MagicMountainMan

Mania is down because supposedly they're installing gates for when riders exit the vehicles. Bugs Land still can be entered through the normal way. However they finally connected A Bugs Land to the Tower of Terror. Due to the fact that the Hyperion is getting painted and they are installing the last bit of the trolley track in that same area, the only way to get to Tower of Terror now is to talk through A Bugs Land. Nobody really knows what is officially going into the spot where Maliboomer is yet. However it's been rumored that they might put a parachute ride in (like the one that Knott's used to have) or even just put a few trees and benches in its place, the latter being the more popular rumor as of now. I for one have mixed feelings about Maliboomer leaving. I actually enjoyed the ride but at the same time it was pretty ugly. Like Mechanic said down there \/ the Maliboomer never really felt like Disney quality. It looked like they bought an off the shelf S&S and put different tarps on the sides and then put ugly buzz bell things on the top. As far as the McDonalds, the ship, and the pizza place, that's all being incorporated into a new area that will feature 1 or 2 new restaurants. The ship is being taken out and new seating is being put in and the existing facade on Pizza Oom Mow Mow will be redone to reflect the new Victorian theme and I believe it's going to be a pizza and pasta place? Somebody correct me if I'm wrong... And then the McDonalds will just be a burger joint again, or should I say a "grill". Basically they're redoing the whole area and making it look Victorian. Or you could think of it as extending Paradise Park. Either way it should look better than it does now. I pretty much agree with you on this, thanks for posting that. That's another reason why I'm looking forward to the completion of Carsland, you won't be able to see the power lines and the convention center over there anymore! And this last weekend I was very fortunate to talk with an Imagineer who did tell me that they are indeed doing a temporary 8 minute screening of the new Tron film in the Muppets theater. Sadly I didn't get to talk to him that long but he is definitely very excited about the future of DCA as well as the rest of the Imagineers.

SoCalCoasters yeah I wasn't trying to be a jerk, it was just a little nudge. And it's good to know you aren't one of those people who randomly submit things to Screamscape! So no harm done, just know that there are people who do read Screamscape and do think that everything it says is pure and utter fact and will completely blow one person's research/analysis/pipe dream out of the water if it is posted there. Moral of the story, if you ain't got a source, it probably isn't worth submitting. And that's our lesson on Screamscape today kids!

Is the reason for the Starcade's second floor being closed off because there's no interest/no need for any more arcade games? Every time I pass through there seems to be a decent amount of people in there, but maybe not enough to justify the use of the second floor? Personally I think that and Innoventions are a huge waste of space.... But that's another discussion. ElecTRONica does seem like a great replacement for the Glow Fest as well. Hopefully now that Disney has control over this event it will be even better! But then again Disney has control over it so it might not get as "wild" as the Glow Fest did. I for one am pretty excited about the future of DCA. Come 2012 it should be a pretty sweet second gate if all of the main plans are actually realized. I really think that Disney is suddenly finding its stride when it comes to DCA.

^It's because of people like you that nobody takes Screamscape seriously... And yes, the possibility of them running S:TE back at its full speed has been discussed. But nobody actually knows anything at this point so it's all just speculation. I'd vote Intamin for Project 18 if I could choose. I have nothing against B&M but the B&M to Intamin count in the park is a bit one-sided.

Well if not B&M then I guess we have to broaden our scope of what is considered a dive machine. Dangit Robb!

^That would be cool since the Mountain doesn't have a drop tower anymore... But we don't know if Disney is selling, keeping, or scrapping. I know this is a total pipe dream, but if only Six Flags would raise their wages a bit... If they did they could be a LOT more selective about who works there and it would bring in a better workforce. Heck they could even start from scratch by firing all of the lower level employees and then selectively rehire who they want back and if they still have positions to fill then hire from outside the current workforce. I know it would take too much time and money to ever happen, but it would definitely solve the problem. To me it seems that the core of all of Magic Mountain's 'problems' are bad employees. By the looks of it, there doesn't seem to be a lack of employees in the slightest, it's just that they are not proficiently trained or just don't care about their job and it takes a lot more then one Jay Thomas to fix an entire park's attitude and culture, like Joey said. Like somebody stated a while back in this thread, if you pay the minimum, you're going to get the minimum. Is that necessarily right that people feel like they are entitled to more pay in order for them to feel like doing a proficient job? No, not at all. But that seems to be the general consensus at Magic Mountain, and that's what needs to change.

