Season Pass Preview Night and Dining Plan

Scottyf said:
That is a ridiculously obtuse viewpoint. This was in no way a normal operating day.

I was talking about opening day not preview night, and I said "opening day", not "operating day".

I've been going to opening days since the 70's and every one has had downtime, inexperienced workers getting confused and inefficiency compared to later in the year. I'm not giving anyone a pass, I just didn't expect anything different and I think the nice weather drew a large crowd which magnified these flaws.

The only thing I found unusual was that the Wicked Twister train was in a partial state of assembly. Other than that, operations were typical of opening days I've exoerienced.

Amen, Pete!

Well said, Pete. It's not the end of the world. Maybe that old reminder should be brought up about any day at Cedar Point is better than a day at work.

Yesterday my daughter and I got in line for Millennium Force (it was closed during most of Early Entry) at 10:15 and there was a listed wait time of 45 minutes. As others stated the yellow train was nowhere to be found and it seemed like the regular line was moving pretty slowly but there were also a lot of people in the Fast Lane line. I thought that staff did a pretty good job of alternating between lines at the ramp.

At 11:20 we were about to board the blue train when the red train got stuck just outside of the deboarding platform and they shut the ride down. We decided to stay in the station in the hopes that they might get it running again soon. It took them about 10 or 15 minutes to get the red train moving and unloaded then about another 20 minutes of testing. By noon we were able to finally board the blue train and had a fantastic ride.

While it was down the crew maintained a positive and upbeat attitude. When the trains were being tested they had a little friendly competition to see who could put down the lap bars the fastest and we cheered them on. You could tell that they were getting tired by the third and fourth tests but they still managed to keep a friendly and professional demeanor. Every time the railroad passed by the MF staff would wave at guests on the train and smile.

I think much of the criticism about the park's performance on preview night and opening weekend is deserved as there was certainly room for improvement, but that doesn't mean that I don't see all of the positive elements that make Cedar Point a great place to visit. A lot of hard work went into getting things ready for the operating season and the investments on off-season projects are impressive.

Likewise, guests work hard to generate money that is used to buy tickets, pay travel expenses, lodging, games, souvenirs, dining, etc. The park set the opening date and I don't think it is unreasonable for guests to expect that it would be ready to roll.

^ I was on that train. I have to say that the operator that told us that it had broken down knew what she was talking about. We found out after we got the re-run (they let us ride again since that happened) that a tire on the brake run was not spinning, so the maintenance workers had to push us back into the unloading area. I do have to say that it was pretty fun to sit there and look at all the people in the q-line looking at us with a confused/ angry look on their face.

I had wanted to go preview night/opening day but I'm very glad I didn't based on what I'm reading here. We have pushed our trip to May 28-29 and possibly the 30th. My husband has never been to CP, so he's pretty excited to see all the coasters he's never ridden, he's been to Kings Island but that's it. I really do hope that the kinks are worked out by then. I figured it was still mid-week, school not out and that the weather would hopefully be a little cooler than waiting to go later in the summer. Any updates on Wicked Twister? I will be so disappointed if it's not running when we go.

Pete said:

I've been going to opening days since the 70's and every one has had downtime.... I just didn't expect anything different and I think the nice weather drew a large crowd which magnified these flaws....... Other than that, operations were typical of opening days I've exoerienced.

Pete, I don't doubt what you're saying, but the fact that 40 years of opening days has led you to have these diminished Opening Day expectations does not make it OK for the rest of us.

IMO, Pass holder preview night was a disaster. I was also surprised to see the line for people getting and/ or processing their passes. It (line)was still well into the parking(and beyond) lot at 7:30pm, as we were STILL trying to get through the front gate. We arrived @ 6:15pm, what I considered early for this event. Maybe those folks(in line) didn't plan properly, had time constraints, or purchasing last minuet. I can imagine the disgust when they still hadn't processed by evenings end. While this event was a 'perk', per say, it was a flop..again IMO. Yes, we were very happy to be @ CP after a long winter, regardless of what we could do. But don't advertise & promote something before it's 100% accurate. CP/ CF might of just had to much going on..it doesn't matter. Don't offer it up if it can't be proven. On Friday night, rides not operating wasn't due to weather, or staffing..it was poor planning. To add insult to injury was doing dry runs on rides and getting guests hopes up. OR having rides running guests didn't know about? All employees I came in contact with were AWESOME & very friendly. I decided @ 9:30 I clearly wasn't going to ride what I'd like, so decided to get a chicken tender meal at the Round-Up. They honored my all season meal plan, nice surprise! After asking how my night was (not good), they stepped it up and threw in 4 extra tenders! IMO, opening day wasn't much better. I look forward to next weekend @ Hotel Breakers. But in the end, we made it the best, and had a blast Saturday

I agree; apathy leads to a perpetually defeatist mindset. The general consensus seems to be that we should be accepting of a recurring issue for no other reason than it happens to reoccur. Opening day need not be mess; I remember 2005 in particular was little different than any other day, and that also happens to be (coincidentally or otherwise) one the few times in recent years that the new ride was actually ready on time.

Have any of you ever been to (or even better, been part of) opening night of a performance of some kind? I wonder. Was it perfect? Nope. Did it quickly improve? Yep.

Like Pete, no pass being handed out, but from everything I have absorbed on here it sounds very typical of opening day at Cedar Point, and I've been to more than my fair share of these. "Shiny new coaster" means an atypical opening day in terms of crowds (read: bigger) which certainly amplifies kinks in the chain and wrinkles that need ironed out.

