KickTheSky
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Posts posted by KickTheSky
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As was discussed with Lex Luthor, isn't there some point of diminishing returns with height? Is the only real reason to go 400' is to have the record? Will the ride experience be a whole lot different than a 320' model?
I guess they didn't really need to tear out the boomerang, then, right? I mean I guess they did because St. Louis needs it, but Over Texas didn't need the space right now....
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When do they release actual layout/park map information? I know the videos basically show where everything is, but I'm curious to see what part of that Logjammer area is being used etc.
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More like "ehNight". AMIRITE?
Maybe "mehNight"?
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Thanks for the replies!
We went to the park and really enjoyed ourselves.
First, since it was just posted about: Pink Things. I assume by "bring back" you mean bring back the original Pink Things, right? Because they are still there, although obviously they're in a different form factor (and flavor and manufacturer) than they used to be! They're now basically just Push-Up type ice cream that is sold at the front of the park....and have a cotton candy-type flavor to them. I wasn't a huge fan of the flavor, but at least one 3 and one 5 year-old loved 'em!! Best part was that they were selling them for just $1 --- RIGHT NEXT to the high-priced Ben & Jerry's store!
Second, what a shame about Texas Chute Out. I'd never been on one of these, and me and my 5 year-old just loved it. FYI: it appears that it doesn't open until noon, so no need to run that way at rope drop. Additionally, they were only running two of the two-chute lines, and that's all they needed. We dropped three times, and just loved it. Even the whir of the cable as you drop "sounded old"!
As many agree, I don't think a lot of tears will be shed for Flashback. If anything, it will be good that the park is losing one of it's many "older" coasters! That is one thing I was stunned by, just how old some of their rides are! That Runaway Mine Train almost looks like one (of their many) old-timey sets! At first glance it's hard to believe that it's actually a functioning coaster.
The steam train is great -- we also enjoyed the books you can buy in the game area to "save" money (you basically get a bunch of dollar tickets, along with free and BOGO tickets, which save you about $20 (when you spend $40)).
Interesting park - we found the location of Judge Roy Scream unique (you enter through a tunnel under the main entrance road to get to the actual ride/line, where it is the only ride located). We were also fascinated by that abandoned strip mall in the corner of the park by Flashback....with the land they (apparently) own there and the Chute Out-Flashback area, they should have a nice chunk to load in (what should be) a signature attraction. Again, it's a shame that they feel like the Chute Out isn't worth the ongoing maintenance costs.......although if Sunday is any indication, I guess ridership is also an argument to nuke it.
EDIT TO ADD: the usual "this park employee told me" comment: this park employee told me (security dude up in the observation tower) that he had heard something about a swing ride that goes "really high" that would be going in where Chute Out and Flashback are. This was after I stated it was a shame they were getting ride of the parachute ride. So, that at least goes along with Six Flags' love of those rides, although you certainly hope they'll be located in the middle of a wingrider or something (to make use of all of that space)!
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Hi,
The usual "I don't ever post, but need some help" post WARNING!
Headed to this park, for the first time, on Friday. Will be there with a tall 5 year old who likes rollercoasters, so I'm just looking for some advice. What can we expect as far as crowds? Is there some ride to hit right away? Honestly, our main focus is getting to Texas Chute Out...so unless advice indicates otherwise, we'll head there first. For a kid who's ridden The Little Dipper & Whizzer at Great America, what rides here would you suggest?
We're a bit worried about the hot sun at this park, as I've read that shade isn't necessarily this park's strong suit....so I assume that getting to the gate right at opening is a MUST.
Thanks for any/all tips! Also, we'll be driving so any tips as far as super convenient hotels/deals would be appreciated (just started working on the accommodations part of the trip)!
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Very unusual for a park (especially SFMM) to already have parts on site for something that isn't even announced yet!
Not true at all. Parts for Tatsu showed up near the employee access road across from guest parking before October 1st, (http://www.themeparkreview.com/sfmmnew06/oct1_1.htm) long before the ride was announced on November 17th (http://rcdb.com/3305.htm?dt=126&d=197). At first some suspected the track may be for a dive machine, but soon after evidence led people to recognize the track was for a flyer.
Speaking of parking, it's funny to read that linked post and see the joke about the Tatsu track needing to pay TEN dollars for parking.........7 years later, we're at $22!
I get that the parking fee is an indirect way of increasing revenue while not impacting the posted/publicized park entry fee, but it does seem so odd for any park to charge as few parks are ever in an area where driving to them is some sort of optional choice...therefore those who do choose to drive will need to pay a fee for use of the land that would otherwise be built upon. Anyway, especially at a park like Magic Mountain it seems fairly nuts that parking now runs more than the smallest bill you could get out of an ATM!
