What is next for our parks?

[TBoy]

With Flash/Dreamland open WOZ and Rivertown to open in the next few months, we soon will have all the lands announced for the parks. The question is, what is next for our parks in the next few years?

For 2025 I can unfortunately see it be the first year in some time without any new rides for our parks. Village and Coast both just spent $50m+ each on WOZ/Rivertown/Flash/Dreamland, and they will need to recoup the cost before spending on anything new. Overall the only significant thing will be the Scooby refurb.

Based on a 2-3 year gap between new areas for each park, I can see Dreamworld possibly investing in something for 2026, but I have a feeling they wont go for a whole new land this time, either an individual flat ride or coaster. I can see Village go to Sea World for investments this time, they seem to alternate where one park gets the main investment for new rides while advertising the previous investments at the other park. It was MW's turn from 2016-2018 (Doomsday, DCR) Sea World's turn from 2019-2022 (New Atlantis) and now it is MW's turn again with Flash/WoO, so based on that Sea World will probably be next for capex.

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

32 minutes ago, TBoy said:

It was MW's turn from 2016-2018 (Doomsday, DCR) Sea World's turn from 2019-2022 (New Atlantis) and now it is MW's turn again with Flash/WoO, so based on that Sea World will probably be next for capex

WetNWild is the poor cousin that everyone forgets about.

I think the pre-covid pattern of a park having 'their turn' is probably a little bit outdated, and there is more for the parks to do than just open blockbuster attractions each year. We've also seen Village group projects run simultaneously across several properties, and also several projects at the same property. 

Likewise Dreamworld needs to keep up momentum and going a year or two without 'something' will see them fade quickly.

 

I personally think we'll see the parks capitalise on the success of their big attraction releases this (or early next) year by introducing some new entertainment offerings, and perhaps filling some of the smaller gaps in their lineups by opening smaller or lower cost attractions for kids or the family market - as I feel they've both got a lot of thrills already taken care of.

[TBoy]

8 minutes ago, DaptoFunlandGuy said:

I think the pre-covid pattern of a park having 'their turn' is probably a little bit outdated, and there is more for the parks to do than just open blockbuster attractions each year. We've also seen Village group projects run simultaneously across several properties, and also several projects at the same property. 

What I am saying is I think Sea World will likely be the next to get something big, you can promote New Atlantis for a few years but as things like Rivertown and WoO start to open, the hype is going to die down and people would go to the other parks which are getting capex.

9 minutes ago, DaptoFunlandGuy said:

I personally think we'll see the parks capitalise on the success of their big attraction releases this (or early next) year by introducing some new entertainment offerings, and perhaps filling some of the smaller gaps in their lineups by opening smaller or lower cost attractions for kids or the family market - as I feel they've both got a lot of thrills already taken care of.

I could possibly see some low cost stuff come, but as both Coast/Village are opening big lands, chances are we wont see anything massive as we only see large scale investments every 2-3 years.

[New display name]

57 minutes ago, TBoy said:

With Flash/Dreamland open WOZ and Rivertown to open in the next few months, we soon will have all the lands announced for the parks. The question is, what is next for our parks in the next few years?

For 2025 I can unfortunately see it be the first year in some time without any new rides for our parks. Village and Coast both just spent $50m+ each on WOZ/Rivertown/Flash/Dreamland, and they will need to recoup the cost before spending on anything new. Overall the only significant thing will be the Scooby refurb.

Based on a 2-3 year gap between new areas for each park, I can see Dreamworld possibly investing in something for 2026, but I have a feeling they wont go for a whole new land this time, either an individual flat ride or coaster. I can see Village go to Sea World for investments this time, they seem to alternate where one park gets the main investment for new rides while advertising the previous investments at the other park. It was MW's turn from 2016-2018 (Doomsday, DCR) Sea World's turn from 2019-2022 (New Atlantis) and now it is MW's turn again with Flash/WoO, so based on that Sea World will probably be next for capex.

Don't stress.  DW have more plans for 2025.

[STRAWS]

13 minutes ago, New display name said:

Don't stress.  DW have more plans for 2025.

I really hope they do a water ride like maybe a log flume or water coaster because as much as im excited about River Town its always going to be a gap in their attraction line up I think it should be their next priortiy.  Does anyone else agree with ? me or dissagree im just curious to hear what other people think.

