cfc

The work of a moderator never ends. It's a dirty job, but somebody's gotta do it.

Banshee was a real return to form for B&M--an excellent invert.

Hard to say when it'll go vertical. Howl-o-Scream starts in September 23, so I guess that's possible. I would think we'd definitely see vertical construction by the time Christmas Town rolls around.

I went over the park today to see what progress they've made on InvadR. The words of the day were dirt, concrete, and a wee bit of wood. Let's get on the train and have a look. We have to go a ways past the Festhaus. Almost there . . . . . . and I do believe we've entered the construction zone proper. Here's the "back" of the work zone, looking toward LeScoot, Griffon, and Alpengeist. Looks like they've done some more work on these concrete footers we saw in the previous update. There doesn't appear to be much going on over on the left side of the train. Hmm--a big new slab of concrete has been added, with some more concrete to come, it would seem. Here's a look at the slab from the other side. New France has got wood. Looks like there's been some more digging and general destruction. Ladies and gentlemen, Styx! Well, some sort of markers with letters and numbers on them. Looking toward the train station from the LeScoot path. I think this retaining wall is new. Here's a view from the bridge to Germany. Yep--more new concrete footers, I believe. Being as it's a hot day and I'm near LeScoot, here's a refreshing splash to cool everyone off. Overlooking the construction site past the LeScoot queue. Does this tarp conceal a deep mystery? And what about the rock? What intrigues lie beneath it? And what might this mysterious object be? Mysteries, everywhere! I don't recall anything in this spot when I did the previous update. That's all for now.

Haven't ridden Valravn (I do like Dive Machines), but I don't care for Gatekeeper (or the other Wing Coasters, for that matter).

Wow! Looks and sounds great. I hope that Hulk is now back to its former glory.

The best rides that B&M has built over the last few years are Fury and Banshee. The only B&M in my top ten is Nemesis. Fury and Banshee could crack my top 25 somewhere, I think.

High Speed Thrill Coaster (now defunct)--Knoebels

I liked Kentucky Kingdom back in 2014--especially Lightning Run. It's great to see the park getting even better. Storm Chaser looks crazy!

It's all the work of Loki.

Euro Mir--Europa Park Sigh! I miss Europa already.

It's the famous story of "This area is under video surveillance". My god! Then the old legends are true!

Those two Wild Eagle POV shots might be the best pictures ever posted on TPR.

Or just leave sections of track where the public can see them. It this piece of Rolling Thunder still there, or has Great Adventure finally removed it? I think Universal put that old Hulk track to good use, though.

^Does it show? More from a great day at Hansa Park. In 2009 only about a third of this tower had bricks. The rock was there, though. The finished queue is now extra-creepy. This looks much better than drywall and Tyvek. Disney would be happy with this theming. Fluch von Novgorod ties Mystery Mine to its bumper . . . . . . and drags it down a gravel road covered in broken glass. It’s the King of the Eurofighters. It’s nice that some of Florida’s Country Bears found a new gig. I had no idea that Wendell, Ernest, and Zeke spoke German: “Die BärenbandBären spielen jetzt in der guten alten Schlüssel von g.” An open campfire and a teepee? No problem at Hansa Park. In fact, they trusted us with fire . . . . . . and lots of raw meat and potatoes! Fortified by brats and taters, it was time to explore the Old West. Proper etiquette is a must. Why, I hear that John Wesley Harding once shot a man for tracking bull crap on his new rug! If this frog band doesn’t give you nightmares, nothing will. Hansa offers a challenging ropes course. The suspension bridge was more my speed. But KT was taking the course like a champ. As for Derek, well . . . “I see a foolish white man.” “Don’t look at me. I can’t do nothin’!” You can hear the king of Kanan laughing at Derek’s plight. Only one person can save him now. Thank goodness for Sarah Crouse: Tomb Raider! Looks like another great family coaster is coming to Hansa. Like so many European parks, Hansa is beautifully landscaped--and a bit quirky. We finished our day at Hansa with some ERT on Karnan. I don’t think anyone objected. Pretty sure everyone took a Karnan shadow photo. Such a beautiful mess of twisted steel. It was worth traveling all the way to Germany to ride this. Big Chief What-the-Hell-Is-He bids you farewell. My thanks to Hansa for being such great hosts. Stand by for Movie Park Germany.

