Angry_Gumball

Love the trains (well..the lead car that is)!

Too bad Hades turned out to be rough. But as said, new trains aren't going to work miracles...track work has to be done as well for the train to smoothly ride through.

Picking back up on Ocarina of Time Master Quest on 3DS. Previously I got to Dodongo's cavern but got lost/haden't played in a while. I just started a new file and figured a fresh start will help me through this dungeon...requiring a little more thinking (trying to stay away from walk thru's/tutorials) I'm on the right track now! The whole idea of everything being mirrored throws me off!

So, I'm going to say it now...I can see this opening in August...not sure how much more work they have to go, prep-wise (queue and whatnot), or how much testing has to happen before it opens but I can't imagine it taking too long before UT takes on its first riders. Looking forward to riding this soon (though I have yet to confirm my next SCBB run...going to be busy with CGA, SFDK, and the upcoming WCB).

^That's good to know! I should visit the 'Walk this limited op off season

In all seriousness, I'm wondering if it will be running when SCBB goes into limited op mode. Otherwise with how short it's season will be, they may as well delay opening to 2014. I know this was beyond SCBB's control when it came to this delay, and I'm sure it has even frustrated them as to why a cookie cutter layout has had such a delay.

Or a whiteboard if we want to not be so dusty As I said before, I think that one section of GS's queue gets a lot of the writing as it's a bit 'hidden' and not easy to spot guests doing it. The FD station (which has bare wood fencing) is in plain sight of park employees which is probably why it remains clean.

That's awesome news! And here we were joking about YOLOcoaster opening delayed....But I will say this: Flying Turns beat UT to testing (recent cycling that is)

Those social networks...they're dumbing down the already dumbed down generation. Most of those tags, as said, are Instagram-related. Then people like to smuggle their phones on for quick Instagram pov clips... Definitely unavoidable but when Gold Striker is the primary attraction being vandalized... It's getting ridiculous.

They wasted no time then...this past Thursday, the queue was nearly spotless! Seems that no matter what the park does, it's gonna be an uphill battle. Time to paint the fences a dark color/paint it black...

I haven't done the ACF in years...like last time I went was probably 1996-ish. From what I hear, it's still pretty good. I used to go all the time. My sister performed there (singing, dancing). While never really doing the rides, I have fond memories running through the 4 buildings that formed a central plaza. I always remembered lots to do at that fair, even if you weren't going for rides. I think next year I'll make it a point to hit up the ACF. They have a Zipper there too and they have a pretty large midway...Blue Fire Guy (who has yet to experience Zipper due to SMCF's tendency to not run it on opening weekend), take note! I agree about the arch...trying to remember its exact color scheme but I think it was in shades of red, stripped much like a rainbow...why I called it a rainbow when I was younger. It does have a ride-like appearance to it from a distance!

Basically, the animals were the 'meat' of my visit...no pun intended The exhibits were minimal, vendors were minimal...the buildings felt like a ghost town and yea...pretty much everyone was all checking out the animals. About the fairgrounds, the buildings themselves have not changed the slightest bit since I was little...antiquated, no revamps...even the restrooms looked a bit rustic Shoot, I may have even spotted the tree that ate my frisbee What was missing was the grandstands...I remember my dad taking me over (during my sister's dance competitions) to watch the sprint cars from behind the fence. Sitting there now is the midway sat, and the track itself has been taken over by dirt, motocross track, and possibly the paintball fields. At least there was some other entertainment offerings (bands performing) and an upcharge 'get kissed by a sea lion' attraction.

Yea, definitely left much to be desired...seeing that the small San Mateo County Fair packed a lot into their fair, I expected more from a fair in Silicon Valley.

I've been on the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds numerous times throughout my life whether if it were for dance competitions my sister participated in (and I'd run around on the grounds, climbing trees, playing catch, throwing frisbees...doing kid things!), or when we'd go play paintball on the onsite fields. But I have never actually been on the grounds in "county fair mode." Today was my first time visiting the SCCF and I had always heard that it has gone downhill...so keeping that in mind, I went in with low expectations. I knew something wasn't right when the fair runs for only 4 days, and opens at noon. I didn't even bother doing any rides as there were only a few noteworthy rides...being Ring of Fire, Zipper, Ghetto Flyers, Round Up, and the $10/10-ticket Zamperla Turbo Force...cycle seemed a bit short for the cost so I skipped. The rest of the carnival consisted of kiddie rides. Everything else excluding livestock felt like as though I was at a local festival and overpriced flea market. Food options were extremely limited...thankfully we ate before even going to the fair. This makes the 3rd fair I've done this year, the other two being the San Mateo County Fair and the California State Fair (which both were pretty awesome!). Without further ado, here's some photos I got from the day. Welcome to St. Louis...I mean, the Santa Clara County Fair! As a kid, this arch was painted multi colored and I called this the "rainbow." Let's start with some animals...(which there is a lot of!) poof-bird! Ooh, a Maine Coon! He was huge and very friendly! Marmalised Kitteh Come November, you guys better hide! Locker Bunny strutting its...man boobs? Yup, another cat! Friendly Scottish Fold cat ... Time to do some dog races (which were actually better than at the CSF...more to it and was a main attraction) Racing Wieners! Now let's look in their halls...Ok, not much to see sadly... Overpriced RC helicopters... Snakey! Wait, what? (At the SMCF, I was a goat...now I'm a snake...yes I'm a shape shifter!) More snakes...and lots of snakes in the Reptile Rescue area. Tortoise...huge! Om nom nom... And a red iguana..sweet! Ghetto water zorbing...seen at just about every fair View from down the "main" road where all the food and vendors were... The carnival...I'm glad I didn't waste any money, nothing to write home about other than.... This (which I was not wanting to spend any cash to ride) Or these two rides... Yes, the Zipper made very scary Zipper-ish sounds. I conclude the carnival portion with a pint-sized Ghetto Wheel. And here's some more animal porn for you! (Large animals this round) Pigs...Little do they know that... ...they will become something consumed by us humans... Translation: Free trip to the Slaughter House... But wait, there's more! They aren't just used for meat... This little guy was cute Last on our visit (within 2 hours time) was the home art exhibits...you can see clearly that it's swarming with fairgoers! Duct tape artwork I probably spent most of my time doing this...*plays Alton Towers Smiler theme...Ha-ha-ha! Ha-ha-ha!* Legos! You know you're a video game nerd when... And one last look at the bulk of the fair...which felt like it was on par with a local street festival and flea market...in the end, it left much to be desired.

