Volume 2, No. 1. January 11, 2002
Dinner reservations
The dungeness crab is good, as is
the Alaskan halibut. Snow crab and bay scallops? Only if you're really in the
mood. And stay away from the bluefin tuna and monkfish. These recommendations
come to you courtesy of the Monterey Bay Aquarium in Monterey, California, but
they have nothing to do with flavor or freshness.
The aquarium is spearheading a campaign to promote healthy seafood eating: healthy
for the animals still in the seas. Next week an alliance of environmental organizations
will meet in Washington, D.C., for a sustainable seafood summit, and a prime
topic will be the Seafood Watch campaign that Monterey Bay Aquarium plans to
expand to other zoos and aquariums across the country this spring.
The campaign originated in 1997 when the aquarium put up a "Fishing for Solutions"
exhibit that focused on issues of overfishing, habitat deprivation and bycatch,
such as snaring dolphins in tuna nets. While putting together the exhibit, Monterey's
staff realized their own restaurant, Portola Cafe, was contributing to the problem
with its popular seafood menu. Aquarium researchers then began looking at which
seafood had the least impact on the environment.
"Before we knew it, we were, internally, coming up with a list of seafood,"
said Jennifer Dianto, the aquarium's Seafood Watch program manager. "Our members
got wind of it and wanted copies of that list. And that evolved into the Seafood
Watch consumer guide."
The guide, which can fit in a pocket or wallet, has three categories: "Best
Choices" in green, "Proceed with Caution" in yellow and "Avoid" in red. Though
some items on the Avoid list, such as shark, are obvious because of the species'
endangered status, others seem odd: farmed salmon and shrimp are to be avoided,
for example, while Best Choices include wild salmon from the Pacific Northwest.
"We try to keep our message positive," Dianto said. "On the green list are segments
of the aquaculture industry working hard to do the right thing in operating
in environmentally friendly ways. This (list) is a way to reward those efforts.
In time, we hope everything on the Avoid list shifts to the green list."
Since the card's introduction—and an educational focus centered on the
Seafood Watch program as part of the aquarium's new Vanishing Wildlife exhibit
which opened last spring (THE
LOOP, June 1, 2001)—more than 200,000 have been distributed to aquarium
guests, and 10,000 more downloaded from the aquarium's web site. Other zoos
and aquariums also are distributing the card or posting large signs replicating
the list, and the Portola Cafe's operator, Bon Appétit, has adopted the
guidelines for its other corporate cafeterias and catering contracts.
Now, Monterey Bay Aquarium is working with a David and Lucile Packard Foundation
grant to expand the aquarium's web site to include more information on the species
listed on the Seafood Watch guide, to create a database for research behind
the guide and other seafood choice programs and to produce regional Seafood
Watch cards for distribution through organizations across the country. "That
way, zoos can give out cards that are more tailored to their region's tastes,"
Dianto said. The funding provides for 250,000 cards in each of five regions,
tentatively drawn as Southeast, Northeast, Midwest and Great Lakes, plus a revamped
West Coast version.
Dianto said the new web site and nationwide program will roll out in May, centered
on media events like celebrity chefs visiting Monterey Bay for a three-day program
on sustainable seafood. Meanwhile, she is looking for partners among zoos and
aquariums to improve and promote Monterey Bay's initial efforts. "We are looking
forward to helping zoos and aquariums set up their own programs, and we want
to get their advice and inputs."
For more information on Seafood Watch and to download the consumer guide, visit
www.montereybayaquarium.org.
For information on the sustainable seafood alliance, visit www.seafoodchoices.net.
Dianto will be outlining the full program in the March issue of Communique,
the American Zoo and Aquarium Association's magazine. To subscribe, visit www.aza.org.
Sobering experience
Most go-kart operators shudder at
the thought of a group of teen-agers driving over their courses while intoxicated.
Fun Spot Action Park in Orlando, Florida, not only welcomes them, it invites
them in free.
