Philrad71

This has been a rough week and then to find out that the star of my favorite show on TV has committed suicide...damn it, damn it, damn it.

^ Totally agree, Andrew. To be honest, the first drop reminded me a little of Magnum's... Great lift hill view, a nice whip over the hill in the back and just good fun after that.

I had that same brochure, Bill! I remember showing it to my parents and saying "Look, the coaster goes all the way to Niagara Falls and comes back!" That's interesting about the owner, Bert. Still seems like it would be a better business practice to try and beautify the park a little bit more, but I'm not a millionaire business owner, so who am I to question his decisions? Hehe.

I can vouch for Big Whiskey's too! Thanks for the update, Andrew...glad that your wife got on TT! As far as Wildfire, that view going up the lift and the fact that it's got the rare straight-down drop for a B&M...loved it. But then again, I loved all of the coasters there - especially when most were walk-on's Hehe.

I definitely got some chuckles from your report on the overall weirdness that is Marineland, Bert. It truly is a quirky park, but it's disappointing that it seemed to be hitting strides in the mid-80's into the early 90's and then...thud. They lengthened the time in putting in new rides and kept peddling the same commercials on local TV, which turned it into a tourist spot versus a place where local folks would want to go to. They unfortunately picked a new ride to install in 2007 that turned into a complete flop IE: the Huss Topple Tower. That weird volcano thing on Dragon Mountain was really supposed to be a completed volcano with lava waterfalls and eruptions during the initial plans. Then the park seemingly fell on hard times and they halted construction to where the the volcano was only partially completed. They did do some work on it a few years ago, but it still doesn't match the original renderings that I recall seeing when the coaster was originally announced. I know that you mentioned cringing when you drove by Fantasy Island, but I would actually go there versus Marineland any day of the week. They have been adding rides and attractions whereas Marineland is adding something once every ten years or so... not going to cut it in this day and age. I do love the fact that Marineland has so much land and potential, but the condition of the park tells me that management basically is in it for the profit margin and cutting cost and could care less about enhancing the experience for guests by investing money into expanding the 1/2 mile sections of basically nothing. We went about 7-8 years ago in the middle of summer on a weekend and it wasn't much more crowded than what I see in your report. Maybe a little more, but all the rides were walk-ons and the ride op's were so bored, they were practically begging people to ride and promising double-cycles (which I admit was cool). Every year I wonder how long this place is going to hold on. I am almost surprised that CF hasn't bought the park and shut it down given the proximity to CW...ala Geauga Lake.

Thank you all so much to everyone for their well-wishes! I know that this is the best coaster community out there and it's really cool to see people rallying around Michael and I! He is currently stable, although they did have to add a drain today to try to get some of the infection out from around his liver. He is very tired & weak, but still his normal, lovable self. It really makes a difference when he is such a good patient for the nurses and I am always inquisitive and willing to help out with anything that can make their jobs easier. After his 6 month stint in various hospitals and rehab centers in 2016/2017, we really gained a highly respectable appreciation for LPN's, RN's doctors, aides, etc...these people work their asses to the bone and sometimes don't get the recognition that they deserve. Not sure if there are any of you out there in the coaster community that work in the medical field, but if you do, THANK YOU for everything that you do!!!

Thanks guys, words cannot explain the nice comments at this time...will certainly keep you posted.

^ Oh I certainly agree about the re-rides...not a problem walking around to ride again as I try to rack up pedometer steps when I can because I get rewards for the more steps that I get. On a sadder note, I am going to have to put a delay on this report. Michael was admitted to a hospital in Erie yesterday with a serious blood infection and a CT scan detected "something" on his liver. More tests tomorrow and we are hoping that it's an abscess (and not a cancerous tumor) that can be cleared up with doses of heavy antibiotics. I will still continue to use this site as my "escape from reality" and will still post here and there, but please try to keep us in your thoughts as we battle yet another setback in poor Michael's health.

That was cool...glad to hear that the park is still hanging on and even turning a profit. Despite the fact that I know that it would likely never happen, I would love to see this park turn into a mini-Knoebels. The main thing people need to remember at CLP is to not walk and look at their cell phones or they're pretty much guaranteed that they are going to twist an ankle where the cement has buckled from the tree roots.

^ Hmmm...may have to try a 6'er of each or try one on draft at the brewery. I think that their IPA's are the best, but I have had a couple other interesting ones like those that aren't IPA's. It seems so crazy to think that I used to go to their original brewery (which is just down the railroad tracks from where I work) on Friday's with co-workers and the bar area sat like 6 people and they had maybe five taps and this game that had a ring on a string hanging from the ceiling. You got 3 tries for a buck and if you could pendulum swing it and land it on a hook in the wall, you won a free pint...it was so much fun and I practiced to the point where I could usually land at least one free pint! Now they have moved across the street and that place has already expanded like 5 times. They have a lodge-style bar, concert area outside, outdoor games like corn-hole and field golf as well as a restaurant. While I love seeing their popularity grow, it was way more fun when no one had ever heard of them...and they had that damn addictive string/hook/ring game!

That and if the kids play sports. Is is just me, or does it seem crazy the amount of time, $$ and parental dedication it takes when their kids play sports? I grew up in a very small town where we didn't have huge sports programs, so it amazes me when I see these lacrosse or soccer teams going up and down the east coast for events all summer long. It seems like that's all Michael's kids and grand-kids do is go from one sporting event to another....town to town almost every weekend. That's a lot of hard work and dedication right there. Perhaps that could be yet just another reason why it's hard to staff a park during the summer with such long hours being requested. To Bill's point though...still a lot of unemployed adults that could potentially apply.

^ I have to admit (albeit a bit greedily) that I loved going then because just about everything was a walk-on (TT & PK were by far the longest waits). I literally rode Wildfire & Outlaw Run with like 3-4 other people on the trains! Although it is interesting that they didn't allow re-rides if no one else was in the station. They make you go back through the line if you want to ride again - so I ended up getting tons of steps on my pedometer during those two days.

^ LOL - I would have loved it if they would have played Synchronicity II as that's one of my favorite Police tunes! To give you an idea about how Branson and SDC were in terms of age, I made mention to Michael at SDC that it seemed weird that I was the outcast in terms of age at a theme park! I would say that the majority of people at the park and in Branson were either senior citizens or young kids (school groups mostly). And there were lots of seniors working at SDC as well that were all very polite and pleasant - personally I would rather parks hire seniors than young school kids based on their work ethic alone. And yes, I was definitely the youngest one at the Patsy Cline and Million Dollar Quartet shows by a large margin - lol! Certainly don't let that be a factor in visiting though...I really had a great time and would highly recommend the area to anyone. Beautiful country, clean, and with very friendly people everywhere without quite as much Jesus stuff thrown in my face like in Pigeon Forge. I came away very impressed and hope to go back again someday.

^^ Those are great points, Bill. ^ The same can be said for SDC and Dollywood when you mention older employees that really do a great job. I wonder what the salary is for a ride op or food vendor at these parks versus the CF and SF parks? I assume that they would make more, but wonder if anyone on here has any "inside info"?

^^ Hehe...nailed it, Bert. NF USA is still pretty much a shit-hole, but it's not as shit-holey as it used to be, believe it or not. Improvements are coming, so I hope that downtown can revitalize itself in the manner that the Buffalo waterfront has. Fantasy Island really isn't that bad of a park, although you don't see a whole lot from the 190...unless it's really gotten bad in recent years. I truly enjoyed our visit a few years back and Silver Comet is worth the stop in itself. It's nothing fancy, but it only costs like $20 to get through the gate. It was actually clean and op's were decent...and the beer prices and sizes make it one of the cheaper places to enjoy a cold beer on a hot day! I have a trip report out there somewhere of the park...I'll see if I can find the link. Edit - here it is....only a "few years old" - back in '09! LOL Link

^ Great post, Michael - very informative!

MARCEL...come back....CP needs you!!!!

After leaving St. Louis, we headed for....BRANSON!!! I had been told by a co-worker that the Titanic Experience in Pigeon Forge was pretty cool, so we decided to add tickets to our Welk Resort package. It was interesting, if not a bit of museum overload for me. They give you cards at the beginning with a name of someone on the Titanic and then you see if you live or die at the end. Somewhat morbid, but I did end up "surviving" the sinking of the ship - Michael didn't fare so well, however. Oh wait - he did...that's him down there on the sidewalk! Hi Michael! We went downtown to see a Patsy Cline tribute, which was a hoot. Before the show, we were looking for a place where Michael could get an ice cream. This place certainly fits the bill! Someone is a happy camper with his hot fudge sundae. I got a chili cheese dog and it was really good! When we went to the theater, it was somewhat odd, although very reminiscent of how theaters used to be with the old soda jerk and concession stand...neat! No pics of Patsy, but here is the theatre where she performed. I know that this may sound petty, but I was really impressed that you didn't have to pay for parking in downtown Branson - how cool is that??? Here is downtown Branson's version of the Bellagio fountains in Vegas. Every hour they do a cool fountain show with lights, fire (came from those tubes) and music. We heard some Joe Walsh, Beatles and another cool band (Fleetwood Mac perhaps?)...a great selection of songs with the fountains dancing along in synchronicity! We decided to hit a Mexican restaurant at Branson Landing and order a couple of drinks and appetizers to watch the show. It was so relaxing and fun...and given that it was a weekday in May, crowds were non-existent! The queso, salsa and guac were outstanding, but my watermelon margarita was a bit too tart for my taste. Michael's mango one on the left tasted much better, although nowhere near as tasty as the ones we drank in Aruba. A pic of the view from our room at the Welk Resort - very nice! SDC coming soon!!!

^ I was there the night of May 12th and had similar experiences on MF and Valravn. You are correct in that it takes a lot of the fun of being at a theme park. On the other side of the coin, our visit to SfStL days before was exceptional with temps in the low 80's and sunny - a great day!

Short answer: Yes. As someone who employees low-wage seasonal help, the applicants are: 1. Not very motivated to work 45% 2. Have priorities outside work 45% 3. "Fight for Fifteen" 10% With that said, if you can hire more of #2 and be flexible with staffing, the effects of #1 and #3 are limited. With a semi-isolated location like Cedar Point, hiring "more" people who work "less" hours may not be very practical. When you literally have thousands of employees living on the property, you want them working so they aren't idle in the dorms, possibly causing damages. When you hire employees locally that do not need housing, you might get away with more flexible hours, but you are also competing with the market infrastructure that has developed because of your own business. Years ago, Rt 250 didn't have nearly the number of businesses it does now; and those businesses are definitely deterring locals from working at the park. Now, I personally do everything I can to keep my employees happy without having to pay them more (which I need permission from the owners anyways.) So I offer them different incentives and am extremely flexible with the hours they work. We also offer them perks that they can use when they are not working, or to invite friends or family to join them. If the different park operations divisions can work out the flexible scheduling, maybe they can offer things like: Free Admission for you and a guest. Half price on all food and drinks. Discounts on all shop items and Fast Lane. Maybe offer incentive prizes (gift cards, bonus hours, free food.) Etc. Would this work? I'm not sure. I would need more details into the hiring pool and staffing coverage required for minimum, normal, and maximum operations. --- PS- Can we please keep the politics out of the discussion? Yes, I will...but that bit of politics could potentially be a big reason as to why more foreign students are not coming to the US to work in theme parks. You certainly can't deny that and I consider that a valid point of discussion on the topic of park staffing.

Sounds like perhaps Voyage is getting better through re-tracking and maintenance? I'd still like to go back and try it out again, but with much trepidation after getting absolutely battered on it a few years ago. Raven was above and beyond the best wooden coaster there, but we still preferred the water park over the ride side.

While it sounds like most parks are hurting for staffing at food stations, stores, vending, etc...it's still early in the year and most high schools are not out yet. CP has always depended on high school, college and foreign students for help. But given that a lot of the younger generation are lazy, self-entitled spoiled brats, I can see why they wouldn't want to work for peanuts at a theme park doling out sh%t food in a 100 degree small kitchen. And if I were a foreigner seeing a lot of what our a-hole POTSA is tweeting about immigrants, walls and other BS, I would be reluctant to come over here and work. I'd be more than happy to stay in my country, work at the local park and laugh at the joke that this moron is making out of the USA.

Great report, Zach...glad that you and Emily had a great time despite the ending being a pain in the ass. I really hope that we can hit Melt the next time we go. I agree that the sandwiches are huge and enough to share with another. I wasn't able to finish either sandwich that I ordered at the one in Cleveland on our two visits. So much bread and cheeeeese!

^ Glad to hear that as the US side as always been the "red-headed step child" to the Canadian side. It seems like NY is FINALLY taking steps to make our side appealing to tourists. I have found it to be a shame that Niagara Falls, NY has always (during my lifetime) been run down, crime-ridden and really devoid of any attractions with the exception of Cave Of The Winds, the state park, the observation tower, the casino and the tiny aquarium. The rest of it has always been pretty much a dump. I have read in the news that there are exciting new attractions planned like more music and food festivals, an indoor water park/hotel complex and some type of major indoor arcade/gaming complex. Sure hope that this stuff all comes to fruition!

Damn, I like your style, Phil. LOL - as long as you limit it to vacation only! Seriously though, I did try that cheese on a stick with cheese sauce once and it was absolutely disgusting. I will stick with the "healthier" cheese fries from here on out. Glad to hear that you had such a great time at Coaster Camp Out. I was reluctant like you to try anything of this nature, but it sounds really cool. And yes, the ride op's kill it at CP...I can't say enough good things about them. They are #1 of any park that I have been to...and that includes some damn fine parks like WDW, DW, SDC and the two Busch parks.