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Well yeah, times did change. The cost of college has dramatically shifted, and the demands of employers to do things like unpaid work (internships in related fields, for example) has grown tremendously. There's no benefit to the majority of college or high school students to work at Cedar Point. In fact, working jobs like this generally gets you looked down on in professional or academic fields. It's a net negative. And then there's the whole "They're open when school is in session" conundrum that they never bothered to figure out when expanding the calendar beyond Labor Day 20+ years ago. This isn't new: Cedar Point's staffing has been abysmal for YEARS AND YEARS AND YEARS.

Great news. They finally got permission from the state to run Zumanjaro and Kingda Ka at the same time. No more staggered operations. Here's a vid that was posted today. I linked directly to the timestamp where you can see it in action. If it doesn't automatically go to the time it starts at 7:29. This is not my video btw.

The more days KI hits capacity, the less days we have to wait for that modern multilooper filling Vortex's giant dirt plot... right?

At this point, "we'll actually be open every day in June like we told everyone for months" would be a big announcement.

It's always so awkward when someone who rarely posts here comes on with some OMFG BrEaKinG NeWs hypefest without bothering to read the last few pages of a thread to see if its been talked about alrea.... oh you're a Youtube'r looking to plug your channel. Got it. Carry on...

Hopefully Blue Streak does not get the same fate!

I've only been to KD 3 times. . but on all 3 visits? I305 didn't "Absorb" anything from anywhere, and was mostly very short station wait it's simply too intense for many of the General Public, and they don't want to ride it. (oh, don't get me wrong, there always seemed to be lots of folks gathered around the Entrance to the ride, and in the gift shop there. . so lots of NASCAR fans. . but I dont' think we ever waited more than 10 minutes for it, even without Fast Lane)

I'm sure this is causing a big sh*tstorm all over Sandusky this weekend. It's pretty ridiculous that this was the "solution" they came up with for under-staffing issues. With that said, at $20/per hour and a $500 signing bonus... brb throwing all my belongings in the car and headed back to work at Cedar Point for the summer!

I've been exercising for over a week now, every day. . and lost 3lbs. only 3, but I'll take it!

Now how are we going to see the spot where the old water park slides were without the Giant Wheel there?

Just get Blue Streak running and that's all I need to return...

nah people can mock but IDC, aint going if Pantheon isnt open. I will just feel bad. Like to have a good time but see it there and think damn.... also KD is covered by the pass, BGW is not and by this point I've spent a lot of $ lol Well that's fine Bert It's OK to disagree! All I'll say is, I am aware of their lineup lol I know what's there and yeah...outside the big two it doesn't really impress me. Dominator I do indeed find eh....fun but too short (I always hated that it runs so quick into a MCBR) and a lot of the rest is solid but ya know but nothing spectacular imo. Like I admire the positvity/enthusiasm! But Racer while fun, just a standard out and back, FoF is alright, Wild Mouse.....I mean cmon. IDC about location....Anaconda LOOKS great, but its utter crap lol Backlot is also fun but again, its not anything special nor is it unique. I do like Grizzly it was prob my fav outside the big two. So yeah, your opinion is perfectly fine, just as mine I think most of that, while fine, is pretty uninspiring. Good to know about I305, only been once while that ride was there and that was dang, 2013? Well I say good to know but if its down guess it don't matter. I guess we'll see!

um. . . this is an extremely odd statement. Kings Dominion has I305, Twisted Timbers, and Dominator. even if you don't consider Dominator a "top tier" coaster, just that KD has I305 & Twisted Timbers makes it a destination park for coaster lovers. add in that even without Avalanche (or the departed Volcano), it has these other coaseters: An Arrow Looper - with an incredible location over the water (Anaconda) A Premier LIM launch spaghetti bowl (Flight of Fear) A Premeir LIM launch terrain coaster (Back Lot Stunt Coaster) A classic racing woodie (Racer 75) A quite fun wild mouse, one of the better ones out there (Apple Zapple) A fantastic junior woodie that gives pops of airtime in the back car (Woodstock Express) and a Rough, but fun, woodie-in-the-woods (Grizzly) and they're about to get an S&S Freespin. that's a really decent coaster lineup, even if the enthusiasts / coaster fans, are gonna come for I305, Dominator, and Twisted Timbers mainly. so . . it's an odd statement to me

face it Kim.. you're a troublemaker. that's why I like hanging out with you can't wait for 7 weeks from now at Kings Island - we're gonna have a blast!

