packfanlv

I believe they have also announced similar deals at most of their parks across the country. They are getting prepared for a slow down because of the higher gas prices it seems.

^JZ I forgot about Wild Wild West at MovieWorld in Australia. What a great surprise that flume turned out to be. I would definitely put it up there with Splash Mountain. The first backwards drop was incredible and the final drop was great too. Movie World was such a great park. I was so surprised how well done it was, especially considering how crappy Dreamworld turned out to be.

^That Vancouver crossing (truck exit) was the worst of the three border crossing into Canada I did last year. The guy searched our car up and down because it was the third time we had crossed into Canada in a little over a month. We also had a small delay in Niagara Falls. The easiest crossings we had were in Vermont (coming back into the US) and Maine (going into Quebec) where there were no lines and the agents didn't ask any questions at all, but they were both a bit out of the way for going to amusement parks!

B&M also made several Superman:Ultimate Flight Rides and there are several other Superman coasters that is why I was confused. The OP never said SROS. I have been on two of the three SROS (SFNE and SFA) and I think they would be a great addition to any park. So if they are getting that then it will be great! Thanks for clarifying that. Edit: Thank you I was writing this when you posted that it was a SUF clone.

^What is the standard Superman The Ride clone? There are so many different Superman coasters that I am not sure. Do you mean Batman: The Ride?

^I know its a joke, but that seems a bit out of line to me.

^He has been on a lot of pretty intense coasters. Millennium Force is his favorite. As for inversions, he was so delighted that Ninja at SFOG had a 48" requirement that he had to ride it again. Of course this was his first solo ride, since neither my wife nor I could stand the thought of another go around on it! But yah we keep praying for him to grow to 54" soon because he throws a fit every time we ride a coaster he can't go on. (Of course that never stops us!)

Nice TR! I had not heard of this park before. I am sure they are hurting a bit with the opening of Hard Rock Park! Thanks again.

^We got soaked from the rain, but not from the ride. I agree the water was nasty, but we had seen other people go and knew we wouldn't get wet from the ride. It was horrible though. At least I got a good workout in pulling the boat back!

I did enjoy the Paul Bunyan log flume. (I don't know what it is named now!) I also think the MGM Grand Adventures log flume was really well done and of course Splash Mountain is wonderful on both coasts. The absolute worst log flume I have been on is at Genting Highlands in Malaysia. There was no water flow after the first drop, so the only way the log would move was when a log behind would hit the drop and move the water. Of course, the further we would get from the drop, the less we would move. Eventually it started to rain and we literally had to pull ourselves back in since we were moving so slowly. The entire ride is pointless and I had blisters on my hands from pulling our log along. A self powered log flume is a first for me! Flume snakes around with no flow in the bottom right of the picture.

Yeah, so, how is it possible? I'm kidding. It is absolutely awesome and incredible that you're able to take such a trip. It would be fun for a single guy like me to do it, but to do it with your family while you're still young makes it even better. You've also found the perfect balance of seeing the world and getting credits too! All you have to do is figure out a way to print money! Thanks for the nice words. This trip has been a blessing and getting to visit a few parks here and there certainly is an added benefit! During the last year I have been able to ensure that my son is a coaster freak just like me! I just can't wait until he is 54" so I don't have to hear him whine every time he can't ride a certain coaster!

I don't really consider this much of an update, but I thought these pictures might be of interest to some. When we were in Singapore a couple of months ago, we were able to capture some photos of the construction of the site that Universal Studios Singapore will sit on. Universal Studios Singapore will sit on Sentosa Island in Singapore. This island is known as being a family destination in the city and is home to a number of tourist attractions. Access to the island is via causeway, monorail and cable car. We captured these pictures from above in the cable car. The location also sits right across from the new cruise ship terminal in Singapore. The park will be partly owned by the Genting company who owns the Genting Highlands resort that I will write about in my next update. No upward construction had begun yet and they were still doing land fill, grading and foundation work. Here are a few pictures. I will get the Genting Highlands update done either tomorrow or the next day. Keep the comments coming. Please keep in mind these pictures were taken two months ago so construction has progressed since then. It was also raining that day, so the pictures aren't of the best quality. Thanks! Another view of the site. This time you can see the monorail on the tracks! Making more land! Foundation work! You can see the Sentosa Monorail line runs directly through the site. There will be a stop right outside the entrance to the park. Say hello to Universal Studios Singapore!

