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Volume 2, No. 6.   March 22, 2002

By Eric Minton

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Allied force
In a marriage of strengths and mediums, THE LOOP is formally forging a partnership with the industry newspaper Amusement Today. Officially launching April 1, the partnership will manifest most in a new Web site, www.amusementtoday.com, that will be run by Minton Enterprises, LLC, publishers of THE LOOP.

"It just fits," said Gary Slade, publisher of Amusement Today, which begins its sixth year covering the amusement industry with its April issue. "We do so much together anyway we needed to find a way to combine efforts that was good for both of us. We found a way that will also change how news is delivered to the industry."

In particular Slade means a special feature of the new Web site, a page titled Extra Extra that will contain breaking news stories as they develop. The stories will then be expanded with the reporting of complete details in the semi-monthly LOOP or the monthly Amusement Today.

In conjunction with the Extra Extra updates, THE LOOP will start running an Extra Extra box that will be continuously updated with headlines of new items posted on amusementtoday.com. This way, readers can have a quick source to breaking news. THE LOOP will continue to be delivered free via e-mail notifications with the posting of each new issue the second and fourth Fridays of every month.

Though other web sites offer amusement industry news, amusementtoday.com will feature the combined efforts of Amusement Today's team and Minton Enterprises, two organizations grounded in journalism with strong connections throughout the industry. Further, the partnership combines the strengths of the two organizations: Amusement Today is the industry's most respected publication among manufacturers and parks, especially in North America, while THE LOOP brings to the mix Eric Minton's nine years of experience covering the amusement industry—including zoos and haunts—plus international connectivity and a strong web presence that already draws more than 8,000 visitors per month.

While both entities remain separately owned, the alliance also represents a combination of advertising efforts. Amusement Today will take on the bulk of ad sales for THE LOOP in addition to selling amusementtoday.com and the newspaper. With all three outlets advertisers will be able to purchase maximum-exposure packages through cooperative advertising.

At the least the alliance clears up confusion, both for readers of the two publications and the publishers themselves. THE LOOP, which was first developed in 1999 as a column for IAAPA's Funworld Magazine, launched as a web site in February 2001; a month later, as a freelance writer, Eric Minton joined the Amusement Today team as the Ohio Bureau Chief. Both publications occasionally shared information and traded out advertising, and THE LOOP operated out of the Amusement Today booth at the 2001 IAAPA Trade Show. Nevertheless, the two entities competed for editorial and advertising.

Now, they combine forces, keeping what makes each special, adding a breaking news element and making the whole more affordable for advertisers and more accessible for readers. "It marks a new beginning for reporting news to keep our readers better informed," Slade said. Meanwhile, it marks the end of confusion and competition between two good friends.

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Ocean Journey's grand entrance on the aquarium scene could not save it from a dispirited end.
Photo by Eric Minton.

Drowned in debt
Open only three years, during which time it became a warning beacon of financial excess among the aquarium community, Colorado's Ocean Journey in Denver, Colorado, announced Tuesday that it would shut its doors to the public April 2. The aquarium will remain operating another two months while it finds homes at other AZA-accredited facilities for its 8,000 animals.

"We are still hoping there can be some miracle to pull us through," said Kimberly Thomas, public relations manager for the aquarium. "We hope some angel will come along to give us money that the bondholders would find acceptable. But we're talking multi-millions."

Specifically, $63 million in debt, $57 million of that in bonds. Last July the aquarium defaulted on its bonds when it quit paying into the escrow accounts. By then Ocean Journey, which had opened at a price tag of $93 million to much fanfare in June 1999, was on its way to losing another $6.8 million for the year. Ocean Journey was built and budgeted on a forecast of 1.1 million visitors per year, a figure—if it could be reached—that still swould not allow the aquarium to climb out of debt quickly. The first year 1.4 million visitors passed through its doors, and the aquarium still struggled financially. Last year attendance dropped to 742,000.

In January the mayor offered a bail-out plan, but the city council this month wouldn't approve it in the face of an economic downturn that forced budget cuts throughout the city government. The aquarium also reportedly approached several amusement corporations about purchasing the facility, including its neighbor, Six Flags, none of whom showed interest in running the operation.

At an impasse with the bondholders, the aquarium board decided on a course of closure. "We're trying to be very realistic so we can give our employees as much notice as possible as well as help our animals find suitable homes," Thomas said. Ocean Journey employees 100 people, not including three contracting agencies, and 550 volunteers also work there. The animals represent 500 species, including three Sumatran tigers, two people-loving sea otters and a flirtatious octopus.

