disney4me2001

On a slightly unrelated note, any ideas on the crowds for Mother's Day (Sunday May 13th)? I'm planning on hitting either SFMM or USH on Sunday and the other park on Monday May 14th. Based on previous experience, will the park be deserted on Mother's Day, or would it be better to go on Monday?

The most terrifying meet-and-greet at WDW: "This, as you may recognize, is a maintenance service elevator, still in operation, waiting for you. We invite you if you dare to step aboard because in tonight's episode YOU are the star. And this elevator travels directly to...THE GIFT SHOP!" YOU MUST LOVE/BUY DUFFY!

Yes please! Another clue would be nice!

I just sent in my own email. I've never visited CGA (I'm from AZ), but I do visit SoCal multiple times per year, and a new coaster at CGA would be a good reason for me to make a special trip to NorCal. So I made a point of stating this in my email to let the city know that this decision could affect future tourism and that allowing CGA to go forth with their plans would make it a favorable destination for tourists such as myself. Hopefully it will help, although I'm assuming I'll get the same canned response that everyone has gotten. We can only hope that the Mayor and city council will actually take the time to read what we wrote!

Hey everyone, I found a couple of interesting videos at random, and thought some of you might like to see them. This one is the full pre-show film from Apocalypse: http://ao-ent.com/apocalypse/ And this one is a behind-the-scenes video talking about how they made the pre-show: http://ao-ent.com/the-apocalypse-behind-the-scenes/ The firm's site (http://ao-ent.com) also has a bunch of other SFMM promos, mostly the same ones that have been used in the queue lines at the park.

I only attended SFMM, but here are my thoughts: This is just speculation on my part, but does anyone else think that maybe SFMM offered less this year because of finances? Unless I missed something, Six Flags did just come out of debt. I'm no expert, nor am I proclaiming to be, but if finances played a role, I can see why the food and ERT wasn't as impressive as it's been in years past (such as only having to staff 4 attractions for nighttime ERT over 16-17 and serving a different, probably cheaper lunch). I think I remember someone at Q&A in 2011 asking why the event price increased, and the response was that SFMM had been doing WCB at a financial loss for a while, and so the increased price was necessary so they could at least break even. Maybe they opted to water down this year's offerings in favor of a price increase? If it is true that finances was the cause, then I'm thankful that there even was an event considering that it would be easy for them to just say "No"! If I'm completely wrong (which I know is very likely), then I'll just say that while the offerings this year weren't as extensive as they could have been, it was still a lot of fun! I did enjoy Neil and Tim's presentation (they're always really entertaining!), and of course I enjoyed ERT (X2, Tatsu, and Green Lantern specifically). It would have been nice if there had been backstage tours and more attractions open during ERT, but I'm not complaining. I'll take a scaled back event over no event at all. I do think that Jay played a role in making previous years impressive simply by attending and participating, so it would be nice if Bonnie could possibly attend next year (at least for the presentation portion if not anything else). And if backstage tours are offered next year, can we get tours of X2 and Superman? Just a suggestion. So again, although I obviously don't know why SFMM didn't offer as much this year, and although I'd like to see things like more attractions for ERT next year, I'm glad I got to attend this year and I will continue to come back! I do think it's important to give honest feedback so that the parks will get a feel for how they did and how they can improve, but I also think we should appreciate that they do West Coast Bash for us each year. With that said, thanks again to Robb, Elissa, the rest of the TPR staff, and everyone at SFMM for putting on this year's event! Although I didn't get to attend on Sunday, thank you to Knott's as well for participating in West Coast Bash- hopefully I will make it to both parks in 2013!

Thank you Robb, Elissa, Six Flags Magic Mountain, and the rest of the TPR staff for making WCB 2012 so awesome! Unfortunately I was not able to attend the Knott's day, but I did have a blast at SFMM! Can't wait for next year's Bash!

I agree with this, I think she was just referring to New Year's Resolutions and getting into shape. But I definitely wouldn't be disappointed if they did put in a Wonder Woman coaster...I mean, who wouldn't want to ride Wonder Woman?

Very nice! I just want to say thanks for posting coverage of IAAPA! I loved the videos, and I especially liked the photo of the Manta vehicle! It looks amazing.

I was at Knott's last week and noticed the music had changed. Personally I don't like it- I liked how the music fit the themed areas...my favorite loop was the 50s/60s loop that played in the Boardwalk area! Maybe this is temporary? If not, oh well...I go to Knott's for the rides, not so much the atmosphere haha!

I got my Bag of Crap a while back...I was away from home for a few months, came back, took pictures, and apparently forgot to post them (sorry!). But I'm posting them now! I want to say sorry to Robb and Elissa for not posting these pictures sooner, but also "thank you" for collecting all the "crap" and then being so willing to send it out! Also I would like to say "thanks" to Eric, who awarded me the Bag of Crap (it was through one of the facebook contests!). Anyway, on to the pictures! A map from a park...I'm honestly not sure which though (my guess is that it's from a park in Germany!). Next up, an ad from a Lady Gaga concert...haha! A preview copy of Kevin Yee's "Mouse Trap" (which is really cool since I also have a copy of the final published book!), a TPR DVD (I believe it's Coaster Expedition 8), a couple of Six Flags tattoos, and a Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party sticker! A crapload (see what I did there?) of maps and brochures from different parks! Love the HK Disneyland map and the Disney-MGM Studios schedule (since it's now called Hollywood Studios) And finally, some TPR mints and one of the infamous pens- they're magic, y'know! Which probably explains why I've been having such good luck since I received this Bag of Crap...

