lt_hambone

WARNING! GEEKY SPACE NERD TRIVIA! Snoopy was recruited by NASA to be their unofficial mascot, and Charles Schulz was so honored by the NASA request that he granted NASA free use of Snoopy. For the Apollo 10 mission, Snoopy was the name of the lunar module, and Charlie Brown was the name of the command module. Schulz also did a few strips with the world famous beagle going lunar - NASA also has the Silver Snoopy award - a special honor awarded to NASA employees and contractors for outstanding achievements related to human flight safety or mission success - And now you know the rest of the story. We now return you to your regularly scheduled Oddventure.

Forgot to give BGT credit for making the BEST roller coaster commercial EVER - What have we done?

My first trips to BGT were back in the early 80s when we moved to nearby Palm Harbor. Back then BGT was a very simple, family focused park divided into two distinct areas. On one side was the huge Serengeti Plain with hundreds of free-roaming animals, and the only way to see the animals was either by train, sky ride, or monorail. On the other side were the rides - nothing fancy or outlandish, and all were for the family to enjoy together. In the middle of the park was the brewery were one could take a tour and sample some beer. BGT was the anti-Disney back then - a quieter, smaller park that complimented the large, noisy, and expensive WDW just an hour to the east. I also got the vibe that BGT knew there was no way they could compete with Disney, and they were happy keeping the park the way it was. We moved away in the mid 80s, and my next visit wouldn't be until 1999. I still remember walking into the park and having my jaw drop. Gone was the quieter, smaller park that I remembered. Newer, bigger rides had sprung up - Gwazi, Montu, and Kumba. The huge Serengeti Plain had been invaded by the Edge of Africa exhibit and the new land - Egypt. The brewery was gone, replaced by a forest of timber and rails. I felt sad because to me, the park was loosing its family friendly appeal, and was trying to keep pace with IOA, the new kid in town. My next visit was last Saturday during the grand re-opening of Gwazi. Once again, my jaw dropped as I entered the park. There was another new coaster (SheiKra), and another one being built (Cheetah Hunt). The Python was gone, which left only two big coasters my first grader could ride (Cheetah Chase and Scorpion). The huge Serengeti Plain had been invaded yet again by Rhino Rally and Cheetah Hunt, and the monorail was officially gone. I also noticed the crowds had changed as well - while there were still plenty of families, the majority of guests that day were older teens and young adults coming to ride the big coasters. The look and feel of the park that I had cherished in the 80s was gone for good. Sigh. The Hits - feeding kangaroos, Lory Landing (first grader had four birds on him!), riding Gwazi with the new trains, riding Scorpion with the first grader as his first looping coaster, riding SheiKra & Montu with my third grader, watching the Orangutans in Jungala, and animal watching. The Misses - The third grader was tall enough for SheKra & Montu, but a half inch too short for Kumba? They are all 54 inches, so why aren't the measuring sticks consistent? Dining plan was a good idea, but the food choices are limited for kids and overall the food is mediocre at best. Freezing my butt off on SheiKra at sunset - it was darn cold 200 feet in the air (and I was convinced the anemometer was going to fly away it was so gusty!)! The Brazilian groups that kept line jumping in front of my first grader. Rhino Rally - disjointed story line, mediocre driver, few animals - what's the point? Photos - Unfortunately, all of the pictures I took are too perfect and without the proper watermarks for me to post on this board. Since I do not know how to apply watermarks, I will refrain from posting. Finally - I do have a whole bunch of questions for the boards. First - Scorpion - Where's the second train? Second - Where are the Clydesdales? Third - Is the Garden Café the former Hospitality House? Looked familiar, but didn't know for sure. Fourth - Wasn't the Desert Grill originally a Fest Haus, just like the one in BGW? Fifth - Wasn't there a dolphin show at some point? If so, where was it? Sixth - Settle this debate. A guy in line was trying to tell me that each of the five big coasters has a twin in BGW. Python = Loch Ness Monster, Montu = Alpengeist, Kumba = Apollo's Chariot, SheiKra = Griffon, and Cheetah Hunt = TBD. I disagree. Who's right? Thank you for reading, constructive and destructive criticism is welcome and appreciated.