Six Flags America (SFA) Discussion Thread

[jedimaster1227]

http://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/15984/lo-q-awarded-contract-for-eleventh-six-flags-theme-park-15984.html

 

Lo-Q Plc (AIM: LOQ) has won another new contract with the Six Flags group, to install its virtual queuing system in the ‘Six Flags America’ park in the Baltimore/Washington, DC region. Lo-Q has a strong relationship with Six Flags, and this deal brings Lo-Q’s Six Flags park installations to 11.

 

"I am very proud to have added this park to our list of parks using the Lo-Q system”, Lo-Q Chairman Jeff McManus commented. “Many Lo-Q users are repeat customers and we are so pleased that our system helps to give greater enjoyment to visitors to Six Flags".

 

Through Lo-Q’s Q-Bot and Q-Text products, theme park visitors can join a virtual queue for a particular attraction or ride, instead of physically standing in-line, then once their ride is ready Lo-Q’s systems alert the customer so they can make their way to the attraction. The Q-Bot is a handheld unit which is rented by the park visitors, and the Q-Text uses the visitor’s mobile phone instead of the Q-bot, by sending a simple text.

 

“This park brings the total number of Six Flags installations to 11 and now allows any guest, at any Six Flags theme park, to rent a Flash Pass to book rides, thus drastically minimizing the time spent waiting in line”, Lo-Q stated.

 

Lo-Q has installed its systems at most of the major Six Flags theme parks, since first implementing its systems at the Six Flags Over Georgia attraction in 2001.

 

"Lo-Q has proven to be a solid partner for us, providing exceptional service to guests in ten of our parks ... We're very pleased to be bringing Lo-Q to Six Flags America, allowing guests to maximize their visit. By utilizing the Lo-Q system, guests can enjoy their favourite rides and still have plenty of time to catch a show, shop or grab a bite to eat", Six Flags Senior VP of In-Park Services John Bement said.

 

The latest Six Parks deal is the second new installation contract this month, after Lo-Q sealed its first Q-txt installation for a US theme park. The company signed an agreement to install its Q-txt queue management system at the Lake Compounce Family Theme Park in Connecticut, USA. Lake Compounce is operated by Palace Entertainment, part of the Parques Reunidos family of parks.

 

Indeed, in a separate statement, ahead of this afternoon’s AGM, Lo-Q’s Chairman commented on the company’s ongoing expansion. "The Company is in active discussions with a number of theme park operators and is hopeful of adding to its portfolio or parks during the course of the financial year”, McManus stated.

 

"All parks in which Lo-Q is involved have seen a positive start to this year's selling season with the normal variability between the various locations across the world. Trade has been very encouraging in the European parks, and, all in all, revenue to date is above the level experienced last year”.

[Hercules]

^ Another point in the argument that Six Flags America won't be "Geagua'd". That is a pretty good investment into the park.

[SFA Regular]

Sooner or later they are going to need a new coaster. That's what most of the general public wants from that place. No theme park should have to go 10 years without a new coaster.

 

I hope you don't mind the small tangent, but what exactly is going on with the motion that (Capital Avenue Management) filed against the current board of Six Flags Inc?

[SharkTums]

I hope the employees are trained a bit better on how to deal with Qbots, then they were with the paper FlashPass tickets.

 

On our East Coast visit, some employees got on the microphone and suggested that everyone in the queue 'Boo' the people who were using Flashpass!!!!

[SFA Regular]

I hope the employees are trained a bit better on how to deal with Qbots, then they were with the paper FlashPass tickets.

 

On our East Coast visit, some employees got on the microphone and suggested that everyone in the queue 'Boo' the people who were using Flashpass!!!!

 

They do it in all good fun. Now, I can't say the same thing for people in line because I know most of them get mad. As I said in another post, they need to get rid of Flash Pass. On weekends when they only have 1 train, it makes the wait in line twice as long. On top of that I don't think it's fair unless you have rides where there are multiple trains, to put in an express line or a single rider line. In conclusion I think everyone should have to wait in the same line.

 

It looks a bit unorganized when you are exiting the station and there are a tone of flash pass people in your way, on top of that non-riders who got stuck holding possessions of people who did not put their stuff in lockers.

[thrillrider]

Do they even need flash pass at this park?

Every time I have been there, the coasters were a walk on or very short wait. I don't see them making a ton of cash off of this.

 

I thought this park had a weird layout. The "main street" area of the park, was one of the best that I have seen at any park.But once you cross into gotham(sp) city, it had a really sparse layout. The batwing coaster looked like they plopped it down in a field. And the slc was the worst I have ever been on.

 

There were a few good things in this park though. I really like superman and jokers jinx. Wild one was great as well. Skull mountain was really cool. I like how they were playing potc theme song in the tunnels. The western show was a blast as well.

 

They also seemed to be keeping the place clean, or it may have been that the park was almost empty.

 

I am not sure what it is, but this park seems to be missing something.

 

I have to be honest and say that this is now my least favorite six flags park now that kentucky kingdom is gone.

