Top Thrill Dragster 2022 Status

“Their sole purpose is to entertain through attractions.”

That’s not even remotely close to any kind of true. You couldn’t be more off base if you tried honestly, and clearly you have not been paying attention to where the park has been investing money lately.

Sure I've been paying attention.

Every time the park updates an area lately, it seems to be typically accompanied with at least 2 things: a new ride and/or live entertainment venue and beautification of the area (see: Gemini midway, Valravn, Steel Vengeance, Boardwalk, etc.). And I love that they're doing that.

However, if you were to take a poll at the gate to ask people how excited they are about seeing the lagoon, I would guess that 90% would look at you funny and have no clue what you're talking about.

All that to say, if whatever is going on in the lagoon is for TTD24, it would seem the park has a preference for star attractions that get people in the gate over tiny pieces of an existing waterway. And who could blame them?

Did you know that attendance has increased each year and that in years where a new attraction was opened it didn’t have a substantial impact on attendance numbers?

And no, you’re not paying attention. Since SV, the park has pivoted and focused on overhauling their food offerings; spent millions on renovating a little resort down the road known as Sawmill creek, and, oh yeah, is opening a boardwalk area this year that includes (checks notes): two existing flats, a family ride (because that’s gonna spike attendance) and, gasp, a massive building that focuses on…food.

So no, the park is not focused on building rides to bring people through the gates. Might I also remind you that they had record attendance in a year without TTD?

The park is focused on a total guest experience. We aren’t living in the Dick Kinzel age anymore.

I guess I must have missed something, because nothing I've seen indicates the lagoon is being filled in. If they were filling in the lagoon entirely, it's not a super complex process requiring a cofferdam and gravel specifically placed in only certain locations and not others.

Sparty42:

...the park has a preference for star attractions that get people in the gate over tiny pieces of an existing waterway.

Are you arguing that the two are mutually exclusive? If so, why? What are they doing for TTD that requires the filling in of the lagoon there?

Also, when conceiving and building Farmhouse, they went through the considerable expense of maintaining the bridge and pond. So there is precedent that shows the Design folks understand the value of atmosphere, and that water features improve the atmosphere.

mgou58:

Might I also remind you that they had record attendance in a year without TTD?

I don't think they ever said that. They said the company had a record year, but did not say Cedar Point specifically. They did say that Fast Lane sales were down last year because of TTD being closed. Clearly, the ride is important to their bottom line or else they would have torn it down instead of upgrading/transforming it.

@mgou58

Well, define guest experience..Are you inferring people overall are coming to Cedar Point for the hotels and food options?

CP is investing in the total guest experience because they have to and have the LUXURY to. They today have over 70 rides and they are the self-proclaimed Roller Coaster Capital of the World.

SV not causing a huge uptick in attendance doesn't automatically mean people don't come to CP for the rides, either. The industry growth as a whole in 2019 was becoming stale, with attendance across most parks either growing slightly or not at all.

Post pandemic, there was an influx in attendance across all parks because people were sick of being cooped up in their houses for over a year. Not because of the Farmhouse Grill.

I promise if SV didn't cause an uptick in attendance, either did their shiny new places to stay or food options. Keep in mind that SV is an extremely intense ride that perhaps isn't aimed at the vast majority of their guests either. There are ride intensity charts on the website for a reason.

My point is they have the privilege to take a couple years to invest in areas that were sorely lacking because of their-already world class coaster and ride lineup. They want people to enjoy the overall experience so they come back, which sure, does include the quality of food and places to stay. But when people pack the family up in the car to go to Cedar Point, it will always be for the rides.

I’m checking the history books and CP ran for a while as a bathing resort before rides were the focus. Or even invented for that matter. I like rides and it’s a draw for me but I prefer to see the uniqueness of the place and call it a resort. There’s plenty for everyone, so stay a while if you’d like.
Take that, Six Flags.
And what’s the argument here? Is it whether or not whatever they’re doing going to add the right kind of value to the Cedar Point experience? Aw, who cares? Sometimes boring-assed maintenance and infrastructure necessarily take up part of a budget. Not to say that’s what this is, but if it is, well ok then.

