SFWoA's Operating schedule changed....
Today a memo was sent to employees stating new operating hours for various reasons.
Sunday-Thursday(no fireworks) 10am-9pm
Friday/Saturday (fireworks weather permitting) 10am-10pm
effective till Augest.
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SFWoA ATL in 2002!
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-Matt
2001 Magnum Crew
Sounds like someone isn't making the operating budget.
Just when is "Augest" anyway?
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Jeff - Webmaster/Admin - CoasterBuzz.com, Sillynonsense.com
"As far as I can tell it doesn't matter who you are. If you can believe, there's something worth fighting for..." - Garbage, "Parade"
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CBCon Quote "We didn't even get wet"......30 seconds later you hear plop, then splash!!!!
Am I suprised..no.
For those who go to this park weekly most can see why they did this. This place gets extremely packed during the day. But the average family leaves here around 7pm. As they do at CP at 7pm (unless they have a hotel up there...which can start a whole nother story with SFWoA). Until SFWoA builds up their night time life...which hopefully will be next year with all the new stuff. I can see why they did this. Budget and guest happiness is everything to the management this year. As for how much this will effect the park right now...it's very tough to say. I for one am upset just because no matter how busy it gets during the day I can go up there and ride the great rides at night with very little wait and not little kids are annoying mom's who upset with there kids all day. :) We'll see how this holds out.
"The Future of Roller Coasters"
-RollerCoasterGod
http://OhioThemeParks.com
Maybe it has something to do with 13,000 peeps on a Saturday in June.
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Jeff - Webmaster/Admin - CoasterBuzz.com, Sillynonsense.com
"As far as I can tell it doesn't matter who you are. If you can believe, there's something worth fighting for..." - Garbage, "Parade"
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Can we change the name of Top Gun to your mom so no one wants to ride your mom?
I'm assuming it used to be open till 10:00 every night?
Those are better hours than alot of parks (SFStL is only open till 10:00 on Saturdays).
SF has to pay for your new hyper somehow... if I had to choose between that and one hour less in the park each night, I'd choose the hyper.
Just so everyone is clear on this - 13,000 peeps on a Saturday in June is VERY POOR attendance! Honestly, that is probably fairly poor for a weekday too.
While I agree that many people start leaving early, there is a reason behind why parks stay open late during the busier season. It is so that the flow of people leaving is manageable. Take CP for example: people gradually start leaving at say 7 or 8 and there is a pretty steady stream of cars leaving the lot from that point on. Despite this, there is still enough people left in the park at 10, 11, or 12 (whenever closing time is) that there is usually some delay in getting out. Imagine if EVERYONE was forced to leave at 9 - you're going to end up spending a lot longer trying to leave. Some parks are easier to get out of than CP, no doubt, but that was just an example. Staying open late also gives people with season passes and such the opportunity to come in at night, get a bunch of rides, blow some money, and then leave. I'd probably be much less likely to go if I had only 2 hours in the park instead of 3 or 4.
I find it interesting how CP can afford to have like 8 people on each major coaster while SF has about 3 or 4 on each major coaster and they still can't meet budget. A cutback at CP usually involves having no entrance person on a day when a ride has a "platform only" wait. In that case the turnstyles person does the duties of the entrance person. Six Flags is cutting park hours, cutting supervisor hours, and cutting 35 cashiers. Perhaps SF should realize that they need to have more people working rides so that people actually flow through the lines, move about the park, spend money on food, games, etc. I can tell you that I'm a heck of a lot more inclined to pull out my wallet if I'm getting tons of rides, moving about the park having a good time and not standing in lines that don't move. I'm sure they can more than make up the couple hundred bucks it costs to have two extra ops on a ride in increased food, souvenir, and game sales.
It's one thing to penny pinch a bit, but I have my doubts as to whether this penny pinching is going to be unnoticeable to guests.
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-Matt
2001 Magnum Crew
*** This post was edited by MDOmnis on 6/17/2002. ***
It is total crap that they're closing at 9pm. Like someone said earlier it would be better to open an hour later like last year and stay open until 10. MDomnis said he'd rather see more people on the platform on their coasters. I agree somewhat. SF is cheap as far as paying exra workers. However, lines don't get long as in hours and hours for a coaster like CP for example. Even with 2 people checking bars on a coaster at WoA, I'd bet the wait time is still significantly less than CP's coasters. In the end though I think the park cutting hours will only hurt them. They may save some $$ from not paying for staffing but the people that leave upset will not pay off in the long run. I really wish they wouldn't have done this but oh well. I will still love the park for what they have done, what they have, and their value.
