amy_mel

Sidewinder is brown and a white-ish color. Unless Great Bear is considered purple, there isn't a coaster at Hershey that is purple.

My kids and I were riding Great Bear in the first row. We pulled back around to the station to find the next train had not dispatched. While we were sitting there my son (not being the most tactful of children at 11) loudly announced to me (on the opposite end of the row) that the lady in the last row of the next train was stuck. Sure enough, 1 ride op was trying in vain to clip the buckle while 3 of his fellow ops were literally hanging off the restraint in an attempt to get it to lock down far enough. After a few minutes of this they stand back and look at her, at which time my son shouts "maybe she should be in row 5 for larger guests". I guess they heard that and tried to release the restraint and have her move. She said no she has every right to ride whichever row she sees fit. It was a moot argument anyway because at that point none of the restraints would open. Long story short, we sat on the brake run outside the station with front row seats to what ended up being a carnival sideshow of ride ops fighting with this lady who was far too large for even row 5.

Today at Hersheypark I was sitting in front of the Kissing Tower. While waiting for my kids, I heard the following: I am never going on that again! They don't even tell you it goes up that thing in the middle! I turned to see who gave me that gem thinking it was a child but nope, it was a group of adults. They all agreed that Hershey should have some sort of warning that the Kissing Tower actually goes up the tower.

The first time I rode Drachen Fire, my mother and I disregarded the warning signs stating remove earrings. This coaster was so rough that I got off the ride bleeding from the neck where my earring posts had pierced the skin. Rough enough? Don't get me wrong, it is still one of my all time favorites but only because it was so unique in it's elements. And I didn't come to appreciate it until much later when I really began to understand how coasters work. I also rode it pre-1994, before the removal of the corkscrew after the brake run.

You couldn't PAY me to go to this. You have to walk alone, and I've heard it's terrifying: http://www.nychalloweenhauntedhouse.com/reviews.html No freaking way!! The description on the website scared the piss out of me!! I wouldn't be able to do it in a group, forget about all alone.

The onlynthing I've ever chickened out on was Power Tower at Cedar Point. I was the person I usually laugh at, making the ride op open the restraints so I could get off before it launched. Don't know what it was. I rode Demon Drop and Tower of Terror but Power Tower did me in. I couldn't even look at the one at Dorney after that.

It still sounds like a disgruntled customer who simply wants to complain. I'm fairly certain that most, if not all, parks have a ride at your own risk policy. There is inherent risk in the theme park business. I'm not saying that this allows the park tomrun willy nilly without the safety of guests in mind. I do disagree with your opinion of Busch Gardens however. My family and I have been to parks many times and have never been dissatisfied with our experience. In fact, we went this past June and had a problem in the park which was resolved quickly and efficiently to my satisfaction. While riding in the 3rd and 4th rows of Loch Ness Monster (after a 20 minute delay for the same weather situation you complained about), a teenaged rider in the front thought it would be great fun to throw a refillable souvenir cup backward toward the rest of the train. The cup bounced off the train right in front of my son, nearly hitting him in the face. I promptly reported this, in front of the offender who took off like he was being chased by rabid dogs. Needless to say, he never made it out of the exit before security stopped him and escorted him out of the park. Management then made my son feel like a VIP by escorting him back to the coaster and skipping the line and providing my entire family (7 of us) with a free meal, drinks, and desert. I couldn't have asked for better especially since my children were not even injured, just scared.

I have one degree in Physical Science Education and another in Chemistry. I am currently working toward my PhD in Organic Chemistry. I would like to continue in medical research, geared specifically toward polymer Chemistry.

Yes, all of my kiddos are coaster enthusiasts as well, much to my husband's chagrin. My oldest stepson would like nothing more than to become an engineer so he can get into designing rides. We start them young in my family, my 9 year old has around 20 credits already and his first credit was at 3 years old. My 18 month old will ride anything in the park she can but she really likes the turnpike cars at Hersheypark.

I've found that it really depends on whether you go on a weekday or weekend. Weekdays you can hit up Storm Runner around 3:00 or so and there's minimal waiting. But with the new trains, Sidewinder seems to always have about a half hour wait. I try to head straight to Fahrenheit then head all the way back to Lightening Racer and work my way back to the front of the park by staying to the left on my way around (Wildcat, Wild Mouse, Sidewinder, Storm Runner, Trailblazer, Great Bear, Looper, Comet). I find that if I take my time and let my kids ride the flats along the way I rarely hit anything aside from Fahrenheit that has a long wait time.

