Starlight Experience

On Saturday evening the Trail closure began around 9:00 with guest flow resuming around 9:20 or so. During the closure guests already sitting inside the Trail were allowed to stay put while the army of John Deere tractors quickly brought the four Peanuts-themed floats onstage. There wasn't really any sort of "sweep" to clear all guests from the area completely, just a general "please keep to the side" as the floats came through. It seems the Trail closure is mostly about minimizing the number of guests on the pathways so that the floats can be safely put in place.

The logistical issues notwithstanding, the Starlight Experience is a very big step in the right direction for the park. On both nights guests were just eating it up, taking pictures with their cell phones and just hanging out on the Trail in numbers you don't usually see that time of night. We heard more than a few guests, young and old, say any number of variations on "This is so cool!" as they walked down the Trail. The park is clearly creating the kind of memories that you can't really put a dollar amount on.

Also, for those interested in such things, the music loop for the Starlight Experience appears to be around 15 minutes long with most (if not all) of the music coming from the 2002 Dreamworks' Animation film Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron by Hans Zimmer (the track "Run Free" also part of Maverick's queue loop).

Are the floats situated in such a way that they couldn't be left in place during the day? I mean, could they not cover them up or something?

Three of the floats (Spring, Summer, and Fall) are placed right in the middle of the walkway. The Winter float is placed slightly off to the side. While their placement works well enough for the show, they would definitely impact guest traffic if left in their locations throughout the day.

The floats are stored on the access road behind the Pet Farm barn and brought out in a line during the Trail closure.

It probably takes longer to clear the trail out then it does to actually set up the floats. I'm not a fan of the floats I think they look cheesy. Reminds me of the house on your street that has an inflatable Santa, Snowman, and a row of plastic light up reindeer in their front yard on Christmas as opposed to the house with nice lights outlining every edge on the house.

Also, I thought I'd share this funny pic of Tony I found putting the finishing touches on the winter section of the Starlight Experience.

^ very funny!

It would seem to me that they could walk the floats out just as they do during Halloweekends, with the crowd control and what not. Not that I'm a safety expert, but it sounds rational.

Yeah ... Closing the trail seems to be a bit drastic. That would be like closing route 250 all the way down to I-80 right before the park opens and after it closes.

I haven't yet seen the Starlight displays (hoping to see them at CoasterMania) but personally, I think it would be a neat idea for Cedar Point to use the Frontier Trail as a sort of "proving ground" but then expand the lighting out to the rest of the park. Perhaps starting with whatever it is they are doing on the island. :)

Cedar Point, like many traditional amusement parks, used to be known as a really attractive place at night, but since Gemini opened with its miserable light package in 1978, park lighting has been a lot less interesting and attractive. But with the new technology, they can light up a million light bulbs (as many as Coney Island's Dreamland!) for...eh, I did some calcs on this...under 2kW. I think the Calypso has more than 2kW worth of lights on it.

I say, make this the first of a multi-year program to light up the whole park. And while they're at it they can bring back the nighttime. Keep the park open until at least 10pm every operating day; if it makes sense to cut the hours, cut them at the *start* of the day instead.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

If people take a day off of school (I'm talking early May) or work they don't want CP to open later and stay open later. Most likely they have to be back to work the next day and will leave early. Thats the reason they close late on weekdays in early May.

Maybe. But wouldn't it still make more sense to be open from 12-10 instead of 10-8 ? Especially this year with the new lights.

^ - not if most of your attendance at this point is schools and they leave by 6 or 7 at the latest.

I've been there on a Friday in May before. The park was EMPTY by 8pm.

So in other words ... Screw the rest of the public that IS able to stay after 6 or 7. And on Memorial Day at that just to cite an example. All over a whopping 2 hour shift in the times ?! That's poor.

The beginning of the day is their busiest, its when the most people are there. Losing those 2 hours to stay open 2 hours later is asinine because there are less people late in the day. I'm sure if the crowds were there later in the day, they would make the shift to staying open later.

I understand what you're saying but they're not that extremely busy from 10 a.m. to noon either. I don't know what the numbers are, but I would bet that 75% of your crowd doesn't get there til after 12 p.m., and the people that are there certainly aren't spending any money yet. I would even go as far to say that there are more people (on average) left in the park the last couple of hours before closing, than there are the first 2 hours they're open.

75%?? You've got to be kidding. It's probably closer to 25%. Have you ever paid attention to their parking lot at open? It's a steady stream of cars and busses.

Yes I have paid close attention thanks. That's why I am confident in saying that. I don't care who's in the parking lot, I'm talking about who's actually in the park. The first 2 hours the place is open is one of the best times to ride (in my 25 plus years of experience anyhow) because just about everything is practically a walk on. Or at the very least, a short wait (Raptor being the obvious exception, along with MF and Dragster).

As far as buses goes ... Go to Hersheypark sometime while school is in session if you want to see what a real study stream of buses looks like. I drive charter and school bus and have been to both parks with large groups numerous times. There's no comparison.

Oh ... Going back to a prevoius post. I would argue that their busiest time is the middle of the day, not the beginning.

It will be interesting to see how that now-lit-up section of the park will look from above...thinking specifically Power Tower and MF's lift. Should be quite lovely.

I can't believe how horrible the plugs and extension cords looked strewn across frontier town.

I took a stroll through Frontier Trail tonight after Dragster/Magnum ert. Not all the lights were even on.. and they were adding more lights tonight.

I liked the way it looked! It is gonna be great once I see the whole thing next weekend!

And yes there are a lot of plugs scattered about when first walking into the trail from the front half of the park.. but after that first section.. you do not notice much of the other ones... unless that is what you are specifically looking for.

Overall I think it will be great once they get everything running smooth. It is a very nice addition.

It looked great at night the seasons were kinda cool, the music is creepy and haunting not magical or anything it's bassy and dirge like.