OrientExpressForever

I had a great visit last Sunday! Crowds were light, coasters had no wait or 2-3 train wait at the most, (not counting Spinning Dragons which had a 30 minute wait, painfully slow loading). Mamba provided the best rides I have ever had on it! Back seat floating air all the way down the 2nd hill, midcourse brakes were off or not noticeable, bunny hills had nice pops of air. Unfortunately, the helix is showing its age with some bumpy roughness, but still relatively smooth as compared with the next door neighbor, Timber Wolf. They are still ironing out some issues with 2 train operations, there was stacking more often than not and it went down at least once for a half hour or so, but it seems most of the station delays revolved around riders being slow to put their loose items in the bins. Prowler was running great and the few spots of track work provided noticeable improvement from last season. It was, however, down for 15 minutes at rope drop and about an hour in the afternoon. Patriot was in good shape with 2 train ops. Boomerang was not terrible, but Timber Wolf is really struggling to be rideable. With all the track work they've done, you'd think you could feel a difference, at least in the most recently worked sections, but alas. Not sure what can be done to make it a worthwhile ride again, I doubt RMC or GCI would even attempt a re-imagining because it doesn't seem much of the existing structure would even be useable. It may be time to pay our last respects. Not much to see at the Zambezi Zinger site, but some clearing. With all the lovely trees, that I hope they preserve as many as possible, it will be hard to see anything until vertical construction begins. My eyes may not be trustworthy, but I thought I saw a ground level tunnel entrance east of the Boomerang exit ramp. Super stoked for this new addition!

Wild Chipmunk at Lakeside Park in Denver. Loved it for it’s weird quirkiness and wacky fun! Missed it due to it being down on my first visit over 20 years ago, but enjoyed riding the Cyclone. This time around, Cyclone was down (as well as the new Zyklon? coaster), and Wild Chipmunk was running one car. Had a blast and I’m glad they were running it, but it was quite the long wait. The ride operator said the other 2 cars were waiting on parts. I can’t imagine it’s easy to get parts for this oldie-but-goodie.

This will be a fantastic addition to the park, filling the much needed stepping stone between the ho-hum Spinning Dragons and the more intense coasters and it will also be great for anyone's first wooden coaster experience. As much as I love white knuckle, super intense coasters, I also love a low to mid intensity coaster that is just a lot of fun, which this would seem to be. CF/WoF was very smart, in my opinion, to recognize that they needed a family coaster, make the effort to design a custom layout instead of another off the shelf model, and tie in enough similar elements of a much loved and lost coaster that it would appeal to the nostalgic fascination of the predecessor's devotees. I would bet that it will be enough to entice many in the KC metro area who haven't visited in years to make the trip at least once next season. Also, GCI is an amazing manufacturer of high quality woodies that introduced the world to butter smooth twister elements and I would love it if they continued adding more of their products! This would seem to be a project where CF is testing the Titan Track product for viability/reliability in a few different sections, so they can compare how it fairs versus standard woody track. I have high hopes that it will prove highly successful and it will give CF the confidence to green light full, ground up TT coasters. How awesome would it be to get a full TT re-creation or extended version of Orient Express?? Imagining the first ever woody/hybrid interlocking loops has me salivating...

According to my Gold Pass membership benefits, the only active Bring a Friend Free coupon is for any day June 5 - 18. However, a recent email regarding season pass holder celebration days suggests that BAFF is not valid on the 17th. If you don't have the SixFlags app, I'd recommend it. You can store your season pass in it so you don't even need to bring the card with you, and it provides you with the most up to date coupons and perks for your pass. Hope that helps.

I've always been curious about the gigantic Viking ships because the Pirate ships are on my short list of favorite flat rides. For those who have ridden, is the ride experience significantly more thrilling, i.e. longer moments of airtime and/or more forceful g's, or does it actually seem less intense? Would it be worth the greater expense for a park to install a giant Viking vs the standard Pirate/Sea Dragon?

Thanks for the great trip report! I had the opportunity to visit this park about 12 years ago and had a great time. I was enchanted by the quaintness of the park and friendliness of the staff. Can't wait to get back!

If only this jaw-dropping level of theming detail were the norm at parks in the US... ...but I guess since it can nearly double the cost, new attractions would be fewer and further between.