I personally prefer Enterprise. I seem to get better customer service and a better quality of vehicle. I haven't rented from the airport in a long while though.

WOW! Have you tried the Disney website directly? I'm not super familiar with how international travel works. I just checked into packages for 2 adults and 2 children with the deluxe dining, park hopper, and water park options at a moderate resort (Port Orleans) and got a quote of $4500. That was for late June 2012. I don't know how that compares to what you have been quoted. If you can't make the hotel change happen, I would find out when the earliest shuttle goes to the property and catch that. I would imagine it would be fairly early (7:00 or 7:30) and from I-drive wouldn't take much more than half an hour or so depending on how many parks they stop at. Once you are on Disney property you can use their transportation as you need. Another bonus of staying on property is the Extra Magic Hours. Resort guests can get as many as 4 extra hours in the parks- one park will open an hour early and a different park will stay open as much as 3 hours late. Lines are pretty light during these hours.

If you are going to spend the whole time at Disney now, I would consider trying to change your hotel to a Disney hotel. They have shuttles from the airport to the hotels and once you are on Disney property, they have all sorts of free transportation. There are shuttle buses, boats, and the monorail. I'm not familiar with the non-Disney hotels but I imagine that the wait time would be considerable. Disney's shuttles run every 10 minutes or so. I find them to be quite convenient.

Disney does have handicapped entrances separate from the stand-by lines. I'm not sure what proof they require though. A statement from your wife's physician should be sufficient I would think. Disney is a week long adventure in my opinion. I have been there at least 15 times and always manage to stay busy for the whole week. I haven't been to Universal or Busch Gardens since I was quite young, so I can't offer any advice there.

The Disney Deluxe Dining plan probably offers you the most flexibility as it comes with 3 meals and 2 snacks per person per day. The meals can be either quick service (walk up window type) or table service (sit down, full service). You can use the meals to do the character dining, which my kids loved, but you would probably end up planning your trip around your meals because they require reservations. I personally recommend O'Hana for breakfast with Lilo and Stitch. The food was amazing and the kids got to have a parade around the restaurant with the characters.

Get a Disney dining plan. It was very much worth it to not have to carry cash for the very expensive food in the parks.

The 11 letters did spell out ride the edge. We found the 12th QR code behind a bench in front of the doomed restrooms. It said 12 NEW. Their way of telling us where the ride entrance will be located exactly?

Ok. I'm sitting on the bench in question. There is indeed a full QR code taped to the back lower left corner. I scanned it and all I get is 01.r On the back of the code it says 1Comet. The ride op from Waveswinger just about killed himself making sure it code was still on the bench when I was done. I rode Comet and found nothing unusual or new. Unfortunately I don't know how to post pics from my phone to the forum. If anyone can give me direction I'll gladly follow this scavenger hunt.

Getting to Hershey from Harrisburg International isn't too bad. Look for Route 283 and follow the signs toward Harrisburg. Follow 283 until you see the signs for Route 322. Take 322 east toward Hershey. There are a few stoplights along the way on 322. Stay on 322 until you see the signs directing you to Hershey attractions/Hersheypark Drive. There are signs directing you to the park entrance.

It is. There's news footage from the accident on YouTube that is pretty graphic. The survivor of the rear car spoke to the reporter something like 20 years later I think. Very sad.

I have absolutely no problem checking out a bench in the middle of Comet Hollow. Seriously, I'm not going to see any of the people there again in all likelihood so if they think I'm strange, oh well. I feel like it's my way of contributing in some small way if I can be there to find whatever it may be. I'm not super good at finding the computer coded stuff so it's my way of giving back to everyone who shared what they found.

I already had plans to be at the park on the 18th anyway. I'm not the greatest at this game they are playing but with season passes and my curiosity for the game, I can certainly take note of something different or new in the hollow. I'll be sure to check out the bench and the area around the restrooms.

Hydra @ Dorney Park

Hi all I have been a member for a while but haven't had the nerve to post until recently. I'm a little on the shy side. Not sure what else to say. My home park is Hersheypark and I can't wait for them to open their new coaster next year! I am a Disney fanatic at heart and have been to WDW somewhere around 20 times. I am mom to 3 kiddos and step-mom to 4. Life is crazy! In addition I am working hard on my PhD in organic chemistry. I hope to be able to meet new people who share my crazy enthusiasm for thrill seeking

I have to agree with Spidey on that. When I read the article the first thing I thought was who let him on that ride without legs. That seems rather negligent of at least the employees checking the restraints. I may have felt differently if it had otsr's.