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Video of some of the work I saw on Saturday:

I was there on 7/26 and saw the service cart up on the lift. There were 4-5 guys up there working, starting at the top and making there way down. It seemed like one would hammer at something for a while and then a couple of them would give the track a belly rub--sort of a sanding motion, but maybe applying grease?

Disneyland is definitely not a waste (I just went for the first time this year and I'm 30). I don't think I would have as much fun there by myself (I was with my girlfriend), but if you're the least bit "park enthusiast" you will most likely enjoy it no matter what. I don't even like most of Disney's licenses but I think the theme parks are great. On Knott's, people are quite divided... I happen to like it a lot. It is a small park, and depending on your timing you could probably get a lot out of 3 hours there. I wandered around looking at everything in Ghost Town, so I needed some more time... there are some unique food choices, too. For me, Magic Mountain is king down there. Big park, big rides, old tech, new tech. The crowd may be sketchy (though not nearly as bad as about 5 years ago) and the food is pretty terrible, but the place is great for rides. If you're with someone and want to have a "cute" (and fun) time, I would definitely hit Disney. If not, I would try to work in both Knott's and SFMM. If you play hockey at all, Hockey Giant and Hockey Monkey are nearby, too... but if you're from midwest/out east anyway then you probably have something just as good back home. Go get a chili dog at Pink's though! eat at Norm's in the middle of the night...?

I went to SFDK and CGA this weekend... it seems like neither offers a full park experience, but you'd be in pretty good shape if you could somehow stitch them together. They are both small, have few roller coasters and overpriced food. CGA has always had the charm, SFDK is getting close recently, CGA's water park owns when it's hot, and the SFDK animals are great (especially when the lines are long). Anyway, the lines were long, and there doesn't seem to be enough of those "well this is fun enough for a short line" rides at this park. But there are plenty of animals to look at! here is a short video... I have more but haven't edited it together yet: It took me a while to appreciate Roar... I thought it was too small, and too short (duration), but now I think it is a really great wooden coaster and I always enjoy riding it. And I thought Medusa was really great for a while, but lately the line has been ridiculous when I've tried to ride it (could be bad luck, there have been other times earlier in the season when I've been able to ride in 15 minutes). I like B&M's inverts better, but this ride has a lot of cool elements--I wish it was in a prettier part of the park though! I really like V2... the line always moves faster than I imagine it will, and it is one of the most unique coasters of its kind. I still haven't figured out the seat to guarantee an inverted pause on the diagonal spike, but it's fun to try for it. The elephant show is awesome. I think I've seen it 4 times now... it always fills up to max capacity, and it is really amazing to see what they can do. I've got a full show recorded and will try to get it up on CoasterTube soon. The bird show has a corny script right now, but it is great to see some incredible birds in action. I missed out on the new tiger exhibit... so I'm keeping this kind of short until I can return. Oh, back in the "Land" area, there is a goofy exhibit of Chrysler/Jeep/Dodge cars... it is kinda like they are grazing on a grassy hillside. I didn't feel as "advsertised to" as I have in the past couple years, and I think the park has really come a long way in the past 2 years. More soon!

Well, it definitely looks *stronger* than MF's lift, but other than that it looks very similar. Launching could have been a reason for the strength, but as many have pointed out, the cable is in the wrong position relative to the catch car for a launch cable. It looks like those mounts on the left of the image are for the stairs--don't see many stairs on launches... (or elevators)

heh, well, yeah OK Looks a little different to me, but i haven't seen many.

I'm starting to agree that it will be launched. That rectangular shape above the cable slot seems ideal for a catch car.

I'm pretty sure that would increase the load on the motor as much or more than having a longer chain. The two-chain system seems like a pretty simple solution to the problem.

IMO, even considering your caution about driving in the U.S., I would still recommend you just get a car. I would get frustrated waiting for all of these connections...

I've never done it myself, but I looked into it once... I think you can take VTA (San Jose lightrail) to a CalTrain station, which could get you to a BART station.

Last I had read, the noise issue is just about "solved", too... the noise level will be measured at Prudential once it is built, and Cedar Fair seemed to believe that they could easily meet the requirement. Of course, there were still some issues about who would do the measurement, and what the weather conditions had to be like on the day of measurement, etc... hopefully they can work that out while they BUILD...

So far, it appears as though the overflow parking will be replaced by shared spaces in a to-be-built parking garage. It seems to me that the city decided to get the deal with the 49ers worked out first, then deal with Cedar Fair... because getting all 3 to agree was not working. Now (afaik) they will continue to meet with Cedar Fair and try to address their concerns. Does anyone know exactly what those concerns are? I understand the issues with game days, but how many of those are there during Great America's season? Not many, right? I guess bigger problems will occur if they use the stadium for concerts or anything else.

It is only a shame that it does not satisfy our curiosity... It is hardly a shame that there are now TWO yellow coasters in the works for 2010!

Now that's a peculiar figure to throw out there... what else do you know?

It depends... maybe if the bad economy resulted in lower steel prices? I don't know if that's true or not, but it seems possible. Otherwise, I think we're may be more likely to see record-breaking heights with wood.

^ Indeed! And don't assume the lightning hit the ride structure... it very well may have hit the hydraulic building directly or somewhere else "upstream" in its electrical path.

I went to this ice rink in Santa Rosa that Charles Schulz's family had built. There is a gift shop nearby (as well as a full-on Charles Schulz museum) that has a bunch of Peanuts stuff on display. This is hanging on one of the walls... at first I thought it was a map of the Camp Snoopy at KBF... and I couldn't figure out what those "towers" were edit] The rink's website here: http://www.snoopyshomeice.com The rink itself is awesome, and I recommend any Peanuts fans in driving distance to check it out if you haven't already. I've been living relatively close by for about 10 years but never made it out there until this year.

