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Volume 1, No. 20. November 2, 2001
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Serving the serving
Michael Fleming had the best of intentions when he promoted among his
customers a letter-writing campaign for the armed forces personnel serving
in Operation Enduring Freedom, the military campaign against terrorist
organizations. Fleming, the managing general partner of Mountasia Fun
Center in Santa Clarita, California, and the Northridge, California, Skateland,
as well as a partner in a Farrell's Ice Cream Restaurant, provided postcards
and pencils at the service counters in his facilitie. Staff selling tickets
and tokens at the fun centers and wait staff at the restaurant invited
guests to write a quick note to be sent to troops in the Middle East.
Fleming had done a similar
letter-writing campaigns at his former roller skating center in Orange,
California, during the Gulf War, and he even got the the Roller Skating
Association, the International Association for the Leisure and Entertainment
Industry and the National Restaurant Association to replicate his current
efforts nationwide.
This week, the U.S. Department of Defense nixed Fleming's and all such
letter-writing campaigns, including the 17-year-old Operation Dear Abby.
The military did not want to add any additional burden to a U.S. Postal
Service already grappling with the widening problem of anthranx-tainted
mail. Fleming's attempt to turn his postcard campaign into an e-mail campaign
has also met with what appears to be an insurmountable obstacle as the
military clamped down on e-mail traffic to its personnel stationed overseas,
too.
"It looks like our program is scuttled," he said. It's a frustrating development
for a man who saw such good come out of the Gulf War correspondence. That
program Fleming launched on a whim, when he announced during a skating
session that he would have pieces of paper in the snack bar for anyone
who wanted to write a letter to the Desert Storm troops. "We made the
announcement, and all of a sudden 200 kids came rushing into the snack
bar to write those letters," he said. Soon after, those kids had appreciative
pen pals, including one sailor who, after the war, visited the skating
rink. "He got on the microphone and said, 'You will never, ever realize
how much getting your mail meant to all of us out on that ship. We always
hoped to get a box from you guys,'" Fleming recalled.
Though anonymous correspondence with troops has been halted, the military
is encouraging people to find other outlets of support for service men
and women. Personnel at military bases in the United States are working
just as hard as their overseas colleagues, and many families of deployed
troops are enduring difficult, lonely times. Though not every community
has a military installation nearby, almost all communities have residents
who are members of the National Guard or Reserves. Many of those Reservists
have been called to duty, leaving well-paying civilian jobs for lesser-paying
military service.
Fleming is now turning his attention to the efforts of the USO, through
which he had coordinated his letter-writing campaign. "They've sucked
me in," he said, noting that the 123 USO offices around the country rely
on volunteer help and donations to provide places of shelter and entertainment
for military families in need. The USO center in San Diego will be hosting
a Thanksgiving dinner for families of deployed personnel, and not only
has Fleming donated some of the turkeys and fixings through his restaurant,
he and his family will be among those serving the dinner. "I asked my
kids if they wanted to join my wife and I in doing this, and they said,
'Absolutely.'"
Truth semen
Terry Wolf, wildlife director
at the Lion Country Safari in Loxahatchee, Florida, has become something
of a television star as the butt of many jokes, a phrase you can take
quite literally in this case. With a stint on Comedy Central already to
his credit, Wolf will appear today on the television game show To Tell
The Truth where the panel will determine which of three contestants
is the real African elephant semen extractor.
If everybody is entitled to 15 minutes of fame, Wolf is reaching 30-plus
minutes, a path to notoriety that passes through the urethra of Bulwagi,
Lion Country Safari's 20-year-old bull elephant. He can thank the zoo's
director of public relations and marketing, LJ Margolis, who first heard
of Wolf's work during her interview for the job. "Immediately my little
mind went 'Press! Press! Press!'" she said. Though her superiors at the
zoo weren't sure semen extraction was the kind of story a family park
should tell, the local newspaper got a hold of the story a couple months
later: "I don't know how," Margolis said with more than a dribble of slyness
in her tone.
Local press coverage led to a morning radio show broadcasting a live profile
on Wolf and Bulwagi and posted photos on its web site. Stuff, a
magazine for men, picked up on the photos and ran a story, which caught
the attention of Jon Stewart's The Daily Show on Comedy Central.
"They didn't make fun of the animals, they made fun of me," Wolf said
of his Daily Show segment, which tracked Wolf as if he were an
endangered species, being as how he is an elephant semen extractor. "I
was kind of concerned because they can make you look like a jerk real
easily. They told me they wouldn't do that, and they didn't."
