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Ben

CF Legend
I actually think Cedar Point need to get a family coaster now. They don’t really have a good ride for everyone to enjoy together, something along the lines of Firechaser Express would fill the actual only real gap in their line up.

But it’ll probably be a massive Flyer or T Rex.

A massive water coaster wouldn’t go amiss either but somehow can’t see them calling up Intamin for one of theirs.
 

Snoo

The Legend
I actually think Cedar Point need to get a family coaster now. They don’t really have a good ride for everyone to enjoy together, something along the lines of Firechaser Express would fill the actual only real gap in their line up.

But it’ll probably be a massive Flyer or T Rex.

A massive water coaster wouldn’t go amiss either but somehow can’t see them calling up Intamin for one of theirs.

That is something I always forget about being an enthusiast. They don't have a true middle of the road coaster for everyone that isn't complete ****. You have rides like Cedar Creek Mine Ride and Blue Streak but thats kinda it. And Blue Streak is BARELY "family" considering what it is.

We were actually discussing this during the Live. CP has 2 water rides in the entire park. 2. And they've been the same for decades. Now, they do have a water park but lord almighty they should invest in that department as well.
 

Edward M

Strata Poster
I really do agree with the previous two posts. While I loved my time at Cedar Point, I think that every park needs some "stepping stone" coasters. Some kids are tired of Blue Streak but not quite ready for Gemini, and I felt that the park didn't have any coasters for that demographic. The fact that all ages can ride is one of the best aspects of the Disney parks for families. It's fun to ride with your whole family, young and old. Also, the water ride aspect was disappointing. Log flumes are, to me, a staple of a park, especially an older park. Sure, they're far from the most exciting rides, but they're perfect on a hot day when you're not in the mood for Thunder River's drenching. While I would rather have a 200+ foot T-Rex, appealing to that demographic would be their best option, IMO. This is especially the case with just how many kids you see at the park.
 

Pokemaniac

Mountain monkey
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Considering that a family ride isn't that big of an investment unless you do it the Disney way, is there a chance they could get that covered in 2019? If we assume that they're going to save the big 150th anniversary for something really spectacular, a family coaster seems unlikely for 2020. But if they were to buy one in 2019, they'd still have some money left over for the big news in 2020.

Otherwise, if a family coaster is too big of an investment for an interim year, I think we'd have to wait until 2022 at the earliest. 2018 saw significant investment, 2019 may be a low-investment year, then 2020 will be another big one, which probably means 2021 will be another quiet year, so 2022 would be the next opportunity to cover that hole in their lineup. However, by '22, it will definitely be about time to do something with Gemini, so maybe a family ride is pushed even further back...

Swap out "family ride" for "water park expansion" if you like.
 

Snoo

The Legend
Considering that a family ride isn't that big of an investment unless you do it the Disney way, is there a chance they could get that covered in 2019? If we assume that they're going to save the big 150th anniversary for something really spectacular, a family coaster seems unlikely for 2020. But if they were to buy one in 2019, they'd still have some money left over for the big news in 2020.

Otherwise, if a family coaster is too big of an investment for an interim year, I think we'd have to wait until 2022 at the earliest. 2018 saw significant investment, 2019 may be a low-investment year, then 2020 will be another big one, which probably means 2021 will be another quiet year, so 2022 would be the next opportunity to cover that hole in their lineup. However, by '22, it will definitely be about time to do something with Gemini, so maybe a family ride is pushed even further back...

Swap out "family ride" for "water park expansion" if you like.

You could say that but you're equating "anniversary" to "huge roller coaster". Leadership makes the decisions so celebrating it throughout the year with huge events may be the route they go instead of spending another 20 million on a new coaster. But, the reason I do lean family if it's a coaster is that they have been investing in family rides over the last few years, both expanding and modernizing both family areas and expanding their water park.

Also, they don't HAVE to invest every year in something new. They're already Cedar Point. Like Disney, they already have all the free press they need. It's ingrained in not only enthusiast culture but in local culture as well. Even people in Cincinnati, who have Kings Island, may take a day trip to Cedar Point instead as it's an enormous brand name with the pull of enormous and exciting attractions.
 

Pokemaniac

Mountain monkey
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Administrator
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You could say that but you're equating "anniversary" to "huge roller coaster".
Yes, that's the base assumption. It could very well be that they're not going the coaster route in 2020, but after spending the last 30 years building a reputation as the thrill capital of the world, it would be strange of them not to mark their anniversary the same way. A little out of character, so to speak. I'm not saying they don't have a lineup big enough that they can rest on the laurels for a while, and the park doesn't really need another big coaster (as this thread attests to, they've built most of what there is to build anyway), but the anniversary would be such a perfect occasion for one that it'd be strange for them not to grasp it.

