Author Topic: Worlds of Fun 2012 (Read 18000 times)

sambrwn52 · « **on:** Apr 9, 2011, 08:03 »

I have a feeling something big is coming to Worlds of Fun in 2012.

What do you think?

Swoosh · « **Reply #1 on:** Apr 9, 2011, 09:25 »

We'll just have to see how the park does this year. They are getting quite the expansion with Planet Snoopy AND the Grand Carousel. It could very well be that Planet Snoopy is "still new in twenty 1 - 2"

Adam420 · « **Reply #2 on:** Apr 10, 2011, 02:33 »

I could see a Windseeker or some other kind of big thrill ride, but I highly doubt a coaster.

tonyblackjack · « **Reply #3 on:** Apr 10, 2011, 08:42 »

Brandon said on the blog not to long ago when asked if we could get a Windseeker down the road and he said "I would say the chances are decent but we'll have to see how they play out at the other parks." It was on the Snake Saturday Parade Blog if you want to check it out!

sambrwn52 · « **Reply #4 on:** Apr 10, 2011, 09:22 »

Aww crap. If we get a Windseeker I'm screwed! I hate spinning rides, but I love heights! If anyone is riding a Windseeker this year, tell me the experience of it.

Jason · « **Reply #5 on:** Apr 10, 2011, 03:31 »

I also hate spinning but love the Starflyers. I bet that they spin at a similar speed to the Wind Seekers, which isn't a sickening spin.

My first choice would be a coaster (always) and my second would be a Wind Seeker.

Orient Wolf · « **Reply #6 on:** Apr 10, 2011, 09:23 »

Perhaps 2012 will be the year OOF sees a new attraction?

sambrwn52 · « **Reply #7 on:** Apr 11, 2011, 07:06 »

^ Good point, they haven't gotten anything new in years! ^

cbconglom · « **Reply #8 on:** Aug 5, 2011, 08:56 »

from screamscape

2012 - Windseeker - Rumor - (8/5/11) The rumor for the past few weeks was that Cedar Fair has purchased two or three more Windseeker rides for the parks in 2012. I already highlighted Kings Dominion as one of the most likely homes, but it seems that Worlds of Fun is also very high on the list to get one.

Swoosh · « **Reply #9 on:** Aug 5, 2011, 09:39 »

Supposedly 3 have been bought for next year. I'm thinking Carowinds, Kings Dominion and Worlds of Fun

tonyblackjack · « **Reply #10 on:** Aug 5, 2011, 10:34 »

Knock on Wood!

Swoosh · « **Reply #11 on:** Aug 5, 2011, 07:57 »

My vote for location is in Europa. Remove the entire Autobahn building and use the that area as well as where Bounce-a-roos was located. If you have room, you can also move Scrambler to that same area and free up that pad for future expansion of Planet Snoopy (read Jr. Inverted

)

Jason · « **Reply #12 on:** Aug 6, 2011, 08:26 »

I've always thought Europa as well but figured the carousel spot since it also has a small chunk of land next to it for a que. The lighting package would complment the Snoopy Lights really well.

steel · « **Reply #13 on:** Aug 6, 2011, 11:16 »

Europa needs it. Europa needs *something* new. I would prefer an Intamin/Mack launch to replace Le Taxi Tour, but this works nicely.
But maybe it will replace Thunderhawk? The color scheme would make more sense in Americana. Not that Americana needs a new ride atm, but that part of it could use some sprucing up. It's really just a glorified exit path for Timber Wolf right now.

It's a pity, though, the park that could really use a Windseeker is Valleyfair, but they'll never get past their height limit.

zztop · « **Reply #14 on:** Aug 6, 2011, 04:31 »

I don't care where it goes just as long as we get one

Swoosh · « **Reply #15 on:** Aug 6, 2011, 08:59 »

Is Thunderhawk open yet?

steel · « **Reply #16 on:** Aug 6, 2011, 10:37 »

Last time I was there it wasn't even totally intact.

Swoosh · « **Reply #17 on:** Aug 7, 2011, 05:22 »

Yeah that was the same for me, but that was over a month ago.

greenman · « **Reply #18 on:** Aug 7, 2011, 06:39 »

Europa would work best, it would bring balance to the park. All the big rides are located on the outside perimeter of the park, so this could be the centerpiece. Paint should be the color of the water tower

Swoosh · « **Reply #19 on:** Aug 7, 2011, 08:00 »

I'm all for our topper being a hot air balloon for our Windseeker.
I think the "typical color scheme" would work just fine for ours.... but then again I really like KBF's color scheme too.

PreOut · « **Reply #20 on:** Aug 9, 2011, 06:54 »

I'd kind of rather see them just spend this year's money to rehab a bunch of rides. Some of the older ones are looking pretty sad.
-Make Furry of the Nile a wet ride again, revamp theming
-Fix ThunderHawk (water & all).
-Fix Autobahn
-Revamp/fix Cyclone Sam's effects/building/theme
-Give Boomerang a proper station/queue (althoughth it hardly ever has a line) & repaint
-Repaint Mamba

Come to think of it, the theaters look pretty ran down as well.

Heck, they could even upgrade some rides with that money and advertise them as semi-new (not unlike what Six Flags did with Bizzaro). Add the fabled tunnel to Mamba, upgrade Detonator to reach the top of it's towers (or convert one side to a drop tower!), add some new waterfalls/rapids/surprises to Nile, and change up Viking Voyager's path a bit (and of course add nitros to the Taxi's), then throw together some ad campaign about how the park has been "super charged" or something, change the name of a few rides if that helps.