BGW exists... just throwing that out there. Lol

I haven't posted anything that isn't true. And you continue to have it out for me for some reason. Each time you post evidence supporting me. We can disagree here. But the fact remains, masks are not required of anyone at many Six Flags now. I have not suggested anyone do anything against park rules.

You're cool, Kim. You didn't start anything. That dude has been going around various Six Flags threads lying and pretending the parks have lifted all mask rules. It's a dumb thing to say, but I guess he's bored or something. Maybe a bit off topic for this thread, but on topic for your son: Missouri legislature just passed a bill that says businesses aren't liable if people get Covid unless they actively try to give people Covid. With that law in place, it makes sense that the St. Louis park wouldn't bother with anyone proving anything. I have much more to say about Moleg's "Sucks to be you" attitude, but I suppose I ought to just leave it there.

Yep, can confirm. Was there today with the family. Possessed still slaps. The holding brake still hasn't been turned back on, and honestly, I doubt it's ever coming back, but it doesn't need it. It's still a great ride even without it. I'll have a longer write up in the next few days, but overall, it was a great opening day without any of the major problems that plagued the other parks on their first day of operations. It was great to be back!

I remember when you worked at the Point. I enjoyed it then. Seems like quite a mess now. For $20 / hr, and a $500 bonus, I'd do it except I live over 2000 miles away. That's a long drive to work every morning! Seems like great pay for a part time job. With their staffing crisis now, you could call your own shots for more...

Welcome back, welcome back, welcome baaaack

Look dude, you're being an ass. I don’t care how you feel about masks, and I don't care what you do at a Six Flags park. I do care that you have been actively encouraging people on Six Flags threads to break Six Flags rules. When you are invited to someone's house and they ask you to take your shoes off in the mudroom, you don't ask "Is that a requirement or a recommendation?" You're a guest, and you do it just because your hosts invited you. You know this. Quit being an ass.

You're still spreading disinformation. You know damn well that Six Flags wants unvaccinated guests and employees to wear masks. As a timestamp on this post, here's a screenshot of the current policy on the SFoG website:

Cedar Point should pay people a premium to work there. Unless you love the industry and have aspirations of moving up within it, why else would you work at Cedar Point? - For most jobs, there are no benefits. - Your hours are inconsistent and range from being overworked in the summer to barely working at all in the fall. - Your job ends on November 1st, at which time (if you live in the area) you have to look for a job at the same time as everyone else who just lost their job at Cedar Point. Then if you find one and get settled there you have to quit again next year to apply for a job you already had that you’ll lose again on November 1st and repeat process. ... or you can work retail in Sandusky in heat / ac with more stable hours and not have to deal with any of that. I feel that it’s absolutely worth paying people a premium to have to deal with all of that bullshit. Most of that is not Cedar Point’s fault, but as an employee who could work absolutely anywhere right now, who’s-fault-it-is isn’t really your concern. Everyone is hiring, their gig sucks in a lot of ways unless you care about the industry but most of their employees probably don’t and they don’t have the creativity of a chain like Six Flags where they can find a way to make it work so this is what they have to do now. Cedar Point could do something like Six Flags Coaster Power Hours on those days where they only staff 15 rides, open a few select food stands and get thousands of people to show up but nope, they'd rather close entirely. lol

Eh... Superman being closed would totally be a dealbreaker for me on SFA. It's not that great of a park and it's clearly the best thing there.

It has been two weeks since I received the second dose of the Moderna vaccine. I am now fully vaccinated.

hah. . Universal's response:

Like Elissa said, I think the fact that Velocicoaster has been consistently testing since November helps its reliability now. That is over 5 months of working out bugs. And the block system is much less complicated than Hagrid's it seems. I do think crapping on Intamin's reliability is outdated. Their newer rides (that are simple and proven concepts, not crazy prototypes) seem equally reliable as new Mack launch coasters, new RMCs, or even new B&Ms. I am happy to hear it is running consistently. Velocicoaster and Iron Gwazi were both at the top of my list for "awesome new rides that I NEED to ride when I move to FL this summer." At least one of those coasters is open to rave reviews and consistent operation. The other is a beautiful statue that should be located in a museum.

