bert425

we're in Texas tho. Texas "cold" counts about as much as California "cold". . .LOL. . as in . . not really. People thought it was "cold" when I went to Fiesta Texas on Sat, and it was in the low 60's. (I moved to Texas when I was 7, so I remember New Jersey winter. . THAT is "cold") ETA: it *is* a bit chilly in Austin today, with the temps hovering around 42, and drizzling all day. So I wouldn't argue it was chilly, or "cold" if someone wanted to describe it that way today. . .

thanks, tho wasn't really expecting much/anything to be done since i was there just about 2 weeks ago. what was interesting is how quickly they pulled down the Panda Express signage to start change over to the Six Flags branded restaurant. . it was up and operational just the other week!

it's getting lots of coverage locally here (I wonder if it's because we're "close" to SeaWorld San Antonio). I do fear this might cause this ride to shut for quite a while, as the headline on the morning news here was: passengers stuck for *hours* included a baby, and a partially paralyzed park goer. To be 100% fair, I could absolutely see how terrifying it could be to have be evact from a swinging gondola if you have mobility issues. Tho no idea if this is one of the folks that's been talking to the news. hopefully they wont' remove the ride, but for sure expect if/when it reopens, the slightest wind will bring the ride down.

they really could use a good dark ride tho. . .maybe something along the lines of Black Diamond at Knoebel's, or the Mine Train at Knott's. . . so they could call it a "coaster", to go with the "America's Roller Coast" tagline. hell, they call Pipe Scream a coaster, so I'm hoping for a large Dark Ride (in the current location of the Arcade)

Pics from our trip to Fiesta Texas yesterday. not the usual, full report, from me - since was just there ~2 weeks ago for Mardi Gras, so just a few bullet points and the pics. -- Spouse went with me this time, so didn't intend to ride anything "big" sticking to things he'd go on with me. Park wasn't packed tho more crowded than it was when I went the other week. Most things had 15-30 minute lines (even Rattler was only 1/2 way up the ramps to the station, and Roadrunner was actually almost a walk on, and was back to running 2 trains) . . longest line was Wonder Woman which looked to be ~an hour. -- we were there about 3 hours and rode 5 things: Carousel, Pirates of Deep Sea, WaveRunner (Scrambler. . which was running a super long, and intense program!), Pandemonium, and Roadrunner Express. We would have ridden the train too, but it was closed. We also ate lunch at the Mardi Gras food stands, listened to the zydeco band in Rockville, and met/took pics with a bunch of park actors. and yes, I counted 10 separate stilt walkers, but also a few actors & photo ops that hadn't been out my prior visit. (If I had been alone, yeah, I would have simply waited for the bigger coasters, but he was willing to go, so was happy just eating, walking, and riding a few things). -- I noticed it several visits ago on Goliath, but it seems to have spread to queues thruout the park now: SFFT is "holding" the line prior to the Flash Pass merge. So, for example, Pirates appeared to have a good 40 minute wait, as the line was in the outdoor queue, but that was only because the Flash Pass operator was holding the line there. When he eventually allowed 30 or so people in the outside line to go, we found no line at all in the indoor portion of the queue, and walked right onto the ride. We saw the same thing happen on Roadrunner Express too..LOOKED like there was a line, but really was a walk on, just being held at Flash Pass merge. Not a biggie, I guess they want to make the pass a better value. .but just mentioning it for awareness. -- as noted in the post above, the Mardi Gras drinks were't super strong - a bit too sweet. . .but the alcohol content was bout "Applebee's Level" and got to keep the themed plastic glass. .so that was neat. -- Six Flags no longer offers bottled water 2/$7 in the stores -- something they have done for *years*. the water is now 2/$10, and they add tax, so was almost $11 for the two waters. No, they have no pricing signs up, so a bit of sticker shock when I went to get the water for our lunch. -- on related note, the Bottled Water (and Sodas) from the machines are now $6 each. (so still cheaper to get at a store and get 2 at once). -- they have fixed the camera on Bug's White Water Rapids. We didn't ride it, but saw other's pics when getting the professional pics loaded onto my card at the Photopass booth, and commented that the flume pics were now crystal clear (and the guy at the booth said they had fixed the camera last week). -- Panda Express has been removed from the park (it was in Crackaxle area), and signs are up that a "new" restaurant will be in that location called "Chop Stix" - that will be on the dining plan. on to the pics: first thing we see upon entering the central plaza? the baton twirler from the other week. .and she was still having a blast. told her I posted a pic of her and that "Baton Twirler who DGaF is my hero". . she loved it and we posed for this pic. Then Nick posed with her partner. we never did figure out why she was carrying the fake rifle. She wasn't twirling it or marching with it. . but it was so "odd". . we loved it. Don't think I've ever taken a picture of this clock in Spassburg. . . and it nicely has Batman and Scream behind it (and was clear enough was able to get a nice pic). . so here's my hubby and the clock! and then we met Lola and Bugs in Mardi Gras outfits. no line for them, which was a surprise of course. like we aren't gonna stop to ride this?? LOL My lunch from the Mardi Gras food stands -- Jambalaya with corn bread. it was good, but a bit dry. my solution was to ask for some "boom boom" sauce from the Boudin balls to be put on top (they were happy to do it when I asked), and it made what was 'good but dry" pretty dang amazing. i was impressed. Nick doesn't like spicy food, but they have these Roast Beef Sliders on the Mardi Gras menu too, and they were really good too (I had a bite). the Zapps chips (only in Voodoo flavor) come with any of the sandwich options (Cajun chicken po-boy, cajun shrimp po-boy, or the roast beef) My Hurricane. . a bit too sweet, but it did have some alcohol in it. and I liked the mardi gras theming on the "glass" I got to keep. it was ~$10.50 some characters that hadn't been out the other week. "King" turned my hat that way just before the picture was taken, so I posed appropriately douchey and a new Photo Op set up the throne is back out too! got a nice pic of heading into Fiesta Bay Boardwalk. . can't see Wave Runner, but behind the palm trees is the Pirates of the Deep See, and the park's Ferris Wheel. in line for Pirates of the Deep Sea, showing some of the outdoor queue theming. we didn't know this was really the only part of the queue that had a wait. we were on the ride less than 10 minutes from this as indoor queue was empty. a rare pic I took of Poltergeist -- it actually has the train in it (LOL). from the wave runner queue. Nick thought he was photobombing - he didn't realize I was waiting for him to lean in to take the pic. that's why the weird face he's making. . LOL More characters out. . we snagged a pic with them while listening to the zydeco band on the stage directly behind us. a better view of the Whirlygig chassis sitting on the ground near Batman which was operating this visit! (tho I didn't ride, as I had told Nick I was fin just riding smaller things WITH him this visit) the fish in the Koi pond near Batman/Whirlygig are getting really big! no real progress on the update to "Gotham City Crime Wave" since my last visit. looks like really nothing has moved. tho some better signage has gone up on the fencing over where Twister used to be, and where Joker is going to go) holding camera up over the fencing -- no real progress from this side. but from the far end looking over, some of the machinery seems to be in place.. so maybe they are about to start working on it. Didn't ride this trip, but did notice this bright, shiny sign. With a much younger Superman on it. not sure if they got a new sign, or just cleaned the old one buh bye Panda Express. . . I guess the employees won't be spending the day telling folks they aren't on the dining plan any longer. how very Six Flags. . . heading out in the afternoon, what do I spot across the parking lot while walking to the car? the giant ornament from Holiday in the Park. Just hanging out off to the side of the parking lot. . . LOL. . guess they didn't have the proper screwdriver to dismantle? official pic from Park Photographer. . but I'll point out that I had to ask him to come over to here to take the picture (and then several folks lined up to get a similar pic). you'd think the official photogs would hang out here? tho the original pic is much better because we sat in the front row of the back train, we had a fantastic ride (the smoothest I think I've ever had on Roadrunner). but it made it impossible to get both of us in the photo frame! kept cutting Nick off, unless I made us bigger (too big for the train) and moved over. but eh. . it's cute I guess

