Cedar Point (CP) Discussion Thread

[CJStephens15]

Trip Report from yesterday, Sunday Sept. 7th.

 

Got to the park right for opening at 11. It was pretty evident that crowds would be light from the parking lot.

 

Broke the normal routine of right to MF for first ride of the day and opted for a quick ride on Raptor since the line was about 10 minutes. Grabbed the second row and had a great first ride of the day.

 

Started to head towards the back of the park next. Mantis, MF, and Iron Dragon were not opened yet so headed back on frontier trail towards Maverick. Skyhawk was a walk on so I jumped on it for a quick ride before Maverick. By this time MF, TTD, and basically all the rides in the park were operating. Got to Maverick and the line was about three quarters through the first set of switchbacks. Surprisingly the line moved super fast and I was on for a back row ride within 15-20 minutes. Pulling back into the station after that ride I saw that the line was now only down the stairs! So naturally I jumped back in line and opted for a front row ride this time and only waited about 10-15 minutes. Great start to the day.

 

Headed over to Magnum for a walk-on ride in the 3rd row. Next up was TTD which had about a 15-20 minute wait for a middle row. Then over to MF which at this point (maybe 2pm-ish) had the longest line of the day at a little under 30 minutes. Opted for a back row ride. After that I wanted to grab a ride on Mantis in case I don’t get on it again within the next 6ish weeks. Line was down the stairs but only because there was about 10 minutes of downtime. Once that was up it was only another 10 minutes or so for a front row ride. I’ve never had a hatred for Mantis like some do, but it’s far from my favorite ride in the park. Sad to see it go but I’m sure what CP has in store will be much much more enjoyable.

 

At this point it was between 3-4pm and I headed up towards the front of the park. Gatekeeper was a walk on so I grabbed 3 straight rides, 2nd row left, 2nd row right and 6th row right. Great rides as usual, glass smooth and I’m still in love with the first drop. Definitely my 3rd or 4th favorite ride in the park behind MF and Maverick and arguably TTD. After GK I walked onto MaXair and Windseeker which were both fun. I’d never been on Windseeker before (always been down on my past visits) and it was a cool experience.

 

Now that I’d gotten on everything I wanted to, it was time to get as many laps on the big 3 as possible. By now it was around 5:30pm and crowds began to thin even more. Went back to MF and the line was just down the ramp. Waited about 10-15min for a second row ride. Next back to Maverick which had about half the first set of switchbacks filled. Line moved super fast again and was on for a second row ride in about 10-15 minutes.

 

Headed back over to TTD and discovered that the line wasn’t even out of the station; something I’ve maybe seen once in the past 11 years. Got two more rides in the second and third row. After that it was about 7pm and time for MF. The line at this point was back to the unloading station and I was able to grab two more rides one being 3rd row and the next being 2nd row. After that it was about 7:45 and the line started to fill up down the ramp so I opted for GK as last ride of the day. Waited about 4 trains for a front row left side ride and I have to say this is probably my favorite seat on the ride. Excellent last ride to end the night on. Headed out right around the 8pm closing time.

 

Some notes:

 

-Absolutely gorgeous day. Mid 70’s as a high, low winds and not a cloud in the sky. This in addition to the almost non-existent crowds made for the perfect day at the point. I will definitely be returning this weekend next season.

 

-Had no restrain troubles all day minus some road(coaster?) rash from the Mantis bicycle seat. I forget if the non-front rows are this way, but the front has that hump in between the middle two seats (I was 2nd seat from left) which made it really difficult to stand up straight correctly as it messes with your natural foot placement. No head banging though but I’ve never had much of an issue with that. Maverick and Magnum were totally fine, although I never had an issue with Maverick.

 

-Operations were stellar. As far as I noticed there was next to no downtime on most rides. TTD and Maverick were hauling all day which was really refreshing to see.

 

Final count:

X4: MF, GK

X3: TTD, Maverick

X1: Raptor, Magnum, Mantis, Skyhawk, MaXair, Windseeker

[GCI Wooden]

You escaped again Mean Streak!!!

 

 

That makes me wonder, do you guys think that Cedar Point is going to pull a six flags and keep Mantis open a day after it's advertised closing day for season passholders like Magic Mountain did with Colossus?

[ScreaminNewEngland]

Cedar Points gonna have to blow mantis up to top this! lol

[JonnyRCT3]

Cedar Points gonna have to blow mantis up to top this! lol

 

They blew up Space Spiral. Well, the base of it.

[DarienLaker]

Cedar Points gonna have to blow mantis up to top this! lol

 

They blew up Space Spiral. Well, the base of it.

 

And don't forget to add Mean Streak to the blow up list!

[DJeXeL]

^Maybe they should move Mantis to Darien Lake.....

