Could Steel Vengeance have a media event?

I'd go to media day without the swag. And call it a win!

Bluestreaker said:
I'd go to media day without the swag. And call it a win!

Exactly, and so would most enthusiasts. Just a few are rude.

Kinda sad. Personally I am a "Enthusiast" but don't belong to any clubs ect. I just love the place.

Of all the passions in my life I've never heard of complaining about not getting free stuff, until reading about it on here regarding CP.

Man that hamburger was great! Next time I come in for one could I get it half off?? All of this entitlement conversation about enthusiasts had me very confused...........Till I thought back about my years in food/customer service. Most of us tend to black out those memories after moving onto something better.

What happened at Holiday World?

At an event an enthusiast decided it would be a good idea to stand on Raven. She was thrown and killed.
It was in the evening and enthusiasts were assembled in the theater waiting for ERT. They were told there was accident and the remainder of the event was cancelled.
It was devastating for the park, needless to say.

Oh my gosh; honestly have never heard this story.

No words, really. The ripples of devastation touched a lot of souls, I'm sure.

Yes, and the lady has actually been mentioned in the infamous Darwin Awards. (Which defines "airtime" as trying to stand up on a coaster, and thus probably misleading many people who have later heard an enthusiast ravin' about Raven.)

The ride had PTC ratchet bars and seatbelts (a belt which was allegedly found unbuckled) by the way - buzz bars were not the cause, Raven had been converted prior for the accident.

I do feel sorry. She did something stupid, but nobody deserves to pay with their life for a dumb decision. But that's probably why Holiwood Nights is now quite strict about safety and makes you sign an agreement threatening a ban if you try to interfere with the restraints. A fairly reasonable thing, I suppose. After such a terrible thing happened, it's a miracle they even throw such a big event any more, let alone be as generous to enthusiasts as they are.

GigaG said:

Obviously any group that has a special event is a burden. OSU, enthusiasts, company employees, whatever. I just think it's a bit ridiculous that enthusiasts should be punished for the activities of a vocal minority who likes to loudly complain about the amount or quality of CP swag they get.

Punished? You get the same thing everyone else gets, how is not getting something extra being punished?

^Having a generous privilege taken away because of the actions of vocal minority of enthusiasts is kind of punishment.

If a child acts up and gets a certain privilege taken away, we call that punishment. This is similar, except all us "children" are being punished for the actions of a few.

Notice I'm calling it a privelege - I'm not saying we're "entitled" to Media Day. I just think it would be a really good idea, and most enthusiasts would enjoy it rather than moan about free stuff.

Most enthusiasts would enjoy it, yes. But is it worth the extra time, effort, and money to expand the event? What's the ROI on inviting people that are going to come to the park anyway and are already posting on social media about it? The park employees 5000 people, they definitely do not need more people to fill those trains for Media.

The park expanded the first rider event to allow more than just the top x bidders, and at this point is probably as close to an enthusiast pre-opening event as anyone could expect.

Like CoasterMania, charging some amount of money seems to solve some of the problem.

^How much do you have to pay to be part of that event? (For Valravn, or whatever the most recent ride that did it was.)

I personally don't think there was ever a "problem" with media days except for a vocal minority of enthusiasts. However, there definitely was a problem with overcrowding at CoasterMania. Charging for it took from "more crowded than morning ERT or even passholder ride nights" to "truly feels like high-quality ERT." That has to be one of the best decisions CP has made recently.

I've never done one of the first rider events, although I might next year.

It looks like the Valravn one was $75. If it was like other charity events CP has done, the full amount of the ticket price might have been tax deductible.

http://www.sanduskyregister.com/story/201604220051

Based on Steve's comment here, it sounded like a good event.

https://pointbuzz.com/Forums/Topic/media-days#572226

Eh, if it was priced more like CoasterMania, I'd probably go. We'll see how much it costs this time around. At least it's not rider auction only though, I'll consider it.

(Still wish they still did media day though One of the best days I've ever had at CP.)

I attended the Valravn charity event last year and the Mystic Timbers one at Kings Island this year. I loved both. The money goes to a good cause, not to mention there is food and collectibles. The Valravn event had fantastic food. Check out Invertalon's excellent photo album.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/invertalon/albums/72157665654478774

I now prefer all of my first rides on new coasters to be accompanied by shrimp and crab legs. :-) You likely won't get as many rides as you would during a morning media day session, but a good portion of the people attending these events aren't interested in riding over and over. I got 3 rides on Valravn and 9 on Mystic Timbers. That was with taking breaks in between to visit catering heh.

As much as I loved the Gatekeeper Media Day, I understand the parks view. Media Days have always been there to promote the newest attraction. But, what good is it if they don't have many guests their enjoying it? I know in recent years, they have had radio contests and have winners invited. I think that is great idea, as it provides excitement and views from the average guests. I liked how it was done years ago when it was limited. You actually had to be personally invited. I got on the media list in 2000 and enjoyed the events for several years. I have always enjoyed doing anything to help promote the park. Sure, the free stuff is cool. But not needed. I will say that the Gatekeeper bags were the best! We still get a lot of use out of ours.

I say keep Media events limited. Get enough guests to keep the trains full. No need to have 2,000 guests there for it.

Cedar Point had a great idea with the Gatekeeper media day. I was there, it was fantastic. It should've happened with Valravyn as well. It won't happen for Steel Vengeance, but that isn't because the fans of the park do or don't deserve it.... it's just a nice, kind, HUMAN gesture. In this world, those kind nods are few and far between. Of course people want that. And I saw the PR they got from the event. It should've been enough to promote them to do it continually for all new major attractions. Disney does this stuff, why not Cedar Point?

Ken P said:
Like CoasterMania, charging some amount of money seems to solve some of the problem.

Last year was the first year CP charged an additional fee for CoasterMania! It was also my first time at the event. I was AMAZED how many people complained all morning that there were no donuts & coffee before morning ERT, and then that there was no swag given out at lunch or during the Q&A session. Many said it ruined CoasterMania! That must have been some AMAZING donuts and swag, because the last 2 CoasterMania!s have been the 2 best days I've had at Cedar Point... I've already put in my time off request at work for June 1, 2018!

This year was our third Coastermania...
Our first year, they had donuts and coffee/juice as you walked in....
Last year they didn't have it.
This year they didn't have it.

As for the swag they gave out the shirts first thing this year, and years past you got them as you entered lunch.

1. I was always mindblown that they did it all for free.

2. It (like other great things) got too big. It was free, well run, and the park was always SUPER generous, so people just started to "expect" things... and it grew and grew because people would tell their friends, and then they'd tell THEIR friends and more and more would come "Because its free! AND they feed you and give you stuff!"

3. When they announced that there would be a cost and spaces would be limited going forward, I was happy (because you could tell it was turning into a clusterbleep) and completely happy to pay the cost.
No problem paying for Chill-out, no problem paying for Coastermania.

The issue is that people are creatures of habit and become expectant. It's not right, but it is what it is.

I hope people who "had their Coastermania ruined" are so upset about it that they don't come anymore lol. (or at least grow up!)

I have done a couple of the free CoasterManias, and both of the paid ones.

My daughter and I witnessed a single conversation at the last free one that we thought summed up the whole attitude problem. I won't mention a name, because almost half the people in the MF ERT line seemed to know him.

So, it starts, we are just in the line. Then this person started to complain how one year CP had handed out t-shirts when it was kind of cold. And another year they handed out hoodies when it was 80. And oh my gosh, the year they handed out those GateKeeper jackets, they waited until lunch when he could have really used it in the morning. Yeah, seriously, like CP should know the exact weather conditions 4 months in advance when they are custom-ordering this stuff.

And then, it just turned hilarious. He started to complain that the ACE jacket he was wearing, which he had purchased himself, was made too heavy for coaster enthusiasts to wear during the summer months, but since he was an ACE member he needed some way to assert his membership to the world so he still wore it.

I'm not sure where his ACE jacket was the prior year when he needed something in the morning before the GateKeeper jackets were handed out, or why he had such an issue with the hoodie if he was ok wearing this heavy jacket. I guess the ACE jacket is easier than having to whip out a membership card in line.

I had warned my daughter about the entitled mentality before, but she clearly under-estimated its full potential until that point, as she almost lost it in laughter.