Philrad71

^ Well said, Joey! If knowledge of the danger and negligence of safety prove true, heads should definitely roll. As you mentioned, sometimes the final verdict never makes it back into the national spotlight, so we may need our TPR locals in KC keep us up to speed when that happens.

I am soooo excited to ride this and SV - such a great-looking year for awesome new coasters! C'mon spring is here, Mother Nature...start acting like it!

Looks like a great add for Fantasy Island... Now if they could somehow bring the Mr. Rogers train ride & all the props from Idlewild and reopen it here, it would be the best children's area ever!

Saw Dean Ween Group and Keith Kenny at The Beachland Ballroom in Cleveland last night - great show! I had never heard of Keith Kenny before, but have a feeling that we all might be hearing more about him in the future. Guy has obvious talent and absolutely shreds on guitar.

^ Oh wow!

Very well said, as many people just don't understand why the accused generally look to be clearly guilty before the trial. In no way am I defending Schlitterbahn, just confirming how justice works. I agree with you and Zach's post and I appreciate him coming out to say how initially you can be cast in the media as guilty even before a court of law makes a decision. I was in a similar boat myself back when I was 18 and it's not fun to be judged before you even get to tell your side of the story. But back then, (luckily) there was no social media or internet, so it was only the local rag that dragged my name through the mud based on very "loose" information. It's a powerful message for anyone that reads or sees something in the news and immediately makes a rash decision or judgement. But then again, I see stupid people doing just that in the comment sections of online articles - and that is really saddening. That is why when the links were posted, I skipped the newspaper articles and went straight to the indictment. Like you said, we'll see what happens in trial...but man, this is really just not looking good at all for Schlitterbahn.

Wow - that is just really, really awful. WTF were these idiots thinking? It's like the cast of Jackass "designed" a waterslide that they knew could potentially kill people - and they went ahead and let it operate anyway despite the previous (serious) injuries? Uggghhh. I can't even begin to digest how this went on for so long and they knowingly condoned it. These people are either freaking monsters or stupid beyond belief. My faith in humanity just dropped yet another notch after reading that indictment.

Wow - this looks like a ton of fun (like I had any doubts, lol)! I hope to get down there to ride it this year, but we'll see. Thanks to all that have posted trip reports so far and to RMC for the awesome POV footage!

^ LOL...no way I could eat all of that, Bill...even if Michael and I share. We do have two day tickets, but you're right in that could be tough in even two days. That's why I need the expert opinion from SDC vets on here to tell me what they think is best.

Looks great - and with anything Europa, you know they are going all out on theming.

Definitely not...I enjoy that as well. When I first started getting Michael into coasters, he would clench his eyes shut and mutter stuff like: "Oh fu%k, oh fu%k...why did I do this, why did I do this...why did I let you talk me into this...this thing just keeps going up....ahhhhhhhh!!!!!" And of course, I would be dying and saying things like, "well, we're about half way up the lift now...hey, open your eyes, I think I see Canada from here (while at CP, of course)! Yes, I am an evil little sh%t!

I wonder if the looping waterslide will make an appearance?

It was alright. It's basically mashed sweet and regular potatoes with a bit of onions and spices and some sausage on top. The consistency can vary throughout the day. I think the other skillets are probably better, but I wanted to try this again since it is "new". Thanks for the review! After checking out all of the dining options at the park on their website, I can see that I am going to have a hard time whittling my choices down! Other than the cinnamon bread (must try), I thought that the fry bread sandwiches, sausage medley skillet, pretzel brat on a stick, grilled chicken and cheese grilled cheese and maybe even the pork rinds all look quite appealing.

Thanks for sharing, you two...I would LOVE to visit this event one day! I would be curious to know what else is mixed in with the boysenberry hummus? Was it just chick peas and boysenberry or were there other ingredients melded in?

Lovin' the reports, Michael! I definitely have to get back to SW to ride Mako and the new raft ride as well as try the Dine With Shamu as that looks like a great perk - even if it is Budweiser. Loved the 2nd to last photo of Kraken where the front row riders (except maybe the one on the far left) all look to be seniors in their 60's or 70's & they look like they're having the times of their lives (except maybe the one on the far left). That's always awesome to see!

