rcdude

So far: Six Flags Magic Mountain (x2-January and March) Nascar Cafe (not an actual park) (March) Knott's Berry Farm (x3-March, May, June) Legoland Calfornia (June) Scheduled: Six Flags Magic Mountain (visit #3) (July) Six Flags St. Louis (July-new park) Holiday World (July-new park) Quassy Amusement Park (TPR NE trip-July-new park) Lake Compounce (TPR NE trip-July-new park) Six Flags New England (TPR NE trip-July-new park) Palace Playland (TPR NE trip-July-new park) Funtown Splashtown U.S.A. (TPR NE trip-July-new park) Canobie Lake Park (TPR NE trip-August-new park) La Ronde (TPR NE trip-August-new park) Great Escape & Splashwater Kingdom (TPR NE trip-August-new park) Six Flags Great Adventure (TPR NE trip-August-new park) Universal Studios Hollywood (August) Wild Rivers (waterpark) (August/September) Possible: Orange County Fair (July/August) Raging Waters-San Dimas (waterpark) (August) Knott's Berry Farm (up to two more visits) (August/September and November) Six Flags Magic Mountain (4th visit) (October) Disneyland (October) Disney California Adventure Park (October)

I've been to Six Flags Magic Mountain a number of times during the summer, and I will only visit on a weekday. In my experience, I've always gotten there before opening, had a plan, and stayed all day. Usually, lines for the most popular coasters (X2, Tatsu, Goliath, Apocalypse, Deja Vu, and Riddler's Revenge) were around an hour to an hour and a half for most of the day (X2 was longer in the morning, Tatsu was longer at night). I'm assuming Superman will probably be about two hours, and Green Lantern will be 3-4, but since I haven't been since they opened I can't say for sure. Most of the other coasters, with the exception of Colossus, Revolution, and Gold Rusher, were between 15 minutes and a half-hour (those three were almost no wait). The water rides all had really long lines, as the temperature is often around 100, but the other rides didn't really have a wait. I've always managed to get all of the coasters done, but haven't had time for any re-rides. Previously, I would have advised starting at Tatsu, then going Apocalypse, Deja Vu, and working clockwise from there (skipping Gold Rusher and Ninja for later). Using this, I've always managed to get to X2 at the low point during the day (mid/late afternoon). However, I am not sure what the best plan would be now. I'll be going in Mid-July (probably either the 12th or 13th), and other than doing Green Lantern first I haven't really got a plan yet.

I haven't tried Green Lantern yet, but whether it flips a lot or a little, I am still looking forward to riding it when I go later in the month. Rides are made for the largest market they serve, and in the United States that is the American public. Enthusiasts make up an infinitesimally small percentage of a park's attendance, and rides just can't be built to cater to them. The goal is for a park to build the best ride they can for the largest percentage of the target audience possible, and therefore some rides must be toned down. The last thing a park needs is bad publicity, and I'm guessing SFMM would get plenty of that if Green Lantern spun like crazy and caused fainting, nosebleeds, or vomiting like Insane reportedly did during an ERT session. Some GP would think it was the most daring thing ever, but many would be afraid to ride it or would sue because it "injured" them. If this is how Green Lantern is going to stay, so be it. I'm sure it will be a winner with the GP anyway. However, I also don't think a ride should be judged on TWO DAYS of operation. Some rides need adjustment for some time after they open (for recent evidence, see I305, which took around a year to get to its final form), and I wouldn't be surprised if this is just one of those.

I've never really had a problem with the parking charge. When I go to a park, I just say "it's going to cost me this much" and not "it's x to get in, y to park, z for food, etc." I figure that no matter where I spend the money, it is still going to the park. Of course, I might be in the minority with this. If you look at the parking price individually, then yes, $20 is pretty expensive. It is not, however, outrageous. Split the cost between everyone in your party, and it is almost negligible if you're going with more than three people. Given the price for everything else at Six Flags, split the parking cost and opt for a free water instead of soda with lunch, and you break even.

