There are plenty of signs that someone has worked at The Rockinâ Rollercoast of Sandusky, Ohio. Some more apparent than others, like tan lings or how quickly people walk. But one thing is for certain. There is nothing like working a summer, or two, at Cedar Point!
Depending on where you live, on point or off point, the smell of the surrounding lake is unbearable at times. Cedars, the old Breakers hotel, was converted into dorm like living for the employees. Itâs by far not the prettiest, or nicest, but who cares when youâre working or in the park most of the time. Though it does suck a little when all the bugs slip in through the cracks in your window. Mayfly season is the absolute worst, ranking up there with a swarm of locust. They cover every surface, and make a crunching noise when walking over them. Perks of living on a lake, right?
To run such a large park full of fun, it takes a ton of man (or woman) power. That means working a shit ton of hours. But in all honesty, Cedar Point is basically an island, so what else is there to do other than work? A typical shift is at least 10 hours, but itâs not all that bad. Well, I lied. The first week is an absolute living hell when youâre getting into the swing of early mornings and late nights. Though working with great people, and interacting with amazing park-goers makes things so much easier. Your shift typically flies by quickly. Then after everyoneâs 12+ hour day, we play. Yes, we still have energy to go out and party and drink.
Working in some of the hottest months of the year is pretty shitty at times. Especially when all you want to do is go chill in one of the pools youâre patrolling, or hop on one of the jet skis skirting around the lake. Regardless of the amount of sunscreen you lather on, youâre bound to get burnt. I rarely get burned, but the first week of work my face was peeling and throbbing with the pain of a sunburn. Eventually that burn will turn into a tan. A very deep, never ending tan that you will have for all of eternity. Most everyone will have the t-shirt tan line, with a deep cut âV,â the shorts tan line, most definitely the sunglasses tan line.
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Along with working all the time, youâre also trying to keep up with the internationals that are working at Cedar Point. Many of the internationals come from places like Taiwan, Thailand, Jamaica, Czech Republic, and so many other countries, just to work at one of the many amusement parks in America. Coming with them is their amazing tolerance for alcohol. Trying to keep up with the internationals in terms of drinking, is nearly impossible. Most the time it ends up in one of the two parties ending up schwasted on the floor, more than likely hugging the porcelain bowl.
Not only do the internationals bring about their otherworldly drinking skills, but they also bring about amazing friendships. It is impossible to not make friends from somewhere new. Sure I made friends from Michigan, and surprisingly a few people from my hometown. But the numbers of friends that youâll make from another country, is outstanding. Presently I have friends from at least five different countries, and theyâre some of the most amazing friends Iâve had. Considering that most people only work at Cedar Point for about three months or so, itâs amazing the bonds that people form while working at The Rockinâ Rollercoast.
In case you do end up with a hangover from heavily drinking the night, or two, it comes in handy to know where all the good hiding spots are. Having a hangover at a normal job is bad. But having a hangover while working an all-day shift, in the summer, is the absolute worst. Finding a nice spot in the shade, away from the public (and your supervisors) is a necessity for making it through your months at Cedar Point. Storage closets, bathrooms, and even spots on the beach (my favorite) are a must.
Speaking of all day shifts. Everyone knows what an âOCâ is. When someone asks what your shift is, the groan that follows will say enough. An âOCâ is an open to close shift at the park, aka, death. By open they mean a couple hours before the park opens, and by close they mean a few after the park closes. More often than not, you can easily hit a 15 hour shift. Unless itâs the Fourth of July weekend, then youâre looking at the park closing at midnight, and not crawling into bed until 2:00 a.m. or so. Donât get me wrong, I would much rather be enjoying the park, or the beach, or even the waterpark on an 80-degree day rather than working. But all those OC shifts add up to quite a nice paycheck.
Speaking of Fourth of July weekend, or any weekend in general, you may hear Cedar Point employees asking âWhat are thoosseee?â But really, what are weekends? Having a weekend, or even a Friday or Saturday off is unheard of in Sandusky. With weekends being the busiest times, having those days off is a rarity. I was lucky enough to have Sundays off, and let me tell you. Those days were not wasted or taken for granted. All the weekâs work (and laundry,) was packed into one day. Though chances were I would just end up going to the park anyways.
The human body is amazing at learning to adapt to new environments and situations. Situations like, barely ever getting any sleep. While working at Cedar Point, the body definitely learns to work well on an empty tank. Whether it be by choice, or because work ran late(r,) I was always running low on something; food, sleep, sanity. Usually sleep. After a while, people stop asking âAre you tired?â because the answer always comes back the same. Lucky enough to get eight hours each night, you learn to live with the fact that sleep has now become an unfamiliar friend to you.
One of the few reasons to get little amounts of sleep, is Ride Night. Most of the employees are too busy working, or too impatient to wait in the never-ending lines to ride them. The park opens after hours once a week for employees to have some fun. Each week itâs a different ride that opens, specifically for employees to enjoy themselves and let loose a bit. While most people value their sleep more than a three to four minute adrenaline rush, Ride Night is always something that makes Monday a little less shitty.
