McSalsa

Oof. Blood Drums was awesome, I am gonna miss it. It was one of my favorite things about Haunt the last few years. Last year I still vividly remember riding Diamondback and they had a huge pyro effect go off just as our train came out of the splash zone into the final brakes, then while we got "stacked" on the brake run for a few minutes I watched (could not really see the show but could see the colors and hear it) and listened to the show so it wasn't a problem.

Valravn has reopened today, but is only running 2 trains. Thus it has a huge wait, from what I heard. Source: CP Rundown on Facebook

^ Not at the park, but via the wbecams, Diamondback looks like a 15-20 minute wait. So it probably isn't too packed, unless everyone has gone to Soak City.

I can think of ONE: Holiday World, for their 60th anniversary in 2006, added The Voyage along with the entire Thanksgiving Section of the park. That's it though, I don't know any others.

Using a Youtube Doubler, I can vouch: if this recreation is anywhere near accurate, both the 2020 KI Giga and Leviathan have the exact same length (in time) from their drop to when they hit the final brakes: http://youtubedoubler.com/?video1=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DqIrBVVxg_XE&start1=105&video2=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dey2PeEL12W0&start2=58&authorName=Polaris+vs+Levi Edit: Just re-watched the doubler, and the KI Giga was a second or so longer. Might just be a timing error. Still, a mere second or two longer is "about the same length" in my book.

I don't count Mammoth and Wildebeest as roller coasters, though if I did, they would both probably have a great shot at my Top 10. I like both of them even more than Raven & Thunderbird, and I think Raven and Thunderbird are great rides! I'm not normally huge into waterslides- especially if there are big waits for them- but I'll happily wait for those two.

I love this color scheme. (The red and black is also cool and would be my #2 pick)

