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CoasterKrazy

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Everything posted by CoasterKrazy

  1. Old scenery just doesn't do it for me. Given the confining space in which most of the Fear Fest themeing is found, I think it would look horribly out of place in the antechamber. I can do without the movie screen, but since CF did prepare a nice video for Maverick, we know that they are capable. The music though...I don't think I'll be able to ride it again if they've butchered the soundtrack. My mouth literally fell open when I saw the Drop Tower sign from Great America. I was hoping KI wouldn't get the same treatment, but it looks like we're stuck with it too. I have to admit, though, Drop Tower aside, everything else looks really good. The row of trash cans along Coney Mall is actually comical. I'm hoping the small footers are an indication of a Maverick-like station. They could very easily reproduce the station, refill Swan Lake, and I think the area would be very nice with its new addition. But you're right...its all about doing things well.
  2. The Crypt's new facade has piqued my interest. I'm both impressed and worried at the same time: Impressed that KI took the time (and more importantly, money) to create a new facade and sign; worried that this minor removal of symbols may indicate the removal of much larger items from within the tomb. If licensing issues required the removal of these symbols, I imagine the various statues in the antechamber and pre-show room will have been removed as well. I'm still skeptical that CF would be willing to spend the money to produce thematic elements on par with the originals. I think it is apparent that there will be replacements for the removed themeing, but of what quality, I'm not sure. Rumors that old Fear Fest scenery may be used is particularly troubling. I hope to be pleasantly surprised when I visit the park, but I won't hold my breath.
  3. I'm happy with the new logos. While very similar to those found at Great America, which I don't find particularly attractive, our logos have backgrounds. That, I think, adds a lot to the looks of a sign. I hope our Drop Tower sign follows this trend; my mouth literally fell open when I saw the sign at GA, and I would be very dissapointed if the same treatment were given at KI.
  4. Just a small update for anyone who has not yet had the opportunity to make it to the park for season pass processing: -All Paramount-branded location signs in the parking lot have been removed. Son of Beast, Beast, Gold Pass Parking, and Preferred Parking signs are still there. -Panels on brown attraction signs along Kings Island Drive south referring to Paramount have been removed. -The Cedar Fair Platinum pass is very similar to last year's Maxx Pass. The only differences are that the Platinum pass is named a such, and is grey rather than red. -The front-left ride and safety sign (with scrolling notice at top) has had new footings poured (or existing footings were repaired). As of yesterday, it was still being supported externally. -The sign along the west face of International Restaurant is empty. -I was not able to see any indication of construction going on within the park.
  5. My experience with free water at Cedar Point was comparable to that at Kings Island; temporary and certain "specialty" stands did not have free ice water, but the vast majority of permanent locations did. Perhaps the proportions between these different types of establishments are different from park to park, but I've never found that it was more difficult to get free water from one place or the other.
  6. Neither. I may take an Intamin, though.
  7. I'll take a new Phantom Theater and re-furbished TR:TR (all with original soundtracks of course) over a new coaster any day. It amazes me that given the vast number of rides that have been recorded on video camera (especially those found at Disney) there don't seem to be any that have been posted online of Phantom Theater. I would think someone, at some point, would have sneaked a camera onto the ride and taken at least a few seconds of footage. This being against park policy, of course, but I must admit, I wouldn't mind seeing the old Maestro again.