^I think you may want to scale down the size of that picture a little.

^I agree with what you said about the GP. Every time I have ridden X with someone in my family they were absolutely blown away by it. That is why there was always a long line for it. The GP was willing to wait in three hour long lines to ride this ride. This ride is the first thing you see when pulling into the parking lots and with the improvements and the fact that SFMM is the cheapest theme park option in Southern California with their specials right now, I think it will be drawing people. For such an extreme coaster it also has the benefit of having a 48" height requirement making it more friendly for families with children who fall short of 54". Yes we are enthusiasts and have been on 10X more coasters than the average person in the GP. When I hadn't traveled as much and been on coasters like SROS, Nitro & MF then this was my top coaster. I now prefer airtime over inversions, but X2 is a truly unique ride and in my top 5 coasters. I think people will be getting out to the park just to see this ride. I know I have non enthusiast family in Southern California who is going out to see it this weekend!

^You are right. I don't know what I was thinking. They used lockers that sat between the load/unload areas. Thanks for the correction.

Give me an X!!! Give me a 2!! Wait how do you spell that? Edit: What happened to the cheerleading comment?

^I understand the hype though. They spent 10 million dollars on revamping this ride. The money needed to be spent, but to get some return they almost need to advertise it as a new experience. They are trying to get the draw that a new coaster would. If you spent $10 million wouldn't you do the same thing? I also think the general public will love it even more than before. The choice they faced was either scrapping a unique coaster or doing the refurb and I think they made the right decision.

^I have to disagree. I have been on more height friendly coasters that have been extremely enjoyable. It doesn't have to be the biggest and fastest to provide a fun experience. Besides, Magic Mountain needs to draw families and a new coaster with a low height requirement is what is required for that. (A dark ride or two wouldn't hurt either!)

No the seats rotate in a way that is conducive with the way the car is moving on the track. It is more disorienting than anything else. I would compare it more to an inversion than a spinning ride. For instance if you watch the video, you will see the seats rotate during the first drop. In that circumstance you rotate to face straight down as you drop. It makes sense with the way the car is moving. I think you will get off X2 thinking, "What the hell just happened?" But I haven't ever seen anyone get sick from it. (Unless you ride it too many times in a row like I did a WCB 2007. I had to sit down for a good hour after riding it five times in a row but that happens with any intense coaster for me.)

^I believe they did add padding for the calves, but someone complained that there is not enough shoulder padding. I understand holding your legs out to avoid banging, but if you have to concentrate on doing that for the entire ride then it becomes a lot harder to enjoy. (Of course being in pain also makes it hard to enjoy!)

Great photos. I just hope come tomorrow you don't see constant four hour lines again. Hopefully with a little practice the ride ops can get all three trains running with minimal stacking. I believe it can be done if they have enough staff checking the trains and with the new locker policy!

^Agreed. X has always been a top 5 coaster for me. I also agree my last rides on X which were at WCB in 2007 during ERT were much smoother than in the past. If that is still the case then it is wonderful. I can't wait to ride it later this year when I get back to the states.

^It seems like they cut back on some of the things like tunnels, but added the audio instead. I do wonder if it actually cost them 10 million dollars or if that amount was cut back along the way. I am also wondering about the fog effects since I didn't see them on the video. Robb said they were there, but didn't mention exactly where!

Great video Robb. The only part of me that didn't like X was my calves, but that never stopped me from riding this ride. For me the pain was worth it. It looks like they have improved on it. I can't wait to get out there later this year to ride one of my favorite coasters.

I forgot about Wild One. It is a great coaster. As for Joker's Jinx, I just don't get the spaghetti bowl coasters. I don't like Poltergeist at SFFT either. They just aren't fast enough and seem to barely get through some of the turns. It is certainly not a good coaster IMO. But Chuck you are right, Wild One is great!