Hi everyone! Welcome to the 3rd McSalsa Trip Report of 2019, for Sunday May 26th 2019. If this feels like it came a bit outta nowhere, it kinda did- we planned this trip a mere 2 days in advance! And I went on a new ride I had never been on before at KI, so thus the ride rating system must be mentioned: RIDE RATING SYSTEM (For New Un-ridden rides or major updates only) 10=ZOMG THIS RIDE IS EPIC 9=I Adore This Ride 8=I Really Like This Ride 7=This Ride is Fun, I Like It 6=It's OK Enough, Will Ride Again 5=Meh, No Feelings Either Way for Various Reasons 4=Ehh, Kinda Bad 3=Yuck, Bad 2=POO, THIS RIDE SUX 1=SUPER POO, THIS RIDE SUX EVEN HARDER! 0=WHO MADE THIS MONSTROSITY!?!? Anyhow, let's begin the trip report itself! I was with my sister and the one friend who we have been helping get over his fear of roller coasters the last 2 years, the other friend who is usually with us may have broken his toe a few days ago (he is not 100% sure if it is or not- he has a appointment with a doctor in a few days) so he skipped this trip. We left our house (which we just moved into) at around 7:30AM, but we didn't get to the park until 9:50AM, so no time for Beast ERT. So instead we (me and my sister, our friend as you may know cannot do inversions) went and rode Banshee, as seeing it test from I-Street made it look tempting. There was not wait either, and we rode in the very back. Banshee was running great, especially for so early in the morning. Smooth (other than the usual slight vibration Banshee seems to get), fast, and forceful. A great first ride choice. Next, we headed over to The Bat, which was fun but did feel a bit like it had the early morning sluggishness as it didn't feel as fast as usual. Still, beats having it closed all day like it was opening day. After The Bat, we headed into Oktoberfest/Coney Mall, as our friend wanted to ride Viking Fury. The Festhaus went off right as we showed up, so we watched it for a bit- I was glad to see it fully working, as I had watched CoasterBob62's Coasterstock video from this year not long before this trip and noticed the lady on the left of the 2 guests drinking beer was not working in that video, but here she (and everything else) was working fine. We then rode Viking Fury, which was fun but I didn't find it very intense- then again I have ridden and compare it, possibly unfairly, to Skyhawk and Wicked Twister and stuff. And Viking Fury my sister and our friend wanted to smoke, so I went over and rode Red Racer (Blue was not running). It was running pretty rough (I was even on a non-wheel seat), but had very good airtime. Also it appears they are getting ready to start pouring the footers for Project X (Aka 2020 Coaster). After riding, I headed back to the group, and we rode Adventure Express. This was one of the smoothest feeling rides I have ever gotten on AE, and the spear effects in the 2nd tunnel were working. AE probably could benefit from a good restoration though. Then we went and rode Red Racer again- and there was a barf train. Uck. I rode in a different train, but same seat, and I think the roughness I felt on the 1st ride was due to that train- this one felt a LOT smoother but still had the solid airtime. After Red Racer (2nd ride) we headed over and me and my sister rode Flight of Fear (our friend again sat it out- he can't do loops unless they are super few and fast like on Maverick). I was a bit shocked to find the ride a near walk-on given FOF is pretty popular usually- I thought Memorial Day weekend was supposed to be packed! FOF was running pretty crazy- this feels like the 2nd most intense FOF ride I have ever had, behind only the time during Haunt 2016 when I rode it with the MCBR off! It was super forceful and violent. And fun. We got off FOF and headed back into Coney Mall, where my friend and sister wanted to smoke so I rode Vortex which neither of them did. I missed not being able to ride this one a lot on opening weekend, and it was running great. I rode from 7-1, and while there was some headbanging, I didn't find it too much and loved the airtime on the drop, the forcefulness of the inversions, and the general twisty insanity. After I got off and met back up, my sister had talked our friend into trying WindSeeker of all things. We boarded the ride, and he actually was OK with it! I also got a great look at the 2020 construction. It was a fun trip 270 feet in the air (I heard the ride ops say 250, but based on how the tower is 301, I think 270 is more accurate for how high you go). Our friend did need to smoke again afterwards so I went and rode Vortex again. Hey, might as well, I didn't get to ride it once on opening weekend- even took 7-1 again. I found the left side of the train was smoother versus the right, at least for me. I also saw even Beast and Diamondback had short lines while riding Vortex. Once again...isn't Memorial Day weekend supposed to be CROWDED? Guess not, at least this time. Which is a great thing for me! One Vortex ride later, seeing a short line for Beast was making me crave it, but first we hit up Backlot Stunt Coaster as it was right there. BLSC was running pretty fast, as it seemed the rides had all broken in at this point. The 1st helix actually made me a little queasy! After BLSC, my cravings were satisfied as we rode The Beast next. It was the usual bumpy, fast journey through the woods of Ohio. I could clearly see the clearing for Project 2020 though, so I do fear that is gonna affect Beast rides as I am pretty sure you are gonna be able to easily see it, especially if it has a big light on it (which will really affect night rides if the light bleeds over). After Beast, we headed over and got a locker to ride Mystic Timbers. Mystic was also running pretty fast and had good airtime. In The Shed, I got the Cars+Snakes combo. After Mystic Timbers, we got on Diamondback, riding from near the back of the train as usual. LOTS of airtime, and pretty strong airtime too! Maybe not as crazy as at the end of Opening Day, but not far off. After DB, we headed into Planet Snoopy, where I was reminded of something. There is a coaster credit at KI I have never claimed... NEW RIDE: Flying Ace Aerial Chase Yep, in all my visits to KI since 2009, I have never ridden this coaster. Until now. And...I think it's pretty bad. I know it's a kids coaster, so I could forgive the lack of intensity, but WHY IS THIS SO ROUGH? There was almost non-stop shuffling. Vortex is buttery smooth in comparison. At least the restraints were very comfortable so no headbanging or pain. Still, if this is how a Vekoma kiddie invert is, I dread to see what the big SLC's are like... Rating: 4/10 After riding that shockingly rough coaster, we headed into the petting zoo. It doesn't have as many animals as Cedar Point's, but this is still a fun attraction for anyone who loves animals. Then we rode Surf Dog, which was fun. Coaster or not, I will ride that 1000x over Flying Ace. Then we returned to the locker, got our stuff, and my sister and friend wanted to smoke again so I went and rode Diamondback again since Mystic Timbers had a line. It was about the same as earlier, but I did wait a bit longer as a slight line had built up and the dispacthes were a bit slower too. Then we went out to the car, as we had brought our swimming gear to visit the waterpark. Also, the time at this point? 1PM! I HAD BEEN ON NEARLY EVERY BIG RIDE AND IT WAS NOT EVEN LATE AFTERNOON YET! Swim trunks in bag (in hand), I returned to the park and we headed to the waterpark via the KI & MV Railroad. I went into the changing rooms and got changed, came out, and when we put our stuff in our locker we heard...Meowing? And it sounded like it was from inside a locker! I hunted down a security guard, and we analysed the situation and...the cat was just a stray who lived at Kings Island. S/He wasn't in the lockers, but behind them. Never got to see the cat though. Also, our friend opened our locker and my sister's phone was in there and not secure...and it fell and crakced. Thankfully, she has insurance on it, but it'll be a week before the tech guy comes. Ouch. And then, at the same time, some storms begin to roll in and everything in the waterpark shut down for a good 10-15 minutes. My sister and friend got in line for Mondo Monsoon, the huge funnel, when they began prepping it to re-open but I forgot my glasses strap so I had to run back and grab it. Then it re-opened right as I got back and the line was too long at that point, so I went to the observation area and just watched my friends ride it. We then headed into the Older Wave Pool for a bit, and then headed for the Lazy River. We got in line for it and...it shut down again due to another storm coming. My sister thinks these storms could have been a big reason for the low crowds, and she could have been right. We gave up on the waterpark, changed again, and headed back to the dry park and then our car (once again using the train). We discussed some stuff, and seeing rides in Action Zone running, we decided to go there. We talked our friend into trying Drop Tower...and he backed out. I tried to ride it by myself, and was ready to ride the next cycle and...weather closes everything again. We split up for a bit, I stayed near Drop Tower to see if it would re-open, while they decided to check AE (which was also closed). We were pretty hungry at this point (we did snack in the car) so when I found out my group had gone to Skyline Chilli I-Street, I went over and met them and got a single Chilli Dog. It was good and much needed at this point. Afterwards, I headed back towards Action Zone and...Banshee TESTING! I called my sister who also saw it, and we met up again. Drop Tower was also prepping to re-open but needed a mechanic to come and reset the ride (Intaminitis strikes again! All other rides re-opened almost instantly), then we watched a test cycle and then we boarded the ride. A minute or so later, we were nearly 300 feet in the air, facing the park (I got seat #8 again which IMO has a amazing view) and then we dropped. Our friend survived it and would ride again, but his heart rate was over 140! After Drop Tower, they went and smoked for a bit, and then we watched Gravity. It was pretty much the same as I remember it being in 2018, but that's not a bad thing: this show is awesome! There was a botch of two (by one person), but I can forgive that- the feats they are doing aren't easy. If you have not seen Gravity (it is in the Kings Island theatre in front of Invertigo for any one who needs to know), go see it on your next KI visit if at all possible! After Gravity, we headed to Coney Mall and rode Blue Racer since it had opened. It was drizzling a bit, but not raining. On Blue Racer- I can see what people mean by the turnaround feeling weird. I would not call it rough- the car just vibrates oddly and makes a weird sound, it doesn't violently shake or anything. It does feel like maybe the wood they used for this "new" section is different or something. I would still perfer Blue Racer to Red this year though, it is not trimmed (Red still is) and thus you get much more airtime on the return run. After Blue Racer, we went over to The Beast and got a sunset ride, and on the way saw a huge rainbow that went from Racer/Zephyr to WindSeeker! It faded by the time we reached WindSeeker though- would have been awesome to ride WindSeeker and see a rainbow. So we headed over and rode The Beast, and took front row (I sat behind my group in 1-2). As it had just drizzled, you could really smell the woods, even when the ride was going full speed. And the moist cool air felt awesome to blast through. Beast may be a coaster with a lot of straight track and not too many elements, but it really is more of a "sensory" coaster. I can't think of another ride I have been on where the SMELLS of the ride made it better. Yet ANOTHER awesome ride on a KI Classic. No night ride this trip though as we had other plans (hence why we took a Sunset ride- at least that is still different from a day ride). After Beast, we took and 2nd ride on BLSC. It was even crazier than earlier in the day! I wasn't hungry this time so no queasiness, but it was even more forceful and I even got a good amount of airtime on a few of the drops! BLSC may not be a huge monster coaster, but it can still pack a punch. After BLSC, we headed towards the Eiffel Tower but saw the elevator get stuck for a minute near the top, so we said nope and continued on to International Street, and rested for a bit watching a show (I grabbed a quick soda). Then we went to Sweet Spot, and got the fudge ice cream cone candies- I ate one, it was very good, and for the price I can easily reccomend it. Then we headed to Action Zone to kill some time before the fireworks show. My friends wanted to smoke one last time, so I rode Delirium. It was a fun ride as usual, swinging and spinning. It being dark out also made it even better. Then me and my sister rode Banshee at night (very back once again), and while it was already running good in the morning, now it was HAULING. The cool air in my face, the intensity, the inversions, the tombstones along the ride...it was all awesome. Then, for our last ride, we grabbed our friend again and rode The Bat. This is a really underrated night ride, it is very dark in this area and thus it really feels like you are a bat swinging and flying among the trees, looking for bugs to eat. And with that...a record is broken! 27 rides in 1 day is the best I have ever done, beating out a day last April where I rode 25 in 1 day. With our riding done, we headed back to I-Street for the fireworks show. I thought it was great- I like how the updated fountains sync up with it now, and the lights on them are very nice (the big lights above now only light the buildings). There were some sections of the show where they did nothing though, so I wonder if there are still technical issues they are working out as these fountains are technically still pretty new. The new song was good, though TBH I am gonna miss "The Greatest Show". Also there is a new "park is closing spiel", sounds like the same guy who is "The Undertaker" during Haunt does it. And with that, we left the park and headed home. Once again, Kings Island was AWESOME and provided tons of fun. Now for my usual Pros/Cons...: PROS +Light Crowds All Day...uhh, aren't holiday weekends supposed to be bad? I broke a personal record! +Many rides were running great +Dispatches were also pretty good all day, which may have also helped keep lines down +Gravity was still awesome the 2nd time (even with some minor botches) +The park looks beautiful with nice landscaping and scenery CONS -Storms during the afternoon that shut rides down but didn't even touch the park (not park's fault) -A few dirty bathrooms -Flying Ace Aerial Chase is a bad ride IMO And that does it for yet another McSalsa Trip Report! As usual, comments and questions welcome. My next trip is probably gonna be KI again, in 3-5 weeks, for the upcoming Grand Carnivale. MCSALSA AWAY! (Transforms into a bat and flies away, only to smack into a brick wall) Ouch! PS: I am glad I decided to change my TR style and not do sections for every ride- this trip report would take a billion hours to make/read I feel if I did that!

