Blogs

originally posted on 10/20/2023

Photo: Alex Rigsby. View full-sized image.

As attendees started arriving at Lagoon, located in Farmington just north of Salt Lake City, Utah, the weather coincided with the season — not too hot, not too cool. Many of the 210 attendees had never been to “America’s Largest Family-Owned Amusement Park” (a claim according to the park), but by dinner time most agreed it wouldn’t be their last.

Anyone who pre-purchased an event shirt picked it up at registration, and several made a point to don them immediately. Other ACE merchandise items were for sale, which was a pleasant surprise.

A switch of ERT sessions was necessary owing to park concerns, so the ACE Fall Conference started with the newest coasters. Most people rushed to Primordial, which had been open for mere weeks. Some attendees used social media to investigate what to expect of this new ride, while others specifically chose to remain in the dark. A description of Primordial won’t be given here (but look for a separate article).

Eight years in the making, Primordial featured a mix of coaster and interactive dark ride. Attendees were able to get numerous rides on the new attraction, which turned out to be a real benefit. Later, when the park opened at 5, an absolute sea of people flowed to the Primordial entrance, creating an instant line that could have easily reached more than a two-hour wait.

Long before Primordial, Lagoon, partnered with ART Engineering for its 2011 Bombora family coaster.
Photo: Jason Huber. View full-sized image.

Also included in ERT were the adjacent S&S towers and another Lagoon-created coaster, Cannibal. Opened in 2015 and designed by park visionaries, Cannibal is the park’s tallest coaster at 208 feet. As with Primordial, Lagoon partnered with ART Engineering for the track and vehicle fabrication. For 90 minutes, ACEers enjoyed the three rides as well as complimentary snacks.

Attendees appreciated ERT on Lagoon’s largest roller coaster, Cannibal.
Photo: Tim Baldwin. View full-sized image.

Once the park officially opened, dinner awaited attendees. It was a great opportunity to catch up with friends — or be introduced to new ones. ACE Events Director Steve Berto asked how many were visiting for the first time, and numerous hands went up.

The rest of the evening was unscheduled, so the group dispersed to enjoy everything Frightmares had to offer. Several registrants pre-purchased tickets to “Séance, The Dark Ritual.” This spooky upcharge was an intimate show during which the entire room just goes out of control. The spooky fun was made even more enjoyable when all the observers were ACEers. (An ACE-exclusive showing was also made available for Saturday night.) All the haunted houses were included, but people who had paid for the wristbands had immediate access.

Lagoon offered less-frightening experiences to counter Séance, The Dark Ritual, including Puff the Little Fire Dragon — a small Zierer Tivoli coaster.

Most people just enjoyed the rides, which were running spectacularly thanks to Lagoon’s stellar operations. The throughput achieved on many of the coasters would be the envy of many parks around the country. In addition to the park’s in-house-designed coasters, two Schwarzkopf coasters (Colossus The Fire Dragon and Jet Star 2) were running wonderfully.

Attendees enjoyed all of Lagoon’s impressive collection of roller coasters from classics like the Jet Star 2 to modern thrill machines like its in-house-designed Cannibal.

Attendees enjoyed the park for as long as they wanted.

On Saturday morning, breakfast was provided adjacent to the carousel. Soon, ERT took place on Roller Coaster, an ACE Roller Coaster Landmark, and Wicked (Zierer launched, 2007), as well as the vintage carousel. Many an ACEer paused to take in the history display within Roller Coaster’s station. The 1921 woodie has served Lagoon for more than 100 years.

Despite having recently entered into its second century of operation, Lagoon’s classic 1921 John Miller Roller Coaster remains a focal point of the park and feels like a new ride.
Photo: Tim Baldwin. View full-sized image.

Following a group photo in front of Roller Coaster, the park opened to the public, letting ACE see everything there was to see. For those unfamiliar with the park, Lagoon is a treasure trove of both modern and classic rides, two dark rides and an impressive Pioneer Village full of historic buildings and artifacts. Of course, attendees made sure to get on all 11 coasters as well. There was much to enjoy.

Wicked — a 2007 Zierer launch coaster — remains one of the park’s more popular roller coasters, and still offers an enjoyable experience highlighted by a zero-G roll and quick directional changes.
Photo: Tim Baldwin. View full-sized image.

