OldJJman

At King's Island, Vortex's station used to be the station for the long gone Bat. If someone has a close-up pic of the station, you can see where the trains enter and exit, that there are cut-outs for the inverted track on top. Also, at Disneyland, in the gift shop for Buzz, an actual Peoplemover train was incorporated into the one of the cash register tables. I don't remember if it was there for Rocket Rods or not. Not to mention the three heads (Maxx, ? and ?) from Country Bear Jamboree, are still visible in the Winnie-the-Poop ride.

Expoland was an odd experience in that when we were there in September, there was our group of 6, and MAYBE 15 other people in the park. It was really odd, but we did manage to have fun. Here are a couple of pics of the sectioned off portion of Fujiun Raijin II where the accident occurred:

There's not enough bandwidth on this site for that!!! JJ

Happy Birthday Elissa!! Love ya!! JJ

I'm sorry, but that statement alone has "fanboy" written all over it!! I would like you to cite, just ONE, poll that is "more legitimate" than Mitch Hawker's polls. (Wood or Steel) Name ONE poll that is HALF as "legitimate" as Mitch's is. In fact, name just ONE poll out there that is NOT set up like a rigged election. Discovery Channel, The Learning Channel, Time Magazine, NY times, etc... All of the above entities have their own "coaster polls". Each one is NOT a "poll" but a popularity contest, where ANYONE can vote as often as they like. An example of ALL the above methods would be something like this: An election was just held. A poll was taken upon exit. 5 votes were cast for one candidate, 15 for the other. Yet, only 10 people voted. How did this happen? Five people voted once for one candidate, and five people voted 3 times each for the other, because it IS allowed. Even the highly revered (by parks, anyway) "Golden Ticket Awards" has it's problems. Granted, they generally send their ballots to people who are more well known travelers, but it does have problems with accuracy. For (an exaggerated) example: Ten enthusiasts have been to Williams Grove. Only one of them has been to Cedar Point. So, 9 people vote WG as their #1 park. The last votes CP as best, WG as #2.. By that voting method, (10 pts for 1st, 9 pts for 2nd, etc...) you have: Williams Grove 99 points (9 votes at #1, 1 vote at #2) Cedar Point 10 points (1 vote at #1) So, obviously, by this tabulation method, Williams Grove is a much better park! (Sarcasm intended) All of the "more legitimate polls" have absolutely NOTHING "legitimate" about them. They are nothing more than popularity contests that allow corrupt voting practices. In Mitch's polls, Mitch tries to ensure that there are NO people submitting more than one ballot. Sure, I would imagine some get through, but he does an incredible job at weeding those things out (via IP addresses etc...) Every person's vote is tabulated, and then ONLY the "head-to-head" rankings of rides ridden, by each individual voter, are compared. Hardly a popularity contest like the others I mentioned. All of the info of how the info is gathered and processed can be found on his web page: Best Roller Coaster Poll So you might want to rethink your "opinion" about "more legitimate" coaster polls. JJ

Is it September yet??????

I, too, COMPLETELY agree with Eagle Fortress's placement in the poll. I, like a couple others, didn't vote in the poll due to the sheer numbers involved. However, Eagle Fortress really deserves it's place in the poll. Personally, I have it ranked at #4 (out of 670 steel). Here's the story from my perspective, of the TPR trip there last September. It was kind of cool and damp when we got there in the morning. We had ERT on Eagle Fortress. An Arrow suspended. Oh effen joy. Who cares. As we walked up, the little bit of the ride you can actually see, seemed rusted and dilapidated. Fine. Let's get the credit and move on. With massive amounts of apprehension on everyone's part, we slowly filled the seats of the train. The lift hill was a bit steep, still not revealing much of the ride. At the top where we disengaged from the chain, we were near the outskirts of the parks' perimeter. The turnaround was maybe 8-10 feet off the ground. As the last car came off the chain and we started going downhill, everything that followed was bat-out-of-hell, WTF was that!!! It just kept getting faster and faster, swinging wider and wider to both sides! Extremely smooth! We got back to the station and we were cheering. NOT a faux cheer, to please the host park (Everland) as can be common in many events, but a real cheer. The TPR people in the station who didn't make the first train, thought we were giving them the biggest BS of our lives. Yet, from that moment on, everyone tried to get as many rides as possible (myself included). The train never went out with an empty seat after that. The thing was absolutely amazing!! T-Express may be a large part of the draw for me to head back with TPR to Korea in September, but T-Express is still an unknown. Seriously, I could go back just for Eagle Fortress and be just as happy. It IS that good. Think Big Bad Wolf's drop over the Rhine river. With NO trim brakes. No shuffling. Side to side, past vertical. For a full minute. It is amazing. And, it's an Arrow! W-T-F??? JJ

