From Screamscape:
???? - Wizarding World Expansion - Development Phase - (1/29/11) According to one rumor, Universal is looking into having the expansion of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter finished by 2013… which is confidently the same time that Disney should be done with their Fantasyland expansion down the road. (I love it when they play nasty…)
As for the expansion, the plans are still being worked on, but the general idea is to take over the rest of Lost Continent, though at the same time they do not want to disturb the Mythos restaurant. (Just my 2 cents… but just place the new gateway to the Wizarding World just beyond the entrance of Mythos to avoid the clash.) The obvious and early idea here right now is to re-create a Diagon Alley environment… full of more theme appropriate shops to sell merchandise of course. An action show of some kind is being tossed around to replace Sinbad, and one possible storyline could involve the TriWizard Tournament. As for what may become of Poseidon’s Fury… the jury is still out, and many ideas are said to be on the table, however one possible idea under consideration would be an indoor steel coaster ride themed to Gringotts Wizarding Bank vaults seen in the first film. In case you’ve forgotten, check out the video embedded below.
(1/26/11) Screamscape sources tell us that survey markings are appearing in backstage areas behind the remainder of The Lost Continent as they attempt to map out how Phase 2 of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter will take shape. It would be easy to convert Sinbad into a new live action show, but what kind of attraction could make good use of the Poseidon’s Fury structure?
I'd take the 2013 opening with a grain of salt, but with surveying apparently happening... hmmm... if this 2013 opening rumor is true, expect construction to begin in a matter of months.
I'd rather see a Ministry of Magic-themed show, instead of a Triwizard-themed show (though it would be fun too). But either case, this expansion is already sounding exciting to me. =D
Invertigo Removal:
From Screamscape:
Park News - (1/29/11) Cedar Fair has confirmed on the CGA website that Invertigo is indeed being removed from the park before it opens for the 2011 season, to be relocated to another Cedar Fair park. As for the Invertigo site… they say they have plans in the works.
I say that it better be a new coaster… something wickedly cool in steel… or that awesome GCI design they had all but confirmed a few years ago. If they try to put in another Windseeker there, you have my permission to riot.
(1/27/11) Screamscape sources tell us that California’s Great America will remove Invertigo before the start of the 2011 season. If true, we can look for it to start to coming down around February 1st. Unfortunately they have no plans for the site in 2011, and this means yet another coaster removed from the park, in a long series of such events, without having added a new coaster in the past ten years.
The good news is that apparently they are finally eyeballing the park for a major new attraction in either 2012 or 2013. One rumor is that the GCI wooden coaster that was designed could be back on track, possibly moved a bit to take up some of this location and avoid the complaints from the neighbors that delayed it before. Other rumors say that something entirely new may come in to replace Invertigo. Either way, if Invertigo is coming down, we wont have long to wait.
From the California's Great America website:
Invertigo Going to a New Home
After 12 years of service at California's Great America, Cedar Fair has decided to move the ride to another Cedar Fair park and open up a new opportunity for Great America.
This is a business decision that is taking into consideration all of the Cedar Fair properties and allowing us to infuse capital into another park while opening up a great opportunity for a new attraction at Great America.
Although we do not discuss future plans that are not definite, our Corporate Design team has evaluated the location and plans are underway for the future of the location.
This is not unusual as in 2003 the ride Stealth was removed and relocated to Carowinds in Charlotte, N.C., to make way for what is now known as Boomerang Bay water park.
Stay tuned for more details as they are available!
California's Great America is in Santa Clara, California (of course in California). And the park consists of 5 (er... 4) big coasters:
1. Vortex (B&M Stand-Up) - I hear this is one of the roughest B&Ms ever made, but it kind of looks like fun. I think a refurbishment will fix it.
2. Flight Deck (B&M Invert) - This coaster has a low-to-the-"ground" helix on top of a lake.
3. Demon (Arrow Corkscrew) - This was originally "Turn of the Century" when it opened.
4. Grizzly (??? Wooden Coaster) - I have no idea who the manufacturer is, but next to Vortex, I hear this is one of the most despised rides in the park (it looks cool though).
5. Invertigo (Vekoma Invertigo) - This coaster has a clone at Kings Island in Mason, Ohio. THIS RIDE IS NOW BEING REMOVED.
And three smaller ones:
6. Psycho Mouse (Arrow Wild Mouse)
7. Taxi Jam
8. Woodstock's Express
I'm just shocked though. They just reopened Invertigo last summer, and now they are removing it? =O I hope something big comes to this park. I would hate to see another Kentucky Kingdom/Geauga Lake/Astroworld tragedy. Unfortunately, many people are speculating that this is the first step in selling the park to the impending 49ers, whom the park had many issues with over the past few years (along with some cranky neighbors in office buildings next to the park that delayed the 2009 GCI wooden coaster (hey, newsflash! You chose to LIVE by a park... imbeciles -_________-)), as they want a stadium in the parking lot.
As for where Invertigo will go up, Screamscape posted this:
2012 - Invertigo - Rumor - (1/29/11) In case you missed the rumor from California’s Great America, it has been confirmed that their Invertigo coaster will be removed in the next few weeks to be sent to another Cedar Fair park. The early rumor, even before the removal was confirmed, was that it was going to Dorney Park for the 2012 season. This would make Dorney Park the only park in the country (world maybe too) to have 3 true Inverted coasters. (No, I’m not counting Suspended or Flying coasters) Stay tuned!
I've got to admit, I felt that it would go to Dorney Park when the announcement occurred. My gut tells me it is where Laser once stood. The space seems perfect for a ride like this. Also, there are some kiddie rides adjacent to the site up for sale:
Park News - (12/3/10) It looks like Dorney Park has put three (1 / 2 / 3) of its small kiddie rides up for sale on Ital Intl, all of which I believe are located in the same general area of the park, along with the Steel First kiddie coaster. Could they be clearing the area out for a new future development?
I'm getting pretty interested in what Dorney Park is getting for 2012 (guess Hersheypark's 2012 coaster is getting some competition), and what the future of California's Great America holds. Will the park survive? Or will the park die in the hands of the 49ers and cranky neighbors? Wait and see!
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