Photo TR: SFOG Spring Fling '08

[BeemerBoy]

It was time for the 7th Annual ACE Southeast Spring Fling event at SFOG. And for the 7th consecutive year, we were originally planning on avoiding it at all costs. Well, then things changed when we learned of some friends that would be in attendance. So figuring we might only make one trip down to SFOG this year, I decided to take Rick (CoasterPalooza) up on his offer and join he and Gyen as guests for the event.

 

But wait, that's not all. You mean the Big Mike World Tour would be rolling into town? AND Hot Fuzz himself would make a special guest appearance? Well,that's just the cherry on the Ben & Jerry's double scoop cone, my friends. Damn straight we'll be there.

 

In a nutshell, here's how it went down. We woke up, drove to the ATL, and met up with the gang around 8:30. We were shocked that the weather had held up to that point. We all managed to get in ERT rides on Scorcher, Goliath, Ninja, GASM, and Superman before the park opened to the peasants, er, GP.

 

After that, we followed Rich's agenda to accomplish all credits before the world ended (love ya, Rich). With Rich's fearless leadership, we managed to attain all credits, minus Mindbender, which was having issues early in the day (that's what happens when you turn 30).

 

Long story short, we braved the ACE buffett crowd, headed back into the park, and it began to rain not long after. From that point on, it stopped raining periodically just long enough to ride several things, and yes, finally get the elusive Mindbender credit for the gang.

 

Although most of the afternoon and all of the evening ERT was a washout, it really turned out to be great fun hangin' with you guys!

lol.

 

This seems like a good time to take a break in the action. Stay tuned for part two.

But with quality programming like this on Six Flags new media network in the queue lines, who can possibly complain? I pity da fool who does.

Next up was this gem.

Hmm, I've never tried Panda before. I wonder if Anthony Bourdain has?

Hi Lou.

Gyen seems pleased. Rick's still terrified, and Big Mike's just anxious to update the back of his shirt.

Weeeeee. Or Wiiiiiiiiiii. Whichever you prefer.

A certain 'Bama student will need to try and contain himself here. Yay lifthill shot.

How does the kiddie coaster get more intricate theming than Goliath?

Ooooh, a new credit for us. Yippie. It's been closed or had too big a line the during our last couple of visits. But since we're with VIPs today, it was a walk-on.

2008! Not 2007 or 2006. And no, not to be used in 2009, 2010, 2011, or even just before the world ends in 2012. That's right....2008, people.

Ahh, that's more like it.

After heading down to Gotham, we realize Mindbender's closed. Did Joe not authorize usage without his presence? Could be. Or maybe it has something to do with the group of mechanics who were working at the base of the second loop?

Okay, now here's a shot of Goliath. It also happens to be in the USA. Educational, huh?

I guess since Deja Vu' left, this section just doesn't get the crowds anymore. hehe

Um, Ninja.

The umpire and the cop enjoy a bit of ERT.

If you can't make out what it says, it reads.... RIP, Shannon, VEAL.

Okay, no clue what the VEAL's for, but who cares.

 

Holy Crap!! Talk about funny, freaky, scary, and disturbing all at once.

Okay, as Gyen, Mike, Shannon and I are waiting for Rick and Rich to get several ERT rides on Superman, Shannon looks down and finds this. What is it, you ask?

Considering a recent thread, I'm scared to think if water parks had on-ride photos.

This would be one of the few pictures taken by Big Mike's camera not featuring Big Mike.

And in case you live in a cave, and aren't sure who I'm speaking of......indeed, the master of self promotion himself.

TPR's other Oscar winner.

Our first ride of the day was on Goliath, but the camera didn't surface until we got to Superman.....so um, that's where we'll start.

[jarmor]

Is it me or does it ALWAYS rain during spring fling!

[BeemerBoy]

^ I'm sure you're not alone on that thought.

 

Anyway, on to round two.

Bye for now, Gotham. You're still one of, if not the best Gotham-themed area I've seen.

This will one day be in my garage.

After a great ride on Mindbender, I snapped a couple shots of the Batmobile. Why? Because it's the frickin' Batmobile. That's why.

This looks much better with the lights on. Much less boring than this caption.

Shan says, "bring on the Orlando Starflyer next week. This is child's play!" For the record, I'm officially scared of it.

