Original

Thanks Internet for posting what I wrote :angry2: Anyway, what I said was, in no way do I want LW back, every time I rode that thing I came off with a thumping headache and ears that felt like they were bleeding, that could sometimes last a whole day. This was not matter what I did, brace or not brace, didn't matter, each experience was the same, pain! I think Wyncenuros, you just had a bad day riding it. I've had them before; I've been on ToT2 10 times in a row when it first opened before I started to feel a bit under the weather and then went a week later, did one go on it and feeling not very good at all. I know with the The Claw, as much as I love it twice in a row in my limit, a third go in a row and it is not a pleasant experience. However, one day I did at least 10 rides on Cyclone, ate breakfast then did Wipeout twice with fairy floss and Krispy kreme in between the 2 and then a go straight after on The Claw, I was fine up until my ride on The Claw, needless to say I needed some time out after that Hell I even blacked out once on the Corkscrew (back before it was SV), I blacked out just after the first loop and came to when it hit the brakes. I've done SE once at least 10 time in a row, the park was empty and raining, yet SE had 2 trains going and even chalked up a few rides on batwing straight after and didn't feel a thing. So Wyn, I may not be a doctor, or have any idea about your ride; but from the sound of things I would just chalk it up as a bad day/experience and have another go later and report back again

If memory serves me right, wasn't there three stations, one outside the Sea Lion Theatre, one for the water park and another one for the resort?? I always thought, if there was enough room, for a station where the coaster are. Would also give a point of difference to the monorail, if the train line was ever brought back.

Well am I imagining things, or was there talk of a second train when the ride opened, however this never eventuated??

I think I remember for the Dinosaurs it was stated it was going to hang around for something like 15 months?? My point with the monorail is for years until recently it ran with 3 trains, 2 on the track one in maintenance, now imagine in the peak period they find something wrong with the second train and its taken out of action, not good. My point with these things as I've said before these parks aren't seeing declining numbers, they are a lot stronger when what they were when they had; so why now do they think they can get by on 2? Some air-con I agree wouldn't also go astray.

Liked the review, so BT is finally getting gutted, which good, maybe some new construction soon! I still think would it be possible to open a new ride in there by Christmas? Or would be too much work? SW was always my favourite park, but it did drop the ball. But they seem to have made some good decisions as of late; the news jet ski show, Penguin Encounter, the parade and I think anything to get people over to the lighthouse that has been dead for years is a good idea. Plus maybe its just me, or I'm not as picky but the dinosaurs appear to look fine and I'm sure its target market of 5 year old boys are going to be that picky about how the dinosaurs look and therefore will be hit with the park as a family attraction. I like to hear that the Skyway is running good again, I was worried about that ride for a little while; SW also can't help whats happened with SV but at least they aren't letting it sit there and rot, they are attempting to fix it and offering free peddle boats and SkyClimb as compensation is a good idea. Now all thats needed in my eye is something to be done with the train, fix up the empty spot in the kids area for the helicopter ride and put a new ride into where the Pirate Ship ride was, order a new monorail train so it goes back to how it was with 3 along with a BT replacement which appears to be on the way and the park will be on its way to being my favourite GC park to relax in. Also, the games area in the courtyard where the food and gift shops are, does it still look cheap and temporary? Because, my other gripe would be if it wants to stay there; which from all accounts it makes money, so its not going anywhere, give it a proper looking home that ties in with the rest of that area and with SW as a beach side theme and not what it is now. Anyway, good review, because it sounds like management are now turning their focus to SW and are slowly improving it back to the standard it used to be and with it hopefully the charm of the park returns!

I think no matter what you build, people will always find something to complain. I remember when SE first opened I heard people complain the pre-show (earthquake) part was boring and wish it was just the ride. You can't please everyone and now we live in a world with the Internet peoples opinions get heard a lot more. If a park could build a ride that EVERYONE was happy with and loved I think it would have to be a first for a theme park globally!

I've always found Westcoaster and its humour to it all in perspective. Back on topic of 2012 addition Verbolten is currently running some soft opens and from the reviews people are really loving the ride. One new fact about the ride now is that the dark ride consists of 3 different "stories" 'Spirit of the Forest' 'Thunderstorm' and one that pays homage to 'The Big Bad Wolf' the ride that Verbolten replaced!