Along with Ride Nights, thereâs also the end of the season party to look forward to. Big Bash is when a section of the park for employees to celebrate a successful season. During my season, the âGatekeeper Midwayâ was open for us. Gatekeeper, MaxxAir, Wicked Twister, Tiki Twirl, and all the games were open just for us after hours. I must say, riding coasters in the dark, front row, is something you must experience if youâre going to Cedar Point. If youâre lucky they may also throw some hints out about the new ride too.
Cedar Point isnât just all fun and games, there are rules too. Things other than, âPlease keep all hands and feet inside the coaster at all times,â and âPlease refrain from using phones on the ride.â When it comes to Park Services, aka the people that keep the park clean, there are plenty of rules. For instance, always walk like you have a place to go; Sweep Pace. Itâs not uncommon to see people in canary yellow shirts bobbing and weaving through the crowd. But the one thing that will probably stick with you even after your time at CP, is to point with your arm, not your finger. Using your entire arm makes it easier to direct people. It also makes it a harder habit to break. I constantly find myself pointing with my arm at work and around campus.
Most rules are meant to be followed, but this one was always broken. In an attempt to show better gratitude towards customers, one phrase was invented. âMy pleasure.â Those two words are enough to cause all employees to feel just a smidge uncomfortable, especially coming from a childish 16 year-old-boy serving you your corn dog. âMy pleasureâ is just something that shouldnât be used at all, ever. Though I never used it, anyone serving food would have to. Unfortunately, a few times out in the ânormal world,â Iâve ordered food and had someone say those words, causing an involuntary skin crawl.
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Working as a park sweep, weâre some of the more noticeable people. Â Typically running around with a broom and dust pan in our canary yellow shirts, mostly cleaning up the left over fries around the park. But for those unlucky enough to be working the beach on a 90 degree day, the worst has yet to come. Most of the time thereâs just the usual beach trash to clean up. Cups, water bottles, cigarettes, dead fish. Yes, dead fish are the job of an employee to clean up. Imagine cleaning up a fish thatâs been roasting in the sun for several hours, picked over by seagulls. Yum.
Although the job as a park sweep isnât the most glorious (by any means,) itâs one of the jobs that has the most fun. Except for when a âguest illnessâ call is sounded over the radio. Someone, somewhere in the park had one too many Oreo Churros before taking on Millennium Force, and well. The force was clearly not with them that day. Itâs also very unlikely that this poor soul made it to a garbage can or the bathroom to upchuck. So yes, itâs the job of an employee to clean it up.
Guests arenât the only ones that have projectile vomit. Though one can only hope that itâs in the form of fun facts and not actual vomit. Another awesome part about Cedar Point employees is that we know hella fun facts about the park. We even carry a little booklet around in our pocket that has them all in it. Want to know the three tallest things in the park? We can tell you. BTW itâs Dragster, Millennium, and Windseeker (in that order.) Want to get your steps in? Well thereâs about three miles of midway, so get to steppinâ. How many records did the new Valravn break? Itâs the tallest, fastest, and longest dive coaster in the world.
With great power comes great responsibility. In the form of a radio. Walking around with a radio clipped to your belt is one of those things that makes you walk around with your chest puffed out a bit. Except itâs possible that midway through the day, you may end up launching into Lake Erie. With the park being so large, itâs essential to have a fast form of communication. Most days itâs quiet, though on the weekend the chatter never seems to cease. There are those days when youâre in the park and hear a radio chirp, and instinctively reach for yours. Laughing to yourself, youâll look around to see if anyone saw you reaching towards your collar for your radio that isnât there.
To the public, there are only about four entrances to the park. But for employees, there are endless entrances. Though most wouldnât know about them unless theyâve pulled dumpsters around with a tractor, like I have. There are entrances in some of the most obscure places that one would never think to look. Knowing these entrances tend to come in handy when you need to access an area quickly. It also helps when you have a full set of keys to unlock any of these mystery gates. Or if you want to sneak in after your time at Cedar Point has ended, and you donât want to pay for a ticket.
After the regular season, the park opens only on the weekends for HalloWeekends. Friday through Sunday the park is open late at night for fun and fear. Haunts and scary mazes scatter across the park to add in a little extra adrenaline rush. Haunts include a creepy wax museum in the middle of Mean Streak, and a haunted ghoulish high school behind Hurrincane Hannahâs at the front of the park. Being a screamster (the scary people,) would be fun and all, but actually working in the park is more work than the normal season. With only a fraction of the number employees previously, and long nights, HalloWeekends are exhausting.
Overall, my time at the Rockinâ Roller Coast was one that I will never forget. It was something I chose to do last minute when I realized I needed something new. Although the days were long, and the work was tiring, I donât regret leaving the life I knew to move away for the first time. Nothing can compare to this job, even though Iâm constantly comparing each of my jobs to Cedar Point. Now that Iâve seen and done it all, every job I have now seems easy peasy.
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