Magnum and Gemini Closed?

Siouxsie, you missed the part where

RCMAC said:
Cedar Point is in the middle of nowhere compared to parks in Cincinnati, Richmond, Charlotte, or Kansas City. Those places have a pool of high school students in the metro area who don't mind driving to a part time job on the weekends. Cedar Point doesn't have that kind of numbers in their local population. They have to wait.
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So a park in Cincinnati had a stellar weekend. Maybe they had plenty of kids lined up to work. Maybe the weather in Mason was nicer earlier in the season than Sandusky's. (It was, by a lot)
And they let everyone in "a little early"? That made me laugh out loud. Do you seriously believe that was a courtesy to you? A nice little treat? It wasn't. They were braced for an inevitable stampede.
I went to KI on a Friday with a 10a opening and I can assure you things were less than stellar. The crowd was light, mostly school busses. Lots of places were closed and food stands that were open had horrendous lines all day. Rides that were open operated smoothly and save for Mystic Timbers at 25 minutes, all were a walk-on. I considered that to be a fair trade off. I went that morning knowing things would not be 100%.
I'd guess management chooses (wisely) to go as fully staffed as possible on the ride side of the house and it sounds like, as Pete said, CP didnt fall short aside from 2 coasters out of 17. And seriously, that can happen any time of year.

And you know what? I don't care about CP's opening weekend. I wasn't there and knew better than to try to go. No, I'm going to try for a couple of weekdays next week and I'll know exactly what to expect from a slow day with a short staff.

I just get irritated with enthusiasts who complain without thinking. It displays a lack of knowledge of how things work in the business.

(Side note: how you figure Maverick and Mystic Timbers are similar rides says it all to me. Both great rides. Not similar.)

Another question... it sounds like you knew that Cedar Point often has a bit of a struggle to get things going on opening day. And the last few years, they've opened a weekend earlier than in previous years, which seems like it'd be even more difficult to accomplish, especially given the staffing issue that RCMAC described. Yet you still went into the park with the expectation that everything was going to operate flawlessly. And because it didn't (on a cold, windy day, no less), it's the park's fault for not trying hard enough? C'mon.

RCMAC said:

So a park in Cincinnati had a stellar weekend. Maybe they had plenty of kids lined up to work. Maybe the weather in Mason was nicer earlier in the season than Sandusky's. (It was, by a lot)
And they let everyone in "a little early"? That made me laugh out loud. Do you seriously believe that was a courtesy to you? A nice little treat? It wasn't. They were braced for an inevitable stampede.

You seem awfully angry and defensive in your posts. Might want to take it down a notch or two. I didn't say I expected perfection, and I said I had a generally nice time on Saturday. And while I can understand that it's not going to be running perfectly, I'm not going to accept every excuse or possibility of why it didn't. It's just not that important to me and I will be there again at least one day this coming weekend for some more fun and possibly a little more frustration. It goes with the territory and I accept that. I think your hostility was triggered by the original complaint that was posted by another user so please direct it accordingly.

RCMAC said:

(Side note: how you figure Maverick and Mystic Timbers are similar rides says it all to me. Both great rides. Not similar.)

Because they both have a lot whips and sharp, exciting jolts that keeps the adrenaline at a maximum. My immediate thought after my first ride on MT was that it was definitely the Maverick of Kings Island. My first thought after riding Maverick this past weekend was that as much as I still love the coaster, I love MT more. I'm going back to KI in July and I'm really looking forward to the coaster again.

Actually, I was speaking to everyone until you quoted me. Then I had no choice but to speak to you, because I felt misrepresented. I read everything and I can assure you I was aware of previous posters' comments. If that seems angry and defensive to you then I sincerely apologize.

As for Maverick and Mystic Timbers being similar? Sorry, it's still a firm nope from me.

Magnum "Candy" Man said:

It's like going to out to eat and then after complaining, you get the typical response, "We're short-staffed". Well, that's not my fault. That is poor management, plain and simple.

As the scheduling manager at a cinema, I take offense to this. We have had times where weather and films do business beyond industry expectations and there is nothing we can do about it. If the attendance matches the trends and expectations, everything is fine. If the attendance is low, I get chewed out by the owner for having too much staff. If the attendance is high, I get chewed out by the customers for not having enough staff.

Sometimes you simply do not have the staff available, too. Sometimes critical people call off and you can't get those hours covered. There's a lot of variables to work with, and sometimes you have a fluke where the customers all decide to come at the same time, when the trends would normally say otherwise.

An example was Deadpool, a few years ago. Industry expectations were about half of what the film ended up doing. Our expectations as a business were about 60-70% of the crowds we had. So even staffing above the expectations for the business, we were understaffed. Is that poor management? Explain.

I went to CP Sunday. When I passed Gemini they were only running the red trains and the line snaked out into the midway. I never saw people on Magnum. Pipe Scream broke down right before we would have gotten on. The line for Millennium was an hour when we were in that area. Line for Maverick wasn't much better. There aren't any more paper towels in the ladies room at the arcade only hot air dryers and Berserk wasn't turned on so my kid couldn't play it. Despite this I somehow managed to have a wonderful time and I'm glad I went. There must be something wrong with me...

