Battlestar Galactica Reopens at Universal Studios Singapore

© Universal Studios Singapore

After being closed for a large part of the five years since the park's opening, the dueling Battlestar Galactica roller coasters at Universal Studios Singapore have reopened as of May 27th.

The coasters, which are advertised as the tallest dueling roller coasters in the world, have had problems with the design and structure of the ride trains since inception.  During the latest and longest closure, the rides trains were changed from four across seating to two across seating.

The coasters were designed by Vekoma, and the red Human track is a sit-down coaster that features no inversions, while the blue Cylon track is an inverted ride with several inversions.  The rides both utilize a LSM boost up their respective first hills instead of a chain lift, and then interact with one another through simulated 'close calls' throughout the ride.

The park has released this footage showing the new two across trains in action.  Since the track was designed to support wider trains the new ones look a bit tiny as they go, but at least the ride has been able to open again.

The park has shared some additional photos of the ride in action on this blog, and Dejiki has posted a not-to-miss four part series on the ride's reopening at this link.

Scott And Carol Present - More This And That Around The Amusement Industry

KONG To Make a Colossal Return to Morey’s Piers. The big ape will be snorting smoke and fog, while sporting an “I love Wildwood” t-shirt and clutching one of Wildwood’s well-known tram cars while hanging from the 60 feet tall lighthouse at the ride’s center. Eight vintage world war planes will duck, dive and navigate around the infamous gorilla, bringing riders 26 feet in air. After sunset, KONG will light up the night sky with a rotating light on top of the lighthouse and enhanced LED lighting outlining each ride vehicle.

 

Puss In Boots © 2015 DreamWorks Animation L.L.C. Universal Studios Singapore ®& © Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.

At Universal Studios Singapore, on board one of Humpty Alexander Dumpty’s latest flying machines, guests will set off from the Giant’s kitchen in search of the legendary golden eggs. The mission runs into trouble when they are spotted by a Tattletale gosling who alerts the Great Terror of their presence in the castle. Once exposed, riders are rocketed through plenty of twists and turns as they are pursued by the Great Terror, who turns out to be one big Mama Goose! 

                Puss In Boots © 2015 DreamWorks Animation L.L.C. Universal Studios Singapore ®& © Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.

The quest, nine lives in the making, begins here as Puss In Boots and Kitty Softpaws go in search of the precious golden eggs in a bid to save San Ricardo’s Orphanage, which has fallen on hard times. Guests will join in the legendary exploits of Puss In Boots as they take off on an anti-gravity swashbuckling flight. Mr John Hallenbeck, Senior Vice President of Attractions at Resorts World Sentosa, said: "The launch of the much-anticipated Puss In Boots’ Giant Journey ride gives guests yet another reason to come celebrate Universal Studios Singapore’s fifth birthday with us."

Kentucky Kingdom has been named by MSN Travel as one of the ten best amusement parks in the country to visit this year. John Mulcahy, Director of Marketing and Communication for Kentucky Kingdom, remarked, “We are honored to have been recognized with these other great, long established parks, especially after only one season of operation.  In just a few short weeks, we’ll be opening the park for its second season, with eight new rides and attractions for the public to enjoy.  The reopening of our suspended looping coaster, T³, this season brings our total number of coasters to four, and I understand the diverse collection of coasters we offer is one of the primary reasons for Kentucky Kingdom’s inclusion on this list.”Sixth on the list, Kentucky Kingdom is in very good company, Holiday World, in neighboring southern Indiana, also made the list at number eight.

Who doesn't like something for free? In an agreement reached with the Kentucky State Fair Board, Kentucky Kingdom will provide free parking at the Kentucky Exposition Center for its season pass holders, beginning with the upcoming 2015 season. According to Ed Hart, President and CEO of Kentucky Kingdom, LLLP,  “We are committed to providing value for our season pass holders, so adding free parking to our already low season pass price of $69.95 just underscores that a Kentucky Kingdom season pass is the best theme park value in America.”  Added Hart, “While free parking is limited to season pass holders, this benefit applies to all 2015 season pass holders, regardless of when they purchased their passes.”

Sleeping Beauty's Castle -Disneyland 50th Anniversary 2005

Sleeping Beauty Castle in Disneyland park now dazzles in diamonds, part of the Disneyland Resort Diamond Celebration officially kicking off on Friday, May 22. A few months ago, we went behind the scenes for a glimpse at what it took to create this sparkling look with Imagineer David Caranci. In the video below, we visit the warehouse where a talented team of artisans molded, shaped, painted and placed each diamond by hand.