Next, To Tell the Truth came calling, and not only did the producers
put Wolf and two impostors on their show, they used this particular segment
as part of their fall sweeps campaign. Wolf had 30 minutes to coach his
fellow contestants, one of whom sells peanuts at Dodger Stadium. "The
two people I had with me really paid attention and tried," he said. For
a schedule of the show's airing, visit http://www.totellthetruth.tv/tune_in.html.
Ours being a virtual publication, we'll attach a paragraph below with
the game's results after today's airings have concluded.
His occupation may garner the initial attention of show business, but
Wolf's personality and quick wit make for a good fit with his comic hosts.
"When the high point of my day is massaging an elephant's prostate, you
have to look at the bright side," he said. He partners with semen extractors
working with two bulls in "a little zoo in Orlando" (i.e., Disney's Animal
Kingdom), but, he boasts, "Frankly, Bulwagi's semen is the best."
"Terry lets me ridicule him
on national television and he just grins about it," Margolis said. "Every
zoo PR person should be so fortunate as to have a Terry Wolf to work with."
As for his own fame, Wolf sees it as advancing education about the elephant
artificial insemination program itself, which has resulted in a total
of five pregnant cows since April at Six Flags Marine World in Vallejo,
California, and the Toledo Zoo in Ohio. "Anything for baby elephants:
that's my motto," he said. "Anything we can do to educate people, whether
it's comedy, nature shows, THE LOOP, whatever it takes, that's fine with
me. My ego is such it can take a little kicking around, anyway." He's
also keeping his minutes of fame in perspective. "I'll be a lot prouder
when those baby elephants are born."
Fooled a few
The segment opened with Kelly
Crofton, a hostess at an Italian Steakhouse, holding up her armed sheathed
to the shoulder in a plastic glove and saying, "My name is Terry Wolf,
and I use this to help make baby elephants." The third contestant, Terry
Wolf himself, is 6-foot, 6 inches tall, and when he held up his gloved
arm it likely sealed his fate. "All three panelists who picked me said
it had to be me because I had the longest arms," he said. The other panelist
and the audience voted for No. 2, Mort Rose, the peanut vender at Dodger
Stadium. Ironically, Wolf received the fewest audience votes, 27 percent,
behind Rose's 38 percent and Crofton's 35.
LEGOLAND got a sweet deal with a Krispy Kremes franchise. Photo
courtesy of LEGOLAND
Running circles
Never tell Kina Paegert hers
is not a sweet job. The senior representative of media relations at LEGOLAND
California in Carlsbad had the enviable task of promoting the park's landing
of a Krispy Kreme Doughnuts franchise. With the park and confection partnership
kicking off in a celebratory day October 20, Paegert made the rounds of
media outlets earlier in the week, hand-delivering Krispy Kremes to delighted
journalists throughout San Diego County.
"LEGOLAND was definitely the hero in the media's eyes," Paegert said upon
delivering a total of 72 dozen doughnuts to 24 outlets. The process involved
5 a.m (05,00) pickups of doughnuts, placing LEGOLAND and LEGO brick stickers
on each box, and driving them to television stations and newspapers on
the first day, and repeating the early morning drive the second day for
radio stations. She used her own car for the task, an Acura Integra. "It's
amazing how many doughnuts you can really put in there," she said, but
she had to lay the back seat down and stack the boxes to the ceiling.
While reporters, editors
and deejays appreciated the treat, Paegert did encounter some hassles
during delivery thanks to heightened security. Some of the television
stations opened the boxes to ensure they carried doughnuts before allowing
her admission. The efforts paid off, though, from the mouths of ecstatic
deejays and the visual of Krispy Kreme boxes on the local NBC affiliate's
news desk.
For Paegert this was a true labor of love. The daughter of a career Navy
man, she spent a lot of childhood time in the South growing where Krispy
Kremes have long dominated the doughnut market. Two days of close confines
with the confection did not dampen her love for the doughnuts, either.
"Are you kidding? You can never get sick of Krispy Kremes. They're awesome!"
she said. And in a real test of her professionalism, while she bought
one doughnut for herself each day of the media rounds, she did not sneak
a sample from the press' gifts.
Storm watch
Face it, the Newport Aquarium in Newport, Kentucky, seems unusually blessed.
