Six Flags Magic Mountain to reclaim coaster crown in 2010

Lord Gonchar said:

LostKause said:
Six Flags saves operating costs when rides are closed, and they sell more Q-bot too.

They sell more Q-bots when there's less rides available to use it for?

Wow, they should close all the rides but one.

....slowly beginning to see the hidden wisdom of the SFKK project.... ;)

Thanks Ed. Hopefully they are just slow updating the site and it's good to know that Scream was open this past weekend. As far as rides being closed, don't forget we are entering the time of year that SFMM usually does most of their maintenance/rehab.

rollergator said:
....slowly beginning to see the hidden wisdom of the SFKK project.... ;)

Heh. No one had it pegged as a q-bot money grab.

You win this one Six Flags...

WildStangAlex said:
It would be super nice to see Magic Mountain restore a lot of the old "Charm" to the park. I've never been there, so I have zero credibility on this, but it sounds like the park is just a bunch of rides plopped on a hill. It'd be really cool to see more terrain coasters like Revolution, Ninja, and Tatsu. Is there a chance of expanding further into the foothills?

The park has a rolling topography with the centerpiece being a very, very large hill (not large enough to be a mountain). Most of the park's rides are built in nooks and crannies surrounding the hill, with rather few attractions on top of the big hill itself (only seven rides).

Here's a rather neat photo of the park: You can see that it's not just a bunch of rides "plopped on a hill." To give you some perspective...the Sky Tower's base is the highest ground within park boundaries. The lowest is the area closest to the bottom of the photograph (where the water rides can be seen).

http://i45.tinypic.com/29a7op.jpg

I never attended the park before it was sold to Six Flags, but you can actually pull up retro photos of Magic Mountain in the 70's and early 80's where it looks completely different. Lots and lots of family rides, tons of transportation rides, and the "little things" that no longer exist there (like fountains, cattle ranch, botanical gardens, etc.)

SFMM just updated their site to reflect that Scream! is now open. Also, it now says Goliath will reopen December 19th.

Yay! Scream is now open. Let the headbanging begin!

^^ Thanks, I just noticed that too. I will be visiting that corner of the park after all.

That's good news because Moosh is just itching to get on his favorite coaster at the park (Scream).

Considering he frequents the park alot, he cries everytime he walks past a closed Scream. :)

Yes, they do. Lines are longer when more rides are closed. Long lines make more people consider giving into the the pay-to-cut scheme.

I wouldn't be at all surprised if a Six Flags park had only one ride open during a normal operating day, at some point in their past.

Dude, for real?

LostKause, there is no data that proves that. You are making an assumption that isn't based on any factual evidence whatsoever.

Then again, a significant number of your posts are jam-packed with fallacies.

Lord Gonchar said:

rollergator said:
....slowly beginning to see the hidden wisdom of the SFKK project.... ;)

Heh. No one had it pegged as a q-bot money grab.

You win this one Six Flags...

Like I needed MORE evidence to like Shapiro? ;)

In my experiences at SF parks, when lines are long due to limited capacity, people make a run for the Q-Bot shack. Yes, Gonch, for real.

There is no hard factual data for anything that has to do with Lo-Q and their business practices. Assuming is the next best thing.

When I seem to jam-pack my posts with fallacies, consider that it comes from my experiences on the subject.

I don't think the fallacy is in the experience, it's in the interpretation.

I was at "the mountain" today. Only 1 guy painting Goliath. At this rate it'll never get done. This trip Goliath is a no go for me...

He did not get the memo...

Maybe they're out of Orange paint. They could spread some pumpkin pie tomorrow.

Lk: If it really were a good business decision to keep rides closed that could be opened, why wouldn't they do it all the time?

If they do that all the time, it becomes too obvious. And a lot of folks give up on the park if too many rides are closed too often. And if the goal is to get people in the park, who get frustrated with long lines due to multiple rides being closed, to go to pay attractions instead, you need to keep attendance up.

Not saying that is what they are doing. Don't have enough info either way though it seems to me its a risky strategy at best. And to pull it off (and maximize profits in the long term), you would need to walk a very fine line.

I think it's hilarious that anyone is even discussing that approach as a viable (or remotely reasonable) one.

Are we really suggesting that Six Flags actually makes a conscious effort to close rides so that lines get longer so that, in turn, some of the people in these marginally longer lines buy into Flashpass - even at the risk of alienating guests due to the ride closures?

Puh-leeeeeze.

Considering it as a joke? Sure. In theory as a sidebar to Q-bot debate? Ok. For poops and giggles? Of course.

As a serious consideration? Wow. Just wow.