01-19-08 Coaster Expedition #9 Release Party And SFMM/TR

[Jhcbiinoc]

Apologies for this being up a little later than I had planned-and for the lack of photos (I am still kicking myself for leaving the camera in the car yesterday!) but I wanted to write down some of the highlights of the event.

 

The nutshell version, for those who don't like long TR's: It was an awesome day, both the time at SFMM and the party at Robb & Elissa's, and once again, huge thanks to them and to everyone at the park who made it possible.

 

The longer version:

 

Woke up Saturday at 6am (amazingly, as I had not been able to get to bed until after 4am due to the insane work schedule demanded by my often obtuse boss, and a side freelance web development project I am working on that had a deadline of Saturday morning). After a disappointing call from a friend who was supposed to come with me telling me he was too sick to get out of bed and pounding some coffee, I headed up to SFMM about 7am from the far reaches of Mission Viejo. Due to good traffic, actually managed to get to Valencia in time for a fast coffee and muffin from AM/PM before arriving at the park at 8:50. Had a few minutes in the line of cars waiting for the gate for the parking lot to open to see painters hard at work on the painting of X in its new "X2" colors (which really do look good).

 

Got up to the gate in plenty of time, got my wristband and nametag (I love the way Robb put real name and screen name on the name tags) and before long Neal Thurman, the Director of Operations for SFMM and Robb gave us the ground rules, and we were off into the park at 9:30 for ERT on Tatsu. There was a surprise added, though, as we were also informed that the newly painted Viper was available for ERT as well. Although I do enjoy Viper, I wanted to get on Tatsu more and headed up the hill.

 

The Tatsu crew was in top form yesterday morning, efficiently running two trains and I managed to get five great rides on it-although after the first two consecutive rides in the back row, I had to move up front. Although X is still my favorite coaster , Tatsu is a very close second. It really is an awesome coaster, and I really enjoyed the opportunity for ERT on it.

 

After the park opened and ERT was over, I headed towards the back of the park. Crowds were lighter than usual. Walked back and saw that Deja Vu was closed (the couple walking away from it said they were told it was closed all day, but it did reopen a few hours later). As I was walking down towards Scream to grab a few rides, I ran into the TPR group (who even had a TPR sign they were carrying, which I thought was a great idea.) I stayed with the group and rode Riddler's Revenge (two train wait for the front row), B:TR (pretty much a walk on, and the ride seemed smoother than normal), Colossus (rode in the front row-surprisingly, not all that rough-not the best wooden coaster I have ever been on, but definitely fun, as I had not ridden it in 8 years) and Scream (great ride as always, and also a walk on).

 

At 11:30, we all met at Mooseburger Lodge for lunch. I wasn't sure what to expect, but when we got upstairs (which was all closed off for us) I was pleasantly surprised to see that they had laid out a custom buffet of Italian Food for us-several types of pasta, chicken alfredo, fresh mozzarella and parmesan, bread-and it was all extremely good. Arrived at the table to see they had place settings with a souvenir bottle with a t-shirt inside and a water, and a member of the wait staff came around and gave us the beverage of our choice. The wait staff was great as was the food, and they even surprised us with dessert-massive pieces of either chocolate or carrot cake. A few park staff members and wait staff came around and asked us how everything was, really giving us full service treatment.

 

After lunch, Jay Thomas, the new Park President, Neal Thurman and Tim Burkhart announced that it was time for the park tour. We left and first went to see the grave of Flashback-folks, if anyone was under the hope that Flashback was returning, I am sorry to inform you that it will not be. We saw what was left (just random track and car pieces and ripped up rebar) and noted that there is a lot of room over there now, plenty of room for either park-HH or SFMM to expand.

 

We then proceeded over to the site for Thomas Town, where we were given an outline of what was going on there. It too is a large area, one that offered some great vantage points of Goliath's first drop for those who were taking photos or video to take advantage of. The area itself sounds like it will be very nicely done and well put together when it is complete, and a great addition for families.

 

Finally, the part of the tour I was most excited about: we got to go up to the X Station-and see the beginnings of X2. They have a banner up announcing X2 on the bridge I saw as we were walking up. Upon getting into the station, it was clear that not only is the ride being painted, but the station as well. At this point, Tim Burkhart and Jay Thomas gave us a run down of most of what to expect, and without giving too much away-next year X fans, myself included, will have a lot to be happy about with improved capacity, ride experience and more. I was extremely impressed with the amount of passion Burkhart has about getting the ride running as it should have been from the very beginning, and really he seems to know what he's doing. We also got a good behind the scenes look at X.

