verticalzero

I can't do Magic Eye pic's either.

Great report and pic's Ryan, nice to see a Park so clean taking care of their rides and guests. All coasters should have a min of 2 Ops as standard procedure SFMM has a lot of catching up to do

The 1920's - 1980's were the best time for parks before all the stupid "Health and safety" laws arrived. Why add "seatbelts" to Rollercoaster when it has been doing it's layout with no deaths for over 50 years. I sat across the seat when I went on this ride last time, great fun There is a Park in Linconshire which has a ride with "tubs" simular to the virginia reel. A Park needs to be brave and rebuild a "virginia reel".

I went on "Shockwave" at DM 2 weeks ago and found the ride quite smooth apart from the double corkscrew where there was some side forces to make your head wobble. All of the supports are "steel" not wood, they are only 1/2 painted in a cool light blue colour. The trains are perfectly fine for this type of ride which was built in 1994 Back then this type of layout was great, today it still delivers and it is good to be different. It's the only 1 in Europe. During one of the European Coaster Club meetings (the ride is closed to non-club members and public) we were allowed to ride it facing "backwards", I'll ride "Mantis" backwards if I was allowed. Mantis is a different type of "stand-up", it was born in 1996 and is mega twisted and has lots of +G's as well as -'G. I loved my ride on Mantis in Y2K. I wish Cedar Point kept the name "Banshee", love to own one a T-Shirts before the name change. No park in the UK would be allowed to construct a "stand-up" like Mantis or Chang due to our stupid Health and Safety laws. Examples of our laws, 1) there are 3 interlocking goldfish ponds at my work, a life ring has been installed next to the ponds incase someone falls in and can't swim in 2ft of water. 2) Banning "Comic Relief" red noses in a TV studio as they are classed as a "Fire Risk". ------------------------------------------------------- The world needs more "stand-up" coasters, they give such a unique ride to all who dare to step onto the trains.

Blackpool wins for me cos they have the super lovely "Wild Mouse" and the "Classic" woodies. AT comes 2nd, they have 3 different sizes of B&M track. Shame they killed "Black Hole"..

Excellent News Disney, Everyone is equal in this world. Better get the Euro Disney trip arranged soon.

I attended the local "Wheels day" today which is set in some army arena about 15 mins drive away. With around 2000+ vehicles on show of every type you could wish to see, ranging from Street Rods, Custom Cars, Yanks, Bikes, Vans, British Classics, Historic Vehicles and Dragsters. Beautiful sunshine and temps of 22c, I was part of the UK Cruiser Club, we met at 9am (local tesco car park) and 26 different cruisers all entered the show grounds, it made a great sight. Enjoy the pic's and see how many make's of cars you can name

Another sad loss for English coasters, Who wants to say what the next coaster to go..? The Save Dreamland Campaign has worked tirelessly over the last few days to save the Runaway Coaster, being the only side friction figure eight coaster left in the UK and one of only two in the world. We believed it to be an important part of amusement park heritage." Nick continues: "The ride was earmarked for demolition first thing on Monday but we contacted the developers of the former Rotunda Park and told them that we wanted to move the ride off the site and store it. The developers agreed to give us 48 hours to confirm in writing that this would be done within six weeks. An engineer visited the site on Tuesday and carefully inspected the ride, which was found to be in remarkably good condition, although some wood replacement would have been necessary. A quote was obtained from an established ride transport company for dismantling the ride and moving it to storage. We were fortunate to secure financial backing for this and our supporter wrote, on our behalf, to the developer confirming that the work would be done within the required period. Despite confirming receipt of the letter, demolition proceeded today regardless with no explanation. This is disappointing as there are no more traditional side friction coasters left in the UK.” RIP Runaway 1922 - 2007