A very nice video, very well done. (Warning: very slow loading - about 11+ minutes long.) I really enjoyed that park last summer!

With no offense to Joey, NOTHING could be farther from the truth! Florida's version is FAR superior, starting with the fact that they had a much larger building to work with. JJ

I'm just glad I decided to add Japan to the end of my China/Korea trip!!

Once again: Wes, DIE! JJ (Btw-my DD shirt is better than "cool Rich's", so I should get the hat!)

Good stuff so far Jahan!! Too bad that Thunder Run never opened up for you guys. That's my only reason for going back there (maybe Greased Lightning). So, why won't you ride a penguin themed ride??

If you're only in it to make a big credit run out of the trip, yes. However, Legoland is only open 10-5 on the Monday of your trip. Giant Dipper in Mission Beach is open until 8. But, I would find it hard to justify spending $$$ at DLR just for the credits, especially if you haven't been there in so long, know what I mean? Unless you're really a credit whore (like some of us), you're better off sticking off with your original plan of the 4 parks in 3 days. JJ

I'm not 100% sure, but I believe that the "Extra magic" hours are ONLY before the park opens to the public in the morning. If you have money to burn, sure. A quick scan of the cheapest Disney package available for the days you listed came out to $848.04, total for 2 people. Others may be more adept at finding packages, but that gives you a start. But, I do believe that surrounding hotels do have packages that do include tickets, so you may want to check into that as well. JJ

Elissa and I can vouch for this as well, as I was there that day! A bunch of us were in Orlando for a few days to do various parks. I wandered off on my own and went to MK. Splash was closed early in the day with NO explanation (typical Disney). I started getting paged by Elissa and others mid-day, as it had made the news that a 37 year old man had been killed on Splash. They actually thought it might be me, as I was 37 at the time.

I don't think that would be too difficult to do. Here's what I would suggest: 5/5 Leave SF at 4am as planned. Take your time as there will be no traffic at that time. Hit and conquer SFMM. Stay all day (hrs 10:30-6:00) as leaving early, you'll get stuck in rush hour traffic anywho. You might consider staying at the KBF resort hotel. For 3 days/2 nights it's about $440 and comes with breakfast, park entry and parking. With the added bonuses of food ($10) and park entry ($50 or $43 online), for 2 people, it's about $110/night, and save on parking. Not bad, not great, but worth considering. 5/6 Start out at KBF. Be forewarned, there are times that some of the rides in the back half of the park don't open until 11am. You can easily polish off the park by 1:30-2:00. Head over to the DLR resort. Pick up a 2 day park hopper. Head into DCA. Do what you want till they close at 6. Head over to DL, they close at 8. 5/7 Get over to DLR. No rush, both parks open at 10. I would say that you should do the big rides you may have missed at DL the night before first. During the middle of the afternoon, go back to DCA and hit what you missed and/or what you'd like to re-ride. Finish off D in the evening. Head home. That's pretty much how I'd do it, if I was taking my time. JJ EDIT: Bob (Gisco) and I think alike. Scary, I know. But you do get the idea of how it could easily be done. He just posted his first!

