Volume 3, No. 8. April 25, 2003
Eric's Turn
ACE
of diamonds
They are revered.
They are reviled. Often by the same people.
They are coaster enthusiasts.
Our industry has a love-hate relationship with enthusiasts. Enthusiasts are
perfect PR fodder for media days, make great models for video shoots of new
rides and are the primary perpetrators of good buzz for a ride or a park. All
you’ve got to do is feed ’em and give them some ERT. Many enthusiasts
also behave like over-demanding, spoiled brats, grow oversized chips on their
shoulders and tend to regard the “GP” (general public) as flotsam
to be skimmed out of their way, ignoring the fact that buzz is nice, but GP’s
pay the parks’ bills.
Say what you will about individual enthusiasts, but you cannot deny the huge
impact the American Coaster Enthusiasts, ACE, has had on our industry in the
club’s 25-year history. Is it coincidence or correlation that the industry’s
post-Roaring 20’s heyday, spurred by the steel “coaster wars”
and the resurgence of classic woodies, came about during ACE’s lifetime?
I think it’s correlation, though determining which spawned which is a chicken-and-the-egg
argument.
True to its name, though, ACE bred enthusiasm for coasters among the paying
public during the coaster war years. At the same time, the organization held
dear one of the primary tenets of its charter: to preserve classic coasters
and celebrate the amusement industry’s history. Even as its members were
looking for the latest, greatest thrill, they were campaigning to keep many
of the traditions of amusement parks intact and, in some cases, campaigning
to keep traditional amusement parks alive. Not only did they generate some business
for these parks, but their ideals were eventually embraced by the cyclic nature
of consumers who now desire traditionally Americana experiences.
ACE is in the middle of celebrating the 25th anniversary of its founding after
a coaster riding marathon at Paramount’s Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia,
to promote the just released Hollywood thriller Rollercoaster. The celebration
began at last year’s annual Coaster Convention at Six Flags Magic Mountain
(THE LOOP, June 28, 2002),
where one of the club’s founders, Richard Munch, rode the Revolution
coaster with Rollercoaster star Timothy Bottoms (photo above). The yearlong
celebration concludes this June when the annual Coaster Convention returns to
Kings Dominion as well as Busch Gardens Williamsburg June 15-21.
Meanwhile, the organization is moving forward on establishing the National Roller
Coaster Museum and Archive. It already has a large collection of coaster cars
and amusement park memorabilia and is raising money to find a permanent home
to exhibit these items for the public (THE
LOOP, November 26, 2002). The fund-raising campaign, run by a separate not-for-profit
entity but launched with a $250,000 contribution from ACE itself, aims to raise
$500,000 over the next three years.
THE LOOP is joining in both of these endeavors, and invites you, both industry
supplier and operator, to participate. We will be publishing our pre-Coaster
Con issue May 23 containing features, tips and schedules to assist not only
Coaster Con participants but anybody who may someday descend on the Virginia
parks. We will publish our post-Coaster Con issue June 27 containing a report
on the convention’s news and events plus a first-for-the-industry survey
on rider and patron preferences. We are offering special advertisements for
these issues—hot-linked to web sites, of course—and for every ad we
sell, 20 percent will be donated to the National Roller Coaster Museum and Archive
Fund.
This is an opportunity for you to congratulate ACE and support their worthy
efforts, a chance for you to build your future and your past. For more information
on the advertising special, click
here.
Clarification
In
the April 11, 2003, edition
of THE LOOP, a story about George Mason University’s new tourism degree
program and internship opportunities prompted a letter from George Mason alumnus
Mark Riddell, the public relations manager at Paramount’s Kings Dominion.
He recalled his alma mater being located in Fairfax, Virginia, not Manassas,
Virginia, as reported in our story. He’s right, the main campus is in Fairfax.
The university also has a campus in Arlington, Virginia, and in Manassas. The
Department of Health, Fitness and Recreation Resources' Tourism and Events Management
Program offers their major and minor degree on both the Fairfax and Manassas
campuses. The HFRR's main office and all five tourism faculty are located on
the Manassas campus.
THE LOOP is written and produced by Eric Minton, Minton Enterprises, LLC. To see more examples of Eric Minton's work and Minton Enterprises services, visit www.ericminton.com.
©2003, Minton Enterprises
LLC
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