Besides, didn't Tony Clark drop some hints? Not taking that for granted either, of course, but it would be an indicator.

I agree that the park could afford to invest in small things or just maintenance for a while now, by all means, but with the anniversary coming up it would be strange for them not to beat that big drum one more time.
 

Snoo

The Legend
Yes, that's the base assumption. It could very well be that they're not going the coaster route in 2020, but after spending the last 30 years building a reputation as the thrill capital of the world, it would be strange of them not to mark their anniversary the same way. A little out of character, so to speak. I'm not saying they don't have a lineup big enough that they can rest on the laurels for a while, and the park doesn't really need another big coaster (as this thread attests to, they've built most of what there is to build anyway), but the anniversary would be such a perfect occasion for one that it'd be strange for them not to grasp it.

Besides, didn't Tony Clark drop some hints? Not taking that for granted either, of course, but it would be an indicator.

I agree that the park could afford to invest in small things or just maintenance for a while now, by all means, but with the anniversary coming up it would be strange for them not to beat that big drum one more time.

I mean.. Tony is Tony.. he has dropped solid hints over the years but he's also dropped absolutely nothing as well.

The one thing we do know is that they will celebrate that year. And they would be foolish to grasp it in some capacity, but given what they can do and where, their in a tough position. We've been talking about this with Cedar Point for years, they're running out of room for major additions.

As we stand now, they have the space where Shoot the Rapids used to stand and the Wicked Twister area, which has been rumored to go along with Windseeker for a new addition as the stadium was just torn out. Outside of that, they would have to take out something already standing or renovate. Hell, look at their last few coasters: Mean Streak and Mantis renovated, Valravn on vacant land where a coaster once stood (Wildcat) as well as taking out another older attraction, and Gatekeeper.. same as Valravn. Outside of vacant land, there would have to be something removed. What more could be done with what they already have that would be major? The options are very limited. Thats why I favor a smaller addition instead of something major because logically, it just works. Yeah, I'd love a 400ft TRex.. but lets be honest with ourselves.. :)

Aquatrax confirmed.

My dude.
 

EthanCoaster

Mega Poster
We were actually discussing this during the Live. CP has 2 water rides in the entire park. 2. And they've been the same for decades. Now, they do have a water park but lord almighty they should invest in that department as well.

I gotta disagree, and I’m starting to think most regional parks do to. Cedar Point is a regional park in Northern Ohio, so the time frame they can successfully operate water rides is pretty small (4 months at the most). That’s a big factor when considering return on investment. For an attraction that you can only operate during the summer months, you might as well just build/expand the water park at a cheaper cost (which is exactly what they did).

On top of that, Cedar Point is surrounded by a giant ****ing lake. That’s their biggest selling point as a multi-day resort. Why waste money on something maintenance heavy that you can only run four months out of the year when people have other ways of cooling off at the park?

As for 2020, I’d have to guess a massive single rail or flyer or something, but considering Cedar Fair is working with Mack now, I think a giant Xtreme Spinner would be a big attention-grabbing attraction and it would offer something unique to the park’s lineup.
 

Pokemaniac

Mountain monkey
Staff member
Administrator
Moderator
We've been talking about this with Cedar Point for years, they're running out of room for major additions.

As we stand now, they have the space where Shoot the Rapids used to stand and the Wicked Twister area, which has been rumored to go along with Windseeker for a new addition as the stadium was just torn out. Outside of that, they would have to take out something already standing or renovate. Hell, look at their last few coasters: Mean Streak and Mantis renovated, Valravn on vacant land where a coaster once stood (Wildcat) as well as taking out another older attraction, and Gatekeeper.. same as Valravn. Outside of vacant land, there would have to be something removed. What more could be done with what they already have that would be major? The options are very limited. Thats why I favor a smaller addition instead of something major because logically, it just works. Yeah, I'd love a 400ft TRex.. but lets be honest with ourselves.. :)

Indeed, you can say in more than one way that Cedar Point is running out of opportunities for new big things, both in terms of adding something they don't have already, and in the space available for new development. I don't think either factor is a guaranteed show-stopper, but they would have to think creatively to overcome them. Finding something new to fill the lineup with seems like the least of their issues, so let's consider the space problem first. I haven't been there in person, but looking at the map there appears to be three zones where they could theoretically expand with something big.

