BeemerBoy

Quite simply, it'd be worth riding again. This park is becoming dead to me at an alarming rate. Such a shame.

Thanks, Chuck! I spent minutes and minutes on that costume, and I'm glad there's someone out there that can appreciate the amount of thought and effort that went into it. Love the "Phantom" shot. Ha! Great start. Looking forward to reliving more of it!

This is actually pretty close to the truth. Also, I'm pleased to say that the salad did NOT disappoint.....nor did Sorrento's!

Okay, thanks.

^ Meh, MLB managed to survive their 1994 debacle. People are fickle and stupid. When it comes to pro sports, as long as you have a good TV contract (Hi, NHL....how's it going?) the sheep will flock back soon enough. I seriously doubt a whole season will be lost. And if it is? Wake me up when they start playing again. I've got too many other things to be concerned with.

I'm not one to "sweat the guy," but this comment is rather shortsighted. What came first, the iPhone "revolution," or every other smart phone on the market that is trying to eat into Apple's market share? Personally, this is what I'd rather focus on. In my personal opinion, just based on what I've read over the years, the guy seemed to be kind of a douche. His micromanaging skills, while they certainly produced results, are rather questionable. And while we're on the subject of pioneers that "changed the world," Bill Gates runs circles around the guy when it comes to philanthropic endeavors. That, in my opinion, is the true mark of a great human.

Water under the bridge. First off, excellent night shots. Was there any post work done on those at all? Secondly, the carousel shot is awesome. And finally, these were 100 times more enjoyable without the, um, well, you know...attached to them.

You know, I'd give anything to have been in the design meeting for this one.

Which location?

I guess Jeff Foxworthy was busy?

What's the NBA?

^ You were in this report? Now if you'll excuse me, I need to walk outside. I keep coughing up fog here at my desk. Oh yeah, and I love the eyes on the tower!

Thanks, guys! Same here. With Halloween being as big a business as it it nowadays, I'd love to see it evolve into an all-inclusive ticketed event with even more houses, etc. Brad, one thing's for certain, you guys have things going in the right direction! Oh, and thanks again for your extensive research into the excellent beer offering that evening.

My team is still perfect, and right on track.

^^ Woah, I'm digging that first shot of the fly. Awesome!

- A couple of benches and a nice fountain. - Restrooms. - An empty building. I would consider any of those an improvement.

