carolinacaniac

It seems like it has been forever since they had three trains going on Volcano. -Gary

For anyone who has been to the KY State fair, did the operation of Kentucky Kingdom change a whole lot besides the fact that they would charge per ride? (Would someone with a SF Pass be able to ride the rides there without paying individually, or was it a case where it was best to wait until the next week?) I was just kind of curious as the two state fairs I have been to were both more traditional.

Excellent pictures as always Zach! Thank you for sharing! I especially love the reaction pictures of everyone over the airtime hills -Gary

I gotta agree, Larry, that is one of he best analogies I have heard in a good bit! Although if we are getting really into it, I suppose you could say that I-305 is like Talladega, and the Carowinds Intimidator is like Lowes Motor Speedway -Gary T.

Love the pictures Zach! I can't wait to get a chance to come and check the place out. We definately need to hang out if the opportunity arises! -Gary T.

Where's the aloe???

I have to agree with you Wes on liking the Carowinds Intimidator better. That is a shame that you had the issues with the rides at SFA. Thanks for the pictures, as they are well done! -Gary "Wish I could have joined you guys at Kings Dominion, but alas getting moved was a bit necessary" T.

Hey everyone, A week ago from this past Sunday, I spent a day with my younger sister, Alysa, at Busch Gardens as the next weekend (this past saturday) she left North Carolina to head to Southern California for a summer internship. The day was a great day, even if there was not as much riding as other times, about two laps on each of the four big coasters, as well as a spin on DarKastle and we also checked out Europe in Air, which was a pretty fun replacement for Corkscrew Hill, although I would have rather they kept it. The way they rethemed it seemed a bit.........minimal? Not really sure how to put it, but the line itself I think would have been better themed as a security line We also got to see the new Celtic Fyre show, and while not as good as Emerald Beat, it still proved to be a good show. Also caught the last part of a Ramp Jam session, this time was featuring Bucky Lasek. Cool event that certainly drew a crowd. Overall, I really enjoyed the chance to hang out with my little sis, and hope that she is enjoying SoCal so far. But I am sure you would all rather just see the pictures from the day, so alas....here they are! -Gary T. On the way there, you can definatly see some interesting things........ Like a miniture circus! There was another van behind it with a similar sign, so I guess it was a fairly small operation While I would like to say we were both estatic about going to Busch Gardens, I am not exactly sure what the hell I was looking at Apparently I can pull off the state trooper look! A nice decoration that they had for Mother's Day on the fountain The next few pictures will show some of the changes made to Corkscrew Hill making it Europe in Air So this is supposed to be an airport now? Can't say I have seen one like this. Ooooooh!!!!! It's obviously an Airport Now! Since they swapped torches for triangular lights!! Well, since this is an airport now, I might as well get ready for security They changed some of the signage inside And for what it is worth, I thought it was a pretty cool video More signage Just incase you forgot what we were seeing here The screen after the video that tells you about the adventure you are about to go on Yeay! Time to fly through Europe in a couple minutes! With her aviator sunglasses on, Alysa could easily pull off being on the crew!sses, she is a part of the crew!! One thing that is neat about the new sheep exhibit is that you can see them hearding through the walkways. Little one gets left behind. A great thing for the day would be the lack of lines in the morning, although they did grow thanks to two train op on most every coaster Such a photogenic coaster......I don't think many people can disagree! Although the skyride would help to get some new angles I had not yet gotten of rides here SKLOOOSH!!!! (From the skyride) A view of Alpengeist I had not taken before the carosuel "Hope you enjoyed the skyride pictures.....now time for some good old shenanigans!" A proper lady rides side-saddle......so why am I doing so............? Is this a proper riding technique as well? So the people who work here are all fudge packers? "In Soviet Russia......Pikachu Chooses You!!!!!!" So I had a chance to gander over at the Ramp Jam for a bit Bucky Lasek was the featured skater of the day As you can see, they had a good crowd The things that they can do on a ramp......... Is much better than anything I could do on one! These guys were like Wendy's......serving up a triple stack!! While I understand that there is such a thing as progress in the world, it does make me sad when it happens to awesome rides. Nothing makes me feel more like a man than carrying a sheep!! Although this little guy is just too cute! Too cute for just one picture! One of the neater touches to Ireland I feel is the live performers on the outside. Not very often that you can have a LIVE OWL on your arm! I thought it was pretty cool! So I have this amazing ability to pick good seats......especially for Pet Shenanigans! How! And we wrap up this update of Gary's 2010 Adventures with my sister, who I hope is still doing well in California! Hope you all enjoyed the update!

