805Andrew

Iron Colossus opening in 2015 at SixFlags Magic Mountain would be the World's first dual track RMC steel/wood hybrid coaster with one side running the trains forward and the other side running the trains backwards at the same time racing each other.

*facepalm* This post is a joke. Please stop posting here if you're going to post garbage like this. Thanks. --Robb "Men being turned away in doves. Seriously? Just stop..." Alvey Hey Robb, what happens if they turn you away Saturday??? Just askin.... Not throw an immature sh1t fit, be respectful of what the park had to do, and most importantly lose 25 pounds. I like your answer Robb. If I ever got denied on a ride (besides kiddy ones) due to my size, that would be a great inspiration for me to diet and exercise vigorously to lose weight. But as long as I don't gain weight, I am fine on any non-kiddy ride.

Ninja, right? Oh yeah! I totally forgot about Ninja. The second lift hill is at the end of the ride with no more elements afterward so I don't think much about it. Ninja is one of those rides where if after the second lift hill there was another part of the ride it could be so much better but I understand due to the terrain the second lift hill is needed. Ninja kind of reminds of Pirates of the Caribbean at Disneyland where the long lift hill is at the end of the ride and then there's the loading station.

I hope they give the Colossus the Rocky Mountain treatment, that would be awesome. It would be even more awesome if both sides of the track were connected to one ride with a station fly through for the second lap, but I doubt that would happen. and if it did it would probably be more like 4 minutes long, which is still good. ^Regarding rides at SFMM that have two lift hills, Gold Rusher is one, what is the other one?

^If I am not too busy September 3rd I could meet up with you in Downtown SLO. I'll PM you as we get closer to the date.

^Wow, there are places in Japan that accept Discover?

Reverchon Crazy Mouse at the California Mid State Fair a few days ago. My next Coaster will most likely be Full Throtle during WCB ERT.

^ Tuesday is Pint Night in SLO and with Cuesta College back in session and Cal Poly starting a couple of weeks later, they will be people about and you should have a good time. Three bars worth checking out in SLO are SLO Brew, Frog & Peach, and McCarthy's (all walking distance from each other). If you have your own pint glass (I doubt you will) you can bring it into Frog & Peach and get craft and import beers for $3 or Coors Light for $1. They have over 30 different beers on tap (try the Youngs Chocolate Stout). You can also buy the pint glass which comes filled and keep it for refill specials. SLO Brew also has pint night, but they make you buy their glass. You can bring the SLO Brew glass into Frog and Peach for their specials. SLO Brew has $1-$3 house brews which they make themselves (the Reggae Red, Honey Blonde, and Blueberry Ale are good) and is a bar and restaurant (before 9PM) upstairs w/ pool tables and a live music venue downstairs with bands playing almost every night. Look at all posters of bands that played there before they were famous such as Green Day, No Doubt, and Sublime. McCarthys is on a side street, but only a few blocks away and is an dive bar (but not too gross) with an outdoor patio. They have shuffleboard and a jukebox that plays rock and punk tracks and are known for having the largest Jameson Whiskey account in the US. Another bar you may want to check out is Bull's Tavern, a dive infamous for a drink called the Bull Sweat which you can probably convince someone to buy for you. For a good inexpensive meal, I would go to Firestone Grill or Splash Cafe. Firestone Grill is famous for its Tri Tip sandwiches (a West Coast cut of steak for you East Coasters). Splash Cafe of course is famous for its Clam Chowder. Both of these places are fast-casual places, so you don't have to leave a tip. If you don't go to Splash Cafe that night, you should go to the Pismo one the next morning. Also don't forget to try Firestone Double Barrel Ale and Firestone 805 beers, which are locally made in Paso Robles (not related to Firestone Grill) and if you like wine try some Paso Robles wines like a Petite Sirah or a Zinfandel. For hotels, you might be able to find a decent hotel for close to the price of a Motel 6 on Priceline or Hotwire. We should totally hang at Magic Mountain btw.