I can share my early memories of KI- at least what I remember. I was 10 years old, and it was the summer of 2000. (Probably August) We got lost on the way to the park and had to get directions, but we made it. It was a big family trip- we had at least 10+ people, probably more. The big new ride (which I was seeing advertised on TV) was Son of Beast. As we were on the way to Kings Island, I was so sure I was gonna ride it, given I had ridden Hoosier Hurricane at Indiana Beach 1 year before and it was fine. Then we got to the park and I actually saw Son of Beast. For reference, Hoosier Hurricane is about 78 feet tall. Son of Beast was 218. Yeah, I chickened out- and about a decade later, when I finally got the courage to start riding big coasters...Son of Beast closed for good. I do remember watching Son of Beast from the Eiffel Tower though- I went up there 3 times total that day! I really enjoyed the Eiffel Tower. Still do. Also, my first ride ever at Kings Island was...Atom Ant's Airways. Now it is known as Sally's Sea Plane. I also vividly remember King Cobra. Never rode it either, but I remember just standing on the walkway where Sling Shot is now where that big loop went right past the path. As a kid, I thought that looked very cool. I was actually a bit shocked to learn the entire ride would be gone just 2 years later. Also, seeing the sheer size of SOB made me nervous even on the smaller coasters. What was then The Beastie (now Woodstock Express) gave me a bit of a scare, and Racer was flat-out terrifying to 10-year-old me because I didn't realize what airtime was. I also recall watching my Mother ride Drop Zone, and we saw some show in the Kings Island Theater (I think it was a musical show about monsters in movies). I also remember not being able to really see most of Beast- if only I knew to look BEHIND Vortex back then from the Eiffel Tower. It was a fun trip- TBH, I am a bit shocked I can remember as much of it as I do. That says something.

I would be OK with grey track, as long as it has blue supports. See the color scheme Afterburn @ Carowinds has (I like this paint job): (Image From Wikipedia) I would probably still prefer the reverse (Blue Track and Silver Supports) though. Also, dang I missed a LOT today. I guess that "leaked" layout was legit, which matches the clearing and everything. While the stats could be better, I feel I have ridden enough coasters already to realize stats are not everything (Mystic Timbers is awesome, and it didn't break a single record. Neither did Maverick.). And a 301-foot drop just barley beats out Millennium Force, which is a whopper of a drop anyhow, and while this coaster isn't going to be as long as Millennium Force, the elements are probably gonna be much better (Millennium Force is basically 90% overbanked turns with 2 giant airtime hills that give OK-to-good airtime and then 1 awesome speed ejector airtime hill) while this coaster is probably gonna have a much more feature-packed layout (with various overbanked airtime hills and such). Even if it just evens out and we get a coaster that is as good as Millennium Force, that is still one heck of a addition to KI's lineup (and could still be the best ride in the park). And the 3rd major ground-up coaster added in just 6 years. Very few parks can make the same claim: Cedar Point itself can only claim that if you count Steel Vengeance, which was not fully ground-up (but did cost a lot I have heard).

