SF3582

Bert, Why wouldn't the one at SFSTL be considered a classic? Just wondering. I know how fond you are of them and you have seen many more than I....

Hate to think this.. aren't the partnership buyout agreement due dates coming soon for SFOT and SFOG? Could this be a "run the place down and lower the buyout costs" master plan? Something does not seem right about all this. Then again- the CEO did come from Spirit Airlines so maybe this plan does seem logical to him. IDK,

So very sorry for your loss Bert. No words can ever lessen the loss. Please know that you are in my thoughts.

ProZach- We have a mutual friend that confirmed that he is .. indeed.. still there and working on the Horses, Did I not connect with the joke? Anyway- have a great day and late Happy Father's day!

TeacherKim... It was very "cool" and breezy that day. They loaded the test trains with sandbags. We had cranes and wench's ready in case it valleyed. The first train went up and around and then whoosh- all the way around at an awesome speed. Everyone on the platformed was in awe. The construction crew cheered for 10 minutes. The concern was cresting that second hill. It was 'scary" back then because of it's size. Now - to me- it is just awesome fun. Somewhere along the way My Dad was given an Eagle Head- used on the sides of the trains. I still have it... it's pretty cool still. The other day I found old name tags- my Six Flags watch and my Eagle Belt Buckle for 1976.

TeacherKim... I am old but I will never forget my first ride on the Eagle- I was lucky enough to ride actual Train # 2 with people on it. Mostly construction workers. It was the most unbelievable ride on the Eagle ever. I also got the see the look on Mr. Allen and Mr. Cobb's face when the first train came back in the trims and ready block.... some things you never forget. Also, it was not a warm day so... They had "very" light grease in the bearings because of the cold- it really flew around the track. On the original back "dog leg" you felt like the Train was going to fly off the track. The paint on Eagle has held up- but needs a new coat. The original pieces were "dipped" in a paint trough and allowed to dry before being assembled. I believe that it has lasted longer than most and kept the wood in good shape. The summer of the build was awesome. We got to see it being assembled. It was bigger than anyone had ever seen in 1975. The first 5 or 10 bents for the drop went up first. Walking up the hill toward the mine train from the USA section you are right in line with those bents. People would stand there for 30 minutes looking at that with mouth agape. Some would ask what it was and the word around the park from employees would be "it's the braces for the world's largest drive-in movie". That was an awesome summer to work in the Park. BTW, Steve Reed - the guy that is refurbing the Horses on the Carousel- started 2 years after I did. I was so surprised to learn that he is still there. The winter we painted the Horses- my winter work was sanding the Horses to get ready to receive paint. Sanding the flowers and intricate work on those Horses was very hard work. You really developed an appreciation for how detailed those pieces of art really are....I also sanded trash cans to be repainted before Park open in April- a different time to be sure.

I saw a lot of shows working there and as for the crowds causing issues- 2 shows- Charlie Daniels Band and Andy Gibb- those were some really eventful nights.

I mostly base my opinion on my visits to SWSA..... 2 of the worst visits that I have ever paid for was experienced at SWSA. Our last visit 2 months ago or so was better- but it's never been whole lot better than CF, but better than SF. The food under Busch was pretty good. It's a long story on what happened on those days.... maybe a "one off"?

If this was true- how could we stop it? SEAS- please leave Cedar Fair alone. Or, better yet hire them to run your Parks- it would be a great improvement over what you offer now.

Be nice.... compared to Millions without power last time- it is better. This also wasn't the magnitude of storm that we had last time. Losing power happens every year during these storms...I have friends that work at ERCOT. There is plenty of power available this time. Knocked down trees and lines happens in Texas all the time. As some of my family have these outages I do feel for people. That's why we share our home with others in times of need. I like you Bert. Don't want to argue. I enjoy your posts. Thanks for the posts about Fiesta- I really enjoy them.

Interestingly- no major power outages in any large Texas City. Some small outages due to fallen Trees, etc. I would say Governor Abbot's plan worked well. Then again, I doubt Bert's politics and mine would match up much. I love his Theme park posts though. I hope Jeffery Seibert does not get in hot water with the new CEO the way Ron reportedly did. I think we lost a great guy. SFFT is still the best Park in Texas- maybe in the chain.

I think it is mostly budget. Not much to do with masks. I have been traveling some recently and found DFW to be no different than any other rational place to live. I believe that staff still have mandatory mask rules at SFOT. My last visit all of the staff was wearing masks. There is a worker shortage- most places are hiring in the Metroplex. Lots of "Help Wanted" signs out. Restaurants only opened to about 1/2 to 3/4 because of not enough servers, etc.

I worked in the Parks so I get the staffing thing- only one shift is needed. I still think the hours are a little short. I guess they have the same excuse everyone uses- "it's a COVID thing".... If you are talking about raising prices and offering less hours IDK. Doesn't really seem like a good value to me. I'll go anyway- I just question the overall direction.

I just reviewed the park schedule for SFOT- sorry- the hours suck. No openings before 11 am. Many days closing at 5 pm or a little later. I think the new CEO is on the wrong track if PREMIUMIZATION is his goal. Shorter hours for more admission is not a great trend. Then again, you HAD a guy that was fixing things up to provide a better look and feel and possibly give an impression of value- and you fired him. I am not sure that he really knows what he is doing.

I am sooooo furious. He was awesome and was "tearing up jack" to make this old run down Park look good again. We "ALMOST" wound up with a decent Park. This new management Team seems to be making some very unwise decisions. I am depressed now. I had high hopes.

I attended a Private Event for my company last weekend. I had a chance to visit with the new Park President for a bit. It was a pure delight. He is an awesome individual and I believe the Park is now in very good hands. So many Maintenance projects around the Park that I cannot list them all. He mentioned some plans for next year- general comments but I don't feel at liberty to repeat. If they do half of what He wants, the Park will begin to look very nice. Currently they are replacing the worlds most ghetto park fence with very nice looking black metal fence. Already looks so much better. Mr. Freeze is being painted, Pandemonium is being painted. Pirates of Speelunkers Cave revamp is underway. Many buildings painted and cleaned up. New shade materials on outdoor patios. One parking lot was scraped to the base and is being re-asphalted. Really good Maintenance projects happening. The Park was very clean and ran well that day. I was impressed. Good things ahead I think.

We drove to San Antonio for spring break. We visited Fiesta Texas on Monday.I have read some comments like "seeing pictures of IRAT does not do it justice". I will agree. It is very impressive. It just "looks" like it should really fly around the tracks. Some of the turns are really tight. The twist of the track going up into the zero G roll are incredibly tight. This should be a monster ride for the park. BTW- Fiesta looks great. New food stands abound. The park was very clean. It was very crowded but we still had a lovely time.