Looks like I'll be going solo as couple of friends already had plans for that weekend. I just have to get the days confirmed off and I'm set. I'll be driving from the San Luis Obispo area either Friday evening or very early Saturday morning. I wouldn't mind carpooling with someone from SLO if that's possible (PM me). Now that you have an extra day you should leave SF early and definitely see the Monterey Bay Aquarium, then head down the Big Sur Coast. You should walk around downtown SLO (Higuera St) the night you are there and eat at one of the many eateries there. They even have a branch of the Splash Cafe there (not the original location but the same menu). Walk down Bubble Gum Alley in downtown SLO and check out the lobby/main building of the Madonna Inn (both featured in the book Weird California). It is not likely you will probably be staying at the Madonna Inn as it is pretty expensive. If you are staying in SLO Thursday night you are in for a treat as the Farmer's Market on Higuera St runs from 6:30 to 9 PM every Thursday night and is famous. Produce is only a small part of it, as they are numerous vendors, food booths, special interest groups, and street performers as well. They are tons of people walking around and all the shops and restaurants along the streets are open.

PCH can be done in a day, but you'll want at least 4 hours for the Monterey to San Luis Obispo portion of the drive (the best part). Most of the tips given to you by other members are good pieces of advice to follow. Starting PCH from SF, you don't need to stop until Santa Cruz. Stop in Santa Cruz if you want to see the Boardwalk. If you just want to walk around it briefly and just ride the Giant Dipper and the new coaster it shouldn't take you more than an hour (assuming the lines aren't long). After Santa Cruz, Moss Landing is a good pit stop if you are hungry as they have several seafood shacks along the right side of PCH (It's a long way to Pismo). Monterey should be your next stop. Go straight to Cannery Row, the heart of Monterey. If you haven't eaten yet, they are a lot of eateries here (you will be hungry again by the time you get to Pismo), although I feel the restaurants in Moss Landing are less touristy and a better value. The Monterey Bay Aquarium in Cannery Row is excellent and should be visited at least once in one's lifetime, but you should allow at least two hours for the Aquarium and even then that may be rushing it. If you don't have time for it, it gives you an excuse to come back. Walk around Cannery Row and the Wharf and then move along. The 17 Mile Drive (a toll road) might be worth considering if you want to drive through Pebble Beach and its famed golf courses and it will connect back with the PCH. If not then continue down the PCH from Monterey. BTW, gas up in the Monterey area as gas stations are few and far in between and very expensive for the next hundred miles south. Gas up again in Morro Bay (the Valero, ARCO, or Mobil, not the Chevron ) as their stations are usually cheaper than the ones in SLO. Driving South of Monterey, stop at Pfeiffer Beach. This place is tricky to find as there is no sign for the turnoff, but if your rental car has GPS, it will find it. Going South, right after Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park (which is on the left side) there is a road on the right side which has a sharp beyond 90 degree angle which is the road that goes down to Pfeiffer Beach. It is a windy narrow paved road that takes about 10 minutes to get to the beach parking lot, which is $5 charged by US Forest Service. The beach is a short walk from the parking lot and you can see it in about 10 minutes if your