McSalsa
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Posts posted by McSalsa
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Oops, uhh, IndyGuy you voted twice. However, because this is going kinda slow versus the 1st one (I think we hit Round 2 back then in mere hours), I am gonna allow it and make a rule adjustment: If a round has NOT ended, but 48 hours (2 days) have passed since you last voted, you may vote again. -
OK- I didn't add any votes here, but I am "marking" finished battles where a coaster has gotten 10pts. Please do not vote on these anymore. Coasters now in BOLD have earned 10pts and advanced to the next round. Strikeouts mean the coaster is...ELIMINATED!!!
Millennium Force (9) vs. Great Pumpkin Coaster (3)
Top Thrill Dragster (11) vs.Wilderness Run (1)
Steel Vengeance (10) vs.Flying Ace Aerial Chase (2)
Diamondback (11) vs.Woodstock Express CP (1)
The Beast (9) vs. Woodstock Express KI (3)
Magnum XL-200 (10) vs.Backlot Stunt Coaster (2)
Banshee (9) vs. Cedar Creek Mine Ride (2)
Valravn (5) vs. Adventure Express (7)
GateKeeper (5) vs. Blue Streak (7)
Vortex (9) vs. Iron Dragon (3)
Maverick (10) vs.The Bat (2)
Raptor (8) vs. Invertigo (4)
Rougarou (8) vs. Corkscrew (4)
Gemini (5) vs. Flight of Fear (7)
Wicked Twister (4) vs. The Racer (8)
Firehawk (4) vs. Mystic Timbers (8)If you notice your vote is "decisive" (aka the coaster you vote for reaches 10pts), please do this for that battle as well, so later votes will have a easy visual guide as to what battles are over.
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Hi everybody! If you were on this site way back in 2011, you may recall this poll I did where I pitted 32 roller coasters against each other- all the coasters were from Cedar Point and Kings Island. But, rather than one poll where you just voted for your favorite, I made it a Tournament-style poll, where you voted on each coaster and first to reach 10 points advances to the next round, until they are reduced to the final two and the winner was chosen.
Well, in a odd twist, as of 2018 Cedar Fair once again had 32 roller coasters in Ohio (counting Firehawk which will be in this poll since it did operate this year) so I have decided to do a Version 2.0 of it! Since 2011, quite a bit has changed (Including me getting out to Cedar Point since the 1st poll so now my votes will be more educated). Also, where I randomly sorted the poll last time, this time I "seeded" the coasters based on their stats: height, speed, length, with a bonus point for every inversion. So the larger coasters will get higher seeds. Though that still does not guarantee they will win, only the votes do. So, here are the matchups. Due to the way I seeded the coasters, the first few are probably gonna be very one-sided:
Millennium Force (1) vs. Great Pumpkin Coaster (0)
Top Thrill Dragster (1) vs. Wilderness Run (0)
Steel Venegeance (1) vs. Flying Ace Aerial Chase (0)
Diamondback (1) vs. Woodstock Express CP (0)
The Beast (1) vs. Woodstock Express KI (0)
Magnum XL-200 (1) vs. Backlot Stunt Coaster (0)
Banshee (1) vs. Cedar Creek Mine Ride (0)
Valravn (1) vs. Adventure Express (0)
GateKeeper (1) vs. Blue Streak (0)
Vortex (1) vs. Iron Dragon (0)
Maverick (1) vs. The Bat (0)
Raptor (1) vs. Invertigo (0)
Rougarou (1) vs. Corkscrew (0)
Gemini (0) vs. Flight of Fear (1)
Wicked Twister (1) vs. The Racer (0)
Firehawk (0) vs. Mystic Timbers (1)My own votes are already counted, as you can see a lot of the rides (mostly the "favorites" based on stats but this is just Round 1) that have a "1" instead of a 0. You can vote on all the matchups, or just 1 (in case you have not ridden some of the coasters or feel it is too close), but you can only vote on each match once per round. When all the matchups are complete (a coaster from each pair has reached 10pts) the next round will start. Basically, just copy and paste the battles and add 1pt to each coaster you like more. (If a battle already has a winner, please don't vote on it BTW- it will confuse those who have yet to vote!)
Enjoy the Tournament-Style poll! It will be interesting to see what Ohio CF coaster wins this time. Some old coasters have dropped out, and new ones have replaced them, and a few have undergone some BIG changes since 2011. Plus KIC has also changed quite a bit since 2011 too, lots of new members have joined since then who did not come here in 2011...
UPDATE 11/28/2018: New voting rule since this is going a tad slow- you can vote more than once per round now, but must wait 48 hours (2 days) between votes.
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3 minutes ago, BoddaH1994 said:
Nope. It’s this year.
^From today
Umm, that is VALKYRIA, a Dive Coaster in Sweden that opened in 2018, not Valravn.
Also a giveaway: Valravn's cars seat 8 across, this is only 6 across.
Here is Valkyria's RCDB Page: https://rcdb.com/14301.htm
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Kinda, but it was more Werewolf-like, and standing on 2 legs and "roaring". Had on a ripped up red plaid shirt if I recall (may not be 100% correct, it was 8 years ago). They had a fog machine and red lights around it as well, so it had a ominous red glow. Don't know if anyone was able to get pictures, since it was WAY back in the woods and the only way to see it would be via riding, and you can't legally take pictures while riding coasters at Kings Island. And I dunno if they did any Beast backstage tours during Haunt 2010.Also, even though it is not 100% what I saw, that pic of what Beast apparently looks like is awesome IMO.
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I dunno about Diamondback, but in 2010, The Beast had fog machines and a "Beast Monster" for Haunt night rides. It was covered up in the daytime. The monster was located next to the final turn before the 2nd lift. Still one of my most memorable Beast rides to date, 8 years later.The fog machines were back in 2014 and 2016 (the other years I have been to KI's Haunt), but no Beast monster. And in 2018, they didn't even have the fog machines, though the ride was running great so it didn't matter.
They do still add extra stuff to the que, though. In 2018 it was a Graveyard.
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2018 was an amazing year for me as well, to the point I would say, Amusement Park-wise, it was my best year ever! In April, we ended up getting Platinum Passes for the first time because we were also planning trips to Cedar Point and in the long run it would save us money. As a result, I have been to Kings Island alone 5 times this year, more than any season in the past (and we did end up also doing Cedar Point twice and Holiday World once). And IMO, Kings Island was better than ever in 2018. Here are some of my 2018 memories...though I will go a LITTLE off-topic and include stuff from all 3 parks.
(WARNING: HUGE POST AHEAD!!!)
In April, my sister surprised me and we went to Kings Island for the first time without me knowing beforehand for Season Pass Preview Night. Having only a half hour or so to get hyped before we arrived at the park was new, I was expecting to go to Kings Island the week after. We got our passes processed, I was actually the first Platinum done by the lady who took my picture, and my first coaster of the year was...Adventure Express.
