We shared the park with a moderate crowd, Friday. The longest line, as usual, was for LR. We practically walked on to all the coasters.
Our daughter (13) rode OR for the first time; I thought she would hate it, but she went back for a second time through. As for me, they clamped the restraint down so hard I couldn't even enjoy the ride. I didn't notice a smoother ride from the back, but we did notice the braking was a million times quieter than last season. Next time, we're looking to get her to ride WF.
Our son (7) rode three new rides - TGS, Electrospin, and Firefall. He loved each of them, which is exciting for us, because he may have finally graduated from the kiddie rides, and we won't have to spend as much time in those areas. Next time, we hope to get him onto OR.
The saloon show is great, with David and Rachel in terrific form. I had just remarked that the other male lead looks a little like Lynn-Manuel Miranda, when the "Tilly" and the girls started singing "Helpless" from Hamilton. We love the music from Hamilton (which it totally uncharacteristic of our normal faire), so this was a nice surprise...and it did not detract from the show or even seem out of place. I wonder how many people recognize such a hip, modern influence.
There was an issue on RB that caused a shutdown of the ride while the kids were on it. A couple of workers rode a raft through the channel, looking into the water. It sounds as if a mother had reported a missing child and claimed she never saw the child exit the area after riding. It seems, in that case, that the workers were looking for the missing child, in case she had fallen overboard. I didn't see that as what happened, but I guess such a report will be publicized if it turns out to be the result.
I look for details and changes, so here's a short list:
1. The picture outside the saloon - the one that rotates a face to make it appear with a different expression when inverted - is no longer there. Maybe I'm not up to date on this removal.
2. The wheel of fortune behind the bar in the saloon was set on the number 26, which happens to be today's date. Is that just a coincidence, or does someone change it to the current date every day? If you're in there, I'd love to know if it's always set to the date or if it's just always on 26.
3. The new Keep it moving face in the FM didn't win me over at all. While I'm pleased that they kept the feature, the face is jerky and weird (and clearly computer-enhanced). Of course, I'm nostalgic for the old guy, but just having the face in a frame doesn't have the same appeal as the face that appeared to be more three-dimensional.
4. I totally shot over 900,000 points on FM, rolled the display, and shot another 727,000 before the end of the ride - which is why I hate the shootout aspect. The gun just racked up points every time the trigger was pulled, whether aimed at a target or not. The scores are obviously irrelevant when the guns malfunction, which I suppose is quite often.
My daughter dropped the lid of one of our cups over the rail on the back of the Culinary School into Echo Hollow. She had to get permission to enter EH and retrieve it. We took two of the cups that we found in a flea market for $1 each. It was a great purchase, since they are Buzzsaw Falls mugs with only $1 refills.
My wife lost her phone on TnT, thought she lost it on FM, returned to FM to find it. The phone was discovered on TnT, but of course we couldn't call her to tell her. Big fiasco. Elevated stress levels.
When we got home, my daughter couldn't find her own phone, iPod, and two other items. Most of the items turned up in the middle of a nearby street, with the iPod completely destroyed by a car running over it. Devastation. Total melt-down. Not a great ending to the day.