OrlandoGuy

New Jersey counts as a major area of the country now?

The media event looks awesome, thanks for the great TR!

Once again, I suppose the definition is interpreted differently by different people. For me, it's simple: 0 G = weightlessness <0 G = airtime That's it. Right, but even so, a tighter lapbar or seabelts is not going to change the G-forces of the ride. If it at any point pulls less than 0 G's, no matter how tightly youre stapled into the seat youre going to feel weightless. So I think we are actually in agreement here, really. Seatbelts can not affect airtime.

well we know that *now* they wont ride it because theyre too stressed out about sitting down with those seatbelts that are so in the way

Exactly. You feel "weightless" whenever experiencing 0 G's or less, regardless of if youre "floating" or not. Also, I think a lot of psychological factors play into this whole floating sensation...you may *think* youre being lifted out of your seats on certain rides, but the fact is you aren't...youre just hitting your restraint with a lot more pressure than normal. Bottom line, seatbelts are not going to change the negative G's Diamondback, Behemoth, Intimidatot, etc. pulls, therefore will have no affect on the feeling of "airtime" because your body will feel the same independent of how much space is between you and the lapbar. Its all in your guys' head

No airtime is when your butt actually leaves the seat. Being forced into a restraint without your butt leaving the seat is not airtime. Airtime = time in the air. If you don't leave the seat there is not airtime. If this was the case, very few modern roller coasters would be considered to have airtime. Airtime can also refer to the lightness your body feels (like the feeling of being in the air) your body experiences during negative G moments. When youre free-falling on a seat, you feel weightless even though youre on a platform. If you hit 0 G's or less, you feel weightless, which = airtime.

Double post

No youre right, and Im sorry for the ignorance. But unfortunately your case is the exception to the rule.

Yes, the seats are the same for everyone. Fat people shouldn't be priveleged with special accommodations. Not completely sure what you're arguing here. Exactly. And at the end of the day, people can control being overweight. I dont see the need for parks to change how they do things/how people enjoy then to accomodate someones choice.

August 19th is still "summer", so the park will be busy, especially with the HP expansion opening up. I would reccomend Express Pass unless the rides youre trying to hit is somewhat limited. Hulk, Spider-Man, Dr Doom, Jurassic Park, Forbidden Journey, and possibly Dudley Do Right at IOA have single rider. They do sometimes close the single rider line if it becomes too long though, so this is not necessarily a guarantee. Over at Universal, Mummy, HRRR, Transformers, Men in Black, and possibly the new Gringotts coaster have single rider (again, subject to availability). While single rider lines help, its not as beneficial as Express Pass. Last summer when Transformers opened to 2 hr+ waits, single rider often took over an hour to get through. If you have a limited wishlist, then you *may* be able to get a full day's worth without Express, but to see all the major attractions it will be impossible without Express. Definitely make a point to do Spider-Man, Hulk, Dragon Challenge, Forbidden Journey, Gringotts, Mummy, Men in Black, Rip Ride Rockit, and Transformers! As for hotels, check the Double Tree on Kirkman Road. Its literally right across the street from property and can sometimes have low rates. Hope this helps!

I'm just guessing on all of this, but I doubt they care all that much - if the weather's decent, it'll be packed all weekend anyway. I can't imagine there's a very big percentage of people who are not going to go to the park just because Goliath is not open yet (and those people would just probably go later in the year anyway, so it's not as if the park loses money on those people. If Six Flags really really cared about being open for Memorial Day, they'd have started the project earlier (or scheduled more employees on it). I'm pretty certain they care when there is a bottom-line. Six Flags is a publically traded company, which means investors, not just some park operating on a whim and yes, holiday weekends are major revenue generator for parks. Delays are a potential reality for any project despite the best attempts to keep it on-schedule. Projects require that financing is in place before construction can begin and adding more workers/labor cost more money, so these projects are a little more complicated than simply starting earlier or adding more labor. Anyway, it's not the people who already go there; it's those that rarely or seldom go. Banshee had a five hour wait its opening day, so yes new attractions can be major revenue generators, even by just one day. New attractions are not merely built for exiting customers. They are built to attract new customers or those who have not visited the park in several years i.e. growing the company. Memorial Day weekend is attractive since may companies that operate on Saturdays will close and the additional day gives people the change to travel further distances. So, yes, SFGA will attract a large crowd that weekend; but it is likely they would have attracted more people, especially those that are located at the farthest reachest of the park's intended market e.g. Wisconsin, Iowa, NW Indiana, and western Michigan. It's those customers that may plan to take a chance on a park visit that weekend, especially if there is a new attraction. Or you could look at it from a different perspective...Memorial Day is going to draw large crowds anyway, but the weekends after arent necessarily going to be as packed; therefore, by opening it later, you attract a "Grand Opening" crowd to a typically dull weekend while also attracting the normal annual Memorial Day crowd...kind of spreads the crowds a little more evenly through the summer to keep flows consistent rather than consolidated strictly to holiday weekends and mid-summer. I mean, look at Banshee, there have already been reports of KI being dead despite their new headliner. Had they held off on the Banshee opening, they couldve had a sizeable opening weekend crowd in addition to some opening ceremony hype for the typically dead times (of course, CF wouldnt do this because they actually give a crap about customer satisfaction unlike Six Flags ) Just another way to look at it...I obviously dont run theme parks, but delaying the opening of Goliath isnt entirely a stupid decision.