I'm not a huge gamer, but here are some of the games I've enjoyed the most, although they might not really be the best (in no particular order): -Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic -Super Smash Bros. Melee/Brawl -Mario Party 7 (only when playing with others) -Roller Coaster Tycoon 2/3 -Star Wars: Jedi Knight games -Pokemon generation 1/2/3 games -Lego Star Wars/Harry Potter/Indiana Jones -Portal 2 -Animal Crossing (only played DS version) -Pac-Man/Galaga (favorite arcade video games)

^The large scale city models in Miniland are pretty much what I showed in this report: New York City, Washington D.C., San Francisco, New Orleans, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas, as well as the Star Wars and New England harbor areas. There used to be a Daytona Beach area, but it was removed to make way for the Star Wars section. There are also a few other stand-alone models that are a little separate from the cities. I know there was the Sydney Opera House, Taj Mahal, Eiffel Tower, and Mount Rushmore. There may have been more, but I don't remember. These models are best viewed from the Coast Cruise ride instead of the walkway. There is a lot to Miniland, and that is why it is one of the best attractions at Legoland. You could easily spend twenty minutes examining each city closely and finding all kinds of hidden details. Additionally, it doesn't have a line, so it is great during the middle of the day.

Last year, I did a trip report covering everywhere I went over the summer, due to the large number of parks I was visiting. This year, I plan to do the same once again. This summer, I am planning to visit a large number of parks, many of which I have never been to. In addition, as I am going to St. Louis and doing stuff around the city, I'll post pictures from that. Here is my schedule for this summer. June 14th, 2011: Knott's Berry Farm (no trip report) June 23rd, 2011: Legoland California (below) July 23rd: Six Flags Magic Mountain (scroll down) July 23rd-July 28th, 2011: St. Louis Trip -July 23rd: Arrival, Budweiser Factory Tour, City Museum (further down) -July 24th: Six Flags St. Louis (below that) -July 25th: Gateway Arch, St. Louis Segway Tour, Cardinals Game (below Six Flags) -July 26th: St. Louis Zoo and the drive to Santa Claus (even further down) -July 27th: Holiday World (bottom of page) -July 28th: Return drive and onward to Newark (very bottom of page) July 29th-August 5th, 2011: TPR North East Trip -July 29th: Quassy Amusement Park and Lake Compounce (Page 2) -July 30th: Bizarro Bash at Six Flags New England (Page 2) -July 31st: Palace Playland and Funtown Splashtown U.S.A. (Page 2) -August 1st: Canobie Lake Park (Page 2) -August 2nd: La Ronde (Page 2) -August 3rd: Great Escape & Splashwater Kingdom (Page 3) -August 4th: Six Flags Great Adventure (Page 3) -August 5th: Departure Day (Page 3) August 17th: Universal Studios Hollywood (mini-report page 3) September 11th: Wild Rivers Waterpark (mini-report page 3) September 13th: Knott's Berry Farm (2nd visit) (mini-report page 3) For those who have read some of my previous trip reports, you may remember that they are primarily text-based with some pictures. This year, I plan to have the same text-based reviews of all the rides, but will have a larger number of pictures and even some videos. Before I begin, I might as well post my rating scale as well, which will be used throughout all these reports. It is mostly based on the American school grading system. A-One of the best rides I've been on (at least of its type), or one of the most unique. It may also be the best ride at a particular park. These rides are generally what I consider the absolute must-ride attractions. B-A really good ride that I'd be willing to wait an hour for and would hate to miss, but would do so to get all the A rides in. C-Decent ride, but not worth an extended wait time (greater than 15-20 minutes). D-Not very good, and only worth riding if there isn't really a wait. F+-I don't care to ride it again, but would do so if I was with someone else who wanted to ride. F-I've done it once and don't care to ever do it again. I very rarely give an attraction this rating. When I do, it is usually because the ride is painful, not because it is simply boring. These are the only rides I would not be willing to try again, even if I was visiting with someone else who had never been on it. Okay, time to begin. June 23rd, 2011-Legoland California In late May, I found out that my cousins from Northern California were going to be visiting for a week at the end of June. Usually, when they visit, we take them to one of the local parks, as they don't care for any of the parks in Northern California (since we last visited them up there in 2008, they have been to SFDK once and none of the other three at all). Last time they visited, we had taken them to the Disneyland Resort, but that was in the fall when the park was less crowded. I asked them if they would be interested in visiting Universal Studios Hollywood, as they had shown interest in that park before, but they both declined. When I asked them if there were any parks around here they wanted to visit, they replied with Legoland California. This surprised me, as one is middle-school age and the other is in high-school, but since I hadn't been to the park in a couple years I agreed. On Thursday, June 23rd, 2011, we left my grandmother's house in Costa Mesa slightly before 9 A.M. and headed down to the park. We got there to find a moderate line at the parking booths, but a relatively short line at the ticket booths. After purchasing our tickets, we headed inside, turned right, and headed to the Imagination Zone for our first ride of the day: Technic Coaster. All ride reviews are in the order we rode them. Technic Coaster-Out of Legoland California's three roller coasters, this one is probably my favorite. It is just a Wild Mouse, but it is a good wild mouse, and Legoland isn't about coasters anyway. It has a large drop right at the beginning, which is easily the best part of the ride. After that, it is pretty much a normal mouse, however. C Dragon-I don't know why, but I didn't enjoy this ride as much as I used to. It is just a junior coaster, but it is probably my least favorite coaster at the park (as a coaster). The dark ride portion at the beginning