Chapter 4 Castles, Curses, and Creative Vision--Hansa Park Hansa Park provides a nice contrast with Heide--the family-owned park vs. the corporate park. While Hansa may not have the finances and the corporate machine behind it like Heide, it more than makes up for it with a friendlier vibe coupled with a desire to be the best damn theme park it can. Yes, Hansa always seems to plan big when it comes to new attractions. Of course, sometimes those plans can take a while to achieve. For example, when I was last there with TPR in 2009, the park’s new signature coaster, a launched Eurofighter named Fulch von Novogorod (“Curse of Novgorod”) was only partly themed. The ride was open to the public, but the show building was only half-covered with brick, the queue was full of bare drywall, and the ride’s “pre-show” before the launch was one spooky talking scarecrow. Here’s the show building and queue as they appeared in 2009. Even so, the ride was great. And its even better with its full theming today. The castle queue is nice and creepy throughout, and the pre-show features an operatic ghost (“N-o-o-o-v-go-r-o-o-o-d!”) and some creepy monks (the scarecrow is now part of the outdoor queue). The Eurofighter’s staple vertical lift boasts some nice effects, too. Hansa is taking the same approach with its excellent new coaster, Karnan, which is themed to yet another cursed castle. The story is that a king wanted a fortress that would be completely impervious to enemy attack. Well, he gets what he wants--but at the cost of his soul as it becomes part of the castle itself. Riders are part of a team exploring some of the castle's hidden passages. They even use this “Indiana Jones" type of tale to explain why you can't take any bags, glasses, or other loose items with you. Even the boarding process itself is a spooky light show tied into the legend of the castle. (Hansa is doing some Disney-level stuff here.) The ride is open and running, but the castle isn’t finished. But, like its cousin on the other side of the park, it’s a great coaster that any park would be proud to have. There's some scary, "Skyrush-style" airtime on this monster, along with a few surprises (which many you probably already know about, but I'm not going to spoil for others). The park’s entrance has also been considerably improved since 2009, with facades based on the great coastal cities of Europe. Back in 2009, I wrote, “Hansa is a very good park that's working on being even better--all starting with a new, operational, if not-quite-finished world-class ride in Fluch von Novgorod.” Well, it now boasts two world-class rides in Fulch and Karnan, along with a great collection of other attractions and beautiful grounds. Everybody needs to visit this park near the Baltic Sea at least once. Let me show you why. Hansa Park’s entrance looks like it wants to swallow you whole! Fortunately, Theme Park Review received the blessing of a local friar and his sacred mackeral, and we were saved from the hunger of the ravenous park entrance. Park management came out to greet us. I love little touches like this. They're very enthusiastic and rightly proud of what they've accomplished at Hansa. You now know the exact time and date when we entered Hansa. Elissa was happy to see two of these three mascots. When a Vekoma and a Schwarzkopf love each other very much . . . The designers at Gerstlauer really are evil geniuses. This is one twisted hunk of incredible. No, I'm not talking about the wild mouse on the right. So, what is this “Karnan” all about, anyway? Aside from being a great excuse for a kick-ass coaster? Maybe this rather attractive German historian can shed some light. “We also want the most insane roller coaster you can devise. That way, when we are besieged by enemies, We will ride it, laughing and showing them how awesome we are! Their tweets will be so jealous and petty!” “We wish to rain death upon them from an enormous cobra roll. All will cower in terror at our enormous steel snake!" “We will laugh and scorn our enemies with obscene gestures as they seethe with jealousy!” “The wind from the first drop should scatter our foes like dead leaves!” “We want to feel their anger . . . . . . and get drunk on the wine of their curses and tears!” “This ride must be so amazing that it will render our enemies impotent, thus ending their foul line forever! Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!” But local bureaucracy thwarted part of the king’s plans--for now. However, the king was able to build this family coaster dedicated to his “Schlange.” That’s some pretty cool theming for a simple family ride. Hansa puts a lot of thought into their queues. If this were Six Flags or Cedar Fair, you'd be lucky if they put up a few umbrellas to block the sun, much less construct an elaborate queue and tell you a story. Of course, it helps if you can read German. You get two laps on the “Schlange.” "Ride the snake . . . the snake is long . . ." The old wild mouse is crazy . . . . . . and a bit painful--but fun. How many American parks would provide a German hillbilly band with a wild mouse? Oh my god! Those poor people in the loop don’t know what they’re in for! Somebody stop the ride and warn them! Too late. They’ve been swallowed whole! Hmm--this is the second German park in which riders are swallowed by a monster, then expelled out its rear end. More to come from Hansa.

That's my guess as well. I like ToT, but I dreaded that area. It was just a huge open area with not a lot to do. I think the best evidence that much of the studio section was wasted space was its use as a party zone for ElecTRONica and Mad Tea Party. When those events weren't running, what was the point of going there, except to get to ToT? The animation exhibit is only a shadow of what it was when it first opened. The Monsters Inc. ride is fun, but not all that amazing.

^I was planning to head there on Sunday and get some photos for a new update.

Now known as Blue Flyer--Blackpool Pleasure Beach

I love the old-school neon signs, but it's a pity Lakeside isn't in better shape.