^I just finished the Madden demo too. The new playcalling system isn't the greatest but overall I felt like it's a pretty solid game. Might be picking it up as soon as the prices drop a bit. And I'm STILL playing Bad Company 2. Like seriously, if you haven't tried this game, do yourself a favor and try it out or borrow it from a friend. I've been playing MW2 online and BC2 destroys it in many ways it's amazing. Yeah, it needs new maps, but it hopefully won't be too long until they release the Vietnam expansion. Unlike MW2, there is a tiny bit of strategy involved when you're playing Rush and Squad Deathmatch. In Rush, there really needs to be a balance of players to win the game (not too many snipers!!! a few medics, two or three engineers, and like 5 assault). Squad Deathmatch you really have to be balanced and stick with your squad if you want any chance of winning. Conquest isn't as much strategy... Squad rush is a joke. But one thing that's really great about BC2 is that it's hard to camp! Like if you're camping in a building it sucks for you if the building is leveled or a wall is destroyed and you're exposed. I was just playing a game today and some guy on my team was having fun with C4 and literally leveled half the map and it made it quite interesting. No two games you play will ever be the same. Yeah, I really love that game.

Wasn't there some park that just added 10 in one year or am I going insane?

Wasn't it stated by Shapiro that Magic Mountain would be getting a new coaster in 2011 for the chain's 50th? Mr. Six's Dance Coaster was supposed to be for 2010 so that wouldn't count, and Superman for all we know it's going to become a "new" coaster. Maybe the plans have been changed though and Magic Mountain won't be getting a new coaster for 2011 now that Shapiro is out. Actually now that I think of it, if Magic Mountain was getting a new coaster, there should have been some marker sightings by now shouldn't there? -Brandon "Even if we don't get a new coaster in 2011 or 2012, we still have 17 others!" Tisor

Like they fixed the Yeti on Expedition Everest? Somehow I don't think a flashing light would be a suitable fix in this case... Good one! Only thing is the Yeti is about 2345978 time more complex then the dragon is, but besides that the similarities are uncanny. All I'm trying to say is, it's Disney. They aren't just going to sit around and see if it fixes itself, they're going to do something about it. Whether that means the dragon will stay the same or if they will make him less mobile is yet to be seen. But they're doing something about the current situation, that's for certain.

^I must say it does seem like Disney does that a lot. They seem to tweek and modify the crap out of everything but I wouldn't always say it's a bad thing. Is it true that the dragon is on some type of modified cherry picker like system? I always wondered how they got that think in and out of hibernation so fast. It's Disney though so I'm sure they'll fix it somehow.

To me it looks like instead of turning outside of itself, it turns inside of itself. Like how HRRR turns right and then left (or left then right, I don't know, I haven't payed attention) this one turns right then right a.k.a. turning into itself. But this park looks really cool! I keep telling myself that if I ever go back to Italy I have to go to some parks there, and this is just another reason to go back!

Wow that's rather surprising... I thought Jay was doing a fantastic job! Best of luck to him in the future.

The majority of the employees there aren't very knowledgeable. However I have found a few (usually coaster enthusiasts) that are actually very up-to-date. But I'd still take Robb's word over any of them. Does anybody know how the crowds will be this Friday? I usually avoid Magic Mountain during the summer since it's so freaking hot but since it really hasn't been a hot summer my friends and I decided that we'd go one last time before school starts. I know that LAUSD doesn't start until mid-September this year so there goes that advantage, but is there any other reason the park might be disgustingly crowded on Friday?

Due to technical difficulties Tower of Terror actually opened before Superman so their claim is correct.

Key phrase in my post, one of the few... I do agree with you though that there are people on these boards who probably know exactly what's going on. For all I know they are probably just sitting back and laughing at this whole conversation!

Haha Robb is just pissed that nobody ever listens to him even though he's one of the few that could actually be considered a credible source... But seriously if the park wants to launch Superman backwards then they will, and in a safe/comfortable manner. It's not like they will just be able to flip the car and launch it backwards and call it a day. My guess is that there will be a lot of tinkering with the launch to make it less jarring at the very beginning. But then again, is Superman really more jarring than Xcelerator's break run? I mean there is a reason why it gained its nickname SuperVAN.

