kraxleRIDAH

^ I don't believe it's possible to operate Tatsu with three trains without both sides of the loading platform open. Each of the station sides serves as a block -- and if one of them is not in operation, the ride loses an active block section.

Desperado @ Buffalo Bills Hotel & Casino Raging Wolf Bobs @ Geauga Lake ANY Vekoma SLC

The same reason why GhostRider has a roof over its first drop. And why Maliboomer has fiberglass "shields" in front of the harnesses. It's to keep riders' screams from projecting towards the neighborhood.

A very typical review of Six Flags Great America -- one of the chain's better performing parks. Nice TR!

KYNDRA

I do not believe ANY rumors of Flashback moving and re-opening at all. It just doesn't even make sense that what was probably the most unpopular coaster in the park next to Psyclone which hasn't operated in 4 years would re-open in a new location. Spending the money to dismantle, refurb, landscape the Psyclone area, and reconstruct Flashback there makes zero sense. --Robb It wasn't a rumor. It came out of Sue Carpenter's mouth -- quoted in L.A. Daily News and L.A. Times. Then again, she only stated that Magic Mountain is "exploring the option to reinstall it in the future at a different location inside the park." Which means it's not set in stone. Hell, the ride hasn't even been pulled down yet!

Haha. I like how the sub-thread title is "Oh my God." This is not that big of a deal. Plenty of rides have stalled or gotten "stuck" with people on them before. And considering how just a few days ago, about 12 riders were stuck UPSIDE-DOWN for nearly half an hour approximately 150-feet in the air on the X-Coaster, this is bobsled coaster incident is especially not a big deal.

Nice PTR. Great Adventure reminds me a lot of Magic Mountain -- they both have similar skylines with a large number of big coasters. The only difference is Magic Mountain is not as cosmetically up-to-par with Great Adventure. By a lot.

Ditto. I tried reading past the first two sentences and just stopped.

Sucks that happened. But still, things like this happen everyday. Why is it on CNN?

Honestly, why can't they keep a classic? (For lack of better words) Because it takes up way too much land in a park that's really tight on space and is probably the most outdated attraction still operating at the park. For crying out loud, the projection is so outdated you can see every pixel on the screen and a simple turn of your head during the ride you can see 7 other deloreon-shaped motion simulator pods shaking around above and next to you It's about time they got rid of it. Classic schmassic.

I've been to two -- Knott's Berry Farm and Cedar Point. And also Great America, Kings Dominion, and Geauga Lake when they were owned by CBS Corp. and Six Flags, respectively. I'd have to say Cedar Point was the best by a long shot. There's a lot to do there, operations are great, and landscaping is nice -- plus the peninsula location is unbeatable.

Before I get to the main point --- for those that are unfamiliar with Las Vegas Wet, it's a 200-plus-acre development on the southern tip of world famous Las Vegas Boulevard that's currently underway. Unlike other resorts and entertainment venues on the strip, these developers want to target every demographic there is -- so that's there's something to do for EVERYONE (completely unlike the "luxury luxury luxury" mindset the rest of the strip is doing). This huge Casino/Resort/Entertainment Complex is slated for completion in 2011 and will consist of (bear with me here): 1) North America's largest indoor water park at 350,000 square-feet with certain sections extending outdoors and will feature numerous themed-lands and over 25-water attractions. 2) Largest indoor snow dome in North America at 150,000 square-feet for year-round snowboarding and skiing. 3) Performing arts center with three separate theaters; the smallest one with a 500-person capacity and the largest with an astonishing 3,400 person capacity. 4) Four hotels each with WELL over 600 rooms and condominiums. 5) 100,000 square-foot casino. 6) Two sports arenas --- one with 18,000 seats; the other with 5,000 seats. 6) 5,000 square-foot "Childrens Zone" featuring venues like Chuck E. Cheese and Discovery Zone. 7) Two "themed streets" at 250,000-square-feet --- featuring retail stores, bars, nightclubs, and restaurants (Route 66 and Rue du Monde) --- think CityWalk and Downtown Disney. 7) 12-plex Cinema with 3 auditoriums designated for 21-and older patrons featuring cocktail service and leather seating. 8 ) "Hidden Riviera" --- exclusively for the 21-and-older crowd where adults can relax in an international atmosphere with resort features often found in Europe and Asia. 9) A nightly spectacular featuring water, pyrotechnics and lighting all set to a musical score and live performers (think Fountains of Bellagio, but on Ecstacy). 10) 60-acre theme park utilizing a "internationally recognized theme park brand." Got your attention yet? Then there's... 11) "The Beach" -- inspired by The Wavehouse in San Diego...where people can surf man-made waves, rollerblade along the beach and ride a classic wooden roller coaster. Looks like Project CityCenter has a massive rival on the playing field...and another place for thrillseekers and credit-whores to patronize. Other cool notes about this project: - Will feature the world's largest parking structure...with a capacity of 18,000 cars. - "With the fluctuating costs of energy, coupled with a community that is undergoing rapid growth, the Project has chosen to generate its own electricity using fuel cells (the first installation of this kind in Nevada) and microturbines. This "green" technology allows the Project to have an almost zero carbon footprint, and creates the opportunity to sell tax credits to other businesses. In addition to electricity, the Project will have its own fleet of hydrogen busses and vehicles, and may even generate its own hydrogen for these vehicles." For more detailed and comprehensive information about the project...click here.

