cfc

Why would you go to SFMM or SFGADV: the flats, shows, atmospheres? Doubt it! If Europa was in US do you really think more people would be drawn there over CP? Im not so sure. They do have Blue fire which is a Mavericky kinda coaster, but do they have a MF, Raptor, Mantis, TTD, Wicked Twister, Magnum, Gemini, and numerous thrilling flats to back it up? Absolutely not. The point being, again, you don't have to put CP as your #1 but don't lie to yourself and say its not up there with the best. And how, exactly, is Joe "lying" to himself? Simply by not valuing Cedar Point as highly as you do? Joe has stated his case quite reasonably, but you have responded obnoxiously. This is a warning--cool off.

OK. Some think Cedar Point is the greatest park ever. Others do not. Move along, please. Nothing to see here.

^I was chuckling over the freshly painted handrails, too. I guess they wanted the Wolf to go out with some dignity. Nice montage, Eagle Eye.

^^Yeah, it's fine line. I think your list of "winners" matches much of mine, Larry (I did pick Epcot for best food, though).

I have trouble taking any "Top-10 Wooden Coaster" list seriously when Balder isn't on it, but I guess not enough people have ridden it. (That's the nature of the beast.)

^Apparently, there is a shortage of "good" flats (in his opinion).

"Disney McKids"? The hell?

^I've always rather liked the Studios park, but I can understand your feelings. For me, the "Old Hollywood" is classic Disney-level theming, but the "Backlot" is a bit underwhelming. (I'd love to see them replace the tour with something good.)

^Hey, my Arrow experience earlier consisted of the original Knott's Corkscrew and Great America's Turn of the Century. They were pretty damn smooth back in the day. I'm also not a big fan of coasters that one has to "know how to ride" to keep from getting battered.

Where can I purchase my season pass to Diablowood? "Diablowood"--now there is an awesome name for a park. In the hills near my hometown of Patterson, California, there sits a bankrupt golf course called "Diablo Grande." I'm sure you could get that real estate for a reasonable price (it you don't mind a few rattlesnakes, coyotes, and wild boars). Good luck! EDIT: My mistake. Looks like Diablo Grandeis back in business again. So much for an amusement park for that vital Stanislaus County-San Joaquin Valley market, unless you can work out some sort of an arrangement.

^That happened to me the first time I rode Drachen Fire, before the reprofiling. I didn't ride it again until after they "fixed" it, but by then I just found it to be "meh." I had a similar experience with Anaconda the first time, too. Now my niece Leslie loved Drachen Fire--go figure.

It's not "obnoxious" for someone to have an opinion that differs from yours. What's "obnoxious" is how some people state their opinions--see example quoted above. I've never been to Cedar Point, so I have no opinion on the park one way or the other (looking forward to visiting next spring, though).

I never really looked at it that way but you're right. I truly feel that Busch Gardens Williamsburg now has a new record, the only park to remove two legendary coasters in less than only ten years. I guess that depends on how you define "legendary." The first time I rode Drachen Fire, I exited the ride with huge bruises on either shoulder, a throbbing headache, and a rather sick stomach. The best things about it were the view from the lifthill and how it looked at night (while you watched, rather than rode). I shed not a tear when DF was shutdown. I hated that thing. BBW was always the better ride of the two, and it is one of the few of a dying breed--and it definitely outlived DF.

BBW was always at its best in the front seat (especially after dark). The back could be a bit insane, though.

^Then alert me the next time you attempt to be funny. Back on topic, I can't think of a park that I felt was seriously overrated. Maybe Paris Disney (but only slightly--it's still a great park).

Yeah, I don't get it either. I think Europa is the best park in Europe (including Paris Disney). But to each his own.

^I bugged out around 5:00, when it started raining again. Train 3 was, apparently, tagged "do not use," so I guess something went seriously wrong with it over the weekend.

The Last Day of the Big Bad Wolf The Big Bad Wolf's last day got off to a rather dreary start--cloudy, gloomy, with a forecast of over two inches of rain for Williamsburg by tonight. But wild rides in the rain just seemed appropriate. Hell, I rode this sucker in the snow once. So I went to BGW to pay my respects to one of a vanishing breed--the Arrow suspended coaster. It was pouring rain by the time I got to the queue (around 1:00). Labor Day crowds tend to be a bit light (Saturday and Sunday are the big days for this holiday weekend), but the rain kept quite a few people away, I think. The Wolf's queue house was about half full when I got there. It you wanted the sit any old place, the wait was about 20-30 minutes. (Only two trains were running--number 3 was out of commission.) But I wanted one last ride in the front--as did a lot of people--so my wait was about an hour. (This was pretty good, being as the line extended out of the queue house and down the bridge into Italy on Saturday and Sunday, I was told.) The mood was a bit festive at times. The ride ops would ask riders for one last wolf howl, and the riders would howl away as the trains left the station. But people are going to miss this ride--a lot. Still, as usual, Wolfie really delivered--it was great, damp ride in the front seat, floating over the woods, pouncing on and circiling the village, then plunging down to the Rhine River. Big Bad Wolf, we'll miss you. But all things come to an end. Here's to the Wolf--and to the future. And now, some rather dark photos of the last day of the Big Bad Wolf. Goodbye, Wolfie--see ya on the other side! That's all for now. That's a wrap. For me, at least. Back to the station. See? I told you. There's a train in there somewhere--trust me. "A-w-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o!" "Had enough yet? Well 'prosit' this!" "Take that, ya leiderhosen-wearin', wood-choppin' yokels!" "Growl! Snarl!" "I'm gonna terrorize the crap outta these villagers one more time!" "I'm still in charge here today!" "Move over bumper cars!" Woot! Woot! W-o-o-o-o-o-o! A-w-o-o-o-o-o-o! Here's our train--shall we go? And here's the security guy who made sure that no one line jumped their way to the front seat. Here's the line for the front seat. And, yes, it's still raining. Ol' Number 3 is out of commission already. It went down over the weekend. The queue was only about half full today. But this is who we came to see. A nice beer or cup of coffee in the Festhaus is pretty tempting. Nessie's OK with it, too. A little rain doesn't bother this swan. And, so far, the newspaper is correct (no thunder and ligntning, anyway). Hmm--the forecast does not bode well. Always start your day with a nice cup of coffee--from your official Big Bad Wolf mug. (I apologize for my unshaven, first-thing-in-the-morning mug in this picture. I hope no one was unduly traumatized.)

^Which is too bad, because Hurler was a great ride when it first opened. Nowadays, it's never better than "OK."

Riding a tricycle in a concrete corridor while wearing a paper bag over your head is better than Monstars of Rock. Ah, yes--the Cave Train, a bizarre, Flintstones-inspired journey through the depravity of prehistoric man. In addition to the caveman on the chairlift, they used to have a caveman on a perch with a megaphone, shilling for the Cave Train and SCBB's knockoff of the Autopia, the Autorama (which I think is gone now--correct?).

The floral eagle was one of the first things to go at Williamsburg. Looks like another great time, Erik. I'm kind of a sucker for those Morgan hypers.

I'll be paying my respects tomorrow (get in a ride last Friday night, too). So, they're selling metal signs now? Figures. I've already bought one of the cardboard ones.

^Tell me about it. I'm only about 5' 9", and I had trouble wriggling out from under those lapbars.

^Friday is the best night to hit HOS--the crowds are usually the smallest (especially early on in the Halloween season).

^I've changed the link above so that it goes directly to the auction page at http://eagle97.com/pages/3650058.php?contentType=33&contentId=64069. I have no problem with the park auctioning off the last ride as long as the money goes to a good cause.