jab88

Why would CGA get a star flyer when SFDK has one? CGA does not have a 150 foot limit like SFDK so they could make it 301 ft. CGA does have height limits in place, if I am not mistaken, it is the height of Drop Tower (around 225 feet) due to the proximity of the San Jose Airport, the same issue keeps height limits for Downtown San Jose.

Does not surprise me that it is starting to slip again at the end, where one faces the fire and water there, it did it all too often in the year and a half I operated that ride, usually accompanied with a squealing/screeching noise as the brakes slid during that portion of the ride. It seemed unpredictable with when it would do it, sometimes I'd wait one or two rides before calling it in, as it would not slip constantly, but if it did it again, I called it in to the mechanics. Not to alarm or scare anyone over Firefall, but there was another time that the mechanics were cycling the ride (sometime around after the gondola had been returned from it's long rehab) and at the end of the ride, the gondola actually got stuck upside down in the loading area, the holding brakes did not release it for a few minutes, I had never seen it do that before.

While it was built in the 90s, it did not replace the Edge. Where Drop Zone is now used to be the Ameri Go Round (if you've seen Beverly Hills Cop 3, it is the one Axel/Eddie Murphy is seen on as he tries to get away from the Wonderworld "Security') Anyway, the Edge was located near what is currently the Go Kart Track, next to Psycho Mouse.

^ The cables attached to the side of Superman near where it stopped? Here's an image of them below that I took, the day after the ride stopped.

This is exactly what happens to me on Flying Eagles. The only problem about flyers is their low capacity and it usually has a 10 minute wait when there isn't many people in line. When I worked at Eagles, we were suppose to try to get people to pair off, to help move the line along. Some would pair off with no problem, mostly adults and some teenagers. The problem though was with some of the younger kids who were tall enough to ride alone would not pair off with their siblings,friends, or parents. They insisted on going alone, further making the wait increase. The ride cycle is about 2 or so minutes, loading/unloading time about 3 minutes, but the ride cycle could be shorter if we decided to stop the ride early. As for the cables and the snapping/thumps that happen, Generally it is up to the ride operator if they stop it or not. Over the 2 seasons I was there, I had stopped the ride on multiple occasions for violent swinging, in addition to some guests rocking the eagle side to side and told them to not come back to the ride at all for the day, though I'm sure some did after I left.

When I worked exit at Firefall, it was much like QueerRudie described with wheelchair access. The guest would show the boarding pass first and we'd usually have them wait at the first bend in the ramp until the next ride cycle. After the cycle was up, I'd have them come up and wait near the top while the riders exit. The person at control would hold the entry gate and the guest in the wheelchair would come up to the gondola and board the end seat on the first row, usually using the step first and then going onto the gondola, along with assistance from someone with them. I never had any problems with the guest boarding the ride this way during the two seasons I spent at Firefall.

Yeah, it was on here, I had found the image in one of the city council planning sessions and posted it on here a while back. I went back and looked for the post to re-share it again. Wonder if they are still considering using the amphitheater site as a back up though, since the attached is from 2008.

Thanks! Yeah, it was neat to see a picture of Whizzer and how it looked at Great America (especially since I never did get to see the ride). True, I agree, I think if we did have the preservation efforts then, many would still be around today. It certainly would be odd at Great America without Flight Deck or Vortex, it already was strange enough not having Invertigo there last season (though it's removal was for a different reason, not age in this instance) And yeah, at least they still do live on somewhat as parts for the other coasters just like them, such as Greased Lightning at Kentucky Kingdom, which isn't it still sitting there in that closed park? Yeah, someone did die on it, I think the trains collided into one another (a moving train into a stopped train), I might have it wrong but I'm trying to remember what my dad had said about it, the person was getting on the stopped train when the other one hit it and he fell to his death.

Thanks! I came across it on accident actually and I asked my mom (she took them back in the late 70s) if I could scan them and clean them up. Yeah, it would of been neat had they saved the Whizzer and not taken it out, along with so much more that has disappeared from the park over time.

On subject of the Demon, came across this picture in a photo album of Great America with Demon running as Turn of the Century along with a view of Willard's Whizzer and the Sky Whirl.

So the park won't be dying or closing down anytime soon. If the mayor is excited with the plans that Cedar Fair is making then I would imagine more attractions coming into the park sooner rather than later. Well that's good news to here, that JMA is not going to buy it after all. Will be nice to see something new come to the park, makes one wonder now what they have planned for where Invertigo used to be at. Maybe the change in CEOs played a factor in this decision coming about?

I saw that one too, quite a story actually, to be locked in a freezer. This might be the shop (in the link below) it was in Yukon Territory and if I am in the right section of the park, I believe it is the building near the Endeavor along the wooden dock, where ice cream and funnel cakes are now sold- I had read somewhere that used to be a roast beef shop and the restaurant now housing the Joe Cool Cafe (formerly Nicktoons Cafe) sells roast beef sandwiches. http://www.greatamericaparks.com/images/displayimage.php?album=170&pid=1650#top_display_media

Not sure if it is true or not, but I've heard that the Great America (Paramount) Theater is supposedly haunted as well. As for the Drop Zone, that is strange, the penny falling from the seat. Which cabin set was it, #1-3 or #4-6? I worked at Drop Zone a few times last season when I was not needed at Firefall and it was a pain at times.