With a fiduciary obligation to make as much money as possible and save capital, the aquarium decided to close after spring breaks are concluded, and will sell as many animals as possible rather than give them away to other institutions, Thomas said. Next week the aquarium will host a scheduled Regional Aquatic Workshop, attended by aquarium professionals from around the world. "It turned out to be very good timing," Thomas said. "It will help people see what we have here in our inventory, and it offers the aquarists here a chance to network."

The aquarium announced that it would not reimburse the 15,000 families who had paid $85 memberships, but Wednesday the Denver Zoo offered free memberships to the zoo for all current Ocean Journey members. Meanwhile, news of the closing caused an outpouring of community support and visitors. Children started fund-raising campaigns, and one raised $112 to give to Ocean Journey. "There's grass roots support, but when you're talking multimillions, it's not enough," Thomas said. More than 4,000 people visited the aquarium Wednesday, about double its normal gate, she said. "It was real bittersweet because they were having a lot of fun, but it was too late."

Institutions accredited by the American Zoo and Aquarium Association who are interested in providing new homes for the animals can contact Ocean Journey's curator of fish Rich Lerner (rlerner@oceanjourney.org) or curator of training and husbandry Pete Davey (pdavey@oceanjourney.org).

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A restraint finding
In the first application of California's 1999 permanent amusement ride safety law, the state's Division of Occupational Safety and Health issued a report Tuesday on last September's shoot-the-chute fatality at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, ordering improved restraint systems on the ride before it can reopen.

A woman weighing 292 pounds fell from the Perilous Plunge boat just as it was making its final descent. The state inspectors determined that the woman's obesity was partly to blame for the accident, but that the ride's seat belt and lap bar were insufficient to restrain a person of that size. The division ordered Knott's to make 12 modifications to the ride, including changing the restraints to accommodate larger people.

Knott's officials said the park would work with the ride's manufacturer, Intamin AG, to make the changes and reopen Perilous Plunge when it meets inspectors' approval. In a prepared statement, the park also commended the process that led to the reported findings. "(Park) officials respectfully thank the state's investigators for the professional and diligent manner in which the investigation was conducted," the statement said.

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New heights
The issue never was about tip-toes. Disneyland in Anaheim, California, wanted to create a high-tech height check as a time management service for guests. So, the Imagineers sought to replace measuring stick-carrying cast members with something new and cool, and effective, too.
"We've taken technology and applied it so that guests understand as they start their day what they can do and what they can't do for the remainder of the day," said Jim MacPhee, vice president of attractions and guest service operations for Disneyland Resort.

His team began testing the new ultrasound unit, located at the park's information board in the entry plaza, on December 5. As children stand against a pole, the device shoots an ultrasound beam between the pole and the child's head to measure his or her height, calibrating five to 10 times to ensure an accurate reading, MacPhee said. The reading then automatically triggers a color-coded light that corresponds to a Disney character on a wristband the child can wear. White—Mickey Mouse—lights up for individuals less than 35 inches (89 centimeters), yellow/Minnie Mouse 35 to 40 inches (102 centimeters), blue/Donald Duck 40 to 46 inches (117 centimeters) and green/Goofy above 46 inches. Eventually the attractions themselves will have corresponding color-coded signage, MacPhee said.

Ultrasound, MacPhee said, "takes any subjectivity out of it," and that is as much a perception issue as a purpose for using it. Castmembers carrying measuring poles could ensure children stayed flat-footed and accurately judge their heights, but using technology removes even the notion that such calls are incorrect. Adding the color coded lighting system makes the measuring experience more fun for the family, too, as castmembers can remark with surprise, "Oh, look you're a green!" And the wristband serves as a Disney keepsake for the children. "The wristband is quite the collector's piece right now," MacPhee said.

The device's primary mission, though, is to save guests time and heartache. By measuring at the start of their day, families know what attractions to target and what to avoid. It also precludes approaching an attraction with the promise of riding and then learning at the entrance that the child is too short, a scenario usually resulting in tears, pouts and implorings from children and parents alike. For these reasons, guests have been reacting to the measuring station as "a great experience," MacPhee said. "The reception we've received from guests is an indication that it's another great tool, like Fast Pass, to plan their day here."

Measuring stick wielding cast members remain at the individual attractions as Disneyland fully phases in the program. MacPhee said more units are planned throughout the park, and the program will begin rolling out in Disney's California Adventures by the end of this month.

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Haunters took to heart the old business adage: you are what you wear.
Photo by Eric Minton.

