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Thrill parks: When you can't do big, new will do

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By BRANDI BARHITE
brandibarhite@sanduskyregister.com

SANDUSKY - What'll bring people into amusement parks these days isn't always the tallest and fastest roller coasters.

But those in the amusement park industry know they'd better introduce some type of new attraction every year to stay competitive.

Of the 320 amusement parks in the United States, every park is doing something new this year -- some are even rolling out multiple attractions, according to Beth Robertson, spokeswoman for the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions.

"U.S. tourists are looking for attractions that are suited for everyone in the family -- multi-generational," Robertson said.

It's not necessarily bigger and faster, just new -- anything new, she said. It could be new shows, discounts or attractions that families can ride together.

"We look at it in simplest terms; people want to have fun," Robertson said.

Jim Seay, president of Premier Rides, a ride manufacturing company based in Millersville, Md., said today's guests have a high level of expectation each year for a new and unique entertainment product.

A big part of the reason for this is because of the many opportunities people can spend their discretionary income on: Movies, the newest video games or NASCAR races, he said.

"It is important for parks to make a strong statement," Seay said. "It's not necessarily bigger and faster, but it has to be entertaining and it also is important that the ride has wide appeal."

Seay's company provided the equipment for The Italian Job: Stunt Track, a new multi-million dollar fast-track coaster, which opened at Paramount King Islands near Cincinnati last summer.

Kings Island spokeswoman Maureen Kaiser said The Italian Job has a broad appeal for families. At Kings Island, the goal isn't always to break a record, she said.

"We are really working with a wide variety of diverse guests," Kaiser said. "Some look for bigger, taller and faster. Then, there are those who are looking for more of a family product."

Wendy Goldberg, spokeswoman for Six Flags, said the company's parks are being recast as a one-stop shop for family entertainment.

Six Flags used to participate in the "nuclear arms race" for coasters, but as soon as the first year was over, the thrill was basically gone, she said.

"At the end of the day you were back at where you started," Goldberg said.

Six Flags is diversifying its attractions to include more for the family. Looney Tunes characters mingling with guests is among one of the new attractions.

"The roller coaster build-off ended up being targeted to the teen audience," she said. "We want to reset the balance. Families like roller coasters; some don't. Maybe your kids aren't tall enough."

Also, roller coasters can cost as much as $20 million and parks almost never recoup the investment, Goldberg said. Family rides cost much less. Also, as kids get older and taller they can move onto the larger rides already at the park, she said.

"At Disney, we are always looking at ways to improve our parks," spokeswoman Michelle Baumann said. "We are always trying to make them exciting and relevant."

This month, Expedition Everest debuted at Disney's Animal Kingdom.

The highest peak of the coaster, taking riders through the park's version of the Himalayas, is slightly less than 200 feet.

"Thrill rides aren't anything new to the park," Baumann said.

Cedar Point spokesman Bryan Edwards said the industry trend toward bigger and faster roller coasters started with the park's Magnum XL 200 in 1989. It was the first coaster to break the 200-foot-tall barrier.

Cedar Point didn't shatter the 300-foot barrier with the Millennium Force until 2000, but when it went over 400 with the Top Thrill Dragster in 2003, guests began to expect it more frequently.

"Every year doesn't have to be a coaster," Edwards said.

But it does help create excitement and attendance.

With the introduction of the Millennium Force in 2000, attendance was 3.4 million, dipping to 3.1 million in 2001. Then when Top Thrill Dragster came out, attendance came in at 3.3 million.

"There is definitely improvement in attendance when we introduce a new major thrill ride," said Stacy Frole, director of investor relations for Cedar Fair, parent company of Cedar Point. "It doesn't necessarily have to be the biggest and fastest."

A combination of attractions and new features of the park all help with the attendance, she said. In 2000, the Breakers Express hotel opened and the marina was renovated.

It's all about being fresh and spreading newness throughout the park, Edwards said. If the park adds an attraction to the children's section one year; it'll concentrate on another part of the park next year.

"Reinvesting in the park can only benefit you," Edwards said. "The more things you put in the park, the more people will be interested."

At Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, spokesman Gerard Hoeppner said thrill rides and coasters are important, but not the end all.

Busch Gardens is home to North America's only dive coaster, SheiKra, among other coasters, water rides and a zoo.

The tallest roller coaster in Florida and the tallest of only three dive coasters in the world, SheiKra features a record-breaking, 90-degree vertical dive from 200 feet, then carries riders through several additional thrill elements at speeds reaching 70 mph, he said.

"The key for us is that is has to be repeatable," Hoeppner said. "We aren't looking to build a ride that guests will only ride one time. It has to be a stand-alone attraction, a thrill not found elsewhere."

Yearly attractions

Highlights of recent years at Cedar Point: What it spent, what it built, and how many came to see it.

2000:

$47 million capital expenditures
Millennium Force
Breakers Express
Marina renovation
3.4 million attendance

2001:

$16 million
Lighthouse Point
Employee dorms
Vertigo
3.1 million attendance

2002:

$13 million
Wicked Twister
Peanuts ice show
3.25 million attendance

2003:

$27 million
Top Thrill Dragster
3.3 million attendance

2004:

$8 million
Soak City- Splash Zone
Lighthouse Point expansion
3.2 million attendance

2005:

$32 million
maXair
Games Midway renovation
Castaway Bay
3.1 million attendance

FunCoast.com is your online guide to summer fun for Cedar Point, the LakeErie Islands and Sandusky area. Our site offers up-to-date information on area attractions, restaurants, hotels, gasoline prices, ferry schedules, swimming, birding and fishing, along with a complete listing of events happening in the Sandusky/Cedar Point area. To use our Webcam and zoom in on Cedar Point's rollercoasters, go to http://funcam.funcoast.com

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