Photo TR - Cedar Point 2011 - Worst. Opening Day. Ever.

[Real]

I've been to my share of opening days. Its gotta be over a decades worth now. None have been this bad.

 

Ill try to keep it to bullet points here...

 

 

Opened the park and these rides were not operating:

 

Maxair

Ocean Motion (being installed still)

Blue Streak

Windseeker (delayed)

Gemini

Top Thrill Dragster

Mine Ride

Maverick

Wildcat

 

That left these rides open at 10AM (mind you...they let in Platinum Pass holders in @ 9)

Millenium Force

Raptor

Wicked Twister

Mantis

Iron Dragon

Paddlewheel Excursions

Magnum

Mean Streak

 

Thats unacceptable. Weve had a lot of rain, but these rides are not made of sugar. They will not melt and with the exception of Dragster, the others WILL run in the rain.

 

Anyways, we waited for Maverick to open up and it did...1.5hrs later. There was no sense of urgency at all. Lazily transfered trains back and forth (Seemed to be a lot of confusion between ride ops...that or bad communication) and this was the theme for other rides as well. We were around the 6th train and after the 7th train went through and stopped behind us, the ride broke down again. They transfered a train off and apparently after a few more cycles, was back up.

 

We walked the park and this is where I took pictures because, well, when all those rides are down, your options become limited. A VERY DENSE fog had rolled into the area and I felt it was time to take advantage of the unique situation.

 

Pictures on my Flickr as well - Rest of photos posted below

 

We also found that the thrill ride Octopus (or Monster to some) had suffered a massive failure or some sort of fluid. Engineers were trying to clean it up. It did reopen later. Also, Gemini's blue train had vallied at some point between the drop and first hill. So that wasn't running (red side did open up a lot later)

 

Dragster didn't even show signs of life till 1:40pm. That crew seemed to not care in the least that it was down. Not that they could do anything but I didn't see any urgency to prepare the ride or get people involved.

Around this time Pinks, the new eatery from the westcoast was set to open. We approached and saw it was blocked off. Not opening for 2-3 hours because of a malfunction. Wait, this is a restaurant...not a ride. Apparently during their VIP party the sprinkler system went haywire.

 

At this time I noted at least 3-4 upper management personnel, all of whom I've seen before and they looked none to happy.

 

 

Maxair was the only ride to not open at all that also wasn't still being built but it took all rides till sometime around 2 to achieve open status. Im going back today (Sunday) and hoping the results are better. If it were me, id have told the entire maintenance crew to go take naps/sleep during the evening because they'd be pulling an all nighter. This was, or has to be, one of the worst opening days they have suffered in a long time. I don't even want to hear weather was an issue. It was foggy but 65degrees F and not a drop of rain till almost 5. It then sprinkled for an hour and again was dry. So weather had nothing to do with it. Winds were also very calm, maybe 10mph max but averaged 5mph max there too.

 

 

Probably wont be photos tomorrow but never know.

 

 

Just to be fair, I give CP a lot of crap. But I hold them to a very high standard, a standard THEY put on themselves. Sure, the golden ticket awards are more or less rigged and a sham, but don't pat yourselves on the back and fail to deliver. I still go there and love many of the rides and enjoy my time there thoroughly. But today...wow. Really sad. I've attended at least a decades worth of Opening Days so Im used to hiccups and burps along the ride. Today, was all out vomiting in terms of preparedness.

 

Heres a few images per forum rules...I don't think you want all 33 pasted on here for bandwidth issues. So here a few to tease, rest on my facebook.

Ocean Motion

Foggy Bird

Fun on said Bird.

Power Tower...seriously, its not funny anymore, come on out...

There you are, but youre still trying to hide.

I was pretty sure hiding a 420ft tall tower thats bathed in bright red and yellow would be difficult. Mother Nature threw up her middle finger to that today.

One last shot, people enjoying Millenium Force.