What does this mean for the Park and why can't the state pay off it's debits and help restore the "Blue Streak" to it's original condition. Link: http://www.meadvilletribune.com/local/local_story_094215529.html?keyword=topstory http://static.cnhi.zope.net/flashpromo/meadvilletribune/pdffrontpage/front_page.pdf There are at least eight significant errors in the $140,000-state-grant-funded plan for Conneaut Lake Park’s future. In addition, while the plan envisions developing large portions of the park’s property, it offers no estimates on the amount of money the development would raise and there are no appraisals showing the current value of the park’s land. Although no details are included, the plan does state that the revenue raised would pay off the park’s debt, currently estimated at $2.7 million. Other aspects of the plan appear inconsistent with the needs of the amusement park. For example, all of the park’s parking lots are slated for commercial, retail or residential development. In addition, all of the park’s picnic shelters are slated for retail and commercial development. The 50-page plan, authored by the Economic Progress Alliance of Crawford County, is considered key because state agencies and private banks probably won’t consider funding the park without some sense of the facility’s future direction. However, the plan, which was due in August 2006, was finished six months late. Alliance Director Mark Turner said the delay was necessary because work to complete the plan was more extensive than initially expected. The delay has left little time for park officials to review the plan and secure funding in order to open this summer. Nonetheless, the park’s court-appointed custodian, LeRoy Stearns, is having the plan studied by the park’s attorney out of concern for the accuracy of the information presented. Areas of the park and the uses envisioned in the plan include: - Entertainment – includes the current Beach Club and Dockside facilities with no proposed changes. It also extends from the lakefront to Comstock Street, which includes the current midway and games. - Recreation is proposed for the area from Comstock to Route 618, including the majority of the rides. - Future residential with revenues to the park is the area along Route 618 adjacent to the former Jo-Winn Trailer Park, now part of the Snow Waters project. - Future retail/commercial along Route 618 from Reed Avenue to Inlet Drive. That would encompass the current parking lot and picnic pavilions and a number of residences between Matson Street and Comstock Street. Only a few homes along the corridor — across from the water park — would remain under the plan. - Future development — Camperland and the adjacent parking lot. The plan doesn’t specify what type of development, but both are identified as revenue zones. Also included in this designation is an area running from Comstock Street through the Convention Center and to the site of the former Flynn House on the lakefront. The park is currently entertaining an offer to sell about 3.3 acres of land including a portion of the lakefront and the site of the former Flynn House, but it makes up only a portion of this future development zone. - Marinas — two are envisioned. One, labeled a private marina, would be located in front of the former Flynn House site. A public marina would be located in front of Hotel Conneaut. I wanna ride it asap

If money is not pumped into a park to add new rides and attract visitor's it will not grow, no park should look like it has been dumped into a field with no theming. I make better parks on Tycoon 3. I do feel sad when any coaster has to meet it's maker esp the old wood ones built before 1960's, I have never visited WG and experienced the "painful" Cyclone. The only coaster which I think i'm going to die on is the "Wild Mouse" at Blackpool, but I love it and can multi-ride when I visit the beach. By looking at the pictures, I don't know how it past it's yearly "inspection" for safety. Seems like the "Big Dipper" at Chippewa Lake looks safer. Seeing the TPR video, the wonky lift-hill, the last corner before the station, double down and hearing an "aaarrrr" wants me to ride it, but now it is SBNO and the park has closed I will never get that ride. The Cyclone is an "Ace Classic" , trains from "Palisades Park Cyclone" and last one built by "Oscar", are these 3 good reason not to save it..? I thought all "Ace Classic" coasters should try to be saved if they are in danger of being razed. Does the "Hurler" / "Grizzly" give a better "non-death ride. ---------------------------------------------------------- So goodbye WG "Cyclone", thanks for providing near death thrills since 1933. I hope the "Blue Streak" is not next on the list to become history. I really want to ride this woodie when I come across the pond in a few years time.

The fun house could of been moved to Blackpool if Amanda wanted to save it. All she wants is to have "infusion". How many "fun houses" are left in the world..?

I just used it, thanks Robb for adding it

If I saw an Op on their mobile or listening to their MP3 player while working a ride I would make a complaint, it is so dangerous. They should be fired I'm allowed to use an i-pod at my work desk as I am not in a customer facing role, being deaf in 1 ear makes it difficult for my work friends to chat to me, so I don't bother with any music player. ------------------------------------------------------------- I went to my local Sony shop last Sat to have a chat about the PS3 (I know most things about the machine and what it can do), the shop assistant was a guy in his early 20's who was playing "Call Of Duty". I was asking questions about the PS3 and the games etc, he did not even stop the game, turn to talk to me, he just carried on playing. So I reported him and I got a call from the Shop Manager who said "I will make my staff only play games when they do a demo for customers, they are not allowed to play games at any other times of the day". I am very hot on "customer service", everyone should be treated with respect and politeness wherever you go. I like going to the USA for a holiday as the customer service is so "great"

I'll have to miss out, I do not ride vertical drop coasters or towers.

Cool Pic's of Dis'land. I use Paint Shop Pro to resize my photo's. The Q lines at Alton Towers can be 2.5 hours during the summer. I always go to a Park off-peak, 2nd week of Sept when the school are back and most of the rides are walk-on's.

Nemesis Inferno at Thorpe Park and Cobra at Paulton's Park, both are 1/2 hour drive away.

I'll be getting a PS3 and a Wii at the same time in a few months time. I hope more games will be added to both machines.