is kind of neat, but since the park now has an actual dark ride it is no longer as unique as it used to be. In addition, I've been on some other dark ride/coaster hybrids that are better. The ride isn't bad, it just isn't really anything special anymore. Fortunately, it is one of the few rides at Legoland with decent capacity. D for the coaster part, C for the ride overall. Treasure Falls-This is the park's log flume, which I had never actually gone on before (it was always closed). Since it was running, we decided to ride. It is very small, probably not more than fifteen feet tall, and it has miniature logs that only seat two people (or three kids). Needless to say, this is my least favorite log flume, and is so pathetically small that I doubt kids are that into it either. The line crawls due to only having four logs, and the logs themselves are very uncomfortable. The only miniscule positive of the ride is that it is a Jeff Johnson credit, as the logs coast from the top of the lift all the way around the turn to the drop (although they are stopped before the plunge). This is also the only block-sectioned log flume I have been on. F+ After Treasure Falls, it was about 11:30. We decided to get lunch early to avoid the crowds. I got a hot dog, while everyone else decided to go down the hill and get pizza. After I ate, I walked around the park for a bit and took some pictures, then headed down to Explorer Village to meet them outside of our next ride. Fairy Tale Brook-This ride is technically a boat ride, but is better described as an outdoor dark ride. Riders float past scenes from classic fairy tales, all depicted with Lego models. Unfortunately, some of the displays seem to be wearing out and are not functioning correctly. I remember all of the displays having some type of motion in the past, but this time at least a third of them were static. Nevertheless, it is still a decent ride, and it almost never has a line due to its location and somewhat decent capacity. C Aquazone Wave Racers-Best described as a water whip, this is probably my favorite water-based attraction anywhere if you exclude flume rides. You stand on a jet ski and steer it, attempting to avoid the water blasters that can be fired at riders for free. Since it was a bit cold on the day we were there, the line was pretty short for this even though you don't get that wet (I took two direct water bombs and got off drier than I was after the log flume). B Bionicle Blaster-A subpar teacup ride that is very difficult to spin. As a result, I almost never go on this. We only rode because there was no line. F+ Coast Cruise-Probably the most relaxing ride at the park, this ride is a boat tour of the lake. It allows you to get a unique perspective of some of the Miniland sets, including some that aren't easy to see from the walkways. It isn't that long, however, and most of the same sights can be seen from the walkways. C Miniland-This is the absolute best Walk Through attraction I have seen anywhere. Famous cities and landmarks from all over the United States (and a few international ones), all created out of Lego bricks. It is amazing how detailed some of these displays are. Many have moving vehicles and guest-activated elements, which are fun to watch. New since I last visited was Star Wars Miniland. I have to admit that while I am a Star Wars fan and the area looked nice, it was not quite as impressive as most of the real world structures. I took a lot of photos of Miniland, most of which are posted below. A Fun Town Fire Academy-This is one of the most interactive attractions I have ever seen. To save a lengthy, detailed explanation, I'll just post a video at the appropriate place within the photos. It is really a lot of fun, but I dislike the police academy theming that has been added since last time I rode. Police don't capture robbers by shooting fire hoses at them. This is only a minor complaint, and doesn't affect the ride, so I'm not going to let it affect my rating. B After Fun Town Fire Academy, the younger of my cousins wanted to do Driving School (which is probably one of, if not the best, attractions at Legoland, at least for kids). She is the only one in our group that is young enough to ride, and since this was the last time she would get a chance, I agreed. My sister decided that she would wait with her, and I told them to call us when they were done. Meanwhile, my other cousin, my brother, and I went and rode Legoland's one true thrill ride. Knights' Tournament-This is one of those KUKA robotic arm rides. There are five intensity settings, and riders pick whichever one they want. I have personally experienced levels 2-5 (1 is pathetic), and level 4 is my favorite. Five just gets me sick as I can handle inversions, but not being held in an inverted position (which five does several times) and the lower levels are less exciting (although three isn't bad). There is a video below of my brother and cousin taking on level five, so you can look at that to see how intense this attraction can get. I really like this ride, but unfortunately it throws you around a bit and isn't the most comfortable ride. B After we got off the ride, I got a call from my sister. They arrived and wanted to ride as well, so we were forced to wait in the half-hour line a second time. This time, my sister did level five solo, my brother and one cousin did level four, and I did level two with my other cousin (I was unsuccessful in trying to get her to try level three). Once we were done, we headed down to the Land of Adventure, as one of my cousins hadn't been to the park since it opened. Dune Raiders-One of those sack slides that had been added since my last visit. It wasn't that large, and was quite bumpy, but at least you went somewhat fast. There were also a pair of spiral slides but I don't know what they were for as I never saw a single person ride those. C Lost Kingdom Adventure-A pretty good shooting dark ride. I enjoyed this, and ended up with the highest score of my ride vehicle (and third out of the five of us). Surprisingly, the cousin that hadn't rode this before got the highest score. With the exception of Disney's shooters, this is probably my favorite shooting dark ride, and is way better than the Ghostblasters rides. However, it seems like they either run too many cars or