Battlestar Galactica Officially Reopening at Universal Studios Singapore

© Universal Studios Singapore

The long-closed Battlestar Galactica dueling coasters at Universal Studios Singapore are finally due to reopen in early 2015.

The official blog of Resorts World Sentosa, where the theme park is located, stated the rides went through an "extensive attraction review" that has led to the reopening.  The pair of coasters, which utilize a launch lift hill and two completely separate tracks, has had a troubled history with regard to the trains Vekoma provided.

The problems, some made official and some rumors, have led the ride to sit closed on and off since it debuted in 2010.  The original Vekoma trains featured four-across seating, which many believed led to the problems.  Now both the Human (red track, sit-down trains) and the Cylon (blue track, inverted trains) vehicles will be two passengers across, seen in the photo at the top.

This video of the new Cylon train testing was released by Dejiki.com, which follows updates at Universal Studios Singapore.  They have additional photos of the new train, along with some information on all the changes that have been completed.

One must wonder if the park hasn't strongly regretted not having Bolliger & Mabillard create this ride in the first place! 

New Puss In Boots Coaster Announced for Universal Studios Singapore

© Universal Studios Singapore

Universal Studios Singapore has confirmed that they are building a new family suspended roller coaster, named Puss In Boots' Giant Journey.  The new coaster will carry on the Shrek theme found in the park's Far Far Away area, and will include Puss' friend Kitty Soft Paws.

© Universal Studios Singapore

The park released these photos of the ride under construction, but very few other details and no formal concept art for the coaster.  As far as theming goes, the press release only mentions that the ride takes place "in a giant's castle now overgrown by a magical beanstalk" and that it should be completed by the end of the year but no opening date has been announced yet.  I would take a wild guess that the track will be themed as parts of the beanstalk, going off the green color.

Earlier rumors of the coaster being created by Zamperla have yet to be confirmed, but that spiral lift hill does look very similar to the company's Volare coasters.  Hopefully more information on the coaster is released soon, perhaps some hard numbers on the ride's measurements.

© Universal Studios Singapore

Also a part of the announcement was a new stage show, The Dance For The Magic Beans.  Featuring both Puss and Kitty, the show will last for 20 minutes and open in September.  The characters will be available as a meet-and-greet after the conclusion of the show.

New Coaster Going Up At Universal Studios Singapore

Universal Studios Singapore has started work on what appears to be a new family inverted roller coaster, located in the park's Far Far Away section.  The Shrek themed area is home to Donkey LIVE, Shrek 4-D, the Magic Potion Spin, and another family coaster, Enchanted Airways.

The theme park originally opened in 2010 and has since added the Sesame Street Spaghetti Space Chase dark ride to its lineup of attractions.

Seen in orange outline above, the Far Far Away section of Universal Studios Singapore had a nice sized open area for expansion.  The new coaster will utilize a spiral lift hill, as seen in this recent batch of photos.  The green track and white supports don't really give much of a theme away, but the popular rumor is Puss In Boots.

The spiral lift hill reminds me of the ones used on Zamperla's Volare flying coasters.  Not sure if that means we're looking at a custom layout flying ride, or just a new train style from the company.  Hopefully the park announces the new attraction soon so we know just what to expect!

A Trip to Outer Space to Save the Spaghetti

Universal Studios Singapore has created an adorable new dark ride for families called Sesame Street Spaghetti Space Chase.  The traditional dark rides takes riders (who are led by Elmo on an in-car monitor) on a journey into deep space to return spaghetti to planet earth.

Yes, I just wrote that all the spaghetti on earth has been taken, and that does sound pretty terrible if you ask me.  It seems that the ride's storyline involves Macaroni the Merciless and his two associates, Zester and Shredder, stealing everyone's favorite pasta.  Grover and Elmo have teamed up, along with the rest of the Sesame Street characters to get it back, but naturally they need riders' help to accomplish the mission.

The ride uses some modern special effects along with basic animatronic characters during the ride.  Certainly not an "E-ticket" but still a solid family attraction, and Universal Studios Singapore really lacked a traditional dark ride.  It is a bit of a shame that we won't see the ride at either of the North American Universal parks, as Sesame Street is licensed to the SeaWorld parks.  Maybe this will give them some ideas, though?

