cal1br3tto Posted October 11, 2017 Share Posted October 11, 2017 ^I'm not sure how the process works for calculating wait times or who's in charge of it, but one thing I noticed about a Six Flags app is that they're updated infrequently enough to be somewhat questionable unless it's shortly after an update. The updates were at odd times, about once an hour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
defrocker Posted October 11, 2017 Share Posted October 11, 2017 I'm pretty optimistic about Dragster opening up soon. The real question is, are you optimistic enough to make another trip to Cedar Point this year to try to get on it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Password121 Posted October 11, 2017 Share Posted October 11, 2017 ^I'm not sure how the process works for calculating wait times or who's in charge of it, but one thing I noticed about a Six Flags app is that they're updated infrequently enough to be somewhat questionable unless it's shortly after an update. The updates were at odd times, about once an hour. I can't speak for Six Flags (though it may be similar procedures), but a ride host at the specific ride calls in wait times at a given interval (or when given the opportunity), which then updates the app. There are definitely times it might not be updated recently, but in general they're updated reasonably well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted October 11, 2017 Share Posted October 11, 2017 The real question is, are you optimistic enough to make another trip to Cedar Point this year to try to get on it? Nah. Sky Ride is generally closed for staffing during Halloweekends so I generally avoid the park after Labor Day. ... lol and I'm only kind of joking. While obviously I run with the Sky Ride thing a little as a joke and while obviously it's not the main draw... why go to the park when you know a lot of rides will be closed or running at reduced capacity due to staffing problems? If I loved closer I'd go, but when we only get one or two visits a year I schedule them for times when the park will be running at full capacity. They don't even have the staffing to run a lot of their coasters on Friday nights. It's more the fault of the year-round population of the area than the park but Halloweekends is a mess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canobie Coaster Posted October 11, 2017 Share Posted October 11, 2017 ^ This! If I were in driving range, like Six Flags Great Adventure last year for Holiday in the Park, I could accept rides being down. But if I have to fly to a park and can avoid things being down, I am going to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
defrocker Posted October 12, 2017 Share Posted October 12, 2017 Yeah, I've only been able to make limited visits to Cedar Point every handful of years. As such, most of my experience with the park has been in the middle of summer i.e. a madhouse. Last year we went on the opening week and it was still pretty busy, but we were pretty fortunate. I think next year we are going to shoot for the first full week of operations and go during the week so I can attempt to get some of the station waits that, from my experience, I can only assume are some sort of myth... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BitterOldHag Posted October 12, 2017 Share Posted October 12, 2017 They don't even have the staffing to run a lot of their coasters on Friday nights. Friday nights this year are even less "ride-centric" than in the past as Wicked Twister, Windseeker, Iron Dragon, Skyhawk and Power Tower were added to The List of closed rides. I guess we can also say Dragster is on that List temporarily. Adding Cedar Creek Mystic Mine Ride to the Friday Night lineup helps, but it was weird that my perception was there were far fewer rides available even though it was technically only 4. I also stay FAR away from any of the food stands on Friday nights as a line of people 6 deep can often result in a 20-30 minute wait! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted October 12, 2017 Share Posted October 12, 2017 I don't pretend to fully understand the logistics of operating a theme park but I don't understand the Friday night lineup and I probably never will. The park opens at 6:00 exclusively for a scary haunt event that's not appropriate for young children but Kiddy Kingdom and Planet Snoopy are open and fully staffed until 10:00 while Corkscrew, Gemini, Iron Dragon, Rougarou, Wicked Twister, Witches Wheel, Power Tower and Skyhawk which are all far more appropriate for the demographic of the event are all closed because they can't staff them. I don't get it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WolfBobs Posted October 12, 2017 Share Posted October 12, 2017 I've been more and more let down with Halloweekends as the event continues to grow. In my opinion each year they try to make it "bigger and better" and each season it seems they have more and more issues to properly staff it. I'm not just talking about rides but also the Haunts. A few times last season I went through entire Haunts seeing less then 5 scare actors throughout the entire maze or outdoor section and this was on Saturdays. It just seems to have gotten too big for a seasonal park. