QueerRudie

I think that in the future, rides will be fully mated to theming much more than they are now. Rides like Space Mountain being the first generation, Rock and RollerCoaster being the second, and I've yet to see a 'third' generation of themed rides- but I do have a few ideas for what I see being 'future'= First: Using TWO rides as a 'storyline' type attraction: I.E. a coaster mated with another ride- I see this much like a James Bond type adventure- say, a start with a 'motorboat' chase (The World Is Not Enough) combined with a LIM/High speed coaster (GoldenEye) and have a full-on walkthrough as if you WERE James Bond. The only obstacle to overcome here is matching ride capacities of both rides to allow a satisfactory ride experience and no bottlenecks in operation. Perhaps one of the major 'studio' type parks could pull this one off. Second: Integrated rides and scenes FROM a movie- I came up wit this one on my own, out of being a fan of 'disaster' films- TOWERING INFERNO: the RIDE. Basically, a tower ride combined with an Intamin Drop ride, the attraction would start out with 'invited guests' to the opening of the Glass Tower- a 'party' would be going on in the promenade room (just like in the movie) at the top of the tower. Standard elevators would take 32-48 guests to the top of the tower, where they would be invited in, when the 'fire' breaks out- Technology along the lines of Backdraft and Escape From Pompeii would make fire surround the guests, complete with falling objects, things breaking out all around, and then.... The Evacuation: the 'guests' would be led to the back side of the attraction, and onto the 'escape vehicles' that they've rigged up- which are, convieniently, Intamin's Drop Ride seating vehicles. The floor opens up, the riders 'fall' to the bottom, and the 'guests' are now 'rescued'- much like what the ending of the Towering Inferno is. Basically, a total-immersion ride experience, but with more interaction between the ride and the guests themselves. In many cases, you might be able to integrate full themes beyond just movies, but also into real life- I.E. using News stories, world travels, etc. to build a ride expereince where all things are brought together in a single scene. Just my 2.50 worth on that-

I'm now beginning to think of the Late Geauga Lake as an organ Donor- Parks are getting new life into areas where they were once 'dying' as a result. KD has -always- been short of flat rides, ever since the early 90s saw the disappearance of the -much- beloved Schwartzkopf Enterprise (Apple Turnover) and the SkyPilot. KD has always seemed short in this respect, and I think a Ferris Wheel, amongst other flat rides will be -perfect- for the park. There should NOT ONCE be a complaint about a park adding new rides, let alone three of them at once. Three in one year is GREAT. CedarFair has done wonders with KD in the few short years since they took over, and I'm now very satisfied with the upgrades to the parks. Now, if we could just encourage them a -little- further in adding a Hyper/Giga/TeraCoaster to the mix....

OK- Business 101: When a smaller firm wants to buy out a larger firm, and they don't have the capital, they use the 'assets' of the larger firm as equity and collaterial on the basis of selling bonds, stocks and long-term debt. This technique is called the "Leveraged buy-out" and is a process that has SCREWED compaines for years now. Companies that have used the Leveraged Buy Out in the past: RJR Nabisco, 1987 (Also a fantastic movie with James Gardner and Jonathan Pryce called "Barbarians at the Gate"; TexasAir group buying out Continental, Eastern, PEOPLExpress, Frontier, PBA, Britt et al; and, near and dear to us all, Premier Parks buying out SixFlags Inc (1997). So if you think they don't have the cash, it's not always about the size of your wallet, but rather the SIZE of the equity in your partner's company.

I'm planning on making a trip report later on this week- for those who are interested- and with a few examples of what could be changed- and what is still worth it-

Having lived briefly in Nashville in 2000, I know this feeling well- As I passed from the Opryland hotel towards the sprawling Opry Mills complex, I passed by the River Rapids ride- still standing, sans water. I got a distinct feeling of not only emptiness, but also sadness- both for the same reason: A good park gone wrong, now due void of people's laughter and fun. I don't want to cast a shadow on the park for which I truly love, but I have a strange sense of dread over my head right now- and for some reason, I can see Opryland/Opry Mills clearly again...

