*** THE BEBES *** Rainbow Magicland ITALY TR

[timfar]

Boy am I dumb. I read through this TR thinking that somehow after evening ERT at SFMM you guys boarded a plane to the East coast and hit these two parks TODAY (er, yesterday now). A real-time report. Man, you guys are hard-core!

 

... I'm laughing my AO at myself because in the back of my mind I was thinking "how (and why) the hell did they take a break from a DRIVING TRIP ON THE EAST COAST and fly out to SFMM for Termination Day?" And the answer came back: "because they knew Termination Day was going to be THAT awesome." And that was enough for me. No joke, that's what I was thinking. And my A just fell O. I've got to start reading more carefully.

 

Loved the shot of Mr Bebe hitting himself in the face and all the crying pictures. Keep up the good, funny work.

 

It was great meeting you guys. I really wish we could have taken Lady Bebe's advice and stayed for nighttime ERT, but the little ones were exhausted. My boy was tickled pink to see a picture of himself in a real live TPR TR!

 

A quick question: I am going to be in Virginia on July 16th, a Thursday. You were there on a Wednesday. Did you get the impression that the crowds were light at PKD because there was a storm coming or because it was a Wednesday? I'm trying to decide whether to hit BGE or PKD because I've only got one day and BGE has a QuickQueue and PKD has no form of legalized line jumping. I'm at a point in my life where one 1.5 hour wait in the hot sun will crush my soul AND ruin the day.

[cfc]

Congratulations on riding the elusive Skull Mountain. I rather like this ride, but it seems to spend more time down than up. Plus, I've been to SFA four times, and I've yet to see the rapids ride in operation.

[redfoot12]

I went on a bad date one time to Extreme Pizza. The pizza's neither extreme nor very good.

I'm sure you saw some interesting people at the Village. I spent New Year's there once and if we hadn't known the bartender I probably would have gotten kicked out.

That area on Chamberlayne is tres shady. Sorry for you guys.

[Big Mike]

I am enjoying The Bebes reports soooooo much!

 

 

I wish I could rent that extra room out by you and convert it into a Big Mike West Coast World Headquarters!

 

 

Peace, Big Mike

I LOVE this picture.

 

Lady Bebe has that "sexy" look in her eyes. Lucky Mr. Bebe!

[SuperShawn]

I saw the Bebe's at Termination day, but sadly didn't introduce myself. A bad move by me. Your trip reports are great! And I'm jealous you got to ride skull mountain, it was closed my visit to SFA. I can only hope to run into the Bebe's at another TPR event in the future and say hello in person.

[Big Mike]

That is a shame because Shawn was one of the nicest and coolest guys I met at West Coast Bash!

 

 

Guess we are BOTH wishing for another chances to see The Bebes!!!

 

 

Peace, Big Mike

[Capitalize]

I'm glad to read a pleasant TR from SFA. The park has definitely been better this season then the past couple years, the staff seems to be doing well and acting pleasant; and maintenance is doing much better. Wild One is one my favorite wooden coasters, the second and third hills give some nice airtime.

[coreysjunk]

^^^^^timfar,

We got to KD at 6pm and it was sunny, warm and EMPTY. That storm really came in from nowhere around 7pm. I can't vouch for a day in the middle of summer, but I would guess that a Wednesday shouldn't be TOO bad at this park. The Bebes usually try hitting parks on weekdays and in the off-season (or as close to off-season as the park allows).

[The Bebes]

I wish I could rent that extra room out by you and convert it into a Big Mike West Coast World Headquarters!

Peace, Big Mike

 

Our empty room would make an excellent Big Mike West Coast World Headquarters!! Should we send you the rental contract??

 

I saw the Bebe's at Termination day, but sadly didn't introduce myself. A bad move by me.

 

Bad on you, Shawn!

I'm pretty sure I remember seeing you around, too. You're hard to miss!

The Bebes are also very shy about introducing themselves to people and wished that we went out of our way to meet more, or talk more.

 

We will most definately be at WCB 2010 and possibly invade a few parks on TPR's West Coast Trip in August. So if you're there, definately come say hi!!!

[HPCrazy]

Another good T/R! Too bad it had to rain....again. How frustrating!

[Tikifire]

I've really been enjoying your TR's guys! Keep it up and here's hoping you get to ride Volcano sometime, it's awesome!

[atem122]

I didn't introduce myself since I'm a little young, but I sat in front of you guys on one ride and rode with one of your friends!

[frozenflames]

Nice SFA TR! I'm going there in a few weeks with a bunch of friends from college, so it's nice to see that the park looks to be doing alright.

 

As for Skull Mountain, it did actually run backwards for a while. If my memory serves me correctly, the boats used to get turned around right before the bunny hop drop, and then would float backwards through a tunnel before hitting the second turntable.

 

But anyway, I'm really enjoying this thread! Nice pictures, witty captions, everything is just fun to read!

[CPmaverick]

I was just at SFA and it wasn't as bad as I expected. The worst part was Superman being closed . Two things still amaze me about that park: One is how much worse Batwing is compaired to Firehawk, and two that Mind Eraser was my favorite ride in the park.

