Every year since joining this site it has been tradition for me to open each operating season with some words of wisdom. To inspire the future generations who will be joining us in the finest tradition of park operations. This year our industry celebrates 115 years in the service of fun.
Before we get started I would like to take a moment to reflect upon those who gave their lives in the ultimate sacrifice of service. In a last ditch attempt to avoid a collision with a reversing monorail, Austin Wuennenberg remained at his engineering station and made valiant attempts to avert collision and keep the guest on board his monorail safe until such time he was crushed in a collision. If it was not for his actions, and his dedication to the guest in which he faithfully served. The force of the approaching monorail traveling at full speed would have pierced the passenger cabin and more then likely killed its occupants.
In 2009 153 operators and maintenance personnel were killed worldwide in accidents involving amusement rides. Similarly we failed to protect 331 guest, and over 10,000 suffered some sort of injury. While I am reminded that theme parks are statistically safer then airlines, there is always room for improvement.
For those of you whom this will be your first job, Welcome. You have signed up to operate heavy machinery in climates of varying extremes for extended periods of time with our breaks in a fast paced, exhaustive, repetitive, dangerous, unhealthy and sometimes hostile work environment. If this doesn't sound like your cup of tea it would be in your best interest to find another line of work.
In recent years the operators role has been down played by the reliance of automation. Guest think that operators are only button mashers, ticket takers, and rule enforcers. Frankly, I say that's bull poop. Now more the ever qualified and professional operators are needed to insure guest safety. Computers are only as smart as their creators, they simply cannot handle all of the external factors that come into play in the day to day operation of a ride.
Ultimately an operators job is to (1.) interface with the guest and to insure their safety. (2.) To monitor the automatic operation of the ride, and to be prepared at anytime to manually take control of the ride or quickly stop its operation. (3.) To object to the operation of the ride if at anytime the operator feels an unsafe condition exist.
1. Interfacing with the guest can be a difficult task at times. They say that when a guest enters into the gates of a park they become a sugared up tantrum prone three year old. The fact is that they payed a lot of money to visit the park, and rightfully so they expect world class service. At all times an operator should be courteous, professional, clam, and firm on matters of safety. Everyone is responsible for enforcing park policies and there must be a consistent level of enforcement throughout.
2. Guest enter ride perimeters, trains skip blocks, hydraulic lines break. What do all of these problems have in common? They are require operator interaction to correct and stop the operation of the ride in a safe and controlled manner. An operators duty is to the the ride at all times it is in operation or motion. A distracted operator is the equivalent of an intoxicated operator.
You have no business being on any phone at anytime the ride is in operation. If you find it necessary to chase ass, do it while the ride is not in motion. You can save time by ordering business cards with your booty call information already printed on them.
3. Who is at the ride more often, Maintenance, Electricians, or the Operators. After a week of operating you have probably cycled your ride more then 150 times. After that time you should understand how it works, how it responds under certain conditions, whats its quirks are, and what it sounds like under normal operating conditions.
More often then not it is an abnormal sound that triggers the concerns of the operator. Similarly as an operator moves about and observes the operation of the ride, it sometimes becomes apparent that components have failed, are operating improperly, or are missing entirely. You should never be afraid of raising objection or asking for assistance if you think something is out place. However you should use your knowledge of the ride to make a professional decision and plan a course of action.
In my time I have worked with many coworkers in the maintenance department who become annoyed when an operator calls upon them for a safety check. It is my opinion that these type of people are not worth the ground that they stand on. I have witnessed many of these same coworkers end up with mounds of paperwork because they ignored request to investigate problems with rides they were responsible for. Not to mention the fact that they had to rebuild and repair equipment that was involved in minor or major accidents.
Operators are the heart and soul of a park. They set the pace and the precedent in which all the other departments revolve around. Most guest do not come to parks for the food, for the shows, or for the games. They come for the rides and the chance to be scared shit-less on a subsonic three hundred foot plus multi-million dollar piece of hardware built and installed by the lowest bidder.
So remember,
1. Your duty is to the ride and the safety of your guest.
2. No matter what happens remain calm and be professional.
3. When things look out of place, stop, evaluate, respond.
4. Be prepared for anything at anytime.
5. Know your ride, Know your guest.
6. Humor fix's everything. When things look dark - Smile, Tomorrow will be worse.
In closing, I hope everyone has a safe season. Hopefully Tconwell will be along to give the seasonal prayer and blessing.