load too slowly, as the car stopped a couple times toward the end of the ride due to the station being full. B After Lost Kingdom Adventure, everyone except me decided to take a second spin on Bionicle Blaster, then we stopped for a snack. Here, we made a list of what everyone still wanted to do in the hour and a half that remained. I asked each person to pick one ride they wanted to do again, or one ride that we hadn't done yet, and we set out to do them. Our first stop was in Fun Town, where my sister had chosen Kid Power Tower. I stayed off as I didn't want to delay the line (only four people over twelve can ride at a time), although I do really like the ride (I'd give it a B based on my last experience). We then went to one of my cousin's picks. Adventurers' Club-This is an entertaining walkthrough, but I'm kind of getting bored by it. The objective is to find seven hidden Lego keys in the three rooms (a jungle, an Egyptian tomb, and an arctic wasteland) but as I know where they all are it isn't as cool as it used to be. Nevertheless, it is an okay time waster, especially if you are with people who haven't done it as much as you have. C Skipper School-This was my choice. It is my least favorite of Legoland's six water rides, but it is still a good ride. There aren't many attractions where you get to drive a boat through an obstacle course, which makes this ride unique. Unfortunately, the line is one of the slowest I've experienced, so even though there were only about twenty people in front of us it took fifteen minutes. C We then headed to my brother's choice: Knights' Tournament. Unfortunately, it still had a half-hour wait and nobody else wanted to ride, so he decided he'd pick something else. We went to my other cousin's choice, Dragon (her favorite coaster excluding wild mice), and rode it again. We then went to my brother's alternate choice: Technic Coaster. Unfortunately, this ride still had a half hour wait as well. Even though I was willing to wait with him, he decided to just skip it. I then gave everyone twenty minutes for shopping. They only needed half that time, so we headed out just before closing at 6 P.M. We drove through a Carls Jr. on the way home, then headed back to my grandparents' house. Overall, I enjoyed my visit. Legoland California is one of the more unique parks I've been to, and is a park I try to go to once every couple years or so. Most people think of it as a kids park, and although it is certainly geared toward the elementary and middle school aged crowd, it isn't exclusively for them. Adults can still have a fun time as long as they go with the knowledge that the park isn't about thrill rides. In fact, this is probably the least thrill-based major park in the United States. There are two main faults Legoland has, however. The first is the admission price. In my honest opinion, the park is not worth $69. On most days, when the crowd isn't outrageous, it is possible to do everything in about two-thirds of a day. The park doesn't have a large number of attractions, and only about two-thirds of those are even rides. I personally feel an admission price more in the $40-$50 range would be more appropriate. The second major fault is the low capacity rides. With the exception of Dragon, Coast Cruise, and possibly Fairy Tale Brook, I doubt any of the rides can manage much more than 400 people per hour. This is not a fault of slow operators, but is inherent to the ride design. In some cases, this can't be helped, but for some rides it would have been nice if they could have found some way to install a higher capacity model. Oh well, what they have is enough to deal with the typical crowds the park gets. I have only seen lines greater than a half hour for a few of the park's worst capacity offenders, and 45+ minute waits only seem to exist on one or two rides. Ride Count Technic Coaster-1 Dragon-2 Treasure Falls-1 Fairy Tale Brook-1 Aquazone Wave Racers-1 Bionicle Blaster-1 Coast Cruise-1 Miniland-1 Fun Town Fire Academy-1 Knights' Tournament-2 Dune Raiders-1 Lost Kingdom Adventure-1 Adventurers' Club-1 Skipper School-1 Total-16 rides in 8 hours (2 rides per hour) Photos: We're here, and it's time for the first ride of the day. This is the best part of the ride. The rest of the ride is more or less standard. This was the line when we got here. It took about a half hour. When we got off, the line was over an hour. I think a lot of people run to this ride first thing, and the station set-up doesn't work if they don't run enough cars (they had six going, and the line wasn't going very fast). Time for another coaster. This one is too hidden by trees to get a good picture of, but imagine the larger Vekoma Junior Coaster design with a dark ride portion added at the beginning and you've got a pretty good idea. Time for Pirate Shores. This is Soak 'n Sail, also known as the drowning factory. It wasn't too popular today. The old style Splash Battle. Didn't ride this since it was right about 70 and cloudy the whole day, plus the guns don't work very well. You can be hit by people on the shore, but you can't hit them back. Captain Cranky's Challenge, the only ride in Pirate Shores that doesn't involve water. Finally, Treasure Falls. As far as log flumes go, this is like the credit whore log flume for sad and pathetic people. In fact... Here are the two who convinced us all to ride. My brother (Gemstone on TPR) is in front and one of my cousins is behind him. Fortunately, the line was less than fifteen minutes, or I would have been quite irritated. This is new since the last time I visited. I skipped it not because it was cold, but more because I don't think a raft slide, three small body slides and a lazy river is worth extra. Washington DC? That can only mean one thing...It is time for a tour of Miniland. New York, the largest of the Miniland creations. I will be at the real place in about a month (well, actually slightly outside it, but close enough). That's either a really big boat or a really small city. Some of Legoland's sponsers are advertised in Legos. Video game fans: what do you think will be the successor to the XBOX 360? Whatever it is, it better not have the red ring of death issue. Legoland Truck. If Miniland was supposed to be in real time, they would have had to let someome run amok here after Hurricane Katrina