Mechanic

I imagine this thread will heat up after WCB.

Woohoo! I just registered the whole family and ordered T-shirts for all of us as well. What a cool surprise to have it launch a day early!

I've ridden the Boomerango at CGA, once. It was a fairly unique experience for a water slide, but I personally much prefer twister type slides. For what it's worth, CGA has a boomerango, an enclosed single rider twister type raft slide, and an open family raft slide, all sharing the same tower. While we re-rode the twister and the family raft slide several times, I believe only one of my sons bothered riding the boomerango again. It's not that it's a bad slide, it's just a very short ride that didn't seem worth the wait if the wait was anything more than maybe 15-20 people. It did seem to be a popular attraction with a sizeable line though.

^ From the original post:

Are the upstop wheels just really well hidden?

That thing was making some pretty sketchy noises.

I saw Mystery Lodge in its original location at Expo '86 in Vancouver BC and was absolutely wowed by it. People we talked to all over the fair said it was a must-see and to brave the line, no matter how long. As I recall, it was a pretty long wait, but nothing too horrible. Maybe an hour I think. I saw it again a few years ago at Knott's and somehow it just didn't seem the same and I'm not exactly sure why. Not that it was bad or anything, because it was fine. I just remember leaving the theatre in Vancouver and being totally blown away by the show. When I saw it again at Knott's, not so much. Maybe it was just all the years that passed in between making my memory of it something more than it was. I would still encourage people to see it though.

First Park: Universal Studios Hollywood the day before WCB. First Coaster: I guess it will be Revenge of the Mummy: The ride, since it's the only coaster at USH. First New Park: I doubt we'll make it to any new parks this year, but I may be able to make it to Dollywood if the stars align just right. First New Coaster of 2010: Mister Six's Dance coaster at SFMM some time this summer. First Food Bought: The all you can eat meal plan at USH looks like a good value since we're planning on spending a full day there.

For what it's worth, we've stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Simi Valley for the past couple WCB events. It's in a nice area, the drive is less than 30 minutes to Magic Mountain with very little in the way of traffic on the freeways early in the morning, and the price is just under $60 a night, including all fees and taxes when booked through Hotwire. We're staying there again this year because we've been very happy with how it's worked out for us. It's not as ideal as being in Valencia or Santa Clarita, but the savings is more than worth the somewhat longer, but still relatively short drive.

I must say, it was very considerate of them to not snap our spines until the end of the event.

Just don't try to use it on Percy

I'll go with whatever choice you make Robb, as I've developed a sincere respect for your judgement, but I really hope that you don't put off launching Club TPR. My initial responses on the questionnaire about Club TPR had me thinking that I probably wouldn't join, but after you gave us just a little more background on what you had already been doing, in addition to what you were working on, I became genuinely excited about joining Club TPR. That was even before perks for any parks in my immediate area had been mentioned. As others have said, it is absolutely amazing how much work you, Elissa, and the other great people that help you, do for the benefit of so many enthusiasts. I think the time is right for Club TPR and I know it will be great, because you won't allow it to be anything less. I'm also sure that it will get bigger and better with each passing year, but it's got to start somewhere. If you ask me, you're already off to a hell of a start and I can't really see a good reason not to go forward. If you're worried about disappointing a handful of people, don't be. Maybe not everyone will be on board right away, but I have a feeling it won't be long before many of those same people are regretting not having become charter members. Respectfully, - Really looking forward to the March 15th launch of Club TPR! - Mechanic

I'll take a backstage tour of Calico Mine ride over a ride on Percy any day. If Xcelerator opens in time, great. If it doesn't, no real big deal. I've been to Knott's before when Xcelerator was closed and still enjoyed myself just fine. I can only imagine how fun Knott's will be while being there with TPR. Looking forward to it, however it plays out.

Well, that same Flash Pass information page linked earlier shows that X2 is available for an additional fee on Gold Flash Pass, but makes no mention of X2 with platinum. So, you either can't get it on platinum, which I highly doubt, or one would be lead think it's included with platinum. Once again, we're dealing with Six Flags information pages, so the fact that the information is vague or misleading, intentionally or not, isn't surprising.

Wow, what's next? The unobtanium Flash Pass?

That could be on the flyer: "West Coast Bash, douche-free since 2010."

I didn't entirely or incompletely understand that. It may not be definite that the news could be there is no news. Or maybe it could be? Now I've gone and confused myself... Here's to hoping that Xcelerator doesn't not open in time for WCB!

That pistol wasn't fake. It was a BB pistol, and it could break the skin and cause a really bad infection.

Anyone can ride Canyon Blaster as far as I'm aware. Percy is a different story.

Of course there are almost as many theories on LOST as there are viewers, but is anyone else getting the vibe that maybe Jacob is really the bad guy?

In no particular order, other than how they came to mind: 1. Disneyland (My personal favorite.) 2. Disney's California Adventure (It's okay, and I enjoy it for what it is.) 3. Six Flags Magic Mountain (Ever heard of this place?) 4. Six Flags Discovery Kingdom/Marine World (My "home" park.) 5. Marriot's/Paramount's/California's Great America (My red-headed stepchild "home" park. Just light fire to Grizzly already, please...) 6. Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk (I love me some Giant Dipper!) 7. Gilroy Gardens/Bonfante Gardens (Probably the most beautiful landscaping I've personally seen.) 8. Universal Studios Hollywood (I've only been to HHN this past year, but had a GREAT time.) 9. Knott's Berry Farm (I don't really get all the bashing, but then again, I never visited during its heyday.) 10. Pacific Park (Wishes it was SCBB.) 11. Enchanted Forest - Oregon (Awesome, unique, little family park that everyone should visit if they're in the area.) 12. MGM Grand theme park - (Now defunct.) 13. Expo '86 - British Columbia (Does a World's Fair counts as a park? Hey, it had rides! And Scream Machine was pretty intimidating at the time.) Can you tell I'm from California and don't travel very far? I realize my list is a little short, but.. I WAS IN THE POOL! THE WATER WAS REALLY COLD! IT'S JUST SHRINKAGE! SHRINKAGE, I TELL YOU!

I thought the episode was pretty decent. Not the best and not the worst, but just solid enough. The smoke monster not "seeing" Kate just because she went over the edge of the hole where they were holding Claire seemed a little on the weak side, but I guess we can't very well be killing off Kate just yet. On a similar note, I found it odd that something as seemingly omnipotent as the smoke monster not being aware that people were hiding inside a chamber in the wall was also a bit hokey, but I'll play along. At this point, we pretty much have to. Although his appearances were limited, I still continue to be impressed by Terry O'Quinn. Badass Sayid is also much better than whining, "They tortured me - (whimper) - " Sayid.

Thank you for that information, and for that great value!

Terminator is no longer an upcharge and is included on the regular Q-bot. The FastPass vs Flashpass vs any other system vs nothing has already been beaten into the ground. Disney's system is far from "free", but rather, it's just "included" in the price you pay for admission. The bottom line is really: If it's worth it to you, pay, if it's not, don't. End of story.

You select a time from those still available at the time you purchase your Gold Q-bot and add the $10 X2 upcharge. The time is then programmed into the Q-bot for you, and you are also given a piece of paper with confirmation information and instructions to show up PRIOR to your scheduled X2 ride time. At the ride an attendant will verify the piece of paper, clear your X2 reservation on the Q-bot, and allow you to queue for the ride.