amusement park ups and downs

\"Great,\" 7-year-
Old Patrick pushed his adult away and ran to line up for his seventh shock wave roller coaster ride in the King\'s rule area.
\"This time, I will go ahead.
Patrick has tried-
He closed his eyes, opened his eyes, put his arms down, raised his arms and climbed the roller coaster.
He tried the car and the last car.
It\'s time for the big car: the front car.
At a height of 95 feet, the front car provides a beautiful view of the amusement park for those who dare to bow their heads. Patrick looked.
But before he found his mother in the crowd, he was being thrown down the mountain at a speed of 50 miles per hour, and passing through a circle, blowing him up to 66 feet of the air.
At a height of 80 degrees, the second ring found that he was actually parallel to the ground.
At the end of the journey, Patrick was satisfied with not reaching the maximum excitement, waiting in line for the eighth place.
Since the opening of the first roller coaster at the turn of the century in carnival and amusement parks, Americans have been attracted by this stimulus, which is an opportunity to test the boundaries between fear and fun, overcome this uncomfortable feeling when your stomach feels like stuck in your throat.
Today, coming up with the latest and most exciting things has become the focus of the four major competitions --
Alliance theme park within 150-
According to the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions, the Washington mile radius is the third most competitive market in the United States.
Although today\'s amusement park still uses the old
The theme and concept of time Carnival no longer depends on the simple fun of the carousel.
Today\'s entertainment world is a high level. tech, high-
The $4 billion industry that needs huge amounts of money.
Although the organ music of the carousel still echoes in the park, these days, it is likely to be overwhelmed by the original screams of the passengers, the passengers are upside down, take rides with names such as Loch Ness Monster, Grizzly Bear and rebel shouting.
Last year, a record 0. 25 billion people visited amusement parks across the country, and they were unable to resist these monuments to young hedonism.
Dueswell, the King of Va. , (1.
2 million tourists)
Wild World in Largo, Maryland, (650,000)
Hershey Park in Pennsylvania (1. 7 million)
The number of people participating in the competition is recorded.
Busch Gardens is located in Fort William, Va.
More than 2 million guests last year, down slightly from 1987.
Because the competition is so fierce, every park has to open up a small world in the market.
Busch Garden, 360-
Kerry theme park for an older family
From the Bunbury cross in England to the beer festival in Germany, people are more attracted to their quirky European villages.
In contrast, the 60 acres of land in the wild world are small, but it focuses on seven water rides, including millions
A gallon of waves and Paradise Islandtube ride.
Hershey Park is the oldest park in the region.
The old-fashioned carnival atmosphere is different from other carnival.
There are 45 rides in the park, including a modern steel roller coaster called Super roller coaster and Comet, the original road of a roller coaster, and a 1919 carousel.
But if what you desire most is excitement, where the king rules, there are 44 rides, 11 live shows and dozens of games, shops and restaurants.
The park is divided into five parts: International Street, Old Virginia, Candy Apple Grove, Hannah-
Barbella land and wildlife hunting village.
Running an amusement park is nothing but fun and games.
First of all, it is quite expensive.
The King\'s Dominion, built in 1975, costs $50 million and invests at least $1 million a year in new rides.
For example, in 1977, King Cobra, a ring steel roller coaster, was added for $2. 3 million;
In 1979, The Lost World rode $7. 9 million;
In 1982, the grizzly bear, a delicate wooden roller coaster, sold for $2 million;
In 1986, the shock wave of $3 million, in 1987, the flood of $4 million.
This short history does not include the 4,000 gallons of paint used to clog the park before each season, nor does it include thousands of flowers planted each spring.
Overall, King\'s rule Group has spent $97 million on capital improvements. said.
Even $97 million, it\'s just a matter of keeping pace with competition.
Busch Gardens, 75 miles away, regularly increases the tourist lineup to bring visitors back year after year.
It cost $36 million to open the park in 1975.
In 1977, the Oktoberfest was built for $8. 5 million;
Monster of Loch Ness, double, 1978
A roller coaster that surfaced for $5 million;
In 1980, the Italian village and several new rides were added for $7 million;
In 1982, da Vinci\'s cradle tour, Palace Theater and another entertainment show cost $3 million;
In 1984, the Big Bad Wolf roller coaster, $6 million, in 1985, an ice show, $900,000.
Only a few companies offer the latest riding magic, but even so, it\'s tricky to choose the right one.
It must be different, it must be safe, and it must have sufficient capacity to deal with the crowds of thousands of tourists every day.
\"There must be a market for riding.
It must be cost-effective.
Effective, \"said Flohr.
\"Many companies can build anything you want for you for $15 million.
But this is not what we\'re looking.
\"The latest exciting tour of the King\'s Dominion, the sky pilot, is a perfect example of all this.
The Sky Pilot was built for $1.
Flohr said 9 million, but it is easy to recover in a year.
Because it\'s a journey of participation. -two-
Riders can control their own capsules. -
For young people who want to experience how Tom Cruise feels in the cockpit of F-it\'s a big draw14 jet fighter.
But increasing stimulus is only part of a successful amusement park strategy.
As Disney has proven, clean streets and good
Clean, smiling young workers are an important part of the formula.
