USCoaster

Isn't Frontier City the "home park" of Premier Parks? If I am correct, it could be just a huge symbolic gesture towards old management.

The reason they keep releasing new versions of the same console is because the technology has improved to a point where they can release a smaller, better version. The GBA, GBA:SP, GBM line is a great example. Yeah the all play the same games, but the GBA:SP makes the GBA so obsolete is insane. The lit screen and rechargable batteries are worth every penny of an upgrade. The GBM while still a GBA system, is designed for more of a niche market than the normal systems. It is designed to appeal to teenagers and the young adults out there. Its the size of a cell phone and can easily take it anywhere in your pocket. Nintendo even designed the follow-up to Polarium to be played with one hand on the Micro while riding on the train (similar to cell phone games). The same applies to the new Nintendo DS. It hasn't been announced here in the States yet and knowing Nintendo's usual delay, I don't expect to see it until late summer. Making it just 3 or 4 months shy of the 2 year aniversary of the DS being available here in the states. In Japan, they have been sold out of DS units since December. So instead of making more of the original design, it makes much more sense to release a slimmer, more compact, and more visually appealing model. FYI... Sony has done the exact same thing with the PS One and the PS2. And if they release the ceramic white PSP here, I would probably break down and buy one... only cause its soooo pretty. In the end, every time Nintendo releases a new version of a console, its up to the customer to decide if they want to upgrade. Depending on the condition of my DS when the new one comes out, I might but it.

Not all of 6 Flags' parks are as focused on teens and thrills as SFMM. SFGAdv has added family attractions with both Kingda Ka and now El Toro. SFoG did a major expansion to the kids area over the last 2(?) years. And SFMW is currently adding/expanding their kids area. SFMM seems to be the exception with its new coaster every year and maybe we will get the Tilt-A-Whirl fixed policy.

When did amusement park commercials begin to suck? They used to be so creative. I loved the commercials. I just happened to spend that June in Maryland with my grandmother so I got to see them all the time. I lucked out and my uncle decided to take me to PKD one day. RCDB says it opened on June 18, 1996. We just happened to got on the 21st so I waited to 3 hours to ride. (The worst part of the wait was the white trash couple standing in front of us. The girl was peeling sunburned skin off the guys back. Hella nasty). It was a good ride.

I think they just changed stuff like the length of the drops, number of full height vs half height drops, etc. I don't think they can really change the acceleration rates with out upgrading the mechanical systems. (very unrealistic due to the massive size unless they can just change some parts to increase gear ratios or something) If it was just the drop sequences that make the WDW version better than the DCA version then its just a matter of time before the DCA version "gets better." I think that the elevator mechanics in all the towers will be the same so all that has to happen is Disney has to do is change the program to change to drop sequence. I'm sure someone will correct me if I am wrong, but isn't Tower 4 just 4(?) different drop sequences that the Tower cycles through (or chooses randomly) so that it is unlikely that you will have the same drop sequence twice in a visit? For those who know, is DCA's tower currently running the original MGM drop sequence, or did they choose a different one for opening.

1. Imogen Heap - Speak for Yourself 2. Annie - Anniemal 3. Girls Aloud - Chemistry 4. Goldfrapp - Supernature (released in Europe last year, March here) 5. Rachel Stevens - Come and Get It 6. Bananarama - Drama 7. Madonna - Confessions on a Dancefloor 8. Robbie Williams - Intensive Care 9. Liberty X - X 10. Sigur Ros - Takk

I have filed one complaint at SFMM. It had to do with the severe lack of syrup in the overpriced sodas at the pizza place in Gotham. I don't remember if that was just an extra crappy day, or if it was the build up of little things over many visits. As for why more people don't complain... I think it probably has to do with the environment you are in. When I go to SFMM, I guess I've come to expect ride-ops with pants/shorts sagging, talking on personal phones or gossiping with other employees, and in general providing a mediocre experience. If I saw the same thing happening at Disneyland, I would be much more willing to spend the time filling out a guest survey in City Hall.

The sad thing is, if we had someone say that to us at SFMM, we would just write it off to it being SFMM.

Irn-Bru = Sickly sweet bubble-gum flavored orange soda (my opinion of course). Supposedly it is Scotland's second national drink (after your alcohol of choice) and is supposed to have amazing anti-hangover properties. And as my sister found out after she brought some back from Scotland, it will take the copper off a penny. For those in the Los Angeles area, the British grocery stores usually have it. And the Virgin Megastores around California (the country?) usually have some in stock near the Virgin Cola or "authentic British crap" table...

I'll drive by it tomorrow and see if there is anything to get pictures of.

Definitely not Rachel Stevens. I think it looks more like Cheryl Aloud. (For the Americans... Cheryl Tweedy from the group Girls Aloud) Or if I got the girls confused, Nadine Aloud.

Yay for replay equipment not working at the most convienent time!!! I'm gonna go get drunk... Congrats to Texas for winning... Congrats to USC for reminding me why I stopped watching games at the end of the 2002 season.

ACK!!! Not the Crazy Frog Racer!!! Sad thing is, most of the people here in the States won't know what Crazy Frog is. They tried to release it here, but thank god it didn't catch.

The biggest difference between this Tower and the DCA and TDS versions is this tower is being built with a cast in place concrete structure instead of using steel frame.

Hey Elissa Could you please change my title to "Denny Crane!"? Thanks. John FYI... My sister's name is Alissa. Um yeah.

