originally posted on 7/20/2019
Photo: Harris Lanum. View full-sized image.
Saturday, June 22, 2019, was the Coaster Con 42 add-on day at SeaWorld San Diego, and 133 ACEers gathered at the park for a beautiful day by the bay.
Event registration provided free parking and admission into the park at opening, and it being Saturday, the lines to get in were long. ACEers were allowed to ride Tidal Twister, the Skyline Attractions Skywarp Horizon, an hour before the general public. Most attendees went to that area initially to ride it, as the Quick Queue cards given were not valid for Tidal Twister. The ride was experiencing some technical difficulties, but the first riders boarded around 10:30 a.m. The debate was on: some considered this a coaster credit, while others did not.
Photo: Harris Lanum. View full-sized image.
A “pasta-licious” buffet was provided for the group, and during lunch attendees had a visit from Sidney the Shark and Pete the Penguin. Pete proved to be popular with all the ACEers.
During lunch, Jim Potter, project manager for SeaWorld design and engineering, gave a talk about the refurbishment of Journey to Atlantis (SeaWorld San Diego's water coaster), which turned out to be a rather difficult task.
Photo: Harris Lanum. View full-sized image.
Prizes at this last event of Coaster Con week were extra items from the convention host parks including T-shirts, mugs and glasses. SeaWorld donated some Tidal Twister lunch bags as well. Everyone who attended was given a raffle ticket, so all had a chance to win something.
After the group photo following lunch, ACEers went out to get their credits. The Quick Queue cards were very convenient as the park was quite busy. The ones provided to ACE included unlimited priority access to the remaining coasters in the park (Manta, Electric Eel, Journey to Atlantis) plus Wild Arctic and Shipwreck Rapids. Since the morning ERT was cut short because of technical difficulties, the park graciously provided priority access to Tidal Twister all day long to those wearing the morning ERT wristband. Everyone also received an arcade game card valued at $5.00.
Photo: Harris Lanum. View full-sized image.
ACEers could enjoy the park until 10 p.m., and the weather could not have been better. Everyone had a great time, and all were in agreement that SeaWorld San Diego did a great job welcoming ACE.
— Jackie Edwards
ACE Southern California assistant regional representative
@#$%&!
#ACENews