Fears for the future
With signs that the haunt industry, after an off year in 2001, is still growing, the fledgling International Association of Haunted Attractions elected a new president and board of directors to lead an organization with growing membership and increasing financial stability.

Bob Turner, president of Turner Enterprise Inc., which runs Haunted Hydro Dark Attraction Park in Fremont, Ohio, took over the gavel from D'Ann Dagen at this month's annual IAHA meeting during the TransWorld National Halloween Costume and Party Show in Chicago, Illinois. Turner becomes the association's third president under the bylaws adopted four years ago after Dagen served consecutive one-year terms.

"Last year I had not worked enough with D'Ann and needed one more year to feel comfortable before taking over," said Turner, who had been vice president during Dagen's tenure. "She's done a great job for us, given us a lot of committed time. Anytime you are building an organization it's the slower steps that have to be handled very carefully for the long-term growth of the organization. She's accomplished a lot of those steps that will allow me to take it to the next milestone."

Among those milestones is to establish more IAHA-sanctioned regional meetings so more haunt operators can gain the educational benefits of the association's training seminars and literature. Last year IAHA published a Safety Manual free to members, and this year it produced a 118-page addendum to the safety manual, plus a 132-page Haunters Handbook, with operational tips from established operators. "I think from the inception of the TransWorld conference four years ago to what it is today we have made tremendous strides and have established some great networking opportunities for a lot of people across the haunted industry," Turner said. "And the new handbook is a wonderful addition to the safety manual. Between those two activities we truly have accomplished a great deal."

Just by staying alive, IAHA has accomplished a great deal. The haunt industry is saddled with a seasonal calendar more pronounced than any other sector of the entertainment industry and creative egos and strong personalities—a requirement if you are going to dress as a fiend with the express intent of frightening your paying guests—unmatched in the amusement industry. Yet despite many clashing personalities among this group, they have banded together for the benefit of the whole.

Membership stood at 300 going into this year's TransWorld show and officials suspect it could approach 400 once the applications collected in Chicago are counted. Meanwhile, the association's coffers sit at a close to $30,000, a workable amount for an organization still wholly dependent on volunteer labor. Dagen proved the perfect president for these pivotal years, earning universal admiration from her peers and rising above personality issues while bringing to the table her strong business sense and organizational skills as president of La-De-Da Productions in Fort Worth, Texas. She will continue serving the association under the title Past President as a non voting advisor to the board and provide administrative support.

One thing IAHA does have going for it is a still-growing industry; in fact, IAHA itself may be a contributor to that trend. The TransWorld conference saw about a 20 percent increase in attendance over last year, pulling in more than 300 people, and many of the attendees were newcomers. "It's kind of surprising how many are trying to get into the business," said Randy Young, an IAHA board member who runs the Haunted Castle and Black Forest in Fort Wayne, Indiana. "At least in outward appearance, it is a healthy industry." Young, Turner and several haunt vendors reported that while the number of theme parks attending the show was down, representation from zoos is on the rise, and family entertainment center operators helped fill the trade show aisles.

And filled is no hyperbole. At the haunt end of the trade show floor traffic was consistently heavy. "Whether they were buyers is hard to say," Young said. "There may have been a lot of lookers rather than buyers." But that was better than the other sectors at the show did: the costume end of the floor saw much less traffic, and the aisles in the party portion of the show were virtually empty. As the U.S. economy struggles to recover from its recession and the attractions industry still wonders what 9/11's ultimate fallout will be for this year, the haunters, at least, are feeling bullish and building a future.

For a complete list of IAHA's newly elected officers, click here.

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Building from the ground up
Want to inspire your staff to a feeling that they can surmount mountains? Build a mountain.

Hawaiian Waters Adventure Park in Kapolei, Hawaii, took on new management this year and faced an uncertain season of attendance thanks to the downturn in destination tourism. However, instead of retrenching, the waterpark embarked on one of the most ambitious capital improvements ever in its three-year history and looked to the land for inspiration.

Volcano Express, set to open Memorial Day weekend, features a four-lane race slide by ProSlide Technology descending from a heavily themed volcano. Plans include smoke rising from the top, steam oozing off the sides and fiery, red light illumination at night. The slides themselves will start off as red at the top, fade to orange by the mid-point and end up as yellow at the bottom, representing molten lava flowing down the volcano.

The park is marketing this as the island of Oahu's only active volcano, and the $400,000 project represents the first time Hawaiian Waters has gone beyond landscaping and signage in theming a ride. But it's not the archipelago state's active volcanos that gave management its inspiration, but the dormant ones.