[packfanlv]

I am shy and often don't introduce myself to people either, but I couldn't avoid the Bebes at Termination Day. From the morning parking lot tram to walking out of the park at the end of the night, they were there at every turn. It was great meeting you guys and I want to thank Mr. Bebe for sharing the last ride of the night on Terminator with me.

 

So while the other Shawn didn't introduce himself, this one is glad he got to meet you guys. I hope to run into you again soon! By the way, I also think the Big Mike Western Headquarters idea is a great one!

[SuperShawn]

Next time I won't be shy and just start chatting away with the Bebe's when I see them. And If the Bebe's do invade the West Coast trip at a park I'll gladly come out just to say "hi" to them and everyone else.

 

Thanks again for the kind words Big Mike! I hope to ride X2 with you again at WCB 2010

[Capitalize]

Nice SFA TR! I'm going there in a few weeks with a bunch of friends from college, so it's nice to see that the park looks to be doing alright.

 

As for Skull Mountain, it did actually run backwards for a while. If my memory serves me correctly, the boats used to get turned around right before the bunny hop drop, and then would float backwards through a tunnel before hitting the second turntable.

 

But anyway, I'm really enjoying this thread! Nice pictures, witty captions, everything is just fun to read!

Correct. They stopped doing that 2-3 seasons ago when they gave the ride an extensive overhaul which has resulted in it actually being open every once in a while...

[The Bebes]

DAY 11: King’s Dominion

 

Thursday June 4, 2009

 

We woke up this morning hopeful that we would not get rained out and that all of the roller coasters at King’s Dominion would be fully operational. Rain was in the forecast for the next several days, so we put on our raincoats and headed to the breakfast room at the Days Inn Richmond on Chamberlayne Rd. The room wasn’t looking so good, the selection sparse, and then a cockroach ran out of the juice machine. We left the Days Inn and went to the McDonald’s across the street instead.

We stopped at a souvenir shop and spotted another “sad panda”. Hopefully the rain will avoid us and we won’t be sad pandas like Justin at our last theme park of TPT:P2; Busch Gardens Williamsburg…….

We went to dinner at Pierce’s Pitt BBQ. It was OK, but a little pricey for its portions. By the time we left it was pouring rain.

Another Days Inn. This one in Willimsburg, and much nicer than the last!

Mr. Bebe was obsessed with this freaky old Buick station wagon.

And then she TOUCHED it!!! Rumor has it that park management deemed it contaminated by Lady Bebe’s touch and had it replaced with a different ride. Does anybody know if that’s true?

Lady Bebe got out and got some close-up shots. This one has some writing on it if anyone cares to decipher its meaning.

We drove up closer to the pieces.

There were some workers building a fence to hold the parts, and the area of the fence was looking large.

On our way out, we noticed the new attraction parts near the main parking lot.

We ended up having a good day at King’s Dominion. We got every credit in the park, re-rides on most everything, and it only sprinkled a little bit.

We finished our day at King’s Dominion with four laps on Dominator. Does anybody know why the ride was re-painted a slightly orange color, but the first big loop is still Geauga Lake yellow??? Weird.

Do you want to S*CK my F*CK? Berserker!

As soon as Danielle took the last name of Giannantonio, she claimed to be Italian. And to prove it, she baked this pizza pie all by herself. It tasted like cardboard.

The seatbelts said “For Marine Use Only”. Since neither of us belongs to any branch of the armed services, we went without them for this ride.

Then we headed for a flat ride called space surfer. Just as we got there, it closed down. The problem seemed to be with the restraints releasing, so we waited nearby. It opened about 5 min later and we rode. The ride was not much more than a spinning swing ride.

We grabbed a bite to eat at Chick-fil-A. Yummy!!! Nuggets!!!

Our friend, Justin, who was supposed to come on the trip with us said that he was a “sad panda”; and this reminded us of him.

And another spin on Volcano. Farthest back this time, and it still creeped through the exterior elements. A fun ride at the start, but it needs a little more speed after exiting the Volcano.

Then we went deep into the heart of the Congo for a couple re-rides on Avalanche.

Mr. Bebe wonders if he is authorized to enter. But enters anyway. It was quite a fun launched spaghetti bowl in the dark. We rode twice.

I guess that’s it. No more coasters here at King’s Dominion. But it doesn’t add up. We’re missing Flight of Fear! It was completely closed when we were over by Anaconda in the morning and has no markings that lead people to it. Maybe it’s inside this warehouse over here.

We decided to ride Drop Zone. And although we had thought we had ridden one before, we were completely caught off-guard when it thrust us downward. That was pleasant.

The pre-ride show was even more fantastic!!!

Then it was Togo’s Masterpiece, Shockwave. Bad sign, bad paint job, bad mechanical design; but an all right ride overall. We did get jarred a little, but the layout was neat.

Time for Lady Bebe to take another spin on Toilet Bowl: The Ride.

Mr. Bebe spews into the trashcan after riding Hurler. It truly lives up to its’ name.

Hurler is open!!! Our hearts are mended! The ride was fine. Lots of good lateral G’s. It actually starts out good, but loses steam fast. We rode front and back. And WHY do they call it Hurler?

