bill s said:
Most of the now 10 PM closing nights were 9 PM when Drachen Fire existed.
Respectfully... that's absolutely and demonstrably untrue. The park generally stayed open later in those days, and the older brochures' operating calendars back that up.
But this 9pm notion is particularly odd given that there was
no such thing as a 9pm close at BGW in 1993. Or 1994. Or 1995, 1996, or 1997. (Didn't bother to check 1992 or 1998 since the pattern is already clear.)
Maybe you're thinking of a different park?
Some rough numbers for those who care...
Nights open until 10pm or later, May-Oct:
1993: 92
2017: 63
Nights open until midnight, May-Oct:
1993: 11
2017: 4
Most 1990s-era calendars had stats very similar to the 1993 example above.
Operating realities aside, I really do wish the park stayed open later these days. To me, the park's most beautiful time of day in the '90s was the 9pm-midnight stretch. It was a three-hour block of slow pathway strolls lit by shop windows; night rides on dark terrain-following beasts like LNM, Alpengeist, and especially BBW; and hamlet music languidly floating through the air from sources invisible while crowds thinned out to leave a quiet, reflective back half of the park. You could truly cool off from the summer heat, and either hit your favorite ride a ton of times or slowly enjoy the park at its very best. Magic.
Edit: Also, tracer lights.