"Everything else that we've done in the park is given names based on something to do with Hawaii," said Jerry Pupillo, the park's new general manager. "All the islands were formed by volcanos. In developing a new ride we thought that the way to expand and do new things is the way Hawaii expanded and became new things, which was via volcanos. We're having a little fun with it; it's a motivation for our staff."

It is specifically timed motivation. Horizon Amusement Group of Sacramento, California, was contracted to build and manage Hawaiian Waters, training a management team to take over in its wake. That contract concluded at the end of last year, and Pupillo, the park's first hired employee, took over as General Manager January 1. His new management team settled on the ambitious Volcano Express project. "It was a tremendous commitment on our ownership's part, and greatly appreciated," Pupillo said.

Especially in view of the coming season's uncertainty in attendance. About 30 percent of Hawaiian Waters' gate comes from out-of-state tourists, the bulk of that coming from Japan, a market which markedly fell off after the September 11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington. Even if that market doesn't bounce back this year, Pupillo feels Volcano Express will heighten interest in the local market for the 2002 season. "Then, when the tourists start coming back, we'll have something new to sell them," he said.

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When in Lubbock. . .
Joyland Amusement Park doesn't usually get too ambitious about its marketing reach. The small, family park serves the 201,000-population city of Lubbock and draws from other South Plains counties of west Texas. This summer, however, Joyland's advertising clout will reach around the world, thanks to a little help from Rome.

The Vatican Museum is sending 31 medieval frescoes from its collection to Lubbock for an exhibit at the Museum of Texas Tech University from June 2 to September 15. Called, "Traditions and Renewal: Medieval Frescoes from the Vatican Museum," the collection features rare works painted by members of the Roman school from 1250 to 1340. This is the first time the Vatican Museum is loaning a collection of its works to a single city, and after the exhibit closes in Lubbock the works will return to Rome where they will stay locked up for at least 20 years.

Because of this exclusivity, Lubbock is expecting up to 400,000 visitors from around the world to descend on Texas Tech to view the exhibit. There, the tourists will get a booklet about the exhibit, the university and Lubbock, a book that contains sponsorships by local hotels, restaurants and businesses: among them, Joyland, which is placing a $2 coupon off the regular $12.95 admission ticket to the park. The ad also briefly describes the 14-acre, 30-ride park.

"When these people fly in they will have some extra time in the evenings," said Kristi Dean, one of Joyland's owners. "So, we want them to go out and have some fun." She also supported the book for its potential to refract the Vatican exhibit spotlight onto the rest of Lubbock. "It's important just to get the word out to people when they visit that there is more here than just Texas Tech and Bobby Knight," she said, referring to the college's basketball coach who gained notoriety as head coach at Indiana University.

Admission to the exhibit is free but will require reservations. For more information, go to www.vaticanexhibit.com and www.vaticanexhibit.org. To check out Joyland, go to www.joylandpark.com.

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In this issue
(To go directly to a story, click on a blue keyword below):

Amusement Today and THE LOOP form a news-delivery alliance for the industry; Colorado's Ocean Journey plans to shut down under the weight of debt;
California inspectors cite need for new restraints in Knott's Berry Farm accident; Disneyland is pleased with its new measuring tool for children;
IAHA and the haunt industry have high hopes for a scary future;
Hawaiian Waters is motivated to make a mountain out of a racing slide;
Joyland in Texas gets a little boost from the Vatican;
We welcome a talking tree in a supermarket, a flying coaster at Alton Towers, a new GameWorks in Kentucky, a carousel at the Dallas Zoo, an Australian exhibit at Jacksonville Zoo, and tower rides—one wild, one mild—at Miracle Strip and Xcaret, Mexico; and,
We extend a heartfelt handshake to our new partners.

For back issues of THE LOOP,
click here

New Arrivals

The New Jersey supermarket went out on a limb to make shopping fun for its patrons.
Photo courtesy of Custom Creations

It's a talking tree!
Pearlmart Shoprite in Jackson, New Jersey, announces the arrival of a talking tree, February 19, 2002. Measurements: 22 feet tall (7 meters), 8-foot diameter (2 meters), 4-by-8-foot walk-through (1-by-2 meters) and 16 witticisms. Delivered by Custom Creations and Gilderfluke & Co.

Six Flags Great Adventure has competition 10 miles up the road. It's a supermarket. "We try to make shopping fun," said Jim Haslett, vice president of operations and a partner of Pearlmart Shoprite, which has five stores in north-central New Jersey. Its latest is a 70,000 square-foot (21,500-square-meter) full-service supermarket with extensive theming and humorous signage. For example, over the seafood counter hangs a depiction of a fisherman being pulled out of his boat by an oversized fish. "It shows the fish winning," Haslett said. "But it's a friendly fish so it won't scare the children."