Last week I had the opportunity to attend an annual passholder preview of the Jurassic World VelociCoaster at Universal's Islands of Adventure... I'll start the report by simply saying this thing is AWESOME! The VelociCoaster is designed with a fun first half that weaves in and out of itself after the first launch before throwing you into a much more intense second half. The drop coming off of the top hat gives some insane airtime and the inverted stall is such a neat maneuver. The final roll over the water is also intense and flips you only a few feet above the lagoon. All of this said, the coaster flies over and around the guest paths and viewing areas without nets, which makes these flyovers even more exciting--this is accomplished by requiring all riders to put their belongs (save for their park tickets/annual passes) in the lockers in the queue so nothing is dropped below. The lockers are double sided, so you load them in the queue and you access the other side and open the locker in the exit flow. The queue for the coaster is very cleverly designed, wrapping around the ride in key areas and setting the story of a rollercoaster in the raptor paddock being the newest attraction in Jurassic World, the still-open dinosaur park on Isla Nublar. The coaster sits inside of the Jurassic Park island with some of the land's design elements matching Jurassic World's aesthetic while others still tie into the Jurassic Park's styling. Let's take a look around... This view greets you as you enter the park... The top hat's wide curve is deceiving--that drop feels way more steep than it looks. There are many spots outside of Jurassic Park where the coaster can be seen running. Hello beastie! According to one of the creative team for the project (on Twitter), these raptors facing off against each other is a not to the former entrance sculpture that was once at Dueling Dragons. Outward banked airtime! Hangtime! Such a great dive! I really do love that there are no nets beneath the coaster. The plaza is full of kinetic energy. No nets! In case you were wondering where the entrance is in relation to the Jurassic Park Discovery Center. Dive! Dive! Dive! So great! Looks so great! The entrance of the queue is covered but not fully enclosed. Despite this, giant fans help to keep the space well cooled. This queue space is absolutely filled with dynamic lighting. There's definitely nods to different elements of the franchise's iconography throughout the queue. Very cool. Hard to photograph, but Robb & Elissa's video shows the effect really well. The raptors chase after the trains as they go through their second launch. BD Wong's Dr. Henry Wu makes an appearance for several videos in the queue. I can't say I expected animatronics to be featured in the queue... Clever girl! I love that they brought Mr. DNA into the queue loops! A look at the double-sided lockers. inGen gets a nod in the exit of the attraction. There is a separate location for single riders to use lockers. A pop-up VelociCoaster Store has been set up at the ground floor of the Jurassic Park Discovery Center, which double's as the exit path for the VelociCoaster. Merch, merch, merch. Walking around Jurassic Park, you can get some more fun views of the coaster in motion. My favorite photo spot because you can see the train move through a ton of different portions of the first half of the coaster. Here is the first launch... Going up... Going down... Heading into the second launch... In the back row you get a bit of hangtime as you move through this element. Hairtime! Prepare to be launched! VelociCoaster is a great addition to the Universal Orlando Resort and a fantastic addition to Central Florida's world-class collection of coasters!

So FYI - Kristen and her friends went Saturday at 3pm over to Universal. They somehow had a great time! Crowds were not bad for a weekend and it was our last decent weather day here in Orlando till October. At one point they went by Velocicoaster and it was a 75min posted wait. Since they are 14, and wanted bragging rights, they went for it! 75min later after a less than 10min breakdown they were on it. They all loved it! Kristen even had a single rider next to her as yes, they opened the single rider line. She was telling us such great things about Universal that we went down around 7pm with a 9pm closing just to get some steps in. Well, with single rider lines open on Hulk and Velocicoaster, we rode both!!! It was great. Back to the Intamin debate. I've always said I prefer most awesome Intamin rides even if they only operate 70% of the time to almost all B&M's that operate 98% of the time! Intamin really does push a lot of limits and I think a lot of their issues are fair. This coaster has been running since November so they had a lot of test and adjust time and it's great seeing them get to open a done and tested ride (unlike Hagrid's!)

So for all the hate that Intamin gets when it is okay to talk about the fact that they soft opened a 70 MPH multi-launcher for the first time Friday afternoon and since then it's operated every day with zero breakdowns. Zero... I also understand that any downtime it does have may not be due to a breakdown since it's just in soft openings and it could be weather related also but it's not having any downtime whatsoever. None. In that time it's actually been the most reliable adult coaster on property. Three days is a very small sample size, but the fact that it's a BRAND NEW Intamin multi-launch makes this pretty surprising. Maybe it's time to stop giving Intamin so much shit?

Well, disregard the refurb comment. RIP in peace Giant Wheel