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Orlando, FL – While the stock market was looking down, things were looking up at the 2008 IAAPA Amusement Park Expo this past week. Produced by the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions, the annual trade show attracted an estimated 24,000 people from a record-setting 100 nations.
Carousels, roller coasters, arcades, concessions, and every imaginable vendor to the industry who was anyone was there.
The world’s largest conference and trade show for the $24 billion amusement park and attractions industry took place at the Orange County Convention Center, Nov. 17 through Nov. 21, with the theme “Success in Every Direction.”
Conference and trade show participants represented amusement and theme parks, family entertainment centers, waterparks, zoos, aquariums, museums, casinos, resorts, developers, themed entertainment designers, consultants, manufacturers, and suppliers.
“Considering the state of the world economy and the fact that this was our second consecutive year in Orlando, we are pleasantly surprised with the attendance at this year’s Expo,” said IAAPA President and Chief Executive Officer Charles Bray. “26,500 people participated in last year’s show in Orlando, which was one of our best events in the past 10 years. To be down less than 10 percent during these tumultuous economic times is amazing.”
More than 13,000 buyers representing more than 5,000 companies participated in the Expo. While some buyer categories experienced a decline in attendance, the number of buyers increased from zoos, aquariums, museums, and science centers. The number of buyers from Western Europe, Middle East, and Southeast Asia also decreased; however, the number of first-time buyers increased 25 percent.
The trade show floor featured 1,154 exhibiting companies on 482,550 net square feet of space. Exhibitors showcased everything from rare antique carousels to new thrill rides, roller coasters, and inflatable attractions, theatrical equipment, souvenirs, high-tech control systems, candy, snow machines, and the world debut of the arcade version of the popular “Guitar Hero” video game.
United Kingdom-based Haystack Dryers’ U.S. Operations Manager Wayne Jacks said, “(The Expo has been) absolutely fantastic, probably the best show we’ve ever done. We’ve had a buzz that’s been insane. We’ve had a group of people around us continuously. It’s been so successful; it looks like we’re going to expand our business in the States based on the show.”
By Frenchi Jones – Coastal Courier
Every child wishes they could have a carnival at their birthday bash, and although that might be a stretch for most parents’ budgets, it was the least that could be done for military children as the 3rd Infantry Division celebrated its 91st birthday this week during Marne Week. The Courier went behind the scenes with the fourth-generation family of carneys responsible for making the festivities come to life.
Jerry and Joanna Geren stand outside one of the trailers they haul around the country as they run Geren’s Rides carnival midway. Photo by Frenchi Jones
Fifty years and still riding
Joanna Geren remembers the day she first saw her husband. The carnival had come to town.
“I saw him riding the Tilt-A-Whirl,” she said. “And when I saw him, that was it.”
But she did not know what she was getting herself into. Her future beau was not just there for the ride. His family owned and operated it.
“Back then, it was a lot harder than it is now. He didn’t have much time for a girlfriend,” she said.
Joanna was a dental assistant in the small town of Jasonville, Ind. While Jerry Geren spent his days working booths, putting up and breaking down rides and making sure the children in each town he visited left the fairgrounds with a mouth full of cotton candy and a smile on their faces.
“One of the most rewarding things has been the children. It’s just a delight to see them,” she said. “That’s what our business is about. It’s a place where a family can make memories.”
Geren’s father was only 14 when he joined the carnival. Trying to escape life in an orphanage, W. R. Geren ran into the arms of a carnival worker. She gave him a place to sleep, he bought his first ride several years later and the rest, Joanna said, is carnival history.
The Mighty Hoosier State Shows, as it was called when it was established more than 85 years ago, became Geren Rides, Inc., a fourth-generation business of carneys.
“We’ve often said we could write a book about all the experiences the family had, but people probably would think it was fiction anyway,” Joanna said.
And so she married him, adding another chapter to the book.
“It was sort of a culture shock. You go from living in a house to living in much smaller quarters with no running water,” Joanna said with a chuckle. “But this has been my life and I don’t think I would want to change it.”
Twelve hundred employees, 1,825,000 bags of cotton candy sold, and 51 years later, the Gerens, happily married with only one son and one granddaughter, have kept the family business rolling.
“I would like to have a nickel for every mile she has followed me down,” Jerry Geren said.
He pulls the office trailer and Joanna hauls their living quarters – a 40-foot, fifth wheel travel trailer with full amenities, which is more than an upgrade from the humble abode, with no running water, they started with.
“There have been some hard times. There are hard times in every business, but our love of family and our faith in God has always got us through.”
Not always fun and games
Hard times and humble beginnings have not only rung true for the Gerens. It’s also an idea Emmit Johnson, one of 30 employees hired to help keep the Gerens’ carnival up and running, can appreciate.
“It’s been a wild ride,” he said. “Behind the scenes and after quitting time it can get a little crazy out here, if you know what I mean.”
“At night can also be a carnival.”
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BY KIRSTIN MAGUIRE – The Miami Herald
The 33rd annual Broward County Fair offers family fun and thrill rides.
Between motorcycle daredevils and 100-foot-high rides, Broward County fairgoers are in for a trip.
Themed Catch a Ride, the 33rd annual fair runs through Nov. 30 at Fort Lauderdale Stadium. Organizers expect about 250,000 people to attend.
CANDACE WEST / MIAMI HERALD
The festival is a place to have traditional family fun, said fair manager Beth Jarvis. ”Especially since it’s Thanksgiving time, people are reminded it’s a time to spend with family,” Jarvis said. “The fair has something for the littlest of children and the oldest of grandparents to enjoy.”
Fair organizers have recruited the ”Fearless Flores” family to perform motorcycle stunts in the Thrills & Spins arena. The performers’ main attraction is the Globe of Death, a big, caged metal ball where they race each other on bikes.
”I wish we could come back here every year,” said Ricardo Flores, whose family performed at the fair in 2004. “The crowds are awesome. People come back to the shows over and over again.”
A 104-foot ride called Speed, which swings in the air, is returning to the fairgrounds for the first time in many years. Usually people have to pay an additional $10 for the ride, but this year it’s included in the unlimited ride ticket.
ORLANDO, Fla., Nov 18, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ — At its annual Attractions Expo in Orlando, FL, The International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) today announced winners of the industry’s recognition program honoring new services, rides, games and technology. Orlando based international ticketing and electronic commerce provider, accesso, took home the award for Best New Product in the Revenue and Admission Control category for its streamlined new ecommerce package, SHOPLAND.
SHOPLAND is part of a comprehensive suite of ticketing, ecommerce, marketing and access control services available from accesso. The SHOPLAND package was launched in 2008 by Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, as well as numerous other leading entertainment destinations in North America. The robust package offers an entertaining and interactive shopping experience for online shoppers, providing easy to use and engaging screens that encourage up-sell packaging and offer guests additional products based on their buying behavior.
The full suite of accesso ticketing solutions is available for demonstration at this year’s IAAPA Attractions Expo in Orlando, Florida November 18 – 21 at the Orange County Convention Center, exhibit booth 1455.
“At accesso, our sole objective is to offer the entertainment industry’s most effective and guest-friendly solutions for ticketing at a price that makes powerful technology accessible to attractions of all sizes,” said Steve Brown, CEO of accesso. “The addition of accesso SHOPLAND to our ecommerce suite delivers an incredibly effective online sales tool that dramatically enhances the guest experience and increases the attractions revenue even before guests arrive.”