DragonLord

Mine is Drachen77 (look at avatar to guess where that came from ). I play Lost Planet, Rainbow Six: Vegas, and MLB 2K7.

I got to see NIN in Frankfurt (Germany) this month and it just surreal. Probably more than half the people didn't know what he was saying but they sure were into it. Anyway, I am a HUGE NIN fan and I have to say that I am pretty disappointed in this album. There are some great songs like "Survivalism" and "The Beginning of the End" but songs like "Capital G" and "The Good Soldier" are so weird. "Capital G" is the worst song NIN has ever made (IMHO). I applaud Trent for going WAY out there on this one but to me it feels like he pushed too hard to make it unique. In the process the "unique" sound is kind of rehearsed sounding. I have been listening to it quite a bit and I will keep trying it. Perhaps it will wear on me. I didn't really like "With Teeth" at first but I really like it now. Nothing will top "The Downward Spiral" and I am glad that Reznor has not tried to repeat that sound. I like it when bands go in new directions and sometimes loyal fans (like me) have to keep up. As of right now I would give it 3.5 stars out of 5. BTW, the Thermo-Chrome disc is the coolest CD ever. I wouldn't be surprised to see more of them.

I have been lucky enough to ride Eagles Fortress which is called "Suspended Coaster" on the Everland map. I was stationed at Osan AB in S. Korea for a year and took a trip up to Everland. It is a really cheesy park and I got my picture taken by a Korean lady because she had never seen a white man. Anyway, the ride itself is amazing, it has no brakes (at the time, 2004), and just flies through its course and is situated along a woody hill and the trains come very close to the trees. Clearly S. Korea doesn't have the same rules that America has. BTW, not only does Everland have one GIANT swinging ship but two, right next to each other. Pretty sweet.

I'm not sure how kids' rides came up but I will throw in my two cents. My two kids love Land of the Dragons but are a little too old for the rides (since they can ride Big Bad Wolf now, everything else is too wimpy). But you would be surprised what kids like and what will keep them occupied. BGE (IMO) has a perfect set up for families with rides spread out and not just in one themed area. I personally love "Griffon" which BTW is also a vulture in France. So, the name could go either way. If it is the mythological beast, it will be a great addition and goes well with the other coasters. Busch does pick good names and there is nothing wrong with "Apollo's Chariot" since the ride IS the chariot and not Apollo or Phatheon themselves. Montu, Alpengeist, and Shiekra are my favorites, but Griffon will soon join (once confirmed). I think its great.

I personally feel like you left out the best at BGW but from the ones you gave us I picked SFFT. It is so unique and amazing especially when the water is falling from the rock face. Six Flags should be ashamed of themselves that they haven't made that park better with a new coaster or thrill ride. SFFT is just beautiful.

I agree. I think Amusement Business feels like Disney gets enough props from tons of other groups. Disney really is in a class by itself and many other parks could not compete against the megalomaniac Disney. I was disappointed that not all categories were covered. They probably could have made it a two hour show.

Actually Kumba and Drachen Fire were designed at the same time but B&M didn't have the manpower to finish both projects, so BGW (which had a great relationship with Arrow) turned to them. Arrow used different engineering concepts and had to adjust accordingly, which is where the problems developed. Look at DF's supports and cobra roll. Arrow had never used anything like them. Arrow's designed around the same time have their traditional support system while DF has a very B&Mish system. Granted the designs were preliminary but Arrow used what they had and went from there. Look, we can go around and around all year, the bottom line is that DF failed in every respect and that is why it's gone. I love my old coaster, but she didn't deliever the goods to most people.

I also don't buy that B&M would admit any involvement. But when I worked on Drachen Fire, we would talk to the mechanics and they said B&M had originally been the designer. While I worked there, Alpengeist was getting built, that is why the discussion was relevant. The mechanics had been there 15+ years, so they knew the happenings at the park pretty well.

Riddler's Revenge is not only the best stand-up but one of the best coasters in the world, period. The design would work no matter what trains were on there, but the stand-up trains add a pretty unique experience. To me, stand-ups are either hit-or-miss. 3 are great, 4 are terrible.

Alpengeist gets my vote all the way. For my money, no coaster combines every element of coaster design so perfectly. It has a great location and (to me) runs flawlessly.

B&M was fairly new at the time and didn't have enough capital or manpower to handle two massive designs plus continue development of their new stand-up and invert designs. BGW had a good history with Arrow and asked them to take the project over. Arrow didn't know why to replicate some of B&M's designs so they made their own. If you look at Kumba, that is pretty much what Drachen Fire would have looked like. A loop around the lift hill, zero-g roll, cobra roll, interlocking corkscrews, and then a helix; almost twins except no dive loop. One could argue that Drachen Fire's problems were the beginning of the end for Arrow and that they never recovered from it.

I wish I could find my old "operator's manual" for Drachen Fire. It is in my parent's attic somewhere. It had every bit of info you could ever need for that ride. The cutback was a great element that got alot of attention since it was right above the walkway. People used to love the lights on the cars too. BTW, they were just Christmas lights. There was a toggle switch on the back of each car, very simple. It was a very good coaster mechanically; it never once broke down while I was there.

Great photos! The park looks like it is going to be pretty good this year. SFOT is a special park to me since that is where I first rode a roller coaster (Judge Roy Scream), and I grew up for 6 years going to that park. Glad to see that Ozarka Splash is gone, El Aserradero is a much more original name and more historical.

It is a pretty good looking coaster, however is doesn't quite make me feel like....say....Natalie Portman. Kudos to WOF for sprucing up a pretty basic invert layout.

