New for 2015

Removed:
nighttime show
Irrelevant because it was replaced

wild cat
That's not what I'd call a family ride, it was a ride

space spiral
Arguable yes, but it was old

disaster transport
C'mon, removing this was like removing a wart, it needed to be done

paddle wheel
Couldn't agree more

raised height limit on iron dragon
Couldn't agree even more - stupid move

several small kiddie rides (Gemini midway)
These were redundant anyway with Camp snoopy right there

I'll tell you why I'm worried Cedar Point will indeed take the TrioTech route.

Not too long before Disaster Transport came down, I had a chance to have a nice conversation with John Hildebrandt on the midway. I had gotten to know him through the Face your Fear project, and we started talking about Wildcat's removal, etc. Now John would never tell me anything (nor did I expect it); I'm not in the "circle of trust". In fact, when I asked him what was coming in place of DT he smiled and whispered, I could tell you, but then I would have to kill you.

Somewhere in our conversation I simply asked him if Cedar Point ever considered a family dark ride, and his face lit up and started talking about how much he loved the interactive dark rides that were popping up, and that this idea had been brought to the table.

Now of course this is a 3 year old conversation with someone how is no longer the GM, nor was he trying to reveal anything, but of course today we see the "groundbreaking" Wonder Mountain's Guardian pop up at CW, and my first thought was, well, I hope this is good, because this is what we're getting at Cedar Point.

I wasn't really worried until I rode it, and was just utterly disappointed.

Our conversation most likely means nothing, it just stuck with me, mainly due to my disdain for the interactive dark rides.

Dead Sexeh said:
Removed:
nighttime show
wild cat
space spiral
disaster transport
paddle wheel
raised height limit on iron dragon
several small kiddie rides (Gemini midway)

Added:
gatekeeper
new nighttime show
up-charge walk through
two new family rides
fresh paint and new signs on 3 family rides

They removed an outdated show, a coaster so old the park had to manufacture replacement parts itself, two old rides that were both far less popular then their respective heydays, made a mis-step with Iron Dragon and removed several kiddie rides.

They added a far superior show, dinosaurs that arrived with the added benefit of generating revenue, new family rides and also refreshed several rides.

Seems like they're successfully working on appealing more to families.

Some of the removed kiddie rides were actually re-located to Kiddie Kingdom.

As far as I can see CP seems to be doing a great job appealing to thrill seekers and families.

The two new rides (Eagles and Pipe Scream) seem popular with young and old alike. Neither are very intense rides but both seem to be getting good reviews from those who have rode them. My only complaint is that capacity on Eagles is very slow. Unloading/Loading takes forever as the ride takes far too long to stop. I was actually surprised how much fun Pipe Scream was. It's no Gatekeeper or Millennium Force, but it's a nice thrill that all ages can enjoy. My 3 year old isn't quite tall enough for Pipe Scream but I'm not disappointed as the park has plenty of attractions for her and she'll likely be tall enough by next summer.

My kids (3 and 6) love all 3 kiddie sections and my 6 year old is tall enough to start riding the coasters so he has fun in all areas of the park. He's having the time of his life trying to rides and earning his coaster cred.

I honestly don't understand how people can complain about what the park has done over the past 3 or 4 years. I think they've made some great improvements and additions.

djDaemon said:
Your theory would only make sense if the demographics in each region were different, with little or no overlap: only thrill-seekers in Metro Detroit, Cleveland, etc., and only families in Knott's neighborhood.

Didn't say the demographic makeup of their regions are different but their audience is. Knott's advertises itself as a family Theme Park (America's 1st Theme Park) and Cedar Point advertises itself as the Coaster Capital of the World (worlds greatest AMUSEMENT PARK). Whole generations have grown up with this ingrained in their heads and now have expectations built on that. Visit the Cedar Point Facebook page or any local editorial on Cedar Point and you'll hear fans clamoring for a roller coaster. Often, they're mad when anything thats not a coaster is announced. Go to Knott's Facebook page or any local editorial and you'll hear a cry for dark rides. Often, they're hostile when Dick Kinzel is brought up and mad at Cedar Fair for ruining their park by jamming in a ton of coasters.

