thrillseeker4552

I do believe Lagoon will be one of the parks to open sooner rather than later, though. Utah is doing much better than several other states when it comes to COVID-19. They recently moved into the orange phase, and if they advance into yellow within the next month, I can see Lagoon opening in June.

^Bingo. I think Six Flags realized that Magic Mountain, being a year-round park, probably benefited more from having a third train to cycle through maintenance than Great Adventure did. It is also interesting to note that Green Lantern has 7 cars per train and Riddler has 8, so I wonder if somewhere in the process they kept off the last car at either park during the transfer.

Lagoon's schedule has listed the next available weekend as operating ever since March. They keep pushing it back week after week. I wouldn't trust it too much.

^I think that can be said for all 5 Paramount parks that they purchased. And really just all of their parks. Knott's has improved drastically in the last 10 years too.

Most Cedar Fair parks posted an update today. Specifically to Knott's, here are a few highlights: 1. Knott's Bear-y Tales is on track to open when the park opens! 2. 100th Anniversary celebration postponed to 2021 3. Ghost Town Alive not taking place this year, and postponed to 2021 https://www.knotts.com/park-update

Looks fantastic. I hope people know that it's not always going to run at that speed though! If only it did!

^I am wondering the same thing. If parks are cutting their theoretical maximum capacity, it could just feel like a regular day at the park.

^Very true. The fact that I rode more coasters and visited more parks in 2019 than I ever have in my life is definitely lessening the blow that the 2020 season will be a crap shoot.

Oh, how things have changed. I visited Disneyland and DCA on New Year's Day. Then Knott's, SWSD, and SFMM the first week of March, just before crap hit the fan. Once Lagoon opens this summer, I will definitely be going. I will also go back to the SoCal parks in the fall and winter. Outside of those parks, I am not doing any east coast traveling this year. I am using this year to rack up my savings for a large trip next summer (2021) after I graduate college. Fingers crossed Ms. Rona is gone by then.

I feel like masks at a theme park poses many questions. Do we wear them on rides? What if they fall off? We need to take them off when we eat or drink (which is quite often at a theme park). Doesn't that defeat the whole purpose? Will little kids even keep theirs on? Same with social distancing. We can run rides at half capacity, use every other switchback, etc. But it's a theme park. I feel like it is actually impossible to social distance. It is very different than a restaurant, bar, or gym where enforcing it is much more practical and reasonable. I don't know. If all these crazy rules are in place at a theme park (such as wearing a mask, trying to social distance, rides operating at half capacity, services closed, limited attractions), I don't even wanna go yet. I would rather wait until next year altogether. What's the point of going to a theme park if it's a total warzone and you cannot enjoy yourself?

Interesting that they chose a Sunday to open. Perhaps this is a "test day" so they can make necessary changes immediately during the week before opening again. Hope all goes well.

Great news! I am not much of a water park person, but I am very glad we decided to stop by Carolina Harbor when we were at Carowinds last June. Aside from the cool views of Copperhead Strike, it is HUGE (compared to my home Knott's Soak City) and my sisters and I had a blast. A giant mat racer is the perfect fit. Hopefully guests can ride it this summer...

HangTime at Knott's, on March 7th. Who knows when the next time will be...

I completely agree. Eventually, people just need to take individual responsibility and not rely on the park to protect them. Just as it has always been before this virus came around. Frequently wash your hands, don't touch your face, and watch how your actions affect others. If someone has health issues or is high-risk for the virus, or any virus, then they shouldn't go! If somebody isn't comfortable going for ANY reason, then they shouldn't go! There is ALWAYS a risk with going out in public, and there always will be, and I hope people will eventually assess their individual situations and decide what they should and shouldn't do and not rely on the park to place them in a bubble and protect them. But like you said, given our sue-happy society, I can see somebody catching the sickness and suing the park for "not doing enough to protect them."

I definitely think Jersey Devil and Aquaman are both still on (especially the latter since it will be at a year-round park). All of the other flat rides, water park additions, and kiddie stuff I can see getting delayed to 2021.

I am indifferent to stand-up coasters. I have learned how to ride them comfortably, but I will never prefer stand-up trains to regular sit-down trains. When I hear "surf coaster," I think of a low-to-the-ground, motorbike-esque ride. Perhaps B&M is dipping into the launched family coaster market? This could be very interesting. Assuming we even make it to 2021... lol

I stopped trying to understand how we label inversions long ago. I realized that parks and manufacturers will call them whatever sounds marketable, and trying to distinguish between different types is a headache and, honestly, a waste of time because they are constantly changing! Who cares? Just my two cents...

West Coast Customs posted a mini-documentary on YouTube about the process of working with Six Flags and Premier Rides to design West Coast Racers. They talk about the entire development of the ride, from concept to opening. If you are bored during quarantine, I highly suggest giving this a watch!

People seem more focused on current events rather than building hype for roller coasters. Everyone just wants to get back to normal first. I would imagine amusement parks will be one of the last businesses to go back to normal. Right now, people just want to go out to eat or see a movie. No one can even get a haircut currently. KI and other parks don't even show up on my FB feed anymore. Either I'm specifically not seeing them for some reason, or they're trying not to be insensitive to the real issues we are facing right now. Orion is going to be great. But, more people are focused on being able to have a face-face conversation with friends and family. "Grandma just died, but at least I can ride Orion soon!" I just don't see this helping build hype. You bring up a good point. I hope I didn't come off as insensitive. My thought process is just that, because everything is up in the air right now, the day people can finally ride all these awesome 2020 coasters will be even more rewarding and exciting. It will make people way more appreciative and look at things from a whole new perspective from now on. I see plenty of posts on my Twitter and IG feed from theme parks. Many of them are providing "stay-at-home" activities like coloring pictures, word searches, etc. Carowinds, in particular, is doing an alphabet of their attractions on Twitter. Kentucky Kingdom and Worlds of Fun had an epic rap battle a couple weeks ago. But parks are still holding off on posting official POVs of the new hotness, so I'm sure there is a level of respect to the current situation they are trying to maintain.

I wonder if theme parks (outside of Disney) will adopt virtual queue systems as a result of this virus. I am sure the days of cramming people in a cattle pen queue line are over. Will virtual queues and Rise of the Resistance-type queuing be more common now?

When it opens, I think people will be so ready to get outside and go back to theme parks that nobody will care about a lack of theming or a lack of trees. This ride was already incredibly hyped in the surrounding area, so this delay is kind of hyping it even more. I'm sure the area will naturally fill in over time. That drone footage also makes it very clear how close that turnaround is to the Beast. This definitely changes the view on the first couple hills after the first drop on the Beast since you will be directly facing Orion's turnaround!

Interesting (and cool) that they added a mega-Top Scan. I was curious if Mondial would sell more after making the custom one for Knott's.

I would love to see videos from defunct theme parks! Like old Kentucky Kingdom, Geauga Lake, Six Flags New Orleans, Six Flags Astroworld, etc. I'm not sure how much you have from those parks, but I am fascinated by all of them.

Kraken is the only B&M floorless coaster in the US that I have not ridden yet. Given that the other 3 floorless coasters that opened in 2000 are my three favorite ones, I imagine Kraken is just as good. One day I will finally get down to Florida.

That is some awesome footage. Hopefully it opens this year...