Mechanic

I have never noticed it. Am I blind, or does it just blend in really well? I think a great solution to problems such as vandalism, line cutting, etc. would be to have plain clothes security personnel in the park, enforcing the code of conduct rules. Have signs clearly posted around the park indicating that plain clothes security could be anywhere at any time. They could have posters in the queues that say something along the lines of "Thinking of cutting to the front of the line? Well, that friendly looking gentleman right ahead of you just may escort you to the front gates and out of the park!" They could also have similar messages play on the video screens around the park in between the promotional videos. Can you imagine the uproar of applause from rule abiding park patrons when they witnessed vandals or queue jumpers being kicked out? I don't think it would take long before word spread about rules actually being enforced and incidents of improper guest behavior dropped substantially. I also believe it could be done without any actual increase in security staffing. Just take about 25% of your current security force and put them in plain clothes and let them make their way around the park as if they were a regular guest.

It was really good to see the Lakers play the way we all know they can. Now I just hope Cleveland can pull this thing out of the dumpster so we can have the matchup of the league's 2 premier stars. (That, and Orlando worries me more than Cleveland does.)

For all I know, someone has probably posted this before, but I came across this while doing some random surfing about Magic Mountain and thought some people here may find it interesting. The Legend Courtesy of a very well-informed fan of the trolls, I have a bit of the old lore that accompanied the trolls at Magic Mountain. It was the legend that helped explain how Magic Mountain came to be. The following is from Larry Ellis Reed. If you want more info, email him; he has a lot of good info to give: "It turns out that there was this quite elderly Wizard (as turned out to be a close relative of Merlin, as in the Arthurian legend) who resided in a small cave in what we mortals call the Santa Clarita Valley--and, as it turned out, he had a habit of strolling around this hill every morning for inspiration and exercise. Yet, as it turned out, things looked pretty dull and boring. "One morning, during our Wizard's daily stroll, he noticed some bizarre sounds coming out of a smallish cave opposite his. And, curious fellow that he was, he walked briefly into the cave, only to spot four strange-looking, furry creatures in highly-animated conversation. Unfortunately, he couldn't make head nor tail of what those creatures were, or what they were saying. "With much haste, the Wizard returned back to his cave and conducted some research into the subject through a series of spells. Which revealed to him, among other useful things, that the cave he encountered was home to a race of Trolls, and that they needed a liberal dose of Vitamin F (fun) every day if they were to avoid extinction. As it turned out, the Vitamin F was quite low in those parts, and they were seriously doomed to extinction unless drastic action was taken. "As for what they were saying, he referred to a volume of Special Vocabulary Spells, and decided to employ #5565 (Understanding Troll Language) to find out. Once successfully cast, our Wizard returned back to the Trolls' lair, and the message given him (this may sound a little childish, as it was in rhyme) explained their plight: "Without lots of fun, we just wither away, For fun is our food, we could eat it all day! "This mountain we share, it's lovely, but glum, But if you could make magic, then fun, it will come! "And with kids of all ages, making fun every day, We'd make it a mountain of magic. HOORAY!!!" "With that, the Wizard decided to get acquainted with his new friends in the Trolls--and as it turned out, Trolls didn't normally have names; hence, it was decided to give them such: *The Troll as wore a jewel-encrusted crown and regal robes was given the name of "King Troll." *The pair of youngish-looking such were given the names of "Bloop" (the male) and "Bleep" (the female), so given by The Wizard because they pretty much looked the part. *The infant child of the pair was given the name "Blip." And so, without further delay, work began in earnest among both Wizard and Trolls in turning a barren piece of Santa Clarita Valley hillside real estate into one spectacular place where the Trolls could have their Vitamin F and eat it too--and also have this same magic rub off upon all who would visit that very enchanted place. (And no mean feat, mind you!) After the dust had settled, the Wizard wiped his brow, and remarked: "This certainly is a magic mountain!" Whereupon Bloop responded: "That's the perfect name for this place right there: Magic Mountain!" And so Magic Mountain it became. Link to the site where I found it: members.tripod.com/heylownine/troll.htm Note! The site does have some annoying, but harmless pop-ups. Consider yourself warned.

Are you sure he's not yawning?

Far too many when I was younger and much, much dumber. Having way too much of a penchant for drinking and partying in my late teens and early 20s didn't help matters much. Thankfully, those days are long behind me. And yes, I've had my a$$ kicked.

Boringly straight. "Not that there's anything wrong with that." I've never even really known very many people that were openly gay. I'm pretty much cool with people doing whatever they want as long as it doesn't have a negative effect on me, so if you're gay and ok with it, more power to you. I'm not going to go march in a gay pride rally any time soon, but by the same token, I'm not going to engage in any anti-gay activities either. I guess I'm pretty much neutral on the subject.

Will King James be able to will his team to victory in Orlando to force game 7 back in Cleveland? The saga continues...

^^ I don't think that will ever be topped. That's the Bizarro equivalent of the Wilt Chamberlain 100 point game.

Simply brilliant.

^ 185cm is about 6' 1", so I'd imagine that unless you're exceptionally thin, you'd probably take a L. Can't wait to TAKE THE TUNNEL!

Awesome update Big Mike! Backyard coasters have always interested me. Also, congratulations on getting your very own link on TPR.

It was nice to see LA finally turn the defense up a few notches. You mean that's not Ron Jeremy?

I've only heard what's on the video Robb posted, but I have to agree with you. I clearly hear the "re" and I've also been wondering what people were talking about with the "You" thing. Racial stereotypes aside, I don't think there's any question that enunciation varies from one person to the next, but I'm just not hearing any significant lack of enunciation in the word "you're" in the video.

That was just hard to watch. I really have no attachment to either team, but I find myself pulling for Cleveland at this point. Seeing the favorite become the underdog makes the series that much more interesting. A 3-1 hole is tough to dig out of, but it's been done before and could be again. Cleveland's bench better find some way to get a fire lit under their butts.

I expect to see the East series tied up as well. It sure is looking like both series could go 7 games. I still think we'll get the Kobe - LeBron matchup in the finals.

We have a winner!

^ Or go to a TPR event and enjoy next to no line at all.

The video itself is basically useless since it's almost completely dark, but a child's voice can be heard several times in the early moments of audio, saying what sounds like, "This is stinky!". Perhaps these queue farting incidents have been going on for some time now and left an irreparable stench in the attraction.

Hint: The thing in the image is the subject of considerable debate.

That process of elimination eventually worked out. Ok, here's a new image to wrap your brain around:

Is angsty even a word? Can a dyslexic atheist believe in a dog?

There will be tens of thousands of trips to Australia this summer. What color is the sky in your world?

It was the only game winning shot last night.

We did have a fairly large contingent for this year's WCB. We're down to 4 for the Terminator event though. My wife had surgery a little less than 2 weeks ago and won't be back in coaster riding form for a little while. Plenty of room left for everyone else right now, but do be sure to sign up soon. TPR events are not to be missed!

Our group is registered and now eagerly awaiting June 28th! Thanks for putting together what is sure to be another awesome TPR event.