Namtab 2013 at Great America

I keep hearing about trip reports but I keep not seeing any links.

You are right. Now that I had more time, I went back and read a lot of recent trip reports. Most of the reports from last year were pretty good. 2011 was a little bit iffy. 2010 was a little worse. I didn't go back any further than that.

---Corporations are people too: A mini play by Lost Kause----

SF: Gimme all your money! HEHEHEHE! :p

LK: Not this time SF.

SF: BUT-BUT- Aren't we still friends? :(

LK: No, dude. Not really. You stole thousands of dollars from me throughout the years. You don't steal from friends.

SF: But I have changed. I don't steal anymore. I haven't stole form you in like eight years.

LK: Yea, I know. That's because I quit handing my money over to you expecting something in return.

SF: Come on, man. Trust me. I've changed. I don't do that crap anymore. I'm a new man. Gimme your money! ...Pleeeeease? O:) I'll give you what you want in return. I promise.

LK: I'd be a fool to ever trust you again, dude.

SF: Come on man. All your buddies give me their money nowadays. They like it.

LK: Nope. I'm going to give it to other guys like Kings Island and Cedar Point. They appreciate it.

SF: Well, can you at least quit telling people about me stealing from you? It was a long time ago. I don't want you to keep me from stealing from-err I mean- I don't want you to talk people out of giving me all their money. Please?

LK: Whatever, dude. Just leave me alone already.

Wow.

What scares me is that I think you really buy into what you wrote.

Whoa... Travis I generally like reading your posts, but that was just...weird.

Sure you don't want to delete that before it becomes a classic, for all the wrong reasons? lol

I'm almost glad I haven't been a raging enthusiast for all that long because I have never had such a bad experience where I swore off Six Flags for good. The closest I could think of to bad was the Maryland SF, and it wasn't because anyone was rude or there were long lines or anything...it was that the rides looked to be so poorly maintained, with no landscaping and most of them in dire need of paint jobs. It was more depressing than BAD. But I think every chain has its problems, and I like and dislike each one for different reasons.

I've had considerably more positive surprises than negative ones from SF in the last 5-6 years or so...

Have I mentioned the hot day we were visiting SFStL a couple years ago and I casually mentioned to the board op on Knievel how great his cup of ice-water looked? We pull into the station, and he hands me an icy-cold cup....

There are more and more stories like this one nowadays, and WAY fewer ones like the "bad old days" at SFA and SFMM...yes, there were times when an overflowing trash can seemed to be the corporate logo....but the restructuring has left a very different group in charge.

I think that I will write in mini play form a lot more. That was kind of fun. :)

I'm okay with you all being friends with SF. I don't have to hang out with SF though.

I'll probably give in this year and visit a SF park again, if it is convenient to whatever else I am already doing at the time. If it turns out to be craptacular like before, you don't know how disappointed I would be.

Talking about this bores me...

LostKause said:

Talking about this bores me...

Apparently not.

Thinking about all this backwards on Batman business, I ran across an early B&M rendering in Rollercoaster! magazine, where the ride originally only had 3 inversions: 2 vertical loops and one corkscrew.

This is going to breath some fresh new life into an already popular ride. Good for them for doing creative and cool things to increase profits.

From a marketing perspective (Cause, ya know, that's what I do), I think it's a great way to add something 'new' with very little cost. If they're making a special Chassis(s?) to accomodate the backwards ride, that can be purchased and then moved around to different parks over the next few seasons when those parks aren't getting any new 'real' attractions, then great.

Market this with a new show or nite time spectacular, and you've REALLY got something.

It may be fun, it may not, but that doesn't stop people from riding Ninja @ SFoG.

^I'm glad people like Ninja. And Superman and Goliath. More quality Mind Bender time for me :)

I wonder if Great America will be paying a higher insurance with the ride backwards? Eventually, it would be cool to have some cars forwards, some backwards - like Thunderation was. And think about a double loading station like Stormrunner - one can be forward, one backward. Superman backwards would be very strange...

Six Flags keeps turning around rides I'd rather not ride backwards while Cedar Fair turns my favorite backwards coaster forward. I'm looking at you Racer.

Yea, that will remain one of my biggest Cedar Fair disappointments ever, with one of the lamest excuses I ever heard. So I doubt we'll see them jump on the bandwagon any time soon, as "gimmicky" attractions just aren't their thing.
I expected/hoped to be able to ride backward Gemini one day. But again, they'd be compelled to operate both red and blue sides even on slow days. Oh well.

I've never understood why parks take certain rides that were SUPPOSED to run backwards and then stopped running them backwards. Like Musik Expresses. I liked backwards Musik Express.

Especially if it involved backwards Lisa P.

^^That really sounded dirty. Yes of course my mind went there.

Forget Musik Express, what about the Matterhorn. Best backwards ride ever.

Touchdown said:

Forget Musik Express, what about the Matterhorn. Best backwards ride ever.

When did those 2 stop running backwards?

I didn't want to post this in the Day in Pictures forum, because it belongs here.

This is regarding Tech's hilllarrrrious joke about ride closures. If a park as a legitimate reason for a ride closure, like if there were a major accident or malfunction on that kind of ride somewhere else in the world, I'm okay with it. If they close rides because of mismanaging the staff retention, or because of unnecessary maintenance or adding or remove ride features during the busy season, I am not all for it. Unforeseeable ride closures for safety reasons are different than planned ride closures and mismanagement.

Twist my words all you want, friend. I'll kindly straighten it out over and over. :)

I'm not twisting you words, they're twisted enough. I thought you were bored talking about this?

Oh, right.