The Rougarou Files #3

According to Tony's tweet https://twitter.com/tonyclarkcp/status/560973144782286849 the next Rougarou files will surface tomorrow. What do you think it'll be about? I'm excited to see it!

Well if it involves Rob Decker, I'm going to go with design stuff.

If Rob Decker is in it then I'd go with design stuff too. I think its probably going to be about the station in some way, in my opinion

Video is up.

http://t.co/RXxt21Pj0u

Here it is,so you don't have to click a link.

This was a good episode. I've been looking forward to the next episode for a while.

The aerial shots at 1:40 and 2:45 are fantastic. I have wondered why we have not see more of these Drone type vantage points of the park. I have been loving the drone updates of Wicked Cyclone, Twisted Colossus and Fury 325.

I agree this was a very good episode. I'm looking forward for opening day.

I really enjoyed this episode as well! I'm just surprised that they don't have the floor panels in place yet. They must be still working on more electrical work. I'm hoping the next episode comes around the time we have the Winter walk through tour.

I mean I know it was b roll footage..but when they showed Corkscrew..and mentioned dud ride...kinda got a little eye twitch :P

Corkscrew is still a fun ride, and it's something I usually ride because the wait is not that long. CP certainly got it's money's worth out of the ride, it was extremely popular from when it opened through the mid eighties, and I'm sure it caused a nice attendance spike in 1976.

Wasn't 1976 the first season to reach 3 million visitors?

Either '76 or '78 with Gemini, not sure.

I've never heard roller coaster enthusiasts referred to as "extremists" before... haha

Not much in the way of substance in this video, but I, too, really loved the aerial shots. And it looks like the station conversion is requiring a good deal of work.

kylepark said:

Wasn't 1976 the first season to reach 3 million visitors?

Actually, it was the year before in 1975. The highest overall yearly attendance being Raptor's 1st year in 1994 with 3.618 milliion guests. CP broke the 1m attendance mark in 1960 and 2m mark in 1965. Hope that helps.

I always have pondered why the attendance has never topped the 1994 record. I know attendance doesn't necessarily equal to more $$ in the bottom line, but it is still an interesting topic to discuss.

You would think with rides like Millennium Force, Dragster, etc. the park would have at least topped 3.6 million. From my understanding they haven't gotten near that mark in awhile. The other interesting note is that in 1994 there was no Halloweekends, the park closed shortly after Labor Day.

Do you think it has more to do with population decline in the Cleveland, Detroit, Toledo markets?

At least in the Cleveland area it is not population decline but it may have something to do with economic conditions. Although going by how many people fill the restaurants and casino in Cleveland, there are still many "haves" as opposed to "have nots". It may also have something to do with competing opportunities for entertainment. In any case, the Cleveland metro population has remained fairly constant, with actually a slight increase in population compared to 1990. Here are the stats:

1990: 2,859,644

2000: 2,945,831

2010: 2,891,983

The Cleveland Indians sold out Jacobs Field for 5+ seasons in the mid-late 90s. Now you can walk up and get a ticket to just about any game, even when the team is doing great. To me, that signifies something in overall landscape changed. Not sure if there's any real correlation there, but it's a least an interesting coincidence.

For what it's worth, Detroit Tigers' 5-year average total season attendance has gone up pretty significantly from 1994 (1.54 million) to 2014 (2.86 million), a jump of about 86%. At the same time, Detroit Metro population has dropped somewhat from 1990 (4.382 million) to 2010 (4.296 million), a drop of about 2%.

To Walt's point, I don't think there's a strong correlation there, because the Tigers weren't exactly perennial contenders in the 90's. But then again, they weren't in the early 00's either, but I'm sure the shiny new ballpark had a lot to do with attendance.

At any rate, people are still patronizing entertainment events in Metro Detroit, even during tough times. I think the lack of record attendance at CP in recent years may be attributable to a lot more competition for the entertainment dollar these days, as compared to 1994.

I'd be interested to know what the demographics of visitors were then and now. Aside from Magnum, and then Raptor, the park wasn't all about roller coasters the way it is (perceived to be) now. You've probably seen in interviews how Ouimet has mentioned that you're not just trying to get people in for one visit, you're trying to get their families in and make it a place that they'll want to come back to the rest of their lives. It makes you kind of wonder... did the Millennium Force to Dragster era produce short-term gains but put off parents with 2.2 kids in the long run? As a single 20 to 30-something in those days, cool, good times, but if I look at the park in those years through my current eyes with a 5-year-old, I'm not sure I would have felt the same way.

I think you hit the nail right on the head with that Jeff. The CP I knew from the mid-60's through the mid-90's strived to create a variety of rides and attractions to appeal to everyone. I'm sure that focusing on roller coasters (as cool as that is) changed the way those parents with 2.2 kids looked at the park as a place for entertainment to meet the needs of their family.

Personally, I don't think CP should have ever changed the formula from the success they saw in the 70's, 80s' and 90's. Add a block buster roller coaster (like Magnum) every now and then, but between that, add rides and attractions of equal stature but that do something completely different, to appeal to families and people who may not really care for coasters. I'm not talking about inexpensive flat rides, but rides that may cost as much as a coaster and are as grand as a coaster, but are a unique experience. Build something contemporary that has the appeal that Western Cruise, CP & LE RR or Jungle Larry had when they were built. Just look at the ridership of the Sky Ride. People love family rides that are large scale and offer a unique experience.