Extended Closure

I have marked it on my calendar to bring this thread back to life in a year. Never Forget!

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heads will roll once again...

75% confidence?

If your dentist was 75% confident that the implant he just placed for you will be there in a year you should be very worried. ;)

RCMAC:

Maybe they see 80% of the responses include things like “I’d like to see more places for alcohol” and “No more boring boat rides”

That’s pretty much what my survey said except I did not ask that they get rid of the boat ride but rather serve alcohol on the boat ride.

RCMAC:

Maybe they see 80% of the responses include things like “I’d like to see more places for alcohol” and “No more boring boat rides”

Survey Results, 2019:

"Bring the boat ride back!"

Cedar Point: "Let's build a boat ride!"

Survey Results, 2022:

"No more boring boat rides!"

Cedar Point: "Close the boat ride!"

Based on how the park seems to be currently managed, this actually makes (unfortunate) sense.

72 hours left of Cedar Point being a Cedar Fair park.

I am surprised to hear the critical comments about how CP is being currently managed?

Not that I am following all the details that closely, but I applaud their recent decisions to invest significantly in updating old attractions like Mean Streak and TTD. And the Boardwalk stuff seemed decent?

Their investments over the past decade look very similar to past expenditures, or am I wrong about that?

(I think it was brave and cool to invest in TTD2 -- even going with Zamperla was a substantial investment and I don't see it as a "cheapskate move," despite it not turning out well - for now.)

I think a few folks did a really good job of explaining the critical comments, I don't see where the confusion is coming from. If Matt was still in charge and the park wasn't merging with Six flags then maybe people would feel more hope.

It's subjective, yes. And even if TTD2 was running flawlessly my concerns with the park would be the same.

The little things in life explain a lot more than the big things. Simple stuff like a Museum that requires next to nothing to operate is closed. I can only imagine it's because no one is left to care about the culture and the subtle things that add life to this park.

Maybe the compromise is to add a bar inside.

I can only speak for myself (although as Matt said I think it's been laid out); any current criticism or lack of faith in the future has nothing to do with Top Thrill Two being functional or not. In fact its presence is symbolic of where I think the park is losing step with the direction it was headed in in the very recent past. TT2 is a very, very, big thing. And an awesome thing. Hope to ride it sooner than later.

It's the steady increase in the little things falling by the wayside that are problematic. Not too long ago, the park adopted a mantra of "best day ever", which is exactly what any park would want, because those big things like TT2 are not what keep people coming back; it's the slow process of building a legacy of great memories that comes from personal experiences with employees and being able to soak in all those little things that can set a place apart from all the other poorly run parks.

I hesitate to use Disney as a comparison because it's such a different thing in a lot of ways, but if you ever want to have employees at a park bend over backwards for you, it's there. Dollywood also comes to mind as a park that consistently nails the guest experience. And it's not just the employee, er, cast member experiences, it's the parks' absolute dedication to detail that makes you feel like you are in a special place.

One glaring example is Frontier Trail continuing to die season by season (now Paul the woodworker spends more time helping kids make candles than on his art, which last I saw is also now hidden away in the candle shop...blacksmith still needs hired....there's an unused "jail" that could be such a fun interactive thing for kids...Fort Sandusky is usually closed off and last time we were there you couldn't climb in the mill to explore...). I could go on.

There are now three areas of the park that are symbolic of what's not right. First, the aforementioned museum. For Christ's sake hire a local Boy Scout troup to fix it up. They will be done by mid-August. Second, the area around the outdoor stage where they have just tossed some cornhole games to let guests feel like they are hanging out in the back of abandoned K-Mart, and the third is only visible from the tippy-top of certain coasters; the sad playground surrounded by the shrink-wrapped boats from SRE.

But hey, 3 new "bars" opened up this year.

And a human claw.

And we're now a Six Flags park.

Maybe GCI could get a contract if they included a bar with the station build out?

