Jump to content
VOTE NOW FOR ALL YOUR FAVORITES FROM G.A. 2023 ×

Thunderbolt

Black Tag
  • Posts

    321
  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    3

Thunderbolt last won the day on August 25 2016

Thunderbolt had the most liked content!

About Thunderbolt

Recent Profile Visitors

11,881 profile views

Thunderbolt's Achievements

Log Flume

Log Flume (4/6)

9

Reputation

  1. Looney Toons was licensed to Six Flags for 99 years. DC was licensed before the superhero craze exploded. I'd imagine the licenses are very cheap, considering they're barely mentioned in the SEC Filings.
  2. Disney isn't losing sleep over Fun Spot. It's not competition despite existing. Who else competes at scale? Palace and Parques Reunidos aren't in the same league with Six Flags or Cedar Fair as is. Let alone combined. DC stays. You can leverage that IP. Looney Toons vs. Peanuts likely rests on licensing fees.
  3. Paramount and Cedar Fair didn't overlap outside Ohio. The merger killed Geaugua Lake. A Six Flags/Cedar Fair consolidation basically gives the combined company a monopoly on major regional theme parks. It's the equivalent of Disney acquiring Universal and Sea World Orlando. Either parks get sold/shuttered, or "New Six Flags" raises prices significantly to cover debt. Granted, DoJ rarely considers public benefit as a condition any longer. I expect to see bankruptcy, or sale of significant real-estate assets to pare down debts, if this merger happens. "Lease back" will kill the company. If I'm a city with a Six Flags or Cedar Fair Park, I'd start suing to block this merger immediately. Tax revenue and seasonal job loss will effect them. If I'm a customer, expect ticket price increases and an end to "cheap" season passes. Truthfully, Six Flags should have ended the latter decades ago.
  4. I can't see Cedar Fair and Six Flags getting regulatory approval, if the DoJ decides to enforce "Sherman". The combined company has too much overlap. Either they dispose of multiple parks, or they shut them down. I really hope this doesn't happen.
  5. New ride reports and speculation are always fun!
  6. Thanks! I liked the yellow pastels used in the past. I agree the pinks and reds were out of place. Is anyone left in the sign shop, from its glory days?
  7. "Main Street" looks so drab. Fresh paint is always welcome, but couldn't they choose a better color scheme? Grey just looks awful on any day. Superhero Snacks looks awful. Like a NYC construction site plastered with bills. Sad because its a nice structure. Six Flags continues deferring maintenance on "The Big Wheel". There's no excuse to see it in that state. Ceder Point has an identical model (only 2 of this kind were made), and its meticulously kept. In fact, Cedar Fair moved it closer to the lake, and upgraded to a stunning LED Light Package. I love Schwarzkopf Flat Rides. This one doesn't seem long for this world. Intamin AG services these rides. (edit: removed "salt breeze splash". The Great Lakes are freshwater. I should have remembered that!)
  8. Hershey Park gets it. Well maintained and beautifully cared for. Candymonium looks like a winner!
  9. Screamscape has recent flyover footage from SFDK. Harley Quinn's Crazy Train still stands. Maybe its SBNO this year? I have no idea why Six Flags bothered with this addition. Superman right next door is a better ride, with a similar experience. (Been a long time since I've logged in here. Don't know why, because I kept following GAH without pause).
  10. No matter who manages Great Adventure, the issues remain the same. Call it the "Big Wheel" lights syndrome. No matter how many times management promises to replace or upgrade the lights on the "Big Wheel", so many sections remain in a literal dark state or disrepair. I'm not qualified to rate the Fitzgerald Era, as I haven't been to Great Adventure since 2008. His reviews are mixed from what I gather here. Only Harry can speculate with any degree of credibility, how much latitude corporate gave him in terms of future planning and day to day staffing. Out of all the Six Flags Managers I've read about, the best by far was Jay Thomas. What a terrible waste of good talent Six Flags made when they removed him from Magic Mountain.
  11. I remember that "Rolling Thunder" signage animation as a kid. It was one of the things I missed when they let it fall into disrepair.
  12. That video fails to load for me. Suggestions?
  13. Without any doubt, Cedar Fair could not have mismanaged this property any worse than it tried. From closing down the "Sea World" side of the park, to building Wildwater Kingdom on the wrong side of the lake (never mind "Hurricane Harbor" was already pretty new); Cedar Fair's mistakes seem almost orchestrated. Had Premier not been forced to sell SFWoA (or lose control of Six Flags in general), I wonder where the Aurora park would be today? Perhaps it would have overtaken Kings Island in terms of economic value. If I recall at the time, Busch decided to sell the park when their desires to build a mega coaster on their side of the lake were thwarted. Having failed to acquire Geauga Lake, or construct rides on "their side", Busch decided to bail. Someone needs to write a book about this. It would be a fascinating read for any amusement park enthusiast. Geauga Lake really needs their own Harry Applegate.
  14. Is "El Diablo" generally a walk-on? I do miss my visits to Great Adventure. Can't believe my last trip was in 2008.
  15. As cool as that urban legend may sound, I would imagine Kingda Ka was planned before the sale of Six Flags Ohio to Cedar Fair. Unless you mean it was a 'middle finger' to Cedar Point. Then I could agree. Burke seemed like that type to flout his accomplishments. In reality, he should have. Despite lousy ride ops, Premier was my favorite SF Era.
×
×
  • Create New...