Photo: Vejas Belzinskas. View full-sized image.

Adam Leishman, Lagoon’s media relations spokesperson and historian, gave a history presentation in one of the park’s pavilions. Most guests probably don’t realize it is Leishman’s voice heard in park announcements and in ride stations around the park. He also authored a coffee table book on the history of the park. Like many of the park management, Leishman has had a lengthy career at Lagoon, which speaks toward the excellence of the park’s atmosphere and work environment.

Later, dinner was held in the same pavilion. The park provided numerous auction items — including a log from the retired flume!

Lagoon supplied many items to be auctioned, including a log from the park’s retired log flume.
Photo: Brysson Hileman. View full-sized image.

Terry Capener, the park’s general manager, is always a delight to listen to, and he provided his own warm welcome. He expressed Lagoon’s sincere excitement for ACE’s visit. Julie Freed represents the third generation of the Freed family, who own the park. She was also there, as well as during the history presentation. Dory Clark in sales was also acknowledged and thanked for all her work in organizing the event.

General Manager Terry Capener and Julie Freed.
Photos: Tim Baldwin. View full-sized image.

Adam Leishman, media relations, gave a presentation on the history of Lagoon.
View full-sized image.

Before leaving the pavilion, all attendees were offered a copy of the park’s hard-cover coffee table book. This was a wonderful perk, as was the discount when buying other souvenirs in the gift shops.

Receiving the gift from ACE was Julie Freed (left), third generation of the Freed family, along with General Manager Terry Capener, flanked by ACE Events Director Steve Berto and ACE President Elizabeth Ringas.
Photo: Tim Baldwin. View full-sized image.

While it was a busy day, the park’s top-notch ride operations and haunts and shows that were included with admission entertained attendees for as long as they wanted to stay. Lagoon is a special place and difficult to leave behind. Fortunately, the ERTs and exceptional teams in place allowed the group to get many rides throughout the visit.

Following time spent at Lagoon, attendees traveled north to the home of S&S Worldwide in Logan.
Photo: Raffi Kilejian. View full-sized image.

Just a little over an hour north, Logan, Utah, was the destination for Sunday morning. The drive to get there came with beautiful fall color. ACE members were eager to enjoy a tour of S&S Worldwide. The impressive manufacturing facility was interesting to ACE members. Both the offices and the production floor engaged attendees during the tour. S&S requested no pictures inside and ACE abided by the rule.

Following the tour, attendees gathered in front of the facility for a group photo. Once back inside, Executive Director Preston Perkes explained how the afternoon would proceed. There were auction items to bid on, some of which were reproductions from the Arrow archives. There was delicious pizza from local favorite Lucky Slice, along with beverages and desserts. And then there was this little prototype coaster outside that everyone was eager to try.

Alas, going into the conference, all attendees knew that the operation of the Axis prototype would allow only about a third of attendees to ride. Perkes called names drawn out of a bowl, and time slots eventually filled. Those who didn’t get picked were appropriately disappointed, but everyone enjoyed observing the ride in motion.

Limited capacity meant the Axis prototype could only be experienced by about a third of attendees, but even those not lucky enough to ride appreciated being able to see the creation in motion.

It was clear that the loading and unloading of the coaster was quite involved. There was no actual station or brakes. The Axis model was created to demonstrate what the newly created genre was capable of — to both S&S and potential customers. The workers at S&S were able to load four attendees about every 10 minutes.

While only a few hundred feet, the ride showcases fun flips, swoops and curves. Those fortunate enough to ride got the sense of what a cool thrill a full-length installation could be like.

Following the close of the auction, funds raised from both facilities combined reached a total of $2,940.

Accepting a memento from ACE is S&S Worldwide’s Jason Mon and Preston Perkes (center), along with ACE’s Steve Berto and Elizabeth Ringas.
Photo: Tim Baldwin. View full-sized image.

At whatever time people chose to depart, everyone left feeling the weekend was full of benefits and opportunities. ACE graciously thanked both properties for all their generous hospitality. The ACE Fall Conference was an exceptional event.

— Tim Baldwin, ACE News

#ACENews