Thea Awards Announced by the Themed Entertainment Association

Each year at the start of the IAAPA Convention the Themed Entertainment Association announces their list of Thea Award recipients, a coveted award that celebrates excellence and breakthrough innovation within the themed entertainment industry.

This year's list of winners is as impressive as ever, since 2012 was a mighty year for new themed experiences to debut.

This year's Buzz Price award, which marks a lifetime achievement in the industry went to Frank Stanek, who has had an extensive career with both Disney and Universal.  During his tenures he helped both companies branch out into new parts of the globe with new parks and attractions.

Mr Stanek's long list of parks he has been involved with include Epcot Center, Disneyland Paris, Tokyo Disneyland, and Universal Studios Japan.

The Thea Classic award went to Germany's Europa Park, which is owned and operated by the minds behind Mack Rides.  The park started as a showcase for the company's attractions, "but over the decades, by alternating innovation and adaptation, applying the world’s best practices together with their own brand of creativity, Europa-Park has grown into one of the most important theme parks in the world."

While I have never had the pleasure of visiting Europa Park I've never heard a bad thing about it, and it is regarded in our community as one of the best out there.  A deserving award, indeed.

The Thea Awards also recognize individual attractions with their Outstanding Achievement Awards.  Among them this year are three different awards for projects that were part of the new Disney California Adventure theme park.

One award went to the Radiator Springs Racers ride, which has opened to rave reviews for park visitors.  The land in which the attraction sits also received an award of its own, and that's Cars Land.  Between three different Cars themed attractions and a full recreation of Ornament Valley, the new land has really marked the transformation of the park.

Near the entrance of Disney California Adventure, the Carthay Circle Restaurant and Lounge also picked up an Outstanding Achievement award.

Another attraction that was recognized is Transformers: The Ride at both Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Studios Singapore.  Delighting guests at both parks, Transformers is an immersive, next-generation thrill ride that blurs the line between fiction and reality, and puts guests in the middle of the ultimate war zone."

The Outstanding Achievement awards are not only for single attractions, however, as even and entire resort may be a winner.  Such is the case with Disney's Aulani, a full resort and hotel located in beautiful Hawaii.

Other Outstanding Achievement awards went to Canada's Sports Hall of Fame, Calgary, Canada, Aquanura at Efteling Park in the Netherlands, Tait Pixel Tablets for their use in the London Olypmic Games, and the Making of Harry Potter studio tour in England.

For more information on all the outstanding winners of this year's Thea Awards, check out this feature story.

Horror Nights: Scares Heard 'Round the World

It's baaaaack!  Halloween Horror Nights, which debuted at Universal Studios Singapore last year, will return again this October to scare the pants off visitors to the new theme park.  And this year's host for the festivities is the Puppet Master, seen above in promotional art.

The even only runs for a total of seven nights, but still features five different scare zones and three indoor haunted houses.  The Puppet Master himself will have one haunted house in which visitors see just what evil plans he has for visitors, another house is called the Dungeon of Damnation, and finally there is the Insanitarium.

As popularity ramps up, I have a feeling we'll be seeing the event in Singapore continue to grow, as even this season will have one more house that last year. 

Video game fans may want to book a flight to Japan - and I mean soon.  Universal Studios Japan will for the first time offer a Halloween Horror Nights event that features haunted houses... as previous events only had walk-around character and special lighting, etc.

The reason for game fans to head to the park is because this year's event is basically a giant real-life version of Biohazard, which is Resident Evil in Japan.  The 6th game releases this October, and Universal Studios Japan is actually using part of the park to recreate Racoon City, the original setting of the game in celebration. 

No doubt that the event will be popular, where they will also transform the Terminator building into Umbrella Corporation: T-Virus Escape, another maze.

In total there will be two houses, at least I think.  Navigating websites in Japanese isn't on my resume, but things certainly look like they will be a great mix of zany Japanese fun right along side some mutant creatures and plenty of gore.  Cool!

Universal Studios Singapore Welcomes Sesame Street

Universal Studios Singapore, located at Resorts World Sentosa, has announced that the Sesame Street gang will be coming to the park starting in 2012.  No need to wait to see your favorite characters at the park since live shows featuring them are already playing, such as When I Grow Up, one of three 12 minute shows that take place in the New York section of the park.

The characters will also become a part of a regular breakfast event that guests may purchase tickets for, and there will also be plenty of Sesame Street merchandise available on property.