That's why I will likely never be a manager of any type. The first time someone did something totally stupid like that, I would be inclined to react in that manner in order to teach them a lesson. I was raised that if you broke the rules or did something stupid, that there were consequences to be had. Not sure when a big chunk of American society dropped common sense from their morals, but it seems to have exploded in the last ten or so years. Now everyone makes mistakes (including myself and I have no problem admitting when I do) and I get that, but when there are signs everywhere telling you TRAM STOP - NO PARKING, then the person gets what they deserve - a basic lesson on how to not be stupid. On another note, I have to say that despite the skillet dinners always looking phenomenal in PTR's from here and Dollywood, does anyone else think that Tater Skillet in the trip report looks kind of nasty? Perhaps it was just the lighting? What was your take on that tater skillet Shave The Whales?

I think that it makes all sorts of sense to remove the soda, not only from a business standpoint, but why contribute to the obesity epidemic in this country by offering kids what they really don't need - unlimited high fructose corn syrup and unnatural dyes? When we visited LC and Holiday World, there were kids downing that sh%t like there was no tomorrow and then they would just leave their half empty cups at the stand, which was a huge magnet for yellow jackets. Not to mention the overflowing garbage cans where there were swarms of bees, to where I could see bee allergies perhaps being another reason why they removed it. Don't get me wrong, free stuff is good at parks - especially when families pay an exorbitant amount to spend a day. But I would rather see them sacrifice the soda for free sunscreen (like HW), as well as offer free bottles of water or decent-sized cups of ice water in order to prevent dehydration.

Hey Andrew - great report! Glad to see that this coaster is something that you and your son could ride together! With regards to the idiot that parked in the tram stop, I love SDC's response! I would have towed it to the furthest, most extreme spot away that I could so the person (or persons) would have to walk like a mile or more. You wanna know where your car is? You see this red dot? That's where your car is, a$$hole. Buh.

^^ Mini-golf was exactly what I thought of when I saw the photos too!

^ Great to know...looking even more forward to it now!

We hit up a Super 8 one time coming back from Florida on I-77 just North of Charlotte and were greeted by a young Indian boy of about 10 that checked us in because he said that his Dad "had stepped out." We had a room out back and were greeted by "country folk" that were just hanging in front of their room drinking - it seemed pretty obvious that they were "regulars". We were getting the eye enough to where we grabbed all our sh&t, locked the vehicle, went into the room, locked the door and never went out again for the rest of the night. The carpet was sticky and we heard things during the night that I hope that I never hear in a motel again. So yeah...between that experience and the one at the Rodeway Inn in Sandusky, that sold us on paying the extra money for the Hampton Inn, Courtyards & Hilton Garden Inn. On a good note, I just went after work and got gas, a 12 pack of Southern Tier and a trip to the liquor store for Manhattan stuff...and it all went on the Amex card. Who knew that my drinking habit could reap such wonderful rewards?

^ Is it the same as the cinnamon bread at Dollywood? I assume that a lot of the food there is probably a carbon copy, but don't think that I mean that as a bad thing. Yes, we will definitely be getting cinnamon bread - and this is coming from someone that normally doesn't do sweets!

Great photos - thanks for sharing! Looking very forward to our visit in May to check out all the sites and sounds of SDC. We both loved Dollywood, so this can only be as good or better, right? Oh and....skilllllletsssss!!!!

^ No introductory cost, Zach. I just went and dug out the paperwork and here are the main highlights... * You receive 3 HH points for every dollar you spend (unless used for fees, charges, cash advances, etc) * You receive 4 additional points (7 total points) for each dollar charged directly to a Hilton entity * You receive 2 additional points (5 total points) for each dollar spent in restaurants, grocery stores and gas stations that are not affiliated as warehouse stores (IE: Costco, Sam's Club, etc) * You forfeit your accrued monthly points if you make a late payment * No annual membership fee * 18.99% variable for purchases, balance transfers and cash advances (I don't use these and pay off in full each month, like you do) * Late payment fee up to $38 One of the downsides that I could possibly see is that people have complained in the past how Amex isn't as widely accepted as Visa and Master Card. Guess that I will find out now!

Agree with others...Stephen Hawking will be missed. So, so intelligent/smart.