As suggested by @CoasterMegRN in the decoding 2020 thread, they thought this would be a interesting topic for discussion. Since it is technically kinda a poll, I put in in polls, but if a mod feels this is out of place they can probably move it. This one is simple. What are your current Top 10 coasters? What makes you like each one so much, if you wanna explain it? Also the total # of coasters you have ridden (doesn't need to be 100% accurate if you don't keep lists- just a guess) might be useful for others. Also your list doesn't even need to be ranked, if you want you can just pick 10 of your favorite rides and have them unsorted. And you can go from #1 to #10, or go upwards from 10 for "dramatic effect" (like I am gonna). And you can split up Steel and Wood, etc, or keep them together. With all this said- here is my current list. Note I have only been to 3 parks in recent years (since 2009)- Kings Island, Cedar Point, and Holiday World and have only ridden 35 (by my count) coasters...still, getting on my Top 10 already isn't that easy! #10- The Legend @ Holiday World Holiday World has 4 coasters (and 2 epic water coasters that are not eligible for this list despite their awesomeness) , and all 4 are well reviewed by most, but Legend is usually the one people seem to shaft. However, I love this ride, and think it's better than Raven or Thunderbird (spoiler: they didn't make my Top 10 even though I really like both! I told you this list wasn't that easy)! This CCI wooden creation features a epic curved 113 foot drop into a tunnel, some nice airtime hills under water slides, VERY powerful laterals (strongest of ANY coaster I have ridden so far besides a Wild Mouse at the Indiana State Fair) and it has a cool double helix (with tunnels like Beast) and 4 lateral-heavy (though a bit tamed in recent years but not too much) final turns. It is also pretty smooth for a nearly 20-year-old woodie thanks to the GCI retrack in 2016. #9- Mystic Timbers @ Kings Island Kings Island's current newest coaster (soon to no longer be true) is another great wooden coaster. On paper, the stats don't look like much- 109 feet tall is OK height for a woodie, but 53mph? And only about as long as Racer? However, Mystic Timbers packs a punch in spite of its small size. It starts with another curved drop, and then it is airtime hill after airtime hill, with some pretty good air to boot, and in what is now standard for GCI, there is not a single foot of straight track: it's all either a drop, twist, or turn and it's all in a wooded setting. The only real knock I have on this coaster is the short length, and yes, the "shed" ending is just a glorified brake run. But they did put more detail in that shed than you may first expect, and it has kinda grown on me a bit since 2017. If I am ever at Kings Island, odds are, I'm gonna go in that shed a few more times. #8- Top Thrill Dragster @ Cedar Point Well, I usually don't like super short roller coasters unless they really do something cool to overcome that shortness, and this one is only 17 seconds long...yet the fact TTD makes it to my #8 spot should say a lot. This coaster has the height and speed in spades: at 420 feet tall and 120mph, it is the tallest and fastest coaster I have ever ridden. The sheer size of this ride alone is enough to intimidate, making it a bit like Drop Tower where the scariest part isn't even part of "the ride": it's when you are on the launch track, waiting to launch. The catch car latches on, you pull back...and then you feel the pressure of insane G-force as you rocket to 120mph. As you shoot 400 feet in the air, you feel relief from the G's and stare into the sky, but then you see Millennium Force and plummet to the ground, doing a twist on the way down! Then comes the finish sign, and the ride is over. It is only a 17 second ride, but it is a very epic 17 seconds. #7- Diamondback @ Kings Island Kings Island's current tallest and fastest coaster (also possibly won't be true much longer) stands 230 feet tall and goes a claimed 80mph. However, as you plummet down the 215-foot first drop, especially if in one of the rear cars, Diamondback's focus will become clear: this coaster is designed for maximum sustained airtime. On a slow day (usually in the early AM hours), it's just good floater, but when the coaster is warmed up and running well it becomes very strong, sometimes even giving what feels like sustained ejector air! The coaster is also very smooth, and the B&M clamshell restraints are the most comfortable I have ever ridden with so far. The splashdown at the end is also nice, though it is only for off-ride viewers mostly. #6- Magnum XL-200 @ Cedar Point Yep- as much as I love Diamondback, I still (barely) perfer the OG Hypercoaster Arrow made in 1989. Magnum XL-200 isn't as smooth as Diamondback, which is gonna be a given since it's 20 years older and a Arrow, but I never felt it was too rough and thus this added to the charm. The first drop has a epic view of Lake Erie, CP Shores, and the beach- though not much airtime even from the back cars. However, Magnum XL-200 seemingly gets more and more intense with each element- something Diamondback does not. By the time you are in the pretzel knot, you get some great positive G's. But then come the airtime hills on the return run- oh man, these hills are why I have this coaster this high: welcome to the ejector air buffet! And some of the hills are IN TUNNELS- always a plus in my book. Just be sure to try and leave some room on the lap bar for your thighs: in classic Arrow fashion, they used Mine Train style cars on this ride (a straight lap bar with ejector air!?!?). Still, it's very much worth it, IMO. #5- The Beast @ Kings Island This massive wooden behemoth opened 40 years ago, and is still one of Kings Island's more popular attractions, and is probably its most famous. Yet it is also controversial- some people adore it, others hate it. It isn't your typical woodie by any stretch: there is only 1 airtime hill that rarely gives even a whiff of air, the big drops are more like ramps, the ride is mostly long swooping curves, and there are some annoying trim brakes along the course. However, it is very fast for a woodie (even with the trims) and it basically runs with the theme of "big wooden coaster rampages through woods at high speed". The roughness- so long as it isn't too much, I try to avoid very back wheel seats but front and middle are OK- can actually add to the ride's out-of-control feeling. It's also a very long ride- still the world's longest 40 years later. Then the double helix at the end is pure insanity, few coasters have anything nearly that intense (and this is WITH a trim brake!). And while this leads to ride I very much enjoy when the sun is up, The Beast must be ridden at night to get the full experience- when the sun is gone, the woods become pitch black, and The Beast goes from a good ride to a epic journey where each element (yes even the double helix) feels even more intense than in the daylight. #4- Millennium Force @ Cedar Point Millennium Force is kinda the steel version of Beast in that it also focuses on speed. Since it is a butter smooth "modern" coaster- unlike Beast which shakes and rumbles because it's a old woodie- Millennium Force must go higher and faster to get a good sensation of speed: and boy, it does. The lift stands a mammoth 310 feet tall, with a 300 foot drop at 80 degrees- my favorite first drop on ANY coaster I have been on thus far due to this sheer size. Then you go 93mph, and the overbanked turns begin. If these turns were not as high, I imagine this ride would pull a lot of strong G's (Intimidator 305 style), but then it would probably not be liked by the GP as much. The ride also offers some decent airtime hills, it's not as good as the hypers I have been on but it's solid and here the airtime hills aren't the focus, it is the speed. The coaster also runs through the woods and into tunnels twice, which are neat features. Cedar Point has built many more coasters since this opened in 2000, and yet this one remains very popular: and for good reason, IMO. #3- The Voyage @ Holiday World A more modern take on what Beast tried to create in the 1970s- a huge, super long wooden coaster- but with a much more eventful layout in terms of elements. Voyage has immense size for a wooden coaster- 159 feet tall, 6400+ feet long, and a 67mph top speed- just like Beast, but it starts with 3 huge airtime hills similar to what Diamondback has, and then it features some very twisty sections similar to Mystic Timbers (with PTC trains instead of GCI though so it is a bit more awkward). And like Beast, it is buried in the woods (though Thunderbird's addition in 2015 dug into them somewhat). There is a lot of airtime here too- 24+ seconds in fact, according to the "official" stats. It can be very rough if caught on a bad day, but my 2 rides in 2018 were both pretty smooth and when this coaster is running well it is clearly among the best in the world. It also, once again like Beast, gives a epic night ride...if you can get one with Holiday World's weird hours. #2- Maverick @ Cedar Point Maverick proves you don't need to be stupidly tall or fast to give a intense, thrilling ride. Maverick stands only 105 feet tall, and while the ride has a top speed of 70mph, for most of the ride you are probably going closer to 50-55. However, Maverick packs a punch: it starts with a LAUNCH LIFT HILL. Granted, it's only about 20mph, but still. This is followed by a beyond vertical drop and then come many twists, turns, and some great airtime hills: the big airtime hill in the 1st half is awesome and usually gives great ejector air. Then come two corkscrew-style flips. After that when some might think the ride is almost over, you launch at 70mph out of a tunnel (then get trimmed down to 55) into more twists, turns, and airtime hills before the ride finally stops. This bucking Bronco was my favorite ride at Cedar Point and #1 overall at the end of 2017, but then... #1- Steel Vengeance @ Cedar Point ....some Outlaws showed up, seekin' Vengeance for Maverick's crimes! The former Mean Streak (which I never rode BTW) has been transformed into a monster hybrid coaster, with steel track on wooden supports. In this transformation the ride became taller (205 feet tall), faster (74mph), longer (5400+ feet), and elements which were very tame on Mean Streak became insane on the new ride. And while there were some hiccups (trains bumping, hot sauce, and whatnot) the overall ride experience seems to be a smash hit with nearly everyone...me included. This coaster has it all. It's huge, fast, intense, and it has tons of airtime everywhere- and a lot of it is Magnum XL-200 level airtime! Add 4 inversions- 2 of which are in the final section in the huge wooden structure- and you have a true winner. This is the only RMC I have ridden so far, but if they are anything like this on their other rides, I can see why the company is so hyped. And that is my personal current Top 10, as of May 2019. This will probably change as I go to more parks in the future, obviously. Also this is just a "template" feel free to make your own lists less detailed (or more) if you want as stated above. Enjoy the poll/discussion!

One note on this: Six Flags I agree with (they seem to be very heavy into cheaper additions recently so a Giga is clearly not what they'd have in mind) but Busch MIGHT be a chain that sees a Giga in the future. For 2020, they are adding a large Intamin launch coaster at Williamsburg as well as the massive RMC Gwazi (though we don't know how long RMC Gwazi is supposed to be either), and a smaller B&M Dive Coaster in California to boot. I would not be totally shocked if they decided to do a Giga coaster at one of their bigger parks down the line, especially with how serious Busch seems to be on new coasters since Mako opened in 2016. Herschend would be another possible chain to add Gigas, given that Dollywood has added some very big rides this decade like Wild Eagle and Lightning Rod, and they have been building expensive expansions to their parks as well. These are probably the only other chains besides Cedar Fair I could see realistically getting Giga coasters though. Disney and Universal have the money, but they tend to focus heavily on theme, and I don't think you could do a super-themed Giga that easily. And smaller parks like Holiday World and Kentucky Kingdom just don't have the money to blow on a 300-foot roller coaster. Agreed- I really like that concept and his version of the layout. Another Youtuber- CanadaCoasterFan- pointed out his layout has elements from Leviathan (high speed airtime hill and big airtime hill), Fury (Treble Clef), and Shambhala (Weird Giant Helix Thing) which basically makes it seem possible Kings Island just went for the "B&M's Greatest Hyper/Giga Element Hits" with this layout. Record-breaking or not, if that is or is at least close to the layout we are getting, it will be a awesome ride. BTW for those who have not seen CoasterMac305's video, here it is again so you don't need to search a billion (seemingly) pages for it:

Well, reading through this, one thing that pops in my head- I doubt this will be the shortest Giga. Everyone seems to have forgotten this one which is only 5,100 feet long- shorter than Diamondback. https://rcdb.com/4520.htm Also, I remember in 2010 when that coaster opened. It got a lot of the same complaints about being smaller, slower, and shorter than Millennium Force. Edit: Also, if that Polaris animation is anywhere near how the coaster is actually gonna be...that is gonna be a great ride.