to bring it up to date. I don't know exactly what this is supposed to be. If I ever go to New Orleans, I'm sure I'll find out. I like watching all the boats moving about in the Miniland Harbor. The land vehicles are controlled by magnets, but the water vehicles are just attached to underwater cables. If you look closely, you can see them in this picture. Even though its a kid-focused park, the model builders still decided to recreate Sin City. This is the hotel my brother wants to stay at when he goes for his 21st birthday. Too bad the volcano isn't interactive. Legoland could use a little fire. I'm pretty sure Legoland has the two closest Eiffel Towers in the world. This one is for the Paris hotel, and there is another one just across the lake. This hotel looks just as impressive in Lego form as it does in real life. Legoland's master builders appear to have made an improvement. This is the only hotel I've stayed at in Las Vegas. I guess that's what happens when my trips are always done as cheaply as possible. If Transformers ever decide to destroy Las Vegas, they better not destry this. If they do, it will be just like Revenge of the Fallen. When I went and saw the real thing a few weeks ago, I had no idea I would be seeing the Lego version in the same month. Since this is where my cousins live, they enjoyed seeing it. However, it appears that there is something unusual going on here. San Francisco is being attacked by giants! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES! It is now time to journey to a galaxy far, far away. Cue John Williams's famous Star Wars theme. First stop...Naboo, as seen in the Phantom Menace. I wasn't a huge fan of this recreation. This movie would have been much better if the gungans lost, or at least if Jar Jar Binks died. Next up...Geonosis, from Attack of the Clones. This was one of the better areas. "The shroud of the dark side has fallen. Begun, the clone wars have."-Yoda The Clone Wars movie was pretty bad, but somehow it ended up with what is probably my favorite set: Christophsis. Revenge of the Sith was the best of the prequel trilogy, so for that not-so-remarkable achievement it gets two planets. The first is Kashyyyk, home of the wookies. The second is Mustafar. Or is it Mordor? I don't know, both look pretty similar on screen. If there is one thing that is definitely better in the prequel trilogy than in the original trilogy, it is the lightsaber duels. Akakin Vs. Obi-Wan is probably one of the top ten swordfights in any movie I've seen. From A New Hope, we get Tattooine. This is arguably the most important planet in the Star Wars galaxy and I'm glad that they did a good job with it. From The Empire Stikes Back, we have Hoth. I was a little disappointed by this choice, as Hoth is probably my least favorite planet in the Star Wars galaxy. I would have much preferred Bespin. Finally, from Return of the Jedi, there is Endor. This one is pretty well hidden, and even though I knew it was there I almost missed it. Some random imperial speaks with he-who-must-not-be-named...oh, wait, wrong series. Please, Lord Vader, don't force grip me! Now that we are done with Miniland, it is time for a tour of the remainder of the park. First, let's take a look at the park's dinosaur problem. These guys are everywhere. Some appear to be helpful, while others are just goofing around. Skipped Coastersaurus, even though I like it, because it was a 30-60 minute wait all day and nobody else wanted to ride. This is where you can learn to drive and get a Legoland Drivers License if you are between 6 and 13. For those between 3 and 5, they can drive here for practice. I don't know if they get a license too, as I was never young enough to do this one. Up on top of Fun Town Hill, they have this ride. The ride attendant said the record for most ascents/descents in one cycle was 3.75, but my brother claims he got 4. This ride is also on top of the hill. I've heard this attraction called various names, but the best description is "the pedal-powered ride." At most parks, if you see a line that is only this long you are pretty happy. Here, however... No way is it worth that! Earlier in the day, this sign said 120 minutes. More random dinosaurs. I wonder who would win: the dinosaurs or the dragons? Fun Town Fire Academy! This sign tells you what to do, however I doubt you can read that. Just watch the video to see how this ride works. [coastertube]http://www.themeparkreview.com/coastertube/play.php?vid=Fun_Town_Fire_Academy_qkz5[/coastertube] Skipper School. It is the aquatic equivalent to Driving School. This course is surprisingly challenging. I see a lot of people get turned around backward in here. It used to be harder, but most of the obstacles have been removed. Time for Legoland's one true thrill ride. Choose thy destiny wisely, for none enjoy a protien spill. "Grrr! I am the Knights' Tournament dragon. My older brother kicked me out of the castle up there, and now I have to stand guard over a plastic chest and make sure nobody breaks the rules of this ride." From here, it doesn't look so bad. However, everyone in this picture has chosen destiny one or two. These people are going a little more intense, but you can't capture the true insanity of this ride in a picture. [coastertube]http://www.themeparkreview.com/coastertube/play.php?vid=Knights_Tournament_zvy5[/coastertube] "Hey, you! Yes, you back there with the camera. If I catch you taking an on-ride video, I'll eat you." The brand new Dune Raiders (well, I think it's actually a year or two old, but it was new for me). It wasn't that good. I've never gone on this, but it looks somewhat pointless. Dueling Frog Hoppers! KidTums must really enjoy this part of the park. Aquazone! I remember when this ride opened and I thought it was the coolest thing ever. Of course, I was nine at that point and wouldn't ride any coaster larger than Knott's Jaguar. Now for the last ride featured in this trip report: Bionicle Blaster. As you can see, it is just a teacup ride. A very mediocre teacup ride. And to end, a picture of my group enjoying themselves on Bionicle Blaster. One of my cousins is on the left, my brother has the gray jacket on, my other cousin is next to him, and my sister is barely visible behind the poll. I am not visible at all and am instead behind the camera.