While I love Mr. Freeze, both forward and Reverse Blast, my favorite is Greezed Lightnin' of the now defunct Six Flags Astroworld in Houston. If I remember correctly, the intense launch on this one was steam-powered, like an aircraft carrier launch, as opposed to the weight drop variety. Unfortunately, it is now rusting away somewhere and is probably beyond the possibility of making a comeback.

Just throwing this out there as a possible interpretation of some of the journal entries. I noticed that at least some of the entries highlight or reference things that could be associated with existing attractions or lands. For example - Day 4 - "stare first at sky, then at sea" - sounds like what you experience on The Mayflower swinging ship Day 8 - "beakhead and chains" - sounds like Eagle's Flight to me Day 9 - remembering the Speedwell which was delayed by taking on water twice - perhaps a reference to the problems with Pilgrim's Plunge/Giraffica Day 17 - reference to freedom, the struggle and sacrifice, and joy - I think that sounds patriotic like the 4th of July land Day 21 - looking closely at the picture of the ship, the lower couple of boards show a ghostly arm and figure, while the top board just under the deck seems to show a ghostly face - perhaps depicting a headless guy and maybe being a reference to The Legend. There are also references to October and late autumn on Day 7 and 12, which could reference Halloween Day 16 - "something so tiny could be so loud" - could reference the Howler So, I could be completely wrong, but I'm wondering if a lot of the entries have less to do with the actual attraction for next year, and more to do with a "voyage" through the park's lands/attractions to the final destination where/when the new attraction will be revealed. Does that make any sense? Are there any other entries that could reference current attractions in some way? PS, I think one of those clouds looks suspiciously like Holidog.

D.C. Lynch Shows has one they bring to the Richardson County Free Fair in Humboldt, NE every year.

The Huss Enterprise was one of my favorite flats for quite a while, namely Zulu at Worlds of Fun, which has operated there at least since the mid 80's when I started visiting. Going upside down with no seat belt or other type of restraint added to the excitement. Most of the Huss rides I've experienced were fun and re-rideable, (at least when I could take the spin-and-puke rides). As others have said it probably has more to do with maintenance costs and reliability than popularity.