Yeah but Escape from Pompeii has a reasonable capacity. I have no doubt BG can take any ride and theme it adequately. But they cant change a ride's capacity issues. We dont know this is for sure yet, though. Guess we will have to wait and see

Actually, did you know this is wrong? On the topic of Valleyfair, Ive actually always been very interested in this place. I do kinda look at it as one of the chain's flagships because of the name, and yet they really dont have a major headliner or anything worth traveling far for (in my opinion). It looks like a really nice park aesthetically, but as a less hardcore theme park fan, I would want a major attraction to get me to the park, and Im sure most people feel the same way. I think they could definitely use a nice big coaster in the next few years, because as of now the very pleasant space theyve created is wasted on somewhat mediocre attractions IMO

I don't think it's meant to be family-friendly because I agree with you, those stats are far from that. I also think that not every roller coaster in the park has to be ridiculously tall, fast, and forceful. Do I like Raptor and Maverick? Absolutely. But Gatekeeper is fun in its own way…it's not aggressive, no, but it's fun to feel like flying. I think even the enthusiast community (well, some of it) can also appreciate it for its gimmick of being on the waterfront and having unique seating and a bizarre/strange first drop. Even though I know the mechanics of rides, what is forceful/what's not, etc. doesn't mean I don't enjoy zipping through the air with nothing above or below me right next to Lake Erie and above the main CP midway…it's different and fun!

Just to be clear, a troll isnt someone who has a differing opinion, its someone who posts to antagonize. Replying the word "Gatesleeper" to a well-thought-out defense of the ride isnt the most substantial post. But Im sorry the word came up...didnt mean to step on toes and Im sure I just misunderstood.

This is the only place where Ive seen a roller coaster described as boring...especially one with 6 inversions, a unique seating arrangment, a beautiful lakefront setting, and one of the coolest and most out-there first drops ever. Dont listen to trolls, Gatekeeper isnt the re-invention of the wheel, but it is a very fun ride. I waited 3 hours for it on opening day and it felt justified to me.

If I want Steel Jungle supports or other downloadable add-ons, what do I do after downloading the programs to get them to appear on the game? Sorry if thats a stupid question. While Im at it, how do I get my own music into the game?

Im probably just a crazy person, but Im kind of going to miss the old Gemini midway. Yes, it was dead and outdated, but that gave it charm in my opinion. Plus, it usually seemed devoid of people which was always nice on otherwise busy summer days

Oh yeah, definitely have to add Outlaw Run to my list as well

Simply put, what roller coasters do you really want to ride that you haven't yet? I'd have to say it's split between Skyrush and El Toro for me. It used to be Bizarro but after seeing some less-than-stellar reception on this board, I'd try to visit Hersherypark or Great Adventure before SFNE. What about you guys?

^agreed. That woman is simply minding her own business trying to have a fun day doing something we all love. There was no need to poke fun at her. Other than that, great pictures. Cant wait to see the rest

^^ you wont need 2 days at Universal Orlando around September. Its pretty easy to hit all the major rides in one day. Allow for two if you can to see everythinggg, but if you only have 1 day, I would NOT reccomend only hitting one park...still attempt both. Also, if the date you visit Universal is a weekend around later in September, go to Halloween Horror Nights. It is bar none the best Halloween event in the country, despite its dip in quality in recent years. Seriously, dont miss it if you can go!

That honestly may have a lot to do with the view on both of these rides. Gatekeeper was disappointing and Banshee seems to be surprising. I wonder what an unbiased evaluation of both rides, unaffected by pre-opening hype would be like.

I don't know, to me there isn't a better steel coaster that I have been on. It has everything...an amazing drop, insane speed, pacing, ejector airtime, crazy g-forces, insane transitions, and comfortable restraints. It literally has it all. I think I value airtime more over laterals, and when I went (which I believe was when it had trim brakes...I wasn't really up to date with theme park info at the time lol) it was lacking in that department. I also think the OTSRs take away from the freedom of it, which is IMO the best part of such big low-to-the-ground swoops. It's definitely a great coaster...I don't really do lists but I wouldn't be surprised if it was in my Top 10. But Top 3 seems high, and I see it on a lot of people's top spot. It's all a matter of opinion, too. Maybe I'm just weird

^I dont get the love either. Its an undoubtedly great ride, but I dont see it as the 3rd best roller coaster. I dont know, maybe its just me. I get the hype, but not the "OMG BEST RIDE EVER" crazy hype.