Six Flags Great America (SFGAm) Discussion Thread

[DoinItForTheFame]

Every new image of this coaster amazes me. I seriously can NOT wait to ride this thing!! It looks beyond awesome!!!

[glouthan]

As the sun sets over Six Flags, there should be some amazing night rides on Goliath.

[GoBears]

Saw this on the webcam earlier today. You can see the heavy rain off to the right.

 

[leviathandude306]

Anyone have an idea when testing will start?. Hot has it already ?

[willthegolfer]

Testing has not started yet, my guess (and only a guess) is that it will begin at the end of this week on Friday or Saturday.

[Olsor]

You have to slow some space in the schedule for snow days, Especially in the Midwest.

 

It's worth noting how historically bad the winter was in the Midwest. It was simultaneously the third-coldest and third-snowiest winter in Chicago history. Chicago hadn't seen temperatures that low in 20 years, and hadn't seen that much snowfall in 35 years. This was truly a once-in-a-generation type of winter, and not something you plan for on an annual basis.

 

That said, there could have been plenty of other things that contributed to the delayed opening, but if ever there was a year that weather was a perfectly valid excuse, it was this year.

[CoasterGuy06]

You have to look at recent history to get an idea. I'm not going to blame Six Flags, RMC, or winter, but Six Flags isn't known to meet deadlines, even Memorial Day deadlines. Even this year, Zumanjaro is delayed, Ragin Cajun is delayed (which is completely beyond me- a relocated wild mouse, for God sakes), just to name a few. Cedar Fair (as an example because they are a similar business) meets deadlines (usually opening day) much more consistently than Six Flags. I'm not saying you're wrong, but I don't think it's totally out of line to blame Six Flags on this one. If RMC promised Memorial Day, or even before June, they wouldn't have waited as along as they did anticipating a harsh winter. You have to slow some space in the schedule for snow days, Especially in the Midwest.

 

California's Great America- Gold Striker opened late.

Canada's Wonderland- Wonder Mountain's Guardian opened late.

Carowinds- Their waterpark opened last weekend. The new slides aren't ready yet. The new dining/show hall isn't ready yet.

Cedar Point- Maverick, Shoot the Rapids, and Windseeker all opened late.

Dorney Park- Demon Drop, a relocated ride, opened in July 2010. Possessed opened late too, and it was removed from Geauga Lake over a year before it opened at Dorney. Their waterpark opened last weekend and the new slides weren't finished when it opened.

Kings Dominion- Dominator opened Memorial Day weekend in 2008. It was relocated.

Kings Island- Windseeker opened in June 2011

Knott's Berry Farm- Xcelerator opened late. Windseeker opened late. The refurbished Camp Snoopy/Calico Mine Ride doesn't open for nearly three more weeks.

Worlds of Fun- Steelhawk still hasn't opened. It's a relocated ride.

 

 

It's not just a Six Flags problem.

[Rollercoaster Rider]

You have to look at recent history to get an idea. I'm not going to blame Six Flags, RMC, or winter, but Six Flags isn't known to meet deadlines, even Memorial Day deadlines. Even this year, Zumanjaro is delayed, Ragin Cajun is delayed (which is completely beyond me- a relocated wild mouse, for God sakes), just to name a few. Cedar Fair (as an example because they are a similar business) meets deadlines (usually opening day) much more consistently than Six Flags. I'm not saying you're wrong, but I don't think it's totally out of line to blame Six Flags on this one. If RMC promised Memorial Day, or even before June, they wouldn't have waited as along as they did anticipating a harsh winter. You have to slow some space in the schedule for snow days, Especially in the Midwest.

 

California's Great America- Gold Striker opened late.

Canada's Wonderland- Wonder Mountain's Guardian opened late.

Carowinds- Their waterpark opened last weekend. The new slides aren't ready yet. The new dining/show hall isn't ready yet.

Cedar Point- Maverick, Shoot the Rapids, and Windseeker all opened late.

Dorney Park- Demon Drop, a relocated ride, opened in July 2010. Possessed opened late too, and it was removed from Geauga Lake over a year before it opened at Dorney. Their waterpark opened last weekend and the new slides weren't finished when it opened.

