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BoddaH1994

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Posts posted by BoddaH1994

  1. 1 hour ago, MaestroJr said:

    I kind of wish The Adventure Express was open as well for Winterfest because I think it would be a pretty nice addition to the lineup and it’s not a very intense roller coaster so I think it can operate most of the time. It’s nice to have The Racer though.

    Me too; however, I think the minimum is somewhere in the 40s, which wouldn't work.

    18 hours ago, BeeastFarmer said:

    I remember when I was new here and KK was becoming reborn. That thread was a hot topic then. I was ridiculed for thinking the park would even survive the first season, much less pose any threat to KI 

    At that time, I was told that Kings Island laughs about the thought of KK and Holiday World providing any competition. 

    Times have changed, and Kings Island seems busier than ever.  But I never thought I would have a Kentucky Kingdom season pass and would let my Kings Island pass expire.

    Perhaps the time it was true, but it matters where it matters. With Six Flags having certain expectations, if they lose even 1% or 2% to people from Louisville who decide to just go to KK instead then that may wreck their entire season. As with Holiday World, it really only matters to certain markets. It won't be a  meaningful amount of people who will go from Cincinnati to Louisville or Cincinnati to Santa Claus; however, people in Louisville, Evansville, Indy, etc may. These are slightly outside markets but are still a must-win. Much like how Universal measures success with if they can chip away one extra day from your week at Disney, if these parks can stick the landing for a small percentage these geographies, they can win big. These numbers add up and that's how Kings Island is affected.

  2. 8 hours ago, DJSkyFoxx said:

    Also, silly question in regards to Racer running during Winterfest. What makes it possible for it to run this year vs previous years? Was it the retracking or? Just curious. Either way I am really excited to see it on the roster for this year!

     

    7 hours ago, DonHelbig said:

    Christmas at Kentucky Kingdom! 

    “It couldn’t possibly run during those temperatures!”

    ”It wouldn’t be ready for spring if they opened it for Winterfest.”

    Then KY Kingdom announced their event. 

    KI ran out of excuses.

    As with all things, it comes down to how little they can spend without people ceasing to show up. Clearly they feel that risk.

    If you think KY kingdom doesn’t matter to Kings Island, it certainly does. Their success will force Kings Island to do slightly more than the bare minimum. 

     

    • Like 2
  3. What it boils down to is that the company is clearly eager to move forward with this restructure. The director level will not be Chad, at least in the Midwest Region. Both he and/or Elizabeth may be one of the positions below that, but as Don said, they won't be exclusively for Kings Island. This may mean that they get placed in roles that are within the region or they may get "future endeavored." If I were to guess, I'd say that we'll have a pretty good look at what this where people will be by the start of Winterfest.

    • Like 1
  4. 12 hours ago, Platinum Bass said:

    I finally got to this episode recently. First let me say I love both Tower Topics and The Attractions Group podcasts. Always interesting stuff...

    That house has fascinated me for some reason. At one point not too long ago I went down the rabbit hole of seeing what historical information might be available about the property online and learned quite a few things. None of that is super exciting, but perhaps a few details might be worth sharing...

    Based on various property records, I believe the house was built sometime between 1954 and 1956.

    I can't speak for or against the accuracy of the supposed agreement to not tear it down, but FWIW it was actually one of three houses side by side all along what was the east side of Columbia Rd that Kings Island left standing, and apparently used in some capacity, for many years. Each property had different owners prior to Taft purchasing each of them separately in early 1970. All 3 houses were still standing at least until 1986. 2 of the three until at least 1993. By 1997 only the one in the fort remained.

    Hopefully I'm attaching these images correctly...

    The first one is snip from a survey from 1984 showing each of the original property boundaries of the three houses KI kept around. The house in the fort is the southern most of the three plots in the red circle.
    Survey.png

    The other images below are all snippets cropped from aerial photos made available online by the Ohio Department of Transportation. In each one the "fort house" is circled in red.

    Here is 1956. Fort house is recently built. The middle of the 3 houses is being built. No sign of the northern house yet. The old farm house further north in this photo would not survive the park opening.

    1956.png

     

    Here is 1957. The middle house is now complete. The fort house has added a pond. Still no sign of the northern most house.

    1957.png

     

    Here is 1964. The northern most of the 3 houses the park would keep is now present. The middle house has added a garage or large shed.

    1964.png

     

    Here is 1970, the year Taft purchased each property. All 3 houses were purchased on different dates in Jan and Feb of that year. The northern most house looks to have added an addition to back since the 1964 photo. This one is at an angle that gives a reasonable idea of what the housed looked like before the park owned them. Also of note the old farm house further to the north is still standing at this point.

    1970.png

     

    Here is 1972. The park is open now. All 3 homes are still standing. The older farm house that was further north is gone. This photo shows what Don described in the episode that the train did not originally come particularly close to the house.

    1972.png

     

    Here is 1974. Cars parked at all 3 houses. This one is angled to show a bit of the front of the houses.

    1974.png

     

    Here is 1975. Another one showing a decent look at the houses.

    1975.png

     

    Here is 1986. All 3 houses still standing and appear to still be used in come capacity.