Edited July 31 by STRAWS

[Levi]

i feel like i remember Dreamworld confirming plans for 2025 but i may be remembering wrong, however if they go for a water ride, their only option is a water coaster, unless it’s something like a Zamperla Big Wavez. i believe the next addition will be something catering to thrill seekers though when looking at their pattern (Sky Voyager > Steel Taipan > KB Dreamland, DF and Rivertown.) 

in general i think 2025 will be more of an aesthetic / overall park upgrade year for all the parks. i could see Sea World potentially opening a new ride in the old VR station area since some work has been happening there lately, but who knows.

[TBoy]

Just now, Levi said:

in general i think 2025 will be more of an aesthetic / overall park upgrade year for all the parks. i could see Sea World potentially opening a new ride in the old VR station area since some work has been happening there lately, but who knows.

I'm not sure something will be able to fit there due to the size of the area, by the looks of it it seems to be turned into a path

Another point, where could the parks expand? You have spare room at Dreamworld but the Village parks, especially Movie World, are landlocked.

What about building a Mini-Citywalk where the carpark is right now and building a multi-story one on the overflow? If there is a flood risk maybe try to build 1 story higher than ground. It also gives people something to do at night while staying at the MW Hotel. Have a day at Movie World, have tea in one of the restaurants, go to TopGolf, then go back to the hotel. If you add buses to Sea World, then you have MW, SW, WnW, Paradise Country, CityWalk, AOS, TopGolf and the hotel which means people staying on-site without leaving, therefore all the money goes to Village.

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

2 minutes ago, TBoy said:

I'm not sure something will be able to fit there due to the size of the area, by the looks of it it seems to be turned into a path

You'd be surprised what they can fit into tight spaces when they try...

[Levi]

19 minutes ago, TBoy said:

Another point, where could the parks expand? You have spare room at Dreamworld but the Village parks, especially Movie World, are landlocked.

as far as we know the Villians precinct as a whole is done. they’ve let it to rot and with them “exploring options” for Doomsday, that will be the next attraction area for sure. besides that, they’ll just have to start getting creative. 

[TBoy]

Just now, Levi said:

as far as we know the Villians precinct as a whole is done. they’ve let it to rot and with them “exploring options” for Doomsday, that will be the next attraction area for sure. besides that, they’ll just have to start getting creative. 

I personally would like to see them gut the showstage and use that, maybe have a land with a flat outside and a dark ride inside the showstage?

[TV15]

4 minutes ago, DaptoFunlandGuy said:

You'd be surprised what they can fit into tight spaces when they try...

a la The Flash: Speed Force.

4 hours ago, TBoy said:

The question is, what is next for our parks in the next few years?

I could definitely see something happening to Superman Escape, like removing the hydraulic launch and replacing it with LSMs, as the ride is approaching 20 years. I'd assume this would take place when Scooby Doo Spooky Coaster reopens and they've installed a functional replacement for Doomsday. It would be a big capacity hit for the park, so I just hope we don't get the same surprise closing for SE as we did for SDSC.

As for Sea World, the castle, VRLF load/unload station, and the plot beside JR all seem like the next expansion spot. I'd like to see a high-capacity dark ride in place of the castle, a family-thrill flat ride in VRLF, or a few permanent quick-service popup food stores. I'd love sitting around there watching Storm and JR go by. Jet Rescue is another area that could use some attention. I love the ride, but some days those restraints can be awful. For the JR expansion plot, I'd love to see a modern Vekoma thrill coaster, something like Shockwave or Lech Coaster.

If Dreamworld unveils something big and thrill-based, which I have a feeling they might, VRTP will respond in some way—either at Sea World or Movie World. I could see MW's response being a complete overhaul of the Kids WB Fun Zone or utilizing some of that space behind WWF for a dark ride. If they tied the dark ride into the theme of WWF with an interesting storyline and immersive theming, it could be a huge hit for the park. I'd assume SW would just add another thrill-oriented coaster. And for the last time, the Gold Coast does not need a mack extreme spinner but I could see Dreamworld purchasing one.

[themagician]

8 minutes ago, TV15 said:

like removing the hydraulic launch and replacing it with LSMs

Don’t give them the idea, this would be a terrible change. And the rides just has some upgrades to the launch system (hence the unexpected closure before the last school holiday)

[TBoy]

4 hours ago, TV15 said:

or utilizing some of that space behind WWF for a dark ride.

