Actually Six Flags did the opposite of running Geauga Lake into the ground, they bought Geauga Lake, slapped in 4 major coasters in one season and renamed it Six Flags Ohio and built up the park so big that it couldn't support itself, then they bought Seaworld Ohio that was right across the lake, named the whole complex Six Flags Worlds of Adventure and it became even bigger and less self sustaining, until they sold this disaster of a park to Cedar Fair who renamed it back to Geauga Lake turned the old Seaworld side into a waterpark and eventually closed the dry side and distributed easily moved rides around the Cedar Fair chain.
Favorite Wood Coasters: The Voyage, Ravine Flyer II, Thunderhead, Balder Favorite Steel: Voltron Nevera, Steel Vengeance, Expedition GeForce, Olympia Looping Parks visited: 232, Coasters Ridden: Steel: 894, Wood: 179, Total: 1073
I meant run it into the ground financially. I wish I would have known about this place before it closed. Never made it there. I was researching it's history last week and found that Busch Gardens offered to buy it in 2000 and Six Flags countered and bought Sea World instead for $110 million. So what do you think Busch would have done with it? Would they have operated the 2 parks independently? Would they have rethemed GL into a Busch Gardens? Would the parks still be operational today? What type of rides would have been added and removed?
I'd wager to guess it likely would have gone in the direction of BGW ride wise, and would probably be around and successful today, though a coaster or 3 would probably end up having been removed. Actually if SF had picked 3-4 coasters to tear out and send elsewhere, and not bought Seaworld, the park would probably still be there today and probably profitable.
Favorite Wood Coasters: The Voyage, Ravine Flyer II, Thunderhead, Balder Favorite Steel: Voltron Nevera, Steel Vengeance, Expedition GeForce, Olympia Looping Parks visited: 232, Coasters Ridden: Steel: 894, Wood: 179, Total: 1073
I am SO glad none of you are defending Cedar Fair in this instance.
I think the Park needed a BIG expansion to compete better with Cedar Point but I think Six Flags picked the wrong year to expand it. They should've done it in 1999, That way their only competition was CP's Camp Snoopy. In 2000, They had to go up against Millennium Force.
I agree 1000x percent that they shouldn't have purchased SeaWorld, If I were Six Flags, I would've had the park go until SeaWorld closed the park. SFO was 232 acres, That should've been MORE than enough land to build upon.
Six Flags should have never tried to compete with Cedar Point in the first place. Geauga Lake had been around for around 100 years and was doing quite well before Six Flags decided to put it up against Cedar Point. Now the park is gone. If SF never flagged the park and added the 4 huge coasters the park would probably still be doing quite well today.
Favorite Wood Coasters: The Voyage, Ravine Flyer II, Thunderhead, Balder Favorite Steel: Voltron Nevera, Steel Vengeance, Expedition GeForce, Olympia Looping Parks visited: 232, Coasters Ridden: Steel: 894, Wood: 179, Total: 1073
^^ Six Flags didn't have trouble with attendance in 2000. They could't sustain it in the following years, which killed them. Something around 2.1 mil in 2000, 1.4 mil in 01' and around 700-800,000 from 02'-04'.
