HWFan

Yesterday, I had lunch in the back room of the Flash Pass office and received a Guest question on my way out. They had been on American Thunder & Mr. Freeze so far that day and, as frequent visitors to the park, were wondering why the coasters were only running one train. As the off season is a lot shorter this year, they have already had to start rehabbing some trains. As this is something most people wouldn't think about, I wanted to share it here so that nobody is surprised if a certain ride is only running one train. The single problem that I see only concerns one ride. After having most of the regular season to work on it, there is absolutely no reason why Boomerang should be at one train. Even though it isn't scheduled to be open as part of the regular HIP ride line up, I feel like the park can do better. Oh well, maybe next year...

Three things I learned tonight: 1. I'm not the best at serving popcorn & hot chocolate. 2. HIP is getting rave reviews from the employees. 3. My phone & I take horrible low-light photos. With that in mind, I'm hoping the other Josh I know on here wouldn't mind taking lots of pics to share on here, as he's great at that sort of thing. However, one picture I took came out really well. I don't take panoramic photos often, but I took one to send to a friend from Sally Corp. The DC Comics plaza is very minimalist on the lights, but this picture really looks great, especially with no Guests or Team Members around:

^For instance, the light show that happens every twenty minutes in the Palace Garden has a focal point of the five, beautiful pole trees (which have special lighting packages of their own) but the show is also made up of the 18 trees in the Palace Garden. We're the only park to have a light show that immerses Guests like that. (SFMM has their D.C. Heroes area but it's not quite the same feel). I just went around the park all lit up, and I think that the topography and insane amount of large trees helps to give our event so much character! Tomorrow is media day, which is being covered first thing in the morning by channels 2, 4, & 5. I'm also going to work on a huge collection of pictures of each themed area for a big "trip report" type post. I'll probably wait until Friday to post that to respect the park unless I get the okay to post early.

Well here's the Fox 2 News story with some more views: http://fox2now.com/2016/11/17/holiday-at-the-park-coming-to-six-flags-next-week/

If you look closely, the paper only says "Dear Santa," but I did include a hyper coaster in my list for Santa. We'll just have to wait and see.

After SFOG made one, SFSL decided to kick it up a notch with a "mannequin challenge" video of our own. [youtu_be] [/youtu_be]

^one thing that amazed me (in addition to the insanely fast FF take down) is how many lights went up in places like DC comics plaza. Before opening Saturday, I almost didn't notice it, but JLBM has lights and everything. It'll be a great event.

Hmm, after reading your post, I think you might be confused. It sounds like you might have been visiting Universal. In all seriousness, glad you had a great time. The overall atmosphere is my favorite part of Fright Fest.

Even though I'm at SFSL, I really love seeing pictures and hearing about SFFT. It's a beautiful park that seems to have great management. Our park'a long-time marketing director, Ron McKenzie, is moving down there to take Jeffrey's spot since he was promoted. From what I've heard about Jeffrey and what I know about Ron, that'll be one of the best President/DirOfMarketing teams around. In a lot of ways, SFFT is a bit of what I aspire SFSL to be someday, as things continue to get fixed & improved each year. By the way, the projection show on the quarry wall and what looks like projection mapping being used on a building are freakin sweet. Projection mapping is really a game changer for theme park night entertainment, so I hope to see it used more and more at SF parks. Thanks for the great photos and videos, Robb! I love the "this is what my office looks like today" pic & caption. I love seeing other people who have such passion for the hard work that park management teams put in in order to create a great Guest experience. Even better, you couple that passion with hard work yourself to bring us updates and keep the forums on track when needed (seriously, thanks for that).

This is just a complete guess, but one reason to have it closed could be to work on the track & general maintenance. They need the offseason for maintenance, but I'm sure they have a careful plan worked out. Also, I was wondering if someone would mention the food trucks. It's something interesting and at least made them put out some more tables.

Make sure to check out Freaks Unleashed!

