Airtime&Gravity

^All of their coasters have been removed. I had no idea they were in trouble either. Although when I tried to get the credits in 2008 (the coasters were closed), the park looked pretty bad. With Mt. Olympus right across the street, the park just didn't seem to have anything to compete with. If Mt. Olympus was still how it was pre-2004/2005, I could see the park doing well, but not in its current form.

I'd Do Anything - Simple Plan

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While I would like to see Holiday World get one, I just don't see it happening. I'd like to be proven wrong, but I doubt I will. If any U.S. park builds one, the most likely candidate I think is Lagoon. Most U.S. parks don't seem like they need or could support one, while parks in Asia and Europe can.

This thing looks incredibly terrifying. Although, it looks like a ton of fun, and a must ride if you visit the park, I might have to consider whether or not to ride it. I know I'd be safe, but something about spinning 300ft in the air with the only thing keeping you safe being a little chain seems like it would be a little unnerving. Hopefully more rides like this begin to open up around the world, as they look like some great thrill rides.

Turning Japanese - The Vapors

Nice photos and report, and it was nice to see all of you again on Saturday. It's too bad that Chicago weather causes some long off seasons, but at least it's over now. Also, that Ricochet photo is pretty cool. I actually liked the Papa John's pizza more than the "old" Papa John's they had. I know everyone else didn't seem to like it though, so maybe I was just unlucky the one time I had pizza at the park before. Granted the pizza was still pretty bad, but it was still a lot better than what was there IMO.

Six Flags could exit bankruptcy next week. Link

Link Although, I'm not sure how well they'll race as they have two different lengths.

I was also surprised that Cedar Point didn't hit 3 million, but the economy and weather reason for it makes sense. The huge increases in attendance at the Disneyland Resort parks and the huge decrease in attendance for Universal Orlando and the Sea World parks was pretty surprising too. Other than that, not many surprises. It's still a little sad to see Six Flags Great America back at 2.5 million, but hopefully when the economy improves attendance will begin to get up to where it was around 2005. I didn't know Thorpe Park and Parc Asterix both pulled in under 2 million visitors either, and wow, Efteling had a huge attendance increase.

Although still a little early, this coaster is starting to look great. It is a great attention grabber with it being right beside the road, although something about it looks a little weird.

Nice photos, and even with the Paramount branding now completely gone, Kings Island still seems to have the atmosphere I thought would be gone. The Planet Snoopy area looks pretty nice, and it looks lie some effort was put in to it. About the Backlot Stunt Coaster trains, I read that BMW went after Freestyle Music Park for the use of the trains on Round About, so I have to think Cedar Fair changed the trains to avoid being sued too. Although, I don't know why they went after the parks and not Premier.

Yes, Viper was definitely running better yesterday than it was, in my opinion, most of the entire 2009 season. Although, from yesterday, the first half seemed fairly mediocre, but the second half was great with lots of airtime and speed. The good thing is that at no point did the train seem like it would stall like it did last season. The season has just started, so we'll see if it stays this way/improves, or if it is going to be a season like last year. I think he was working for the park. When I got to the park, he was over by the Goodwill area(wasn't filming), but he then went into the park. He also asked if we could appear in a commercial which me think he was filming for the park. Plus I don't see why a news crew would be going into a park or asking to film us at Magiquest for what would be a quick news story. If it was the opening of Little Dipper, then I might expect to see a news crew inside the park, but not for opening day or Magiquest. For that, if it was going to be on the news, I'd expect the news crew to be out by the ticket booths. The lack of a news van also makes me think it was for the park. Again, I had a great time yesterday, and hopefully I'll be able to meet up with you all again. Sorry I had to leave early, but I should be able to stay for most if not the entire day next time.

Nice trip report, and the parks looks like a fun place to visit with lots of random attractions. It definitely looks like a great family park where people could spend a day, and it's a shame that we don't have more places like it her in the United States. Wild Eagle looks like a lot of fun, and it is something that I can see showing up at Dollywood in the future.

Thanks to everyone who came out today, I had a great time. Luckily for us, the weather ended up being on our side. While it was cloudy and a little chilly, the rain stayed in Wisconsin, and we ended up not having to worry about what to do if it rains. The crowds were light with most rides being a walk-on or a wait no longer than 15 minutes. The only exception to this was Superman: Ultimate Flight and Whizzer. However, this was due to one train operation(at least on Whizzer) and not crowd size. The park staff was very friendly and worked hard to keep the lines there were moving. When we were in the County Fair area, we were asked if we could be used for a commercial, to which some members agreed. It was a fun day, and with the exception that it was a little cold, and the one train operation on Whizzer, I can't think of anything that went wrong today. Notes: 1. Whizzer is being used to advertise Karate Kid 2. The Papa John's pizza has changed(for the better) 3. Little Dipper construction seems to be progressing nicely, although they still have a good amount of work to do if they plan to open it in a month 4. After running fairly poorly last season, Viper ran great today, so hopefully it runs as well this entire season Photos: Preparing to ride Giant Drop See, Whizzer has been wrapped in stickers for Karate Kid The MagiQuest building There is lots of random stuff around the building to use when you play Revolution The MagiQuest sign Another view of Revolution TPR members on Fiddler's Fling Zoom Zoom Zoom TPR members on King Chaos King Chaos

I had one yesterday, and it was fairly good. It was pretty salty and messy, but it still tasted good and was filling. It isn't my favorite item at KFC, but if it stays on the menu, I might get it occasionally. My only real complaint is how difficult to eat and how greasy it is.

Dark Knight - earlier today It's still a fun ride with me still noticing something new(for me) every time.

A news article that talks about the Zamperla company, the plans for the site, and what will be built in the future. Although, something tells me that the 4.5 million European park visitors statistic is slightly under the actual number. Link

^Well, for the entire day, Weather.com says there is a 60% chance of rain, so I (and I'm sure everyone else) expects it to rain. Plus, as of now, the worst weather seems like it will be in the morning with the scattered shower and a threat of a scattered thunderstorm the rest of the day. From weather.com and the National Weather Service, it doesn't sound like it will rain terriably hard, just that there will be rain or the threat of rain for a long time. Airtime - has opening day ever had good weather? - &Gravity

Given the Chance - The Starting Line

The weather report seems to be pretty consistent now. There is a 50% chance of rain at 10 AM, and starting at noon to closing, there is a 30% chance of rain. However, from noon on, weather.com still says to expect isolated thunder storms. The temperature will stay around 55 so it'll be somewhat chilly, but nowhere near as bad as opening day last year. So assuming we wouldn't fall in to the wrong side of the 30% all afternoon, it sounds like it could end up being somewhat decent day. Even with the buy one get one free promotion with Goodwill, crowds should(well hopefully) be on the light side. http://www.weather.com/weather/hourbyhour/47467:20?from=hrly_graph_icon&page=hourlygraph&fcstHour=14&begHour=9&begDay=114#14

Linnanmäki has also built a new coaster for the 2010 season. Link The ride at the factory: Link

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The weather keeps changing, I've seen it go from 30% to 70% chance of rain in the past day...got to love Chicago weather. I say check the weather tomorrow afternoon/night to see how Saturday will be. For the past few days though, Saturday is still looking a lot better than Sunday. I'll be in the area, so I'm currently still planning on going to to the park. It is supposed to just be showers(not t-storms), so I'm not concerned unless it is supposed to be heavy rain all day. Opening day always seems to have bad weather, so I'm not that concerned about the park having to close. We just might have to run to Dark Knight or the new food court shelter at some point in the day.

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