MrSum1_55

The day didn't start off too great. I was supposed to get a suppliment ticket for my lost SFDK season pass here. As it would turn out, I would have to get a regular ticket, since this park couldn't contact the other park. This was the line to get in 15 minutes before opening. Yikes! Strangely, the park actually opened a whole three minutes early . This must be the alternate universe Magic Mountain. Here is a picture of Green Lantern. Upon opening, I bolted to the ride, weaving my way through the walking crowds. The outside queuing area is very small, and this is pretty much the entire thing. Eventually, the wait managed to overflow all the way back to the DC Universe Entrance. I was actually pretty close to the inside queue where I was, although it did take a while to move due to so many people holding spots in line. On pretty much every cycle, the car would stop for quite a while on the block brake. Why this is, I do not know. Could it have been a slow crew, or due to problems with the leveling of the cars? This was taken from GL's queue. That day, the park was having some serious problems with three of its for B&M's. Batman and Riddlers ran on and off all day, while Tatsu never opened. The outside queue's theming was pretty much just cardboard props. Here is one. Here's another. The indoor queuing area looks awesome. It is probably the best themed queue of any American Six Flags coaster. (I do not have pictures of every part, though.) Noted! Since it was a pretty hot day, they had this random fan in the queue. Nice! This area is meant to be themed as a hangar, and it works really well with the roar of the cars echoing through the walls, like planes. In the station they have air gates, but no rows. A ride op just escorts you to your seat. This ride, though is pretty violent. Since my car was off balance, I did get in two flips before the brakes, but none after, which is quite strange. Even so, this ride still has some violent jolts of airtime that throw you into the restraint. (Think Maginum at Cedar Point). Even without consistant spinning, this ride is still pretty insane. Now quit complaining/critiquing/whining about a ride you have never ridden and go ride it! I should also note that I was among the lucky ones who got stuck in a 90 degree position at the end of the ride! (A ride op had to manually spin our carrage back up!) Now to wait in another line! This time so I don't have to wait in line! I did add this to my Gold FP, however... I was unaware you could do this. Oh, well. I already rode it once, and I had bought my Gold pass in advance. Oddly enough, Deja Vu was not on that day, so I made it the last ride of the day (with a 1 hour wait, at night!) 1st ride of the day was Revolution! Why? Because there was no wait on the Flashpass! Revo was running very well that day. Holding on tightly, I survived without any headbanging! Ouch! Viper was not running so well today. At least I got to skip most of the (full)queue! Superman time. The inside queue was full on both sides, to non-FP users (actually, that was not as long as I thought it would be) I took this on the way to the One-Train Wonder The great One-Train Wonder in person! The train. Since this is the only one, appriciate it! If you can guess how many trains are running, you win 1,000,000! That's correct! You have just won 30,000,000! Plus, in celebration of your correct answer, we will run one train for another six months! Nothing to see here. Move along, move along. The trains did seem to have new padding, and, as everyone knows, the audio system and box are gone. What makes it even better is that it was one train! (Even with Flashpass this ride had a 30 minute wait) Goliath time! (Riddlers and Batman were both down, according to the Q-bot) The crew was doing awesome! Two ride ops were checking restraints, with one of them was managing the Flashpass line almost the entire time. Even so, they did not stack the trains once. Scream was next. I did witness two very funny things in the FP queue for this ride. First was this car. I have no idea if this was a management or something, but this was just funny. Everyone's joke is that they want to drive their car under Scream. Now, it has happened! Second was this cell phone. I actually did see this fall from the train as it passed! Almost symmetry! Onto the MCBR! Extreme closeup! Colossus time! I got a new Jeff Johnson credit from riding on the other side! Next, the FP let me book Riddler's, so I rode it. After Riddler's, I decided to purchase an X2 extention. To kill some time, I rode some other arrows! Here is Viper... The station pretty much looked like this most of the time, thanks to one train running on such a long ride. Time for Arrow #4! On the other side of that fence is a 2-hour wait. That was well worth it! The ride was running a little bouncy, but the extra padding helps. Also, in the train I rode, the audio was still off. After a ride on Jet Stream (5 Arrows, Jahan would be proud), Batman finally opened up. Then, I could check out DC Universe without having to bolt through it! Looks very nice... and colorful... Looks very nice... The highlight of the day was probably riding Batman twice in a row, in the back and the front. All thanks to the Q-bot! In both seats, though, the ride was running very well that day. It was nice and smooth and the train did not seem to stall at all around the loops. In Batman's FP queue you can see some Halloween decorations! and bugeyes! After Goliath, it was time for RRE, now launching at 1,000 MPH! Wait...how come the majority of riders are not young kids? Is everyone here a credit whore? After being sad and pathetic, I went over for one last ride, a night ride on Deja Vu. Oh, yeah. I caught this on camera as well. See the ride in the image. Well, GO RIDE IT! I also rode Ninja for the second time that day, but did not get one single picture either time! Here is Goldrusher. and very well done, especially by SF's standards.

