Friday, July 23, 2004
Universal Studios China Canceled
Universal had hoped to get the park off the ground before Disney could open a second park in China. They both wanted them open before the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Not anymore:
Universal Studios has pulled the plug on a proposed theme park in China and laid off 30 employees who had been working on the project, a company spokesman said.
The fate of the theme park had been in doubt for months. Universal had plans to build a $1-billion theme park in Shanghai, but the venture, set to open in 2006, was never given approvals by the central government in China.
It also faced skepticism from Universal's new cost-conscious corporate parent, General Electric Co.
The layoffs leave Universal's theme park design group in Orlando, Fla., and Los Angeles with about 45 employees, down from more than 100 a year ago.
Those employees are Universal Creative (like Disney's Imagineers). Unlike the Imagineers, Creative employees are contracted for one job and when that job is over they are no longer employed by Universal. So this was to be expected for them. Most will likely be contracted for other Universal projects in the future.
Thursday, July 22, 2004
Mother May Be Jailed For Dropping Her Son Off At A Six Flags Park
She dropped her 11 year old son off at the front gate of Six Flags Elitch Gardens and then left for the day. When she came back at 10pm he wasn't there and she called police:
DENVER -- A woman who dropped off her 11-year-old son at an amusement park faces up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine for violating a municipal code.
Charlotte Nadine Chavez, 28, was charged Monday with wrongs to minors under a law designed to protect children from abandonment, city officials said. The charge is similar to a ticket and is handled by the city attorney's office.
On Saturday, Chavez dropped her son off at downtown's Six Flags Elitch Gardens, where he was meeting friends. She returned to pick him up at 10 p.m. and called police about two hours later after he failed to show up.
"He's never done this before, that's why I kind of freaked out," Chavez told Denver station KCNC-TV. "I love my son. I didn't just go drop him off."
The boy had spent the night at the house of a friend's grandmother and was found at the amusement park the next day by an off-duty police officer.
Chavez was charged because investigators discovered she had left the boy unsupervised at the park several times before, Det. Virginia Lopez said. Lopez said she didn't think police had ever charged anybody under the code.
"The mother needed to be given a wake up call that you can't always dismiss adult supervision," Lopez said.
City Attorney Cole Finegan said the law does not specify at what age it would be appropriate to leave a child unsupervised. The municipal code covers minors under the age of 18.
"It's a policy to ensure that you don't have people abandoning their children or placing them in danger and that there is some accountability,' Finegan said.
There was no phone number available for Chavez.
People dropping their kids off at amusement parks (instead of getting a babysitter) is a problem for all parks, but it seems to happen at Six Flags most often.
Paramount's Carowinds Bans Off-duty Works From Park
An interesting story, as being able to get into the park for free has been a major selling point of any park's employment campaign.
Paramount's Carowinds has banned its teen workers from the grounds after their shifts end at the theme park.
The ban, which went into effect last week, eliminates a perk that helps lure some 2,000 mostly young workers during the park's operating season in spring, summer and early fall months.
Carowinds spokesman David Mandt said too many off-duty workers, often wearing portions of their khaki pant and blue-shirt uniforms, were socializing with on-duty employees, creating the wrong image for paying customers.
He noted that employees are welcome to visit the park - which straddles the North Carolina-South Carolina line off Interstate 77 - on their days off for free, a savings of $42.99 on the price of adult admission.
"We made this change to enhance the overall park experience for our paying guests," Mandt said. "The expectation is, if you're not working, you shouldn't be in the park."
Disneyland requires off-duty workers to change costumes of uniforms and remove name tags if they want to hang out the park in Anaheim, Calif., a spokesman said. Disneyland also grants free access for up to four guests of workers, except during the peak months of July and August.
They can come into the park only when they don't work that day and only when they pay to get in. I hope this trend doesn't spread to other parks.
Slightly off topic
Derek Smart
Oh what fun he is. Check out the fun here. The good news is he got me back into Freespace 2. The bad news is the reason why he was posting about it in the first place.
Derek Smart
Derek Smart
Derek Smart
In other news... I'll have some good posts tomorrow before I head off to California.
Friday, July 16, 2004
Tuesday, July 13, 2004
Top Thrill Dragster CLOSED INDEFINITELY
This is breaking news.
About 8:20 last night metal shards from the launch cable came off and injured four riders.
SANDUSKY, Ohio -- Four people are recovering after shards of metal started flying Monday while they were riding the Dragster, NewsChannel5 reported.
Some were also burned by some type of oily substance.
A metal cable was reportedly frayed, and when the cart rolled over the cable metal shards were sent flying, said Janice Witherow, Cedar Point's spokeswoman.
The riders were reportedly treated at the park's First Aid station. Two others reportedly chose to seek medical attention at a Sandusky hospital.
