Geauga Dog

Anyone see how eerily similar that layout is to the S&S Sansei model?

Disney's America was brought up which brings to mind the third Marriott's Great America that was supposed to be built in the Washington DC area - probably the same reasons DA never came to pass as people didn't want a theme park in their town.

I was thinking about this at work today - how much would CP lose out if Soak City was included with admission to the park? After all it's going to be at least $65 just to get into the park this year and Cedar Point is already a two day park as it is. They've combined Oceans of Fun with Worlds of Fun - how has that worked out for them?

Huss makes a smaller version of the Swing Around called the Bee Bee. www.hussrides.com/en/family-rides/bee-bee Technical Park makes a full sized version called the Apollo 2000 http://www.technicalpark.com/amusement-rides/swing-ride-apollo-2000/ Technical Park has quite a unique mix of flat rides in their catalog. I'd love to see more of their products in the U.S..

I don't know if Cedar Point can successfully put on a Christmas event due to its location. We were blessed to have a warmer than usual December last year but we all know that kind of weather isn't guaranteed every year. It would be brutal walking down the midway with those bone chilling winds off the lake. Between the two Ohio parks Kings Island is better suited for such an event as it has already been proven from when they used to have Winterfest and I wouldn't mind the four hour drive to experience theirs.

Nice photos! I'm thrilled that Revolution is getting some love. I don't have an issue with the supports being painted blue but I think the loop should have stayed all white and lit up with color changing LED's.

Wow, talking about being out of the loop - STR is leaving? I never rode it as I'm not a big fan of walking around soaking wet but I always enjoyed dropping quarters and water bombing people on the ride. They should move the water cannons over to Thunder Canyon where they belong. Other than VertiGo this has to be the shortest stay for a ride at the park in recent memory.

Nice shade of blue on that Silver Comet train. I sort of liked the old gradual changing colors on the train, making it seem like a fiery comet flying around the track. Any hints of anything new coming to MFI this year? They've really been adding a lot of new attractions the past few years that maybe this will be an off year for the park.

IIRC when I was at WOF in 1989 there was a ride called the Omegatron. Did it also have the same ridership issues that Thunderhawk has now since I believe it was tucked back by Timber Wolf?

Glad to hear of the new purchases and it's great that Carowinds is getting most of them as I felt that park really lacked in the mid-level thrill/family flats when I was there in 2011. Hoping the Japan trip will bring us an Ultra Twister or two. I would love to try one of them.

Count me in as a Screamin' Eagle fan as well. It's my favorite in the park followed by American Thunder and Mr. Freeze pre reverse blast.

It was a nice day by Northern Ohio standards and I was bored so I took the hour ride up to Sandusky to see Valravn for myself from the mainland. Taking Route 6 into town you can't miss the ride from the former airport - it's darker color really stands out though from that vantage point it doesn't make as strong of an impact on the skyline, IMO. From the park next to the marina on Water Street Valravn does fill in the skyline nicely. I took a few photos, which wasn't easy to do as it was quite blustery on the lakefront, making it a fight to stand still long enough to get them. The webcams are much better at showing the construction but here it is from the mainland. Valravn and Gatekeeper - now bookends on the front half of the park. The main part of the CP skyline. Valravn fits in perfectly.

Hard to believe Corkscrew will be 40 years old this summer. I remember waiting in hour long lines just to ride it back in the day. I think its location is a bit tight to put in anything large scale, i.e. record breaking, if the ride was to ever be removed.

I actually liked that slide at Kings Island but, of course, the last time I actually enjoyed the water park it was still called WaterWorks and the slide was known as Ultra Twister. By the way it has been described as of late it reminds of the Thunder Falls body slides at Wildwater Kingdom after they moved it from GL's Hurricane Harbor over to the then new water park in 2005. Those are back ripping slides right there. A KrakenRACER would be a nice fit for Darien Lake as Splashtown will always need more capacity for as packed as it gets but I'm hoping the dry ride side doesn't eventually get neglected down the road. Rolling Thunder was a very good addition and with majority of the flats in the park seeming like they are almost at the end of their life cycle (see Ranger and Corn Popper as examples) they are going to need to be replaced.

I'm kind of surprised that building was razed yet the last thing that area needs is another game stall. If it wasn't for that area being the entrance and exit for White Water Canyon a nice flat ride would be nice right there since there are no rides between Diamondback and Beast since the crappy Crypt was removed (not counting the KI & MV RR).

Having done both I prefer Xtreme Skyflyer over Sling Shot though Sling Shot is really not a bad extra charge ride. If you want to try Sling Shot, as already mentioned, get to it early when the price is cheap and there is no line for it (it can get a bit of a line as the day goes on). Seeing the Eiffel Tower do a full 360 at the top is pretty cool to see. Skyflyer is scarier with those few seconds of pure freefall before the cable grabs you plus I like swinging out over the midway far below.

Mine are the SUF clones since I don't exactly enjoy the flying coaster concept though I still have yet to ride Tatsu and Manta and those may change my mind just like how Georgia Scorcher changed my mind on the stand-ups, which also are not highly favored.

Disaster Transport - I liked it better as Avalanche Run. Going up the lift would be stifling hot. Wicked Twister - I really like the Impulse coasters but the seat belt situation on this particular one has me avoiding it.

I also have to go with SFGAdv as having one of the best skylines. Even just this small part of the skyline was impressive to me back when I visited in 2005.

Wouldn't it be pointless to have both the Flying Dutchman and Stingray in the same park? Both would offer the same sensations.

The spiel for Waldameer's Whacky Shack can get annoying really quick since there is literally no break in the loop from when it ends to when it starts over again. Plus it doesn't help that the line can be one of the slowest moving for what is one of the best rides in the park.

The repaint of Xtreme Skyflyer, though the same gray color as it always has been, looks great and I highly agree that Sling Shot should get some much needed paint.

I think some opinions of Blue Streak not being all that great would change if the ride was in much better condition but for a wood coaster it's age, it's "OH CRAP!" moments of air time, especially in the back seat, beat out a lot of other wood and steel coasters that have been built today combined. It's definitely a gem worth saving.

Maverick - No change needed as it's perfect as is. Raging Bull - IMO the layout is perfect for a hypertwister but they really could, at least, lessen the brakes on the camelback and mid-course as we all know they will never be removed or be totally turned off. The Beast - Lessen the brakes in the two worst spots: at the crest of the ravine drop and at the end of the straight shed section. Ride of Steel (Darien Lake) - Remove that long straight section after the first helix and add another airtime hill. I-305 - Just make it a bit longer with a few airtime filled camelbacks to burn off some of that speed.

While the ARM/Larson towers are awesome they would be a capacity nightmare at Kennywood, unless they were able to build a slightly larger version that was also a bit taller or if they added two towers.