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CP Maverick Posted October 12, 2017 Share Posted October 12, 2017 They have cut down on actors in mazes to cover the outdoor zones better. It’s not ideal, but the mazes never were the selling point of Halloweekends (IMO) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainUnknown Posted October 12, 2017 Share Posted October 12, 2017 I don't pretend to fully understand the logistics of operating a theme park but I don't understand the Friday night lineup and I probably never will. The park opens at 6:00 exclusively for a scary haunt event that's not appropriate for young children but Kiddy Kingdom and Planet Snoopy are open and fully staffed until 10:00 while Corkscrew, Gemini, Iron Dragon, Rougarou, Wicked Twister, Witches Wheel, Power Tower and Skyhawk which are all far more appropriate for the demographic of the event are all closed because they can't staff them. I don't get it. It wouldn't surprise me if part of that reason dealt with parents ignoring the warnings to leave the kids at home, and when they got to the park, they complained that the kids areas were closed, the kids could ride nothing, and were getting traumatized by all the scareactors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted October 12, 2017 Share Posted October 12, 2017 Even so, do they really need 2 kids areas open? Wouldn't one be more than sufficient considering kids probably shouldn't be there in the first place? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BitterOldHag Posted October 12, 2017 Share Posted October 12, 2017 ^^ Well, there's always the upcharge "NoBoo" necklace for the nominal fee of $10... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WolfBobs Posted October 12, 2017 Share Posted October 12, 2017 They have cut down on actors in mazes to cover the outdoor zones better. It’s not ideal, but the mazes never were the selling point of Halloweekends (IMO) I was also referring to the outdoor Haunts. Last few visits this season and last the amount of scare actors was considerably less then even say 5 years ago. Last season I walked through the Haunt within Camp Snoopy (CarnEvil) and only saw two scare actors. It was disappointing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Running_Buddy Posted October 12, 2017 Share Posted October 12, 2017 Speaking as a scare actor from a Cedar Fair park (Valleyfair), there is constant staffing issues for Haunt. Every night it seems there are a handful of actors who get moved from one maze to another just to keep it staffed. Our park is very close to two major cities and we still never fill all positions, so I can't even imagine how Cedar Point manages to get the seasonal help they need for their Haunt. I'd at least hope they compensate gas for employees driving from major cities. On a side note, it's been great hearing people's opinions on Cedar Point Haunt vs. KI Haunt. I'd like to go to one eventually and I think I'm now sold on KI. Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DILinator Posted October 13, 2017 Share Posted October 13, 2017 I think next year we are going to shoot for the first full week of operations and go during the week so I can attempt to get some of the station waits that, from my experience, I can only assume are some sort of myth... You'll probably see a lot of me there then, because that's when I'm going to be there frequently, as I am every year! But I'll be there even more than normal next year, thanks to Steel Vengeance! And I can assure you, from my experience, they are FAR from a myth, my friend! Mid-weeks in May are the only time to go to CP, in my opinion, and I have ZERO problem pulling my kids from a day or two of school to take them there to capitalize on that! On a side note, it's been great hearing people's opinions on Cedar Point Haunt vs. KI Haunt. I'd like to go to one eventually and I think I'm now sold on KI. Oh, definitely go with KI! It kicks @$$! Can't wait to be there tomorrow night once again!!! (And drive two hours farther than CP to do so!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alilstronger Posted October 13, 2017 Share Posted October 13, 2017 I am late to this party... I find it weird they open so few rides for Halloween. I am surely not an expert but I have been to Kings Dominion, Dorney, Six Flags America, Six Flags Fiesta Texas and Six Flags Great Adventure for their respective Halloween events and at every park everything was open minus the water rides (some were open at Fiesta Texas). I am someone who strictly goes to Halloween events at amusement park for night rides on coasters. Now, on the flip side I have been to Knoebels Halloween festivities and they do not open everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prozach626 Posted October 13, 2017 Share Posted October 13, 2017 I am someone who strictly goes to Halloween events at amusement park for night rides on coasters. I'm with you. I attend the Haunt events mostly for the rides, with the Haunts being a little side action. *Party Pooper Alert* The "haunted" atmosphere is kind of fun and neat to look at, but it's diluted every year by the constant complaining of not having enough scare actors. I don't understand an adult's desire to be "scared" by a teenager in a costume who hides in a corner and yells "RAWRRRR!" when you pass by... I find the mazes fun, with entertaining things to look at, but not scary. Even so, I don't think more actors necessarily makes for a better experience. I would think the anticipation of being startled by the rare actor would be more intimidating than predictably having someone around every corner. For those having a strong desire to be scared, I recommend visiting a shady neighborhood or bad housing project at 3am on a warm Saturday night. It will be an experience... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CP Maverick Posted October 13, 2017 Share Posted October 13, 2017 I’m with you guys. I love Halloween events and haunted houses for the macabre atmosphere. But the prospect of night rides on everything is much more tempting at an amusement park. I like a few actors to enhance the atmosphere, but they aren’t the focus of the event. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidB Posted October 13, 2017 Share Posted October 13, 2017 I'm kinda in the same category with you guys. I don't really have any interest in waiting in line to go through a haunted house when I could be riding coasters at night. I've gone through some of the scare areas at Cedar Point where there isn't a line, like that one by Raptor where herds of people just wander through, or cornstalkers, but not any of the houses. I will say that when I was there last year, I was a little disappointed with the lack of scare actors in the steampunk area on Frontier Trail, but mostly because they do such a good job with the decorations in that area and then there were few actors to add to it. For the most part I just like the atmosphere with the music and decorations and fog...and extended night time hours for night rides. The houses are zero draw for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philrad71 Posted October 13, 2017 Share Posted October 13, 2017 I don't pretend to fully understand the logistics of operating a theme park but I don't understand the Friday night lineup and I probably never will. The park opens at 6:00 exclusively for a scary haunt event that's not appropriate for young children but Kiddy Kingdom and Planet Snoopy are open and fully staffed until 10:00 while Corkscrew, Gemini, Iron Dragon, Rougarou, Wicked Twister, Witches Wheel, Power Tower and Skyhawk which are all far more appropriate for the demographic of the event are all closed because they can't staff them. I don't get it. It wouldn't surprise me if part of that reason dealt with parents ignoring the warnings to leave the kids at home, and when they got to the park, they complained that the kids areas were closed, the kids could ride nothing, and were getting traumatized by all the scareactors. Bingo. Although I bet that there are a lot of families that buy the Halloweekends package through the resorts where Friday night is included. Of course on the other side of that, you also have the mothers and fathers that are really only there for themselves (and not their kids) dragging the screaming and crying kids through Frontier Town so they can go ride Maverick. We sat at the beer place on the (haunted) Frontier Trail two years ago and witnessed at least two families with crying kids getting pulled through it by Mom and Dad. One of them even said "Stop it and quit acting like a little bitch or we'll go home right now!" Michael and I just looked at each other and said, "What is happening to our society?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ytterbiumanalyst Posted October 13, 2017 Share Posted October 13, 2017 "What is happening to our society?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I love pie Posted October 13, 2017 Share Posted October 13, 2017 One of them even said "Stop it and quit acting like a little bitch or we'll go home right now!" I don't get it. Wouldn't a better threat be "stop it and quit acting like a little bitch or we'll stay here longer!"? If I was a little kid I'd probably wanna go home as soon as possible Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bill_s Posted October 13, 2017 Share Posted October 13, 2017 For those having a strong desire to be scared, I recommend visiting a shady neighborhood or bad housing project at 3am on a warm Saturday night. It will be an experience... I used to live in a shady neighborhood, didn't really scare me but my house was defenseless. However I have had a genuine scare when surrounded by 4 tall vampires or especially once I was surrounded by 8 or so savages all chanting "Sacrifice!" and then suddenly realized .. I was at Haunt and safe as houses. You don't get that last part in combination with the rest elsewhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CP Maverick Posted October 14, 2017 Share Posted October 14, 2017 Apparently tonight is extremely busy. I’m not used to Fridays being like this... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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