I am quite disappointed to see that a oncce proud name is being sold to a group of foreign businessmen. While I do not enjoy beer as a whole, there is something about the PRIDE of having a company say "American. And proud of it." It is -tragic- that in this economy we can simply sell off something that is uniquely ours, something that (when they still had them at the parks) they would show the AMERICAN influences, AMERICAN history, and AMERICAN craftsmanship that made AB what it is today. When you visited their Brewery tours, and saw the Eagle standing there, proudly, you could feel pride in being AMERICAN. Seeing the Eagle on the bottles, on the logos, and on the Flag- All American. I am not anti-foreign- by any stretch, but I am very PROUD to be an American, and now I'm sad to say that I'm disappointed in August Busch IV's decision to simply let go of the company his forefathers created, nurtured and turned into what it is today. Busch I is now spinning in his grave, and with due course-

OOps... I stand corrected. So much for an aging memory-

If memory serves me, the aformentioned standup coaster went to SFOG as Georgia Scorcher- As for the park: Rundown would be a good word for it. Lack of attention also comes to mind. As does decaying. I'm reminded very clearly of what other parks in the past have done: Either renovate and expand, or close your gates. SFA has some -very good- coasters in S:ROS and Wild One (I don't care how many people complain that it's not that great- I love it.) as well as ROAR (Which I thought was running fine three weeks back) in addiiton to Jinx. With some investment in the park's apperance, a new coaster and some other new flat rides, the park could be EXTREMELY successful in it's future endeavours. However, considering the recent spattering of bad attention (Myself included, read earlier on in this thread) it seems that SFInc is determined to turn this park into a Ghost Town. SFA is a tarnished jewel in the crown- and DESPERATLY needs attention to regain it's status. 2001 was, in my opinion, it's highest point- when the park looked and felt like how a Six Flags park should lood: well staffed, clean, brightly painted, and with plenty of attractions running. Nowadays, it's like the other side of the mirror: Crumbling, decaying and without the luster it used to have.

I can say this: It depends on 1. the crowd itself, and 2. if they're actually on the ball. 1. The crowd itself: My experience has been mixed with this- as in there have been good days, and REALLY AWFUL DAYS. Some times if there are large groups of teens/'kids campers' it can become unbearable with bad attitude and SEVERE line jumping (Expect that to happen QUITE a bit there; I've yet to go the park where I didn't have people pushing ahead of me at least two or three times per ride. In other cases, if the crowd is more managable, then it's not too bad, and you can often make several trips through the lines quickly- Check their calendar to find out if there are any of the 'larger' groups- and AVOID at all costs.... 2. If they're on the ball: As of late, this has been a REAL downer- It's been a while since I've seen less done to keep rides up-and-running, and although they're quite prompt usually to repair/restart certain rides, there are often days where some larger attractions will either be running at 1/2 capacity due to few operators, or not at all. Good luck if you choose to go to SFA, but for me I'd prefer to KD.

I had the good fortune to ride the Comet in it's last seasons- and with the recent loss of some very good woodies, this makes it just that much worse for me remembering what riding it was like- I keep hoping that people will start to treat each older ride like it's historical, instead of letting them decay into ruin- If you can't keep up your ride, please let somebody else who wants it and can give it the love and attention it needs to survive. How much history do we need to lose before all is gone?

