Jump to content

bsktgrvy

Members
  • Posts

    134
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by bsktgrvy

  1. Great tips! We are also planning to visit Pigeon Forge in mid June. How crowded is the park on a Friday? We probably won't ride a lot of rides but plan to ride some of them. I have read that lines can be very long even for shows and food - is that true? I've also read that food in the park is very pricey. I can live with that since everyone raves about the food there. I just want to make sure we don't regret getting in the park only to find it to be too crowded to do much of anything. Thanks!
  2. Things I miss - A train ride that was more than just a way to get to the water park and back. Winterfest The original themed sections of the park - although KI is doing a pretty good job of getting back to that. The area that had the Paramount Story that has been turned into a smoking section. People smoke pretty much when and where they want anyway - why not designate it as a non-smoking area?
  3. Do we have to be so connected to phones that we can't even enjoy an amusement park ride without feeling the urge to text? IMO, the ride operator did the correct thing.
  4. The accompanying photo gallery to the article brings back some good memories. I especially like the photo of the 'jello jump' from 1979, because I was one of the participants. Too bad I did not win the car. Article - http://cincinnati.com/blogs/ourhistory/2011/07/11/lesourdsville-lake-was-blue-collar-coney/ Photos - http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Avis=AB&Dato=20110710&Kategori=NEWS01&Lopenr=107060803&Ref=PH
  5. Great trip report. And you made the most of it despite the weather, and you did not even complain about the weather. Good for you and your family! I highly recommend a visit to Chattanooga. It is a great area for a family vacation.
  6. I agree with the idea of a park history area and I suggested this in a thread last year. The old 'Paramount Story' park area would be a perfect place for this. There could be photos and video screens with old commercials and ride videos, and actual ride components would be a big plus.
  7. What a great thread! This brings back so many wonderful memories. Thanks to everyone that has shared their photos and videos.
  8. We were at the park yesterday and the fountains were off the entire day. I guess this is normal now? It was disappointing. The fountains (when working) make a very nice entrance to the park and when having a snack or a meal on International Street.
  9. That Sky Ride was very high!
  10. I would love to see the train ride enhanced with animatronics, more theming, additional scenery, etc. However, if that is cost prohibitive, here's a thought - perhaps the "History of King's Island" could be told throughout the ride with a recorded audio presentation and signs and historical park photos situated along the route in a timeline fashion. It would be tough to condense that much history down to a few minutes, but with careful selection of the most significant events I think this would at least make the ride more interesting.
  11. Great job! Thanks for sharing the pictures. The Bayern Curve will always be one of my favorite rides that King's island had. And look at how beautiful "Tower Gardens" was then. I also remember the Kahn's hot dog place on International Street - where they actually made sausages. I agree - the themes throughout the park then were so much better than now. Ahh....Memories.
  12. I think that is true for most parks not affiliated with Disney characters. Most Disney characters are loveable. I never got that with Rugrats or any of the Nickelodeon characters. Hanna-Barbera characters are good, but they are not exactly current, either. At least the Peanuts specials are shown throughout the year. Most kids will know them and I think the kids area will be just fine. And it doesn't hurt that their parents (and / or grandparents) grew up with Peanuts. I think you may be surprised at how much that will matter.
  13. That's a good point, though. I think a lot more young kids know about Charlie Brown than we think due to the Christmas and Halloween specials still being shown yearly.
  14. It fits well, actually. It was a movie of the same name. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Race_for_Your_Life,_Charlie_Brownwiki page
  15. I was able to ride this one several times. I was much braver (and younger) then.
  16. I enjoyed your trip report and your photos. Those are nice family memories.
  17. 5. Thunder Run - SFKK - I remember this as being pretty fast. 4. Vortex 3. Lightning Racers - Hershey Park 2. The Racer 1. The Beast Can you tell I am partial to wood coasters? I have also had a ride on "Raven" at Holiday World but after riding it wondered how such a short ride could be considered one of the best. It was fun, but seemed to be over in no time.
  18. Nice photos and report. Looks like a nice park but $50 does seem a little steep. Your little girl is adorable.
  19. I get freaked out just reading about it. Great trip report, though.
  20. I agree about the quiet places. I cannot believe there are no benches in the area that used to be the Paramount Story. That could be a great little park with just a few additions. Even throw in an old time cart vendor or 2. Let's give Cedar Fair some time - maybe they will surprise us.
