QueerRudie Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 (edited) In September last year I attended my first TPR event at Deep South Bash in Atlanta- and realized something rather important: WHY WASN'T I ATTENDING MORE OF THESE THINGS? Fast forward to February 16-20 2012: Or as I'd like to call it.... QueerRudie DOES WCB So let's start off with the voyage and days leading UP to WCB 2012. After some conversations with some of my friends around TPR, we decided that we'd like to visit as much as possible- and as little time as possible- a daunting task for a smaller area such as Atlanta or Dallas- but one of epic proportions for something like LA. I'd not been to most of these parks in over a decade, so grabbing credits was a key issue here- and I will say that I was for the most part successful in my endeavours. Day 1 begins with a mid-day departure from my current home of Phoenix to the crater of blight... LAX. Mind you, I hate LAX. I REALLY hate LAX. We're talking with a gun to my head I go there. But for a total airfare of 5.00, I'll go... reluctantly. Domo and I packed our suitcases, and headed to the airport... as always, Domo had a better boarding number than I did- as he's just cool like that! DOMO! Domo is a good Southwest Airlines passenger- and always keeps his seatbelt fastened when seated... A brief hour flight and I'm in the City of Angels, but somehow, it's LAX, and it's hell on Earth. Whomever designed LAX terminal 1 was obviously born with no arms, no brain and missing a foot, as it is readily apparent that humans were NOT part of the design process. It is a long way from anywhere at LAX to get to anywhere at LAX. Did I mention that LAX sucks? Really. LAX SUCKS. So leaving on the Super Shuttle for Knotts, LA decided to give me it's finest welcome it could ever give! OK: WTF? At least the driver had a good humor about him, and the trip took about 50 minutes overall. My roomate/partner in crime for most of this voyage wasn't due in till a bit later than I was- so after dropping my luggage at Knotts, it was time for some BEE-R-T. Red Trolley Lager... NUMMY! So while Chad and others ventured forth to see other things in the LA area, I chilled out, had a nice dinner at Mrs. Knott's and then started my ritual of being in a hotel. In my case, this means unpacking, ironing, refolding the towels, and cleaning. (Yes, I do have OCD. Get over it. The towels must be folded right- and that's not a request.). As I finished up the ironing, I had a most unpleasant surprise... The iron committed suicide. Really- that's no joke. I killed the iron. And I still had four towels left, too. NOOOO!!!! R.I.P. Hotel Iron. You died valiantly in the battle of the misfolded towels. Mourning the Iron, I slept preparing for Disney the next morning- something that I was looking foward to in every way... DAY 2: Disney or DEATH! Morning comes early, and it's time to conquer Disney. With the most generous help of a friend, I had the two parks in Anaheim for free- and I am so very grateful to her for that! So this would be a rather interesting trip, as I had several things to visit to gain the ever-elusive and growing list of credits to my name. I'd yet to visit DCA, so for me this would be a new park- and a whole other experience. Meeting up with Jo at her hotel, it was time to go to the Happiest place on Earth! (No, it ISN'T Muensterhausen, Germany...) DL was starting the Mardi Gras stage and performances in New Orleans Square... and with it being President's Day weekend, it was, well, a wee bit crowded... however I do get one advantage: The LineBuster 3000! For the most part, it came in handy with DisneyLand- and we were able to access some of the more crowded attractions easily. Jo, First thing in the morning... Chad first thing in the morning... (Don't they just look SOOOO happy that I'm taking first thing in the morning pics???) First up for the day was StarPort 77... AKA Space Mountain. Meeting up with two MORE TPR people- Gregg and his son Josh, we formed a perfect group of six for a voyage into the dark recesses of Anaheim. SP77 is a great ride, and while I prefer the original SP75 in Orlando, it still packs a decent punch and is a fun ride for all. Heading out of there, a Jedi Mind Trick was used to load us onto StarTours II- which was for me a great experience- even with C3P0 being a lousy pilot. I sort of regret having eaten this before boarding, though: Tasty! Following StarTours, I saw a very interesting character patrolling the galaxy close close to here... Storm troopers invaded StarPort 77... NICE! For me, some of the fun of DL was spending time with people I truly care about- and that made it that much better for me. It helps that they have similar personalities all around- and I do enjoy having them around. Seeing a park like Disney with them will be a highlight of my life- and as much as they might not realize it, that is a very special thing to me- and something I cherish deeply. Onto my curse: For 21 years now, I have had a curse around my neck: Every Vekoma Roller Skater ride I've ever tried to ride has, in one form or another, broken down or was closed for repairs at EVERY SINGLE PARK I'VE BEEN TO. That's not a a joke. So, since DL wasn't an announced stopover for me, I figured I would sneak up on one, and