John Peck

The old action theater had the Dinosaurs Alive movie in it about 3 years ago, but all it is used for now is Urgent Scare during the Haunt.

I hope it's a refurbishment of Coney Mall with a couple new flat rides and a refurbishment of the Racer

^ I agree with Rob. It looks like some themeing, but not a parachute ride (similar to Disneyland Paris) in itself. I'm really looking forward to this addition.

All good points, Rob. Thank you for the insights. I didn't realize that SFDK was becoming year-round.

Wow... I hadn't heard the news yet about the car stunt show being closed. I might have just missed it.

I'm not trying to start an argument, and I understand that the park doesn't have that much space, but I just find it odd that they are converting a perfectly good wood coaster like Roar (aside from the jackhammering) over to the RMC treatment. I just feel that there are other rides in the chain that need RMC'd well before this one, and I'm sad to see what I thought was a decent wood coaster go away, as opposed to some recent ones that really needed something done with them. That's just a personal opinion, again, not trying to start anything.

Absolutely, the park has hundreds of signs and miles of fences, but if somebody is determined to get in, they will do it.

I agree, too. I sent them a positive response on their FB page amidst all the people saying bad things about the person, which is tragic in itself.

Still planning my trip for the last week in August. What route (in the park) should I take if I arrive in the early morning (planning to take advantage of the early entry) as well as if I were to arrive for a second day in the late afternoon or early evening? Also, since I have the dining plan, what are the best places to eat?

They mentioned on Facebook that they were shutting down wildcat for good due to reliability and not sure about Sea Dragon, though both rides came from Fun Spot, perhaps maintenance lagged when they were there.

I'm hoping to hit this park in late August. Any advice on my best way to do it? And be cost-effective?

Thank you for the advice so far. We are going to totally go the cheapo route on the trip, so we won't really be doing much else besides the parks and coasters. I do want to hit Como Town for that new Galaxy. As for the Valleyfair waterpark, if it's hot enough, we'll go for a couple of hours, but we have many of the same slides down here in Ohio The Dells will be a quick trip, too. I've heard about the spotty operations at Mt Olympus. That wave pool sounds pretty cool, I forgot that they put that in. Minnesota State fair looks great, but there is no way we will have time for it.

I'm planning a Valleyfair trip for the first time in Late August -28 29 or 30- (God-Willing). We have Platinum passes and the all season dining plan. I saw the early ride times, but what other advice would you suggest for us. We also want to hit: Como Town, Mall of America and Nick Universe, as well as the Dells and maybe Little Ammerika. Had to scratch Bay Beach and SF from the itinerary due to budget. Any advice and tips are appreciated!

Bummer. I hope all involved are going to be okay. I want to say I've heard of other Jitterbug rides toppling over, I know for a fact the Lollipop Swing by Zamperla has toppled over on at least one or two occasions. Sounds like a balance issue.

I think some of you may have misunderstood my post, or I wasn't clear enough. I was commenting on a post where someone mentioned to ease off on the midcourse brakes, and i was just stating how the ride could be stopped there and still make it back (unless there are unforeseen circumstances).

Great Pics so far! I didn't realize you guys had three kids.

Mantis/Rougouru was designed to come to a full stop on the mid-course block (if needed) and still be able to finish the circuit. My first thought was a locked wheel or something creating too much friction.

I'm no park financial person, but I think the $15 million is just for the ride design and fabrication itself, and not the construction and expenses around that. If we DO get a 230' Dive coaster, I wouldn't be surprised if the final price tag turns out to be $23 Million or so. But again, I know nothing about ride cost breakdowns.

I took one lap in the front seat this year on Mean Streak. It wasn't horrible, but it didn't stand out like anything major was done to it. Maybe I'm realizing I like the layout less and less. Like I said in another thread (or maybe it was this one) I would rather see Mean Streak replaced with a dueling GCI like LR at Hershey (I know, they have Gemini, but I would love a "wood twister coaster1" with a high capacity and 4-trains) and an RMC built elsewhere later on.

Yes, the Flyers were around 2007 or so. I know they were relatively new when we went as there were no decals on the tubs.

^ I think that's the one he's talking about. Not sure why Camden has taken out so many rides. The other ride gone from my 2008 visit was a Chance Skydiver. So they removed: • Eli Ferris Wheel • Bumper Cars (which were great) due to the fire • Sky Diver • Hot Cat • Spider • Kiddie jet ride (which was packed up on a trailer when I went in 2008) And they added: • Mini Golf in 2008 • Rocking Tug (Riverboat) (2010?) • Rattler (2012?) Rye is a great park. I went in 2003, the Derby Racer (like Cedar Downs) was insane. Two more pics from my 2008 Camden trip: A kiddie jet ride that was packed up Skydiver, not running that day

The open space that was fenced off is where the Spider was. It had an accident where one of the "legs" broke, which is actually a reoccurring problem, so that's why you saw it covered up backstage somewhere. Shame, it was one of the best Spiders I ever rode. I assume the bumper cars are still gone? (they were located next to the Whip) They burnt down a few years ago. The Hot Cat was a caterpillar with no canvas and a roof over it. There was also one an Eli 16 Wheel, but both of those were removed for the "Rattler" Some pictures from 2008: Hot Cat Building and wheel Hot Cat Spider Dodgem to the right

Since they only have one train, are they planning to add the other this year (meaning: is it backstage?), or wait until after the coaster has run a bit before they order it?

Sorry, but did they keep the skyride towers and just close the ride itself? I see what looks like them in one of the trip report pictures. (I don't really have the time to read back through the thread to find an earlier answer)

I see that they stuck with 7-car trains like T2 before as opposed to a 10-car train like most of the SLC's have