One rider was reportedly injured when a shard of metal struck him in the chest. His condition, however, is unknown. Privacy laws forbid hospitals from releasing information on conditions.
Terry Downey said his 20-year-old son, Joel, was on the ride with friends when he told him that something snapped. The ride reaches 120 mph.
"All of the sudden, it felt like they were being hit by bugs because the ride was going so fast," he said. "He said when the ride stopped everybody was looking at him and he said there was blood on everybody."
Meanwhile, Cedar Point officials said the park has an overall good safety record. The ride, however, is shut down indefinitely. This is the second time this month that the ride has been shut down.
Monday, July 12, 2004
Teenager's Body Found On Cedar Point Beach
It isn't really clear where on the beach the body was found. I don't know if it was by the hotel or some out of the way place. Either way it is both sad and scary.
A woman and her grandchildren found a body washed up on the Cedar Point beach yesterday, according to the Sandusky police.
Police received the call about 7:45 p.m., said police Sgt. Robert Van Scoy.
On Saturday, Steven Thomas Wallace, 19, of Weyers, Va., disappeared into Lake Erie after jumping off a sailboat near the beach at Cedar Point, Van Scoy said.
Rescuers searched the area until 6:15 p.m., then called off the search, according to the Sandusky Fire Department.
The body that washed up yesterday has been taken to the Erie County Coroner's Office and has not been identified, Van Scoy said.
Click here for the story yesterday when he was still missing.
Friday, July 09, 2004
Disneyland's Big Thunder Mountain Crashes, Again
From the Los Angeles Times via the Sun Sentinel:
A 10-year-old boy and his parents suffered minor back and neck injuries late Thursday afternoon after two trains collided on Disneyland's Big Thunder Mountain Railroad — the second crash on the ride in three months.
The roller coaster, which simulates a runaway mine train, had only recently reopened after a state investigation into a Sept. 5 crash that killed a 22-year-old Gardena man and injured 10 others.
"We had a bump of two coasters on Big Thunder," Disneyland spokesman Bob Tucker said Thursday. "They were coming in at the loading station at a slow speed."
The boy and his parents — described by an Anaheim Fire Department spokeswoman as a 44-year-old woman and 42-year-old man visiting from Canada — were taken to Western Medical Center-Anaheim for treatment.
The roller coaster was shut down, "in an abundance of caution," Tucker said.
The accident was reported to state investigators as required by law.
Tucker said he did not know what caused the accident, which occurred about 5:15 p.m.
In the fatal crash, two bolts on a guide-wheel assembly fell off, causing the locomotive to separate and partially derail.
Disneyland admitted that incorrectly performed maintenance led to mechanical failure on the ride.
The same findings were made by investigators from the Division of Occupational Safety and Health, the state agency that regulates amusement parks.
The state ordered Disneyland to retrain maintenance workers, managers and ride operators, and gave the park the approval to reopen the attraction in March.
But a month later, two unoccupied trains crashed during a routine "reset" operation.
After that minor incident, the state again ordered Disneyland to retrain workers.
Sure, the first accident was caused by the old Disneyland management style of running rides until they fail. But this is the third accident on the same ride in less than a year (one fatal) all under the new leadership. How long can we keep blaiming Paul Pressler for what is going on now?
Saturday, July 03, 2004
Coaster Con: Part 2b
Another Geauga Lake Q&A came to mind after I visited the website. Bill got a question about the Geauga Lake dog and then he took a poll to see if people wanted the dog back. Most of the ACE members cheered. He then asked if the dog should appear with some new friends (ie... Snoopy and pals) and it was the same reaction as before. The Geauga Lake Dog as well as Snoopy and pals (and Camp Snoopy too) will be coming back soon.
Friday night was the best night for ERT. They announced that Raging Wolf Bobs would finally be open and that we would be the first to ride it (outside of park management). There was also ERT on Double Loop and the Beaver Land Mine Ride.
The Mine Ride was an amazing kiddy coaster, it was both fast and intense. You really do have to try that ride out for yourself. I was also amazed at how long the train is: Twenty cars! The back is the best.
We walked over to Raging Wolf Bobs where the line of ACErs streaked out the entrance to the ride and down the walkway. It turned out only to be a 15 minute wait though, even with only one train. I hadn't ridden the Bobs in years so it is hard for me the judge the quality of the retracking job but the beginning of the coaster was very smooth. Much smoother than Villain.
On Saturday they only offered ERT in the morning because it was the last day. Villain, Dominator, Thunderhawk, and Double Loop were all available. It was mostly a repeat of the earlier sessions except that the Villain crew allowed people to ride again without going back through the line.
