PROJECT PREVIEW THRILL SEEKER
WHAT IS ORLANDO THRILL PARK? DR: Orlando Thrill Park (OTP) will be a thrill-ride based amusement park featuring 12 thrill rides including roller coasters and free fall drops. This isn’t a park to bring an infant to, it’s for thrills. The outdoor attrac- tion will also feature restaurants, gift shops and guest services. Pending approval of the development
plans by the Orlando City Council, con- struction will begin at the end of 2011 with a targeted opening date in mid 2013.
WHOSE IDEA WAS THE PARK? DR: I came up with the idea of an incred- ible, thrill-based experience using some of the latest and greatest ride technology and platforms. I told Joyce and we started evolving the idea and built a team. We identifi ed the roles we needed to move the company forward – creative, masterplan- ning, cost management, operations and so on. We then chose the people who would best suit these roles. It’s an effort of love by everyone involved.
We’ve all developed it – I just came up with the concept.
HOW DID YOU TWO GET TOGETHER? JA: We’ve worked together on several projects. Doug’s on the business strategy and planning side and I’m on the creative, so we often get thrown together on teams.
WHY DOES ORLANDO NEED ANOTHER PARK? JA: What’s unique about this park is that it’s all thrills. The theming in Orlando is the best. We’d never try to outdo Disney,
About Orlando Thrill Park
Location International Drive, southwest Orlando, neighbouring the Festival Bay Mall. Size 78-acres Visitors Two million per annum Costs US$260m (£161m, 187m) Developers Orlando Thrill Park is a joint development by I-Drive Investors LLC, Miami and the OTP Group LLC Web
www.otpinfo.com
58
Visitors wanting an adrenalin-fuelled experience in Orlando rather than a family day out, may soon get what they’re looking for at Orlando Thrill Park. Co-founders, Doug Rutledge and Joyce Arbucias, tell Kathleen Whyman about their white-knuckle offer
Universal or SeaWorld. We recognise them as being the market leaders, but we think there’s a missing niche for the thrill seeker who wants to get onto the fastest, most exciting rides possible and ride as many of them as they can in one day.
WHAT AGE WILL OTP BE FOR? DR: It’s more about height than age. We’re working with some great coaster and ride partners. By talking to them, and based on our own research and observations, we’ve decided that as long as kids reach a cer- tain height restriction (42”, 1m), if they like thrills, they’re on board.
HOW HAS YOUR IDEA BEEN RECEIVED? DR: We’ve had a lot of positive feedback with our potential funding partners. They all think the idea is a timely one. We’re blessed because Orlando is a
theme park hub, not just by the number of parks it has, but the number of industry professionals that are located here. We’ve been able to reach out to many vendors, suppliers and consultants and they’ve all received the idea very well. The ride manu- facturers and developers have also been very positive.
WHAT WILL THE DESIGN BE? JA: We’re evolving the design right now. We won’t have traditional theming with rock work and waterfalls. We’ll have our own brand identity instead. It’s about the thrills and the ride experiences. DR: We’re not going to commit the capital that goes into telling those immersive story lines through elaborate theming. We’re instead spending our budget on state of the art attractions and rides presented in a clean, safe, engaging environment. We have a technology overlay that we
can’t disclose yet, but it allows a deeper interaction for our park guests on so many different levels. It’s centred around RFID
Read Attractions Management online
attractionsmanagement.com/digital Doug Rutledge and Joyce Arbucias
technology. We’re working with a group that’s developing the systems. We’re also looking at alternative
energy technology. We truly want to make a commitment to the environ- ment as well as our guests.
HOW WILL YOU MEET THE NEW BENCHMARK SET BY UNIVERSAL’S THE WIZARDING WORLD OF HARRY POTTER? JA: We’re not putting together the same type of ride experience – immersive, heavily themed, indoor – but our rides will, like theirs, be state-of-the-art. What’s interesting to us is how busy the
rides at Wizarding World were. When peo- ple got off, they were excited and talking about the scares and thrills and their expe- rience. I was surprised by how broad the audience was. It shows us, and the indus- try, that a wide age range of people are looking for an exciting ride experience. DR: Another differentiation between us and Universal is that not only did they cre- ate a brand new, state-of-the-art ride, they also created the whole area as a destina- tion. Some people probably don’t go there specifi cally for the ride, they go to walk in an incredible, immersive environment. Also, Universal’s budget for Wizarding World exceeds our entire park budget!
WHEN DO YOU HOPE TO RECEIVE APPROVAL? DR: The schedule to receive approval for the development plans is in August. I’m not nervous. We’ve been responsive to everything that’s been asked of us. Our
AM 2 2011 ©cybertrek 2011
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78