try to score it when it wasn't looking. We migrated to ToonTown... and there it was waiting for me: Gadget's Go Coaster. The elusive Vekoma Rollerskater... Fortunately- there was success this time- and five of us piled into the small train and logged in this credit for me- finally. I guess it really WAS a Magic Kingdom for me that day! A quick trip around the park via the WD RR, and a few of us were off to the wonderful world of Disney's Construction Adventure, opposite the Magic Kingdom. This was a new park for me, and while the park was full of construction walls, it was still a nifty place to visit. Walking in, I got a preview of an attraction that was forthcoming for me: Soarin'. OOOH! Plane credit! Hotel in the trees... A short walk around towards the back of the park, and we meet up with the fun that is California Screamin. This was a new credit for me, and one that I was looking foward to, considering my, um, 'feelings' towards fine Swiss-German quality. CS did not disappoint at all- and was a very interesting ride from all perspectives. The loading/unloading of it was amazing to see- and extremely efficient in every way. MMMmmm... Intamin Looper goodness! Launch Track goodness READY... SET... GO! Switch track porn for those who like that sort of thing (You know who you are...) More switch track Porn... Platform porn... I found this interesting... trains are coloured AND numbered! I found Mickey's Wheel to be the most creative use of theming yet- and it fit so nicely into the Boardwalk area. Mind you, I don't generally do ferris wheels- and this was no exception- but it sure did look awful pretty! A good use of theming- and a nifty looking ride overall. Mickey has a HUUUUGEE wheel for a mouse. While I also missed out on the flying swings, they too looked amazing to see in person. OOH! Silver swingy thingies! One of the things I found interesting about DCA was that you could get alcohol there... Some of us partook in said libations- which would be needed for my next conquest du jour. Jo and the pink lemonade thingy... Jo and a blue thingy... After letting liquid strength set in, it was time to conquer a major fear of mine: I don't do freefalls/Drop towers. At all. As in: I've been on ONE up to this point- and I -hated- it. I am not a freefall type, never have been, never will be. And Hollywood Tower Of Terror is PROOF of that for me. I will give them redit, the theming was over the top in every way, and I was thoroughly impressed with how they handle the masses in this key attraction for DCA. Tower's Lobby Even the dust was themed well. Theming- CHECK. I had the urge to find a shampooing machine and clean this... I really did. Details everywhere- and yet no dusting rags! Even the pipes are perfectly broken... Perfectly built junk... I had to resist the urge to reach over and sweep the dust off. At this point, I knew that things were going to get hairy. I was right. I won't bore y'all with details from this point forth. Suffice to say, I was scared S#@!less on ToT, and was justifiably paid back in spades on it. I think I bent the steel pipe in front of me grabbing on for dear life above. NOT FUN. What's weird: I turned as white as the ghosts in the attraction in terror on it- and I'm very happy to say I won't be returning to Tower Of Terror again. Ever. I mean that. NEVER. This poster was just plain cool: COOL POSTER! Heading back to the Magic Kingdom, I wanted to log in a few of the 'standard' credits- including Haunted Mansion, Splash Mountain ("Don't worry- you won't get wet on this ride!" Best lie I'd heard in a while...) and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Timing the return for the parade, it was a bit crowded, but we were able to knock out most of the Dark rides in Fantasyland- as well as dinner and the aformentioned above rides. New Orleans Square Big Thunder Mountain: Still fun after all these years! And around it goes! This ride is beyond photogenic! TRAIN CROSSING! This was a 'lost' portal that belonged to the first 'mine train' at Disneyland- and I loved seeing a little bit of history while wandering around there! As darkness fell across Anaheim, I found myself by myself and decided to take some time to revisit one of my favorite rides... STARPORT 77! I've always had a fondess for Space Mountain, and all it's siblings- so it is fitting that this would close out this segment of my TR- with a few geekshots of details in the entry queue! SP77 logo- nifty! Cool touch to the theming! An interesting bit of trivia: StarPort 77's 'track' is known as Gamma... while StarPort 75's tracks are Alpha and Beta. Disney thinks of everything... Coming soon: Part II: Whoring out at SFMM... R.D. Edited March 6, 2012 by QueerRudie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GriffyTiffy Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Nice report RD! I can't wait to see more pictures of Jo. Oh, and coasters too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chadster Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 At least next time take my photo from my good angle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Intimidator305 Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Nice trip report so far. I saw some shots of the parks I haven't seen before. Too bad you missed the DCA fight! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbalvey Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 At least next time take my photo from my good angle. You don't have a good angle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Clinksalot Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Just wanted to add a couple of pics from the "other" side of the Disney day. RD, Jo and Chad at Disneyland. It truly is the end of the world. I still found it quite hard to believe that RD had never been on a RollerSkater, and we were quite privileged to be there to see RD pop his Cherry. Mission Accomplished!! Can't wait to see more RD. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-Edge of Beast- Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Those constant facebook posts were taunting me. Hate you RD and Jo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chroniq Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Great trip report so far. If you don't post the next update in 7 days, I'm going to force you to ride tower of terror again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sspaz1000 Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Great start to the report RD! One day I'll get to meet you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Clinksalot Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 RD, I know you said you are done with Tower ... but you MUST ride Tower in FL once. I'll ride another crappy woodie with you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanic Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Looking forward to more. Sorry that it didn't work out for me to go to WCB this year so that I could meet you Rudie, but that's what next year is for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fatdaddy Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Since I missed this day, by default...YOU SUCK! This is a good start, keep it going! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coreysjunk Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Nice TR so far QueerRudie. Sorry we didn't meet at KBF. I was with some other queers (see fat daddy). ^^Missed you this year Mechanic John! -Mr. Bebe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jojo19799 Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Since I missed this day, by default...YOU SUCK! This is a good start, keep it going! Didn't I see you at ElecTRONica that night? On another note - glad to see there are NO airport photos of me this time around!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larrygator Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Might I request a photo of a properly ironed and folded towel? I'm quite intrigued! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrisrad Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 ^ I'm still waiting - I only got to see the iron carnage on FB. Great TR so far, RD. It was nice going to Adventure City with you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chadster Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Might I request a photo of a properly ironed and folded towel? I'm quite intrigued! I know I didn't take a foto of one but I can contest, he pulled out all the towels, ironed and refolded them, organized his belongings in the drawers, wiped down the furniture, folded the unwanted bed spreads, yes I said spreads as in plural as in there were two beds in the room, not to mention the ironed underwear. Having not my head on straight, I should have left my clothes on the bed, they would have been ironed and organized. Then the maid tidy's the room and refolds the unused towels...the sh!t hit the fan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrisrad Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jojo19799 Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 I have one thing to say: NO WIRE HANGERS!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbear30 Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 QR, I can attest to the drop tower thing. I absolutely hate them as well and have promised my husband that I won't ever ride one again. I can do some small shot towers, but NO drop towers. They scare the SH*T out of me. So if (or when) you move to the ATL and go with us on trips you will have someone to hang out with when everyone else is riding drop towers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
netdvn Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Wait so someone convinced you to ride Tower of Terror AND Splash Mountain? What has this world come to? On another note, I thought Space Mtn in FL was Alpha and Omega. I had no idea DL had a name for their track. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueerRudie Posted February 22, 2012 Author Share Posted February 22, 2012 Great trip report so far. If you don't post the next update in 7 days, I'm going to force you to ride tower of terror again Ask and you shall receive, Chris! RD, I know you said you are done with Tower ... but you MUST ride Tower in FL once. I'll ride another crappy woodie with you. You're going to have to up the ante with that, Gregg... I mean REALLY up the ante. On another note - glad to see there are NO airport photos of me this time around!! From DSB in September, let there be... JO in the AIRPORT! Sorry, Jo. It wouldn't be a PTR without a picture of you in an airport! QR, I can attest to the drop tower thing. I absolutely hate them as well and have promised my husband that I won't ever ride one again. I can do some small shot towers, but NO drop towers. They scare the SH*T out of me. So if (or when) you move to the ATL and go with us on trips you will have someone to hang out with when everyone else is riding drop towers! Oddly enough, at DSB I was the 'bagholder' for a whole bunch of TPR people under Acrophobia... I guess I AM the purse-bearer for the group. On to the show- of Day 2! Six Flags Magic Mountain: The morning was a very early start for us as we headed North by Northwest to Valencia- and Six Flags Magic Mountain. I wasn't quite prepared for the bonechilling tempertures that presented themselves, but I have no complaints at all, as it could be a LOT worse. This was my first time back to SFMM since Batman: The ride was new, and quite a bit has changed to me from year to year. The first stop was to pick up tickets, and figure out were to go and what to do early on. Since most of the parks' ERT attractions were towards the back of the park, it would be a TON of walking early on- and my body wasn't too happy with this. SFMM: BRING BACK IN PARK TRANSPORTATION. Chad messaging- again. What will we call the tickets? SFMM's PR staff - with the lanyards, wristbands and other fun stuff. The Boss... and The Boss's Woman. Tickets in hand, it was time to start the mad rush towards the back... save one thing: Guest Services was open, but nobody was home. (You may insert joke here if you wish.) After a 15 minute delay, stop off for juice and donuts, it was off to start riding. First on the list was Colossus, which proved to be a decent ride (at least to me) compared to years in the past. Mind you, I recall the days in [CLASSIFIED] when it had the double-downs, and the three-bench trains. Onto Goliath, which to me was not a bad little ride, very smooth, nice views, etc. However, I found the Gs lacking all over- and while the floater gs along the course were nice, the positive Gs were, to me at least, totally lacking. Not even a hint of brownout... Up the hill I started with Pup in tow, and onto Green Lantern. Here is where I give the warning: R.D. does not spin or rotate. However, being the whore I am, this did not stop me. It should have. So onto the Intamin Zac-Spin we went. Nerdporn. I see you Intamin fanboys. Go ahead, get your kleenex out. Something seems missing here... oh wait. It's the shell that hides the 'dirty parts' of GL More Intaporn. Go ahead, take a look. GL doesn't mind. One of the things I found most disconcerting about GL was how difficult it was to get into- The seats are built for safety for all guests, but for me it was nearly impossible to wrench my fat a$$ into them without aid of a stool and the help of another person. I don't expect any manufacturer to build a car/ride seat for the handicapped- but for F&%@$ sake they could at least TRY to make them easier to get into and out of! The ride itself was quite smooth, and very different. However, that is the last compliment I will pay to that *&@#$%@#$#@ ride. Any time I turn green on a ride, it's bad. Any time I can feel breakfast making a round trip, it is worse. Two sick sacks WAY up. Honestly, I don't care what people say. This ride made me seriously queasy all over. Looking up Green Lanterns' goodies... After a bit of 'recovery' time, it was off to ride Batman: THE CLONE in the same hues as it's Georgian cousin. Access to the ride was considerably easier than the previous attractions, and I found that the ride itself was running quite well- smooth, fast and thrilling. Onto Riddler's Revenge, which to me was a very pleasant surprise overall. The walk into the ride reminded me a great deal of walking through the far recesses of a long lost world- or perhaps O'Hare airport. Finally getting to the platform area and, gasp! It appears there are lockers! lockers as far as the eye can see!' I did Riddler in the front- and it was quite nice... but for the real money, I did Riddler in the rear- which was AMAZING all over. VERY powerful and potent, and forceful- just the way I like it. By this point in the day, the park began to open, giving me a chance to do GoldRusher, which yet again was a gem of a ride- despite the LOW LOW CLEARANCES of the bushes along the course. The views from the course DID provide for some nifty views of the future 14 inversion wooden LIM Shuttle Aquatrax coaster site. It's good to see one coaster preserved like that- especially a decent mine train with interesting two-tube construction. After Goldrusher, and yet another long walk, we came to Termocalypse/Apocanator. This was another first ride for me, and a genuinely good wooden coaster from GCI- smooth, fast and thrilling. And with FIRE, too! Termocalypse flying under the exit ramp. Termocalypse Porn... if you dare! Clmbing over the top of the mountain, I soon grabbed a reservation for Tatsu as we headed towards lunch at the picnic groves- on the other side of nowhere. I will give SFMM credit: If one wants to lose 20 pounds, they will do it for you! A quick stop after lunch provided my second roller-skater credit in the form of Road Runner's