Kevinj:

it's the slow process of building a legacy of great memories that comes from personal experiences with employees and being able to soak in all those little things that can set a place apart

This was Matt Ouimet's whole thing and Jason McClure as GM in that era was the perfect face and voice for the park as they set that in place.

Originally I had my doubts about Carrie when her overall presence was nowhere close to what we became used to with Jason (or John H.), but I think a lot of it had to do with the ease Jason has with talking to the public. Anyone else remember the dad-joke filled presentations from Jason and Tony during some of those Winter Chills Outs? He had passion for the park but also was a great communicator and talked about that passion easily. I have had a chance now to meet Carrie a few times and chat with her about the park and it's extremely clear to me that she has the same passion about the park (both its history and its future) that Jason did/does. The difference is she doesn't have the support or autonomy from the folks in Charlotte that was present in the 2012-2019 time period, so she just doesn't have the opportunity to tease all sorts of new improvements and exciting things.

As long as they do not change the recipe for the hand breaded chicken tenders all will be good.

Kevinj:

(now Paul the woodworker spends more time helping kids make candles than on his art, which last I saw is also now hidden away in the candle shop...

Timely comment as just yesterday (Thursday) around 4:30pm or so I happened across Paul as he walked past Iron Dragon towards the front of the park. Part of our short conversation included him saying he was to close up shop early for the day.

Shades:

As long as they do not change the recipe for the hand breaded chicken tenders

I love the taste of hands.

Çp4€và04:

Maybe the compromise is to add a bar inside.

A speakeasy/prohibition-type bar with all of the museum stuff would be super cool ngl.

Kevinj:

now Paul the woodworker spends more time helping kids make candles than on his art, which last I saw is also now hidden away in the candle shop...

I was very fortunate to purchase 4 pieces of his hard to get work, including a skyride cabin, a gemini car, a trashcan, and a mini Schwabinchen lady. It's the first time in 2 years that I've seen him have any of his work for sale as he says the park won't give him enough time.

We had this conversation with him last year. He was hoping the move to the candle shop would be temporary, and you could feel his sadness about it, but also his willingness to "take one for the team" in being relegated to a new role. The same dragon he was working on last year is still being worked on.

Paul is actually a great example of everything going on. This guy should be made into a rock-star of the Frontier Trail. People of all ages love(d) watching him do his thing, and anyone who has ever talked to him knows how much he knows about the park and the time he will take to talk about his craft or whatever else anyone would want to talk about.

Instead, unless you already know who he is and where to find him, you would never know who he is or what he has done over the years.

I'm surprised they don't have him pushing a beer-cart after 4:30 pm.

I wasn't sure that he was still around. Me and Ken got, uh, happy, two years ago in the building where he used to work. Because it was serving aclahol.

Jeff:

I love the taste of hands.

I think the sweat from the hands of the chicken breaderer really enhanced the flavor. I don’t want my chicken breaderer to wear gloves.

I appreciate the comments and the context regarding the changes to CP.

I love the Frontier Trail area too, but rarely saw Paul.

Reminds me of when Magic Mountain used to have Spilkin Corners, a legitimate arts/ craft area....

Cedar Point was definitely craft-forward when Frontier Trail was first conceived. And there was a special structure they called The Paddock where artists would come from all around to demonstrate and sell at weekend shows. Paddock was behind the Glass Blowing Shop and was eventually replaced by Thunder Canyon.
Cedar Point from the 60’s on was a great imitator with a lot of influence from places like Disneyland. I have to believe Frontier Trail was conceived after someone took a good look at Silver Dollar City which had great success combining rides, food, and old-time authentic crafts. I don’t know what the advantage, economic or otherwise, would be by eliminating such attractions but there ya go. Maybe they didn’t sell enough to keep it feasible, or maybe artisans are few and far between these days.
I have quite a few pieces designed and crafted by Paul and I’ll never forget the afternoon he and his dad hosted me and gave me a detailed tour of their Merry Go Round museum in town.