Cedar Point to close Goodtime Theater

They did purchase a chain of stores, though I can't remember the chain's name. But, they were in different cities. I remember a Cedar Point Gifts store at the Richmond Mall in Cleveland.

EDIT: Found information, the chain was called Seven Seas and it was operated by George Roose and his family before being purchased by Cedar Point.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1350&dat=19780214&id=ZgxPAAAA...63,2860125

I get that parks don't know how to market these experiences as new and exciting but the timeless charm makes it one of those classic experiences people love. Get rid of the fumes, give it a surprising layout and watch the queues fill up.

Instead of gas burning Vettes. Cobras and T-Birds, why not have electric turnpike cars with Teslas, Volts, Leafs, Priuses (prii?) and i-MiEVs. Okay, scratch the last one, no kids are going to be fighting each other over the i-MiEVs.

It would be a great way to brainwash the youth against the idea that driving used to be fun, and be good for the environment and health of the employees as well.

Seriously? How are the employees of these rides not dying of CO poisoning? I feel light headed just waiting in line for some of these rides. Knoebels Haunted cars being the worst.

Interesting that the chain of gift shops was owned by Roose. I didn't know that.

I think Jeff Flicko mentioned at No Coaster a few years back Kennywood's turnpike cars were in storage as the park wanted to bring the ride back at some point in the future.

On those family trips in the 70s to Cedar Point, the car rides were always a big deal. It was fun getting to "drive".

I have trouble imagining kids waiting in line to drive an electric Volt or Prius at the amusement park. They just don't seem interesting the way an antique or retro styled car is. Of course I'm a fan of land yachts so maybe it's just me.

You're talking to a guy with a '65 Impala Convertible! (Shameless bragging,so what?) My above post was mostly made in sarcasm. I still enjoy the antique cars, even at 39. But I was serious about the fumes part. I would refuse to work those rides out of concerns for my health.

As for relating to the Goodtime Theater closing? Well, even my son, who loves cars and loves the antiques because it's as close as he can get to driving now, questions why CP needs 3 identical rides. We've been speculating for years (with no basis or anything) that they could get rid of one, or even 2, and free up tons of space. The above idea of the GT Theater and the Turnpike Cars seems to make a lot of sense.

I'd guess that the reason Cedar Point has, for years, had three identical car rides is that the space they occupy hasn't been needed.

Cedar Point has a long history of replacing rides and attractions. We can no longer ride the Giant Slide, the Double Ferris Wheel or Broadway Trip; the space occupied has been put to good use over the years.

Yup. If an attraction is still being sufficiently utilized by guests, maintenance is not a complete nightmare, and the land wouldn't be better suited for a capex project that management has in mind, said attraction will remain. The park would be foolish to throw away a ride that is adding enough capacity to the park to justify its operating expenses. That's probably the only thing that has saved any of the three car rides from the wrecking ball.. er, backhoe?

Combining Good Time Theatre with Cedars and Cadillacs provides a much larger composite area, thus hinting that we may finally see the car ride count reduced. It's not a given, though.