I'd barely count that as doing something. It's a coin that costs $15. That's expensive. That's nothing to glorify the ride, it just glorifies their bank account.
Apollo's Chariot
- Thread starter Zachary
- Start date
I was at the park this weekend and I was just wondering why the park allows the ride operators to say whatever enters their empty heads.. I mean, this one guy was going on and on and on...how was your ride, blah blah blah. Just shut up and operate the ride. When the automated messages are playing I was thinking how much more professional that was versus some guy yelling on the mic at the top of his voice.
The operating crews AC gets are always the most annoying. This year they just happen to be very, very slow too. The dispatch spiel("Enjoy your voyage to the sun on the wings of Apollo's Chariot") has been broken since last year. I don't understand why AC's operators are always annoying when they talk manually into the mic, all the other operators at the other coasters do it in a lot less annoying way.
Honestly, they have nothing on the singing ride op at KD.
phareous said:
Maybe its just me, but I actually like it when the operators interact with people more than hearing the same old robotic spiel go off every 30 seconds. Especially when everyone else just lets the spiels run.
Unless they're being offensive, there's nothing wrong with the ops talking into the mics. Its pretty much allowed at every other theme park in the world. Busch is no exception.
Isn't the point of them talking to get you excited for the ride and interact with you to make sure you had a good experience? I'm sure it comes off as annoying to some, but it's nice to see them care about their jobs to want to try to do that.
phareous said:
It can't be anywhere as bad as the stuff they say at SFA. Last year a ride op on the Roar thought it was a good idea to play uncensored verisons of songs off his iPhone, then started to encourage his co-worker to "Twerk like Miley".
It might be just me but for any ride I can't stand it when the ride ops ask "Are you ready to ride?" and when they get weak responses, they ask two more times then dispatch. I understand they're trying to have fun and interact with guests but please don't make dispatch times longer than they should be.
Part of the deal with operating rides is the fact that employees interact with guests, some are good at entertaining guests while others prefer to let the autospiel do their jobs. Some rides have excellent autospiels which explain everything properly and there is literally no need for the operator/expeditor to say anything besides 'dispatch' (Demon Drop's autospiel comes to my mind).
I'm one of those operators that loves to talk and pretty much run the ride from the booth, mainly because my rides autospiel is quiet compared to the train that goes roaring by every few seconds. Grouping, holding rows, upselling, and just trying to set the pace all from one spot is very easy for me and it just helps me interact more with the guests than just 'shouting into the mic' saying the same things over and over again.
There are some people I've worked with who don't diversify and interact much with guests and it gets very annoying for everyone in the station especially if they don't have the right tone of voice. If they tend to speak loudly it becomes hard to hold rows for the loader since they have to shout over the operator at the guests, which they either won't hear you or take it the wrong way and get mad at you.
I'm one of those operators that loves to talk and pretty much run the ride from the booth, mainly because my rides autospiel is quiet compared to the train that goes roaring by every few seconds. Grouping, holding rows, upselling, and just trying to set the pace all from one spot is very easy for me and it just helps me interact more with the guests than just 'shouting into the mic' saying the same things over and over again.
There are some people I've worked with who don't diversify and interact much with guests and it gets very annoying for everyone in the station especially if they don't have the right tone of voice. If they tend to speak loudly it becomes hard to hold rows for the loader since they have to shout over the operator at the guests, which they either won't hear you or take it the wrong way and get mad at you.
It personally just gets really annoying when you're in the station forever, and you have to hear the same shouting into the microphone 10 times. Not only that but because he's shouting at the crowd telling them to scream 50 times before he dispatches a train, it slows down operations, ultimately making the suffering longer in the station. Spiels are also put there for thematic reasons, not playing them takes away from the theming. And just because you have heard the spiels many times, most people haven't and should here them more for thematic reasons.
That's all on the operator. As I've said some are good at it and can entertain guests, others should stick to an autospiel or a predetermined set of spiels and just avoid talking while at the mic. If the issue at Apollo's is bad just try and find the supervisor and respectfully tell them that the operator should try something different. The supervisor should be aware enough that guests aren't happy and do something.
Sometimes the autospiel hits me in a nostalgic way. There are several recordings by the same male voice that I think of as the "Anheuser Busch" voice and it is like I am back on the monorail for a ride to the brewery. I have heard some really creative ride operators and also some that were pretty annoying. I have never heard anything annoying or offensive enough to complain about.
Southwest Airlines is known for flight attendants that improvise and for some it is an art. I wonder if they receive many complaints since they push the envelope in directions I suspect some might find offensive. Anyone experience one of Air New Zealand's safety videos? Really, really creative and pretty funny.
Southwest Airlines is known for flight attendants that improvise and for some it is an art. I wonder if they receive many complaints since they push the envelope in directions I suspect some might find offensive. Anyone experience one of Air New Zealand's safety videos? Really, really creative and pretty funny.
I'll admit that I miss the Belgian lady at Volcano, telling me that "loose articles will not be tolerated."
Speaking of the shouting at guests blurb I made in my previous post I accidentally made a group mad since they had three consecutive trains with Platinum Flash Pass in their row and I couldn't get them on the train or talk over the train roaring by. So when they finally got on I let them ride a second time when they got back, cause they ended up waiting I believe like 4 trains for the same row while we were pushing 75 second dispatches.
For those that haven't been to a Six Flags park recently Platinum Flash Pass is the highest tier of Flash Pass that allows them to ride twice in a row without getting out of their seat.
Usually it doesn't pose much of a problem since guests only wait for one more train but sometimes they like to group up in the same row on every train and just stick other people behind the air gates until they all get that second ride.
For those that haven't been to a Six Flags park recently Platinum Flash Pass is the highest tier of Flash Pass that allows them to ride twice in a row without getting out of their seat.
Usually it doesn't pose much of a problem since guests only wait for one more train but sometimes they like to group up in the same row on every train and just stick other people behind the air gates until they all get that second ride.
Great replies. I will say I don't always have a problem with the operators on the mic... the issue is when they are screaming at the top of their lungs (you can't even understand them anyway) and they are saying the exact same stuff train after train after train. I mean some people might be waiting in the station a while and get tired of it. At least the auto spiel is usually low key
And likewise on the dispatch... don't hold up the train because you aren't getting the response you want
Also while the dispatch spiel might be broke, the arrival one isn't... so no need to constantly talk every time a train comes into the station
And likewise on the dispatch... don't hold up the train because you aren't getting the response you want
Also while the dispatch spiel might be broke, the arrival one isn't... so no need to constantly talk every time a train comes into the station
Verbolten may have the most annoying spiel off all the coasters at BGW, simply because the park thought they needed the audio to be played once for each train in the station, even though the audio from one spiel can be heard throughout the entire loading platform, so when the first train pulls in, its unloading audio plays, then its loading audio. Then, the second train pulls in and its unloading audio starts playing, so you end up with a very annoying echo effect.
Surprisingly enough, the park now has the ride theme on iTunes. Link.
I am amazed. I have talked to numerous people in charge of music, even the composers themselves, but none of them could see this happening.
I am amazed. I have talked to numerous people in charge of music, even the composers themselves, but none of them could see this happening.