netdvn

Man and I thought I had too much time on my hands.... But honestly this is pretty impressve!

I just picked up two Ocean Breeze Waterpark 2008 brochures (they don't have 2009 yet). So here's my updated list... Brochures: 2009 BGW x6 2008 Ocean Breeze Waterpark x2 Extra: 2009 BGW Event brochure x1 2009 BGW Adults at Kids Price coupons expires June 14th x3 --------- Reserve your spot for... 1997-1998 PCW Top Gun postcard 1997-1998 PCW Wonder Mountain postcard 1999-2000 NY NY Postcard Jan 1988 DL Space Mountain photograph

Coca Cola today doesn’t have cocaine in it anymore. Coke started phasing out the use of cocaine around 1903-1904 when they decided to use spent cocaine leaves which had most traces of cocaine removed. It wasn’t completely phased out until the late-1920s. http://www.snopes.com/cokelore/cocaine.asp http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/384/is-it-true-coca-cola-once-contained-cocaine

^ Now that you've posted it on the largest coaster enthusiast community that is viewed by hundreds of people each day, it's not really a secret anymore.

^ World's of Discovery was cancelled after InBev bought AB. And I'm pretty sure that if a Dubai park wanted a B&M, they would manufacture the parts in Europe.

Dan's Theme Park Artwork A Return to Cheddar Beach Part 7 Update!! I decided to head back to Cheddar Beach for the media event for their new coaster, Outlaw. I arrived before the crowds arrived just to take some pics of some of the different rides located inside the park. The new coaster was undergoing some testing while I was there. Here are the first few pics I've got. Outlaw and X-Scream Doom Stream is a heavily themed water ride which replaced an aging log flume. It was built in 1992. Millennium Dragon looms in the distance. The entrance to the park... In the distance you can see Millennium Dragon, Rocket Towers, and Taboo Tower. The sign overlooking the lake. This is one of the nicest-looking city parks in the world.

^ and Tigger too! < and Piglet too! V and Roo too!

I totally agree with you! It seems that everyone loves TTFAF because its on GH3. TTFAF is a good song, but there are much better Dragonforce songs out there! Revolution Deathsquad - Dragonforce (Best DF song EVER!)

^ So according to your friend, the ride will be a robocoaster? Dan - Aren't people sworn to secrecy on these things?

^ Actually I think SFGAm is tied with Alton with the most prototypes... Alton has the prototype dive machine and flying coaster while SFGAm has the prototype invert and the prototype coaster/stand up.

Cry for Eternity - Dragonforce (One of my favorites)

1. The major parks are already pulling in guests and making revenue. 2. In this economy, which "good" chains would buy the parks. This seems very unlikely. 3. Again, in the current state of the economy, I don't really see many new parks being built. And on top of that, the newest theme parks have fallen flat on their faces. On top of that, it would be extremely difficult to compete with already established parks. There would have to be something to draw people from the old, established parks to the new one. 4. Considering the fact that we haven't had a park building boom since the 70s, and add the fact that most major metropolitan areas are served by a park already, this would be very difficult to do. Refer to number 3. SF is both focusing on the parks through ride upgrades and maintainence as well as focusing on bringing the chain out of debt through trying to attract a larger audience (families). The idea sounds good, but it seems kinda ambitious to me.

Not anymore... They've turned over a new leaf and are quickly becoming the CF of 2000-2005. Its called paying off debt. What about Bizarro? X2? Texas Giant? Hell they even upgraded Monster Plantation to Monster Mansion!! All these rides got major upgrades with new theming, trains, and a fresh coat of paint! Maintainence does come first with new management. TripAdvisor is filled with a bunch of angry people that had a bad day at the park. Flash Passes and Q-Bots are there to make the company money and to add convenience to the guest. The prices are jacked up to get fewer people to buy, but give the park money so that the system is abused. They tried selling MM already and that pretty much failed to do anything. New management has changed the parks for the better. Last time I checked, there were fewer problems with "hoodlums" at SF in recent years. On top of that, they're trying to give themselves a more family friendly image so they have to turn over a new leaf. They've sold off a bunch of parks and even tried to sell MM and yet, we still don't really see much growth in amusement parks at all. On top of that, which major chain will purchase the park in the first place? With everyone trying to sell off their parks, I don't see this happening anytime soon.