I did get the employees names- but still have not heard back from ANYBODY in the park over the events that occured- for which I am quite surprised- As for the power failure- Yes, I can understand a power failure knocking off the coasters, etc.- But the flat rides were all operating (As many of them were; Some of the rides had "Not in service today" signs on them-) And I can only hope that PARC managment is offered the parks- but I have severe doubts considering where Dan Snyder lives- and where his (non-winning) football team is as well. I'm giving SFA one more chance next week- and as a stockholder (SADLY!) and as an enthusiast, I hope that it will turn out better than in the past- It's far too sad that parks such as this decline as bad as they have. I have many fond memories of SFA between 1998 (still as AW) through 2002/3- when the decline began, and I can only hope that a return to a better state is in it's future- DC NEEDS a 'local' park that fits the standards that most major cities have in it (Sorry, Houston- but look behind a BUSCH for that in the future-)

SFA is my 'local' park- accesible by both bus and rail- so it is an easy ride to 'ride'- but a few weeks back wsa a day that goes down as the -single- worst theme park experience I've ever had- and one which I'm very surprised that could/did happen- Now I'm a well-seasoned park visitor- and know that there are 'operational' problems on a day-to-day basis from bad weather, broken rides and other 'difficulties' that can arise in a park from time to time- but imagine this scenario: Arrived at the park around 1:30PM, entered the gate (Great staff there, very pleasant and friendly, and security staff with a smile- a great change of pace from years past)- and walked back towards S:ROS as the previous visit I made the ride of steel was closing down (I can understand this, when you see Lightning above the ride, it's not a good time to ride)- Upon arriving at 'gotham City'- I first saw Jinx looking tantalizing, and entered the queue- to find that Jinx was a jinx- Shut down again! (The same thing happened on the previous visit a few days earlier)- so I proceeded down to S:ROS and found out it TOO was not operating- as well as a grounded BatWing- also not operating- Scorecard so far: S:ROS- 0, Jinx, 0, TwoFace, 0 (Although this is not surprising; TwoFace wasn't operating at all either trip) Batwing, 0. Over to ROAR- Not operating- Then onto the Hang And Bang Mind Eraser- Also not operating- So now we're six for six- as in NOT A SINGLE COASTER or Water Ride for that matter is operating- NOT ONE. Now I'm frustrated. So as a last-ditch attempt to ride ANYTHING, I decided to walk towards Wild One (I'd hope that it was not going to be a TOTAL loss)- and as I passed a group of employees and their friends, I felt a 'clunk' upon my shaved head- in the form of a piece of trash thrown by one of the staff members. A not-so-nice interchange of race vs. appearance then took place (Be it well known, gentle readers, that I am a full-blood English Skin, as in Black and White make BEAUTIFUL music together- not the idiot boneheads that appear on TV as racists and aryans) and I was pretty much called every name in the book- not only by the friends, but also by the staff- Completely exasperated, I went to Guest Services- where a long (25 person) line had formed inside- and I promptly took my time writing out a four-page comment sheet on said events. I have been to the most backwoods fairs, poorly run parks, and parks where bad things have happened- but NOTHING will ever top this event- and when the explination of a 'Power Failure' having taken control of the rides, I kindly reminded them that all the food stands, merchandise shops and games were very well operating- as were all the vending machines and anyplace you can spend spend spend the time waiting for the rides to reopen. The response was a deafining silence- Now I've been to Busch Gardens Williamsburg after a Hurricane- and EVERY ride was operating. EVERYTHING. And the park looked clean, well groomed and well maintained. But this is one example of how NOT to run a park- or rather, how to RUN a park into the ground. My prayer: HersheyPark takes over SFA and turns it into a good park-

I've been pretty fortunate for my ridestop- Loch Ness Monster, 1992, ACE Day at BGW- "Nessie", the LOVE of my life, had a temper tantrum, and did a full-stop lockdown as we were on the second lift hill- Resutling in a train in the block brake just above the entrance to the tunnel (The Flatbrake) and us on the 2nd lift- All due to the transfer track sensor going haywire.... Resulting in an up-close and personal walkdown the second lift- and a free day in the park later in the season! A GREAT Day for me!- although the GP on the train were being less than friendly to the ride herself- saying she was 'dangerous' and the usual dribble of 'we're going to get killed' etc. P.S.- Nessie was my FIRST tattoo-

A veeeeerrry cool set of photos waiting for us to find out what is being built- Perhaps somebody should come up with a 'pregnancy' test for theme parks- Just to figure out whether or not they 'really are expecting' a new bundle of joy- But these pics would (ALMOST) confirm it- It could just be a new ditch and wiring for all we know...

