shepp

Call me unimaginative, but...front row, first drop on MF. Jesus!

^ Thanks for clarifying that...I guess $2.50 per ride on Superman isn't too much to ask.

I'll be driving past SFA early one morning, and thought I might just stop in with my SF pass for a couple of rides on S:ROS. Yeah, I know I'm being cheap, but I hate to drop 10 bucks on parking just for that. Anyone know if there's safe and legal free onstreet parking within strolling distance of the park? I'm not talking about the lot of a Motel 6 or Denny's, more like what I found near KBF and, a bit farther away, at SFMW.

Freelance writer. That must be why my posts are overlong: I think I'm getting paid by the word.

Hell, I wish they made rubbers named The Hulk, Volcano, Superman: Ride of Steel, and, for gay men, Dueling Dragons.

Just a note of gratitude for the consistently civilized tone of this thread. I've been on coaster boards where sexual orientation issues have been flamebait and worse. It's nice to be hanging out with a better class of people.

Yeah, Florida wins. Though I'm not sure I liked the Dania Beach Hurricane more than Ghostrider, and I really liked X, Goliath, and Xcelerator, Florida has Montu, Kumba, DD, and the Hulk, even Rock n Roller Coaster. And Spidey blows every other dark ride out of the water. On the other hand, California has beaches surrounded by cliffs instead of tacky hotels, you can go skiing and mountain climbing, there's lots of major culture, and though we're ruled by an idiot Republican, at least he ain't the President's brother. Sure, up here in San Francisco we may not have anything flashier than Medusa and the Giant Dipper, but you can walk outside in July without keeling over. Lucky that I have relatives 40 minutes from IOA, and can usually fly SFO-MCO for less than 200 bucks....

Tough one. I prefer speed and smoothness to nonstop heavy positive Gs or crushing intensity, so I lean toward B&M. Their best coasters just seem to have this elegance - the Hulk, for instance, or Montu. On the other hand, MF, S:ROS, TTD, and Xcelerator are some of the most amazing rides - okay, maybe the most amazing rides - I've been on. I know B&M has taken a lot of heat lately for repetitiousness and failure to innovate. Still, S:ROS has been cloned twice, and KK is essentially TTD with a big bunny, so...

But on the other hand, a couple of minutes later, it's ready to go again...

First inverted I rode (Top Gun at PGA), me and the bf were in the front row, alongside 2 butch lesbians. As the loading platform fell away, I felt extra safe, knowing they were beside me...

^ I last went to BGT years ago, pre-Gwazi. Montu and Kumba kicked ass, of course, but the park as a whole then seemed friendly, clean, and well-run. What's happened since to make it "dreadful?"

Listen, I'd suggest you do some online (or offline) research, not merely decide on the basis of one opinion. While IOA is my favorite park anywhere, there are only 3 (well, 2+) coasters there, plus a great flume ride, a great rapids ride, and Jurassic Park. WDW, while it doesn't have Spiderman, the best dark ride anywhere, does have Tower of Terror, Rock&Roller Coaster, Splash, Space, and Big Thunder Mountains, Kali Rapids, Mission:Space, and plenty more. Anyone with a ParkHopper pass certainly can "ride something" at the WDW parks. I'd still choose IOA, but on the grounds of the overall experience, not just because of DD and Hulk.

Having wandered into KBF on a Gospel Day, I'd avoid it. Cut-rate tickets, big crowds. And I know this is just me, but I really, really hate being proselytized when all I want to do is ride. What is it with Christianity and coasters? If I have to queue up behind one more fundie with an "I'm going to Heaven, but you're not" type Tshirt, I swear I'm gonna perform a Satanic rite right there on the loading platform. I mean, I don't go into some church, throw my hands in the air, and shout "Airtime!"

It's my home park, and though it's not a world-class destiination park by any means, I like it. But one reason I like it is because of the (controversial, I know) animal stuff. There are only a few notable coasters: Medusa West (like Scream, but not as intense or painful), Roar West (a good woody), the world's only impulse coaster with a diagonal front spike, and Zonga, an old Schwarzkopf, since reprofiled. There's also an SLC, boomerang, some flats. But I like to take a break from riding and see the killer whale show, the dolphins, hand-feed giraffes, watch the walruses, the tigers, etc. Since SFWOA closed, SFMW has gotten a lot of their animals: there are now 4 dolphins in the show rather than 2. And soon there's going to be a feed-the-dolphins attraction. It's kinda like the SeaWorlds, but with land animals, too. But if you're an animal rights type, or bored by the idea of looking at butterflies, you might be disappointed...

I'm on a city-bike-type Seca II, and my bf rides a beefy Suzuki Bandit 1200. In late 2003, I busted my hip in an embarassingly stupid accident (don't ask) and ended up with titanium inside. After the operation, I asked my surgeon two questions: Would I be able to ride a bike again? And would I be able to ride coasters? Seven months later, I was back on my motorcycle, and on Millennium Force. Jeez, it's just like an inspiring Movie of the Week.