Has anybody noticed that they spelled Greezed Lightning wrong in the coloring book?

^ I believe it takes about 7-8 hours to get to NYC from Williamsburg (where I live) if you decide to use the I-64 to I-95. The driving time is cut if you decide to take the Chesepeake Bay Bridge Tunnel.

Theme parks are basically upgraded amusement parks, for example, Holiday World is a perfect example of a basic theme park. It WAS truly the world's first theme park after all . The entire park is divided into sections which have a specific theme (holidays). The rides fit in with the surroundings (Raven and Legend are Halloween themed coasters in the Halloween section, Voyage and Pilgrim's Plunge are Thanksgiving-themed rides in the Thanksgiving section). The theming is FAR from the level of theming that Disney/Universal parks have, but all the rides/attractions suit the area they are placed in. Even though the rides are priority, there is still a basic theme overall. The Six Flags parks are borderline theme parks/amusement parks. Most SF parks started as theme parks, but over time, the theme still remained, but there was more focus on the rides/attractions then the theme. Now more recently, there has been a bit more focus on the theme with the ride upgrades, the Dark Knight coasters, Terminator, and Buccaneer Battle. CF is a chain of amusement parks. There is some theme (Maverick, Renegade, Prowler) but there is a much larger focus on concrete, trash cans, and coasters than SF has. They plop coasters where there is any space with disregard to the theme of the area (if the theming is still there). World class theming will enhance ANY ride regardless of being world-class or not. Space Mountain without the dome is merely a Whizzer-sized coaster. Being in the dark adds to the thrill and the theming provides a basic storyline to the ride. The coaster itself remains popular after all these years because... 1. Its a family coaster that children, teens, and adults can enjoy. 2. Nostalgia factor - Space is often considered the "first big coaster" for many. 3. Its the biggest ride at MK. If there were a bigger ride there, that one would be more popular. 4. Its dark so it provides a great way to cool off. 5. Space Mountain is practically the first thing you see when riding to MK. The structure is very big and very imposing. The structure adds to the anticipation making the coaster inside seem bigger than it really is.

^ I think this would help explain how the splashdown works... http://www.google.com/patents?id=3SeuAAAAEBAJ&dq=Bolliger+and+Mabillard The pool at the base of Matterhorn Bobsleds works the same way... There is a rumor going around that B&M will be developing a prototype coaster in the future, but nobody knows what it is or where its going.

^ I'll try to draw my concepts and post them here later... Griffon -- Add abandoned-looking buildings around the queue line. Talon-marks cover the outer walls and there are holes in the rooftops... The buildings both add to the theme and serve a functional purpose because it provides shade to those waiting. Inside the buildings, add some things strewn about to represent the chaos that the griffin caused to the French people living inside. Lying at the base of the main drop, a large building is with a huge hole in the roof where the train can fit through and the queue line is placed underneath. Guests waiting can look up and see the train going through the hole in the roof. Another building is placed right behind the immelmann with large talon marks on the side facing the coaster, creating a near-miss effect. The MCBR will remain unthemed, but the drop over the Rhine will be located in a large bell tower-like structure. The immelmann will remain unchanged. After the train exits the immelmann and goes up the hill, it will enter another building and exit through another hole into the splashdown. A final building sits at the end of the brake run where the random metal thingy is located (I'm not really sure what the metal structure over the final brake is). That one serves as a headchopper effect and is also part of the queue. I'll also place trees throughout the layout and some theming (like some of the old Le Man's cars) in certain parts of the ride area. ----------------------------- Now AC is a bit more difficult to theme because the sheer size and length of the coaster and the fact that it is in an open area. First thing I would do is completely overhaul the station. Get rid of the not very Italian-looking colors and convert it into an Apollo-themed temple (I believe there really is a temple devoted to Apollo that I can base this off of). The entire area around the ride looks like a carnival, not Italy, so I'll probably overhaul that area to look more like Ancient Rome. The trains would be gold and white since those are the colors that come to mind when imagining the colors of the chariot itself. The original story of Apollo's chariot involved his son wanting to control his father's chariot, but he had no idea how. When he took control the horses wouldn't listen to him. He would bring the sun too close to the earth and the people would burn to death. Then he would bring the sun too far away from the earth and the people would freeze to death, so the bottom of the hills would be painted a red color (to represent bringing the sun close to earth) and the top of the hills would be painted a blue color (to represent the sun moving away from earth and to match the color of the sky so the ride doesn't stand out as much). I would probably paint the supports a white color since it goes well with both red and blue. Sorry for the long-winded post. I'll try to post a visual reference as soon as I can.