I guess WCB must be a "cursed" event. We got new audio on Terminator, which was gone shortly after. Next, new audio was heard on X2, which is now gone. I am almost glad S:EFK and GL did not get audio, because it seems the park builds us up only to tear us down. Of all SF's budget cuts, I will say the removal of X2's audio is the most disappointing to me. I always knew the last WCB would be the last (and first) time I would ever hear the "Ripped Up Rockets" audio, but I never knew it would be the last time I would hear the original audio as well. (I came a few weeks after, and the audio was gone)

I am headed to the park July 9. My plan is to arrive between 8:30 and 9:00 (the park opens at 10:00). There, i will get my season pass reprocessed for $25 (lost it), and be in line early. The second the gates open, I will bolt to GL, and hope to get in a quick ride on it. Then, I will head back to the entrance to get myself a Gold Flashpass with the X2 extention. This way, I will be able to enjoy my day, with one hopeful ride on GL. Also, I bought my lost pass at SFDK. Will I still be able to renew it for the $25 at SFMM without buying a new one?

^Kinda shows how people don't realize what they have until they don't have it. Here, European park that pays more than an average American park with probably only slightly worse conditions got in trouble. If the same thing happened at an American park, I doubt anyone would care. Europeans get generally better conditions, a ton of time off, and better retirement policies. (I believe one or two countries require 35 payed days off in a year, while Americans are guaranteed about 35 days less than that) Wow! I guess the US really does suck! [Not meant to be offensful to any Europeans)

Has anyone actually been there yet? How does DC universe look? Is it complete? SFMM's site says that BTR is still closed, which makes me curious to see if the area around GL is fully complete.

^I rode X2 a week after openingin the back, outside seat, and it was rough as hell. December, 2009 I rode it again, and it was running great! April 2010 I returned and rode in row four on the outside seat, only for it to jackhammer like crazy. Finally, by WCB 2011, I had figured out how to ride with minimal discomfort. It is a real shame that this ride is not smooth enough now to just throw your hands in the air and enjoy the floater airtime. Since you will be holding on so tight and keeping your head back to keep yourself from flying like a rag doll, it pretty much kills the floater airtime.

^Even though the ride has been running very rough lately, I have found out how to ride with minimal discomfort, by riding in rows 1, 2, or 3, and keeping head and legs pressed against the headrests/seats. I believe the rattle has been there since opening day, just some days the ride decides to run better than others. (Two Decembers ago, I got in two glass-smooth rides in one day) Also, I did use this strategy before, to make a 2 hour wait upon opening 30 minutes. However, this day has the potential to be packed, meaning I may wait, but will probably get the extention.

Looks like Teh Diana Beach Hurricane may be saved, unlike Teh Big Dipper. However, how is moving it to another fun center going to be any different from before? I guess the response is that families visiting the zoo or water park may also stop by to ride this. I do recall, though, the credit at Wild Island Fun Center in Nevada. That place, containing a bowling alley, several mini golf courses, and a small water park, could barely make a profit on its kiddie coaster (now at Dixieland). The thing only stayed open for three years, while the rest of the place continued on just fine. How in the world is a zoo supposed to keep up a large coaster like this, while one of the largest fun centers in an area can barely keep up a little coaster? I am surprised Hurricane stayed open in its original location as long as it did.