I kinda understand the full day at EPCOT. High School Kids, exposing them to all the culture in the World Showcase. if you're watching the movies/seeing the performances, going into each pavilion, and even just browsing in the shops? yeah, it can be a learning experience.

Yep. And now it's a Johnny Rockets. . . but. . . . they STOP TO DANCE !!! (while you're hungry and waiting for your food, and you have to stop and wait to watch them dance, while your burger sits under the lamps until they are done so you can get your mediocre burger). . but hey, at least the shakes are great, and the dancing is fun and they are talented enough to pull it off in every case I've seen.

wow.. that is so cool. (to be fair, I'm in Texas, so seeing snow is rare anyways, but I can just imagine how magical it was in Tokyo Disney parks!).

at SFoG, the "kiddie coaster" Joker, seemed to have a long line, when it was operating (it was down one whole day when I was there, but had been up the prior day) DDD has terrible capacity (and personally, I did not care for it). . but if you want to ride it, I'd suggest hitting it early, before the line gets formed. . otherwise you'll be standing there a long time instead of riding other, better, things. Goliath rides in the evening were a ton of fun too.

oh my. . the front POV. . . . is track supposed to bend like that??? and the back seat facing forwards! LOL, it was like watching weebles wobble during an earthquake. glad y'all all survived, and great that the back car group was laughing thru the pain.

here ya go Larry. . made sure to take pics today. of the new sign/queue, and in the new location:

cool. .can't wait to hear any specifics they might announce!

went back today, with the spouse. more crowded than last time I was there, but not too slammed. enjoyed the food, and the music. and Pirates again which only had about a 10 minute wait - I think a LOT of folks don't know it's open! While waiting for Pandemonium, which had about a 35 minute wait, as they are only cycling *FOUR* cars now (operators told me the 5th was out for repairs), we chatted with folks around us and mentioned we had just gotten off Pirates, and none of them knew what I was talking about. . .despite being right next door to the ride. Even with the pirate characters still running about the boardwalk. yeah. . they need to promote this better. anyways, short TR up tomorrow with some pics. but overall? we had a really nice time, Pandemonium was the longest wait, and the food was delicious. (the Hurricane, while not bad, had what I'll refer to as "Applebee's Level Alcohol Content". . but hey, I got to keep the plastic glass) till full pic report:

great report that brings back some wonderful memories. as I tell everyone, night rides on I305 are absolutely BONKERS.

is this one the same design/size as Skyhawk? (thought this was a smaller model)

HA. .that pic of you on Mindbender is Awesome-sauce. still giggling over it. really looking forwards to your full mall report, as I've always wanted to go to this place to check it out. (maybe not bucket list, but bubbling just under bucket list). spoil a bit tho. . was the Aquarium worth it?