But I thought the official BB page has posted photos of the old house being gutted.

^ Is that the spot where when you stood in line and looked to the left the air-conditioning motors were?

Actually, I found our Coke and the Coke in America to taste completely different. I think it was something to do with the fact we used sugar cane whereas Coke in America uses corn syrup. Personally, I preferred our Coke with sugar cane.

Hey, There may still hope for a BT replacement by Christmas! ATM the Village parks don't have anything for the Christmas period and would be a nice finishing touch by always having one up on the other theme park company down the road!! Anyway I'll have my fingers crossed!

I don't think its going to be that all. I'm speculating and it appears most on here are that it will be a shooting dark ride, there is also rumours Sally is involved which specialise in this type of attraction. So if I have to put money on it, mine goes to shooting dark ride.

SkyRush from Hershey park is one coaster that looks really good and there are now videos surfacing of it testing. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgPSY658VhI&feature=player_embedded Heres another one, seriously this ride looks really awesome!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkIGfuaASMY&feature=player_embedded I also wanted to include a Verbolten video, but it won't let me embed more than 2 videos so you'll just have to click the link its an offical video from Busch Gardens about the testing of the ride and it looks like a really neat coaster. However, to my surprise its not an Intamin coaster like I had been thinking all along, instead its a Zierer coaster, the same manufacture of Polar X-Plorer at Legoland Billund

^ Its an old film (in black and white) but a classic! When I went to San Fran for a week and lived on campus in the college dorms at the University of California practically everywhere I went gave free re-fills. I remember I first encountered it when we to Hard Rock at Pier 39 and they gave me a drink and I was like "I didn't order this!" and had to be told by the people I was there with this was the norm in America. Last time I went to Food Fantasy at Jupiter's it had unlimited refills; my guess is they make such a killing from post-mix due to its low cost and high mark up and they don't want to loose it!?!?

You know, I have myself thought the exact same thing. We have 3 dark rides all down at once why not kill all 3 with one stone and most likely pick-up a discount on the way. I think that Sally interview at IAAPA really does lend itself to them coming here to do JL since thats a major brand like they mentioned, but they could do something with SW and if it Jurassic themed BT already has much of theming in place and Sally do work with Dinosaurs! But please if the Volcanoes remain, I beg (even though with JR it possibly can't be done now??) bring back the fire!! However, with LT I wouldn't mind seeing (if theres enough space) a rapids ride themed to LT, SF and our sister park in Spain both have rapid rides themed to the Looney Tunes characters and Universal used one for Popeye. Its also exactly what the park needs for the hot summer months another water ride and help take the strain off WWF as the only place to get wet to cool off on a hot day. But maybe Sally could help out with the LT animatronics like Bugs! I just thinking as well opening dates, if this is a major new attraction for SW, my guess is they wouldn't open it the same time as the Batman replacement. This would be for the Christmas/Summer holidays, that way Village have opened something new basically every holiday this year and essentially have gained a monopoly over DW in terms of marketing and attracting people and spreading there guests out between their 2 theme parks.

Maybe they are interested, but probably not until they have finished their other park first and look at its results as well before they go rushing out looking for a second location. I don't remember the deal but when Paramount and the government split was a good parting or was there bad blood. Because, if there was they may not be so interested in coming back to a place where they left pretty unhappy the first time. Australia is only small, so do we really want another movie park?? I mean wouldn't it be nicer to add some diversity to our small range and go for a new theme park with a different theme?

