DaptoFunlandGuy

That's a pretty strong prediction Matt - any sources or more info?

Dinosaur Island eh? that sounds familiar....

I've a feeling that there is more than one Bermuda alien on these boards... some of them in better condition than others...

Cooper - although I don't believe this plan is suggesting any changes to our own park, we have long discussed the need in our Sea World for a better balance on rides than current. Consider the non-animal line-up Sea World has right now: Flume Coaster Water CoasterFlume (Battle) Boat ride Play structures Kiddie Area For these purposes i'm not considering transport rides. Now consider the animal attractions: Shark Bay, incorporating 4 different 'hands on' experiences: Reef Snorkel Touch Pools Shark Encounter Scuba Glass Bottom Boat Polar Bear Shores Polar Bear Pre-School Ray Reef (including ray feeding) Seal Sea Lion enclosure Penguin Enclosure ANOTHER penguin enclosure Fish (feeding near the bridge) Seal Sea Lion Show Dolphin Nursery Dolphin Show Dolphin Encounters (deep water shallow water) Trainer for a day I'm kind of torn in relation to the Cinema... it doesn't have animals, but it's about animals... Sea World San Diego has an attraction in this category (for me) which is a motionbase simulator, that takes you on a journey to the arctic Antarctic, after which you are deposited in the middle of their 'polar' exhibits including bears, penguins etc. SO in my opinion, there are 4 rides an adult is going to ride - 3 of which are water rides... sucks in winter. I could see our Sea World going down the line of broadening the animal exhibits - but they have no more room for a major enclosure (short of the 'wild' space), and any major enclosure is going to require too much back of house filtration equipment for the space they have. They could enter into a partnership like other zoos and take on some of the animals they have in the American Sea World parks - like Otters etc. Orcas are definitely out, no matter how much anyone may want them, Blackfish has put the kybosh on that ever happening anywhere. All that said, I actually found San Diego to have a VERY nice balance between animals and rides... so while I can't speak for Orlando or Texas, I don't think its a fair comment to say they are all too heavy on rides.

^it certainly does look it, but not quite. If in fact it is, Atari's attention to detail has slipped dramatically. That looks like a double-decker carousel, but with teacups. There wouldn't be a counter-rotation inside the ride-base. What an exciting announcement - Suddenly - everyone's interest is piqued once again... I'll just wait and see what Joz can do with it.

Sorry are we talking about the same film - Rollercoaster - 1977 starring George Segal (most known for his portrayal of Jack Gallo in 'Just Shoot Me'), and not starring, featuring or even crediting Steve Guttenberg? (who played an unnamed, unimportant and most of all uncredited messenger?) You're shooting down an entire film (which was actually fantastic for its day) because of an extra who later became someone?

We finished off with the non swinging seats on Mickeys fun wheel. I do wonder why they went to the expense of building it below water level? My first thought was probably a height restriction in OC, but then my brain when 'duh... this is Disney'... my next thought is probably the aesthetics - they wanted the fun wheel, and they wanted screamin, but at level, Cal Screamin would be not even half the height of the wheel. Looking at some of my pics from different angles, the wheel has a nice balance in comparison with the other rides surrounding it - it doesn't dwarf anything nor does it seem too big. Probably not a big consideration but because the loading area is ramped at each end, if they had built it on the same level as the rest of the park, the loading ramps would be a couple metres above that... I'm sure someone else has wondered the reason - time for some googling!

reverse the train backwards and relaunch as a new ride...

Admittedly though, Vekoma SLCs aren't exactly regarded nicely no matter how well maintained they are - although the Arkham train has certainly softened it up a little. Onwards with a different off-topic topic - didn't think we needed another 5 post thread... Jokers Jinx at SFA in Maryland has had a high-sided stall... http://www.news.com.au/world/roller-coaster-the-jokers-jinx-at-six-flags-america-maryland-is-stuck-with-24-people-on-board/story-fndir2ev-1227020036768 Roller coaster The Joker’s Jinx at Six Flags America, Maryland is stuck with 24 people on board 24 minutes ago August 11, 2014 7:52AM Roller coaster Joker's Jinx stuck at Six Flags in Marylands. Photo: Twitter @Fox29philly MyFoxPhilly Source: Supplied AUTHORITIES say a roller coaster carrying 24 people has become stuck near the top of the ride and fire officials are trying to rescue them at Six Flags America in Maryland. Prince George’s County Fire officials were called to The Joker’s Jinx roller coaster at the park just before 2:30pm Sunday. No injuries have been reported. Assistant Fire Chief Paul Gomez says the riders are sitting upright near the top of the ride. He says it will likely take a few hours to get them down. It’s not clear what caused the ride to get stuck. Telephone and email messages left for a Six Flags spokeswoman were not immediately returned. Six Flags’ website says the ride goes 96.5km per hour and turns upside down four times. There are more pictures at the above link.