Let's see... The ride has the capacity of a wild mouse, SFMM has been advertising like crazy, there will be no Flashpass access, and the opening is on a holiday weekend. Ok, so I am going the weekend after, but I am still probably screwed. At least now I do not have to waste any extra $$$ on a Platinum Pass. Now, my current plan is to head directly to GL upon opening, and run back for a Gold Flashpass. If the line for X2 remains long enough throughout the day (which it probably will) I may get the extension. It is a real shame you have to spend $15 a person for ONE ride. If you could take as many rides as you wanted, it would be worth it. Now, though, it is only worth anything on the most crowded of days.

Wait! GL was accessable via Gold and Platinum Flashpass, then just Platinum, now none at all! (SFMM just recently removed the 'yes' under the GL Flashpass)

^I have seen many people use FP's on Superman, so there is no question about that. Also, there is a Flashpass line on Deja, but I don't recall anyone using it on my last visit. Perhaps it was not available on the pass that day?

^^^It's a magical house that you can only see on the fifth Tuesday after an eclipse. It is located near the base of the lifthill and can be located from the back path. Also, the partridge is invisible, so the ride ops will not see you carry it on. Normally, you would be breaking park rules, but, since this bird is magical, that's okay. Anyway, I am planning on going July 8. Going to get there early, run to X2, and back to the entrance. There, I will buy a flashpass, probably Platinum. GL marathon, anyone?

Arrive at least 30 minutes before opening, and head directly to X2. Superman and Deja already support FP's, so, unless the FP is not available on any rides, just walk to GL after riding X2 and hit up any major attraction not supported by the FP on that current day. After GL, head directly to the FP office. However, if you can afford Platinum passes, just go straight to X2, and come back to the office to get your pass. These also support GL, and you will get two rides for every 1. However, if money is such an issue, there is little more you can do with a Gold Pass over a regular one; you can go on all the same rides, just less riding. It all depends on how often you visit the park. If you go less than once every two years, try to go Platinum. If you go less than once every year, go Gold. If you visit often, and crowds are not TOO bad, go regular. If crowds are light enough, don't get one at all. Oh, and one more thing. If it's Tuesday on the fifth day after an eclipse, go to the little house underneath Tatsu. There you will pick out a partridge in a pear tree, and hold it while riding X2. This will give you good luck for the rest of your visit.

What about these? Are these still considered the same thing as before to the books of the State of California?

Then why did SFOT and SFOG get to keep their lap bars on their Schwarzkopf loopers? Does anyone know what made Revo get the special treatment, while its cousins at other SF parks did not?

^^^Who knows? Maybe CF will stop only caring about CP and the other parks can get more attention. (Actually, CP has felt a tad niglected as well over recent years) Although a former executive of a family fun park chain taking control over what is mainly a thrill park chain will be an interesting mix. I am not quite sure at the moment which way this is going to go. I would like to see more revenue put into theming and family rides, but not to the point of which it will at all slow down construction of more thrilling rides. (i.e. I would pefer if CF parks did not go to the Disney way of thrill rides, with one family coaster every 10 years or so, although this is very unlikely to happen, especially with parks like CP) I had a dream recently, where the exact opposite happened. A former CF executive took over Disney, and an Intamin hyper was announced for Frontierland (California) shortly after. I really am not making this up! I really did have the reverse dream, and I wonder if the reverse result will occur in real life.

I have heard someone say "I don't really want to go to SFDK. I have driven by there. The roller coasters just look so boring compared to Disneyland. That one even got a mental facepalm from some of my GP friends!

