rollermonkey

I have to vote Alton as I haven't been to BGA since the season Kumba opened.

Steel Dragon 2000 has a pretty fantabulous view of Ise Wan, Nagoya and lots of mountains. Fujiyama has Mount Fuji to the left. (On a clear day.)

The first to buy 'em will be Barry and Ryan!

Sorry, Satoshi-san, I think that Japan is one of the most xenophobic (the fear of outsiders) countries I've ever been to. (And I've been to 44 countries outside my native USA.) Yes, the younger generation is much more accepting of gaijin than the older generation, but a current of racism against ALL non-Japanese persons is still very much a reality in this country. I love living here in Japan, but I do often feel that many older Japanese citizens I have met would like me to leave. My wife often tells me about how 'half' children are treated in the schools and workforce. When my wife and I have children, I'm not sure if I want them to be subject to that, so I'm not certain that I want to move here for the rest of my life after I get out of the Navy.

^Is jealous that I rode SD2K without him yesterday. \/ Is ALSO jealous that I rode SD2K without him yesterday!

Summer in Japan ended on Tuesday. It was weird. Monday was hot and muggy. Tuesday was just blah. Wednesday was cool and windy. The forecasts for the next ten days are all cool and windy or rainy and windy.

No, I don't wan't spilled soda spraying on me during the launch phase. Would you like fries with that?

The latest bunch are great! I'm so glad you are doing all these projects for us all! That must be Shanghai Disneyland's castle!

^ What he said. Plus, B&M doesn't always do it. Last B&M I rode was Pyrenees, and it makes about a 5 degree turn out of the station without any drop before engaging the lift. Other companies do it, too. Eejanaika does it, (S+S Power) Drachen Fire did it, (Arrow) Aska did it, (IntaminAG) and Vekoma Loop-Screws do it.

I'm with pete4winds on this one. I've been to Dubai a few times, and I'm definitely up for a repeat visit! The 'attractions' at this complex get weirder all the time. It'll be a while before it's done, but definitely something to watch!

That's a longer down time than after the TDL Space Mountain death in 2003! I'd suspect a revamp, but not a new track install. Only time will tell. (Let the wild speculation begin!)

Thank you, Robb. I don't get the fuss about CLP's Blue Streak. The only woodie in PA I care less about is/was the Williams Grove Cyclone! As for Cyclone? It's pretty low on my woodpile, too, but Derek said it best. The current management is pulling out classic rides and installing cheap crap at the PB, so why would anyone expect better treatment at the less favored park?

The 'lean back' before the lift was pretty dumb, so your WTH is quite justified there. The 'lean forward' on the brake run is actually quite fun. Thanks, Dave! (Let me know how Malaysia works out for you!) Here's the Dodonpa song: Imagine the taiko drum game or if you've heard a real taiko, imagine that. Next, slowly, hit the drum once on the skin. Then do it again. Then hit the side of the drum. Wait a half count then repeat. And repeat ad infinitum. The pace never varies and the BPM count is only around 50 or 60. There isn't even a safety announcement to break up the monotony. The line is usually at least an hour, even on a slow day due to the 8 passenger trains. I think I may have a clip from the queue with that 'music' on it. I can't post it today, I'm going to Nagoya in an hour, I'll try to put it up tomorrow or saturday.

Oh yeah! And mostly uneccessary, to boot. Do you think about coasters all winter?

Not counting screenplays, I think that I have read just about everything that King has written, including Danse Macabre and On Writing. The Stand is probably the best of the lot, but the more you read, the more you realize that Flagg is in a LOT of his books. That's him as the baddie in Needful Things, just going by a different name. The connections between all the books become more evident when you get through the seventh volume of The Dark Tower and lots of characters and themes from many of the earlier books are revisited. I'm currently rereading the last short story collection Nightmares and Dreamscapes while I am waiting for some books from Amazon by my current favorite author: Terry Pratchett. Think Douglas Adams, but far more prolific.

^^^ See this picture I took: http://www.rcdb.com/ig1646.htm?picture=21 There's still a T-bar, but your legs are spread out. It's supposed to make you feel like you are on a jetski. I didn't get on the d@mn thing on either of the two times I went to Lotte World. The first time, it tested empty all day. The second time it was down for a week for maintenance.

The red and white thing in the middle of the coaster is usually a water tank. It provides enough weight that the train going around the track doesn't move the ride. (Even though it is technically aportable coaster, the idea is to only move it while it isn't running.) Thanks for the TR! I think a lot of us will never get to that park!

I was pretty surprised that you don't really go upside-down on the full-full, even though I had already seen POV of the ride.

Aight, as probably the saltiest sailor on this board, I guess I'll chime in here. Yes. You could theoritically fit a coaster on a cruise ship. The typical cruise liner is roughly 600 feet long and about 60 feet wide. Ships are designed with a balance point that is as low as possible to reduce the affect of loading and movement as the ship rolls in heavy seas. This means you wouldn't want to go too high. with the narrow shape, you'd be limited to out and back or 'cyclone' style designs. A Wildcat or Galaxi model would pose no problem on a cruise liner, but why would you want to put one of those in? Another factor to consider is the motion of the ship on the moving cars/trains. You probably would not be able to run the ride if the ship had more than one or two degrees of roll or pitch. Honest opinion? It'll never happen. They make too much $$$ from the casino to give up space to a coaster.

I'm fairly certain that it was Boomerang at Knott's Berry Farm in @ 1994

If you think that listening to Eejanaika's music for 5 minutes during a video is bad, imagine listening to it during a 2 hour wait for the ride! And Don is right, Dodonpa's 'music' is even WORSE! Don, did you actually get the Eejanaika symbol tattooed on your body!?! That's just kinda creepy! I hope everyone likes the video, it only took me about SIX FRICKIN' HOURS to get that much footage!

I can't wait to check this one out, especially since I've never made it to the other two!

This is 'the other thing' I have to do before I leave Japan in 28 days!

^ Which is why I'm getting down there ASAP to ride the dang thing! (Next Friday, I hope.) As for Japan? I call it the land of a million mediocre coasters. There are a lot of 'em here, but 90% really are pretty boring. I've had the fortune of living here for the past three years, and it is easy to get anywhere in this country by public transit. (Much like Europe in that one regard.) As for ACErs? I am subscribed to that magazine, but I've never been to an event. There's one member that I am in contact frequently, and she's very nice. There are some members I've met that I didn't get along with. I think it's true of any bunch that the noisiest members are the ones you wouldn't want to hang out with.

Venus @ Space World.