netdvn

Are these trains being produced by Rocky Mountain or is SDC going with another company in the same vein of SFOT and Texas Giant? I'm seriously digging these new themed trains. After seeing these and really loving Texas Giant's Cadillacs, I'm hoping FT goes with some awesome looking trains for Iron Rattler.

Curacao Curacao was a pretty interesting port. The city was divided in two by a huge river with a high rise bridge crossing in the distance and a floating bridge in the downtown area. Like Aruba, I wish we did a lot more stuff here, but we decided to walk it out and save the excursions for a future vacation. The island itself while not as touristy as Aruba was, still seemed to have tons of stuff to do all over the place. The main downtown area has lots of small shops scattered around narrow walking paths, so at least this port was more walking-friendly. All the buildings themselves are designed to look and feel European (at least that's what I gathered). You had to take a bus to do all the beaches though. We basically walked the downtown area checking out the small shops, then headed to the other side to check out the hotels. The entrance to the port is actually a huge resort overlooking the harbor and an old fort that's been repurposed as a place with restaurants and small gift shops. The sky was overcast for much of the day, so I couldn't get great shots. The island seems like it's got power plants and factories scattered all over the place. Looking toward downtown Not sure what this is. I think it's a government building. The town's city hall/governor's palace sits in front. Welcome to Curacao Me and my mom looking toward the port. This seems like a pretty industrial island. I don't think I've ever seen an island with this many power plants/factories in view before. I think this is some sort of oil drilling/refining area Like the other islands I've visited, Curacao really knows how to dress a place up for tourists. Stay Klassy I'm sure these pics would've turned out better if the sun was out. Rest in peace There was a tour group inside, explaining the history of the fort. The entrance to the fort from downtown The floating bridge thing was actually pretty cool. It takes about 15 minutes to unhook the bridge from the port and drag it across the canal so boats can pass through. Two bridges in one! Construction junk or art? The downtown area looks pretty cool. I guess you could say this is a pretty charming city. Every building is virtually a different color. It's like walking through a rainbow. I kinda regret not going back into the town to take more pictures later in the day. This city sure loves its colors. More to come soon. I'll be sure to get to the theme park stuff later too! Thanks for reading!

After riding BBW, I'd love to check out the other suspended coasters this world has to offer before they go extinct forever. BBW was a pretty awesome ride (even the first half going through the village was a ton of fun, plus that small drop diving toward the shack really kicked me in the gut the first time I rode). I seriously wish more of these coasters were built. Maybe if a park contracts Vekoma to build something insane, they might make a return.

It's a shame to see two SF parks lose classic rides in the same year. Then again, maybe it's just me but I feel, a small ride like this would go great at Magic Mountain or Great Adventure. Anyone know if the ride is getting scrapped or sold?

Anyone know why Liseberg decided to announce this ride two years before it opens when most parks announce their new rides the year before? I don't think Liseberg's announced any of their other major rides this early.

A lot of theme parks were built in the middle of nowhere and still survived (Disneyland, WDW resort, SFGAm, KD, SFGAdv). Granted a lot of these parks were built in large markets that didn't have many major parks to compete against (except maybe Disneyland), but still. It can happen. That being said, with the bad economy and the fact that many larger new projects never got off the ground, this probably won't happen in the near future or the project will be scaled down. I'm not holding my breath for this project.

The flyer and water park expansion were added long before SF decided to sell parks off.

1) Invertigos in general are junk. They're known for being unreliable and stalling in the cobra roll. I'm not surprised Two Face was removed. 2) Premier bought way too many properties in the 90s on top of morphing into the SF chain as we know it today. Buying up parks for the sake of buying up parks isn't really a good idea. SF figured flagging everything and then throwing 2-3 years worth of coasters on top of the newly flagged parks was a good idea. We all know how that plan turned out. 3) Ultra Twister was damaged in shipment, so SFA couldn't build it even if they wanted to.

I don't see how people in SoCal can't appreciate outdoor family attractions like Dinosaurs Alive. Especially families with children (because kids love dinosaurs). Dinosaurs has done exceptionally well at the other CF parks, otherwise CF would've just kept it at KI. Plus it would be not only a suitable replacement for the old KOD attraction, but it would bring some extra revenue into the park. Space-wise, if Grona Lund and Indiana Beach can squeeze coasters into their parks, Knotts can do it too. Doesn't matter how big the park is. All that really matters is whether the park is willing to make room for other rides. Everyone said Cedar Point didn't have enough room for a new coaster and then they got Gatekeeper.