It is part of a community outreach program Fun Spot conducts for local schools,
coordinating with the Florida Highway Patrol. The program uses a special pair
of goggles that emulate the mental condition of a person who has just consumed
four beers within an hour. Fun Spot sets up signs and other obstacles on its
flat track, and after a state trooper re-enacts a DUI arrest for the students
and discredits old wives' tales about beating sobriety tests, the teens take
the wheel of the karts and navigate the course while wearing the goggles.
"At the time, all of them think they're doing great," said Fun Spot President
and Owner John Arie. "But when we show them the video, we show them they didn't
do as great as they thought." Arie himself can attest to the goggles' effectiveness,
which he purchased a year ago from Amusement Products in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Comparing them with his "youthful experience," he said, "You don't have the
buzz, but you have the disorientation. When I did it I knew I didn't hit anything.
I was proud of myself. Then they showed me the video tape, and I hit many things."
After forming a partnership with the Highway Patrol, Arie approached the schools,
bringing out a group of teachers to try the program. They became his biggest
champions, but "the schools haven't jumped on it as hard as I expected," he
said, citing administration trepidation over field trips in general. Nevertheless,
he averaged three programs a month in the first year, with some teachers using
their own resources to bring groups of teens to the park.
Arie finds the best audience for the program comprises ages 14 to 18. "Once
they get to 16, they get a drivers license and they get cocky," he said.
"For maybe 10 percent of kids over 16, it's more of a game than a true
experience. For kids under 16, it's 100 percent effective: they are very involved,
and the program is very impactful."
Because only eight students can take on the course at one time, the rest of
the group often play in Fun Spot's arcade or other attractions until it's their
turn to drive. Some groups also eat lunch at the family entertainment center.
Otherwise, the park makes no profit from the program. "It enlightens the kids
to our presence," Arie said. "They've heard of Fun Spot but never been out here,
didn't know how big it is and all the activities we have, so it's a great marketing
tool from that point of view." His primary motivation, however, is "give back
to the community."
For that reason, his favorite aspect of the program is watching the highway
patrolmen interact with the kids. "They spend 15 to 20 minutes with the kids
and create one to-one relationships. One guy is phenomenal. He works 10 p.m.
to 6 a.m. (22,00 to 06,00), gets a couple hours of sleep and comes down at 10:30
(10,30) to do this, and we can't pay him. We offer him things, and he won't
take it. It makes me appreciative whenever a Highway Patrol car goes by."
Going with the flow
One of the dangers of being an improvisational
actor interacting with children is that your audience can hit you with a tough
question.
At Het Land van Ooit, a family park in Drunen, Netherlands, one of the characters
mingling among the young patrons is Sap the Juicy Root, who looks like a tree
root and lives underground. She emerges to tell children stories about trees
and plants.
After one such performance, a child asked Sap if she'd seen his grandmother,
who had been buried the week before. The actress, though taken back by the sad
question, didn't miss a beat. "Yes," she replied. "She's now a beautiful flower."
Ahead of its time
If yours is a land of make-believe,
you can make up just about anything—even the time of day. LEGOLAND California
in Carlsbad located itself in LEGOLAND Standard Time for New Year's Eve, a time
zone equivalent to Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, six hours ahead of the park's surrounding
neighborhoods.
So, midnight struck on the Fun Town Square Clock Tower when it was 6 p.m. elsewhere
in California, allowing LEGOLAND's chief demographic, children ages 2 to 12,
to ring in the New Year with wild celebration rather than sound sleep. This
was the park's third year hosting an "early" Kids' New Year's Eve party, with
attendance this year nearly doubling that of last year, said Kina Paegert, senior
communications specialist at the park, though she would not reveal the final
number. The party also attracted three local television crews.