Blurry shot of Gwen because my camera would not cooperate.

Where it was time to take in the waveswinger. Okay, all of us except one. I won't mention any names, Rich.

Then I think we headed back to Gotham.

Stuff like the ever-popular Monster Plantation. Or is it ever-confusing? I vote for the latter.

It finally cleared just long enough to walk around a bit and hit some of the other offerings besides the coasters....although yes, they are pictured here.

Did I mention the rain?

Where it was no longer Prince, but classic Stevie Wonder on the flatpanels. You know, I was seriously expecting to be bombarded with craptastic music on these things, but aside from one lame Kenny Chesney song (sorry Rick), it wasn't too bad from what I remember.

The rain let up just enough for us to find a new location to chill....Cyclone's covered queue line.

Soon after lunch the rain came, and we were pinned near the bathroom for cover. So what do you do to pass the time? Take foolish shots attempting to get the perfect "highschoolish emo myspace pic," of course.

"I'd like to thank you all for coming to the Big Mike show. After you eat, I'll be signing autographs and posing for pictures....of myself."

All proceeds from our raffle go directly towards the museum fund. We're only 7000 events away from that becoming a reality.

Hey ya'll, it's fixin' to be chow time. Grab yer sweet tea and hit that there buffet line!

And you get to sit next to GASMs first drop, in all its jackhammering goodness.

Not a single hardcore Acer was late to lunch. But you already knew that.

This thing continues to kick the crap out of me. Although it looks great, I wish it would go the way of the Tilt-A-Whirl.

Sometimes you sit down and try to come up with clever, witty captions. Other times, words are simply not needed.

However, the dreaded brake run did manage to hold them captive.

I'm glad they survived it as well.

Apparently, these two were not affected by the torture device by sitting in the front row.

There, that's better.

After my last rides on this, I swore to never step foot on it again. I stuck to that, and let the others get their credit without me.

This pretty much sums up the day.

Hi Wes. Thought we'd check out some Prince while waiting for Acrophobia....which is actually 20 feet taller than Godzilla. Don't believe me? Check Rich's (sfne2005) trip report. It's true.

[sfne2005]

Big Mike on the Mike...seems like a theme for the day. Too funny man.

[ernierocker]

Six Flags is really improving things when they now have Mr. T in the queue lines. That is a giant leap forward in my opinion.

 

Nice TR!

[Wes]

If Six Flags TV played nothing but Prince, it would be the single greatest queue entertainment idea known to man. People wouldn't even go on the coaster after, they'd just stand in line to watch Prince destroy with some ridiculous solo over and over again. No one would complain about Flash Pass, they'd just be mesmerized by Prince.

 

Are you listening Shapiro? Prince on Six Flags TV. All the time.

[Meteornotes]

^I think if you alternate between Price and The Final Countdown, then you'd have something awesome. Perhaps too awesome for humans, though. We may not have yet evolved far enough to survive such an experience.

 

dt

[ParkTrips]

Big Mike is a whore.

 

I wish I would have known such a contingent was around that night.. yall could have joined us kickin back some beers at Taco Mac.. great stuff Scott, but I'm eagerly awaiting the Star Flyer

[cfc]

Shan says, "bring on the Orlando Starflyer next week. This is child's play!" For the record, I'm officially scared of it.

 

I rode it last year, Scott--I think you'll live. It does look sort of dodgy, though.

 

As for that red Vekoma, at least it's not an SLC, eh?

[OldJJman]

After carefully tabulating the results of this PTR*, I do believe that "Big Mike" may find it slightly unacceptable that the ratio of Big Mike to Rich pics is only 2 to 1.

 

I do believe, in the "Big Mike Self-Promotion Tour Packet 2008" on page 26, section 34, article 19, sub-paragraph 4, billet point 3, reads as follows:

 

"When pictures of an event attended by "Big Mike" are posted for viewing by the General Public (GP), pictures of "Big Mike" must be cropped and edited so as to not show any other person AND the likeness of his greatness, "Big Mike" MUST outnumber the amount of pictures of any other person(s) by 400%, UNLESS said person happens to be a bikini clad person of the opposite sex."

 

 

*Big Mike pics = 12

Rich pics = 6

 

 

Sorry Scott. You fail. Try again.