I had an idea of using the area behind Scooby/WWF for a new land connected to WWF and WoO, but the problem would be it requiring studio buildings to be relocated onto the grass field next to the stages. I made a concept a few months ago, it would include a lake, food stands and two rides, a dark ride themed to Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and a Vekoma Madhouse themed to Beetlejuice.

[Noll_57]

6 hours ago, Levi said:

as far as we know the Villians precinct as a whole is done. they’ve let it to rot and with them “exploring options” for Doomsday, that will be the next attraction area for sure. besides that, they’ll just have to start getting creative. 

I’m almost certain the Doomsday area will be the next thing Village focus on. They certainly need to, as the land is currently a massive white elephant (as is that whole back section of the park). Ever since the WB Showcase closed and foot traffic in the area dried up, it seems as if the park have completely given up on maintaining the land and have started actively discouraging people from venturing into it. Considering they have switched off all the effects, removed multiple theming elements (while letting the remaining ones rot) and placed netting over the ride fence (I guess to try and hide their dud attraction?) there’s literally nothing for guests to see or do and no reason for anyone to be there. I think this is a pretty clear sign that the area is truly on its last legs and will close fairly soon (possibly once WOZ opens). 

As for what could replace it, I do agree that a new high quality, well themed dark ride is the one thing the park desperately needs at the moment more than anything else. Utilising the Doomsday/Showstage area seems like the most suitable location for such an attraction, seeing as though most other existing show buildings are now used as storage areas and there isn’t too much space to easily build elsewhere. 

[Baconjack]

Next year or two from village will mostly be updates I'd say. 

You have Scooby opening next year. Next big ride to do up is Superman. I doubt Village will have any interest in an LSM conversion for superman given Cedar Point's issues with theirs. What they should be doing is a next generation like revamp - completely re-doing the dark ride section as it is looking very tired. Haven't ridden Superman in a while as I'm too tall for it now but recent POV's give it away, the track sensors are playing the wrong voice recordings. If they're spending money on the queue, the least they could do is extend that to the actual ride. With the lockers going away, bring back the shop while you're there. Maybe new trains to accommodate taller riders, but a difficult task when considering clearances.

Doomsday and the villains land is as good as gone - i'd expect that and the showcase building to be used up for their next big ride, but that's at least 3-4 years down the track. Make that entire area wild west, superheroes belong in superhero corner. I'd love Vortex at Movie World where Doomsday is now, but I doubt it gets moved. Wishlisting a small scale dive coaster on that combined site as it's a proven guest magnet, the optics of it would be good (imagine a vertical drop and immelman staring at you walking towards west) and will make that corner of the park lively.

Likewise at Sea World the vikings castle will probably be kept until its time for something new. How long it will be until that 'something new' gets built is up for debate. I'll wishlist a modern flume there. I don't see anything going on Corkscrew's spot personally, I think that stays BOH with the new workshop being built nearby.

 

Dreamworld really needs to build more beyond Rivertown and I'm sure that what they're doing now isn't the last thing we see. They need a water ride of some description, either a shoot the chutes or a water coaster on Rocky Hollow's spot, and a big flat in Wipeout's spot (would love a star shape there). That's the bare minimum and i think those two things are achieved before Coast sell. WWW really really needs a lazy river but not sure on if it'll get built.

All that is really left to touch inside the park is Motocoaster, and that's probably going to be seeing changes sooner rather than later.

Edited July 31 by Baconjack

[New display name]

MW need to focus on re-opening Scooby in 2025.

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

14 hours ago, TV15 said:

removing the hydraulic launch and replacing it with LSMs

I don't think you've got the launch length for LSMs to work, and a swing launch wouldn't work with the current storyline, unless it's "Superman: Escape from the old folk's home"

[themagician]

19 hours ago, TBoy said:

For 2025 I can unfortunately see it be the first year in some time without any new rides for our parks.

I disagree. I think the parks will want to continue their trajectory and add a new attraction/s.
 

MW have grown the reputation of having all their rides closed, so by adding another ride (and with the reopening of Scooby), they’ll see that as a way to win people back over (even though I believe the heart of the problem is poor maintenance management).

