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This thread.

Look, I've been a leader on this particular issue, as the mod team well knows. I assure you, it was more than 'a facebook comment I disagreed with'. However - Bikash's involvement on these forums, as well as his recent admission that he got a few things wrong in the early stages of the pandemic, in many respects, has redeemed his prior actions. I don't agree with the sometimes brutish nature of his defence of his position and reputation, but his intent is generally in the right place, and i'll say no more on the subject - simple point being, he is not the reason, nor even the main reason for some of the criticism I have for Village. I don't think its fair of you to discard any criticism of Village as being all because of Bikash. It isn't. I'm sure you and others (Like Joz) can agree Village is far from perfection. I have to tell you, my 'hating' on village isn't because of Bikash, and it never was. As for Green Lantern, while this isn't my position on the issue, what i've heard is that Village pressured S&S to develop the 4-across el loco, S&S expressed concern it couldn't be done, and Village's response was 'make it work'. From what I had heard, S&S had expressed concern about the engineering of the bogies and Village was accepting of the risk. They knew about it at the very least, if this is the case. Now, the engineering responsibility still lies with S&S, which is why I said it isn't my position on the issue, but if the above is true (and thats a huge if that few if not nobody here would be able to confirm or deny), then Village knew about the risk, could potentially have had more frequent NDT or monitoring on the parts at risk. At the end of the day, they're just lucky that nobody was killed. The 'manufacturer fault' story sounds like it would wash, but likewise, the blame would shatter the public's confidence in the brand - even if they could say it wasn't engineered correctly and they've fixed it now - how many people would trust the new engineering? And wouldn't that then cast doubt on the manufacturer for future products? Isn't that why we don't see either park dealing with S&S on future attractions? Deaths on GL could still have seen it removed - regardless of who was at fault. A derailed train is one thing - like the one that jumped the tracks at Cleveland a while back. Nobody remembers that. But a derailed train that killed people - AKA Granville - that people remember. Things I dislike about village that have nothing to do with the current COO: Sea World train gate detour Failure to maintain, upkeep or upgrade transport attractions like the train, skyway and monorail 365 days of christmas lights down movie world main street - covered in cobwebs shuttering of stars cafe leaving a huge derelict facility right by the park entrance removal of marvin rocket, and leaving the entire ride theming in place the rotting of the thatched huts (now hut) in WB Kids Skill games taking up prime dining real estate in the SW plaza The 8 year ignorance of WNW while shuttering attractions (Mach 5) The haphazard operations schedule for Surfrider The abandoned zip line the sorry state of whirlpool springs (until the shutdown, when it was resurfaced) The closure of Chinatown Alley as a major thoroughfare for people to get between the front and back of the park without navigating the chokehold of mainstreet moving Carnivale to Sea World The loss of major family friendly attractions like Bermuda and LTRR, and shows like PASS, replaced with poor substitutes that don't appeal to the same broad market. On the subject of shows, the corny, unappealing show replacements for Seal and Dolphin versus the predecessors that were the pinnacle of the park the loss of show stage in MW to be replaced with showcase, leaving no seated, covered venue for character performances The pathetically slow operations, staff who really don't care or strive to achieve maximum capacity and efficiency (and the minimal rostering that forces less staff to operate rides previously operated by a larger, far more efficient crew) Running bare minimum cars on track to minimise wear and tear, resulting in large queue lines Then upcharging skip the line passes (and anything else you can come up with) to milk more cash from your guests. I know some of these aren't unique to Village - and i'm by no means defending Dreamworld for their current state either - but these are just some of the complaints i've come up with off the top of my head based on prior experiences at the parks, little to none of which are directly a result of the COO. The overpriced food, that doesn't even include a drink, and is of poor quality The constant over-promise and under-deliver mentality

They had to make the most noise. Its very simple. With out a major park up and running tourism has no confidence to move forward. VRTP parks will play a vital role in shaping the recovery now. Destination Gold Coast know this, the City Council knows this, State Government knows this and federal government. It was not by coincidence that Amusement Parks were apart of the major restriction rollbacks flagged back in April. Same as major sports, its all about consumer confidence and cashflow. No consumer confidence, no cash flow, no parks, no tourism and that shit flows downhil to the rest of the economy. They have done the best job they can with the hand we all got dealt in the last 3 months and good on them!

Of course, they have not gone against the governments' directives. But they have pushed them rather aggressive it seems to ensure they could open their businesses. I get the whole employment aspect and keeping the business viable aspect also. But it also appears as if the sale price of the business is also really important. Comments have been made by particular individuals at VRTP who have said basically "come on let's get on with it. That's something that is upsetting. I do not hear of another company within this field in Australia trying to force the government to open theme parks. We aren't getting international guest this year so it's only the locals who will visit mostly. Then the interstate people. That depends on restrictions within someone's home state also. Plus many have been affected and most likely cannot afford a holiday for a solid 1/2 years. Dreamworld "holding back" as some would say is a good thing I see. A company who can get stuff sorted out, future proof it's self even a little more and still keep workers on the books thanks to Job Keeper. They could also be working on new technology like an app for queuing and we don't even know yet. I understand they look slow and unenthusiastic to most but its a smart move during the cooler months when many cant visit. Plus people with a DW pass will get the extension on a pass that will be slightly longer than a VRTP. So that can be a slight advantage.

