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[chittlins]

Let me preface my comments by stating that I fall into the unique category of a 50/50 enthusiast. While I welcome and advocate the addition of major coasters, I also appreciate the park's continued attention to detail, and would also love to see those efforts put forth with improvements to some SDC staples (e.g., TNT, FITH, FM & AP).

It's already been touched on numerous times in various threads, but the unfortunate truth is SDC simply cannot remain profitable without engaging itself in the ongoing large, thrill-ride race. They are competing for tourism dollars against other major amusement parks that already have an edge based on demographics, brand awareness and geography (proximity to major metro areas).

I firmly believe SDC will always have the charm others in the industry cannot come close to matching, but if you want to see the park carry on, it's going to require the continued addition of new major attractions.

I think you also have to consider that while SDC owns a considerably larger parcel of land than the park's current footprint consumes, there isn't a terribly obvious and convenient place for major park expansion. SDC's major coasters already skirt it's western perimeter, so I think any fear of pulling into SDC's main lot 20 years from now and seeing nothing but towering hyper coasters framing the horizon is unwarranted and unrealistic in my view.

In short, a whole lot would need to happen, before that ever happens at SDC.

 

They'll be a time where they have to redevelop existing areas. You see this with European parks and something I've mentioned where separate rides share the same footprint. There's no reason a coaster and a drop tower couldn't. You aren't going to wow folks with a drop tower but it's a need. The wow will go to Busch Gardens Tampa with that 300 plus ft. one they announced where the seats tilt 90 degrees at the top bringing you face down before the drop.

I'll be tickled pink with a solid family coaster without inversions. I've mentioned Gerstlauer bobsleds but Mack or anyone else is welcome. I'd be happy with a GCI more along the lines of Thunderhead and Ozcat. They will have to eventually relocate the back area, I've stared at that on Google maps for a long time and a single building would consolidate most all those buildings under one roof sans the railroad stuff and y'all know my thoughts on that. That would free up another ravine for a coaster.

I would like a spinner, I get the WOF and SixFlags has bit. I'm looking forward to Mack's suspended Spinner, That kills two birds with one stone on things SDC doesn't have. I like that wooden boomerang concept of GCI's. Another thing that could conform with the terrain of SDC. I'd like a few extreme flat rides. Zamperla's Air race comes to mind as well as Gerstlauer's Sky Fly where you control whether it inverts or not

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eB3aXcRKIII

[Swoosh]

I think a lot of you are being very unfair to the park.

This year alone, the park not only added a new roller coaster and area, but completely redid the Tom Sawyer Landing area.  Replaced a sit-down restaurant with one that has a better flow.  Added 2 new counter services.  Added new restrooms.  Make a better flowing sludge (pan for gold) area. 

They didn't "just add a thrill ride" - they really added to the infrastructure of the park. 
What makes you think this will not happen when they completely redo the next section of the park.

The 2015 (to me at least) is a rather dead section of the park and this new thrill ride (along with other things that will go in) is going to really breath life into that area.  Yes, it is going to be "another thrill ride" - but that is a whole lot easier to market than "come see our new bathrooms" (as Walt Disney World found out).

I think you'll like what is coming, even if you don't like major thrill rides.

[sanddunerider]

Swoosh, i think your right about that....  EXCEPT for the new bathrooms, when was the pizza joint mentioned? or the other mods made this winter.. 

The PTB did a great job this year, everything is themed 99.9% accurate, and really helped the park.

hopefully 14 will bring mods,upgrades needed around the park as we have discussed, then of course 2015 with the NEW thrill coaster and everything will accompany it..///((  Swoosh said it first) LOL!!

[Swoosh]

Swoosh, i think your right about that....  EXCEPT for the new bathrooms, when was the pizza joint mentioned? or the other mods made this winter.. 

The PTB did a great job this year, everything is themed 99.9% accurate, and really helped the park.

hopefully 14 will bring mods,upgrades needed around the park as we have discussed, then of course 2015 with the NEW thrill coaster ride and everything will accompany it..///((  Swoosh said it first) LOL!!

Fixed that for you

[ttroyer210]

So it's not going to be a coaster? I'd love a highly themed shot tower.

[sanddunerider]

Swoosh!!!   

LOL!!!   

Thanks! 

Sorry for the "misquote".....

We sure would not want anyone to be mislead!!!!!

[Wildfire]

I'm pretty sure Pete Herschend is on record stating it will be a coaster

[Swoosh]

No he said "major new thrill ride for 2015 that would excite ACE members"

[sprtbuf]

Is there any chance this new thrill ride is in the same vein as the New Transformers ride at Universal, or the Spiderman ride at Islands?  That would be thrilling without it being a coaster and the footprint would be relatively contained so as to not disrupt the landscape much.

[Wildfire]

Ok you are right.  Guess I read between the lines considering he was telling coaster enthuists to get excited.  Also "old and reliable" screams B & M to me.

[ttroyer210]

"Old and reliable" an S&S drop tower?

[BackInTime]

I think a lot of you are being very unfair to the park.

I believe you're taking some comments out of context. I don't recall anyone speaking negatively with respect to the recent improvements/investments. Personally, I was speaking more to the idea of the park being pretty limited in terms of open spaces for future expansion (outside of the expanse of land they own surrounding it's existing perimeter.

I have no doubt HFEC and SDC will continue to make good decisions regarding park improvements in the coming seasons.

[oldsdcer]

The City is still considered the ugly stepsister to Dollywood as far a promotion is concerned. Everyone knews where DW is but can't tell you where SDC or Branson for that matter is thur out the country.

[shavethewhales]

Regarding the discussions about the lasting integrity of SDC's character, we have this discussion multiple times in every new project thread and the inevitable conclusion is this: the park is going to keep changing, no matter what. We can certainly voice our opinions and help the PMB keep the park enjoyable to as many people as possible, but there's a thin line between constructive criticism and whining that sometimes gives enthusiasts a bad rep, especially SDC enthusiasts.

I always worry that the park will someday be little more than a well-themed Six Flags, but every year the park impresses me with well thought-out additions and attention paid to the details. Surely a lot of this comes from their listening to and understanding what their guests want. I think they've been able to maintain a lot of their character over the past decade while substantially re-orienting their product, and we should all be thankful for that. Like others have mentioned, it's a different market and customer base out there today, and SDC still has some catching up to do in some areas such as major rides.


But back to the actual project discussions, the third-hand accounts I've listened to seemed to be pretty positive that Pete was implying that another coaster was coming, but of course these third-hand accounts after all and who really knows what Pete was trying to imply. The only thing we really know for sure is that there's something to look forward to again already.

If not a coaster of some sort, my immediate bet would be on a frisbee-style ride from Zamperla. SDC seemed to be looking into the concept for their 2007 project but chose TGS instead. At that time they were still doing business with HUSS, who invented the frissbee style ride and was once the go-to company for large, top-of-the-line flat rides. Zamperla has been a major supplier of theirs this decade, and they make a pretty good frissbee style ride themselves now.

The drop tower concept has popped up at least twice though, so that's something they've been obviously considering for a long time...

[chittlins]

This is the next Drop Tower to come to a major park

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4uKOsogphs