Top Thrill 2 Pit Stop | Episode 11: Portal to Thrills

Working with the manufacturer’s recommendations, Top Thrill 2’s rider safety guidelines were revised after initial testing, resulting in our strict policy of loose articles not being permitted past the ride’s entrance.

Due to the later revision, the integration of lockers into the queue, similar to those at Steel Vengeance, was not possible.

This is just an outrageous statement.

Ignoring for a moment the absolutely inexcusable "who could have ever predicted we would need SV-style loose article lockers on a ride that travels 60% faster than SV (and whose previous iteration nearly killed a bystander)???!?!?!?!?" argument, if I'm Antonio JR, I would be absolutely livid at the implication that it is somehow Zamperla's fault that this is the outcome. Even if Zamperla didn't foresee this policy as a possibility, it is absolutely no excuse for the park not having done so, and furthermore no excuse to not have planned for this eventuality being a possibility. And then to blame the manufacturer?!? My goodness.

And they damn well could have integrated SV-style lockers into the queue. They could have asked manufacturers bidding on the project to include the option for such lockers. Even after the fact, they could have come up with something, even though it would have been considerably more expensive. They instead chose not to do those things, presumably because providing guests with a "best day experience" was outside of the budget. What a pity.

Yeah, I mixed up the 'coming weeks' on the theme details with one specific he did mention. That was only about the keychain.

https://youtu.be/l732HdkfcFI?t=1813

Tony says specifically 'within the next 3 weeks'. That just stuck out to me as odd given the previous vagueness, and I don't think they met that date anyway. Obviously things change, and it doesn't matter since they've given us something much worse to be bunching our pants over.

Having SV style loose article lockers was less feasible here as it would go against the cost cutting measures that have been rampant recently. To provide free lockers within that narrow area manned by hourly employees is not as profitable as $3.00 pay lockers outside the entrance. Criticism of GM Carrie may be warranted in some aspects but wondering if many of these cost cutting measures have been demanded by HQ in Charlotte and we see her as the villain. Live-E cuts, Event removals, Food opportunities, Pass perks, hourly wage cuts, etc..... They do not seem overly concerned with people in the queue being separated from their stuff, as they know dang well people will jam that ride anyway. Crafting the statement throwing "the manufacturer" under the bus was odd, trying to save face when it isn't necessary. Just say "this is the policy" and face the criticism.

Can't tell for certain from the video but I'm not too sure OnpointTony & friend were checked for glasses straps.

One thing I've learned about dealing with customers is to save the excuses. No one cares.

My HR team at work rolled out a communication from our leadership team recently that had everyone furious and it was mostly because they used lame excuses that no one else in the company would have been able to use.

Take ownership and work to fix the problem. And this is a problem, as they'll see this summer. Is this not the same exact issue they ran into with SV in 2018? How do you not learn from this?

Kind of stinks, the no free locker part:

https://www.wkyc.com/articl...81e94ab481

Some days it just can't be fun being the messenger.

I did not interpret the loose article policy as blaming the manufacturer. It mentions how strict their loose article policy is, which comes off to me as taking responsibility for the decision based on safety being the number one priority. I mean, the very last time this ride operated, it didn’t necessarily enhance Cedar Point’s reputation positively. To avoid that again (after investing what I assume was millions of dollars to reimagine the ride) perhaps they said “let’s just do away with loose articles altogether” after higher ups got the chance to ride it.

I am not going to deny that the lockers should be free, and they should have learned from the earlier years of SV.

You misread their statement. It clearly states that after initial testing and working with the manufacturers recommendations; then they decided loose articles were a no-go. A ride which, has always been known to A: exceed speeds of 100 mph; B: exert aggressive g-forces; and C: was modified due to issues of parts flying off of the ride due to substantial forces from acceleration and sudden deceleration.

AKA: at no point whatsoever were loose articles of any kind ever going to be allowed on this ride and the park is simply placing blame elsewhere for what in most folks opinions was simply a short-sighted and completely unacceptable miss in the “re-imagining” process.

Well, at least the creative re-imagining of the white wall included the ability for a skilled painter to be responsible for it's upkeep on the cheap.

It would be nice to see a large bank of free lockers. Even if they time out after a certain amount and you then would need to pay for extra time maybe say after 3 hours. They could be small for shoes and phones but wouldn’t hold backpacks.

There is not one service officered by the park that isn’t on a pay structure. Free small lockers would be an amazing win for them across the industry for fans.