Just out of curiousity, but do you have some kind of deep dark childhood secret that you need to share that involved you being trapped in a box or something? To be fair, I have not read all of your posts on TPR, but I do seem to remember many of your posts on the SFA thread being focused on this idea that Six Flags is going to enclose their premier coasters because Kings Dominon and Kings Island has. Not trying to be mean, but to be realistic, I think that the chances they do that are very slim. -Gary "But what do I know, one of my home parks has their's enclosed" T.

I think SFA's operations could also do without the "high-fiving" everyone too, that seems to take up time when they could just check the bars and get it going. I will say that it is a neat way to get them to interact, but it doesn't help the capacity -Gary T.

Sometimes, I begin to think that legally forced sterilization may not be such a bad idea........Oh well! -Gary T

^ That is neat to know, I actually passed by it when I went to Carowinds the day after as I took a quick driving tour around 277, and accidently took the exit for the highway that goes towards the Bojangles Coliseum. So I have another random update from life for everyone, this being from May 1st as one of my fellow beginning-teachers, Kim, had gotten married that afternoon, and I was invited along with many others to attend the reception that took place at the Greenville Hilton in one of the ballrooms. Not as many pictures as other updates, but another small update of things that I have done thus far in 2010! Hope you all enjoy! -Gary T. That's right! Gary is trying to look slick for the occasion! Here we are at the Carolina Ballroom at the Greenville Hilton for the reception! As you can see, they had a very nice set up! They even had live guitar players that played very well. I really enjoyed their version of "Crash Into Me" And here we have the happy couple during their first dance! Certainly would like to wish Don and Kim the best! And at this table we have mostly fellow teachers of A.G. Cox, whom I sat with for the meal Here we have some of the lady teachers of A.G. Cox Middle School, including the lovely bride! And one last picture of the two coolest beginning teachers of Pitt County! Hope you all enjoyed the update!

I think the most whorish thing I did was to hit almost every place in Central and South Florida that had a coaster.......yeah, that or the fiesta express at It'z in Houston with TPR Texas -Gary T.

A part of me is glad to see a ride from the old Fun Forest find a new home, since it was a part of my childhood as the first flume ride I went on, and a part of my old hometown's park. Hope the folks in New York enjoy it! -Gary T.