Kings Dominion- Dominator opened Memorial Day weekend in 2008. It was relocated.

Kings Island- Windseeker opened in June 2011

Knott's Berry Farm- Xcelerator opened late. Windseeker opened late. The refurbished Camp Snoopy/Calico Mine Ride doesn't open for nearly three more weeks.

Worlds of Fun- Steelhawk still hasn't opened. It's a relocated ride.

 

 

It's not just a Six Flags problem.

 

 

Plus All the following Attractions that haven't opened yet:

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train

Falcon's Fury

Diagon Alley

Aqua Drag Racers

Chima Waterpark

 

 

I do not like this trend of rides opening late.

[chadster]

Who is to say a ride opens late? It's generally an arbitrary date placed by marketing/pr who is sure to rarely check with site mgmt on a regular basis, handed an estimated date which is then in turn treated as gospel. The end result, 'delays' happen.

[anewman35]

You have to slow some space in the schedule for snow days, Especially in the Midwest.

 

It's worth noting how historically bad the winter was in the Midwest. It was simultaneously the third-coldest and third-snowiest winter in Chicago history. Chicago hadn't seen temperatures that low in 20 years, and hadn't seen that much snowfall in 35 years. This was truly a once-in-a-generation type of winter, and not something you plan for on an annual basis.

 

That said, there could have been plenty of other things that contributed to the delayed opening, but if ever there was a year that weather was a perfectly valid excuse, it was this year.

 

I think it's very fair to cut them some slack for missing Memorial Day originally, but I'm much more skeptical of any reasons for missing this week - there's no reason it should have taken them so long to figure it out.

[simon8899]

I see that year-round parks like in Florida or South California have to built new rides at some time during the year and you are always "too early" for an attraction no matter when you will visit.

 

But seasonal parks better get their rides ready by season start - or announce them to be two-years like Liseberg (Helix), Hansa-Park (Kärnan) or Kolmarden (Wildfire).

[rcjp]

But seasonal parks better get their rides ready by season start - or announce them to be two-years like Liseberg (Helix), Hansa-Park (Kärnan) or Kolmarden (Wildfire).

I'm sorry , I'm not sure if I understand. What do you exactly mean by two years? Because Liseberg did announce helix two years before opening but what does that have to do with Goliath? I agree that they should have their rides ready for opening but I'm just a bit confused about what you mean.

[buck funny]

If you consider the lifespan of one of these coasters, a few months late opening is a drop in the bucket. Once It is up and running people won't care that it was late.

 

Generally speaking with projects big or small, things tend to cost more and take longer than you expect. As experienced as the builders are, it is still a one-off/ prototype of a complex machine being built outdoors in a harsh environment. You can pad in a bunch of extra time to complete the project, adding cost, or accept that if there are delays it will be completed later than hoped.

 

What does it add to the cost to put all of the workers on overtime? VS How much revenue is lost by not having it open for the slow early season? As a business they probably decide the gain from opening at the beginning of the season is not worth the extra cost of rushing to finish. It also makes no sense to rush testing and then have a problem where the train valleys and strands riders creating a pr nightmare and casting a bad light on an expensive attraction.

 

 

 

On the bonus side, it is interesting (for me anyway) to see the project as it comes together. The fact that the park is now open so fellow coasternerds get to see the construction and take work in progress photos is pretty cool. PR wise they get people talking about the ride and the park longer as anticipation grows. more free publicity!

[OrlandoGuy]

^yes, a few month delay is a drop in the bucket considering the ride will run for so long. But for guests who planned their trip around a opening date that has been set for so long, its a pretty big deal to not have the ride open. I'm not blaming the park for a harsh winter or delays...but it is 110% their fault for sticking to an opening date knowing full well the date was unrealistic (when the construction workers started working overtime, Six Flags clearly knew they were way behind schedule). The problem is leading people on for so long only to disappoint them. The fact that they didnt announce the delay in time for most people to rearrange their travel plans is where they really went wrong, IMO. And any other chain to do so is also at fault.

 

But to the person who listed the Cedar Fair delays...those are a bit incomparable. Cedar Fair usually announces delays and compensates for them.

