I saw this on GOCC's web site, I don't know if it's old news to you guys or not...

Six Flags To Focus Less on Rollercoasters

After the coup d' etat that happened at Six Flags, Inc., the new CEO Mark Shapiro wants to focus more on creating a Hollywood image and cleaning up the parks. 

In an interview with TheStreet.com, Shapiro was quoted as stating "We need to back focus off of roller-coasters and on to the basics of being a provider of great family experiences," says Shapiro, who noted in recent visits to Six Flags parks that Elmer Fudd-clad characters were sorely lacking."

The former ESPN executive was also quoted stating "At an average cost of $22 million each, Shapiro says, money-gobbling roller coasters take a huge bite out of capital spending and leave him with "nothing left to fix the parks."

The article seems so true... looks like they're trying to follow in Paramount's footsteps in a way.

well theyre following in the dead footsteps, j/k

I think that is good for the short term but not the long term. Like Paramount you can take profit from the past investments. With no new large attractions over the long term will kill attendance. At that point they will have to invest in getting back the lost attendance or sell.

How do you figure that its true. With El Toro, Tatsu, and some other hyper coaster I cant rember the name of. I am sure there is alot more parks too that are getting coasters.

^Shapiro was just put in charge so he made no decision as to the major coasters coming next year however this is probably true because everyone is now seeing the success paramount is starting to have with the family park process, Cedar Fair announced that this is what they need to start doing too........not so much the hollywood effect but the family friendly atmosphere.

I just found a funny error on the SFOG website.

http://www.sixflags.com/parks/overgeorgia/...s/superman.html

If you look at the little grey box, it says that the first drop is 2759 feet, yet the coaster is only 100 ft. tall. I guess its the little special features thing that pushed the rest of the stuff up and made it funny.

Its beacuse that last thing takes up too many lines and it pushes everything up too far.

I think that is good for the short term but not the long term. Like Paramount you can take profit from the past investments. With no new large attractions over the long term will kill attendance. At that point they will have to invest in getting back the lost attendance or sell.

Eventually, the family attrations will start to get 'boring' as the younger kids will become older teens, and begin to seek the large megacoasters, i.e. B&M, Intamin, etc that cost $10-$20 million or more. I'm not saying they should build a new large coaster every 1-2 or 3 years, like SFMM, SFGAM, or SFGADV, but a large family park like PKI is due for one. 2000 was that last mega-coaster (Son of Beast), and unfotunately, it put a (somewhat) bad taste in people's mouth - from corporate down to the guests.

On a side note, one park I'd like to see an increase in dark rides, flat rides, and family rides is Geauga Lake, since the old waterpark has now been fully relocated across the lake to the new Wildwater Kingdom. Nice to see CP has put in 2 flat rides lately as well.

How do you figure that its true. With El Toro, Tatsu, and some other hyper coaster I cant rember the name of. I am sure there is alot more parks too that are getting coasters.

They are opening two Goliaths at SFOG and LaRonde Amusement Park in Montreal.

-Jake

Goliath LOOK INCREDIBLE! I'll be there on opening day!

Six Flags needs to be cleaned up, bad. I have only been to Kentucky Kingdom, and the one out in Chicago, and they are falling apart, especially KK. That place was in decent shape before SF took over, then I went back about a year ago and everything was just about in ruins. Every single ride needed a paint job, hardly anything could operate do to maintenance issues, hardly anything could open due to lack of associates. It was awful. This being said though, I once heard SF was trying to bankrupt KK in an effrort to move it, anyone know about that?