Overall, my thoughts of Geauga Lake are positive. We never got over to the water park because of the bad weather but that section still looked nice when I walked through it.
The Animal side is a sad sight, however. The only thing open there was the kiddy rides, the motion simulator, the 3D movie, and the water ski show. It is also empty. No one goes over there anymore.
I really hope they keep the happy harbor area open. I had great memories of that place as a kid. Right now all the old kiddy things are still open with the exception of a few things still being rehabed.
Mission: Burmuda Triangle is still a little cheesy. Being a certified scuba diver (an a person very interested in submarines) I find the cuts from scene to scene in that film funny. I can't blame Cedar Fair for that though. I hope they can find a newer and better film for next year.
Pirates, the 3D movie is still lots of fun. Not quite as great as Muppets: 4D but still a great experience. We went to the first show on Friday and it was about 3/4s of the way full.
The Water Ski show is a new addition that Cedar Fair made and it does feel a little rushed. Overall though, it was a good effort and worth it to see the stunts. The people were out there even in the cold and rain and I thank them for doing that.
It really is strange to see the Animal side now. All the signs that don't work anymore were covered up and there are walls everywhere. Another special event was going on while we were there so I did get to see that side's entrance and further into the closed areas. Everything is still intact, save a few signs and statues. They also seem to be selling off old animal merchandise at low prices and we picked up a few things.
Cedar Point "Announces" Roller Coaster Anniversary Week
If you have ever been to Cedar Point recently (since Dragster opened) you have noticed the big events calendar on the building where Dragster's machinery is located (near the tower). Along with opening day, Halloweekends, CoasterCon (they are so nice), and a few other events they also listed "Roller Coaster Anniversary Week".
I saw it back in May and I had no clue what it was refering. Today however, Cedar Point announced what it will be:
SANDUSKY, Ohio, July 2, 2004 – When you think of world-record-breaking roller coasters, one park comes to mind – Cedar Point. Known around the globe as the home of the largest collection of rides and roller coasters, six of Cedar Point’s 16 scream machines are celebrating monumental anniversaries this summer. They include: Blue Streak (40 years); Cedar Creek Mine Ride (35 years); Jr. Gemini (25 years); Magnum XL-200 (15 years); Raptor (10 years); and Woodstock Express (5 years). To commemorate this special occasion, Cedar Point will be honoring each of the six classic roller coasters during “Roller Coaster Anniversary Week.”
Beginning Monday, July 12 through Friday, July 16, “Roller Coaster Anniversary Week” will honor a different coaster each day with a short ceremony held at the queue entrance of the featured coaster at 10 a.m. (On Tuesday, July 13, the festivities at Jr. Gemini will begin at 10:30 a.m.) Following the ceremony, a special limited-edition commemorative anniversary pin will be given out to the first 1,000 riders.
“‘Roller Coaster Anniversary Week’ is a fitting tribute to these classic roller coasters that have provided so many wonderful memories to our guests,” said Lee Alexakos, director of marketing for Cedar Point. “More than 170 million guests have rode these six scream machines since their debut.”
The schedule for “Roller Coaster Anniversary Week” will be: Monday, July 12 – Raptor; Tuesday, July 13 – Cedar Creek Mine Ride (10 a.m.) and Jr. Gemini (10:30 a.m.); Wednesday, July 14 – Blue Streak; Thursday, July 15 – Woodstock Express; and Friday, July 16 – Magnum XL-200.
For more about the coasters of Cedar Point, as well as current information (dates, prices and hours of operation) guests can call the Cedar Point information line at 419.627.2350 or log on to cedarpoint.com.
Interesting. Speaking of special pins, I will have a story about them tomorrow.
Welcome!
I seem to have gotten an audience very quickly today (and maybe just for today... I hope not). I assume it was people drawn for the RCT screen shot and they posted around for the Geauga Lake news. Anyway, I hope you will stick around. I can't always promise insider information but some times I do "get lucky".
You all noticed my summary of the Geauga Q&A and while that one was the best, I also was at the Cedar Point session. It's just a few posts down. I haven't posted everything that was said because I don't remember it all but I will share anything that comes to my head.
For instance: Bill was asked about diet and caffeine free pop (like Diet Serria Mist) just like the management at Cedar Point was. He didn't seem as willing to use that idea though and said it is hard to manage the types of pop they have now.
That is it for now. Tomorrow I will share more about Geauga Lake and I may even get to Memphis Kiddy Park. For now, check out my archives (although it is mostly old news, I do throw in my thoughts) I hope you all stick around.
Oh... PS: I have a little comment link (below all the posts) where you can comment on my stories. Feel free. No registration required.
