PAL

By request, a few crappy cell phone pics of the defunct Texas Splashdown log flume at Sea World San Antonio. There's very little left. For the best view of the devastation, the Steel Eel is the deal. These photos, of course, are over the fence shots from the former entry plaza. There was a second construction wall up near the park's main entry plaza, presumably for their Aquatica expansion. Since photo trip reports are not my thing, I might as well take this opportunity to rate the rides. We live in San Diego, we sure as heck didn't bother with the shows. Steel Eel: 7/10. Delicious air in 1-3. Just a row back to 2-1 took much of the fun out of the ride. Smoooth, surprisingly so. Great White: 8/10. A G monster! Relentless, intense, fun, one of the better inverts out there. Definitely from the earlier B&M era, this thing isn't tall but it has sharp fangs. These two would be welcome assets at any park, typical Busch / Sea World quality. Bravo! The rest, not so much. Journey to Atlantis: 3/10. That low score is as a coaster. It has one short up and down backwards slide and that's it. As a water flume, 7/10. Wetter in the back. No story or theming to speak of. Rio Loco raft ride: 1/10. Dullest rapids ride I've encountered. Flat, level flume, no water features... it's 105 out, it's ok, you can splash us. Nope - got off dry. ZZZZzzzzz. For goodness sake, add a couple of water squirters! Shamu Express: DNR. Fenced out. We walked right by the former Texas Splashdown site the first time. That looks painful. The wide view. Sea World didn't waste any time. The opposite view, from Steel Eel. What is this, DCA? Here's the wall at the entry plaza. I'll speculate - for construction of the second gate, the upcharge Aquatica expansion. Bonus! Atlantis, the most popular ride in the park. It isn't much of a coaster. And finally, the wait time this warm and sunny Saturday, 2 1/4 hours. Quick Queue are us!

I can hear the "charmers" wailing already. Some won't care for the rumored giga, claiming it will destroy what little pre-CP ambiance remains. A ride of this size will encroach on a portion of Ghost Town. Personally I hope the rumor is true. The Windseeker move suggests something big is in store for the Roaring 20s section. Notice the sky cabin is still closed? Even back in the day this park occasionally pushed the limits. They've been quiet since Xcelerator.

Six Flags Magic Mountain on Thurs! Got to hit up the highly anticipated Mr Six Dance Coaster.

Great White at Sea World San Antonio finished up a week long Texas tour. It was an intense, g-packed finale.

^The spinner will go crazy if you unbalance the car with two people on one side and none on the other. We visited the day after your trip. I agree, the park is beautifully maintained. Operations, however, were lackluster. No sense of urgency in the ride crews, except the spinner. They kept it pumping.

I rode Shockwave at Six Flags Over Texas a few days back. A great old Schwartzkopf, with wonderful lap bars. OSTRs would wreck it. If it's a Six Flags policy, it isn't uniformly followed.

^I thought it was fine in March. Scratch that, it was better than fine. It was pretty good, with some intensity, a little air and minimal head banging. Rides can be so different from day to day.

^Yes they have eased up on the stapling. Just gentle pressure on the legs gets that light to turn green.

Not to come across all gushy... but damn, this is one freaking great ride! We journeyed to the center of Hell to ride this reborn steelwoodie (yeah, I know it's really a steelie), challenging temperatures in the triple digits. Didn't matter how hot we were (sweaty, melting disgusting messes), it was worth it. We managed 35-40 rides over the course of 3 days, spread among the various rows. Mostly we took it in the rear to the point it hurt to walk away that final day. I'm nearing 200 coasters, mostly major installations, and the New Texas Giant easily makes my top 5. The air is El Toro-like, minus some speed and height. On the other hand the station is brilliantly themed, whimsical, fun touches abound (hey-hey, Wile E!), it has not one or two but three rave tunnels, and the air (I know I'm repeating myself) is outstanding. I'd guess it has more airtime moments than El Toro if you count them. Congratulations to SFOT and to the people behind the Iron Horse track, and to Gerstlauer too for beautiful trains (ouch - hit my elbow on the reach guard again, minor quibble). Special thanks to Chadster for showing us around on Father's Day, getting us on 7 new credits during an incredibly busy morning.

Wow - they let that place go to hell. It makes Circus Circus look like a 4 star property. Thanks for posting a fascinating (and disgusting) set of photos Chad. You got your $10 worth! That view across the street is 3rd world - or Vegas. The city has a lot of reinventing to do on the north strip. It's turned into a wasteland.

^No, Poltergeist had only one train too - I forgot that one. Two ops in the station for every one of the rides, even Superman. No sense of urgency either. Big Spin had the best crew, followed by Poltergeist. The rest were south of lackluster.