Here's a few I liked from the other day at CGA. And some from Knott's from this point on...

People racing down my neighborhood like it's the Indy 500... This happened for the 3rd time this week, and this third time almost ended with me becoming

The pov you linked had to have been the mid to late 90s. You can see Typhoon (RIP), and what was either Chaos or the Chance Wipeout ride where Fireball resides now. Love the new POV!

Grizzly has a Pardon Our Dust sign as they're actually renovating some of the old fencing...they did that by Vortex about a month or so ago, replacing old fencing. Sorry, but yea...Grizzly isn't going to be ironed anytime soon And yes the operations are horrid...I don't bother riding it even if it's just a station wait. But we can dream...as I did

Many more CGA and SFDK to come for sure Santa Clara County Fair (I think I'm gonna hold off on rides and just check out the rest of the fair) SCBB (after UT opens, most likely in limited op mode...hoping UT is part of limited operation) KBF and SFMM (for WCB!) What I have done: CGA SFDK San Mateo County Fair California State Fair Gilroy Gardens SCBB SFMM KBF Disney

Despite the 2 down'd RMC's, it looks like you guys had a great time so far (despite the happenings at SFOT as well)...When life gives you lemons, make it lemonade!

Typically when I've gone, while the boardwalk and beach looked insanely crowded, wait times were relatively short. Too bad you got the (mis)pleasure of missing out on Fireball. It is my favorite of it's type of ride. And I agree, Wipeout is actually my favorite flat ride at SCBB...sure it's just a small 'family-sized' Breakdance Type 4/Huss Rodeo but it runs faster than the one at CGA...combine it with being enclosed with loud techno/surf music and dramatic lighting package. And the 'pods' feel like they're looser/more free to spin...which leaves me with an insane ride full of spinning (I tend to shift weight at the right moments). Last time I rode Wipeout, when the ride stopped, I managed to keep my pod continuously spinning fast...my ride wasn't quite over yet! And then the locking brakes engaged.

^So with that said, the markings should just wipe off when they do their routine cleaning as opposed to carving the writing out every day? At lease some of the vandals were smart enough to memorize the quadratic formula... My theory as to why this is happening in this section more so than by the switchbacks and the rest of the queue...you have an area that is completely secluded, away from cameras, and out of view of any employees...plus you have a large 'writing space' if you want to call it that. I'd think that if another camera or two were installed (before, in tunnel, and perhaps even a 3rd one just past it) it could tone it down quite a bit...maybe not all but should put things under control if people visually see that they're being watched...and not just a sign warning them. And of course while vandalism is throughout the park, it is most prominent over at Gold Striker in the 'secluded/hidden' parts of the queue. And it's because the YOLOgeneration/today's kids attention spans are shot. In the end it disgusts me...the park management doesn't go to their cars in the lot and start writing stupid "follow me on IG" garbage on their cars.

Yea, the one ride in particular (first ERT ride of the night) we were just exiting the brake run and not even in transfer building yet when the other train was leaving the building...take that, Grizzly crew! FD crew seemed to be a little slower last night with the 2 rides I did. Whoop whoop! (Wait, we aren't at SFMM!) Edit: people disgust me...fresh paint doesn't mean to start writing on the walls again. Gold Striker queue is NOT a notepad. 'Twas nice seeing clean fences anyway...won't last long.

So, I'm still wide awake...meaning, here's some random photos of the night! Thank You Thursdays round 2...Well, we got here a little early to snag some other rides! After the evac earlier, Gold Striker was testing and we got in line. We waited about 5 minutes at the time we got there...and it had cycled for 10 minutes prior to opening. So let's get artsy! Golden Columbia Hmm...something looks familiar in this shop. Apparently I'm now on display! More Ghost Rider...I mean Gold Striker And yes, I approve of this...yea I totally got my photos out of sequence just now And a final ghostly shot of Goldy's train!

It's running beautifully again! Was down for 2 hours. Solid night of riding Gold Striker! I think I hit 10 laps, plus as I got there earlier, I was able to snag a ride on Delirium, Tiki Twirl, and a couple rides on Flight Deck! I will post some random photos tomorrow, was experimenting with some night photos. Lots of enthusiasts tonight too, nice meeting up with XYZ and riding a few laps on Gold Striker!