SeaWorld San Antonio released footage on February 4th social media of the first test run of their new B&M family inverted coaster Barracuda Strike. This is the second consecutive year the park will be adding a coaster and it’s 3rd new coaster in the last 6 years. The park has put out a lot of great graphics and concept art related to the ride’s theme, so it will be great to watch in the coming weeks as some of these elements come more into focus. Anytime there is a new coaster test cycling, no matter if it’s a family coaster or a new thrill coaster, there’s still a ton of excitement in the air.

We’re about a month away from the opening of Galacticoaster at LEGOLAND Florida and LEGOLAND California. Galacticoaster is an indoor launch roller coaster and these projects represent a $90 million investment by Merlin Entertainment. It was only April of last year that we were reporting on the ride building in Florida being enclosed and now we are less than a month away from opening day. Merlin Entertainment has recently begun to tease more of the details of the rides now both with media construction tours, website updates and advertisements in their LEGO magazine for kids. LEGOLAND is still finishing construction, but from what they’ve released this “family” attraction has some pretty cool specs and features that will appeal to guests of all ages.

At IAAPA 2025 I had the chance to experience Wingz by Zamperla. Wingz offers passengers the ability to “Fly Like a Bird” by flapping their arms to make the gondola rise and fall as the central tower slowly rotates. Wingz is THE interactive family ride. In addition to the unique interactive feature, it’s designed to be fully accessible and has a specialized gondola that allows wheelchairs or scooters. It’s part of Zamperla’s ALL ACCESS and inclusive lineup of attractions.

We attended the Lights of Life, a well known light display at Life University in Marietta, GA near Atlanta and they had a roller coaster. In addition to lights they also have a parking area with attractions that this year included a kiddie roller coaster called Runaway Train. It was the most simple coaster you could possibly imagine, but a true coaster nonetheless and the best surprise Christmas Eve gift.

The station hums with festive cheer, The grandest ride of all the year! The tracks are iced in silver light, A ribbon through the frozen night. With wreaths upon the velvet cars, We’re climbing upward toward the stars.

Did you know firefighting used to be an Olympic event? The 1900 Olympic Games in Paris were organized as part of the 1900 World’s Fair and included firefighting. These were only the second modern Olympic Games and much more informal than the games are today with a mix of traditional and novelty events. If you’ve been to the LEGOLAND Florida park you know one of the most fun group activities is the Rescue Academy firefighting attraction, sometimes also referred to as Fire Brigade or Fire Academy at other parks. In this attraction you use pumping action to propel your firefighting vehicle, spray water on a target and then race back to the finish line. It can be quite a workout and get competitive, but it also mimics several aspects of the 125 year old Olympic event.