Well we spoke to the guy who's company did the control panel programming for it when we were at Renegade, and he says it's open and it's a Batman clone. --Robb New lesson learned: Control panel programming people are just like those at the Dip 'n Dots stands. They don't know crap.

What part of the valley? I'm from the "Valley" too. USH - 30 minutes SFMM - 50 minutes KBF - 40 minutes DLR - 50 minutes

^ Haha. It's funny how SFMM photo updates go. You'll have a string of photo updates from different sites in a week's period and then you won't see any for the next 3 weeks.

It looks like that park was built on a budget of $500. Yuck.

Ugh. A lot of people will disagree with you on that, me included. The Villain is terrible. MAYBE with different trains it could climb the ladder to be just an average wooden coaster. Because Geauga Lake's attendance figures did not justify so many roller coasters, especially one that demands constant maintenance and attention. So no, Cedar Fair is not "too cheap" to buy a new roller coaster. Neglect? Worlds of Fun got Patriot last year. Valleyfair! got Renegade this year. Knott's got Sierra Sidewinder this year. Michigans Adventure got Canyon Rapids last year. How is that neglect?

I wouldn't say that. I consider Patriot to be more mid-sized than BIG. Alpengeist and Montu are BIG. Talon and Patriot are mid-sized.

Interesting notes from the article: * Six Flags is purchasing the city of Vallejo's $52 million dollar (or 5.2 trillion pennies) interest in the Discovery Kingdom theme park. In doing so, Six Flags will now completely own the park and is now able to exclusively reap all profits generated from the park, while the city is able to reduce its debt load and improve its bond rating. * Six Flags spent $16 million in improvements this year at the park as a result of the transformation from Marine World to Discovery Kingdom. Anybody else curious as to how the new signage and animal sculptures, one coaster paint job, and a new train ride cost that much? Here's the story: http://www.timesheraldonline.com/todaysnews/ci_6067745

Agreed...although "Jewish" would have been a better word for "retarded" in that sentence. "Retarded" is just too insensitive.

I certainly have no problem with waiting in lines, as long as it keeps moving (like at a Disney or Universal park). However, when it's 5 - 10 minutes between moving 5 steps forward (like at a "Insert Six Flags park here"), then I get real agitated --- regardless of whether or not I have a big group of friends with me or not. Plus, it really depends on the temperature conditions too. If it's really hot out like at the peak of summer, I get so miserable from sweating and panting that I have derive no real pleasure from conversing with people I'm at the park.

^ I highly doubt the lack of any grass turf has anything to do with Cedar Point's intensive detail to theming. I'd say it has more to do with "not enough time, we'll plant that stuff later after we get that S-turn fixed in and finally open the ride to the public." I mean, just look at all that dirt and sparse weeds growing here and there. It's unsightly. Wait another month, the grass and landscaping will start showing up.

An interesting line jumping write-up http://tastyresearch.wordpress.com/2006/09/21/cutting-in-line/

Take care of business BEFORE getting on line!?!? Why would I wanna do that? That cuts valuable que line wait time! That's exactly the kind of mentality that leads to making it less for for everyone else in the park. It really isn't that hard nor time consuming to have everyone in your party squeeze out their bladder before entering a queue. Yes, you and your family have been "line jumping forever." And no, we're not labeling you line jumpers. From the parks themselves, you are characterized as so. According to Six Flags' Map & Guide: