(reposted from CP Place)
CoasterMania! '01 is upon us, and I have a special request for any CoasterManiacs who may be attending the presentation after morning ERT.
A few years ago, I think it was for CoasterMania '99, Ron Toomer, retired president of Arrow Dynamics, gave a very nice presentation, well received by his adoring fans. This presentation was followed by a Q&A session, which included some very interesting questions and answers.
But a large number of those questions were questions which, while they could have easily been answered by the Cedar Point marketing staff, Mr. Toomer was, reasonably enough, not prepared to answer. A little thinking on the part of the forum participants would have gone a long way.
For that reason I ask that if you are planning to ask questions, please think carefully about the nature of the question. According to the details on this very web site, the presenter is a representative of Intamin. So ask him questions about Intamin and about designing, building, and operating Intamin rides. Ask questions that a representative of Intamin is prepared to answer. Want to know how the park decided to build a ride, how the name was picked, or why it is marketed the way it is? Ask the park, not the manufacturer. Want to know about a particular ride (Intamin rides at Cedar Point are Millennium Force, Disaster Transport, and Junior Gemini; also possibly the two Schwarzkopf rides, the Giant Wheel and Wildcat) or the design process, or engineering? That's when you ask the manufacturer.
The bottom line is, think before you ask about what kinds of questions the presenter is capable of answering. You'll get a much more satisfying response, and the show will be better for everyone.
Thank you!
--Dave Althoff, Jr.
