theme-park

Six Flags Buys ArieForce One!

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Six Flags teased a major announcement for today and it did not disappoint, SIX FLAGS HAS ACQUIRED ARIEFORCE ONE! We’ve known for about a week now that ArieForce One was sold because of Fun Spot’s Announcement, but to who was a mystery. There was much speculation that today was going to be an ArieForce One announcement, but there was a possibility it was something else (like the new Magoc Mountain coaster). Six Flags announced on social media, “Some roller coasters become rides. Others become legends. We’re excited to share that ArieForce One has officially joined our family.”

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NightFlight at Dollywood to Reopen August 31st and Continue Technical Rehearsals

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Dollywood’s social media has posted that NightFlight Expedition will operate on Monday, August 31, 2016 from 2pm to 8pm. The ride has been shut down for several days as Dollywood said the manufacturer had asked for additional time to adjust the timing of the ride’s turntable in the flying simulator section. The park hasn’t made any promises after Monday, but the park is scheduled to be closed on Tuesday, September 1st anyway. Dollywood considers the ride in “technical rehearsals” so we can expect the schedule to be fluid, although I’m sure they’d love it operating 100% for Labor Day weekend. I had a chance to experience NightFlight and it’s an extremely ambitious ride with simulator, boat, roller coaster and dark ride elements all together. None of the ride elements of NightFlight themselves were revolutionary, but having one single Mack vehicle do them all in a 5 minute experience was pretty amazing! 

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NightFlight at Dollywood Shut Down Through August 30th to Allow Mack to Adjust the “Turntable” in the Flying Simulator Section of the Ride

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It’s no secret that NightFlight Expedition at Dollywood has had some up-time challenges in its early days. I experienced this personally earlier this week with it opening late and shutting down early. We may have an indication of one of the potential issues with Dollywood’s social media post stating, “As part of on-going ride rehearsal, the manufacturer has asked for additional time to adjust the timing of the ride’s turntable to ensure a quality experience for this unique part of the attraction.” It’s rare that you see this level of transparency and specificity by a theme park about a ride issue and it is quite refreshing. The post has now been removed as everything is about Dolly Parton’s passing (and rightfully so), but the bottom line remains that the ride is closed for now.

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Busch Gardens Announces Kumba will Close August 2nd, but Surprises with Simultaneous Announcement of Kumba’s Revenge!

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As rumored earlier, Kumba is indeed closing forever on August 2, 2026 and silencing the iconic roar forever. The park made it official with a release on social media today. This is sad for sure and August 2nd will be a dark day in the coaster community with the closure of both ArieForce One and Kumba on the same day. However, in the sadness there is some intrigue as the park simultaneously announced a new attraction to replace it called Kumba’s Revenge as part of a $100 million project. Could this be the much rumored Giga Coaster for Busch Gardens? Time will tell I guess, but today is a time to reflect and enjoy what we’re losing, we can focus on the future after August 2nd. Kumba was a beast and provided kinetic beauty and iconic sound to the back of the park. Enjoy these last few weeks with Kumba and hope to see you at the park!

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Will Busch Gardens Close Kumba and Silence the Roar Forever?

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Kumba at Busch Gardens Tampa
Kumba at Busch Gardens Tampa

Update 7/14/26: Unfortunately the rumors were true and Kumba will close on August 2, 2026.

Rumors are flying online that Kumba may be closing, perhaps as soon as August 2nd! The demise of the iconic B&M coaster has been feared for years now, but this time feels real. There is no official word from the park yet, but my information comes from sources in the know that have essentially always been right (which is unfortunate in this case). It seems crazy to not announce anything in advance, but the same thing happened with Kingda Ka, so anything is possible. The last time Busch Gardens closed a roller coaster was Scorpion and they announced a September 2, 2024 closing on August 23, 2024. Therefore I’m not expecting a long runway once the announcement is made. The hope is of course that the only announcement we get is a retrack (like Hulk at Universal).

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You Can Own a Piece of Epic Universe! Comcast Spinning Off Theme Parks and Media Assets into New NBC Universal

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Comcast has announced that upcoming spin off of its theme park and media assets separate from its broadband and wireless operations. This will place Universal’s theme park division inside a standalone media and entertainment company called NBC Universal with the communications business will remain known as Comcast. The new NBC Universal will be structured similar to Disney and this movie is being done with the hope that the market will value the new company like it does Disney. When you compare the two companies they are similar in market cap and annual revenue, but the stock price is a different matter as Disney stock trades at near double that of Comcast. Why is Disney stock worth more than Comcast stock?

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Mythbusters Tested if a Giant Ball of LEGO Could Roll Over an Actual Car with the Help of LEGOLAND California!

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Mythbusters has been off TV for a while, but you can now watch a bunch of their classic episodes for free on YouTube. One of those episodes tested if you could make a giant ball of LEGO that would roll down a hill and over a car! Obviously, it is possible to make a giant LEGO ball, so the myth centered more on its weight and the number of LEGO bricks it would take. The ball they constructed was amazing, made of solid LEGO bricks where some large builds may be hollow or use DUPLO at their core. The Mythbusters crew even visited their local LEGOLAND California park for some advice and also took in some rides while they were there.

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Review of Dinner at Sanaa at Walt Disney World’s Animal Kingdom Resort

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Sanaa Entrance Sign

I had a chance to enjoy dinner at Sanaa, located at the Animal Kingdom Villas at Walt Disney World. Sanaa is a restaurant featuring African cooking with Indian flavors with spectacular views of exotic animals. Disney took a bit of a risk initially with Sanaa in that they used one of their best pieces of real estate for a restaurant serving food that many of its typical guests wouldn’t be very familiar with or find slightly intimidating. A safe choice would have perhaps been something like a steakhouse as opposed to the predominantly African-Indian menu. However, this place was packed and reservations at good times are sometimes tough to get, so apparently it’s working! The name is pronounced “Sah- NAH” with the first part like the beginning of “safari” and with the stress on the second syllable “NAH”. It is derived from Swahili, where it roughly translates to “artwork”.

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LEGOLAND Florida is a Great Place to Celebrate America 250 and Surprisingly LEGOLAND Billund is too!

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July 4th, 2026 is America’s 250th birthday and it’s been a year long celebration. If you want to get in a patriotic mood, LEGOLAND Florida is a great place to go. You’ll get to see some of the nation’s most iconic structures all created as LEGO brick builds. From the Statue of Liberty to the National Mall to an American Eagle, they’re all represented in LEGO. However, what’s perhaps even more surprising is that if you head over to LEGOLAND Billund in Denmark you’ll also see a tremendous amount of Americana!

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I Rode Dive Bomber at Six Flags White Water to Achieve LogRide Park Completion

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Dive Bomber at Six Flags White Water

This past Sunday I finally got to ride Dive Bomber at Six Flags White Water and check the last remaining attraction I hadn’t ridden off my LogRide app. I use LogRide to track my roller coaster credits and everything else related to theme parks. It’s kind of addicting and if you’re prone to wanting “completion” like me you’ll sometimes ride stuff just to check it off. However, Dive Bomber was something I’ve wanted to ride for a couple years, it’s just been frequently closed.

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