A ride that CP doesn't have & you wish it would...

The real world experience is that people demand healthy options, but buy the junk. The smart operator gives the people what they want, not what they say they want.

(So why doesn't Cedar Point serve the sliced hot caramel apple with frozen custard anymore? The firehouse no longer has the caramel apples, and the place on the Frontier Trail with the apples doesn't have the custard!)

Oh, I think I have found a couple of great locations for dark ride show buildings: above the games buildings on the main midway. You know, the one-story buildings with the two-story facade and the *huge* courtyard behind...a very large dark ride could go there with the show building on the second floor. It would be practically invisible, take up almost no midway space, and as a bonus would turn the open courtyard behind the games building into a covered (but still open) space.

It's not exactly a new idea; it's what Kennywood did for Ghostwood Estates, and it's how Knott's found room for that Iron Reef abomination.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

Shades said:
Tossing out the water park options, other than their log ride and their dark shooting gallery, I do not see that HW has anything more to offer than CP with regards to family rides.

Yes, if you ignore the attractions at HW that would make CP a more family-friendly park, HW doesn't have much more to offer families than CP...

That log ride and dark ride combo would go a long way toward making CP more appealing to families, so it makes zero sense to "toss them out." Beyond that, HW has ubiquitous theme, a big play structure (why on Earth has CP not added one of these?), and food quality and value that make it immensely appealing for a family.

No - I didn't toss out the log ride and dark ride. I said tossing out the water park, the only other family rides that HW has that CP doesn't is the log ride and the dark ride. How is that tossing them out?

I tossed the water park to compare dry rides. I will say though that having the water park being included at HW is a big plus as compared to it being separate at CP.

You're basically saying "if we ignore what are arguably two of the most family-friendly rides at HW that CP doesn't have, HW doesn't offer that much more for families than CP."

By that logic, if we ignore the drive train and number of doors, a Corvette is not very different from a Cruz.

The point is that those two attractions - the log ride and dark ride - are a huge part of what makes HW more appealing to families.

It actually emphasizes the point.

No one, including myself, is wanting (well, expecting) Cedar Point to install 6-7 quality family rides (although wouldn't that be amazing?). The park is what it is, and it's amazing at what it does. As DJ noted, having something akin to a log ride (or true family coaster) plus a family-friendly dark ride would be an incredible shot to the arm for Cedar Point's lineup.

Right now there is just simply so little at Cedar Point to ride as a family together, just one of those would make it feel so different.

And let me be very clear what I mean by family ride; this would be something with a 39" height restriction that provides some level of moderate thrill. I hate to keep using Firechaser Express as an example, but it's just such a damn good one outside of dark rides, log flumes, and Disney.

Cedar Point has Ocean Motion and Scrambler.

That's pathetic.

But, as others have noted, maybe their "data" don't tell them to add something like this. I have no idea. I will say, though, that while I am impressed overall with the changes that occurred during Ouimet's tenure, I thought for sure one thing Cedar Point would get was at least one really high-quality family ride. I got the vibe that was a focus of his, and coming from Disney added to the fuel that fed my assumption. "Amusement Dark", anyone? What the hell happened to that?

And who knows? We have no idea what is already in the works for the next few years. Something along the lines of what we are discussing could very well be planned. I certainly hope that is the case.

Pete brought up a really good point about kids in this regard. You know what got my kids to look at coasters in awe? Cedar Point. That certainly sparked an interest in them, not to mention having a dad that is, shall we say, somewhat interested. But do you know what actually got my kids hooked on riding coasters? Disney. Having all those experiences as a family together is what truly got them into wanting to ride them, because we could actually conquer something relatively thrilling together. Space Mountain, Seven Dwarves Mine Train, Splash Mountain, Thunder Mountain RR, Test Track, and others all at 3 years old? Now that's an experience a kid can walk away from and feel not just excited, but proud and inspired to move onto the next challenge with. Then they go back to Cedar Point and stare at something like the Mine Ride and wonder why they need to be 7 just to get on. Explaining the restraint system does little to help. But I digress, we also always had a blast at Cedar Point when they were tiny. We did what we could and loved it.

It's just a shame to some that Cedar Point has left this aspect of their park behind, because while it's amazing, it would not take much to make it even better, and isn't that something we could all agree on?

^ x 1,000

Also add Tower of Terror- my daughter conquered that beast at 3 years old as well! Many of the people who do not understand Kevinj's argument either

A. Have no kids

B. Have never been to Disney or Dollywood

Another argument I like to make is how Dollywood adds family oriented playgrounds near their bigger rides. I've always wanted a playground built inside Millennium Force's overflow queue concrete that hasn't been used in ten years. It would allow the kids to get their energy out while waiting for the bigger kids to ride. It may sound weird, but my kids (8, 3, 1) would rather go on a playground and run like crazy than go through the monotonous process of boarding one of the circular rides in Kiddy Kingdom.

