IAAPA says theme park business has lost $18 billion to Covid

As it looks increasingly like 2021 seasons at parks will still include masks, distancing, and limited capacity (and likely limited interest), my heart goes out to all operators in the industry. None of them could have imagined this a year ago.

I'm not sure. I think we'll know better December-ish, when we know where the vaccine trials landed and what the manufacturing ramps look like. See, I'm optimistic sometimes. 😊

Jeff said:

I'm not sure. I think we'll know better December-ish, when we know where the vaccine trials landed and what the manufacturing ramps look like. See, I'm optimistic sometimes. 😊

If my discussion with Clermont is any confirmation, it appears work is slow later this year. Which is a time of year they would often be cranking out a ton of B&M track for winter/spring installs 2021.

That, or they just have a ton of capacity at the ready. But I wouldn't be surprised if parks hold off on any expenditures for 2021.

I'd have to imagine that with capex and crowds both reduced, B&M's position as the most expensive house on the block is not a great place to be right now. The smaller guys, who aren't building capacity monsters, are likely to see the first orders. Perhaps we will see another resurgence of wooden coasters in the next several years.

One plus right now with the B&Ms is they can still load every row of their coasters since most seem to naturally have 6 foot spacing.

I was referring to the manufacturing of the vaccine, not rollycoasters.

Jeff said:

I was referring to the manufacturing of the vaccine, not rollycoasters.

Whoops. I see that now... Reading comprehension fail.

I thought he was talking about ramps used in manufacturing.