pianojohn Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 This was my 5th IAAPA, but my first as a member of the press! The event is very cool, but after about an hour or so, it becomes sensory overload, and it's hard to cover everything! So, if I missed your favorite manufacturer or park, forgive me! Of course, I did find Intamin, S&S, Great Coasters, etc. I did not find B&M, but I know they were there somewhere. I did find some cool things and some nice pics, so check 'em out! And thanks Robb for the opportunity to cover this. The very blue sky made for great pics! In action The coolest thing outside This was an obstacle course type attraction. Kind of sad This was the outside midway. Literally one ride. Last year they had a few, but this year one kiddie ride. And no Dinner in the Sky. My friend James had an entertainment company booth set up. The Give Kids the World booth. I think this was a gingerbread man. These lights were very cool. My friend Tim wanted to get them for his home! Watch for this one at your local FEC (Family Entertainment Center!) In action The Star Flyer people had this model set up One of the many walkways Tim O'Brien took the floor for the IAAPA Hall of Fame awards I attended the kick off event on Tuesday morning since I vocal coached a group from Sea World/Busch Gardens. Here is a pic of the Blues Brothers from Universal Orlando The convention center Welcome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pianojohn Posted November 20, 2008 Author Share Posted November 20, 2008 PART 2! And a creapy animatronic musician And talking bust A cool talking statue Some very cool animatronics Hmm....not sure it's me. A visor with hair....hmm, what would I look like... More entertainment! The PTC booth The other view I had my TPR shirt on More stuff AHH!!! About 20 feet up! More of the booths Surf's Up, the Zamperla Disk-O About 1/15 of the whole convention About to get a bird's eye view courtesy of Zamperla's Drop Tower The Maurer Sohne booth. The gentleman there was very nice and explained a bit about Rip Ride Rockit. We asked why there were no inverisons, and he explained that the client (Universal) wanted a ride with broader appeal. He also stated that there would be 6 trains, each one capable of holding 12 guests. The model was there as well, but they did not want pictures taken of it. You can find them online. The S&S Booth Steel Lasso's car from Vekoma The London Eye company. Is this the same company building the giant wheel in Orlando? And me in the car. The Vekoma booth And the control panel! Here is the booth They had a short piece of it set up, and you could ride the drop part! Of course, no water was available, so you had to wear a jumpsuit to try it out. More pics coming! OK. So this is one water slide I would NEVER go on! Keep reading... The film Me taking it all in This was a simulator type attraction. It had 6 films, all computer animated, pretty cool. The inflateables section was HUGE. I took one pic. Sue me. Cool but not sure how this would work with guests with pacemakers. A climbing wall that used magnets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pianojohn Posted November 20, 2008 Author Share Posted November 20, 2008 Part 3...just a few more pics! And the final pic: this very strange animatronic cheerleader from Japan. But they also had a human dressed as a cheerleader as well. Thanks for reading! Pixie stix type candy that turned my tongue blue! Ready to ride! Met another TRP member who works for GCI! Joe! His name is Joe! I will never forget it now! They had a Millenium Flyer train on display. The train usually sits at the Coke headquarters in Atlanta. GCI's booth A non-ice ice rink. Very cool looking This company had a triple decker carousel on display. see! Another mascot. Love these! This very cool wall of water that spelled out things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeemerBoy Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 Cool report, John. Kind of scary how empty the outside was this year. Oh, and there's just something odd about that loop slide display screen.... Hmmmmm..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thrillgeek Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 Wow your really lucky you got to go to this! Where is this at? That sucks that the outside area wasn't filled like you were expecting. Glad you had a good time though. Thanks for the pics Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the ghost Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 The animatronic musician was amazing, I thought it was real. BTW does the loop water slide actualy go upside down. ( Ive always though a water slide with an inversion would be cool, but now that it may be real I dont know if I would feels safe riding it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iZak Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 Awesome trip report! I hope it isn't that dead next year when the show comes out here to Vegas... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kalepi_Konei Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 ^ ^^^ And is IAAPA still open and can anyone get into it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
