haiderodes

Funny. But seriously, that clock temperature gauge has been on 93 degrees since at least July. I noticed it at the same temperature all day and night for two straight days.

For anyone planning to attend Universal Studio's Halloween Horror Nights, advanced ticket sales have begun. It seems that the earlier you go, the more the discount when you purchase online. 10/3 or 10/4 $34.99 = $20 off full price 10/10, 10/19, 10/26 or 10/30 $39.99 = $15 off full price 10/11, 10/17, 10/24 or 11/1 $44.99 = $10 off full price 10/18, 10/25 or 10/31 $49.99 = $5 off full price They don't really have much info up about individual mazes yet, but it seems the theme is nightmares with Freddy, Jason and Leatherface coming back.

If you are talking about accommodating in respect to girth, my opinion is that Tatsu is somewhat more accomodating than Batman but a little less so than Riddler. The biggest thing on Tatsu seems to be not just getting the restraint to lock, but getting it to lock enough to satisfy the sensors. Last time I was there I saw lots of rechecks for people that could get it closed, just not far enough. It seems that the retraint has to go down two clicks. Riddlers belt is the big thing and if you have a big belly thats an issue. Generally speaking you need 3 clicks to get it far enough down for the belt to latch, but if is possible to get some of the belts to latch right before the 3rd click. ^I'd add Goldrusher to that list. Due to its single position lapbar.

I was most suprised by the Men in Black: Alien Attack queue. It was very deceiving as the outside queue was about half full, but then you enter the building and go through all those additional rooms and what not before you actually get to the loading station. It stated a 30 minute wait that ended up being closer to 60 min. I'd also say the haunted house queues for Horror Nights at USH are also pretty deceiving. You enter and see what you think is the line, but then behind a wall or in another room is another crazy maze of switchbacks. The Universal parks seem to love huge blocks of switchbacks.

My two cents would be to make sure you are properly hydrated. That by itself helps keep headaches away.

Its very enlightening to hear how varied our experiences have been at the mountain the past few months. In my visits this summer everyone (including the ride ops) were all about the "Have a Magic Day". They were very good about multiple trains with the main issues usually stemming from the GP not following instructions or size concerns. Test seats would really help at Tatsu and Riddler especially, even for normal sized folks to "practice" before boarding. Those two rides seem to have the most re-checks that take a long time. My main peeve for the year as a whole has been the internationals. Some have a hard time communicating in english...even simple questions.

It's fired from the roof of the Fantasyland "west" attractions (Pinnochio & Snow White).

That Batman queue is hardcore. Reminds me of SFOG...long ass garden queue followed by massive queue hidden queue house. Interesting that they made it with no "shortcuts" built in like at SFMM, if its not busy you can bypass the garden section of the queue.

I always thought that the two separate lines on the Riddler staircase up to the station was pointless as there is no separation for front half and back half once you actually get up there...its a free for all. Until they fix the air, the key is gonna be having the "lockers" person limit the amount of people up there at any given time. Its a balance though - they need to let people through frequently enough so that the outside lines seems like its moving, but at the same time not overcrowding the station. Batman has been hit or miss for me. Sometimes theres air, sometimes its stuffy. Back in July I was at the park over two days (Wed and Thurs), Wednesday there was air, Thursday there wasnt.

Fall Rally North! I was in Key Club in High School and Circle K in College. So many memories at Fall Rally South at SFMM!

Its still there.

That would be quite a feat! But seriously, it would be cool to have at least one of the seats from the old train taken up there...not quite sure how they'd display it. Did they ever get a test seat from Arrow when it opened? Perhaps they never needed one, the seats seem to be rather accomodating.

Bill & Ted was not in the Wild West Theatre last year...it was in the Fear Factor/Castle Theatre. You may be confusing it with USO's HHN...they had it in their Wild West/Fear Factor Theatre. The Wild West Theatre had the Jason maze with all the bleachers removed and the queue taking their place.

^Perhaps it was the fact it was a poorly written sentence, but I thought he meant that he got a phone call so his friend rode Batman while he was on the phone. As in he didn't ride, but his friend did.

^^That's really interesting stuff. I can see why some would want the extra light, but it just totally destroys the atmosphere. I'm sure it would save them money as well to not use the "high beams" during the day except during cases of necessity. ^As for wireless mics, I'm not sure about the clarity thing. That has to do with how well the receivers are positioned and the battery power in the mic itself. We tried em out on the parking lot trams at Disney and we had issues with the receivers and battery power which meant they cut out a lot. I guess it just depends how well they are installed. For me its not about the guest interaction at Riddler as much as it is a saftey concern. People anywhere outside of the train cannot hear instructions...especially the pre-recorded boarding instructions. In fact, I only could hear those after getting off the ride!

