Bussy

Alex, the Demon train has never stopped in the boomerang with people on it at Wonderland, the closest it came to doing that was when the train was released early on the first lift and the operator pressed the e-stop (this happened several times), the train would hit the brakes and go partway into the boomerang and then roll back into the station. The cable did snap and caused extensive damage to the first section of the track and the train, but as Daniel said the operator and guests were not injured during that incident. The operator who injured her back did so by slipping and twisting her back and causing nerve damage. It is physically impossible to unlock the harness while locked into the seat. So those operators who were terminated, and it was not 5 by the way, it was 2, were obviously full of bullcrap. The carriage have never separated due to a sheared coupling or any other fault like that the only time they have come apart was when they have been taken off the track for maintenance work. As I have just stated the train has never stopped in the boomerang so I think you should go back to bed and continue having your wet dreams. If it did happen you would not think it was funny because you would be stuck there for sometime and if you were in the back or front carriages you would be nearly upside down and if you were in that position for probably at least an hour you would definitely not think it was funny. Get your hand off it Kostya. "The Bus is now leaving for Black Bull Scrub, Tasmania"

Would, lol, it, lol, Hussy,lol? "The Bus is now leaving for Laughing Water, Tasmania"

The thing with Demon was that it would basically have a hissy fit every so often. It would go for a period where everything was fine during everyday operation and then there would be a period that would last a couple of weeks, during those periods the ride would breakdowns on a regular basis. I’m talking 5 or more times a day sometimes. The reason this would happen is because they would fix the ride and then the standard of up-keep would drop so another problem would come up and it would take them some time to diagnose the problem and then to fix it. Would you call a crack in the supporting structure's welding a minor problem? The crack was in one of the supports for the loop and closed the ride for several days while an independent inspection was done and the required repairs done. This crack was not a minor one, it was about 2-3 inches long, now if the ride had been maintained properly and inspected thoroughly then the crack would have been detected earlier than it was. There is a problem with Sydneysiders and that is if they can drive somewhere then they will, the only reason Olympic Park works is because it was designed that way where as most other places are not. Wonderland is a perfect example of this, the built an absolutely huge car park and as far as I know the only time that the whole thing was used was during the 2000 games when it was a park and ride venue for the equestrian centre at Horsley Park. People will want to drive there and that’s a fact. "The Bus is now leaving for Crack Hardy Point, NSW"

The structure may appear to be squares but they would be triangles. Squares are a very weak structure compared with triangles and are therefore hardly ever used in structures. "The Bus is now leaving for Sesquicantenary Square, NSW"

Well considering that I spent usually 3 or 4 days out of 5 operating that ride or over a year I consider myself an expert. Now I know you are going to say that I was just an operator and didn't know anything but I spoke to the maintenance guys almost daily and I saw that ride breakdown at least twice a week on average. There has been no comment about structural problems because that was the first time I have brought it up. I think it was just before Christmas when the problem was found and the ride was closed for several days while the structural problem was investigated and an appropriate solution was made, whether or not this was a long term solution or not remains to be seen. Do you think that is a viable solution that would be appreciated by the customers? How would you feel if you pulled up at the gates and were told to go 5kms down the road and park and then wait 15-30 minutes for a shuttle bus? The public transport that serviced Wonderland was poor and I don't see Busways getting any better. But if you want to hire a bus just give me a buzz and I will be more than willing to lend my services, for the right price of course. What's wrong with the land? Well it's about 5 meters wide and 20 meters long but that shouldn't be a problem, should it? If you go any further into the park and any further along towards the M4 you would be encroaching on the space that Zordy wants for rides. Bush Beast with a heritage order on it? Why? So the council can waste a heap of money each year keeping in a reasonable state, another waste of taxpayer’s money as far as I can tell. "The Bus is now leaving for Waste Point, NSW"

Slick if you had looked at the second link and read the article or at least had a look down at the bottom of the page you would have seen that the F1 car was a one off promotion. The gist of the article is that the coaster is a giant advertising tool, which is one thing that Wonderland could have done to bring in some revenue. Bush Beast was a giant billboard waiting to happen but was not used to its potential. "The Bus is now leaving for Car Bob Well, Western Australia"

So what is going to happen during the busiest times of year for any amusement park (school holiday time)? The businesses around there aren't going to close down during these times to allow for visitors to park in their carparks. The council and probably the state government would never allow a situation like that to happen, so you had better come up with a solution. By the way how did winning the $23 million go? What was wrong with Demon? The question should be what's not wrong. It was mechanically on its last legs, the track was in very poor condition and I don't mean that it needed a lick of paint there were structural problems as well. Constant problems with the carriages. Besides that not much was wrong with Demon. Don't worry about people throwing things at the ride, what about people dropping things off the rides, things like cameras. But then again that would never happen would it Rich? "The Bus is now leaving for Dropmore, Victoria"

