Marko

I will be there! Look forward to meeting you guys. We were out at VF today getting my son's season pass processed. Afterwards we wandered back through the picnic grounds and immediately saw Renegade testing with passengers in the front row, water dummies in the rest. They've got a lot of last minute work to do in the surrounding area but the Marketing Rep I spoke with said it *will* be open Saturday - can't wait!

Woohoo! Thanks for the update.

Question: If you received a flyer in the Fall of 2006 from a park that had a promotion to "Bring a Friend Free" if you purchased your 2007 season pass by a certain date, when would you assume you would bring said friend to the park for free? In 2006 or 2007? Yes, this applies to Valleyfair and yes I asked the person who sold me the pass when I could bring the friend free (they told me 2007). But it turns out the promotion was to bring a friend free in 2006. I didn't have a season pass to VF in 2006, how was I suppose to bring a friend free? I wrote a letter to them asking such naive questions, and pointing out what the employee had told me. The response from the Director of Operations was that the promotion was only valid during some unspecified period in 2006. Why didn't they call the promotion, buy a season pass by September 24 and receive free admission to the park in 2006? Or did I need to pay for my own admission to bring the friend free, essentially making it a buy one get one free offer? This Director wouldn't answer any of these questions and only offered an apology that I misunderstood the offer. I suppose I'm the only one who misunderstood *and* was misinformed by a VF employee! Oh well, not a big deal, but it left a sour taste in my mouth.

I'm pretty certain when it was first announced on the local news that they said it was planned to be ready for opening day. But it could have been wishful thinking!

The part I don't like is they don't seem to have a plan! We'll see what the next 25 days bring.

DF - Can you verify whether Renegade is behind schedule and if so why? Thanks!

I received the following response today from Valleyfair Marketing regarding Renegade: "At this point, we cannot guarantee that Renegade will be operational by a certain date. If you would like to contact us again when we are closer to opening day, it is possible that we may be able to give you more information." I was out there Sunday getting my Maxx Pass processed and walked through the picnic grounds back to the HR building (job fair was going on) which just happens to be right next to Renegade. They definitely have a long way to go - no queue area, mechanics working all over the structure and of course no trains in sight. Hard to understand them being behind with one of the warmest/mildest winters in history. Possible bummer!

You're exluded as you're already clearly hopelessly cool. I remember when I was first getting into the hobby and seeing the Discovery Channel special and there you were showing off all your season passes - that's easily one one in a million! But if you find yourself feeling barfy when you can ride again, do tell!

Couldn't agree more, in the profile I have up there is one mention of coasters and amusement parks and of course my catchy tag/subject line "Let's Coast Together" (yes, you appropriately can barf and snicker ). I list a ton of other interests like washing clothes in my parent's basment, collecting GI Joe dolls and of course my amazing Jar Jar Binks wall mural. But seriously, I have tons of other interests and coasters is one of them and I could care less if that makes me a total dork. Among many other things I'm looking for in a partner is someone to hit the road and visit amusement/theme parks so I'm just telling it like it is. But back to the subject - how many female coaster enthusiasts do you know with kids versus those with no kids? This is a phenomena I tells ya, if not a major medical issue that modern science should be working on a vaccine for. More times than I can I count I've been told by women they used to be able to ride, until they had kids.

OK. maybe I am scary, lol. But I have an ad on a online dating site and have received more replies than I can count saying they were interested except they can't stand roller coasters. In fact I just received one tonight and that's the reason for the post. So, why so few women? Just because women are cooler (less dorky) than men? And why the sudden drop-off once they "grow up"? My theory is one that society says it ok for men to act like boys and that women are supposed to act their age (so sad!). And two I really believe something biological happens to women after they've had children that prevents them from riding.

Just posting a personal theory based on experience, looking to hear what others think. I'm a single guy, have no problem meeting women but it's nearly impossible to find any in their 30's/40's who can tolerate riding roller coasters. The few I know that can and still enjoy it have never had children. If you look around in amusement parks one of the largest demographics are teenage girls, but then suddenly they hit a certain age they stop going. And not to mention the predominance of men at enthusiast events, and a lot of them have left less than sympathetic wives/girlfiends at home. This is a completely serious post - what stops *most* women from being able to ride? Is there something about having babies that puts an end to coaster riding? Marko

When did either off-site properties add a shuttle?

