Meteornotes

Why does this: -Not actually surprise me in any way? -Make me giggle? Thank god SFMM has such a keenly aware maintanence staff that they can't steer a truck around a roller coaster! Then again, I suppose that's what they get for plopping it down in a parking lot. As for the new hyper at SFOG, it looks like it should be fun. I'm not as much of a fan of the B&M rides as the Intamin ones, but it should give a decent ride. If it turns out to be anything like Goliath at Walibi World, it will instantly become one of the best coasters in the US. I thought the WW Goliath was one of the best steel coasters I've ever been on... dt

As a branding strategy, the campaign has been pretty successful. I think they even won a few advertising awards for it. As a ploy to get people to come into the parks, well, there it hasn't worked. And I'm not really sure that it ever would. Sure, more people when surveyed will say they saw the ad and remember it, which is a good sign. But I think that the majority of people that have had horrible experiences in SF parks over the last five years are going to need a lot more than a dancing old guy to convince them to plop down $50 for another visit. Six Flags has a lot of negative perceptions to overcome if they want to see an increase in attendance. Sure, some parks in the chain are good (SFGAm being an example), but ask the average person, and their description of a Six Flags park is a hot, sweltering hell pit full of line jumpers, rude employees, and overpriced consessions. It's going to take a massive overhaul of how the whole company operates to cure these perceptions... dt

OK, Mary has to go to the UK the last two weeks of October, so I'm in on this insanity. Should be amusing... dt

I still think it's awesome how they built the corkscrew to run through some guy's garage... dt

I thought we were all supposed to have jet packs and flying cars and be living on the moon by now. Stupid old SF films lying to us all. And that video was hilarious! I'm not sure if it's real or not, but if it's real, he's lucky to be alive! dt

You sent me a link to the forums on AIM before they were "live". I should tell the story of the first time I met Elissa, but since the fifth anniversary is approaching, I'll save it until then, and perhaps create an animated tribute... dt

Sent! dt

Most of what is now known as Comet Hollow at Hersheypark was submerged in water during Agnes in '72. I can't remember what was damaged, though... dt

Our deposits are on the way. Many cancellations should now follow this news... dt

Like Robb said, Movie Park was the surprise of the trip. I don't think any of us expected to spend more than a few hours there, but we ended up doing every attraction and had a great time! Sure, the place is new and sort of small, but the people running the park are really into it, and their attitude reflects in the operation of the place. While their budget is likely a small fraction of what Universal or Disney would spend on a show, they use a lot of creativity and come up with stuff that's just as good (if not better) as something you'd see at another studio tour. And if you like to see stuff blowing up, THIS is the place to visit! Here's hoping that tomorrow's update will contain plenty of photos of the TUNNEL OF DEATH where we had to narrowly dodge guys hurling barrels full of napalm and firing rocket launchers at our car, as well as having to steer around Godzilla and MecaGodzilla breathing radioactive fire at us. Or at least this is what Elisssa led us all to believe was going to happen... dt

Pre-Show: Paris by a mile. It rules! Ride: Pretty much a tie. I might like the Paris one a little better, but I thought they were both pretty good rides. dt

Best. Idea. EVER! And that's all I'm going to say about that... dt

I guess the problem I have with it is these awards are supposed to be the highest ones in the theme park industry. You'd think they'd want to get an accurate survey of what's really the best of the best, not just poll people that have never ventured out of Ohio. Like Robb said, the Hawker poll is probably the most realistic one out there. Perhaps he should add a few more categories. Then again, polls/awards in other industries rarely get it right either (Oscar and Emmy awards) or just totally ignore reality (Grammy awards) so I guess I should not be surprised that theme park awards are also skewed in a strange manner... dt

It was 110 degrees that day, so I think everyone was pretty drained at that point. Mary and I were off taking pictures of Katun when they were getting interviewed, so I never saw it until now. Pretty good interview... dt

Remeber that Herseypark owns the old airport land across from the park, as well as the golf course area behind Chocolate World. They have a lot of room to do all sorts of things if they wish. I still say a water park would be a really good idea... dt

Wow, I have had totally opposite experiences. Aside from the smoking, the crowds I've experienced at HW were full of cursing, spitting and generally obnoxious people. Plenty of line jumping too. The employees might be nice, but the crowd is pretty rough. As far as Disney, I've always found the crowds there to be pretty tolerable. The ones at Disneyland as opposed to WDW seem to be worse, but I've rarely had any sort of people problems there. Of course, all but one of my visits have been at off-peak times, which might make things more tolerable... dt

Gardaland was a the worst park of the trip. It seemed like it should have been a good park, but there really wasn't anything redeeming about the whole experience. Their customer service made SFMM look like Knoebels. Crap rides, crap service, the total inability to operate a park in a rain storm (Knotts only wishes they were this ineffecient!), and overall just not a good place. I don't care how nicely themed a park is, if there's nothing there worth riding and/or the people working there are downright antagonistic towards the most basic service requests (like, say, asking for more water when eating), it is not a good place to visit... dt

That was a great photo TR! It must run in the family. Good job with the water skiing, I have a feeling that if I tried it, a visit to the hospital would soon follow... dt

After taking our trip to Europe, it seems the parks there don't get a fair shake in these awards. Balder is not even in the top ten wood coaster list? Or Colossus? Um, OK... Plus, I think Europa Park should rank a bit higher in the categories it was in. I found it to be far superior to the vastly overrated BGW. It really was the most beautiful park I have ever seen. And how does IOA not make the "best food" list, just by the virtue of having Mythos on the property? Seems like some parks win in a certain category, and then just pretty much just stay there. Can anyone honestly say that Ghostrider still belongs in the Top 10 Wood Coaster list? I doubt it... dt

Contest over, Wes wins!!! Too bad Mr. Roboto was not somehow worked into that, though... dt

OK, that whole "Joey not paying attention" section of the update RULED!!! What was he looking at, money?!? dt

OK, I want to know what Justin was looking at when he found that picutre... dt

You have to understand that Ozzfest only exists for one reason: to make Sharon Osborne more money. They don't care about the fans, they don't care if everyone is ripped off on ticket prices and concessions. It's a huge corporate mess. Tack on the way Iron Maiden was treated on their last night, and you have a show I'll never ever give a cent of my money. Compare this to something like Prog Power, where the tickets are reasonably priced, it's held in a nice concert facility, and all the bands are treated with respect and get a decent set time (the shortest is 30 minutes, usually reserved for a band that's just put out their first CD). I know where I'm spending my concert money every year... dt

Wow, can't use Firefox. Oh well... dt

There are indeed a lot of good restaurants at WDW, but my pick would be California Grill in the Contemporary. You will have to dress up, and it's not cheap, but the food is absolutely amazing, and the view from the windows is fantastic. Highly recommended. dt