coasterdude5

^ Thank you. That's refreshing to hear as the reception at other forums hasn't been as positive. I'm really enjoying making this park and I'm glad to hear that you're liking the results!

Thanks for the replies, guys. An Updraft Strikes EarthQuest The "sky" area at EarthQuest Adventures will be home to some of the park's most exhilerating attractions, and Updraft is no exception Updraft will be the first of its kind in the U.S. The original EarthQuest design had all of the "Sky" attractions spread out. I think having these rides interact will prove to be much more exciting for guests. I still have a lot of work left to do around the ride, but the foundation and queue is nearly complete. Random AeroWing track shot for grins and giggles. There are two more major thrill rides left to be added to the Sky area. Stay tuned! -Greg

^ Thanks! Reach Towards the Sky The "sky" area of the park continues to take shape. I'm pleased with how it's turning out. The entrance to "AeroWing" isn't complete, but it's progressing nicely. The AeroWing trains will be blue rather than red as per Boeing's request. Ride lockers have been added outside the AeroWing entrance. We don't want guests losing their valuables while riding! Here's a preview of what will be showcased in this week's updates. Air panorama. More soon! -Greg

The Sky is the Limit Here are a few more shots of the "Sky" area of the park. AeroWing's first dive is quite photogenic against the crystal-clear blue sky An AeroWing train passes over the Boeing Store. The floor-to-ceiling windows inside the Boeing Store will provide guests with some up-close shots of AeroWing. Here's one more overview of the Boeing Store. An AeroWing train crests the massive lifthill. Stay tuned for more updates! -Greg

^ This is a very different project compared to SFSC. This is meant to be realistic, but in a different sense. I'm building an entire park from scratch, whereas SFSC started out small and then grew season-by-season. If I took the same approach with EarthQuest Adventures, you wouldn't see any screens of the progress for at least a year. By doing this "designer" method, I can show you the progress more frequently.

The Sun Sets at EarthQuest Computer software is a really amazing thing. I've been able to simulate what a beautiful sunset will look like at EarthQuest Adventures. Looking towards the entry portal, there's obviously a considerable amount of work left to do. AeroWing's sky blue track blends nicely with the warm early morning sky. AeroWing is no match to EarthQuest's giant centerpiece mountain. Yes, the yet-to-be-named mountain is a tad bit larger. Here's another view of the Boeing Store. Boeing will have a lot of room to work with once they start designing the interior of the store. The building itself is very "green" and will be LEED certified. Stay tuned, there's more coming soon! -Greg

This is a random thought, but how cool would it be if they moved the Ozark Wildcat to this park, perhaps for the "future expansion" area?

This is great news. Opryland was one of the first parks I visited, so it's always held a special place in my heart. It will be interesting to see more details about this park develop. I would like to see, at some point in time, some "dry" rides and maybe even a coaster open at the park, but I'm not complaining about these plans. Anything is better than nothing. I also believe this park may be the "seed" for a larger theme park developing in the future. This is very exciting for the Nashville area.

^ Thanks! Boeing arrives at EarthQuest Hello all! You may or may not know that Boeing is sponsoring the AeroWing coaster, so naturally it's only appropriate that guests find Boeing material throughout the ride and surrounding area. I've been working closely with the Boeing people on designing the in-park Boeing store. I'll show you more in future updates. As I stated earlier, guests will learn more about Boeing's products and initiatives while waiting in line for AeroWing. More to come soon! -Greg

More Progress Hello again! I hope you all enjoyed the video. You might have heard some bankruptcy talk surrounding the EarthQuest Adventures project. Let me tell you firsthand that, as of this posting, the project continues to move forward, therefore I will as well. Let's start off with the iconic mountain at the center of EarthQuest Adventures. There's still a considerable amount of landscaping to be done on the mountain, but I'm pleased with how the texture is looking so far. The AeroWing station is almost complete. Smaller details are being added to the interior of the station. I'll be moving over to the "land" section of the park in the next couple of weeks. Don't worry, the "sky" section is nowhere near completed. - Greg

Thanks guys! AlmereStars, that text effect goes with the actual "CD5Productions Intro Music," but since I was playing the video's music, that's probably why it seemed a little off. BTW, the actual EarthQuest Adventures project is still moving forward, therefore this one will as well.

Well, they got some of X-Flight up before the snow hit! Hopefully the area will see a milder winter so that progress isn't delayed.

