[split] Concepts Think Tank
IndyRacingNut said:
One solid argument for a Disneyland-type attraction sponsorship business model.
It has worked for them since 1955. If they're still doing it today, that must mean it WORKS. The whole thing w/Stride & Kia (actually the KIA one doesn't look all that bad, to be honest. Wouldn't keep me from riding the ride...)
I'd like to post a full picture of the train but the only picture I could find was taken with a brick, and it looksmore like a blur than a coaster train. Take it from me you'd want to beat that train with a sledgehammer when you see the full thing, it's absolutely vomit worthy.
No Disney property has closed down. Can't say the same for Six Flags. There's been a TON of closures on their part.
Fair note. I am not arguing for Six Flags on this, just laying down the facts so that we all really understand what goes down. Only one park has officially been "closed" by Six Flags without extenuating circumstances, and that is Six Flags Astroworld.
Six Flags New Orleans was heavily damaged by Katrina, completely flooded actually. Six Flags decided it would be a better move to abandon the park instead of refurbishing it and getting it back to operating condition. Also don't forget that Six Flags leased the property, and it wasn't cheap whatsoever. The hurricane gave Six Flags an escape clause to drop the lease and cut their losses in the easiest way possible. The park was a wash out bar a few rides they salvaged, and they had to fight New Orleans for 2 full years just to get a B&M Invert and a Vekoma family coaster out of there.
Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom was also a nightmare when its lease went up, and talks for renewal came up. The Kentucky State Fair Board wanted to raise the costs for leasing the property, and Six Flags decided it wasn't worth the investment and packed up rides and left. The reason why this isn't an official closure is because Six Flags wasn't operating the park at a loss, the KSFB basically drove them out of their own park. We have I think three threads in the other parks forum about Kentucky Kingdom, and it's been brought up a few times just how hard it is to work with the KSFB when the Koch's of Holiday World back out of a deal, and the guy who was willing to use his own money to revive the park was denied.
Six Flags Ohio was meant as a competitor to Cedar Point, and it didn't work out well. They escaped by selling the park to Cedar Fair (the same company who owns Cedar Point), and sticking them with what to do with it. Cedar Fair ultimately "closed" Geauga Lake, but it still operates as a standalone water park under the Cedar Fair banner.
Astroworld had similar circumstances to its closing like Kentucky Kingdom did, but Six Flags decided before that it'd be better to shut down the park and leave due to the upcoming lease renewal and the extremely high cost of staying there. They knew keeping Astroworld open wouldn't of been a good idea, so they let the park slowly whither until the lease went up in 2005.
Now it's officially an overflow lot for the Reliant Stadium.
IF it's done right (meaning, do it the way Disney does it) then it WILL work. And unlike their patent on the FastPass system, Disney has no patent on this particular method of bringing in extra revenue. Blackstone would be wise to look at this.
Blackstone would be wiser to actually ask Disney how they manage to keep sponsors interested, and how to make sure they build a relationship worthy of making the sponsors invest with the park. A good chunk of Disney's sponsorships actually made Disneyland, and were set in stone before the park even opened. What Blackstone would be doing is trying to recruit sponsors in order to invest in the park, instead of actually building one from complete scratch.
