bobkmertz

joined 2 years ago
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I've had one of my worst experiences in the last week ever in dealing with Universal Orlando. When I bought my pass last year I opted to do the FlexPay program - it wasn't even a month before I realized that was a mistake but the gravity of the situation didn't become as evident as it did in the cancellation process..... Actually, I didn't want to cancel but.... Well.

So halfway through my 12 month term I upgraded to premier at the park... I paid the difference of the 2 passes in full and then just continued to pay the monthly payment for the power pass that I initially got.... I had thought that the excess paid would be credited -- it wasn't. That wasn't the really upsetting thing.... The notification that my 12 month term was up was realized when my credit card was charged $80. In calling customer service to cancel they initially told me that I was unable to cancel because I entered a new 12 month term and I'd be able to cancel in November 2024..... I told them that's not what was indicated when I signed up because, as I understood out, I was in month to month terms. My ultimate goal was to cancel the Flex Pay but renew (at the renewal rate) a Power Pass via a one time payment.... I was told I can only do that if I stop by guest services...... An absolutely unreasonable thing to ask of anyone but especially someone that lives numerous states away. Incredibly the company that always had one of the best customer service teams of any major theme park became just like Comcast (who would have thought, huh?) and clearly didn't care in the slightest about their guest..... I was told to just keep my pass active until I could visit again...... Absolutely not an option at the higher prices.

In the end I was forced to cancel my pass.... But ~~Comcast~~ Universal had one last trick up their sleeve. You can't cancel FlexPay over the phone.... It has to be done in writing and you are responsible for continuing to pay until they get around to canceling your pass which meant I ended up paying another $80 payment.

All said and done I completely pissed away $160 and received absolutely nothing in return..... And if/when I want another pass I have to pay full price.

As much as I love Universal these little Comcast games keep creeping in..... I suppose it's been a miracle that Universal survived as long as they did without Comcast dictating stuff but it feels like that's starting to change with this and the mandatory mobile ordering (requiring you to install an app that hoards data from your phone).

 

Not only do they preserve old rides you can't find anywhere else but they remember the history and what we've lost. Its not complete yet but the Joyland sign is a fitting memorial for a park lost and this ride's former home.

 

I know many absolutely love the Halloween events but I'm curious if there's anything else specifically that people love? For me, this time of year is great at parks because of the weather and days shorter (night rides!).

 

There was an electrical fire at Kennywood last night (Sunday night) during a private event for Highmark. Damage isn't known but the park did say they will be opening for Phantom Fall Fest / Fright Nights as scheduled.

 

It's been the joke for years..... Dollywood is just gonna give up and make the launched wooden coaster (that isn't even a wooden coaster anymore) a chain lift coaster......

Well... it's happening. The launch will be removed in favor of a "high speed chain lift"

In addition to the article, Dollywood posted a video on Twitter regarding this change: https://twitter.com/Dollywood/status/1701611625071919200?s=19

 

I've never been so happy to hear a rumor was false regarding the Titan Track on Wildcat..... According to Lake Compounce's website they are bringing in Gravity Group to restore it. I'm seriously looking forward to this.

 

Six Flags Great Adventure is getting a Vekoma Super Boomerang for 2024. I've been looking forward to one of these for a while now but, man, that capacity in such a large park is a bit concerning.

 

Mind Eraser along with the other rides in the area will be rethemed and to match the reimagined area. The SLC will receive new trains which I'm sure will be a welcome change. They will also be adding a new Nebulaz ride but it does appear that Rodeo (the breakdance) will be removed.

 

It seems like they are blaming Intamin which I personally find a hard pill to swallow considering CP does the maintenance on the ride, used the wrong grade of hardware, and had been using a third party (A3 Tech / Bitech) to supply parts for the coaster.

It'll be interesting to see how the case plays out.

 

The document was won at auction and then was subsequently posted to the Internet Archive for the world. It includes what Pixar Pier could have become along with other interesting facts.

 

Yesterday I got to complete a childhood dream and actually do an entire track walk of a coaster. In Feb there was an ACE event and they had a charity auction which Knoebels put up a maintenance tour and fortunately I had just completely a major project at work and had the funds to compete, lol. Yesterday morning I woke up at 3:30am and drove the 3 hours to meet Jutt (one of the mechanics) at Twister who took me along as he completed his daily track inspection. He was assigned to the last section of track (while others had their own sections) so we slowly walked until we reached the end of the track as he pointed out the things they look for and made the few adjustments that were needed that morning and then once his part was complete we “took the long way home” by continuing backwards through the layout and climbing the first drop up to the top of the lift hill. Words can not describe the energy required to climb a steep drop on a catwalk, lol… but it was such a wonderful experience. They also showed me around the control areas of both Twister and Phoenix and it was incredible the difference of technology being used. Twister still uses it’s original relay based system while Phoenix now has a much newer and extremely advanced PLC system that can track every single aspect of things that you aren’t even aware of.

I think the most impressive thing for me was how much all of the mechanics cared about their rides and the passion they had for their operation. They pointed out a lot of the work that was done including how they added center masts to help support the wood structure to ease maintenance requirements while not taking anything away from the actual ride experience.

Fun fact: Phoenix’s PTC train has a completely wooden frame unlike nearly all of the same PTC buzz bar trains you see on other coasters which have metal chassis frames.

Anyway, I was really focused on the experience more than I was taking pictures but I did take some and, with the park’s permission, I’m sharing them with the world. Hope you enjoy

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