DW will also want to continue their trajectory of investing in more attractions (or even a new land). The crowds are really starting to return to the park in the last year and I think that’s because they’ve been investing large amounts of money (almost yearly). The park had grown the reputation of they’ve removed everything and theirs nothing to do, so they need to put that to bed completely. 

19 hours ago, TBoy said:

Sea World will probably be next for capex.

I get the feeling Village is pretty happy with the line-up with Sea World right now. I think there is definitely more the park could do and needs in its line-up, but it’s the most attractions the park has had in more than a decade.

 

19 hours ago, DaptoFunlandGuy said:

WetNWild is the poor cousin that everyone forgets about.

It really is! And despite the opening of four attractions in 2021 they have since then lost Surfrider, Aqualoop, SkyCoaster and Flowrider is rarely open. I see Aqualoop has the best viable location for a new attraction. 
 

But I think WWW is that poor cousin too because other than Fully 6 (4), it hasn’t had a decent investment in over a decade. The park wide refurbishment was a decent investment, but it needs that expansion that’s been spoken about for many years now. They have also lost Wedgie and I don’t think Triple Vortex has been open for several seasons.

7 hours ago, Baconjack said:

Doomsday and the villains land is as good as gone

Absolutely and I think this will be there focus alongside (or soon after) Scooby.

 

7 hours ago, Baconjack said:

Dreamworld really needs to build more beyond Rivertown

I’m really hoping to see something open on the former rocky hollow site as that is really the most lacking corner of the park and makes the Giant Drop feel like it’s not even a part of the park. If they built a new ramp to remove all of spaghetti junction they have a lot of land, and even more if they finally demolished Blue Lagoon. 
 

I’d to see a new thrill attraction that makes people want to visit the park to just ride that and then compliment it with a smaller family attraction (even if it’s a flat ride), so they can create a new ‘land’

[TBoy]

8 hours ago, Baconjack said:

Wishlisting a small scale dive coaster on that combined site as it's a proven guest magnet, the optics of it would be good (imagine a vertical drop and immelman staring at you walking towards west) and will make that corner of the park lively.

Good idea, I think this would be good for the park as they haven't added a large-scale thrill coaster since 2017. If B&M is too expensive, what about Gerstlauer dive coaster like Hangtime at Knotts? It can fit into a small space and has a less expensive manufacturer, and also seems to have good reviews. Have the entrance where Showcase entered and have an indoor queue and station, before the lift hill takes you outside and the main layout is in the former Doomsday area

[Tricoart]

2 hours ago, DaptoFunlandGuy said:

I don't think you've got the launch length for LSMs to work, and a swing launch wouldn't work with the current storyline, unless it's "Superman: Escape from the old folk's home"

I definitely don’t see them going with Zamperla over Intamin after TT2’s issues (& them not seeming to have any biases against Intamin that’d cause choosing a worse option), and Intamin can have some pretty punchy LSMs. But, despite that, with the (non-maintenance) benefits of LSMs being of:

• not needing the a section after launch to slow it’s catch car down,
• being capable of a rolling start, instead of needing to stop & hook to the catch car, and
• having the flexibility for stators to be able to stretch further into the pullout if needed,

they could get LSMs working on it if they needed to. It’s more a matter of if that’s the case or not, and I don’t think it will be, at least in the near future.

9 minutes ago, TBoy said:

Good idea, I think this would be good for the park as they haven't added a large-scale thrill coaster since 2017. If B&M is too expensive, what about Gerstlauer dive coaster like Hangtime at Knotts? It can fit into a small space and has a less expensive manufacturer, and also seems to have good reviews. Have the entrance where Showcase entered and have an indoor queue and station, before the lift hill takes you outside and the main layout is in the former Doomsday area

As a largely coaster fan, I’d agree that either model would be great to have on the Gold Coast. But Movie World can go years without adding a new thrill coaster, whereas it needed some good flats like yesterday. I’d hope they’d see that that’s the case, instead of focusing solely on upping their coaster count like the Six Flags park they’ve become.

