NEW AND HAVE QUESTIONS!

hello everyone! my name is sonya and I just applied on the 25th of December for the ride host job. I'm very excited. I have a few questions

1) For the early entry rides, What time do you have to be there and what rides are they?

2) I would like to work a coaster, but i've heard that you wont want millenium, maverick or raptor because you have to be there so early. (not a morning person).

3) When should I expect a call? When they offer me a job offer online, will the ride I will be working be on there?

4) how many hours should I expect to work a day? The most I worked as a food host was about 10 or so.

5) do i get to pick my shift?

thanks for your help, look forward to seeing you all in the 2012 season!

1) Things that open early an hour before the park are: Planet Snoopy, Rapter, Iron Dragon, Dragster, MF, Maverick. usually you would have to be at your station 7:35-8

2) Your always gonna be at work 3-4 times a week by 9. And if you dont have a car you would have to get up earlier because many people wait for the bus for the last second before their shift. So if you dont have a car down there I would wait for a bus an Hr before your shift

3) Returning employees will be starting to get calls Jan 3rd. Dont expect yours till end January-end Febuary. Might even be longer. They do not gueentee a call for every App they get.. You do not get a ride or job title till after you are accepted by them. After you are accepted, they will e-mail you a conract and your ride will be on that contract. Even though you may start on one ride, prepare to jump to ride to ride where ever they need you.

4) If you work here in the first month of May you will prob work Open to close. Hours on Fridays and Sat are open 10am-10pm. And other days in May is 10am-8pm. After the end of May expect to work a couple of Open-Close (O-C) but not every much. A week you will experience 36-42 hours a week.

5) No, Your teamleader will make a schedule for the crew usually on a Thursday-friday for the upcoming week. You can always talk to your Teamleader (TL) about your schedule if you need a day off or when you want to work your 1:30-Close. For Powertower my TL had a smartway of doing it by having a calender book and you would write in the day you would like your day off, but it wasnt promised. The shifts you will be seeing are O-C, 9-1:30,9-6,10:30-C,10:30-6 (Rarely) 12:30-6,12:30-C, 1:30-6, 1:30-C, and my fav... A Split which is 9am-1:30 then you go back 6-C

Hope this works a bit for you. Good Luck, hope to see you this summer!

sonyamarie said:
hello everyone! my name is sonya and I just applied on the 25th of December for the ride host job. I'm very excited. I have a few questions

1) For the early entry rides, What time do you have to be there and what rides are they?

2) I would like to work a coaster, but i've heard that you wont want millenium, maverick or raptor because you have to be there so early. (not a morning person).

3) When should I expect a call? When they offer me a job offer online, will the ride I will be working be on there?

4) how many hours should I expect to work a day? The most I worked as a food host was about 10 or so.

5) do i get to pick my shift?

thanks for your help, look forward to seeing you all in the 2012 season!

1. Depends on the ride. For Raptor, we had to be in at 8:20am every day. For rides like Millennium Force, if you need to do water dummies, you'll have to be there as early as 7AM (If I remember correctly).

2. I've worked Millennium (2010) and Raptor (2011) and it's not really that big of a deal as you might think. You will honestly get into the habit of waking up early and it won't even phase you after a while.

3. Calls will start going out for supervision probably right after management gets back from their break. Leadership probably mid-January, and calls for red tags will probably follow. You can follow your applications progress on jobnet.

4. You can work anything from a 1:30-6 (4 1/2 hours) to an O-C which (14 1/2 hours). Generally, you won't see such short shifts unless it's July when we actually have staffing. This last summer, I worked approximately 130 hours per pay check, so ~65 hours per week. Keep in mind, I asked for longer shifts and always offered to stay after my shift if someone wanted to go home.

5. No. Your TL / ATL will do the schedule based on need. Although, generally if you have a legit reason for needing an O-6, chances are they'll grant it. But don't expect to work only O-6's, only 1130-C, etc. Your schedule will vary.

You dont use water dummies that much though, but pretty much everything he said sums what I said already :)

Just 40 hours a week Steve??? lol there was more than that...if you even worked 6 days a week and did an O-6 you get 54 hours haha...