Another point missed is that Le Scoot isn't remotely close to the location description on the "expansion proposal". That description (along with the attached map) clearly shows Le Mans location which makes a little more sense. Le Mans is probably getting expensive to operate since fuel costs are up and the cars are older than most cars on the road. With DarKastle and Corkscrew Hill, the park has plently of exciting family rides. IF Le Mans does go I will miss it since I rather enjoy seeing my kids having a blast driving a car, but I understand the reasons (if those are the reasons). Don't forget that the VA Gazette is a little 10 page "newspaper" in Williamsburg, so that don't exactley have Bob Woodward reporting.

The buildings will be 7,500 square feet. The entire site will cover 5 acres. One thing I have learned about BGW is never to trust any rumors. The are amazing at keeping secrets and we won't know crud until they announce it. Of course, it is always fun to guess. It's like taking an office pool for the NCAA tournement or NFL Draft; Half the fun are the surprises. BTW, a drop down through the station would be absolutely wicked.

I knew that building looked familiar. I ate there when it was Bob Evans. Good food, too bad it closed. The will probably expand the building if they want to add some cool stuff.

^ Actually, I believe that Intamin built Escape from Pompeii as well. Since 96, Busch has built 5 B&M's, 3 Macks, 1 Morgan, and 1 GCI. Oh and I believe Vekoma helped build Rhino Rally. Also 1 Zierer kiddie coaster. I too believe that a B&M Dive Machine is the answer. I thought for sure it would be a flyer but at 210' it's probably a shade too tall for the area that is proposed. A DM's steeper lift hill and drop will make it easier to fit it in.

I think Ripley's is really cool. They have some pretty unique stuff. It is probably a "tourist trap" but Williamsburg has been hurt since 9-11 and needs anything to boost tourism. The Giant President's Head's just aren't getting it done (what a surprise ) A new Ripley's should give a slight boost but not anything huge. They probably want to keep people in the area by giving them more stuff to do.

It's cool to see so many military folks on this site. I am in the active duty Air Force stationed at Shaw AFB in South Carolina. I am an Airfield Manager (I inspect the runways and such, input aircraft flightplans, pass emergency info over the "crash net", etc.) I used to be a F-16 crew chief, but I didn't like being a mechanic so I cross-trained. I have also been stationed at Hill AFB, Utah and Osan AB, South Korea. I have trained at Lackland AFB, Sheppard AFB, Tx; Luke AFB, Az; and Keesler AFB, Ms.

Alright, I am going to get on my soapbox and pimp for my park again. Something that many people don't consider when they talk about Busch parks is the amazing conservation and environmental work they do. One of the reasons Busch parks can't affford or don't desire to add more rides is they feel it is important not to take away too much land for rides and they have tons of animals and other items that most amusement parks don't have. Look at BGW, they have an Eagle's nest just for beginners. How much upkeep does that have? Not to mention the space it takes. That entire section of the park between Ireland and Aquataine is off limits to rides because that is for animals. People complain about prices at SeaWorld. But think about how much it costs to rescue manatees and nurse them back? How much is it to get animals out of animal shelters for Pets Ahoy!? There are costs involved with Busch parks that most other parks wouldn't even think about. All I am saying, don't judge a book by the cover. Don't rollerskate in a buffalo herd. Don't tug on Superman's cape. Don't..... Well, you get it. Busch parks are very complicated and they are a great experience.

^^ That was simply a suggestion by myself based on nothing substantial. There have always been tons of rumors about what the park was doing, but I think most of that comes as a response to the secretive nature of the park. They don't give away too many hints but if you work there or live around it, there always seems to be a little rumor floating. I suppose most parks are probably like that, my experinence is with BGW though. Anyway, what I am saying is that when I worked there in '97 that the New France/ Aquitaine section of the park needed something new. They never really got around to it though. The biggest rumor of course, was that New France would become Switzerland hence Alpengeist's location but it never happened. They decided to change Heatherdowns into Ireland instead. My suggestions are simply based on old rumors and a general knowledge of how Busch is. (Sorry, long post to explain something simple)

^ Drachen Fire was a gorgeous roller coaster. Of course, I'm partial, I worked on it. I do miss it very much, but it had to go. Too many complaints. Anyway, like I had said I do think Busch wants to build a new coaster to erase the memories of Drachen Fire and get people looking forward again. Granted Alpengeist and Apollos Chariot were built after DF, but no coaster has been built since it was removed. BGW always tries to stay ahead of the competition so I think a dive machine makes the most sense. That is if it is a coaster at all, perhaps a Journey to Atlantis type ride to replace Le Scoot or a Huss thrill ride. No matter what, it sure will continue the buzz for the park.

Drachen Fire was not as bad as people make it out to be. I mean, look at how many garbage coasters are out there right now that seem to get a free pass. Anaconda, Carolina Cyclone, Ninja, Vortex, and I could go on and on. They hurt just as bad if not worse, BGW just didn't want to deal with it anymore and worried about it's image to the general public. Plus no one rode it, so the operating costs outweighed it's usefulness. Hence, bye-bye. Busch still carries that scar and will unitl another coaster is built I believe.

BGW isn't desperate for anything. It is a great park that suffers from thrill seekers who need a new rush every year. Busch just built a $25M ride in DarKastle. They are not going to build a cheesy coaster just for the sake of building it (kind of like King's Dominion). BGW isn't about that stuff. It is fine that KD is, that is their niche. BGW doesn't really have a singular focus, but tries to appeal to families, thrillseekers, shoppers, and food connoisseurs. They have maintained their steadiness while other parks have spent themselves into debt and high operational costs but haven't increased attendance. People that are waiting to go to Busch are making a mistake, the park is great as is. If they do add anything next year, it is sure to be another great groundbreaking ride.