ajfelice

Darien Lake's Viper comes to mind for me. I really appreciate the uniqueness of the location inside the heart of the layout, but after one time through the "scenic" route, just give me a shortcut! Lightning Racer at Hersheypark is a good one mentioned earlier. Last fall I saw what appeared to be some deconstruction of the overflow area as several pieces were missing and the area seemed uncharacteristically messy by Hersheypark standards. So it appeared they were in the process of removing it, or using it as a parts donor for other queue sections in the park. Another example was Led Zeppelin/Time Machine at Hard Rock Park. Even with high hopes for crowds, the amount queue line was massive. It seemed never-ending.

As a chicken wing enthusiast myself, this looks like another good reason for a visit this season! Never had these wings before, but I hear good things. Good for Darien Lake to build up their park infrastructure will unique food options outside normal park food.

I'm happy to have ridden Zeppelin when it was Hard Rock Park. It will make a great addition to a smaller park looking for its first major looping coaster. Hard Rock Park itself was very well done, but the concept was simply bad for massive appeal. Not to mention the management and marketing turmoil that made the whole situation worse.

Last season they were letting VIP Coaster Tour people sit wherever they wanted. Also, if you get to the park early in the morning and start by Exterminator and work away from there, the lines won't be horrible enough to really dictate buying the VIP Coaster Tour which was to my knowledge around $25. If you can't handle a maximum wait time of 30 min, then maybe you should buy it. However, be warned that you can only use the VIP pass once on each coaster. If anything, Kennywood needs a VIP Flat Ride Tour because they seem to be horribly slow loading Black Widow, Swing Shot, and Aero 360.

Damn you CP for not being able to accommodate "normal people."

Thought I'd share with everyone something really cool we will be doing at Waldameer on Opening Weekend May 11-12. A local news anchor will attempt to break the Guinness World Record of longest time on a Ferris Wheel by riding for 31 hours. The public is welcome to join him for a ride if they make a donation to the John Kanzius Cancer Research Foundation. Link: http://yourerie.com/fulltext?nxd_id=297752 Another cool thing I learned this past week is that we will finally conquer running two trains on Comet. Both trains are finishing rehab at PTC, and Comet will be ready to operate for opening day. However, two train operation will probably not occur until at least Memorial Day weekend if not later when crowds start to pick up. Lastly, crews were available earlier than we expected, and Ravine Flyer II is back up and ready to go. Heck, it's already roaring over Peninsula Drive weeks before we usually get started on testing.

This upcoming May, I'm planning a 2-3 day trip to Holiday World and Cedar Point. The dates are not exact, but they are most likely to fall May 15-17 or May 22-24. I'm really excited to finally experience Holiday World, and I want to get a whole experience with both Holiday World and Splashin' Safari. I expect the park not to be crazy busy, but I know their water park is very popular. I am aware that the rides are open until 5:00/5:30 and the waterpark is open until 4:00/4:30 for those days. Since I want to experience the amusement side and the waterpark (I don't waste time in wave pools, lazy rivers, etc., I keep it strictly slides), should I plan on one day or two? Any advice or experiences would be very helpful! Thank You!

I would never categorize Arrow as "lazy." Actually, I appreciate what Arrow has done for the industry. On the other hand, I'm not giving them a pass for their struggles in the 1990s into bankruptcy in 2001. Arrow, to me, is a great example of mass customization. They had their selection of elements in which a few had a couple of size options, and a new coaster was born by arranging those elements. This was a fast way to meet the huge demand for the multi-looping signature coasters parks were looking for from the late 1970s to early 1990s. Given the very primitive level of coaster technology at the time, I speculate the time and money required for custom elements/inversions kept them from doing anything too innovative for the most part. Transitions were probably limited to the technology available at the time as well, so they were as good as time and money allowed for. Fast innovation probably wasn't too big on the radar either as Arrow pretty much had a monopoly on the looping coaster within North America. However, sitting on that relatively untouched multi-looper cash cow ended up biting them in the butt as they were in too big of a hole to catch back up to the likes of Intamin, B&M, etc.

I am the source that told Screamscape about the new plans for the wave pool. Right now the new target opening is 2015. It's kind of a bummer, but the 2013 expansion came with a price a lot higher than orignally planned, and the length of time required to install the wave pool is much longer than expected. Since this information was published in a industry magazine, I can let you in on some of the future plans for Water World. Some future things to consider are a bowl, funnel, and a family raft slide among several proposals. The new children's play area will be next to the wave pool in the existing parking lot, so the current play area will be removed to make the major slide complex expansion possible. The empty spot on the tower where Midnight Plunge and Awesome Twosome currently are has also been addressed by ProSlide, but no official plans have been released. On top of that, the entrance to the park from the Peninsula Drive parking lot will have to be redesigned to make way for the monster expansion. This plan I'm talking about will take place over several years, not just one or two.