Working a coaster isn't that bad...Just watch your checks and clears, make sure you know everything in your position is done locked, and checked. You'll develop as the season goes on, don't expect to be by the book perfect, it does take time, just go in with open eyes and ears and be ready to learn it quick. For instance at the beginning of the season, getting a train unlocked, locked, checked, and sent on Corkscrew took us the whole trip time of the previous train and sometimes longer. By the end of the season, we had the train ready to go as soon as it hit the safety brakes most of the time. Like any job just go in, learn it, and be fast and efficient in the safest way possible, and you'll be fine...

Remember your low zones :) hahahaha

what exactly is a low zone? and will I have to learn how to operate the ride (know all the buttons) haha because that seems really complicated:0haha i wanna be the person that goes "welcome back riders, how was your ride?" haha

Low zones are areas a roller coaster or a moving ride comes into close proximity to the ground (where all the restricted areas & signs are). I really meant is as a joke towards someone. Next time Steve is on you'll maybe know hahaha...But yes you do need to know these because they get locked before opening/closing with different locks, ect.

Anyways, basically here's what a ride op learns during the course of your training. You'll start with your SOP (Standard Operating Procedures). This class/book kinda goes over all of the different terminology used for the rides/park, types of clears, codes, signals, edict you're expected to follow, ect. This is basically during your orientation week, it's really used moreover to get you used to the parks terminology, standards, ect. ect. to prepare you for work at your location

After all of this easy orientation training(especially the cornerstones class bahaha) you'll start to learn your ride. From here depending on your ride, you'll learn how to get everything up and running in the morning, normal operation, operation in other situations (guest evac, e-stop, safety set-up, ect.), each positions responsibilities, ect. Every ride is different from one another, some are close, but no two are exactly alike. You will learn all the buttons during your tenure most likely. Sometimes you don't HAVE to per say. I had a few internationals on my crew that never learned controls or wanted to do it, but most people do get certified to work controls. To operate in the control booth, you need to know what these buttons do, when to use them, how to use them, and what they do. For coasters you will have to take a test showing you know how to operate the controls safely. Most flat rides say, Monster, do not, however some such as Snake River Falls will, it just depends on the ride. Basically you just need to know the control panel's use, and how to use it properly, and safely at all times. Example: If you saw all of the shoulder harnesses up on the train and everyone cleared it and it was "ready for dispatch" you wouldn't clear the train and let it go out of the station.

After a bit of time with help, training, ect. it will be a piece of cake. Looking back from Day 1 to my last day, it's really drilled into your head. Everyone's first time at a location is probably nervous. I know I was terrified a bit, especially going from empty trains during training week to loading full trains of people. This is exactly why you're trained though, so people can come to the park and they can safely ride and partake in the attractions at the park, it's truly our responsibility.

Just go in with open ears and eyes, and learn what your told, read your materials, ASK QUESTIONS (even if you feel it's dumb, it's better to ask then go without knowing info that could make the difference between a safe decision and an unsafe one), and just make it fun. It's the summer, you're at an amusement park...Just enjoy it...

Oh i see. thank you so much for the help:) the three rides that i would love to work are mantis, wicked twister, and raptor. but what exactly is Matterhorn Triangle?

The split shifts seem like they suck. And 9-1:30? short shift

LOL! Low zones are very important (From Experience) if you forget one or you mess up on one such as not locking the whole chain around the door then you would recieve 2 steps. Corkscrew lift hated me, out of all other low zones and all of Dragster low zones I had no trouble.
If you have a lot of internationals on your crew prepare to spiel a lot because they will avoid the microphone with all costs. LOL
Matterhorn Triangle is:Matterhorn, Scrambler, Dodgems.
Split shifts may seem that way now but you will appreciate them during the summer when it gets hot. Usually when I go in 9 and leave at 1:30 and go straight to the beach or water park and enjoy my 5 hours in the sun and staying cool. then by 6:30-C It cools down a bit. During June-July it will reach over 100 degrees and you will be in a sweaty, non breathable close and will only get 1 or 2 breaks a day. Take advantage of your breaks then

so basically you just have to remember to lock your low zone gates so no guests will enter? seeems easy enough! Haha so excited for this summer!

sonyamarie said:
seeems easy enough! Haha so excited for this summer!