This took awhile. I broke it into 3 catagories: Gone, Moved, and SBNO Gone Motorcycle Chase/Wacky Soap Box Racers (KBF) King Cobra (PKI) Psyclone (SFMM) Flashback (SFMM) Chaos (Opryland) Wabash Cannonball (Opryland) Screamin’ Delta Demon (Opryland) Lightning Bolt (MGM-Vegas) Windjammer (KBF) High Roller (Stratosphere Tower) Python (BGA) Zingo (Bell’s) Orient Express (WoF) Scooby Do’s Ghoster Coaster (PKI) Hercules (Dorney) Batman and Robin: The Chiller (SFGAd) Viper (SFGAd) Jumbo Jet (Coney Island) Flyer Comet (Whalom) Spellbreaker (Legoland, CA) Dare Devil (FFC, Upland, CA) Storm (Botton’s Pleasure Beach) Bullet (Flamingoland) Thunder Mountain (Flamingoland) Cyclone (Southport) King Solomon’s Mines (Southport) Big Apple (Southport) Wildcat (Southport) Black Hole (Alton Towers) Runaway Coaster (Rotunda) Tornado (Walibi Belgium) Texas Cyclone (SFAW) Viper (SFAW) Serpent (SFAW) XLR-8 (SFAW) Beaver Land Mine Ride (GL) Hypersonic XLC (PKD) Wacky Worm (Myrtle Beach Grand Prix) Hurricane: Category 5 (MBP) Little Eagle (MBP) SBNO Nightmare Mine (Frontier City) Screachin’ Eagle (Lesourdsville Lake) Big Dipper (GL) Raging Wolf Bobs (GL) Mind Eraser (GL) Double Loop (GL) Megazeph (SFNO) Rex’s Rail Runner (SFNO) Muskrat Scrambler (SFNO) Mad Mouse (J’s Amusements) Scenic Railway (Dreamland) Villain (GL) Zippin Pippin (Libertyland) Cyclone (Williams Grove) Blue Streak (CLP) Devil’s Den (CLP) Moved Mountain Express (SFMM-> Now in Mexico) Corkscrew (KBF->Silverwood) Sarejevo Bobsleds (SFMM->SFAW->Scrap) Rock-n-Roller Coaster (Opryland->Old Indiana->GE) Shockwave (SFMM->SFAW->Scrap) Hangman (Opryland->SFDK) Vampire (SFKK->SFNE) Super Screamer (Adventureland->Pharoah's Lost kingdom->Scrap) Serpent (Lesourdsville Lake->Kokomo's Fun Center) Serial Thriller (GL->MA) Viper (SFoG-.SFKK) Orient Express (SCBB->Palace Playland) Greased Lightning (PGA->SFDK) Stealth (PGA-.Carowinds) Whirlwind (Knoebels->Parque de Diversiones) Starliner (Miracle Strip->Cypress Gardens) Magnum Force (Flamingoland->La Feria Chapultepec Magico) Batflyer (Lightwater Valley->World in Miniature) Traumatizer (Southport->BPB) Gauntlet (Camelot->New Pleasureland Southport) Klondike Gold Mine (Drayton->Funland Amusement Park) Super Dragon (Drayton->Funland Amusement Park) Looping Star (Dreamland->Loudoun Castle) Blue Coaster (Dreamland->Khurais Plaza Shopping Mall) Wild Mouse (Dreamland->Loudoun Castle) Magic Mouse (Rotunda->Fantasia Luna Park) Serial Thriller (SFAW->GE) Mayan Mindbender (SFAW->Wonderland Amusement Park) Ultratwister (SFAW->SFA) Greased Lightning (SFAW->Joyland Amusement Park) Steel Venom (GL->Dorney) X-Flight (GL->PKI) Dominator (GL->PKD) Wild Maus (BGE->BGA) Revolution (Libertyland->DelGrosso's) Crazy Mouse (Myrtle Beach Grand Prix_>Wild West World->SBNO) Wildcat (Williams Grove->Adventure Park USA) Mad Mouse (MBP->NASCAR SpeedPark) Deja’ Vu (SFGA->Silverwood) JJ

ACTING???????? Sure had me fooled! JJ

Maybe I'm the only one that thinks this, but I actually hated the Haunted House at Knoebels. It just felt cheap and rushed, and the gags, I thought, were mediocre at best. I much preferred ones like Phantasmagoria at Bell's, and the ones at Lake Winnie or even Conneaut Lake. Personal preference I guess. JJ

