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The L.A. Auto Show is on through December 13. I got some discount tickets, so I just have to decide when to go. Eric

The first coaster I rode in Florida was Montu. Eric

^ Needs to put a space between his lines to make reading his stuff easier. < Needs to put some space between himself and certain people. V Already has plenty of space between his ears! SPECIAL NOTE: "Thinks improper grammar is, well, improper!" (no_brain_er) You, sir, are a winner for saying that.

^ Sorry to hear of your troubles. It's too bad that you wouldn't have at least been offered one of the positions inside the store when the shaker position ended. Over the years, I've found myself on the receiving end of a job termination for questionable reasons. It's just part of being in the American workforce. Eric

^ That song came out when I was in high school. Eric

<--- Maybe next time I'll look at the pictures AND read the words... Eric

Funny...I've lived in SoCal my whole life and really like cars, but have never been to this museum. Shame on me for that. I'll have to make my way down to Hollywood and check it out at some point. I have been to the Petersen Auto Museum down on Wilshire. That is worth a look-see. Sometime in the next nine days, I'll be hitting the L.A. Auto Show at the Convention Center. Maybe I'll do a Photo TR. Eric

^ English. < Scotch-Irish. V Scotch taped to a pole!

Not accidentally... Have you ever ridden in the back seat of your own car when someone else was driving?

"I really don't like beer." (natatomic) I'm right there with you. I just can't develop a taste for it no matter how much I've tried. Eric

I do it the easy way---I just don't tag anyone at all. Eric

"But I guess at 16 you wouldn't necessarily have multiple keys to put on a keychain." (themeparkman25) Guess I was strange because I had a bunch at that age. Eric

I haven't been to Belmont Park in ages. Need to go back. Thanks for sharing your experience. Eric

^ The short answer: Yes. Keys should be attached to a good keychain, not loose in your pocket (if that's how it was). It's a lot harder to lose a keychain than it is a loose key or two. Eric

^ And we have Sweet Tea to go along with it. For only a buck. Eric

^ One more thought: block brakes can serve as trims, but not vice versa, as a block brake needs to be able to stop a train completely, and most trims aren't set up to do so. Eric

^ Laughing. < Typing. V Foaming at the mouth!

"When were the trims added and why?" (coasterking2981) I think it was within a year of the ride opening; not exactly sure. As for "why," the only thing I can think of is to keep the speed down. Also, back during its first few seasons, the track on the big turnaround after the first loop swayed very noticeably. That's why those big horizontal cross members were added to the vertical poles. And for the record, Toomer bent coat hangers to see how new inversion elements would look, not to design the rides themselves. Eric

The Swiss pavilion with an East Coast Matterhorn ride would have been really cool. I wonder how much different it would have been than the one at Disneyland? Eric

I got my annual jar of Chocolates of the World at Costco earlier today. They usually sell out of that item quickly, and they only offer it during the Christmas holidays. Eric

Hot dog and soda at Costco: $1.63 including tax. Eric

^ Yeah, I agree with that. In its original form, Viper didn't have that trim between the boomerang and corkscrews, so you took the latter a bit faster. It also didn't have that trim after the first loop. Eric

"I know that is the sad thing, we can't do coasters forever..." (billyb67) I'm 50 and can keep up pretty well, so as long as you stay healthy you should be fine. And even though some things like the helix on Goliath and Tatsu's pretzel loop in the back row are intense, I can get through them. Eric

Patience? I'm not a doctor... I think things will kick up after the first of the year. Meanwhile, I'll just focus on something temporary to get me through the holidays. With my luck, though, I'll get a Christmas job at the mall, then my phone will ring off the hook with jobs in my regular field of work. It always happens like that...when it rains, it pours. Eric

"Am I ready for some football? Nope." (metrock) Ditto for me. Earlier today I was reading an article about how much it costs for a family of four to see a football game at the new Dallas Cowboys Stadium...over $700 for a fair seat and some refreshments. Absolutely ridiculous. Eric