For the kids, it was like being in Times Square with Dick Clark. Starting at
4:30 p.m. (16,30) and centered on the park's Fun Town section, the party featured
LEGOLAND's regular entertainment corps performing on stage in a continuous show
and mingling among the celebrants. A roving video camera broadcast kids on a
big screen television perched atop one of the buildings. Children could see
themselves dancing on the giant video and telling an interviewer their New Year's
resolutions, which ran from "being nicer to my big sister" to "playing with
my LEGOs more." Armed with noise makers and party hats, the gathering counted
down to midnight when a giant LEGO brick dropped igniting a 15-minute fireworks
display choreographed to a mix of popular and oldies dance music.
With 2002 now arrived, the patrons dispersed, LEGOLAND closed to the public
and readied itself for a private fund-raiser party, featuring dance music, party
favors and yet another brick drop and fireworks show at midnight.
That's midnight, Pacific Standard Time.
Return visit
The saga of Whalom Amusement Park
(THE LOOP, November 16,
2001) continues as the foreclosure auction set for this week—itself
postponed from December—has been moved to February 15. Shareholder Joseph
O'Donnell is negotiating with developers to sell the Lunenburg, Massachusetts,
park. Meanwhile, the delays are allowing the Bowen family, minority shareholders
and longtime owners/operators, to come up with their own money for outright
purchase. Allyson Bowen said she has lined up private investors and talked with
a financial institution, but her main thrust is a fund-raising "Buy a Whale"
campaign. "We're still hopeful we can get communities on board, whether it's
the local community or enthusiasts," she said. The campaign's web site is www.savewhalompark.com.
New Arrivals
It's a roller coaster!
Fujikyu Highlands in Fujiyoshida, Japan, announces the arrival of Dodonpa,
December 21, 2001. Measurements: 1,189 meters long (3,940 feet), 52-meter-high
tower (170 feet), three 800-horsepower compressors to air-launch an eight-passenger
train at 172 km/h (107 mph) in 1.8 seconds. Delivered by S&S Power via Kawasho
Corp., with assistance from Intermountain Lift, Setpoint, JKR & Associates and
Deterministic Systems.
Stan Checketts, founder and president of S&S Power, has said he was inspired
to build his thrust air roller coaster when he raced his snowmobile up cliffs
near his Logan, Utah, home. He wanted to share that thrill with as many people
as he could, and he set out to do it with the thrust air technology he perfected
in his turbo drop towers to send trains rocketing straight up and then down
an inverted U.
With Dodonpa, the company's second thrust air coaster installation after
Hypersonic XLC at Paramount's Kings Dominion (LOOP,
March 23, 2001), he came closer to his original vision than he would
have wished. Just 15 minutes after Kouichirou Horiuchi, president of Fujikyu
Highland's parent company, Fujikyuko Co., Japanese sportscaster Motoko Obayashi
and model Kanako Kojima cut the ribbon at 10 a.m. (10,00) that Friday, the first
snowflakes began fluttering down. Within 30 minutes, Dodonpa had to close
for the rest of the day, thanks to a snowfall that would accumulate 4 inches
(10 centimeters) by early afternoon.
Even so, Dodonpa accomplished its two missions: establishing a new speed
record among coasters (if not all forms of land transportation) and wowing those
who did ride it. "I've never felt like this before," said Obayashi about her
front-seat ride on the first official train. "I heard that this ride is famous
for speed, but when I did it, it was faster than I thought it would be." As
a professional volleyball player and sportscaster, Obayashi has traveled the
world and visited many amusement parks, testifying to a love of roller coasters
and proclaiming this "the best ever."
It is her athletic experience, however, including driving race cars, which gives her opinion authoritative weight. "I've experienced high speeds, but this was the first time to experience so much speed in such little time." Then, pointing out that a volleyball can be struck at 120 km/h, she said, "This was faster than a spiked volleyball."
It's
a roller coaster!
Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California, announces the arrival of
X, January 10, 2002. Measurements: 200 feet high (60 meters), 3,600 feet
long (1,090 meters), 76 mph (121 km/h) with 28 passenger trains featuring 360-degree
of motion in the seats independent of the track. Delivered by Arrow Dynamics.
