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Everything posted by BugEyed
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London Hyde Park Winter Wonderland
BugEyed replied to Chrisp's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
I was in the UK last week for a series of concerts and managed to squeeze in a visit to Hyde Park on a Monday night. As it's reputation had certainly preceded it with regard to the size, the detail and the quality, Winter Wonderland had a lot to live up to. Holy crap! I can easily say that Hyde Park Winter Wonderland is everything that everyone says it is and more. We had an incredible time. The rides were amazing, the food was fantastic, and the prices are completely on par with the level of excellence being offered. Absolutely worth every penny/pound/schilling/quid/whatever. I didn't take very many photos, but here they are. Enjoy! Hyde Park from the plane Approaching the front gate Walking in a Winter Wonderland (quite literally) Low crowds on a Monday night = best night ever Best appreciated after several glass of mulled wine Yes! Finally rode it, and it was everything. I have so much love for the glorious Mr. Schwarzkopf A dream come true to find myself in the same city as this masterpiece of design and engineering. -
What are your TOP TEN COASTERS
BugEyed replied to ddaver177's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
01 - Maverick 02 - Intimidator 305 03 - Mindbender 04 - Storm Runner 05 - Nitro 06 - Phoenix 07 - Shockwave 08 - El Toro 09 - Titan 10 - Tatsu -
Lagoon Discussion Thread
BugEyed replied to Twister II's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
Just over 3 weeks until my trip to Lagoon. So pumped. -
Visionland Construction
BugEyed replied to Gutterflower's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
Holy crap, those have to be the most eye-popping park renderings I've ever seen. That close up image of what looks like a massive snow globe/metallic ball is like an Epcot meets H.R. Giger dream becoming reality. (and for the record, I have Epcot/H.R. Giger dreams fairly often.) -
Gardaland or Mirabilandia
BugEyed replied to jjune4991's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
Reviving this thread both out of curiosity and as a reference for my 2016 trip planning. As it's been more than 4 years since the last post, let's ask the question again: Gardaland or Mirabilandia? -
Your longest coaster road trip
BugEyed replied to larrygator's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
My longest coaster road trip is a little convoluted, as it had a fairly massive transcontinental detour in the middle of it. During Christmas season in 2011 (coinciding with the recent openings of Buzzsaw and Green Lantern) we flew from Toronto to Los Angeles to Sydney, Australia; spent 36 hours sleeping then flew from Sydney to Adelaide (South Australia). In Adelaide we rented a car and drove 4,558 km (2,832 miles) to Gold Coast via Alice Springs in the centre of the continent; in order to hit our intended destinations of Dreamworld, Warner Bros. Movie World and Aussie World. A little over 50 hours of driving (and 47.5 hours of flights). Yes, we intentionally took the long way. The Driving Portion -
Kings Island (KI) Discussion Thread
BugEyed replied to robbalvey's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
I really appreciate your offer (and everyone's advice). I decided last night to pre-pay a car rental for the day. In the end the extra money seemed well spent to allow me to autonomously enjoy the park for a full day. And to my surprise it was actually quite a lot less expensive for a single day rental than it would have been in Canada. Again, thank you to everyone for their very kind offers of transport and advice. Can't wait to visit your park for the first time on August 18th! -
Kings Island (KI) Discussion Thread
BugEyed replied to robbalvey's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
I'm not very familiar with the city, but I do know that we're staying somewhere near the University/Zoo area. -
Kings Island (KI) Discussion Thread
BugEyed replied to robbalvey's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
^ That's a really great idea. Anyone in or around Cincinnati with a car on Tuesday August 18th want to go to the park with me? I'll provide gas, free parking, food and drinks (up to a value equal to that of a car rental). -
Kings Island (KI) Discussion Thread
BugEyed replied to robbalvey's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
My "friend" is actually a grumpy old man (related to me by marriage) that doesn't respect or even acknowledge "grown men that go to amusement parks intended for little girls." One of those. ugh. I rather pay for the car rental. -
Kings Island (KI) Discussion Thread
BugEyed replied to robbalvey's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
I'll be in Cincinnati for a wedding; as a passenger in someone else's car though. The car owner is anti-amusement park in every way. My coaster trip budget is already maxed out for the summer so I'm trying to do a first-ever trip to KI as cheaply as possible. It's not helping that the Canadian dollar is taking massive nosedives in the last week (currently $0.76 for every US Dollar... and falling daily). Oh well, I'm just gonna suck it up and rent the damn car. No way I'm being that close to a new-to-me park with a Platinum Pass and not going. -
Kings Island (KI) Discussion Thread
BugEyed replied to robbalvey's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
Can anyone tell me if there's a reasonable method of getting from Cincinnati to Kings Island without a car? I've been striking out trying to locate an efficient transit, train or shuttle service that doesn't require multiple transfers at weird times of the day. I found a taxi service that offers a $30 flat-rate fee (each way), but past experience tells me all that does is leave you trapped at the park at closing. Figure it's at least worth asking before I just give up and rent a car. -
Shanghai Disney Resort Discussion Thread
BugEyed replied to Dr Freeze's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
I was obsessed with the 1982 arcade game as a child and have been waiting decades for a kickass TRON ride to exist. Finally! -
Canada's Wonderland Discussion Thread
BugEyed replied to BDG's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
Bit slower = Barely discernible. -
Canada's Wonderland Discussion Thread
BugEyed replied to BDG's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
Sorry, but I strongly disagree with this. I've been to the park 5 times this season and each time Leviathan's crew has been awesome. If the seatbelts have affected anything it's barely discernible. -
Mini Mini East Coast Trip
BugEyed replied to i<3coasters's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
^ I agree with that. For me Hershey is a full day experience. Beyond the coasters it's a park with so many cool little nooks and crannies worth stopping and checking out. -
Mini Mini East Coast Trip
BugEyed replied to i<3coasters's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
I did these same parks in the same order on a Mon/Tues/Wed in August 2013; starting and ending in DC though. An evening flight on day 4 allowed for an additional 5 hours at SFA (which was more than enough). -
The Official TPR Video Thread!
BugEyed replied to robbalvey's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
That's so cool. I fully intend to spend at least an hour tonight watching the side-by-side part whilst listening to In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida. -
Canada's Wonderland Discussion Thread
BugEyed replied to BDG's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
This is definitely the first trip report I've ever read that ended in bear collision. Holy crap, that's horrible. So glad to hear that the humans were ok (poor bear tho). -
Most INTENSE Coaster Moment?
BugEyed replied to EuroTre's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
Tatsu's Pretzel loop caught me mid-swallow. For a split second I thought I was going to choke on my own tongue. -
Lagoon Discussion Thread
BugEyed replied to Twister II's topic in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
Unique and creative. And fast. Words I love to use when describing a new coaster. Cannibal looks fantastic. My mid-August trip to Lagoon is the park visit I am most excited for this summer. -
I worked at Santa's Village Family Entertainment Park in Bracebridge, Muskoka for two summers in my early teens. The first summer I was strictly a Parking Attendant. The 2nd summer I graduated to Parking Attendant/Swing Ride Op and was taught to operate every ride in the park. I parked cars in the morning, then jumped between rides for the rest of the day during the op's lunch breaks, filling in on sick days, etc. I thought I'd died and gone to heaven whenever I operated Rudolf's Roller Coaster (Zamperla Powered Coaster). I always thought it was so cool that I wasn't even old enough to drive, yet they let me operate a roller coaster. It was a tremendous amount of fun and I loved every moment that I worked at Santa's Village (though the money was abysmal).