Thanks to its exhibit "Guardians of the Deep" featuring rare
South African sharks, the Cincinnati-area aquarium earned unprecedented
news coverage in the late summer when Ohio and Kentucky journalists seeking
a local angle during the media frenzy over the East Coast shark attacks
visited the aquarium in droves (LOOP,
September 21, 2001).
Ironically, publicity for that exhibit had prompted a media outcry back in May, thanks to a television commercial which resembled a news bulletin featuring fictional reporter Gail Storm broadcasting that sharks had been sighted in the Ohio River, on which the Newport Aquarium sits. Two Kentucky TV stations, one in Louisville, one in Lexington, pulled the commercial two weeks after they started running. "Neither received complaints, but the general managers were worried that the commercial was so close to TV reports and they would be perceived as actual news," said Genine Drozd, the aquarium's public relations assistant.
What was Kentucky's worry
is Ohio's reward. That same commercial has received a Ruby Award from
the Ohio Travel Association. The association judges tourism promotions
for impact, singularity, the effectiveness of the message's delivery and
a five-second test of instant recognition. Though the aquarium sits in
Kentucky, it promotes tourism to the Cincinnati area, making it eligible
for the prize.
Drozd submitted the spot for Ruby consideration, oblivious to the storm
of protest Gail Storm created when she debuted. "If you think about it,
people in those markets should know who their local newscasters are,"
said Drozd, noting that the ad was used on several stations and so never
showed a newscast logo. "And it's almost too ridiculous to think there's
really sharks in the Ohio River."
Winning the Ruby, she said, exonerates the commercial's success at being realistic but fun. Much like an aquarium.
Return
visit
In the October
19 issue of THE LOOP, the original version of the World Waterpark
Association trade show round-up cited WWA officials saying attendance
was down 20 percent over the previous year, and that seemed optimistically
fuzzy math. The "fuzzy math" comment was based on the fact that for much
of the show, traffic in the exhibit aisles and convention halls was notably
sparse.
WWA President and CEO Rick Root responded to that line with numbers that,
far from being fuzzy, went four digits past the decimal point. Counting
all classes of attendees, attendance was 86.322 percent of what the association
registered at the 2000 trade show in San Antonio, Root said. Removing
vendors and journalists from the equation, attendance was 81.3838 percent
of the 2000 show, he said.
I reposted the story with these figures, and I mention it here as a pointer.
Often associations and trade shows blur their attendance figures, feeling
that the more numbers they can boast, the more important their show appears.
They may have important shows, but the merits of any trade show and convention
can only be measured in results: the amount of potential and actual business
a supplier achieves on the trade show floor, the education and sense of
value attendees get out of seminars and social fellowship. The WWA, mounting
a show in the face of the September 11 attacks, an apparently floundering
industry, and the loss of its own 20-year leadership, didn't flinch from
its responsibility to pursue these kind of results though knowing it would
lose the numbers game.
Consequently, the show proved how cosmetic attendance figures can be as
vendors noted their preference for quality over quantity. In that sense,
the WWA Trade Show was a refreshing revelation.
Root pointed out that he's legally obligated to provide accurate figures
to his membership as far as attendance. True, but here's a salute to straightforwardness
and, more importantly, proper perspective.
New Arrivals
Guests became part of the Kaleidoskop, which included a trip to Mars, at Vienna Prater's new Kultiplexx. Photo courtesy of Kaleidoskop Kulltiplexx
It's a kultiplexx!
Prater in Vienna, Austria, announces the arrival of Kaleidoskop Kultiplexx,
October 26, 2001. Measurements: 2,500 square meters (8,250 square feet),
six caverns for educational workshops, one stage theater with 180 seats,
one SimEx theater with 12 motion seats and six stationary seats, one interactive
play area, one exhibition room, one restaurant, one gift shop and three
party rooms. Delivered by Martin Schwarz GmbH.
The second oldest amusement park in the world entered the 21st century
in a big way last Friday with the opening of a new-generation family entertainment
center that combines games with shows and hands-on educational programs.
"Though similar in infrastructure, the Kultiplexx and the Multiplexx are
decidedly different in content," said Catherine Zoihsl, Marketing and
PR representative for Martin Schwarz GmbH. "The Multiplexx offers many
movie theaters, while the Kultiplexx offers many theaters which have live
performances of different types"—with a little virtual reality on
the side.
