So I’m thinking about applying to kd to be a ride operator. I just want to know if you’re able to choose a ride or do they just send you to one. Because I really wanna operate I305 like it’s honestly a dream.
Park Jobs
- Thread starter realrx
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I know at least at BGW it just depends. If they have a lot of open positions they'll let you choose, but if they don't, or they specifically need help at 1 ride they won't let you choose. When I was hired they didn't let me choose. I would imagine KD is the same.
Take this with a grain of salt since this was 2018, but they do ask what rides you would like, but I did not get any of my top three. I however did love where I ended up. If you end up in Jungle X you might be crossed trained for it, in case your ride goes down. I ended up being trained at Dominator, Berserker, Log Flume, WWC, Cars, and Grizzly. I only had my level 1 (highest level at each ride, most of the time, your board op) at WWC but having some basic training at other rides in my area allowed me to take position when running other supervisors breaks if needed and I had somewhere to go in case WWC was not running. I think part of the reason they ask which rides you want is that want to make sure you aren't trying to be grouped with friends, as that can lead to you being distracted because there was people in my training group who got put to at Twisted (my top choice). If you have any other questions, shoot away. Honestly, my time working at the park was some of the most fun I've had. And I miss it sometimes, and the benefits are nice too. You get you and one friend into every "Six Flags" park. That means all CF and SF legacy parks, you also get you and a friend into BGW, Dollywood, and Hershey. you also get 8 free tickets your first year and 16 a year after your first year.
You had me going until the part about tickets at unaffiliated competitor parks - how'd that work?
I can't see why they'd justify spending on that for regular park employees (competition research?) nor the other parks having some kind of reciprocity agreement.
I can't see why they'd justify spending on that for regular park employees (competition research?) nor the other parks having some kind of reciprocity agreement.
It's just a reciprocity agreement
The only thing I’ll add to that is we gave other park employees free parking and Bgw never gave us free parking.
When I worked there I wasn't able to choose, however it was during Haunt so that might have affected things. Although I didn't work there long, it was a lot of fun so I definitely recommend it!
I’ve never directly said this before but it’s probably been obvious from my posts — I worked at KD for several years, and I absolutely loved it. I’m nostalgic for my time at KD all the time. Made amazing friends and memories, and felt that the company — as much as could be expected from a corporation mostly staffed by hourly laborers — and leadership genuinely respected its employees. I’d recommend it for sure.
For what it’s worth, I never worked in Rides, but as others have said you likely won’t get your first choice of attractions. That said, if you stick with it for a while and develop a good reputation for yourself, doors will open.
For what it’s worth, I never worked in Rides, but as others have said you likely won’t get your first choice of attractions. That said, if you stick with it for a while and develop a good reputation for yourself, doors will open.
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I applied during a job fair and was hired on the spot. I had experience working as a mechanic so I wanted to either work on rides or at least operate them, but was not given the chance to even choose the “department” when I was hired. As a 19 year old at the time, I did not love it as we didn’t make a lot of money and it was a 30min ride from where I lived, but honestly I didn’t like any job back then. All That being said, looking back on it with the benefit of 15 years of growing up - it was actually a fun and valuable experience that had some cool perks and I am glad that I have those memories. Not only did I get to learn something about retail and customer service (both valuable and applicable to my current career), I met some great people and got to spend time in a place I truly love. The foreign exchange team members were one of my favorite parts of working there, very cool to mix with people of different cultures and I’m still great friends with one of them. If you are ok with the drive and pay, then I say go for it! No matter where you end up working in the park, if you bring a positive attitude and desire to learn, you will find value in it … either way though, at the end of the day it’s just a job and you can always give notice and leave if you find out it’s not for you
