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Park Hoppin In association with Park Hoppin’with Susan Storey S
pring has sprung. This has always been my favourite time of year. Snow thaws and everything starts to bloom. There is a fresh
smell in the air that says, “Spring is here.” It’s also when regional parks reawaken and reopen shuttered buildings and attractions. Hiring fairs pop up and parks prepare to debut “what’s new” for their guests. In years with new capital, that story is easy to tell. However, in those seasons without major new “hardware” sometimes the
task of finding fresh and new is tougher. Early in my career, after a season when we debuted two new coasters, our next was a quieter one. The big news was the announcement that Six Flags Great America was repainting Batman: The Ride. At first, I did not think that sounded sexy at all. With apologies to Baynum Painting however, I soon learned the process, the impact, the investment and yes, the excitement such an endeavour brings to park guests. There’s nothing like seeing fresh paint on beloved rides, and that season, Batman was as talked about as the year it was installed. Yes. Spring brings colour to our industry, whether it’s on a winding track or through the artistry of horticulture teams. One of my favourite spring traditions is the EPCOT International Flower and
Garden Festival. It is a 90-day ode to the season, growing more beautiful each year. Park festivals are fun at any time but there is something special in the way EPCOT has combined Disney magic with plants. Each year the stars of the Flower and Garden Festival are the themed topiaries. The characters take root and bloom in ways I don’t think Walt Disney could have envisioned. The “Fab 5” – Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Donald and Pluto – are on display, as well as lesser-known and newer characters, so that everyone can find something in the foliage to identify with. Lady and the Tramp are among my annual favourites. I love how the plants capture Lady’s, a cocker spaniel, long fluffy ears. Very much like my cocker spaniel at home. Brand new topiaries always excite guests, and this year the films “Wish” and
“Coco” blossomed at the park. The budding star though is Groot from the “Guardians of the Galaxy” trilogy. He is a fun one. Disney calls Groot a flora colossus topiary. It is over 13 feet tall and Groot himself is five feet tall. He stands over his head. The tape’s spools even turn as if it were playing flower power tunes. (I wonder if there is a topiary pencil hidden behind a tree somewhere just in case it needs to be rewound?) All in all there are 70 topiary structures around the park. In addition, EPCOT has specialty gardens throughout the park that make
everything feel vibrant and alive. Disney’s team told me the festival has 25 garden “destinations” this year, each with its own theme, colour palette and fragrance. As you wander the park, hopefully with snacking on a few of the
“food stroll” menu items, you can’t help but feel refreshed. The entire park is teeming with petals and leaves and words like rebirth, a-new, fresh start and new beginning all come to mind. Isn’t that what we all love most about spring? The fresh start each new bud symbolises. Fresh paint and fresh flowers aside, spring is the time when our industry often
introduces us to new life. Zoos and aquariums celebrate new babies born in their care throughout the season. Just last week, while at SeaWorld Orlando, we stopped to watch six roseate spoonbill nests, each filled with fluffy chicks. Spoonbills are odd-looking birds. Pink like flamingos, they move awkwardly in the trees and on their nests, and their spoon-shaped beaks make you think of salad tongs. I got the inspiration to write this column as I watched the spring hatchlings, and others around me who were equally watching with wonder and awe. When I got home, I did a quick search to see what other parks had welcomed spring babies. Here in the US, in March alone we’ve seen a baby siamang, a type of endangered ape, born at the Virginia Zoo; a two-toed sloth at the Brevard Zoo, a baby blue duiker, an antelope, at the Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens; a spotted fanaloka pup at the Nashville Zoo (look that little guy up!); and a porcupette – that’s a baby prehensile-tailed porcupine – at the Stone Zoo. All these spring births are cute and unique, and I chose to list them because
they are also important. Each is a threatened or endangered species. With their tiny birth, they represent the future of their species and hope for future generations after them. It is only through the care and dedication of the professionals in our industry that these “zoo babies” will continue to thrive and grow to serve as animal ambassadors to us all. From fresh paint to tiny seeds that sprout high to the tiniest new hoof and
paw, spring brings out the best in this industry. Take a moment to step outside and inhale the fresh air. In these coming weeks, we are all united as we ‘spring’ forward together and prepare for a fun, safe, and successful season.
MARCH 2024
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