Steve I wish I was there for your reaction when reading this hahahaha

sonyamarie said:
Oh i see. thank you so much for the help:) the three rides that i would love to work are mantis, wicked twister, and raptor. but what exactly is Matterhorn Triangle?

Raptor and Mantis, out of all of the rides I've worked, are my two favorite rides to work.

Low Zones get changed every morning (usually by leadership, or whoevers opening the ride). The only time red tags usaually do do low zones is at night. At first, it's hard to remember all of the low zones, especially at rides like Raptor which has a lot of them. On the bright side, usually you'll go with a partner, especially when you're learning them!

Also, I hate split shifts. If I'm opening and closing the ride, it be an O-C. My favorite shifts are cutbacks.

TheDevarious said:

sonyamarie said:
seeems easy enough! Haha so excited for this summer!

Steve I wish I was there for your reaction when reading this hahahaha

LOL I dont know why that Lift hated me, I trained so many people of low zones, yet I mess up on my own haha I think I even walked with you your first time too lol!

The only thing I have on Mantis is that people bounce in their seats and when you lock them many people will be upset that they are uncomfertable. It gets annoying after 10 min when you start to work.

What happens if you forget one?

I know this is going to sound bad but, I don't want to work a ride like Witches Wheel where i am all alone and get no guests. I like fast paced work with a group of people that i can socialize with. Im not the kind of person that can do well on her own for multiple hours. I'd much rather work a roller coaster where I have other people go guide me and socialize with me along the way. Would it be bad if i said that in an interview? I really don't want to work on a ride where you are alone or with 1 other person

you recieve 2 steps, I forget how many steps you get until you get released but you get these steps for Operationals (Forgeting unfasten seatbelts, messing up clears, messing with controls, letting a person not tall enough to ride, ride. ECT) being late/tardy, getting speeding tickets, Getting caught drunk in public, being in a another sex dorm after hours. Basicly common sense. Common sense is a must or you will not last very long. Also do not come work drunk... this will hurt your crew so much.... plus its not good for the park or yourself. Who wants to see that you got fired for being drunk? Will not be good for your next job. :) Plus do not try to sneak in friends in the park because corkscrew crew will call security :) I think you get fired in this situituion too

I remember two questions they will ask you if you would like to work is kids or adults more, then if you like to work more with a small group or bigger group. This little happends to give you a chance but they just want to make a little detail. Like corkscrew, you will work with that and a flat ride (Super Himilaya) by your self. Devan worked at Monster and Whitches Wheel, he should tell you more about it :)

Steve so much of that is ironic...The stuff at the end of the first paragraph...when did that happen???? I don't remember this

As for Monster/Witches wheel...Working monster is a blast. You're out in the sun tanning, working out (constantly moving & picking up the bottom half of the cars and whatnot, ect..Controls is all manual and is awesome to actually work. Witches wheel there is actually two of you. One platform and one controls so you're not alone. During the summer you actually do have guests and you do have company and whatnot. It's actually how I met my girlfriend, so don't think it's completely unsocial. Plus you're in the sun tanning again and after every cycle you do move quick...You go around once and unlock the platform go back, assign seats, and then re-lock and check the platform, then start up the ride and watch it until it comes down.

Basically I will throw this out there. As much as you want to work here or there, I'm sure you will get a chance to go to these places during the summer. However there will things you'll have to do you don't want to do. For instance I got volun-told to go be a sweep for a day...Worst day at the park ever in my opinion. Steve and me both can relate there I think haha...Besides the ride doesn't make the summer, it helps, but it's not the most important part...Your crew makes your summer. Just go in not expecting anything or with any views whatsoever and let the park just do it's thing...You'll have fun for sure..

thanks for the reply. I'll try and go in with an open mind.

Antonio said:
What happens if you forget one?

maintenance may also cut the lock off and you'll have to pay for it.