There was a problem adding your tickets.

Like I said at the start, if you want to think they're holding back by design, you're welcome to think that. If part of you giving them a pass involes making up your own narrative for what they might be doing in secret, have at it. If you think extending passes so they are valid for the exact same amount of time a Village one is, but doing so later is somehow better, I won't invade your non reality bubble. I'm afraid you are now too far from reality.

Personally, that isn't the case. Maybe its a case of once being too close to the fire and being slightly burnt let us say. Sure. His story makes for a great one. Working up the ranks within a company is hard for anyone to do. He shows loyalty. But I doubt a single person can influence everyone. Everyone is allowed to follow team A or team B. I think the massive issue is the "mudslinging" that occurs because people reckon DW is being "too slow" while others will say "VRTP are reckless". I don't agree with the tactics VRTP used during the downtime with COVID-19. Sure it is just the flue but man. Like smaller parks around Australia (yes not just the GC) have almost gone under during this time bet I reckon no one will bat an eye about it. Sure not liking tactics a company uses seems childish etc but its a personal viewpoint that I stand by. Sometimes it's nice to also go for the underdog. Living in the ivory towers might be great and they might have a great view. But they honestly made the most noise during the whole debacle. It wasn't pretty noise either.

Here's the thing with Green Lantern, it's like the airbags in your car. It's happened a few times that cars have been packed with faulty airbags. They send their cars to the mechanics, who checks everything over exactly how they're meant to, but later on the airbags deploys, killing the driver, who is at fault, the car owner, the mechanic or the airbags maker? If you've been following the news, you'll know it's the airbag maker, it's their product, their engineering, their maintenance regime. I honestly can't remember what I know from here, OH&S or talking to people involved, but the car in question had jist recently been worked on by S&S, and it was effectively new when the incident occurred. I can't remember if there was a report (I think there was?) But MW were in the clear. They also shut the ride down until the cars were reengineered. TRRR is more like a car that you made that never looked after, never had a proper looked at, made modifications, and drove erratically. You had a bad accident on it but didn't fix the problem and said 'Shit lucky no one was on it at the time lol'. One day it kills 4 people. Who do you blame, the Owner, the manufacturer or whoever made the modifications? Well DW were all 3. Hence anyone wanting to air Village's dirty laundry would be advised not to bring it up as a comparison. Why people are thinking that ripping into Village proves anything is anyone's guess too. Rappa made the point that it's pretty poor form for Ardent to have a dig at Village for safety, and the DW apologists come out in force to defend them and bash Village. You know what I hate about this thread? I don't even like Village, but here I am defending them. There are a lot of things to dislike them for, but they've got safety pretty tightly sewn up. If you don't believe me read the TRR report again. Nothing will ever be perfect and there's always room to improve, but the difference is night and day on this.

How does it act exactly? They are excited to announce they don't know when they're opening. How is that even a thing? It comes across like it's an announcement in response to the news today rather than being something they are promoting on their own terms. They are on the back foot, not smart. If this is them on the front foot, they're also not smart. HeIl the media reached out to then and the declined to comment. You know why? Because they had nothing to announce. Obviously this story is going to blow up today and they weren't ready have beeb left behind. Yes they'll get clearer air when they do announce it, but yesterday they weren't even able to say 'We're in the final stages of finalising our reopening date for Dreamworld, however we are excited to announce Sky Point will be reopening on..' Also according to the link posted yesterday, weren't the staff told first at Village what was going on? Isn't there communication to staff out there explaining the various situations to them? Also, someone from Ardent has been reading from the Village book of bland Corperate speak, having announced a **World Class** Covid safe plan

First question. Well, it is fairly obvious. They have announced when they will be reopening. Before the September holidays in a staged re-opening. I gather people are upset because they didn't yet give an exact date. They have given an idea. So its better than nothing else. It is not like they are chucking a tantrum. It seems to me like DW management understand workers health and safety along with guest is more important. Does anyone also know how VRTP has been losing 15 million a month?. Is that just the GC parks or worldwide stuff also.

Its a lot better than the company who has been jumping up and down demanding the government changes rules and regulations while keeping its own staff in the cold. At least DW has not kept staff in the cold. What's wrong with today's announcement from DW anyway?. They announced they are opening and that gives everyone a timeline. But then again DW ain't no VRTP and we al know hos this forum acts these days. Just don't go crying when the numbers fall or if those parks are required to do more than what we have already been told.