A thank you to Mr. Lutz (and TouringPlans.com)

[Athlonacon]

I've ridden LOTS of rides at Disneyland for the very last time, it's really nothing new to me. But thanks to Al, I was able to *enjoy* one last ride, knowing it was my last. The thing is, I was going to ride the Matterhorn in 2009, and had waited in line for almost an hour, when the ride broke down with about 5 people in front of me. I was going to try again last August but it was closed for renovation. But thanks to Al's insightful postings, I rode it this week knowing that the 1978 sleds, the vehicles I had known for all my life, will be removed by the time I end up riding it again. Now, obviously the Matterhorn isn't going anywhere and it's just a vehicle change, but anyone that has ridden the Matterhorn knows that that's more than half the ride right there.

I started visiting the park in 1979 and grew up seeing the sleds slicing through the mountain, absolutely terrified of imagining myself on them. The new updates combined with the new vehicles will drastically alter the feel of the mountain, and the ride, so I'm just glad I was able to experience one more time as the way it's been since the day I was born... not only that, but *knowing* I'd be experiencing it one last time. Al may think he's simply creating the most insightful, detailed, interesting and forward-looking columns on the Internet, but he's done so much more than that. He's given a person the gift of knowing when that last ride will come. Thank you so much Al!

Also, the TouringPlans.com helped me so much in determining the crowd size. It seems like every time I go it's a cattle herd and a sea of humanity that clogs every ride to their saturation points, prevents you from stopping from walking for even a fraction of a second, and just generally creates a stressed-out "wish I stayed at home" sense. But TouringPlans.com said the resort would be a 4/10 and, sure enough, everything was a 15-minute (or less) wait, the walkways were clear enough to actually pause for a second, and I had SO much fun and enjoyed myself so much I couldn't believe it was the same park as the cattle herd. Miceage isn't just a fascinating site, it *truly* does make a difference in the way a person experiences Disneyland.

Thank you both for all your hard work, it makes a genuine difference!

[DLFreak71]

Glad to hear you had fun

[Witches of Morva]

ORDDU: My sisters and I agree that Mr. Lutz is a fine man with many insights that help us all to make better decisions about our trips to the Happiest Place on Earth. Even the closure of certain restrooms--in the past--have been pointed out.

ORGOCH: Yeah, ya gotta know where ta go WHEN ya gotta go!

ORWEN: Oh, are you finally starting to actually USE restrooms these days, old biddy? Last I knew you always did your thing in the bushes!

ORDDU: (Ahem!) Be that as it may, sisters, we should never forget how much we owe to our friend, Mr. Lutz, because of his many updates.

[count_justin]

i think the new bobsleds look nice but the old bobsleds were a great date ride! the new ones do look very uncomfortable