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Shavethewhales

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About Shavethewhales

  • Birthday 02/26/1991

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  1. This sucks. I had IB on my bucket list for so long, especially Lost Coaster, but it's just so far out there and hard to get to... Fantasy Island closing as well means the small park sector of the industry is taking a major blow. It's basically grow into a major destination or go out of business anymore.
  2. You can definitely walk to the park from White Wing, it's just a really long walk. You just need to walk north along the tram road past Stop 7 and near to Stop 5 where there is a walkway to the entrance. It's got to be a mile to the park though, and parking/tram is free anyway... Let us know how White Wing is. Used to stay there all the time when it was Deer Run. It was dated back then, and I hear the new owners may be hit and miss...
  3. Very interesting. While I want them to pour capital into FC, it makes sense to rebrand and fix up WWB. Like FC, that park is undersized and underutilized with vast potential. It's crazy how OK parks have been slept on so heavily. Would be great if the water park gets a big new slide complex and FC gets a new flat ride in the same year. Some people are speculating that FC will get a smaller star flyer. That would be fine by me. The bar is pretty low, and that would be our biggest new ride in a long time.
  4. Absolutely insane. As with so many developments in the arab peninsula, there's going to be a lot of wait-and-see to know if this will become reality or not, but if it does it will be a must on every enthusiast's bucket list. I have mixed feelings about visiting Saudi Arabia, but this might end up being enticing enough to get me there. The location is beautiful (in the photos at least). Reminds me a bit of southern Utah, but more desert-y... This region of the world has certainly pulled off plenty of mega projects, even some that have seemingly had no rhyme or reason for existing. I hope this will be one of them. Anyone have any experience traveling to Saudi Arabia?
  5. The park has been oddly quiet. Apparently they are missing some people in their marketing department since the transition. Not much going on with their social media these days. I am still holding out hope for something major in 2020. It might end up being for White Water though... At this point the park has shown its potential, and everyone involved knows that the rides are seriously lacking. People aren't going to return next year if there isn't anything new. The park really needs a good ride.
  6. Thanks for the photos guys. The park looks nice lately. I'm glad they have put some more emphasis back on appearances and keeping things looking at least maintained. I know we've gotten onto WOF fanboys for years about whining because WOF isn't getting much for next year, but I was really hoping 2020 was their year for something exciting. It's been awhile... I'm sure the new slides will be nice. There have certainly been a number of nice additions and improvements, but I think 2014 was the last really high-profile addition with their windseeker. It's getting downright odd, considering how busy the park can get with teens/thrill-seekers. Maybe the issue is they don't want to push teen attendance any more considering the problems they've had. I'm not saying the park needs to get a new coaster because it's been x number of years, but any kind of half-way thrilling ride would be nice. I guess they haven't made any real announcement yet so there is still a chance that something is coming to the dry side of the park. Doesn't seem to be really likely that they would invest in both for the same year, but anything could happen.
  7. Less than 24 hours to go now. This one is going to really surprise some people. It's pretty obvious that it is a new rapids ride, but the details should be very impressive. They are sinking some serious money into this thing. It looks like it will be a Disney-scale attraction.
  8. From what I have gleaned, the owners are kind of eclectic and out there. They are married to this idea of Lakeside staying "affordable" for the low income residents in the area immediately surrounding the park. Unfortunately I think we can all agree they have gone too far with what "affordable" means. They slap a few coats of paint around the park occasionally, but everything is obviously showing signs of fatigue or even near collapse. The famous landmark tower is really rough looking, and I fear they are letting it get too water damaged to save. They can't even keep staff around. They have to do multiple hiring events throughout their relatively short season just to keep the park open. There are a few really dedicated folks who keep things going, but they can't keep everything going as a labor of love indefinitely. I think Lakeside will suddenly close within the next few years. I really really love the park, but I know how this ultimately plays out.
  9. I was also there this weekend to see it again in person. This thing is immense. It's a bigger project than even Time Traveler. For a park that has to use it's space wisely, this is a huge piece of land they are developing. It's not just the ride even, they have already replaced a ton of pathway in the area to make it wider, and the new building in front is a replacement for the old Rib House restaurant. There will be a huge new seating area as well. Just an absolutely huge project that must be costing them a ton of money on infrastructure and concrete alone. Also, summer is such a great time to visit SDC. Time Traveler was a walk-on all Sunday and had like a 15 min wait on Saturday. I mean, Branson was packed but SDC was barely filling their closest parking lots. It was definitely hot, but that usually doesn't stop people this much. Maybe it's the lack of water rides this year... By fall I'm sure it will be packed out again for Pumpkin fest & Christmas.
  10. ^Interesting info. I had forgot the hotel was included in the purchase, I'm sure you told us about it before. It's very interesting that they are fixing the building up, considering the recent survey about possibly adding hotels on to SF parks. It would be an easy market test for the concept since they already have the building and infrastructure. The attendance bump has been so noticeable. I'm psyched that they are starting to see the potential here. I don't want to get my hopes up, but I could see them just entirely re-doing the area around Nightmare Mine. That's a ton of land that is only really half used. With the right planning, they could fit a new coaster and something else there, especially if they also chip some land away from the maintenance area. They should move the entire maintenance area across the road to the boneyard.
  11. Developing all that land will not be easy due to both zoning and the neighboring communities. They may be able to shift some of that land into parking, then develop on their current parking lot. Really though, as we've seen with plenty of parks, it's all in how you use your existing land vs. having a ton of area to spread out. The abandoned hotel North of the park had no direct relation to FC that I know of. If FC has acquired that land, it is a recent development. They bought out half the old RV park a few years ago. Their parking area used to be tiny, but they rarely filled it up. These days they fill both the asphalt and the grass area up regularly.
  12. There have been so many discussions about what to do with SFNO over the past decade and nothing has ever happened. At some point you just have to tune out until something actually materializes. I'll bet they keep discussing things for another several years before they even figure out something. There's not much they can do with that land, and there's not a huge amount of demand for development in NO. Eventually it will get turned into housing I'm sure. Everyone wants a theme park to return, but no one has the money to put up for one. The location sucks, it's too far away from the tourist area, and NO isn't big or wealthy enough to support a park unless it is a small one. Maybe a Fun Spot style park could do OK.
  13. ^^Which "contracts"? Do you have the actual details of these contracts? I doubt anyone in the enthusiast community really knows those details. Most likely case is that they will remain SF parks regardless of what deals have to be renewed.
  14. Well, that's certainly a rumor... but it is not out of the question for HFEC to be making a bid on SF properties. They have done it before. They almost acquired Elitch Gardens, Darien Lake, and a few other properties during the SF sell-off years ago. HFEC has been fairly conservative with their money/growth, and most people underestimate the size and power of the company. I've been told many stories over the years about an odd setup with the ownership of SFOT. Something about minority stakeholders and original family stakeholders and such. I've been told that's part of what has held the park back in recent years while other parks have gotten larger investments. If such a situation does actually exist, this could have some weight to it. ...buuut, I don't think SF will give up SFOT willingly unless there is some sort of massive monetary incentive besides getting rid of a few minority stakeholders. It's a cash cow in any case, and a big piece of their national membership strategy.
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