Edited May 15, 2011 by Real

[ANJLOVER14]

Hey Real, the Facebook page isn't really working, and I'd love to see more Cedar Fair Crappiness!! Could you post more on this page? Or fix the link (Unless it's just my stupid computer)?

[Gerstlauer1]

I'm glad that you are going often to CP, otherwise this would have been a disaster!

 

I really think the sign for Ocean Motion looks like shit, the letters type, does not fit well at all!

 

Nice TR, i enjoyed reading it!

[Double0Kevin]

It sucks that you had a bad day, but did the TPR Forums just become MiceChat?

[Real]

It sucks that you had a bad day, but did the TPR Forums just become MiceChat?

 

I dont get that joke obviously...

 

Ill just post the rest of the pics here. I made sure my pictures on facebook were available for all, no restrictions but whatever.

 

Also, that font is very...old style. I think it fits well with the "old boat ride sorta a pirate ship" look theyve given it. But to each their own, its just a sign.3

 

 

Forgot to add, Power Tower took all day to open and only ONE single tower worked...

Wicked Twister greeting me...sorta. Are you even there Twister?

Power Tower was even more shy.

Ocean Motion area.

Maxair as we walked by.

Happy riders

Raptor in The Mist

No idea we signed up for a taping of The Mist today.

These next three show 3 shots, about 1.5 seconds apart shot at 1/2500th of a second each. Watch the train disappear.

Going...

Gone.

One more sequence, this time, 2 photos that span no more than 1 second and shot at 1/5000th of a second each.

Valley - The Ride.

This is how you break The Monster (Octopus) That sure looks like some sort of antifreeze/or green hydraulic fluid and I doubt it should be all over the ground...

Best shot of the day. The close swing is at full swing, swinging to the pictures right and far swing (in focus) is swinging to the pictures left.

Llama Chicken? wtf?

Through the trees...still do that here? lol

Panorama of what I saw when I parked. I was parked in row 16 for this picture which is basically parallel with the last set of flags in the center area. aka CLOSE.

[andyuk200523]

Some amazing photos there, nice TR, shame The Point had really bad operations for you.

[Real]

Im driving back up today. Im really hoping they worked overnight to fix some of the stuff that didnt even open.

 

3 of Power Towers towers never opened. Never even tested. Maxair never even had a single worker on it. All in all, I mean, I suppose it cant get any worse so yea, today should be better.

[Geauga Dog]

But I hold them to a very high standard, a standard THEY put on themselves.

 

I absolutely love this quote. That's pretty sad that a park that proudly boasts being the "best" happened to be the "worst".Yes, I know it's only opening day It is uncalled for to have that many rides closed given that on various reports it did not rain until late afternoon. The CP of old never would have let that happen.

 

Otherwise, great photos. When that thick fog covered Cleveland in the early afternoon I thought about what it might have been like in Sandusky. I bet it offered some unique rides.

[John Peck]

Let me just make sure I did the math right. By the end of the day, the ONLY rides that never opened were maXair, Windseeker (as expected) and Ocean Motion?

 

If that's the case, that's still 97% of rides up—which is better than a lot of parks. But you're right, they have set a pretty high standard for themselves.

[Philrad71]

I really think the sign for Ocean Motion looks like poo-poo

 

Ooops, guess they better just stick with non-theming of the rides then. Oh well, it was a nice try by Cedar Point!

 

Sorry to hear the day was bad for you, but I have read a lot of reports on here about all kinds of different parks all sucking on opening day. Note to self...don't go to theme parks on opening day - especially when you have a really crappy winter and it rains every effing day in the spring!!!!

 

Although going on Power Tower or TTD in that fog would have been an interesting experience...

[Cavs Fan]

I wouldn't say it was that bad. I had the most fun I've had in awhile. When there are poor operations, you have to make the most of it. I just rode Magnum a bunch of times. Also. although the new Ocean Motion sign looks bad to some of you, the new Ocean Motion area is probably countless times better than the old one.