    1986.png

     

    Here is 1993. The middle house is now gone. It would have been in the way of the re-route of the train for the water park. The fort is now build around the southern house. The northern house is still standing though.

    1993.png

     

    Here is 1997. The northern most house is now gone, only the southern one inside the fort survived this long.

    1997.png

    THIS is why I love the internet! 
     

    This made my day!

    In regards to whether or not the house had that tear down agreement, I always thought that sounded a bit absurd. I always assumed they since they actually used the house, and had it disguised, no one wanted to foot the bill for tearing it down and the “agreement” was just urban legend. The same day we recorded this episode, we spoke with a former park executive from that time period to verify the story. He said he “remembers something like that.” So that gives some indication that there may be some truth to it.

    • Like 2
  5. 1 hour ago, Tr0y said:

    So what I take or at least expect is things won’t change from the current “hands off” approach of the current team.. I can’t imagine there will be more involvement now that PR / Marketing is being controlled from Charolette.

    What will happen to Coasterstock? 

    Coasterstock will be back in 2025, per the park’s announcement.

    . .. Unless they decide not to, of course. 

  6. Grace will be a regional PR, and have “helpers” who just facilitate on the park levels, but they will not have direct ownership of the parks’ efforts. They will also have a region Social Media person and have local “helpers” that will work on general projects across the region.

    If I were a betting man, I’d say that there will be a spot for both Chad and Elizabeth, but Chad at least, may be taking a bit of a haircut when it comes to the take home pay. Just speculation. 

  7. I know you’re being facetious, but to give them kudos, the fountain seems to be drained later every year. Had they not added the weekend, they would have done all of Haunt with it, which is impressive based on previous years. 

    • Like 2
  8. Coney Freestyle is where I’ve always seen them. I’m not big on sugary drinks, so I haven’t tried it. I’m a big fan of the coffee. I’ve had success at French Corner and Graeters. I was on the fence because I bought it more out of curiosity than anything, but now that it’s coffee season I think I’m happy enough buy it again next year. 

    I think the Hot Chocolate thing will “fix itself” during Winterfest because of the prominence of that option during that event. I do agree, the poor communication, which has been indicative of the park the past several years, is frustrating. I remember when the park opened and they were telling people that it only worked at the place by the Dodgem and Planet Snoopy, and that the “Mix Up” places didn’t count. A day later, it was, “LOL jk you can use it there. We just didn’t have the cups yet.” I understand that the “first day stuff” is going to happen, but being so grossly unprepared gets harder and harder to excuse every year. 
     

    …but as… wise man… man once said (repeatedly, about you - the most loyal park guests) “Your complains are as adorable as they are predictable.”

     

     

    • Like 1
  9. 39 minutes ago, RedSummit20 said:

    FAR FAR FAR from operator issue. Once those dispatch buttons are pressed and the train clears the lift, the train wont stop till the break run. So again FAR FAR FAR from operator issue. ;) 

    My understanding is that there was some sort of software procedure glitch that caused the Valraven issue. Something like, the PLC thought it had one more train or one less train than it actually had. 

    • Like 2
  10. On 9/21/2024 at 11:24 PM, Losantiville Mining Co. said:

    Has anyone else noticed the new digital signs that have popped up around the park? They seem to be in places that used to have either a park map display (where the interactive map screens used to be) and where the advertising boards were. Specifically, there is one in the calendar date planter and another on the side of the Eiffel Tower near French Corner with others around the park. 

    Thoughts? Ideas of why the park replaced the physical map boards? I think they're kinda neat because they're new :)

    They are themed to the areas loosely with a shroud. 
     

    IMG_0665.jpegIMG_0664.jpegIMG_0666.jpegIMG_0663.jpegIMG_0657.jpeg

    It appears that the screens are exposed directly to the client. That will be problematic, especially since people will likely think they’re touch screen and poke them. 

    • Like 4
  11. 14 minutes ago, SmartCat7162 said:

    I like the gold pass just randomly appearing in the promo.

    They got the idea from Apple TV+, where everyone seems to have the current iPhone, iPad and Apple TV regardless of their situation or socioeconomic status. :D

  12. 2 hours ago, Tr0y said:

    The food was great and so too was the ambience. However, It is a bit pricey and I don’t find much value in meeting Disney Princesses. 

    I would say for a once in a while experience yes.

    That’s how I felt about Hollywood & Vine. We did the Fantasmic dinner. It was worth it for not having to wait 90 minutes for the show, the food was okay for a buffet, and the character meet and greet aspect was fun but not repeatable without kids.

    Our bucket list right now is Royal Table, Be Our Guest and Space 220.

    • Like 1
  13. 3 hours ago, BeeastFarmer said:

    I'd be the person to follow the person who spent the money on the lantern and get the interactions for free.

    Follow me for more hacks.  :)

     

    Instead of buying a No Boo, just follow a kid with one. Follow me for more recipes. :D

    What I think is funny is that we went into this thinking that Hooked was what was "new" for the event. In reality, the lanterns are a really big deal (it's a several-hour activity, for those who wish to participate), Nyte Walkers was reworked from last year for the better, there is a new scare zone near Backlot, and while the closing show is similar to last year, (no spoilers) it adds an element that is 100% unnecessary and really "plusses" the experience. 

    • Haha 2
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