I hadn't seen this picture before. I've never been to MOA, so it took me a while to figure out what I was actually looking at...

I figured using the actual Disney names would be better than asking "how would 'We Live in a World that is Not Big When You Think About It' do at a park?" I was thinking about some of those Disney rides... the ones that aren't really movie or character licenses (at least they weren't at the time). That sort of experience is rarely or never quite duplicated in other parks. Sure, $$$$ is probably a big reason...

Yeah, trust me, I get that... I'm not quite interested in whether it will happen, but if you plopped It's a Small World down in some seasonal coaster park, does it still have the magic that it has in its Magic Kingdom environment? Would it do anything to benefit a park like that? Or are the guest demographics just too different.

Yeah... pretty sure I covered that in the topic description...

What if Disney licensed some of its attractions to other, out-of-market parks? Or even sponsored one..? Would a Disney ride be successful in another park? Which ones would do well? We see Dumbo clones everywhere, but would it be any benefit to have the real thing, water fountains and all... "Disneyland's Dumbo the Elephant"? Would it be any benefit to Disney? What if "Disneyland's It's a Small World" showed up at Cedar Point... or SFGAdv... is that just a ride that fits in its home, or could it be successful somewhere else? hope this seems at least a little interesting... i haven't been able to sleep and its already 5AM here

I don't want to be one of those "look how much i know about this" guys, but wasn't that more than just an aesthetic choice? I could be wrong, and/or whoever told me this could be wrong, but I though that that whole debacle was because they were updating the ride for more capacity and the new ride was too heavy for the old People Mover building to support.

I definitely understand the concern over spoiling that area of the park... I grew up going to Cedar Point and I don't like Millenium cutting in. But--done right--this could restore some of the magic back there. Besides, it is almost scary back there at night when the park is about to close. I just wonder what it will look like during the day? The 30 minute path closure may indicate that the canopies are somewhat retractable... or something... ?

Wow! I'm pretty excited to see this... I posted an idea for something like this in my Knott's TR from last year... thinking they could put this in Ghost Town, so that there will be something nice to look at even when they eventually build coasters OVER Ghost Town http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/Cedar-Point-971739.html Apr 07, 2009 11:05 ET Starlight Experience to Brighten Cedar Point's Frontier Trail Cedar Point Starlight Experience SANDUSKY, OH--(Marketwire - April 7, 2009) - Cedar Point's Frontier Trail will be filled with light and music when the Sandusky, Ohio, amusement park/resort will introduce the Starlight Experience, a brand new themed lighted walkway, for this summer. Each night, the Frontier Trail will be transformed into a brilliant canopy of lights and colors that will be themed to the changing of the seasons. Similar to the climate in the Midwest, each display will gently segue into a different season. Accompanied with music, the Starlight Experience will use a diverse mixture of colored lights and displays to decorate and highlight the buildings, trees and structures along the wooded walkway. It will extend from the bridge across from the Snake River Falls water ride to the tunnel beneath Millennium Force. Besides the seasonal scenes, the Starlight Experience will also use several themed floats that will depict each season. For younger guests, Snoopy and his favorite friends will also be included in the show. Larger-than-life replicas of the PEANUTS characters will be displayed at different locations along the trail. Using more than one million highly efficient LED lights, the Starlight Experience will be presented every night the park closes at 10 p.m. or later, Saturday, May 23 (Memorial Day weekend) through Sunday, Sept. 6. The new family attraction will cost approximately $1 million to design and install. "The Starlight Experience will be a very popular addition to the park this summer," said Charles Bradshaw, corporate vice president of live entertainment for the Cedar Fair Entertainment Company. "These dramatic light displays will appeal to everyone in the family and will be a wonderful finale to our guests' day in the park." Besides being visually stunning, the Starlight Experience will also be environmentally friendly. LED lights use a lot less energy and will last considerably longer than standard bulbs. Plus, LED lights reduce the emission of carbon dioxide and do not contain mercury. The Starlight Experience is scheduled to begin daily at twilight and will be in operation until the Maverick and Millennium Force roller coasters close for the evening. (The Frontier Trail will close 30 minutes for show setup.) To add even more value during a stay at Cedar Point, registered guests at any of the park's resort properties will be able to purchase Starlight admission tickets for $14.99, a savings of $15 per ticket. Starlight admission begins at 5 p.m. daily or 4 p.m. when the park closes at 8 p.m. or earlier. In addition to the Starlight Experience, Cedar Point will add two new offerings to its live entertainment lineup for this summer. "Got Country!," a rowdy rendition of country favorites, will take the stage in the Red Garter Saloon on the Frontier Trail, while in Frontiertown, the Palace Theatre will present "Live Music at the Palace," a new venue featuring piano music. Three new shows from last year will also be back for an encore performance. "Signed, Sealed, Delivered," a '50s and '60s revue, will return to the Centennial Theatre, while "Snoopy's Big Bow-Wow" that features the lovable beagle and his friends in an ice-skating extravaganza takes to the ice in the Good Time Theatre and "All Wheels Extreme," the high-energy stunt show with rollerbladers, bikers, skateboarders, gymnasts and dancers, will defy gravity for a second season in the Extreme Sports Stadium along the Cedar Point Beach. Cedar Point will open for its 140th season on Saturday, May 16 and will be open every day through Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 7. The park will reopen on Sunday, Sept 13 and will host its 13th annual HalloWeekends fall family screamfest on Friday nights, Saturdays and Sundays, Sept. 18 through Nov. 1, 2009. For more information, please visit Cedar Point's web site at www.cedarpoint.com or call the park directly at 419.627.2350. Media Contact: Robin Innes Director of Public Relations Email Contact 419.627.2226