cfc

If you have to go on Labor Day Weekend, go on Labor Day itself. Spent a few pleasant hours at the park, and the longest wait was about 20 minutes for Apollo's Chariot.

^That's Labor Day Saturday for you. Saturdays during Howl-o-Scream can be like that, too.

One last look at Holiday World. Off we go to Uber Secret Entrance #3! The ride maintenance shed! Sir, what do I have to do to put you behind the wheel of one of these beauties today? Essential equipment--a stereo and a cat. According to these gents, the toughest attraction to work on outside of the coasters is Paul Revere's Ride--lots of parts and it's "pretty dirty" underneath. Welcome to the warehouse--where a certain mouse likes to sneak a smoke now and then. Jodie tells us about her typical workday. When the season is over and the inventory is cleared out, this space is used for ride maintenance. "Please . . . can't . . . breathe . . ." This is where the park's signs are designed and made. Remember, kids--he sees you when you're sleeping! Boogie, boogie, boogie! Samantha had never ridden Pilgrim's Plunge. Our group talked her into trying it. I stayed behind to document the occasion. She loved it and rode it twice! Again, thanks for a great afternnon, Samantha! Our backstage tours weren't over yet. Time for the Voyage walkback. You can get some great pictures of this gigantic ride from the access road. (Unfortunately, many of mine came out blurry.) We certainly got up close . . . . . . and personal! See that hair a'flyin'? NERDS . . . wait a minute. I'm back here, too. OK, "nerds" stands. Voyage goes so fast that it sometimes slips dimensions! Just the calm before the interdimensional vortex. "Where are we going? PLANET 10!" "When will we get there? REAL SOON!" Waiting for that perfect shot. Yep--Voyage is freakin' huge, but 99% fat free! Bon Voyage! Sorry, guys. You'll have to wait until Splashin' Safari opens tomorrow. Again, my thanks to Robb and Elissa and Holiday World for a great day! Next up: Indiana Beach.

Time to poke around and see what makes Holiday World tick. Let's see, lunch is at some room behind Kringle's Cafe. I wonder what part of the park that's in? Hey, Santa . . . oh, I beg your pardon. Yep--that's me. Must be the place. No trip to Holiday World is complete unless you get your picture taken with Holidog. Our group's backstage tour started at 3:30. Our first stop: the administrative building under Gobbler Getaway. Our excellent guide was Samantha, the park's director of training and development. Don't mess with her--she's on a roller derby team! Here's where the staff checks in and gets ready for the long workday. The poor accountants didn't quite know what to make of us, but they were very nice. The Holigram is the park's employee newsletter. These puzzles are part of an employee-incentive program. These tokens are given to a small number of park guests each day, who give them to HW cast members who provide especially good service. CMs with tokens get to add a piece to the puzzle. Samantha was very patient with our motely little crew. Splashin' Safari from behind the scenes! Oooo! Forbidden view of the Voyage! Forbidden view #2! Time for a little bodywork. Water-filled dummies on a Timberliner! Flesh-covered dummies on Voyage! I'm lurking back there somewhere. The signature move! I didn't even know this picture was on my memory card until I got back home. Thanks for taking it, Samantha! We got a lesson in funnel-cake cookery, too. And a funnel-cake challenge. Who will win? Let's see. One looks like a funnel cake. The other looks like fried taun-taun guts in powdered sugar. One more set of photos to come.