Of most interest to me is the addition that's received the least amount of detail - a new indoor dark ride that features Elmo and the other characters, located somewhere in the New York section of Universal Studios Singapore.  Stating only that the ride will open in the second half of the year, I haven't seen any other descriptions or concept art.

While I'm not expecting a ride the caliber of Transformers, I'm curious to see what Universal Creative comes up with for the Sesame Street characters.  There can never be too many dark rides in the world!

Transforming Universal Studios Singapore

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Earth Universal Studios Singapore is getting ready to officially open Transformers: The Ride on December 3rd.

The long awaited attraction will also be opening at Universal Studios Hollywood next year, but the Singapore version will be thrilling riders in just a couple weeks.

Well... actually it appears as though the ride is sporadically opening for previews already, meaning that if you look around you can find plenty of photos and ride descriptions, much like this. Naturally, if you do not want any spoiler information than that link is not for you.



As far as official information goes, well the park has released the above teaser video on their official Transformers blog. The shots of both the ride and the vehicle draw immediate comparisons to Spiderman, but that was expected.  Seems the jury is still out on whether Spidey will remain king, or be dethroned by Transformers.  We shall see!

Weekly Rewind 10.22.11

Wild Eagle at Dollywood is already getting close to being completed!  This ride is going up oh so fast, and from these new photos, looking oh so good.

This was the first year for Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Singapore, and it looks like the event is quite good.  Certainly not the same as the American counterparts... but a nice start indeed.

Hollywood Drive-In Golf has changed from a hole in the ground to a identifiable mini-golf course, complete with some wacky theming, at Universal Orlando's CityWalk area.

The opening of Hong Kong Disneyland's new Toy Story Land is less than a month away.  The area, very similar to the Paris version, features three new rides in a larger-than-life setting.

Cedar Fair has promoted Richard Zimmerman to COO, formerly he was a Regional Vice President, and before that GM of Kings Dominion.

It is almost like these Wing Rider coasters go up faster than others!  The Swarm at Thorpe Park has made much progress again this week - the ride is now completed up through the zero-g roll.


Busch Gardens Williamsburg has released a new teaser video for Verbolten, above. For recent photos of the ride's construction, check out this link.

The Hawaiian Falls chain of water parks in Texas will be growing again next year with the debut of Hawaiian Falls Waco.  Check out all the info on the project on the park's website.

In other water park news, Virginia's Water Country USA is seeking approval to develop the park to double its current size in the future.  Think of all the slides they can build!

The old Hard Rock restaurant building inside Universal Studios Florida has finally been demolished.  For something new?  It's a weird location, but perhaps!

Weekly Rewind 10.8.11

Universal Studios Singapore has released another image of the queue for their new Transformers ride (left).  The attraction is scheduled for a December debut, just a couple months away at this point.

Disney also announced this week that Bob Iger has signed a new 5 year contract that will see him stay as the Chief Executive during the period.  He will retired afterwards, so it looks like a new Disney leader will have to be found.

As a lover of dark rides, this interview with Sally Corporation's John Wood, CEO of the company, is a pretty neat read.  Sounds like the company has a huge project in development, set to open late next year.

Six Flags Great America began to receive track for X-Flight this week.  The candy red pieces are pretty nice looking!  The park also shared photos of Iron Wolf pieces being shipped out.

I'm excited to see Matt Ouimet's changes at Cedar Fair, like really excited.  Two new corporate VPs were added this week, one with long Disney history and another with sports team marketing experience. 

The Tokyo Disneyland Resort has announced decreased attendance for the first half of its fiscal year - not a surprise considering the major earthquake that hit.  After the parks reopened the resort saw the highest attendance numbers ever - certainly a good sign.

After recovering from the major flooding that took place at the park, Hersheypark is once again focusing on Skyrush construction.  Tons of track has arrived, the Tilt-a-whirl is gone, and more footers have been completed.

Congratulations to Silverwood Theme Park for achieving record attendance this year, despite a seemingly perpetual down economy.  More than 650k visitors came to the park during the normal season.

Sounds like Dollywood is quite displeased with Huss after the struggles they've had with their Topple Tower ride, named Timber Tower.  Details of the full lawsuit the park has filed are available in this article.

Weekly Rewind 8.27.11

The birds are back at the Magic Kingdom - old school style.  The Enchanted Tiki Room has reopened after a refurbishment that returns the show to its origins, no longer "under new management."

