bigboy

If it stays on course, the more easterly landfall puts Galveston on the clean side of the storm with wind, rain, and storm surge way below what they saw with Ike. They may dodge a bullet on this one.

I don't have an answer on that, but if crowds stay as light as they've started out and the inevitable late summer heat slows things down further, I don't know that I would let them doing ^that^ scare you away.

Good stuff. I love finding someone else that doesn't loathe Rip Ride Rockit.

The SA Zoo opened to the public on June 1. I’ve heard June 15 for SFOT but I’m not sure if FT will open before or after that.

I love Luke's. I don't remember what they call it, but we had the $40 feast where you get a ton of food on our last trip. Best meal I had in the city. The memorial and museum really are something everyone should take the time to see. The inner chamber of the memorial exhibition inside the museum is incredible. We stayed in there for over an hour.

Every indication has been in Texas that mass gathering places like movie theaters, sporting events, and amusement parks will be among the last businesses to open and, even when they do, it will be with a drastically altered operation.

I could care less if they ever fix it. I rode EE a half a dozen times before I even knew there was something that it had done at one time and wasn't doing anymore. It's easily my favorite ride at AK and probably one of my 3 favorite rides at the resort.

I've been led to believe the Yeti fix is a "months" project, not weeks and, since it would likely involve a contractor, it's not an on-the-fly, do-it-just-because-we're closed kind of job like disinfecting the trains or pressure washing a sidewalk.

I've always heard that the Yeti fix is cost prohibitive unless they take the ride down for a planned, extended refurbishment. I would assume that right now wouldn't work for that given that no one knows how long (or short) this shutdown will last.

Blog Mickey posted aerial photos of the parks this morning and that looks like a cropped/zoomed version of one of theirs.

I strongly suspect that the capacity on this will be through the roof. The movie ride could chew through a line pretty fast and this looks to be even better. We rode the movie ride on the second to last day with a good portion of the line outside of the building and still got on in around 45 minutes.

You obviously haven't been to Waco since the emergence of the Fixer Upper craze and the opening of the Magnolia Silos. It's already a tourist trap.

It's worth every penny, even with a crowd. It's far and away the best atmosphere I've every experienced in a park.

I would expect the closed rides to vary between now and spring break. From my experience working at the park, very few rides were rehabbed for the entire 8 weeks of the off season. Some were done in a matter of a couple of weeks. Of course I don't know exactly how extensive the current rehab is, but it's entirely possible that those 3 rides are back in operation in a couple of weeks and a different set of rides is down. I did hear that the Oil Derrick was open all weekend and it is normally fairly seasonal. They've had pretty bad weather luck thus far into year round operation with chilly low temperatures and highs staying in the 50s keeping the crowds low. This coming weekend should be interesting since it is supposed to be sunny and in the 60s with a south wind.

There are some a couple of pages back in this thread and SFOT Source had some over the weekend. There's really not much to see other than dirt turning and a few footers.

With that being the last Saturday before Christmas and the day after kids get out of school for the break, I would expect it to be pretty busy barring wet or below freezing weather. It's been pretty mild so far this fall and despite a cold spell this week I wouldn't be shocked if it stays mild going into Christmas. I haven't been to the park since September, but just following along the last few weeks on Facebook groups, it sounds like there's an early rush on Saturday at opening and then the crowds pick up again as it starts to get dark around 5:00.

They poured a very temporary looking slab and put a haunted house in a tent on the old Chevy show spot for Fright Fest this year. I wouldn't count on anything major happening there soon. They have their hands full filling in dead areas (there, Flume 1, Gold River) and rumor has it that the area encompassing that spot and Gold River will have to be raised out of the flood plain before anything can happen. Take that with a grain of salt since pretty much the whole dang park is in a flood plain.

Holy crap, that looks cool! I didn't want to watch a POV, but it's going to be April of 2021 before I get there anyway. I like the 2 different experiences. The effect of the light saber cutting through the roof in that one scene is incredible.

^This^ x 100. I've attended the show for work a dozen or so times over the last 20 years, and while I won't pretend to have any significant insight, I feel pretty comfortable saying that the overwhelming majority of the 25-30k buyers that attend are there for networking and practical ideas and education sessions that will make their everyday job easier. The audience that the new hotness is aimed at is pretty narrow. For the most part, the show floor hasn't changed all that much since I first attended in 2000. It was very heavy on VR and access and revenue software and equipment this year. A little light on practical equipment and supplies for the average operator. Inflatables seem to be on a downward trend and the haunted house equipment that came in awhile back was almost non-existent this year. The outside midway area was pretty thin this year and they're now up to 2 tents of exhibitors in the parking lot. It's hard to believe that they've finally outgrown the North/South building after moving the show there in 2003 when things were starting to look a little lean in the struggling economy. The building is about to expand in the coming years and I heard that there's a possibility of part of the show moving back over to the West building.

Isn't the guy that runs Texas Thrill Seekers the same guy that posted the ridiculous Herschend buying SFOT rumor to drive his social media traffic? Anyone that really knows what's going to happen with Gold River isn't talking and anyone that's speculating that wildly about what's happening with Gold River doesn't really know.

They require 2 riders in the last loaded seat of any train so that, in theory, there are 2 people that can see anything that happens to that train during the ride. It's come and go over the years and most recently resurfaced when the rider was ejected from NTAG. When I worked there in the mid-90s, it was explained as a insurance requirement and went so far as to say that all loaded ride units or flat rides had to have at least 2 riders. I don't know that it makes a whole lot of sense, but there is a reason behind it.

A 15 year lease is incredibly optimistic since I have serious doubts that the old stadium will still be standing in 15 years. The Rangers and the city have the option to tear it down and I can't see the value of the office space and the small team tenants being worth the upkeep and maintenance of such a large facility. At some point, it's going to make huge financial sense to redevelop the land or use for parking.

Be prepared for heavy traffic. Traffic going in stays pretty heavy through the late afternoon and it will be compounded tomorrow by a Sunday night Cowboy game next door. That could work in your favor since Cowboy game time is known for being a good chance to enjoy alternate activities with a smaller crowd. Grocery stores, movies, etc. However, I wouldn't count on that making a huge difference with the gorgeous warm weather and closing in on the peak of Fright Fest. If it weren't your first trip to the park, I would tell you to go enjoy the closing hours of the State Fair's season, but hey, go to the park, enjoy the weather, and make the best of it.

Even if they aren't walk-on, those are still really reasonable wait times compared to what you'll see during the day. I get that the crowds cut into the expected exclusivity of an after hours upcharge event, but I think this goes right along with the idea that there's no longer such a thing as a "slow" time at WDW, especially at Magic Kingdom. I would also point out that the wait time for Haunted Mansion is one that is consistently over stated. I've jumped in the line with a 30 minute or more advertised wait more than once and been in the pre show in less than 10. That thing is a line eater.

Thanks for the explanation. I didn't realize Riviera wasn't open yet. I've stayed at Caribbean Beach twice and, like the other moderates, it is nice, but very spread out. Getting to the common buildings and the bus stops can be a bit of a chore, especially in the heat and humidity. I've stayed at Pop Century twice in the meantime and I think I would choose there or Art of Animation going forward. The more compact layout (made smaller by spending a little extra on a preferred room) and the centralized bus pickup just makes for an easier stay. I can handle walking a little more if needed, but I don't feel guilty since we're walking like crazy in the parks. The room quality at Caribbean was no better than Pop Century.