Since we are talking about Gotham City Backlot... Perhaps my memory is fading but didn't they use to dim the lights in the station when they'd dispatch the Batman trains? I ask because during my visit at the end of July, they left all the lights on during the day and then at night only had the atmospheric lighting so it was dim and looked nice, but no change in light level when dispatching. It would be awesome if they brought back the fog as well (at least in the station area). Riddler for that matter is another ride that has been irritating me this year. I've enjoyed all my rides on it and sure it would be nice to have the moving lights working again, but I'd say there are a couple other more important issues. First, there has to be something done about the lack of air circulation in the station. The only respite is if you stand in the row 8 queue by the blower, but even then its weak at best. I'm not saying full out AC, but just some air movement would be great. Second, if they are no longer selling Riddler on-ride photos, why must the flash still be on? It tricks people into thinking they are gonna see a photo when they make it out the exit. Last, this is more of a safety concern...the ride op audio is barely audible in the station. I remember before, theyd have the music playing, but then when the ops made announcements or dispatched trains, the music volume would lower. Now it seems like the only speakers that are used are located directly over the train. On my last visit to the park, the ops kept yelling for people to stop sitting on handrails, but people didn't listen because I honestly don't think anyone past the 5th person in line could hear.

I'd say it depends how the park is organized. I've worked at both types of parks...those where you can only work smaller rides first. I've also worked in places where it doesnt matter.

Last night...The Final Riot Tour Paramore, Jack's Mannequin and Phantom Planet

Where did you start your trip in SF? There's the Baylink Ferry from SF Ferry Terminal to Vallejo Terminal (1hr boat ride). Then the bus directly to the park (picks you up from the ferry terminal and drops you across the street from the park). I've also tried the train/bus version as well as its a little cheaper...but as you mentioned there are so many chances to miss a bus or train if something is delayed.

What part of town were you in? I was here at work on the strip and I didn't feel anything.

^Very true. Haha

^ My bad. I thought it was a joke...I didnt think it was serious. Congrats man!

I noticed that too, but the two times I rode last week I still walked up the single rider queue. The first time I told the grouper that there was an empty row and he let me through. The second time I checked with the unload side first before walking all the way around, he said single rider was open even though the chain was still up. I didn't really need it the second time since it was pretty early and the line was only about a train deep, but there was an opening so I got right on anyway. Perhaps they didnt realize the line was closed off?

I was at the park Wednesday and Thursday (7/23 & 7/24)... Overall, the ride crews were doing a good job. Everything was running two trains that could. It was busy, but none of the waits were outrageous as it seemed a good amount of people went to the water park. Lots of school/day camps at the park. I usually like to hit the back of the park first before the crowds get back there, but even later in the day most of the rides in the back had short waits. I managed to do all 13 adult coasters on Wednesday (missed Superman Thursday...the line was out of the building). There were a few problem employees. Speficially I saw two seperate employees smoking onstage. One was walking to the break area between Food Etc and Goliath...man, they couldnt walk a few more feet before lighting up? Second was at the gate near the Colossus Cookery, she was walking FROM backstage smoking! Another thing that irks me are people not wearing uniforms properly...untucked shirts especially! There was a really big guy working Colossus Wednesday night who had the back of his shirt all hanging out with his pants sagging. If he knew what he looked like he would have fixed himself. I also saw one of the VIP tour guides sagging and just generally looking rough as well. The crews seemed to do a little better avoiding stacking on Wednesday, but I have to say most of the stacking I noticed was due to guest issues. Specifically, people not following instructions about loose articles and shoes...especially on Riddler. Why must people automatically take their shoes off? Even if its a ride where you have no way of losing shoes! Also on Deja there's always the issue of people not listening and pulling down the harnesses before they can check the seatbelts which slows everything down. Tatsu was frustrating, not because the crew was bad, but because they had to recheck at least 3 seats each and everytime I rode. They ran two trains with one station for most of Wednesday, moving to two station op later on in the day and night and back to two trains one station on Thursday. Got my first ride on X2 on Wednesday night. Got in line at 940p and was walking out at 1115p. I didnt mind waiting since it wasnt like I was missing any other rides. On Thursday I ran from the gate to X2 and had a nice short 15 minute wait. Once I got off the queue was already completely full and down the bridge! Oh and fire on Wednesday, none on Thursday. I had a really fun time at the park. It was kinda hot, but not unbearable. Boy, there are a lot of internationals this year. Of my visits this year, this one was perhaps the most "interesting" as a few times I asked an international a question to which they couldnt reply because they didnt understand. That language barrier concerns me a bit, but they were working hard. Except for the grouper at Deja Vu, who would sit down between cycles, and the regular employees would keep yelling at him to stand back up. Oh, and speaking of Deja Vu... What gives with the single rider line being closed off? I just opened the chain and walked up and they let me on. I even asked one of the ops if they were doing single rider, they said yes, but then why was it blocked off?

^ Thats sounds like how we had it at Adventuredome. You have to work your way up to certain positions on a ride such as controls. I hated it with a passion, because like you said, you could end up in a single position for quite a long time. From a worker's standpoint, I'd rather be completely certified on a ride with hourly rotations. We did that at MGM and it meant you were only at a single ride for a day, but you rotated often keeping it fresh. Plus you got to know the ride better, so you could troubleshoot when things went wrong. But then again if you have people who werent certified on that ride, you have no one else to pull in.