SeaWorld's Mako Makes its Move to Orlando

August 17, 2015 at 12:16 PM · Kinda interesting to see a park wanting people to tweet out track pieces on the road (signs on the side of the trucks letting everyone know what the pieces are). Typically anything that leaves that Ohio factory is under the shroud of secrecy (like the coaster pieces tagged for Cedar Point's as yet unannounced Dive Coaster). I like when parks get out in front of the story instead of letting bloggers and others speculate what's going on or releasing little snippets or pre-vis drawings that draw more false theories and bad information than anything else. Imagine how excited people would be for Avatar right now if Disney were controlling the flow of information of what's going on behind the scenes during construction, and what guests can expect when the work is completed. If Imagineers have truly ridden the vehicles that are part of the "Soarin'-like" attraction, why not show people what you're talking about, or at least release some shots of the construction site? There's something to be said for keeping certain things under wraps, but creators need to take more control of the narrative when it comes to new attraction publicity in this world of instant gratification.

August 17, 2015 at 12:51 PM · Interesting. I wonder about this approach, only because I think SeaWorld has recently suffered from a problem of over-promising and under-delivering. I watched with eager anticipation all of the youtube teases for the Antarctica expansion. By the time it came around, it was so underwhelming compared with the scale of its PR buzz that it hurt the attraction's reputation. Russell, I totally agree that we fans want more and more detailed info further in advance. Maybe the secret is to tease a bunch, but leave plenty more unspoken? I don't know the answer, but I am worried that they are trying to make what is basically a nice B&M coaster (we hope!) into some kind of ground-breaking ride. That approach could backfire.

August 17, 2015 at 5:49 PM · I am very excited for this coaster. To me, Mako is the #1 reason to plan a trip to Orlando in 2016. And it is a great move for SeaWorld, a park that needs a real shot in the arm after losing a considerable amount of market share to Harry Potter.

August 17, 2015 at 6:01 PM · So I guess we can call this a "Land Shark?";)

August 17, 2015 at 9:28 PM · I don't really have an opinion on the whole taking pictures of the track pieces as they're being taken down to Orlando, but I do think this coaster is going to really make Sea World THE place to go for roller coasters in Orlando. 3 top notch B&M coasters will really make it a park that thrill seekers will love coming back to again and again.

Now....Antarctica was a huge disappointment, and I don't know if there's any easy fix for it. It was a big let down for me, and the exterior paint job was awful. A lot of blue, and the white looked dirty. I remember seeing all the articles and concept art about Antarctica prior to it opening, and being excited for it, and that was probably the main cause of my negativity.

I honestly just don't know how good of a combination sea life and roller coasters is. One is for thrill seekers, and one is for education. I think it's a bit of a no-win situation they've found themselves in, and unlike Busch Gardens two parks, even after Mako, they'll have only three roller coasters.

Admittedly, their biggest obstacle is their location and size. It's quite a pain to get in and out of the parking lot and back onto I-4, and there are no themed on-site hotels. Sea World will never be an all-day or weekend destination that families will plan a trip around, but if you love roller coasters, this will be one heck of a nice park to spend a few hours at to get your fix.

August 17, 2015 at 9:40 PM · Letting the interested fans know about and get real updates about Mako during construction is the same as what Busch Gardens Tampa is doing with Cobra's Curse. BGT is tweeting construction updates every day or 3 with photos and facts (i.e. cubic yards of concrete poured).

I like it. This seems to be a top-down directive from SEAS as part of their image rehabilitation. Very different from the Disney and Universal secrecy during early construction phases.

August 19, 2015 at 10:13 AM · Still not making me go to Sea World any time soon.