Legoland California has announced the addition of a three story, 250 room hotel set to open adjacent to the park's main gates in 2013.  The hotel will feature themed rooms that are designed for families, a pool area and restaurant.

Some good news for the potential reopening of Kentucky Kingdom - a private investor has offered to back up to $20 million in loans needed to get the park reopened.  If the plan sticks, the park could reopen next Spring with only minor expansions in place.

With each new piece of track added to the new B&M Inverted ride going into Parc Asterix, the ride looks better and better.  Check out the latest update of the just about completed ride.

Universal Studios Singapore is planning on opening Transformers: The Ride in December of this year.  A new mini-site for the ride has been launched.

The expansion of Coney Island will continue next year, according to this report.  CAI is planning on developing more of the site, possibly including water rides, go-karts, and even another Ferris wheel. 

Details on rides and attractions opening at Shanghai Disneyland are still scarce, but the company has released some news on the park's signature castle - the biggest of any Disney park.

Six Flags Magic Mountain released a pretty mysterious hint about the park's next big addition at the end of this video.  Not sure what it is, but they point to the top of Superman - must be something tall!

Now that we are post-Skyrush announcement the hype has calmed down, but the work at Hersheypark rages on.  Check out the latest update, with more footers completed and some nice yellow track that has arrived.

Industry Suppliers Enjoying Asian Park Boom

It's actually been going on for a while now, but here's a current article that takes a look at the theme park boom that's going on in Asia.  According to the article, 15 different parks are currently being built in China alone - and others have recently opened elsewhere, such as Universal Studios Singapore (with their Battlestar Galactica coaster, seen above).

The current trend of opening new parks - and expanding current ones - has ride manufacturers salivating at the possibilities.  B&M, Intamin, Vekoma, Martin & Vleminckx, all are mentioned in the article as having seen an uptick in work in that segment of the world in recent years.

The amount of rides being built reminds me of the expansion that the U.S. saw in the later '90s, only there are a ton of brand new parks opening in Asia, filled with new contraptions by our favorite manufacturers.  There's already a handful of unique looking rides that have sprung up, with plenty more on the way. 

While North America's boom seems to have fizzled some for now, we can hope that the pendulum swings our way again soon!  Until then we'll just have to enviously follow all these Asian projects - I know I won't mind.

Weekly Rewind 6.4.11

The continuing transformation of Paradise Pier at Disney California Adventure intrigues me. It's not often that we get to see a theme park totally renovated while still operating. This video gives a peek at the latest section getting ready to open.

According to the Funland Blog, the Green Lantern at Six Flags Magic Mountain now has a July 1st opening date, slightly pushed back from their previous opening date.

The new Splash Zoo area at Legoland California's water park has opened.  The area caters to the toddler set, and looks like a ton of fun!

The Disneyland Resort has a busy Soundsational Summer season planned, with the addition of the Little Mermaid attraction, Star Tour, and a brand new parade.  I'd love to go check out all the new attractions.

Valleyfair Zone has posted a really nice review of Valleyfair's new Planet Snoopy.  The photos are beautiful! 

Universal has stayed pretty quiet on their new Transformers ride for Hollywood and Singapore, but some new art of the ride's queue and station have leaked. 

Knott's is continuing to build their Wind Seeker, and Westcoaster is sharing some photos of the ride going up.  I'm still digging the paint scheme.

KI Extreme has added a new gallery of historical Kings Island photos.  Check out the rainbow in some of the shots!

Finally!  Some footage of the 90 ft. geyser that launches off the top of Michigan's Adventure's new Beach Part attraction.  This news clip shows water soaring up over the attraction.

Bay Beach Amusement Park's new recreated Zippin Pippin had a very successful Memorial Day weekend when over 14,000 rides were given.  Now public parks everywhere start building wooden coasters, please!

The end has finally come for Wild Rivers in Irvine, CA.  The park's lease will not be renewed as the land it sits on will be used for apartments.  The park is looking into relocating.

Canada's Wonderland has opened their Wind Seeker - if you'd like to see these rides in action then be sure to check out this video.

A Trip To Madagascar & Blog Update

Blogger had a bit of a whoopsies that past day or so, so apologies for not getting much new up.  Scott & Carol's Blast was up, then not up, and now up again, so make sure to scroll down and check it out.  Now back to our regularly scheduled programming.

Madagascar: A Crate Adventure has opened for passholder previews at Universal Studios Singapore. The ride has been delayed by a number of issues, but now seems ready to take guests on a journey with Alex, Marty, Melman, Gloria, and the rest of the gang.

