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-   -   What would push you? (http://www.wakeworld.com/forum/showthread.php?t=799913)

greenbass86 09-10-2013 8:40 PM

What would push you?
 
If there was a cable park out in the middle of the dessert, just an hour outside of Tucson, the closes town being thirty minute drive. You would have to go through dirt road to reach it.
Imagine this park having camping, and a 3 acre lake, food and beverages, a canopy of trees but also open area to view the night sky with night riding under the stars.
What would this park need to convince you to make the drive?

Please give any and all serious suggestions. Who knows you're suggestion could help make this dream a reality!

mtownrydr 09-10-2013 9:19 PM

I dunno...wakepark in the middle of dessert sounds...absolutely delicious!

durty_curt 09-10-2013 9:31 PM

what would the park need to convince me.... a reality. and... no wildcats allowed (go sun devils!)

cell service? bathrooms? how far from a real city? like phoenix :p

Jmorlan 09-10-2013 9:46 PM

Tons of hookers and free blow.






Kidding, tbh, I'd much rather be on my boat than at a cable park. Sounds interesting though!

stuey 09-10-2013 11:05 PM

A 3 acre lake? In addition to the cable park I would hope - otherwise that is way too small a lake for a full size cable park.

In regards to what you need - population. If this location is somewhere closer to Phoenix, it might be sustainable - but if it's east/south of Tucson and you are relying on solely the population of tucson to make that drive to attend everyday, it's a bit unlikely to be successful. 30 minutes away from the nearest town is tough - you need the local business to become your regulars who drop in when they have a free hour. A dirt road is tough also - I avoid a local ski hill because they have a dirt road to get there, it sucks, and I don't like having to clean my truck everytime I go there. I only go now if somebody else volunteers to drive, but I don't make the trek on my own.

As far as the draw - look no further than what BSR has done. It's starting to look like a freaking resort there - floating river, kids inflatable adventure park, bi-level lake, cabins, bar and grill, beach, volleyball - oh yeah, and a fullsize cable too. Talk about doing things right

VinnyA 09-11-2013 3:58 AM

a hot tub and lodging sounds good to me! ^I was gonna say follow BSR's example too lol

captain_vilfo 09-11-2013 4:55 AM

all i need are sliders that are well kept and some that are entirely different than what other parks offer

greenbass86 09-11-2013 6:04 AM

it is about an hour from Tucson and approximately two hours from Phoenix
Plan would honestly be to only be open on the weekends to start. Then eventually if and when customer basis grows start expanding on our days of being open
the local town that is half an hour out, is extremely small so wouldn't be able to count on them as the main source of income, maybe the Tucson population might be nice
Sliders and kickers are defiantly going to be there, we have some ideas that we think might really make things interesting, fun and unique when it comes to obstacles.

VinnyA 09-11-2013 12:21 PM

If your worried about starting capital then ignore this suggestion but there are other fun things that can make your park stand out than a killer feature set up/cable. Maybe you could have a rock climbing wall/butte or a flow rider too! Don't limit anything because people who enjoy things like wakeboarding also have the luxury of enjoying things like surfing/rock climbing too and if they can do all those things at one convenient location then why would they go anywhere else! Example Jay peak ski resort put a flow rider in and a lot of my skiier friends spend a good chunk of their time doing that when they take weekend trips to the mountain as well as ski.

pierce_bronkite 09-11-2013 1:01 PM

Make it anything like BSR Cable park and you will have a solid cable park. It is like a resort there, my entire family has fun and I am the only who wakeboards too.

greenbass86 09-11-2013 2:34 PM

We most certainly want to add more than just wakeboarding ideas in the future, but to start off and get this thing going we would like it to be known as a wakeboarding park/camp site and add more onto it later
For now we just need to know, what would it NEED to have in order to get people to visit it. What would it take for you to decide you would like to make the drive out there and stay for the weekend.
What does it NEED to attract you not only those of you in AZ but those of you through out the world. What would convince you to visit a brand new cable park out in the middle of a dessert.

stephan 09-12-2013 8:25 AM

What it would NEED first and foremost is a local population of wakeboarders that will keep it busy all the time. They will buy season passes and they will form the modest staff that a place like that requires.

Then to attract people from around the country, it would NEED to blow other cables out of the water. There are already many established cables much closer to well populated areas. To draw people away from convenience the aforementioned "hookers and blow" idea might be your best bet.

JustinMD 09-12-2013 10:05 AM

First off, stop beating around the bush as spill the location. I personally think this has fail written all over it. Too far away from major metro. Tucson doesn't support crap. Trust me I've lived here for 25 years. People here are lazy and cheap. Water parks fail and they are closer than an hour away. Phoenix has lakes that are too close to ignore. The people that would go to a Park are going to be younger adult males and they are a bunch of broke dudes.