  8. Why didn't arrow think of that? Well, remember this. Ron Toomer was a lazy designer. It's obvious in the horrid transitions that most arrows have. Not to mention, he basically bent a coat hanger and said wow, I designed a loop. Better than crumpling a piece of paper and calling it a building, in my opinion. I don't believe Arrow's earlier "faults" were a matter of laziness, but rather utilizing proven technology and a lack of competition. Why develop an entirely new product when its doing just fine as it is? Their coasters were selling, and were popular with park goers. Sure, Schwarzkopf was providing a better product at the same time, but his designs filled a different niche than that of Arrow. Flash forward to the mid 90s, however, and I do believe it would be safe to assume that Arrow was being a bit lazy. With B&M and Intamin becoming major players, with obviously superior rides, Arrow should have taken the time to re-vamp their product line, rather than relying on what had served them in the past. Tennessee Tornado is apparently a great start, but one that came too late. Why didn't Arrow think to put the brake fins on the wheel assembly, rather than the bottom of the train? I can only speculate, but I would guess it was another matter of doing what they knew best; all of their previous coaster relied on brake fins mounted on the bottom of the train, and it had worked. Perhaps they believed that the moments (Force x distance) created by a deeper car configuration would be better handled by the more substantial wheel assemblies, rather than the car bodies. That seems to be fairly understandable, in my opinion. A bit shortsighted, but understandable nonetheless. I have the advantage of hindsight, so I can't say that I wouldn't have made the same mistake.
  9. I am not looking forward to the new TR:TR. Given Cedar Fair's track record regarding themeing, I think the ride will end up being even more of a shell of its former self. The experience is so totally dependent upon the special effects and scenery, I don't think Cedar Fair will be able to produce an adeqaute replacement for the Paramount branding. I'd be happy with one more season of above average operations (think 2006 season), and then removal.
  10. While I've not read this entire thread, if the rumors of a hyper for 2009 are true, I hope that Cedar Fair has enough respect for Kings Island to install a unique ride, rather than a clone. Just my two cents.
  11. Could the entire parade be watched (and more importantly) heard from one vantage point, or did certain locations along the route have a particular "musical scene" associated with it?
  12. Was the Nickelodeon Parade soundtrack played over speakers mounted on the floats themselves, or was the available park infrastructure used? If the latter of the two, did the park update the sound system in order to account for the moving of the parade, or was it designed in such a way (unlike most Disney parades) that certain parts could only be heard at certain locations along the route?
  13. A would like, among general park improvements, for a HUSS Topple Tower to be placed on Flight Commander's old pad. This flat would be perfect for that location, and would provide a thrilling experience for people both on and off the ride.
  14. This event was incredible! My thanks go out to everyone involved! The media presentation was especially entertaining, and without a doubt, I had the best time at Kings Island I have ever had!
  15. We aren't the only ones noticing the lack of themeing on Tomb Raider. The general public has taken note, and as far as I'm concerned, the park is the only party wearing blinders at this point.
  16. We did enter the line the second time only a few minutes after re-opening, so I don't believe that wait is indicative of what we can expect for the rest of the season. The first wait, however, was no longer than what I had seen last season on busy days, so it seems that the popularity of ride (which is mediocre at best, in my opinion) has not changed.
  17. If I can remember correctly, our first wait was around 40 minutes, not including the approximately 10 minutes we waited until the ops announced the issue would not be resolved for over an hour. (The queue began just after the tunnel beneath the access road, and we got inside the station before the breakdown) Our second wait was less than half an hour (which began on the second level of ramps, and obviously through the rest of the queue).
  18. Here's a (somewhat) brief description of my trip yesterday, which was my first visit to the park for the season. Started off with Flight of Fear. The pre-show was in use, despite the fact that the entire lighting package was not operating. The mid-course brake run brought the train nearly to a stop, which added a definite lull to the middle of the ride, although I enjoyed coasting down the drop following the MCBR. Followed up FOF with Firehawk. The landscaping in this area is very nice, and I think the placement of Firehawk is perfect. We waited about 1.5 hours, which was not bad in my opinion for two-train op. They were using both stations, and the mechanism that switches the track leading from one station to another was very amusing. The ride itself is simply amazing. Very smooth, very comfortable, and an overall great addition to the park. Vortex was up next (with the queues in the station house open; not something I see very often) followed by Italian Job. They were running all three trains, and the fire and helicopter effects were working (the helicopter remained in the "up" position) but the water and fog effects were not (the spray at the end of the ride not included). Next was lunch at Wings. While I like the idea of a buffet at an amusement park, the price ($14.99 plus tax) and the presentation (styrofoam plates and plastic utensils) are unacceptable. Having been to Midway Market at Cedar Point (which is cheaper, with table service and real tableware), Kings Island has a considerable amount of work to do. Whether the facilities support industrial dishwashers or not, the price demands higher standards, and I believe that a refurbishment is in order. We then headed over to Nick Universe for my first ride on Avatar. This little baby really is a great ride, and offers an experience that was fairly unique, especially when the car was perpendicular to the track and suspended over the midway. Next was Scooby Doo and the Haunted Castle. Two fluorescent lights were used in the queue, but all other themeing seemed to be working. My gun and my friend's both seemed to work as designed. Headed over to Action Zone for Top Gun and Son of Beast. SOB broke down while we were in the station for what was going to be "over an hour," so we made our way to Tomb Raider. The music in the outdoor queue was working, as well as that in the tomb. The light on the blood diamond in the entrance has been removed entirely, and the monkey room is not in use (so no chamber opening sequence). The pre-ride show was working. Now to the bad stuff. The ride itself is an absolute joke (as expressed by the riders who swore never to ride it again, and the guests outside the queue saying the ride is pointless {I agree}) . The drumbeat was working, but there was absolutely no audio during the ride, and needless to say, only a select few special effects were working. This ride is ENTIRELY dependent upon the audio and visual sequences, and is utterly useless without them. At this point, I think the ride should be restored, or removed entirely, given that a new ride cycle is probably out of the question. Went to Son of Beast, which had reopened. The trains are certainly more spacious than the old, and the ride experience has improved, but in my book, going from an F to a D isn't very impressive. It's worth giving it a go with the new trains, but they aren't the panacea some were hoping for. Racer followed, with nice airtime. Overall, it was an awesome day, and I couldn't have started out the season any better.
  19. I should have been more specific. Perhaps a better choice of words would have been 'marketable gimmick' rather than 'flare' (even though I don't consider the majority of coaster concepts at the Point to be gimmicks). Can other manufacturers provide a quality ride that the general public will enjoy? Yes, most definitely, and perhaps even more so, considering the reliability of B&M coasters is so high. But from a "Wow! I've never seen that before," standpoint, I think Intamin is the most likely candidate.
  20. And Wicked Twister, and Xcelerator as well. (As if the list weren't long enough already) Despite the numerous issues (some unacceptable) that have plagued the Intamin rides, I understand why Cedar Point continues to go to them for coasters. Simply put, Intamin delivers rides that other manufacturers can't. It may take them a few years and some [major] modifications, but a floorless from B&M can't provide the flare Cedar Point is know for. An Intamin can.
  21. I never understood Paramount's apparent obsession with not maintaining themeing, and I fail to understand Cedar Fair's obsession with not maintaining themeing. Spend the money, fix the themeing. Expensive or not, they are blatantly skimping on the guest experience, which has not gone unnoticed by the general public. Food prices are horrible too...but that's another thread.
  22. My one and only ride so far on Maverick was nothing short of awesome. It was fast, intense, smooth, and an altogether great ride. The themeing in the tunnel was simple, but very effective. In my opinion, it is certainly not the family coaster that some people thought it would be. I believe I was in row two of car two, and experienced no more head-banging than that on Raptor, and it was just as impressive. While I can see where some would have experienced head-banging (I was blown away by the quickness of the two Stengel Dives) I don't think it detracts from the ride by any appreciable amount. I've found that sticking my head out, rather than keeping it against the headrest as directed, increases the amount of head-banging I experience. Perhaps this is a situation where height is a factor (i.e. Vortex). I'm about 5'11'', how tall is everyone else?
  23. So is the color scheme red and gray (as reported by the Post) or red and yellow, (as reported by the Inquirer)?
  24. Assuming this is the new logo, I don't like it. I would rather Cedar Fair maintain a distinct difference between Cedar Point and Kings Island, rather than take the logo found on their trashcans and paste "Kings Island" underneath. I really like the current logo, and would prefer a modified version, if possible.
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