Jon Sabo

A recent news article has stated that Busch Gardens Europe was voted the best themepark in the world. Past winners of this honor includes-Tokyo's Disney Sea, and Universal's Islands of Adventure (2004). Members of the website Themepark Insider voted over a year from its 12,000+ members were from across the globe in over 80 countries. More on the article(s) below: Credit Link 1: http://www.timesdispatch.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=RTD/MGArticle/RTD_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1149188985600 Credit Link 2: http://www.themeparkinsider.com/ I am a fan of BGE and a (proud) past employee of the park and the fact that the most-beautiful landscape awards has been handed down for roughly 16 yrs. in a row. I am not sold on this award being voted as "best themepark in the world" based on several issues regarding: a. friendliness of staff (lack of). b. ride capacity issues (stacking of coasters and low-loading times). c. overall quality of park cleanliness (areas in need of improvement). There are several other issues that I believe that could be addressed also, but I would be curious on what criteria the results came from. So, let the debate begin....What qualities do YOU believe make a thempark the best in the world? And, should a park receive this award more than once?

I want to hunt down the owners or suppliers of hearing aids and get the Soprano's gang to put them out of business. Perhaps then, they won't have any trouble hearing (the noise) then. The situation is similar here too. These gated-type communities and such really have some strange clients. I really think they are "drama queens/kings" that need to get in touch with reality instead of coming up with ideas and plans to generate (superficial) media attention. This really isn't anything we've all heard before. I think several instances are like this all across the US also, but not reported as much. 1. Kingsmill (next to BGE-some people that really need some "drama" in their lives). 2. I think I could add Dorney Park, but I'm not familiar with the history of that park. But, isn't the nearby Amish people always complaining about noise and took Dorney to court several times? 3. There was a group of people that took BGT to court about 8 yrs ago (about that time) complaining of some noises coming from the park and to top it off, nearby businesses were threatening legal action for "taking business away from them". I believe it was settled out of court (after nearly 2 yrs).

Ron Toomer (Arrow) had fond memories of Nessie. He was also proud of DF (despite its tragic ending).

Great find Derek! I actually am a shareholder (cough) in Six Flags stock and get reports on shareholder going-ons and such. I think I'll sell it all off now..lol I really hate to even post this, but I honestly believe Snyder has big plans for the park chain. He will sell the projected parks listed and then focus on the remaining ones (don't expect N.O. to be on the 'saved' list). I think it will take roughly 5-6 years to get the remaining parks to satisfy the shareholders, the stock (in general) and the parks running smoothly. Then, when things look good, Snyder is going to drop the bombshell (again) and sell the remaining parks to the highest bidder (or close a couple of more parks and sell it as real estate-similar to the proposed MM scenario). I doubt Shapiro will hold out for 4-5 yrs. before he actually moves on. He has a history of doing this with other businesses and his renegade management style in operating/ownership duties with his 'beloved' Redskins football team really puts a dry taste in my mouth. Conspiracy theory? No, just a strong gut-instinct from his past business practices and management/ownership style.

^Interesting that you brought up the "inner-ear" scenario, because some medical journals now are saying fear of heights and the inner-ear play a big role together. Now, some women experiencing post-menopause are becoming afraid of riding coasters (when they loved them for a long time) and it relates to inner-ear problems. It's quite interesting how bio-mechanics and medical studies are entering the amusement park arena and finding things about how we all act and react toward thrill rides/coasters, etc. A-C is an awesome ride. It is just non-stop fun. I acutally like that much better than Alpengeist now(mainly in part the things that maintenance has neutered that ride in recent years-and I was a guilty party on that when I worked on that ride).

^^I'll send you an email (when I leave Hawaii and finish the move back to VA)..lol When I last visited BGE, some of my former bosses informed me that they had no plans to re-plant LeMans anywhere in the park and in fact they had an interested buyer for the ride. The rumor on the old DF site is just that, a rumor. In fact, there are some interesting plans for the old DF site formulated in the master-plan for BG (but that master-plan was developed when Keith Kasen was still GM/EVP at the park). I'm not even sure if those plans changed or not (but, it was to become another country for that section of the park-and extend South past the railroad tracks, etc). Those were developed after DF was torn down.

Yes. I already seen his post after the post I put on this thread. I just put it on this one to keep it all consolidated (similar to the Tatsu thread) and not have all of the posts all over the place. But, I already posted on that thread and I guess the mods will figure which is best (or combine them eventually). Thanks for the info.