[ShannonSomerville]

I,personally,don't use the Flash Pass system. But,anyway,its about time they have the Q-Bot system.

[SFA Regular]

I,personally,don't use the Flash Pass system. But,anyway,its about time they have the Q-Bot system.

 

I agree with (Thrillrider). During the weekdays they don't get big enough lines to even use Flash Pass. The only time it really gets on my nerves is during the weekends and when a ride like Superman or Joker's Jinx only has 1 train going. They are forced to alternate to every other train being a flash pass train and it holds the main line up a good bit. I don't use Flash Pass either, and never really was a big fan of it coming to Six Flags parks. The only time I really was okay with it was when it was just the middle row. When they started letting them sit wherever they wanted, I was totally against it. They need to go back and just designate the middle seat for (Flash Pass). Making the middle row isn't heart breaking to riders, because anything close to the back and front is where most people stand in line at. That's the way Flash Pass was intended to be.

 

If they did it this way, more people would be happy again.

[Kingsislandfreak]

I feel this park should use the feild to connect Batwing and Mind Eraser and fill the path with buildings,flats,and maybe a compact coaster like an S&S El Loco but since the economy is horrible it is never going to happen

[SFA Regular]

I have always said that the park needs to run in a complete loop. Not sure, why they have never gotten around to it or why there is always some excuse as to why flats never get put in this park. Another thing that has been on my mind, is how many people actually notice the speed difference between (JOKER) and (POLTERGEIST) at SFFT. Here I will post a link for Joker and a link for Poltergeist. Notice how (POLTERGEIST) keeps its speed throughout the whole ride. Why can't Joker's Jinx be this fast.

 

POLTERGEST:

 

JOKER'S JINX:

[SharkTums]

I hope the employees are trained a bit better on how to deal with Qbots, then they were with the paper FlashPass tickets.

 

On our East Coast visit, some employees got on the microphone and suggested that everyone in the queue 'Boo' the people who were using Flashpass!!!!

 

They do it in all good fun. Now, I can't say the same thing for people in line because I know most of them get mad. As I said in another post, they need to get rid of Flash Pass. On weekends when they only have 1 train, it makes the wait in line twice as long. On top of that I don't think it's fair unless you have rides where there are multiple trains, to put in an express line or a single rider line. In conclusion I think everyone should have to wait in the same line.

 

It looks a bit unorganized when you are exiting the station and there are a tone of flash pass people in your way, on top of that non-riders who got stuck holding possessions of people who did not put their stuff in fluffy, fluffy bunnies filled with medicine and goo.

 

 

WHOA WHOA WHOA!!!! Are you serious? Are you even remotely suggesting that it's 'a funny joke' that the employees call attention rudely to FlashPass users and give them shit, then encourage the GP to give them shit also!??! Trust me, the employees were not being funny, they were encouraging the GP to get in fights and yell and curse at people who used Flash Pass. Wow, you deserve SFA as your home park! Good luck with that!

[YoshiFan]

I agree 100%, I have never used Flashpass but if I were using it at a park and the ops told the people in the regular line to yell at Flashpass users, I'd be writing a letter to the park. Of course, based on my last letter to Great Adventure (ride op texting before letting people into the ride, the same op with his phone out during a ride cycle, closing lines early before park closing when there was no wait and some other employee problems) that they didn't even respondto, I would even expect a response from them.

 

On top of that I don't think it's fair unless you have rides where there are multiple trains, to put in an express line or a single rider line.

 

Single Rider lines when used properly, make the line shorter for everyone. If almost all single riders used, the line they will fill in rows going out with empty seats freeing that single rider from taking a row and making a group have to wait longer. It's something I wish all Six Flags parks would add for the rides that seat 4 across when you see a ride going out with 10+ empty seats and knowing you could be riding in one of those seats but are too far back in line.

[SFA Regular]

I agree with Yoshi. Six Flags America rides always have empty seats, even on the weekends. Normally people want to ride with their friends, and it gets all mixed in with the flash pass riders too, so a least 5 seats don't get taken. They need single rider lines for a lot of their rides, including the ones that just seat 2 people across.

[nitrofan]

That's crazy that rode ops would be that rude. People are already rude enough to Flash Pass users. The only time I've used Flash Pass I was getting flicked off and cursed at from people in line. They definately don't need ride ops egging them on.

[jynx242]

I hope the employees are trained a bit better on how to deal with Qbots, then they were with the paper FlashPass tickets.

 

On our East Coast visit, some employees got on the microphone and suggested that everyone in the queue 'Boo' the people who were using Flashpass!!!!

 

They do it in all good fun. Now, I can't say the same thing for people in line because I know most of them get mad. As I said in another post, they need to get rid of Flash Pass. On weekends when they only have 1 train, it makes the wait in line twice as long. On top of that I don't think it's fair unless you have rides where there are multiple trains, to put in an express line or a single rider line. In conclusion I think everyone should have to wait in the same line.

 

It looks a bit unorganized when you are exiting the station and there are a tone of flash pass people in your way, on top of that non-riders who got stuck holding possessions of people who did not put their stuff in fluffy, fluffy bunnies filled with medicine and goo.

