Archive: July, 2009

Jeff, Mike and Pat review this week's news in the amusement industry.

• Wild West World's new owner says economy slowing re-development, while former owner goes on trial for taking investors' money. Is being a crappy businessman illegal?
• The "every sponge," SpongeBob Squarepants has been around now for ten years. This brings up the credible rumor that Cedar Fair is going to ditch the Nickelodeon license, which might be stupid for a lot of reasons. It's not just about merchandise, it's about the experience. Replacing with Peanuts won't be the same.
• OSHA jumps in on Dueling Dragons accident.
• The Dells are saying you can't run your amusement park late. Owner points out that's pretty stupid, seeing as how bars can be open late and, uh, it's Wisconsin Dells. What else is there to do?
• Give Kids The World Village hits volunteer hour milestone. CoasterBuzz would appreciate your donation to this awesome charity.
• Schlitterbahn opens new water park in Kansas City.
• No proposal for Coney Island will ever make everyone happy.
• Legoland California attendance way up with new aquarium, and people are spending more to see it all. Aquariums are cool. Check out the one in Baltimore's Inner Harbor if you ever get a chance.
• Is the capital intensive nature of the industry something it did to itself? How is it that Orlando can get away with so much less?
• Cedar Fair has a Ride Warrior site now, and we're wondering what the point is. Meanwhile, the marketing across the company is very one-size-fits-all, an odd symptom of corporate mentality in all aspects of operating the parks. The Cedar Point template for running a park is backward, since it's probably the exception to the rules.
• A rise in child molestation at water parks, a faux bomb scare in Cedar Point's parking lot, worker falls from BGT sky ride, Sky Ride station at Alton Towers burns, Six Flags says guest satisfaction is up... what's the world coming to?
• Disney World manages to keep butts in the hotel rooms, and word on the street is that some of the discount deals may persist into December.
• Discounted food and merchandise is a great perk for season pass holders, so why doesn't Cedar Fair do it? As it is, passholders can be a drain if they visit frequently and don't spend any money.
• Big Bad Wolf won't be bad much longer, as Busch Williamsburg announces its retirement.
• Finance blog gives an honest assessment of the Six Flags premium queuing system.
• CoasterBuzz Club is $25 per year. You can join or renew today. Enjoy CoasterBuzz with no ads.
• BooBuzz 2009 details posted for Cedar Point!
• The Fall Affair at Holiday World promises to be a big deal. Register today! Gonch will be there if others show up.

Jeff, Mike and Pat review this week's news in the amusement industry.

• Euclid Beach carousel controversy is a good example of the complete failure of preservation efforts being a complete mess. Coney Island is another. Why is it so hard for these things to come together.
• Alleged weed smoker booted from Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, then says he got a beat down from the security folks.
• Walt Disney World monorail accident a series of tragic human errors. Lots of follow up news over the week, including profiles of the crash victim. The pilot job seems like such a cool job, and he seemed to really dig it.
• Cypress Gardens pulls a Geauga Lake last year, and they're still struggling. Is it an issue of location? Did they make the right decision?
• Ghost Town can't get its marquee attraction open. Is it because the people building the coaster trains have never built coaster trains?
• Southern Star wants Six Flags New Orleans, with a Nickelodeon license, yet the city and Six Flags are not involved. If you keep saying it, maybe it'll come true!
• Speaking of Nickelodeon, SpongeBob turns 10. His appeal is that he's an every sponge. Patrick is a moron though.
• Busch Gardens Williamsburg is going to do a holiday event this winter. It's the last season you can try to score extra cash in, depending on your climate.
• Six Flags Great America hosts record public shower. Mike thinks that's a pretty stupid record, and that most records are generally pretty stupid.
• Freestyle Music Park gets to bottom basement gate, which if it weren't for the relatively small investment made to buy the park, would be pretty ridiculous.
• Secrecy over new attractions has begun to fade, as evidenced by the non-secrets at Dominion and Carowinds.
• CoasterBuzz Club is $25 per year. You can join or renew today.
• The Fall Affair at Holiday World promises to be a big deal. Register today! Gonch will be there if others show up.

Jeff, Mike and Pat review this week's news in the amusement industry.

• New ride at Universal Studios Florida still has no opening date. Jeff hears that they're trying hard to get it open by the end of July.
• Beech Bend invites people to ride one of Michael Jackson's Sea Dragon. Coverage of the dead singer has been strange.
• Kings Dominion's GM is profiled, we like the story. And she gets a new Intamin coaster that will be really big.
• No one is talking about the new Carowinds ride yet. Why not?
• Hall of Presidents reopens at Magic Kingdom. Gonch says they can't quite capture Obama's cool in animatronic form.
• Now you can dress up as a pirate, with the whole family at Magic Kingdom. Which princess would you be?
• The chuckin' baby park, Hong Kong Disneyland, wants to boost their attendance by 60%.
• Merlin Entertainment is considering Central Florida for the second US Legoland park. How cool is the Millennium Falcon Lego set?
• Stupid people buy tickets from the back of a van (metaphorically), and they're shocked that the tickets aren't valid.
• Worker hit by train in Dueling Dragons field at Islands of Adventure. Jeff hears the guy was supposed to be there, but it creates more questions than answers.
• Universal partially wins court battle over property taxes.
• S&S gets a couple of roller coasters right. Hooray! Restraints sure are goofy. Intamin's "decorative" shoulder restraints might just be the most evolved.
• Monorail crash at Disney World results in one dead operator. Still putting together what happened.
• CoasterBuzz Club will be going up in price soon, to $25, after eight years at $20. You can still join or renew today at the old rate. Jeff explains why the increase is coming.
• The Fall Affair at Holiday World promises to be a big deal. Register today! Gonch will be there if others show up.