I am definitely interested, and I don't have an issue with only being able to cut the line for each maze once. The only thing that may be an issue is the date- I usually visit the SoCal parks in mid-October. If there's a chance future events like these could be made for somewhere around that time instead of in September, then I could make it to them easier (same goes with the Knott's Halloween Haunt event scheduled for Sept. 24th). I can understand that September might be easier for the parks to work with, so I realize that scheduling these events might not be possible in October. But what's included for the price range sounds very reasonable to me, plus I know it'll be a lot of fun since it's a TPR event! My favorite event is West Coast Bash, and I try to attend every year!

Great update! Looks like it was a lot of fun! Haven't had a chance to visit Tokyo Disneyland myself, but it's definitely on my to-do list. Thanks for taking time out of your trip to take lots of pictures and to share the experience with us!

I have that one on DVD! That's why I was hoping to get to BGW to ride it! But hey, there are still (from what I'm hearing) amazing coasters there, plus I'll always have a BBW POV on that DVD!

When I went in November '09 and this past April and October, it opened and closed with the park (so you could get in line 1 minute before park closing and still get a ride on it). But that's not to say that it doesn't happen...I've never been there in August like Tmcdllr has. Just ask an employee when you get there and they should tell you for sure. Have fun!

Never went either, but I do remember passing by it the one time I went to Vegas (which was almost 10 years ago).

Thanks for that info! I was wondering how much life it might have left...I had heard that they received X-LR8's trains after Astroworld closed and were using them for parts. But I too would be interested in seeing what they could do with that location. I think it would be nice if they could build something that uses the hill and passes over the log ride. Honestly I think that's what makes Ninja fun!

I thought Jay said that they had made upgrades to Ninja to ensure that it wouldn't suffer the same fate as BBW. Of course, my memory could be a little fuzzy since WCB was back in March, but I thought he said something along those lines. As you said, anything goes now since Jay's gone, but I thought all of Ninja's downtime last year was done to make improvements. If that's true, then I wouldn't necessarily expect Ninja to be the next suspended coaster to go, but I do agree that newer coasters are definitely more thrilling, so I won't be surprised when its retirement is announced. But of course, I'm no expert, I'm just going based on what I thought I heard at WCB...feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. Sorry for going off-topic, but here's what I will say about BBW...I never got the chance to ride it (I've never been to BGW), but I definitely would have liked the opportunity to do so before it closed. Just because it is gone will not prevent me from going there eventually, as there are plenty of other coasters there. But I get what locals and some other people are saying about nostalgia- it sucks to lose a favorite ride. Even though Rocket Rods at Disneyland wasn't the most thrilling ride out there, and even though it wasn't themed very well (not to mention the long lines and frequent breakdowns), it was still a favorite of mine as a kid and I miss it...so basically Rocket Rods was my BBW.

Agreed. I actually like this name, and I think it's a better retheme than the other Wiggles Worlds, even though this particular one is a water play area as opposed to a regular Wiggles World

I'm surprised that anyone on here even recognizes Castles and Coasters as a park! Although I do know Robb and Elissa did a TR of it a few years back. But yeah, I live about 40 minutes away from that "park" and yet I haven't actually visited in probably 5 years at least. I'd rather just fly over to SoCal and hit DL, Knott's, and SFMM, even though it costs much more to do so. So I agree with you, they really need some new rides! Their "big" announcements this year were (according to their facebook page): Justin Bieber concert Discounted ride passes Really, CnC? Really? Ugh...but then again, I keep hearing rumors of a possible second park being built somewhere in the Valley within the next few years, so fingers crossed!

I totally agree! I visit Houston every summer but I never got to visit this park. Reason being that I was there to visit family each time...but still, I would have killed for just one day in this park. And I would have had opportunities to visit the past couple of seasons if the park was still open. But hopefully Joyland will find a way to build Greezed Lightnin'! Other than that, my biggest disappointment this year is Jay Thomas leaving SFMM. While I'm happy he's at least still with Six Flags, and I do believe he'll be able to accomplish some great things at corporate, I feel that SFMM will take a hit. He seemed to do so well in helping to motivate the employees, in upkeep (i.e. the decision to repaint Goliath and Batman), and in overall operations. I also appreciated how well new park additions/improvements turned out under him (such as X2, Terminator, and although it wasn't very successful, Thomas Town). My trips to SFMM were much better while he was in charge than past visits had been. I don't doubt that Bonnie Rabjohn will do a good job, but it seems like she'll have big shoes to fill if the park is going to keep improving like it has over the past few years. Oh, and the other thing that disappointed me this year- the Intamin cable. It didn't do anything amazing this year.

That is a good point...I'm kind of interested in hearing what kind of answer they'd give haha But maybe they'll use the extra time they're closed to work on Terminator/Apocalypse? I doubt it but it's at least a nice thought...better that they start earlier rather than later, right?

I cannot wait for WCB 2011! The SFMM day was on my birthday last year, and it was awesome! During nighttime ERT, I literally had Batman: The Ride to myself! Pretty sweet. Of course, the Knott's day will be on my birthday in 2011, so I'm looking forward to that! Plus because I had such an awesome time last year, I'm suggesting WCB to a few friends. So thanks to Robb, Elissa, and everyone else who plans this out and does all that work so that we can all have fun. I'm sure I'll enjoy next year's event even more than this year's! On another note, I LOVE Superman's new colors! Hopefully we'll at least get a backstage tour if it's not open by WCB. Hey, I can dream, can't I?

Hey, I won this prize too! So congrats to both of us! I'm going to plan mine for sometime after Superman and Green Lantern open.

Oh wow...was heading out the door as this started, and I get back and it's 25 pages long! Wish I could've stayed at home and participated, but YES, please do more of these! This is awesome! Very clever and it looks like it was a lot of fun!