Last night we were happy to represent TPR at Six Flags Over Georgia's opening night of Fright Fest 2011! We arrived at the park in the late afternoon, wandered around a bit, took it all in, and were then treated to a special preview of two of the park's highlight attractions for this year's event - The Terror Train (just what it sounds like), and Dr. Fright's Frightorium (a walk through haunted house)...both of which require an additional fee. I'll be honest, we visited the event last year, and it didn't do much for us. Now granted, we visited this year under different circumstances, but I'm not the type to let "VIP treatment" cloud my impression of anything. I call things like I see 'em. With that said, I'm proud to report that SFOG seems to have really stepped up their game this time around. After DSB, I'm sure that doesn't come as much of a surprise to any of you who attended that event, but I felt it should still be noted. Here's a list of just some of the thrills by day, and FRIGHT by night: - Kids Costume Contest: Parents can register their children each day during Fright Fest at the Bugs Bunny Theater. - LOONEY TOONS After Dark: When darkness falls, seek comfort in Mariner's Cove for some late night Halloween cartoons featuring your favorite LOONEY TOONS pals. - McBoogles Hanson Cars: Meet the McBoogles and read what happens to this silly and spooky family of ghosts during your leisurely drive on the antique Hanson Cars ride. - Mr. Six's Spooktacular Dance Party: Join Mr. Six for this exciting dance party, where ghouls and goblins dance the day away to your favorite frighteningly fun songs! And for guests who dare to brave the midways after nightfall, Six Flags Over Georgia transforms from a theme park to a "scream" park with a host of terrifying attractions: - The Terror Train : New in 2011! All aboard for what may be your final destination. This in no ordinary railroad, as it takes riders to an old gold mining town that was the scene of a gruesome murder in the early 1800's, known today as Bloodtown. - Dr. Fright's Frightorium : Step into this haunted house that was once the home of Dr. Fright, an evil doctor that experimented on his patients with one goal in mind: to bring his wife and daughter back from the dead. - Road Rage Cage : New in 2011, experience bumper cars like never before. Buckle up and try to stay alive as you drive through fog, heavy metal music, and flashing lights! - Dr. Fright's CarnEvil : Dr. Fright returns in this award-winning Halloween circus show as the ring leader for his loyal legion of freaks featuring singers, dancers, and unbelievable specialty acts. - Club 13 : New in 2011! When the sun goes down the hottest place to be is at Club 13 on the Dare Devil Dive Stage with DJ Marcos P spinning mind numbing house and techno mixes every Friday and Saturday night during Fright Fest. - And even MORE, MORE, MORE!! Anyway, big thanks go out to TPR and everyone at SFOG for a great show. The effort was top-notch all around, and we really enjoyed ourselves! On to the show..... Welcome to SFOG's Fright Fest 2011. Unfortunately, Mother Nature was a bit cruel on this day and hit us upside the head with an unusually early cold snap, which I believe might have affected the crowds somewhat. This guy plays that organ year after year to warn you of evil, frightful things that are about to take place. Evil, frightful things such as Shannon losing a thumb. This result is not indicative of eating at Johnny Rockets......I think. Pro Tip: If you're middle aged, (and like MCA) are sporting your share of grey hairs, don't proceed to act like you're 16 years old and on your first date. It's embarrassing.......to the rest of us. Thank you. Terror Train! It was filled with terror. And train. If you're wondering why you didn't see more trip reports from Deep South Bash, it's because most of the participants died. This was cute, and clever. All the kids could grab a ring, and if they became frightened of the scare actors they'd just hold it up and say.... ...or something like that. Hi, KT! Oh, Jesus! Ghoul-B-Gone, Ghoul-B-Gone!! Noted. Although it wasn't dark yet, we jumped onboard the Terror Train.This was our "Steampunkish" host. Is this terrorized train actually tilted, or is it your imagination? I kinda liked this animatronic; however, I get the impression that it may have looked better later at night. Warp speed. Hi, Jake. This had a pretty good crowd. But really, who doesn't like sarcastic puppets? See? You can barely see the top of Dr. Fright's Frightoreum back there. I thought it was a pretty good walk through. Many people concurred. My apologies though for not remembering what the upcharge was. This begins a series of signs. Enjoy! (i.e. "If I hear one more request for Party Rock, I have full authority to kill you.") Freaks! This was full of awesome. Don't miss it. Stay tuned for pictures. Yo, VIP, let's kick it. Alright stop, collaborate and listen, here we are at the buffet reception. Shannon's back and she's reading a presentation. This food grabbed a hold of me tightly. Flowed like a Blue Moon, daily and nightly. (For the record, the Blue Moon was for human consumption. The Bud Light was used to mop the floor after the event.) Will it ever stop? Yes, yes it will....right now in fact, because I have to mention the bumper cars. Bumper cars in the dark with strobes, fog, and heavy metal. Seriously, this was a brilliant idea. If it had been Knoebels, there's a good chance I would have been arrested for vehicular homicide. Rollin' in my 5.0, with my ragtop down so my hair can blow. Okay, sorry. I promise that's it. Maybe. Seriously, all bumper cars need to be like this at ALL times. And finally, for us, the highlight of the night was the IAPPA award-winning "Dr. Fright's CarnEvil", at the Crystal Pistol. The dude in the last pic was the, um, "head of the freaks, I guess? I'm not sure what his official title is, but he was full of energy, and genuinely excited about the whole month of October! The crowds were large for each show that afternoon/evening. In a nutshell, the show consisted of freaks, freaks singing, freaks dancing, freaks doing freakshow things, and chicks. Seriously though, we really did enjoy this, and thought there were some great voices showcased. Go see this show. I imagine this is what the outside of Dave's house looks like. Just before we left, we caught a couple rides on DDD and Goliath. People were also getting their groove on. Don't be mislead. It was cold, and this was after the park had been closed to the public....hence the handful of people. Now everyone needs to go back to SFOG, or I'll be forced to break out Ninja Rap. Fright Fest 2011 gains our stamp of approval. Word to ya mutha.

This is the last thing I'd do. Subjecting an expensive camera body and/or lens to the potential abuse from being in a cargo pocket while on a ride is quite honestly...well...insane.

^ Well, he did use coat hangers, and I'm under the impression there's an inside joke involved there?

^ If you don't mid me asking, what type of lens and settings did you shoot that Windseeker shot with? I'm assuming you autobracketed those first three shots, correct...at -2..0..+2? And then possibly ISO 100, f/12, and 8 seconds for the last? Am I in the neighborhood there? I've been reading up on HDR at night, and some of it seems rather daunting. You pulled that one off rather well though!

Same! Jake, nice work! It's tough to cover an event like this without giving too much away, but your account of it was just right.

You kind of disproved your original statement there. If you're addressing your competitor's moves by either A) Investing in a highly successful IP in order to create a unique theme park environment with it, or B) Purchasing the rights to a highly successful IP in order to "take it off the market" from competitors (whichever view you choose to take on the issue), then you are indeed "answering" your competitor's moves.

I think the last three films demonstrate that's not true. Star Wars can suck when it wants to. Oh, very true. To me, and a LOT of fans, there's only three real Star Wars flicks. But as for the theoretical possibility of a Star Wars "land," are you willing to say that had this been (stealing from Chris) "Tom Staggs announcing this new land as an expansion to Hollywood Studios during D23 with George Lucas at his side," that this particular thread wouldn't already be 40 pages deep at this point........with at least 90% more excitement than skepticism? While I'm sure Disney will knock our socks off with presentation and technological wonder filled with pixie dust, in reality it's still just Avatar.....which was basically just style over substance anyway.