This is Oktoberfest

[Doglover98]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

I completely agree, Sky. I did not like the new stage at all when the Festhaus was first renovated, but when you really look at it, it works very nicely with both of the shows. It also gives the Festhaus a more spacious feeling since it is not as tall, which I think makes the building seem larger and less cramped. However, I do wish that they could have found some way to perform Entwined on the old stage because it was so perfect for TIO and really brought something special to BGW. Here I go, getting all nostalgic...

 

[Planeteer]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

I personally like the Entwined stage for TIO because you get the bandstand there. Also, does a rising stage using hydraulics fit the themeing?

 

[Thomas]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

Does a giant steel twisting roller coaster fit the theming? Do toilets with running water fit the theming?

I don't quite think you're grasping the concept of theming here...

 

[Planeteer]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

OK, forget the hydaraulics, does a rising stage fit at all? The Black Forest stage fits better, IMO.

 

[Zachary]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

*rolls eyes*

Because every beer hall has a forest in the middle. My bad.

I love how this thread, the Europe in the Air thread, and others are now filled with people who have become more than happy to live with the current state of whatever-it-is while just two years ago not a single such person existed for any of these topics. This is when I, once again, point to my signature. Why? Because it's becoming a pandemic. I've been here since the very beginning. Everyone from the first years would think every last one of these posts was a complete joke. Even just a year or so before that- I'd love to have some of the BGEscape guys read these posts. I truly do find just how far the community's collective standards have been eroded to be horribly disheartening and really, fairly disappointing.

*hops off soapbox and retreats to the corner in which people who care about details, theming, and atmosphere seem to be segregated to now*

 

[Smatt]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

If I were you I would be ecstatic that these threads are filled with "complacent people" because it means your forum is growing and expanding to the "GP"(which I imagine is the goal?)....but at the same time I see your dilemma because it's becoming clearer that NOT "everyone hates this" or "no one likes that" and the majority and minority are starting to equal out.

 

[b.mac]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

I've always been the person in the corner as Zach stated. Just the difference is I'm cheering on the parks that don't settle for second best and actually invest in improvement and are worth keeping an eye on. The ones that care about their history and know it's a long fight to improve just that little bit that could make some family's year.

 

[Party Rocker]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

Zachary, I feel your concern, but opinions can change over time. I personally love having a more diverse group of members because that means there can be more conversation going on. I mean reading "this sucks" after so many times gets boring, worn out, and overall leaves the forums in a stagnate position.

Also I would like to point out we now have had 2 people from outside the forums join and fully explain how terrible the reputation of these forums are to the general public. I mean, yes we have a good reputation for giving out great information and all that jazz; however, the people skills and opinions get very conflicting quick.

I think this is an opportunity to really get into these topics. Why do these members like what they didn't like three years ago?

 

[Zachary]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

it means your forum is growing and expanding to the "GP" (which I imagine is the goal?)

Nope, not the goal at all. Never was.

 

[Planeteer]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

Then why have a public forum?

 

[BGW Family]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

*grabs Zachary's soapbox*

This is my opinion: because it is tradition. I expect to see things anyone would expect to see in a Festhaus or at an Oktoberfest celebration. Like a beer hall with banners and a round stage and maypoles and beer wagons and Polka Bands and alpenhorns with lederhosen and dirndl worn.

The title is (and should be) "This is Oktoberfest", not "this is some dance in the black forest". I don't want to see some German dance to a Madonna song by a cast wearing bowling shirts on a black forest stage backed by a rock band. Or Entwined, either. Since they put a kiddie show in a beer hall, are adults going to get a beer stand in LOD? Exaggerating, I know, but some things just don't fit

No more than I want to see something out of place in other hamlets. Celtic Fyre in some weird setting that wasn't an Irish pub? Drinks and Irish step dance on an Irish hillside? Not the same the immersion.

 

[Zachary]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

*stops sliding soapbox with foot and hops back up on it*

Well said BGW Family. *tips hat*

Then why have a public forum?

So the people with a passion for what the park has always been have a way to find each other and to discuss what was and what is. We welcome everyone but the site wasn't built for everyone- it was built for people with a true passion and connection to the park. The trouble is that most of the people who had that 4 years ago don't have it anymore- it has been destroyed by the park. We're left with a passion for what was and a distaste for what is. The people who have developed a love for the park in more recent times have the same passion about what they see now as "the old guard" had for what we saw just a few short years ago. That's the root of all of this conflict and disagreement and there's no fixing it on either side because, truly, there's nothing broken other than the park itself.

Why do these members like what they didn't like three years ago?

Because things keep getting worse. Entwined looks like a god-sent now that we've seen Killarney Kommotion. That's how standards are eroded. I wrote a massive post stating my peace about this sorta stuff a few months back- let me see if I can hunt it down.

EDIT: Here's the link.

