Shavethewhales

Well, judging by that building in the background, it's in dubia.

Here's a spot of more news: Bell's officially left the old site behind, and they are now in a boat without a paddle. Currently, the Bell family is taking a well deserved break, but they'll start the process of getting investors and a new piece of land later this very week. They'll need those investors to, by the way, as not only will Bell's have to pay for the new land and park, but they'll have to replace $5 million of lost articles from the old park. A slew of equipment, the arcade, concession buildings, and the Chili Peppers were all stolen from Bell's by the fair because there was no time to take them down what with the pending parking lot plans that couldn't be held back. Lord knows Tulsa needs more of that find asphalt paving. Anyway, Robbie and company are still pissed about everything, and make sure to note that even while they were having a down-ish year, they still paid more in rent than the stadium and water park combined. Also, if they were given more notice or a final season, the process of moving would be much easier on Bell's, the taxpayers, and the fair. The list of grievances go on from there, but Bell's can't do anything to reprimand. What would they file a lawsuit for? You can't sue someone for terminating a lease, it's their right to. Still, that doesn't mean that every little bit of this whole tragedy was pure idiodicy, unethicality, and straight up mean with no pay off for anyone. Anyway, the quest for the new park starts now. I'm sure we'll be seeing some good progress made in the next couple of weeks.

^If it's going to be the largest thrill ride in the history of Arkansas, it'll have to be bigger than the Arkansas Twister and the Gauntlet. Thus, this thing'll have to be pretty damn huge. It could be an over-exaggeration though, as anything bigger than those two would have to be a large coaster, and they've already gotten two large coasters in a short time period.

Ah, what a question... I've asked it many times myself, but I've found it's almost always more of a question of whether or not kids want to learn it, and none of them seem to. Tch, remember kids, you not only need to learn proper grammar and speech, but you should want to learn it.

Errrrg, I'm still the only one from Oklahoma.

Well, I had doubts before, but the Bell family is out to prove to the world that Bell's can live again. It seems we may see a late 2008 opening after all, if nothing big happens to delay the project. The old Bell's property has been officially robbed from Bell's as of midnight last night. The chili peppers and several massive hunks of scrap metal from the old buildings were all that was left behind. Everything else has been put in storage in either downtown Tulsa or a warehouse in Catoosa to be kept until they find a new piece of land, which may not take very long at all. Bell's team has been working like madmen for the past few months to take the park down on time, but they aren't taking a break yet. They'll start the process of buying a new piece of land this very week. Since they've already scouted out quite a few locations, they probably already know which one they want, so now they just have to buy it. In a KOTV news report, Robbie Bell Sen. made sure to note that this was really only the beginning, and that Bell's was coming back with a force. Robbie Bell Jr. noted a few days ago that he was delighted to have a chance to build Bell's all over again just the way he wants, and also that the new park would be world-class. Even after all the countless hardships the family has endured, they still have a maniacal passion for the park, and won't stop working until it can open again. It may be tough to open the park again for 2008, seeing as they still have to buy the land, zone it, plan the park, get it approved, get investors, get contractors, put in utilities, build the park, and test everything before they can open it. But none of the looming tasks ahead are even fading the Bell's passion, as they are still holding to that 2008 opening.

Dude, nice, but how long has this park been around? It looks like WWW: nice, but obviously unfinished. I can't believe wristbands cost $30 though, what a rip off, you could get into plenty of much larger parks for that.

Eh, well, I doubt they'll have very good attendance until 2009. That is, if the new coaster turns out to be what everyone has said it will be. Everyone I've heard from that was at the park's media event said that they did indeed show a photo of the Thunderbird at Powerpark to represent what the 2009 coaster will be like, so I've got my hopes up.

Your going to need at least a full day just at SDC to fully soak everything in, but two days or more is well worth it as well. CC only takes a few hours to do everything, but there are ways you can spread out your time there. You'll find that while SDC and DW are definitely sister parks, they are very different in many regards. SDC has a charm that you'll fall in love with immediately, and novelties abound everywhere you look. Sometimes I like to take some time between rides and just wander around the park and see what I can discover. The cave tour is well worth the time taken away from riding, you'll find the entrance to it inside the building you pass through before hitting the main square. Also, if you like quaint things, you might want to stop by the replica 1880's ozark buildings, complete with a school and functional church. Lastly, make sure you pick up a few things of their homemade apple butter and similar spreads, you can't get stuff like that anywhere else.

