April 30, 2007

GeoTrax Vehicles w/ People Sets (Stat & Stewart) - New Release

One more new GeoTrax release I found looking around the Mattel customer service website. Looks like Fisher-Price is changing the little vehicles released last year to include people that can actually ride inside the vehicle. Each vehicle appears to come with two figures.

The GeoTrax vehicles being released appear to be...an ambulance, police SUV, recycling truck and construction dump truck.

GeoTrax Vehicles w/ People Sets (Stat & Stewart)
Image Credit: fisher-price.com.

Check out the GeoTrax Vehicles with People Sets Instruction Sheet.

April 29, 2007

GeoTrax Grand Central Station - New Release

Grand Central Station is the set I am most excited about with this next set of items to be released and it seems to be attracting the must buzz on the Internet right now. The GeoTrax Grand Central Station set appears to be the successor to the Workin' Town Railway and the Tracktown Railway sets. I bet this will cost around $40 once released.

GeoTrax Grand Central Station
Image Credit: fisher-price.com.

New stuff being introduced with this set include the new style switch which is more of a parallel switch than the curve switch we are all used to. This set also introduces some new curved elevation track pieces which appear still different from the curved elevation pieces that come with the Mile High Mountain set.

GeoTrax Grand Central Station Parts List
Image Credit: fisher-price.com.

Check out the entire Grand Central Station Instruction Sheet.

GeoTrax Remote Control Train - Bull & Bruno - New Release

The second of two new remote control trains is this one know only at this point as Bruno & Bull.

Bruno & Bull Remote Control Train
Image Credit: fisher-price.com

This is a great-looking train--much like the trains you see running freight across our countryside. I am guessing the train is Bull and the man is Bruno but that is complete speculation on my part.

This train also comes with forward and reverse action...should be a great addition to you set. The actual release date is unknown at this point.

For more details check out the GeoTrax Remote Control Set with Bull & Bruno Instruction Sheet.

GeoTrax Remote Control Train - Alpine & Will - New Release

Here they come, we will soon have trains with the same forward and reverse action as the already released bulldozer and dump truck.



It looks like Fisher-Price is playing to one of its strengths and introducing action figures to go with the GeoTrax train sets. As a kid I spent hours playing with my fisher price people...I think the camping/safari set was my favorite.

My son likes to play with his Galactic Heroes (mini Star Wars figures) while playing with his GeoTrax. They ride in the train cars, climb the mountain in the Mt. blast Construction set and use the GeoMotion Water Tower as their Storm Trooper base.

I think my kids will really like the new figures.

For more details check out the GeoTrax Remote Control Train with Alpine & Will Instruction set.

April 14, 2007

GeoTrax Track Layout Ideas - Quick Tip #2

I finally bought some of the newer T-Track (or double-switch) pieces--I now have two T-track pieces. One I got when I purchased my Lift N' Load Quarry and the other I got from the City Track Pack set. I have been playing around with my T-track pieces and I came up with some interesting ideas building on the concept of a figure-8 layout.

There are a lot of ways you can create a figure-8 track layout with GeoTrax. The basic figure-8 layout is a quick way to get my youngest child up and running with a simple track layout that doesn't take up a lot of space and keeps her entertained while I am trying to build a more complex layout. Here is a quick picture of what a figure-8 layout might look like.

Figure 8 track layout
Figure 8 track layout broken apart to show pieces better

You can modify this same concept by adding the T-track pieces into the mix. Your figure 8 has more of a square look but adds some alternative paths to the layout for your trains. Here is what mine looks like...

Figure 8 track layout using T-track pieces

Or you can combine these two ideas together into something that looks like interlocking figure 8's (or a 4-leaf clover) which can then be altered in a way to allow for off and on ramps for the clover leaf design. Check this out...