Swami. At least I give you credit for admitting that your afraid of heights and such. And the idea that you open a thread to discuss the issue is a good idea. In some cases, I have seen many people who are afraid of heights and will ride (some) coasters, some won't get near them, and yet sometimes try to face their fears and ride them-in hopes of getting rid of the height thing. Some people in society (mostly men..lol) won't admit to being afraid of heights, but when it comes time to go up a lift or even a roof on a house, they freeze halfway up. Mr. Macho has just left his ego at ground-level. When I first left the operations/management side at BGE, I went into maintenance, mostly because I love the machinery/technology behind the rides and was facinated about working on them. My first assignment/job was to inspect-BBW/Nessie/Drachen Fire. At the time, heights did not bother me, in fact I ate lunch on Nessie's Loop (off-season) just because of the view..lol During one year when the park was open, I was inspecting loop 1 (first/tallest) vertical loop on Nessie. It had rained the nite before and the catwalks were wet. As per the standard requirement, we had our safety belts on and such, but as soon as I stepped off the "ladder" part of the loop, I slipped and the safetybelt caught me, but I was literally "hanging". I just froze for about 10 minutes (until my other co-worker came and helped me down). And for about the next 6+ yrs. or so, I was afraid of heights. I would still ride coasters, but actually closed my eyes (thinking about the Nessie incident that day). To help with my fears (and keep my job), I hired a professional therapist/hypnotist to help me "unblock" the trauma from my memory. It was expensive, but it sure worked.

Crap..lol I just posted a link to the photo's and such on the other forum/thread. I didn't know a new one was opened...lol **I don't recal if there was a link off of a thread from this site or another one, but there was a long promo-video on YOUTUBE site talking about Shiekra and at the very end of the promo-video...it said something along the lines the legend lives..(or something along those lines)...then it said "Or has it?" talking about a ressurection of some sort or in reference to a Phoenix 'rising from the ashes'....Anyone remember that video?...I have the link to it, but cannot remember what part I saved it in my "favorites" section in IE. If I find the link, I'll post it on here. "Cfc" what part of Wmsbg you live now? I'll look you up (and slap you) when I move back there 1st week in August..lol j/k

S&S really made some changes to the bogey and wheel carrier units. I believe Alan and the gang shed about 1100lbs. of weight off the train(s) and looks like they modified some other components (apparently issues related to X). Let's just hope the improvements provide a good (and reliable) ride for those that experience it.

A-B has barely ended the reign on LeMans raceway and is now beginning its next course of action with teaser signs within the park. An eerie feeling of (hopefully) proving my theory on the color-scheme too-I reported on that site. Credit (from friends at BGEscape site): http://www.bgescape.com/ Teaser Photo: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v162/drgnlvr89/100_0496.jpg[/b]

Alton Towers' legal team were back in court this week, as the Ropers saga continues to drag on. Credit Link: http://www.towersalmanac.com/index.php?show_story=249

Yeah! Trains. Couple additional links to the trains also. http://www.asovini.com/forum/album_pic.php?pic_id=61&sid=32d8fa89a690acf73e2722210ac7e603 http://www.asovini.com/forum/album_pic.php?pic_id=63&sid=32d8fa89a690acf73e2722210ac7e603

Ok. Just a thought. I'm not trying to get myself "banned" from the site...lol I just notice it appears to be more work for the mods to constantly "police" the site with locking posts (when some members can just use the search button, etc). I guess with increasing members signing up, the incidents that occur are going to be more frequent. I'm sure its frustrating. But, perhaps some of the members don't take the time to do that. I do think they (mods) do a good job. In reference to my comment on those who do not give/provide credit for a link or rumor, it just is frustrating because they claim a " reliable-source", but expect the other members to research it themselves and we have to ask questions to refer back to that source. I did not post my earlier comments/suggestions in a negative manner by any means and hope it was not taken that way.

Ouch! I guess I'll scratch KBF off my list now..lol I think the last time I been to that park was in 1988 and CF did not own it then (right?). I remember riding the corkscrew coaster (forgot the name) over and over and the soap box derby-racer(s) were there too and it was actually a fun day (except when one of my former classmates ate some bad food and got food poisoning and throwing up in parking lot (and locked her keys in the rental car..lol).

I don't see this happening anytime soon, but BGE was exploring that option in using a "fast-pass" system. I think the idea is good for 6F (and even Disney), but I believe the experience at A-B parks would actually 'create' line jumping and so on. I'm not really sold on the pricing structure in using a fast-pass system, but I can see it being useful in spending less time in lines for rides and getting the most out of the day in attending shows also.

This comment is going to sound absolutely hilarious, but I can forsee a lawsuit against MM coming any month now. Why? With all of the trash within the que-lines lying around, someone is bound to slip and fall from it and ...kaboom...broken leg/arm/foot or something along those lines. I will say it is actually a harzardous condition (trash in the que/station). If Ca-OSHA comes by and inspect the park (and notices that) I believe its roughly between $400-1000 per incident. Now THAT'S some expensive trash.

^^^Unless the sale was "as-is" the park can actually have S&S or a metal/track fabricator shop convert the track to a bolt-on package. Case in point: Big Bad Wolf modifications in 89 and 91. Sections after 1st lift and the last drop (s-curve) sections were re-profiled and now use a bolt-on pattern.

