Weekly Rewind 3.27.10

Cliff's Amusement Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico has announced the addition of a Super Fire Ball for the 2010 season. Standing 80 feet tall and promising to turn its victims--er, riders--upside down 13 times a minute, it should be a great addition to this small park. Based on what I've read, it sounds like the Super Fire Ball will actually be replacing a 60-foot tall "regular" Fire Ball which used to call Cliff's home? Perhaps one of you who frequents the park can clue me in!

Clementon Park just unveiled a flashy (no pun intended) new web site, and I must say it looks great. I can't help but wonder if their "Something Hot is Coming" promise is really a teaser for a future ride or attraction, but for now it would appear that they are simply referring to their 2010 season pass deals. Nevertheless, better keep an eye on that one just in case...

We've grown delightfully accustomed to Six Flags President and CEO Mark Shapiro's regular blogger conference calls. This past Monday he took that concept to a whole new level by hosting the first ever "super fan" conference call--also slated to be the first of many. Although we didn't do a formal write-up on this one, we did listen in and Mike has posted some of the highlights on our Facebook page. Should there remain any doubts that these calls actually make a difference, let me erase them right now by pointing you in the direction of the March 25th entry on Six Flags' official blog. Among other things, you can thank the "super fans" for bringing Houdini back to Great Adventure this year!

On a final Six Flags note, the L.A. Times has posted a piece of concept art for Mr. Six's Splash Island, which will open at Magic Mountain this year along with the previously announced Mr. Six DanceCoaster. The addition of this family friendly interactive water play structure was first revealed during Monday's call.

© 2010 California's Great America

In other left coast news, America's favorite beagle continues his quest to take over the world. Or at least, all the parts of the world belonging to Cedar Fair. California's Great America has posted a whole slew of new photos in their latest Facebook album which showcase the progress being made on Snoopy's new lair. Everything looks so fresh and bright!

I don't know who Peppa Pig is, but apparently she's a big hit in the United Kingdom and she's on her way to Paulton's Park. The park has released a flyer announcing the addition of Peppa Pig World in 2011. The brand new 120,000-square foot themed land, advertised as a "UK Exclusive and World First", will feature seven new rides, various Peppa-themed attractions, and both indoor and outdoor play areas. More details are forthcoming, as the park plans to launch a web site for the project in the very near future.

Something new is coming to Germany as well, and you won't have to wait nearly as long to experience it. Holiday Park (not to be confused with the States' Holiday World) opens for the 2010 season today, and has announced that a new family coaster called Holly's Wilde Autofahrt is on target to open sometime this spring. According to the news post on the park's web site (which most of our readers will probably want to view in the English translation!), this Maurer Söhne Wild Mouse will anchor a brand new area. Holiday Park will also be introducing some exciting new shows this year.

According to this article, Darien Lake's proposed $7 million water park expansion has not only been approved, but will be completed by May 2010. As in, a couple months from now. Perhaps I'm overestimating the amount of time required to install water park rides, but that seems like an awfully quick turnaround to me!

© 2010 Kennywood Connection

Then again, some things do go up pretty fast. Just take a look at Kennywood's Sky Rocket! Kennywood Connection posted a great construction update this week showing off the many supports that are already in place and the various track pieces that are about to be attached to them. At the rate they're moving, the new coaster should be blasting off in no time.

Spring has sprung, and that can mean only one thing for Conneaut Lake: It's time to spruce up the park! Conneaut Lake Park and the Hotel Conneaut have put out a call for volunteers who'd like to participate in this annual spring clean-up event, which will be held on April 24-25, 2010. For more details, refer to the park's web site.

The arrival of spring also means the return of thrills, tasty food, entertainment,and much more to Puyallup, Washington--if only for a few days. The Spring Fair, held at the Western Washington Fairgrounds, will run from April 15-18, and I'm sure our friend John Hinde and his crew have been hard at work ensuring that the historic Coaster Thrill Ride will be in tip-top shape (not to mention all in one piece!) for the occasion.

On a related note, remember that great web site I mentioned in my Coaster Thrill Ride construction article called Roller Coasters of the Pacific Northwest? Well I happened to notice that the site now has its own Facebook page as well. Check it out!

Not sure if you'll make it to Singapore this summer? Well have no fear, because you can take a virtual ride on at least one of Universal Studios Singapore's new attractions thanks to the Sentosa Theme Park Blog. They've uploaded the video above, which provides a POV ride on Revenge of the Mummy, to YouTube and I must say it looks like a great ride. While it's too dark to make out exactly what's going on during some parts, this video certainly gives you a sense of the level of theming you can expect.