Having been on all three, I would give the nod to TDS "Crystal Skull". The queue was much more interesting and detailed. The effects throughout the ride were all top notch, and I never felt bored or waiting for something to happen. PLUS: Paco>Eyeore!!! When you get to "Forbidden Eye", it's just a "hit or miss" on what effects will be working that day (or even time of day). Like someone else said: Dinosaur is just wasted warehouse space. BUT, I would have to give a second place vote to Pharaoh's Fury at Lotte World. It is such a good and perfect rip-off of the Disney Indiana Jones rides, and it has TON's of fire effects, the smoke ring, SNAKES, etc.. It was a pretty cool ride, with an enormously long (but interesting) queue line. JJ

Probably not, Jeff is a cross dresser and he liked to take off his bra and hang it on the 2nd lift hill. NOT! When we were there in 2002, the entire approach to the second drop had about 10-15 bras draped over the railing. All we could think was WTF??? It's on the video that Robb did from the ACE ECO trip. Unfortunately, I didn't see it listed in the archives here. If he has time (which I doubt) maybe Robb can dig it up at some point and repost it. JJ BTW- Bob, DIE!!!

I love it, and I hate it! I miss the bras at the top of the second lift hill.

Being known as a coaster enthusiast by almost all of my customers (Where did you go on vacation this time?), the point that keeps coming to me is that of line-jumping. (I understand that this is not just a SF problem.) A lot of people have had MANY bad experiences with that at SFMM, causing them NOT to want to come back. Signs being posted, never have been, and never will be, a deterrent to line jumping, as the employees are generally too complacent to do anything about it (due to physical size, and/or LACK of security). Is there ANYTHING being done to address that major "guest experience" problem?

^I would never do such a thing!!! Besides, then you could see my depends.

I love any/all of the queue jumping systems!! Granted, I've been to quite a few parks, sometimes for a full day. But sometimes, I'm just going in for new credits, and have a tight schedule to keep. That can be due to flights, distance to next park, etc... A good example: A couple of years ago when Kingda Ka opened, Great Adventure was the last day of a 5 day trip. The Sunday of Memorial Day weekend. I had to catch a flight at 5pm. It meant, at the time, I had to leave the park by 1pm. I had 3 hours. I had no problems choosing the Gold Q-bot! No running to Ka, nothing. First thing we did was go get our Q-bot. Took a few minutes. 15 minutes later, with a 2.5 hour queue, I was on KK (hated it - btw). We decided to ride it again. Took all of 20 more minutes. We even had to wait, (ooooh BFD) as they merged the lines at the station. By this time, the local radio station broadcasting from in the line, was proclaiming that the line was in excess of 5 hours long! I believe it. Thank God I didn't have to wait! We also got in 4 rides on Nitro before we left. I could have waited in line, for ONE ride, and possibly not ridden anything. Why did I only leave myself 3 hours to visit there? Because I saved almost $230 on airfare by coming home on Sunday, as opposed to Monday. I CHOSE to make the most of my day AND my hard earned dollars. With my schedules, it was probably my only chance to get there that year. I made sure I made the most of it. On the TPR Spain trip, we got the passes and used them very effectively. On the rapids ride, we got in 3 rides in the amount of time for the stand-by peeps to only move about 1/3 the way through the queue. As far as spending money on food, deal with it! Any SMART person would be eating a filling breakfast before spending an entire day at a park. We all know that, in general, theme park food (OK, SF and CF) is crap. Not surprisingly, no matter what park you go to, you see tons of "families" (since that seemed to be the focus of Yoshi's argument) that, throughout the day are tailgating it in the parking lot. To save money. So, why in the hell would you want to eat there in the park? The SF debacle about no re-entry was erased before it was ever implemented, due to the outcry over the internet. Yes, it was on their website, and if I remember correctly, it was removed in less then 72 hours, never to see the light of day. So, that argument is a total loss. Besides, how many fast food and normal restaurants are near amusement parks. Tons. Walk, it'll do you some good, and you'll get better food at a cheaper price. I live 10 minutes from Disneyland. If someone goes there for the first time, and the only chance they get to go is on a Saturday in July/August, they'd NEVER ride everything they wanted to, and certainly not more than once. Being a local and using FASTPASS system, I can get anyone on EVERY ride in the park, usually with 3-4 hours to spare, to re-ride anything they want, and never being in a rush. A little knowledge goes a long way. No knowledge is just that, uneducated. Long live the legal queue jumping!!! JJ