Family Ride?

With all the hype Cedar Point is fueling I am somewhat hesitant to believe people who think this will be a run-of-the-mill family ride. Obviously there is some reason to keep everything secret and let people dream of their personal "perfect" coaster. If they simply put a family ride in I don't think it would go over well with everyone who expects something thrilling. Plus they have a new contest to chat with the corporate vice president of engineering and safety, who happens to know everything there is to know about new construction. Seems to me, to be a good and cheap way to get some publicity and you don't heavily publicize a family ride. What does everyone else here think?

You know what you have a really good point there. Why whould they go through all that trouble for a small family ride???

Cedar point also already has three coasters which can be or are considered family rides. These are Iron Dragon, Mine Ride, and Woodstock Express. I dont see them adding another family coaster

agreed. I mean, why would they code name it Project 2007 and toy with people if this is just a family ride? Why would they start construction so early? Anyways, while the idea of a family ride is getting passed around a little more than I can bear, I think most realize that this will be something epic.

Ahh, I cannot wait for the sarcasm, pissy remarks, and criticisms from the Pointbuzz regulars... *** Edited 7/24/2006 12:47:15 AM UTC by ramboozle***

Cedar Point hasn't hyped anything. They've just kept their mouths shut, and let the enthusiasts hype it.

The same was done for Skyhawk.

Why go thru all the trouble? They if I remember right always keep plans a secret until they want the public to know. They probably have 08 already in the works if not already planned and paid for.

All the family thing is about is a ride (coaster) that has just a little more room that not only the in shape and skinny can ride. At least that's what I got from reading the other thread.

I don't think Skyhawk had it's own code name like "project 2006" or anything. Simply by calling it "Project 2007" is hyping it up. Putting up a wall around the construction zone and then putting signs that may or may not hint at something is hyping it up, not just for us enthusiasts, but also for the GP. I think the GP will be expecting something major for next year.

Sorry but yes there was the famous blue prints found in the trash by town hall while preparing the park for halloweekends last year by Tony and Tyler. This project just needed to start earlier due to size and requirements of warm weather to speed up the cement process.

djDaemon said:
Cedar Point hasn't hyped anything. They've just kept their mouths shut, and let the enthusiasts hype it.

I can't entirely agree.

When's the last time they put up 'teaser signs' (ie: "Ya'll ready for...", etc.)?

While I do agree the enthusiast crowd has 95% of the hype accredited to them, CP did add fuel to the fire with those signs and the one-liners on the blog. Brilliant marketing, I admit... but they did give it a nudge here and there.

Those are some hefty supports, i would doubt it be anything but a coaster. A family coaster is possible though.....

+stares at coaster tracks+

I wouldn't be surprised if it isn't a big as anyone expects it to be. Sure Iron Dragon, Cedar Creek Mine Ride, and Woodstock Express (probably Disaster Transport too) are family coasters, that's not much compared to...everything else.

I still think it'll be a fun, exciting, and enjoyable ride, but that doesn't mean it has to be terrifying.

After it opens there will surely be a flood of members here named Maverick Man, Maverick rules, Maverick ___mph, etc.

DISCLAIMER: I only used the name Maverick because it sounds better the Project 2007 ;)

DISCLAMER, second edition!:It will still be some landmark ride for Cedar Point. :D

Maybe it will be a ride for all ages. There are lots of thrilling coasters such as Millennium, Magnum, Raptor, Dragster, etc that kids may not want to ride. There are the smaller ones such as Iron Dragon and CCMR and etc that parents, kids, and people in the middle can ride.

Gravity said:

I can't entirely agree.

When's the last time they put up 'teaser signs' (ie: "Ya'll ready for...", etc.)?

While I do agree the enthusiast crowd has 95% of the hype accredited to them, CP did add fuel to the fire with those signs and the one-liners on the blog. Brilliant marketing, I admit... but they did give it a nudge here and there.

Well, TTD was the last time anything, in terms of signage, was done regarding a ride. And before the obvious is pointed out, let me explain...

When they were preparing to build Skyhawk, there were markings around the area, which in itself caused enthusiasts to speculate and postulate about what could possibly be going in. CP did little to instigate any type of speculation, because there simply wasn't enough evidence that they needed to account for.