Kaleido, a robot, greets guests and directs them to one of the themed
workshop rooms or caverns: the Fairy Tale Cavern, Music Cavern, Media
Cavern, Circus Cavern, Magic Cavern and New Games Cavern (games without
losers). A Cavern Master works with the families on an interactive program
that then moves to the Show Theater. Afterward, families can take in the
rest of the Kultiplexx's offerings, from the play area for little kids
to the virtual reality games for teens and adults.
Opening night introduced this concept and the ATS 60 million (US$3.9 million)
Kultiplexx to 300 invited guests, who not only experienced the SimEx theater's
first trip to "Mars" but also were treated to two cabaret shows featuring
15 artists from 10 countries performing magic, acrobatics, break dancing,
music and rap. The weekend traffic was lighter than expected, said Samantha
Fisher, International Press Representative for Martin Schwarz GmbH, but
she expected the numbers to grow in coming weekends, especially when the
Viennese realize the Kaleidoskop Kultiplexx is open on Sundays, a rarity
for such entertainment venues in Austria.
It's an arctic
exhibit!
The Detroit Zoo in Michigan announces the arrival of Arctic Ring of
Life, October 19, 2001. Measurements: Four acres, three exhibit areas,
seven polar bears, six seals (four harbor, one gray and one harp), four
arctic foxes, two snowy owls, four keepers, 300,000-gallon (114,000 liters)
tank, and a 70-foot-long (21 meters) underwater acrylic tunnel. Delivered
by Jones Jones.
Underwater viewing areas have become standard fare for zoos with polar
bear or hippopotamus exhibits, but the Detroit Zoo has taken the concept
to its logical next step: a tunnel, like those used in aquariums. "It's
pretty amazing when you're walking through this tunnel and you see this
polar bear right on top of you," said Rana Kozouz, the zoo's public relations
director.
The tunnel is, however, only the highest highlight of this multi-highlighted
exhibit that the zoo claims is the world's largest polar bear exhibit,
giving its ursa residents ten times more room than they had in their previous
home. Set in the Nunvat region of Canada, the exhibit showcases three
eco systems: the tundra, the open sea with the 300,000 gallons of chilled
salt water, and the ice pack that supplements its simulated ice with 1,800
blocks of real ice machine-produced every two days. Visitors pass through
a gallery featuring Inuit art from the region, then move into the tunnel
where they can watch the polar bears and seals swimming together—except
for a 12-foot-tall (3.5 meters) acrylic wall dividing the two species.
Guests end up in a cave with real walls of ice, then move into an indoor
exploration station emulating the work of arctic researchers, complete
with interactive kiosks. Outdoor viewing areas also are available to guests.
The zoo previewed Arctic Ring of Life to the media the day before the
Friday ceremony unveiling the exhibit to zoo donors, a ceremony attended
by the Canadian general consul. The following day the general public got
to view the long-awaited, $14.9 million complex. "We had double the attendance
that we normally would on an October weekend," Kozouz said.
In
this issue
(To
go directly to a story, click on a blue keyword or phrase below):
Our IAAPA Convention and Trade Show preview, with a guide to the best parties of the week and a look at the must-do seminars.
The U.S. military puts a halt to an FEC-coordinated letter-writing campaign for Middle East troops.
Lion County Safari's elephant semen extractor becomes a national TV star.
LEGOLAND California goes for the Kreme with a new franchise.
A controversial commercial lands Newport Aquarium a tourism award.
WWA's Rick Root fine tunes the math.
We welcome a new entertainment center concept at Prater in Vienna, and the next step in polar bear exhibiting at the Detroit Zoo, and we invite you to pay us a visit at the Amusement Today booth during the show.
by Eric Minton
Do some shopping before you go to IAAPA. Click on the logos below to see what vendors have to offer this year. For a complete list of exhibitors, as of November 2, click here.
Booths 1036 and 9525
Booth 3953
Booth 1817
Booth 3825
Booth 7879
Booth 6466
Booth 2833
Booth 5053
Booth 261
Booth 5953
Booth 4289
Change
is a-comin'
This is an IAAPA Convention and Trade Show on the cusp of change, for
itself and for the industry. Yet, one thing you can count on: fun. That
one constant in our industry will be ever-present November 10-17 in Orlando,
Florida. You can also count on some snowfall, too. No need to pack a parka,
though. The snow will be falling inside the Orange County Convention Center
at Unlimited Snow's booth.