WOW- I leave KIC for one day to do other stuff, and this thread exploded. Leaked images, obvious fakes, etc. and everything. But the stuff I have seen that at least looks legit (and matches the current clearing) makes me think a few things: -This is gonna be a bit more like Leviathan, than Fury 325. And much more out-and-back'ish. -Will probably be shorter than Fury 325 as well, by 1000 feet at least. Might be a bit longer than Leviathan, but probably not by too much. (Leviathan is 5,486 feet long) -Though I do think it will be a bit taller than Fury (330 feet or so). They will probably market it as the "tallest and fastest traditional coaster" while Fury 325 will still be able to claim longest steel roller coaster in the USA. -Depending on how fast the coaster is going, that one helix near the end is probably going to be pretty intense. I would still wanna see the official announcement (for exact hill locations, the size and speed each one is taken at, etc.) and obviously ride the new apparently-a-Giga before I make final judgments on it. It'll probably still be a excellent ride though, even if not quite Fury 325 level. And it should at least be a much better, more reliable and higher capacity ride versus what it is replacing (Firehawk). Also I watched a Leviathan POV and it does give me a sense that it does heavily compare to what the leaks suggest.

Wow- Cedar Fair is just killing it this year with nostalgia and stuff. Cedar Point was already gonna do something retro with Corkscrew going back to its 1976 train colors, but now Mine Ride and Magnum XL-200 are also getting some love. I wonder if Magnum XL-200 in particular will get some "Magnum Fun Facts" boards in its que like Beast did. Also, I imagine THIS is what is coming back to Magnum. Dunno how easily the sounds will be noticed though- I imagine the awesomely strong ejector air will be distracting in the final tunnels.

Yeah, while I had a Dive Coaster at #2 most likely a while back, now I'd drop it to #4 most likely. If not a Giga, this is a HUGE Wing Coaster or maybe Floorless. (I think we could be looking at a 200-foot tall and 5000+ foot long version of those coasters) Though at this size, both of those would also be crazy expensive, so I'm thinking this is a Giga since that's what so many have asked for since 2013'ish. I also hope they keep it far enough from Beast that it doesn't mess with the seclusion that ride has- seeing Diamondback after you do the 1st turn outside the long tunnel mid-ride is already kinda jarring.

I know- I've actually ridden Diamondback in the back before. On this night, for whatever reason, it was running even crazier (even better) than usual compared to all my past rides in that same row. Maybe the cold temperatures had something to do with it, I'd guess (maybe the rails shrunk ever-so-slightly due to the cold). I am definitely going to try and get more Diamondback rear car night rides this year after this.