This report just proves that even the worst parks can have good days. In my opinion, if you visit a park and it is just a bad day, it shouldn't be written off, and you should give the park another chance. Fuji-Q looks like it might be an okay park in low crowd, good weather conditions. I'm really enjoying all these updates, as Japan is one of about two Asian countries I'm interested in visiting sometime. Maybe next time there is a TPR Japan trip I'll be able to do it. Also, they are getting me excited for the North East trip in just one month.

I will wait for more definite information before I entirely believe this, but it sounds like both a plausible idea and a winning one. For some time, I've thought Knott's could use a mega or giga coaster, and this would really be the park's first ride since Xcelerator that appeals to people outside the immediate area. However, building this massive of a ride will likely destroy most (if not all) of the remaining old Knott's charm that the park has. The attractions will still be there, but the atmosphere won't. In a way, however, I kind of think it is time for this to happen. The park has chosen to go the thrill park route, but as of now they really only have a couple of major thrill rides. The way I see it, old Knott's is a thing of the past and probably would not be as popular with the current generation of parkgoers.

Six Flags Magic Mountain in Mid-July, assuming there are no hiccups with Green Lantern. After that, I'll be on a two week trip beginning in late July including Six Flags St. Louis, Holiday World, and the TPR North East Trip.

Dragon at Legoland California on Thursday.

A few I know that haven't been mentioned yet (some are minor parks, but others aren't): Busch Gardens-The Dark Continent -> Busch Gardens Tampa -> Busch Gardens Africa -> Busch Gardens Tampa Busch Gardens: The Old Country -> Busch Gardens Williamsburg -> Busch Gardens Europe -> Busch Gardens Williamsburg Cypress Gardens -> Cypress Gardens Adventure Park -> Legoland Florida Grand Slam Canyon -> Adventuredome Hecker Pass Family Adventure -> Bonfante Gardens -> Gilroy Gardens Family Theme Park In addition, all the former Paramount Parks added Paramount to their name at one point and have since dropped it. And then there is the least obvious name change I can think of: Disney's California Adventure -> Disney California Adventure

I went and saw Super 8 last night. I enjoyed it, but it wasn't really my type of movie. The characters were great, acting was good, alien was somewhat creepy, but I'm just not a fan of movies involving aliens. I'll give this a 7/10, but I'm guessing it would be an 8 or possibly even a 9 if I was more into that type of thing.

