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I was always turned off by it as a kid, and while I've learned (partly thanks to TPR) that I'm able to watch it, I'm still not a "fan." (I've never cared for cartoons, so don't expect any academic criticism here, haha.) That said, I was hugely impressed by, and perhaps even loved the simulator at USO. The theming and even the ride experience itself was top-notch, not to mention more thrilling and satisfying than many simulators.

"Life of the Liar" - Cotton Mather New album, "Death of the Cool," came out yesterday. WOW.

"Cherry Mine" - Jon Waterman I feel kind of really uncomfortable, yet intrigued by this album. It's about historic disasters...has a cool, appropriately folky sound to it, though...

One of my home parks, Enchanted Forest, always gets into a tizzy over this and tells their fans to request it get changed. They're understandably afraid that people will think it's true.

I'm always heartened to hear such positive reviews of Lagoon. I don't think I initially had the impression that it was so highly regarded, but I've been hearing that from often well-traveled people for a while now. At minimum, the ride collection seems above average, but a lot of other things sound like icing on that. Glenwood Caverns sounds like a place where the all-day pass would be well-warranted and the coasters are not the highlight. I don't know if I'll have a reason to do so myself now, but it was interesting to hear about the Amtrak ride. Always good to know where non-car options are feasible when it comes to theme parks.

Since my last post: 600. T3, Kentucky Kingdom (2016) Previously: 100. Wacky Worm, WOF (2010) 200. Superman: Ultimate Flight, SFGAdv (2011) 300. Lightning Racer: Lightning (2011) 400. Carolina Cyclone (2012) 500. Goofy's Sky School (2013) I'd totally forgotten that it took me nearly three years to progress from 500 to 600, although I do remember that one of the intervening years was decidedly low-credit. (These have all been decided based on what I considered accurate at the time of original counting. My tiny number of retroactive credits I've added as the "latest coaster" whenever I ruled each one as countable.)

I've been on team living bacon since the first of the month. As people have shown zero hesitation in pointing out, as if I don't have nerve endings (okay, a few folks actually helped me out). Have you used (or perhaps regretted not using?) bug spray at all this year?

Well, I needlessly walked through a sliver of Splashin' Safari to get to Voyage and Thunderbird. Is there a dog in the same room as you right now?

Cool, very cool. I hope that's permanent, which seems possible as they've got several in storage in addition to the astounding number played daily. The huge Wurlitzer 165 just hangin' out across from Phoenix creeps me the heck out and I won't go near it (not a dig, I'm just weird like that), but I love the tunes it plays!

^I do believe it's "tomorrow" now! Kidding, kidding. But take it as a compliment that I was thinking of pestering you to finish this when I noticed you hadn't posted Seabreeze yet. As I have and/or at some point will make very clear, I share your fascination for the park and carousel(s).

^For sure! The band is Cotton Mather, known in the 90s for their creative take on Beatles-influenced power pop (singer Robert Harrison is almost a dead ringer for Lennon). Kon Tiki is their best and most-loved album.

Pretty sure I got "spayed" once while trying to board a WindSeeker. It's not like I'm short-legged or anything so not sure how I managed to clock myself like that. Same thing when the restraint on Riddler's Revenge clicks up a notch too high (I'm always the one person who has trouble adjusting it right). TMI? Sorry!

^I've got a favorite band based in Austin; they haven't played much in a long time, but hopefully that'll change with their upcoming projects.

(Not that anyone doesn't trust Larry but) all of this is correct. ^And David, all I got the last time I went was "Stop taking pictures of the horses!" which I deemed fair enough. I thought the ride itself might kill me, though.

Wow, I'm pretty impressed that they added an unlimited "coaster tour" and that the front seat option is now "front/back." I'm not the biggest fan of line-skipping systems that keep you to a schedule, but I've always liked that Kennywood offers a variety of options, including different sets of rides and even a la carte.

Um, that would be this. Because. Reasons. I mean look at the guy. What better way to celebrate my birthday, right? I figure glam metal fans are no longer prevalent in today's society, and most have probably been there, done that (during better days which I may or may not envy), so I'll just give a quick rundown. I am not adjusting too much for personal bias, of which there is plenty. Enchanted Rock Fest: The Rankings 1. Warrant: Because I wasn't all that impressed with the band before I first saw them live and sometime during that set, that all changed, profoundly and permanently. (I was just as confused as you may be.) Somehow, this time lived up to that high bar. I will never understand how a garden-variety, easily mocked (but good!) hair band with a (sexy) replacement singer can send chills down my spine like that. 2. RATT: It's not really Ratt, but you can't resist singing along to all those hits. I got the setlist! 3. JRGW: Strictly a greatest hits type set, so nothing new for me, but you go for the vocals above all else and that, as expected, was not lacking. 4. Bret Michaels: I'm not a huge fan of Poison because their songs are silly and make me dumber. I was kind of a Bret Michaels fan before I knew too much about him. Also a fun singalong set with covers and Poison hits. Bret has a lot of energy! One of my favorite bassists (Eric from Cinderella) showed up for the encore. 5. Firehouse: I'm not really a Firehouse fan. Too ballad-heavy, for one, so the fun for me here was in a couple of the rockers. I DID enjoy meeting them, though. 6. Steelheart: I wasn't familiar enough with them initially to be that interested, but I liked what I heard. He still has some pipes on him, for sure. There were definitely some superfans in the crowd so don't feel too bad. Firehouse: a band I have met. I had one of the best views, both in general and while this shot was taken. (Robert Mason from Warrant)

I find that very hurtful. Oh, wait, you weren't talking about me.

Wow. Those pictures are brutal in terms of how...just...wrong that is. That's definitely one of those things most of us don't seriously expect to happen, like, ever. I hope everything works out as well as it possibly can for the victims, loved ones and witnesses.

Sometimes, to make myself feel better, I pretend this actually makes sense. Like it's referring to "a break in the action/taking a break" or that something is technically "breaking" in a non-harmful sense. But that's just denial on my part. At least it's better than the countless enthusiasts who fail to use the word "ridden"...

Have you posted a review by any chance? It's only very recently that I've seen anything but fairly extreme criticism of the place, to the point that I've been strongly considering not going there even knowing that Silver Comet is often considered worth riding. And I'm relieved to hear that the air gates are potentially non-hateworthy.

^Unfortunately...

I haven't heard about this place in a while, but I've long wanted to ride Swamp Fox, and it sounds like it's still plenty of fun. Shame about the particulars of the carousel, but that tiger/horse hybrid (I thought those were usually black and white and called zebras?) is kind of charming in its own special way.

^I'm a bit more concerned that I seem to have legitimately forgotten the term ride op(erator)!

Sweet! I have a sort of middling opinion on this park, but it was certainly on my must-get-back-to list for the awesome-looking flying coaster, and because it has a fairly decent ride collection as it is.

Exactly this, to my understanding (as I've seen it reiterated many times when this comes up). Whipping is a separate issue that can cause damage, and effective snapping techniques don't require it. The fact that some employees (or a single longtime employee?) are known to discourage or disallow snapping seems unrelated.