To me, that might appeal more to families than a ride like Windseeker (which I think you have to be pretty tall to ride, right?), which SFSTL basically already has. I know there's not a ton of ROI in remodeling, but the park seems to be so caught up in the Patriots and the Prowlers the past few years that they've let parts of the rest of the park get a little dusty.

Swoosh · « **Reply #21 on:** Aug 10, 2011, 08:23 »

The park rennovates stuff every year and it is not advertised. For instance the entire trough of Viking Voyager was replaced pretty recently. They have completely overhauled numerous flat rides including Bamboozler, Zulu among others. They removed the Forum stage this year which finally took an ugly eyesore out of the park. They replaced the Festahaus tent with a new larger permanent building. So, saying that the park doesn't go in and do upkeep on its older rides is just simply not true.

Does Autobahn need a lot of help? Yes it does, but of all of the things listed, that is the only one that is really pushing. Thunderhawk is being worked on (granted not as quickly as I would like - but a lot of that has to do with Huss).

Personally I feel a Windseeker will bring in more people and that is what is important

Bradley Robertson · « **Reply #22 on:** Aug 10, 2011, 08:48 »

Quote from: PreOut on Aug 9, 2011, 06:54

..but the park seems to be so caught up in the Patriots and the Prowlers the past few years that they've let parts of the rest of the park get a little dusty.

Since Prowler was built Europa got Snoopy's Hot Summer Lights and Planet Snoopy. While Lights was lipstick (no major over haul of the rides was required), Planet Snoopy was a major rehab. Small things like signs and railings have been repainted. Windseekers cost $5 Million. That will leave probably at least another Million for off-season rehab of other things, which won't go far but anything helps. If we get a Windseeker this year I think we can expect that there won't be anything new in 2013 except maybe some haunts and it will be a rehab focused off-season.

There is a reason why Cedar Fair stock has gone up recently (mainly that they are paying dividends for the first time in 2 years) while the DOW is tanking. The improvements CF has made to their parks over the last few years have been well received and the ROI has been above average. They are a business so they have to balance maintaining a certain image to consumers, but still being profitable. While I will admit I have not been to the park in a while, there will probably always be some area that appears to need work. It isn't the Magic Kingdom where tickets cost twice as much and they are open 365 days a year in conditions that aren't that hard on items like paint. WoF is located in frankly one of the worst climates next to Oklahoma City. The temperature has a range of more than 100 degrees every year. Our winters can be wet and cold, and summers dry and hot. Anything left outside for a few years in our climate is going to suffer. More to the point, I think our park is maintained a whole lot better than a certain other park down the road on 1-70.

Swoosh got his response out before I could finish editing mine, but as he points out there is a lot of rehab that is done each year that isn't advertised because it simply doesn't sell tickets. A consistently well maintained park will not see sales increase without new rides. A poorly maintained park will see sales decrease over time even with new rides.

steel · « **Reply #23 on:** Aug 10, 2011, 09:31 »

Windseeker is only about $5 million. Prowler was $8 million and Patriot was $14 million. With the right planning, there is more than enough left over for repairs and rehab. I think this year, it's time to remove either Autobahn or Thunderhawk, paint Mamba, and add that Windseeker.
I really would rather not have Worlds of Fun stoop to Six Flags's level and start advertising old rides as new. Worlds of Fun might be a little shabbier this year than usual, but Six Flags St. Louis has been that way year after year after year. I don't know if that's a business model I want CF to pursue.

PreOut · « **Reply #24 on:** Aug 11, 2011, 01:00 »

Has CF given up entirely on Huss rides? I was hoping the next 'flat' ride to be a giant frisbee, but it seems like CF isn't interested in putting those in any other parks.

Windseeker wouldn't be my first (or second choice), especially now that SFSTL has a similar model, but I guess it will be nice to have something finally break Mamba's height record at WOF (assuming we get the 300' version) and at just $5m for something that big, that's a pretty good deal.

Swoosh · « **Reply #25 on:** Aug 11, 2011, 01:17 »

WindSeeker would be taller than SkyScreamer (and more reliable).
Huss seems to be having a lot of problems right now (you notice that you are not seeing any new rides showing up in the USA by them). I also fully believe that if we were to get a "frisbee" it would be the Chance model and not a giant frisbee.

Bradley Robertson · « **Reply #26 on:** Aug 11, 2011, 01:57 »

I am surprised we haven't had more Chance Morgan rides installed considered manufacturing is in Wichita and replacement parts could be transported in less than a day if needed.

Swoosh · « **Reply #27 on:** Aug 16, 2011, 10:57 »

So I saw this over at Toilet Paper Residue...

Quote

I went to Worlds of Fun on Sunday evening with a couple of my friends. When we were riding Prowler at night, on the turnaround I saw some parts for something that sort of looked like B&M track in the back parking lot. Since it was dark and the ride was fast, I couldn't see a lot, but I could still make out some interesting things.

Jason · « **Reply #28 on:** Aug 16, 2011, 11:16 »

I wish.

Bradley Robertson · « **Reply #29 on:** Aug 16, 2011, 01:03 »

Quote from: Swoosh on Aug 16, 2011, 10:57

So I saw this over at Toilet Paper Residue...

Well after doing a quick GIS for "windseeker construction" I saw nothing that resembled anything from B&M. I'm taking the observation with a grain of salt since most B&M's seem to cost 8 figures at this point and I have a hard time believing WoF would be getting something that costly since $12-$15 million has been spent on the park in the last 3 operating seasons. We definitely aren't "due" for that level of capital improvement.

Although, if it does happen I hope I am at home when I hear the news because I would most likely defecate myself.

Author Topic: Worlds of Fun 2012 (Read 18000 times)

Adam420