With Project 2007, there is a lot more going on - they removed a significant ride, cleared land and started construction earlier than is typical. Its not like they could simply ignore the obvious, which would lead people to even more grandiose(sp?) speculation. So, while its certainly within their ability to remain completely silent about what's going in, they feel it prudent to keep the enthusiasts somewhat "in the loop" regarding the construction. In regard to the project, the blog is aimed primarily at us, and we've gotten very little info relative to the other topics presented there.

Coverage of changes within the park has increased dramatically over the years as the internet has grown, so comparing the coverage of this construction relative to other projects is invalid, in my opinion. While the internet was certainly around during the construction of Millie, it was definitely not as widespread as it is today. The same can be said for the construction of TTD, though not to the same extent.

As for the signage itself, I take it as CP simply keeping guests in the park informed to an extent. It makes the construction site feel more like a part of the park, in that the guests can theorize as to what they're building while gazing out on the expanse of land.

I think that if they were truly trying to "hype" this ride, there would be more info, more signs and more coverage overall. They'd have more regular coverage on the blog. They'd have had press releases perhaps. There is a lot of simple things they could have done if they were really interested in creating a furor over this.

Imagine if they simply remained mum on the whole thing. Enthusiasts would be foaming at the mouth with half-baked theories (yeah, even less half-baked than the theories we have now) about the ride. "OMG! CP isn't telling us ANYTHING!!! They don't want SF finding out what it is, so they can't copy it and break their records!!! It MUST be a 500-footer, because CP is still mad about losing TTD's record, and now they are going for blood!!!"

However, I thought that T&T said awhile ago that they would do more hinting at what it is, why they seem to have slowed/stopped that, I really don't know...

^noticed that too, but I don't know why.

I don't recall that. What I recall is T&T telling us (very early on) that they will not answer any questions relating to the project - and they've stuck by their word.

This whole hyping idea is ludicrous. Apparently, unless CP hires elves to work in the dead of night, undercover, so that nobody ever sees ANYTHING, they must be hyping this thing.

ALL they have done is not told us anything! They're not planting news stories, they're not taking pictures on an every-couple-days basis, they're not participating in forum discussions and they're not walking around like secret service agents. The closes CP has come to "hyping" this is simply aknowledging that they're actually building something. Enthusiasts have done EVERYTHING else.

Okay, they inferred that they would be hinting more about it as time goes on ;)

djDaemon said:
Cedar Point hasn't hyped anything. They've just kept their mouths shut, and let the enthusiasts hype it.

The same was done for Skyhawk.

What about all of the signs around the construction area... "serious sidewindin'" , "whole new direction" , "hold on to your spurs" etc. That's hype. the signs don't merely say "Excuse our dust while we improve for the future" or something generic like that.

Also, what about T&T's blog. That is a deliberate marketing effort, aka hype.

Unless it ends up being an Aquatrax, I agree it probably won't be a family coaster or midsized coaster. What would be the point? Aquatrax is the only family type ride I know of that makes logical sense to me- replace a flume attraction with the next generation.

If it isn't an Aquatrax, I think it will be a long coaster and the WWL area will only be the ending of the ride/brake run/station. I am starting to believe this may be the case.

Though it may be too early to tell, with the vertical supports we've seen so far it looks like helixes / banked turns at low height (elements often found at the end of a ride when speed has decreased and there is no longer sufficient energy to climb higher), and there doesn't look to be a whole lot more room in the WWL area for much more given the space those helixes will take up. Sure you could fit a loop or two in, and a moderate sized hill, but what would be the strategic value in putting an average coaster in there?

DA20Pilot said:

What about all of the signs around the construction area... "serious sidewindin'" , "whole new direction" , "hold on to your spurs" etc. That's hype. the signs don't merely say "Excuse our dust while we improve for the future" or something generic like that.

So, everything with a sign is hyped?

"OMG!!! They are so HYPING Donut Time!!!!!!11!"

Also, what about T&T's blog. That is a deliberate marketing effort, aka hype.

Please show me a link to all of the blogs regarding the project.

The blog has only occasionally referenced the construction. Most notably last fall when they announced the closing and demolition of WWL and then this spring when they acknowledged the construction area and the P2007 envelope (that hasn't be spoken of since then).

The signs around the construction area are just a more creative and themed way to say "Sorry for the mess." If CP is trying to run a perpetual hype engine then they need to go get it fixed. All the hype surrounding the construction has been almost (about 99%) created by the enthusiasts.