It's been a long time since word of Bell's has reached this forum, so here's an update. The park has been completely dismantled, with the exception of the Chili Pepper water slides, which will be destroyed. The only thing left to do is to remove Zingo's pieces from their stacks in the parking lot to their holding spot in Catoosa. Bell's was supposed to have everything out by June 15th, but they've been given till Sunday night to get Zingo off the property. And thus, with Bell's gone, the asphalt parking lot of unimaginable pleasures can be built - but that's not all the old amusement park site will see. A new main entrance for the fair will be constructed on the site, a mere mile or so away from most of the fair parking. During the fair, the questionable 'tiger show' will be featured on part of the old Bell's lot as well, featuring lean-looking tigers stuffed in small cages with only a crappy tarp to protect them from the blazing okie sun - at least that was what it was like last year. An international beer garden (translation: a few picnic tables and a cart that sells Heinekens) and a wild west show (I haven't a clue) will all use some of Bell's old land during the fair. The rest of the lot that isn't parking will be storage, and during the rest of the year the entire area will be turned into a giant crap heap full of stage parts and bleachers. So that's that for the old location, but what about the future? Well, there may not be one, at least not until 2009. It's been all poor Robbie can do to just get the park moved into storage, so the process of building the new park hasn't even begun yet. They don't have land, they don't have much money, and they really can't form much of a plan until they have either. As Robbie said, a farewell season, or at least a fair warning would have made a world of difference in the fare of the park. However, the park's future is bright still. Robbie still wants to re-open the park bigger and much better than ever before, but he certainly won't be able to by 2008. He now has to start back at the very beginning of the amusement park business: attraction investors. What worries me is that the fair alleged that Bell's had poor business planning and practices for the reason of their eviction, and this won't sound good to investors. Bell's will need at least $30 million or so to start a new park, and that kind of money comes from investors and banks who seriously trust in the man in charge. Still, Robbie has his own extreme determination, the park's charm and history, and the overwhelming support of the community on his side. He just needs to get in the game, and he won't have a good chance to start until next week when the park is safe in storage. The plans are subject to change, but back several months ago, Robbie was saying that the new Bell's would have up to seven new rides, and a new Phantasmagoria dark ride. I hope that the dark ride concept comes through, they were going to build it at the previous Bell's site, and the artwork looked amazing. I guess we'll just have to see what happens, but I anticipate a grand re-opening in 2009.

So, is anyone going to try it? We all know it may mean death, but someone's gotta check... I'd do it if I could. I just want to see the looks on people's faces when they come back into the station.

I'm the kind that actually can find enjoyment out of rough rides (well, some of them anyway) so I can't think of many rides that I wouldn't go on again, with the exception of Mantis (for purely manly reasons), and the Stinger at CC (because the only highlight of the ride was getting off).

^I think there's quite a few parks out there that do a pretty good job at theming, it's just that theming is not always centered on for certain rides. Theming is great, no doubt, but many parks just like to keep it simple and cool and provide the basic thrills everyone wants. I think more parks could benefit greatly by going with a little extra theming and attention to details on their attractions, but most of the time they are simply too caught up in the works of just building and opening the attraction itself. Theming is often viewed as a secondary thing in the overall process.

Was #26 the side-friction coaster from Rotunda? Awful what happened to it, would they consider building a replica?

Great to hear how much you enjoyed everything, I think that makes a photo TR ten times better. Yeah, Powderkeg is pretty much the Hershends favorite coaster ever, you should hear them talk about it. I'm quite surprised that CC and DW haven't gotten anything like it yet. As for the rooster atop the GS, did you find out that it was actually made at SDC? And that it has a time capsule inside? You should have seen it before they put it up, it's absolutely massive.

Not to sound snobby, but why does everyone use the word 'ghetto' to describe anything that's not in prime condition? If you think Dorney Park is ghetto... you must have a pretty superb life. Mediocre rides? And Hydra sucks? Damn... my entire state has a total of 3 roller coasters, and none of them come anywhere close to anything Dorney has. Why is Hydra so bad? It looks absolutely incredible. Amazing photos though.

Wow, talk about your head choppers. In that first photo, the supports look dangerously close to the track, and this is just on the first drop. It looks wickedly steep as well, but they always do before the actual track is put on.

This sounds great to me, I was beginning to wonder what ever happened to the Scenic Railway. Most park support groups make a little noise and are inevitable bowled over when the park finally dies, but this group really managed to accomplish something. Are they saving Southport's old wooden mouse?

Good grief, that thing is loud! It sounds inanely fast.

Awesome PTR. SDC always delivers, no matter what you're looking for. Did you happen to notice if Tom Sawyer's landing was open, or if work was being done on the adjacent tree house? Also, if you even went by it, did Geyser Gulch ever get completely re-painted?

^What was harmed?

Ah, I thought about it now and I take back what I said before- it doesn't look so much like a freak accident but rather that caused by improper upkeep. This slide has been around long enough that if this was something structural, it would have happened long before now. Besides, look at the aerial shot. You can see that the slide came apart at the slots where it's bolted together, maybe that implies that the screws just came loose or broke off. Then again, I don't know much about water slides, but I wouldn't be surprised to see the Murphy's be forced to hand out some serious cash to cover this up.

Wow, you'd never suspect something like this. Granted, this could be a freak accident, but it's ironic that one of the reasons Bell's was evicted was supposed problems with keeping up their rides, but the Murphys' have free reign. It does just look like a free accident though, I've been on this slide many times myself and it's pretty solid.

The park looks incredible, but why does it need a new name? I thought the old one was as good as anything.

^^Eh, well there's honesty and then there's just being iffy. ^I'm going to bet it'll be Larson, but they could be using S&S. I think people really only use S&S if at least some of the towers they're purchasing are shot towers though, drop towers can be made by those like Larson for much cheaper.