With the change of population structure, the attraction of the park is also changing.
In order to provide guests with live performances, the King\'s Dominion has opened theaters, concert halls and small stages.
Flohr knows that a new musical will attract more moms and dads, and that a concert showing the hottest entertainment shows will help keep guests of all ages in the park all night.
\"This is a valuable business,\" said Flohr . \".
\"The Return of the dollar to the guest is as important as the return of the dollar to the park.
\"The King\'s Dominion in rural central Virginia is heavily dependent on repeat operations,\" said Flo.
By contrast, Busch Gardens and Hershey Park rely heavily on not only amusement parks, but also tourists attracted by other attractions.
As the young Patrick proves, while $20 at the door allows you to enjoy all the rides you want in the king\'s reign zone, but it doesn\'t include soft drinks, canned apples and burgers that every family may spend on pretzels.
Today\'s parks earn about half of their income from franchise stalls and games.
Guests are not allowed to bring food in all parks-
Not even a thermos.
There is no doubt that the smell of greasy french fries and hot butter popcorn floating in the park directly increases the bottom line: last year, guests drank 451,594 gallons of soft drinks, I ate 200,000 French fries and 761,040 pizzas.
Unwilling to fall behind, Busch Garden said customers consumed 30 tons of pasta, 40,000 gallons of ice cream and 22 miles of German sausage.
Still, it\'s not the food that brings people back, it\'s the rides.
\"Everyone is looking for excitement,\" said John Graff, executive director of the international amusement park and Attractions Association, based in Alexandria. \"The high-
Technology wizards are fascinating.
They want to be afraid, but they know they are safe.
Park operators do everything they can to make sure the rides are not really dangerous, Graff said.
Most parks follow the daily schedule of equipment maintenance and hire consultants for regular inspections, including X-
Ray and other tests of structural components and ride parts.
Contrary to what you might expect, the amusement park pays no more liability insurance than any other industry.
Park managers declined to disclose their insurance premiums, but an insurance company that specializes in amusement parks said the annual insurance premiums started at around $300,000 and then rose. Depending on the size of the park and the nature of the rides.
\"Death often stays in the minds of people because they are so spectacular,\" Graff said . \".
\"But they are rare relative to the number of visitors per year.
From 1973 to 1988, 27 of the 0. 214 billion North American passengers died on the roller coaster, Graff said.
Roller coasters often attract the biggest crowds.
If the design is correct and the awareness of fear and expectation is carefully cultivated, roller coasters like the shock wave of King rule will pay back $3 million in attendance fees in a year or two, ron Tumer, president of Arrow power, Utah, said the company is the leading steel roller coaster design company in the United States.
He said quick returns are crucial to providing capital for next year\'s Big Adventure.
This year, Parks across the country have added 12 new coasters, including giant American Scream Machines on Jackson\'s six-flag adventure in New YorkJ.
The roller coaster won the world\'s fastest roller coaster championship at a speed of 68 miles per hour and a maximum of 173 feet kilometers.
According to roller coaster data, the number of major roller coasters in North America has increased by 29% over the past decade to 190!
A magazine organized by roller coaster enthusiasts.
Ron Miller, vice president of marketing at King\'s Entertainment, said: \"The exciting war is just a marketing strategy . \"
The master of the King.
Graf predicts that future wars will revolve around the latest water sights, children\'s rides and hightech thrills.
Next year, the King\'s Dominion will expand and upgrade its children\'s rides and may add water rides to its land attractions.
Many of the park\'s rides already involve water to some extent, but Flohr says he is considering adding sinks and slides that require guests to wear swimsuits.
The only water in the wild
The theme park in the area plans to continue to expand its water attractions and children\'s areas.
Wild World general manager Laer warlinski knows all about the return on investment.
When Wolinsky took over the park in 1984, the annual attendance rate was only 350,000.
The park is losing money, paint is peeling off and plans to add new attractions have been canceled, he said.
Since taking over operations, Wolinsky has spent more than $5 million to upgrade the park, with an annual attendance rate of about 650,000.
That means his, conservative estimates.
Investments of $5 million increase annual revenues by at least $4 million a year.
Unlike three other parks that adopt traditional marketing strategies, warlinski has gone out of his way to attract attention to his business.
When the park opened in 1986, three couples got married on wooden roller coasters.
He claims to have built the world\'s largest ice cream float and the world\'s largest potato chips Bowl, which he made inside the satellite antenna.
A press release released last week promoted his latest stunt: The Ninja Turtles, which will premiere last weekend.
While Wolinsky relies on theatrical performances, most other operators will be looking for motion simulators to get them back to buy more.
Very high simulator
Technology visual stimulation, deceiving the brain to believe that flying into space or running around a racing track is a \"real\" experience.
Although the sports simulator has been in existence for less than 10 years, the amusement park has ordered 160 simulators, Graff said.
Graff said he believes the amusement park industry has reached saturation, with at least one large amusement park within 150 miles of each metropolitan area.
\"It will cost $0. 12 billion to open a big park like Busch Garden today,\" Graff said . \"
\"But if you can find a place where you can support it.
Given the competition and the high cost of capital, I don\'t think we will see more parks being developed.