Gladly utilizing the Coca Cola $30 days at Silver Dollar City as an excuse to get down there and ride the much anticipated Outlaw Run, I packed up the family and made the four hour trek to the land of "Holy crap, that costs HOW MUCH????", with a pit stop at Lambert's - "home of the throwed rolls". Sadly, it was the only good eats on the trip. While the entertainment capital of the Midwest has no shortage of fun things to do, it seems to be severely lacking in good places to eat. We checked in for our first stay at Big Cedar Lodge and were totally blown away! About 10 minutes South of Branson on Highway 65, this huge, sprawling resort is tucked away on the picturesque mountainsides overlooking Table Rock Lake. Sound like a travel brochure? Well, the place truly lives up to and exceeds expectations! There are 5 different pools and several massive hot tubs, some of which use salt water, (which is way better than chemical sanitized pools) and there is even a lazy river. There was so much for our family to do at the resort, we just spent a lot of our time there! If you ever get the chance, I highly recommend trying it out. Also, our 4 night stay was cheaper than the nightly rate at most mid-grade hotels in Branson! But, enough about that. Silver Dollar City is one of my favorite parks in the country because it offers a great, all around experience. It has a reasonable collection of unique coasters, balanced with other rides and shows, the staff is fantastic, the food is a cut above the average park fare, the location is gorgeous and the atmosphere is endearingly relaxed and enjoyable. Unfortunately, due to the shortened operating hours (10-6), I was unable to do as much as I had hoped, but we still had a great time, especially because the crowds were pretty light and the temperature was perfect. Outlaw Run - I have been chomping at the bit to get a ride on this bad boy and it did not disappoint! The twists and turns on this beast were engineered to the degree that they felt perfectly natural and bat-outta-hell insane all at the same time. The only part of the entire ride that didn't feel quite perfect was the last quarter of the final barrel roll which, due to momentum loss, caused a somewhat uncomfortable shift to the right side as it came out of the the roll - a minor gripe to be sure! The staple factor wasn't bad and the shin bar was only slightly annoying until the ride was engaged and it was completely forgotten. All in all, a spectacular addition to the park! Wildfire - I am not ashamed to admit that I passionately love it! It is smooth as butter with some good spots of decent force and decent air, with a great view as it sits on the mountainside. A good all around coaster with excellent capacity. Powder Keg - I would classify this as a good introduction to launched coasters. It is, indeed, a whole lot of fun, but not a white-knuckler. I am glad they were able to make use of the Buzzsaw Falls lift hill, it would be nice if the old concrete waterways were filled in for landscaping purposes. It is great that the fire effect still works! Thunderation - Unique among mine trains, this is a fun family ride, but it is certainly showing its age. It has become quite a bit more rattly and bumpy in the 5 years since I last rode it. I was also disappointed that the reverse car was removed. Fire in the Hole - There is nothing like the original dark ride/coaster combo! Unfortunately, it is in dire need of some TLC. Many of the effects are in sad shape or simply not working at all. Sure, it is not a slick B&M coaster or a Disney grade dark ride, but I would love to see a nice chunk of cash invested into restoring this to, maybe, better than it's former glory. New fire effects, gunshot sequence, animatronics, upgraded sound system, collapsing bridge remake, and maybe piping in the smell of burning wood - just a hint of it - would bring this back to life! Maybe I'm just being sentimental. American Plunge - Another oldie but goodie, in need of restoration. Aside from Disney's Splash Mountain, this is my favorite flume of all time. But the effects and gags have been mostly removed and the few that remain don't work any more. The tunnel used to be mysterious and foreboding with a massive waterfall effect that lit up as the log passed, and creepy statues that "watched" you as you drifted by. There was also a whirlpool scene with a dog rescuing a drowning guy, which is still there, but dilapidated and not functioning. It is still a great flume ride, but it needs help. Lost River of the Ozarks - This river raft ride is also one of my favorites and could benefit from some sprucing up. It is still running pretty well, but one of my favorite parts was the hairpin turn into the loading station that sent the raft spinning, however, due to extreme boat stacking, loading and sending 3 at a time, that effect is negated. I am pleased with the new attractions that SDC is investing in, but it is my hope that they will also invest in the upkeep and restoration of their older attractions as well, rather than letting them waste away to their eventual demise. On our way out of town on our last day, we decided to stop for a breakfast buffet at the Great American Steak & Chicken House, big mistake. Ordinarily, in every day life, if you came upon a giant 40 foot tall chicken, it would strike terror in your heart and you would run for your very life. However, in Branson, where giant animals are born and raised, a giant chicken stands at the door of a restaurant and beckons you saying, "Come on in, it has to be great, 'cuz I'm a giant chicken. I wouldn't tell you wrong. I wouldn't be here if this wasn't the best place ever!" Friends, I am a survivor, and I'm tellin' you, if you see a giant chicken, don't believe a word it says. Just run the other way. The staff acted so unprofessionally it reminded me of an episode of Undercover Diner and the food was deplorable. That's all I have to say about that. Enjoy the pictures... Gulp Big Cedar Lodge Do the Harlem Shuffle...board Private swim beach and marina All sliders are required to maintain the landscaping Pick up the pace, you lazy river! The indoor pool Swimmin' pools, movie stars... Where is the turn, I don't see it?? Family pic! Hillbilly shootout or opening ceremonies, you pick. I pledge allegiance... Grandfather's Mansion All people are required to lean at SDC The shooting game is fun, but wish it were returned to the former dark ride and storyline After him! He's getting away! What lurks within the trees... Giddyap Weeeee! Credit, yes, purchased with legal tender of one child Thou art sklooshed They think they are on a quiet train ride through the woods What a nice little building... Oh, wait, everybody run, it's gonna blow! Then, Bammo! The aftermath. I told you not to play with that there gunpowder! Where it all began Volunteer Firefighters needed The free shindig after park closing I see you, Wildfire! Ooooo, pretty! I'm gonna get you! Oh, the horror! Drive, little van, drive!

I was there Wednesday, August 14th. Crowds were very light. Wildfire, Thunderation and Fire in the Hole were 2-3 train waits. Powder Keg was 10-15 minutes. Outlaw Run was 20-30 minutes throughout the day. Just plan to get there before opening ceremonies and head straight to Outlaw Run for a few short-wait rides. Wear comfy shoes for lots of walking up and down hills. Bring change of clothes if you plan to ride any of the water rides and, yes, Fire in the Hole will get you wet! If you like caves, the Marvel Cave tour is included in admission, lasts about an hour, and is a good diversion toward the end of the day. However, with the shortened operating hours, you may not want to use up an hour on a cave tour. The park is one of my favorites because of the unique old-time atmosphere, the picturesque location in the heart of the Ozark mountains, the friendly staff/cast members and the overall fun to be had there. I hope you have a great time!