It was a fun ride to start the year. We rode Racer next, and I got one of my smoothest rides ever on the coaster on the Red side (and I got a equally awesome and smooth ride on Blue months later). Vortex was also running smooth, thanks to new wheels. Beast was fun, but due to sitting on a back wheel, I got a little beat up, nothing terrible (especially compared to what would come later in the year). This was the one trip where the food service was kinda bleh, most places had huge lines due to the big crowds and since the employees were not yet trained, the lines moved slow, so we went for about a hour just looking for food until we finally found Tom and Chee's was do-able line wise (I was actually OK as I had eaten prior to coming to the park, but my friends had not and were starving). Then, towards the end of the day, we spun the Fast Lane Wheel and got tickets for Diamondback and Banshee. We had a fun ride on Diamondback, then went over and got a great ride on Banshee before we went up the Eiffel Tower and watched the Fireworks show from 275 feet up. There was a slight traffic jam when leaving the parking lot, but again, this was nothing compared to what would happen later in the year.
As promised, about a week later, we came back. It was kinda cold, but because of that, there were very light crowds even though it was a Saturday. I rode nearly every big coaster in the park, and when it did warm up a bit for whatever reason it felt like all the coasters sped up noticeably. The day ended with epic rides on Mystic Timbers, The Beast, and The Racer- all at night- and we STILL had time to get to I-Street and watch the fireworks. I rode more on this 1 day than any other day since I began riding big coasters in 2009! It was another awesome trip.
In May, we took advantage of the Platinum part of our passes, and headed North for my 3rd ever trip to Cedar Point. I didn't get to ride too much on the first day we were there due to large crowds and high winds closing some of the rides, but we did end the day waiting about an hour 15 minutes for...STEEL VENGEANCE. This coaster was super-hyped, and it actually lived up to it! SO. MUCH. EJECTOR AIR. Saturday- Day 2- had much less wind, and while it was pretty crowded for most of the day, it turned out to be a lot of school kids because they all left after 8pm and the last 2 hours were pretty dead. I rode Raptor, Valravn, Magnum XL-200, AND Top Thrill Dragster at night that day. And then had some tasty nachos afterwards at TGI Friday's. There was also some rain, and near sunset we saw a BEAUTIFUL rainbow that ended...in Canada.
Sunday was our final day for trip #1, and crowds were very light all day so we re-rode a bunch of rides, visited the museum and petting zoo (both were fun), and I got a T-Shirt and some very tasty Loaded Sidewinder Fries from Sidewinder Sue's. They were delicious. We left around 5pm, since CP is so far from our house it takes 4-5 hours to drive home. What a trip, felt like a mini Vacation because it was 3 days long. I also got 3 new credits: Cedar Creek Mine Ride, Corkscrew, and of course Steel Vengeance were all new for me as I didn't ride them on my 2017 trips.
Come June, it was time to return to Kings Island yet again. It was HOT on this day, in the mid 90's! The crowds were starting to pick up by now, especially in the waterpark (main reason most of us came) but on the dry side of the park, waits were do-able for the most part (until the waterpark closed and Beast broke down, causing the lines for Diamondback and Mystic Timbers to go bonkers). The rides were all running pretty fast too, and I ended up riding Beast 3 times in a row with little wait. The 3rd time was a bad idea though, as I sat on a rear wheel seat and while I was fine the first 2 rides (in 6-2, the very back car none the less) riding on a back wheel seat was a mistake as Beast decided to go ham on my right shoulder. Didn't even realize how bad it was until later (felt fine immediately after), when I rode Banshee and noticed the vest restraints hurt a bit. A big storm came through around 5-6pm, and due to this, we ended up catching some shows: The JUMP! Dog Show was fun, but Gravity was the one that blew me away. I only managed to see it once, but that 1 show was one of the highlights of my 2018 amusement park trips. This was also during the Peanuts Celebration, so before the park opened for ERT I got some nice free donuts, watched and laughed as my sister did some shenanigans with the Peanuts gang in the former Enchanted Theater, and I also got some of the special Charlie Brown Ice Cream which was pretty good. We ended the day riding WindSeeker as the Sun went down (where I saw Beast had broken down from), and then we rode Backlot Stunt Coaster at night which was actually pretty fun to end this trip.
We were gonna go back to Kings Island in July, but the day we had selected ended up having bad storms come through. However, Holiday World was looking like it would have much better weather, so for the first time in 5 years, I returned to Santa Claus, Indiana. Being a Saturday in July, there were big crowds. Thunderbird- the biggest by far new addition since I last came- had a 1 hour wait, but it was worth it, IMO as Thunderbird is a very good coaster. Raven was running pretty good as well, and Legend has become very smooth after the GCI refurb in 2016. However, Voyage was the coaster highlight: after giving some somewhat disappointing rides in 2011 and 2013, Holiday World has seemed to finally get the coaster back to its old self I remembered from 2010. I even got a night ride for the first time, which was insane in a great way. Didn't get to do too much in the Waterpark- huge crowds there- but I did get both water coasters (both of which are still epic) and the lazy river. Holiday World also felt the cleanest of all 3 parks I have been to in 2018, while KI and CP are far from dirty, Holiday World was spotless, even in the bathrooms. We did have a bit of a issue with Wildebeestro, the employees apparently didn't know what came with their own combo meals and they overcharged us for a cookie, and we got double charged on a locker (but Guest Services came through and refunded us- they are as good as claimed!). I really hope I don't have to wait 5 more years to go to Holiday World again, it's another amazing park.
August was a double whammy month: I got TWO park trips in, to Kings Island and Cedar Point once again. I did not realize it, but on my August visit, I got my last ride on Firehawk- it was fun, and a good final ride to leave on I guess. We also managed to get one of our friends, who was afraid of coasters just last year, to do Diamondback and it became one of his favorite rides ever. I also saw a bit of the epic stunt show they did during this month, I liked the song choice of Rob Zombie's "Dragula" and thought the show was cool. I also ate half of a DELICIOUS chicken wrap at Chicken Shack, possibly the best of all food items I ate at KI in 2018 (so far- I hope Winterfest has good stuff). As we headed for the waterpark, via the Train, I also saw DEER. Real ones! I also took some time to check out and appreciate the landscaping work KI has done on this trip via plants and flowers, etc. The park really did a nice job in this regard in 2018, it was all beautiful. We ended this trip with night rides on Diamondback and The Beast (which I wanted in June but it was broken), both were epic as usual.
Then came Cedar Point Trip #2, another 3-day trip like the 1st one. Not only did I get re-rides in (often more than once, I rode Magnum XL200 6 times!) on every big coaster save Corkscrew, I rode tons of flats (Including the now-defunct Witches Wheel) and ate lots of good food. Melt Bar & Grilled was awesome, I loved the atmosphere of that restaurant, and their "Chicken Vengeance" sandwich gets my vote so far for best food item I have eaten at a amusement park in 2018. They were also having a food truck contest, and these guys were no slouches either. Thanks to the "renew season passes" promo, on Sunday I had Fast Lane Plus, which enabled me to get 3 more rides on Steel Vengeance in. Still so awesome, but Maverick did try very hard to get its #1 spot back. We did have a issue with the parking lot on the 1st Day, because there was a minor accident and it was crowded it caused a cluster(BLEEP) trying to get to the road that leads to Hotels (we left the park to get some food at the off-site Dairy Queen due to rain and got a message our hotel was ready so we came back). Made the fiasco at the KI parking lot earlier in the year look great in comparison. However, that was the only real bad moment of the trip. I also finally got my sister to face her fear of Top Thrill Dragster, which she found to be more bark than bite, and we got our friend to ride his first Giga coaster, Millennium Force (he liked it but hates how high it went).