on a tight schedule. It has purple sand in certain parts and is worth seeing, but bring a jacket as it can get very windy here. Right before Pfeiffer Beach is Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park on the left side, which is a really nice park with redwoods, a river you can swim in, BBQ/picnic grounds, and a campground. If is really nice to see if you have time but if you can't allow yourself at least 45 minutes in the pay day use area then skip it. Definitely see McWay Falls in Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park which is 20-30 minutes south of Big Sur. If you only make one stop on your drive, let this be it. Turn left into JPBSP as it has free parking. From here you can walk a few minutes inland along a creek to see some redwoods before you take the coastal trail to McWay Falls. Then take the coastal trail which goes underneath PCH to the view of McWay Falls. Turn on the left trail after going underneath the PCH and it will walk along the cliff giving you beautiful views of the falls pouring onto the beach which has no access to it (somehow people still manage to get down there). Continue along the trail until the end (it isn't very long) to see some cool ruins from the 1920-1930s. You can manage to see all of this in 20-30 minutes as the trails from the parking lot are very short. Continuing South, stop wherever you feel has a nice view for a quick picture. Ragged Point is a good place to stop and use the restroom and has a short walk to a view of the coastline. If you stop here, take a peak of the price on the gas pumps as it might be the most expensive gas in all of California. About 10-15 minutes south of here is a lookout for the Elephant Seals before San Simeon. Stop here to take a look at the Elephant Seals, it will only take you a few minutes. Driving South, look into the mountains on the left side and try to spot Hearst Castle. You won't have time to take tour of Hearst Castle if you are going down PCH in just one day. Don't feel too bad though, as I live in San Luis Obispo County and have only been to Hearst Castle once on a 6th grade field trip back in the 90s. PCH 1 will merge with the US 101 in San Luis Obispo, and from there on, take 101 south to Santa Barbara. Stop in Pismo Beach for Splash Cafe and get the clam chowder. The other seafood dishes are good too, but the clam chowder is a must. I haven't tried it with the seafood topping, but it is good straight up in a cup. If you want to, you can walk to the pier to get a view of the beach as it is only half a block from Splash Cafe. Pismo Beach calls itself "Classic California" and it is an example of a CA beach town that hasn't had the effects of overdevelopment or over population. After Pismo, stick to 101 and don't bother with Hwy 1 as it just goes through Guadalupe and Lompoc which is nothing worth seeing. Hwy 1 will merge again with 101 south of Buellton/Lompoc. You'll see numerous billboards for Pea Soup Anderson's in Buellton, skip it. Before Buellton, you'll have the option of taking CA Hwy 154 to Santa Barbara where it will merge back with the 101. It can be slightly quicker than the 101 depending how the traffic is flowing. It is a scenic route that goes by some vineyards, a lake, and up a mountain down into SB with great views coming down to SB. 101 is also scenic south of Buellton and into Gaviota, but boring after that until SB. If it is dark by the time you get to 154, then I would just stick with the 101. If you still have time in Santa Barbara, cruise down State St. to the beach and walk the beach and/or downtown State St. area. From Ventura, take Hwy 126 to Valencia. Enjoy your drive down PCH and 101.