The store's entertainment centerpiece—standing, fittingly, in the produce section—is the talking tree, the first time the food chain has taken its penchant for entertaining customers to the level of animatronics. The tree's eyes move as it mouths encouragement for children to eat vegetables and tells bad jokes ("Where do watermelons go on vacation? John Cougar's Melon Camp"). Though part of the produce section the tree is strategically located near the seafood counter and the deli, places where customers generally have to wait while being served. While they wait, their children make friends with the tree.

By installing an animatronic tree, Pearlmart Shoprite epitomizes a further fusion of the amusement industry and retail businesses. When THE LOOP announced the new arrival of a family entertainment center inside a Covington, Kentucky, toy store (THE LOOP, November 16, 2001), we broached the prospect that such blurring of the retail/entertainment lines could be a trend in the making. A supermarket seems to represent the concept's furthest frontier because food shopping is not only an essential day-to-day task, it is inherently unentertaining.

Haslett looks to the amusement industry to glean entertainment value out of visiting a supermarket. "We don't want to be an amusement park," he said. "I looked at the carousels like they have in malls, but we really can't put that kind of equipment in a store. But we do want to have the theme of fun. If we can have people enjoy shopping, which is a difficult task, they'll choose us over somebody else."

That they seeme to do. Thanks to a wise-cracking tree, customers are returning to the Pearlmart Shoprite to take in shopping and a show.

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Congratulations

www.custom-creations.com

www.gilderfluke.com

for a successful opening!

For more photos and information on the talking tree,
Click Here

It's a flying coaster!
Alton Towers in Alton, England, announces the arrival of Air, March 16, 2002. Measurements: 840 meters long (2772 feet), 20-meter-high drop (66 feet), 75 km/h (47 mph), 28 passengers per train. Delivered by Bolliger & Mabillard.

B&M entered the field of flying coasters under typically dreary and drizzling English March skies, but the initial reports coming out of Alton Towers indicate the company has landed another winner for its catalog. "It has received an excellent, excellent response," said Liz Greenwood, the park's public relations manager.

It is a response delivered by the most demanding customers, she said. "Traditionally the first day of the season we get a lot of roller coaster enthusiasts because they have been watching the development for the past two years. And in many ways they are the hardest to please because they have an idea in their minds of what the ride should be."

Ironically the ride has been enticing significant numbers of non-coaster riders, too. "You watch this one go around and it looks so smooth, it doesn't look violent," Greenwood said. "It has encouraged a lot of people who don't normally do roller coasters to go on it. And they're coming off loving it." The ride is not intended to be so much a physical thrill but an experiential thrill, she said. Consequently it does not attain high speeds or heights, and theming is restricted to a tunnel entering the lift hill. "It's about the proximity of you to the ground and you to the sky," Greenwood said.

B&M's version of the flying coaster starts with passengers loading into seats. The floor then drops away and the seats tilt forward to move guests into a prone position, which they maintain the length of the ride. Restraints are shin bars and vests that feel light as air.

Despite being B&M's first flying coaster and Europe's first-ever flying coaster type, Alton Towers didn't pursue a high-profile debut, Greenwood said. Alton Towers teamed up with Thorpe Park in Surrey, England, on March 12 to helicopter media to the two parks for test rides on Air and Thorpe's Colossus, opening this weekend. On the eve of the season opener, Alton Towers then hosted a three-hour Radio One show, including a performance by the pop group Sum 41 and live broadcast on Air itself. "That gave us a huge amount of publicity," Greenwood said of Great Britain's top youth radio station.

On opening day Air stole the show on its own. As the gates opened the crowd rushed as one to the new coaster. "There are some good athletes visiting our park," Greenwood said of the sprinting guests. "The rest of the park was virtually deserted all day: rides were walk-on, walk off." Meanwhile, queues for Air maxed out at 2 1/2 hours during the day, she said, another indication that this new B&M model is off to a flying start.

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A '70s cover band scored big with the GameWorks opening night crowd.
Photo by Eric Minton.

It's an entertainment center!
GameWorks announces the arrival of Newport on the Levee GameWorks in Newport, Kentucky, March 15, 2002. Measurements: 25,000 square feet (7,576 square meters), 130 games, two bars, one restaurant, 100 employees. Delivered by Andamiro, GameWorks, Global Billiards, Hyper Entertainment, ICE, Konami, Lazertron, Midway, Namco, Sega, Stern Pinball, Universal Studios, Williams.