^ I've been thinking a lot about VR coasters, especially with Ninja. My research has led me to only one logical conclusion: 1. Six Flags needs to get the second track of River King Mine Train back from Herschend. Herschend seems way too wholesome and perfect to be true. With SF looking to have parks in Asia/China, get help from Chinese cyber espionage teams to find dirt on Herschend. Then blackmail them to putting the coaster for sale on Amazon with Amazon Prime eligibility so that SFSL gets free shipping. 2. Move Ninja to China. I mean, c'mon, an older but real Vekoma/Arrow can't be any worse than the cheap (and potentially dangerous) knock offs that litter the continent. 3. Put second Mine Train back in its original position. Herschend bought newer and a little more comfortable trains for it. Lol at their lost investment now that SFSL has it back. This will make it perfect to become a VR-only coaster. Plus, an elongated station with a load & unload area would increase efficiency (plus no OTSR). If Mine Train's theoretical hourly capacity with three trains can even beat Batman's, VR slowing dispatch times won't hurt capacity as much (if you consider it as a percentage of capacity lost per hour) as it does Ninja. 4. The penultimate step is just making sure everything operates well and things like the haunted attraction currently housed there is moved carefully for the future seasons. 5. The last step is probably the simplest. Basically, make a lot of small changes, including but not limited to: Replace TR with the Mississippi River Cruise. Replace Boomerang with bumper cars. Replace Fireball with a Chance Shooting Star. Replace Superman with a smoking area. Replace SkyScreamer with a Huss Condor. Replace JLBM with a fun and not-100%-politically-correct boat adventure into a cave named something like Washington Redskin's Cavern. And finally, turn the trains on Mr. Freeze back around so we don't have to listen to anyone complain about how it "ruined" one of someone's favorite rides . Thoughts? Ideas? Questions?

Remember, for anyone visiting today, the park is open from 5:00pm to 9:00pm.

With a huge amount of season pass holders attending fright fest, the $25 or $30 isn't too bad considering the prices for other St. Louis haunted attractions. St. Louis has some of the best stand-alone haunted attractions in the country, which makes SFSL keep their houses at a fairly high standard.

They have something called a slasher pass. It gets you into all of the attractions for that night. I cant remember the exact cost but it is somewhere in the $30 range I think. You can also buy individual tickets if you want to. My suggestion is don't waste your time in BlackOut, previously voided vision and total darkness before that. It's just not worth the time. That's interesting. Here at SFOT we have the Fright Pass which costs $25. It's good for the entire run of Fright Fest, Sept 24 thru Nov 1st. At SFFT all haunted attractions are free with paid admission. I hope it's something they start doing at all SF parks. I hope not. It's all about supply and demand. Obviously SFSL has a higher demand for its haunted attractions, which is why they can get sizable lines sometimes, even though they're upcharge. If they were free, you'd see the lines become overwhelming and probably a decline in quality. Last year on most days the Slasher Pass was $25 with the Express version being $30 on most days. I believe they also had some demand pricing where it slightly fluctuated depending on the day.

If you have to ask how severe the punishment would be for purposefully breaking park rules, then you definitely shouldn't bring it. I've been to parks that have (in my opinion) bad policies...I mean, even the new Six Flags Accessibility Pass is a complete slap in the face for anyone in a wheelchair and has led me to visit the park a lot less, even though I get in free. However, I look at any policy as park of that park's experience, so if that experience isn't worth it to me, then I just wouldn't go.

