[bgwfreak]

^ Total what would you guys say? 175.

But that included a school group of 100+.

I was actually shocked at how many came. It was about the size of the last C3 I'd guess, which is great for a first time event and lots of new faces.

[coasterbruh]

Ok now since coaster shock is over what are you guys thoughts...
What did you like?

I liked how professional everything was but with a personable touch. I didnt feel like I was merely a participant but felt like I was a part of the event. I liked how ALL the staff interacted with the people that came to coasterstock. Suprisingly, I liked the breaks in between some things. The longest break was 2 hours and it was done twice, 4-6 and 730 to 930. Those breaks were very welcomed by me and gave us time to catch our breath as well as some folks time to shop . I feel a non stop event wont give people a chance to enjoy the park. Some people may come from out of town for the first time (which im sure will happen for next years event) and that time gave them a chance to see and ride things that werent in ert.

What didnt you like?

That the event was totally outdoors. I know this could possibly be a challange since the only real indoor places at carowinds right now is country kitchen and the carowinds theater. However I feel like the jeopardy or a park history video could have been placed in the theater.

What do you think should change?

The way the end of the night was handled. I think we should have all been hoarded into the theater, showing our lanyards (I swear I saw 1-2 people for the night ert that wasnt in the park/with the group at all during the day and NOT wearing a lanyard), and have the awards/prizes done during that time. Also it would have been cool to have a group picture for the first coaster stock! In front of a coaster of course, but im sure dani will make sure we all take a group picture during coaster stock infront of something that wasnt there this year. Also a snack would have been good right before night ert because after being at the park all day and having only one lunch it would have been nice to have some bottled waters/gaterorade avaliable and/or a bag of chips or some snack to end the night and keep the energy level going. This could go good with ending the evening before the ert in the carolina theater while we wait for the park to close. This might be a stretch, but when ordering tickets for next years event it would be cool to have a little demographics survey prior to the purchase to see how many were first timers to the park, first timers to a event, season pass holders...things like that. That way you could kinda know what kinda crowd you are getting.

What should stay the same?

The energy! There was never a dull moment during the event! The food...I wanted to pocket some briskett sooo bad lol. The onride voucher. It makes people feel like they are getting a huge bang for their buck. I mean even though they may never use it (like me) its that added value that makes event better!

[April_Fool_79]

Definitely a fun event. And an excuse to take the day off work and continue to confuse my co-workers. "You're taking a day off work to ride roller coasters?!?!" (Apparently if you have pink hair you can't like roller coasters and NASCAR. Go figure. )

Things I liked:
1) ERTs. Having only 5 people on Nighthawk was AMAZING!! I don't think I've ever seen that thing at a walk on, much less not a full train. Riding After Burn over and over and over again, with the stars between your feet. Awesome.
2) Buffett. That was some good food. Would have been better to have bigger cups (who drinks soda out of what is basically a paper shot glass?!?!) and some ICE CREAM!!! (Those freezers were such a TEASE.)
3) The prizes!! OK, that was pretty darn cool.
4) The free Cobra picture. Would have been better to have the option to put "Coaster Stock 2009" on it, though.
5) Anthony on the Flyers. That dude ROCKS!!

Things I didn't like:
1) The way the trivia game was done. Need to split people up into teams, and read out the questions for us to write down the answers. That way Dani would have been able to get in those Entertainment questions she was *DYING* to ask.
2) Starting at 7AM?!?! Sheesh. 17 hours is entirely too long to be spending in a park. I thought I was going to die by the end of the night, especially having only 4 hours sleep the night before due to working until midnight.
3) Nothing much to do during the day. Definitely needed a photo scavenger hunt to keep us entertained during the better part of daylight.

Suggestions for next year:
1) Start later!
2) Have a go kart competition for us.
3) Event T-Shirts! (Yeah, you can get one made at that store, but it would have been nice to have "official" T's)

[Wormy]

Belated entry here. Busy weekend.

A few bullet points:

• Shoney's settled well.

• Got to work on my farmer's tan.

• My blisters finally popped.

• Great to meet fellow posters and casually hang out all day. (back 'atcha KenB).

• Anthony was brilliant.

• Did the Flyers survive?

• The Whootah team got a raw deal with a WTF Jeopardy question.

• Endless Summer on Ice was cool. Barely escaped injury getting to the seat.

• Food was good.

• Why was Darth Vader there?

• Infomercials in Spanish at Plaza Fiesta.

• So that's why Thunder Road won't be painted white again. OK. Sure.

• The Chernobyl wings at Wild Wing Cafe were tasty, but the restroom sink water was even hotter. OWWW!

• A 32 coaster Disney park? I thought the name Fantasyland was already taken.

• Lovely concession prize toilet seats.

• I usually give Hurler a hard time, but I thoroughly enjoyed it Friday.

• Favorite moment: "How many B&M coasters does the park have?" "THREE!"

• With so many shutterbugs flitting about, I gave the camera a rest...

...but I still don't know what was happening here:

[BoociferPatch]

Is the question your talking about the, What day were the Paramount Parks sold to Cedar Fair? question or the Cartoon Network World one? lol

[Dani@Carowinds]

Hey Gang-

It was a pleasure meeting you all on Friday, and, although I may have lost my steam by the end of the event, it was a pleasure getting to know you...and hopefully I'll be able to link names to faces...and usernames to real names...(it was all a bit overwhelming, I wont lie). Also, thank you to those who emailed me with your suggestions for next year. Most of you may have seen me with my little clipboard all day taking notes, and I've already got some great ideas for 2010. For those of you that enjoyed Coaster Stock, we'll work to make C3 a mini CS.