 

[Johnny Upsidedown]

Nice photos, it was a good day for the most part. Morning ERT was great.

To bad I didnt know you were going to post a bunch of photos on TPR. I was one of the lucky winners of the Walk back photo tour raffel and had an extra spot for somebody as I was there by myself.. Oh well. The walk back was awesome. I got a ton of great behind the scene photos.

 

Great event as always, if you ever get the chance it is a must do event.

J.

[BeemerBoy]

^ Glad you won the walkback tour, Johnny. It's odd that we didn't see you there, as it wasn't really a huge crowd. And yeah, I don't doubt that you got some great shots....yours are always some of the best.

 

Ernie/Wes/Dave - Combine clips of Mr. T with Prince and The Final Countdown, and Six Flags stock will soar. I can hear Larry on the phone with Shapiro right now.

 

Chuck - It's kind of a toss up on the Vekoma-SLC thing. Do I want my head bashed on the SLC, or my kneecaps destroyed on Ninja? Maybe they should just replace it with a Tilt-A-Whirl.

 

As for the Star Flyer.....yeah, I may need a drink or two before/after.

 

Joe- Yeah, Taco Mac would've been a good idea. I knew you weren't going, but I really should of hit you up afterwards. My bad.

 

Jeff- LOL. Yeah, I really shouldn't have misplaced my Big Mike Tour handbook. I'll try and remedy the unacceptable picture count situation later this afternoon when I finish out the report.

[Johnny Upsidedown]

^ Glad you won the walkback tour, Johnny. It's odd that we didn't see you there, as it wasn't really a huge crowd. And yeah, I don't doubt that you got some great shots....yours are always some of the best.

 

Thanks, I am sure I saw you, and I know I saw the guys that are in most of your photos. I do tend to keep to my self though.

Here are a couple small photos from the walk back. I would make a tread for them but all my photos are to large and well thats why I have my website.

Anyway if you want to take a look you can view all the photos here http://www.johnnyupsidedown.com/eventSFG12.html .

[SharkTums]

I think Rich's vest needs more pockets.

[cfc]

^Ha! My parents actually gave me a vest like that for my birthday before the UK trip. I remember thinking, "You know--I'm going to the UK, not on safari." It's still hanging in my hall closet. I imagine it's quite practical, though.

[mcjaco]

^I think if you alternate between Price and The Final Countdown, then you'd have something awesome. Perhaps too awesome for humans, though. We may not have yet evolved far enough to survive such an experience.

 

dt

 

Can we throw in some "Built this City?"

[65skylark]

Add in Matt singing the wrong words to "Proud Mary" and you've got some amazing entertainment.

 

Scott, I couldn't agree with you more about Cyclone. That ride is pure crap and should be burnt to the ground. I wasn't sure if I was going to live through my one and only ride on that contraption. Probably didn't help that I chose to ride on the wheel seat of the last car

[VivaLaVibora]

Did they have any cartoons on those tv screens, or anything besides music? I don't know what Mr T does besides that A-Team a long time ago.

 

^ Chuck - It's kind of a toss up on the Vekoma-SLC thing. Do I want my head bashed on the SLC, or my kneecaps destroyed on Ninja? Maybe they should just replace it with a Tilt-A-Whirl.

 

SLC's to me are just what the heck is going on. For Ninja, I think I'm going to have a headache because my head has hit the harness so many times. Tilt-A-Whirl replacing Ninja. Yeah. As long as it's not as UGLY looking as SFMM was. No wonder why no one went on it if that was the case. I might not go on that either. Kidding, I know.

[PKI Jizzman]

Awesome pictures, great to see many SFOG TR's since I'm going June.

[sfne2005]

I think Rich's vest needs more pockets.

 

It beats giving Six Flags anymore money for lockers

[BeemerBoy]

^^^ Honestly, most of the rides were walk-ons, and we didn't pay much attention to the monitors all day. The only time we did get the chance to was during the rain when we were in Cyclone's queue. Even then we only got to hear a few minutes of music before Rick mentioned something about lightning, storms, etc., and almost on cue we lost the power. When the place powered back up, the monitors were messed up from there on. There was a broken signal, and a black screen, so I don't even remember what was being played on them.