This was part of a 2,000 mile road trip over an extended Labor Day weekend. Friday through Sunday we were in Branson and decided to make a day trip on Saturday down to Magic Springs, Arkansas. It's actually a very pretty drive in parts, we got up early and were at the park in time for opening and the rope drop. Immediately we headed straight for X-Coaster, brand new for 2006 and the only Maurer Sohne X-Car-Coaster in the U.S. We got there in time to see them do a test run but then the car got stuck on the lift "hill" (tower would be a better term). We hung around for a little bit but when the mechanics started climbing around on the tower we left knowing it would be a while. We rode their SLC, Gauntlet, which wasn't all that bad/rough, and then the rest of their coasters none of which are very remarkable or memorable. X-Coaster dominates the park and it was easy to keep an eye on things to see if the car had been unstuck. It was pushing noon when there were signs of life and we immediately headed over and got in line. For a Saturday on a holiday weekend the park was amazingly quiet. Apparently the real draw for the locals is their water park which was very crowded by mid-afternoon. But we were there for this crazy, one-of-a-kind coaster with the tallest inversion in the U.S. - with only a lap-bar to boot. It was more than the worth the drive and wait. After a few test laps the gates were opened and I managed to get a front row ride. The lap restraints are like nothing I've experienced, very wide and you are clamped in very tight. The ascent straight up the tower is incredibly cool but nothing prepares you for the flip upside down once you reach the top. Suddenly the Ozark Mountains are where the sky should be and the sky is on the ground, and then the whole scene twists in front of you as the car is let loose and you go tearing down the track. Easily the best three seconds on any coaster imho, even better than cresting the top of Dragster or Kingda Ka. From there you are hauling ass, heading straight down through the station, back up the tower where the catch mechanism grabs the car and then lets go to gracefully glide back down into the station. It doesn't sound like much but honestly it's one of my favorite coasters I've been on. That moment at the top where you are flipped upside down with nothing over your shoulders is absolutely amazing. The only downside is the restraint can really clamp down during the positive G's after the straight down dive back into the station. Magic Springs has a real winner here! And I actually really enjoyed the park, spent the whole day there in fact getting in ride after ride on X. I haven't seen many TR's or pictures on Magic Springs or their new coaster , here are a few that give the general idea. Would love to hear what other people think of it that have been on it. Mark and down Over Up From earlier in the day, stuck.

Quick TR: I stopped out at VF this morning to purchase my 2007 Maxx Pass (a steal at $85, plus they include a free ticket to bring a guest if you purchase by tomorrow). It was supposed to be a rainy day but as I walked out of the sales office the sun came out. I don't have a season pass for this year so I sat down on a bench in front of the gates thinking how great it would be to be able to go in for a few rides. I look over and there's a lady sitting on a bench holding six tickets in her hand. So I walked over and asked if she was selling them, hopefully at a discount. She said she wasn't but had an extra ticket and gave it to me - score! I had fun in the park for a little over an hour, it was completely deserted. I could see a lot of land clearing activity going on for Renegade from the lift hill of Wild Thing. I am really looking forward to it opening next year! For those of us that have lived here since the park opened in 1976 I can tell you this is the best addition the park has ever made. It's going to be an amazing romp through the woods, absolutely unbelievable that land has sat unused for this long. Things are also coming along nicely for Valleyscare, My favorite ride/coaster in the park now is Xtreme Swing, or I guess the first two hills on Wild Thing (and then, it's over).

The park should be pretty much enthusiast free! They'll all be 3.5 hours east.

If you haven't been on MF or TTD at night I would highly recommend staying at CP until close. Plus the park is absolutely beautiful at night. CP's lines close at 10:00 but they cycle all the riders through, which often makes the actual closing times for MF and TTD an hour or more later. While my coaster count is only 120, one of my all-time favorite moments/memories are late-night rides on MF and TTD.

Also remember the traffic around Chicago is insane, there doesn't seem to be a good time to hit it either. One option to consider is to visit Michigan's Adventure after CP and then take the new high speed car ferry from Muskegon to Milwaukee. From Milwaukee to SFGAM is less than an hour drive, plus you save a ton of stressful driving and get to ride Shivering Timbers. Otherwise stock up on change for the tolls and give yourselves plenty of time to get through Chicago.

