Cedar Point of View

It’s been 11 days since our last blog. We’re sorry we haven’t been able to post more frequently. We’re still having to come to McDonald’s for the free Wifi since they don’t have it at the dorms in which we’re staying. Hopefully we will have better connectivity soon as we’re looking into renting an apartment for the remaining 3 months we’re here! We found a place that is only a little more expensive than staying at the dorms and we’d have our own bathroom and it would be quiet. It also will not smell like feet, have a roommate we don’t know that steals our flip flops and uses them to shower with, and have red goo bleeding from the ceiling! Haha!

Coming to McDonald’s to post also wouldn’t be a big issue if we had more time to do so. Given the level of staffing right now we have been working every day but Sundays for 9 to 16 hours a day! It will be really nice when we get our paychecks but it’s pretty exhausting! Our days tend to consist of waking up, working, eating, and going back to bed. Supposedly things are going to get better when we have some international workers come to help with staffing. Currently Power Tower has the biggest crew in the park and last year during the peak of the season they had twice the number of people they do right now. Similarly, Dragster will be getting some new workers in June to help Micah’s crew out since they have people from different areas of the park coming to help them right now.

The past week and a half has had a lot of ups and downs, which you would expect working at the best amusement park in the world. We’ve had quite a few days where we just weren’t feeling it. We’ve been feeling sick and have still had to stand in 50 degree rainy weather either checking seats or telling people the ride is closed due to inclement weather a billion times.

We would both agree though that the positives in our experience far outweigh the negatives. We still can’t believe we’re actually here! After getting the jobs, driving here, processing in, going to classes, learning our rides, and moving in we still feel like we made a good decision to come here. We have decided to keep a tally of all the rides we ride and will update it when we update the blog! It’s crazy how many rides we already have! We even rode the rides we were (thankfully) transferred from, Iron Dragon and Paddlewheel Excursions. It can’t be emphasized enough how thankful we are to have been moved!

We can’t wait to see what the rest of the summer holds for us! Last night we rode rides with a few people from our crews and it was a blast. Even riding the Mean Streak in the front row with all the bugs flying in my face was entertaining. The picture for that ride was priceless! Should have bought it! And we ended the night riding Dragster which was incredible!

Needless to say, we have met some pretty “out there” people while working here. Among the most out there were the ACE (America’s Coaster Enthusiasts) riders. One of the most famous ACE members is an old man called Single Rider Bob. Bob’s home ride is Millennium Force. After each season he makes a shirt which details how many times he has ridden Millennium Force. As of this season, he holds the record of over 1300 rides. Sean got the opportunity to ride next to Bob this week! He said that Bob was a very nice, enthusiastic and energetic person. What else would one want to do on their retirement except ride roller coasters?



Next on the list is a woman who we (we being every employee at Cedar Point) call Snow White. Snow White looks to be in her late 50’s, but we don’t actually know how old she is. She wears a white Snow White sweatshirt, with pink pajama bottoms and flip-flops. She carries around her Snow White dolls and insists on riding with them. She was at Cedar Point for the first 6 days! She waited in line for Dragster for a whole 12 hours while it was down due to the rain. Unfortunately we don’t have a picture of her, but trust us, it is better off that way.

Now for a subject we know everyone wants to hear about—dealing with guests who are too large to fit inside the rides. Most of the time larger guests will try out the test seat before actually entering the line. We offer them some help, but there are some guests who are just too large. Surprisingly it isn’t too difficult to deal with those who don’t fit. We do have to be conscious of our wording however. When asking a guest to try the test seat, we must use the word “buckle” instead of “fasten” because “fasten” sounds too much like “fat” and can potentially upset the guest. There are some who are in denial and will not try out the test seat, determined to fit when they get to the station, and end up having to take the walk of shame down the exit ramp. There have been a few miracles however. There are some guests who just have the will to fit, and surprisingly they do! It is probably because of their “pudginess” so to speak. The squishier their belly is, the more likely they will fit.

Over all the experience here has been great. It will be even greater when we get our first paycheck! Getting to talk to the vistomers and giving riders a good ride is worth it. Also, when it isn’t raining the weather here is great! We look forward to the feedback and will try to answer any questions you guys may have! We love and miss everyone!

With Love,
Sean and Micah