VinTheAttendant

My Mom is trying to convince my dad to take the family on a trip to Tennessee and North Carolina. And Dollywood is on the list of places to visit! Keeping my fingers crossed.

I'm hitting Coney Island this Tuesday, rain or shine. Weather Channel has been giving out bad news on weather, but I hope that whatever happens will be brief (and maybe scare some crowds away). If everything works out, I'll finally break 200 on my coaster count.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but wouldn't this have to be the largest ride to ever be removed from a park? I can't think of a taller, faster, or longer ride that has ever been torn down. And all that lumber...no wonder why it's been standing there for a long time. EDIT: Just remembered Hypersonic XLC

A couple months ago, my family and I were renovating the house, and I found this 1999 Hersheypark map tucked away in a photo album. I thought I'd share it for the park index (I had to slightly Photoshop two pieces together since the whole map would not fit on the scanner) Hersheypark map 1999

Happiness is coincidentally showing up on the 80th birthday of (arguably) the most famous roller coaster in the world, and offered limited edition memorabilia of the day! (Coney Island Cyclone for those who didn't figure it out)

Just curious, does anybody else count alpine/mountain coasters? I see no reason why they shouldn't. They're fixated to the track, they have a lift hill and brakes, run on gravity, they're full-circuit, and can have roller coaster elements. The only difference I see is that the riders control the speed (and they're not generally on rcdb).

^Hahaha! How foolish of me to think that something else could be better

Hooray!! For the longest time in my group of friends, nobody has ever wanted to put together an outing or big trip other than me. While I love hanging out with my friends, it gets a bit annoying being the only one deciding where to go. Well finally, my girlfriend invited me on an excursion with her family to the mountains, and now my best friend is inviting me on a road trip. Mission accomplished!

Well, not the best series about roller coasters, but I'm just happy that there is enough interest going to keep generating these shows on roller coasters. I actually really enjoyed the camera work they did for Aftershock with the catch cars, and there's always a high energy vibe from the narrator, the enthusiasts, and the editing. But of course, the geek inside of me cringed at the over-exageration of ride elements, the incorrect matching of narrator explaining the element and the clip being shown, the ride selections for the given categories, a vague understanding of the categories (g-forces are more intense the longer they are sustained, not necessarily how high or low they can get...), not enough Robb, lack of coasters outside the U.S., and the biggest insult: The almighty Montu lost to a Vekoma clone. But I'll still watch the show. Maybe someday a TPR member will be able to launch his or her own series and get it right. For now, this is the closest thing we've got!

I have never had to do the walk of shame myself either. But when I was an attendant for Batman: TDK, I had the displeasure of sending my best friend from the front row to the big boy seat...on my very first cycle with the general public.

Don't know if anybody mentioned this yet, but when I was at the park yesterday, the Flashpass line for Bizarro now welcomes single-riders.

^^Well, since they like to put rides that "cannot operate in wet conditions" in a location where they literally have a wet season, that's a "yes".

I was at SFNE today. While waiting to board the train, a kid wearing shorts bearing the American flag openly announced, "THIS RIDE MATCHES MY PANTS!"

^Amen! I have to say that my biggest guilty pleasure are watching stupid movies that are aware they are stupid movies. Movies that have simple plots or ridiculous plots, but are easy to follow along. As long as the movies put together strong characters and actors who fit the role perfectly, then I can forgive just about anything wrong with the story or the effects. If the actors are having fun with it, chances are I'm having fun with it. Movies like: Snakes on a Plane Final Destination Tremors Wanted The Happening Half of SYFY original movies On the contrary, I really dislike stupid movies that try to pass themselves off as something more dramatic than they really are. The actors usually try way to hard, and attempts at meaningful dialogue usually sound good in ones head (or maybe a fanfic), but sound really stupid on the screen. Movies like: Just about anything from Michael Bay 10,000 B.C. Battle: Los Angeles The Last Airbender The other half of SYFY original movies

This is the truth! I liked Brave, but it definitely didn't feel that much like a Pixar movie. The plot was very safe, and didn't take many chances (well, actually it did with some of its body humor, but it didn't take any risks structure-wise). The humor was more along the lines of slapstick instead of the clever mix of dialogue like we found in Toy Story. As you approach the climax, you can easily guess what will happen up until the end of the film. Also, I felt like it was trying to jam in as many lessons as it possibly could into its short, animation run-time, so at times the movie felt messy. But the animation was FANTASTIC, Merida's hair alone is probably a miracle in and of itself; and the kids in my theater had a great time. And because I'm such a Pixar fan, I can't bring myself to rate Brave any lower than three out of four stars.

