Jew

R.O.I. When Tim Burkhart said it would be hard to get a return for a flat ride, he was 100% correct. Major market parks aren't going to win over guests with a Top Spin. As far as the fair circuit? Most of the large flat rides are too big/heavy and expensive to travel in the U.S.

^Bingo. So much goes into each coaster that it's really impossible to compare one project to another. Plus, no one actually know what the park is reporting as an expense relating to the project. So those numbers can be inflated for publicity purpose as well.

^I thought that photo gag was brilliant. More parks should do that.

Well, considering in the offseason I highly doubt they are actually earning that much (seriously...there can't be more than 4,000 people in the park if that), it's still an impressive feat.

House of Horrors consistently has 10+ performers now. The park has definitely made an effort to enhance the experience as much as possible from previous years. It was nothing spectacular, but since there aren't many year round haunts around it will still be sad to see it go if the rumor is true.

Content overload...new comic con quest.

^Without knowing exactly WHY guest spending is up, it's really hard for anyone to say what the long term prospects are. If they are spending more because prices went up, then attendance being down is a disaster waiting to happen---eventually they'll run out of people to gouge and costs to cut. If people are choosing to spend more on their own at the same prices, it's not necessarily a bad thing for the company. Given Six Flags history...I'm inclined to believe this is might be the beginning of the end.

I think you just unintentionally summed up why the Six Flags business model is terrible. "Why go the extra mile when we don't have to" AND "we have to keep our admission prices low to draw people in and HOPE they spend money elsewhere...that $20 parking fee can only help the per cap spend so much!"

I'm pretty sure that's an industry standard and not limited to Six Flags. That aside, the theme park business is one where the phrase "you have to spend money to make money" is 100% true. Obviously you have to control costs, but unless you invest in infrastructure, employees, and capital projects you won't be successful. Six Flags puts everything in the capital additions pile at the expense of the other two and it absolutely shows.

Here's the facts regarding SFMM and annual maintenance: they simply don't spend enough money to get them all done on time. They don't have the manpower or resources to get them all done. 100% on them.

Uhm...guys...this is SFMM we are talking about. They'll run with one train until they absolutely have no choice but to spend money for new parts or a new train.

I get the impression that these events are meant as a distraction to slow you down from finishing all the district 8 characters because they are nowhere near finishing district 9.

^That could be just the body.

I haven't been able to get a single glove to drop. Joe doesn't even show it as an item for target practice for me.

Their 50th birthday lasted 2 1/2 years, so cut them some slack...

I honestly don't think the majority of people even remember Windseeker at this point. And if they do remember, their story about it has probably been exaggerated quite a bit. However, a low capacity ride with mechanical problems would fit in perfectly at SFMM...

^^Apples and Oranges. Universal has the resources to ensure things get better. Rockit is a perfect example---it's still FAR from reliable, but has seen significant improvements in downtime since it opened. The reality of any ride is that you can design the perfect ride on paper in CAD and write the perfect program, but you won't truly learn how to maintain and operate the ride until it's open for guests. Technicians gain experience and figure out new ways to troubleshoot and improve processes that were never thought of during the design and testing phase because the focus at that point is just getting the ride open, not how to fix it.

^Yeah. I get the feeling the developers were like "you guys kept bitching for Stewie...have fun assholes!"

Two random rows not next to each other would lead me to believe it has nothing to do with the LSM's.

It's very sad that grouping is considered an improvement of operations at SFMM...

I think he's referring to the fact that much like a fast pass at Disney, they are giving out tickets with a time window to return in order to enter Diagon Alley.

^^I personally would rather have a cutting edge ride system that breaks down while they learn how it operates vs. a standard buzz bar dark ride. That's not to say some incredible things can't be done with a traditional dark ride, but the reality is anytime you push the technological limits of what's possible on a ride system things are bound to go wrong.

If Groening would of been willing to sell the IP licensing rights in the mid 90's (during the shows peak popularity) which obviously he wasn't we would of almost certainly ended up with Springfield instead of Toon Lagoon. Bart Saves the World was a pitch in which guests would of boarded a bus (simulator) and gone on a wild trip through Springfield along side Bartman. Btw not saying you didn't already know this but more for those who may not of. That would have been AMAZING! Hope it call still happen at some point. I agree with Robb...put BTTF out of its misery and use the land for a much better Simpsons ride.

I'm still on Team Air Race, especially after riding one on the Scandi Tour. They haven't had the best of luck with Zamperla in that location either...

^That's pretty ambitious to have done by October. Really don't see them knocking down/rebuilding walls if they aren't even updating the AC in the rooms.