If you want to make it work you will need lots of other features. Motocross needs a home. Maybe a BMX pump track? Other water features to cool the people. Loads of shade. Also you have to consider security as a big one. Illegals will take all the stuff they can when they over run it on their way to job search. If you add a lot of features you will need some medical staff. Lifeguards. Gate attendants... the list goes on. And you will need to source these grade A employees from said small town. You might be able to make something work if you built an actual ski lake. Maybe 1/2 mile long, 10 feet deep. 500' across with an island in the middle. Shallow rock beach with a few Sandy spots for spectators. You could run the cable down the center with features on the sides. Make it available to other water sports to increase the user base. Wake, Surf, Slalom, Kneeboard, Hydrofoil... Maybe have the lake available for members only during certain times. Huge light system like a drag strip to make it go into the night. Take a look at Firebird Lake. Maybe you can get UofA to sign on and open a water sports program like ASU has.

Just some thoughts. Good luck.

JustinMD 09-12-2013 10:22 AM

Are you thinking of tapping into CAP water for this?

wakeandsnow27 09-12-2013 12:25 PM

A Grand Opening date would convince me.

greenbass86 09-16-2013 10:49 AM

Justin - at this time we are still working on getting everything finalized with property purchasing which is why the exact location has not yet been revealed, once everything is said and done then we will let all that out. For now we are waiting to finish dotting the i's and crossing the t's
You talk about needing a large staff for such a park, but we don't plan on having all that BMX, motocross, or any of that stuff YET, however it is something we are considering for a future possibility. For now we just want a nice simple cable park, with some unique obstacles and with camping available. As I said before it would only be opened Friday - Sunday until business can pick up, so we aren't to worried about staffing, we pretty much have all of that taken care of already. The park will obivously be available to anybody who wants a pull, wakeboard, wake skate, kneeboard, skis, etc etc.
Do we have the land to make a lake like the one you've suggested, sure we do, but like a said the long term plan is to not limit it just to wakeboarding, but also add in more. Paintballing, Motorcross, rock walls, and even horse back riding.
Your suggestions are greatly appreciated and defiantly will be kept in mind, we like the idea of getting UofA involved and of course the sandy spots would be a must. I honestly didn't even think about the lighting system which is another thing we will be adding to our list.

Everyone we are loving the suggestions, please keep them coming. Once we are officially starting construction I will announce an opening date.

chillinoj 09-16-2013 12:48 PM

The biggest driver of all price...

For me since I don't own a boat I can drop $30 in gas or $30+ bucks on a daily pass at a park, usually that decision is easy and boats wins every time someone is going out. I know it's a big investment up front and you're trying make your money back from pass sales pretty much alone, but keeping actually cheaper than buying gas would be Key, especially if you are as far from town as it sounds.

Have a killer pro shop, that will only build your stoke for the sport and newbies, hopefully would drop the cash after their first day
Speakers on every tower so you can hear some jams everywhere
Have a decent food & drink option, or allow people to bring coolers
Volleyball, cornhole, horseshoes, ladder golf, something to do when the line is way long or do with the family

that would be a great start on getting me to come out there

chillinoj 09-16-2013 12:50 PM

Also for more of your "core" riders have a different option other just season pass and daily pass. Maybe a week/end pass if someone is only in town for a week/weekend. Monthly passes or punch pass type of deals would help those not able to buy a season pass up front.

wakeandsnow27 09-16-2013 1:08 PM

Why Tucson? I agree with JustinMD....to far from MetroPhx where you need to be. The outskirts would be fine (buckeye, NW surprise, AJ, even Maricopa, etc) but not Tucson.

Also, Im extremely confused...You have the land or you don't? You're close to breaking ground but didn't even think about lights? Is their an actual business plan and budget even remotely in place? Sounds like a premature idea to say the least. I wish you all the best but doubt this is going anywhere.

joshugan 09-17-2013 12:39 PM

Jeff, It sounds like a cool idea and anything that adds to wakeboarding in AZ is great, imo. However, I live in Mesa and might make the trip once to try it for fun but I can't see committing 2 hours to get there and 2 hours to get back on a regular basis at all. An hour is doable but 2 is not. Good luck with it though and I wish you great success!

BamaLurker 09-17-2013 1:57 PM

Go visit as many cables as you can and you'll find your answers there. Build rails not sliders;) JK but for real

greenbass86 09-19-2013 6:43 PM

loving the comments and suggestions, the more we get the better
This is all just going little by little, one of the biggest reasons we are looking for your suggestions is because we want to make a park that the wake boarding community wants. I know BSR and TST and OWC all are some pretty big names and everyone loves those parks, I've been to OWC plenty of times. I plan on taking a trip to BSR since it is such a high profile name.

JustinMD 09-21-2013 5:13 AM

Firebirds new owners are draining the lake. Digging it deeper in spots and adding a cable park. Now you have to think about having a competitor that is closer to Phx.


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