First: I want to say the single Biggest THANK YOU to all those people who posted these great finds on one of the rarest of all coasters- and SECOND only to the Crystal Beach Cyclone as one I'd build a time machine to go and ride- I've been researching (So far quite nearly impossible) the Bat to make a model of the Bat in all it's glory. It is TRULY a shame that no park has taken the initiative to build an updated version of this amazing ride- the simple geomertry and use of high speed curves, and the sensual and subtle actions of the train movments are certainly a rarity- and if the videos posted are anything to be judged by, a graceful ride no less. Having ridden a majority of the existing suspended/'swigning' coasters produced, I have yet to see even the Mighty BBW do things that the Bat did- and I truly love BBW. Perhaps S&S Arrow should REALLY REALLY REALLY Consider reading this thread- and perhaps someody should get off their duff and get to work on one- A rebuild of BAT would be a treasure that the coaster enthusiast community as well as the general public searching for an ever increasing thrill threshold. Mabye Knoebels, purveyors of classic coastering could introduce the first 'new' BAT as their first 'preserved' steel coaster?

A tragic, and EXTREMELY depressing sight- It's like seeing a graveyard- and you know what happens next. It is a SHAME that CedarFair didn't consider donating the land to appropriate uses beyond just the "sell it all off thing"

Hmmmm.... "Factory Concerto" Pietasters- Reserved ONLY for the Loch Ness Monster- "Little Bi#ch"- Specials (Any GOOD hyperocaster) "Zip Gun Bop" Royal Crown Revue- Any minetrain of length- "Work That Skirt"- B52s- Speedracers/Hyperspeedracers from Schwartzkopf/Intamin "Paranoid"- Ruder than You- PowerLoopers "Flight of the Valkyrie"- Wagner- Beemer Inverteds "Golden Gate Fields"- Rancid- Wooden twisters/extended twisters "Black Hawk Down"- Rancid- LIM Coasters "You and Me and the Bottle Makes Three"- Big Bad Voodoo Daddy- Twinlift Arrow Suspendeds "The Globe"- BAD II- Enclosed coasters "Rock the Casbah"- Clash- Terrain Loopers "Seven Deadly Sins"- Flogging Molly- Well Paced Beemer Looping "BoneDiggin'"- Specials, feat. Tim Armstrong and Lars Friedrikson- Intamin Inverted/LIM Inverted "Nightmare on Broad Street"- Mighty Mighty Bosstones- Long and fast minetrains (Arrow's last few for example) Just a few from my ZeroG Ipot

SKIP SFA- Other than Batwing and Roar, nothing too exciting- and they've had some serious operational difficulties all season. Two weeks ago I went to the park and NOTHING was running- Nary a SINGLE coaster (2Face had a GOOD excuse!) but NONE of the other rdies were operating ( I was there a GOOD three hours and rode NOT ONE COASTER.) Save yourself the time- and the waste of money there.

Dollywood- By far. With a full queue house on Tornado, they were able to clear EVERYBODY through in 15 minutes. Amazing BGE: Good if they're paying attention; Seeing Geist Almighty clear a stationhouse with three trains is still awesome to see.

I may have posted this earlier, I don't know... Overheard as I stood in queue at Dollywood for a water ride: "EARL! EARL! GIT YOUR BUTT ON THAT THAR RIDE! I WANNA GIT BACK TO THE MOTEL TO SEE MAH STORIES!" Once again, tact and diplomacy prevented me from getting a hernia on that one!

Confirmed: Hersheypark (Second Tuesday in June) Busch Gardens Williamsburg (June) Adventuredome At Circus Cirucs (Already have in Feb, also again in October for my B-Day) On the 'hotlist'- SFOG (September) SFA (When I get 10 minutes to myself!)