Chapter 7: Independence Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving, & Christmas in August--Holiday World Can't decide which holiday you like best? Well, you can celebrate them all in Santa Claus, Indiana, thanks to Holiday World. This park, which has been owned and operated by the Koch family since 1946, gives you a little bit of Christmas (it was originally "Santa Claus Land"), mixed with three other holidays, all summer long. It's also home to three wooden roller coasters that are quite beloved by many coaster enthisiasts. TPR's Mid-America Trip marks my second visit to Holiday World. I last visited in spring of 2009, and was blown away by the park's woodies. Raven and Voyage shot into my top ten, and Legend fared pretty well, too. What makes this year's visit a bit more special? The TPR touch, of course! HW doesn't offer ERT this late in the season, thanks to the park being very busy, which is a good problem to have. But this year the park held an online auction to help flood victims in Nashville. The offering: private tours from park executives and other perks. Robb and Elissa did their bit to help out Nashville--and to ensure the group a great day at HW. And they succeeded! The backstage tours were interesting and fun, and we certainly got a good dose of the park's famous hospitality. My thanks to R&E and the good folks at Holiday World for making this all happen. But what about the coasters since my last visit? They rank the same, but with some caveats. Raven--I thought this was the best coaster there in 2009, and that hasn't changed, even though it was rougher than I remembered. Still, it's always been an intense ride, and I love the layout. The Voyage--Back in spring 2009, I remembered but one little rough spot on this ride (a noticeable bump as you climb the second hill). This summer, it was conisderably rougher, and not as enjoyable. I still love the triple down in the tunnel, though. Maybe this ride is best when it's cooler out (it was a brutally hot when TPR was there). Legend--This was pretty much unchanged for me from 2009. A good, solid ride--especially it you're into laterals. I spent a good portion of the morning in Splashin' Safari, HW's very nice waterpark. Wildebeest, the LIM launched water coaster is excellent--possibly the best attraction in the HW complex. My group didn't do a lot of sliding, but we were quite content to drift around the lazy river and bob about in the wave pool to cool off. Two Pilgrim's Plunges didn't hurt either. (This really is a great water ride, and despite complaints to the contrary, you do get wet.) Let's nose around a bit, shall we? First stop--Santa's official hotel in Indiana. Where it's Christmas all year round. Yes, more Christmas than any sane person can take! "Ho, ho, ho-o-o-o-o . . . Santa needs to eat more fiber! Come on, little yule log . . ." "Hong Kong Santa! Number-one super guy!" And what's that, off in the distance? "And his eyes have the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming . . ." Merry/Happy/Joyeux [insert holiday here]. Meet Paula (or Raven Maven on the boards). She's taking us through Uber Secret Entrance #1 to walk us back to Raven. Thanks, Paula! Well, there go my plans for the day. I love making mud! Up close and personal with the Legend (which is themed to Ichabod Crane's famous ride from "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.") Raven looms ominously in the distance. Raven swoops by the lake. I got yer "pallid bust of Pallas" right here, Poe! Hmm--looks we'll need a machete to chop our way to . . . . . . Uber Secret Entrance #2. (Or is this Uber Secret Exit #1? I guess it depends on which direction you're going.) "Nevermore! Brawk! Nevermore!" "Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing, Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortals ever dared to dream before . . ." "Take thy beak from out my heart, and take thy form from off my door!" "Quoth the Raven, . . . . . . 'Nevermore!'" That walkback came in pretty handy. You know, I think riders today have more fun than Ichabod Crane did. At least no one throws flaming pumpkins at our heads. Legend really doesn't let up until you hit the final brake run (the same is true for Raven). I wonder what the Pilgrims would've thought of this? We'll get back to the Voyage later. For now, let's check out Splashin' Safari. HW gave us "exit passes" for Wildebeest. It had crazy long lines all day. And that makes sense--this may be the best water ride anywhere! Making Pilgrim's Plunge accessible from the water park was a great idea. The soaking we got was much appreciated. As was this lazy river. Can you spot the TPR members in this picture? How about now? Meet Jake. He survived the Titanic. We didn't do any sliding other than Wildebeest, but it was just nice to cool off here. Up next--a backstage tour.

^Daron and I stumbled over that one in the park's main gift shop, and it was the only "mismatch" I could find. I was looking for a Six Flags St. Louis kitchen magnet, but all that shop had were generic Six Flags magnets. But on the way out, in a tiny gift shop near the gate, I finally found an "official" Six Flags St. Louis magnet and bottle opener--and it was a dollar cheaper than the generic magnet I'd bought in the main gift shop. Go figure.

Well, at least Thunderhawk has a pretty sign.

^All will be revealed in its own good time. BGW has always been good at keeping things quiet until they're ready.

Thanks for the pictures, Hanno. GeForce is such an excellent ride.

^I think you're referring to the old High-Speed Tunnel's makeover as the "World of Tron." Basically, the Peoplemover just cruised through a tunnel with projections from the movie on all sides, which was supposed to give the illusion of increased speed (similar to the finale of Horizons at Epcot).