Thank you for the great info as always, TNT. I kept seeing that train car in and out of the roundhouse, so I'm happy that the train will be back to full capacity (hopefully). They will definitely need it for FF and HITP. Speaking of HITP, something has been troubling me, which I did express to management. Since the first email about lighting and planning, I've noticed them using the acronym HIP. But you see, this makes no sense. Acronyms usually either include all of the small words like in, at, the, etc. Yet, they've decided that the "in" somehow matters, leaving the "the" out of the acronym. It's apparently due to the fact that saying, for example, you have a HIP meeting (pronounced like the part of your body, just like Shakira's hit song about her hips not lying). However, I just think it's lazy and in bad taste to not use HITP. Sorry. Just had to get that off my chest. I can't wait until more details are released or until I'm able to give a couple more details possibly. And thank God someone called out their stock photos, some of which are seriously scary. I don't mind that they tend to include rides from other parks, but holy heck those pictures you posted is in my top ten posts I've seen on TPR. I started watching the first episode of The X Files last night, so you've got me thoroughly spooked. I'd give you comp tickets or something, except for I don't have extra to give. But it's the thought that counts. Anyone visiting this weekend? I'm going to try to spend an hour or two hitting a couple rides in the park after my shift, and it'd be fun if anyone wanted to meet up.

^I just sent it. I'm happy to hear that you enjoyed the event so much, and I'm happy to hear that Pete was able to meet plenty of enthusiasts. Once you get to know him, you can tell he's a great guy who cares about the park and its Guests/Employees. Also, if you want to send this (and any compliments/comments) that anyone has to Guest Relations, they can talk to Rides and help identify employees, as well as making sure it is catalogued in the system. You can submit a comment online via the park's 'Contact Us' page on the website.

I was thinking the same. But I think that once we get to Fright Fest, it'll pick up. Actually, there is one thing to talk about: Six Flags is ramping up their fundraising opportunities again this year. If you have a group that wants to raise money quickly, you can sign up for a date to have your whole group come and work a shift together! You'll get to park in the employee lot, get a short training session inside HR, get suited up in your free Six Flags atire (sorry, you'll have to return it), and get an unofficial tour of some backstage areas as you prepare to/start to make your way down into the park. Especially for those of you who have talked about the Guest-side of Culinary Service, this is a great opportunity to see the other side of it. Plus, while I may not know you personally, I'd suspect that a good portion of you would enjoy the opportunity of working for Six Flags for a day. Besides the money being raised for your group, you'll also receive one free complimentary ticket per group member. There are a lot more good details, so whether you're a sports team looking to raise money for new uniforms or a charity (like Relay for Life) wanting to raise money for your cause, this may be a perfect opportunity for you. For more information, please contact one of my favorite coworkers (who somehow finds time to help coordinate HITP lighting setup, Fright Fest duties, overseeing training, managing the recruitment program, and coordinating the fundraising program) by either emailing him at mbosslet@sftp.com or by phone at 636-938-5300 ext. 6318. In closing, I still want to remind everyone that there are a plethora of positions open, so if you or someone you know is interesting in working at the park on the weekends, please apply at http://www.sixflagsjobs.com, wait for an email telling you to schedule an interview (or call us in HR at 636-938-5300 ext. 6314), and then come on out so we get a chance to meet you.

thanks for the info - i presumed it would be relatively slower on Sunday. but it was really pretty crowded... For the real reason as to why the park was busy, you can check this webpage. You'll see that Sunday, September 11th was the last Season Pass Bring-a-Friend Free days of the 2016 season. I still would suggest everyone checking that page before planning a trip to the park, because even Bring-a-Friend coupons with just discounted admission can greatly increase attendance. For a very short period (I was listening to the park radio and enjoying the MODOT traffic cams online), the Six Flags traffic was actually backed up onto the highway. For the love of all that is holy, why can't people understand that both lanes of the exit will get you to Six Flags, so use the left lane too....but anyway, the park, under Pete's direction, reduced the traffic significantly by opening the toll plaza, allowing cars to go through without stopping, temporarily. To make sure the Holiday Inn shuttle could get through without waiting 20 minutes they also redirected that into the employee lot, past HR, the train shed, and down a special gate into the parking lot. The riders got some great behind-the-scenes views including a couple cars of the Boomerang train.