It may be possible, but unlikely in my opinion, that SFFT would invest in a new coaster the year after throwing gobs of money at morphing the Rattler into Iron Rattler. That doesn't mean, however, that they wouldn't move a gently used coaster into the pictured field. There is already a lot of speculation about the X in eXtreme referring to X2 at SFMM, but that just doesn't seem like a good fit. But, there is another X coaster that is a possibility, namely the X coaster at Magic Springs. It was supposed to be removed last season, but wasn't because they couldn't take it apart in time. Just food for thought.

Orient Express at Worlds of Fun was, not only my first Arrow coaster, but also my first major coaster. It absolutely terrified me at the time, but it was responsible for starting my love affair with coasters. RIP old friend!

That would be my old friend Zambezi Zinger formerly located at Worlds of Fun, now known as Broca in Parque Nacional Del Café in Colombia.

Herschend Family Entertainment will announce their acquisition of Cedar Fair and the immediate re-branding of all parks to Silver Dollar City. Outlaw Run clones and Ride the Ducks up-charge attractions will be added to all parks for the 2014 season. That will be short-lived, however, because Six Flags, after having already bought Seaworld, will soon thereafter purchase Herschend, Merlin, Universal, and Busch Gardens in their quest for world domination. They will install Batman clones in all parks, except in parks where a clone already exists, they will install a mirror image Batman clone, paint it different colors and call it Goliath. Disney will respond by adding 5 more character meet and greets per park including a special adults-only after dark "meet and greet" with Mary Poppins called Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious - by appointment only. Lurking in the shadows, an unexpected super power: Santa's Village Azoosment Park, having secretly amassed about a third of the country's GDP, will pay off government officials and perpetrate the world's largest hostile takeover in history, thereby gaining control of Six Flags and Disney in one fell swoop and becoming the world's largest theme park company.

Thank you for your detailed trip report and great pictures! Carowinds is a park I have never had a chance to visit and have always wanted to.

I think a major part of the process would be to consider the fairly recent new parks that folded shortly after opening and try to figure out what they did wrong so you don't make the same mistakes. Both Hard Rock Park/Freestyle Music Park and Wild West World suffered extreme cost overruns and opened with too much debt and not enough operating capital. This is purely my opinion, but I think it is important to have enough capital to build the park and sustain operating expenses for the entire first year. I would not use bank loans or other forms of debt to fund it, but rather private investors and commercial sponsors who would allow you to build and operate the park as you see fit without threatening to shut you down within the first year of business. You also wouldn't need to open with a ton of coasters and brand new rides. I would budget a good chunk of money $5 - 7 Million for a world-class custom built wood coaster that would serve to draw in enthusiasts and tourists alike, (something that Wild West World sorely lacked). You could then invest in a couple of used major coasters and a used kiddie coaster to round out the first year collection. I would choose a couple of other signature attractions, perhaps a custom dark ride and a water ride of some type and a handful of new flat rides that are proven to be popular. I would then add a good selection of used flat rides of all varieties so that you can be sure there are plenty of rides for your guests. Other important things to consider are non-ride attractions, shows, games, restaurants/food stands, etc. Also, the location of the park is a major factor. I think it would be necessary for it to be located in/near a major city and close to/visible from a major highway. I hope this helps. It's been a lifelong dream of mine to build a park and over the years my dream has adjusted from starting as a massive $2+ Billion dollar project, to something a little more down to earth and achievable, similar to what I have suggested here, which could be done for $200-300 Million.

Despite the fact that it would be ridiculously cost-prohibitive, Mag-Lev coasters would be amazing! Imagine a flying coaster that would provide the closest experience to actual flight because there would be no friction, vibration, or noise produced by wheels connecting to track that would detract from the ride experience. Now, if only they could figure out a more comfortable restraint system... Another crazy possibility could be to use the maglev system for a supersonic launched coaster. The gimmick would be a launch that actually breaks the sound barrier, so anyone would have the opportunity to experience traveling faster than sound. Just remember to keep your mouth closed...swallowing a bug at 768 mph probably wouldn't be all that fun! It would probably never happen. The track would have to be several miles long, the neighbors would freak out about having to listen to a sonic boom every few minutes, and it costs over $30 Million per mile.