If you didnt email me, thanks to Jarvis for creating this thread to ( I will just assume) help me plan next year's event.

Please feel free to email me your suggestions. As I did earlier this season, I will send out another survey for 2010. This is your event and it is my goal to make you all happy.

With nearly 300 attendees for Coaster Stock's first year, I look forward to an even more successful 2010 event.

Warm regards,
Dani

[Edwardo]

What did I like? That the park put some work into having an event like most other CF parks have.

What didn't I like? That I wasn't able to go. I'll make sure to go next year.

[coasterbruh]

If you didnt email me, thanks to Jarvis for creating this thread to ( I will just assume) help me plan next year's event.

Yeah that was the all intensive purpose of the post. Kinda like a round table so we can all get together and discuss the event!

[AMartin777]

"What did you like?"

I liked most everything. The fact we had ERT on GoldRusher was a bonus for me personally. The best thing about the event really was getting to catch up with some friends I havn't seen in a while. I thought the history stuff at the pavillion was cool while the barbeque, briskett and cookies were awesomefied! As always, the flyers ERT was the highlight of the day with a fantastic job from the operators. The gaps in the day's schedule are very important as it allows you time to enjoy the park itself.

Standout moment of the event - The playing of the official "Carowinds Song" from 1973. Though, you can no longer dance with a Cherokee which makes me sad...


"What didn't you like?"

The heat during the behind the scenes tour. I really think this should be conducted immediately after the morning ERT to avoid the blistering sun. No group picture? Too bad really. Missing an opportunity to eat Fried Chicken for breakfast at the breakfast bar at Shoney's... but that's completely my own fault.


"What should change?"

If anything, maybe move the award presentations and trivia team contests to the theatre. (I realize the ice show probably put a damper on that). The theatre creates a more intimate setting and doesn't disrupt the flow of the GP through the park.


"What should stay the same?"

The fantastic interaction between the staff and the CS attendees. I really felt like I was sincerely welcomed as part of the event and not just an enthusiast being tolerated. We are a tough group of people to deal with and Dani and the rest handled the situation impecably.

[chargercrazy]

"What did you like?"

Standout moment of the event - The playing of the official "Carowinds Song" from 1973. Though, you can no longer dance with a Cherokee which makes me sad...

Is that because you have Dave dancing on camera?

[AMartin777]

If you can catch Dave dancing at any point your lucky because it is a rare occurance.

[retailsamazing]

I personally LOVED the last gap... I took a nap!

[carorush09]

I think for the first year the CS was planned pretty well. True there were was a long gap in the middle of the day, but for most people it was neccesary. Some napped, others braved lines for rides, and some hit the pools.

You just can't beat a nap by the pool.

As for next year we should definately have shirts added and more coasters on the ERTs.

Dani did a wonderful job, I wish she had been able to hook us up with a peek at Scarowinds

[coasterbruh]

Im starting to see more people saying the "gap". How many other coaster events have you guys been to...let me go to my coaster nerd trunk and pull out my lanyards...ah lets see here, spring fling 3p to 830...nothing to do, (sorry max ) C3 930am to 130pm nothing to do, cant find the lanyard went to an event at dollywood for mystery mine, the entire day was a break lol! The 2, 2 hour breaks were very welcomed and gave people time to either catch a bite to eat or ride something without feeling they missed something that had to do with the event.

As for next year we should definately have shirts added and more coasters on the ERTs.

There was already 5 coasters for ert...cobra, dayhawk, top burn, thunder road and hurler thats virtually half of the "big" coasters. I guess I look at it more of an operational stand point. I dont think the park would virtually open the entire park to a group of about 100 or so. If I were a betting man there would be atleast one more coaster added to the line up for next year.

[carowindsgirl1972]

First let me say that I really loved this event. It was my favorite coaster event that I have been to! (it was the only coaster event I have ever been to )

I agree with alot of what has been said here, I really liked the behind-the-scenes tour, but I agree with whoever said that it was really hot I would have liked it earlier in the morning or something.

I also think the awards ceremony should have been in the theatre. But it was fine being outside, I don't really mind.

The gaps in the day were fine, too. I actually went to the waterpark! It was only the 3rd time I have ever been to Boomerang Bay.

I also wish we got shirts! I was so tempted to buy one, but i didnt want to spend $20 to get one. i really wish I had bought one though, now that I look back on it.

The best parts of the day were the ERT(morning AND night), and the awards ceremony( and prizes!!!!!) also the lunch was good.

The worst part( that was completely my fault) was that i was a little bit late for lunch and missed the very beginning of the q&a. Also I only got 3 1/2 hours of sleep Friday night because my family went to new jersey the next day and i had to wake up at 4:30.

comments: LOVED the event!! would definitely go next year! Liked the free cobra photo and the Cobra pin.

Actually, I lost my carolina cobra pin ( i put it on my bag) while I was playing mini golf in new jersey last week, but found it on the course and i think it was stuck to the bottom of my shoe judging by the way I found it! lol