Let the 2019 Season Begin
Jason McClure
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Here we go!!!! Time to kick things off for the 2019 season at Cedar Point. The excitement of Opening Day is special. The emotions that come with getting the park open and welcoming guests back to the peninsula are Like No Other – see what I did there???
I mentioned this in my last blog post - the best part of my job is seeing our guests’ smiling faces - and it has been too long. Although winter along the shores of Lake Erie wasn’t extreme, it lingered. We haven’t had many days of spring-like temperatures the last few weeks, but there is something about the park coming to life that warms things up. The roar of the coasters, the smells from our restaurants, the bright colors of the flowers - it is definitely time to open this place up.
It has been an action-packed off-season. Meetings, video conferences, phone conferences, strategy sessions, training, construction updates, all kinds of important business. I definitely enjoy that part of the job. If our team doesn’t focus on business initiatives (and execute them well), then we aren’t able to provide the experiences you’re looking for. Those meetings don’t go away when the park opens, but they are more enjoyable when in between the meetings I get to walk down a lively midway, interact with our guests and associates and sometimes sneak in a ride.
Speaking of our associates! We have so many hard-working and dedicated associates. We celebrated work anniversary milestones this off-season and it’s a great reminder of the number of long tenured team members that we have. They literally give their lives to making Cedar Point great, and it wouldn’t be A Place Like No Other® without them. For over 149 years, Cedar Point has seen a lot of change, but the one constant is hard-working people that are dedicated to providing a one-of-a-kind guest experience.
One of the exciting, yet challenging components of opening is welcoming new associates to the park. Recruiting, hiring, on boarding and training up to 5,500 associates every year is critical to our success. Working at Cedar Point is an amazing experience. That means having the opportunity to work and play with energetic people from around the world, all while experiencing everything Cedar Point and Northern Ohio have to offer. I look forward to getting to know this year’s team as they continue to arrive at the park.
So let’s get this season underway. Every year is great, but this one is special due to all of the great events and activities that take place in May and June. It will be exciting to see so many major projects come to life. Watching our guests experience Monster Jam Thunder Alley, Forbidden Frontier on Adventure Island and Frontier Festival all in the next two months will be awesome.
I look forward to seeing you at the park soon. I know we will validate your choice to visit us by providing a great experience. The Cedar Point Team has a singular purpose: to make people happy, and we look forward to having the opportunity to do just that, soon.