SANDUSKY, Ohio – Shortly after 8 p.m. on Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 5, guests of the Firelands Chapter of the American Red Cross will take the final public rides on the Paddlewheel Excursions, the scenic riverboat cruise at Cedar Point.
To determine the participants on the two last rides, the Red Cross will host The Last Ride Auction for the seats on the last two boats. Each boat will accommodate 25 riders. (Riders must be at least 46 inches tall or accompanied by a responsible person.)
The top 49 bidders will be officially certified as the Last Riders on the Paddlewheel Excursions. The highest 24 riders will earn a seat on the last public cruise. As a special treat, that last boat will be captained by Dick Kinzel, CEO of the Cedar Fair Entertainment Company. Bidders 25-49 will have a seat on the second last boat. Official bidding began Aug. 26 and will run through 8:30 a.m. on this Friday, Sept. 2.
In addition to a final ride on Paddlewheel Excursions, successful bidders will also receive complimentary admission to Cedar Point, admission to the Last Ride Auction Reception with complimentary hors d’oeuvres and refreshments that will begin at 7 p.m. at Charlie Brown’s Cookout in Camp Snoopy, a commemorative medallion from the Red Cross and certificates of recognition from the Red Cross and Cedar Point.
Winning participants will be able to enter the park anytime during the day and will also receive free parking. (Cedar Point will be open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 5.) They will also be able to purchase discounted tickets for family and friends for use on Labor Day.
A themed-riverboat cruise has been in operation at Cedar Point since the early Sixties. During that span, it has given more than 47 million rides.
All proceeds from the event will support the many programs provided by the Firelands Chapter of the American Red Cross.
Those interested in submitting a bid should visit:
For additional information about The Last Ride Auction, please visit www.firelandsredcross.org or call the Firelands Chapter of the American Red Cross at 419.626.1641 or 800.589.2286.
Cedar Fair said Monday it has found a successor for Dick Kinzel, the longtime Cedar Fair CEO who made Cedar Point the roller coaster capital of the world.
The new leader is Matthew Ouimet, 53, a former executive for the Walt Disney Co. and Starwood Hotels and Resorts.
Ouimet began work Monday in Cedar Fair’s Sandusky office, in the back of the park, as the new president of Cedar Fair. When Kinzel, 70, retires on Jan. 3 as CEO, Ouimet will succeed him.
In an interview, Ouimet (pronounced “We MET”) said he plans to keep the company’s headquarters in Sandusky and will make sure Cedar Point remains the “crown jewel” of Cedar Fair’s family of amusement parks.
“I see no logic to moving out of Sandusky,” said Ouimet, who, along with his wife, will move to Ohio from Orange County, Calif.
Investors will get a look at Cedar Fair’s new leader when the company hosts its annual meeting at 9 a.m. July 7 at the Cedar Point Center at BGSU Firelands.
Ouimet spent 17 years with Disney, including handling the financial management of Disney’s parks and projects in California, Florida and France as the company’s senior vice president; running the Disney Vacation Club, and serving as president of the Disney Cruise Line and Disneyland Resort. More recently, he served as president of Starwood Hotels and Resorts, overseeing 900 properties in 90 countries, and was president and CEO of Corinthian Colleges. Ouimet is also on the board of Collective Brands, which owns the Payless ShoeSource chain.
Disney emphasizes qualities such as service and cleanliness and has a culture similar to Cedar Fair’s, Ouimet said.
“I grew up in a culture that was all about quality,” Ouimet said.
He said his visits to Cedar Fair parks such as Knotts Berry Farm and meetings with Cedar Fair officials showed Cedar Fair has a similar focus.
“It is clear to me this team has extremely high standards,” Ouimet said.
He said he shares Cedar Fair’s philosophy of keeping its parks clean.
“I can’t walk through a park and leave anything on the ground,” he said.
C. Thomas Harvie, Cedar Fair’s chairman of the board, said Ouimet was the right man to lead Cedar Fair into the future.
Harvie cited Ouimet’s track record of finding growth opportunities and his background in resort development, finance, marketing and operations.
The board met other candidates who were well-qualified, Harvie said.
“The board agreed that Matt stood out from the rest due to his strategic business mindset and his natural and engaging leadership style,” Harvie said.
“Matt is an impressive business and operational executive whose character and values will be a great complement to the strong Cedar Fair culture,” Kinzel said.
The Q Investments family of companies, controlled by Texas investment banker Geoffrey Raynor, has warned it might oppose a new Cedar Fair CEO if it didn’t approve of the board’s choice.
On Monday, Q released a statement reserving judgment on Ouimet, but pushing Q’s position that unitholders should be allowed to nominate members of Cedar Fair’s board.
“We have no current comment on the hiring of Mr. Ouimet. However, regardless of whether the company hires Matt Ouimet or Warren Buffett, it does not change the fact that unitholders should have the right to nominate their own directors. We will continue to take every step necessary to ensure unitholders ultimately receive this right, which 95 percent of voting unitholders demanded at the last special meeting,” the Q statement said.