Finally, at the end of September, we returned to Kings Island for Haunt. While the park was pretty empty at first (which enabled us to ride nearly everything early on- even Invertigo which I only rode on this trip) it started to get more crowded around 1pm, eventually turning into some of the biggest crowds I have ever seen at Kings Island. I tried the Mac N' Cheese Bar, which was very good but I did feel was overpriced a bit even by KI Standards. I also got another rare super-smooth ride on Racer, this time on Blue, and I got my sister to ride Drop Tower- which was the same as TTD, once she rode it she realized she was scared for no reason. I also randomly saw a McDonald's from atop Drop Tower, LOL. We intended to get one final ride in on Firehawk before it closed forever, but it decided it wanted to throw a fit and keep breaking down, so that was a no-go. Once the Haunt began, the park transformed and IMO, the Haunt Atmosphere was BEAUTIFUL. Of course, since I really am not a fan of the Haunts themselves, me and a small group of friends did rides. We got epic night rides on Beast (cool graveyard in the que, but nothing new added to the ride itself for Haunt- didn't need it though as it was still epic), Mystic Timbers, and Diamondback (A fun moment for this was as we came into the brakes, Blood Drums began and thus we got a epic light show). After one last trip atop the "Evil" Eiffel Tower, we headed out of the park, the 2018 ride season (save stuff that will be open for Winterfest like Mystic Timbers and FOF) over. I have to give the ride-ops for a ton of the rides massive props, they were sending out trains like crazy, and in spite of the crowds waits were somewhat manageable. A good example: Mystic Timbers was claimed to have a 75-minute wait, but we only had to wait 45 because the ride crew was doing such a good job.
So yeah, that was a summary of my 2018 coaster season. It was AWESOME- and I left a lot of stuff out here to save room, see the individual trip reports (I did them for every trip) for more details. Big props to Kings Island, Cedar Point, and Holiday World- all 3 are excellent parks. And, since I have renewed my Season Pass for 2019 (hence how I got FL+ at CP for Trip #2) I hope 2019 can at least give it a run for its money. Kings Island is super likely, and Cedar Point will probably see me again in 2019. It isn't 100% confirmed, but we are looking into Carowinds as a possible new park to visit in 2019 with our Platinum Passes, since they have Fury 325 and new-for-2019 Copperhead Strike.
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47 minutes ago, LondonFreak said:
I agree that these tracks look different. Remember, Firehawk (as X-Flight) was one of the first few models of the Flying Dutchman that Vekoma installed. It is very possible that they have made major upgrades, making the older models almost impossible to find parts for. I also have known people that worked on the ride, and they said that it was a maintenance NIGHTMARE with the mechanism that lifts and lowers the trains (this was several years ago). Also, a friend of mine and I were talking to an employee on the ride last week, and told us that there are also so many minor issues with the restraints having to be fixed almost as often, because they get stuck down. If they have more than 4 seats down, it is deemed inoperable due to capacity. This was confirmed by my friend I was at the park with, who worked in rides for 5 years, that this is a standard procedure on all rides at KI.
Ironically, Vekoma has yet to actually install one of these "New-Gen" Flying Dutchmen at any park. It's a model they still offer, but no has bit on it yet. Batwing at Six Flags America, ironically, is the newest one built (not counting re-openings due to relocation) and it opened in...2001, same year as Firehawk (as X-Flight at Geauga Lake). And Vekoma has only built 3 of them to date. Soon, only 2 will remain.
For comparison, B&M has made 11 Flying Coasters since 2002, and none of them have closed. All remain in operation as of this writing, and the newest B&M Flyer, Flying Dinosaur, opened at Universal Studios Japan in 2016.
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Wow. What a blast from the past, I remember this Trip Report from way back when I first joined KIC in May 2009. One year later, on May 29th, 2010: I went to Holiday World myself for the first time. Had a blast. Since then, I have gone back in 2011, 2013, and this year, 2018. Every single time, I have had a great time. Voyage, amazing in 2010, was running way off in 2011 (super rough and no air) and a bit off in 2013 (first half great but 2nd half was like 2011), but it seems to have returned to form as of 2018. Wildebeest, Mammoth, and Thunderbird have all been amazing additions the park has seen since 2009. I do miss Pilgrims Plunge, it was a fun ride, just sucks that- from what I have heard- it was gonna be so expensive to repair 1 part ($2 million!?!?) and the ride wasn't popular enough. On my visits before it was removed, I found it usually never had a long line. I also miss Paul Revere's Midnight Ride, their old spider type ride. TBH it was better than KI's monster.
Also, out of curiosity I looked up how much that $7.50 2 slices of Pizza costs at Holiday World now: it's $11 now. I know Kings Island charges about $15 for the same 2 slices, so Holiday World is $4 cheaper now, but I don't remember how much Kings Island charged for 2 slices of Pizza back in '09. If it has always been $4 more at KI, then 2009 KI Pizza would have been $11.50, which seems about right.
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29 minutes ago, flightoffear1996 said:
I just wonder how much of a bottle neck it will be to get to The Vortex and Wind Seeker.
Having been for Haunt this year, the construction fence is already bottlenecking that section as much as the Antique Autos will in 2019. It was also one of the most crowded days I have ever seen at Kings Island.
It was a bit of a bottleneck. It was still a wider path than the one in front of Vortex, that connects Rivertown to Coney Mall. However, due to the fact they have THREE haunts (KillMart, Field of Screams, and Urgent Scare) back there during Haunt, it was wall-to-wall people near the bathrooms. You could easily get to Vortex since its entrance is on the side, but you had to walk through some people for WindSeeker. I don't think the path width was that bad, during the day before the crowds came in it was fine, but the fact they stuffed 3 haunts in that 1 section is what caused the bottlenecking. It should be fine during the spring and summer, I don't see the Kings Mills Antique Autos, Vortex, and WindSeeker drawing THAT many people back there by themselves but when you add the 3 Haunts, with as crazy popular as Haunt has become, that is when it is gonna get crazy.
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27 minutes ago, flightoffear1996 said:
Is the Voyage even really a traditional roller coaster? I believe the support are all steel.
In the case of wooden coasters, yes. Support structure really doesn't matter much- there are actually quite a few wooden coasters with steel support structures. For example, the Coney Island Cyclone in New York, one of the most famous roller coasters and built in 1927, has steel supports. And almost everyone recognizes it as wooden as well. Mainly, it is just the track that matters to what type of ride something is, not the structure. Which is why Gemini and Steel Vengeance, as well as Mine Trains, are considered Steel coasters even though they have wooden structures. Though I have seen some generally call them "hybrids" in a sense, for example some might list Voyage as "Wood/Hybrid (Steel Structure)".