holyblakbelt Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 Nice TR. That Disk-O was interesting. Was that a stand up version? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeemerBoy Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 Thanks for that pic of Xtra Ice. I had never heard of it before, so I checked out their website, and now I'm fascinated by it. Really, it's frickin' amazing!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gotdane Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 Great report! The aqua loop looks ridiculous! And GCI Joe! I'll never forget my Voyage-night ride with him. AMAZING. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evan1127 Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 ^ ^^^ And is IAAPA still open and can anyone get into it? The trade show floor is open tomorrow until 4:00. At-the-door registration is pretty expensive. I'd recommend just trying for next year instead so you can be there for longer and pay less. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KDCOASTERFAN Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 What's up with that car from Vekoma? it looks sort of like a new version of the flyer cars that B&M use complete with ankle flaps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loefet Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 ^ It's the seats that will be used for the Stingray design that is going up in China. Also for the future flying coasters. Nice to finally see some pictures from IAAPA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DBru Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 Great PTR! I always love seeing what interesting products different companies have come up with... Did B&M show anything new, as rumored? I don't really understand how IAAPA admission works... Is is open to the public, or can you only attend if invited? If so, how do you get invited? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kenshinmac Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 Any impressions of how the PTC single bench cars looked? I noticed them in a pic... Looks cool but as others have said it is REALLY empty outside. I don't understand do they normally have so much stuff inside? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jedimaster1227 Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 Nice TR. That Disk-O was interesting. Was that a stand up version? The ride is a newer version of the Disk-O called "Surf's Up." It does have riders standing throughout its duration which makes the motions feel far different from that found on the Disk-O. Personally, I liked Surf's Up better... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evan1127 Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 Any impressions of how the PTC single bench cars looked? I noticed them in a pic... Looks cool but as others have said it is REALLY empty outside. I don't understand do they normally have so much stuff inside? Yes, there's typically that amount indoors (more even.. this year seemed a little lighter), and the outdoor attractions supplement companies that have booths inside. But the outdoor section had significantly less attractions than I've seen before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DenDen Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 Great report John, thanks!!! I had a feeling that the outside ride's midway woud be non-exsistant this year. Just a wild guess to lay blame either on the economy, or the fact that too many non-industry people were getting in to ride. Last year's was pretty scaled down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mxman005 Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 Hey. I saw you in the press room this morning. I have been covering the show since Tuesday for my site that I am currently working on. (www.amusementlife.com) Was gonna walk up and introduce myself but I was on my way out to do some work right as I had noticed you. Anyways I hope you had a great time. I plan on posting a few pictures later on. B&M was there but with a very small booth but they actually had some different brochures this year. Look for some pictures sometime tomorrow or later tonight Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
figment1986 Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 ^ ^^^ And is IAAPA still open and can anyone get into it? The trade show floor is open tomorrow until 4:00. At-the-door registration is pretty expensive. I'd recommend just trying for next year instead so you can be there for longer and pay less. Actually if i remember correctly Friday's at site registration cost is only like $30 due to the shorter time and not much really going on other than the trade show. Though if you want to see everything it may bes best to wait till next year when it is in vegas and pay the higher fee for all week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebl Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 "Cool but not sure how this would work with guests with pacemakers." (about the magnetic climbing wall) I guess you just have to have the heart for it! The Flogo is a great idea. I don't know how expensive it is to have them set you up, but it's a good way to introduce your business or product. Imagine if they'd done that with the "No on 8" campaign here in California! Nice TR. Hopefully I will attend an IAAPA convention sometime. Having it in Las Vegas at least makes it just a few hours away. Eric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thrillgeek Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 How often does this event move sites? I'd like to see it come to the city some time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mxman005 Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 How often does this event move sites? I'd like to see it come to the city some time. It is going to be in Vegas next year. 2 years ago it was in Atlanta and there wasn't a great turnout. The smartest thing to do is to go where the industry is big. For instance this week, alot of break out sessions have been going to tours of Disney parks, Universal parks, water parks around orlando and such. In my eyes orlando is the best place for it but I also live here and like not having to pay for flights. I have talked with someone at the Orange County Convention center telling me that IAAPA would like to make that its home for the Attractions Expo. If that will happen, who knows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guy T. Koepp Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 John great pictures. I have been waiting for someone to report about the convention this year. thanks for taking the time to do so. Oh, that was GCII Joe! Do I win anything? Guy "Planning on going to Vegas next year, cause nothing compliments coasters more than strippers." Koepp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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