Ouimet brings deep amusement park and resort industry experience and a rich understanding of financial, operational and brand management to this leadership role
Ouimet will succeed CEO Dick Kinzel on January 3, 2012, as part of Company’s CEO succession planning process
SANDUSKY, OHIO, June 20, 2011 – Cedar Fair Entertainment Company (NYSE: FUN) today announced that Matthew A. Ouimet has been named president of the Company, effective immediately. Ouimet, 53, will succeed Dick Kinzel, 70, as chief executive officer, who will retire upon the expiration of his contract on January 3, 2012. Today’s action is in line with Cedar Fair’s previously announced CEO succession planning process.
Ouimet is a 20 year veteran of the amusement park and hospitality industry, of which 17 years were spent with the Walt Disney Company (“Disney”). During his tenure with the global entertainment conglomerate, he had the opportunity to work in a wide range of business lines with increasing levels of responsibility. Highlights of his tenure at Disney include serving as:
Senior vice president, finance and business development, and chief financial officer of the Disney Development Company, in which he was responsible for the financial management of Disney’s resort, theme park and corporate real estate projects in California, Florida and France;
Executive general manager of Disney Vacation Club, where, through expanded marketing and sales initiatives, Disney established itself as a major competitor in the timeshare industry;
President of Disney Cruise Line, where his team built the most successful family cruise product in the industry;
President of the Disneyland Resort, where he and his team developed and implemented a comprehensive strategic plan that resulted in significantly improved and sustained performance for Disneyland’s 50th anniversary and beyond.
In 2006, Ouimet was recruited to serve as the President of Starwood Hotels & Resorts, overseeing 900 owned, managed and franchised hotel properties in 95 countries. In this capacity, in support of brand-driven pricing premiums, he drove an operational focus on delivering a guest experience consistent with the characteristics of each of Starwood’s hotel brands, including St Regis, Westin, Sheraton, W Hotels and five other brands. In 2008, Ouimet joined Corinthian Colleges, a $2 billion, publicly-held, post-secondary education company which operates in the U.S. and Canada. As President and Chief Operating Officer, Ouimet championed executive talent development and the expansion of management and systems infrastructure to support rapid growth in the student population and expanded regulatory complexity.
“Without question, Matt is the right leader to join Cedar Fair now as it builds momentum on its renewed path of sustained, profitable growth in 2011 and beyond,” said C. Thomas (“Tom”) Harvie, independent chairman. “Throughout his career, Matt has proven to be a critical thinker and effective business strategist with an enviable track record for identifying growth opportunities within existing businesses in the amusement park and resort industry. His broad and diverse background in resort development, finance, marketing and operations will allow him to integrate quickly into Cedar Fair.
“While our thorough search process with the assistance of the executive search firm Korn/Ferry International enabled us to meet with and consider many extremely qualified candidates, the Board agreed that Matt stood out from the rest due to his strategic business mindset and his natural and engaging leadership style,” said Harvie.
“Matt is an impressive business and operational executive whose character and values will be a great complement to the strong Cedar Fair culture,” said Dick Kinzel, chief executive officer. “I look forward to working with him over the coming months to ensure a seamless leadership transition.”
Ouimet currently serves on the Board of Collective Brands, Inc., a $3.4 billion global enterprise encompassing the internationally recognized footwear brands of Payless, Sperry Top-Sider, Stride Rite and Saucony, where he serves as a financial expert on the audit and finance committee. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree majoring in accounting from State University of New York at Binghamton.
“I am thrilled to join this successful Cedar Fair leadership team. I am particularly pleased to have the opportunity to work closely with Dick Kinzel and to continue to build on his legacy in years to come,” said Matt Ouimet. “Cedar Fair is a wonderful company – its properties are vibrant and extremely well-run, its reputation is superb, and the record-setting 2010 performance has put us on a path to deliver the positive financial results Cedar Fair has long been known for. I am truly honored to have this opportunity and sincerely thank the Board for entrusting me with this critical leadership role at this pivotal point in Cedar Fair’s evolution.”
“On behalf of the Board, the management team and all of our colleagues past and present, I would like to thank Dick Kinzel for his unparalleled vision, passion and selfless dedication to Cedar Fair over the years,” said Harvie. “Without Dick, Cedar Fair would not have the opportunities or the growth potential it has today. He has been the heart and soul of this organization for many, many years and, while he can be succeeded, he can never be replaced. We wish Dick and his wonderful family all the very best as he moves into his well-deserved retirement at the end of the year.”
Kinzel began his career in the amusement park industry at Cedar Point in 1972. In 1986, he was named president and chief executive officer of Cedar Fair, L.P., the parent company of the parks, which was listed on The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: FUN) in 1987. Kinzel also served as chairman of the Board from 2003 to 2010.
