stuff would have some equally awesome elements. As amazing as the former Lost Continent was, like Elissa already pointed out, this was kind of the plan from the start if the first phase was a success. I seem to remember at the start of this whole transformation process several concepts being thrown about that were not included in the first phase so I'm assuming those were ideas for a much larger Potterland that could eventually happen depending on the success of the first part. Although obviously not everyone is a fan of Harry Potter, the area is themed well and the level of detail is top notch so hopefully at the very least the attractions will be good enough for those who do not like Harry Potter to also enjoy. I feel that is the biggest problem with the Forbidden Journey. I like Harry Potter, but I'm not a crazed fan that knows absolutely everything. I had trouble following what was happening the first time around, but hopefully any new attractions won't have this problem.

^Raptor was painted not all that long ago. It just needs a REALLY extensive washing to get all the bird crap off of it. The parts that aren't coated in bird poop still look good. As for Millennium Force being painted, that is fantastic. It was really starting to look awful and neglected. Hopefully TTD will get the same treatment for 2012 since it is suffering in the same way.

Not to stir anything up anymore, but I also didn't have to wait to enter the shops when I visited in December. They were extremely crowded and uncomfortable, however, but the only one with a line was the wand one (sorry don't remember the names). Granted it also wasn't all THAT busy when I was there. It was more crowded than I had personally ever seen it, but it still wasn't as crowded as some of the reports I've heard. I think an expansion though to help spread the crowds is a good idea. I miss the original Lost Continent but if Harry Potter is making my favorite park thrive then I will just accept the changes and support future expansions. I do like Poseidon's Fury and the 8th Voyage of Sinbad, but it didn't seem like anyone else was interested when I was there. It may have just been a case of being the closest attractions to the new and shiny Potterland, I'm not sure, but they seemed to be waning in popularity. And this is a trend I've noticed on my once annual trips to IoA over the last 6 years. I love the Lost Continent market area, but if it is transformed into Diagon Alley and there is a Gringotts indoor coaster, I will be more than happy.

^^I went at the beginning of the Christmas season and despite the largest crowds I've seen personally at Universal in the five times I've been there, the park was being run better than ever. I never once had to wait for the small things you have mentioned. I stayed on site so I had Express Pass, but that was not available for Harry Potter and HRRR. Despite this fact I never waited more than 20 minutes for eithr of them. Harry Potter's line moves incredibly fast and is one of the most immersive lines anywhere and HRRR also moved quite quickly despite having to leave the back two rows closed for most of my stay (well, at least that I saw personally) due to high winds and low temperatures. You may want to reinvest some of your time into a sixth trip as one bad trip does not necessarily mean the whole resort has gone into the crapper. On that note, I was thoroughly underimpresses by the whole of Disneyworld. I went at a time that was said to be the slowest part of the year yet still had to wait in massive lines, weave my way around seas of strollers, deal with more whiny children wanting to go home than any person should be exposed to, and spend an hour waiting in a line to get a piece of pizza and a soda. The park's were decent, but offered very little in the thrill department and I left each park wanting something more. Test Track, Expedition Everest, Tower of Terror, and MAYBE Space Mountain and Thunder Mountain (Rock 'N Roller Coaster was closed during my visit for maintenance) were about the only rides I could consider thrilling, but even then they were tamed down to suit the younger crowd. The resort as a whole also seemed a little tired. The Magic Kingdom looked like it hadn't been updated in years and the other three parks were lacking in things for a 20 year old and his mother to do. We both left the vacation happy we experienced all of DisneyWorld but we both GREATLY prefer Universal Studios.

^Absolute truth. I co-oped for school down south in the HIlton Head area and there were more Panameras there than should even exist in total. I couldn't go out for a drive to the grocery store two miles away without seeing one. It didn't help there was a Porsche dealer three miles from my house. Ugh. I just don't get how anybody could look at the Panamera and think, "you know, that's an attractive car. Let me spend the better part of $100k on it."

^Or more importantly that if you are going to go big, hire a firm that knows what they are doing. I'm excited to see how all these projects work out. I can easily see Son of Beast and Mean Streak getting some form of treatment from Rocky Mountain Coasters. Hopefully the results are as good as they are looking.

^Where exactly are you getting your information. This is the first time I've heard of FR launching slower than 149mph. And the trims don't matter. Just because it slows it down right after the launch doesn't negate the fact that it goes 149mph (which it does, not 110-120).