First, the main parking lot. Open-air parking lots are notoriously inefficient when it comes to land use, and at Cedar Point the land is at a premium. It could be theoretically possible to free up significant portions of the parking lot by building multi-storey indoor parking instead. The parking lot covers an area half as big as the park itself. Cutting just 30 % off it would free up more room than any coaster could realistically required. The main challenge would be to connect a ride there to the rest of the park, as it would have to go around Gatekeeper and Blue Streak somehow.

The second would be the Soak City car park. Same story there, it's three times the size of Gemini's footprint, all sprawled over open ground. A garage there would free up more than enough land for a new big coaster, but once again it would run into the problem of connecting it to the rest of the park. Gemini is in the way, and we may assume that retiring it is not an option.

Third, the island with the defunct Shoot the Rapids and Millennium Force's turnaround. The former could be demolished, the latter could be built around. If Blackpool Pleasure Beach could fit Icon in between their existing rides, Cedar Point could fit a coaster around the turnaround. The land is accessible from the park as well, as demonstrated by Shoot the Rapids' existence. However, utilizing this space would require a lot of trees to be chopped down, and trees aren't really in abundance in that park. So overall, there's room if they want it, but they'd have to compromise to make it available.

Besides, it's not like a memorable addition would have to be terrifyingly huge by necessity. What would excite me the most would be something in the spirit of Maverick. A quality coaster that's only large-ish by size, and which just provides a really thrilling ride without trying to break any records. Cedar Points lacks a good sit-down multi-looper, so there is a niche for it. And not to beat the long-since-dead Aquatrax horse, but that ride type is a water ride which doesn't necessarily involve soaking the riders. If they could somehow combine a water ride, a coaster, and a really great ride experience, they could provide an attraction worthy of a 150 year anniversary while staying below 30 meters in height and a kilometer in length. It could feasibly even fit at the Wicked Twister/stadium site - although I suspect that area is reserved for a kiddie/family ride like you suggest, given its proximity to the kiddie area. Question is if that will be in 2020 or another year, though.
 

EndlessWire

Mega Poster
I don't know the topography of the park at all, so I have no idea where it could go, but on paper, it certainly seems to me that the most likely thing would be something like an RMC T Rex. While something similar to Maverick would appeal to me more as well and it seems like they could do with more 'gateway' coasters to bridge family attractions and the bigger ones, I can see CP putting in something like 'the world's tallest inverting coaster', and a T Rex should be capable of achieving that. From my detached position across the pond, it looks like CP concentrate on the coasters more than any other park, so it would seem to me that the most fitting way to mark a significant anniversary would be to pop in another big attention-seeking coaster.
 

Snoo

The Legend
Just an FYI for the park.. it's completely flat short of an inner lake and some minor hills in the back portion in between Maverick and Millennium Force. :D
 

codeman94

Mega Poster
they could do with more 'gateway' coasters to bridge family attractions and the bigger ones, I can see CP putting in something like 'the world's tallest inverting coaster', and a T Rex should be capable of achieving that.

Surely I'm not right... but is Valravn currently the worlds tallest rollercoaster with inversions? I did a quick search and it doesn't seem like that is a stat that is kept.
 

Pokemaniac

Mountain monkey
Staff member
Administrator
Moderator
Surely I'm not right... but is Valravn currently the worlds tallest rollercoaster with inversions? I did a quick search and it doesn't seem like that is a stat that is kept.

Fourth tallest, actually. At 76 meters, Eejanaika tops the list. The next two are Kärnan (73 m) and Dinoconda (69 m). If you count defunct shuttle coasters, both Moonsault Scramble (70 m) and Speed: The ride (68.3 m) were taller than Valravn (68 m), although their claims are rather flimsy seeing as no part of the train actually reached that height.
 

Hixee

Flojector
Staff member
Administrator
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Fourth tallest, actually. At 76 meters, Eejanaika tops the list. The next two are Kärnan (73 m) and Dinoconda (69 m). If you count defunct shuttle coasters, both Moonsault Scramble (70 m) and Speed: The ride (68.3 m) were taller than Valravn (68 m), although their claims are rather flimsy seeing as no part of the train actually reached that height.
And those two being in that list are why they're so ****ing terrifying amazing.
 

EndlessWire

Mega Poster
Fourth tallest, actually. At 76 meters, Eejanaika tops the list. The next two are Kärnan (73 m) and Dinoconda (69 m). If you count defunct shuttle coasters, both Moonsault Scramble (70 m) and Speed: The ride (68.3 m) were taller than Valravn (68 m), although their claims are rather flimsy seeing as no part of the train actually reached that height.
Ah, I knew there was acrrasa I didn't think it was Valravn! Glad I'm not going daft...
 
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