 

Oh yeah, and Rich was ready to hand out a beatdown to a couple teenage girls and their mom for bouncing a basketball off the loose railings, which was pretty loud and annoying. Ahh, good times.

 

Anyway, time to close this bad mamma jamma out.

So instead of night ERT on Goliath and Acro, it was off to Ruby Tuesdays for some drinks before the Big Mike Roadshow (GA edition) came to an unfortunate end. Thanks again guys. We really enjoyed it!

You might remember this moment from Rich's report. It's worth laughing at again though. Oh, and it's another Big Mike/non-Rich pic.

Next up, free bottled water and a screening of a coaster documentary featuring Mystery Mine. The producers are trying hard to get it picked up by some network. You can learn more about it here: www.BusinessOfFun.com

And then finally, Bugs and Daffy got what they had been waiting all day for.

Shannon and Batman were battling to see who was more pissed about the rain. It's a close call.

I found this somewhat interesting. If you're desperate to charge up your cell phone and text your friend in the switchback next to you, then this machine is for you! 15 minutes and you're golden.

What does an empty Goliath station look like in the rain? I'm glad you asked.

Rich had been plotting to make his move all day, and it was at this moment he felt the opportunity was perfect to lean in for that romantic first kiss.

Okay, so hours later the rain decides to let up again, and that means a train ride was in store.

Time for the Georgia contingent to take part. Visit Big Mike in Holland, AND the Netherlands, and you too can have this much fun! lol

Rich, Walter's not happy about you stealing that vest. You're gonna be in a world of pain for that!

What else to do besides wait for people to come running down the wet hill outside and bust their face? Update the shirt, or course.

Hey, this time we can feed our faces while we wait out the rain.

Okay, we've had enough of this walking around and enjoying rides. Can it please rain again? Thanks. Btw, SF is doing it's best CF impression here.

Okay, here you've got Ninja or GASM.

 

 

hehe, somewhere a martial arts enthusiast just chuckled.

They cut right to the point with this sign. We, however, did not cut right to the line.

Okay, I'm all about historical carousels and whatnot. I realize this was created in an artsy way many decades ago, but is it just me, or is Jesus mackin' on a topless chick? Seriously, the guy who created this didn't at any point step back and say to himself, "Whoa whoa, that kinda looks like Jesus. Man, this is soooo wrong. I can't do this?" lol

A quick peek at the historical facts before the next showstopping pic.

As are we. Why else would we even have even bothered to get out of bed and drive 90 minutes south at 7:30 on a Saturday morning?

Don't be fooled, these two aren't excited about the carousel. They're happy to be in the presence of Big Mike.

And it's relocated. If you rode it when it was at Riverview, then this would be a new credit. Hi Rich.

"Well, it's no Hydra or Nemesis Inferno..."

Sorry Riverview. Your loss is our gain.

Okay, it's no Big Mike, but trust me, he will return. During the brief break in the rain, a ride on the carousel was necessary, right Rich?

There we go.

Dammit, that's not gonna work.

The swings. And yes, Big Mike. Current tally for Part 3: Big Mike pics= 2, Rich= 0

Big Mike and the Mindbender.....but focus on Big Mike. I'm trying to meet my quota here.

[Big Mike]

This was a FANTASTIC trip report!!!

 

One of the best I have ever seen

 

 

You and Shannon are awesome!!

Rick and Gwen too!!

 

Love you guys!

 

 

You guys made a rainy day sooooooooo much fun.

 

 

Hope to see you again soon.

 

 

Peace, Big Mike

[SharkTums]

No NO!!!

 

This is for the employees not the guests!

 

Since we all know that SF employees are the best texters around!

[ernierocker]

The vest comparison to Walter is just amazing!

 

Although, Walter would be upset that he was included in a TR that took place on Shabbos! You know he doesn't roll on Shabbos!

[Meteornotes]

^I think if you alternate between Price and The Final Countdown, then you'd have something awesome. Perhaps too awesome for humans, though. We may not have yet evolved far enough to survive such an experience.

 

dt

 

Can we throw in some "Built this City?"

 

You are very wise.

 

Six Flags totally needs to hire you, me and Wes to program the TVs. Peoplle would hang out all day just to watch the entertainment, and not even care if they get on rides, which cuts down on the upkeep and helps SF make even more money. They're sitting on a potential gold mine here!

 

dt