It sounds like there really is something wrong with Wicked Twister, but you know these big toys have a way of breaking (especially the ones labeled "Intamin", just fyi)...and there is never a good day or time for this to happen.

From what I can tell, what you all experienced is what opening day at Cedar Point is like.

I don't have diminished expectations for opening day, but I do have realistic ones.

Kevin, this is not some opening night theater situation. That analogy is just not applicable. These are rides that have been operating for many years, with vast, real-operation and maintenance IP in the hands of the park. Even Rougarou is not a quantum leap of operational difference from Mantis. Ironically, it operated better than every other major ride (except for Raptor and Gatekeeper). The point is, the park had months to plan for opening day, weeks to test for it, and this is what they delivered.

I've been to my own fair share of opening days, and this is not even in the same ballpark as "typical." This was a disaster as I've never seen at Cedar Point before. This wasn't an unforecasted storm, nor some surprise water main break. This is 100% on park management. They had absolutely no right to be open in this state of disarray.

And yet, not one complaint (outside of Wicked Twister being in pieces) falls out of the realm of normalcy from what I have experienced over the years.

And in a lot of ways, this is an opening night at a theater. Or if it suits you better, let's take a professional big-time act like, say, Aerosmith. They have had years to prepare, sing the same old song and dance (pun intended), and yet having watched this band for decades I have witnessed opening night on a tour, mid-tour performances, and end-of-tour performances. It's a night and day difference, with the first couple shows sometimes being filled with all sots of "oops" moments and downright debacles.

I have zero doubt that there are some in the audience who go home and start blogging about how terrible, unjust, and downright apathetic the band is to their fans if the opening night show is all they saw.

You're not wrong for thinking it was a disaster from your perspective, by the way.

Is this the first opening day for Cedar Point? Of course not. But is it the first opening day for a lot of the employees? Mmhmm.

sounds like CP preview nite and opening day was like a typical day at six flags.

Day two has had its share of glitches also with rides down and some not open. Millenium Force was in one train operation when we got to it. Dragster was down a fair amount but we got to ride with little wait when it came back up. Magnum went down and didn't come back up before we left around 6:30. Rougarou spent time down but was running when we left. By then the line was over an hour so we'll get it another day. Because of the complaints about yesterday I assumed today might not be spectacular either but I wanted to ride really bad. Not everything was peachy but it was still a good day. I'm glad we went.

Kevinj said:

And yet, not one complaint (outside of Wicked Twister being in pieces) falls out of the realm of normalcy from what I have experienced over the years.

So your experience is the gold standard for everyone? I've been to a lot of opening days as well, and it doesn't sound even remotely "normal" to me. Look, I'm a big fan of the park too, and a lot of great friends work there, but I would be pretty disappointed because this is not the park that opens in a reduced fashion, any day of the year. It's what you expect from a Six Flags. I'm sure they can do better, and I'm sure they know they can do better. I'd be shocked if they didn't learn from it.

I don't think I understand how Kevinj is saying his experience is the gold standard for everyone. Quite frankly, being miserable because a few rides were experiencing down time on opening day sure doesn't seem like the "gold standard" from my experience. I LOVED my time this weekend.

The amusement business IS show business, and it's an absolutely perfect analogy. During the run of any show things can and often do start shakily, especially during previews. It's where they practice for an audience. And it doesn't matter how old the coasters are like it doesn't matter how many times Peter Pan has flown. New show, new season, new cast. It's bound to happen.

Now having said that, I agree with Jeff's assessment some posts back that every audience deserves the same as the last and the next. When I was an actor our mantra was that Wednesday deserved the exact same as Saturday, and there's no slackin'. Those people won't be back and there's no second chance. The director's, the performer's, and the technician's goal is one thing- make it perfect and make it the same each time.
In the end the reality, no matter how hard you try, is that human beings always run the show, and there's got to be some noticeable variables from rehearsal to performance.

I've attended many disastrous opening days many places, including Cedar Point. My last at CP was when MF opened in the year 2000. I also went to Diamondback along with every person in the tri-state area. I've finally learned to wait, and as much as I'd like to see the new Dodgem and stay at the new Breakers I know to hold off. There's no way, as tempting as it was, that I was going to subject myself to a season pass holder's preview.
I'm sorry for y'all it was a bust, even worse than usual it seems, but at least pass holders will likely give the place another chance and misgivings will eventually vanish. Right?

My union stage manager wife would probably tell you that if your opening show goes poorly, you were doing rehearsals wrong.

The whole "ride breakdown" thing drives me nuts anyways. Yes, these are complex machines, but the bulk of this machinery on most rides is simple: break run, station, lift. That's it. The rest is just steel and concrete. When I see a ride break down, then shortly (if not immediately after) watch it run just fine without any mechanical corrections, I shake my head at the over-engineering of the system. It doesn't need to be so complicated as to break itself.

To add about the rides not running: it's unacceptable to me. It isn't like they turned the key on Friday morning and said, "Well shi*, this thing needs new parts! Better call Switzerland!". They have several months to rehab the trains and several weeks to test these rides to perfection. If anything less than that occurs (Millennium missing an entire train for instance), it is a lack of staffing.

TwistedWicker77 said:

Last, guests don't know (and I don't expect them to) the new training program that got implemented mid last year that all ride hosts must follow. It's called IROC

So no more "I wanna ride THESE Bumper Cars" video :P

If someone has that video somewhere please share it hahaha