Saldek

^The official colors of the state of Bavaria (where Oktoberfest is officially held) are blue and white, so how does the color scheme of this ride not fit in with the theme?

^The pic with the flag on it show's that it is not yet complete.

The park uploaded a short video showing the first piece installed.

^BGW's version...

^^Looks like that may be all they can put up for now since they are calling for severe weather all day tomorrow. The park is open Friday so I doubt they'll be working on it anymore this week.

The park just released a new montage video showing construction pics and testing footage.

Great pics! I might be going to Germany this September to visit my aunt and if I do this is the first ride I'm getting on!

^The park has been open for two of the last three weeks for Spring break so I doubt they would want to bring in the equipment to build the ride especially with the bridge being right there. They go back to weekends-only starting this week so they'll have plenty of weekdays to work on it. They also poured a huge slab of concrete in that spot so I wonder if its even cured properly and ready to go vertical. Anybody with construction and cement knowledge know how long this process takes?

I went to BGW yesterday and, man, was it crazy crowded! It took 45 minutes just to park. I'm not doing a full trip report since I was there with family so I spent most of the time chasing toddlers in Forest of Fun and Land of the Dragons. I just wanted to post a few inside pics of the new Pretzel Shop. I had some Cinnamon Sugar Pretzel Bites and a piece of a Jumbo Pretzel. They were really good. I'll have to try the others when I go back. Food Menu Snacks & Ice Cream Menu Frozen Drinks Pretzels Cinnamon Sugar Pretzel BItes Dipping Sauces for Pretzels Pizza Pretzel Pretzel Dog Cinnamon Buns Making Fresh Pretzel Dogs SeaWorld Represent! Self-explanatory!

Awesome pics! I love the theming in the water. How many rides did you get?

You're right. On busy days they usually have at least one person working each row. This video of yours only shows two checking the restraints.

Just saw on KD's website that the park is closing at 4:30 p.m. today due to severe weather. http://www.kingsdominion.com/

Tokyo Disneyland will reopen Friday, April 15th. Tokyo Disney Sea will remain closed. http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T110410003475.htm

This report from OLC shows every section of both parks and only three areas seem to have minor damage. http://www.olc.co.jp/wpmu/wp-content/blogs.dir/7/files/2011/04/20110328_01e.pdf

Thanks again for the pics! Especially for fulfilling my request of the loading station photos!

Awesome pics! If possible can you take some pictures of the train loading area tomorrow? I'd like to see how they set that up when you board the coaster. -Thanks

Official POV here:

I did a patent search and found all the patents for every other train design they have but not this one. I'm sure B&M filed a patent for these trains but it's possible that the patent office is backlogged and have yet to publish it on the site.

^They brought "Hugh Mongous" back after they dismantled him but in 1989 some pyromaniac lit him up and burned him to the ground. So he was gone for a year or so but they rebuilt him. Here's an article about his destruction: http://media.hamptonroads.com/cache/files/images/blogs/69451.jpg

Some new pics

Here's another video with nice close-ups of the trains from 2:34 on.

R.I.P Elizabeth Taylor!!! http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturenews/8400903/Dame-Elizabeth-Taylor-Hollywood-actress-dies-aged-79.html

The U.S. State Department has upgraded the travel advisory for Japan. http://www.travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/tw/tw_japan.html

^The lines for the rides on Passholder Day aren't really too bad. It's the other operations of the park that struggle because of understaffing this time of year. They just don't have enough employees to handle the volume of customers. The lines for food can get miserable, especially during lunch and dinner hours.

^Did you get a rubber diabolo or a rubber/plastic hybrid? Just wondering because the rubber ones tend to lose its shape a lot easier than a hybrid. If it gets deformed it will be harder to manipulate the spool.