Edited July 31 by Tricoart

[TV15]

9 hours ago, Baconjack said:

You have Scooby opening next year. Next big ride to do up is Superman. I doubt Village will have any interest in an LSM conversion for superman given Cedar Point's issues with theirs. What they should be doing is a next generation like revamp - completely re-doing the dark ride section as it is looking very tired. Haven't ridden Superman in a while as I'm too tall for it now but recent POV's give it away, the track sensors are playing the wrong voice recordings. If they're spending money on the queue, the least they could do is extend that to the actual ride. With the lockers going away, bring back the shop while you're there. Maybe new trains to accommodate taller riders, but a difficult task when considering clearances.

Cedar Point went with a manufacturer that had never built a roller coaster on the scale of Top Thrill Dragster. It has always been speculated that CP went with the cheapest manufacturer, Zamperla. If they had chosen Intamin, as they should have, would we be seeing these issues? Probably not. Do I think that whenever Zamperla has a fix for the ride that it will operate reliably, yes. But just give them time.

During past extended downtime, I happened to be there on the day it randomly opened. Everything was working and triggered on time, with the exception of the outside smoke rings.

Here's a recent POV of the ride, everything looks to be working correctly.

1 hour ago, Tricoart said:

• not needing the a section after launch to slow it’s catch car down,
• being capable of a rolling start, instead of needing to stop & hook to the catch car, and
• having the flexibility for stators to be able to stretch further into the pullout if needed,

This. Intamin can put LSMs on the base of the top hat if needed (e.g., Storm Coaster UAE). But this seems like something that might happen within the next 5 years. It's an older ride, and I'm sure it has cost the park a lot. VRTP has put themselves in a tricky position here with FSF being in the helix. If we get any sort of retrack of SE, this will impact the ride. If they want new trains with higher heartlines and potential clearance issues, this will impact the ride. If they want to extend the layout in some form, this will also affect the ride. I'm sure VRTP doesn't want to throw out FSF in 2027, which is only 3 years away.

Edited August 1 by TV15

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

2 hours ago, themagician said:

I get the feeling Village is pretty happy with the line-up with Sea World right now. I think there is definitely more the park could do and needs in its line-up, but it’s the most attractions the park has had in more than a decade.

I get the feeling Sea World has more to come. Like MW they've gotten a bit of a reputation about having things closed, so expanding their lineup can't hurt. 

 

3 hours ago, themagician said:

But I think WWW is that poor cousin too because other than Fully 6 (4), it hasn’t had a decent investment in over a decade. The park wide refurbishment was a decent investment, but it needs that expansion that’s been spoken about for many years now. They have also lost Wedgie and I don’t think Triple Vortex has been open for several seasons.

I kinda see WWW as less of a critical factor for several reasons - not least of which is it's seasonal operation. As long as they continue to operate it for only part of the year, I don't think WWW is the priority. Also, because it is co-located, it's more open for park hopping during the day, whereas a WnW day tends to be a full day for most guests, because a park hop typically requires bundling into the car to relocate closer to the other park. For all those reasons, WWW is not really in the same (forgotten) position as WnW - WnW really needs to be able to hold its own as a full day park, whereas WWW has for several years now been regarded as a part-day add-on, and only for part of the year.

2 hours ago, TBoy said:

what about Gerstlauer dive coaster like Hangtime at Knotts?

Look, Gerstlauer's foray into Australia with Abyss was Abyss-mal. That rollercoaster should be condemned. I'd love to see a HangTime clone over here as it is hands down my son's favourite rollercoaster, and the one by which all others are compared. It's a lot of fun, plenty of inversions and thrills, with a lower height requirement than some of the other big boys. I'd mention the awesome lighting package it has, but sadly we'd never see it with our 5pm closure times. As long as they've ironed out whatever issues they had with Abyss and the Australian Weather conditions, it's a plus one from me.

2 hours ago, Tricoart said:

• not needing the a section after launch to slow it’s catch car down,
• being capable of a rolling start, instead of needing to stop & hook to the catch car, and
• having the flexibility for stators to be able to stretch further into the pullout if needed,

they could get LSMs working on it if they needed to. It’s more a matter of if that’s the case or not, and I don’t think it will be, at least in the near future.

I'm not an engineer so i'm not about to say they could replace the hydraulics with LSMs without some sort of swing being necessary without seeing some real data on it.

What I will say as a layperson is that the full length of the superman launch is approximately 40 metres long, to crest a 40 metre tophat with a max speed of approximately 100km/h.