[JonnyRCT3]

^and Iron Dragon

[whatabeast]

Cedar Point is my home park. I've been going there several times a summer for 8 years now. The park has-- without a doubt-- dropped in quality over that period of time. Honestly, I've been expecting them to be "dethroned" for a while now.

 

I'm not doubting you, but can you explain how the park has dropped in quality?

 

Sure. A lot of it has to do with the overall feel of the park. Several years back, they had all of these gimmicky things that made being at the park kind of novel (When they'd banter off "America's Roller Coast!" when you were getting off of a ride, 25 cent cotton candy, things like that). I can't think of anything they do like that anymore. Worse than that, it seems like they replaced it with a sort of... bragging that they're the best. Like, the park seems like it's full of itself. I don't know how else to put it. I walk in there, and I feel like the message I'm bombarded with is, "Hi, This is Cedar Point, We're the best there is, Isn't this incredible?"

 

Aside from that, the number of rides that don't allow loose articles in line has gone up, as have storage prices (storage, since apparently their real name changes to "lockers" now?), as have prices for just about everything. Probably about the last six or seven times I've been to Cedar Point, getting stacked on the break runs has been getting more common. So they may be running the rides at full capacity, but "fast loading times" have becoming less and less of my experience. At least, coming to a full stop on Raptor's MCBR doesn't feel like efficiency. But maybe I've just had bad luck. At least I don't have to deal with that on Wicked Twister.

 

Oh, and that's only when the rides are open. Let me tell you, it isn't fun waiting half an hour for Mean Streak while TTD, MF, GK, AND MAVERICK are all broken down at the same time. I know, I know, they have no control over that, but seriously?? Every time I go to Cedar Point, at least one ride is closed for the day.

 

Then there was the terribly handled Wildcat removal. By which I mean, that roller coaster was one of the oldest in the park, it wasn't necessarily "beloved," but it was well-liked at the very least... and they just announced, mid-offseason, that they were removing it so that they could expand the midway. They didn't even offer "last rides" or anything. And then that "expanded midway" (read: "narrower midway") is the biggest jumbled mess in the entire park. Navigating that thing, especially on a busy day, is a headache at best. "Oh, but Luminosity!!!" sucks.

 

Then they do stupid things. There will be a 40 minute wait for Gemini, but only one side will be running. The queue for TTD will be halfway down the midway, but none of the switchbacks will be open. They'll load Maverick's train with four rows of single riders. Do they even train their employees anymore?

 

Their roller coasters are world class, there is no arguing that. But they do not seem to value their guests the way they used to. And, let's be real, if you don't feel valued, you're gonna have a better time somewhere else.

 

(I read somewhere, somebody said that this past year they've gotten better. I can agree with that.)

 

EDIT: PLEASE DON'T GET ME WRONG!! I love Cedar Point. It's one of my favorite places in the world, definitely one of my favorite parks. But I've been having much better experiences at other parks lately.

[jonskinny12]

Aside from that, the number of rides that don't allow loose articles in line has gone up, as have storage prices (storage, since apparently their real name changes to "fluffy, fluffy bunnies filled with medicine and goo" now?), as have prices for just about everything.

Isn't this the case just about everywhere though? Maybe not because I don't get around as much as I used to or would like to, but it seems to be more and more common lately. Especially prices at anything for entertainment - theme parks, sporting events, concerts, etc. I can't speak to anything else you've said because the last time I was at Cedar Point was a couple weeks after Maverick opened.

[ajfelice]

whatabeast, the more time you spend at a park, the more apparent it's flaws become. I hate to accuse, but you seem to be whining.

 

I am far from a CP apologist that can't find any fault in the former "Best Amusement Park in the World," but I can say that your argument seems to lack context. From an employee of two parks, I can tell you that there is a lot that goes into the things you complain about.

 

Breakdowns: you will have most days where things run smoothly with just a couple minor hiccups that are resolved quickly, and you will have some where all hell breaks loose and next thing you know several rides are going down at once. Unless you spend almost every day at Cedar Point or any park, you can't speak to their up-time or downtime until you document it. Then see if you just caught the park on a bad day, or the place really is suffering as a result of downtime. It can be argued that Millennium Force and Top Thrill Dragster have improved greatly in terms of reliability over the past few years alone.

 

Wildcat: You are really still upset about the removal of an okay ride with low capacity that CP probably had to scratch the bottom of every barrel to maintain and find replacement parts for? Ask a sample of the GP, and they probably enjoy Luminosity more as a part of their experience as opposed to a small coaster that didn't have much more value than being sentimental.