When I was at school we went to Wonderland for a maths or physics excursion. It was the bludgiest day (I had a lot of these) of my schooling career. And like most of the school kids that went to Wonderland for a maths or physics excursion one of the first things we did was find a bin to put the worksheet in. Ah those were the days. Is the reason that you think that they are up themselves Shifty, the fact that they are at least slightly educated unlike yourself? It would of been about 2:30 - 3 O'clock when the kids left and that is because they have to get back to their school at a reasonable time. "The Bus is now leaving for Bludgers Paradise South Australia"

Great design Gazza but there are a few things missing as far as I can tell. Where is the 'back of house' area? There needs to be a place for the administration staff, also the maintenance area, the staff room and associated things that go with this. I know that you wouldn't include these in a design like yours but if you have a confined space to work with you have to think of them. One thing that stood out on that plan was a lack of 'facilities'. Where are the crowds going to go when they need to use the toilet? I've got an idea that would make Zordy proud, use the surrounding factories facilities, they aren't going to be used on the weekend. Zordy do you think that $23 million would be enough to resurrect Wonderland in another form? I think that that would leave you about $100 million short by my calculations. "The Bus is now leaving for Calculation Hill, Tasmania"

I have to agree with ScReAMmachine!. It is just not financially viable for a fun/theme park on that site. And as for factories not operating over the weekend, where have you been? For example the building directly in front of you as you drive in the driveway at FactoryLand is a food distribution centre, fruit and veggies mostly, runs 24/7. Also I think the figure of 300-500 employees is a under-estimate if I have ever seen one. Costa’s (the food factory) probably employees 75-100 people and that’s not including the truckies that are constantly coming and going from the site, now multiply by the number of factories that will be there are the numbers are far greater that what you have stated. Sean, what nearby residents are there to kick up a fuss? The nearest residential neighbour is about 2km down the road from the site, so I don't think they would care that much considering they are having a very large road built on the doorstep. No self esteem lacking here. As I said the only people who should wear lycra are professional cyclists, oh yeah and wrestlers and weight lifters. One more person to add to that list, Matt Shirvington. "The Bus is now leaving for Swinging Shovel, South Australia"

Well that was my very first post on Total Thrills and what a beauty it was. There was no truth behind the post, except that is that Bush Beast was closed at that time. Yes the tap was on but it was you guys who were getting the crap out of it not me. The only reason I posted that was to see how much people would believe or disbelieve. Well I can safely say now that Bush Beast is now closed and will be pulled down and replaced with a large building of some sort containing a business of some description. The details are a bit sketchy at the moment but watch this space for breaking news. "The Bus is now leaving for Ben Tapps Hill, Tasmania"

Call it what you will it just wouldn't work on that site once the planned development has finished. Take your planned mini park and surround it with a bunch of very large buildings, mostly factories and distribution centres for various companies. Add to that a 6 lane motorway, a 4 land motorway, a 4 lane major road and the biggest spaghetti junction in Australia, it's going to be about 16 meters high. I personally couldn’t think of a more unpleasant location for a theme park, fun park, whatever you want it to be. I just had another look at your proposed changes and there are a few things that seem to be missing, where are they going to have things like the administration, maintenance and warehouse? The most important thing that is missing is the parking? Where are people going to put there cars? I think the concept is good but you just need to find a more appropriate site for it. No I’m definitely defiantly from the Fab Five but one things for sure Zordy, the only way you would get me in lycra in any form is to pay me a bucket load of money and put me in a bike race. Hopefully lycra will never make a come back in my life time and I feel for those future generations who may have to endure it. One things for sure though, I will be teaching my kids from a very young age to forget the monster under the bed and worry about the horror that is lycra. "The Bus is now leaving for Badajinnygugga Pool, Western Australia"

Zordy, it would be very hard to convince anyone that a small theme park will have a greater benefit in terms of jobs or economic factors. I have said it before and I will say it again, it doesn't make financial sense to have a small theme park employing how many people, 50? 75? Compare this to a business that would be on the site which would employee probably twice as many people. Now tell me which option has the greatest benefit in terms of jobs, economic and community benefit. Face it its gone and there is nothing that can be done now to change that. Oh yeah, one more thing, when did blue lycra shorts come back into fashion? "The Bus is now leaving for Goneaway National Park, Queensland"

Just out of interest Alex was that "Official" or Official permission to film on ride? If it was you would have used that weird harness thing that made sure that the camera didn't move an inch through out the ride. Shifty, surely you have read the thread about on ride video so I won't go on about it as you will know how I feel about the subject. But I will just say that anyone taking loose articles on a ride is an idiot. This is not to say that theme parks don't do it but when they do they make sure that there is no danger of the camera falling. "The Bus is now leaving for Red Tape Creek Tasmania"

Believe it or not someone asked for a copy of the Wonderland CD before the park closed, was that someone here? Unfortunately, while this was one of their best acts it was not original. I do believe that it is a Siegfried and Roy act. I think I saw the act in National Lampoons Vegas Vacation. Why anyone would want the music is beyond me, but if it blows your trumpet. One last thing, Stand up, Stand up, And be identified. "The Bus is now leaving for Standup Point, Tasmania"