Friday, July 02, 2004
CoasterCon Part 2a: Geauga Lake
We arrived about 2:00pm on Thursday (we stayed at our Cedar Point hotel another night because there were no events on Thursday until later). Checked into our hotel and then after a quick nap, went over to the park.
It was a nice day but even being a Thursday, the park was empty. The longest we waited for any ride was Big Dipper and that was because they only had one train running. And we wanted the front. I managed to ride all the coasters (except for Steel Venom-closed, Head Spin-makes me sick, and Raging Wolf Bobs-closed) before the 7pm ACE Welcoming Reception. It was nice of Geauga Lake to feed us so well (nacho bar and mixed fruit) but it took a lot of waiting in line. They announced that they would have ERT on Villain instead of Raging Wolf Bobs, as well as Dominator and Thunderhawk.
Dominator (a B&M floorless coaster, formerly Batman) was running very well and even during the middle of the day it was walk on to the front row. Some people have laughed at the name, but I think it fits well. They even designed a really cool logo for it, so cool that I even bought a shirt with the design. It is a great ride and it really is amazing what kind of speed it has coming out of the first loop and low around the entrance. A really interesting thing I noticed was it didn't seem to have enough speed at the top of the first loop. It slowed down enough that you were no longer pressed into your seat. If you were in the front row it happened 3/4 of the way through the loop and you would fall "forward" into your restraint. If you were in the back row it would happen at the top of the loop and you would fall "up" (towards the ground) into the top of the restraint. A very interesting experience.
I only rode Thunderhawk twice (once during regular hours and once during ERT) and the less said about that ride the better. It is no Raptor.
The Villain was great fun. It is really amazing how that ride keeps its speed going. I think the front is the best because there are some great surprise moments when you think you are going one way and the train will turn a different direction.
On Friday it rained which made the crowds even less than on Thursday. We had morning ERT on Steel Venom, Big Dipper, and X-Flight as well as a breakfast of muffins, fruit, and coffee. At 1pm the park gave us lunch and Bill Spehn, the General Manager, was there to answer questions. He really is a great guy and he even stayed for an extra 45 minutes to answer more questions after the lunch was over.
Among complements and tiny questions there was some news and interesting notes:
-The park will be getting a hyper coaster (over 200 feet tall, like Magnum) soon.
-Raging Wolf Bobs will be getting some new trains. Most likely the PTC (the good kind) trains from the now closed Hercules at Dorney Park. Villain may also be getting new trains.
-He promised that all the rides would get the loving care they need and didn't get before.
-They are still taking about what to do with the animal side of the park. He did say that Sea World built some amazing stadiums and it would be a shame to tear them all down.
-He said a dark ride and more kiddy rides were a good idea.
-He said he would like to add a train to move people from one side of the park to the other.
-Building a new dock for the boats took longer and cost more then they though so they are just opening now. The boats don't have much maneuverability so any kind of lake cruise wouldn't happen.
-X-flight will only be running one station side and two trains from now on. They found that was much faster then running two stations and/or three trains.
-One man asked about a sign on the log ride that said each boat needed a minimum of two riders. The sign was only to been seen in the station and he asked if another sign could be posted at the entrance. Bill said that he would look into it and maybe even see if the sign could be removed. Not even ten minutes later, he announced to us all that the sign had been removed.
And finally, the big news I have been promising you all week. I asked this question of him and never expected the answer I got:
Q: I was looking around the water park and noticed that the kid’s area in the lower section has been walled off and drained. Why is that and are you planning to do anything with it?
A: That area is called Hook's Lagoon and when we took our first tour of the park we noticed that it wasn't up to Cedar Fair standards so we decided to keep it closed. We had planned to build a replacement and open it this season but we ran out of time, so next year will see the debut of a whole new section to our water park.
Overall Bill was a really great guy and has removed almost all doubts in my mind about him running the park well. When people asked him about problems he offered to get things fixed right away. He is a really great guy.
More about Geauga Lake and Memphis Kiddy Park later!
RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 Scoop
Atari launched their new Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 website today and announced that you would be able to create your own fireworks shows. They also released a video showing off the fireworks and plenty of other news things. However, there was one new thing that everyone has missed so far.
I downloaded the giant file (At their website) of the fireworks movie and I noticed Rollercoaster Tycoon 3's user interface. No one else has mentioned it yet and the only reason I noticed was because I was trying to figure out if the Dinosaur scene (that you can see the UI in) was a dark ride or some kind of coaster.
Its a big movie file (but well worth the download) and the website is going really slow, so I took a screen shot of the video. Enjoy:
What I can see from left to right: Two unknown icons. Four game speed buttons. Cash information (looks like $10,000 so no realism from the money in this game). Park rating. Some kind of pull-down thing (I think). Temperature. Some kind of other icon. Date and time (April, Year 3 11:17 am). A final unknown icon.