For the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions,
in addition to the traditional passing of the gavel from the outgoing
chairman of the board to his successor—this year that will be Bill
Sims handing off to Alain Baldacci—the Orlando show will mark the
change-over in IAAPA's day-to-day leadership. This is the last show for
retiring CEO John Graff and the first for his successor, Brett Lovejoy,
who has served as President since May. Graff, who has helmed IAAPA for
22 years, will be the featured speaker at the General Managers and Owners
Luncheon on Thursday, November 15.
For three years the industry has looked forward to its really big show
"coming home," as it were, to the amusement capital of the world, Orlando.
A great convention city, an even greater convention facility, and the
kind of ancillary entertainment that is ideal for this particular band
of conventioneers attracted a total attendance of 33,100 in 1997, the
last time IAAPA gathered in Central Florida. That remains an IAAPA Convention
and Trade Show record, and it inspired the association to anticipate 30,000
for this its 83rd annual confab.
So much has changed in the past four years. In 1997 the global economy
was booming; since then economies on two continents crashed, the U.S.
and European economies are struggling, and the entertainment industry,
traditionally recession proof, has hurt along with the rest. So much more
has changed in the past two months. Americans don't want to travel, especially
by air, and the rest of the world's population is not certain it wants
to fly to America. All of which spells trouble for the IAAPA Trade Show,
right?
Well, yes and no. The answer depends on whether you use numbers as your
only barometer for success. Though officials say international attendance
is expected to be normal, with few if any cancellations, other indicators
say otherwise. Many of the Orange County Convention Center-area hotels
not only still have plenty of rooms available but reportedly saw several
cancellations for the week of November 10-17. We hear more talk of people
not attending than attending, and that talk circulated even before September
11, thanks to economic constrictions. IAAPA staff has mounted a heavy
marketing push in the past few weeks almost begging people to put aside
their trepidations and attend, an effort which could be a sign of either
aggressive marketing or desperation.
On the other hand, some parks who, prior to September 11, had planned
to send only key people now are sending more staff because the cost of
traveling to and staying in Orlando is the lowest in years. Moreover,
the international attendees who are canceling are those who regard IAAPA
as an excuse to take extended holidays in the United States, whereas owners
and managers who see the trade show as essential to purchasing and networking
are more likely to attend.
IAAPA typically touts total attendance, which includes exhibitors, their
guests and families, and with 1,253 vendors that total figure could approach
the association's 30,000 goal. But it would not be an accurate accounting
of traffic, which is likely to be down this year, not only from the 1997
Orlando crowd but lower than last year's draw in Atlanta.
However,
the experience at other trade shows this year proves that attendance is
not an accurate gauge of a show's success, at least for the exhibitors
themselves. Numbers have been down at virtually all shows this fall, but
many more companies than not said actual business at those shows was better
than in previous years. Furthermore, many vendors even liked the lesser
crowds, allowing them more quality time with clients and full concentration
on closing deals.
No question the industry is retrenching worldwide, a trend that appeared
likely to continue for another year even before the events of September
11. The terrorist attacks added more uncertainty, a turmoil that in a
strange way may boost the industry via more family bonding and stay-close-to-home
travel, which would especially help small and mid-level amusement parks,
family entertainment centers, waterparks and, a sector that already was
booming, zoos.
Bottom line:
manufacturers and suppliers who provide a good product and service at
affordable price points should have a good show in Orlando.
And everybody will have a good time. Here's how.
A
leg up
"IAAPA Legs" are that moment when the lower limbs of a person's anatomy
morph from sore to bone-aching. Depending on how much walking, standing
and playing you do, and how little sleep you get, it usually victimizes
most conventioneers by the third day of the trade show. Yet, despite the
dawn-to-dusk walking work that goes into attending an IAAPA Convention
and Trade Show, we tack on another six or more after-dark hours of play.
As veteran IAAPAers will tell you, the socializing is as vital to industry
networking as the convention seminars and trade floor exchanges.
But this is not so much about business as about having a good time, and
here's your primer for fun.
IAAPA itself sponsors or hosts several events, and one annual gathering,
the International Reception, this year requires a $25 ticket. That includes
food and non-alcoholic beverages, and will be a good opportunity to mingle
with counterparts from around the world, plus take in the Plaza International
Ballroom at the Peabody Hotel across International Drive from the Convention
Center. The Wednesday evening reception conflicts with several other scheduled
social gatherings for various sectors of the industry, two of which are
off-site: the Zoo and Aquarium Social at the Central Florida Zoo, and
the Waterpark Social at SeaWorld's Discovery Cove. You waterpark operators,
if you get an invitation to the last, don't pass it up. You'll get good
food in lush environs of that singular park.
