Quick Little Status Update
May 5, 2008Just wanted to check in and let you all know that I haven’t forgotten about you, the site or how roller coasters still rule. I’ve had a crazy April and finally things are getting back to a little bit of normality, I’ve also been completely obsessed with Mario Kart Wii - so excuse my general laziness.
I did return to doing the CoasterBuzz Podcast last week after a six week hiatus (due to aforementioned craziness), so be sure to head over there and give it a listen.
I also scored a new camera and a couple a nice lenses since I last updated the site and I’ve been playing with that too. Can’t wait to finally get to a park this year and try the new equipment out.
Speaking of which, it should only be another week or two before we start heading out on 2008 park visits. I know plenty of you have already started your 2008 season and I’m pretty jealous - we’ve just been hung up on those pesky ‘real life’ issues. This is the latest we’ve gotten the season off to a start…well…ever!
I do have just one last batch of 2007 photos to get online - Lake Winnie, a couple of features and a handful of 3D pics. Those will be up sooner than later. I appreciate everyone being so patient with me this offseason, I’ve never been forced to spend so little time with the site as I was these past few months.
But things look to be right back on track. We’re considering a stop off for the opening weekend at Waldameer to check out the new Ravine Flyer coaster, but I’ll be honest in saying that a lot of that depends on weather. I was blue skies and sunshine and anything less might set us back. We’ll probably fight the crowds on Memorial Day weekend to see Robbie Knievel jump 24 Coke trucks at Kings Island. We’re also keeping an eye on Steel Hawg at Indiana Beach - that’s another trip we’re ready to take on a moment’s notice.
June sees us heading east. We’ll be stopping by Hersheypark to see if Fahrenheit can live up to the hype. We’ll be dropping in on Dorney Park to do a little Voodoo as well. Then it’s off to Jersey and Six Flags Great Adventure where we’re hoping to check out the new Batman coaster and finally get some decent pictures of Kingda Ka and El Toro. We’ll end the trip with a tour of as many of the piers and parks along the shore as we can possibly fit in. A nice mix of updates and new material for the site.
In July we’ll be on the road again as we head south…to Myrtle Beach to be exact. I’m old-skool metal and there’s no way I’m missing the Hard Rock Park this year. Of course a drive that far leaves lots of opportunity to makes stops along the way and we’ll be making those stops. Carowinds, Ghost Town In The Sky, Camden Park and others are on the agenda.
Late Summer/Early Fall should find us making the usual stops at Holiday World and Cedar Point for the CoasterBuzz events.
Then in October we finally make the long awaited return to Disney World. We’ll be spending 8 days there finally updating our woefully outdated Walt Disney World photo galleries.
I’m sure there’ll be other stops to make inbetween, we’ll take them as they come. I’m hoping to be able to keep the updates much more timely this year because once winter hits the plan is a complete overhaul of the site - new design, new look, new site. I’m hoping to make it better for everyone visiting and easier for me to maintain behind the scenes. Coasterimage.com is way bigger than I ever imagined and I’m still a one-man operation. No staff, no contributors, no nothing except a guy with a love for the parks and a need to share it all visually with like-minded individuals.
I think that about covers it. I just wanted to let everyone know where things stand and where we’re headed in 2008. I do thank each and every one of you for supporting the site. It’s because you guys stop by and tell others about what I do here that I’m able to keep delivering the goods like nobody else - thousands of photos, the videos, the free DVDs…it’s all possible because you guys allow it to be.
As corny as it sounds, thank you all for letting me do this.
I’ll have the rest of those 2007 pics up soon and then we’ll get started on what looks to be a totally badass 2008. Have fun everyone and get out there and ride.
Sir Goonys Pictures
Apr 7, 2008
Just a small update this time. I have new Sir Goony’s pictures for you to check out. It’s a neat little entertainment center in Chattanooga - just a few miles from Lake Winnie. Speaking of Lake Winnie, that will be the next update, but it probably won’t happen until later this month. I’m going to be in and out of town taking care of things for the next couple of weeks. It kind of came as a surprise which is why I threw this small update together for y’all.
I also got the preliminary 2008 travel schedule online. It looks to be another great year of travel in 2008 with lots of new parks and coasters to visit. Good stuff.
That’s all I have for now, I got to head out of here in a little bit. Enjoy the new photos and check back in a week or two for Lake Winnie photos. After that a couple a little updates and then the 2008 season starts.
