mforce79

Thanks... I actually didn't get many coaster pics today. I have so many pictures of the rides, I tend to focus more on the random stuff I run into at the park nowdays. I took a lot of video of Alpengeist though... I'd like to make another video soon. To answer your question, there are plenty of coaster pins in the gift shops, but most of them are different designs from what they used to be a few years ago

Sorry, no pictures of the car ride to the park today. I wanted to save my batteries for the important stuff:-) It was an absolutely beautiful day for pictures, but the park was pretty crowded, and the temps were up in the mid- 90s. We only got a chance to ride each coaster once, but we cheated and signed up for the Brewmaster's Club twice, so overall it was a sucessful trip. The thing I love about Busch Gardens is that every time I go, I find something in the park that I've never seen. Today I met a walking four-legged piece of shrubbery near the park entrance. Very random, but also very entertaining. For a park that only has 4 coasters I'm happy that there is so much else to do every time I go. The park has an astonishing attention to detail that I'm starting to appreciate more as I get older. Not many changes in the construction site since 2 weeks ago. The area is pretty much leveled off now and it looks more and more like a parking lot. hope you enjoy the pics. -Chris I wasn't lying... a group picture with the walking 4-legged creepy looking piece of random shrubbery. If you look closely at this picture you'll find that this dude is chiseling a naked woman into a piece of canvas with a hammer patiently waiting for free beer while being subjected to subliminal advertising... no wonder it's free Then later, the same dude came out with a small alligator. And he was like, here kids, touch my alligator he was like... here kids, touch my snake After having an intelligent conversation with a talking Parrot, this guy came out with an 8 foot boa wrapped around him This is the closest I've seen the Bald Eagles. It was only about 4-5 feet from the fence Some real park photos We asked a random employee if we could help with the construction, and they put my brother to work right away new for 2007. $500 preferred parking bye-bye Lemans station Judging by this picture, I think it might end up being the world's first wooden dive machine Gotta get my construction footage

I really don't understand this either. I'd definitely put PKI on the top of my list, it's always been an enjoyable park when I'm there with a good variety of rides. Son of Beast puts a damper on their coaster collection, but it's also kinda easy to forget about when you're in the park, and I don't care about riding it again, so I usually end up forgetting it's there. 1. Kings Island 2. Carowinds 3. Kings Dominion 4. Canada's Wonderland 5. Great America

Regardless of how much the ride sucks, these types of situations really do hurt parks in their local markets, and a large part of that is caused by stupid rumors fueled by the retarded media. I think think this statement was a smart move by the park, and I hope everyone who watches the news gets a chance to read it.

and it only takes those 3 ops about 10 minutes to cycle the freakin' ride. It seems like Cedar Fair would know enough about operating costs, so I really don't see why Paramount would try to deceive another company by closing a ride. It's hard to say what they were thinking, but yes, I'd be very surprised if the ride doesn't open at PKD next year.

I realize I've been missing out on the whole Sheikra goodness the last couple years, I might make it down there this winter, we'll see. By the way, how well does it work loading 8 people into each row? It's hard enough sometimes for the GP to fill up a row that's 4 across, so I'm wondering whether the operators have to work at pairing people up to run at max capacity. I'm asking this because I've been disappointed with the efficiency of the operators at Busch Williamsburg the last few years. I'm not complaining because I've seen much much worse, and I think they've always done a decent job, but it used to be much better. Either way, really looking forward to this new coaster. Should have some more pictures soon, I may be able to get to the park on Sunday.

Construction Report - July 11, 2006. Headed up to the park for a couple hours this evening and got a few shots of the construction area. LeMans hasn't even been closed for a week, and they've already ripped out several trees and torn the track apart. The skyride looks to be the best place to get shots of the general construction area, so I plan on taking a spin on that every time I go back. I heard a rumor the skyride will be closing once construction gets more underway, which makes sense, but I don't know how accurate that information is. On a side note, does anybody know why they installed gates on every exit on/off ramp down 64 between Richmond and Williamsburg??? I've never seen anything like this... next to Alpengeist's turn into the MCBR. flyover shot of the poor LeMans station... so many memories.... It looks like they pulled those trees right out of the ground and gently stacked them next to each other Looking toward LeMans ride area - taken from the Skyride Q-Line it's a sign. ONLY Busch Gardens will landscape a construction privacy fence... but I'm still tall enough to get my camera over the top The Garage This looks like the entry point for construction equipment Station almost looks pretty normal except for that gate in the middle of the exit. Trees that might not be around much longer... we'll see These double gates have been installed on every on/off ramp down 64

I've wanted a trebuchet so bad for years now. Probably the coolest invention ever!