But to further clarify, by "traditional" wooden coasters, I mean the old-school, cut and built on site track, aka what The Racer and Beast use, which is what most wooden coasters used (and nearly all of them until recently). They are still being made, GCI still uses traditional wooden track, for example. By "new style" I mean stuff like Intamin's prefab laser cut track, or RMC's Topper Track. The Voyage is actually the tallest and fastest wooden roller coaster to NOT use either of those.Also, out of curiosity, if you do disqualify Voyage from traditional woodies just because it has a steel structure (you also have to DQ Coney Island Cyclone then) the tallest and fastest "all wooden, all traditional" wooden coasters are: The Boss at Six Flags St. Louis has the biggest drop at 150 feet, and thus the fastest speed at 66.3mph. But, the tallest is Wodan Timbur Coaster @ Europa Park, at a whopping...131 feet tall. (Hades 360 is taller than Wodan, but it also has a steel structure and would thus be DQ'd same as Voyage)
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I also rode Voyage this year, in late July. It was pretty hot but I felt the ride was much smoother this year than it was in 2011 and 2013, when I rode Voyage last. As a result, I loved how long and intense the ride was. However, wooden coasters can be moody. This year alone I have had both amazingly smooth and very rough rides on The Racer (both sides), for example. I would not be shocked to find Voyage is the same way, having its on/off days. One of my 2011 rides was among the roughest I have ever had on any roller coaster.
Also, Holiday World has, if I recall, given The Voyage major track work almost every single offseason. With most wooden coasters (Raven+Legend fit this bill), parks just have to replace the top layers of track, but The Voyage requires all of them to be replaced. Per RCDB, Voyage is 159 feet tall, which makes it the tallest surviving traditional (no prefab, no topper track) wooden roller coaster in the world. Wooden coasters begin to require a lot of maintenance and you have to start limiting what elements you do with them at around 125 feet, so The Voyage is a good amount beyond that. Add the fact the ride still uses PTC 2-bench trains, which while better at it than the 3 benches are not great at sharp turns and twists, of which Voyage has plenty, and the fact you have over 6,400 feet of track to maintain and it becomes clear how hard Voyage must be to keep running at a decent level. Holiday World's wood coaster team has to work very hard to keep this ride going.
I also don't think we are ever gonna see coasters like The Voyage again in my lifetime. Rides like Mean Streak, The Rattler, and Son of Beast (among others) have proven that classic wooden coasters have limits that need to be respected or the ride will have problems, possibly major ones. The Voyage really pushes those limits. If someone did try to build a even more extreme wooden coaster with old school track, it would probably end up being un-rideable quickly. But most parks now this by now, so I figure most future wooden coasters will either be smaller rides below 125 feet tall (or use terrain if they do go above that height) or use Intamin or RMC's modern track designs to increase the limits of what they can do, though at the expense of the "wooden" feel of the ride. The days of parks building 150+ foot traditional wooden coasters are probably over.
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I also have never been, but from doing research, do not expect it to be like Kings Island's Haunt at all. No blood, gore, or scares- it's a very family friendly event. Also crowds are actually apparently fairly light, since the event is aimed at kids (so it does not draw the teenagers and stuff like KI's Haunt does) and the biggest draw to Holiday World, their GIANT waterpark, is closed. You should easily be able to ride all 4 big coasters (Raven, Legend, Voyage, and Thunderbird). Probably more than once, along with whatever flat rides tickle your fancy. Heck, I went on a super busy day in July this year and got on all 4 coasters no problem (though I did have to wait 1 hour for Thunderbird).
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Great Trip Report! Sucks that Firehawk, in its last days, is being this unreliable. I had that exact same problem when I showed up for Haunt 2 weeks ago: it was down all day, opened up, and when we went to it, it broke down again. From your experience, sounds like it's been doing that to lots of people recently. It's been worse than even Top Thrill Dragster in that regard! Really, just makes it make sense why the park has decided to remove it, likely for something far more reliable and higher capacity, if the documents suggesting B&M are legit.
Also interesting to hear how crazy Vortex was running. Especially considering it was only in the 40's, and coasters are supposed to run slower in cold temperatures, but the rain may have slicked up the track hence why it ran so fast. At least, that is my guess.
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So, a Gravity Group Jr. woodie? That's actually a GREAT addition, and from the brief view of it from the animation, it looked like a Mini-Raven to me. Probably a much better addition to Kentucky Kingdom than a used Vekoma Flying Dutchman. Especially if Vekoma really has stopped making parts.
I have never ridden one, but I have heard great things about these mini-woodies, and in many polls they do far better than you'd expect from their size.
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I was at Kings Island yesterday, and they didn't close when Haunt began. Basically at 6pm, the monsters come out, the Haunts open, and the fog machines turned on. They did begin warning people at 5pm though over the intercoms with a pre-recorded voice-over by "The Ringmaster", and again 30 and 15 minutes before Haunt. As far as I know, only Planet Snoopy actually closes when Haunt starts. Anyone in the park when Haunt starts can do Haunt, though I would not recommend it for young children (though sadly I did see quite a few at Haunt yesterday).
I didn't actually do any of the Haunted Houses, though, as those are not really my thing. I was too busy getting epic night rides on Beast, Mystic Timbers, and Diamondback.
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Hello everyone! Welcome back to McSalsa's Coaster Adventures, as it is time for yet another trip report! But, per usual, first I will explain my ride/food/etc. rating system for newbies:
F- Garbage. I regret ever riding this and will not make the same mistake of ever riding it again!
D- Mediocre. A disappointing, or painful ride, though there might be a little fun here. I might give a D-Tier ride a second chance but it is gonna need to be a walk-on or something.
C- Average. A fun ride, but either there is enough roughness/pain to dilute it, or it just does not blow me away. Will still ride this if the wait is not too bad, though.
B- Good. A ride I enjoy, but it may have some flaws, but I will happily re-ride this unless the wait is pretty crazy.
A- Awesome. These rides leave me with a huge grin usually, and I will ride them over and over if there is a short wait. If there are long waits around the entire park, I may aim for these anyway, as if you are gonna wait, best to be for something worth it. Surpassed only by...
S- Epic. The best of the best. I am usually giddy and my happiness meter is maxed out after riding one of these. Tragically, these are not the most common rides out there, however.
Note: If you wanna take this as a 1-10 system, S=10, A=9, B=8, C=7, D=6, and F=5 or worse.
Our group for this trip was the usual, at least for the start. There was me, my sister, and our 2 main friends who have been coming with us the last 2 years (Friend A who has been overcoming a fear of coasters and cannot do most looping coasters, and Friend B who is less afraid but also can do looping rides). Later on my sister's best friend- along with her boyfriend- joined the group, which I will point out when it happens. Anyway, let's begin the trip report!
We arrived at the park around 10:15 AM, so we easily made it in time for ERT. The parking lot was pretty full for being 15 minutes early to ERT, which was a sign of things that would come later. However, we got in the park, and as a few of us were craving Diamondback, we went to that first.
Ride #1+2: Diamondback (ERT)
Waits: Walk-On, 5 Minutes for FrontWell, I guess a lot of the cars in the parking lot were not for ERT, because Diamondback had no wait when we got to it, so we ended up riding it twice in a row. We rode near the back on our first ride, and got lots of floater air over nearly every hill. On our 2nd ride, Friend A wanted front seat, so we rode there and got epic views and I noticed the style of airtime felt very different, it was more like weak ejector and it also tended to only happen on top of the hills. Both rides were smooth, and very fun. A great ride to begin the day with!
Rating: A
After Diamondback, we quickly got a locker for 2 hours, and then went over to ride Mystic Timbers.
Ride #3: Mystic Timbers (ERT)
Wait: Walk-OnWe rode near the back of the train, and got a pretty solid ride on Timbers. There was good airtime, and the ride whipped through the course. One thing I have noticed the last 2 years since I have taken advantage of ERT and gotten lots of rides in, is that most rides tend to run better later in the day or at night versus in the morning hours. This was the case here: it was a lot of fun, but I felt Mystic Timbers was running just a little slower than it does later in the day. Also I got the rarest (supposedly) of endings, Tree, in the shed.
Rating: A-
After Mystic Timbers, ERT was over, so we decided to go ride The Beast before we got our stuff from our lockers and went to X-Base.
Ride #4: The Beast
Wait: Walk-On
Just like Mystic Timbers, Beast in the morning is fun, but it feels slower than later in the day as it hasn't broken in yet. Still gave a pretty good ride, though the trims were also kinda biting, I even felt the one on the first drop for the first time. Helix, as usual, was crazy though. A fun ride, and hey, it had no wait.
Rating: B+
After The Beast, we got our stuff from the lockers, and my friends wanted to smoke at the Reds HOF Grille section. Since I don't smoke, and it had no wait...
Ride #5: Mystic Timbers #2
Wait: Walk-On
...MOAR MYSTIC TIMBERZ!!! It rode about the same as earlier, but this time I got snakes.
Rating: A-
I got off MT and met up with my friends. Then we headed towards X-Base, however, we stopped at "The Graveyard" to see Firehawk's grave site. We also noticed from here that Firehawk did not appear to be running. Then, we got a message from my sister's friend that she had arrived, so we met her at the Eiffel Tower along with her boyfriend. After a brief chat, we decided (a bit randomly) to go ride...
Ride #6: Backlot Stunt Coaster
Wait: 5 Minutes
I am not sure why, but whenever we "randomly" ride a roller coaster, it usually ends up being Backlot. This was the typical Backlot ride, all the 2018 effects were still working, the helix had really good G's, and there was also a nice pop of airtime after the overbanked turn on the small hill.
Rating: C
After Backlot, we headed to X-Base to see if Firehawk was truly closed. It was, they were having issues, so we went for Flight of Fear instead.
Ride #7: Flight of Fear
Wait: 15 MinutesThe line was out of the main building, but thankfully none of the inside ques were open, so it was only about a 15 minute wait. Flight of Fear was running pretty well, a little rough but besides 1 moment where it threw my shoulder into the side of the car nothing too bad (and even after that I was OK- I can still kinda feel it if I move my shoulder too much though). Even now, I am still boggled they fit all that track and supports into the building- you could kinda see it because the colored lights were all working. Another fun ride.
Rating: B
After Flight of Fear, we exited and looked at Firehawk again- still down- and then left the area hoping it would open at some point. We were hungry at this point and decided to get some food, we had heard about the Mac & Cheese Bar and decided to eat there. It was not ready to open when we first arrived, so we headed out back to pond and my friends got some beer and smoked (I do not do either of these things) and I relaxed for a bit. I really do love the Oktoberfest Pond area, you get a great view of Banshee, Drop Tower, and Delirium on one side, the top of Racer can be seen, Viking Fury can be seen right next door (and even heard) and the Eiffel Tower is clearly visible as well plus you have a nice pond. Then the Mac N' Cheese Bar opened...
FOOD: Hank's Mac N' Cheese Bar
I got the Spicy Mac N' Cheese, and for my toppings, I chose shredded cheese, bacon, and chicken. The Mac N' Cheese was not as spicy as I was expecting, and the chicken was somewhat dry but also had a bit of a "smokey" taste to it. However, it tasted very good, especially when it was all put together. I gobbled my bowl down pretty quick, usually a sign something was great. However what I didn't like was the price. There was no sign to tell what the price of the Mac N' Cheese bar was, so we just got it, and I was expecting like $8 or something based on the size of the bowl, but it was $13! Now if they were giving the 2x sized version that Winterfest 2017 had, yes $13 would be fine, but this? Overpriced, even for Kings Island standards. At least it tasted good, though.
Rating: A for Taste, D- for Value
After the Mac N' Cheese Bar, Friend A suggested we go ride The Racer as it was close by and had no wait. We ended up riding Blue Racer.
Ride #8: Blue Racer
Wait: Walk-On
I don't know how or why, but for some reason...Blue Racer was running insanely smooth! This was the smoothest ride I have ever had on Blue Racer, it felt more like Mystic Timbers than Blue Racer. Even the "rough spot" wasn't so bad, though it was still there (felt like a weak vibration instead of a THUNK though). We also got good airtime, and we won the race in spite of Red Racer dropping of the lift first! Woo-hoo! I wish Racer ran like this a bit more often!
Rating: B+
After Racer, we headed over to Action Zone, and my sister actually wanted to try Drop Tower (she has been afraid of it for a long time). A few others do not wanna do it (mainly Friend A and Sister's Friend) but the rest of us get in line. We wait 15 minutes, get halfway there (it was about a 30 minute wait as crowds were starting to pick up). Drop Tower suddenly remembered it was a Intamin and broke down. D'oh!
So, we headed over to ride The Bat instead.
Ride #9: The Bat
Wait: 5 Minutes
Bat was also pretty much its usual self: fun, swingy turns and twists and it's over pretty quick. There was a actual pop of airtime on one of the turns, though. Also I was looking at the layout from the walkway and noticed there is essentially a 2nd drop after the turn over the station that is nearly as big as the first drop, no wonder those final turns go so fast! Friend B, who I was riding with, said this blows Iron Dragon out of the water and I agree. Also, we had to wait a few minutes on the brake run, as there was a barf train ahead of us. Eww.
Rating: C+
After The Bat, we gave Friend A our stuff, was we were gonna ride Banshee and didn't want to get a locker and he cannot do inversions.
Ride #10: Banshee
Wait: 30 Minutes
30 Minute Wait for Banshee!?!? Oh boy, the crowds are kicking in. Granted, Banshee is a people eater, so a 30-minute wait had a LOT of people in line. But at least the line was constantly moving, and we got a great ride at the end. Banshee kinda reminds me of, ironically, a invert version of Millennium Force because both are big and fast, and have huge elements. The main difference is on Banshee those are inversions, versus overbanked turns on Millennium Force. Banshee does pull a bit more G's though.