Of course there is a thrill seeking audience in the Orange Country area but they're small and not worth Knott's time trying to capture (just look at how poor Magic Mountain's attendance numbers are compared to Knott's, Disney, and Universal). As I said before, Knott's is one of Cedar Fair's only parks with competition and just look at the competition. They have to go up against Universal Hollywood (building Potter), and Disneyland (Carsland). Knott's needs to continue piggybacking off of Disney and Universal's current success. Cedar Fair know's the potential and is investing heavily.

In Ohio your family's options are much more limited and thus they can't afford to be as picky as Southern California. This doesn't mean they haven't attempted to or that it wouldn't be a wise investment to focus on families, just that it isn't as crucial to focus on them as it is for Knott's.

djDaemon said:
If CP has historically marketed toward thrill seekers, then it would seem logical that they should market to other demographics, like families, if they want growth. And in fact, that's exactly what they've been doing.

What they've been attempting to do, yes. Unfortunately, they haven't done anything large enough to change public perception that Cedar Point is anything but a coaster park.

Kevinj said:
I'll tell you why I'm worried Cedar Point will indeed take the TrioTech route.

Matt has said they base their future investments on the popularity of past investments. Since Cedar Point hasn't had any dark rides in a LONG time, I assume they're going to play it safe and test the waters with a light investment (i.e. TrioTech). If it ends up being successful, then we may see future investments on a much larger scale. For now, I see TrioTech setting up shop at Cedar Point in the not to distant future.

Skippy said:
...they haven't done anything large enough to change public perception that Cedar Point is anything but a coaster park.

According to who?

Limited family options in Ohio.... just Cedar Point, Kings Island, Waldameer, Kennywood, major zoos, Put-In Bay, hundreds of miles of Lake Erie waterfront for boating, beaching and more, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, major sports teams....

Yes. Pity the poor families of Ohio with so few choices available...

Kennywood and Waldameer moved to Ohio? Why don't people tell me these things?

Because its hard to tell you things?
I'm not sure if you're trying to be smart, but we get Kennywood commercials here in Columbus, and Cleveland gets em too. Parks in western Pa.definitely see Ohio as a market.

I hear commercials for Kennywood here in the Akron and Canton area on the radio.

There are a number of people living in Ohio for whom, if they want to visit an amusement park, Kennywood is the closest option. And people who live east of Cleveland and have a hankering to ride coasters may well choose to go to the closer, cheaper Waldameer rather than Cedar Point.

Isn't geography fun?

(Plus they can stop at the White Turkey Drive In on the way, and nothing says summer like a stop at the White Turkey Drive In.)

You wrote "in Ohio."

In Ohio, you have options that aren't in Ohio. In Michigan, you have options that aren't in Michigan. Case in point, my frequenting CP over MiA despite living in Metro Detroit.

Well, then, let me clear that up, scottyf:

Limited options for families residing in the state of Ohio who may or may not be geographically closer to some out of state attractions....

Scottyf said:
You wrote "in Ohio."

Your argumentative nonsense is getting old. Everyone here understood the context of the post. Move along, please.

Back on topic, has anyone seen any construction progress on this http://www.themeparkreview.com/forum/files/new_building_1.jpg building next to Gatekeeper? I forgot to look over there on July 2nd (my last visit).
Is it possible that it could just be an overflow storage building for the games/souvenirs area or even possibly a replacement building for Boo Hill since the old Pirate Ride building might be affected by the C&P bathroom expansion? Any updated pics of that building would be appreciated.

There's also a weird new Cedar Fair trademark...

Most likely for a haunt of some kind.

Rougarou?

Rougarou is French for werewolf, so a haunt is definitely possible. However, the word is French so I think it might be headed to Canada's Wonderland instead of Cedar Point.

noggin said:
Limited family options in Ohio.... just Cedar Point, Kings Island, Waldameer, Kennywood, major zoos, Put-In Bay, hundreds of miles of Lake Erie waterfront for boating, beaching and more, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, major sports teams....

Yes. Pity the poor families of Ohio with so few choices available...

I was actually referring to amusement / theme parks when I made that statement. It's my fault for not being clearer. Obviously there are local Metro parks and museums and such, but thats not where I was going with that. Although, they do all compete for the same dollar where applicable.

The point being Cedar Point doesn't have a Disney park 10 mins down the road, a geographical fact we can all agree on, and caters to a different audience anyways. Which is why, going way back to my original post, I don't think we'll see a high quality traditional dark ride like Knott's Berry Farm.

Kudos for acknowledging that amusement parks do not exist in an alternate universe where they only compete with each other.