CoasterBuzz Podcast #119 - August 4, 2008

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

• Cedar Point, Disney, maybe others, raise ticket prices. (Note: I learned later that CP prices are actually still less than 2005.) No significant number of people go to Disney World for one day anyway.
• Jeff rants about the ridiculous price for everything at Kings Island. Six bucks for fries? More than three bucks for a 20 ounce soda? Count me out!
• Kings Island once sold as much as 250,000 season passes a year according to one former employee. Then Cedar Fair thought they knew better, took a huge hit in sales, then went back to the deals this year.
• Cypress Gardens dials back off-season hours, which probably shouldn't be considered a failure, just the seasonal nature of the place.
• Fire strikes Six Flags America and knocks out a haunted attraction.
• Busch starts doing a meal deal, all you can eat, in the Florida parks. We wonder how much someone would spend on food ordinarily, because it might be less. But with drinks, it's probably a good deal. Universal doesn't include drinks.
• Questionable politician who saw Bell's close on her watch loses primary election to one of the Bell's. That's karma.
• Six Flags New England looking for a permanent zoning variance to build stuff up to 200 feet.
• Hong Kong Disneyland wrestling with government over financing. Mike reminds us that this is the chuckin' babies park.
• Lassiter/Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom suit scheduled for 2010, we wonder if it'll go to trial.
• Better account of violent attack at Valleyfair published, charges upgraded. Crazy that people go nuts like that inside of a park.
• Gonch is hoping to go to Indianer Beach.
• CoasterBuzz Club events coming up this year: The Fall Affair at Holiday World, and BooBuzz at Cedar Point. Visit the CoasterBuzz Club page for more information.