I do believe Batman may have already had its seasonal rehab over the winter. I went in January 2011, and, although I did not wait in line, I did hear that one train may have been running due to the slower-than-normal dispatch rate. It is hard to tell on that ride, due to the awful queue design. (It gets REALLY hot in the summer) While two-train operation is important, as long as you have good staff, three train operations are not. It would be much better if many parks focused more on staff modivation and less on running more trains. Goliath is really SFMM's ONE redeeming ride in terms of capacity. While three train operation would be nice, it really doesn't need it as the Goliath crews are always awesome, almost never stacking the trains.

^^I only visit Disney once in every 2-3 years, while I go to SFMM much more often. In fact, my last visit to Disney actually did feel kind of like a fluke day. Many rides broke down for long periods of time. Actually, I visited in a span of two days. The first day was a Friday, and BTMR and Space Mountain did not open with the park. (A 1 hour delay for Space Mountain, and 90 minutes for BTMR) However, that day all rides were running their maximum number of trains. I wish I could say the same about the next day. CS opened THREE HOURS late, and only three trains were running on a Saturday, even though the queue was overflowing all the way back to the single rider entrance, only to switch back on iteslf a couple times. This is quite odd, since not even a third of the people were waiting the previous day, and all five trains were running. During that two day span, I also encountered many other breakdowns and almost Six Flags quality staff, in terms of knowing what was going on, (with one major exception, though) It is a safe bet to say that this was just one fluke day, and not all Disney visits are like this. Sorry for the long and somewhat off-topic post. For something that is on topic, does anyone know if X2 will be getting a rehab session next season? That would suck.

^Actually, there is a sesstion where even Disney does have to run fewer trains; on my last visit, CS was running three trains, while BTMR was running two, about half the amount they usually run. Also, is one-train rehab on Tatsu really necessary? Would you rather have a ride that can run two trains all year, or a ride that has to take three weeks out of the year to run two trains for possible future three-train operation? For reasons of being able to rehab one train at a time, you rarely ever see 3+train rides go down for rehab, yet Tatsu did. At least on that they imposed a ticket return system. When Pocky was running one train with a full queue, the ride op told me the wait was 75 minutes, while the actual wait was 120 minutes. He might have been right, if it had not been for every preshow being halfway filled up with Flashpass users. Why don't they just add a ticket system like Tatsu? It makes no sense.

^^and^ Also, if they just shut down the ride, they can rehab both trains at once, allowing for a shorter session. Tatsu, a three train ride, had a shorter session due to being able to rehab two trains at once. However, this is not to say why they shouldn't just either close the ride or add a quicker-access ticket system. Since Apoc is next to Deja, why not just rope off the whole area for a while? (Although Deja is up and running now)

^Big Chief's Carts and Coasters became Mount Olympus Theme Park.

^Oh, God. I hope they can get the second train on by 4th of July. I am going the weekend after, when it will hopefully be a bit less packed. Still, 1 train op on Apoc has caused me to wait 2 hours before. I seriously hope they will have the second train ready VERY soon. Actually, I wonder why they don't just close the ride for rehab. Deja has been down for the longest time. Why not just close Apoc as well?

^^For body slides, it is not worth it. The tube slides do not get you that wet, so a fluffy, fluffy bunny filled with medicine and goo is not necessary. However, the body slides will get you soaked, which puts me in a really sticky situation, since I am a total Dan when it comes to water rides, and I typically like to bring a change of clothes, yet I usually cram all my belongings in my pockets so I do not have to get a fluffy, fluffy bunny filled with medicine and goo. What I did was leave my belongings with a non-rider. However, the body slides are nothing to write home about, while the tube slides don't get you that wet. If you don't want to get a fluffy, fluffy bunny filled with medicine and goo, just skip the body slides altogether.

^I believe it is now only $20 more to purchase a season pass AND a Gold Flashpass over a 1 day Disney hopper. You can come as often as you want PLUS you don't have to wait in lines for a day PLUS there are some discounts on food. However, parks should not just give guests who pay more the special treatment. Maybe if there was no stacking on X2 or Tatsu, the Flashpass would be more than justified, as are Fastpasses. (Especially due to the enormous additional fee on X2) Didn't the Flashpass come before the Fastpass, though? It was just under a different name when it first came out at SFOT.