Hurricane Sandy was not kind to roller coasters. One of the largest, if not the largest, trees in the park fell onto a newly re-tracked section on Ravine Flyer II. Once some of the crew can return from their project Wisconsin to fix it, Ravine Flyer II should be ready to go for Opening Day on May 11. I didn't share the story with TPR back then as I wasn't sure if the park was ready to share. Sure enough, several months later, Waldameer shared some pictures on their Facebook page of the damage as well as the retracking. The pictures below focus in on the damage from the fallen tree. Re-tracking pictures in this album: Courtesy of Waldameer's Facebook Courtesy of Waldameer's Facebook The New View of RFII's lift hill. Taken on my Droid Friday March 15.

The past couple years I have witnessed a steady decline at Kennywood in terms of operations. Operators seem to be getting increasingly sluggish these past few seasons. Flat ride operations in particular are pretty poor. Black Widow and Swing Shot crews really needed a fire lit up their butts to get moving. The slugglish operations prevented re-rides on a not so busy Mondays for my past three visits. Their coaster operations were still decent, particularly Thunderbolt. As someone with a good amount of operating experience on many rides, I understand the tired factor (I worked 10 hour shifts with one break), but all I ask is for is an effort to be swift. Swift doesn't mean sprinting, but simply moving quickly and making a serious effort to move people through. This year I'll find out about the horror of the lap bar police at Martin's Fantasy Island.

Correct me if im wrong, but CP's site has TTD listed at 52" minimum height. Anyways, I always enjoy a good height requirement story from the GP. One day I had the task of checking the height signs, but I got diverted into an issue at Ravine Flyer II. I got the usual, "the doctor said he is 48" last week, your sign is wrong." Conveniently I had the tape measure still on me, and right in front of her confirmed the height requirement sign was correct. She stomped off before I could say it verbally when she saw the line match the tape exactly.

It's ok to love Predator! I understand I'm in the minority, but I can't understand the sheer level of hate for Darien Lake's Predator. Especially since the installation of former Voyage Trains. In September 2012, the place was empty so I took the time to find the "bad" Predator a lot of people loathe. I couldn't find it in the front, back, middle, almost front, almost back, wheel seat, etc. Predator follows a very simple yet effective traditional layout that is above average in airtime with some forceful moments sprinkled in. By wooden coaster standards, is it El Toro smooth? Heck no. Is it violent like the former SoB, or former Myrtle Beach's Hurricane, or Hurler at KD? Far from it. Do the trains shuffle? Nah. Are there a few shakes? Of course. But, doesn't almost any traditional (no Topper or Prefab) woodie have some shaking? Yes. There is no defensive riding on this coaster.

Well if they are thinking of TTD's height, they are off by a Giga Coaster.

Exactly Right! For example, the average Six Flags Great America Pass is used a whopping TWO times, according to my contact in their marketing department. Therefore, the price of a basic season pass is just under the price for two general admission passes. I'm not sure on the usage rates for SFA or SFMM, but I think its fair to say the usage rates are a major factor in setting the price.

The belief of many local visitors of Waldameer and Water World is that the original Ravine Flyer still exists to this day! No I'm not referring to the picnic grove that was the original station, I'm referring to a coaster in the park that still operates. I have looked all over the park for the original Ravine Flyer still in operation, and finally I found it! I guess I was wrong the entire time about the origins of our junior coaster! Ravine Flyer was renamed "Comet" after Waldameer chopped it in half, removed the bridge going over the road, and put some turns in to complete the circuit. The final product was a junior coaster. Who woulda thunk it? So be sure to put a note in your credits, as many of you have ridden the original Ravine Flyer originally built in 1922. As for the story about the accident, many embellished accounts float around to this day... ...some guy got drunk and thought it would be fun to jump off... ...he had a planned suicide... ...the rider that fell off was actually a baby someone someone snuck onto the ride... ...he didn't die from the fall, but he was struck repeatedly by oncoming traffic... The boring, but true story is as follows: A young man (late teens or early 20s) lost his balance when he rose to calm his sister when the train valleyed over the section that crossed the road. He didn't die immediately, but passed away due to a head injury shortly after being transported to a hospital.