OMG You're going to Saintes!!!! When did they move the program back there? I went in 2001 and had a blast. Theme parks: DLP and Parc Asterix are possible on a weekend. I would say do Asterix on a weekend in late Sept or Oct if they are open. I went late August and it was really crowded. As for DLP... if you don't mind the cold, hit it up during their awesome Halloween celebration, or for small crowds, right after the program ends during the week. I went twice when I was over there and didn't have huge crowds either visit. I think the longest I waited was an hour for Big Thunder the first time. The second time was the week before Christmas (I think) and it was fairly dead. (I closed the park with 5 or 6 rides on Big Thunder and the temp was close to freezing.) I know that Walibi Aquitane is the closest Walibi Park to Saintes, but I couldn't figure out how to get there without a car. I have also heard good things about Futurescope in one of the towns with a TGV stop on the route from Paris to Bordeaux. Its more of a 3-d movie/motion simulator place with really outrageous buildings. As for taking trains to Germany and other places, it is possible, but unless they have new routes open from when I was there, it takes a while. The train to Paris takes a good 3 hours with the first hour spent on a regional train and the last 2 on the TGV. From there, Amsterdam is easy to reach (and probably Walabi Flevo...World (or whatever its called now)) As mentioned, Strasbourg should be easy to get to on the TGV...not sure about getting to Europa from there. If you check rates on the low-fare airlines in Europe, you can get decent priced tix to most major cities. Bordeaux is the nearest major airport and is a 60 min/$20 train ride away (student prices) plus a short Taxi ride. We did Berlin on a 3 day weekend. Culture... based on my trip, the French people aren't as bad as people make them out to be as long as you don't go with the "ugly american" attitude. The people in Paris had a little more attitude than the people in Saintes who tend to be really friendly to the students who stay there. There is a bit of a language barrier if you don't know French, but in Saintes, they will try to work with you. A lot of the people I met knew some english, but didn't use it for various reasons. If you learn/know some basic French and try to use it, I found that a lot of the people outside Paris are pretty nice and will help you. Other travel hints.... if you will be in a city for long enough, buy the week passes for the Metro's and stuff. You might not get every penny worth of riding, but it saves you from digging for change and stuff at every station and lets you hop a bus whenever you want (very useful in Paris, London, Barcelona). Otherwise get day passes or similar. If you plan on doing London, look into buying a CityPass before leaving the States. I got one that had a weeks worth of Underground/bus travel and free admission to the major tourist attractions (St. Pauls, Tower of London, etc.) If you have any other questions, just ask. LOL I'm sure I have more things I can share.

LOL Here in the Reno area this fall, we have had two different high schools closed for decontamination after incidents with mercury. The first time, they had some students break a thermometer and not tell anyone. The second time, they had a student bring some to school with them and start passing it around. My family and I are sitting here in disbelief over the extreme measures they are taking because she remembers sitting in science classes playing with it on her hand. (We don't think anything is wrong with her, but who knows) But for the Disneyland thing... It sucks to hear about 2 similar accidents in the last week. But I guess things happen.

I visited Erik yesterday, but left after I found out his store was closed for an upgrade too. Sorry to hear about your trees. They were all still intact when I was there.

I've added everybody who's posted a code so far. Mine is 5455 2159 3080 Name: John Town: Fabulous

You're lucky you were in Temecula! There were people camped out here in Reno and it was supposed to go down to 22 that night (and I'm sure it was a lot colder elsewhere in the country). I thought it would have been really funny if they had gotten frostbite on their fingers and been unable to play for weeks.

Right now, for the DS I have: Nintendogs (Best Friends Edition) - OK game, played for a while and lost interest due to more exciting games...I wonder how my dog is... Nanostray - awesome on-rails shooter. need to play more Kirby Canvas Curse - great game. lots of fun, get it. Puyo Pop Fever - awesome puzzler. The Puyo Pop series doesn't get enough respect here I think. It has touch screen control, but i use the buttons as it provides more control. The best part about the DS version is they have full voice acting for the insane plot. Mario Kart DS - awesome... Importing and waiting for the shipment: Quendan - Japanese DDR-ish j-pop based rythem game that will probably drive me crazy... for a quick demo, play the video on the linked page...needs sound Getting next week... Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time. As Kenny^ mentioned, the GBA Mario and Luigi is probably one of the best games released for the system (along with Wario Ware Twisted) so I'm definitely looking forward to this release. On to-buy list: Meteos, Go and Touch Yoshii, Advanced Wars DS, Castlevania DS, Metroid Prime Pinball, Sonic Rush

I added the people who posted their codes. Mine is: 270642 486980

I'm not sure if Interactive rides is to blame or Stratosphere. It sounds like Stratosphere decided that the slot machines deserve back-up generators, but not the amusement rides. Based on the design of the ride, I'm not sure Interactive rides could have designed the ride to return to its start position if there is no power.

Official story here This time it was X-Scream which got stuck hanging over the edge of the tower. Amusingly enough, the local news station in Reno said the slot machines in the Stratosphere casino continued running on generators.

If you're getting a new GameCube make sure you get one of the bundles that are out. I know they have Super Smash Bros Melee, Pokemon XD, and Mario Party 7 in different bundles for the same price as the standard $99 GameCube. It makes it a little easier to break down and buy when you get a $50 game free with it. (The Mario Party Bundle comes with an extra controller too.) As for DDR: Mario Mix, I will probably end up getting it soon. It looks like fun and now that someone else has confirmed it, I'm a little less worried about spending $50 on it.