Dieseltech20 Posted May 9, 2013 Share Posted May 9, 2013 Take a behind the scenes tour of The Beast and you can ask him any question your heart desires. Of course judging by the stuff asked on the one I attended...he has been asked it all, lol. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KIFan1 Posted May 10, 2013 Share Posted May 10, 2013 Why doesn't KI get more Cedar Point like rides and get a Halloween event like what Universal Studios has. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheCrypt Posted May 10, 2013 Share Posted May 10, 2013 Because Kings Island is not Cedar Point. It is not Universal Studios. Kings Island doesn't have to imitate other parks because they do just fine being unique. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thrill_Biscuit Posted May 10, 2013 Share Posted May 10, 2013 Because I remember, eidetically, the Van McCoy flash mob and retro-uniform crepe-paper rose sales of the 2008 Knievel Jump, I must ask: Will someone be serving Porkchops and Applesauce during next Sunday's "Brady Bunch" visit? There, I did it. [Runs for the door] 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SonofBaconator Posted August 9 Share Posted August 9 @DonHelbig what were your thoughts on the Orion project from it’s conception to its announcement? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonHelbig Posted August 9 Share Posted August 9 19 hours ago, SonofBaconator said: @DonHelbig what were your thoughts on the Orion project from its conception to its announcement? It missed the mark. It fell well short of garnering the same level of anticipation, interest, excitement that teaser campaigns and earned media placements did for Diamondback, Banshee, Orion, and the parking tolls leading up to those announcements. Slapping posters on a wall as teasers just didn’t net the same results. It would have created more buzz had the teasers been things like boulders being placed around the front gate area and around park with steam coming out. The posters were not aligned with what planning and design had in mind for the backstory. And then on the night of the announcement, a banner was unveiled with a rendering and it had The Racer with one side running backward. So, guests were wondering if that was returning instead of talking about Orion. Plus, half the conversation on social media was is it really a Giga? The parking tolls announcement had everyone buzzing because an aerial photo from behind The Racer that showed the parking lot and tolls was used on social media with the accompanying post copy saying two things that had been at Kings Island since 1972 was going away. Naturally, everyone assumed The Racer. “What’s Kings Island doing?” stories were everywhere. New York Times. Los Angeles Times. Boston Globe. I worked with KIC on that teaser and that really helped amplify the speculation. When it was announced new parking tolls and the original parking tolls would be torn down, there was a lot of conversation on social media with people breathing a sigh of relief The Racer wasn’t being torn down. Because of all of the chatter, news of the new tolls was nation wide. Matt Ouimet, Cedar Fair’s CEO at the time, was impressed that I could take new parking tolls and get it in the New York Times, and other major papers. Orion could have had that same kind of media coverage leading up to and for its announcement. It didn’t make it much further than the park’s backyard. just a lot of misses from start to finish. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SonofBaconator Posted August 10 Share Posted August 10 2 hours ago, DonHelbig said: It missed the mark. It fell well short of garnering the same level of anticipation, interest, excitement that teaser campaigns and earned media placements did for Diamondback, Banshee, Orion, and the parking tolls leading up to those announcements. Slapping posters on a wall as teasers just didn’t net the same results. It would have created more buzz had the teasers been things like boulders being placed around the front gate area and around park with steam coming out. The posters were not aligned with what planning and design had in mind for the backstory. And then on the night of the announcement, a banner was unveiled with a rendering and it had The Racer with one side running backward. So, guests were wondering if that was returning instead of talking about Orion. Plus, half the conversation on social media was is it really a Giga? The parking tolls announcement had everyone buzzing because an aerial photo from behind The Racer that showed the parking lot and tolls was used on social media with the accompanying post copy saying two things that had been at Kings Island since 1972 was going away. Naturally, everyone assumed The Racer. “What’s Kings Island doing?” stories were everywhere. New York Times. Los Angeles Times. Boston Globe. I worked with KIC on that teaser and that really helped amplify the speculation. When it was announced new parking tolls and the original parking tolls would be torn down, there was a lot of conversation on social media with people breathing a sigh of relief The Racer wasn’t being torn down. Because of all of the chatter, news of the new tolls was nation wide. Matt Ouimet, Cedar Fair’s CEO at the time, was impressed that I could take new parking tolls and get it in the New York Times, and other major papers. Orion could have had that same kind of media coverage leading up to and for its announcement. It didn’t make it much further than the park’s backyard. just a lot of misses from start to finish. I would agree, when compared to earlier installations- the hype wasn’t there; especially when one remembers that it was the park’s largest ride investment. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnjniehaus Posted August 10 Share Posted August 10 To be honest, while Orion is a great ride I've even had non enthusiast friends tell me they thought "isn't it just another Diamondback?" Even a member of the GP can tell when two rides are similar. I get that KI took over a project that CGA abandoned but at the same time I do feel like the park needs something more unique the next time around. Don't get me wrong Orion is a great coaster and I'm not knocking it or saying it's a bad ride. I'm very glad we have it. However the next time around we need something that will please the enthusiasts crowd but also something that will get the GP excited and thinking "wow I've never seen anything like that!" Unfortunately with current communication slump the park seems to be in, the next coaster project probably will have very uninteresting teasers and promotional material. I think it's bad when you see billboard ads for Dollywood in Cincinnati and not for Kings Island... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SonofBaconator Posted August 10 Share Posted August 10 16 hours ago, johnjniehaus said: To be honest, while Orion is a great ride I've even had non enthusiast friends tell me they thought "isn't it just another Diamondback?" Even a member of the GP can tell when two rides are similar. I get that KI took over a project that CGA abandoned but at the same time I do feel like the park needs something more unique the next time around. Don't get me wrong Orion is a great coaster and I'm not knocking it or saying it's a bad ride. I'm very glad we have it. However the next time around we need something that will please the enthusiasts crowd but also something that will get the GP excited and thinking "wow I've never seen anything like that!" Despite how people felt about the ride itself, marketing wasn’t stellar compared to previous additions. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gforce1994 Posted August 10 Share Posted August 10 What is the Air-Speed Velocity of an Unladen Swallow? All jokes aside, what was the most difficult ride to market? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YuYuYuuki Posted November 1 Share Posted November 1 Does the alien leader from Flight of Fear have an official name?? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tr0y Posted December 21 Share Posted December 21 Who the Schell is Logan? Also I like the sweater! 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonHelbig Posted December 21 Share Posted December 21 10 minutes ago, Tr0y said: Who the Schell is Logan? Also I like the sweater! Everyone knows who the Schell Logan is. He knows what the Schell is going on at theme parks across the globe. And from what I hear, a Schell of a good storyteller. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disco2000 Posted Saturday at 10:52 PM Share Posted Saturday at 10:52 PM 22 hours ago, Tr0y said: Who the Schell is Logan? Also I like the sweater! If only someone would do an investigative piece to get to the bottom if Kathy lied or if Kathy was not made privy to the information... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeeastFarmer Posted Saturday at 11:15 PM Share Posted Saturday at 11:15 PM Hmmm...I wonder who? John Mattress? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disco2000 Posted Sunday at 05:01 AM Share Posted Sunday at 05:01 AM 5 hours ago, BeeastFarmer said: Hmmm...I wonder who? John Mattress? At the end of the day, I am sure Kathy, the associate that responded to Logan, gave her honest answer as that decision was above her pay grade, so any news outlet that tried to get answers would simply get the run around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
befat Posted Tuesday at 02:36 AM Share Posted Tuesday at 02:36 AM On 12/21/2024 at 5:52 PM, disco2000 said: If only someone would do an investigative piece to get to the bottom if Kathy lied or if Kathy was not made privy to the information... Or was it PR spin? She acknowledged that it was a rumor. She didn't straight up say it was a false rumor. I'm sure the group of people with direct knowledge of the fate of Kingda Ka was quite small at first, so to anyone outside of that group, it was a rumor. I bet most people who work for Six Flags Great Adventure found out at the same time the rest of us did. So Kathy's quote can be read either way, she could have been in the know, or she may not have. We'll never know, but I don't think it's fair to call her a liar. She was just doing her job and would probably have been fired if she had stated that the coaster was going bye bye before the official announcement. If anyone wants to criticize Six Flags employees, criticize the decision makers at the top. Those are the people who decided to wait on the announcement, which put people like Kathy in a tough spot, and didn't give their guests a chance to get a last ride in. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn Meyer Posted 17 hours ago Share Posted 17 hours ago I would ask Don this. I know you don't work for the park anymore, but if you did, this would be my question. Since the merger, would you want to work for the park now compared to when it was just known as a Cedar Fair property? Like, would it bother you to work there under the Six Flags merger? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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