I was just at the park yesterday and it was overrun with school groups taking end of the year trips. Was there from 10 to 3 and only got on Ghostrider, Timber Mountain Log Ride, Montezooma's Revenge, La Revolucion, and 2 rides on Xcelerator. Silver Bullet had one train and the queue was overflowing, but everything else I saw looked like it was operating at decent capacity to cope with the huge lines (all major attractions except Xcelerator appeared to have a line 45 minutes or longer). If the park is like this, you will need a full day to do everything. Fortunately, most of the school trips should be done by the end of this week since most end next week. In that case, it probably wouldn't be too bad. If you are trying to get all the coasters done, it is possible to do them in three hours if you are lucky. If you are just interested in credits, I'd do GhostRider first, followed by Pony Express (the line for that one moves slow). Next, do Sierra Sidewinder as the capacity is pretty low, then do Silver Bullet if the wait is reasonable. Since the ride is only running one train right now, it may be a long wait, in which case you will have to decide to either wait, chance it and ride later, or skip it. The Boardwalk doesn't usually open until 11 on weekdays, but it should be open by this point. If it is running, head to Xcelerator. Then do Boomerang (if you must), Montezooma's Revenge, and Jaguar. Although it can be done fairly quickly, I'd recommend spending a full day at Knott's if you have the time (especially if you've never been there). It may be a Cedar Fair park and be dominated by thrill rides, but there are still a number of classic attractions left. Be sure to ride Timber Mountain Log Ride and the Calico Mine Ride, as those are both historically significant attractions. Unless the park is dead, it is easy to occupy yourself there for a whole day if you are interested in seeing everything. One other note (sorry if this is old news)...Knott's is now selling a skip the line pass. It costs $40 and is good for one ride each on Boomerang, GhostRider, Timber Mountain Log Ride, Silver Bullet, Pony Express, Sierra Sidewinder, and Supreme Scream, plus one ride on the Screamin' Swing. I haven't used it, but it looks like you just go up the exit and get right on. Personally, I wouldn't recommend it unless you have a very limited time at the park and it is especially crowded.

I'm going to guess this is a drop tower as well. Perhaps SFMM will replace Thrill Shot with an Intamin Gyro Drop and call it the tallest in the US. It would only have to beat Kings Dominion's Drop Tower (which I believe is about 315 ft) and it would be significantly different than any other ride around. If it is an S&S tower, however, I hope they get a combo tower as those look like more fun than a standard space shot or turbo drop. If the park doesn't get a drop tower, I don't know what else they would be likely to get. Most other flat rides won't draw in crowds and it would be harder to claim a record unless they get something that hasn't been built in the US yet.

It's something in Florida but beyond that I have no idea.

This ride looks really well done. The station is outstanding and the ride itself looks nice also. I'll be riding this on the TPR North East trip and I'm guessing it will be one of the better coasters. I can't wait!

I think if Holiday World gets a steel coaster, it should be a ride experience very different than their wooden coasters but still accessible to the same group of riders. I haven't been to the park yet (going for the first time next month), but the wooden coasters appear to have large drops, massive airtime, and tunnels covered adequately. The best type of steel coaster would be something that is launched and has inversions, but isn't super intense and has a 48" height requirement. I think something like Maverick, although possibly a little less intense, would be a good fit for the park.

It looks like Disneyland has finally hit $80. In my opinion, it has been overpriced for some time. Yes, it is a very good park, and I understand why they raise their prices annually, but at the same time I wish they would have less frequent price increases. They are the main reason I now only visit once per year instead of getting an annual pass. I'm still going to go this year, and I'm not going to complain about a relatively small price increase, but I find it interesting that a pass to Disneyland with parking is now more expensive than a pass to every other major So Cal park combined. I really wonder how high they will go. I've long thought $100 for a one-day, one-park ticket is about the max before attendance starts to significantly decline, and at this rate they'll reach that in about four or five years. At least Disney California Adventure Park might finally be worth its admission price when Cars Land opens next year.