IAAPA's annual Thursday Night Social will be at Universal Orlando's Islands
of Adventure. If you have never been to this theme park, take advantage
of this exclusive party to play in what is arguably the industry's best
themed environment with some spectacular rides, especially The Amazing
Adventures of Spider-Man. Tickets cost $65 and will include all-you-can
eat and drink (including alcoholic beverages) at the park's first-rate
restaurants. Saturday night's social and Changing of the Gavel Ceremony
Reception will be at SeaWorld ($78 combined ticket, $65 for the social
only), and aside from seeing a special Shamu show, you can count on SeaWorld's
caterers producing stellar fare.
The must-do party of the week will be the annual bash thrown by the Themed
Entertainment Association beginning at 6:30 (18,30) on Friday night. The
TEA is renting out XS, a games and nightclub at Pointe Orlando on International
Drive, and the $60 ticket includes all you can eat, all you can drink,
door prizes and a game-playing card for XS' video arcade. This is also
the best dance action of the week, this year courtesy of a dee-jay.
If you want to find your own hot spots to party, head to Universal's CityWalk,
where you can dance to live reggae at Bob Marley's or gather in the quieter
confines of Cigarz. Orlando has two dueling piano bars, the famous Howl
at the Moon downtown at Church Street Station, and Blazing Pianos at the
Mercado on International Drive a few blocks from the Convention Center.
Even closer to the Center is Bahama Breeze with reputedly the best margaritas
(called Bahamaritas) on the planet, and Back Stage, a club with live music
on the ground floor of the Rosen Plaza right next to the Convention Center.
Wising up
However much you party the night before, IAAPA's seminars usually are
worth dragging yourself out of bed to attend, even the 8 a.m. (08,00)
sessions. This year's slate features some old favorites (Michael Getlan
gives an encore presentation of his "Smile" seminar on customer service
Tuesday morning) and some seminars that will help you get a grip on a
few of the trends worth watching the next couple of years.
A two-part seminar on the Americans with Disabilities Act Tuesday afternoon
promises valuable insights on serving customers with disabilities, from
accessibility issues to proper etiquette. Also that afternoon, Andrea
Stueve of the Travel Industry Association of America will cover that organization's
latest research on U.S. travelers. Former IAAPA President Gena Romano,
owner of Nellie Bly Park in Brooklyn, New York, will moderate a meeting
Friday morning of how small parks survive around the world. At The Future
of Themed Entertainment presentation Friday morning, the TEA in association
with Amusement Business will be presenting the results of a survey
on the tastes and spending patterns of Generation Y compiled by Teen Research
Unlimited.
Orlando also affords IAAPA a chance to showcase the facilities of the
association's designated charity, Give Kids The World and the World Passport
for Kids. IAAPA members worldwide have donated funds and equipment to
GKTW over the past few years, allowing the organization to build a center
to house terminally ill children and their families while they visit Central
Florida's theme parks. GKTW will host a Partner Appreciation Day throughout
Tuesday afternoon for those parks and companies who have contributed to
the program, and an Open Village for all convention attendees Thursday
afternoon. Complimentary bus transportation will be available from the
Convention Center.
Where
are we?
Gary Slade and I are good friends, close colleagues, and we work together
well. I serve as a bureau chief and contributing editor for his publication,
Amusement Today, and he feeds THE LOOP occasional photos and information
for stories. For the IAAPA Trade Show, he is letting us share his booth.
That only made sense as I'll be covering the convention for both publications,
so I might as well hang my hats in one place on the trade show floor.
Be sure to drop by the Booth 4289 to visit with Lynne, Stacey and I as
well as the Amusement Today crew. We will also be making the rounds
of as many receptions and seminars as we can. You can also reach me on
my mobile phone during the show, 937-321-8290, or e-mail us at eric@gettheloop.com.
Not only will
we have our web site operating at the booth, we will be posting the next
edition of THE LOOP during the show, providing you up-to-the-minute industry
developments and human interest stories we uncover during the convention
and trade show.
To everybody attending, safe journeys, and we'll see you in Orlando.
Correction
In the October 19 issue
of THE LOOP we ran a New Arrival on the Deja Vu boomerang coaster at Six
Flags Great America in Gurnee, Illinois. Some of the information in that
report was not accurate, and because that has brought into question the
credibility of the article's source, we have pulled that piece from the
issue. We regret the error.