I like what you can see in the video.  The animatronics aren't super advanced, but the use of screens mixed in along with full sets is nice.  Doesn't appear to be any drops during the course, and follow the story of the movie pretty well.

Weekly Rewind 2.5.11

Battlestar Galactica at Universal Studios Singapore is officially reopening on February 21st, but apparently it's already having soft openings.  That makes the ride's closure just under one year in length.

Cheetah Hunt progress continues, with more track being put in place and many theming details coming together.  Check out photos from Busch Gardens Tampa and RCPro.

Instead of having to keep typing "the GCI coaster at Knight Valley" we can now refer to the coaster at Mountain Flyer, which is what the company has shown on their website.  That name fits the ride perfectly, eh?

Some photos taken from the top of Krake's lift can be seen here.  Nothing quite like staring down that vertical drop!

Many parts of the Green Lantern have arrived at Six Flags Magic Mountain, including track and the ride's cars.  I'm liking the shade of green!

Cedar Fair is being hounded again by Q Investments, this time they want another vote to force the company to allow unit holders to nominate candidates for members of the board.

Kings Island now offers a webcam for fans to watch the construction of WindSeeker.  Right now it is still a cement pad, but that'll change, eventually.

Liseberg previously announced that they were changing their observation tower into a free-fall, and they've been posting photos of the transformation all winter.  The Intamin designed free fall will drop riders from almost 300 ft. in the air.

The Gravity Group has been keeping everyone updated with the construction of Twister at Grona Lund.  That's going to be one wicked ride.

Cedar Point and K'NEX are holding the first Great Thrill Ride Build-Off this year.  Classrooms can construct a K'NEX thrill ride and submit it to possibly win some cool prizes.  More here.

In addition to a brand new Parade, Sesame Place is also adding a new ride called Elmo's Cloud Chaser.  They're not saying what it is just yet, but giving hints on the park's blog.

Great progress is also being made on Planet Snoopy at Valleyfair.  New buildings are up, and the entire area is a massive construction site.

If you haven't been following the photos Knoebels has been posting of Black Diamond, you're missing out.  They also just put up a video of a really stubborn donkey!

Weekly Rewind 12.26.10

Orlando Attractions Magazine has launched a new weekly show that takes a look at the latest news from all the Orlando area parks.  Each episode ranges from 10 to 30 minutes in length.  You can find all the recent episodes on the Attractions Magazine website.

I'm starting to wonder about The Great Escape's future as a Six Flags park.  It is the only U.S. Six Flags park that isn't branded, it's shortening its season and hours next year, and not only did they retheme the Wiggles like the other parks, but they've also removed Looney Tunes from their stable of characters as well.  Prepping the park for a sale perhaps?  I bet CNL would snap it up in a minute.

Cedar Point's annual collection of loose change found inside the park and its water fountains totaled $1,500 this year and the park donated it to the Victory Temple Soup Kitchen.  The park also donated another $4,500 worth of goods to the kitchen and the Salvation Army.  Nice!

A visit to Disney California Adventure theme park in 2011 will be one filled with construction walls.  The park will have a modified entrance area for a big part of the year, due to construction on Buena Vista Street, a highly themed entrance street.  Check out the details from the Funland Blog.

The dueling Battlestar Galactica roller coasters at Universal Studios Singapore have started testing once again, after one of the seats fell off a train during testing earlier this year.  The ride is scheduled to reopen during the first half of 2011.

Idlewild and SoakZone had a Christmas present for us all - they announced the name of their new wave pool!  Wowabunga is a pretty cute name.  Perfectly fits the park's family theme and atmosphere.

Cedar Fair is once again experimenting with a skip-the-line pass.  They tried this briefly at Cedar Point some years ago, but killed it pretty quick.  Knott's will be selling Hate To Wait passes that will get you on five coasters and a few other of the park attractions with no wait.  The passes aren't cheap, though.  Read the details of the new program here.

 

The barns are up!  Dollywood has been working on building the thematic elements for their new Barnstormer ride.  Riders will swing in between two big chunks of barn when the ride opens next year.  Check out the park's latest gallery of construction shots here.

It is just a start, but Canobie Lake has shared some early shots of their work on Untamed, the park's new coaster for 2011.  It looks about as snowy there as it is here today!  I'd hate to be one of the workers out pouring concrete in that weather... but their work will be well worth it come next summer!