Forgive the people of Cincinnati, Ohio, for thinking three GameWorks opened up locally in less than a month. Only one installation of the entertainment center opened in this market—in the entertainment/retail complex called Newport on the Levee on the Kentucky-side banks of the Ohio River—but in a marketing plan meant to build buzz while honing the center's details, GameWorks unveiled itself in three phases.

Three weeks before the opening, about 150 media and local dignitaries were invited to learn the lay of the location. The centerpiece Arena Bar was functioning, but the walls were still covered in plastic, no games had been installed, and the Jax Grill kitchen hadn't received its permit. A local caterer used GameWorks recipes to set up the buffet. "That first event was meant to answer the question, 'What is GameWorks?'" said LeeAnne Stables, the company's senior vice president of marketing. "There was so much interest to see what we were doing."

The second event, two weeks later, further sated the curiosity when GameWorks invited 300 media and special guests to serve as official game testers. "When you bring this many games in, you have to get them played, you have to operate them," Stables said. The event allowed management to watch traffic flow and subsequently move some games around, including a Turret Tower which had been placed front and center inside the entry. "It looked good on paper when we planned it out," Stables said. "But it was the first thing you saw when you came in and it blocked the view of the bar and the rest of the facility. We thought, 'We spent all this money to make this look good, why are we blocking it?'" So GameWorks spent more money on a hydraulic lift to move the Turret Tower to one side.

After a follow-up employees' guests night and a week of sneak previews, GameWorks finally opened for real with a Friday night bash. Some 400 guests—again, including media and local dignitaries who were beginning to feel like fraternity brothers and sisters—showed up for a three-hour free play, free drinks and free food session featuring fire-breathing bartenders and a local band playing '70s disco tunes. The public were allowed in at 10 p.m., and a long line quickly formed of guests signing up for the game-play cards.

By then, the venue was a smoothly running operation, a direct result of the three-step unveiling. "It is so helpful to the technical guys and to the staff to have the feedback and have 10 days to make adjustments," Stables said. GameWorks first employed this method at its previous opening last fall in Tampa, Florida. Aside from working out the kinks, each media event spawned local newspaper, television and radio coverage, and both Cincinnati daily papers devoted multi-page spreads to the new GameWorks.

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It's a carousel!
The Dallas Zoo in Texas announces the arrival of its Endangered Species Carousel, March 11, 2002. Measurements: 36-foot diameter (11 meters), 30 figures representing 16 species. Delivered by Chance Rides.

On the day its new carousel was to open, the Dallas Zoo was closed. More than 650 local dignitaries and guests had committed to attending the March 2 opening gala, but zoo officials canceled on the eve of the event thanks to a weather forecast—accurate, it turned out—of sub-freezing temperatures and snow.

Rescheduled for a week later, the ribbon-cutting ceremony still took place under chilly skies and "a wind like you would not believe," said Ellen Villeneuve, the zoo's public information officer. Even so, about 200 guests and members of the media showed up for the first official rides, a celebration that featured a "carnival buffet" of midway food, such as caramel corn and hot dogs. The weather was still cool and windy when the carousel opened to the public the following Monday, but it registered 401 riders at $2 per ride. On Tuesday the air warmed to the mid-70s and the number of riders surpassed 600.

Other than a monorail safari, this is the Dallas Zoo's first ride. The $800,000 capital improvement project, funded by a 1998 City of Dallas bond program, included the custom-built carousel, a shed, benches and stroller parking. This endangered species carousel features two unique creatures. One is an okapi, a tip of the hat to Dallas Zoo's successful breeding program of the giraffe's Congo cousin. This figure represents the first okapi Chance has made for its carousels. The second unusual figure is a triceratops, an animal who was last listed as "endangered" several epochs ago. "We wanted to use this as something to educate the public as well as give them a fun ride," Villeneuve. "We're saying that this could be the only place that your children's children could see these animals. That's one of the reasons we have the triceratops: we're showing what could happen to the others."

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It's an Australian exhibit!
The Jacksonville Zoo in Florida announces the arrival of the Outback Steakhouse Australian Adventure, March 9, 2002. Measurements: Two acres, five species comprising three koalas, two kangaroos, eight wallabies, 37 lorikeets and one cassowary. Delivered by QC Management and The Stellar Group.