 

We took a break for a while before the afternoon meet up, presentation, Q and A and video at the Magic Moments Theater (complete with a "Welcome Theme Park Review" on the marquee).

 

I have to say that this was one of the most interesting parts of the event-Jay Thomas began highlighting some of the things the park has in store for 2008, not just the new Thomas Town or X2, but the positive overhaul of the infrastructure and operations of the park that is taking place: programs to improve the quality of the staff and the guest experience, keeping the park cleaner, offering a guest experience that is truly memorable in a good way. They showed some concept art from Thomas Town, and then Tim Burkhart did a presentation about X2-new trains, improvements to the station, and the overall ride. Everyone who loves X will be very pleased next spring. I know I am happier about X2 and the fact that they are doing what they are to the ride than I am any other new coaster addition I have heard about in 2008, and I am grateful they are really putting so much heart and effort into it and taking the measures to see that X runs better and more efficiently than it ever did.

 

Then there was an extended Q and A session which was very candid and revealing (the only thing I will give away for now-is that it can be said for sure that the rumor about the back part of the park closing was false-the rest will have to wait.)

 

Then there was the screening of the new Coaster Expedition 9 DVD-very well done and entertaining. Really made me wish I could go on one of these trips!!!

 

Finally, after some final words-Jay, Tim and Neal got a well deserved round of extended applause from the audience and as we left, we all got an actual piece-part of a wheel assembly-from Flashback! They even went to the trouble of machining it down and drilling a hole in it for anyone who might want to hang it up somewhere (it's actually going on my Christmas Tree next year.....)

 

I walked away from the event thinking, "these guys are serious". This wasn't PR, or lip service, these guys really are passionate about making this park shine like the gem it has the potential to. They are aware of the issues, and they are working to actually fix them rather than "spinning" it and saying, "Look! A new ride!" as the old management team did at times. Not only that, they truly do understand the importance of balance-creating a family environment while maintaining their reputation as the leader in thrills. One thing really stood out to me: they acknowledged that they understand that "thrill seeker" does not mean "rowdy teens who don't spend money in the park" or "troublemaker", and have a sense of appreciation for enthusiasts and coaster lovers as well as families who may not be there for coasters. I know I left there with the feeling that they care about what all of their guests want-not just enthusiasts, not just families, not just thrill seekers, but everyone-and want to provide them all with the best experience at the park possible. They understand the concept that you don't have to alienate one group to appeal to another and I feel that that will bring them success.

 

The overall impression I got yesterday in between the things they are doing, the comments made, and the passion they have for doing things that appeal to the thrill seekers (X2) as well as appealing to families (Thomas Town, and other things you'll be hearing about soon) while keeping the park operations running smoothly left me with a very good feeling. They know the problems. They know things aren't perfect and want to know what else needs to be fixed. But they know what they're doing, and I think it is very probable that SFMM will be better than it ever has been as a result of their efforts.

 

I stayed at SFMM for two final freezing rides on Scream and one on Tatsu in the back row, and arrived at Robb and Elissa's about 7:30. As usual, the party was awesome-the dinner was delicious, and I enjoyed the trivia-even took home a piece of Flashback track as a prize! It was great to get a chance to talk with people who I have not seen in a while and meet new people, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

 

The entire day was a great escape from the stresses of my life, but I was tired and had to get back-so finally got some of the "Extra Caffeine" Mocha Coffee at AM/PM and hit the road home.

 

Thanks very much again to Robb & Elissa, Jay Thomas, Neil Thurman, Tim Burkhart and the staff at SFMM for everything, it truly was a great event.

 

Eagerly awaiting West Coast Bash this year!!!!!

[ebl]

^ Nice report, John. It was good to see you again.

 

Eric

[Purplepills]

Thats the only non-photo trip report that long that I've read all the way through. Really well written, and it sounds like you guys had a great time!

[PURE]

^Yeah, he's good at them.

 

Tis a damn shame I couldn't make it, everything sounds like it was awesome. Thanks for the TR, its nice to know what I missed out on!

[robbalvey]

^ Just don't miss West Coast Bash! I have a feeling it will be everything we did this weekend and more!

 

--Robb

[coasterjunkie91350]

Well i can say i can submit my day off request a few months early for the 2008 West Coast Bash I really had fun at the last one and am looking forward to doing it all again .

Ill Be Back !!!!!!