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That area of Kennywood is actually one of the most pleasant with its 'grove like" feel and carousel. I hope they keep it that way. Sad to see some older, traditional rides bite the dust. The good news is that they updated "The Old Mill" this season. The Kangaroo is a tough loss...

It's fairly common for them to replace sections of rails on both Bat, Vortex, & Express as annual winter maint. I think The Bat webcam back in 2013/14 showed this during its repainting.

Even when we get a vaccine, it's going to take months if not another year to distribute it and plus you have to get enough people to take it which seems like is going to be a problem since there are a lot of people who say they aren't getting it.

It seems like multiple members have voiced their complaints about the same general issue. Many people have went out of their way to address what's annoying them. It seems like the majority of members are called wrong while the individuals who are causing the complaints are not. We have members who contribute meaningful and accurate content to this site. Allowing other members to continuously talk about inaccurate information does@KIghostguy , @TombraiderTy, and other credible members a disservice. Immunity must be nice.

I haven't read the entire thread, but will pipe in to simply state that I believe Adventure Express has had portions of track replaced in the past. The memory is blurry, but I seem to recall it being the 1998 off season when what appeared to be replacement track for AE appeared in the parking lot. Saw it with my very own eyes. I cant say for sure where along the course the replacement could have been made - however I've long suspected it was at the start of the ride, where the "mist" effect was located. I believe that very same season, the mist was discontinued and has never returned afaik. The piece(s) I saw, if they were indeed AE track, weren't very long - maybe only 10 feet or so.

Now that we are at the dreaded off-season, lets see who is good with their detective skills by submitting your Easter eggs and what they are referencing in Area 72. There was an existing thread that was started, but lets start over with this new thread with a picture and the reference. https://kicentral.com/forums/index.php?/topic/36573-how-many-easter-eggs-can-you-find-in-orions-que-line-and-the-new-area-72-area Submit your Easter eggs and I will do everything I can to confirm or deny if they are accurate. Also in this thread there will be the - KICentral Golden Easter Egg Hunt! A KIC T-shirt is waiting for whomever is the first person to correctly post the KIC Easter egg and what it is referencing about KIC! Here is the Orion gallery to get you started, but you can use your own photos to post as well. Hint, the Easter Egg can be seen in at least one of the photos in the gallery below.

With an original opening date of April 11th, everyone was excited and on the edge of their seats to experience the biggest investment in park history with the unveiling of Orion. As we got closer and closer to that opening day, the more likely that anticipated day was not going to come. Obviously we know that Kings Island did not choose to just be open for just 65 days. Kings Island and parent company Cedar Fair was put in a position that no entrainment company (or any for that mater) has dealt with in our lifetimes. With the weigh of the pandemic, CF management had to figure out how to best open the park (with the little knowledge know about the virus) in a safe manner, and follow the ever changing government guidelines. I can imaging this made for a whirlwind of decision making. On July 2nd Kings Island was finally able to open their doors to their passholders with many restrictions in place like masks, a health screening, and reservations for the day. The day had finally come to experience that new blue and grey steel structure in the new Area 72 section of the park. Orion was that new experience that we longed for at a time park fans needed it the most. Orion became an instant hit and will be a staple for the park for years to come. I am sure it was not the grand opening for Orion the park wanted, but we are most appreciative that it graced the skyline of Kings Island this season. As we got into the season, visitors to the park learned how well Kings Island was doing with their safety precautions. This lead to increased attendance as the season went on. In the terms of safety for its guest, I don't think Kings Island and Cedar Fair could have handled the pandemic precautions any better. Yes, there were times that visitors were not following some of the rules and was frustrating. Respectively, Kings Island did a really good job at correcting and reminding guests of the guidelines. Some of that ownership has be on the guest who agreed to the guidelines when they walked into the park. I commend the park and associates for their handling of these guidelines and we could not have asked for more. As we then transition into the fall season. How will the park be able to have a fall calendar that includes interactive activates for the family? The park was able to put on their creative hats and instead of Haunt we got a new fall event called Tricks and Treats. This was an instant hit with families this fall with all the activates that came with the event. Again, Kings Island put on another great event and made it look easy during a pandemic. I felt most safe taking my family to participate in Tricks and Treats. Now we are at Nov 1st , the closing day of the Kings Island season. It is always a day park fans dread. For KICentral members, it is no different especially this season. We have only had 65 days to enjoy the 2020 season. It seems it just got started. There are so many pass holders who use the Kings Island season as their escape from reality (which we need this year), stress reliver, and place to just have fun and unplug. 65 days we just not enough. We greatly appreciate the season that Kings Island was able to give us and we are most grateful to all the staff of the park for making it happen and added stress you went though this year. I have no doubts this season we will be discussing on these forums and other fan sites for year and years to come. As we go into that dreaded off-season, take this time to reflect on the good that came out of the bittersweet 2020 season at Kings Island and post your thoughts below. Thank You Kings Island for making the 2020 season happen! Here is a message from the General Manager and Vice President Mike Koontz to the visitors at Kings Island this season.

