Double0Kevin

Actually the reason the big rides are up front is because the park's height limit progressively gets lower as you get farther back. 150 up front, 125 by boomerang, 100 where sky coaster is, 75 near the shore, and I think it drops more right on the water. The neighbors are the reason the city strictly enforces the heights, but if the park could, they would build big next to the water regardless of the neighbors. On a side note, I heard that cobra will just be moved, but no clue how accurate that is.

I kinda feel like everyone is saying Dubai and no one has been named the winner... I dont think if we keep saying it, it will come true. That being said. I have no clue. Does the robot on the pink bag mean anything to anyone?

Oh, my bad. I thought I read something about you going to Ferrari World. That's for the reports though, they were really enjoyable.

This is what I find so puzzling .. it seems that if they just rented out the retail space, then it would be up to the renters to equip it, staff it, supply it, and run it - plus Six Flags would actually be getting paid. I'm obviously missing something here, because it sounds like it's not that simple. Is it a zoning issue (ie: will it conflict with the malls and such outside the parks)?? Cameron. Johnny Rockets is one of the locations operated by SF and their employees. So six flags was required to pay for the supplies to operate it. Panda, not SF operated and therefor funded by Panda.

I think MS and SoB were coasters that could have been great and never lived up to it. I think this treatment could be exactly what those coaster need to become what they always should have been. This mostly goes for SoB that really has no other choice except a wrecking ball. That being said, I think the coasters Robb threw out there are also top choices. I would love to ride Ghostrider with this treatment but not have the layout changed at all, simply replace the wood track with exact steel replicas. I rememeber the first time I rode it in 2002 how much fun I had, not so much anymore.

I didn't see this idea before but I confess having only skimmed a bunch of pages... Anyone just think they are done with the mod and it's a jump? I mean, It could happen.

Oh, I never really counted that as a water ride... It always just seemed like an out of place waterslide without much water.

This is proof that the whole "Parks have no room to expand" excuse is BS... If a park really wants a new ride, they can find a way. This think looks awesome just for all the close fly-bys with all the other rides.

^Yeah, my problem is the lack of wetness with it... and this is coming from someone who HATES water rides. Maybe it would be benificial to remove Tidal Wave and install a newer water ride, it's a type of ride SF hasn't invested in in quite some time and there are some pretty rad options out there... A water coaster would up their coaster count and provide more water attractions. And I'm lost, 5 water rides? Tidal Wave, Jet Stream, log ride, rapids ride... what am I missing?

Agreed, And I'm not usually too bad with heights, but this one may test that were I to visit it. Awesome second part. Can't wait to see the rest.

Well food is WAY different than Rides... With rides you pay to theme a ride and don't see much back except in the form of attendance. With food, the parks see revenue back. They are most likely just going to drop the brands that they don't see a lot of revenue back from. Johnny Rockets at the parks are run by SF employees and if it's not getting business it loses money. Panda is run by Panda (they pay for the supplies and staff) so the parks just get money for them being there at no cost to the park. As long as the Lessee locations are paying their bills, Six Flags is happy to have them I'm sure. So my point is, you may very well see more brands come in when it's food or merchandise related as long as it's a Lessee. We'll never see In-n-Out in a park though.

I was thinking the same thing... Maybe they will try to market it as a new experience and claim it's Psyclone reborn. I've always felt like Tidal Wave should be ripped out(it's old and run down anyways) and they connect Gotham to Riddler via the area where the old Batman overflow queue is. Then you can theme the bumper cars and various other things in that area after DC and have a major DC themed land. Hell, the pathway up to Superman is near there too to kind of incorporate into the land... It doesn't have to be too close to everything else, it is the Fortress of Solitude, not a lot of Solitude right next to other stuff.

Agreed, though when the first 2 opened it was black and white between the two... SFDK was crazy packed and SFNE barely had any attendance in comparison. The main thing noticed was the only really busy attraction was Thomas, not the flats. I think that may have been why SFMM and SFOG's were smaller and mostly just the train. Then I think they saw those fail (but DK and NE still fairing well) and tried the bigger TT at SFA and I'm not sure how that went, but I guess they said screw it and didnt feel like trying anymore. Maybe Thomas and six flags just aren't a right fit, you gotta go big, but six flags won't go that big.

^ Probably because that would require hauling up twice as much paint and having the guys paint different colors. And the guy doing yellow would finish much faster than whoever is doing blue or red. I'm sure it's more efficient to do one color at a time.

^That article was posted on the last page. I kind of like the new name for Evel Kineval, It fits with the park... (I think, is the ride in an American themed area?). I'm interested to see how the "Whistle Stop Depots" turn out? I assume they will just take down themeing with characters and pain over anything Thomas related. Having once been the Supervisor of Thomas Town at SFDK I can say that a re-theme won't be too hard... Take the fake trains off the storage shed building and just have blank doors, and then just chang out signs. I assume they will get an unthemed cap to go where Thomas' face is and take the "1" off his side and BAM! No more theme. I guess we'll wait and see.