[ginzo]

I like these fogged-in photos. It might be fun to ride a lot of this stuff in the fog. I've been to Cedar Point when several of the major rides were down at the same time. It's not fun when they're posting a 2-hour wait for Blue Streak.

[aimster]

Ok those fog shots are pretty nifty. I really miss Cedar Point. Haven't been there since 1990.

[Millenniumfan94]

Have they finished painting Millennium Force? That would be a shame if they haven't...

[asimowalk]

^ In a recent Point Cast video, they said it will take more than one off-season to complete the painting of Millennium Force.

 

This reminds me of how KI's Facebook fan page was littered with negative reviews after their opening day. The northern parks keep complaining about weather and rain delaying everything, but CW's opening day was almost perfect if it wasn't for Windseeker. Maybe it's just bad luck.

 

Or maybe it's the thundercloud looming over Mr. Kinzel's head.

[Chris Benvenuto]

I hope the park will be at full strength for tomorrow, I'm heading down to the Point for the day on Monday. This is sad, how a park that boasts of being the elite and brass of the theme park world. Can't even have a decent opening day to kick off the season, but alas, it's the first day and this crap happens. But, I still think alot of this should've been foreseen weeks before and not allowed to happen on Saturday.

 

I'm placing my luck on a prayer, and hoping the park's all up and running tomorrow. Thanks for the report, Real.

[Skycoastin Steve]

Sorry to hear the day was bad for you, but I have read a lot of reports on here about all kinds of different parks all sucking on opening day. Note to self...don't go to theme parks on opening day - especially when you have a really crappy winter and it rains every effing day in the spring!!!!

Bingo. Kings Dominion sucked equally as bad on opening day last year because practically the entire offseason was spent digging out of snow and building 305. I would be willing to bet by next weekend, most of these problems will be worked out. I know on opening day 2008, they were still getting final state inspections on a lot of rides the last hour or so before the park opened, so it happens. I'm not sure I've ever encountered a truly "successful" opening day at ANY park.

[Real]

But the odd thing is, I have been to almost all Opening Days at CP for the last 12-15 years minus a few here or there.

 

They have never, ever been this bad. You get the occasional hiccup, ride ops not quite gelling with each other and those little things. Im completely ok with that. Yesterday was none of that.

 

And John Peck - when I left @ 9, there were rides that had come up but gone down. I was being fair to say that all the other rides but Maxair and Windseeker eventually opened, yet, several of them went right back down. Dragster being one of them.

 

 

Today was a shocker...it was less than a drizzle, like, that "spitting" rain that is very sporatic and the only rides they will run in the rain are:

 

Mean Streak

Blue Streak

Disaster Transport (but that was testing till almost noon...? Why?)

Wicked Twister

Corkscrew

Iron Dragon

Maverick

 

 

However, I got there at 11 this time and it took till sometime around 1 it seemed before Maverick, Corkscrew and Transport started working regularly. I have a feeling after that Magnum incident with the rain that they treat the rain like the plague, even a very light drizzle. Everything shuts down. Even Raptor. Raptor and Magnum never had their trains removed from the brake runs.

 

Seemed a lot like they gave up this weekend. But I still think it looked like a lack of effort to make the park "fully operational" for opening day. And I exclude Windseeker in that because new stuff is always hit or miss.

 

 

Oh well. Ill give it a few weeks before I go back.

[CPmaverick]

^All of the coasters closed today were due to the 25+ mph winds, not the drizzle. Big coasters + high winds = valley.

 

Also Mantis was open.

[Real]

Ah yes, I forgot about Mantis but I typically avoid it because 1 train operation and terrible trains dont gel with me. Ive given that ride numerous chances to redeem itself, Im always disappointed. Though it was running trims off and the first half is good. Second half is a punching bag.