Sure does!!!! That little thing is way more fun than you'd expect for its size. Yes, yes. That's what she said. Ok, so I feel like someone should point out that American Thunder won't be open for HIP. According to the thematic map & renderings, the path from Moon Cars too Log Flume won't be open. Remember, there is only about two weeks of true turnaround time from Fright Fest to HIP. Blind Fury has to completely come down and be replaced by some light lighting, in addition to the entire graveyard in the palace garden be removed. The logistics of everything is being planned out meticulously. I'm getting pretty excited just to see the transformation.

I had the huge pleasure of meeting and riding around Alabama Splash Adventure with Ramone, who is the main Zamperla rep for the United States. You can tell he's Italian, and he is an extremely smart guy. One thing that I really like about him is how much time he insisted on taking to tour the entire property (even though he'd been there before) and suggest a dozen other small or big non-ride things that the park could do to improve in its look and feel. While we were eating lunch, he told me that SFSL was his next stop (he's from Italy but lives in New York I believe), and that is actually how I found out about the addition. Zamperla's coasters are...well...ya know... But they have an absolutely fantastic collection of flat rides and kiddie rides. They are good quality and look great. I have absolutely no doubt that Ramone at least talked to the members of management that were present about how to make that whole surrounding area look fantastic. But I guess we'll have to wait until next year to fully see.

While it was a few pages back, just like beetle juice, three posts that include "HWFan" summon me. As usual, I have a small litany of little things to address: 1. To the person talking about being sent up to Season Pass Services, waiting in line, and finding out that their dining passes were already on their passes... Your experience is the exception, not the rule. At least when I worked in Guest Relations, a very small percentage of Guests' dining passes would already be on their season passes. However, when the percentage of Guests like that is less than 5%, I think you'd agree that it makes sense to check every Guest. The park's (very hardworking) GR staff want to make sure any problems are taken care of being you wait in line at a restaurant to use your pass. 2. To the person who posted the Pandemonium retheme joke and also to the person who didn't get the joke... I actually didn't get the joke either until my boss, who thought it was hilarious, showed me. Thank you OP for adding some light humor to this forum. 3. To the poster who talked about using 4 wheel drive to conquer the parking lot and a weed eater to get to a restaurant... You have the potential of being a great satirist, like Mark Twain, even though I don't think that your post was intended to be satire. 4. To my BFF prozach... Your post comparing the parking lot complaints to Holiday World was excellent. After visiting Holiday World six weeks ago, I was really tempted to write two separate trip reports: one from the mindset of if it was a Six Flags park and one from the rational mindset of it, while having flaws, being an absolutely fantastic park. (P.S. For me, the most embarrassing part of the SFSL lot and entrance/exit roads was the almost translucent paint. However, the paint crew recently invested lots of time & money repainting all of the lines, which especially look great on the exit road. Heck, they even did the small employee lot too.) 5. To the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, I want to sincerely thank you for awarding me this Golden Globe, and thank you to everyone who helped me get this far. 6. To the person who leaked the ride early... Why ya gotta be like that bro? However, I did enjoy how I was one of the main suspects, even though I never even saw the leak until the afternoon of September 1st. 7. To everyone who visited this past weekend... I want to sincerely thank you for taking the time to visit the park, even if everything wasn't perfect. 8. Finally, to the sometimes-criticized man who took the time to get some Steak n Shake with me recently... I want to say #ThanksPete.

But really, have any of the employees at Six Flags St. Louis ever actually gone "above and beyond" doing their job?? Just an FYI that this is the reason I'm pretty much done with this thread. The sad part is that I came to it tonight with optimistic news and updates to report, especially as I am looking forward to going to lunch with Pete Friday. But hey...have a Six Flags Day. Some of y'all are just ridiculous.

I like it when we agree, because you're 100% right. Islands of Adventure has a huge superhero land, and it's awesome. Plus, a lot of kids really really like the DC characters. I can't believe that today is the last day of full time operation for 2016. However, I'm excited for tomorrow. If you visit this weekend, Blind Fury will already be blocking the arbors, and you might spot some lights in other areas of the park. As they love to say, "Six Flags - Thrills for All Seasons!"