The Jacksonville Zoo traditionally sells naming rights to its exhibits as part of its sponsorship programs, but Outback Steakhouse took its association with the zoo's new Australian exhibit a step further, partnering in the marketing campaign. Aside from providing advertising, Outback Steakhouse participated in the exhibit's weekend opening, sending its Australian-native representative to the zoo in the restaurant's HumVee.

"He was great talking to guests about living in Australia," said Angie Lindsey, the zoo's marketing and communications manager. "He was entertainment within himself."

The zoo, which officially unveiled the exhibit in a donor's reception the week before, set up several objects d'entertainment to entice the public to see Australian Adventure: a crocodile themed bounce house for kids, a video surfboard simulator, a didgeridoo performer and walk-about characters from Nickelodeon's The Wild Thornberrys cartoon, who came courtesy of the local cable representative. Gorgeous spring weather also drove a gate that reached 7,300 people on Saturday and 5,700 on Sunday, untypically high numbers even for a new exhibit, Lindsey said.

The exhibit itself also had a particularly powerful drawing card: koalas. "They are just so daggone cute," Lindsey said, and in Australian Adventure guests can view the teddy bear-like marsupials in an air-conditioned habitat. The koalas, however, were not the weekend's biggest hit with guests. That honor went to the lorikeets, who flew about the new Lorikeet Aviary feeding off cups of nectar in the hands of guests. With a $1 upcharge for admission to the aviary, the Jacksonville Zoo chose its stars wisely.

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Guests got a thrilling view of Panama City Beach on Miracle Strip's new ride.
Photo courtesy of Miracle Strip/Shipwreck Island.

It's a tower ride!
Miracle Strip Amusement Park in Panama City Beach, Florida, announces the arrival The O2 Tower, March 8, 2002. Measurements: 185 feet high (56 meters), 12 seats. Delivered by S&S Power.

The beachfront amusement park rushed to get its $2 million new addition, an S&S Space Shot Turbo Drop combo, opened in time to handle the college students descending on this resort town for spring break. The tower, however, stood dormant for most of its first week. "College spring breakers are much more into the club scene and doing foam parties in their rooms," said Buddy Wilkes, Miracle Strip and Shipwreck Island's general manager. "A bowling alley on the beach has thong bowling every night. An amusement ride is a little too squeaky clean for that mind set."

The subsequent week saw more high schoolers on their spring breaks, and the mix of the increased high schoolers, families and Southeastern college students boosted ridership for O2. "When we started getting the mixture of high school kids and families, we did really well," said Wilkes, noting that he was able to keep O2 open until 1 a.m. (01,00) on some nights.

The tower stands just off the beach, which stretches 27 miles along the Gulf of Mexico shore. "We're sort of in the middle of the beach, so on a clear, bright day you can see from one end of the beach to the other, all 27 miles," Wilkes said. Wilkes plans to offer O2 as a tourist viewing tower, sending guests up to the top in gentle elevator mode so they can shoot pictures of the view (THE LOOP, November 30, 2001). That role will begin in the summer, Wilkes said. So far, the ride is not generating many daytime riders. "We opened during daytime and competed with the beach, and that didn't work. Now we're opening at 5 p.m. That's when the cruising on Front Beach Road starts."

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It's a tower and theater!
Xcaret in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, announces the arrival of a Skytower and theater, March 4, 2002. Tower measurements: 110 meters tall (363 feet), 72 passengers in a 360-degree rotating gondola. Theater measurements: 1,200 square meters (3,900 square feet), 876 seats, two shows with a cast of 60 each. Tower delivered by HUSS Machinenfabrik.

After a delay of almost four months, the firm that runs several natural parks in the Riviera Maya region of the Yucatan Peninsula finally got its second Skytower open and now can live up to a boast that it has "The World's Best View." The eight minute ride to the tower's top gives guests a varying show of natural and man-made richness. To the west is a green carpet of jungle rolling out to infinity with vestiges of ancient temples. To the north are beachfront resort hotels, to the east the clear blue Caribbean Sea lapping at Cozumel Island, and to the south the Ecoarchaeological park of Xcaret itself.

"We have one of the most beautiful corners of Mexico and the world," said Javier Moreno, a park spokesman. "The tower is the only way to take in this view." The company is so intent on capitalizing on this view that it opened its first tower in Cancun in September and plans one for Isla Mujeres next month and Cozumel later in the year.

Meanwhile, Xcaret sought to celebrate the country's cultural attributes through two shows at its new theater. "Voces y Danzas de Mexico" features 60 performers wearing 40 different costumes doing dances and songs representing all nine states in Mexico. "Tradicion del Caribe" also uses a 60-performer cast to take guests on a musical tour of the Caribbean Islands. Both shows last 100 minutes.