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Might I suggest tapatalk? It's free to install into the forums, then the app can run the member anywhere from $1--$5 depending on platform. It makes the movile browsing of the forum WAY more enjoyable, and allows you to easily upload.
(I don't work for tapatalk or anything, but have experience with it and it drastically changes the experience for folks that frequent messageboards via mobile (especially if they want to upload pictures))
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Surprised at the lack of updates, fan-wise, both here and at thecoasterguy.com! Really interested to see the progress on the entrance, at least.
Anyone else know the typical testing schedule for a new drop tower? Just wondering if it's usually just literally days, or will they be fast-tracking this ride's mandated testing schedule to meet the opening date?
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Looks like they switched from Texas' beloved Blue Bell last year, to Schwans. In fact, according to this article it looks like they've changed it up several times since the park opened: http://www.dallasnews.com/news/community-news/dallas/headlines/20110527-six-flags-makeover-of-pink-thing-causes-a-stir.ece
Seems odd to go from Schwans to another vendor after just one year, but it is curious that they switched vendor AND flavor.
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Good luck to all of you who applied for the commercial shoot! Even if I was free that day, I don't think they'd pick me.
Why? That's an odd thing to post. Unless, of course, you're assuming that your bizarre forum picture would be held against you...then, yes, I'm in agreement with the park for not wanting to include you
Will be interesting to hear how the test runs go, I assume that if there are no major problems that they can crank through the minimum number of mandated cycles day and night, right?
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Shane,
Love this thread, as always.
I know it's midwest, but did you ever get into any Riverview (Chicago) stuff? Obviously one of the true classics, with a lot of amazing rides for the time, I just wonder if you ended up hoarding, errr collecting, any of that park's information?
Great stuff, as always, easily the best thread on this website.
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Wait, what? He says he has no idea but then offers up a "$1 per launch" guess and you appreciate that? Wish my curiosity was as easily satiated!
They better nail down exactly "who" gets to ride the ride on May 12th, and get it out there on their site/FB page etc. I assume most folks interested enough to follow along via social media and the web are season pass holders, but I could definitely see some portion of people hearing about it and making that day their one day at the park---then ultimately being pretty upset when they are turned away from lining up.
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Take a look at the area, V2 and what other aging attraction could be removed for a mega coaster....?
Hinting, and giving clues, about stuff that then makes it look like you have some insider info is so AWESOME! Hopefully you can tease us with some more vague stuff, then when something is announced you'll circle back and give us a "see?!?!"
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Do we have pictures of the inside of the tunnel, or more closeups of each side of it? I checked youtube for an onride to get more info (obviously it's been years since I, or anyone, has ridden the monorail through it) but came up dry (I did find an old home video from '97 but it appears they edited out the section where they passed through the tunnel).
I'm curious as to what it looks like - what kind of structural shape it'd be in at this point - and, I assume, they'd probably deck it out in timed lighting like other coaster tunnels (like Demon at the Great Americas etc).
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Oh, ok, fair enough....guess maybe I hadn't seen the pictures, and just skimmed over text? Will read more closely!
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I don't get the hate on that link. Annoying that you have to click through to view the stuff, but I'm assuming that the poster probably didn't feel that he had the authority to repost someone else's images...so he just linked.
As far as the newsworthiness, I found it interesting myself. Mostly interesting to see actual demolition of the monorail track, finally. Wonder if that was done to get equipment in the area, or that they're getting an early jump on the attraction (that is going in the area) that will need that monorail track to not be there?
That Food Etc has looked run down for years, nice that they're finally renovating it. Assuming it has something to do with increased traffic over there with the drop tower?
Also, nice to see where that guy Eric ended up going (comments section of that blog that was linked). I've read this site for years, and always laughed as half of his posts seemed to consist of "was going to go to the park/may go to the park/ended up not going to the park" comments! Assuming it's the same dude, he's keeping his posting style alive!
Anyway, I appreciated the link provided as it showed some pictures I hadn't yet seen....and I did enjoy them!
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This is not a spectacular followup to the Santa Claw, is it? At first blush it sounded exciting, but man the lag time just makes it impossible to find this enjoyable.
Love Real Art, love their energy and effort, but this one seems to be falling flat. Maybe the bar was just set too high with the Claw?
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I don't get all of the Carnival hate, here. Before this completely avoidable tragedy, was there a company-wide track record of events that would elicit the "well, it IS Carnival" replies? I am no fan of Carnival's cruise vacation presentation and execution, but I don't recall hearing tons of stories that result in this story being "well, there goes Carnival AGAIN" (in regards to their policies, procedures and staff training). Maybe the track record is there, and I'm sure it will be pointed out quickly by the Carnival haters.