Siouxsie said:

I wonder how much they actually test the rides? I saw a Maverick train get stuck in the tunnel early opening day, then saw maintenance manually pushing Pipe Scream to it's proper position after a cycle so they could unload the riders.

That's normal procedure for a shutdown at Pipe Scream. As far as testing the rides, a LOT.

Siouxsie said:
CP each year is an expected mess, and this year was no different.

From reading this thread, a number of folks know the park will be an "expected mess" opening weekend, which leaves me scratching my head and wondering why anyone would be surprised that what was expected turned out to happen.

And as noted upthread, Cedar Point has staffing issues many parks don't face. Your friendly ride op at Kings Island rolls out of bed and toddles off to the park with a schedule that fits in with other obligations he or she has. Cedar Point depends on people who by and large move to Sandusky for the summer. If their college schedule ends on day x, they can't really commute back and forth prior to that date.

I got a good browns joke to insert here. Why don't you go do something that rhymes with truck with a sheep!

I'm sorry, but Magnum Candy Man's story about being in a lazy river and being told to "keep up with the group" is just too much. I'd be annoyed by being told such a thing too. Also, I know this guy personally from my experience working at the park. Worked three seasons on Magnum and he was a very frequent rider and never was rude to any of us. Heck, he brought us candy many times - thus his name. :)

So if you're burnt out at your customer service job and frustrated with a-hole customers,that's fine, but I can assure you, you've taken it out on the wrong dude here, Cartwright.

Well, by his own admission he swore at staff who were, by all accounts, doing their best under the circumstances (being understaffed early in the season).

Why be annoyed by people doing their best to assist all guests?

Well when I'm in a lazy river, I'm usually half asleep so I don't want someone telling me to paddle to keep up with a group of people I don't know and probably want nothing to do with. Why not tell the others to slow down? I don't think that would be right either. It's just a ridiculous thing to even ask. I'd be annoyed too. His irritation was justified. I'm not necessarily defending swearing at someone as a response, but this "people like you are the problem" stuff is equally out of line.

I was in the Lazy River at Soak City when it was staffed like Candyman said, the group is not a small group rather it is all the people who are in the Lazy River. The lifeguards walk with the group instead of being stationed around the river. This is a very large group however, comprised of multiple small groups and staying with the group never was an inconvenience. Candyman must have completely used the ride in a different way then other people there that day as there was no issue staying with the group for me, it seemed the same as any other day.

Given my larger size I generally travel much slower than most on a lazy river. On the flip side that mass can be a problem on tube slides, on a few occasions I have literally hydroplaned across the splash pool and beached the tube at the exit. There is a reason there are weight limits on those things and it is not because you are going to collapse the tower. :)

MDOmnis said:

So if you're burnt out at your customer service job and frustrated with a-hole customers,that's fine, but I can assure you, you've taken it out on the wrong dude here, Cartwright.

He may be a good guy who is a pleasure to have on the Magnum platform and brings you candy and that is all well and good. But by his own admission he was dropping F-bombs at lifeguards who were performing their job as required, and asking him to follow their policy resulted in said F-bombs. So in that particular case that he brought up, I feel my point was valid.

It's called a "lazy" river for a reason! That one has always been my favorite, as I could float around for hours in the shadow of Magnum. But, you always have others (usually kids) that have to run through it.

As MDOmnis said, I am normally a courteous guest. Spouting off at an employee is not what I would normally do. I remain nice and calm if complaining. Nine times out of ten, they are just following their job description and they do not make the rules. I realize that complaints need to be addressed towards management. But this particular situation I kept biting my lip the first few times and then finally snapped near the end. Normally, you are NOT supposed to be walking in the lazy river and are told not to. So, why the lifeguards were not telling them that, I don't know. Maybe he felt like it was easier yelling at one person instead of entire group.

CP Maverick - I understand the points you make. I realize that there are variations that come into play. If the weather is bad out, I would understand that. Or if you are fully staffed and still have issues, that is out of your control. Problem is owner greed (usually Corporate). They want to make big profits and not want to pay out for unwanted staff. I would personally rather pay extra to be overstaffed to take care of customers, than have upset customers that will not return. Famous Dave's, for example, are normally staffed right. Rarely do I visit one that is understaffed, and that says a lot, as I have been to over 200 of their restaurants!

But, again, it's all about the almighty dollar. I don't work for the cinema industry, but do know it's not cheap, and realize the demands put on theater owners from studios.

Magnum "Candy" Man said:

...as I have been to over 200 of their restaurants!...

Enthusiasts count more than just coasters??

thedevariouseffect said:

Magnum "Candy" Man said:

...as I have been to over 200 of their restaurants!...

Enthusiasts count more than just coasters??

It's actually a very impressive feat, considering the following information.

"The restaurant chain grew throughout Puerto Rico in 2014. It has 170 locations in 34 U.S. states as of 2016."

Magnum "Candy" Man said:
...Famous Dave's...
...as I have been to over 200 of their restaurants!

Did you ever make it to the Famous Dave'ses in Western New York? The unexpectedly closed last week. If not they can be your Drachen Fire of the BBQ world.

Any update on Magnum? Is it running today?