[Comeagain?]

Pretty much anyone here should realize that coasters and rides often open late and can have extensive downtown early in their lifetimes. Planning trips around original opening dates is a dangerous game. Especially if you're traveling.

[LiMiT]

Really with most opening dates on rides, all a park can do is estimate. The date was probably based on the projected time frame to build it, but not taking into account possible weather delays and other stuff. No need to complain about the pushed back date, the extra week is to make sure that everything is in place and complete, so there are no complications when it officially opens. Hey, at least it's not delayed nine months *cough* X *cough*.

[DirkFunk]

The problem isn't scheduling trips around opening dates for most - it is when you schedule the trip a month or more after the original opening date and the ride still isn't open. Both big chains have been guilty of the sorts of investments that lead to this and no one is "innocent". As predictable as something like Goliath not opening on time was way back last year, it still isn't actively good.

 

Hell, I think most of the major "new for 2014" rides still haven't opened and won't be open by June 1.

[OrlandoGuy]

Pretty much anyone here should realize that coasters and rides often open late and can have extensive downtown early in their lifetimes. Planning trips around original opening dates is a dangerous game. Especially if you're traveling.

 

"Anyone here" should realize that, sure. But the whole point of opening dates is to let the majority of the parks audience know when they should travel. If that wasnt the whole idea, why would they bother setting dates at all?

 

Delays happen, and thats fine. But its wrong, IMO, for a park to not let the people who are counting on the deadline they set for themselves know whats up.

[simaticable]

It could be worse. At least it's not as bad as SFMM construction.

[robbalvey]

Five minutes ago I just received the following email from Six Flags Great America:

 

"Good morning - The world’s tallest, steepest and fastest wooden roller coaster, Goliath, is coming soon. Thanks to Mother Nature’s freezing temperatures this winter and unseasonably cool and rainy spring, the final touches on Goliath have been delayed. We anticipate announcing the roller coaster’s new media preview and opening dates later this week."

 

For those of you who have signed up for the media event, here is what we are going to do. If you have registered for EITHER date, May 29th or June 6th, your name will be on the list for whatever the future date is going to be. If you can make the new date, AWESOME, if you can't, no worries. Hopefully there will be more opportunities in the future for other ride openings.

 

When the new date is announced I will send everyone the details ASAP. Keep in mind, at this stage of the project, it may very well be possible that any opportunities for riding might end up getting cancelled as I'm sure the focus now is to get the ride open for the public. I just want our members to be prepared for a worst case scenario.

 

And please try to stay as positive about this as you can. I realize and understand some of you might have made travel arrangements or changed plans, but when you are dealing with giant projects that have never been done before, it can be unpredictable. I'm sure the end result will be worth the wait!

 

Thank you everyone for your patience and understanding!

 

--Robb Alvey

www.themeparkreview.com

[KBrylczyk]

It could be worse. At least it's not as bad as SFMM construction.

 

Or any road construction. Seriously. Those pricks just close miles of lanes of traffic for months just so they can park one piece of equipment somewhere along that stretch and post one guy in a safety vest smoking a cigarette standing next to it. Road work blows.

 

As for the new delay, well, that blows, too. Still can't be upset about it, though. Things go wrong, problems arise, but it is what it is. Like I mentioned in an earlier post, there's plenty of other cool stuff in Great America and Chicago to keep people occupied.

[GrapesLie]

^ Well this actually may work in my favor as I might be able to go now! Can't wait to hear when they expect to open this monster!

[yay101]

I actually am okay with the delay. All of my General Public friends are extremely mad and all, but I would rather wait a bit than rush the project and do a sloppy job, especially with a roller coaster like Goliath.

[prozach626]

Maybe a little time and TLC now will prevent down time while the ride breaks in. Someone else said it perfectly. This little bit of a delay, although inconvenient, compares to a few drops in the bucket throughout the life of this coaster (hopefully). To me, this seems normal, if not expected, for most large structures.

[Goooose]

The Goliath crew took a day off today. Not mad, just pointing it out! I would need a day off with the family if I worked 14-20 days in a row too! They were probably approaching illegal labor practices and had to take off.