What about BTMRR? Black Mamba? Crystal Wings? Manta? All are outdoor coasters and all are very nicely themed. Parks like MK and IOA don't really have a single overarching theme to them. Now parks like WOF, SFOT, and both Great Americas were built as theme parks, but over time, rides were built out of place and the theming was generally ignored. Because there is less focus on theming, I classify these parks as amusement parks. There are plenty of well-themed parks with huge lifts towering over the skyline and massive drop towers and coasters surrounding the skyline. For example BGW has massive coasters dominating the skyline, but the park also concentrate on theming their coasters and trying to make them fit in with the surroundings (although I do think they cheaped out on theming Griffon). Parks like these spend an equal amount on theming and try to focus more on thrills. Another example is the Happy Valley chain... If you look at rides like Crystal Wings and Dream of Meditterranean, the rides clearly stand out, but are still heavily themed. IOA is a theme park. Why? Because the park focuses on the theme overall along with the rides. The areas are heavily themed and the coasters no matter how large, fit in with the surroundings. I will end on this note... This is a theme park... Clearly the ride tries to blend in with the surroundings, but it still stands out. This is an amusement park... There really isn't a clear theme throughout. Some of the rides may be themed, but overall the park isn't consistent with the theming. And yes I made these myself... If you want to see more, click the link in my sig. I've got pages of stuff like this... [/shameless plug]

^ Behemoth and LZ/Time Machine are the only B&Ms built within the past few years that don't carry splashdowns (unless you want to count coasters like Tatsu and Goliath. The four DM's, Manta (technically its a splashdown), and LSHoF all have splashdowns, which means that they're increasing in number. Referring to my post above, the splashdowns are functional and pleasing to the eye, so I wouldn't be surprised if more started appearing.

On my recent trip to the Outer Banks I stopped by a Subway and found that they carried coupons for "Adults at Kids Price" admission to BGW which expire on June 14th. I have three in my possession right now and I'll be willing to trade them for theme park maps or brochures. If you're not interested, I'm pretty sure most local supermarkets and fast food places (like Subway) will carry coupons for discounts...

I believe splashdowns are meant to serve a functional purpose (to slow the train down), as a visual purpose (because they look nice), and as another way to cool guests off on a hot day. They are a gimmick, but they are a functional one so we may see more splashdowns on coasters in the future. Most recent B&Ms have splashdowns, but I'm not sure if the red hyper will have a splashdown or not...

Frozen Brains Tell no Tales - Buckethead

Please fleece please.... Fleece please!!!... Pleece flease? Pleece fleas?

^ Just be glad you didn't have to read Great Expectations. That was the most boring book I've ever read. There was no buildup to any exciting event, in fact there was only one exciting event in the entire book and even that didn't last very long. I had more fun reading the ingredients on the back of food labels... --- My 3 year old nephew has really gotten more irritable lately. He hasn't been taking his naps and he's been a lot more demanding! On top of that my younger brother has a habit of messing around with him, causing him to scream, cry, and yell constantly. I have absolutely NO idea how my sister can deal with him without much trouble every day. I guess being a parent is like having a second full time job.