But isn't going to the supermarket a drag and a time waster? Can't answer how fast it's launched now but it's definitely less than 100mph. A coaster launched to a speed of 100mph will travel up to a height of approximately 377 feet*. The tower is over 400 feet tall. Even when the ride opened and it was operating at it's designed top speed of 100mph it never made it to the top of the tower. If the coaster is only launched to 80mph as your post suggests it should reach about 200 feet up the tower. (*conversely, on a traditional coaster with a lift hill you'd need a drop of approx 377 feet to reach a speed of 100mph at the bottom) According to an old ride op (who regularly checked the speedometer) it does do around 85 most days. And it has gone to the top of the tower before, well not the very top, but into the safety brakes at the top. But it's never happened when the GP was allowed to ride. I never rode the ride when it launched at 100 mph, or at least I don't remember. But according to people who have (and I'm sure people here can clarify), when it used to launch at 100 mph it came very close to the safety brakes at the top. So yeah, I'd agree with that guy ^ that it used to go around 377 feet higher then the bottom of the launch, not 377 total feet.

I really hope that all they do is repaint it, just to spite all of you.

I really do wish that B&M came up with a new/better restraint and stop buying the current restraints they have. (Yes, B&M does not make their own restraints. Neither do most companies.) Although most B&Ms don't have much headbanging, I think the whole rider experience would be improved by a lot if there was a smaller, less bulky restraint, like the vests that are now being used. No, that's what we call the B&M rattle. Headbanging really has nothing to do with the upstop wheels being tight to the track or anything like that. All that does is cause extra rattle and vibration, and in the case of some bad Arrows and Vekomas, some really hardcore jostling. That's it. Headbanging is the result of lateral movement. <--- like that. Quick transitions that are in theory perfect (I305 and Maverick for example) still cause some headbanging (neck chopping) due to the fact that the designer only takes into account one uniform heartline height as well as one uniform speed, both of which do vary. Now in the case of most Vekomas and Arrows, the headbanging is caused by poor transitions that cause quick lateral movement. Oh and both of these 'cases' can be interchangeable between manufacturers. So basically true side to side headbanging is caused by lateral movement. Not because of some random fluctuation of joints or track segments.

^There was no incident that I know of. The only reason that I've ever heard for them not launching it up to 100 mph is that they don't feel like paying the absolutely massive electric bill. Same goes for why they don't run both sides at once. There's just no need.

According to an old ride-op that used to post on a different forum Superman doesn't run both sides simultaneously due to the power house things in the middle of the two tracks used to get really really hot. According to him on a hot day at Magic Mountain (when is it not hot there during the summer?) the last power house thing actually caught on fire because it got so hot and they had to shut the ride down for an extended period of time to fix it. I have no proof to back this claim up so don't bet on it. But I do know that the reason they don't launch it at full speed anymore is to save on power usage. Does anybody know if LIMs consume any less power than LSMs? My thoughts on the 50th: When Shapiro was still in he said that all of the parks were getting new stuff for the 50th. I'm pretty sure that he said Magic Mountain would be getting a new coaster but that's just based off of memory. Granted Mr. Six has been pushed back a year to 2011 and Al Weber has stated that he's not going on a spending binge for the 50th anymore. My guess is quite a few plans were canceled when he came in. The way I personally see it is that this is what Magic Mountain will be getting for the 50th; a refreshed Superman/Bizarro or whatever it turns out to be and the Mr. Six coaster. I'd be genuinely surprised if they put in a new coaster on top of all that. But dangit I think Robb knows what's going on! Tell us Robb!!!!

Have you forgot when KG was on a terrible TWolves team and they didn't make the playoffs for a few years? What about the year Kobe missed the playoffs? Just because you're a superstar doesn't guarantee that you'll make the playoffs. Bosh has had a terrible team around him throughout most of his time in Toronto. But to each his own.

^I think they are going to have to ban the sale of beer at the Q when he comes back or it might get dog pound ugly... I really hope for the sake of Cleveland that the fans don't do something really dumb when he comes back for those games.

IMO the only reason hasn't been such a household name as LeBron, Kobe, Melo, Wade, and the rest is because he's not in the right market. I don't care how big Toronto is, it's not a basketball town. Now that Bosh is going to Miami he'll have a LOT more exposure and will probably be considered a superstar and one of the best power forwards in the game. I'll put it this way, if you're paying a guy a max contract and he's not a superstar then you're getting ripped off.