The reason I posted this topic is that, though I love today's theme parks with all the latest and greatest new rides, I have always been fascinated/charmed by the great old amusement parks such as Luna, Steeplechase, and Dreamland at Coney Island as well as Riverview Park in Chicago, Coney Island Cincinnati, Revere Beach, Euclid Beach, and a myriad of other parks that flourished in that era. And while we can certainly catch glimpses of these great parks and their legendary rides at a handful of parks around the country, like Kennywood, Lakeside Park, Knoebel's, Rye Playland, etc., I have always dreamed that someday a park could be built that would resurrect the best of the coasters and other rides and attractions from the past and, perhaps, capture the fun, excitement, and nostalgia they offer, so that we could experience it for ourselves. So, given that, I am genuinely interested to know if you would want to visit a park like this and what you would want to see there or if you really don't like/don't care about the concept. Thanks for your response!

39. My first coaster was a kiddie coaster located at the now defunct Boyle's Joyland in Topeka KS. It was very similar to the Little Dipper at Conneaut Lake Park. My first major coaster was the Orient Express at Worlds of Fun, which scared the poop out of me, but began my love affair with coasters!

Ok, here's the scenario for this off-season topic: Mr. Moneybags comes to you and says, "I have a wad of cash burning a hole in my pocket and I want to build an amusement park. The thing is, I don't know much about what attractions would be popular, so I need an enthusiast like yourself to help me design the park. I want it to be themed as a traditional amusement park from the golden age - basically the '20s and '30s, which means I want the roller coasters and other attractions to be reproductions of actual rides that existed in that era (with modern safety features, of course). So, the questions for discussion are: 1. What are the top 5 coasters from the '20s and '30s you would most want featured in the park? 2. Which manufacturer(s) and rolling stock would you use for each coaster? 3. What non-coaster attractions would you include? 4. Would this park be viable? 5. What would be the best location for this park? 6. Are there other coasters that should be considered for novelty/nostalgia sake even though they may not be the best of the best? My top 5 coasters are: 1. Bobs - Riverview Park - I would want this one built by GCI and using Millennium Flyers Source: http://chuckmancollectionvolume13.blogspot.com/2011/03/postcard-chicago-riverview-amusement.html 2.Cyclone Racer - The Pike at Long Beach - Perhaps Intamin could take this on with Timberliners Source: http://rcdb.com/1945.htm?p=6728 3. Airplane/Aeroplane Coaster - Rye Playland - I'm thinking Gravity Group with Timberliners or Millennium Flyers Source: http://www.myspace.com/rye_playland/photos/13373090#{%22ImageId%22%3A13373090} 4. Atom Smasher - Rockaway's Playland - I'd give this to Gravity Group and maybe see if Gerstlauer could replicate the NAD trains Source: http://www.worldsfaircommunity.org/topic/5028-original-cinerama-camera/ 5. Cyclone - Crystal Beach - RMC would be my choice for this with Millennium Flyers Source: http://home.cogeco.ca/~1tamed/beach_house/history/history.htm There are a number of enticing non-coaster rides, but an iconic ride I would definitely want to rebuild is the Coney Island Parachute Jump. So what would you build? Thanks in advance for your responses!

The inclined loop (basically a vertical loop leaning to one side, not fully inverting) debuted on Cedar Point's Mantis: Photo courtesy of RCDB Appeared next on Chang at Kentucky Kingdom: Photo courtesy of RCDB Which was transferred to SFGAdv and opened as Green Lantern: Photo courtesy of RCDB And it is featured on Riddler's Revenge at SFMM: Photo courtesy of RCDB These are all B&M stand up coasters I've had the privilege to ride, and I enjoyed all of them, with my favorite being Mantis. The element itself is kinda of just "there" for me, not really adding to or detracting from the fun of the ride. Since it does not totally invert, it provides some laterals and is slightly disorienting. To my knowledge the only other coaster this element appears on is a Top Fun Typhoon currently operating at Hillpark Sibolangit (Sibolangit, North Sumatra, Indonesia): Photo courtesy of RCDB