Personally I never really have an issue with my shoes or phone so It doesn’t bother me but I get it 100%.

^ You must pass through 'TSA-lite' to enter the queue -- you cannot have those items on your person while in line. The argument here is that a phone has become a basic necessity in 2024. It's abnormal to take someone's phone without a solution to safely store it while riding.

Myself -- I come to the park prepared with zippered pockets. I've never once lost an item on a ride. It crosses the line for me when they tell me those zippers still aren't good enough.

Not to sound too millennial, but it has become unsettling for me to be in a public place without my phone for 3+ hours (the expected wait for this type of attraction).

I mean, it sounds a little millennial. 🙂 When the first Dragster opened, not that many people had cell phones (flip phones) unless it was for work.

Tony has stated it’s too late for this season to add SV-style lockers, but wonder if it’s in the works for next year. Sucks having to redo a portion of the queue but it would be odd to have inconsistent operating procedures across the park for the long term.

I doubt they would announce it until the offseason, but it would be nice to hear “it’s in the works for 2025”.

I remember the lockers for SV being free in it's debut year, when was the $3 charge implemented? I don't know as I usually have a non rider hold my stuff while I get in line now. Also is there a fee for lockers outside of Magnum XL-200? Those are ridiculous by the way as they weren't required for the first 30 years of it's opening. I don't understand how Universal Studios Orlando (the last visit I went there) can offer FREE lockers for all of their rides that require it, but CP can't? Why not relocate the Magnum lockers outside of the TT2 entrance area before you get in line? The Magnum lockers REALLY aren't needed. Problem solved. If enough people bitch about not having lockers nearby to store their belongings in able to board TT2 (remember the Game Day Grille non-bathroom debacle about 10 years or so ago?, that was a GREAT thread on here that Plague on Wheels would've enjoyed) the park WILL listen, trust me. Petitions work. The squeaky wheel gets the grease. The power of the pen my friends.

I believe the Magnum lockers only showed up after the loose article bins got taken off the platform ten or so years ago. I doubt they're going anywhere as the ride operators at the Magnum entrance need something to point to when a guest carrying a giant poop emoji midway game prize wanders up to them.

Also, I am not hopeful that free lockers are in the works for 2025 unless the park pulls a 180 on this quickly into the season. The press release doesn't say it is just too late to add free lockers. It says "the integration of free lockers into the queue... was not possible". The park will either need to make it possible or integrate free lockers somewhere else...

I feel terrible for the ride operators who will have to manage this mess every day. Will they have one worker stare at everyone's feet and another doing the TSA searches? I can't wait to show up with my CoasterMania keychain on Sunday that I have to bring to get in... only to get sent straight to the lockers so I can swipe my card and put it away. Well played, Cedar Fair.

Love the irony about making people hold onto a keychain (loose article) for a ride that (checks notes) doesn’t allow any loose articles. The humor of the situation isn’t lost on me.

I was gonna post a new thread on this in General but here goes...

I believe the park knew what they were doing way in advance. They know darn well people carry car keys with metal and have to put them in pockets. You can go without a phone, however but you need car keys. I wonder if they will pat down people or not? I carry chap stick in my pockets and cash (before park went cash-free) and non metal things.

They want you to pay because paying admission plus any extra things (food, games, hotels, fast lane, toys) is simply not enough revenue for them.

I wonder if there will be enough lockers or if they will need to add more. The existing lockers for Dragster handled purses, backpacks, hats, etc., but adding cell phones and car keys will result in a lot more lockers being used.

magdrag95:

Not to sound too millennial

The thing is, it really doesn't matter how it sounds, or whether or not the "get off my lawn" crowd tells you they used to stand in line without a phone for 5 hours in the blazing hot sun, uphill both ways or whatever, when they were your age. The fact of the matter is that a modern day guest should expect to be able to have their car keys and phone on their person for the vast majority of time, with the rare exception of when they're riding or in the pool or whatnot. And the park has failed to meet that expectation. And then publicly blamed the manufacturer for their failure, but I digress...

Maverick00:
Tony has stated it’s too late for this season...

I didn't catch any such statements by the park. Where did you see this?

It’s not an exact quote, but it’s essentially what was said in the Safety Procedures blog post: “Due to the later revision, the integration of lockers into the queue, similar to those at Steel Vengeance, was not possible.”

By drawing a direct comparison, it can be reasonably assumed they would like to install SV-style lockers, but this all just came together too late to get done. That’s why I’m hopeful they’ve already started the order for 2025.