So talking about recent years additions/renovations. Surely the TTD/Corkscrew/Power Tower midway will undergo a beautification or overhaul if 2024 entire focus is on the return of TTD 2.0? I mean it is really one of the last areas of the park that could really use it imo. (Kiddy Kingdom + Planet Snoopy being the other key area that could be reworked imo).

djDaemon:

Are you arguing that the two are mutually exclusive? If so, why? What are they doing for TTD that requires the filling in of the lagoon there?

I'm pretty sure the beginning of the sentence you quoted starts with "If whatever is going on in the lagoon is for TTD24..." and my entire point was to push back on the idea from #TeamKeepTheNature up there that suggested that if we "like concrete, we should go wander the parking lot."

And mgou58, I never said "rides" specifically. I said attractions. There's a distinction and a difference between those two words.

Yes, Cedar Point has built many new restaurants. That's fantastic and you have no arguments from me. However, the need for those restaurants is a by-product of the park's bread and butter (their attractions) and updating food service is clearly a reaction to sub-par guest experience reviews. It's still in service of Cedar Point's main draw: their attractions, whether those are rides, experiences, or live entertainment.

Your post, as I read it, was implying that if the park is filling in the lagoon in order to achieve TTD2, that would demonstrate that, in your words, "the park has a preference for star attractions that get people in the gate over tiny pieces of an existing waterway".

I countered by pointing out that the park has a history of creating and preserving water features, especially post-Kinzel, so I find your argument without merit.

Further, if their philosophy truly were "who cares, it's only a 'tiny piece'", eventually the park would be nothing more than a parking lot with rides atop it.

I still miss the Western Cruise and Frontier Lift.

Well, the plot thickens. Recent drone update from Lake Erie Lifestyles is showing the drill resting in one corner of the triangle.

Could mean that it is indeed drilling holes for possible footings and that the triangle is indeed still likely for a reverse spike. Seems to me that the drill is able to pivot in it's current position and drill holes on both sides of the triangle (and possibly the 3rd point facing the station). I would guess that the planks were lined along the entire back end of the triangle so the drill could get into position first, since you can see some of the planks missing behind the drill.

Meanwhile, the lagoon filling in is still progressing and almost the entire corner near Coasters and Corkscrew is filled in.

I could see the filling in by coasters to have something to do with future corkscrew removal plans.

So, still status quo for the most part. Can someone tell Lake Erie Lifestyles to pilot their drone about thousand feet east? At this point I'm much more interested in how things are going there.

I don't know, they mention filling in by Coasters. I think when all is said & done they will re-introduce water to that area below ID's final spins. Perhaps they lose a few perimeter feet of lagoon for the new TTD queue entrance and the mysterious triangle.

In the first picture I am quite impressed by the efforts of the carpenters. They do such a good job constructing the different stage designs and this one looks nice. Appears to extend a tad into the midway.

Yes, move the drone over towards where the restroom by Matterhorn is so we can see the vacant site.

I was referring to the Boardwalk site, which is ~1,000 feet away, not the restrooms that are 500 feet away.

As for the lagoon, two things.

One, that they're using aggregate, and that they don't appear to be adding it in a way that would support anything (they don't appear to be compacting anything, just dumping it in there), indicates it's temporary. Could of course be wrong, but I would be surprised to see a queue - or anything else permanent - show up there.

Two, it'll be interesting to see whether or not a fence is installed between the midway and lagoon. I get the impression that this work will go on for quite some time, so I would expect at some point a fence to show up.

If the goal is to create more room for a longer launch, you don't need a "spike" necessarily, you just need a longer run.

djDaemon:

I would expect at some point a fence to show up.

That'll boost ridership numbers for ID.

djDaemon:

I was referring to the Boardwalk site, which is ~1,000 feet away, not the restrooms that are 500 feet away.

For real - this is perhaps the most interesting time to be watching the progress of the Boardwalk, yet the cameras have been pointed away for over a week now. Like ok, turn the cameras for the first initial test runs in case something “goes wrong” (construction is inherently dangerous and there are a myriad of incidents that could have been caught on camera in the last several months) but turn it right back.

LEL just posted a video of the updated board walk