Three New Desktop Wallpapers
Mar 15, 2008
Wallpaper. Not the flowery patterned stuff in your Grandma’s bathroom. I’m talking the digital, for your computer, roller coaster variety. I got the hookup. Three new wallpapers for your grubby little hands (and desktops). And it gets better…
In my ongoing quest to deliver items of relevance to Coasterimage.com visitors, I noticed that more and more of you are stopping by with widescreen monitors. (yeah, I’m watching you)
So starting with these new wallpapers I now offer a third download resolution (1440 x 990) that should work quite nicely for you folks leading the widescreen revolution. So be sure to head on over and check out the new wallpaper - I happen to be quite fond of the Mamba image. It’s so colorful and shiny.
In other news it looks like some of our travel plans are coming together. I’ll be getting the travel info online in the schedule section a little later, but right now it looks like we’ll be getting to Indiana Beach to check out their new Steel Hawg coaster early in the season along with standard stops at Kings Island. We’ll also be heading east to sample Hersheypark’s new coaster, Farenheit. And maybe stopping by some old favorites - Knoebels, Dorney Park, Six Flags Great Adventure…things in that direction.
By mid-summer we should be heading south again to invade the brand new Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach with copious stops along the way. As fall rolls around there’s a good chance we’ll show up at the usual fall hangouts - Holiday World and Cedar Point.
But it doesn’t stop there in 2008…nuh uh. A week at Walt Disney World in October is practically etched in stone. That’s a much needed return visit - my Disney gallery is so outdated that it’s embarassing. It’ll be nice to update that one. Then there’s been some whispering about a Dollywood stop around Thanksgiving…but you didn’t hear it from me.
After that comes the complete overhaul/updating/cleaning of the website. But that’s a long way off - there’s a ton of parks, coasters and rides to hit in 2008. Play now…work later.
Southern Adventures Pictures
Feb 29, 2008
All good things must come to an end and today marks the end of the five-year anniversary week around here. I tie things up with 29 Southern Adventures pictures. It’s a crazy little place in Huntsville, Alabama - just down the road from Space Camp. (Come on, what kid didn’t want to go to Space Camp?) And if you head to Chattanooga from there, you’ll zip right by the Unclaimed Baggage Center. (Come on, what kid didn’t want to go to… nevermind). At any rate, it’s a cool little place in Huntsville.
As far as the giveaways go, if you’re reading this and still haven’t heard from us, then it’s not gonna happen. All winners have been notified at this point. The thing that struck me the most was how grateful everyone seemed. I think every last reply contained some expression of thanks. That’s really cool, but you guys have it backwards - I should be thanking you! Thank you all for supporting the site and letting me do this. Sincerely.
Today is Leap Day too. Oddly enough, on the last Leap Day in 2004 we visited Fun Fore All. Just a weird fact.
Anyhow, the week has come to an end. I hope everyone enjoyed stopping by for new photos every day, but I’m getting back to the regular schedule…for now at least. I still have photos to add to the site. There’s a couple of parks (and special features) that you hit if you do happen to leave Southern Adventures and head to Chattanooga (passing by the Unclaimed Baggage Center, of course). Those will be added in the upcoming weeks.
We’re also starting to seriously put together our 2008 plans. I’m trying to figure the best way to hit all the great new coasters in 2008. We’ll most likely hit a half dozen of this years new coasters. We’re also lined up to stop by the new Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach and we’ve pretty much committed ourselves to a week a Disney World in the fall. Should be a busy year.
After all of that not only am I going to get around to a redesign of the site, but also updated scans of all of the early film photos on the site (before July 2003) - the quality of those pics should improve significantly.
That’s pretty much where things stand. Thanks again, everyone. I really do hope you enjoyed the week’s worth of new photos, prizes and stuff. I’ll probably do a little update next week to tie up some loose ends. I have some wallpapers, 3D photos, panoramics and stuff asociated with the 5 parks I added this week that need put into place.
As always, keep checking back. You never know what you’ll find. (smile)
Alabama Adventure Pictures
Feb 28, 2008
Another day, another new photo gallery. This time I’m bringing you 43 pictures of Alabama Adventure. All the photos you’d expect at this point, so head on over and give ‘em a gander.
More prizes going out today so be sure to check your inbox. You don’t want to miss the freebies.
Tomorrow is leap day and the final day of our little five-year anniversary celebration. Be sure to come back for one last photo gallery update - this one is also from a park in Alabama.