Don't be fooled, the parks don't stay open late to make exiting easier. They stay open late to make money. The Summer Spectacular was designed to keep you in the park longer which means, presumably, that you will spend more money.
As for SFWoA, based on what I have heard I don't think they park had a chance to hit their budget figures from the very beginning.
"The Future of Roller Coasters"
-RollerCoasterGod
http://OhioThemeParks.com
I don't know what 5 Akron businesses and three Montrose Restaurants have to do with Six Flags, but from what I've seen on my visit, attendance is very low, lower than last year. The marine side was so empty that the stadiums were filled to only about 25% capacity. I've NEVER seen Sea World that empty on a June day. SF didn't even have the marine gate open.
SF shot themselves in the foot by making both parks a single gate. The former Sea World fans think that SFWoA is all about rides and are not coming to the park. They cut the water ski show (the stunt show is a poor substitute), cut New Orleans Nights, cut the dolphin show, food stands were closed and even the main gate was closed. No wonder people who like the marine park feel like SF treats it like an afterthought. But SF still has the entire marine park as overhead, without the customer base. So, they don't have the budget to run either park efficiently. If they would have run it as a separate gate, the perception would have been that it is like Sea World was, and IMHO they wouldn't have lost as many Sea World fans. Which, of course, would have been a much better revenue stituation for both the marine and rides side.
What happens when you wait for 30-45 min., in a VERY slow moving line, to ride a coaster on a day of light attendance, due to one train operation? You lose customer satisfaction. Next time, you go someplace where you know that park runs rides to capacity. A 30 min. line at CP seems like a much shorter wait than a 30 min. line at SFWoA because the line moves fast. You are not standing in one spot for a long time. Or, you see Magnum running three trains, in spite of most trains going out with empty seats. Guests notice that and appreciate it. It's all about getting more for your money.
SF is in direct comptetion with one of the most efficiently run amusement parks in the world. So what do they do? In addition to the marine cuts I mentioned, they cut hours, lay off staff, close rides, cut fireworks, close food stands, close the water park at the first sprinkle - to send workers home, etc. Way to go to! Overwork the workers they still have, create even slower service to guests, close rides that don't have a line 'till later in the day, close food stands, etc. I hope the whale shows will help them out a little, but all the cuts do not look good for the future of the park.
Is CP's reported 6% increase in attendance, despite lousy weather, only because of Wicked Twister? Or are people, who tried SF out of curiosity, going back to where they know they will get their money's worth in fun and service?
*** This post was edited by Pete on 6/18/2002. ***
MDOmnis said:
I find it interesting how CP can afford to have like 8 people on each major coaster while SF has about 3 or 4 on each major coaster and they still can't meet budget. A cutback at CP usually involves having no entrance person on a day when a ride has a "platform only" wait. In that case the turnstyles person does the duties of the entrance person. Six Flags is cutting park hours, cutting supervisor hours, and cutting 35 cashiers. Perhaps SF should realize that they need to have more people working rides so that people actually flow through the lines, move about the park, spend money on food, games, etc. I can tell you that I'm a heck of a lot more inclined to pull out my wallet if I'm getting tons of rides, moving about the park having a good time and not standing in lines that don't move. I'm sure they can more than make up the couple hundred bucks it costs to have two extra ops on a ride in increased food, souvenir, and game sales.
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-Matt
2001 Magnum Crew
I think this is a great point. I know that every time I go to SFA, I do whatever possible to spend as little money there as possible because I feel like I am getting ripped off in just about every aspect of the park and I just don't appreciate it when I can see that they do everything possible to cut costs (other than adding new rides). But when I go to Hersheypark, I have no problem whipping out my wallet for a $6 sandwich and a $2 piece of corn because 1) I know it is decent food and 2)I see their attention to detail and their focus on customer service and I truly appreciate that...therefore I don't mind opening up my wallet.
Happy Coastering!
Sean
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"Have fun stormin' the castle!"
Pete: All good points. But, I am not sure the answer was to keep it as two separate gates. It sounds like a Marketing problem and they are not getting the word out about the "two parks for the price of one" aspect.
Of course, the other issue is where are the kids dragging the parents? If you are 8-10 years old and you know you can spend most of your time over at the "ride side", I imagine that is where you would be. The perception and reality is it is too far to send the kids while the rest of the family enjoys the "wild side" so the whole family goes over to the ride side.
When it was two parks, and I was younger, I spent most of the day at Sea World looking over at Geauga Lake and the rides beckoning me. The answer is to put more "rides" on the wild side but that can't happen in one season. The hyper should help to change things.
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