I admire the French TGV for going so fast in a train and pushing the speed limit, hopefully their service will expand to the whole of Europe. The UK are so far behind on their rail system, overcrowded and hot in the summer, only 125mph and with tilting trains making you feel ill. All the trains are run by private companies and they have a fare rise by 20% each year, it cost more to go on a train than it does not drive a car. I used to be a train-spotter when I was young, but now adays I visit private railways as they have "Diesel" Gala's and run preserved english Loco's. I love the sound of a triple-headed Class 37 on full power. Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Class_37 Most of the Diesel Loco's on English railways are class 66 and 67, they are ugly and have "no soul", they also sound like "washing machines" on super spin. Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Class_66

This is what happens when the PS3 costs £425 with 1 controller. Link: http://blogs.ign.com/Next-Gen-Gamer/2007/04/03/51143/ Sales of the PlayStation 3 have dropped dramatically on the second week of release in the UK, with official Chart Track figures revealing a fall of 82 per cent. Chart Track data is gathered from 7000 UK retail outlets representing 90 per cent of the software market, including GAME, Gamestation, Play.com, Asda and HMV. A spokesperson for Chart Track confirmed the figure to GamesIndustry.biz this afternoon, stating: "Yes, sales of PS3 hardware have dropped by 82 per cent." Last week, Chart Track revealed that the PlayStation 3 had sold 165,000 units in the first two days following the launch, making it the fastest-selling home console in the UK. "We publish the first week figures because there's such a clamour for them that we can't keep it a secret," said the spokesperson. This week's software charts revealed that sales of the top two PlayStation 3 titles, Resistance: Fall of Man and MotorStorm, had dropped by over 60 per cent.

That's what you call a great twisted design, a POV is needed asap

I hate cricket and football, the most boring sports invented. No-one should be killed just cos their team lost. It's only a "game".

Hopefully you will be able to use your twin machine guns on the ride and do some target shooting while going over the hills.

On the PS3 Trailer, it shows New York and the car is driving past a wood coaster, it does not say "Cyclone" (looks like the Cyclone or Thunderbolt). It says "creamer" ) Great name for a coaster, esp if it is a GG or GCI design. I hope the developers can let everyone ride it, that would (no pun) so cool. Link http://uk.ps3.ign.com/articles/776/776967p1.html or www.gamespot.com

What a great Birthday ( 30th Mar) pressie to have to view the lovely coaster. It's coming on a real treat

Link: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&Item=300094625010&Category=197 Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the waters of eBay, a giant fin slices through the auctions, and suddenly you are face-to-face with a 3500 pound shark designed and built for an attraction in central Florida! This is your once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to own a one-of-a-kind piece in a No Reserve auction. You may never see something like this again on eBay. This shark is made of a latex material, a triple synthetic embed on a fiberglass shell, and it weighs approximately 3500 pounds. The shark itself is not complete, missing a left fin and tail section. This has an incredible amount of detail work in the facial area. On the wooden frame shown, it is 12 feet high, 10 feet wide, and 15 feet long. Expect some dust and need for cleaning, as this item has been in storage. Please see the included pictures for all examples and detail. The winning bidder will be responsible for removal, transport, and trucking from its current location, and this cost is not included in any amounts bid through eBay. Payment must be made by bank transfer or cashiers check in US funds within 72 hours of auction's end, and must be removed from the warehouse within 7 days of the auction's end. Please be aware that this shark is extremely large and will not fit into a standard tractor trailer. If it is to be transported intact, a low-bed trailer will be needed. Any modifications to the piece needed for shipping will need to be done by the purchaser after the item has been removed from the storage warehouse, after payment has been made in full. Two feet in height and/or two feet in width can be saved by removal of the fins should this be necessary for the buyer to ship (based upon their carrier’s requirements), but the seller is not responsible for these adjustments. This auction description does not contain any proper nouns or names that can be construed as the use of a trademark (other than eBay's, of course). This is specifically because you are bidding on the item pictured in this auction, and not on the rights or licensing to display or use any trademark or other intellectual capital. We cannot answer any questions that may arise from bidders about trademarks or other intellectual property. This item is sold “as is” with no guarantee or warrantee as to suitability for any specific purpose. The winning bidder will not receive any rights, assigns, mechanicals, or guarantees as to the item at auction or to any property other than the item listed for auction. By bidding, you are agreeing to the terms and conditions shown and described in this online auction. Prospective bidders should contact their trucking carriers for estimates and ability to transport within seven days of the auction end. This item is stored in a warehouse in Orlando, Florida. Payment must be received in full before item can be removed from warehouse. Florida sales tax of 6.5% will be added to the final bid amount, so please consider this when placing your bid. Seller reserves the right to end this auction early, and to either accept or reject the current high bidder.