Well, I have rested up, and now it is time for another trip report- Part 2 of Opening "Weekend", Opening Day (For Part 1, which was passholder preview night, see "McSalsa's Coaster Adventures: Drenched"! Since the ride rating system won't be used here either, I won't add it to this post (you can see it in Part 1). Let's begin the trip report! My group (Me+Sister+Same 2 Friends from before) woke up at 6:15AM at our hotel (The Baymont near The Beach) and then we headed over to the Big Boy across the street for breakfast. I got the breakfast burrito combo, which was very good, and I also met many KIC members for the first time. After that, we finished eating and returned to our hotel to grab our stuff and put it up since our stay there was over. Then we headed over to the park at 9:15AM. There was a big line just to get into the park, and then when it opened, we headed in to the renovated Interntaional Street (I miss the pedestals but think everything else looked much better than in 2018 BTW) and then went towards The Beast, as the park was celebrating its 40th Anniversary on this day and was giving out free T-Shirts. We found they had actually made a seperate line for T-Shirts versus ERT riders, too. RIDE #1: The Beast We waited 2 hours for The Beast- 30 for ERT to end, and then 1 1/2 to actually get on the ride. They were eventually using every que (when we got in line it was in the house before the ramp but it got longer), something I have not seen in a long time, and eventually the line even got as far back as Planet Snoopy, I am told. Woah, Beast has not had a line like that in years, I bet! They were assigning seats (due to huge line I expected it) and I was given...the very back seat, 6-3. Oh boy. Lucky for me, it wasn't too painful (maybe a tiny bit of back pain at most) but WOAH, was this ride intense. I was thrown around quite a bit in the turns, and the double helix was pure insanity. Also luckily, there was no rain this time so no rain bullets which kinda hurt the ride yesterday. I'd say this was probably the best ride I have ever gotten on Beast outside of night rides! And yes, I got a T-Shirt, Extra Large though (I wear a Large normally- I can wear the shirt but it is kinda big on me). After a epic ride on The Beast, I broke off from my group (who wanted to smoke for a bit), since I wanted to ride... RIDE #2: Diamondback There was about a 20 minute wait for DB, which was nothing compared to what I just waited for Beast. I rode near the back, and had a fun ride with good airtime, but this would be nothing compared to later. Read on... After Diamondback, I called my sister to check with her and we agreed to meet at Racer. Somehow, I beat her there from Diamondback, AND SHE WAS AT SCRAMBLER. Man sis, how were you so slow, LOL? Afterwards, since we were there, we rode Racer. I chose Blue because now I had my glasses on (didn't wear them Friday due to rain) and wanted to see the clearing... RIDE #3: Blue Racer Holy cow, that is a huge clearing! Whatever is coming in 2020, it is gonna be huge. Also Blue Racer was once again running great, smooth (even more than Friday because I was on a middle seat this time) and with good airtime. And still no trims on the turnaround! After Blue Racer, we decided to go up the Eiffel Tower to get a even better view of the clearing. RIDE #4: Eiffel Tower Ahh, the Eiffel Tower. Such awesome views of the park- even on a cold day like this. From up here, you really get a sense of how much space has been cleared- there's a spot that seems cleared in the old SOB area, Firehawk's old spot, and then more clearing near Blue Racer in the old Dinos area. You also get a better view of the "S" shape on the updated fountains from up here. After we came back down, we did some shopping on International Street looking for cheap items. I found a awesome fridge magnet of The Beast celebrating its 40th Anniversary for under $5, so I got that. Heck, there was tons of awesome new Beast stuff in the shops. My sister and friends then decided to smoke again, and I wanted to join the KIC meetup, so I headed off. It was not quite 2pm yet, so I headed into Action Zone to find Delirium a walk-on... RIDE #5: Delirium Ahh, Delirium. Such good spinning swinging fun. Kinda cold going 76mph though when it is only 45 out, though. After Delirium, I found Drop Tower had no wait either. I hesitated a bit- this ride still scares me a bit- but talked myself into it by remembering the clearing, and that I could get a great view of the "SOB section" from this ride. RIDE #6: Drop Tower I didn't hype myself up for nothing- Drop Tower did indeed give a great view of the SOB clearing. As well as great views of the rest of the park. Before I knew it, we were at the top, somewhere about 290 feet in the air. And then we dropped as I was distracted looking at something. A very fun drop, as usual. From Drop Tower, I walked down Coney Mall to the Antique Autos. I got my first good look at them earlier when "racing" my sister to Racer, and got another good look here- as well as seeing the huge line (main reason I didn't ride the Antique Autos on this trip). Even if I never ride these (unlikely- I'll probably do them at some point) I must say this ride has made this section of the park MUCH nicer. Then I met up with the KIC Group, and joined the group photo. I also got to meet and shake hands with Don Helbig. Afterwards, we rode... RIDE #7: WindSeeker If Drop Tower gives you the best view of the SOB Area clearing, WindSeeker gives the best of the former Dinos clearing (Blue Racer kinda whizzes by it a little fast). Looking around at various things also helps here, as well as it did on Drop Tower. It was also pretty cold and windy up top, but nonetheless, this was a fun ride on WindSeeker, and it was also fun to ride with other KIC members for the first time. After WindSeeker, we headed for Mystic Timbers, but that ride never happened. After passing by...uhh, I won't say it because we vowed to keep it a secret from King Ding Dong...we decided to ride the train. RIDE #8: Kings Island & Miami Valley Railroad Riding this with the KIC Group was fun. In addition to the sights and sounds of the train, including the Goose family, we pointed out random stuff and made up fake(?) 2020 coaster rumors based on the random stuff. LOL. We got off the train, and it had begun to rain, and we had gotten kinda cold so we headed over to Boo Blasters to warm up and dry off. RIDE #9: Boo Blasters on Boo Hill There was a short wait for Boo Blasters, about 10-15 minutes or so, as I guess we were not alone in wanting to warm up and dry off here. One of the other KIC members I was riding with didn't wanna shoot stuff, so I used his gun too: I ended up going "Terminator" on the ride, and scored 1800 on my "main" gun (right hand) and 900 on my 2nd gun (left hand). The 1800 alone was my highest score ever on this ride, but someone else from the KIC Group scored 2800, which beat my COMBINED score. Holy cow some people are good at this ride! After Boo Blasters, we headed to the fountains. I checked in with my sister, and she was about to eat, and since I was hungry I decided to go meet them again. I bid farewell to the KIC Group- it was fun hanging with you guys- and headed back to my main group who were at the Antique Autos. They waited about a hour to ride it, and I saw them on the ride. Afterwards, we headed into Rivertown for food. FOOD: Miami River Brewhouse New-for-2019! The food service here was decently quick, we got through the line at a decent pace. There was a slight issue with my sister's debit card, which could have been opening day woes on the park or her bank. But it was resolved. We got some of the pull-apart bread, since it was cheap, and it came to us pretty quick. I must say- this is some good bread. Nice dipping sauces too. Would eat this again, no question. I finished eating first, and headed outside to see Diamondback running empty test trains. One of our friends, who loves Diamondback, came out and suggested since it was testing often that we should go get in line because it was probably gonna re-open. RIDE #10: Diamondback #2 It did, and we only had to wait from the stairs because it had broken down. We rode from near the back yet again (for me), and got good airtime, but still nothing compared to later (keep reading). After Diamondback, we headed over to Mystic Timbers, since it was also in this area. RIDE #11: Mystic Timbers There was about a 15-minute wait for Mystic Timbers, so not too bad. We ended up riding in the front 2 rows, and the ride gave some nice airtime with aggressive turns and twists as is usual for Mystic Timbers. We got Bats in the shed...again, same as we got on Friday. After Mystic Timbers, we headed over to Action Zone, because unlike me my group hadn't done anything over there yet. On the way, we stopped near Festhaus, and the Glockenspeil played- It felt amazing to see it working! In my 10 years visiting the park since 2009, I had never actually seen it run...until now. Thank You Cedar Fair for fixing this! Afterwards, we