I don't understand the point of this thread. Doesn't look like much is being accomplished here lately

iPods can't keep up with my music... I had to get an Archos 100GB. This baby's the real deal, and pictures show up beautiful!

dude, that's not even funny Crotch Raider and Hyperstaple -- Never again! Ever. It was very surprising how short the lines were at all the rides, especially with Volcano down. Even though the temperatures were in the mid-90s, the operaters at every ride were really on top of things, and that made all the difference. We seriously waited about 10 minutes for Hypersonic in the middle of the afternoon. Very impressive. And I agree, the wood coasters were running spectacular. Would have been nice to take a few rides on Volcano, but other than that a great day. 2 closed rides in one shot =( Jeff "squeezing in time" (and holding up lines) for his 270 ridiculous pictures "Every ride we put in this year has to have gravel all around it" Fruity Shockwave with some nerds who actually waited for the front seat Never again Jeff Chillin' in his new toy

My bad.. I was looking at the Terms of Service rules. Apparently those are different.

so much for rule #2 I guess...

I noticed much of New England was getting soaked this week, I was hoping not to see anything like this in a theme park. Is this something that happens often near Knoebels (the title makes it sound like it might happen frequently)?

It's pretty similar to most other locations on the east coast this time of year. It's impossible to predict where thunderstorms will pop up, just keep an eye on the radar before you go into the park. I usually don't worry about isolated thunderstorms in a forecast. Even if something does come through the area they typically last about an hour or less and the rain is a great relief from the ridiculous humidity. Doesn't look like you'll have to worry about tropical sytems in the next few days. Hope you have a good time.

That's a good picture because it shows about where the train *should* be evacuated from. If it's anywhere in the first launch section (even at the end) they're supposed to be able to back the train up to that spot, then use a bridge that connects between the 2 metal rails rails to unload each row. On average it takes about 15-20 minutes. It seems like in this situation they simply weren't able to move the train back and they had to evacuate somewhere near the mid-point or end of the launch tunnel which is where the train ends up after a typical rollback. Of course I don't know anything about this specific situation, so that's just my guess.

If it took 2 hours to evac, there's no way that train was near the station. It wouldn't take that long. Sounds like the story is missing some pieces as usual.

Not exactly coaster related, but still on topic... Stonewall Jackson Lake State Park is probably my favorite park in WV. Stonewall Resort

This is almost a tough one... I like Knoebel's a lot, but Hershey has a lot more to do, and it depends what type of mood I'm in almost. With gas prices the way they are now, I have to say Hershey is my favorite. If I'm gonna drive all the way to PA, I would rather be able to ride more than 3 different coasters in a day. But if I'm headed to the Northeast anyway, Knoebel's is always a great side trip.

It's always a good laugh to carry around a different map with you and start asking random people (guests and employees) how to find an attraction on another park's map. Just make sure it looks similar to the real one from the park. I guess the maps are different at Six Flags now, but those used to be the easiest.

Worst Sound: Hypersonic's train wreck into the brakes Best Sound: Dragster's launch, demonstrated on this video Cedar Point 06

It’s cool, I understand what you’re saying… the sport was built on tradition, and I agree the changes have taken away a lot. Aside from that, I’m just having a hard time understanding how it can be seen as such a negative thing, when (IMO) it’s essentially the same game being played. The intensity and competitiveness is still there, and if back-to-back game 7 wins for a small market team to win the Stanley Cup doesn’t prove that, I don’t know what will. Plus, Carolina has been around for 10 years now, and they’ve had a chance to build a real franchise. It’s not like they just moved down from New England and stole a championship from the fans up there (although I agree that happened more or less in Denver a few years ago). I would think most true fans of the sport would recognize that the changes were made in an attempt to increase the entertainment value, and expand into a new markets and new generations. It’s business. The league was losing millions of dollars each year. How secure would your job be if the company you worked for was losing that much money? In most cases there would have to be changes made, and unfortunately that requires a break from tradition. After the lockout, I’m just happy to be able to watch hockey every week during the winter and spring. Besides, Cheerleaders are better to look at than drunk, glass-banging construction workers who blocky my view of the game

I don't know about most people, but I just finished watching one of the greatest playoff series of one of the greatest games ever created. I've been a hockey fan for a long time, and it makes me angry to read the previous comments after witnessing something spectacular take place in a state that's never had a major sports championship. I live in VA now, but I lived in Carolina for a few years growing up, and I'm sorry it didn't work out in Hartford, but it didn't. What hockey has done for the South has really opened up a whole different world to a new generation that may not have had the opportunity to learn about hockey in the past. It's called expansion, and it happens in every sport. I can't see how in the world it can possibly be considered a bad thing. I learned to play hockey in Carolina beacuse of the buzz surrounding my city's first minor league team, and the passion of the sport will be with me forever because of it. The game has changed, but it's changed because it has to. I think most of the changes made this season have been for the better, and although I'm still a fan of old school hockey, I enjoy the new style just as much. I've had the best time watching the playoffs this season with friends and family, and hope for more of the same in the future. Congrats to Jonathan for starting this post and coming out on top. Go Canes!

< Photoshop is the greatest!

I voted for scream because that’s what my girlfriend usually does when she goes into the bathroom after I’ve been on the can