ginzo

^Zingerman's does food tours that look excellent. They're a bit over my price range though.

Another thing to consider is that some dogs dislike loud noises. We saw a boxer at Knoebels last Saturday that didn't seem to be having a good time because of the noise from the rides.

I'm not inclined to revisit this park because as a rides-oriented person, I didn't feel this was a good value. It's like $40 for an old Arrow looper, a kiddie coaster, and a really good drop tower. I have a similar feeling about SeaWorld, but at least SeaWorld has pristine marine/animal exhibits. Marineland does not. Would I visit Marineland again as part of a TPR trip? Hell yes! I bet ERT on Dragon Mountain is a hoot. I think everyone should visit Marineland at least once because it's so bizarrely spread out. Such a giant parcel of land for so few attractions.

That coin operated TV is hilarious. I respect your stamina in doing road food trips. While I've never done one, I've hit several of these kinds of places whenever they're feasible with trips I'm already doing. I remember once hitting 3 or 4 of these places in a day and that was a bit rough on the system if you know what I mean.

^Key words:

Apparently there is a "synergy" between NASCAR and wine.

Bad rides are a key part of TPR trips. Some of the most memorable times I've had have been during ERT or a TPR takeover of a painful ride. Two words: Antelope ERT.

This guy would have more credibility if he didn't come out of the gate saying stupid things like this.

^Yeah, if you're not into fried chicken, then it's definitely not worth going all the way out there. I think it was like a 100-mile detour from Holiday World. Thankfully, we were hungry and there aren't many good food options around there.

Back in May we made a detour after Holiday World to Henderson and had chicken from the other well known place in town: Mr. D's (the Bon Ton Mini Mart was closed). We thought it was excellent. Much better than Willie Mae's Scotch House, which made good fried chicken, but seemed to be milking the heck out of their fame.

Graeter's is definitely a Cincinnati-based company. One of the VPs at my old work is married to one of the heiresses of their ice cream empire. He used to bring us free ice cream from time to time. We have another ice cream place called Aglamesis Brothers that I would suggest as being better than Graeter's. They only have two locations and the original Oakley location is definitely the one to hit. Very cool 100-year-old ice cream parlor.

B&M building a coaster with no trims these days really would be the end of the world.

This is not true with the Intamin woodies. They've only built 4 in ~12 years. The last one was built 4 years ago and there isn't one announced for next year. The cost limits the amount that will ever be constructed. With Rocky Mountain, we'll see. There is no indication of them displacing either Gravity Group or GCII so far.

Great news! So happy Kings Island isn't wasting more money trying to "fix" this POS. I wonder what Matt "TAER IT DOWN" Ouimet's next target for removal will be?

^Almost as good as if they were announcing the closure of SFA!

Sides are a waste of stomach space at a good BBQ place. I like those old school steakhouses like Luger's that makes their sides unappealing on purpose as sort of an "insult to vegetables".

This Memphis BBQ challenge is a great idea. Liz & I have been talking about doing something similar both in Memphis and in KC for a while now. We've got a layover in MEM next month and plan to hit Interstate and Corky's. While the airport locations might not be as good as the real locations, I'm sure they beat Famiglia pizza or most airport food in general. So what effect does Sandra Lee have on you then?

1 World Trade Center is shaping up to be a nice looking building. Maybe it shouldn't have been built because of the brutal cost (latest estimate $3.9 billion), but it is a very respectable effort. It'll be interesting to see what they do to make the windowless, reinforced concrete base look more appealing. Not much to see down there currently.

I love how they use the word "elected" as if the shareholders have a choice in the matter with multiple candidates, etc. I guess Saddam Hussein was "elected" as well.

If you're looking for something easy to do, try taking the train to Bruges for a day. It's nicer than Brussels. Rumor has it you can even track down some hard-to-find Belgian beers there. If fairytale medieval cities aren't your thing, try Bobbejaanland. It's a fun, quirky little park that is much better than Walibi Belgium.

They're especially good at scaring people with their driving.

Does it really count as culture if Craig is there?

Obi-Wan was a Franciscan? Damn, you really do learn something new every day.

^Of course he's mad about it. But his point about the Koch family's proposed intial investment being inadequate to get this park going again is accurate. It's going to take a pile of cash to reopen this park after years of Six Flags neglect followed by the park sitting around rotting. This is way beyond repainting buildings and putting in free soft drink machines.

Sometimes days on the road just suck. But at least you weren't stranded out in the middle of nowhere. You were in NYC where there is tons of stuff to do.