No kidding on that one. Living on the FAR western edge of PHX, to go there would be a -good- 1.5-2.0 hrs from my doorstep- provided that I-10 isn't closed due to construction or there is traffic along the way. Negative point on that one. But then again, I went to the Renaisance (sp?) festival last weekend, and was amazed to see how many people were crammed in for a cloudy day and with rain/drizzle along the way. It was PACKED. And the mix of people there was good as well: a solid representation of all age groups and income ranges, the best mix for a theme park to have. There is room for a park in AZ, but they need to consder moving it to either Tucson or Phoenix -FIRST- then go for the park concept. I've always wanted to have the money to do a park there right- a nice, indoor park with air conditioning- even as much as I enjoy the summer there.

Having seen the trend at BGT, I'd expect that a Jungala clone may be in the works; but then again, I've also got my own fantasy: Spain. Spain would be a great fit for the park, give lots of theme expansion options, and a perfect-fit for a flyer/looping coaster- "THE INQUISITION!" (Joking on that one, yes I know what the Inquisiton was, and how it hurt people, but the name sounds REALLY REALLY COOL!) Plus there'd be a good secure fit with the European theme- and the possibilities are endless as far as the park could go with it- And a Tapas theme eatery would be cool, too...

If a theme park wishes to use the "elite boarding" type system for their rides, then there is an -imperative- problem with their loading systems anyway. Efficiency lies inherently in boarding a train quickly, eliminating empty seats wherever possible (KUDOS go to the parks with single rider lines!) and rapid dispatch with appropriate staffing to execute this. Look at the difference from say, Dollywood (Tennesee Tornado) to a park like SFA (-ANY-) of their rides where capacity is an issue. I found during my most recent trip to Dollywood that the loading and unloading of TT was amazingly fast, efficient and smooth, whereas -ANY- coaster at SFA has a 2-3 minute dispatch time- which is UNACCEPTABLE at any park where they want to earn their money by getting people through the lines fast enough to spend it in the park. That having been said: Elite Status. Being a very frequent flyer on two airlines, I've earned Elite Boarding status, and Registered Traveler program with the TSA. If a park wanted to get their best customers to stick around longer, spend more money, etc. they would use the same concept: I.E. Season Passholders with a certain number of visits would get to use the FastPass/Preboard ticket concept. And, just like the airlines, people who did not have the "elite" status could then purchase it for a price on a daily basis. In addition, SEPARATE queues for the guests in addition to a single riders line would work nicely. If anything, park operators should take a page from the fastest loading airlines out there: Southwest, with a tiered system to boarding, TED, which uses (at some airports) dual loading bridges, or (God forbid me for saying this!) RyanAir, which uses incentives to get people on the plane faster. Loading was made more efficient by the "flow through" method of boarding a train, but let's evolve this into something more efficient now.

Kudos to HersheyPark on this one.... I'm most excited to see them go for a real show-stopper attraction in a year that (so far) has been lackluster at best over rides. Three clones and two more duplicates for SixFlags. A bunch of relocated rides for Cedar Fair. Nothing really exciting for Busch Entertainment. While adding rides is good (every new coaster is good, unless it's a TOGO DeathMachine) the recent rash of adding rides that are exactly the same at every brand-related park is absurd. One of the things that will get me to go a great distance to ride is a NEW and UNIQUE attraction. Now that SixFlags is hell-bent on making each park look very similar, I'm disappointed. But HersheyPark has given me hope that originality will still play out in light of duplication mania. Having said that... The 'Norwegian Loop' (RCDB's Term for it!) looks amazing. A killer lifthill and first drop- outstanding. Three 12 passenger traiins- Disappointing, to say the least. 850 people per hour - Even Worse. I realize that length of train will affect these rides greatly, but come on now folks, the lines for Fahrenheit will be awful to say the least. HersheyPark has added several mega-capacity attractions (Lightning Racer, Great Bear) where lines move quickly and easily, often to the point of being able to walk on on early summer days, but as of late, adding rides where lines are obscenely long is becoming a trend. Yes, Quality over QUANTITY, but at what point is this becoming a problem.