Update time!!!!! This is for another side adventure that I took a couple weekends ago before my last visit to Carowinds, as the North Carolina State Science Olympiad Competition took place in Raleigh on April 24th at the North Carolina State University Campus. I went as a chaperone for the night before with my mom's team from E.B. Aycock Middle School, and the day of the competition I split time between them and my school's team as they made it to state's too. At one point in the middle of the day, my school's baseball coach/fellow 7th grade teacher, Randy, told me about a softball game between N.C. State and Maryland that he was going to check out, and invited me to tag along with him. So we checked out the game at Dail Stadium, which was a really cool stadium that is kind of like an ampetheater as it is built into the hill to one side, and a road runs along it. I also took a few pictures of Reynolds Coliseum, which, for those who follow college basketball, is the current home N.C. State's women's basketball team, and former home of the men's team (who now play at the RBC Center). This is the same building that saw one of the best known coaches, Jim Valvano (a.k.a. Jimmy V) lead the team that would eventually win the 1983 NC State team (Not that they won it at the place, but it was where they had their home games). So another little side adventure to share with you all. Hope you enjoy it! -Gary T The night before the competition, we got to stay here.....a nice joint if I may say! On par with what you could expect for a TPR Trip hotel! A nice room to stay at for those competing the next morning.....or those who taught that afternoon! Even a couch to chillax on And here we have the E.B. Aycock team, the one my mom was the coach of, getting ready for the big day at NC State Pretty cool that the parents showed support for their kids in the competition this way, like many student athlete parents do About halfway through the day, Mr. Stuckey and I went ahead and had an A.G. Cox teacher mini trip to see the NC State/Maryland fastpitch game. The stadium was pretty neat The stadium shows who this place belongs to A look from beside the press box A look from one side, the side that is built into the hill While the concession stand looks like it is from the 70's or 80's, much of the campus looks like it too. A better view of the stands The scoreboard of Dail Stadium......this game didn't have a lot of scoring involved And one last look at the field So by this time, everyone is heading to Reynolds Coliseum as it was where the awards ceremony was being held. State's campus has a couple of these tunnels around, one of which permits students to place grafitti on it. Didn't grab a picture this time though Just outside of Reynolds Home of the Wolfpack Women's Basketball and Volleyball Inside of one of the lower level doors, you can find the offices of the women's team On one side of the curtain they had is the volleyball court. for basketball games, this would be covered with portable seats, and the curtain would be up On the other side was where the ceremony was being held For the 35 North Carolina Science Olypiad State Competition. Another view of the crowd Here we have my mom's team from E.B. Aycock.... ...and a candid family photo of me and mom! (She didn't even know I took it until I showed her about a half hour or so later) Deciding it would be neat to check out the upper deck until things got started, I found that they have a running track on the upper concourse for track runners and athletes on rainy days. A sideview of the Coliseum An end view.....I was surprised by how long the coliseum was from one end to the other. Makes for some funky sightlines when you sit in the corners Especially if you have this seat......I kid you not, I was sitting in a seat of the upper deck, and this is what I saw! Good old obstructed view seats!! Another view of the volleyball court that is behind the curtain And in the navy blue shirts with the faces looking at the camera, that would be the kids from A.G. Cox!! (They did us proud as one pair got a sixth place medal, and a group of four got a fourth place medal......both a first for A.G. Cox) A full view of all the teams as the ceremony was about to start They also have a tribute to Kay Yow, one of the winningest coaches in women's basketball, who passed away last year to cancer. They had a nice tribute for her at a Hurricanes game I went to last year shortly after she passed Gotta love old school scoreboards!!!! Now, this looks like it could be a display case for all things that our good pal Big Mike has won in his lifetime......... ....but I have a hunch it looks more like this! And that does it for this update from my little sidetrip to the NC Science Olympiad Competition. I hope you all enjoyed, and I look forward to making more updates soon!

Sounds like there may be some hope for the place after all. I hope it works out as it sounds like a really neat park. If they get it opened up this year with Cliffhanger running, I may have to swing over that way to check it out and support another one of my state's parks. -Gary T.

Hey everyone, As I was surfing the internet today, I saw a deal for a rental car that I couldn't pass up on, as it would cover the same amount of time as I had planned for the weekend before to cover the parks listed, but would save around 50 dollars! So I have updated the schedule as shown here, and on the front page! - June 15th: Arrive in Seattle, time with the family - June 16th: OPEN - June 17th: OPEN - June 18th: OPEN - June 19th: Kitsap Destruction Derby at Thunderbird Stadium, Bremerton, WA - June 20th: OPEN - June 21st: Wild Waves Theme Park - June 22nd: Mariners Game vs. the Chicago Cubs at Safeco Field - June 23rd: Enchanted Forest and Oaks Amusement Park - June 24th: Pick-up the rental, Drive to Spokane - June 25th: Silverwood, Riverfront Park - June 26th: Playland (First International Park and Credits!!!!) - June 27th: Remlinger Farms, drop off the rental - June 28th: Back to North Carolina I am really looking forward to it as it is now about 46 days away!! -Gary T

I enjoyed the look at the festival! I kind of wish I had been in Seattle a little later, since that took place about a week or so after I was there last summer. Thanks for sharing it! -Gary T.

When you can find a day where everyone knows what to do......then there will be world peace......the weather will always be in the mid to high 70's with no clouds.....and all world hunger will end. I will say though that you guys do very well considering. so keep it up! -Gary T.

