Chroniq

letters

.. or "pick up gets a flat after running over hammer"

WORDS ON A POST

-CC

The dippin dots guy always lies to me

In order- Location- Because honestly that's about 60 percent of the equation.. Some areas have a high enough population density that are interested in recreational pursuits and have enough throwaway capital to make a theme park feasible and some don't. Example = Detroit - NO, Metro New York - Yes. Research - Feasibility studies and research into your key demographics. IE: how many there are per capita within a 100 mile radius "as the crow flies", what their budget is for recreational activities and what other recreational choices currently exist..Research can provide you with the information to provide the correct ride mix to your park, staffing levels, and areas to market. Example - Hard Rock Park -No (because this resort community already has recreational choices that made this community a tourist area, and a feasibility study would have shown that the failed outlet mall where hard rock park was built would lead to a failed theme park) Orlando circa 1972- Yes A significantly growing retirement community with free time and money plus the lure of cheap land, tax breaks, great weather, and pre built infrastructure. Cost- If you believe your theme park can pull in $20 million a year profit after taxes, your initial expenditure should be no more than $300,000,000 (and conservatively should be closer to $150 million) .. Historically, the majority of failed theme parks spent way too much on capital expenditures so cash flow became an issue in the near term and they defaulted on loans. Example: Hard Rock Park- NO- (cost was 40-50 times expected annual profit) Yes - Splish Splash in New York (cost was 4 times expected annual profit) Edited to say: I should have read the entire thread before I posted because the above poster basically covered the fundamentals. -chris "that's business" con

Just felt this thread needed the most epic "gatekeeper" reference ever put to film.

During our last 7 night trip we ate at table service restaurants every night. We booked one reservation in advance (California grill because it was my wife's birthday).. The rest we played by ear. We used the Disney IOS app to book the rest as we went (and on the same day) .. Each night our group sized varied from four to twelve people.. This new technology that so many people (maybe not here, but certainly on other sites) are quick to shun, allowed our group to be spontaneous, eat at some of the best restaurants on property, and "do what we want"... -chris "I for one welcome our new RFID overlords" con

Why doesn't Robb scream more, yell "twisty", and make more funny comments while riding coasters? And then throw in profanity every now and then? I like to show my son the videos, but he only laughs when he hears people having fun. -chris "more, please!" con

My takeaway from this thread.. -Beggars can't be choosers. -Don't question a gracious host's selection of wine. Enjoy the free glass. -This site isn't about sitting in your basement listening to perfect silent videos of roller coasters.. It's about having fun, interacting with people, enjoying their personalities, and meeting new friends. If you don't get that, then this site probably isn't for you. -If you are invited to a party and aren't happy with the host, It's better etiquette to just head home early, then call him or her out in their home. -chris

This That Quoted for accuracy The thing is, this is Robb's house.. He puts a huge amount of time and effort into this site, the videos and the the trips... If you called me out in my house for some silly minutia like "why do you talk/comment/scream on the videos that I'm getting for free and likely wouldn't ever see if they weren't being provided to me for free on youtube?" , I'd probably be a bit angry too.. It's best practices to wipe your feet before you step into someone's house. -Chris "thinks the asbergers crowd should understand that we are supposed to show a bit of emotion when we are riding something designed to scare or thrill us" Con

Now for a post from the nerdy end of the theme park spectrum... This is either an image of where Avatar will be built, or confirmation that Avatar Land will be built where Festival of the Lion King once stood... Or something else entirely different? .. Thoughts?

What if your gift was something that allowed you to be the first person to receive their secret santa gift? hmm......

Bean received his gift today.... I'll just let the pictures do the talking with this... Pretty sure he he said "best.day.ever!" at some point while opening his gifts..Bean says "Thanks Ally Townsend. You Rock!"

There was, but unfortunately it is "standing but not operating" after the refurb. It was pretty amazing.... Hoping that Prince Desmond makes an effort to save this.

Dateline December 2012 - Disney announces they've just revamped a major e-ticket ride to appeal to every market. Enthusiasts will enjoy the futuristic, pure EPCOT vision . Nerds will enjoy the next gen customization technology, while geeks will enjoy the nods to World of Motion. The general public will enjoy a revamped ride that doesn't seem stuck in the early 90's . Families will enjoy the post show choices of allowing non riders new experiences while waiting for a family member... Everyone complains.. Welcome to the future

Quoted for accuracy.. The food REALLY is a step above a normal theme park.. The places I'd personally skip would be the 50's burger joint near the Dolly Parton museum and as Shawn mentioned the pizza. That being said, both of these food choices are better than you'd find in any other theme park (EPCOT excluded).. For instance, the burger joint features a 1950's coke machine that serves "mexican coke" or coke with real sugar in a glass bottle.... The food choices are "that good"

Seeing the photos of KT, Cammy, and Bean- This is what the holiday season is all about.. chris "would also like shrinky dinks" con Thanks again Carmen, for going the extra mile with awesomeness.