The theater fits the mission of the park, which preserves an important portion of Mexico's natural wonders—including underground rivers, lagoons, coral reefs and jungle—and archaeological treasures. "The theater shows we have a richness in this country in traditions, folklore, music, culture and art," Moreno said. "We love our country, and our first target is to save and transmit this culture to all of Mexico and all around the world."

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Eric’s Turn

Photo by Gary Slade/Amusement Today.

A powerful two
Those of you who clicked on to the previous issue of THE LOOP on March 8, the day it was posted, saw a different edition of the newsletter than those who checked in again after March 9. After posting our story on Cedar Fair removing the VertiGo rides, we received a report from S&S Power on what they determined to be the cause of the ride's collapse. Rather than waiting two more weeks to report the news in this edition of THE LOOP, we decided to update the original newsletter itself and highlight the change here. To see the revised story, click here.

This sequence of events exemplifies one of the key changes coming to THE LOOP thanks to our alliance with Amusement Today described at the top of this newsletter. One result of the alliance will be the new Web site, www.amusementtoday.com, which Minton Enterprises, THE LOOP's publisher, will operate as I assume the title of Web Editor at Amusement Today in addition to my duties as a writer for the newspaper.

The new site will contain a page called "Extra Extra" that will feature breaking news in the industry. With the alliance, when either company gets new information from a manufacturer, an amusement park, a waterpark, a zoo, a family entertainment center or any other attraction, we will post a brief report of that news on Extra Extra. You will be able to get more information and insights on the story in the next issue of THE LOOP or in the next issue of Amusement Today.

As part of this alliance, we will be making some changes to THE LOOP. Most will be cosmetic, and you'll see those in the next issue (April 12). One important change, however, will be the "Extra Extra" box on the newsletter itself. This colored box will be easily identified and continually updated with headlines of breaking news stories. The headlines will link to the Extra Extra page on amusementtoday.com where you can view the complete story. When we update Extra Extra, we update THE LOOP. If a major event merits more coverage, THE LOOP itself will be appended with the news, and complete details and analysis will be given in the next issues of THE LOOP and Amusement Today.

This means that in addition to reading THE LOOP when the link arrives in your e-mail box, you will definitely want to check back frequently for any new news. To make that quicker and easier for you, we are posting every current issue of THE LOOP at a single address, www.gettheloop.com/theloop.html. This issue is parked at that address, so right now take a second and add this page to your favorites or bookmarks. Make a habit of checking in every day or every other day to stay connected with your friends and colleagues. All previous issues of THE LOOP are moved to an archived address that can be easily accessed through THE LOOP Home Page Index.

What else does our alliance with Amusement Today bring?

— More value to advertisers through co-operative ad placements.

— A stronger web presence for Amusement Today to assist operators, manufacturers and readers in everything from getting weather reports and stock news to ordering subscriptions.

— More resources for THE LOOP, which in turn improves some of our other services, such as the Connections page and Reading Room.

— Seamless news gathering efforts between the two organizations working together to provide you with comprehensive coverage and understanding of the industry in the quickest time.

Several of our friends in the industry have wondered when Gary Slade and I would team up. "The synergy is so right," they often said, and we both agreed. But we needed to find a way to make it worthwhile and mutually beneficial not just for us but for our readers, as well. I have been equally frustrated and amazed at the many times I called Gary to enlighten him to breaking news only to hear that it was old news to him. As a competing journalist I was daunted by how much Gary knew and how easily he got news through his industry connections; as an industry promoter I also thought it a shame that everyone inevitably had to wait up to a month to learn all that news. With "Extra Extra," you'll get the news shortly after Gary and I do.

As for the synergy, it is so right. I first met Gary on May 5, 1999, when I was writing for Funworld Magazine and we both were covering the opening of Georgia Scorcher at Six Flags Over Georgia in Atlanta. A fast friendship formed (who doesn't make friends with Gary from the outset?) and grew as we crossed paths at subsequent industry events and trade shows. Though last February as I was undertaking the launch of THE LOOP as a web-based newsletter, I gladly accepted Gary's invitation to join the Amusement Today team, which includes oft-time coaster-riding companion Randy Duffer (that's us above on Wild Adventure's Cheetah in Valdosta, Georgia).

Now, I take great pride in allying THE LOOP with Amusement Today and solidifying the partnership with Gary. Some might think either we or Amusement Today are following the old adage "If you can't beat them, join them," but that's not it at all. Rather, we realized that if we both can do better together, why not?

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