There is no doubt that the two big lasting images from this will be that giant ship laying on it's side in shallow waters and the picture of the captain being escorted into that car. One main thing I've always noted on my cruises is how almost all (regardless of line) of the captains came across as insanely smug and self-important. I've wondered just how much "work" they actually do, and how much responsibility they really have, but damn I wouldn't have guessed that one would react as poorly as this guy. The best part was the way the Italian coast guard guy reprimanded him for his behavior (though I have to say the reenactments of the exchange by English translators have been pretty bad)!
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Was wondering what was in Goliath's spot prior to it being installed (I don't remember), so I did some searching.
Stumbled across this park map from '86 (http://www.themeparkbrochures.net/maps/1986/sfmm1986map.html) and found it fun to note how Shockwave was new for the season -- and then thought about how many rides have come and gone from that corner of the park!
I had forgotten about the zoo (that was neat), and was amazed that it was just trees where Goliath now stands! Also forgot about Mystic Lake and the lack of a waterpark, the sky ride, and the full course of the monorail being so (relatively) short!!!
And an arboretum!!?!?!?! No recollection of that!
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I never really understood if bailing on the monorail had more to do with the condition of the actual trains or the actual rail system? I know they got a few bucks for the remaining trains from Hershey, but I wasn't sure if them deciding to never revisit the monorail was a combo of factors or primarily due to A) Train Upkeep or B) System/track maintenance (supports, bridges, etc)? I get that they're never revisiting it, just not sure which financial factor was the deciding factor.
It's too bad, and the topic has been discussed to death here, that transportation-type rides are going the way of the dodo. Trains, monorails, skyways etc all going bye-bye.
I've been hoping that someone would post a photo-cropped shot of the Log Jammer's course so we could get an idea of exactly how much real estate would be freed up (hint hint)!!! LOL
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What's amazing to me is that Houston is still without a main amusement/theme park! You'd think with all the oil money in the area, there would be some individual (or even, gasp, corporation) that would have the capital to build a well-marketed park. By well marketed I mean sponsored. There are obviously tons of issues with starting from scratch, but what an opportunity to learn from all of the hits and misses of the past 100 years.
I simply can't imagine a park not being at least marginally profitable if they had a decent management team....just seems like there is way more than enough of a population base to support it in that area.
Great pictures, was never able to go to that park but it obviously had quite a bit of history - I'm always saddened when I see a long-since-torn-down sky ride.
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This ride is fascinating
Great stuff, per usual, Shane!
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Per his flickr, Canon EOS 7D.
Would also love to know what type of lenses, as those photos were great! This thread, or at least that photo album on Flickr, should be linked on their official website! I want to go BECAUSE of these pictures!
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What an excellent Trip Report! Great pictures, great captions!
Why all the screaming, Robb?
in Theme Parks, Roller Coasters, & Donkeys!
Posted
Yes, it's definitely a pile-on -- or, in the least, a "I will make a wordy post that hopefully Robb will quote and give me kudos on"!
I don't see much of an issue with the original post. Well, specifically, the part about the occasional swear word making it a non-viewing option when kids are around. I don't care too much for the screaming/ironic screaming/sarcastic information-dropping, either, but I get that it's part of the flavor of this place. Obviously enough people enjoy it that Robb is able to literally make a living off the website, so it's not hurting the bottom line.
Back to the "occasional" swearing, while it may be one for every 100 minutes of footage, the mere fact that it exists makes it so it's not worth it to some(?) to "risk it". I know the world, and the Internet, is a nasty place and if some guy screaming SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT on a rollercoaster is the worst you run into-you're-doing-ok, but something as seemingly vanilla of wanting to watch some world class footage of rides you'll most likely never ride resulting in you/your kids hearing vulgarity is a valid observation and concern.
I thought Robb's response was a lot more calm and calculated that I'd have predicted (from what I've seen posted here before). but the ensuing "me too" pile-on sort of muddied the waters. Sure you could just "look elsewhere" or "mute it, dummy", but if these truly are the best videos around ... why would their creator want you to? He surely doesn't want you muting one of your senses to do so, so I'd assume that (at least) the part about possibly watching the potty language might have struck a chord. I think it's silly to expect a silent ride, as screams are about as crucial as the roar of the track or the clanking of the chain, but it does seem reasonable to not want to hear any cursing. (And yes, I know, if you were actually on the ride you're probably likely to hear much worse, it's just the point that the main audio we hear here is in the control of one guy. One guy who obviously relies on people viewing/paying/clicking through to keep his site/job going!)