 

And I wasnt aware there was a specific wind speed, especially since Mean Streak and Mantis are both much larger than Raptor and both ran. Yes, I know Raptor does valley easier but your "big coasters" is flawed with your own admission that Mantis ran. It also has to do with wind direction and today it was out of the worst possible direction - northeast. Meaning Magnum would run into the wind, so would Mf's overbank and second hill, so would most of Raptor first half...I know it was a combined effort of wind and drizzle.

 

Its no secret though that Cedar Point doesnt like to run in the rain. I have far too many hours in that park during every weather condition possible (Still waiting on the elusive water spout to complete the collection) to have seen this first hand. Id ridden MF in sideways downpour but the wind direction was in the correct direction and we were ok. It kept running even beyond our train when it started. The most painful ride Ive ever ridden.

 

 

What was really agitating was weather reports this morning called for 15mph winds. Not 30-40mph. And Maxair again, literally deserted. A crappy opening weekend for sure. I feel bad for people who dont have season passes.

[CPmaverick]

"Big coasters" is just a generalization. You took it a little too litteral .

[coasterdude2011]

I actually didn't find opening day that bad. I had an enjoyable time time yesterday the longest line I waited in was 30min for Raptor. Yea there were some rides closed but I do not blame them with the weather. There was a constant threat of weather yesterday where it could rain any minute. The rides that were open had good operations in my opinion. I considered it like any opening day, it's expected for a park not to open without kinks, especially after this offseason I thought it was an "ok" day.

[Zingoman]

I really think the sign for Ocean Motion looks like poo-poo, the letters type, does not fit well at all!

 

Ummm, hello? It's the same letter type that ride has ALWAYS had. It may have a different color now, but why are you whining about something that they not only kept consistent, but actually embellished and made nicer? The real difference (to me at least) is that it's not mounted over an antique looking map. Maybe it just looks a little out of context now.

[Real]

I actually didn't find opening day that bad. I had an enjoyable time time yesterday the longest line I waited in was 30min for Raptor. Yea there were some rides closed but I do not blame them with the weather. There was a constant threat of weather yesterday where it could rain any minute. The rides that were open had good operations in my opinion. I considered it like any opening day, it's expected for a park not to open without kinks, especially after this offseason I thought it was an "ok" day.

 

It was "ok", but it took till almost 5pm for it to get ok. Ill say it one last time...I expect the normal hiccups with operations from new crews, crews not used to each other, etc. But this almost seemed like they were still doing pre-season testing. I live an hour away, our weather hasnt been that bad. And I have never had an Opening Day so full of chaos.

 

I think I saw every upper management there this weekend (especially Saturday) and man, they not only looked bewildered but also quite angry. To which I would have said...hey, do this a week or two sooner, and you can work out these kinks

 

 

And I also agree, the font is from an old english base. The ride is the ocean motion, its an old pirate style ship, what font do you want? Pepsi Font? TPR Font? It goes perfectly! The ride area is just lightyears ahead of its last position. Makes the front of the park look so much cleaner and tasteful. Though its sad and weird not to see DD there. I like the old drop rides. Way better than any of the S&S towers.

[CoasterLine]

I really think the sign for Ocean Motion looks like poo-poo, the letters type, does not fit well at all!

 

Ummm, hello? It's the same letter type that ride has ALWAYS had. It may have a different color now, but why are you whining about something that they not only kept consistent, but actually embellished and made nicer? The real difference (to me at least) is that it's not mounted over an antique looking map. Maybe it just looks a little out of context now.

 

It is definitely not the same typeface. Same "old" style, but definitely a different typeface (which is easily seen with both photos side by side). Regardless, the new sign doesn't look bad, it just looks like they decided to over-stylize the words, when the old sign did a good job of displaying the almost "Olde English" style the ride and area tries to provide.

 

From what I have seen, the new area looks awesome, and it's good to actually see the ride given some love. I guess I'll see it for myself in about a week.