As others have said, it has very little to do with the actual speed or height of the coaster, but rather cost. I remember hearing in an interview with Ron Toomer (sp?) that when Gemini opened they didn't think that coasters could get much taller/faster than that. We are currently about 3.5 times taller and 2.5 times faster than that. There really isn't any sort of limit other than how much parks are willing to invest in a ride and whether or not they have the room to build such large rides. If we are capable to building 2,717 foot tall skyscrapers then there isn't really any reason that a coaster couldn't be built several times taller than Kingda Ka. But that brings up another thing that I have always wondered about. I wonder what the terminal velocity of a typical roller coaster train is. If it isn't much faster (or possibly even slower) than the speeds we currently launch our coasters at, then there is almost no point for increasing speed beyond this unless it is for the sole purpose of having the tallest coaster on earth. Granted for rides like TTD and Kingda Ka, this wouldn't matter since there isn't anything beyond the hill so this would still be an effective way of building the tallest coaster on earth, but for a conventional roller coaster there is going to be a point where extra height doesn't lend itself to increased speed (obviously it would vary between different coaster types/train types). If a traditional (lift hill) coaster's terminal velocity is 125mph and it would hit that with a 400 foot drop, then building anything beyond that would only have the benefit of increasing the height of the lift hill.

^I wish I was still down in the Savannah/Hilton Head area. That sounds like an awesome time. I am upset with myself for not getting out to either SFOG or Carowinds when I went back down for the fall quarter. By the time I actually wanted to go there was too much in the way of me actually being able to go. Sad face. I hope you and everyone else has an awesome time though.

^Well shoot, that's unfortunate (and something I actually knew...just drew a blank apparently). Well then I guess my suggestion is invalid.

I have seen this with some people I know in the gay community and it is good that you are not going to seriously consider plastic surgery. This is just my opinion, but unless it is reconstructive it shouldn't even exist. You are who you are and trust me, we all have small things we don't like about the way we look. It's human nature. Self image is something I have struggled with but it has led to constructive efforts such as losing weight and getting into shape over the last couple of years. As others have said, you are a good looking guy and any small things you see when you look in the mirror are not going to be seen by others. You really have nothing to feel upset about looks wise. Also, I may sound like I'm ripping on your choice of getting veneers, but frankly they look ridiculous. Teeth aren't that color EVER. The shape is also...fake. It reminds me of my 9th grade art class when we had to do self portraits and half the class just drew the mouth then made a singular horizontal line to distinguish between top and bottom teeth then separated them vertically into a neat matrix of teeth...not at all how teeth look naturally. Your teeth were quite good looking beforehand and now they look...creepy. I know I'm not someone you know personally or someone whose opinion you will probably put a lot of stock in, but I would really consider getting them removed. They were SOOO much better beforehand. Be happy with who you are and don't try so hard to focus on the small things. In the end these won't matter. And if they do matter, you are doing something wrong as the people who care about you and you care about won't care if your teeth aren't unnaturally perfect.

^The clunking you hear is actually common on a lot of steel coasters that have track bolted together. I don't recall seeing any welding and sanding shots of the track seams (if I'm wrong, please somebody correct me) so I'm assuming that's all it is. Traveling coasters are good for this kind of sound since they are also only bolted together which makes the seams between the tracks more noticeable. Schwarzkopfs especially from what I've seen. In terms of the testing video, it looked so goofy with just that little train going around the track. I wasn't expecting it to actually clear some of those turns but it did so with a decent amount of speed. I can't wait to see the speed this thing carries through the course with the full train.

My younger brother absolutely hates roller coasters but absolutely loves Revenge of the Mummy. The fact that it is all indoors made him more comfortable since there wasn't a view out to see you are above the ground which is where he loses his comfort. The ride is just pure fun rather than frightening or intense. Like others have said it has a LOT of fire and a few spots where I've noticed people jump if they aren't prepared or haven't ridden before, but nothing that should stop you from riding. Test Track is more intense than Mummy in my opinion, so you should be fine. As for Space Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, there's nothing to worry about on those. If you are able to ride a ride on the level of Test track, these two will be no problem. They are designed for families to ride together so are a lot less intense and thrilling as some of the larger rides in Orlando, but again, just plain fun. You should have a blast on them.

^I'm not sure if this is just pure coincidence or if the rehab actually did remove the majority of these bad rides, but I rode it about a dozen times when I was in Orlando a month or so ago and every single one of my rides was fantastic. Only one had anything I would even come close to calling shakiness but even then it was awesome. It was quite smooth and sitting in the front had quite a few extreme pops of airtime, mostly into the brake runs. The pop of air into the brake after the crowdsurfer element was probably the best moment of airtime. And the non-inverting loop offered one of the best experiences I've ever had on a coaster in the back seat. I loved this ride. And the lights and music made it that much better to experience. I'm happy it was reopened and running efficiently when I was there.

