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Park News
www.parkworld-online.com
ParkHoppin’
BUSCH PUTS DUBAI
by Paul Ruben PLANS ON HOLD
Into The Wild
SeaWorld developer takes
reality check
In the November 2002 issue of Park World I wrote about
Legoland California's Driving School, which allows "pre-teens to The suspension of Busch Entertainment’s ambitious Worlds of Discovery
feel empowered as they test their driving skills on city streets project in Dubai is the latest and highest profile casualty amid the current,
complete with Lego stoplights." Now it was time for me to test my some would say inevitable, construction setback in the United Arab Emirates.
driving skills, but not on city streets and not with stoplights. The Orlando Sentinel reported last month that Busch and its partner
During the off-season you may wish to try this yourself. Nakheel, the state-backed real-estate company, agreed in January to halt
I visited The Greenbrier, one of America's most prestigious work on the four theme park cluster because of worsening financial
resort hotels, and home to its newest attraction, the Greenbrier conditions. The two companies will reassess the project sometime this summer.
Off-Road Driving School. The concept of an off-road driving Busch wanted to build the parks – Busch Gardens, SeaWorld, Discovery
school for Land Rovers devotees is not unique. The original Cove and Aquatica – on a manmade island shaped like the killer whale
version started at Gleneagles in Scotland, run by Mark Phillips, Shamu. The development, part of The Palm Jebel Ali., would have been the
Princess Anne's former husband. Greenbrier's school is different. first time the four brands had appeared together in one place, or indeed
People who come here probably have no experience with a Land outside the United States.
Rover, but have a love of the outdoors and a load of money. But, like several other leisure developments in Dubai, developers have been
After some preliminary instructions from Homer the instructor, forced to take a reality check because of the international credit freeze. It
which I promptly forgot, he led me to a shiny new black Range could also be suggested that InBev, the Belgian brewer that acquired parent
Rover, an $80,000 four-wheel drive vehicle that seemed too company Anheuser Busch last summer (after the World of Discovery deal was
luxurious to take off-road. But it is built for just this task, with 11 announced in February), has other priorities, although Busch denies this.
computers that control complex features such as downhill braking According to the Sentinel, Busch recently reassigned the handful of
and lifting the vehicle off the ground to avoid scraping executives who were working on the Dubai parks and moved them back to its
underneath. Needless to say, I still scraped it. headquarters in Orlando. The first two parks – SeaWorld and Aquatica – were
We drove about two miles down the highway before turning off scheduled to open in December 2012.
into the soaring Allegheny Mountains. Then I took Busch spokesman Fred Jacobs insists Busch Entertainment and Nakheel
the wheel and we remained committed to the project and will move forward "when economic
shifted into off-road conditions permit."
mode. First Since the start of the year, delays have been announced to several other
challenge was the theme park projects in Dubai, including a number of those at Dubailand. This
Wall Of Death, a has not surprised some observers: “For over two years, we have been
drive up and then questioning the numerous theme park developments in Dubai,” comments
down a 60-degree Dennis Speigel of International Theme Park Services. “SeaWorld, Universal,
rollercoaster steep Lego, Paramount, Warner Bros, Marvel, Six Flags and DreamWorks all
hill. I was amazed that announced they would be building multi-million/billion dollar projects. Dubai
we climbed effortlessly. and our industry got caught up in a licensing/intellectual property engagement
I was then told to not frenzy.
brake going downhill. “Companies in Dubai who got caught up in this frenzy were willing to throw
The Range Rover would brake automatically. Somehow the car's money at entertainment organisations to tie up naming rights. The park
centre of gravity stayed within the tipping point and we reached companies were willing to accept these upfront dollars and unrealistic
the bottom. relationships in order to get a “piece of the pie”. Designers, operators and
We then slowly drove off through the woods, up a creek bed, suppliers all got
and over some tree stumps. I could hear the tree branches caught in the
scraping on the roof and sides. Glad this wasn't my car, but my frenzy. Now
car couldn't get here in the first place. We paused to take the reality has set in
photo above, my left front wheel triumphantly lifted more than a and there is a
foot off the ground. huge work
This was great fun, but what does it have to do with amusement stoppage. This
parks? Me thinks we should have an amusement ride that mimics should surprise
off-road driving. Rob Norris of Seabreeze recently called my no one. Even in a
attention to the Flying Cars that once operated at old Riverview decent economy,
Park in Chicago. Flying Cars used a large revolving barrel with this plan was
small cars attached to the rails inside the barrel wall. The barrel flawed and would
rolled and if riders held the car's brake it would roll with the not have come to
barrel. One could roll up a wall, release the brake and roll
LEFT: Busch
backward and forward, or even turn oneself upside-down. Flying
wanted to built an
Cars would be a Scary Fling, and an anagram, too. I'd like to try
island shaped like
this; wouldn't you? a killer whale at
The Palm Jebel Ali
6
MARCH 2009
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