headed into Action Zone, and saw Delirium still had no line. RIDE #12: Delirium #2 This was running pretty similar to earlier, save now my sister and a friend were riding with me, and the kid next to me (a boy who screamed like a girl) kept screaming which was VERY ANNOYING. After Delirium, we saw Invertigo was running, which was not the case when I was back here earlier. So we went over to ride it. RIDE #13: Invertigo There was about a 15-20 minute wait. I was hoping for a "smooth" Invertigo ride, but alas, it was shufflin' noticeably. I did figure out that I could stick my head forward and avoid the headbanging on the return trip, though. Probably my least favorite coaster ride of the day. Which is typical for Invertigo. Also, I didn't realize it had gotten Stinger's train. I honestly felt the Invertigo train was running better last year during Haunt versus this. While we were in Invertigo's que, we saw a Squirrel/Chipmunk (not sure 100% which) eating nuts. As we left Invertigo, we saw it again, and then some dumb kid comes CHARGING out of the que, sees it, and he RAN INTO IT ON PURPOSE...THEN CLAIMED IT WAS A "ACCIDENT"! What a Jerk! Thankfully, a kind-hearted old dude grabbed the now-hurt animal with his coat and took it to guest services in the hopes something could be done for it. Everyone around us felt the same way as me. I hope the animal was OK. Afterwards, my sister and friend decided to ride Drop Tower with me, since there was no wait still. RIDE #14: Drop Tower This time I ended up facing Invertigo as we dropped, and the ride op gave us a fake countdown that stopped at 7 (then we dropped- but we knew he was gonna do this because our other friend saw him doing it during our Invertigo ride). Otherwise, same as before, another fun drop. After Drop Tower, we decided to ride Banshee next, as it was now 100% dry. Our friend who does not do inversions held our stuff and saved us a locker fee. RIDE #15: Banshee Ahh, Banshee is so much more fun when it isn't dumping water on you (aka what happened Friday). There was no wait for regular seats, but we waited 5 minutes for front row. Great speeds, huge inversions, and strong G-Forces as usual (just a bit cold because 45 degrees). Another excellent ride on Banshee, which I have come to expect given the last 5 years. After Banshee, we headed to Chicken Shack to get a wrap, but it turns out that it was removed from the menu! One of my favroite food items from 2018, gone! NOOOOOOOOO!!! So we got nothing. After that, my friends headed for the Bier Garden in Oktoberfest to smoke, and I went to ride Racer while they did. RIDE #16: Red Racer Might as well try Red Racer and see how it is comparing to Blue...and while in 2018 I thought Red Racer was better, now, Blue is. Red felt noticeably rougher, and had less airtime. It was still a good ride, just not as good as Blue. After I rode Red Racer, I rejoined the group, and headed directly back to Racer. RIDE #17: Blue Racer #2 I tried to race my sister and friends, but a walk of shame ruined that as my train stayed in the station while theirs left. Oof. Still, even with no racing, Blue Racer had enough airtime to be a good ride by itself. After our failed race, we headed down Coney Mall. We checked out the line for Flight of Fear, but it looked to be about a 30 minute wait so we said no since we rode it on Friday. We then decided to ride... RIDE #18: Shake, Rattle, & Roll No wait, but we did have to watch 2 test cycles, as the ride was coming back up after a breakdown. But whatever broke was fixed, the mechanics left, and the ride re-opened. Then we got a fun, spinny ride on Shake, Rattle, & Roll. This was also one of our friends first ride on it because he feared it might make him sick, but it didn't. After SR&R, we headed into Rivertown, as we were hungry and had decided on... FOOD: TOM+CHEE We got some Mac+Chee sandwiches, and split them up (we got 2, and each of us ate half of one). These sandwiches were very good, too. Nice and cheesy, and the mac tasted great on them. Tom+Chee has become one of our go-to food spots at KI, for good reason. After we ate, it was getting dark, and thus it was...NIGHT RIDE TIME! First up, Diamondback! RIDE #19: Diamondback #3 (Night) OK, where earlier in the day Diamondback was running normally, for some reason when the sun went down, it decided apparently it wanted to do a Steel Vengeance impression. Granted, we rode in the very back, but the ride was giving actual EJECTOR AIR. SUSTAINED OVER THE HILLS. I was not expecting to get yanked over the lift hill, and then launched over every other hill, but it happened. And I even had like a inch or so of free room via my lap bar. Add in the fact it was dark, and you have probably my best ride on Diamondback...EVER. After the Diamondback epicness, we got a locker for Mystic Timbers, but headed to The Beast for now instead. RIDE #20: The Beast #2 (Night) Beast is known for its epic night rides, and this was no exception. Crazy fast speeds, loud and dark tunnels, and a general out-of-control ride in the woods are the norm and this was no different. This coaster has been doing this for 40+ years now and probably won't stop anytime soon. After more epicness on Beast, we headed over to Mystic Timbers. RIDE #21: Mystic Timbers #2 (Night) Another great night ride, but compared to the other 2 we just had, Mystic Timbers felt like a slight step back. It still had good airtime and awesome twists and turns, but the short ride hurts it. It was still a great ride, just not epic. We also got Bats yet again! After Mystic Timbers, we split up as part of our group wanted to ride Banshee and then see the Fireworks, and the other part wanted to ride Diamondback and Beast again. I stayed with our friend who didn't do inversions, and made up the latter. RIDE #22+23: Diamondback #4+5 (Both Night) There was no wait, so we rode twice in a row. Once again, epicness and ejector air, even when we moved up a few rows. I still have no idea what made Diamondback run so great, but if we are getting a B&M Giga and it runs like this with even more height and speed...it is gonna be one of the best coasters in the world, easily. After Diamondback, we headed for Beast. However, when we arrived at the station, it had closed for Fireworks. My friend went to meet our group, while I stayed alone to ride. I had a nice chat with the ride ops and a lady in line, and learned that apparently in 2007 MaXair at Cedar Point had a disastrous engine failure and the ride swung in free-swing for a good period of time, while dripping oil on riders. Can anyone verify if this actually happened (the lady claimed to be a Raptor ride op)? After the Fireworks (which was still the 2018 show I learned) I got a last ride of the night (for me)... RIDE #24: The Beast #3 (Night) I rode from 6-2, I was kinda gonna do 6-3 again but a small line had formed for it. From 6-2, the ride ran about the same as earlier, I was kinda hoping for some extra craziness but it was more the same. Still, that same was a epic night ride, so no anger. When we reached the 2nd lift, I sang "Happy Birthday 2 Beast", and when the final drop happened I was on the last line so I didn't say the last "Beast" until we entered the double helix. Happy 40th Birthday Beast! Still such a epic coaster. After riding The Beast one last time (for this trip), I headed out towards our car. Walking through Kings Island at night with next to no one around is eerie. The fountains had also shut off, which made I-Street very quiet and calm. I arrived at the car, got in, and we headed home. What a trip! Friday was a bit bad due to the heavy rain, but Saturday was MUCH better and actually ended up being one of my best KI days ever. 24 rides is just shy of my personal record of most rides in a day, which was 25 (in April of last year). Not bad, especially since it was opening day. The crummy weather was actually a plus then! Though I do hate that it never hit 50, so the Arrow rides could not open. I will have to give Bat, Adventure Express, and Vortex extra love on my next visit. I rode just about everything else though (I got BLSC and Flight of Fear on Friday). Now, for Saturday's Pros and Cons! PROS +The New-for-2019 Revamps Look Beautiful Including Antique Autos +Not as many ride breakdowns as you'd expect from Opening Day +Almost all shops and vendors were also open +Rides were running great, especially Beast and Diamondback at the end +Very Light Crowds, Only T-Shirt Beast had a signifigant wait all day +Riding rides with other KIC Members for First Time CONS -Removal of Pedestals on Royal Fountains (Mostly "countered" by the rest of I-Street looking much better and the new founatins are OK IMO, but still...) -Still Cold (But Thankfully Much Less Rain) -Thus No Arrows Could Run (I Like Arrow Coasters) -JERK KID RUNS OVER SQUIRREL/CHIPMUNK! (Thank Goodness for Old Man) And that does it for this trip report, and my opening weekend trip report in general. I really am looking forward to more KI trips in 2019. Also, as usual, Questions and Comments welcome!

