haiderodes

Adventuredome MK Epcot DHS DAK BGT SWO Disneyland DCA USH SFMM SFStL Holiday World SFOG Family Kingdom OD Pavilion Also visited the City Museum in St. Louis for the first time.

Longest... Indiana Jones at Disneyland May of 1997 Line stretched across Adventureland back toward the Tiki Room. Lengthwise it was long, but this was pre-fastpass so the wait was just about 2 hours. Most painful.. Steel Eel at SWoT in early June 2009. 90 min wait in the Tejas heat. There was one op in the back who kept holding things up. Then she thought she was cute by jumping around and dancing. No...just do your job. When you do it faster and more efficiently, THEN you may dance. Now the longest lines I have seen, but not waited for were a posted 4 hour wait for Superman: The Escape in November 1997 and 235 minutes for Test Track on New Years Day 2004.

I'm spending the whole weekend there with a couple of friends. Took advantage of the special rates at the Grand Californian. Pretty excited as its my first time staying on property (even though I am a passholder). This is our second time going (first time was 2009). For those from out of town, this is one of the few times you can buy discounted one-day tickets that can be used for a period of almost two weeks. While it sucks that Screamin and Pirates will be down this year and the Halloween fireworks arent included as they were in 2009 (loved the gigantic Jack blow-up head thing), I'm sure ElecTRONica will be awesome this year. As for the activities they really have been growing this event for all ages. In a way I like it better than the Florida version as everything is so close and the variety of things to do. The last time we stuck to the parks. Took a late afternoon break to check out the "welcome center" in the Grand Californian meeting rooms (all the good swag gets taken early). Had some drinks and headed back into the parks. This time we are gonna hit up the Wonderland party on Friday (its a fundraiser for The Trevor Project) and stick to the parks on Saturday with a late afternoon stop for drinks. Then Sunday hit the parks for a few hours before hitting the road.

9/30 - 10/2 is Gay Days at Disneyland

Interesting photos! I have been tempted to go to the sale but I heard what you posted...the good stuff had been swiped when it closed and the stuff left was overpriced for the condition it was in. The most interesting part about it all is that it just closed last month, but it looks like they had really let the place go. I had been in the hotel earlier this year, but obviously not to all the areas you were in. We used to go eat at Pacos (mexican place) for their cheap happy hour specials.

^RE: flimsy paper annual passes... In recent years you could go to Guest Relations and get upgraded to a firmer, plastic card with a small donation to their conservation fund. Back in 2010 this was $5.

not that many... boomerang - knott's boomerang - elitch gardens boomerang - worlds of fun boomerang - sfft boomerang coast to coaster - sfdk flashback - sfot flashback - sfne

Funny that you suggest a ride similar to Knott's Wipeout for SFMM's Baja Ridge area. The mountain already had an older version Chance Trabant called Circus Wheel. Bringing back something like that would help the attraction count, but I don't think a single attraction like that could be marketable for the SoCal market. Perhaps a collection of flats? But then to play devil's advocate... SFGAdv tried that with its "War on Lines" Campaign. Unfortunately ,that didnt work out and most of those rides are now gone. Then there's the issue of staffing. We already know that SFMM seems to have the hardest time amongst all the LA area parks keeping staffing at appropriate levels. There's gotta be a way they can get something else going that isnt a roller coaster that still pencils out. The economy is looking up a bit. For me it's not a matter of cutting down lines from other rides, but rather just having something else to mix into your day. The return of summer shows, IMO, has helped that somewhat but there's more that can be done.

Those seem to be same as the lapbars on JTA San Diego.

^^I'd say they are very reliable. Many casino properties here in town have changed to exclusively LED lighting on the exterior (particular in the areas of signage). In fact, even our 7-11s and other convenience stores have changed to LED lighting on their exteriors. Hell, the grocery store up the street from me uses them in the frozen foods section...they have motion detectors too, so that they only turn on when someone is nearby and/or opens the door. I was reading an article not too long ago about how LEDs are getting more powerful every year without increasing heat and electrial usage. Next time you are in Vegas take a look at the Planet Hollywood sign on the Westgate timeshare tower. That thing is BRIGHT!

You may not know there are a lot more wheels on a Test Track vehicle than you the four you see above the track. One of those "Imagineering the Parks" books has some concept imagery of ToT and it shows the basis of the ride being an Intamin 1st Generation freefall (only larger). I believe this was done only to explore the concept of an enclosed free fall attraction (at the time - late 90-91 - that's all there was). In the end, they reached out to Otis to assist them in creating the machinery for the attraction. Even though they may have reached out to them for assistance, Disney designed it. The fact that Disney asserts so much control over its attractions and partners has long intrigued me. Disney is definately unique when it comes to putting together attractions. Unfortunately this sometimes gets Disney in trouble...IE the Mission Space technology patent lawsuit. Even though this discussion may seem dorky, it is quite interesting to see who knows what.

Ive been on a few launched coasters and my overall fave would have to be Rock N Roller Coaster. Its not overly intense or anything, but the combination of music, lights and darkness I love. Runners up would be Xcelerator for force of launch, air over the top hat and general ride length; Speed: The Ride for the second boost after the loop; and Volcano for its second boost (even though I was disappointed how slow the rolls were).

^Depends how fluffy and in what areas. There's nothing there that is any more restrictive than similar rides elsewhere. That said, El Toro & the B&Ms are a given. Bizarro has the "big-boy seats" that were in high demand the day I was there. I did see a girl have trouble with the lapbars on the Runaway Mine Train though. Those cars are a little cramped and have kinda bulky restraints. She had some thick legs.

^love it! but what exactly is the effect supposed to be? something mysterious in the water? are the birds attacking?

as of today my top 5... El Toro - the drop over Rolling Thunder into the finale X2 - the flip on the first drop is still pretty awesome to me Gwazii (blue) - the angled dueling camelback in the middle of the ride Ghostrider - off the block brake...especially at night in the back row Cyclops - the infamous drop into the ravine