That may been part of the reason, but the day(s) I went to the park it was sunny and no clouds in the sky. A few other people (and friends on other forum sites-including the BGEscape site) noticed that the dispatching system was the same (and they also said it was sunny). So, it must be a new operations method now. I am curious if you had experienced 3 train operation on any of the coasters? I believe all coasters are only operating 2 trains (maximum) now.

^^^That should be the new management team for Magic Mtn..lol I had a question regarding "size" of pics. If we use a digital camera and upload the pics from our file(s), do the pictures re-size automatically or do you have to upload them from a site similar to photobucket, etc...? I finally was able to recover my pics from my BGE trip and wanted to share the pics on the site, but never posted pics before (on a forum site). I noticed on some picture posts the size of the pics are large and others are small-sized.

^Part of the reason(s) why the park appears to stack the trains (on ALL of the coasters their now) is because they are putting the dispatching system into "rain-mode". What I mean by that statement is when inclement weather is present around the park perimeter (10-18 miles I believe if still in effect-Weather 2) it is standard policy (per ride mfg manuals) to have 1 train nearly complete its circuit-run before dispatching the second train. This is in the event that a brake-failure or weather-related incident in stopping a train becomes a problem. But, I am not sure why they are using the "rain-mode" dispatching when I haven't experienced any weather-related issues when I was at the park last month (and previous times). I am not the only one that noticed this. All of my former bosses (I was in mid-level mgmt. at the time) and I noticed that this was occuring. In my opinion, the park is really struggling to find good employees (especially supervisory to mid-managers) to run the daily operations within the park. I noticed that many of the ride procedures have changed (dramatically) and how "automated" everything is now. Even those annoying recorded speils are everywhere now. I miss the days when (when I was in ride ops in the 80's) WE had to talk-the spiel (especially on the BBW/LNM/DF). Now, the ride ops crews barely look "up" at any of the guests, they do not watch the train(s) dispatching and entering the station, some even "forget" to check the harnesses (auto-termination), and most of the ride ops are asking their supervisors: "when is my break/ so-and-so was late for his/I'm tired"..etc. Case in point: notice the Pompei crew/A-C crew/RR.....and so on.... It is a scary time for the park, because if an incident (or accident) happened, there will be complete chaos among the employees (and ride sup's.) I already addressed this with GM and hope to address it again when I begin work there next month after my move to VA. (It will take the entire winter-time just to recommend fixes..lol). But, I still love the park/atmosphere.

Mr. Holland, is the general manager of MM, he needs to take responsibility for the parks preformance. Wether or not all the parks problems are his fault or not he does direct the parks staff and needs to do a better job at it or have someone else come in who can. As you stated regarding Huricane Harbors manager taking initiative and getting out in the front lines, this is exactly what MM needs from a general manager right now. ^ I agree with this post completely. It is the sole responsibility of the GM to have control of his mid-management level team. Unless 6F has a different corporate structure within the management chain, I see no excuse for this whatsoever. Although my management experience with BGE was quite challenging and rewarding, we (mid-mgt) had responsibilities to perform and report to GM (and vice-versa). Part of the failed-system at 6F is mid-leve managers are not acting as a "team" and failure to communicate with the GM and the employees. Of course no system is "fail-safe" and always can use some tweaking, but the corporate policies allow for those items to be addressed in a civilized and constructive manner. 6F manager(s) more than likely lack those skills and/or really don't believe in an open door policy. Mr. Holland may be a good manager or may lack in some skills in motivating his mid-level managers (or lack in skills in delegating authority), but that is just an observation. He IS to blame in most of the case(s) presented. If his "hands-are tied" then delegate or hire a manager willing to perform those tasks. **Which may be difficult within itself (the system), because Shapiro himself stated that they needed to aggressively seek out more "qualified" managers (especially mid-level). Still, it is the GM's SOLE responsibility to ensure the overall operation of the park-period. I'm not trying to 'bash' him as a GM, but it is apparent that the management structure (as a whole) is a failed system. Part of the problem also (may be) that mid-managers don't give a s**@)# and do not inform the GM of any issues. So, in that case I would not blame Mr. Holland in whole, but blame the management as a system-wide problem (serious problem at that).

That event is unfortunate. I noticed many parks are modifying their water rides to (hopefully) reduce the chances of incidents like this. BGE modified their water ride in part for similar reasons.

Nice photo's. The reason why the gate was open is because in the event that 6F park goers and gunshooters decide to come to this park, the mele that ensues would allow those freakish runners/guest to leave the park "in an orderly fashion".

Whoo! Good pics. I visited there last month (first time in 4yrs or so). Missed working on those rides. All the coasters now heavily-trimmed, because of the changes in operations and maintenance personell now. Actually, the park as a whole still seems the same, but wow! the difference in the employees, ride capacity, friendliness, ride tuning has dwindled quite a bit over the years. Been offered a job to go back to work for the park and will most likely take it and move back to VA (Hawaii just too damn expensive to live now..lol). Hopefully, I can address some of my quirks on issues I believe have declined.