  21. My wife and I were chaperones for the annual school music department trip to Kings Island. Fortunately we were only in charge of 2 groups of high school age kids that were required to check in with us periodically, so for us it was essentially a nice date. I was worried about the weather in the morning but it turned out to be a beautiful day. I did not think the park was very crowded. Usually on these music days it is worse than what we experienced Saturday. I have lost my desire to ride the big coasters, and I am kind of hesitant to point out what I rode, but I still had fun, and isn't that what it is all about? After getting all of the kids and chaperones into the park, we had no particualr ride we wanted to go on so we just headed for Rivertown and a look at Diamondback. What strikes me about this ride is that it looks like a coaster on steroids. Everything about the ride is huge - the supports, the track, the trains, even the bolts. 20 years ago that would have been the first ride for me to go on, but I still enjoyed watching it throughout the day. As many have said, Cedar Fair did a nice job with the construction and lansdscaping in the area around Diamondback. Our first ride was the Rugrats Runaway Reptar - we happened to be near it and there was no line at all so we said what the heck and got on. Next we rode Avatar - yes it is in the 'kiddie" section but it really is a fun ride. Kings Island could use a few more rides that provide this much fun and not so much thrill. We then rode Scooby-Doo and the Haunted Castle since it was quick to get on. I wonder how much time they spend making sure all of the guns work - the ride can be frustrating and not nearly as much fun if you shoot and don't score any points, especially for a kid. We headed back to watch Diamondback and see if any of our school kids were riding. Then we rode Backlot Stunt Coaster (I'll still ride a semi-big coaster every now and then). I like this ride, it's fun but it is too short. My wife loves to ride Vortex so we headed back there but the line was pretty long, so instead we did the SpongeBob 3D show. I don't think I will do that one anymore. It's even bumpier now than it has been it seems. And really - isn't time for a new movie? I wonder how much longer this 'ride' will last. It's a pretty long walk back and can get hot waiting in the sun. Next came our obligatory stop for lunch at Larosa's near Rivertown. We would normally bring a lunch but since we were with the group we did not do this. The prices at this and other amusement parks are just beyond ridiculous now. Two pieces of pizza and a large Coke for $14-15 is just outrageous. But I continue to do it, so shame on me, I guess. Our afternoon was spent riding Adventure Express, Flight Deck, Shake, Rattle, and Roll, the Scrambler, my wife rode Zephyr, the Carousel, a trip to the top of the Eiffel Tower, Kings Island Railroad, and taking a walk back to watch people get wet (and get some of them wet) on Whitewater Canyon. We also took in the new country show in the FestHaus - it was good. A couple of notes - Adventure Express - the figures at the end of the ride were not moving their arms and nothing else was working in that tunnel. But this really is a good mine train ride and we are lucky to have it here. Also - I miss the 'real' music on the Carousel. I wonder what it would take to get that fixed? I imagine a lot and there are probably not many people out there that can do it anymore. And the train ride - I have been wanting Kings Island to work on the theming on this ride for years but I guess it will never happen. It does not have to be cowboys and indians, but I can only wonder how a young child's eyes would light up if there were some animated animals along the ride, or some waterfalls or other features added. I have fond memories of the train when I was little and I think it would be nice if this ride got some extra attention. One other note - there is great photo spot/opportunity on the exit path from Whitewater Canyon. We had a regular camera so I'll have to see how it turns out but we got the train crossing a trestle with Diamondback running in the background. For dinner we ate at the new place near Diamondback and had a hot dog, a pretzel with cheese, and a regular Coke - there goes another $12. But the hot dog was pretty good. One last thing - we did see the people that had to walk down the spiral staircase on the Diamondback MCBR. I never found out what caused it but I suspect a sensor or something caused the ride to stop. Better safe than sorry. Must have been quite an experience for those that had to walk donw those stairs, though. All in all it was great day at Kings Island!
  22. Nice report. Great pictures. It sure was perfect weather for an opening day.
  23. Great pictures! Thanks for posting them.
  24. The Screamin Demon was mine. Technically it was the first "big" coaster I ever rode. I had been on the Scooby-Doo (Beastie) several times but nothing bigger than that until I was 16 years old. Peer pressure and the desire to impress (and ride with) a girl made me ride it. Later I rode a double looping coaster at Opryland in Nashville before it went away.
×
×
  • Create New...