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Congratulations to Dennis Speigel, who is being inducted into the IAAPA Hall of Fame during the convention in November. As many of you already know, Mr. Speigel was Kings Island's Assistant General Manager in 1972 and played a key role in the park's development and opening. He was also involved with Kings Island as the Vice President of Operations and Vice President of International Operations for Taft's Amusement Park Group. http://media.interthemepark.com/2022/10/dennis-l-speigel-announced-as-newest.html

We seem to have a couple threads like this, but this is the one that seems to be getting the most attention. Reposting what I said in one of the others: In general, I thought this season as a whole was fantastic and one of the best in the 14 years I've been a passholder as an adult. The park was in peak performance this year, and I absolutely loved it and love where we're heading. The announcement of Adventure Port has to be up there for me. I can't begin to describe the joy it brings me to see KI move closer to being a theme park. On a smaller note, one of my favorite personal moments this year was participating (and placing second in) the 50th anniversary art contest back in May. I don't typically do art for anything other than my own satisfaction, and it felt amazing to put the work in and see it pay off. Getting to participate in the signing event and meet park staff was one of the coolest things I've gotten to do at the park!

I think all the regular season shows were great in their own ways. The 70's show was a throwback to when the park first opened and Phantom Theatre: Encore was a throwback to an older type of show (as well as the ride that the show was inspired by). The Fireworks show was really cool and I enjoyed seeing it from various locations throughout the park such as from Brewhouse patio, The Bat's "rainforest" (that was super cool - it was like being deep in the rainforest and seeing flares in the distance!), and of course at the front of the park. The history timeline walk in Tower Gardens was cool as well, though I really wished they'd have put a small display in there detailing the history of Haunt during the event, but I understand they are prepping that area for Candy Cane Lane. And speaking of Haunt, it was a lot of fun to come back to that after being gone for so long (I had not been to Haunt since 2018, though I did scare in 2019). Slaughterhouse and Chaos were great (especially this past Saturday night! ) and Alien X was an interesting scarezone with really cool costumes and makeup. I also thought highly of Pumpkin Eater's relocation and felt Cornered got better as the Haunt season progressed. Finally, I loved the addition of the DJ in Coney Maul and also enjoyed waiting for Madame Fatale's to open a weekend or so ago and ended up being the first person in the maze that night. So, what was my favorite part? I'm not really sure... I feel like it's been a long season (in a good way) and to think, it's not even over yet! And even though we still have Winterfest to go, I am super hype for the debut of Adventure Port! EDIT: Oh! I almost forgot getting my book signed by @KIghostguy and Mike Koontz (as well as meeting Dennis Spiegel). As I said, it's been a busy season!

Experiencing the classic retro racer paint was something for sure. I’m a lover for history and seeing the red, white, and blue pop back was absolutely gorgeous. Shame they never got the raised letters back on the front of The Racer trains, maybe next year. I loved a lot of things in the 2022 season. Opening day was gorgeous, Beast was awesome, the shows were great, and the food was spot on.

Hey cool sats! My most ridden coaster at the park is Adventure Express just because my sister and I would marathon it every Tuesday in 2019. The operators even started to catch on and ask "we're you here last Tuesday?" Or say "you ride this a lot don't you?" Or " I see you here alot".

I'll give this a try, though I do have a more prepared list for Haunt since we just came off of that... Best Element: Fireworks show. I had never seen a drone show before in person and it did not disappoint. Though I got to see it in some cool locations (viewing it from The Bat's rainforest was really cool!), the final show I saw was probably the best viewing experience as I got the whole package (as I was able to hear the audio and see the building projections). Best Conventional Show: Phantom Theatre: Encore, only because I saw it the most out of the special 50 shows. I didn't know what to think at first, but it grew on me with repeat viewings. Also, Larry was my favorite character! Off the Rails was fun as well and acted as a "pep rally" for the 50th! Best Hidden Gem: Those Adirondack chairs outside of Brewhouse! I loved them so much, I got two for my backyard! Biggest Miss: Maybe the 50th "parade" because of how short it was? As you can tell below, this season was jam packed with epicness; things that didn't fit the mold of these questions are below Best Specialty Food Item: Golden Ice Cream (I'm a picky eater, so this is the only thing I tried...) Best 50th Merch: Although the posters started last year, I grew my collection with the addition of the Flight of Fear poster! Biggest Surprise: Getting FREE tickets to the Berlin/Flock of Seagulls show! Runners up would be finding out that Phantom Theater: Encore actually had a Meet and Greet when it previously hadn't had one and finding out that the park was open until 12 on July 3rd (which included that epic WWC ride with @malem) Rides I appreciated more: Banshee; I really enjoyed riding in the back seat as it reminded me of Rougarou! And I'd be remiss without mentioning other fun moments, like the book signing (+ dressing up for the 50th that day!), seeing Skillet rock it out once again at Timberwolf (and they actually played songs I knew instead of just pulling from their newest albums!) and meeting some people from Germany in line for a Beast night ride. There was also that time I lost my Gold Pass in line for The Bat (I accidently yeeted it into the bushes) and I got to walk through the line (and surrounding "rainforst") after close - that was also the same night as the Berlin concert and the rainforest viewing of the fireworks!). And for a Haunt list, I'd add "Best Scare", "Best Room in a maze" (which is not the same as the best maze) "Best theming" and of course "Best overall maze"

I’ll be there in Orlando to mark the occasion. Congrats to Dennis!

The price is insane but so is hounding the guy repeatedly and then making a thread on here asking other people to bother him as well. His item will never sell at that price but coordinating an online mob to harass him about it is not only pointless but also childish. Stop acting childish and leave the guy alone.

