WOF Guy

^CF moved the cars to WOF shortly after buying KI.

^ this isn't a refurb like Monster Mansion. SDC has constructed a new building with a new ride in a different area of the park.

If put up for sale, I would expect the Fun Spot parks to be purchased by a chain that specializes in smaller locations. Interested buyers could include Five Star Attractions, Palace Entertainment, or Premier Parks.

Would she consider working at Cedar Point instead? Housing is more plentiful there.

And license an Evel Knievel name/theme. A perfect way to retheme the ride and tie-in park history

There is a difference between revenue and cash flow. CF does not recognize all proceeds of a season pass in the quarter it was sold. The price of the pass is divided against the forecasted number of visits, to equal an approximate price-per-visit. Each time a season pass is scanned, a portion of the purchase-price is recognized as revenue. If I use my pass in March, June, September and November, the money I spent on the pass will be reported as revenue spread across all 4 quarters. Cedar Fair is essentially deferring season pass revenue from 2020 to 2021.

Kennywood has also posted vacancies for Food Director and Safety Director. Don"t forget, Palace just hired former SeaWorld executive, John Reilly as their new COO. Someone in that role us certainly on the position to change the culture and expectations of the park.

The color scheme and font is consistent with the Ride Warriors merchandise line from 2010.

Sent you a message.

I hear KD's new marketing director was hired away from BGW.

I don’t think SEAS will sell off the Busch Gardens parks. A company left with just SeaWorld branded properties would be more susceptible to poor-performance related to public relations issues. That said, I think SEAS as a whole is a nice target for acquisition. Some have pointed out the potential synergies of a merger with Universal Parks and Resorts and the deep pockets of Comcast. I believe Merlin Entertainments has the most to gain by purchasing SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment. Merlin has struggled to develop a strong and effective corporate management system for its North American properties. This is especially true for the company’s “midway attractions” like Madame Tussaud's and LEGOLAND Discovery Center. The time difference between the American attractions and their management in the United Kingdom is a challenge. Merlin’s British management systems often clash with American legal requirements (think HR or disability accommodation) and marketing trends. If Merlin buys SEAS, it can place the existing Orlando corporate office in charge of all North American attractions. Additionally, a combined Merlin-SeaWorld would create some needed cross-marketing opportunities. SeaWorld and Aquatica San Diego could be packaged with LEGOLAND California. Busch Gardens Tampa could be packaged with LEGOLAND Florida. Merlin’s Orlando Eye attractions could be packaged with SeaWorld. Rumor has it that Merlin is looking to build a full-size LEGOLAND park in Virginia. Building the park in Williamsburg would help make Busch Gardens and Water Country a multi-day destination. If Merlin would were to buy the company I would expect them to connect the SeaWorld and Sea Life brands. In addition to using similar logos, the local aquariums would serve as a promotional outlet for planning your next trip to a SeaWorld park. Visitors to SeaWorld parks could purchase a pass to see marine life at an aquarium near home. All of this depends on SeaWorld hiring a strong and talented CEO who can get the turnstyles clicking again.

If you just want to explore the show floor I'd recommend getting discounted admission for Thursday/Friday.

^^Brad Marcy is now GM of Dorney Park. ^Tim Boals was reassigned last August (to focus on merch/games exclusively at Cedar Point). A former Disney executive now heads the corporate merchandise office.

The Best Lockers system does not allow a four consectuvie numbers (it also rejects 1234). Having worked with both keyed American Lockers and digital Best Lockers, I think the passcode lockers are overall better for the guest experience. With the old system, at least one guest would lose their key every day (they were always unhappy when they had to purchase a replacment locker). Many families also split up during the day. With the new system you don't have to hunt down the person with the key to get into the locker. As others have said, guests MUST protect their passcode. That means huddling the kiosk when renting the locker. It also requires obstructing views of the keypad by using both hands. It's shocking how many guests will just blurt everything out, "honey we're in locker 1292; the pin is 1955."

$75 for a vintage T-shirt seems far less crazy than the Geauga Lake fortune teller machine going for $10k.