CoasterRadio.com #720 - The Man With Our "Dream Job"

If we asked you guys what your "Dream Job" would be, we're guessing a lot of you would have the same answer...

"Disney Imagineer."

Unfortunately, only a select few get to have that title.  So, it's understandable when some of the more famous names become the "rock stars" of the Disney and Theme Park Fan Communities.

On this week's show, we pay tribute to Tony Baxter, a long-time Disney Imagineer who recently announced his retirement.

Tony is responsible for many Disney Attractions that have become household names.

We'll discuss his career and what it means to be an Imagineer in 2013 versus 1955. Plus, we'll hear from listeners about their favorite Tony Baxter rides.

We'll also hear plans for a new theme park in Texas, news about Skyrush at Hersheypark and details about changes to the Fastpass system at Disneyland.

Plus, we'll be visited by our brand-new correspondent who has detailed tips and trivia about some of your favoritetheme park rides. We only had to pay him $1000 for his appearance (and it was worth every penny!)

Check out all of the show notes and links in our new interactive ZEEN - "In Styleee!" It's brand new for Season Seven!

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Talk about this episode by leaving a comment here on the blog.

Ride Lex Luthor and Be a TV Star!

High Noon Entertainment is producing a brand new Travel Channel show premiering this summer called "RIDE-iculous".

The show travels all over the nation and the world featuring crazy attractions and awesome people riding the rides at the parks.

They are going to be at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, CA this Wednesday, February 27th shooting the new the Lex Luthor: Drop of Doom ride.

They're looking for good-looking, fun-loving, outgoing, energetic and enthusiastic people to be extras and be filmed riding the ride over and over again.

That's the perfect description of the CoasterRadio.com audience! (I'm guessing most of you are good-looking.)

This is a great opportunity for anyone who loves thrill rides and TV production!  For all extras, the day will start at 9:30am and will go until around 4pm. They'll provide lunch for everyone, and food and drinks throughout the day.

The production company has been given access to the park on a non-operational day, so the park will belong to you! Because it is a non-operational day, the other rides will not be up and running, but it's an awesome experience to see/be part of a Travel Channel shoot and a really fun day!

Anyone who'd like to join in on the fun needs to email Brittany Schoede at this address: bschoede@highnoontv.com.

Good luck! Have fun!

Tony Baxter's Greatest Achievement

Earlier this month, famed Disney Imagineer Tony Baxter announced his retirement from WDI and his transition to a "part-time advisor."

Tony's began his Disney career selling ice cream on Main Street USA at Disneyland when he was just a teenager. He started at Walt Disney Imagineering in the 1970s when it was still known as WED Enterprises.

It's been said that Tony was part of the 2nd Generation of Imagineers, because he learned directly from many of the artists that Walt Disney hired himself.

Throughout Tony's 50-year career, he has been responsible for attractions like:

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Star Tours
EPCOT's original Journey into Imagination
The Indiana Jones Adventure
Splash Mountain
Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
Re-design of Disneyland's Fantasyland
Re-design of Disneyland's Tomorrowland
Disneyland Paris

That's quite an achievement, especially when you consider that many of those attractions are household names.

It's also fitting that the painting of Barnabas T. Bullion that now hangs in the interactive queue of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad bears a striking resemblance to Tony.

We'll be devoting a big part of our next show to Tony Baxter and his imprint on Disney Imagineering and the entire theme park industry.

So our question to you is... which of his attractions is your favorite?

Here are the different ways to contact us:

* Call our voicemail line - 206-339-3360
* Post your idea on our Facebook Fan Page.
* Post your idea on Twitter
* E-Mail Us (the address is to the right of this page)

CoasterRadio.com #719 - Gold Striker UPGRADED!

There's big news this week out of Northern California and we have the first interview about it.

California's Great America announced that their new roller coaster "Gold Striker" will now include the world’s longest covered initial descent tunnel on a wooden coaster.
 

Adding intrigue to the record setting feature, Gold Striker’s 174-foot tunnel will be enclosed by wood on both sides, corrugated metal on top and in-fill underneath the tracks, to replicate a true "gold mine" feel.

We'll talk with Tyler Currie, Director of Park Operations for California's Great America about the new ride and their big announcement.

We'll also discuss some rumors coming out of Walt Disney World in Orlando.  Word is leaking out about a possible re-imagining of the entire Downtown Disney complex.... complete with a new name, layout and a five-level parking garage.  Interesting stuff... but maybe Mike and EB have a better idea of what can be done with the area.

All this, plus a Live Trip Report from Kings Island, the return of "OFF TOPIC" and a visit from everyone's favorite Dutch Performance Artist!

Check out all of the show notes and links in our new interactive ZEEN - "In Styleee!" It's brand new for Season Seven!

LISTEN TO THE SHOW

Direct Podcast Link
Show Notes

Click here to subscribe through iTunes.

Click here for our podcast RSS Feed.

Talk about this episode by leaving a comment here on the blog.

CoasterRadio.com #718 - Listener Question Show: Part I

The best thing about this show are the people who listen to it.

They are all fun, passionate people who share a love of theme parks.

They are also one of the most engaged audiences out there.  When we have asked for listener interaction in the past, we always receive interesting and energetic responses.

That's why we love our yearly "Listener Question Shows."

We received a ton of great questions this week.  Actually, we received so many from you guys... we're breaking this show into two parts!

This week, we'll answer questions like:

* If you guys were still bachelors and had your pick of the girls of any of the countries in World Showcase who would you choose?  (Extra degree of difficulty:  No Norway.)

* If you guys could punch one person in the theme park industry who would it be and why?

* What was the most embarrasing thing to happen to you in high school?

* Was the Disney Podcast Guy character based on anyone specifically?  And if so, who?

We'll also spend our "First Drop" segment discussing the best attractions created during the career of Disney Imagineer Tony Baxter.  He announced his retirement last week, so we'll spend some time talking about his legacy and his classic Disney rides.

PLUS, we'll have a Live Trip Report from Disney's Animal Kingdom and the return of the greatest Amusement Industry Game Show ever: THEME PARK SMARTS!!!

Check out all of the show notes and links in our new interactive ZEEN - "In Styleee!" It's brand new for Season Seven!

LISTEN TO THE SHOW

Direct Podcast Link
Show Notes

Click here to subscribe through iTunes.

Click here for our podcast RSS Feed.

Talk about this episode by leaving a comment here on the blog.

Get Your Questions In!

The best compliment this show has ever received is that when you listen, it feels like you're just hanging out with a bunch of friends.

We hope that every episode makes you feel like that. But we really think our next show is the best example of it.

It's our 2013 Listener Question Show!

Yeah, we know... people send in questions all the time.  But we normally only use the ones about theme parks and thrill rides.

But for this particular show, there are NO RULES!

The questions can be about anything!

You can stick to topics like theme parks, thrill rides and the amusement industry. Or, you can go Off-Topic and ask a question about movies, music or pop culture.

You can even ask us personal questions if you'd like. Sometimes the best questions are about the podcast itself!

Here are the different ways to contact us:

* Call our voicemail line - 206-339-3360
* Post your idea on our Facebook Fan Page.
* Post your idea on Twitter

* E-Mail Us (the address is to the right of this page)

Do you have a burning question for us? Now's the time to ask!

AND, we'll be playing another round of THEME PARK SMARTS! If you want to be a contestant, drop us an e-mail!