Geauga Dog

Thanks to everyone for the early reviews and photos. Thank you, Robb, for posting the POV and your on-ride review. I think it's been awhile since I've seen Robb give a big thumbs up for a B&M. Don't know how I'll make it through the rest of the day as now I'm super pumped to ride Banshee.

That looks beautiful! Can't wait to see that in person. I'm deciding if I'll be there on Friday but since KI opening day is an unofficial state holiday for us in Ohio it'll be crowded.

^When I first saw that the first thing I thought of was Intimidator at Carowinds, which would be a nice fit for SFStL. I'd throw a couple of underground tunnels into the layout to spice it up a bit and go under parts of the train track.

Add the two Busch Gardens to the list of theme parks. I still consider Kings Island a theme park that, like most parks built during the building boom of the 70's, has lost a lot of what was considered theming over the years.

The U.S. would more likely get one of these over the Intamin model - and I'd be thrilled to see one here. Thanks, Hanno, for the photos. The ride looks great.

So Delirium got a paint job too? Makes sense since it sits right in front of the new hotness. It sure needed it as it was beginning to look a bit worn.

I'm not disappointed at all in Wildfire. RMC got their wish to build a bigger, longer coaster and they surely went all out on this. Congrats to them and Vekoma, who helped bring this ride to Europe. It has me more excited to try Goliath this summer to see what the RMC hype is all about. Congrats to Kolmarden. For a park that we knew very little about you surely are making a statement with this ride. Robb, I don't know how you were able to keep this a secret but major props to to you for the teasers leading up to the announcement. Side note: THIS is what Son of Beast SHOULD have been.

You're sounding like what happened with Six Flags Ohio/Worlds of Adventure - investing big in a park that was about the same size as Darien Lake. With that mindset Darien would meet the same fate as SFO in 5-10 years....mark my words. Personally I like Darien Lake as it is and I don't think it needs a lot of big, flashy rides to make it better. I like the direction HFE has taken thus far. Sure go ahead and build that 400-foot coaster but the park does not have the attendance to sustain that investment in the long term.

I miss Big Dipper and Double Loop but I miss Villain the most, especially since such a young seven year old ride was sent to the scrap heap in the sky. Night rides, especially when the temps were cool during Oktoberfest and the Haunt, provided excellent rides in pure darkness. Villain would have made a good addition for a mid-sized park.

Love that view of the queue entrance. Now to only remodel all those Action Zone buildings to make it all fit together. All those blue roofs throw the theming off.

I had always though Sling Shot was in a rather odd location right next to the gate and since you mentioned creating a full circle pathway what would you think if they added a new path from the Main Gate towards Mind Eraser's path, relocating the Sling Shot to the new path, thus creating better traffic flow from the front of the park instead of just one path that leads to and from the entrance? Just an idea but what if the park decided to relocate the catered picnic area to the current "Cuda Falls spot to expand Splashtown towards Ride of Steel thus making that entire side of the park all water park? With Big Kahuna already near the current catered picnic area park it just seems like a logical move.

Would it be too outrageous for Darien to remove the slides and level the hill they sit on, using the dirt to maybe fill in one of the smaller lakes on the Splashtown side to open up more room for more waterslides?

My pick would be the double/triple wheels and then the Looping Starship.

I agree 110%. Kings Island got screwed out of their 40th. A new wave pool and yet another water park rebranding seems lame compared to what KD is doing. BTW, the singing mushrooms look great and sound awesome.

I would think that the comparison should be made with Darien Lake vs. Martin's Fanstasy Island, which are only a half hour apart. Given that Martin's may not have the same amount of attractions that Darien offers or may not even get the same amount of attendance it seems MFI has no problem with adding new attractions to its lineup, which seems like more frequently in the same time frame as when Darien was first flagged in 1999 to present.

Georgia Scorcher is a very popular ride. When I was at SFOG back in 2011 it seemed I overheard people talking about how it is one of the best rides there and I have to agree as Scorcher is a rare breed of stand-up being one of the best. Mantis is okay until the twists after the mid-course and corkscrew. That's where it gets brutal. I would like to see a new generation stand-up built. If B&M wasn't trying to sell them then why are they listed on their website?

First, sad to hear that Fresno Vista is no more. That park was just starting to make a name for itself with the growth it experienced. Greywood is starting to look like a nice small park though it seems there is a lot of brown/earth tones in some of the park buildings. Is this to make the park have an "organic" look to it?

Tierco became Premier which became Six Flags. I hope valley Hills doesn't turn into Six Flags West Virginia later on.

Absolutely gorgeous. Those aerial views are quite striking. This is the kind of park where you could just walk around, take in the scenery and atmosphere, and still feel like you've got your money's worth.

That's basically a TOGO stand-up layout (i.e. KI King Cobra, CW Skyrider) with sit down trains. Must be a novelty in Japan for a full circuit coaster to be turned backwards. Plus it needs some paint...badly.

Quite a few parks have a great coaster trio but my picks are: I agree with Hershey but for me it's Storm Runner, Lightning Racer, and Wildcat, despite many who dislike the ride. SFStL - Screamin' Eagle. The Boss, despite it being a bit rough but it has a great layout and I love all the big drops, and American Thunder.

Kings Island has a special Gold Pass parking area that fills up fast as well as an extra charge premium parking area. Besides wasn't Carowinds supposed to be making changes to the parking lot anyway or was this the change they were referring to?

Great to see some progress on Grand Texas. I hope they don't level all the trees on the property.

At first I was a little unsure about how the orange paint would look on the Bat but it looks great in that photo. Much better than al the all gray color it had.

Of the parks I've been to... 1. SFGAm - probably the most complete Six Flags park with it's excellent flat ride collection amidst a solid coaster lineup. 2. SFOG - stellar coaster lineup in a very nice and shade filled park. 3. SFStL - probably one of the more unusual layouts for a park it does add to the charm. Three excellent wood coasters and nice shade filled areas. 4. SFGAdv - another very nice shade filled park, very good coaster lineup but sorely needing more flats to round out the park. 5. SFDK - was Marine World when I was there in 2001 it definitely felt a bit more family friendly with all the animal exhibits. 6. SFMM - while having several very good coasters the park did not feel inviting, seemed dirty, and employees seemed like they didn't care (from my 2001 visit).