The opening helix of Stunt Coaster is the most intense part of the ride, so I could see gray outs happening there.

No. I'm rather dubious about its chances, myself. I'm thinking a big opening followed by a big fall the next weekend (once all the diehard Tron fans have seen it)--and this is from someone who saw it twice when it was first released, mainly for the visuals (the story--meh). The event at DCA looks like fun, though. We shall see.

^^You've made your point. No need to belabor it. ^I'm not a fan of Kingda Ka, either, but to each his own.

Any TR involving Pierce's earns double points. That was a great weekend! It was my pleasure to show you around.

Had enough of Mr. Freeze and Evel Knievel? Let's check out the rest of Six Flags St. Louis. "Yoinks! There's the Mystery Machine, but where's the gang?" I wonder if this is scary? Difficult to tell. Aghh! Now it's pretty scary! Scarier yet! I guess even a ghost needs to take a good dump from time to time. But if ghost scat is transparent, how will you know if you've stepped in it? "I know what you're thinkin'. Did he fire six shots or only five? Well being as this is a Fright Light, the most powerful ghost blaster in the world, and can blow your head clean off, I'd ask myself, 'Do I feel lucky?' Well, do ya, punk?" Hey, don't be rippin' off Rich's signature move! Makes me queasy just watching them. Look! There's an ATM in the arcade! By god, I sure am glad that I found that ATM. Almost makes up for getting no pictures of the Boss. "Scree! Scraw! I'm endangered! I can hurt you, but you can't hurt me! Scree! Scraw!" I'd call this a "Rebel Yell" level ride. It's a bit deceiving too--much longer than it looks. "Greetings, citizen." "It would give me great pleasure to let you ride my Tower of Power!" "I hope it gives you great pleasure, as well." "The world is a carousel of . . ." OK, I've beaten that one to death. It it's Tuesday, it must be Belgium. In Missouri. "Chicken skin! We have found chicken skin! Calloo, callay!" "Holy reversal, Batman! This isn't right!" "It's definitely the work of that archfiend, the Joker! Citizens of Gotham City! Do not panic!" Unfortunately, this sign is correct. None shall pass! (Who would want to?) Riding this thing is like going a few rounds with Bruce Lee. You'll end up with a headache and multiple contusions. But doesn't it look pretty with its nice new paint? From Ninja's station, we looked upon the mine train with great yearning. We ached for it! And Ninja made us ache all the more. Whew! After that beating, I think I'll sit on this nice, fluffy, comfy . . . monster? "We think monsters are such in-n-n-n-nteresting people!" Cheryl and Lauren decided to check out Excalibur. Let's see how they did. Cheryl looks OK, but Lauren seems a little worse for the wear. (Having to sit in the hot sun for an extra 20 minutes while the crew cleaned up a "protein spill" didn't help much.) I'm sure I'll remember this coaster after I ride it at Six Flags Great America. Aghh! Must be time for Fright Fest! That's all for Six Flags St. Louis.