All wooden coaster tracks are like that. Wooden coasters pretty much run on steel strips that are supported by wooden beams, so technically Topper track is a variation of that.

Considering the park got rid of a dinosaur-themed attraction a while ago, I'm surprised nobody's considered bringing Dinosaurs Alive to Knotts. This is pretty much the only major CF park without one. Perhaps if they razed the old KOD building and replaced it with an outdoor walkthrough, it would be a smash hit like the other Dinos Alive attractions are. I'm sure Knotts has plenty of room to work with regarding new coasters/rides. They managed to squeeze plenty of coasters on that plot of land. There's no reason why Knotts can't squeeze a few more on top of the existing rides/attractions.

Most of those manufacturers brochures can be found at trade shows like IAAPA. I don't think you can directly contact those companies for a brochure catalog unless you're associated with a park.

In reality, SF wouldn't have purchased anything in 2007. I believe they tried selling a lot of their properties at the time (including MM). Nightfire is a cool name change. Doesn't sound very CF-ish at all to me. The other ones, I don't really mind, although the SF Z-Force name change bugs me. SF had rides called Z-Force already, so chances are they would've kept the name and added some other attraction called Superman somewhere else in the park.

SFOG already has a drop tower and a hypercoaster anyway. No point in adding more of those.

I'm surprised Hardee's ranked at the bottom of the list for service. Last time I ate at one, I easily had the best service of any fast food joint ever. McDonald's/BK, I try to skip for other fast food places. There are far better options out there. Mickey D's has good food, but I've had it one too many times to care anymore. Having tried Five Guys last July, it was fantastic. Granted Hardees and Chick-fil-A still have it beat out, I'd rank it among the best chain-style fast food places. Plus any place that doles out free peanuts is a winner in my book. They definitely deserved the accolades they were given. In n Out burger is on my bucket list, although I have a feeling I'll be disappointed.

You're still one of the best model-builders on the site. No reason why I can't keep following this. I'm glad to see you're still working on this project and not leaving it off to the side. It's getting better and better.

Best views ever? I'm not 100% sure. I'm sure there are other coasters out there with fantastic views. High Roller (even though it's defunct) definitely comes to mind, especially at night seeing the Strip lit up below. My coaster-riding experience is still rather limited though so I've seen some good views, but nothing too fantastic. I'll say those views are pretty impressive. If they aren't the best views on the planet, they're definitely among the best. Anything overlooking water or looking out toward a city with towering skyscrapers is bound to deliver an impressive view.

Was it built before or after 2000?

Is it a launch coaster?

Does the park have an SLC?

Is the coaster sitting in a corporate park or a smaller park?

Did the coaster open before or after 2000?

Is it produced by a European manufacturer?

Is the coaster taller than 100 feet?

I just got a new batch of stamps and I'm ready to send stuff out. I'm currently looking for an Indiana Beach 2011 map right now. I've got a ton of stuff to offer 2012 SFMM map 2012 SFGAm map 2012 BGW map (Illuminights, regular season, Howl O Scream) 2011 BGW map (Illuminights) 2012 Busch Gardens Williamsburg brochure *thick 2011 Busch Gardens Williamsburg brochure *thick 2010 Atlantis Resort Aquaventure (Bahamas) brochure 2012 Jolly Roger brochure 2012 Splish Splash Long Island brochure/map 2012 Kings Dominion map 2012 Kings Dominion brochure 2012 Worlds of Fun brochure 2010 South of the Border brochure 2012 Busch Gardens Tampa map 2012 Busch Gardens Tampa brochure *thick 2012 Universal Orlando brochure *thick 2012 Walt Disney World brochure *thick 2011 Ocean Breeze Water park brochure 2010 Kings Dominion brochure 2009 Kennywood brochure 2009 Ocean Breeze Water park brochure 2009 Hersheypark brochure 2009 VA Beach Amusement Park brochure (small park, hard to find) 2009 Great Wolf Lodge brochure 2009 Busch Gardens Williamsburg brochure 2012 Fun Spot brochure 2009 Camelbeach brochure 2011 Carowinds map 2009 Kings Dominion brochure 2009 Go Karts Plus brochure 2009 Kennywood map 2012 Michigans Adventure map 2012 Legoland Billund brochure Verbolten press release Be the first to ride Verbolten flyer Be the first to ride Mach Tower flyer