Yep and as Djrappa pointed out Mascot is just about to reach capacity and if you have ever read the newspapers here I think getting a second one here is just about as slim as getting an international park here. Everyone is passing the buck about building one and where it should be built, the premiere here has flat out said NO. Not great for attracting international parks if your airport is at capacity for a growing city and has no plans for a second one is it? You maybe be right but I think Village opening WnW in Sydney is testing the waters for a full on park down the track. In terms of an international brand coming here, as I said before 'not in our lifetime' for the reasons I've stated before. ATM Paramount are busy with their Spain park, SF and CF have too much debt and only appear to be intersted in the American market. For Disney and Universal, currently our population is too small and they have parks in Asia close to us and with a high Aussie dollar its cheap to get there. Australians are also the highest percentage of visitors to LA; hence why Disney are now advertising here for the re-fresh of the Disneyland Resort. Disney are also too busy with China, as are many theme park including Village. Over there the government is willing to spend money and go into partnerships with these parks to get them built, not so much here. As I stated, if you're wanting for a new park somewhere in the near future you should be looking at Village and Merlin, who are here now, to build us something. I wouldn't knock Merlin either, from what I've seen they appear to build pretty good parks. If you want something from Disney or Universal look towards the Aluani Resort in Hawaii from Disney or a Disney Cruise Ship. For that we have unique offerings they could market to the world like our Australian culture, Aboriginal heritage and the Great Barrier Reef. Disney love telling stories and they could do wonders with a resort and our heritage like they did with Aluani and a Cruise ship for the biggest reef in the world... why wound't they?? Fully fledged Disney or Universal park being built here? You can forget it, not for a long time and my guess they only build one when and if the governments put some serious cash up and go into partnerships with them to build it.

I'm sorry, I haven't ridden it yet, but if you have to come up with techniques to stop a ride from hurting you, then that is not enjoyable. I you have to hold you head back firmly for the entire ride remembering this, where has all the fun gone in riding it?? I too use to hold my head firmly against the back and still got horrible rides, while some I faired better than others in the end I was just skipping LW because one day I felt like my ears were bleeding and I had a headache they wouldn't leave for the whole day. I think the issue with harness pressure is the way you position your harness. Who remembers when MDMC opened the amount of people complaining how horrible the harnesses were? Hell, I was one of them, I don't get it anymore because I've learnt how correct use it now without the feeling that my legs needed amputating. I've had the same thing at times with Wipeout, SE and countless other rides. I've found they all tighten during the ride so you work out how to best position the restraint to stop this from happening, you don't always get it right and it can take practice. But from experience I get it on nearly every ride so I sit the harness so its comfortable on me, not tight and then ride, by the end I find its tightened its pressure but not so much that its become uncomfortable. Problem solved. Granted I haven't Arkham yet so I can't comment on its pressure but my guess is the same trial and error until I find where the harness sits best on me so as not to create discomfort by the end.

I wouldn't mind seeing the All Star cafe getting some love, I think its a really nice part of the park, but it has always been on my observations dead, closed or used as a pass processing centre. I wouldn't mind going there and eating there, on hot day inside, or if nice enough go outside and from there I can enjoy the front of the park and also watch the ride doing there thing!

I've noticed SW and MW now say they are open from 9.30 - 5. Have the parks changed their trading hours and extended them by an hour??

Read the last line in the article a SW spokesperson states construction has started on BT.

Just put the same thing in Bat, BT, and Bunny thread, but maybe BT replacement? The article in The Bulletin the other day said they had started construction!