Chapter 6: The Hottest Day in TPR Trip History? Most Likely--Six Flags St. Louis Was the Mid-America group's day at Six Flags St. Louis the hottest TPR had ever experienced? Robb took an informal poll during lunch of those who had been on TPR's two previous "hottest" days: Isla Magica, Spain, and Mitsui Greenland, Japan, in 2007 (I was in the latter group). Most of those polled agreed--St. Louis had claimed the honor. I'd heard estimates ranging from 107 to 114 degrees F for that day; what ever the actual temperature, it was brutal, "fry-an-egg-on-the-sidewalk" hot! Humid, too. But what about SF St. Louis? This is the third park in the chain, and I liked it overall and they treated us very well--but I find it a hard park to pin down. It is "sort of" themed (or at least it used to be), but much of that had been stripped away in favor of big, sometimes well-themed rides. Maybe it was just the heat, or maybe it was because it followed on the heels of Silver Dollar City and the wonderful strangeness of the City Museum, but much of our day there is a blur to me. The coaster lineup is solid, if not spectacular, with one in particular standing out: Mr. Freeze--This is the best launched shuttle I've ever been on. The launch itself is very intense, and the trip over the high hat, both forwards and backwards (especially backwards), is pretty freaky, and it's well themed. Evel Knievel--This solid GCI woodie is a twin to Power Park's Thunderbird. It's a good ride with some nice air, but lacks the insanity of its Finnish cousin. Batman--This is "bizarro Batman," as it's a mirror image of other such rides in the chain. Again, I understand why Six Flags has installed so many of these clones--they're quite the crowd pleaser. Screamin' Eagle--An old-school woodie by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company. Enjoyable with some air, but not top of the line. River King Mine Train--Although this isn't up to the level of SDC's Thunderation, it is an enjoyable, above-average Arrow mine train. Tony Hawk's Big Spin--This is my first "Tony Hawk" ride. OK for what it is, even though our car didn't spin all that much. The Boss--A big CCI woodie that, frankly, has not aged well. It's rather rough and shuffly, but not without some good moments of airtime. Besides, it's light years better than . . . Ninja--This twisted, screwy, loopy pile of steel was started by Arrow, but finished by Vekoma. Better than its namesake at Six Flags Over Georgia by virtue of being shorter. SF St. Louis does have the best "Scooby Doo" shooter I've ever been--a nice, long boat ride through a "scary swamp" with plenty of targets and a few surprises. This is the park's best attraction next to Mr. Freeze. I'll let the pictures do the rest of the talking. When the bus pulled in, there were 100 or so people milling around. They evaporated before our eyes! Fortunately, Mr. Freeze created an invisible corridor of sub-zero temperture, which allowed us to proceed. "Soon, I vill make frosty-freezees of you all! Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha! But I vill vait until the end uf your backstage tour!" An innocent-looking, abandoned ice-cream factory . . . . . . that is actually the icy lair of that frozen felon, Mr. Freeze! (Air-conditioning + blue color scheme = comfort!) Jim Harwig, who was at the park when the ride was first conceived, gave us a great tour. The heart of this excellent ride--the LIMs that launch it. Jim points out another important feature: . . . . . . this little "substation." The park had to provide the coaster with additional power, lest it dim lights all over the neighborhood when it launched. (Personally, I think it was all part of Mr. Freeze's grand criminal scheme.) Yes, off limits--even if you lose a hat. Black shirt, triple-digit temperatures. In hindshight, not too bright. But it was Club TPR day at the park. "Yes, all of Gotham vill loose zer change, cell phones, and other valuables here--all to finance my criminal plans!" "No one may touch the change!" Cold, blue steel! That little bank of LIMs at the top of the spike ensures that you reach the top--and delivers an extra little scare. Snowy's Ice Cream Factory from the other side of the fence. TPR folks just love chillin' out under coaster track. Another view you can't get outside of the fence. Behold the crotch of Mr. Freeze! It is a crotch of pure evil--the loins of doom! Time to head out before Mr. Freeze catches us in his lair. Mr. Freeze will tolerate no forkin'! Ever! Time for ERT on Evel Knievel. This ride can jump over 20 school buses! This is the station--of EVEL! Varoom-room-room! Behold the signature move! This is a very good ride. As you can tell, this was taken late in the ERT session. Meanwhile, back at the sinister, abandoned ice-cream factory . . . . . . Mr. Freeze was casting his cold, scientific eye on some new test subjects. "Everybody chill!" (You know your movie is in trouble if Arnold Schwarzenegger gives the best performance in it.) "My apologies, Batman." "I vould like to toy mit you a bit longer!" "But zat is zee vay zee ice cube crumbles!" Are they coming or going? Either way, it's pretty cool. More to come.

The TR needs more NASCAR. Oh, and some mayo.

^That was my thought, too--but I'm not an engineer.

"Fearless Freep? That's ma boy!"

Scott, while I think your argument holds for something like a Boomerang, the U.S. doesn't have that many Eurofighters (just at the Mall of America and Dollywood). Plus, I think this model delivers a lot of "bang for the buck." I agree that we need Mega Lites here--a Gerstlauer Bob sled or two wouldn't hurt, either.

Oh no! Hersheypark has one of those horrifying Tornado slides, too! Didn't the monorail used to take guests to a bonafide factory tour?

