dragonskeep

I got to ride today and it was definitely all that I hoped it would be. I will echo what others have said about the Pretzel, it is just crazy. The intensity in the back car is about as high as I ever care to experience. This was my first Flyer so I can't compare to anything but it surprised me. The whole area is just awesome. Seaworld has one to be proud of.

I agree, the zero car looks fantastic. Sea world and B&M did a pretty amazing job with this one. They did a perfect job adding an attraction that is exactly what Sea World needed. I can't wait to see the animal part of the attraction completed.

I think the "loop" is going to have a good amount of speed and therefore air time at the top. It still has to get up a pretty big hill upon exiting the loop. For those who haven't seen it in person there is a good amount of ground to cover between the exit of the loop and the top of the first brake run. As someone has already mentioned, a roll back would keep this ride on the shelf for a while so the designers would have built plenty of speed into it. I have seen the ride be built in person from big pile of dirt to the lovely machine we see now. No one will be disappointed. It looks amazing!

I was out at the park today and noticed there are small supports through the drop tuning section of the coaster. I guess we will see track work there soon. The stage is looking great. I am looking forward to Mardi Gras this year (even though the line-up is less than stellar), just to see the completed stage. It looks to be a very nice addition to the park.

That drop into the Treble Clef really does look sick. You are going to bank hard to the left and take that element pretty fast. I am glad to see people getting excited about this ride. The other site I frequent has been a 9 month complaint fest reguarding lack of themeing.

That is gonna be a pretty steep drop. They are getting after it pretty good. I might go back out there tomorrow and watch for a while. There might be something wrong with me , I was just there Saturday. It does look like there are going to be some pretty good drops on this ride.

I am looking forward to seeing the Non-Inverting Loop as much as I wanted to see boobies, but it will be a while ( for the loop that is). The area where the lift and loop will be is currently occupied by construction of the permanent concert stage. I heard the coaster would be built in stages and I wouldn't be surprised to see the area behind the concert stage be among the last of them. Although with the big crane there already, maybe not. The coaster is already looking really cool. I took a ride out yesterday just to see the few pieces of track that I had seen pictures of here. It was a surprise to see how quickly they are moving forward. Two guys on the track and a crane operator can get quite a bit done. The station is also coming together pretty quickly. They have the back of the stage enclosed with block and the front loaders appeared to be grading the area of the second drop for the Rockit. In the BMG area the footers look to be nearly complete, including the large trench that was dug for the Drop tuning section. It is about 15 feet below grade and leads to another trench which is slightly shallower. This thing is going to start to excite people as it comes together. Just seeing the beginning of the Treble Clef made all the difference for me. Rockit is going to be a large and dynamic ride that coaster fans will love IMO.

I agree with those who said the busch parks do a great job. I also like: The Great American Scream Machine Mystery Mine Mindbender Greezed Lightnin All of the coasters that contain the word Cyclone are also great.

Hey dude, welcome to The City Beautiful. There are a lot of exciting things coming our way in the next few years. Manta, Rockit, Potter, and rumors of a redo on Space Mountian as well as a possibility of a Hyper coming to BGA. If you are into sports, the new home of the Magic is gonna be the sweetest in the NBA. Year round parks provide a lot of off season opportunities where the park feels like you own it. Enjoy it here, it's a great place to live.

Hey Looty, first off, real cool trip report. By the way , that's a gator not a croc just FYI. Your seats for the game were totally sick and RJ is a great place to see a game, sorry my boys didn't show you a lot of hospitality. I wish they could fix the rust problem on Kumba, it deserves better. Glad you had a good time. I miss the Black and Blue division. Here's a trip idea for you. Come to Orlando, hit the parks and go check out the Magic. Dwight Howard is worth the price of admission. Our new building will open in October 2010, and it is going to be probably the nicest venue in the NBA. Just in time for the new Robo-Coaster at IOA.

Hulk is getting rusty as well. Kumba has been rusty for a while.

I saw on another site that we should see track work within the next two weeks. They also confirmed the stage and station are the two areas of vertical construction discussed above. The stage area, they say, will be lined with decorative trees. Sounds sweet.