Rating: A
When Banshee came into the brake run, I saw Drop Tower running again, with riders, so I went to check the line...and it was much shorter than before, probably because the ride just re-opened. So, I talked my sister into it again, and we got back in line.
Ride #11: Drop Tower
Wait: 5 Minutes
Drop Tower may no longer be the tallest ride I have ever ridden, but it is still pretty tall, and a little unnerving (though not nearly as much as when I first rode it). It is a simple ride, yet it is quite effective, and the drop is fun. My sister found it to be more bark than bite, just like TTD. And again I am proud of her for finally riding something she found scary. The ride itself was pretty fun as well, I saw a McDonalds way off in the distance (we faced Bat on the way down).
Rating: B
After Drop Tower, my sister's friend wanted to ride Invertigo. I have not done Invertigo all year, so I went with it.
Ride #12: Invertigo
Wait: 30 Minutes
I was kinda expecting to get head-banged again (this is one ride that has done it consistently before), but to my surprise, Invertigo behaved and was actually pretty smooth (new wheels? They looked like they were in good shape). As such, I was able to enjoy the ride and the very strong G forces in the loops. This is a fun ride when it behaves, which seems to be about 60% of the time based on the rides I have taken. However, I saw something horrible when I looked down from the lift: huge crowds of people coming in for Haunt. DA DA DUM!
Rating: C
After Invertigo, my group (Friends A+B plus sister) wanted to run out to the car to grab a few things before Haunt began. I stuck with her friend and boyfriend, and we ended up going up the Eiffel Tower for some views while we waited.
Ride #13: Eiffel Tower
Wait: Walk-On
Looking around from 265 feet up, you could tell the park was getting packed. Diamondback was almost 80% full, and was actually using some of the ques near the lift hill for the first time I have seen all year! Banshee also had a big line, and Racer was out the door. Yep, it is a Haunt Saturday. The views of the park, as usual, were nice. When I looked at Firehawk I imagined what a Giga coaster would look like from up here, due to all the rumors. A quick but fun trip up. Won't rate this though, since it really is less of a ride in a traditional sense, and more of a viewing platform.
Rating: NA
Afterwards, we met back up with the main group and we decided to go ride Adventure Express.
Ride #14: Adventure Express
Wait: 15 Minutes
Thank goodness AE rarely ever goes over a 20-minute wait, even on busy days. We even got front row! Thus, great views of all the scenery and stuff. It did kinda feel like the back of the train was slowing us down, though, at points. It was also a little jerky, and the final tunnel's main temple dude's eyes were not glowing, though the bucket effect was working. Pretty good ride overall though.
Rating: C
After Adventure Express, my companions all got some more beer (one of them spent almost $40 on beer!) and The Haunt began, as we heard over the intercoms. As we had friends who wanted to do Haunts and others who wanted to do rides, we split up. My sister and Friend B left to do Haunts, leaving me, Friend A, Sister's Best Friend, and SBF Boyfriend as the group I was with. They had not done any of the rides in Rivertown, and Friend B was craving Diamondback too, so we went over and rode it again.
Ride #15: Diamondback #3
Wait: 30 Minutes
Diamondback had apparently gone down and re-opened, so the line had thinned out quite a bit. However, this SHOULD have been a 15-20 minute wait, but there was a issue. What I will call, Fast Lane Clog. Fast Lane Clog happens when so many people have Fast Lane, a actual line for Fast Lane users forms, and as such the capacity of the ride for both lines is cut in two. This was the first time I have seen Kings Island so crowded this has happened, besides Banshee Opening Day 2014. Thankfully, to somewhat counter this, the DB Crew was doing a epic job getting trains out, very few stacks and a few trains were on the lift as soon as the one ahead was hitting the MCBR. They were not power-houring either, they were able to do this because I saw like 8 people checking restraints! So, not too bad a wait, considering the crowds. And the ride was running faster now, smooth and TONS of airtime. Great ride, though the Fast Lane Clog was annoying.
Rating: A+
When we were about to get on Diamondback, I saw Firehawk running. So we went over there, and found a decent but not terrible looking line. We got in line, and instantly it seemed as soon as we got in line...Firehawk broke down. We waited 15 minutes to see if they could fix it, but it became kinda clear it was gonna be a issue. Knowing this ride is on its last legs, and is reportedly having issues getting parts, we realized this was gonna be the case all night and thus riding Firehawk was gonna be a no-go this day. We are hoping that our group can return one more time before Firehawk closes, probably on a less busy Sunday, and perhaps we can do final rides then.
With that disappointment behind us, we headed to go ride the other coaster rumored to close, but isn't...Vortex. Also, I will note even as crowded as it was (and with 2 Haunts back here!) even with the under-construction Antique Cars taking up half the midway, I didn't think it was too cramped.
Ride #16: Vortex
Wait: 15 Minutes
Vortex was stacking trains pretty badly, but they were very under-staffed compared to Diamondback so it wasn't a big shock and the wait was still only 15 minutes. They were assigning seats though (could have probably asked but we didn't wanna jam the line), we got the 2nd car, I offered to take the cramped back seat but my sister's friend and her boyfriend took it, Friend A sat this out because it has loops. Boyfriend tried to ride with his $30 Hat, which ended up being a dumb decision as Vortex stole it. The ride did also have some jerky moments, I did get neck-banged (I am too tall for this ride to headbang) once though it wasn't too bad (though if I move my neck a lot I still feel it, kinda like what FOF did to my shoulder). I also felt like a hamster in a ball, I was moving around in my restraints especially in the corkscrews and got great hang time. I did feel Vortex felt smoother in the Corkscrews than Corkscrew did, the rough spots were in the turn-around and helix. The sharp turn before the MCBR also didn't feel as bad from the 2nd car. I still would have preferred the back cars though, as I missed the airtime from those seats. I do think new trains with vest restraints would make this ride better, reliability and capacity wise it's fine. (It was running all day and I didn't see it go down once)
Rating: C
After riding the Hat-Eating Vortex (My Sister's Friend did say she would replace the Hat) we went back to Oktoberfest and they had some more beer, and we met back up briefly with my sister and her friend doing haunts with her. Also, while I mentioned how cool this area was during the day, at night it was even cooler looking! We talked for a bit, and we ended up deciding to split up again, with our group going to ride...
Ride #17: The Beast #2 (Night)
Wait: 60 Minutes
This was the longest I have waited for Beast in a while, as they were using the 1st que house for the first time in ages. However, the line moved very well, thanks to a good ride crew and the fact each train does carry 36 riders. I liked how the lights in the que houses were red and ominous (can't remember if they were like that for non-Haunt), and The Beast Graveyard (with SOB logo on the gravestones) was a neat addition. We eventually boarded the trains, and headed into the woods.