Here's something I put together in about an hour. It's very basic so I welcome others to take the idea and run with it if Robb & Elissa like the concept. I got the idea for this design from the popular Pinterest website. I don't use the website but I do like its overall design. Now this design won't use the same functionality as Pinterest, but the way the site's content is laid out is noteworthy. TPR has an incredible amount of content. Unless someone visits the site every day or every few days, they're likely going to miss some updates. That's just the reality of it. I think the current design wastes a considerable amount of space (one whole sidebar) on updates that span almost an entire year. That's valuable real estate! Also, I don't believe that the homepage should have "one big picture." There's just too much going on at the site. I can't think of one thing that is more important/exciting/interesting/etc. than everything else. My design gives every update, video, trip report, news bit, etc. the same importance. However, I'm sure you guys could have the option of making a few of these "boxes" stick around at the top so that more people can see them. (Wordpress software calls this the "sticky" feature). That way if there's a blurb about a trip or event, or a very popular update, you can have it stick around near the top for a few weeks. I didn't include this in the design, but category toggles could be added to the front page to allow visitors to choose whether they wanted "Official TPR Updates," "Videos," "News," "Events/Trips," etc. to display. Let your visitors choose what type of content they want to see. I know this design is "out there" and might get shot down quickly, but I thought it was worth posting. My motto is "simple is always better." The current homepage is definitely content-heavy and on the simpler side, but I believe you could simplify it even more without sacrificing the functionality. Here's a hi-res image of the design: http://img822.imageshack.us/img822/8995/tpre.jpg

Hello again! Below you will find a short promotional video I have prepared for the park to start building more interest/support for the EarthQuest Adventures project. Please let me know what you think! - Greg

That's a pic from the actual EarthQuest Adventures concept art, which I'm modeling the park after. You can see more here: http://www.earthquestadventures.com

Thank you all for the feedback! grrt and coasterbill, the above coaster is what I'm modeling the Intamin after. As you can see, there are an abundance of straight sections. I've tried to make the layout a little more interesting (and realistic). I think once I add the decorative supports and lanscaping/foliage, the layout won't look as bare.

Happy New Year! I'm very excited about the upcoming year and all the exciting things I have planned (in my head, at least). One thing I want to increase this year is my activity on Twitter and Facebook. If you haven't already done so, you can like/follow me on Facebook and Twitter: Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/cd5productions Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/coasterdude5 I want to use social media to share my projects so that I am sure not to leave anybody out. People are using Facebook and Twitter more than ever to subscribe to the things they are interested in. I'll also be sharing a few things that I don't include in forum updates! You can also find all of my videos on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/cd5productions Below is a preview of what I'll soon be working on over at EarthQuest Adventures in the coming weeks. I'll have a normal update tomorrow. -CD5

This article might be the type of coaster hybrid coming to Universal Studios: http://www.coaster101.com/2011/09/19/universals-motion-base-track-patent/ The descriptions of the two concepts sound very similar. I'm more interested to see how they connect the two lands if this second land opens up. The train idea sounds great.

19/26. There were some wild guesses, but also some "I should have read all of the choices."

^ All the stations in the park won't be that elaborate, but I'm definitely taking my time with the entire park. Quality over quantity!

Thank you for the replies! The AeroWing station is nearing completion, although a roof and some small details are needed. AeroWing's train will skim above the water. Water effects will be added soon. I've begun landscaping some of the areas that AeroWing interacts with. Guests will have plenty of areas to watch the ride in action. I've also begun designing the AeroWing entrance. I'm leaving room for Boeing's signs and such. Boeing reps should be meeting with me sometime next week. It should look quite nice once all is said and done. Inside the station is finally coming together. Again, I still need to add the roof, as well as all the Boeing gizmos and gadgets (anyone remember that game?), so it will look a lot less bare once that is complete. I really am pleased with the multi-level setup of the station building. Guests waiting in line will surely have plenty to look at. The roof will have plenty of skylights to allow natural light into the building, reducing electricity costs. Here's an overview of the station. I'm definitely looking forward to moving onto another attraction!

AeroWing Progress is Slow but Steady AeroWing will no doubt be one of the most iconic attractions at the EarthQuest Adventures theme park when it opens in 2015. That's why it's taking so long to finish. Luckily, though, I have a few shots to share with you all that show the progress I've made as of late: Here's an overview of the station. The station will be themed after a Boeing hanger/warehouse. Originally, the train was to maneuver through a lengthy dark ride portion that's purpose was to educate riders about the atmosphere and its components, but once Boeing came on board they made some changes. Riders will now learn more about the atmosphere (and Boeing products) while waiting in line. The pre-lift section is much shorter, but will interact with those waiting in line. You can see here how the station will be raised well above the ground, with the train passing underneath as it approaches the lifthill. Let me make it clear that there is still a considerable amount of work to do on the station. It won't look much like this once it's finished. This is just the bare structure. Here's a render of what AeroWing will look like at dusk once completed. -Greg

^ You can't tell in that picture, but there are trim breaks after the last big drop that slow the train through that inversion.

Thank you again all for the comments. I'm incredibly excited about sharing this project with you. Redesigning AeroWing It's been a long two weeks. I've been working tirelessly with the great guys at Bolliger and Mabillard on making some pretty significant changes to AeroWing's layout. The higher-ups asked for design changes, and luckily B&M was able to work us into their busy schedule. The redesign was ordered primarily because more room is needed for a flat ride attraction that will be situated in the area under the overbank turn. The new design frees up space in the area around the former overbanked turn, while also a zero-gravity roll over the water, which should provide riders with a very interest effect once water effects are added. Here is a bird's eye view of the new AeroWing layout. Much of the original layout has been retained. My efforts will now focus on installing footers to the coaster's supports as well as finishing the very complex station. I look forward to sharing with you the progress in the coming weeks!

I should be studying for my weather exam, but instead I'm studying this film. This is weather-related, right?