Hey guys, I hope you all have a very Happy Thanksgiving. Here is what I think is going on with the Rockit construction. Reguarding the non-inverting loop. I dont see this as being very family freindly. At 136 feet and fast it is going to be completely wicked. I know some people are not in to the going upside down thing but I think this is going to be one of the coolest elements on any coaster. Next time you are on Hulk imagine yourself rotating to the outside of the track and going over the top of the loop, pretty nasty if you ask me. I am also pretty sure there will be several good pops of airtime. My anticipation level continues to increase fpr this ride. This is definitely the new permanent stage This trench is big and deep, there is a footer in the bottom of it so the track will definitely be below grade. Drop tuning (sideways drop ). I am betting this is for the station not for sale< i think you are right about this being for the new stage

^ I agree, the steel is most likely for the permanent concert stage. There is work going on for the station as well, just not steel yet. I stopped in to get a look at the track the other day and there was a lot of steel there as well. Some was painted the color of the supports and some looked grey, I am guessing it is for the station. Any body have any idea what the block and wood structure is at the front of the construction area?

Thanks for the pics. The Rockit is looking pretty awesome. I love the way it interacts with the structure, there will be a lot of head chopper type stuff going on. All of those cars on course at the same time will be interesting to see. I wonder if the brake runs will totally kill the pacing, that really is my only concern for the ride. However, they could provide some ejector going in and floater coming out. I see a lot of potential for air time thats for sure. I would love to here you guys' opinions on the brake runs. I guess there are so many to allow more trains on course at the same time. How do you think this will affect the ride? Good find, thanks again.

^ I did notice , and I am really glad to see to see it get sooooo close to the ground, thats what a flyer should do. I am also glad to here of the elevation changes in Delirium Guy's description of the supports that are in place. This is gonna be a great ride. Those of us here in Florida are getting spoiled over the next year and a half. See you guys opening day!

Hey folks. I was out at the park yesterday and they are starting to move along pretty well with the construction. There are many footers completed, especially in the area in front of Blue Man. I also saw a large hole in this area which seems to be the area of the Drop Tuning section, there are trenches everywhere but this hole is pretty deep. Some block work has started as well, it seems to be in the vicinity of the new permanent stage. There is re-bar work and footer framing through the entire constuction area. It wont be long now, we will be vertical soon. I wish we could get a better look at the area, they have it blocked off really well. I think the red and tan color scheme will look very cool.

38 and feeling every bit of it right now after a very long day. I am pretty surprised by the poll results, a lot of young folks. My first coaster was The Double Loop at Geauga Lake, a moment of silence please. Thank you.

Manta could have only the Pretzel Loop, First Drop and return to station and I would be pretty excited about it. Florida getting a Flyer at all is great if you ask me. I have a feeling Rockit will be the better coaster though.

Jfrombaugh, I have heard the same rumor about Peripheral devices and providing your own music, however, I think it was associated with the multi media X-car and not this ride. I can't imagine Universal would allow it considering what people would bring in. As far as inversions go, the official text that was leaked by a person attending Grad Night (the same person who took pictures of the layout found on page 10 of this thread) described the Jump Cut as a spiraling negative G camelback. I am pretty sure that means inversion but can't be sure.

Johnny, thanks for the update. Manta will be my first Flyer, and I am looking forward to it very much. I am thankful for both this and Holywood Rockit. Living in central Florida has some killer perks.

Dudley do Right is great at night. Heck it's pretty fun just to sit there and watch it. All the water rides at IOA are great. I really don't have a worst, but the one at BGT is pretty lame.

They also had Jay Z, Tupac, and Run DMC. There were others but I don't really know much about Hip Hop or Rap. I have taken the survey twice and there is a pretty wide selection. I was just happy to see some 80's Metal. Judas Priest-Another thing comin. Alice in Chains- Man in the box, both would be awesome if chosen. Take the survey, they let you comment on 50 songs or so. The second time taking the survey I had all new songs to choose from.

Someone already mentioned staying hydrated, and that is good advice. No single thing can improve your general feeling of well being at a park more than that. Both times I have either greyed out or saw purple spots was on Millennium Force, it's pretty well known for it. Which brings me to this point: Do we really want coasters to get that much bigger or faster?

I think Natatomic has given you some solid advice. Something I would add, stop and smell the roses. You can't really experience the parks when you're just jamming them in. Warning, Old guy story: My friends and I took a week in the summer Magnum Opened to drive up from Florida and ride the world's largest coaster. We only hit Cedar Point on our trip but the memories will last for ever. I'm not suggesting you only do one park, but don't over do it. That schedule could get stressful on a group of guys spending a lot of time together in a small car. All of the sudden your trip isn't fun anymore. Nail down an itinerary and you will get good help here from people who have done it before.