It would be great to see Cedar Fair pick up some of these even though they are rare.

I wonder if we are going to start hearing news of more rides being retired. Maybe even at CF parks. I have a feeling that due to money lost and stuff, we are going to start seeing more rides that cost too much to maintain be removed.

The 'normal' that was pre-covid is gone IMO, even when we're through with it.

I think right now the virus is beyond containing. At this point we are going to have to let it run its course unfourtnaly. Closing down and issue mandates is only delaying getting our normal back.

Even though I don't want a dive coaster, I drew up a concept of one. It fits quite nicely. Photo credit: CoasterBob62

This is one of the things that I did not really like about the Scheid/early CF ownership years. While areas of the park were revamped with new ride additions, often it felt half a**ed. Rivertown getting a refresh but losing its charm, Festhaus getting de-contented, Coney Mall getting pavers but losing signage, and Action Zone becoming an even more confusing amalgamation of themes. I mean, they repainted Delirium to remove the "checkered flag" patterns, but didn't even touch Drop Tower. The last few years have been a huge step forward. Under Mike Koontz, the park has focused heavily on atmosphere. The International Street revamp was complete and well done, Festhaus has been (mostly) restored, and Area 72 is mind blowing in its attention to detail. I hope we see further revamps of areas within the park, and I see Action Zone as an area that really needs work. I really like the idea that has been posted here numerous times of a "Dark Forest" retheme. For a regional park like KI, it would theoretically be a cheap re-skin too. Almost all the current rides would fit right in, with some paint schemes receiving modification (removal of checkered flag accents from Drop Tower). Just plant/relocate a LOT more trees, add some spooky signage, and there you have it.

I can’t wait for everyone to read Kings Island: A Ride Through Time in spring 2021, when it will be published by Rivershore Creative! The book is moving full-steam ahead once again now that I have a contract signed with the new publisher. I promise that the wait will be worth it, as I’ve been spending this time filling the book with more content, more interviews, and more incredible stories.

Here is a surprisingly smooth and clear point-of-view video of Son of Beast in its original form that was just posted to YouTube within the last 24 hours. I have never seen such a good POV of this ride on the internet until now. Enjoy!

These were from July. They have made lots of progress since then

Kangaroo, Bayurn Kurve, Volcano, and Paratrooper. I'm floored. https://www.instagram.com/p/CHI7m1SF9Y6/?igshid=kxfjoeb6d0to

Sad news out of Pittsburgh today - Kennywood is retiring the following four ride: Bayern Kurve (Schwarzkopf Bayern Kurve) Kangaroo (Bartlett Flying Coaster) Paratrooper (Hrubetz Paratrooper) Volcano (HUSS Enterprise) Details: https://www.instagram.com/p/CHI7m1SF9Y6/?igshid=1i0qg7ixpkg0p Especially sad considering Bayern Kurve was one of only two of its kind in the country (albeit Knoebels appears to possibly be opening one next season) and Kangaroo was the last of its kind. Edit - @TombRaiderFTW beat me to the punch -