I've always been curious, how do they respond to women tourists that don't show the same type of "modesty" they show? It looked like there were girls in Bikini's, is that cool when it's within tourist destinations like theme parks and water parks? I'm not a big fan of water parks but I've always wanted to check one out that has those water queues where each ride leads into another. I'd like to try and make it out there one day just to see all those parks and what not. Thanks for the TR.

I think it's pretty much a sure thing that ALL Tony hawk rides, including the waterside at SFA will not be Tony Hawk anymore. All of the rides have big screens at the entrance. From what I've seen of the rides, I think SFFT and SFDK have the most thumbing in the queue. SFFT has all the stuff on the walls of the queue building and SFDK has the huge banners and decals on the queue house. I have a feeling these are going to be ugly rethemes during the of the season till they an really work on them come January (this applies to the 3 Holiday parks and SFMM).

So what I've heard now is that the license are dropped already (most parks are closed so it's easy for them). SFDK took down the revolving TH and painted over Tony Hawk on the signs this week and ran during the weekend as just Big Spin. Thomas Town is closed i guess until Holiday in the Park but Harold had all the choppers simply painted black... I havn't heard what has happened to Bertie, Thomas or all the themeing (Cranky, Percy, Gordon, James etc..).

^Haha, that would be awesome. DC is really a fantastic idea for a themed area, It's possible to mix Kiddie, Family, and Thrill all together. Why don't we see that more often? Why does it always have to be a designated Kiddie area? Why not have a land with a little of everything? I agree, not to mention all the clothing I see young kids wearing with his name all over it. He's definitely still relevant. He has just moved from competitor to brand.

Agreed. That has always been an issue for SFMM and it seems unlikely they will ever build to the level of the other SoCal parks until they solve that issue. SFMM seems to miss the mark when it comes to even no brainer family rides. A 4D Motion Theater? Simple ride really and enjoyable for most all ages (and has the added value of being able to update to new films every couple of years). But back on topic. I agree that the most expensive re-theme will be Thomas as they were the most heavily themed of the bunch. Six Flags must be saving enough on loosing the license to justify the re-theme, or maybe they will just tear them out to save on maintenance (Thomas needs a lot) and operating costs. Those gift shops never were very profitable either.

That name is already been taken, by the perfect place for a Northern California TPR takeover! The Sonoma Train Town....there's even a kiddie credit! http://www.traintown.com/rides.htm Haha, Yeah I'm aware. I live about 30mins from there. Grew up going to that place. I don't think they will tap into those budgets. Those are usually set for their intended projects and that money can't be used for other stuff. You bringing up DC kinda gives me an idea. Wouldn't it be cool to have a DC themed kids area? I mean that's the age when kids start to get excited about superheroes and comics. I know I'm dreaming, but it would be a great idea for parks to pursue. I can just see a dumbo style ride themed to Wonder Woman with clear cars shaped like jets called "Wonder Woman's Invisible Jet." Maybe a little coaster called... wait for it... "Little Flash." I may have stole that one.

Yeah, I think the only THBS that kinda fits in would be SFFT. It definitley doesn't fit in SFDK. I have a feeling all the Tony Hawks will just be called "Big Spin" and mostly left how they are. With Thomas and Wiggles I could see it being harder. Most parks already have a Looney Tunes area. In SFMM's case Thomas would easily assimilate into Bugs Bunny World and with some adjustments SFDK could get Thomas into Looney Tunes Seaport (though the two flat rides are duplicates of ridea already in LTS). I'm curious if they will switch them to existing brands or just make them into generic kinda areas... Train Town anyone?

I drive 6 hours south and hit up Southern California parks... However for the most part I don't really visit Northern California parks... Working at SFDK for 7 years left a bad taste in my mouth and I just don't make it to CGA and SCBB as often as I'de like. Sadly this year I only made it to SCBB and CGA once (in may) and then didn't visit a park again until I went to DLR in October. 2010 has been a rough year. Haha. But my big distraction from off season blues is movies. I watch a ton of em. Love everything about going to the theaters (cept the price) and love watching them on Blu-ray at home.

So I was recently told by and reliable source that Six Flags will be opening next year with a lot of new names on popular attractions. From what I was told, Thomas the Tank Engine, Wiggles, and Tony Hawk will be dropped from all attractions in all SF parks in 2011. Anyone heard similar stories?

You guys keep thinking upcharge rides. Those make the park money, they are there to stay. I can't say which is going, because I'm sure that as I post their Ops managment is reading this(Hi Charles) and I'd prefer not to ruffle feathers, but it's a long standing family favorite that is sure to upset a lot of families and credit whores alike.