Express. Not surprising at all was the number of fellow TPR members whoring out this junior coaster- to the point that there were more of 'us' in the line than children. Also, true to my form, Road Runner broke down after the first of what was to be two rides... go figure! Returning up the mountain (AGAIN!) but this time by the Funicular Railway- and down to Tatsu. It isn't any secret that i don't dig heights; and once again, the 'Must get the credit' part of my brain kicked in. I really do need to get this fixed... One thing I did notice was the, well, discolouration of the track and supports- as in: What was once orange was now a light pale pink... Hmmm- it looks ORANGE from here... Tatsu was a good ride overall- but the height element on it pretty much has guaranteed it to be a 'one-off' ride. And, well, Pup learned the hard way that one should ALWAYS secure all loose articles before riding- as his keys went flying off to the base of the pretzel-loop element... WARNING: THE NEXT SECTION CONTAINS ADULT MATERIAL. VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED. As most people now know, I have a certain 'orientation' that is well known around TPR as being to the edge of extreme. I'll admit it: I'm out, I'm Proud, and I'm not hiding it: I'm a Schwarzphile. Only Anton knows how to give it to me, and give it to me good. Revolution, the first modern looping coaster still reigns over her mountainside setting like the day she opened 35 years ago. Sadly, though, the aftermarket remods for this ride have taken a terrible toll on the ride itself, and it feels nothing like it did in it's younger days. Even I found some of these changes were far too drastic- and I'm sure Herr Achterbahn rolled in his grave when they added trim brakes and stations. His finest shape- despite the 'other' things encroaching... Overall, Revolution was running quite well- save the 'stop on a dime' braking to slow the ride down. For those of you who haven't ridden Revolution before all the atrocities commited against it, please don't hold those things against it. Revolution ran perfectly well for 20 years before they started to 'change' the ride drastically- and may I say this: There is NO REASON for those OTSRs to be on the ride at all- despite what some SFMM staff may say. Hopefully, with the overhaul of sooderdooperLooper at HersheyPark this year, SFMM might get the hint to restore Revolution to its original glory again. I see you, naked and waiting, dripping with wet lube... It's good to see you today... It looks like there's something waiting for me there. So, your place or mine? Anton did treat me well, though, and through 19 rides over the day it was quite good- for everyone who could bear the atrocities that were done to it. At night the ride flew quite nicely, and reminded me of why Anton does it right every time. At this point, my camera started to act very flaky. Sadly, none of the pictures from this point on turned out well enough to be used in this portion of the thread, so let me give a brief rundown of the rest of the evening: Q&A was followed by a quick trip down to Scream to log it as a credit, then out to 'liquid dinner' with Chad and a few others. Returning to SFMM, I headed up to Ninja- and had six very good rides on an old Arrow classic that still packs a bit of a punch- and officially closed out my 'North American' suspended coaster credits. Down to Viper, where I discovered this: Ouch. Viper sucker-punched me in the jaw. TWICE. After moving back a row, Viper then did an upper cut to the chin, followed by a right hook to the shoulder. To close out the day was a ride on yet another "I shouldn't do this, but I need the credit" rides: X2. Now, I will give evey ride a chance, and X2 was no exception to the rule. Not a bad ride, but the 'falling face first thing I could have done without. And there was FIRE! Overall, not a bad way to end out the evening at SFMM. Coming soon: Part III: Knott's Berry Farm... and I feel up Monte. R.D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sspaz1000 Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Great SFMM update. Someday I'll get to other California parks besides Disney, and not be in a hurry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
screaminkid2005 Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 A quick stop after lunch provided my second roller-skater credit in the form of Road Runner's Express. Not surprising at all was the number of fellow TPR members whoring out this junior coaster- to the point that there were more of 'us' in the line than children. Also, true to my form, Road Runner broke down after the first of what was to be two rides... go figure! I was on that train also!!! I wonder if it counts as a half credit because it only went around once! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philrad71 Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Nice report, RD...I wished I could have done WCB this year, but I had to miss it by a couple of days because of work scheduling/training. Did get out to LA (from LV) on Thursday & Friday to get in KBF (first time) & a Hollywood bus tour, but had to skip Disney and SFMM this time around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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