^ hourly employees (a large % of those working at the park during an operating day), don't get paid if the park is not open Mon-Fri. So that's certainly not a fixed cost that doesn't matter if the park if open or closed. what a weird statement about not everyone checks operating schedule. I'd be shocked if anyone planned a trip to go to a park (even if just the local or home park) and didn't check to make sure they were open that day. in this day and age, where everything is on line? there's no excuse not to check if a place is open before going.

The dry park can get moderately busy during parts of the year (I actually had a handful of visits where almost all rides ran two trains!) The waterpark, however... umm. . that's not really crowded (at least not for the Texas parks I've been to). see a lot of space there in your pics I tend not to do the Waterpark, but the one at Fiesta gets PACKED. The Texas shaped wave pool full to capacity. go back in this thread to the Labor Day trip to SFOT to read how crowded it was that day? or this pic from late December at Fiesta Tx. . that's the Superman Queue. .it almost NEVER has a line past the stairs up to the station (a 10-15 minute wait)..this day? most all the switchbacks were full. I was surprised how dead SFA was on our stop there (other than the aforementioned mouse).. tho some of the folks did go to the water park and said it was busier than the dry side. this Superman queue was NUTS.. but I was there, and what else was i gonna do? so got in line and waited to ride it.

too much bacon on that Chili Popper Burger for my tastes (it would overpower the green chile flavor). . but the rest of the ingredients on it sound really appetizing.

I think the lap bar is slightly different, with JJ having a more modern one. . but yeah, very similar design. Gives me an excuse to post one of my favorite pics from the TPR 2018 USA tour: we were only in the park for a handful of hours, and the only ride with a line was the spinning mouse (Rajun Cajun?). . so the Flash Pass was worth it just to skip that long line. had fun there, as it was a new park to me -- but wouldn't have gone out of my way to stop there if hand't been with the group Joker's Jinx front seat: pic courtesy of Robb's handheld camera

you need to sit in front row, not back. Front gives you space to allow for crossing of legs a bit more than the 2nd row, where the bucket seats really lock you in. but yeah, the bottom of the lap bar does have that "foam" that comes down on top of one's legs.

thanks. Pirates of Deep Sea had been announced for 2018 - Thrill Coaster (WW), and Family Dark Ride both coming same season. but due to issues, it just wasn't ready to go in 2018 (another minor point is they were storing the carousel horses (which had gotten a major re-paint when they tore down Amerigoround to move it so they could build Wonder Woman gift shop/entrance plaza in that area). . so they couldn't open until they got the Carousel back up, since the horses were all being stored in there. the Dark Ride really made a lot of progress once the Carousel opened back up. . at least to my eyes. so anyways, that's why they didn't announce it for 2019, since it was announced for 2018. the big ride for 2019, is the Joker's pendulum ride. . so we're getting another thrill ride, on top of this "bonus" ride Are there any notable differences between Poltergeist and Jokers Jinx's trains? My dad, who is a big guy who often has trouble fitting on some rides, actually said he found JJ's restraints to be among the comfiest and easiest to get into (in SFA). Very interesting... Joker's Jinx and Poltergeist have the same exact trains -- but what causes the problems is the side seat belt connection. you MUST be able to click that seat belt onto the side. .and not every body type lets that happen. not to be crass. .but those with bigger gut, seem to have no issue, but some who are larger on top (larger chest on men or women), it's hard to get the restraint low enough to get the side seatbelt to click. I don't think I've *ever* had a ride on Poltergeist where at least one person had to exit the train. and it's not always the larger guests one would think would have an issue. heck, *I* have a hard time getting it to click myself, and need the operator to click it (the angle is funky for me). But have always been able to ride it. hope that clarifies some?

based on the pic, that APPEARS to be where it hops over the path, meaning the track after the upper section just does a quick turn-around feature on the lake, before coming back on the below part. so yeah, don't see how they'd ever be able to run trains to hit at the same time. I'm really liking this Orange color - all the prior pics looked more yellow. Likely this is just primer, but i really do think this looks so much better Orange than Yellow. any ideas what the final color is gonna be? the Steeler's uniforms seem to be an Orangy/Yellow color. . .

that is a GORGEOUS picture. wow. . gonna be a fun ride, and so close to classic Racer, I thought it might be jarring. . but I'm loving it.

Kings Island had one (apparently briefly) in 1972. is it possibly this one? in the images, it looks like it's in a structure that's open only on 1 side like you described [youtu_be] [/youtu_be]