BeemerBoy

^ So you're saying "dead men tell no tales" has been removed in favor of Davey Jones, or is it still used?

So NOR*CAL isn't part of the west anymore? Sweet... can we be part of Japan then? Not like it isn't anyways. Wally, just go back and look at my original post. I simply said SF was considering selling off the "problem parks" out west. I was eluding to the parks mentioned by SF earlier in the day (SFEG and SFMM...Denver and SoCal, respectively - both considered "out west" to most people). In no way did I ever bring SFMW or any part of NOR*CAL into the conversation... because it didn't need to be. Trust me, I am fully aware of my California geography. I'm wondering how many others missed my original point now? XtremeKing wrote: Wow, you certainly live up to your screen name.

Look a little closer.....I simply said "out west," not "west coast." But anyway, yeah, I agree, SFMW isn't going anywhere, I'd guess.

^ I never said anything about SFMW. "West" would refer to the parks mentioned by SF......SFEG and SFMM.

I think it's been fairly obvious that SFMM would not fit into the new SF business plan for months now. If you break things down to simplest terms, SFMM does not equate to "family friendly" in Mark Shapiro's eyes. And really, honestly, can you fault him with that assessment? I know there's a lot of love from the local enthusiast crowd out there, but like Wes suggested, you're such a small insignificant number in the overall scope of things. Save your protests, petitions, etc. It will do no good. Does it suck to think about losing your home park. Sure, undoubtedly it would. Has it happened yet? NO. Is there anything beyond a simple mention of radical changes? NO. If you really wanna prove to Shapiro and company that SoCal is more "family friendly," perhaps a better attitude towardds possible changes may help. Hostility gets you nowhere. Chances are the park will be sold off in one way or another to a new owner. Maybe I'm way off base, but I can't see an AstroWorld thing happening here. I think what we're seeing is a gradual progression towards a new (predominately) eastern US business structure from Six Flags. With the exception of Darien Lake, Six Flags is chosing to focus on its east coast properties. Two of the three jewels of the company are located in the east. Both SFGADV and SFOG are solid performers, and still capable of expanding. Also, when Shapiro conducted his park to park off-season evaluation tour, SFA was looked fondly upon, thus surprising many industry followers. For a park with a generally bad rep, no one has expressed any shock that SFA wasn't mentioned in today's news reports. I'd be willing to guess that by selling off the "problem" parks out west, SF will thus begin to focus on the parks they feel have more potential. I don't wanna forget SFFT or SFKK (for whatever reason), because if I remember correctly, Shapiro also looked favorably upon them. With CF establishing themselves in Virginia with PKD, and Busch already a strong presence in Williamsburg, would it not make sense for SF to become a bigger player in the D.C. region? From what I understand, PKD has another 500 acres to develop. Think what you will of CF's transformations of parks once they are acquired by the company, but can you not see PKD becoming more like CP with lodging and plenty of room to become the SFMM or CP of the east coast? Although Busch is landlocked by comparison, they will remain a strong force for years to come. So why wouldn't SF develop the "promising" SFA into a better park with the land it supposedly has around it? All three parks are within a couple hours of each other, and people already choose D.C. as a vacation spot. Okay, maybe it's more of a historical "field trip" type of vacation, but SFA would be a nice suplement to that, right? Also, Snyder already has roots there with the Redskins, etc. Of course, this is probably mindless speculation on my part, and obviously not something that will occur overnight, but I'm willing to put it down as my uneducated guess as to the direction SF may be heading. Wow, that turned out to be pretty longwinded. Sorry bout that.

^ Actually, major competition is not necessarily a bad thing. Example: Orlando. Disney doesn't suffer from sharing a region with Busch and Universal. Variety and competition help to build a "vacation destination."

Here we go again.

Tennessee, duh!! Why did I just know you'd jump all over that opportunity?

^ That's a great way of looking at it. I suffered through my initiation...so, yeah, you got my vote on that theory.

Better than? No. On par with? Yes. It's tough to say that any "real looking" buildings built for a particular ride are any "better" than what is built for the Tower of Terror rides or EE for that matter. I agree, that ride does look incredible though. Let's hope the problems are worked out and we start to see more of this type of stuff stateside in the coming years.

Hmmm.... or perhaps....

^ Yeah, it's strange that I had wanted to ride it for years, but had never really paid close attention to the stats. I kinda felt like an idiot for not realizing its length before my first ride, but hey, it still ended up being a top 10 woodie on my list. I will admit, the night rides really do add something to it though. Anyway, anxious for more pics. The "bidet" line was great.

I don't bump these thing often, but I thought this was amusing. Mia is obviously a big fan of Joe's work. Oh wait, I knew that couldn't be it. Screen pointers are much more interesting.

^ Yes, apparently beemers have become "forceless." I evidently didn't receive this memo. I hope BGE plans on making their new one reach mach 5 with missle launchers, 25 inversions, and even smoother than the smoothest B&M ever created. Otherwise many enthusiasts will once again be let down. Back to the topic at hand. Superman:ROS @ SFNE sort of let me down a bit. Don't get me wrong, it still stands firmly at #5 on my top ten steel list, but for some reason I was expecting slightly more out of it. A great ride nonetheless, but not quite worthy of its current lofty status on Mitch's poll, IMHO.

Thank you, Ted. Yes, that does present quite a problem then. Amazing that ACE couldn't do more about this sad situation. I guess building a museum to remember it when it's gone was more important? Perhaps I'm wrong on that one? Just my two cents I guess.

Fire. Better group of elements, and the ending doesn't die out as bad as Ice does. Oh, and I have never failed to catch at least a small "pop" of air on fire's hill. Granted, it's never gonna get confused with a B&M hyper, but if my rear end left the seat, then that does qualify as airtime in my book. Scott "would really rather step back and admire DD as one" B.

Not to break balls or anything, but unless I'm braindead and read right over something else, this could mean it's actually already dismantled, and simply waiting to be hauled off. Anyone else know what state it's in?

Nice jobs guys. Glad to see Holiday World wasn't a total bust for ya. I was also really surprised how short Raven was after my first ride following years of anticipation for it. Nevertheless, I still thought it was great for what is was. Nice pics btw....okay, except for the dive show one....I'll just try to imgaine you were on a moving sidewalk or something. But yeah, I'm in the market for a new camera...just curious what you use? And one more thing: upon further review, I believe the refs in the box may overrule, and ultimately give you the 3 train picture credit.....of course I could be wrong, but is that not a car from "that other coaster"? (sorry, too lazy to look up the name) Help me out on that one, Indiana Beach experts.

I'm curious, is the ride still standing, or has it already been dismantled?

^ I guess you didn't notice that the US failed to even qualify in baseball for the last olympics, huh?

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Cmon Ted, don't tease us like that. Spill it, man. Let's hear your thoughts. And HAYASHI, you should be proud....this thread has lasted longer than my last attempt at a logical, and respectable thread on religion. Personally, I think the US should let Richard Marcinko (Rogue Warrior) come out of retirement and get things done the right way. Not sure who he is?.....Google. Scott "Politics, meh" B.

Nemesis.

^ Great pics bro. A coaster and surfing in one pic....very nice indeed. The price doesn't seem all that bad for what you get either. This report makes me rethink my plans when I head home to Florida in the fall. Hmmm, maybe a quick daytrip to the Sebastian inlet is in order now. Oh, and one more thing. I'm not so sure meetings with Paris Hilton are really all that special anymore. I guess the town bicycle is making the rounds down under now.

^^Hmm, that really is a nice minor league park. Oh, and LOL.