dougdrummer

In the lower right of the model base, there appears to be some kind of power pack with a plug in. Could this have been to power some type of lights on the model?

That's why I prefer a ride queue that sets a theatrical tone like Skull Mountain, as opposed to just watching TV videos. Obviously it is easier to accomplish this with indoor coasters, but the original queue for Batman: The Ride was a classic example of what can be done with outdoor ones. Too bad it was diminished over the years. The queue for Dark Knight was pretty good when it was opened, but it seems lame now and needs some kind of update.

isn't there some type of food truck event upcoming?

I would love to know how much money is saved by rotating coasters from one park to another vs. designing and building ones from scratch. Let's just say for argument's sake a new coaster cost $10M from start to finish. How much does it cost to dissemble an existing ride, pack it up, ship it across the country, build new foundations, reassemble the steel and build loading and queue areas? Is it only half of the $10M cost? For some reason I think it would be more than that, since you still have a lot of labor involved with dissembling and reassembling the coaster. And shipping of all those components cannot be cheap. There has to be some savings, but I'm not sure it's all that much. I think it is more about SF being able to move the rides around once they wear out their welcome (or having technical problems), as opposed to cost savings.

I just checked the roller coaster section of this website, and found a chart that indicated the number of coasters that were running at the park over the years. It is mind-boggling to me that there was never more than 5 coasters until 1996. And today we have 13 coasters! When it opened in 1974, there were only 2 coasters (Runaway and Big Fury?). Yikes! From 1996-1999, GA doubled the number of coasters to 10.

Just curious why GA never thought it was worth trying a full sit-down restaurant. And I assume the dining pass could not be used if they did convert to this format. I'd estimate the cost for a family of four would be in the order of $100 to eat dinner there. So I would think the profit margin would be significant. Do they not have the type of trained staff to work and manage a sit-down restaurant?

especially if 50% of attendees are season pass holders - with today's technology there is no excuse for communication I sign up for text updates from my local towns so that when anything is going on I know about it immediately (construction detours, amber alerts, etc).

annoying PETA is half the fun

The park map sure doesn't clearly indicate this pathway. I'm definitely going to try it next time. Do you have to enter and exit a building to access the pathway?

Tommy's Inn at Millstorne is not a very good restaurant. Last time we were there the food and service was terrible.

Thanks for the pics. In the one outdoor construction photo, what was being demolished that resulted in those large chunks of broken concrete? Was it a foundation of a building?

Why would GA want to control crowds? The more people that come to the park, even if with a season pass, the more revenue they generate in food, merchandise and service sales. Jacking up season passes a few bucks is not going to deter attendance too much, and certainly not make up for the millions that will be generated by those that come to the park. I think they need to spend more effort in modifying the park to accommodate the additional guests. 1) improve connectivity, signing and patron flow throughout the park (including reducing the number of "lands" within the park) 2) add more flats and small-scale rides 3) add more shows and small-scale entertainment

that is definitely going to be one of our strategies this season at least I won't have to wait in long lines to get something to eat....LOL

yeah - seems counterproductive to buy a meal plan, but have to wait in a long line to get the food you want....

and how long is the ride itself? at least an hour wait for a half hour safari ride is a reasonable ratio....

So what day during spring break next week will be the least crowded? We plan to attend either Monday or Wednesday.

I wonder what those lines are going to be like??

Ironically I understood the seatbelt and buckle right away because that is the old style used in cars when I was younger. LOL

Would a different lighting affect what or how riders experience it in any way?

I'm going to have to try a Nathan's dog when I return next Monday.

The Grand Illusion

It totally depends on the day, weather, crowds, lines, and whether we're more concerned about eating and drinking than riding attractions. With season passes and meal plans, we tend to just go towards certain parts of the park without doing general circle tours, because you aren't under any pressure to get everything in during one trip. cool discussion and poll, though!

I'm on the fence, but lean towards getting rid of it. I understand why they would have it, but after waiting an hour for a ride and watching group after group take the next car you expected to get on, it is pretty frustrating for those that are already spending a ton of cash just to visit without the flash pass.

What does the Joker look like at night during the regular season? I've only seen it at night during HITP.

As I said we waited an hour for the safari ride, yet our truck had at least 5-6 empty seats when we left the station. This attraction does not have the rollercoaster efficiency of two platforms where you exit to the right and enter from the left. thus speeding the process almost simultaneously. Instead, the trucks pull up to the beginning of the platform, people exit to the left, then the truck pulls forward again and people enter from the left. It probably takes close to five minutes to load each truck, ensuring everyone is buckled and the side grate is placed in the upright position. Rarely did I even see two trucks at the platform at the same time. I don't know how long the line gets for this attraction in the peak periods of summer, but it can't be good. They really ought to blow up the loading/unloading system and start from scratch.