While we were on Grizzly, we saw that Hurler was testing.

We rode front and back. Not a bad ride, but all together forgettable.

Grizzly didn’t have anyone in line.

The wooden Grizzly bear in the queue violated Lady Bebe. Who wishes they were the groping grizzly?

Lady Bebe was doing the pee-pee dance, so she got the first re-ride of the day on Toilet Bowl: The Ride.

Unfortunately, Hurler was closed. The Bebes were heartbroken.

So we headed around the corner to Ricochet. Wild Mouse + The Bebes = Sucks.

We brandished our best Billy Idol faces for White Wedd…errr… Rebel Yell. And we cried, “More, More Mo-o-ore!!!” But we only rode it once. The weather was threatening and we needed to get all of our credits before there could be any re-rides.

Never-the-less, we waited for the front seat again. This time they strapped us in, and we were off! Whoosh!!! Acceleration…a turnaround …Whoosh!!! Straight up and out of the volcano. That was really neat and fun. But then, the train creeped through the rest of the ride. What’s with all of these trains going so slow today???

Of course, the line for Volcano: The Blast was a lot longer today than it was yesterday.

That brings us back to the coaster that we were unseated from yesterday due to inclement weather. And, as we had perfectly planned it, Volcano: The Blast would be our 150th career roller coaster.

Next, we were on to Anaconda, the arrow looper that goes over the water and through an underwater tunnel. This was another loser. It had a lot of trim brakes and took the course at about 7mph. After we got off, the lady behind us said “I didn’t think we were gonna make it through some of those inversions.” Neither did we.

BackLot Stunt Coaster. We tried to ride this three years ago at King’s Island and it broke down while we were in line. Finally, we get to try it out. NOBODY else went for this ride, so we hopped right in and off we went. Overall, it was sort of boring. It had a few neat moments but, overall, not too exciting. This was our one and only ride on BLSC.

But Lady Bebe stopped him to use the restroom.

Finally, they dropped the rope and release the park-goers. Mr. Bebe ran toward BackLot Stunt Coaster, his arms flailing like a madman.

There’s Dominator!!! Doesn't it have a nice yellow loop?

It was REALLY foggy this morning and most of our shots didn’t turn out.

We decided to go up the tower and snap some aerial overhead photos.

As soon as they opened the gates, everyone headed straight for Dominator and Berserker. We, on the other hand, went straight for BackLot Stunt Coaster. But the area was closed off. The only things open for the first half hour were Dominator, Berserker, and the Eiffel Tower.

There were so many school kids waiting to get in that we could hardly move. Mr. Bebe’s blood was really boiling now!

But we were able to snag a primo parking spot right in front of the main gate. Our spot from yesterday was two spaces closer, where the white PT Cruiser is now.

We headed to King’ Dominion, getting there about ten minutes before the gates opened. There were some buses in the parking lot, which made Mr. Bebe’s blood boil.

Our fingers were crossed in hopes that the rest of our trip was better than the Days Inn Richmond.

[cfc]

And WHY do they call it Hurler?

 

Well, the reason you posted, plus it used to be part of a section themed to Wayne's World. Yes, Wayne and Garth had their own realm at Kings Dominion. The Juke Box Diner used to be Stan Mikita's, and Garth's Gremlin was once parked out front.

 

Hurler has been running better this year. When it opened, it was great, but gradually degenerated into crap. The park has been doing some work on it over the last few seasons, though.

[Big Mike]

Wow, it seems Mrs. Bebe gets violated quite often at these theme parks, I like it! lol

 

 

Peace, Big Mike

[rollin_n_coastin]

Great thread! Not sure how I missed this before but glad I found it along with Big Mike's stuff of course.

 

The marketing guy at KD said that the loop was the star attraction and therefore to make it stand it, they gave it a different color. Did they do the same type of thing on a portion of Diamondback?

 

Anyways, great reading through and look forward to the rest. Oh, and if you made it to Busch, hope Hummel Boy didn't violate you both lol

 

Cheers,

Jason

[moinab]

I am in total agreement with you, on the sight of school busses!

 

I am loving your report, but I'm sad that we're nearing the end.

 

Perhaps I missed this somewhere, but inquiring minds want to know - what is the origin of the "Bebe" moniker?

[Calicoasters]

Another Great TR! You need to be more protective of Lady Bebe! Almost everywhere you guys have gone she has been assaulted! I hope those Bears at SFMM know how to keep it in their fur!

 

As for KD, it looks like a great park and Sarah loves anything with an Eiffel Tower! It is still on the "maybe list" for next year, but if this new coaster turns out as incredible as everyone is hoping for, it will move up to the "can we afford it this year list."

[SuperShawn]

Glad to see day number 2 worked out happier for you~

 

I'm also making a note to keep Lady Bebe away from any supports showing up at parks in the future.

[ajinaz]

A truly entertaining TR.

 

Loved the Love Among Freaks reference! (or was it Jay and Silent Bob?)

 

I also thought Volcano had a great start and then it goes on a Sunday stroll.

 

Do you guys post your hotel reviews on Trip Advisor? I know many would appreciate the cockroach story if they were contemplating a visit.