Hmm, I should go look through some of my parent's photo albums, one I came across did have photos of Great America in the late 1970s, including some of the Hometown Square Train Station and other portions of the park I can't recall right now, makes me wonder if any of them had the IMAX in it at all, now just to recall where I saw them last in the garage. That is interesting that it was used once more several years after it closed, I never would of thought, where'd you find that out at? Makes me wish I'd taken some pics of it's interior when I worked at the park, but then again the doors were likely locked. I recall years ago, one associate I was talking to about the IMAX, claimed water was leaking into the space and that it was sinking slightly. Not sure how much truth there is to that given they use the space for Haunt. As for the Stadium, here is the other plan for it, across the creek on the "overflow" parking lot and Centennial Drive with the planned parking garage across Tasman Drive.

It is this that's got this funky stench in the air: I agree about that last quote there, when reading that, it just seems strange and makes one wonder what they want to modify on the ground lease to make the project "more financeable". Of course, it is early in the process of all this and I could be wrong, but from that, it seems like they have other ideas for land the park sits on, or in the least, portions of the land, to become some other uses, that is if the city approves it all. I'd hope this is not the end for Great America.

Got this email a few minutes ago about the Global Winter Wonderland event in the parking lot as they are hiring for it. Did any of the other former Great America associates on here get this email? I'd assume they got a list of our email addresses from the park since it says to mention what positions we had at Great America.

Even though it was a few posts back, on the subject of Demon, I found this postcard for 50 cents at the Inside CGA store (the one next to the main gate). Figured it would be a neat thing to have if the rumors about Demon's removal are true, which I hope they are not. Oddly they still had a few postcards for Invertigo a few weeks before I bought the Demon one, I did end up buying the Invertigo one as well.

We don't exactly allow filming in the mazes, so that could also explain why you're having a hard time finding them That's true, last season with the employee preview night, I thought I'd video tape walking through Club Blood, less than a minute in, I was stopped by a supervisor and told I could no longer video tape in the maze. I'd assume safety plays a factor in not allowing video taping inside of the mazes.

I might know which operator that it was, there's only a few that would goof around and have fun like that. Did his spiel, besides the teddy part, (as long as this may be, but at Firefall he's the only one to do it) include an extended safety spiel, announcing for everyone's safety, in turn pointing at the exit operator and everyone around the control booth? And as far as the teddy bears, they sort of became an unofficial 'ride mascot' left behind by guests who never came back to get them, first it was a Garfield, then a brown bear joined in, and after that I don't know, they could of gotten more, since I no longer work there. It had of been funny to have been there during that and sounds like some of the associates I remember, often doing something funny or random.

Interesting, thanks for explaining about how it all works with Tiki Twirl. So back when it was Survivor and the guests were put into the queue areas with the colored circles and had to perform the stomp/dance being shown on the television, that really had no effect over whether or not the fire went off. As far as guests, true most don't understand why something may not work, but then again most don't care either, such as happened last night when they booed you, among them the rowdy (and rather annoying) group of teenagers that were in front of me, chances are I was the only one not booing you since I know what it's like to be in the position of a ride operator and dealing with guests. Firefall's effects work that way (it's Wind Meter is on top of the control booth) , the wind speed limit varies from day to day for it, sometimes it's 25 MPH and the fire will not go off, other times, it is as low as 7 MPH. I assume the mechanics set the max. wind speed each day before the fire will turn off there, especially with all the wood there, would be a big mess if any of that were to catch fire.

Yeah, it definitely was busy that night, never had seen them use all the parking booths before to pay for parking, but they were. It took a but of time to get into Slaughterhouse, well maybe around 40 minutes, but it was neat to see how it has changed. The night ride I did on Demon was actually fun, especially in the dark and the tunnels it goes through. Were you at Tiki Twirl around 9 or so and making mention of not turning on the fire if the guests on the ride did not scream? I was on the ride during that time, and if so can you really control the fire and when it goes off or does it just not work at times. When I worked Firefall, there were times it would not work and we had no control over it, other than an emergency stop for it.

When I went last Sunday, found this at the store in the front-Inside CGA- I didn't think there was anything left Invertigo merchandise wise in the park, but there this was along with some postcards with Invertigo on it.

Sure, but it does make one wonder what it will all be re-themed into this time around, I doubt Cedar Fair will let JMA keep the rights to use the Snoopy themes currently in the park, it doesn't leave much for the Planet Snoopy area, only Nick (would be interesting if they did make a come back, but I doubt that too) unless some other sort of theme arrangement is worked out. I wonder if Tiki Twirl will have to be renamed yet again as well, since that is something Cedar Fair came up with. As far as the stadium, it's still planned to be on the overflow lot and that section of Centennial Blvd. (that street is going to be removed entirely minus a small access point to the soccer park there, the 49ers headquarters and the back of the stadium. Cedar Fair did not want the stadium on the main lot, mostly for the reasons you noted, parking and that it was rather close to the park itself. And that small substation on the main lot (along Tasman and near the creek) is apparently still planned to relocated to gain more parking spaces.

On the subject of the stadium and it's plans, here are some of the actual site plans from online, well one isn't, I just moved the stadium over onto the overflow lot in photoshop, but the other two are from online.

Which video did the comment about Demon's possible removal occur on? At least it won't be happening for now though. If anything, I would not miss Grizzly, but as of now Great America does not need anymore rides removed from it, unless more are put in their place.