In an industry where hype is endemic, it is sometimes difficult to cull out
the truly revolutionary. X is.
For the first time a manufacturer and a park can legitimately claim to have
the ultimate amusement ride, if only because X is a hybrid of two ride
types: a coaster, with tracks that drop, loop and corkscrew, and a flat ride,
with seats that rotate and spin. This, however, is not just a coaster with spinning
seats. The seats are attached through gear mechanisms to another set of rails
on the track so that each rotation is calculated to occur at certain points
in the ride, making for a balletic maneuvering through air, and an experience
that kicked up the thrill quotient among even the hardiest coaster enthusiasts
Thursday.
And so launches 2002 for the industry, a timing that Six Flags Magic Mountain
arrived at rather inauspiciously. Though never formally announcing a projected
opening date, the park had hoped to get X open by last summer. But as
both Deja Vu and then X experienced technological problems, the
two prototype rides' openings were pushed back to late summer. Deja Vu
finally opened in August (THE
LOOP, September 21, 2001), but X continued to languish through the
fall. When the park deemed the ride ready to debut in December, officials decided
to give season pass holders exclusive ride time and push the public and media
coming out to the New Year.
The result was a buzz-building few rides enjoy, the most Magic Mountain General
Manger Del Holland had ever seen. By Thursday, when, under a cloudless sky and
intense sun, Holland narrated for a live audience and a worldwide satellite
video feed the first official public circuit of X, the coaster had already
attained a legendary status. Now with the media on hand along with members of
the American Coasters Enthusiasts, regard for X rose even higher.
"Most of the guys, after riding it 10 or 15 times, still cannot tell you exactly
where they are on the track," Holland said. "We wanted a ride experience to
be different, we wanted it to be fun, and above all we wanted it to be thrilling.
And this thing delivers. You're in that seat and it starts rotating and you
go down that drop and there's nothing like it. Have you ever jumped out of an
airplane? It's a feeling like none other in the world."
It also provided Six Flags Magic Mountain an event to complete its transition
from being an amusement park to an Xtreme Park. Not only was this part of a
new marketing thrust, it dictated X's placement at the highway entrance
to the park. "We wanted to make a statement: We're the extreme park," Holland
said. "And if there's any doubt after pulling into our toll plaza that we're
not, heh-heh, this is the best billboard in the world, right here." He pointed
to X behind him just as another train of splayed-armed-and-legged riders
cascaded straight down the 200-foot first drop face first. "You just have to
try it," Holland said.
Eric’s Turn
New, new, new
Though THE LOOP has been on holiday hiatus the past four weeks, we've kept busy.
In December, I flew to Japan to cover the opening of Dodonpa at Fujikyu
Highlands in Fujiyoshida, working there with Alan Huestis (above, behind camera)
of Studio 404 Photography, Jon Callahan of Popular Science and Chisa
Hasegawa, public relations specialist for the park. This week I flew to Six
Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California, to cover the opening of X,
along with dozens of journalists.
THE LOOP covered both of these events as part of our Enhanced New Arrivals program,
a new advertising and editorial package that brings you, the reader, more information
and photos about new installations around the world, and brings more attention
to the manufacturers and parks opening up these rides. You can see the additional
material by clicking the thumbnail photos just below the New Arrival stories.
We were fortunate to launch the package with two such important installations:
Dodonpa breaking a world speed record, and X doing maneuvers no
roller coaster has ever done before. We thank both S&S Power (Dodonpa)
and Six Flags (X) for the opportunity and privilege of launching our
new program with their new babies. And we sincerely believe these two successful
openings bode a fruitful and fun-filled year for the industry.
To find out how you can announce your attraction's delivery through with an Enhance New Arrival, email either myself (eric@gettheloop.com) or Lynne Mosman, our advertising manager (lynne@gettheloop.com), or call her at 866-902-LOOP (outside North America dial 1-937-296-9796).