^I've survived a 110+ day at SFMM before without any problems. Granted, that was minus the humidity, but I should be fine. I'll just get water instead of soda as well as stopping at every convenient drinking fountain, and be sure to take it easy. 11 hours is a long time, and given that there are only about fifteen rides that we want to do (plus possible re-rides), I don't think there is any need to rush. I will certainly be very thankful if we get lucky and it is only in the low 90s.

Looking only at rides I've been on both before and after refurbishment... Best: X2 at Six Flags Magic Mountain. The ride used to be really rough, break down all the time, and have horribly low capacity due to operating only one train almost all the time. It is still somewhat rough, but it isn't as bad as it used to be. It is also much more reliable and I've never seen them running fewer than two trains (and on occasion, all three). In addition, audio and fire have been added to the ride, along with a much better color scheme. Runner-ups include Disneyland's Space Mountain (although I consider this a replacement instead of a refurbishment), Revenge of the Mummy at Universal Studios Hollywood (only a few things were changed, but I like the new ending better), and Superman: Escape From Krypton (until one car is turned around to forwards, it is difficult to compare the ride to its original version). Worst: Manhattan Express. The ride recieved new trains and new brakes, but is still just as bad. In addition, the price increased from overpriced to extremely overpriced.

That actually sounds like a better plan given that Batman is crowded. I keep forgetting that Batman is SFStL's most intense coaster (or at least one of them) and therefore one of the most popular in the park. i'm too used to SFMM where it never has more than a fifteen minute wait unless it is running one train on a crowded day. I'm assuming that if you rent a lock-er in Splashin' Safari you can't access it until that park opens. Can you also rent them inside the waterpark, or do you have to go back to the front to rent it? We'll only need one in the waterpark, so it might be better for us to wait and rent it there. I'm not sure how long it will take to get Voyage and Gobbler Getaway done, but if we have extra time we might do that. I know Pilgrims Plunge has a large drop but isn't really that wet, so I don't mind riding in normal clothes. My main concern is getting on Wildebeest before the line grows to an hour or more, which I've heard can happen in as little as 30 minutes after it opens. Thanks for the help. When I visit parks I've never done before, I always like to get as much information before visiting as I can.

I saw X-Men: First Class a few days ago. It was really good. The best X-Men movie, the best Marvel movie, and probably the best Superhero movie outside of Nolan's Batman films. It does have a few flaws, and it has inconsistencies with the later movies, but as this is supposed to be a semi-reboot I looked past a lot of those.

Thanks for the help. We've decided that we'll go to Six Flags St. Louis on Sunday since we should be able to do everything without a Flash Pass. If it is exceptionally crowded (an hour or more wait for all major rides), we'll buy one, but I'm thinking that won't be the case. I have one more question, which relates to both parks and the best order to do attractions. Here are my current plans. Six Flags St. Louis: American Thunder first, then either A. Pandemonium, Boss, Mr. Freeze, Batman The Ride, Ninja, Screamin' Eagle, River King Mine Train, or B. Mr. Freeze, Batman The Ride, Ninja, Pandemonium, Boss, Screamin' Eagle, River King Mine Train. We would probably do Scooby Doo Ghostblasters at the same time we do Mr. Freeze, but most of the other non-coaster rides would wait until we had done all eight coasters (unless they are known for getting long waits). Which of these plans is better, or is there an even better way to do everything? Holiday World: Voyage first, then Gobbler Getaway. We would then go to the waterpark as soon as it opens and do Wildebeest, Pilgrims Plunge, Zinga, Zoombabwe, Wahtubee, Bakuli, then make our way around to the remaining attractions in no particular order. After we are done in the waterpark, we'll get lunch, then do whatever rides we want by area, beginning at Halloween. Is this plan good, or is there a better way? Voyage must be first, but everything else can change if it would likely work out better.

I try to avoid visiting a park when it is going to be excessively hot (over about 95 F) but when I do there are three things I consciously do. 1. Drink plenty of water. When I have a meal, I get water instead of soda. When I am taking a break, I go to the nearest food stand and get a cup of water. When I pass a drinking fountain, I stop and take a drink. 2. Get wet. I ride the water rides in the late morning/early afternoon, and again in the late afternoon to help me cool off and avoid the brutal midday waits some of them develop. 3. When the temperature rises, slow down. As it gets hotter, I take more time travelling between attractions and spend more time resting in the shade. I also plan my day so I will hit the attractions that are indoor or at least have covered queues in the middle of the day. In all the times I've gone to an amusement park in the summer, I have only started to feel ill once, and that was when I ignored rule three on a 110+ day at SFMM. I just took a long break (45 minutes), drank some water, and was fine after that. Unfortunately, a couple of the people I was with got sick as well and they didn't recover as quickly, so we had to call it a day early.