I wouldn't say bad - for it's day the special effects were incredible.

Wedgie may be a term coined by americans, it also fits with the Australian surf culture (and is apt to the ride). As Richard said, it wasn't 'Aussie' themed, it was 'Aussie Beach' themed, hence the giant thongs, blue ringed octopus, the rip, they're all tied into something to do with the Australian Surf.

But then they'd shortsightedly lose their Q4u revenue! Even if they increased percap across the park, they'd only focus on the fact that they were losing Q4U money. I don't think DW is quite ready for a free fastpass system - the rides they have don't lend well to a limited number of paid jumpers, let alone an every-body free-for-all. I agree the Disney system led me to spend money i wouldn't have if i were queueing. We didn't always get one pass and then re-queue for another - sometimes we shopped while waiting for our ride... so there is merit in the system, but the catch is that Disney's people munching mega-rides - rides that dont stop like the omnimover system are capable of letting an extra 4-8 people in every few minutes. Nobody in the queue notices... can you imagine letting 4-8 people in every few minutes on ToT? Or GD? thats pretty well the entire ride vehicle. They need rides capable of supporting a 4-8 person 'blip' before they could introduce something like that. They don't NEED a transfer track - they could mount a second train on the track and adapt the PLC programming to allow for it fairly easily - but it would mean that for 10 months of the year, they're wearing out two sets of wheels and bearings instead of one. Two trains running doesn't halve your usage, because there are the inevitable 'empty cycles' they would have to run to send one train out so they could unload the other. Many possibilities, many ways to cut corners, but at the end of the day - not going to happen.

Nothing more Aussie than beach surf life savers - Red and Yellow, on a sandy coloured beach... those colours fit... (I don't agree that it is Maroon - it looks a solid red to me). Triple Vortex as a name has me at a loss however. Nobody thought that through.

It will never happen - Dreamworld needs to be able to park the train out of the way so that they only run 1 train during busy periods. Two train operation only occurs when there is a film crew in the park, or a special media event. Without a transfer track, it's a very difficult process to put a train on just for a media day... plus - where would they store it? Seriously though - its a great idea (and anyone who doesn't want to ride kumbak still has the option not to) but from a dreamworld perspective - this would only add to their maintenance costs (two trains instead of one) without any real payoff for them except increased efficiency capacity. not going to happen.

That reference was already made a couple days ago Gazza - you're in the wrong timezone... go back to sleep! Awesome - colours already proven to fade their asses off in 12-18 months time... this will be their 'constrictor' lol.

^some would just call that "true to walt's original design" which would instantly make it the pinnacle of dark-boat-rides. You'd get away with a bodgie ceiling in the 60's - nobody cared. they all just said 'wow'. I sometimes think we set our expectations too high these days, and look for fault deliberately.

No - but it's far easier to fly a lighting truss when there's nothing on the ground below it.

I watched both videos side by side, and made my judgment based off them alone. Because the buggies force you to face a certain way, there is a lot of detail "off to the left" as you enter the room that you don't see until you're near Ariel. With the new lighting it appears to be lost. I realise it's only a video, but as Rappa just said above - I don't think the target demographic had any issue with how it was lit in the past. That said - it does appear lit with more than just blacklight and I haven't seen the new version in person... so i'll give it the benefit of the doubt. Looking at the pics (and my knowledge of the show building) aren't the lights suspended below the curved ceiling by chain? It may serve to minimise the visibility. It'd be nice if MW had someone with a bit of flair for theatrical lighting who could go in there and light it up subtly, rather than with glaring warehouse lighting... all about the budget though i'm sure. I have personally seen Pirates ceiling, but you aren't looking for it. Mansion is the same, although they do use several scrims in the 'very obvious' spots. RSR and Splash is done very well, but nevertheless still visible. It's Small World i'm really pointing at as far as visible ceilings, as each 'country' room is short, so long-distance viewing of everything is rare - it means you are always going to look straight up to see characters and thats where the roof tiles come into focus. The only point i'm trying to make is that one member stated MW's "plain black ceilings" are "annoying". Since Disney is usually held out to be the pinnacle of dark rides, I was just trying to point out that they don't do it much differently from MW, so either they're terrible too, or MW isn't as bad as made out.