That USA Today video didn't seem as negative as I thought it was going to be. 1 in 750 million chance of dying on a roller coaster - you have a better chance of winning the lottery. I'll take those chances. By the way I love the new word filter. Click

Just saw last night's episode. It had the lowest scoring coasters of all the episodes I've seen with Magnum XL 200 winning with 815 pts. I missed the previous week's episode #206 as my DVR failed me last week. Doesn't anyone know when Travel Channel will repeat this season's episodes (or at least #206)? Also does anyone know the scores for episode #206 ( the one w/ X2, X Flight, Superman Escape in Australia, and iSpeed)? I'm guessing X2 would win with a score of over 900 points but who knows. I was bummed Travel Channel didn't put episodes of Insane Coaster Wars on demand like they do for some of their other shows. All I got was two minute clips on their website. Nothing on Hulu either. Anyone that can post the scores it would be much appreciated, thanks.

Just saw the video for Iron Rattler, it's looks really cool and blends in with the scenery really well. For those of you who have ridden both NTAG and iRat, which one do you prefer or feel is better?

I was going to comment on the Shoot The Rapids first but that bird video caught my attention. I was almost laughing at how scared the employees were of removing that bird with tongs and gloves. What a bunch of wimps. It was funny someone in line said "be a man" and a guy finally removed that bird. Just the other day a bird was stuck in a corner of a building at work and I had to remove it, but it was a tiny one. And last year when I was driving home from LAX late at night a hawk dove in front of my SUV on the 101 near Arroyo Grande and got stuck on my car's deer guard. That was actually scary, as if I didn't swerve into the left lane, it may have hit my windshield. The next day I had to remove a beautiful hawk from the front of my car. The bird in the video looked like a sea gull, but a rather large one that probably snacked on a lot of Cedar Fair food. Onto the Shoot the Rapids. First of all, I saw the POV of the ride and it looks lame except for the two drops - reaaaaalllly slooooooow moving in the flat parts and devoid of theming for the most part. Also I find it interesting that the big drop is first and the smaller drop is second. I've never seen that in a water ride before. Now on the accident, this was mechanical error meanwhile the NTAG accident was most likely a human error. That's scary that a ride that is only a few years old rolled down the lift hill and it tipped over to its side. The water doesn't look deep enough to drown anyone but luckily no one was injured too badly due to the shallowness of the water. Cedar Point is also lucky that this got overshadowed in the media due to the NTAG accident. Crazy week for amusement parks indeed.

You are probably right. Some reports are saying that the rider felt she wasn't secure and when she called for help the rider attendant simply said "you're fine". If that's the case, then the attendant should have rechecked her restraint and either readjusted it so it was on her thigh or decided she was too large to ride and taken her off. I think this going to come down to human error and not mechanical error. It's really sad, especially for her son who was sitting next to her who may get PTSD that may make him never want to ride a roller coaster again. The park may feel the need to take action on the restraint system even if its just human error (this is Six Flags after all) and add an additional restraint. If so, I would rather have them add a lap seat belt or three-point seat belt instead of an OTSR which would ruin part of the sensation of the ride.

Does Red Bull Silver Edition count? Because that's the last non-alcoholic carbonated drink I had.

Five Finger Death Punch - Lift Me Up

Nice TR so far. I'm looking forward to seeing more of your cross country TR and getting an outsider's perspective of the States. I hope that Knott's Windseeker is able to run again and doesn't stay SBNO for years until its removed. Last time I went to Knott's was in 2011 during its Halloween Haunt and it was a couple of minutes before closing time and I had the option of going on Windseeker or trying one more maze and I chose the latter thinking Windseeker is going to be here next time I'm here.

I saw this mentioned on The Colbert Report in a funny segment. Like KTVU FOX 2 reporting those fake names which they didn't make up themselves is what's going to tarnish Asiana's image. They report, you decide. And I decided that those fake names were pretty funny.

^and^^ Thanks for answering. It's interesting that Slurpee is considered 7-11's signature product here, but is isn't in some of its international markets. I remember 7-11s in Mexico didn't have Slurpees either (nor their Big Gulp fountain drinks - lower quality tap water - but they did have fresh brewed coffee) but 7-11s in Canada do. Excuse me for going off the coaster topic.

It's funny how the question asked what is your favorite coaster in the park and people list half the coasters in the park. X2 is my favorite, though I haven't been on Full Throttle or Green Lantern yet.

^ I don't worry about kiddie credits. I said I don't really care about them. I don't have kids either. I'm sure when I have kids in the future, I'll be riding the kiddie coasters with them, but only until they are tall enough to ride the adult coasters.

Alright, another Japan TR. Each one brings a different perspective. I was wondering did you go into a 7-11 in Japan and if so do they have a Slurpee machine like the US/CA ones? I'm curious what Slurpee flavors they would have there if they have a Slurpee machine.

Kiddie coasters at various parks such as SFMM, Knott's, etc. The way I look at it is why waste my time waiting to go on one of these just to add one to the count when they are so many adult sized coasters and other rides to ride first. It's not like I'm going to beat (or even come close) to Robb and Elissa's count anyway. If I was at a park that had very few things to do, I would probably ride a kiddie coaster but I don't really go to those type of parks or credit whore stops. If I was on a TPR trip though, I would gladly go on the kiddie coasters with a train full of adult TPR members as its more about the silly experience than the count.

Cool pics so far. I never get tired of looking at Japan TRs.