Visited the park on Weds, a first time. Beautiful, much nicer than the typical Six Flags park. Operations though were typically poor. Rattler, the mine train and Goliath each ran one train. I timed 3 Rattler cycles: 5:35, 6:40, 7:25! Weak. I have a new worst woody. Rattler makes Mean Streak a walk in the park. Awful! We checked out the remodeled theater - very nice. Ovation's performers seemed genuinely talented too. The sound system was overly loud to the point of distortion and isolated feedback. We regretfully walked out. Superman was the class of the line up (of course). 7/10. The first half was great, loved the setting and the unique layout. Once we hit the break run it meandered pointlessly. I rank it 3rd among floorless coasters behind Kraken and Medussa, but above Bizzaro and Scream. Truthfully, the park didn't need better ops. The place was fairly empty, with the waterpark drawing the best crowds.

Yesterday was crappy to the max! I immortalized the moment appropriately, with crappy iPhone photos. But this is just the start. Many of the treasures discovered within our craptacular gift will come in handy soon. That's right, road trip! Attack crap! My kid has crap on the brain! You get the idea. A box within a box... Layer upon layer! How did they know? Robb and Elissa know all!

Do you boo grocery checkers when their operations are too slow? Stand up at your restaurant table to belch out a Bronx cheer when your food isn't to your liking? Booing in these circumstances isn't classy - neither is booing theme / amusement park staff in any circumstances. If staff at Tampa deserved it, there are other, more helpful ways to make your unhappiness known.

^^^Beautiful! It's so good to see Revo in its glory.

A week after surly malcontents booed the unfortunate crew staffing Cheetah Hunt on opening day, it happened again. The Happiest Place on Earth was anything but for 200 Star Tours fans who'd camped out overnight. Those first in line say park managers promised them a seat at the opening presentation - a press event. Denied. When a posse of park executives strolled by, the boos reportedly broke out. Life in a America, land of the fat and sassy, is far too rich and sweet. We the privileged enjoy the luxury to rain disapproval on those who provide our recreation. That's an abuse of free speech. Boo when you're in the bread line and the cupboard is bare - yes. Even boo the umps - it's tradition, an expected occupational hazard. Boo at the theme park? Someone's obnoxious sense of entitlement is showing. Don't like the service? Complain politely, and then take your business elsewhere if you're not satisfied with the resolution. Theme and amusement parks are not a right nor a necessity, although they sure make life fun and exciting. That's their purpose. If you feel the need to vent your spleen, you're doing it wrong.

^^That seems likely Gregg. The operational train is in beautiful shape, but it's just a guess. How long should annual maintenance on a two year old train take?

^^Spring break isn't prime time? It truly is disappointing the park is (still!) running one train on Apocalypse. Two steps forward, one step back. On balance, the park is still on the upswing. That's one reason these hiccups are so aggravating. A few crappy cell shots for your enjoyment (or not). Want to truly experience the horror of the Apocalypse? Introducing Magic Mountain's new ApocShot coaster standing platform. For the low, low upcharge price of $250 (plus a signed and notarized liability waiver), you too can strap in and hold on for dear life. Standing room only! The real reason for the lengthy TermApoc train rehab. The removal of failed theming requires the painstaking application of a hammer and chisel. Cheap suds these ain't at $7.50 per Bud and $8.25 for the others. 12-ounce bottles.

^Exactly - Deja and the left side of Supe were not planned downtime. Supe tested for a while in the afternoon, but I didn't see riders. Hopefully they eventually got it running.

It isn't all bad, not at all. The park looks great, the crews are no worse than average, and we experienced excellent service at Mooseburger Lodge. There's beer now, discreetly offered. A bottle of Bud will set you back $7.50; the better grade is $8.25 ea. There's little danger of rowdy drunken louts roaming the park.

Mosh pit madness as the gate opened this morning. We were near the front at the right-most staffed gate. Around 10:15 people started to bunch up to our right. From my perspective, the rest of the entry plaza was nearly full, so they may have been seeking elbow room. That's the generous take - once the gate swung open, all those people pushed and forced their way forward. It was a crush, a full-on scrum. No problem for an adult; definitely scary and potentially hazardous for a child. The park can and should do better. Open earlier when busy, put up a portable barrier by the edge gate, or staff more gates. It's busy here today, with the main lot full. Superman is running one train, as is Apoc (that train rehab is crawling!). Deja is sitting idle. Goliath queue is full. Gold is the day saver.

Looks nice, a good replacement for the manatees. We came through on Friday.

Larry, 10 minutes after I posted these another report popped up on the board with better photos - it soft opened today. The

Missed it by *that* much.

Sea World San Diego's new 2011 ride Riptide Rescue. ea World San Diego's Riptide Rescue, opening June 17 The ride sign? There may be another. This one's at the entrance to the new area.