Grad Nite 2009

luckylady · Post by **luckylady** » Fri Apr 17, 2009 3:27 pm

GaTechGal wrote:How exactly is DHS going to handle all those kids. Let's see they can ride RNR, TOT, TSM, StarWars, and the Great Movie Ride. Have I left out any rides? All the rest are SHOWS!!! Are they going to run the shows during Grad Nites? As unplesant as it is for the CM's atleast the Magic Kingdom is ride heavy. What are all those kids going to do? I can see LOTS of misbehaving going on at DHS.

I agree. Not a whole lot of rides here as in MK. Ya'll know teens when they get bored they get into trouble.Good luck to anyone who has to work this.

goofyjoe · Post by **goofyjoe** » Sat Apr 18, 2009 8:38 am

Cranbiz wrote:Well, the first thing is a SCT (Stupid Company Trick). World Drive will be closed to traffic during the fireworks as pyro will be setting mortars up in the median to achive the desires effect. It's bad enough when MK has perimeter fireworks (ask any cast member about road closures) but to shut down World Drive for 25 minutes or so! My driving nightmare has just begun.

Are they shutting down all of World Drive? If so, I'm surprised that they don't just shut down the stretch between Buena Vista and Osceola. It might make sense just to have people go down Buena Vista to get to AKL or elsewhere on property. But if it's the whole stretch, then what are they going to do with people driving off-property to the south? How are people going to get out of MK?

hhsrat · Post by **hhsrat** » Sat Apr 18, 2009 8:26 pm

World Drive between BVD and Osceola was all that was shut down.

kurtisnelson · Post by **kurtisnelson** » Sat Apr 18, 2009 8:46 pm

Aren't the fireworks for that pretty late?

Syndrome · Post by **Syndrome** » Sat Apr 18, 2009 9:38 pm

I heard 'em at midnight last night.

Cranbiz · Post by **Cranbiz** » Mon Apr 20, 2009 2:25 pm

Yes, World Drive was shut down between BVD and Osceola Parkway. Now it was from 10:45pm to 12:45am.

Now, there must be someone new in the ops center as the detours made sense from a drivers viewpoint. We used Bear Island Rd (all backstage areas) to Western Way for Coronado, All Stars and AKL, and Epcot Center Dr to everything else in that area ( CBR, Epcot Resorts and Pop) It actually went well on Saturday night (well, except for the fatal head-on on Epcot Center drive at 2am)

Ms. Matterhorn · Post by **Ms. Matterhorn** » Mon Apr 20, 2009 3:15 pm

Cranbiz wrote: It actually went well on Saturday night (well, except for the fatal head-on on Epcot Center drive at 2am)

OMG! What happened?

mechurchlady · Post by **mechurchlady** » Tue Apr 21, 2009 6:23 am

Ms. Matterhorn wrote:OMG! What happened?

The accident was on Epcot Center Drive just west of World Drive. Wrong way driver killed a 19 year old who may have been a CM.

http://allfordmustangs.com/forums/musta ... lease.html
This is heart wrenching sad and please read page two when his friends talk about a teen whose life was snuff out by an incompetent SG. Not sure but from the pictures how does one drive on the wrong side of the road there.

It was 2am this morning when he was heading back home from his job(works for some part of disney)... Anyway, he was in a 20001 Honda Accord that was all tricked out that he bought at 16 yrs old when he lived in New Orleans.. After a huge hurricane destroyed their house, they moved down to florida.. Anyhow, the 50 year old male that was driving his big pickup truck was on the wrong side of the road at 2am..

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/loc ... 1160.story

LAKE BUENA VISTA - - A driver killed Sunday while traveling the wrong way on Epcot Center Drive was identified tonight as Angel Morales, 50, of Orlando. His Dodge collided headon with a Honda about 2 a.m. near Buena Vista Drive. Both vehicles caught fire. Morales and the other driver, 19-year-old Aaron Pichoff of Winter Garden, were pronounced dead at the scene, the Florida Highway Patrol said.

GRUMPY PIRATE · Post by **GRUMPY PIRATE** » Tue Apr 21, 2009 12:42 pm

Cranbiz wrote:Yes, World Drive was shut down between BVD and Osceola Parkway. Now it was from 10:45pm to 12:45am.

Now, there must be someone new in the ops center as the detours made sense from a drivers viewpoint. We used Bear Island Rd (all backstage areas) to Western Way for Coronado, All Stars and AKL, and Epcot Center Dr to everything else in that area ( CBR, Epcot Resorts and Pop) It actually went well on Saturday night (well, except for the fatal head-on on Epcot Center drive at 2am)

read about that, very sad.

mapo · Post by **mapo** » Tue Apr 21, 2009 5:01 pm

luckylady wrote:I agree. Not a whole lot of rides here as in MK. Ya'll know teens when they get bored they get into trouble.Good luck to anyone who has to work this.

Well, having worked the first two nights, I can say that the kids have been great! Very few incidents overall.

Studios will only host this event this year. Next year it returns to Magic Kingdom.

Global operations staff and leaders have been pressed into service from all points of the property. Mandatory overtime has, as usual, been assigned to those senior people lucky enough to have Friday or Saturday off, from Global Operations. CMs statused at Studios do have longer days but most of the lines of business have been covered by voluntary shifts. Since most lines of business (not global) have been a bit starved for hours, this is a welcome relief.

Studios management have been quick to constantly ask how to improve the operation on a nightly basis from those of us in the trenches. Improvements have evolved quickly -- implemented the NEXT night!

Universal consensus has been that Studios has more than it can handle but is working as hard as they can to cover. Attendance is very, very low compared to MK Grad Nights so that helps Studios out immensely. Everyone has been asked to be as flexible as possible. I have not seen one CM not rise to the occasion, to pitch in as needed to make this work.

Senior management from all areas including Phil Holmes, VP MK have been on hand for hours walking the grad paths and areas helping target possible problem areas and SOLVE these challenges as seamlessly as possible.

So far it has been the best example of team work I have seen as a CM in my five years!

It has not been perfect. It has some major flaws. But these leaders openly admit they are not MK, do not have the resources of MK, and continually ask (not demand) patience and resilience from the front line cast.

I do not know if this is due to the recent shake up of leadership (layoffs, packages, and retirements). I will say that it gives me hope that we are now moving in the right direction as a global team.

As for the kids and the offerings:

More concert stages than MK
Two Fantasmic Shows per night
Two dance parties on opposite sides of park
All rides open; Toy Story mania and Star Tours getting a good work out too
Coaster area very popular; some issues but marginal given crowds

We still have a night with the historically difficult schools to go. Rival schools coming in this weekend.

Overall, the kids have been there to have fun, not fights. Chaperones have been more of a pain in the ass not wanting to adhere to dress code or listen to security. Love ejecting problem chaperone from park, lovely! :p:

[Disclaimer: It may sound like I am a company lackey from some of my comments. They really are doing a superb job working with front line CMs. Do we still have blue badges walking about doing nothing but holding pickup sticks? YUP...lots of em. However, being in global operations, I can tell you there is a core group that is more than covering for those slackers.]

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