Thank You So look what came in the mail today!. Perfect timing as the entire Connolly family was home to recieve this. After taking a second to be overwhelmed by the sheer awesomeness of this, Kristin decided she would open her gift first, while saying "This is going to be way better than the Raptor shaped wedding ring you bought me" Pick the caption - "Years later this journal will be used as evidence" or "Since I'm stuck at home with a broken foot, I'm going to use this journal to document my deep hatred of paleontology" Me - "Kristin why are you doing that?" Kristin- "I'm WATCHING.. Get it?" Me- "weirdo"....... Later that night we spent 11 hours watching the virtual fireplace. It was a pretty hot evening. Moving on from the bad jokes. Here is a picture of Bean eating baby crack (puffs). Bean's all like " What's this? A gift for me? Great Success!" .001 seconds later .002 seconds later "A monster hat and a dinosaur??? Christmas miracles up in this bitch!"- Bean .... But wait! There's more! It's tough to see in this photo, but our secret santa customized a Marineland pin to celebrate Bean's first coaster on a TPR trip this summer.. Really awesome gift and thanks for taking the time out to do something that cool! CJ loved all of his gifts. My turn! A raptor? a terrible movie? a plant for me to grow? an obscure reference to Tokyo Disneyland? I think you might be my soulmate. Hat Tip! too easy You sir. are awesome. Thanks very much. Our family really enjoyed all of your gifts.

But wait Gregg... There's more .. Give it a day or two... Via Bean Connolly= Cammy I hope you enjoyed your gifts as much as I enjoyed picking them out. Via Me= Gregg= MOAR Via Kristin Connolly= My secret santa will probably have to wait for obnoxious international shipping. -chris "hope you guys enjoy the gifts as much as we enjoyed picking them out" con

For me, Coaster Expedition videos are the epitome of what TPR is all about. While the coaster purists may make up a larger demographic than our group, these videos were the tipping point that convinced our family to join our first TPR trip and we haven't looked back since. When I go to a theme park, I'm looking forward to having fun, having a great time with friends, enjoying the camaraderie of friends, telling jokes and stories, and getting.... well.. a bit crazy... To me, Coaster Expedition is this mentality set to some awesome music. -christian

The title says it all.. In you opinion, which diamond in the rough roller coaster would be amazing after a topper track redo?

Since you asked, I've spent way too much time researching credit cards.. Here's what's in my wallet Visa/Mastercard MERRILL+ - I'm not sure you can even apply for this credit card anymore, but it features a locked 5.15% APR, a decent rewards program, no foreign transaction fees, and no annual fee. Plus elevated Visa Signature Benefits. Great card for transacations that you may need to pay over time. https://www.rewards.ml.com/RWDapp/ml/merrillplus Chase Sapphire - This is the most "modern" card I have..Interest rate is poor at 15.24%, but it has a great rewards program. with double points on travel & dining (great for tpr members).. Annual fee is waived the first year. no foreign transaction fees (another tpr friendly feature). Good point transfer programs. and the card is made of actual metal, which will impress about 1 person a year. https://creditcards.chase.com/sapphire/ Speaking of metal cards. Amex Amex Business Centurion- When I was younger I thought it would be a great idea to place all of my business expenses on a card so I could get the coveted "black card".. with a current initiation fee of $5000.00 and $1000-2500 in annual fees this card is a complete waste of money. Benefits include everything an amex platinum card has as well as invitations to things you won't want to go to. Around Christmas and the holidays you'll typically get a $500.00 gift certificate to a designer store.. Sadly, most of the places don't sell the hoodies and shorts I like to wear. so---- Amex Personal Platinum- This is a great "pay in full each month" card.. The annual fee is $495. which again is stupidly expensive, but a frequent traveler can "game" the system and save huge money at deluxe resorts.. As an example; Whenever we go to Universal Orlando we can typically stay at the Portofino for half the going rate and get free upgrades to suites thanks to the "fine hotels program".. You'll also get free entry into all of the rental car programs and many frequent flyer status programs.. It's worth the money if you can spend some time figuring out how to beat the system. http://www304.americanexpress.com/getthecard/learn-about/Platinum-Card Charge Amex- Starwood- Arguably the most flexible rewards cards for transferring points to and from frequent traveler/flyer programs. I'd elaborate, but this post is getting too long.. http://www304.americanexpress.com/getthecard/learn-about/Starwood-Preferred/25330?intsearchct=curated Jet Blue Card- Because I'm stupid and don't have a delta platinum card http://www304.americanexpress.com/getthecard/learn-about/Platinum-Delta-Skymiles Happy to help anyone out there with any random credit card questions. Best advice- Do your research before applying for anything

Just wanted give a hat tip to fellow TPR member Chadster for taking a pretty epic video of black friday that has gone viral and is being covered by local and national media.. Victoria's Secret Gone Wild. Here's a link to some of the media coverage . http://www.fox23.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoid=3843880 All this for a free tote bag and buy one get one half price bras.

-The people Chris "could give you a 500 word diatribe about how Robb's mentality and Elissa's wit , helped form a community that is comprised of the most normal, friendly, and outgoing group of people in the roller coaster community. But seriously, that's a lot of words." Con