BeemerBoy

I'm not sure why, but on-ride pics never get old to me. Here's a bunch of my faves. Everyone else goofs around on ToT, why not us? Here we are trying our best to pretend SOB is fun. You may note the couple in front of us....how they didn't lose any teeth is beyond me! Sadly, Manhattan Express was a milestone 100th credit for me. I had to buy the pic to prove that I had indeed ridden the worst coaster on U.S. soil. Shannon stills laughs at me for looking way too normal in this pic.....sadly, she's right. Finally, probably my favorite of all. No one warned me I'd come off Rock'n'Roller Coaster actually resembling Steven Tyler! And that's not really a good thing, huh?

Wow, a lot of love for Frank Zappa in here. Nobody's really elaborated on why he's your pick though. I'm just curious, that's all. Are you all just hoping he'll rename you something funky? j/k

Dreams - "Van Hagar"

^ Thanks niiicolaaah. I knew I could count on you.

Okay, let me preface this by saying I've never been to that park before and maybe she was headed to an establishment next door or something. Now, I'm curious because I've seen this before at other places.....ladies, can you please tell me why some chicks go to a park dressed like they were headed for a nightclub? That looks like it would be a very uncomfortable trek around the park. Sorry, that just happens to be my wife's pet peeve, which is how I spotted it in the first place. Nice pics by the way, bro.

Okay, first, Teus....welcome. Oh, and your english is just fine. Complimenti on that. Second....Cerberus, very nice work. I'm curious, are you going to college, or university, or whatever they call it there? I'm sure many of us would like to know after seeing that work, because talent like that should never go to waste.

I know feel dumber for having clicked this thread. Why am I here?

Here's another word.....grammar.

Best. Story. Ever! I guess Hamburger Helper should probably watch his back, huh?

If that new mysterious tarp-covered track at CP really is the next Intamin coaster for the park, then we should hear a collective "D'oh" from CP execs in 3....2....1.....

Maybe it was just feeling a bit jealous of all the negative press M:S has been getting?

Carl, I noticed you live in Florida. It wouldn't happen to be Orange County, Fl would it? Sorry, bro....just messin' with ya. Seriously though, here's my advice to you. Learn to be the bigger man in this situation. Simply suck it up and turn your back to losers like these guys. you seem to be a pretty good and logical kid. Don't stoop to their level....it's just not worth it. Don't worry about losing "street cred" or whatever you wanna call it by not fighting or standing up for yourself. God gave you a brain, and that will always be stronger than the fists of these morons you despise. And as for the phone calls thing...don't sweat it. Actually, if you really wanna mess with 'em, just "kill 'em with kindness." Sure, it sounds hokey, but there's really no better way to get under an enemy's skin than to treat 'em like nothing's wrong, and you're a friend. Trust me, it'll drive 'em nuts, and you'll look good in the process. Good luck, and hang in there.

Not much of a world traveler here, unfortunately. U.S. - FL, GA, SC, NC, VA, MD, DE, NJ, NY, CT, MA, PA, WV, OH, KY, TN, IN, IL, MO, AL, LA, TX, NM, AZ, NV, CA Intl - If you wanna count Niagara Falls, then technically Canada; Bahamas, and Costa Rica. Also had a trip to Ireland and England cancelled following 911, and that stills sucks

Nice pics once again, Johnny! I see they must've been encouraging on-ride photography for the day, huh? Seems like everyone and their mother had some kind of camera while riding. And btw, how do you think it stacks up against Thunderhead?

Well, I guess it wouldn't hurt to join in and show a few pics... It doesn't get much better than this....Fenway, a beer, and a Fenway Frank (not pictured..I ate it ) Ummm, me. Good times....Shannon and I @ Sloppy Joe's in Key West.

^ What about Tad Hamilton?

I don't see any resemblance to anything in WDW. IOA is completely it's own. Good Lord, people. Don't take everything literally. The point is that Universal made sure they addressed every little detail possible in the design phase. Attention to detail, JT3000. That's what they share in common. You make it sound like I noticed Cinderella's Castle in the Jurassic Park area or something.

Thanks Herc. You tryin' to make us all look bad? I guess I'll have to edit mine to say "The top 5 famous people" so I won't be sleeping on the couch. j/k

^ Since you answered first, maybe we could arrange something.

Okay, here's an interesting question that was posed to me this past week by a good friend. If you could chose one person, past or present, to enjoy an engaging dinner with, who would it be? The possibilities are endless with this one. World leaders, sports heroes, rock stars, supermodels (keep it clean, guys), or anyone you've always had a great admiration for....it's your pick. Feel free to tell us why you chose this person, if you so chose. I know it's tough to narrow it down to one, so I'll go ahead and put my top 5, just in case one got stuck in traffic and couldn't make it. Personally, my choice has always been a no-brainer: Walter Elias Disney. I could easily spend a whole week talking with the most brilliant man the amusement business has ever known, but even just a few hours would be amazing. 2. Jimmy Buffett 3. Bob Marley 4. Pope John Paul II 5. Bobby Orr (The greatest hockey player ever ) Anyway, have fun with this one. The floor is open.......

Great pics, Joe! Let me take a sec and wipe the drool off my screen. I drove one of those Maserati's a couple years back in Tampa. Talk about a sweet ride! That Saturn does look pretty durn nice......wait, did I actually just compliment a Saturn!? My how times have changed. Anyway, nice report. Oh, one more thing, spell Ferrari right, you putz, or I'll get really angry.

WOW. So let me get this straight....warmer weather will actually help increase speed? God help us! I can't wait for Holiwood nights now. And thinking back to the original virtual ride....most of us (including myself) thought something was a bit off with how it held it's speed throughout the ride. It's nice to be proven wrong on occasion, I guess.

^ I really hate to quote myself, but sometimes it simply calls for it. If you'll notice, the term "several other examples" was used. That would refer to great ride ideas such as ToT, Indy, Buzz, and although a bust....M:S. Guess you missed that, huh? I never said everything they make sucks, but alot does, IMHO.

Okay, good point. You could say, in his mind, it was never a "finished" product at that point? Also, as he originally planned to re-release it each year, it would be hard to consider something a classic after just the first year. I'll give you that one, though, even if he never did follow through on it. The way I'm viewing it is that Pirates is a completed project, and has been for decades. I highly doubt he would tinker with it after so much public acclaim. Being the perfectionist that he was, I'm sure he thought about how to "improve" things until the day he died, yet as Jew eluded to, the only real improvement came in what Jew interpreted as a clone, and that was WDW. Many things were the same as DL, but it was done out of necessity. The plan was to give as many Americans as possible the chance to visit. Cross country travel was not the same as it is today. Having an east coast "clone" if you will, gave more people the opportunity to experience what they had only been able to see on the Wonderful World of Disney. The "improvement" came from what he learned from DL....and that was securing enough land to creatively expand. Technically Jew, yes, it was a copy. I can't argue that point, but if that's the only flaw in my argument of never repeating yourself, then it's still pretty strong considering what evolved out of Florida swampland (I'm still upset with the parents for passing on that central florida land just before Walt showed up ) Anyway, I'll finish with my original point. I'm just overall disappointed that today's Imagineers fall short of their predecessors in so many ways. From remaking every live action and animated film in the vault, to putting Depp in a timeless classic ride, it just makes me sad to see the way things have gone downhill in the creative department.

Nice pics, guys! That pic of Sheikra's first drop may be the best I've seen yet. And Happy B-day, Immel. I just noticed on the calendar. Enjoy it.