 

 

WHOA WHOA WHOA!!!! Are you serious? Are you even remotely suggesting that it's 'a funny joke' that the employees call attention rudely to FlashPass users and give them poo-poo, then encourage the GP to give them poo-poo also!??! Trust me, the employees were not being funny, they were encouraging the GP to get in fights and yell and curse at people who used Flash Pass. Wow, you deserve SFA as your home park! Good luck with that!

 

I'll agree with Elissa here. Their behavior was completely unacceptable, and certainly not in good fun. It's been a couple of years ago now, and I hope that they have improved this. I really wanted to like this park, and like so many others with the TPR group, I saw a lot of potential that wasn't being used at that time. But really, when a group of 100 theme park enthusiasts vote to leave early to get to the next destination, something is not right.

 

I'm glad to hear that things appear to have improved and I truly hope that this trend continues.

 

Before I get jumped on, I'm not bashing the park - just relaying my PERSONAL experience and NOTE: I would like to see good things for this park.

 

D.

[Nozzy]

With the beeper style Flashpasses there (theoretically) shouldn't be the same backlog problem where entire trains need to be devoted to Flashpass, since it can be listed as full/ wait time increased.

 

The next step is creating merge points to get the Flashpass right into the station instead of directly on the ride. This removes most chance for the booing/jeering, appeases any Flashpass who complain about forced seating, and most importantly speeds up cycle times. Of course, it also requires more staffing and reworking the lines, so who knows how long (and if) they will do this, but it's essential to a good system.

[ginzo]

They boo FlashPass users? What a crappy park.

[Homeboy23]

I would hope it is just certain employees like it is at most parks. When I went to SFA last year I did notice an overall improvement of the employees attitude toward their work than in the previous year.

 

But that being said while I was walking by all the games in the pathway towards Wild One I was called a loser over the loud speaker by one of the employess for not playing his game. That was uncalled for but I put that off as one employee, I just walked by him and ignored him.

[CardCraze]

I'm going to SFA Sunday, so here's hoping my experience is good.

 

It's not my first time at the park, but my first time since about 2005. Joker's Jinx was my first 54 inch coaster, and I can't wait to ride it again. Never rode Two-Face, so I'm out a credit, but oh well.

 

Anyways, I'll be sure to take lots of pictures, and I'll tell you all if an employee calls me a loser for what appear to be... quite various reasons.

[CoasterNERD502]

LOL wow Sharktums, I think your overreacting. They weren't encouraging the GP to fight, they were just having some fun. They knew that the people without flashpasses would be upset since they waited x amount of time, and when they were about to ride, someone with flashpasses takes their seat.(sorry for my huge run-on sentence lol) Its not like they said everyone spit at them or flick em off.

So everyone, lets stop overreacting trying to keep SFA's bad reputation going when they are clearly doing 1000x better now than before.

[SharkTums]

^Dude, you were NOT there, a bunch of us were, others have posted as well.

 

The employees were ABSOLUTELY mean spirited and trying to cause trouble and fights!

 

Guess what, if a park is going to offer a skip the line service, the employees better support it and not treat their customers like crap!

 

Have fun at your new and improved park, if you've actually read the site at all over the last 10 years you would know that Robb and I have ALWAYS been big supporters of SFA even when people were writing it off completely. The visit in 2008 with the terrible employees was one of the only bad experiences we've had at the park.

[CardCraze]

^^It's not overreacting. Regardless of whether or not an employee is trying to joke, you don't call someone a "loser". That's not funny. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the Flash Pass at Six Flags not free such as that of Disney?

 

So what right does that employee have to call someone a "loser" because they pay extra money, money that in part pays that employee's salary, so they can skip a few lines?

[ArizonaGuy]

^^

I totally agree with Elissa and others that have posted here. That's pretty crappy treatment to get when you PAY for a service that the park offers and the employees running the rides encourage the other people to treat you like crap for using something their park offers. I guarantee you If I would have been there, I would have video taped it, and walked it down to Guest Services to show them what a "Six Flags Day" their employees showed me.

[Hercules]

The general concensus view of Flash Pass users from a general public standpoint is already negative. The snears, and dirty looks that I have viewed are bad enough. With employees egging people in the regular line on is absolutely ridiculous, especially with the clientle that SFA brings in. I could seriously see someone being shot in the parking lot for something as trivial as having a Flash Pass.

[SFA Regular]

The general concensus view of Flash Pass users from a general public standpoint is already negative. The snears, and dirty looks that I have viewed are bad enough. With employees egging people in the regular line on is absolutely ridiculous, especially with the clientle that SFA brings in. I could seriously see someone being shot in the parking lot for something as trivial as having a Flash Pass.

 

That's all in the past. Other Six Flags parks have had their share of violence in parking lots too. Again, it's nothing to get all worked up about. The staff has been doing a good job in hiring good employees and friendly ones too. So you should not see that at the park anymore. If anything bad like that were to happen, get it on camera and then show it to guest relations or a near by supervisor and they will take care of the issue.