What is perhaps interesting to note is how different SF parks approach pricing admission and season passes. The nearest for us is SFGAM and their absolutely lowest price for a season pass is $85 ($75 if you buy a four-pack). Otherwise during the regular season it's $100 dollars and if you live outside a 300 mile radius of the park you're pretty much stuck with that price as they do not allow online sales for what they deem to be out of market. Now I know they do have an option to upgrade a one-day ticket to a season pass and various discounts are available for the one-day tickets. I've never done the math but I'm guessing for us out-of-towners that's the cheaper way to go. But still it's strange that Chicago and the NYC area (SFGADV pricing/approach is similar to SFGAM) are priced so differently than Los Angeles. It's almost like they are run by different companies. You could argue the new waterpark at SFGAM is the reason for the higher SP price but really their pricing has remained the same before and after it was added. In the end I'd much prefer to spend my hard-earned vacation dollars at the non-chain parks like Mt. O, Timber Falls, Holiday World, Knoebels, Kennywood, Hershey, etc. Experience tells me I'll have more fun as their focus is less on marketing gimmicks/ploys and more on a overall positive guest experience. Peace, Mark

I'd say the less the emotion the better if you choose to write him. Stick to asking him to explain the statistics he's using to support his agenda for increased government control of roller coasters and amusement parks. Mark

To me the graph implies they added up the track lengths of all coasters in the United States, converted the measurements to miles, and then somehow calculated the number of riders that traveled the overall distance over a multi-year period. But that's just a guess, without any supporting detail data there's not much else any tax-paying citizen can do. His web site is a shining example of why politicians are all too often not trusted by the general public. His goal is to push an agenda by relying on gullibility or outright lies, it's really very sad. Next step is to write this guy a letter and see if he can explain himself, hopefully many of us will do just that. Mark

Take a look at the graph on his web site: http://www.house.gov/markey/amusement.htm He uses a strange unit of measure, 'Fatality Rate per 100 million passenger miles' claiming roller coasters are right behind automobiles in deaths. He doesn't offer any detail data to support the graph that I can find. The graph apparently is attempting to assert there were only 28.5 deaths attributable to autos from 1997-2003 but again using the unconventional unit of measure. And if you look closely at the graph it indicates the time period is from 1997-2000 rather than 2003 as it states underneath the graph. How can he expect to be taken seriously with such misleading and poorly presented statistics? How did he calculate the number of 'passenger miles' and correlate it to the number of deaths? A quick google search reveals there are approximately 40,000 automobile fatalities in the US per year. If anyone can offer an explanation besides this guy is insane I would greatly appreciate it - thanks! Mark

The soft-opening in May wasn't advertised as far as I know though. Hopefully the fall operations will run more smoothly and consistently.

I just received an email from Mt. O announcing that their go-karts, coasters and kiddie rides will be open 7 days a week through mid-October, weather permitting of course. This is a very interesting move, clearly an attempt to compete with Great Wolf and Kalahari. I certainly hope it's a success and will definitely help contribute by paying a visit or two. No mention of what the hours will be, hopefully there will be even more opportunities for night rides on Hades before the season ends. Mark

Nice trip report! Indiana Beach really comes alive at night, it's a great place to spend the weekend (especially Lost Coastser Weekend coming up next week). And definitely hit their double-shot if you get back that way again, it's one of my favorites, a complete laugh-riot! And the elephant ears, the tacos, Sunday brunch at the Skyroom are all must-consumes, it's just such a great and unique park! Mark

This stop wasn't planned but when the gas gauge started pushing towards E and we were in the vicinity of the Dells we just had to stop. From now on I am going to hit this little park any time I'm passing through. They have just an amazing coaster and truly need our support, the place was absolutely deserted. Not a good thing on a weekend in July. Only having time for a single spin on Avalanche we purchased tickets for $6 each, clearly they're pushing the wristbands which at $19 is a real bargain (drops to $12 after 5:00 if I'm not mistaken). We were the only passengers and took the front row of the short train. I asked the attendant if it was just a slow day and he said it was quite often like this which is really shame because Avalanche is just an amazing air-time filled insane ride. It's just so, so, so good, this place should be mobbed with people. They even gave us a second ride because we cheered it on so much, what a great park! Avalanche was a great end to a 2,500 mile trip and easily up there with the best of the best. Can't wait to get back there in a couple of weeks for some marathon night rides. Thanks for reading! Mark