A last look at an evening in which everyone was lucky to come out alive! KidTums knows that the only way to escape cannibal mutants is to head due up! And Derek is right behind her. OK, what does the roof have to offer? This Ferris wheel made all sorts of groaning and creaking noises. The view from the very tip top of the City Museum. This will not . . . . . . end well. OK, you little bastards . . . . . . everybody out! "Scro-o-o-o-o-ge!" Just some guys playing with their balls. Jake? What happened to Jake? Yeah, it was a little warm that day. "Sponges!" "Why did it have to be sponges?" "Avenge me!" The early model Terminators were not particularly successful. Yes, corn dogs--the snack of Satan! "Yes, I do enjoy a nice corn dog--really, I do." Ooo! Trippy! This was the source of a number of injuries. That's all from the City Museum. Next stop: Six Flags St. Louis!

"Go wacky, at Pee-Wee's Playhouse!" Or at the City Museum, and old shoe factory whose current products are chaos and mayhem! OK, who parked that school bus--Freddie Krueger? Hmm--never seen this kind of warning at the Smithsonian. Colonial Williamsburg doesn't have anything like this, either. "TPR! Please do not kill each other! The paperwork is horrendous when you do that!" It's a bit tricky to find your way through the caves to the slides. Hmm--looks like Wilma's been shopping again. Fred's gonna get mad! "My precious! Gollum! Gollum!" Is this a right- or lefthand thread? "You in the green shirt! Quit playin' with my stalagmites!" At the top of these stairs are the slides they used to send shoes from the factory floor down to shipping. They're ten stories tall! "Whee! I'm a shoe! A wingtip!" "I'm a pair of pumps!" Derek repulses TPDave with his demonic eye powers. "Aghh! Things no woman would ever want to see!" "I'm so glad that Fred Flintstone put in air conditioning." "Yes, I think I'll just stay here by this vent the rest of the evening. Thank you!" "Why are you all looking at me so queerly? What's that about my ears?" Derek and KidTums prepare to reenact "The Descent." "Help, the freaky cannibal mutants are gonna get me!" "Yes, there's only one way to stop cannibal mutants! Fire in the hole!" One more set of pics to come.

Chapter 5: An Interlude--The Gateway Arch and City Museum in St. Louis Silver Dollar City was great, but it was quite a haul from Branson to St. Louis. Even so, there was ample time to check out the Gateway Arch and City Museum. The former I'd always wanted to see; the latter I knew very little about. While the view from atop the 630-foot tribute to St. Louis's role in "manifest destiny" was impressive, the highlight was the museum. But, remember, this is a TPR trip--so this wasn't some warehouse full of dinosaur bones, old paintings, and sculptures from past decades (although there was a bit of that). No, the City Museum is more like a very industrial version of Pee-Wee's Playhouse--a demented indoor/outdoor playground where adults and kids alike can hurtle down ten-story slides, crawl through stone passageways and caves, and, in general, risk great bodily injury! And we had the whole place to ourselves that night, from the first floor to the top of the old Ferris Wheel on the roof. Never, on any TPR trip, have I witnessed such amazing mayhem--and I'm a veteran of the memorable Toverland ERT-and-open-bar session of 2008. Perhaps it's best to show you the City Museum, rather than try to describe it. But let's have a look at St. Louis from 360 feet up, first. You ride in little pods up to the top of the Arch. They seem a bit smaller than the escape pods from "Star Wars: A New Hope." This is what 630 feet up looks like from down below. The visitors center. Complete with visitors. Yeah, that inspires confidence. Our tram awaits. Back in the 19th century, people were all black and white and two dimensional. True story. (This will be the only time I use this line in this TR.) Looks like Jackie and Lou are about the same weight. But I imagine Kyle has Lou beat by a few pounds. Despite my presence in a coffin at the end of the last chapter, the rumors of my death were greatly exaggerated. "Quit stealing my material, sir!" Team 8 is ready to rock and roll! Thank you! Yep--a mite cramped up there. Behold! St. Louis! I guess this is city hall, but I'm not sure. Sorry about that. Looking across the mighty Mississippi. Tug boats! Barges! They keep America moving! Safe and sound back at the visitors center . . . crap! A bear! Almost time to go. Must be a local team of superheroes. The bus is here--time to go. But not without one last, artsy look at the Arch--a very impressive structure. Our next stop. Join us, won't you?

He is indeed! There have been times when I've been tagged and I've wondered "why?" These are usually cases where I'm not even in the photo.