Force 310

Wild Train looks awesome as always. It's a shame that more crazy, obscure European coaster manufacturers aren't more like PAX and less like, I dunno, Soquet. (I'd link to Soquet's hilariously amateurish website here, but since the last time I checked, they've updated it to look like it wasn't designed in 1996 by a committee of second-graders.) (It still looks pretty bad, but not this bad.) Anyway. Nice trip report as usual, and one that I'll be looking forward to reading the rest of in the next few hours. I have plenty of catching up to do -- in fact, I just rediscovered this website a couple days ago, as I live near Cleveland and, uh, certain events were transpiring. Good times.

When I read this, I immediately thought, "Red Bull ice cream?" So, anyway, Red Bull ice cream. I was sincerely hoping that it didn't exist, but there you go.

As usual, Pax manages to take a simple, common idea -- a looping shuttle coaster, in this case -- and screw it up completely. I don't mean that in a negative sense, though. After all, their interpretation of a kiddie coaster (Wild Train in its various incarnations) seems to have turned out pretty well from what I've heard, although perhaps not in the way the designers intended, and this, along with most of the rest of Pax's coasters, looks like it will have some nice ejector airtime at the very least, not to mention those beyond-vertical back and front (!) spikes. The track system does look interesting. Does anyone know if Pax has used that particular design for any of their other coasters, or if it's unique to this one? Also, did anyone else notice how the supports connect to the track on either side instead of at the bottom?

So, this is a Tagada (or equivalent), right? I remember seeing one of those in a TR from England or somewhere else in Europe. I'll leave it to you to describe it in more detail, though. Great TR and nice pictures. It's always interesting to see more obscure, out-of-the-way parks, just for their innate strangeness, and your perspective is also nicely unique.

Firefox 3 on Vista, and only the first one is visible.

Aliens are all over the place. I can see them every day as ghostly figures gliding over the horizon. They're brought to Earth by the rogue helicopter pilots. They have no regard for humanity. I saw them capturing the neighbor's cat. They drew it up into their flying saucer ship using a microwave tractor beam with rings on the outside. I carry a Geiger counter around with me just in case the aliens try to deploy their radiation grenades on my home. Sometimes it registers a reading. Clickety-clack. I know they're out there.

I haven't experienced anything that tops SOB's lift hill as far as deafening clanky noises. As for station noise, Flight of Fear and Vekoma Boomerangs/Invertigos/etc. would have to top my list. During the actual course of the coaster (not including lift hills), I really don't notice most of the noise, since I expect it anyway.

I got to level 38 with 3,819 points. I'm still playing, though, thanks to the game being so maddeningly addictive. (In a good way...)

Millennium Force. The first couple times were amazing (see username for details), but now it's just underwhelming to me.

Oh, this is happening on my birthday. Not going to any parks, though. Last year, I went to Cedar Point on my birthday (a Thursday), and there were lines upwards of an hour for most of the major coasters. I can't imagine what a Saturday would be like. However, I am going to Kings Island tomorrow. Not the most fitting park for the occasion, but I haven't been there yet, and I might as well go there some time, although it turns out that next year would have been highly preferable.

I'd love to see one of these in the United States, or any of the compact Pax Wild Train coasters. They look insane, especially with the ejector airtime mentioned in the article. It's too bad that it would probably never happen, with American parks' preference for more well-known manufacturers (the fact that they're located in Russia can't help), not to mention liability concerns. Maybe one might turn up in a smaller park someday.

The show was average, in the sense that it was like every other coaster show that I've seen on the Travel Channel. I find it odd that they didn't show Maverick, especially since it premiered the same year (actually, the same day, if Wikipedia is to be believed) as Firehawk and they could still try to pass it off as a new ride. On a side note, Coastin' Steve has some spiffy shades.

It was sold to Gorky Park in Moscow.

From the TR, the way the maintenance people reacted makes it seem like an everyday occurence. I would hope that it isn't an everyday occurence, though.

A+ because I'm super special.

Apparently, it's going to be rebuilt, but it won't be operating. Double Loop was my first coaster with inversions as well. I just became interested in riding coasters last year, and right after the regular operating season was over, CF closed the park down without warning. So I don't have that many memories attached to the park (besides some earlier memories of Sea World), but I still wish it hadn't been closed down.

It's obviously a launched spinning inverted wooden Aquatrax.

Oh, that makes sense, then. ...Unlike something such as "Superspeed Cool-Cool Bear."

I want to know why this coaster is called Rick's Delight. I want to know this immediately. http://www.rcdb.com/id3936.htm (Nothing unusual about it besides the name.)

The Vekoma Boomerang in Geauga Lake was brutal going backwards in the cobra roll; some of the worst headbanging I've ever experienced. The same goes for the SLC. Villain (GL again) and Gwazi both gave me splitting headaches, in combination with the other rides. Jackhammering and whatnot. Mean Streak actually wasn't that bad, at least not when I rode it. The roughness wasn't that notable; the coaster was just slow and dull.

Busch Gardens Africa Cedar Point Kennywood I would have gone to Waldameer the other day, but that was before I remembered that it was closed on Mondays.

I'm from a suburb of Cleveland, between CP and Waldameer. I was close to Geauga Lake before CF "renovated" it.

Speaking of weird flying coasters: Behold Komet. Located on the third floor of a mall, seven feet tall, strange enclosed cabins, runs on a single rail connected to the roof by an unstable-looking series of tubes. It closed in 2005 for some reason. And contrary to popular belief, this was the world's first flying coaster.

All of the coasters made by O.D. Hopkins qualify for this category in some way or another, but these three especially. The company specializes in water rides. Texas Tornado -- Look at this part of the ride in general, and look at this loop. Cliff Hanger/Red Devil -- The pre-lift has a vertical loop in it. The latter half of the ride looks like a jet coaster. Also, the coaster, as well as the whole park, is on the side of a mountain, from what I gather. New Wild Mouse -- Self-explanatory.

New band, the temptation was irresistible. Band name: Heritage: The Young Concubine Album name: Take to the Oars Album art: