CarrieR

Thanks, Trint. It's easier for me to prepare ahead of time to carry food in than to load six kids into carseats and go across the street, lol... I have no problem doing so since we have legitimate dietary restrictions. (And I am happy to pay for food if they provide food that my party can eat... guess I am just spoiled by dining at Disney, sigh. And Holiday World for that matter! I know CF does not equal Disney but the options at KI and CP are just TERRIBLE! End rant...) Is there a number who can ride with parent swap? Like if a few of the kids rode with the first adult, could the other "half" ride with the second? Or is it just the second adult alone, or with a single companion, or...? I find it easiest to prepare for this stuff ahead of time, it heads off any meltdowns ahead of time. Thanks!

Bear with me please, up through last season I had been a Platinum Pass holder but opted to forego it this year... and I feel completely clueless about my upcoming trip! I take my nanny kids (and a helper!) annually, and usually have the benefit of a few "test run" visits in which to get any info I feel I need, but that's been absent this year! Anyways, I have two questions... 1) Food. Have the food offerings improved any? I tend to carry food in for me and the kids, as we have a number of dietary restrictions (between the group -- I am a vegetarian, some have food allergies, there's a dye reactive kid, etc.) I usually manage to get a good, solid meal in everyone that way and then we pick around what's available at the park. I find it nearly impossible to eat there, and what is available is both insanely expensive and also disgusting... we usually eat fairly balanced diets and the first two years I had a kid puking in the parking lot at the end of the day due to the heat plus all of the greasy food, ha! Anyways, I'm wondering if things have improved any in that aspect? I'm presuming not, but if I could get pieces of whole fruit, fresh veggies (like carrots/celery sticks) or anything like that it sure would make life easier. 2) Parent Swap. I've never used this before, but this year the kids are >54", 53"x2, 47-48" and 44". There will be a couple of rides that my helper and I will probably both want to ride, and I was hoping for someone who has used this program and could provide me with info. I'm thinking BLSC and Adventure Express in particular. We're not opposed to lining up all together, and then timing it out on the platform so that the 44" child can be passed off to the first group before the second group boards, but I know you usually can't even bring a too-short kid into the line. Any help on either front would be appreciated! Thanks!

I had the fortune of riding both Leap the Dips and Tigg'r last summer; at that time, neither had restraints. It's possible T got them since then, but I don't believe it has. I had no qualms about riding LTD without restraints... concerns the coaster was going to collapse, yes... that I was going to fall out of the car, no. (Although it DID have a bit of airtime at points!) Tigg'r, on the other hand, gave me a bit of pause on the first drop... when you realized you were STANDING, in the car, restraint-less. LOL. (The angle at which I had to sit/lean back in order to put feet on the footholds and back against the back of the seat plus the angle of the drop led to essentially standing up in the car.) I also rode Kennywood's JackRabbit pre-current belts... the double-dip on that was probably the only time I've been TRULY scared of death on a coaster. That said, none of these coasters is Diamondback. You couldn't PAY me enough to ride it without restraints. AE or Racer, sure, no problem... although it's not a BAD idea to have a restraint, I wouldn't think 'imminent death' if I didn't have one. Think about a ride like Superman at Six Flags NE -- if the restraint is not right, you will fall out and die. The restraint was not properly restraining the passenger... ergo he fell. D'back (which I have not yet ridden) seems to be compared to MF, which is very similar to S:ROS. They're not the same rides, no, but I think the point remains valid that they're similar enough in their design and forces to draw a comparison. So riding DB without restraints... probably not the best plan. To me, any time you're being actively restrained by the restraint -- when your body weight is against it, being held in -- then that restraint is absolutely necessary to avoid ejection from the coaster. So, BB, although I have a lot of respect for you as a poster around here, I'm going to have to disagree with you on this one.

Thanks to all for your help. Standbyme -- Ah, near Blues Clues. I know exactly what the sign looks like (the one Avatar posted,) I just didn't know where it was located in NickU. Makes sense; although I do spend time in the kids' area even when going with my friends (I have some who aren't too crazy about heights, LOL,) Blue's Clues isn't usually a ride we hit. TeenageNinja -- I'm not sure that there is anything that 'prevents' it, since there's not a wristband/stamp system of any sort that shows what your gate is. And certainly, although I strive to be honest, if I buy a child's ticket because I truly measure them 1/2 or 1/4 inch short at home, and they pass for 48" at the park, I'm not going to hold them back for riding for that reason. I personally fall in line with BavarianBeetle's mindset of intent; my concern is if the park does the same or if I'd have to pay a $23 (!) upcharge if my measurements were off by a half inch. LaurAsh -- Thank you... that's exactly the insight I was hoping for. That seems like a reasonable policy to me. Although I'm hoping the girls will be tall enough to ride, I'm expecting that they won't be -- and if they're not, that's ok with me. I'd rather them be safe. (Major pet peeve is the parent who goes off on a ride op who turns away their child... I'd rather be safe than sorry. There's always next year.) BavarianBeetle -- I'm not a saint; I was raised not to cheat people and even more importantly in this instance, I want to teach the kids right from wrong. While they may never know the difference, if I had to explain it to them under some odd circumstance, I'd want to be able to do it clearly and truthfully. As hard as I work with these kids to teach them honesty (HARD at an age in which they've figured out that lying sometimes lets you get away with stuff,) it's crucially important to me to do as I say, and lead by example. Anyways... soapbox. I'll get off of it now. LOL. BoddaH -- thank you. I saw that list on the website (should have noted that in my first post.) Do you know if that's the exhaustive list? I thought I saw an 'and more' indicated somewhere, although I don't see it on that page. I'm going to presume it is, in which case I guess we'll pass. $13 is a little steep for potato salad, LOL. Okay, enough rambling from me. Thank you again to all for your help -- it's very much appreciated.

Ahh... thanks for the info on the height stands. It was definitely my plan to measure the kids just as soon as we walked into the park, so it's good to know that it's better to do it at the stand in NickU. However, although I know where the stand is at the main gate, I'm not sure where the one in NU is -- can you describe it to me? I guess I'm a little neurotic about measuring the kids... I've always felt like it's really important to prepare kids before we do something like this (for many kids it's their only trip of the year) and a big part of that is talking to them about what they can and cannot ride. It eliminates a lot of tears and also allows the kids to gear up for some things they wouldn't ride without preparation. So I'm familiar with hair-squishing lol! Just checked them again and the .9 one looked to be above the line, the .5 closer to it but still below lol. I guess I need to find out from their parents what shoes they're going to be wearing... ha ha! Thanks for the info.

Although I'm not a huge KIC poster, I do lurk regularly, and visit KI several times a season so I consider myself relatively well-informed... but I have a question that has me stumped. Hoping someone here can help. (I checked with Guest Relations at the park, but they weren't particularly helpful and I figured there may be some firsthand experiences here.) I'm taking some kids to the park with me later this week, and in preparation for our trip, I've been keeping track of their heights on a doorjamb in my kitchen. I have two who I thought were going to make the 48" cutoff, but when I measured them the other day, I got 47 1/2 and 47.9" on them, LOL. That is to say, just shy of that 48" cutoff. It's not a big deal, really; I've explained to them that I'm not sure on which side of the line they fall, and that they may or may not be able to ride certain things. They would only ride a couple of 48" attractions anyways (Adventure Express, BLSC etc,) so no problem. Where a bigger challenge lies for me is in the tickets. The child ticket is for 'under 48"' and the adult is for 48" and up. I'm not in any way trying to cheat the system, but if they're not 48" (and therefore not going to be able to ride the adult rides,) then I don't want to pay for an adult ticket for them. (I'm paying for a whole group of kids and a couple of chaperones to go, both tickets and food, so although the price difference is small, every little bit helps.) What I'm wondering is, has anyone ever taken a child who is around/at the 48" line in with a child ticket, had them get tagged at the gate for measuring, and then been forced to upgrade at gate price? If I could pay the extra $5 to upgrade to the web price, I wouldn't sweat it, but it's going to be $23 to upgrade to gate price. (It's worth a note that I do plan to re-measure the kids the day before I go, and if I get them at 48" I'll buy the adult ticket --I'm not trying to 'squeak' a kid in who is just over the line. I have a 49 incher I'll be paying for, no problem.) All that Guest Relations could tell me is that they "probably" would make me pay gate, so since they didn't have a firm answer, I was hoping to get some firsthand accounts or anecdotes from anyone here who may have had this situation or seen it applied at the gate. Also, on a totally separate topic... what side dishes are there at the Backyard BBQ? I'd like to take the kids, but I don't eat meat and the only veg dish I saw on the whole list was potato salad. Call me cheap, but I'm not paying $14 for potato salad and pop (LOL!) Again, asked at guest relations and they didn't really have an answer for me. I'm going to call the park to find out, but thought I'd ask here while I was posting a topic. Thanks to all who read my ramble here... (and even more thanks to those who reply!) Carrie

I went for my first time a few weeks ago and loved it. The coasters are top notch (Tigg'r in the backseat = hold on!!!) and it's super unique -- boardwalk, built over water, everything intertwined, etc. I didn't feel it was overpriced (and we paid full gate, because we forgot to purchase ahead of time online.) Our waits were minimal -- with the exception of Lost Coaster, I don't think we waited for more than a cycle for anything. Oh, and Lost Coaster: make SURE you do it backwards. It's a wee bit insane... those cars are heavily padded for a reason lol! Also, if the Falling Star is open (not sure if it's affected by the Rainbow shutdowns, since they're similar,) ride it if you never have -- I hadn't been on one, and assumed it to be the same as rides in which you face inward... it's not. Good times. We were planning our return trip before we even left. Carrie

I'm almost positive that the camera itself was gone from the ride yesterday. The mount was still there, but there was no camera in it. Then again that was noticed 'on the fly' as we launched, so I could be mistaken. Ha ha! (But I'm fairly certain it was gone.) Carrie

Scrambler's closed, too. (That's my roomie's favorite, LOL.) Other than that, Cory's exactly right -- all *rides* are open Sundays. (Haunt attractions are not.) There must've been a misunderstanding along the lines of communication.

I dunno -- I went last Sunday and there were mild crowds in the kids' area. The rest of the park was deserted, coasters were walk-on or near. I've posted this a couple of places but really... if you have the opportunity to go on a Sunday (for rides, obviously not Haunt stuff)... go. We did all the riding we wanted to in about five hours.

Gabe (and others) -- it's legit. We used it this past Sunday. Yes, it has to be purchased at the park. But for that steep of a discount (especially Fri/Sun,) I think it's worth it.

The kids' section Halloween Activities (Trick or Treat w Nick characters, etc) are open Sundays -- that's it. Let me say, though, that if this past Sunday was any indication (and it was a gorgeous, low-70s park kinda day,) Sundays are an AWESOME day to go for rides. We rode some of the larger kids' rides, and those had mild waits, but the adult rides were walk-ons. I think I waited three or four trains for Firehawk; we rode AE back-to-back (and could have continued to, if we'd wanted,) and did the closest thing I've ever done to power-riding on Italian Job. LOL. I was with friends who didn't want to do any "big" rides (FH was by myself,) so I didn't hit all of the coasters, but I think those waits were symptomatic of everything else. Just a bit of an endorsement from someone who had one of her most enjoyable KI days ever

House, the Platinum Pass has parking included whenever. The 'early buy' perk is $10 off ($140 instead of $150) and the jacket, if you buy by 11/11. But even if you buy in the spring, you'll get free parking with the platinum. You just have to buy early to get it free on the regular/gold passes. To answer my own question from earlier in the thread: The 'bring a friend' ticket IS obtained at the gate. We went on Sunday and BOY what a value. We were there for about five hours, in mostly walk-on conditions, and for $15? Can't beat it. Carrie

Ok -- so to use the 'bring a friend' discount... I'm a 2007 Passholder (Maxx.) I will be a 2008 passholder, but have not purchased yet (nor do I have the finances to at the moment.) I'm planning on going tomorrow with two friends, one a fellow Maxx Pass holder, the other a GP. I'd like to get the GP friend the $15 ticket. Do we just show up at the park and present our passes? I would hate to not buy the $24.95 ticket online, get to the gate, and be forced to buy a $50 ticket, KWIM? I'm not sure if anyone knows the answer to this, but if anyone does, I'd appreciate it. (I also don't hold out much hope since we're leaving in like ten or eleven hours, most of which are overnight, LOL.) Thanks for any help anyone else can provide. Carrie (who should change her SN to 'questiongirl,' I swear...)

Ok thanks. I knew about TRTR (which we wouldn't ride anyways,) but too bad about Scrambler as that's my one friend's favorite ride. Not so worried about the one train thing; I'm hoping the attendance (for the adult rides) is low enough going on a Sunday that it won't be an issue. Thank you both so much for your help!

I apologize if this has been covered elsewhere -- if it has, feel free to link me and lock the thread. A couple of friends and I are looking at squeezing in one final trip this coming Sunday, but I'm wondering what rides are closed? I think I read somewhere Scrambler gets disassembled for the latter part of the season, is that correct? What about Italian Job? One of the friends I'll be travelling with isn't a big fan of heights, so we do a lot of low-to-the-ground flats and the smaller coasters. Those are more what I'm wondering about. Thanks for any help! Carrie ETA: Although it seems all of the 'Haunt' stuff is really awesome, it's not quite my (or my friends') cup of tea, which is why we're looking at Sunday.

As a passholder, I don't have a problem with that. I'm a MAXX Pass holder this year, and will be a Platinum Pass holder next year... Had they decided to charge THIS year, I would have pitched a fit. The impression was certainly given that it would be included with '07 passes. But it's clearly being stated that it's NOT included with '08 passes... so I'm purchasing my '08 pass knowing that if I want to go to KI at the end of the '08 season, I'll have to pay extra. No problem. (I do think paid parking is a little ridiculous -- that experience is exactly the same as it's been all year lol -- but whateva.) Right move by CF in my book. (And I'm def not agreeing with many of their moves these days, LOL.) I'm glad they went with reason and positive PR over $$$ for once.

Ha ha. That's even funnier considering there's a running joke with my roommate and I that at the end of a KI day, we throw the kids in the fountain for the swamp monster to eat. We've pulled it on every kid we've taken so far this year (seven?) and the kids going this weekend (another three or four.) (Wow, I've done KI with lots of random kids this year. LOL.) So maybe they'll just have to meet the swamp monster a little sooner! Ha!

Yikes... I'll be there with assorted family (aged 2-62) this weekend. I guess we'll be riding Wild Thornberries a lot, LOL... and Congo, for those tall (and brave) enough.