Well, unfortunately, design wise, neither of the latest pins are anything to write home about…but fortunately for me, neither ride is in my top favorites. I do find it odd how some of the pins are super deluxe, and others simply plain…for example, I never would have guessed that the Flight Commander would get the deluxe treatment while Adventure Express got a generic pin.

I guess we need to denote sarcasm around here.

I mean things are only worth what someone will pay for them. If that is what he wants to sell if for that on him that what makes this country great.

I really enjoyed this season!! KI smashed it out of the park this year! One of my favorite parts was the 50th Anniversary Light and drone show that was incredible! The food this year was so good I don’t think there really was anything I didn’t enjoy eating! All the park improvements were amazing! Loved that the old Racer colors came back! And The Beast new track was super smooth I hope they continue to add more! Can’t wait for next year to see what comes along with Adventure Port!

The curtain in the load area is not the red curtain in the concept art. That actually never made it into the finished attraction. The black panel to the right when you enter the load area is there to block sight lines into the actual ride. Feels like it was maybe an error that was caught during test/adjust and that was the solution. It’s not really needed now as nothing you could see from that spot would spoil the ride. If it wasn’t there you’d be able to see where the phantom with the curtain was from load.

I was kind of directing this at the 50th celebration, which ended Labor Day weekend. I think we could do a whole new list for Haunt!

Best Element/Addition : All the TLC the rides got. Racer paint job, Beast track work, and the other paint jobs Best Conventional Show : Phantom Theater Encore (agreed) Best Hidden Gem : While I would agree with you on Off the rails, I’d rather say seeing everyone enjoying the park in by far its finest moment. I loved seeing people checking out the 50th anniversary boards around the park, looking in awe at the new racer paint job, watching and listening to everyone enjoying The Beast again, especially now in the final brake run where people were more in awe at what just happened rather than moans of pain in previous years. I loved watching people take a trip through history at the Tower Gardens, or even seeing a kid fast asleep as their family were leaving after a long day in the park. It’s not something that makes up the entire day but it’s these small things that add up over multiple visits that make it such a gem to me. Biggest Miss : taking too long to put the parking signs back up Not getting The Racers retro raised lettering back on the front of The Racer trains. At the ACE conference last December at GWL, the park said they wanted to bring that back. The Racer trains did not change from the stickers. I don't know whether this was a logistical, construction, or a maintenance issue but nonetheless they were not brought back. Best Specialty Food Item : Beast Burger Best 50th Merch : The 50th Coin stuff Biggest Surprise : I was not expecting how quickly they got Bat back up and running after it’s partial derailment. I thought it’d be down for most if not the rest of the season to fully re-inspect the entire rides track.

You sure? I'll pay you $11,000!

Not all of that detail from the concept art made it into the final project. It was definitely a bit more bare bones than the concept art makes it look.

And after you have the complete set, you will sell them on ebay for $11,000 (cross threading)

There are only so many ways to deal with those kinds of people. The best way will take months, maybe even years, of them attempting to sell it with nobody biting for that price.

I really hope those two large pine trees beside Adventure Express queue entrance aren’t going to be removed but knowing the parks disdain for trees im not hopeful. I like these smaller themed sections like Area 72 and Adventure Port. There is still enough to have Oktoberfest as a themed area. The entrance to Delerium could easily be moved to the pathway beside Festhaus and thst ride could be incorporated into Oktoberfest. In fact there is already an existing sidewalk connecting the queue to that path. Plus there is room for some small food or game stands. That’s enough to keep the area as its own.

Pull the lever Kronk and start the countdown! T-MINUS 166 DAYS UNTIL APRIL 15TH, 2023 We also can probably assume that April 14th (the Friday before) will be passholder preview day based on that opening day.

Why not. Various entertainment industries have been doing that for years. Announcements of announcements and even special websites counting down to said announcement. Teasers for teaser trailers, short teaser clips literally right before the actual movie trailer (that one really bugs me), and so on. I hope they go the Six Flags route and just attach a word before "Wildcat" Twisted, wicked, steel, iron... I'm hoping for Wild Wildcat

There were so many amazing things about this season so I don't really have a favorite! My favorite show probably was Phantom Theater Encore! Even though I never got to ride the old Phantom Theater as it closed like a month after I was born, it was a well put on show and I loved all the stuff they put on display in the lobby from the old ride. I still am holding onto hope that one day they redo Boo Blasters to become a reborn Phantom Theater. Fun fact: I actually helped close Boo Blasters yesterday and everytime I work the ride, I keep thinking how much Phantom Theater needs to return in some form in that building. Anyways, I really applaud the park for such an amazing celebration this year! They really knocked it out of the park especially with all the shows they did this year as well as the repaints and TLC to make the park look great! While I said PT encore was my favorite show, I didn't include Fun, Fireworks, and 50 as it is in its own world. Literally, everytime I would see the show, I would get that feeling where I would almost cry. This firework show was literally on the level of Disney's fireworks. I want to give a huge round of applause to the people who would set up the drones every night, got the fireworks ready, and launched them every night in sync with the soundtrack as if it were the 4th of July every night. You guys rocked!

In general, I thought this season as a whole was fantastic and one of the best in the 14 years I've been a passholder as an adult. The park was in peak performance this year, and I absolutely loved it and love where we're heading. The announcement of Adventure Port has to be up there for me. I can't begin to describe the joy it brings me to see KI move closer to being a theme park. On a smaller note, one of my favorite personal moments this year was participating (and placing second in) the 50th anniversary art contest back in May. I don't typically do art for anything other than my own satisfaction, and it felt amazing to put the work in and see it pay off. Getting to participate in the signing event and meet park staff was one of the coolest things I've gotten to do at the park!

Really cool shot of Orion from Chaos's line:

The Racer. Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk