10 Years Ago…
Today, a Facebook memory floated to the top of my newsfeed. 10 years ago today, I was able to post a selfie I took with our signature orange track because we had finally announced Thunderbird.
And as I think about that day, the feelings come flooding back. I remember being nervous that I might accidentally slip and tell a reporter something I wasn’t supposed to say. And the day was a media marathon. I don’t remember every detail of our schedule, but I know we started with live hits with local stations around 5 or 6 am (including a very brisk morning ride on Mammoth… brrrrr!). After that, we freshened up and previewed the announcement with our Full-Time team, then we gave an official construction site tour.
In the middle of the day, Lauren and I took a short nap under our desks. I believe we had about an hour between interviews and a final rehearsal. We figured by the time we took our 8-minute commutes home and back, we would have lost 16 valuable minutes of sleep, so we brought in travel pillows and blankets and shut off the lights in our shared office, and slept.
We made the announcement late in the day with a big party and fireworks. Here’s the announcement video:
As I watched people gather in the plaza, I peeked at our Google Analytics to see how many visitors we had on our website. As the number quickly swelled, electricity started running through my veins. Not only were hundreds of people gathering at the park, but thousands were logging in to watch online from around the world.
We stepped onto the stage, and my legs felt numb from the adrenaline pumping through me. The weight of announcing our first real “fourth-generation” attraction hit me. We were going to complete one of the last projects Dad had dreamed of. We were announcing the biggest investment in park history. We had worked for years on the project, and it was finally coming to fruition.
10 years ago, we announced Thunderbird. I remember it as one of the best days of my life (though getting married and having a baby have topped it now). Even though the day was long and I was running on fumes and free soda, the cheers and enthusiasm after the announcement made the exhaustion fade away.
Developing a new attraction and announcing it is incredibly personal for all of us. We spend so much time trying to make sure we have the right ride, the right layout, and the right theme, all at the right time. And until the reveal, you never know how it’s going to be received. Even in the moments before Good Gravy! went live, I started to panic: “Will they get it?”
If you tuned in online (or tried to), showed up in person, or interacted at all with our 2014 tease campaign, thank you. If you’ve been invested in any of our announcements and tease campaigns, thank you. You make it fun. You make it worth our while. 10 years later, I still think of this announcement day as one of the best of my life thanks to you.
Even if you’re not a fan at the end of an announcement day, I still want to extend a thank-you. Your passion is always appreciated. And if you’re reading this and happen to be the person who used the term “anticipointment” on Twitter or a forum on July 24, 2014, A+ for wordplay. Sorry we disappointed you with our announcement, but also not sorry because the project was incredibly successful. I 100% have used that word and I love it.