Some gentleman told me he should have came to the park earlier in the season because roller coasters run faster in cold weather when the track shrinks.

I have an idea! Give deflated basketballs for prizes, and guests can inflate them and bounce them on their own time.

Waldameer and Water World Supervisor Class of 2012. Us two Assistant Rides Managers (top left) had the nickname "The GCC" a.k.a. "The Ginger Control Center." Fear the Red Shirts!

Best smoker story: Me: "Sir, I'm sorry, but you may only smoke in designated areas. The closest area is right behind this building in front of the Ali Baba flying carpet ride. You must put out you cigarette and move there if you wish to continue smoking" Guy: (Gives a blank expression and continues smoking) Me: "That means you must put out your cigarette now, and move to a smoking area if you wish to continue smoking." Guy: (Points to a ride) "But my kid is on that ride" Me: "I understand that, then you must put out your cigarette and you can wait for your child, and when they get off, you can go to a designated smoking area." The guy goes ahead and leans in really close to my face with his cigarette still lit and a couple inches from me. At this point I was sure he was going to burn me with it as he was throughly pissed that I told him to put out his cigarette. Then he suddenly raises his other hand and repeatedly smashes his lit cigarette into his hand inches in front of me screaming, "DOES THIS MAKE YOU HAPPY?!" Me: (Cheerfully) "Yes it does, Have a Great Night!" FYI, I have zero sympathy for cigarette smokers and their addiction. We go above and beyond what we are required to do by offering designated smoking areas. There are no laws requiring designated smoking areas, so appreciate the fact we even offer them, and please, make good use of them.

Our log flume, Thunder River, has a fairly long and dark storm tunnel with fog and strobe lights. When I come down from the operator tower I will take a detour and walk through it. On two occasions I caught young teens standing up. When they floated by me (remember you can barely see a foot in front of you) I yelled as loud as I could "SIT DOWN." Their screams were deafening, and when I got to the station I would hang by for a moment to watch them come off the ride. There was no need to say anything else to them, but I enjoyed their guilty looks as they ran off the platform as fast as they could thinking they were getting their wristbands taken. Another good story about that ride came back in my operating days in 2011. It was a slow night, so I was just people watching from Steel Dragon. I see two boys looking around the fence for Thunder River. Apparently they lost a hat in the ride. Next thing you know one of them was climbing the fence into the ride area. As I was on the phone with the office reporting it, I see the kid trying to climb back out. Somehow he gets his pants caught in the fence, and at the same time he realized we were watching him from Steel Dragon. He rips off his pants and is running though the ride area in his underwear trying to find a way out. Finally maintenance got there to let him out.

In terms of things I've "seen" working at a park, the craziest thing for me is the amount of pocket knives we find on rides. For example, it is not uncommon for Ravine Flyer II operators to turn in four or five knives to lost and found during the day. This doesn't take into account the ones people put into the bag-drop areas and remember to retrieve. I guess I never realized how many people carry them around. Then again, this is another unique thing to a free-entry park as most closed-gate parks would probably never let them past the metal detectors.

Great Bear at Hersheypark. The B&M roar was much more intimidating at age 11, but even riding it 10 years later didn't seem too tame like some others say about Great Bear.

I have great respect for the purpose of the ADA. The more people who can safely enjoy rides and attractions, the better. However, I believe some of the benefactors from the ADA have taken things to an extreme in some cases. In this case, I take the most issue with the following excerpt from the lawyer, "On the other hand, the policy is under-inclusive because it says nothing about those who have hands but choose not to hold on." Before making such a statement, I think some research is necessary. Restrictions that require having hands, feet, arms, legs, etc. are put in place in the case of emergency evacuation like others have mentioned, or they exist because these extremities are needed for the restraints to function properly. This statement basically comes off to me as a poor excuse to whine and try to fault others because something didn't turn out as you wanted it to. For the case of Aquaman Splashdown, I'm not defending whether or not Six Flags violated ADA, as I'm not an expert on the ADA (I just follow their guidelines as best I can). Actually, it could be possible that Six Flags may have not made the new policy for that ride. Maybe it was a combination of their insurance provider or the State of Texas? Overall, I take issue with how the lawyer is stating the case against SFoT.

The only time I can recall this on a major roller coaster while the park was open was Geauga Lake in July 2007. Villain and Head Spin Solo trips. Although, im lucky to have experienced this several times on Ravine Flyer II due to preseason testing and pre-opening fun. Disclaimer: Taken with permission from myself