^ Or borrow TPRs

I don't think we are ever going to a see a Disney or Universal park built here in Australia in our lifetimes. But please, Disney, Universal, prove me wrong! First of all the biggest, most obvious reason and the one everyone says, POPULATION. We just don't have enough people here to support one. The argument that they would have to build something "unique" I also disagree with because 1. simply the parks won't and 2. I doubt it would attract people anyway. Think, when Disney build something, or even Universal for that matter; do they do the job half-assed? No, they go all out spending millions. When these parks go and build "unique" attractions most of the money is spent on the R&D. I think we can all agree if they ever came here they aren't going to build a park the size of Disneyland, its going to be small. So why would these companies go and spend millions on R&D for only a small park, that the majority of the world won't even experience? Answer: they won't. Not only that if they did build a "unique" attraction they would most certainly build a clone of it in another one of the parks. You can see they do it all throughout the world, due to the high R&D cost, you find they almost always put one in another park, no doubt this makes re-couping their money spent on the attraction come back faster, rather than spending all their budget on the R&D for another ride at the park that builds the clone. So if their major parks do it, what makes you think an Australian investment would be any different. If they built something "unique" here chances are it would end up in another one of their parks around the globe. No longer making it "unique" and no longer a reason for people to visit their park here. Besides, why wouldn't you build said attraction in other part of the world, after all not everyone can afford to travel to some other parks; as some people have been pointing out why we need one. What makes something "unique" though, how is it defined. I mean I would find that Green Lantern is currently unique, so is Arkham and SE for its preshow or Scooby? I think WWF would be up there with some of the worlds best. What about Jet Rescue as a Jet-ski coaster or MDMC as Intamins first motorbike coaster? GD and ToT both at time have held world records making them "unique", I haven't seen too many people around the world visit DW just so they can ride the worlds tallest freefall. My guess is when you say "unique" you mean expensive, look at WWF Australia's most expensive ride, Disney would have still done more to that, like hiding the final lift hill, and making the mountain go the whole way around. Also, look at SE that wasn't cheap and look at 1. how short it is 2. they didn't have to build the show building and 3. left the outside pretty plain, something Disney would not. All these rides would have sot so much more if it was done to the level of Disney and would have cost more. I just don't see them doing it to a whole park in Australia. If you've got any suggestions for any "unique" attractions that would be in a smaller budget, please let me know, (that's not sarcasm) I would actually love to hear your ideas! Secondly, the world is currently in economic hardship, I don't see the parks wanting to, apart from their current commitments, wanting to be investing as something as large as opening a new park. Also the Australian dollar is high, so even if we offered something "unique", why would tourists come here when they could just go to their closer Universal or Disney which would be much cheaper. Whereas, we can go overseas to other Disney and Universal parks cheaper. Also, another reason why at the moment you won't see them is they are too focused on Asia. Look at all your major theme parks players, Disney, Universal, Merlin, hell even Village Roadshow are all interested in the Asian market at the moment. I mean what company wouldn't when you look at their population. I think after Asia the companies are going to move onto to another highly populated area before Australia. Which leads to another reason, flights are now incredibly cheap to Asia and my guess the parks assumptions are well if Aussies want to visit a Universal or Disney they don't have to travel very far now, plus it doesn't cost as much as our LA parks. While our international tourism is mainly from as someone said Japan and China they now have their own parks. Why come here for another Universal and Disney when they already have one, we can just go there. TBH, theres will more than likely be way better than what we would get anyway. Also I remember reading somewhere that Aussies were the highest percentage of visitors to LA. My feeling is the parks feel that at the moment they have Australia covered for the time being, in the future it may change, but I don't see it changing for a long time. I've got other reasons but I think those are enough to see, and it should be pretty obvious Disney and Universal aren't coming here anytime soon anyway. Once again I'll be happy for the two to prove me wrong on this. But I wouldn't imagine we would see anything more than a small copycat, as long as it has Transformers though. Which btw is now in soft opening in LA. I wouldn't expect anything from Paramount as they got out of the theme park business and are now looking at just getting back in with a park in Spain, so their focus is one that. I mean a large entertainment company invested here called Warner Bros. they didn't exactly build a massive park did they? My feeling is the same as Gazza's, your best bet is a franchise from Merlin, or Village Roadshow. Village are opening a water park in Sydney, so this could be a sign of things to come. Maybe even a partnership between Village and Merlin? I've always thought the two companies were very similar; both have water parks, marine theme parks (coincidently both called SW), both have hotels, at one stage merlin was a part owner in a movie park (Universal Orlando) attractions like Madam Tussaud's and Outback Spectacular/Paradise country, Merlin bought attractions off Village (which Village still promote on their website) and Village proposed a park very similar to Busch Gardens Africa in Victoria. The only other thing that you MAY get from Disney is something similar to what they just opened in Hawaii, that is something they could open in Australia, that we have a population that could support I would imagine. I think they even said they would look at putting similar resorts around the world?? So who knows, it could go in the Gold Coast, or maybe in North Queensland, they have the weather for it, maybe even find an island and create a new Hamilton Island for kids and parents, Disney style. In terms of Disney and Universal coming here, I think its the closest you'll get. In terms of a new park in Australia in our lifetime, look towards Merlin and Village. I know its long, but I feel I needed to say it.

Looking at the photo from where it was taken I'm thinking, as I've already said thats where the simulators were housed and then that larger area off to the left in the photo where it appears to be a large floodlight I'm guessing was the Batcave.