Hey everyone, I didn't take the camera in with me to Carowinds yesterday, as I was really going just to do some riding, but it was a great day with little to no waiting for anything! While I was at the park, I went for a spin on each of the coasters, and when I saw that there was hardly anyone for Afterburn, I decided to do another "One-Hour Challenge", which resulted in 15 rides in an hour. I decided to continue one for a personal streak on consecutive rides on one coaster, which was previously Griffon last year at 20....Afterburn now holds the record at 24. The other note of significance is that this was non-stop (no leaving the station to get back in line). It was a blast! I also got another 13 laps on Intimidator, and also met a couple of other TPR members: -Saw Andrew (Pufferfish) a couple times throughout the day at Intimidator, and had a chat with him while he worked the entrance. Glad to chat with you again Andrew! -Met Colin (nc_coasterlover) and Steve (Skycoastin Steve) for the first time while they worked at Nighthawk. One thing that is for sure is that for a problematic ride, they know who to help keep the crew loose, so I wish you guys well this season, also enjoyed the chat! -Ran into Sean (Dark Stitch) for the first time since my visit to Carowinds in 2007 when he worked Top Gun, and took a lap on Intimidator in the front with him. Enjoyed the ride! I did take some pictures from the time while on N.C. State University's campus for the Science Olympiad state competition that prompted the visit to Carowinds yesterday. When I have a chance, I will add them to my set of adventures here! I should have some more updates to my schedule here before too long, as I may be scraping my visit to SFGAdv and Dorney for now, since it is around the time our school gives End-of-Grade tests, and getting subs for that time is nearly impossible from what I have been told, so it will have to wait another day for now. Thank you again to all who have checked out my thread so far. It has been a blast thus far, and there is much more to come! -Gary T.

^Shake and Bake: The Ride!!!!! I LOVE IT!!!! I think a Bond themed ride would be awesome too.

Hey everyone, Tonight and tomorrow, I am chaperoning a Science Olympiad team to the state competition in Raleigh, so I thought that since I am already part way there, I may just continue on to Charlotte for another day at Carowinds. Just wanted to let anyone who may be in the Charlotte area with plans to go to Carowinds on sunday know that I am going to spend a day at the park, so if there is anyone who would like to meet-up and hang out, feel free to drop me a line here or in a PM. Looking forward to it! -Gary T.

^ The Bizzaro style transformation would be much more logical than enclosing Joker's Jinx. What a Bizzaro transform requires is only a few concentrated (specific parts of the ride that is) modifications. A Joker enclosure would require so many hundreds of thousands of square feet of metal siding (or whatever they would build it with), a decent amount of steel beams for the suport of the building, and all of the concrete that would be needed for the foundation of the building. Not to forget that they would also need to add a lighting system inside for the maintenance, as well as the sprinkler system that you mentioned. They would also have to redo the paths that go along side it as the building would require more square-feet of land to be built upon. Sure a Joker's funhouse theme could be cool. I would like it, but to say that it makes more sense doesn't quite seem true. That and the noise I don't think is that terrible of an issue, it isn't as if it is deafening. They could have some plant-life that will help drown the noice, plus I am sure they will have music related to Thomas the Tank Engine playing in Thomas Town. -Gary T.

^I have actually, I got the credit back in 2007, and the I made a stop at Fun Forest last year the visit the place one last time before it shut down. I may actually add it to the itinerary to see what state the place is in when I am in the area. Not quite sure yet.

Hey everyone, I have finally gotten a chance to make some set plans for my trip to the Pacific Northwest!! I know there are some members on here that live in the area, and would love to meet-up with anyone who would like to. If anyone has an interest in meeting-up, just let me know either on this thread or my a PM! This trip will include some visits to a familiar park, many new parks, and the feeding into my love of SLURPEES!!!! These are the days in which plans have been made, anything else as of now is open. - June 15th: Arrive in Seattle, time with the family - June 16th: Nothing Yet Planned - June 17th: Pick-up the rental car and drive to Spokane - June 18th: Silverwood, Riverfront Park, and back to Seattle Area - June 19th: Daytrip to Playland (First International Park and Credits!!!!) - June 20th: Quick Visit to Remlinger Farms and then to drop off the rental car - June 21st: Nothing Yet Planned - June 22nd: Mariners Game vs. the Chicago Cubs at Safeco Field - June 23rd: Enchanted Forest and Oaks Amusement Park - June 24th: Wild Waves Theme Park - June 25th: Nothing Yet Planned - June 26th: Nothing Yet Planned - June 27th: Nothing Yet Planned - June 28th: Back to North Carolina I am really looking forward to going back to my old homeland in the Pacific Northwest, and to the updates that will come with this trip! Thank you all for checking out my 2010 Adventures so far, it has been great so far! -Gary T.