Coaster Wars II: Magic Mountain vs Cedar Point

http://travel.latimes.com/daily-deal-blog/?p=1611

Nothing in the article surprised me. If Cedar Point is getting some play in California you can be sure that Robin Innes will milk that for what it is worth.

What I did find interesting was the comment to the article. The responder made note of the lack of variety in the park (losing the pirate ride, flume ride, etc) but noted that the boat ride was still there. He actually appreciate the Jungle Cruise like start of the ride with the hillbilly jokes and so forth. But, of course, you turn the corner at Mantis and then the rest of the ride is about the coasters.

Cedar Point IS about the coasters and the coasters are largely the reason why CP has gained the success it has. But, it is time to move past the coasters. They are taking a small step toward that this year with the new Snoopy Playground area but there is far more to be done to return the "family" to the park.

^ All very true. Except the new Snoopy area has no playground in it. Only a planet.

Magic Mountain Guy said:
When it comes to being the coaster capital of the world, it’s measured in thrill quality, not ride quantity.

This line made me laugh really hard. You could take away half of CP's lineup and they would still beat MM hands down in quality. When I went to MM last year, 5 of their coasters were down, and of the ones I did ride, Tatsu and Golith were the only two that I thought were any good. Revolution was decent but nothing great. Everything else was just kind of meh.

And as I mentioned to the author... no one actually cares. The parks don't compete.

Don't be dissing Revolution. You are now teetering very close to offending my generation. I rode Revolution the year it opened and the excitement for that ride would overwhelm the excitement of any ride opening these days.

Sorry about the Snooopy thing. Planet Snoopy, Snoopy Playground...whatever. Point being, that is a step in the right direction but it can't just be: kids rides over here, adult rides over there. It is time to embrace families participating together.

Hey, at least I didn't include it in the "meh" category. :)

Let me know when Magic Mountain ads are running in Indiana, or anywhere in the midwest, on a regular basis. Maybe then I'll think about the word "competition."

Chief Wahoo said:
Don't be dissing Revolution. You are now teetering very close to offending my generation. I rode Revolution the year it opened and the excitement for that ride would overwhelm the excitement of any ride opening these days.

Was that before or after you witnessed the creation of dirt? ;)

SFMM only kept the "crown" by keeping a dead coaster standing for a couple years after it died. And since both are regional parks, they are most definitely not in direct competition. The only thing the title allows them to do is use it in marketing to their distinct region.

You know, I never would have imagined a mainstream media sector that panders to the enthusiast community. I guess it means we're no longer confined to TPR and PB, but are now exposed to the wonderful world of mainstream media, where stupidity reigns. ;)

jugga...that is cold.

But seriously I remember the energy on that platform like it was yesterday. And, that went on all year and into the second year. It really was pandemonium...and not the "staged" openings we see today. I was at Splash Mountain's opening day, Raptor's opening day and they don't even come close.

I wonder if the thrill is exponential? That is to say...the first loop was extraordinary but now we have been flipped upside down so many different ways that it has become somewhat passe? Breaking 200' was really something but were 300' and 400' creating that much of a buzz? It is a challenge for the park operators, that is for sure.

Wait... I don't remember ever going back in time to 2001. :)

Well, you brought up the generations. ;)

I have to agree with coasters not creating buzz. Magnum was huge because no one had really come close, same with Millennium, heck the closest was still 20 feet off. Dragster was too soon after MF. There wasn't that build-up of parks building 300+ ft coasters wondering when someone would break 400 (like there was between Magnum and MF).

Oh, and let me say that...to get on Revolution back then I had to stand on my tiptoes and hope the ride op didn't catch me with the height stick!

:-)

The last really magic opening I recall was Millennium Force. What a great day that was. Dragster was, well, a drag, seeing as how it didn't run during most of the media event.

Gemini's opening day was pretty cool. The whole new midway seemed packed the entire length of the ride. We waited what seemed forever to get on the ride.

The best though was Magnum's opening day. There was definately electricity in the air - along with cold drizzle - and a feeling of history. I still remember the first trip up the lift hill and seeing the top of Gemini to the left and then looking back up to the top of Magnum's lift hill and thinking "There is still almost 60 feet to go!"

Nothing else has come close since then. I'm old and jaded now I guess. :)

-Tambo

I remember driving across the causeway when Maggie was built and thinking, "holy........................". Well, you get the idea. While others have gone higher Maggie really did stand there in glory looking down on the rest of the park as if to say, "you mere mortals".

I went with a bunch of people doing the after prom thing (I was only a sophomore, so I was only along for the ride). We jokingly said we could find Magnum by simply looking up. If only we knew what later years would bring. Still, that was the first weekend it was open, and I remember it pretty vividly. People really freaked out on that first hill.

I wish I could have known the excitement of Magnum's opening.....however, I was to busy being born.:)

I've taken my kids to Cedar Point since they were little, and I rode the rides in Camp Snoopy with them. Now that they're older, and I work for Cedar Point, we still go there together, and now they enjoy the "big boys" rides. I'm still young enough to keep up with them too! My oldest son turns 14 next year, and he wants to work at CP. I'm a seasonal team leader in merchandise, and he wants to work in games. I think it'll be a good first job for him.