Totally agree on needing some play structures. The rope climb structure they had in the 80's was amazing as a kid.

The Happy Harbor play structure was one of the things that stands out to me most from my memories as a kid at Sea World/SFWoA. I suspect the days of seeing those are long over thanks to all the sue happy parents these days.

To the contrary, play structures seem to be experiencing a sort of renaissance. Carowinds is getting a new one for 2018.

MAN! I was reading old blog entries from Tony on the CP main site (including one that I swear is missing about the IIAPA(?) show) and a light bulb went off above my head. Does anyone remember that "random" Intamin visit a few months back to CP where they were showing Jason & Rob a book of mystery contents?

The need for a family coaster has been brought up alot lately and then I stumbled upon this:

https://www.intaminworldwide.com/wave-breaker-seaworld-sanantonio-usa/

Ding, ding. I'm thinking something similar might be definitely possible for the old AWE stadium site. My fingers are crossed & it sure would fit in by the lake now wouldn't it? Themeing and location. What do you guys think, did I stumble on something or am I just nuts? This one feels right.

Seeing as how the height requirement is 48" (which seems largely determined by a ride's restraint system), it's not a family coaster.

If you have never been to Dollywood to experience the play areas they have set up, they are wonderful for both kids and parents. Near a large attraction (like Thunderhead), there is a playground where a parent can kick back while the kiddos have a ball. So if one is doing parent swap, you don't have to run off to some other area of the park to ride something and work your way back.

They're wonderful, and one of those things that sometimes makes me wonder if the folks at park A ever get out there to visit parks B and C to see what they do that works. Nothing could be simpler or more cost efficient.

Here's what it looks like:

A wave runner ride from a company that can’t build a log flume?

I think that would be a cool addition to the lineup considering the theme. However, 2 things:

1) I strongly believe you are overestimating the size of land that AWE stadium took up.

2) Wave Breaker’s height minimum is 48”. That’s the same height minimum as Millennium Force.

EDIT: that was supposed to be for 3 posts above. I guess I was too late

I continue having a gut feeling that a family coaster will replace the now defunct Extreme Sports Stadium. Maybe 2019?

And if I could put a new dark coaster in the park, I'd place it where Shoot the Rapids used to be.

XS NightClub said:

A wave runner ride from a company that can’t build a log flume?

At least if the restraint system pitches someone from ride they will just take a dive into the water to cushion the blow. :)

Bobb-z said:

And if I could put a new dark coaster in the park, I'd place it where Shoot the Rapids used to be.

Mmmmm, no. Please no giant pole barns in the middle of that scenic area. (I use the term loosely) A log ride in a cement mountain would be fine, though.

I like RideMan’s idea of using the hidden area behind the games colonnade for a dark ride. It couldn’t bother anyone there, and there’s plenty of space. The entrance could be where the old restroom path used to be. (Remember that?) Knock out a couple of game stalls for a proper ride facade. That would direct people to a rather mid day-slow area of the park as well.

Having said all that, I’m not sure I trust CF for good dark rides. Knott’s has done a good job with the flume and the mine, but those renos were through special arrangement and I believe very local. The large screen shoot em up dark rides just don’t do it for me, and I’m wondering if CF didn’t finally realize they’re not quite the bee’s knees. As mentioned, the Amusement Dark thing has gone real quiet.

I agree a coaster that any of us would consider decent size (length) could never fit in the stadium’s spot. Maybe a mouse (no thanks), but any other coaster would certainly be small, short, and geared toward the youngsters. This wave runner ride occupies a bit of real estate, and unless they used the beach for it it would never fit. And that would be doubtful. A coaster up over all that blowing sand seems like a bad idea to me. Plus there’s a new boardwalk extension, stuff like that.

http://www.latimes.com/travel/themeparks/la-trb-cedar-fair-dark-rid...story.html

Dark Rides, Smark Rides.... that was so 2015

The only positive I glean from it not being discussed is what RCMAC eluded to; perhaps they are not so enamored with the shoot-em-up video game dark ride combo. I personally loathe those rides, all the way from the cheesy Boo Blasters to the more sophisticated Toy Story. So while I will always hope for a dark ride, I'd be happy if it's not from Nintendo.

Same. I’d much rather just sit and take in the theming than be concerned with pulling a trigger ten thousand times while I ride.

I think it’s a hard to get a ride like that right. Toy Story comes the closest. It’s well done and maybe the reason I like it so is that it’s an actual shooting gallery and the story just writes itself. I also like Men in Black. The sets are huge and the targets don’t dominate the scene. Plus you can shoot each other.

I thought Kennywood’s ride was terrible. All I could see or focus on was what seemed like a billion targets. I’ve never been on either of the new Cedar Fair rides but from what I’ve seen and heard they miss the mark. The Scooby Doos, Boo Blasters, and Gobbler Getaways of the world are cute but the flat cutouts seems so out of date and they’re far from awe inspiring.