 

Genimi: Visit Cedar Point or ANY park in mid to late August and you will find capacity sacrifices due to staffing. It's a fact of life that kids go back to school, and finding QUALIFIED people to operate rides for a quarter of the season is not easy. Cedar Point is not immune from staffing issues, and does the best they can. Closed rides versus have everything open with some sacrifices? The choice is easy, because closed rides due to staffing looks worse to the GP because they don't even have a chance to ride everything they may want to ride.

 

Single Riders: I have begged and pleaded the GP to find single riders to fill empty seats and rows on several coasters while operating. Sometimes people just refuse to double up and they refuse to get on the ride unless they can be on the same ride as the rest of your group. Forcing someone into a train and making them upset is just going to make them more likely to complain and not have a great experience at the park. As an operator, you just have to bite your lip and do the best you can. In many cases, you just can't fill every single seat in every single train you dispatch. Fact of life.

 

Cedar Point in my eyes is turning a corner for the better. Not that the park was ever that bad, but they seem to be focusing more on the guest comforts and overall experience for the family. We hate on GateKeeper because it's not the next best thing since sliced bread, but would you really take back a barely functioning Disaster Transport and outdated Space Needle in a forgotten midway? Would you really take back that corny night show with odes to Ohio State and 'Murica? Would you really take back Gemini Midway to a collection of dated Hampton kiddie rides? Would you really want to navigate that old nightmare of a front entrance?

[MagnumFreak25]

Couple things.

1) Raptor getting stuck on the brake run is not the fault of operations. When trains stack they do not stop on the brake run, that was an E-Stop.

 

2) Generally when dragsters line is going down the midway it means it just reopened or is broken down.

 

3) In the last few years I've never seen a ride stacking trains. The only time was on Gatekeeper and a manager went up and started dispatching trains himself because the ops where to slow and he sped it right back up and there wasn't any stacking the rest of the day.

 

4) Just look at Magnum. That ride is running three trains without stacking or a mid course.(Generally)

 

5) I must just be lucky but I've never seen Maverick down once.

 

Anyway I know CP isn't perfect but most of those complaints are easily explained.

[AndrewRnR]

I'm a long time big fan of the park and have been going regularly since the late 80s. I can see where some of the criticism is coming from - I think with any park (and we see this happen a lot with Disney) when you are a big fan you become super critical and for some reason always remember the past to be better than the present (opposite of grass is always greener on the other side I guess). Can't say I don't feel that somewhat with current Cedar Point but with every nit-picking thing I could name that I feel has changed for the worse something equally as important has been added (up until a few years back you couldn't pay with credit cards in most F&B locations!).

 

 

Then there was the terribly handled Wildcat removal. By which I mean, that roller coaster was one of the oldest in the park, it wasn't necessarily "beloved," but it was well-liked at the very least... and they just announced, mid-offseason, that they were removing it so that they could expand the midway. They didn't even offer "last rides" or anything.

I get what you are saying but to be fair... word around the camp fire is that the park didn't plan on removing Wildcat when it did. It was actually printed on park maps, the ride crew was hired, and then it failed state inspection a few weeks prior to opening and they decided to get rid of it. Probably didn't have many years left anyways.

[Woodie Warrior]

Luminosity was a really entertaining show. The best show I've seen at an AMUSEMENT park by far. I mean, Wildcat looked like an okay ride, but Luminosity is a great fit for the park. My only real complaint about the show is that the stage looks HORRIBLE during the daytime.

[John Peck]

Let's talk about Wildcat really quick:

 

Wildcat WAS indeed set to open for 2012. The ride was inspected and ready to go, they had just spent several thousands of dollars to install a new handicapped elevator and the ride, let's not forget, was on the 2012 maps. Employees were being trained on it, too. Something happened before opening day, which forced it into retirement. Either a fatal structural or operational issue, that's why it was scrapped. They knew no one would buy it.

[whatabeast]

See in writing that, a lot of what I was thinking was, "Wow, writing this out doesn't seem very substantial," and there was one point when my thought was, "Maybe I only feel this way because I've been there so many times."

 

But then it occurred to me that I've been to Kings Island at least twice as many times, (which is weird, considering it isn't my home park), and I've never felt that park has gotten anything but better.

 

I was unaware of the reasoning behind the Wildcat thing. That's awkward.

 

Like I said, I may have just gotten unlucky... every... single... time... I've been to the park in the past four years. After a while, though, it stops seeming like a coincidence.

[whatabeast]

Aside from that, the number of rides that don't allow loose articles in line has gone up, as have storage prices (storage, since apparently their real name changes to "fluffy, fluffy bunnies filled with medicine and goo" now?), as have prices for just about everything.

