DirkFunk

Yes. Yes. This.

This is my feeling as well. The teaser campaign made this seem like it would be something brand new, never before seen. It is brand new. No one has ever built 3 different height S&S towers right next to each other. No one has ever built dueling Wacky Worms before, but that doesn't mean it sounds like a great idea. Wait, dueling Wacky Worms would be an AWESOME idea! They only count as one.

I take that back. Families would love dueling Wacky Worms. Great for kids. GP will eat it up. Enthusiasts just don't get it.

This is my feeling as well. The teaser campaign made this seem like it would be something brand new, never before seen. It is brand new. No one has ever built 3 different height S&S towers right next to each other. No one has ever built dueling Wacky Worms before, but that doesn't mean it sounds like a great idea.

THIS. Unless they build RMC's Voyage and take everything to the far limit, no way can it live up to expectations.

"It's great for the GP/locals/families." How many rides are universally panned upon announcement? Huge WGAF for me but I guess it adds to the skyline or something.

Because there's no demand for land requiring clean up and demolition in the Cleveland suburbs. Six Flags may have screwed up royally by demolishing Astroworld when it was still turning a profit, but at least they were smart enough to line up a buyer first.

So there's increasing volume on the rumor that WWK is going to be closed after this year and the slides dispersed to other CF parks (Valleyfair, Cedar Point). This is your reminder that roughly 2 million annual theme park visits were lost from 2000 from a combination of CSAs totaling around 6 million people. Not shifted, not moved to Cedar Point or Kings Island, but basically vaporized.

I mean, in this business, when that's the only complaint people can muster that means you've conquered all. Congrats, RMC. You're the power to bring all of us morons together in circle-jerkdom. Edit - Also I totally agree. Their restraints are kinda insane to push up. Oh, don't worry. There's some weird angry Cedar Point haters in the coaster hobby who will complain endlessly that it doesn't have any new elements, RMC is creatively bankrupt, or something else totally ridiculous like that.

Rental car.

Has anyone found alternative parking within walking distance? There's a sidewalk and crosswalk leading to the park from over at the Lost Temple or Ghost Outpost down the street. I'd park in the back. Someone might have done this last year that I know and had no problems. If it makes you feel better, go to one of them. Still cheaper than Mt. O parking and you get a haunted attraction as a bonus.

RCDB says that Conneaut Lake Park had a few years where it didn't open for the season. Somehow Lakemont Park managed to stay open every year except 1936. The park is in such a horrible state they never opened anything new on an anniversary. It may be receiving funding from the local government. Like I said, if it closes, I wouldn't be shocked at all.

Lakemont looks like it is on the verge of closing. Lots of rare rides but no idea how to advertise that to anyone. No budget to, probably.

For the record: Funtown Pier is in a less friendly jurisdiction than Casino even though they're on the same boardwalk. They've had issues forever and Sandy bulldozing everything gave the family an out. Casino, meanwhile, is so banged up financially that they were seriously considering selling the carousel about a year ago. So yeah: that whole "they'll rebuild bigger and better than ever" talk afterwards everyone was saying never happened.

Not really, but I think it is included, so why not?

Seaside Heights is finished. Can't wait to see morons tell me that the "market" killed the piers in a couple years.

I know it was changed and not as good as it used to be but still NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Been there the whole time. My recollection is that it isn't on for the first 5 rides of the day while the PLCs calibrate, but ultimately it serves no purpose other than to slow a train down to a specific speed. Sometimes it feels harder, sometimes it doesn't depending on atmospheric conditions, wheel compound, all that. I've gotten a ride with no trimming (usually with a train that's nowhere near full) and ones with it and honestly I can't tell that big a difference. I am also one of the rare people that likes Raging Bull a lot - like more than most hypers because it offers a twister layout over an out and back.

So you are celebrating a company disregarding safety measures put in place by the manufacturer? I'm sure Six Flags put thousands in imminent danger without first consulting as to whether or not it was OK with the maintenance staff. They ran roller coasters in low temperatures. There's no risk inherent. Right. Because manufacturers just put "don't run below ____ temp" on rides for grins and giggles. What do you think is gonna happen? You get on American Thunder when its 30 and it blows up like Space Shuttle Challenger? Log off, brah.

So you are celebrating a company disregarding safety measures put in place by the manufacturer? I'm sure Six Flags put thousands in imminent danger without first consulting as to whether or not it was OK with the maintenance staff. They ran roller coasters in low temperatures. There's no risk inherent.

Gambling and roadside attractions? Now this is a trip report.

Banshee is, IMO, actually an underrated ride. The lack of a block brake and the fact that it keeps up speed so well during the ride puts it over almost all the more vaunted rides in the US. It's been years since I've been on Nemesis to compare fairly, and that is what I've ridden which I see as its closest competition. Afterburn, Montu, Alpengeist, Raptor, Katun, Black Mamba....I'd put Banshee over any of those.

"But, but, some other forum's residents believe something!" A) So, what? There's no groupthink there? B) WDWMagic, DisBoards, all the Disney Forums - these are people who only like Disney. They aren't authorities on anything except maybe the light fixtures or what artbooks some designer cribbed from. Most of them are utterly clueless on the industry outside Mickey and Universal (the eeeeeeevil enemy). Robb knows more than most "experts" there. I do too. Why should I care what they think?

The entire purpose of EPCOT was for Walt Disney World to build a theme park utilizing other people's money using the World's Fair model. Future World consists/ed of corporate pap thanks to huge industry sponsors, some of which is actually false and/or harmful. World Showcase is culture porn paid for by taxpayers of other countries. That model is basically dead because companies aren't seeing returns to justify participation in Future World, and countries haven't seen bumps based on participation in World Showcase (Norway stopped funding the pavilion eons ago). It is time to change it drastically. The sooner it happens, the better off we all are.

Universe of Energy was absolute trash in EPCOT's best days. Even now in its least offensive variation, it is still hilariously ignorant (the global warming stuff is LOLtastic) and for the overwhelming majority, boring. Good riddance.