coasterdude5

Hey guys you only have about 24 hours left to enter the contest! We've had over 50 entries so far!

1976 I have more pictures of Derecho's first ride for you! - Michael May The first drop towers over the rest of the park. The second and third hills aren't much smaller! The turnaround provides a short relief. But soon it's back to the fun!

Hang in there man, it gets better. Be careful about cleaning around where the teeth were. Some food got trapped in one of the sockets which led to a post-op infection which wasn't fun. Oh and if you are worried about getting sick afterwards (I was), tell them that you get sick from the anesthesia - they will mix in some anti-nausea medicine that will keep you from getting sick.

Yes, there needs to be a coaster somewhere in the photo. It doesn't necessarily have to be the focus of the photo, though.

1976 Welcome to the first day of our second season! The crowds today far surpassed last year's turnout. I have a gut feeling it had something to do with our new giant, Derecho. - Michael May The entrance area was packed before the park opened its gates for the day! Some arrived as early as two hours before opening! Seeing the ride in person made quite a few guests have second thoughts about riding, it's alot larger in person! A new gift shop was constructed adjacent to the entrance of Derecho. In it you can find American-themed apparel. Our 200th birthday is right around the corner! The first excited guests entered Derecho's queue line about five minutes after we opened. The tension builds! We'll have to wait until the train comes back to hear what the first group of riders think!

^ Your first name and last initial will be displayed with your photo on the voting page. If you win I will contact you about further details. We're not going to offer it up as free use or anything like that.

Hey guys just a reminder that the last day to enter the contest is this Thursday! So far the entries have been incredible!

Glad you guys are having a great time! Dixieland seems like a cool quick stop... and that zipline looks pretty intense.

From the Liberyland saga a few years ago, I learned a letter of intent is nothing to get excited about. I wouldn't get my hopes up.

1976 Well, we're about a week from opening and we've still got some minor things to finish up before everything gets rolling. We're expecting big crowds this season, especially with the addition of Derecho. - Michael May The queue and station house for Derecho were completed last week. As you can tell by this ride's colors, it was originally going to be named something more patriotic than "Derecho". You can see most of the layout here. Derecho gives Parachute Falls a nice backdrop. Our skyline has changed forever! What a sight... _____________ Hey guys I am leaving for a mission trip in the Appalachian mountains tomorrow and I won't be back until next Sunday so unfortunately there won't be any updates until then. Wish us luck, we hope to get alot done!

Thanks to all 61 people who entered the contest! Results: http://www.coaster101.com/photocontest

1976 Hello all and welcome to our second season which also happens to be a special date for our country. Now before I announce our new addition, I would like to give a little background on it. In late November, an unusual squall line of severe thunderstorms moved through the Charleston area, greatly damaging the lift of this new ride. Our only option was to remove the lift and start over. We were not sure we would be able to open the coaster at the beginning of the season like we had hoped. But due to the hard work by our construction workers, the ride was completed on schedule. We had already chosen a name for the ride, but after the storm came through, we decided to rename the coaster... Derecho, which is what came through Charleston last November. Derecho stands over 100 feet tall and features a 101 foot drop. The ride features an out-and-back layout with numerous bunny hills. The trains are made up of six four-seater cars, allowing for 24 people to ride. The lifthill greatly changes the skyline of our park! Derecho's first drop is a big one! Two large hills follow the first drop. The turnaround. Here's a better view of the turnaround. You experience a good deal of "air time" right here. The home stretch back to the station.

I don't feel dive coasters are "intense", at least not in the sense that Batman or Kumba are. Everything's so gradual... You get "ejector air" but it's more a feeling of weightlessness. It's not very intense, IMO.

13/20 It's better than the last few.

Sheikra is the most re-rideable coaster for me. I can't do most coasters over and over, but I think Sheikra is one of the exceptions. It's smooth, the transitions are not blackout-inducing, overall it's a great, but easy ride.

It sounds like a good idea, even if it is a push for more customers. Not sure I'd where a white glove to the park but I guess if I wanted to get in badly enough I would! It's funny, I saw a Myrtle Beach commercial on TV the other day and it seemed to go on forever. I think it showed every single tourist attraction in the city... except FMP. I'm gonna take a guess and say it was made before the park reopened, but it was still funny.

Hollywood Rip, Ride, and Rockit has really caught my interest. I like rides that are "fit" into parks. I've enjoyed watching it progress because it's so unique. Hopefully I'll get to ride it someday.

When did Viper start sucking? But last time I rode it was in October of 2005 so what do I know. Nice pictures, I miss this park.

1976 Well it's February and we've had one hell of an off-season. While I cannot go into details (because that would ruin the upcoming announcement), I can tell you that we're very lucky to still be on schedule. I'm sure most of you have seen the News and Courier article by now, but if not I have attached a snippet below. I'm not sure how they got this close to the park, we're not exactly in the middle of the city. We will be investigating this more. Trespassing is not allowed. - Michael May

Visualizing that made me laugh. I picture it looking similar to the cage ride at Magic Mountain. The ride itself looks pretty insane. Is there any reason that there couldn't be two or more cars attached to increase capacity? I could even see the "canoes" widening in the future to fit two in a row. The whole concept seems pretty cool, it reminds me of that one ride concept a few years back where the car was separated from the track.

http://tech.msn.com/products/slideshow.aspx?cp-documentid=19445651 PC World did a good summary of some of the typical personalities that can be found in online discussion forums. A few of them can be found right here! It's pretty funny and true!

1975 We had our first breakdown at the park today. The Great Twist had a malfunction that kept riders on the ride for almost an hour. Thankfully it was not a serious issue and it was quickly resolved. Unfortunately some of our guests were understandably not happy. I tried to keep guests entertained as we fixed the ride. We gave all of the affected guests and their families free tickets for another day, yet some were still unhappy with the overall experience. The theater sat quiet with tonight being an off-night. With most schools starting, crowds overall were rather light. Yet guests were still entering the park two hours before closing. The carousel always looks great illuminated by the setting sun. - - - - - - - 1975 Today we took some aeriel shots of Carolina Calamity from above for the PR department. The ride makes good use of its surroundings. The ride drops under its own station. A totem pole can be found in the middle of the second helix. Another group of riders exit satisfied! I have to say, while the job can be stressful, seeing everything come together makes it worth it.

Here's a video: [coastertube]http://www.themeparkreview.com/coastertube/play.php?vid=dollywood09c_v9te[/coastertube]

Uh, what's coming out of the "peephole" in that sign? River Battle's gonna have a sister!

The piece on the front car (can't think of the name) was removed both days. I didn't get to ask why, though. Nope, no free pie for me...