Meanwhile Steel Taipan uses a magnetic launch system approximately 75 metres long (which it hits three times in a swing launch). And the max height for steel taipan is the same 40 metre height, with a comparable max speed of 105km/h.

Intamin might have some shit-hot gear over what Zamperla is using, but is it really (napkin math) 6 times better than Mack Rides systems too?

2 hours ago, TV15 said:

I'm sure VRTP doesn't want to throw out FSF in 2027, which is only 3 years away.

it's ok, they'll just relocate it to Sea World in 2027, due to open in 2032!

[Baconjack]

2 hours ago, TV15 said:

Cedar Point went with a manufacturer that had never built a roller coaster on the scale of Top Thrill Dragster. It has always been speculated that CP went with the cheapest manufacturer, Zamperla. If they had chosen Intamin, as they should have, would we be seeing these issues? Probably not. Do I think that whenever Zamperla has a fix for the ride that it will operate reliably, yes. But just give them time.

Correct me if I’m wrong but wasn’t zamperla the only choice for that project? Intamin I don’t think offers that kind of project, whereas Zamperla had their lsm conversion prototype (that’s now up and running in Canada) done up in time for Cedar Point to come knocking.

3 hours ago, TBoy said:

Good idea, I think this would be good for the park as they haven't added a large-scale thrill coaster since 2017. If B&M is too expensive, what about Gerstlauer dive coaster like Hangtime at Knotts? It can fit into a small space and has a less expensive manufacturer, and also seems to have good reviews.

I think the “too expensive” argument that while was relevant 10 years ago is a little bit out of date now. Mack is arguably in the same price range as B&M yet Village has bought 2 things from them (3 when you count scooby’s renovations). They have also dropped $50 million on Oz. If they want to they can get a dive coaster, Village has shown they’re happy to spend and considered getting a B&M dive (among other things) when making a call about replacing Arkham.

I think you’ll find that the MO of BGH is pumping money into the parks through capex investment with the goal of flipping it off at maximum value, while day to day ops suffers. Coast is doing the exact same thing at Dreamworld, except the day to day part, because they have senior management who know what they are doing. 
 

27 minutes ago, DaptoFunlandGuy said:

I get the feeling Sea World has more to come. Like MW they've gotten a bit of a reputation about having things closed, so expanding their lineup can't hurt. 

Look, Gerstlauer's foray into Australia with Abyss was Abyss-mal. That rollercoaster should be condemned. I'd love to see a HangTime clone over here as it is hands down my son's favourite rollercoaster, and the one by which all others are compared. It's a lot of fun, plenty of inversions and thrills, with a lower height requirement than some of the other big boys. I'd mention the awesome lighting package it has, but sadly we'd never see it with our 5pm closure times. As long as they've ironed out whatever issues they had with Abyss and the Australian Weather conditions, it's a plus one from me.

Sea World has had the reputation of having rides shut without any immediate replacement for the last 10 years. I don’t think a lot changes on that front, Vikings will get its replacement eventually like how Corkscrew was indirectly replaced with Leviathan but I reckon movie world will get a major before them. I’d say the kids area is the next cab off the rank, that Nickelodeon contract surely is up for renewal soon.

I’ve always maintained that Abyss is a good ride, they just picked the wrong restraints from the start. Would be much better with lap bars that are on other eurofighters.

Edited August 1 by Baconjack

[themagician]

37 minutes ago, DaptoFunlandGuy said:

whereas WWW has for several years now been regarded as a part-day add-on

I’d argue that in this case, they should want to expand the park more so that they can make it a full day park. Guests visit DW day and WWW the other, therefore there’s the opportunity for more profit because guests may pay for food, souvenirs and any up charges twice.

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

2 hours ago, themagician said:

I’d argue that in this case, they should want to expand the park more so that they can make it a full day park. Guests visit DW day and WWW the other, therefore there’s the opportunity for more profit because guests may pay for food, souvenirs and any up charges twice.

You're not wrong, but they can't afford that right now. They're still building the dry park up, and winter operations at the water park should definitely NOT be the priority "now". But provided their trajectory continues upward, I could see them refocussing within the next 5 years to start building it up and expanding it prior to the Olympics.

But the dry park isn't ready and isn't producing sufficient revenue to eat the off-season losses at an open waterpark when it's approaching zero degrees outside.