So 20% of the respondents so far are gay men, which, while not overwhelming, confirms the idea that we're overrepresented in the "coaster community." An interesting question is "Why?" Coastering certainly doesn't fit the stereotype of an archetypically queer pursuit. Is it because we're more naturally thrill seekers/risk takers? Or because we're trying to "prove" something? Maybe the fact that we mostly don't have wives and kids to deal with makes extensive riding simpler? (My partner's a coaster fan, too, greatly enhancing my parkgoing, and making it easy to plan trips.) And - with all due respect to sharktums - why the hell are there so few women, straight or not, here? Certainly a higher proportion of riders are female. Is there maybe something about the enthusiast schtick - obsessing over the details of lift hills and helices - that appeals to the teenage boy in us all?

Have only been to 3 1/2 SF parks (including WOA after it GLed), not enough to vote meaningfully. (Tho I'll add a couple more in June.) My home park is SFMW, which I rather like. But it's damn schizophrenic. It's on the shore of a lake, and parts of it are quite pretty. (And they're doing a major renovation of the aquatic area.) On the other hand, having an undisguised parking lot, complete with white lines, under all of Medusa is inexcusable. At least paint it over, guys! Likewise, the ride ops are neither very friendly nor efficient. However, many of the employees in the wildlife areas (butterfly house, bird show, tiger island, the 50 First Dates walrus pool) have been quite friendly and helpful. Sorry, PETA...

The ones I rode: MF A+ in the front seat (nice drop!), otherwise solid A Dragster A Maybe 4 rides weren't enough to get bored, dunno Wicked Twister B+ I do like impulses, so... Raptor B Intense, but not nearly my favorite B&M invert Blue Streak B Pure fun, for what it is Mean Streak B- Not as bad as I'd heard Magnum XL-200 C+ My one ride didn't encourage a second, sorry...ow Mantis C+ Ouch...should have worn a cup AND a helmet Gemini C Not bad, not great Wildcat C What it is Iron Dragon C- Ditto Disaster Transport D Bad theming doesn't save a short, mediocre ride Corkscrew D historical interest only

I'm voting for TTD on this one, partly because of the truly stupid KBF policy which insisted I take off my tightly-strapped glasses and ride with them insecurely stuck in a pocket instead. I'd rather not ride at 80 mph half-blind and without eye protection, thank you very much. Yet TTD, taller and faster, had no such policy. Hell, I could actually see where I was going. Anybody know the glasses policy on Storm Runner?

Queer here, openly, politically so...but I have no problem with straight people, as long as they don't flaunt it. (-;

All-time desert island selection: Velvet Underground box set (Peel Slowly and See) Runners-up: Radiohead: The Bends (yeah, I know it's less adventurous than Kid A, but screw it) Prince: The Hits Nick Cave: The Boatman's Call Dylan: Blonde on Blonde Clash on Broadway

Having only ridden X once, early last summer, and in the front row, I found it to be an amazing experience, and my tolerance for roughness is low. However, I'd been trying to ride the damn thing for two full days, during which it was out of action. So maybe my glee was boosted by running back to SFMM a third morning just to try and get a ride, and ending up on the second train out that day. Sometimes I wonder about extraneous factors influencing my enjoyment of a ride. Would I have liked Raptor more if I hadn't waited in a glacially slow line in the heat of the day? Would Ghostrider have been even more fun without the presence of offensive queue jumpers? Was one reason I liked Mission: Space the fact it was a total walk-on? And so it goes...

Seems to me that she could just show up at the park with the necessary documentation and get her pass there, no? And you did get a bring-a-friend- free ticket, right? So at the least she could get in and play. But yeah, the $11 UPS charge is a damn rip. I mean, I just got amazon to ship me a new tuner for free, and that puppy weighs a lot more than a piece of plastic with Mr. Six's picture on it. FWIW, I've actually found SFMW's by-phone customer service fairly responsive, astonishingly enough.

^ As a rule of thumb, parks are almost always more crowded on Saturdays than Sundays (especially Sunday morning, and if you want to ride X, get there early and check out the map beforehand to see which way you've gotta sprint when the gates open - it's confusing). However, you might check with SFMM to make sure there are no special events scheduled for that day. I got caught unawares by Gospel Day at KBF. They were selling $20 tickets through KFC, and the place was super-packed.

Finessing the previous "park vs. park" thread, I'll be making first visits to both PKD and BGW midweek during the second week in June, and I've got the usual crowds and capacities question: Assuming I get to the gates well before opening time, where should I head first and how can I best stay ahead of the crowds? Volcano before Hypersonic or v.v.? Get Tomb Raider over with? Any worthy coasters draw lower-than-average queues through the day? And similar questions about BG, though the ride choice is clearly smaller. With pluck and luck, y'think I can do all the major rides at each in a non-extended-hours day? Thanks!