 

[Party Rocker]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

Playing devils advocate here, but Zachary do you mean to say I don't have a true passion or connection to the park, because I would have to differ.

 

[Zachary]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

Nope- I said the exact opposite. You have a passion for the park in a very different state though. Your passion is current and, don't get me wrong, there's absolutely no problem with that at all- I'm just trying to lay out the root of the conflict for everyone.

 

[Malsdad]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

I try to give honest opinions here. I refuse to jump on the Bush Counter Bandwagon and place a microscope under every thing the park does. Complacent? No, just not an extremist to the point I'm counting petals on flowers, grading floor paint colors, or continuously comparing the park to when I was 7. Nothing in the world, especially today, stays the same.

There are those on this forum that continue to hold Busch Gardens to a standard of the past that they remember fondly. It's unlikely these people will ever find peace with Busch Gardens, as it's highly unlikely the park will ever again be what some remember it to be.

This is "supposed to be" a fan site for Busch Gardens. It's hard to picture it that way when most posts are either critiquing or complaining about something. Yes, the average public is finding its way to this site, which is quickly segregating the original group of Busch Bashers as the outcast rather than the norm. I guess everyone's definition of a 'fan' is different.

Anyway, that's my off topic post based on the few posts above

 

[Thomas]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

So, say there is this really great restaurant you like. It's different from all the other restaurants nearby, the food is delicious, the wait staff is excellent, and the atmosphere is great. You frequent the restaurant, everyone knows your name and what you usually order. Then one day, you walk in and everyone you knew was fired, replaced with rude teenagers, and the restaurant was converted to a Ruby Tuesday even though there was already one just a few minutes down the road. Are you supposed to just accept it? As a patron of that restaurant, are you not allowed to complain if the reason you liked the place so much is now gone?


And another thing... complaining isn't just done on this forum for the sake of sitting around and bitching. We point out things that are flawed in an attempt to make the park fix them. There is always room for improvement, and I find it helpful and constructive to point out things that could use some work.

 

[Malsdad]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

So, say there is this really great restaurant you like. It's different from all the other restaurants nearby, the food is delicious, the wait staff is excellent, and the atmosphere is great. You frequent the restaurant, everyone knows your name and what you usually order. Then one day, you walk in and everyone you knew was fired, replaced with rude teenagers, and the restaurant was converted to a Ruby Tuesday even though there was already one just a few minutes down the road. Are you supposed to just accept it? As a patron of that restaurant, are you not allowed to complain if the reason you liked the place so much is now gone?

Of course you can. To be honest, most restaurants I love end up eventually screwing it up.

BUT, if I found myself not liking this hypothetical Ruby Tuesday's, I certainly wouldn't join the Ruby Tuesday Fan Site, spend years on the fan site posting how I think they could improve it and telling everyone how great it was 5 years ago. I would find a new restaurant and move on.

So, you are apparently on the side of "How great it used to be" and "They should do this and that".

That's fine, I think a mix of people on both sides is great, but I just don't think your restaurant will ever again be what you remember it being.

 

[Zachary]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

I certainly wouldn't join the Ruby Tuesday Fan Site, spend years on the fan site posting how I think they could improve it and telling everyone how great it was 5 years ago. I would find a new restaurant and move on.

Well, we've all been part of the community since a time when BGW wasn't Ruby Tuesday. That's the big difference.

Also, using that analogy with the conditions we're under in Hampton Roads, that Ruby Tuesday is the only restaurant within hundreds and hundreds of miles- the next closest food options are a Denny's in Doswell or a McDonald's in Maryland. If you want to go out to eat, you're going to go to that Ruby Tuesdays. You'll hate the place and the fact that you're spending your money there, but for even a tiny shard of the former restaurant experience, you'll still go. Unfortunately, each time you go, your disappointment in the place will be renewed once again and, no matter how much you may want to, you'll never be able to stop comparing it to the place it once was.

That's where I am.

 

[Thomas]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

That's exactly what is happening... people are finding elsewhere to spend their money, and pretty soon, the park will be nothing. The hypothetical Ruby Tuesdays will never prosper because the one down the road has a bigger salad bar and nicer booths. Right now, the only thing keeping anyone going to this place is the one sexy hostess that remained from the old restaurant. The one little glint of the charm that used to fill the whole restaurant.

 

[Malsdad]

RE: This is Oktoberfest (1976 to 2011, 2013 to Present)

That's exactly what is happening... people are finding elsewhere to spend their money, and pretty soon, the park will be nothing. The hypothetical Ruby Tuesdays will never prosper because the one down the road has a bigger salad bar and nicer booths. Right now, the only thing keeping anyone going to this place is the one sexy hostess that remained from the old restaurant. The one little glint of the charm that used to fill the whole restaurant.

and the Nurses, don't forget the Nurses