Nothing really sticks out to me as a bad spot to have put a coaster, but I think if I had to choose something close, I would pick the late Nightmare at Crackaxle Canyon at the Great Escape. But only because the box it was in, the setting, and the log flume adjacent to it led me to believe that it wasn't even a roller coaster until after I left. And there are also the coasters in settings that are more annoying than poor decisions. Scream at SFMM for the parking lot. Lightning Racer not getting the attention it deserves, but at least it makes lines really short.

During a casual visit to SFNE a couple years back, I don't quite remember the exact reason, but my sister and I decided to hit Cyclone first. The entire north end of the park was empty, and we got to Cyclone long before anybody else did. Grabbed the front row, and had a rather relaxing time on a wild ride. Then there was Ocean Beach Park in New London, Connecticut last year. Me and my girlfriend weren't just the only ones on a ride, we were practically the only ones at the park (everyone else was at the beach). We thought the park was abandoned, but you just have to find an employee standing around and ask them to operate the rides for you.

Survival - Muse EDIT: It's one of their new songs (and was chosen as the official songs for the 2012 summer Olympics). At first I was skeptical, but it grew on me rather quickly. Love it!

^^I don't think there is a good comparison (in America at least) of how it will feel. It really is the strongest airtime I've felt on a coaster.I don't think all the reviews in the world on Skyrush can prepare you for the air it offers.

I've never read the book and I've only seen parts of the mini-series, but it seems like the general consensus of the 1990 mini-series is people were genuinely terrified by it, or thought it was hilarious thanks to Tim Curry's hokey role (or thought it was horrendous). Whatever the case, the balloon motif from the series will be hard for me to take a remake seriously, unless it employs dark comedy. I still talk in Tim Curry's voice every time I see something floating.

I just finished watching The Mist for the first time. It was a movie I've wanted to see for a couple years now, and the directorial credit was impressive; I must say I was rather disappointed by what I saw. First, I have to say that I love the premise of the movie. I think it's ingenious how the story is setup, taking an ordinary place that hundreds of people visit each day, but never expecting it to be a fortress. This allowed for some creativity as well as the reactions of an unprepared community to the onslaught of the creatures in the mist. It was the premise that drew me to the movie, but what killed it for me were the characters. Aside from the mediocre to simply awful acting, none of the characters were very interesting (well, except for the old lady). And as the movie progressed, the decisions the characters made became more and more stupid, even from the main character. The worst offender would have to be the evangelical lady (to those who watched the movie, you knew I had to go here). I get what her purpose was. I get that she was a representation of a false sense of control, and that people blindly following her was a means of grasping non-existent comfort; but the way it was executed was extremely annoying! For one, the lady playing her was probably one of the worst actresses in the movie, but the point the writing was trying to make was driven way too long, making her scenes unbearably lengthy and making the point of her character out of control. While I'm pretty sure she wasn't meant to be an anti-Christian tool, I really REALLY hope that other viewers don't think all Christians act that way. Finally, the ending really is one of the more clever (if not, depressing) twists I've seen in any movie, but I felt that it fell flat simply because I did not care enough for the characters, and the lead really did not sell it for me. Overall, the premise, setup, set pieces, cinematography, and the old lady were great. The special effects and the score were alright. The characters' conflicts with the monsters were thrilling. The characters' decisions and conflicts with each other were really annoying, and was supplemented with dialogue that people would flash odd looks to you if you spoke it in real life. Since many of these conflicts were prolonged, it messed with the pacing. I must say, I expected better from the guy who directed The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile. My rating: One and a half stars out of four.

Bad Romance - Halestorm (cover, and an amazing one at that)

Just finished watching season 1 of the Legend of Korra and I am NOT afraid to admit it. It's been a long time since I've watched an animated series, let alone from Nickelodeon, that has enveloped me so exponentially. The animation is breath-taking, the plot is surprisingly mature for a Saturday morning cartoon, it employs a beautiful score, and the characters have their own distinct personalities and they actually have flaws/make mistakes. This isn't some show that was quickly pieced together to distract your kids while you go watch football, or something; it was actually very well pieced together with character-development, conflict/resolution, buildup of atmosphere, and even some grisly moments that push the bar on "suitable for children". My only real complaint are some cliches here and there, and the love triangle is a bit distracting and underdeveloped; but I highly recommend the series, especially if Avatar: The Last Airbender was something that had piqued your interest.

After spending two whole days with my head in my Calculus notes, preparing for my test, it just feels so darn good to do absolutely nothing!

A few days ago, I had a dream that I was riding my most recent No Limits creation. I was towards the back, and my sister was towards the front. Midride, my sister yelled to me, "why aren't you screaming." I responded something along the lines of, "I'd rather not, this is a dream, it's not real." My sister laughed and said, "Yes it is! Come on!" I smiled, and then let out a nice healthy, "Aaaaahhhhhhh!" ... then everything went black. I opened my eyes and realized that I had just screamed out loud in my bed. I'm so glad my roommates aren't around.