You can't expect Dreamworld to get a giant version. They wouldn't be able to justify it while getting the attendance they do. I'm not sure what the capacity of the giant version is, but they have 3 sizes. The version I have seen was a 40 seater and that would be sufficient for Dreamworld, any bigger and it would be inefficient (there's that subject again). Think about it could you imagine how long it would take for a cycle if the ride was the giant version? Anyway can't wait to get on the ride once it opens, no matter how big or small it is. "The Bus is now leaving for Giants Dyke Mountain, NSW"

Demon, Space Probe, and Dragons would never go to Luna Park the first two for pretty obvious reasons, does anyone remember why the park closed last time (something about a noisy ride I heard). Space Probe would be too invasive for the residents, yes I know there is a dome on the top but we all know how much they are whinging at the moment. As for Dragon's Flight, there is a bit of a problem with that, it’s in a container on a very big ship on its way to Malaysia, but don't let that stop the rumours from flying. "The Bus is now leaving for Bakers Shipping Place, South Australia"

I saw a bit on the news the other day that showed a football team (might of been the cane toads, go the Blues by the way) and they were going on the ride, I only caught a glimpse but from what I saw the carriages were very small and only one footballer was in each carriage. Can anyone tell me if the carriages are that small or if it was just because they were footballers? "The Bus is now leaving for Player Dam South Australia"

I think that it is unfair to compare any park in Australia with any theme park in North America. They have easily 5 times as many staff on each ride as any park in Australia does. Example, any Demon clone over there would have 5 possibly 6 people working at anytime, where as here there was 1 maybe 2. Even the minor rides such as a carousel would have 2 or 3 working it. The reason for this and the problem with the parks in Australia is that they have an off season where as we don't. Another factor in this is the hourly rate for staff. I know a person who worked at a park in the states and the hourly rate was about half of what Wonderland operators where getting (this does take the exchange rate into account). Now saying all that, I haven't been to the Gold Coast parks for years now so I’m not sure how they are on efficiency, but at Wonderland the operators ran pretty well at the highest capacity possible (well most of them anyway) with what they had. Demon would overshoot the station for several reasons, one being a large amount of passenger weight on board, but the most common was that all the station brakes are not operating, this was more common that you would think, the maintenance crew would turn off on or two sets of brakes and the rest would be sufficient. Well I finally got my computer fixed after nearly 2 weeks so I can now catch up with what’s been going on in the world. "The Bus is now leaving for YMCA Number 1 Shaft, Northern Territory"

See in as this topic was brought up in another thread I thought everyone might be interested in the following links. Link 1 Link 2 <-- Look at 8/18/2003 - Goliath "The Bus is now leaving for Deadmans Swamp Native Forest Reserve, South Australia"

mikrowave for all the information on that topic see the thread. "The Bus is now leaving for Camera Pool, Western Australia"

It was a pay cut, the operators are currently getting $17.50 p/h but the pay will go down to $14.50 in 2 weeks time. It doesn't matter if the information was misunderstood to begin with, you just can't cut your staffs pay rate, especially by $3. The park hasn't decided to reduce staffing levels, what they are going to do in 2 weeks is put all rides staff on the same level of pay, which is wrong because operators have much more responsibility that an attendant. This should be reflected in pay accordingly. Rapster, it’s not that staff members have to be at the park a certain amount of time before they move up a level. It may say that in the handbook but it is not the rule. It is a competency based issue. If a staff member who is not competent enough to move up a level, in the eyes of the supervisor, they will not move up no matter how long they have been work at the place. But if a new staff member who has been there for a relatively short time is competent enough, again as the supervisor sees it, they will be moved up. On the issue of not being paid more for weekends and public holidays, it is absolutely ridiculous to expect people to work on those days for the same amount of pay, when usually, as with all theme parks, these are the highest capacity days and therefore the workload increases. Saying that I know that Skytours at Sydney Tower (Centerpoint) staff don’t get loading for weekends and public holiday’s and the pay rate there is even less than Luna (about $13:50 from what I’ve heard) I don’t agree with strikes at a workplace as I can’t see that they do much good, except save the company a days pay for those employees. There are better ways to negotiate differences between staff and management. The other thing with yesterday’s strike was that there was no prior talk’s between the two parties, so that disadvantaged the employees even further. "The Bus is now leaving for Clear Point, NSW"

Sean you misunderstood, it wasn't 9 at the same time, it was 9 in total. I think the actual number was around 4. He made the comment as a joke. It was something like "It's nice to hear that I’ve had 9 PA's in the time I’ve been here". "The Bus is now leaving for First Party Tank, Western Australia"

The rides staff at LPS walked off the job today over a pay dispute. Basically they are un-happy (understandably) that LPS plan to cut the pay rate for operators at least. From what I have heard from sources inside that park it is a substantial pay cut, about $2-$3 per hour. I can't understand why this would happen so close to the park's re-opening, if they wanted the lower pay rate do it from the start. Good start for LPS management, residents offside, staff offside, could this be the beginning of the end (again)? "The Bus is now leaving for Notts Well, South Australia"

I can tell you that the management at Wonderland did/does read this forum. Stephen Galbraith mentioned at a staff party that he was sure he had less than 9 PA's, this was a comment made in a thread here. "The Bus is now leaving for Reading, NSW"