GGB - there is a lot less to do with rust, and a lot more to do with structural integrity. It's been said a few times that cracks had been identified in the track, and last overhaul they were x-raying the track and doing all sorts of things. Yes the corrosive environment would not have helped, but I don't think "rust" is the issue that has been cited.

See, I think thats rather horrible. There is so much detail in that room and much of it is lost in the darkness now. It was such a brightly lit room with some wonderful characters spaced around the room - now you don't really notice the characters suspended from the roof - and even down to the little details - like the spinning starfish on some of the rocks are barely there anymore. If it wasn't "under the sea-ish" enough, they could have fixed it with some water effect lighting. I preferred it lit up. The ride is aimed at children and they aren't going to give a shit about the roof. I am glad they fixed Ariel up though - the old animatronic had a munted face... the new one is a bit nicer - and her hair has been made to look more natural realistic now too.

Seaplanes as a theme confirmed in an email from Dreamworld: Get ready to be WipedOut! We are excited to announce one of our favourite rides, The Wipeout, has just reopened! But wait there's more! Don't miss out on all the fun this September as we are also launching our new BIG9 Thrill Ride, Tail Spin. You'll be reaching heights of 22 meters, where you can create your own thrill by spinning as much or least as you like! And we will also see the arrival of a new water slide to WhiteWater World at Dreamworld. The Triple Vortex, the hottest high capacity tubing ride on the planet! Plus there's much, much more coming this September to Dreamworld. Be sure to grab your Unlimited World Pass online from $79.99* so you can visit as many times as you like until 26th June 2015. ----------------------------------- Get ready to spin into action as Dreamworld's Big 8 Thrill Rides will soon be joined by a Big 9 Thrill Ride arriving this September. On board the Tail Spin, you'll strap yourself in to one of the twelve mini-aeroplanes as you wait for your nerve shattering flight to begin. -------------------------------------------- From the website: Ride under construction – due to launch in September 2014 Prepare yourself for a takeoff like you’ve never experienced. On board the Tail Spin, you’ll strap yourself in to one of the twelve mini-aeroplanes as you wait for your nerve shattering flight to begin. You’ll soar to a whopping 72 feet, giving you a birds eye view of Ocean Parade. Your plane will then start to whip through the air faster and faster. Grab the controls and let the air tricks begin. Will you take the scenic flight? Or push the limits with a series of heart-racing spins?

I can't quite imagine how Ariel looks with those changes. i thought the brightly lit and coloured area was perfect for the 'under the sea' tune - it in itself was quite upbeat and bubbly. Blacklight implies fluoro paints have been used on everything, which in my opinion tends to ruin it a bit and make it more of an eerie look. I'm glad I got to see it lit up.

But thats just it Richard - you're not being fair (but not in the way you think)... I take what you're saying, and you're making allowances for our parks because of the smaller scales and smaller budgets, but Disney AREN'T all seamless, and they too range from really to not so well done. I don't think Movie World are in any way sub-par when it comes to dark-ride roofing... eg: out of the rides I mentioned above - they do well with Splash, and RSR, (Space isn't hidden so much as it's made a feature), however both small worlds i've been to, Ariel and Midway Mania are clearly visible in the ambient light of the attraction as plain black ceiling tiles, with holes cut in various places for cameras and animatronic control cables. While i'm add it i'll throw in Pirates because several scenes have the same black ceiling tiled roof. Even worse - on Small World and Ariel - the design of the attraction has moving objects animatronics overhead, and in doing so, force you to look upwards where the ceiling is plain to see. This is different to LTRR or Scooby where the majority of the sight-lines were all at or near eye level. I don't think there is ANYTHING to complain about the plain black roof in this attraction, especially since it is a curved, seamless ceiling without joints (other than fire and lighting holes), and it is far better than black ceiling tiles.

So do a lot of Disney rides. It's far safer to have a plain black ceiling containing all your fire fighting equipment than to cover it over with a facade that runs the risk of completely enveloping riders in the event of a fire. Does Small World annoy you? (even the one at HKDL is the same)... Does Radiator Springs Racers annoy you? Ariel's Undersea Adventure? Toy Story Midway Mania? Haunted Mansion? Even Splash and Space are all plain black ceilings. So the reason is - most people aren't looking at the ceiling, so why spend money on it for the few whingers who need to nitpick the ride to shit? Paint it black. If it's black, it's invisible. It doesn't stand out, it doesn't distract you, and it allows the park to spend more money on the parts of the ride that really matter - like the ride system, animatronics, theming, automatic on board fire detection systems with built in auto-reversing thrusters...

Maybe they're doing filming for a new advertisement?