This was a epic night ride. It was very dark out, and it felt like the woods were consuming me. The ride was at that perfect level of roughness: bouncy and out-of-control feeling but not painful. And the ride felt like it was hauling, I did notice a few of the trims but it felt like they could only barely slow the train at all. The tunnels were very dark and loud, and the helix was epic. I did have 1 issue, not with the ride though- in the long tunnel, mid-ride, I saw a dim white light up ahead. Some idiot was filming the ride with their phone! I doubt it was even good footage, that arm they were holding up was swaying a lot (and I think they stopped filming during the helix realizing their phone was in danger). I hope they caught them on the on-ride photo or something, while nothing bad did happen, that idiot could have hurt someone. The Beast itself after dark was amazing though, granted at this point I am not surprised.
Rating: S
After The Beast, we went to use the bathrooms, and then Friend A was hungry, so he went to get a Pizza. I went and got a soda with my season pass drink plan, and he ended up getting a plate of 2 slices and breadsticks, and he kindly shared them with me.
FOOD: LaRosa's Pizza Rivertown
There was a line out the door, but this place was getting the Pizza out fast, so it moved very fast. The Pizza- we got cheese- was pretty good, a little heavy on the sauce but the cheese tasted great. The breadstick also tasted good. I thanked the friend for getting us both food.
Rating: B
After we got food, we went through half of Pumpkin Eater to check it out (it was pretty cool) and then turned around to go to Mystic Timbers.
Ride #18: Mystic Timbers #3 (Night)
Wait: 45 Minutes
The Mystic Timbers crew was sending out trains like crazy, so in spite of the huge crowds and this ride's crazy popularity, the wait was only 45 minutes. Also, remember how I said Mystic Timbers feels like it runs slower in the morning? Well, that is really "slow in comparison" to how it feels later in the day, especially at night. And on this night, Mystic Timbers was HAULING. Lots of airtime and sudden twists, turns, and drops all in near complete darkness, save for the WWC entrance which glowed orange like a pumpkin, LOL. Even the shed was better at night, as it looks creepier and is darker inside. We got snakes, for the 2nd time for me. Also this was my sister's friend and her boyfriend's first ride on Mystic Timbers- they loved it, so it made a great first impression on them.
Rating: S
After getting a amazing ride on Mystic Timbers, we headed back to the restrooms near BLSC yet again to meet my sister and Friend B, who thanks to Fright Lane had done all the Haunts in the park. They liked CHAOS the best. We discussed riding Beast again, but Friend A wanted to ride Diamondback at night badly. My sister's friend and her boyfriend decided it was time to leave now, as it was after 11pm and they wanted to get home, but we wanted to do 1 more ride. We ended up choosing Diamondback, per Friend A's request.
Ride #19: Diamondback #4 (Night)
Wait: 30 Minutes
There were actually more people in line than earlier, but thankfully the Fast Lane clog was gone, and the crew was still doing a epic job with dispatches. So the wait was about the same. Like everything else at night, Diamondback was epic. It wasn't as secluded as Beast or Mystic Timbers (mainly because it comes up and reminds you that you are in a amusement park) but it still had some very dark sections, and the airtime was great. It was also very smooth, and because of that the ride was somewhat relaxing in a way. Kings Island has so many rides that give epic night rides, and they are all very different.
Rating: S
After Diamondback, we headed to the Eiffel Tower as my sister wanted to go up for 1 last view. Oh, wait, the eyes were on...IT IS EVIL TOWER, MWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
Ride #20: Eiffel (Evil) Tower #2 (Night)
Wait: Walk-On
The views of the park at night, with fog all around and all lit up, were cool. The atmosphere of the park in general was great. I also saw the parking lot, it looked like it was gonna be much easier to leave versus how it was preview night. (Again not gonna rate this because it is not really a traditional ride)
Rating: NR
And after the epic views from above, we headed out of the park after a long but epic day. We saw a few monsters around here, one of them even did a funny gag and slid in and did a pose right after we had a group photo taken, LOL. I'll note I didn't see many monsters around 6pm when Haunt began, but more came out as the night went on. Now finally, here are the Pros/Cons of this trip:
PROS
+Awesome Rides
+Ride Ops Doing a AMAZING Job on multiple rides (Especially The "Big 4"), in spite of the crowds this helped keep waits do-able
+Good Food
+Amazing Park Atmosphere, especially during Haunt
+Light Crowds Early
CONS
-Huge Crowds during Haunt, which also attracted a few idiots (Like the person filming on Beast)
-Fast Lane Clog at Diamondback
-Price of Mac N' Cheese Bar (It's good, but $13 for a simple bowl? The LaRosa's we had later was a MUCH better value IMO)
-Firehawk having issues, preventing me from taking last rides. Makes me further accept and understand why the park wants to get rid of it.
Anyhow, that is it. Comments and questions welcome! McSalsa away!
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Someone on Reddit looked this video up, and I agree that given that Firehawk is about to leave KI, it makes sense to share it. Here is how X-Flight was introduced way back in 2001. BUT BEWARE: LOTS AND LOTS OF 90'S/EARLY 2000'S CHEESINESS!
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So, the rumors were true. It was Firehawk. Now, let's see what Kentucky Flyer turns out to be. Also I am expecting a construction fence in X-Base...is it still even that anymore? Flight of Fear gonna be the only ride back there next year. Basically it's just gonna be the Flight of Fear area again, as it was from 1996-2006.
Firehawk was a decent coaster, I did like it, but I can understand why the park is removing it. Firehawk had to have been a maintenance nightmare, and it was known for breaking down a lot. And if Vekoma really did back off on the support for the model, then well, that probably made this decision easy for the park.
Also, odd fact: this will be the first coaster I have ever ridden that went defunct. I have been on flat rides and stuff that went defunct, but no roller coasters (I didn't seriously begin riding them until 2009 and missed Son of Beast)...until now. I am kinda surprised it will be Firehawk of all coasters getting that title. I am planning on going to Kings Island with a group of friends for haunt this weekend, so I will probably get my final rides in this weekend.
Oh and finally:
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2 minutes ago, SonofBaconator said:
@McSalsa According to their website, Vekoma still has the Flying Dutchman on their product list so I don't think spare parts are as hard to come by as people think.
https://www.vekoma.com/index.php/experience-thrill-coasters/flying-dutchman
Hmm. Interesting- though that one does look like it is using the newer Vekoma track. Also IMO, for a flying coaster that layout looks pretty good, with the dive loop and zero-G roll. Those elements are fun on Banshee and I'd imagine they would be fun on a flying coaster. And since this is using newer track, I'd imagine it'd be smoother than Firehawk is to boot.
That does damage the rumor that parts aren't being made, if Vekoma does still offer the model. Though the SBNO status of Batwing still suggests something went wrong there this year, and Firehawk is known to not be the most reliable coaster ever. I guess we will have to wait and see what happens when the park does make the final announcements this week, and when Kentucky Kingdom finally reveals Kentucky Flyer. I'm probably gonna go to the park this weekend, so I hope I know by then so I know which ride to focus on getting those last rides in on.
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Hmm. Just saw DeltaFlyer's post (glanced over it due to how many posts are here first time) and that is VERY interesting that apparently no demolition companies are involved. I will also note that I cannot confirm if Vekoma is still making parts for Flying Dutchmen or not, it was just a rumor I heard and it could be false (not sure why any company that makes coasters and coaster parts would do that- if that is the case Vekoma is hurting themselves BADLY because this is gonna turn-off companies like Six Flags or Cedar Fair), though Vekoma may have simply raised the prices or something (Flying Dutchmen parts may need to be "special ordered" due to the model's rarity- Since Batwing is still down, Six Flags seems like they don't want to pay for this as well.) If they still are making parts, just at higher prices, then the relocation to Kentucky Kingdom theory gains a little traction. It could just be Cedar Fair isn't willing to pay that much to upkeep Firehawk anymore, especially with the recent struggles and cuts, so they put it up for sale and Kentucky Kingdom is willing to put in the money to maintain this ride if they acquired it for fairly cheap. While it does help a competitor (to some extent- not sure how much a used coaster is gonna boost Kentucky Kingdom), Cedar Fair may just have wanted to get rid of the expensive-to-run Firehawk and make some money from the sale at the same time, plus this does open a big chunk of land for Kings Island to add something big, probably the rumored 2020 B&M (and any money made by selling Firehawk can negate a bit of the expenses of the new coaster). And Kentucky Kingdom gets to advertise their "new" flying coaster without needing to spend the huge cost to actually build a new coaster, though maintenance will probably still cost a lot. Though in that way it'd kind of be like a wooden coaster: cheap to buy, but more expensive to maintain.
Also, since no demolition companies were listed on that list, if that's the case than every Arrow in the park is safe because there is no way Cedar Fair is re-selling any of those because Arrow welded their track together, and all of them are very old. Plus they all use terrain so any park that would buy them would need custom terrain. All the Arrows at Kings Island are probably gonna be demolished, not re-located, when their time does come.
This whole offseason, in the span of 1 week, has IMO gotten pretty crazy all of a sudden. So many theories.
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The more I look into this, the more I think it's Firehawk that's gonna leave. Apparently, rumor is, Vekoma has STOPPED supplying parts for some of their unpopular older models, and the Flying Dutchman, and since these models are so rare it is now a huge pain in the rear end to get parts. Six Flags America's Flying Dutchman, Batwing, has been closed since at least July, and apparently will be down the rest of the year as well according to Six Flags' website:
https://www.sixflags.com/america/attractions/thrill-rides
If the Kentucky Kingdom buying Firehawk rumor is also true, then Kentucky Kingdom may have just made a very stupid mistake, buying a used coaster it will be very tough to get parts for (though I don't think they are that dumb and this rumor could easily be false- Kentucky Flyer could be a flat ride). It may also be the case that Cedar Fair is scrapping Firehawk just so they can keep Nighthawk at Carowinds running a few more years, and rumor has it this was part of the reason they also scrapped Stinger at Dorney Park (so Invertigo at Kings Island can have spare parts for a while longer, the Invertigo model is another one parts have stopped being made for according to the rumor).
In comparison, Arrow Looping Coasters, while rough, are very easy to gets parts for due to how common they are and how simple their core design is. Vortex needs new wheels? Very easy to get new ones. Firehawk needs new wheels? Uh-oh. And this could also mean Invertigo, while probably safe for now, may also not be too long for this world as eventually the spare parts they likely ripped from Stinger will run out, and it is also a rare model, unless a 3rd party starts making parts for it, but with so few Invertigo models out there (4 according to RCDB) that may not happen.
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Put me in the same boat as Rivertown Rider: Beast, with Banshee a close 2nd behind it. I'd say The Bat probably has the worst sign of all the rides that have them (I don't think Flight of Fear, for example, even has one right now) since it is literally paper attached to a metal pole, though I think The Bat's logo itself is fine.
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I am leaning Firehawk as well, due to maintenance reasons, but will admit Vortex is getting really old and its popularity is dropping bit by bit every year (though I'd still be surprised to see it going before some of the other, less popular Arrow loopers that are still hanging around). WindSeeker could be another option but it doesn't take up much space, though at over 300 feet tall it easily fits the "big" bill.
Though depending on which one does leave, affects what I think will replace it, though TBH for WindSeeker I can't think of anything ATM. We have good evidence the 2020 project is gonna be a B&M thanks to leaked documents. If Firehawk goes, its location is prime for the long-rumored Giga coaster, and they can expand the X-Base area with a gift shop, restaurant, or even the much requested bathrooms. Though Firehawk's spot is VERY open, so pretty much anything B&M makes could technically fit there.
For The Vortex location, it's a little more cramped. A Giga may not fit, you have Racer and WindSeeker (if that sticks around) on 1 side and Diamondback and eventually Mystic Timbers on the other. The spot is large enough for a Dive Coaster, Floorless, or Wing Coaster though. TBH I could see a Dive Coaster working very well in that spot, have it face the Eiffel Tower and Diamondback before the drop and you have a epic view. Though I imagine with almost everyone thinking "GIGA!" everytime, if we got one of those 3 options people would still be miffed. Heck, they'd be miffed if it was a Giga just because it's likely a B&M ("BUT I WANTED A RMC T-REX GIGA!!!").
I feel really bad for VortexBFForever though. From what I have gathered, she loves all 3 of the rides this "hint" probably suggests are getting removed. Also, I am curious why they would tease a ride removal like this, you would think they'd just be straight-up like: "Yo, we are removing (Insert Ride Here) at the end of this season, ride it as much as possible during Haunt 2018 before it goes." And then have a Mean Streak-esque funeral on closing day of Haunt.
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Also a giveaway: Valravn's cars seat 8 across, this is only 6 across.
Cedar Fair Ohio Coaster Battle Tournament 2K18 Edition
in KI Polls
Posted
You did, mostly. Forgot to bold Rougarou and Mystic Timbers and "cross-out"
(like this)their opponents though, as they hit 10 votes. Also since NewDy420 said they were voting the same way as Maverick44 I looked at how he voted and gave all the same rides +1, so here are the up-to-date standings:Millennium Force (10) vs.
Great Pumpkin Coaster (3)Top Thrill Dragster (11) vs.
Wilderness Run (1)Steel Vengeance (10) vs.
Flying Ace Aerial Chase (2)Diamondback (11) vs.
Woodstock Express CP (1)The Beast (10) vs.
Woodstock Express KI (3)Magnum XL-200 (10) vs.
Backlot Stunt Coaster (2)Banshee (10) vs.
Cedar Creek Mine Ride (2)Valravn (6) vs. Adventure Express (9)
GateKeeper (5)vs. Blue Streak (10)Vortex (10) vs.
Iron Dragon (3)Maverick (10) vs.
The Bat (2)Raptor (9) vs.
Invertigo (5)Rougarou (10) vs.
Corkscrew (4)Gemini (5) vs. Flight of Fear (9)
Wicked Twister (6) vs. The Racer (9)
Firehawk (4)vs. Mystic Timbers (10)Once Valravn vs. AE, Gemini vs. FOF, and Wicked Twister vs. Racer are done this poll will move onto Round 2.