The Return of Tony Clark

by Andrew Rybarczyk
On Monday night I just happened to be browsing my Twitter feed as I usually do. The general hilarity was of course ensuing and then something caught my attention. A tweet exclaiming the return of Tony Clark to Cedar Point. It was as if life was moving in slow motion. Could it be? Is he really back or is this some kind of hoax? I could not open Cedar Point's OnPoint blog fast enough to see if it was true. To my absolute excitement, indeed the man who started it all was back OnPoint. Immediately, tweets were retweeted, text messages were sent, and joyful screaming could be heard by all the neighbors. You may be asking why at this point or you may be joining in the celebration. In either case, let me fill you in.

Tony was the originator of the Cedar Point blog, OnPoint, with his partner Tyler. These two gave us an inside look into the park's workings. It may have been done before, but I can assure you it was never done better than this tag team's contributions. They gave the community an unprecedented look behind the scenes of Cedar Point with pictures and videos in each and every blog. They dropped us hints (many placed as red herrings) when new rides were to be announced. They gave us updates on ride construction. As time went on, the blog just kept getting better and better. PointCast became one of the true standouts on the blog and joined my must watch list of videos each time a new episode was released. I like many others felt that this blog bridged the gap between people who loved Cedar Point and the park itself. I felt a part of Cedar Point and through the blog, even when I was not in Sandusky I could still imagine that I was there. The blog was so successful that Cedar Fair tried to replicate the same winning formula at the other parks in the chain. Some were quite good and some faded off.

Good times were rocking and rolling like Maverick on a hot summer's night. Alas, it was not to last and as they say, all good things must come to an end. Tony and Tyler who had done so much for the coaster community including working late shifts to personally greet each member participating in the passholder's ride nights announced that they were discontinuing the blog. Tony left to take a job working for the Fox Milwaukee affiliate while Tyler was going to focus more on his work in the Cedar Point offices doing his real job. Sadness swept over my household. Even though Cedar Point would try to reinvent the blog twice with two separate hosts, it just was not the same without T&T.

Today, Tony announced that he is back at Cedar Point as the new Digital Communications Manager and with that he is also resuming his role as lead blog host. I assure you that it is because of Tony Clark that I sit before you today and type this blog. I loved Cedar Point before, but it was Tony that introduced me to so many opportunities that I had no idea about. He reported about ride auctions to open rides and events like Coasting for Kids. It were his words and actions that me made feel a part of Cedar Point. So it is with great excitement, that I personally welcome Tony Clark back to Cedar Point. Thank you Tony for all that you have done in the past and good luck in all you do in your new post at Cedar Point!