Isn't this the case just about everywhere though? Maybe not because I don't get around as much as I used to or would like to, but it seems to be more and more common lately. Especially prices at anything for entertainment - theme parks, sporting events, concerts, etc. I can't speak to anything else you've said because the last time I was at Cedar Point was a couple weeks after Maverick opened.

 

Cedar Point's food prices tend to be higher than other parks in the chain, my platinum pass taught me this year.

[whatabeast]

Couple things.

1) Raptor getting stuck on the brake run is not the fault of operations. When trains stack they do not stop on the brake run, that was an E-Stop.

 

2) Generally when dragsters line is going down the midway it means it just reopened or is broken down.

 

3) In the last few years I've never seen a ride stacking trains. The only time was on Gatekeeper and a manager went up and started dispatching trains himself because the ops where to slow and he sped it right back up and there wasn't any stacking the rest of the day.

 

4) Just look at Magnum. That ride is running three trains without stacking or a mid course.(Generally)

 

5) I must just be lucky but I've never seen Maverick down once.

 

Anyway I know CP isn't perfect but most of those complaints are easily explained.

 

Apologies for multiple posts, I'm not sure how to quote multiple posts in the same post.

 

1) Can't argue with that.

 

2) Was not the case.

 

3) Lucky You.

 

4) Magnum I have no complaints about, whatsoever

 

5) Lucky you.

[whatabeast]

whatabeast, the more time you spend at a park, the more apparent it's flaws become.

 

And last, but not least, maybe that's why it didn't win this year! Its flaws are becoming apparent.

 

And yes, I'm whining. My apologies. But hey, I'm not the one who asked.

[FaithPlus1]

CP is being extremely selfish on this.

Why can't they just tell us what they're doing with Mantis so we can quit bitching about what we don't know, and shift our focus on bitching about what is happening to Mantis.

Then we can bitch about the people that are bitching about the new ride.

Then Robb can come in and tell us all to stop bitching.

Then we can bitch about how Robb runs TPR.

Then we can get banned for a while.

 

Hopefully for you, that time being banned will help you understand what marketing is? And maybe learn how to be more cleaver and humorus on a forum.

 

Wow! You my friend are clueless. This was a clear attempt at sarcasm. Did you read anything after the," CP is being very selfish on this?" Get a clue kid. It was a joke and if you didn't see it, you have no excuse other than stupid.

[coasterbill]

So yesterday and today on the live cam there have been people on the lift hill of Mantis spraying it... I assume they're power washing it.

 

If the ride was being scrapped they probably wouldn't be doing that. I guess they might be if they're moving it to a new park in the chain but I doubt it. Does anyone have any theories. They're on there right now if you jump over to the live cam and they were doing it yesterday too.

[Diamondbacker27]

So yesterday and today on the live cam there have been people on the lift hill of Mantis spraying it... I assume they're power washing it.

 

If the ride was being scrapped they probably wouldn't be doing that. I guess they might be if they're moving it to a new park in the chain but I doubt it. Does anyone have any theories. They're on there right now if you jump over to the live cam and they were doing it yesterday too.

Maybe they are cleaning it before putting a new coat of paint on? I really don't think Cedar Point would remove one of its largest coasters for no reason.

[coasterbill]

So yesterday and today on the live cam there have been people on the lift hill of Mantis spraying it... I assume they're power washing it.

 

If the ride was being scrapped they probably wouldn't be doing that. I guess they might be if they're moving it to a new park in the chain but I doubt it. Does anyone have any theories. They're on there right now if you jump over to the live cam and they were doing it yesterday too.

Maybe they are cleaning it before putting a new coat of paint on?

 

That's what I thought too but I know nothing about the process of painting coasters so I didn't want to speculate. I don't see why else they'd be doing it though.

 

EDIT: They're still on there.

https://www.cedarpoint.com/online-fun/live-video-cam

[Diamondbacker27]

^The one with the questions? Basically once again, he confirms the removal of Mantis that no one thinks will happen.

The removal wasn't confirmed, he never said it was being taken apart piece by piece.m

He did state Mantis was leaving their lineup forever though.

Yes, the NAME of Mantis will remove from their lineup. I would say the same thing. Mantis is just the name, it's not the pyshical coaster alone.

[RyanTPM]

^Well of course he mentioned the name of the coaster, he's not going to say 'Our B&M standup will be removed from our lineup forever' is he? Guess we'll see in october. On the other hand, i'm not sure why they'd choose mantis to be removed.

[Diamondbacker27]

^Well of course he mentioned the name of the coaster, he's not going to say 'Our B&M standup will be removed from our lineup forever' is he? Guess we'll see in october. On the other hand, i'm not sure why they'd choose mantis to be removed.

If it is being completely removed, that would be dumb IMHO. Why take out one of the parks largest coasters? Aren't they trying to claim the coaster title again?