I actually had the opposite ride on Invertigo versus what @MDMC01 got, I got headbanged on the first go-through (was going backwards) but when we went forwards I leaned my head out a bit and that really helped. I also had no idea it was Stinger's old train at the time, but I thought it felt weird. Not a fan of the restraints on it, the "ears" attached to the OTSRs feel really un-needed and just cause more headbanging IMO. I actually don't remember if the old train had them or not, though.

My sister actually had some register issues on Saturday at the Brewhouse, her card wouldn't read. We ended up just using a friend's card and she paid them back. The workers were very nice about it though. Also, the pull-apart bread is delicious, but do note it comes with very hot peppers on the side. Be careful if you eat them.

I saw that new building multiple times when at the park on Saturday (I rode Blue Racer on Friday but without my glasses on due to the rain) and wondered what it is. Also, I have to wonder if the 2 big clearings (there is another near where Son of Beast's helix used to be) are for 2 separate things, or if they are gonna eventually merge into 1 huge clearing possibly along with the Firehawk plot. If they do merge, if this isn't for a Giga, it's the most monstrous wing or floorless coaster ever built (which I would still happily ride probably). A Dive Coaster taking that much land doesn't make much sense to me.

Hello! Welcome to the first McSalsa trip report of 2019! With KI finally back open, the offseason is now over, and the trip reports begin (for KI at least). I have decided that rating old rides I have been on multiple times is kinda odd, so I won't be doing that on these anymore, but I will still talk about each ride we rode and how I felt it was running compared to past rides, etc. New rides I have never been on will still get rated though. Here is my 2019 ride rating system anyway, I have gone back to a 0-10 scale. RIDE RATING SYSTEM (For New Un-ridden rides or major updates- not used here) 10=ZOMG THIS RIDE IS EPIC 9=I Adore This Ride 8=I Really Like This Ride 7=This Ride is Fun, I Like It 6=It's OK Enough, Will Ride Again 5=Meh, No Feelings Either Way for Various Reasons 4=Ehh, Kinda Bad 3=Yuck, Bad 2=POO, THIS RIDE SUX 1=SUPER POO, THIS RIDE SUX EVEN HARDER! 0=WHO MADE THIS MONSTROSITY!?!? Anyhow, with that outta the way...on to the trip report itself. We actually went to Kings Island for 2 days, both passholder preview night and opening day. So let's begin with the 1st day, passholder preview night! (Note: Due to how huge the TR will be, Opening Day will get its own Trip Report a bit later) PASSHOLDER PREVIEW NIGHT: April 19th, 2019 We (me+sister+the 2 usual friends from 2017+2018) left for the park around 1pm and arrived at our Hotel, the Baymont across from the Beach, around 3:30pm. It was a cheap (we paid $70 for our room) and nice hotel, and the window just outside our room had a nice view of the park. Around 4:30pm, we arrived at the park itself, and waited to get in. After the national anthem played we headed in and I got my first look at the "new" International Street. It's awesome! I do miss the fountain pedestals, but the new fountain nozzles seem to be more flexible, and the buildings truly have all seemed to get updates. I love that the old flags are all back up. I took all this in as we headed for The Beast, which celebrates 40 years of Terror. RIDE #1- The Beast 10 years ago this ride was the one that got me over my fear of roller coasters, so it was a celebration for me as well. I love everything they have done with Beast this year- the repainted trains look awesome, the paw prints are BACK (though only in The Beast's actual area sadly) and I love the fun facts in the que now. We boarded The Beast, 1st ride of the year on Train #2, and...it began pouring rain as we climbed the 1st lift. I had never ridden a roller coaster in the rain, and now I finally know what "bullets to the face" means. Ouch. This meant I couldn't really enjoy the ride too much, which is sad because it had good speed and the helix was awesome as usual (the tunnels offered some relief from the rain bullets as well). By the end of the ride, we were all pretty wet. We ran into the nearby arcade to dry off for a bit, and threw on our emergency $1 ponchos we had bought the day before. I also removed my glasses as I could actually see better WITHOUT them due to the rain on my lenses. Hoping we wouldn't get much wetter we headed over to another ride that wasn't nearly as big or fast as The Beast. RIDE #2- Backlot Stunt Coaster BLSC was a walk-on. Thankfully, this one wasn't as bad for rain bullets since it only goes 40mph versus 64.8mph for Beast, but it was still kinda rainy and the bullets were there, just much weaker and more tolerable. The ride itself was pretty normal for BLSC besides that. After Backlot Stunt Coaster, we decided to go to the indoor roller coaster, Flight of Fear. We passed the Antique Autos but I didn't get a great look at them without my glasses on. When we got to X-Base, even without my glasses on, I could tell that there were no teasers yet on the big fence. RIDE #3- Flight of Fear The line for FOF was just outside the main station area, just after you enter the UFO, so we waited maybe 5-10 minutes tops. The ride was running pretty well, smooth for Flight of Fear and with some nice G-Forces. It was also nice to ride something dry. After FOF, we went and headed for Racer, wanting to see how well Blue Racer was running since GCI did some re-tracking on it this past offseason. But we also stopped to ride a flat I somehow missed during all of 2018. RIDE #4- Monster Ahh Monster. A fun flat ride- I kinda do regret not riding it in 2018. Well, in 2019, that isn't a issue. Fun spinning and going up a down for the most part. RIDE #5- Blue Racer Blue Racer had no wait, and was actually great. It was decently smooth (I was even sitting on a wheel) though not glass smooth like the ride sometimes randomly gives out, except on the retracked turnaround which oddly no longer feels like it is trimmed anymore, though I am not 100% sure if it is or not. Nice airtime to boot. There was still some "rain bullets", but not as bad as earlier on Beast. A fun ride. Also, one of our friends spotted the huge clearing, though I couldn't see it without my glasses on and was focused on the ride. After Blue Racer, we went into Action Zone, and made a HORRIBLE mistake... RIDE #6- Banshee As we got on Banshee after a brief station wait, the rain picked up again, and we hit the lift hill and got water DUMPED on us like it was a water ride. Welcome to the New World's Longest Water Coaster, Mammoth can shove off! And not to mention since Banshee goes 68mph...yay, more rain bullets. I actually shut my eyes for most of the ride, due to this. The ride itself felt like its usual self, with great speeds and g-forces, but all the rain bullets and soaking kinda ruined it because it was also cold. We got off Banshee, pondering our life choices, and we went to check out the Miami River Brewhouse to find a line out the door. Nope! This was also where I was gonna meet up with other KIC Members but that would have to wait for the next day. We saw Mystic Timbers and Diamondback both had short waits, so we decided to ride them and then leave the park and dry off. RIDE #7- Mystic Timbers The rain had started to back off, so only minor rain bullets on Mystic Timbers. The ride also felt a bit more aggressive than usual, but it was fun and did have good airtime. We got Bats in the shed, which seems to be my usual ending. RIDE #8- Diamondback Thank goodness- when we got on DB, the rain stopped! So we just got a cold (made worse due to wetness) but airtime filled ride on Diamondback. We rode near the back, and got the usual "starts off weak and then gets stronger as you drop" airtime Diamondback has from back there. It was a fun ride, in spite of the bitter coldness. After Diamondback, we got our stuff, headed to the car, went to the Hotel and changed/dryed off and then went to Perkins outside the park and got food. It was a fun day, but the cold and rain TBH made this probably my least favorite trip to Kings Island so far- even 2014 Opening Day was better- but it's not really the park's fault for that. However, we had ANOTHER day lined up after this, as we also planned to visit for public opening day 2019. Would that day fare better? Find out in the next Trip Report (coming soon'ish)! But for now, this day's Pros/Cons: PROS +International Street and the new fountains look awesome +Beast's 40th Anniversary Paint Job and Extra Goodies in the Que are awesome +Blue Racer's retrack has it running better +Very Light Crowds, we got in a decent number of rides in just 3 hours CONS -Rain Rain, Go Away! (Rain Bullets suck) -And the Cold can go away too! -Banshee in the Rain is a nightmare and WILL soak you, in spite of being a great ride usually And that does it for the first McSalsa trip report for 2019. The next one- for Opening Day- again, is coming soon (I am still a bit exhausted from the trip and wanna recover before I write it- minor spoiler again, it's a big one- and a few KIC members will know some of it...). I hope you all enjoyed this trip report, questions and comments welcome as usual.

I have actually never ridden any of the coasters at Kings Island in the rain in spite of 19 total visits since 2000. Even if it was a rainy day, when I got on anything it stayed dry, oddly. I have ridden Delirium and Drop Tower in the rain though, and would like to ride the woodies in particular since I expect they would be running fast due to the wet track.

On the bright side, this is probably gonna drive a lot of people away (so much for the massive preview night and opening day crowds if true), and unless it rains super hard or there are thunderstorms all day, I'm sure at least some rides will remain open (though probably with fewer trains than normal).

This video, perhaps? (The Beast is at 23:00 in the video)