It really all depends on the skyscraper honestly. In the Western world, yes, skyscrapers are significantly more environmental than an amusement park. The design and construction practices of pretty much every major firm designing skyscrapers lead to buildings using only a fraction of the amount of energy they used to. Environmentalism has taken off in architecture recently and skyscrapers, some of the most energy intensive structures on earth, have seen great strides in sustainability. Amusement parks on the other hand use quite a bit of energy, most of which is used for the sole purpose of moving rides through the same path over and over again. Not very environmental (but very fun ) As for this concept, regardless of whether or not it even has the possibility of being constructed, it is awesome. I've always dreamt of what a vertical theme park would be like. It's essentially a more dense, much taller version of all those parks that pack rides on top of each other such as Blackpool Pleasure Beach. If certain parts of the world continue growing the way they are now this may be the only possibility for an urban amusement park. Land in some cities is essentially impossible to come by meaning the only way to build is up. I know for sure that if this was built I would be buying myself a ticket to wherever it is located. A combination of two of my favorite things on earth is bound to be pretty epic.

^^A similar thing happened to me during one of my visits to USF. I don't remember the exact situation but I do know that when we were supposed to launch into the pit we didn't and the train behind us did come into the block directly behind the one you stop in when in the fake unload room. The effects had reset but didn't go off again (I believe they only start once they sense a new train having stopped in the block before the drop). Once we started moving again the lights inside the building were on which was cool since it offered a view (although very short) of the inside of the ride. The ride was closed for a while after that. Not sure what exactly had gone wrong but I believe it was in one of the stations since when we got back they were only sending the trains into the station that they usually don't load when the crowds don't justify the use of both stations (they had been using both when I entered the ride).

My weirdest was on Jurassic Park River Adventure a few years back. We came into the raptor containment area and when we went around the turn with the compees heading to the lift there were already two boats backed up at the bottom of the lift. We bumped the boat and shortly after a boat bumped into us. After sitting there for about another 25 minutes the first boat headed up the lift. When we eventually made our way back to the station the ride ops apologized and told us a lizard had found its way into a sensor and the computer was losing track of vehicles (or something along those lines, not too up to date on the computer systems on this type of ride) every time the lizard walked in front of it. I'm pretty sure this is one of the funniest reasons I've ever heard of for a ride breaking down.

I was randomly looking through lists of the best movies of 2010 for ideas for films to view. I watched three films I hadn't seen before tonight. The first was Buried. The movie did an alright job of making the viewer feel the confines of the space but the movie never really felt desperate enough if that makes sense. It was good but there wasn't really enough panic in the movie for it to feel realistic. *SPOILER* Plus the ending, which was quite predictable, just kind of fell into our lap (kind of literally if you think about it...) and the credits seemed to come a few minutes too soon. Oh well, still entertaining. 5.5/10 The second was Monsters. The movie looked promising and I went in not expecting a revolutionary movie due to the (lack of) budget and all that but was pleasantly surprised. The movie was innovative and felt fresh. The pacing was a little off but that's pretty common with low budget films (not that this dismisses it). I wish a little more had happened with the monsters since the exposure to them was pretty limited and the love story aspect was unnecessary. But still a good movie and definitely worth my time. 6.5/10 The third was Enter the Void. Now I had no knowledge whatsoever going into this movie of what it was about and found myself watching a 2 hour 35 minute long acid trip. Not that this was a bad thing as the visuals were quite stunning. The movie was definitely interesting and told the story in one of the most innovative ways I've ever seen but be warned, this movie is not for faint of heart. Or epileptic. The amount of flashing light/color gave me a headache by the end of the movie. There is also gratuitous amounts of sex/nudity. A little more than was probably necessary but it fit the character of the movie so it was fine in my opinion. A few of the scenes were quite disturbing. *SPOILERS* The abortion scene, the car crash scene, and the final Love Hotel scenes all stepped over boundaries most filmmakers wouldn't be willing to cross. I applaud those involved for a daring movie that tells a story in a pretty awesome and visually stunning way, but I'm honestly not even sure if I enjoyed it or not. I feel like I will need to revisit this movie in a month or so to form an opinion of it. If you are not offended by any of the things I've mentioned above and would like to see a movie that is essentially a long drug trip, this movie is definitely worth seeing. And if anyone has seen it I would love to discuss the movie as it really is quite different from pretty much anything I've ever seen.