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What`s next for Son of Beast?


fighting31irish

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Can someone explain to me exactly what led to Son of Beast's closing? Did that lady who had major headaches win in a lawsuit? or did Kings Island just close it because they knew it was too rough, and many people disliked it?

i don't keep up much.

I can not find the video of the interview, but here is an article quote from last year. http://www.themeparktourist.com/news/20100316/1197/son-beast-remain-closed-throughout-2010-kings-island

Greg Scheid revealed in an interview with Cincannati's Business Courier that he is still "not comfortable with the ride", describing it as "the single toughest ride that I've ever worked with". Son of Beast has been closed since June 2009, after a woman claimed the ride caused a blood vessel in her brain to burst.

Scheid claims that the park has spent "millions" on Son of Beast to smooth out the ride following a 2006 incident which left 26 people injured. He said that the park will not re-open the coaster until it is "100% sure that [park guests] will enjoy their time on the ride".

The Kings Island boss stopped short of saying that the ride will be removed, as rumored last year. However, he gave no indication of when the ride would reopen and it seems very likely that it will be out of action for much of, or all of the 2010 season.

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Personally I like to switch it up, do it in the front seat and the back seat, all in the same day. I once did it in every seat in an hour. (Riding Maverick that is. As much as I love that ride, after ride number 10 my head was starting to hurt.)

I do it more than just in the front seat, thats just my favorite. lol

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I definetly don't mind the roughness. Though, I don't remember how rough it was, because I haven't rode it for 3 years!!!!!! The Beast is

rough, but I like it. I actually rode SOB on the last day of operation, I forgot exacly what day, but June 2009. Later that day I hear somebody complained she got hurt, and SOB will be closed, but it's inapropriate to state when it will reopen. I just wonder if I rode SOB on the last

day of operation.

Interesting, since from available reports, said lady did not make her complaint known to the

park until some weeks after she allegedly sustained her injury. Very interesting, indeed.

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^Some people like it rough in the front seat. ;)

But a lot of roller coaster enthusiasts I know do it in the back seat! :lol:

They've gotta make their minds up. Which seat will they take?

Too bad it's not Friday.

It depends on the ride for me. I like Diamondback and Beast better in the back, but I like Flight Deck and Flight of Fear better in the front.

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^ Actually that is just a quote

in·san·i·ty/inˈsanitē/

Noun:

  • The state of being seriously mentally ill; madness.
  • Extreme foolishness or irrationality.

From Google

First- Really? Give me a break...

Second- I'll take Albert Einstein over Google anyday.

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Which I had a hunch of during the event and (at a somewhat unfortunate cost) I definitely made the most of it. That was definitely one of the best weekends of my life... and tagging yr car was a blast Unreal.

I also went out of my way to thank and get to know Don as much as possible.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I'm just glad I got to ride it during Ride Warriors Weekend that year and got some pretty good pictures of the riding running. Speaking of Ride Warriors Weekend wasn't that year the last year that event was held? Also was the first.

I think having another RWW event would be a great benefit to not only the enthusiast, but KI as well . It really is a great way to draw excitement from the enthusiast and talk about the park to friends and family. I know a number of people I talked to that took their family or went with friends over to KI due to me talking about how much of a good time I had that weekend.

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Yeah, the RWW thing is still a big disappointment to me. I think KI said they were going to make it different somehow in 2010...and apparently different means "nothing at all". The format did need some tweaking, and they probably should have added a fee.

If you are trying to make an event like Coastermania, it is not going to happen in just one year.

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I thoroughly enjoyed Ride Warrior Weekend. It was an extremely fun event, even if I had to curtail my Sunday visit due to wrapping up my thesis at the time

I`m not sure why KI hasn`t brought it back in some form or another. I know that besides Cedar Point, several other Cedar Fair parks host park events for enthusiasts. I would support an event at KI and be there for the entire thing if they were to bring it back. I would pay for an event like Coastermania at Kings Island. Nothing outrageous since I do have a Platinum Pass, but $10 to $20 (especially if a meal is included) is well worth it to me, if they have the amount of ERT that RWW had in 2009.

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Terp again notes in passing a new CEO will be in charge very soon...

This scares me as an SoB fan.

Unless this guy wants to split an albeit probably small group of enthusiasts into loving him/hating him right off The Bat, I doubt he makes a decision on SoB anytime soon. A big financial decision like that going the wrong way wouldn't be a good start for him in his new place of power.

But what do i know? I hope he's a fan of the ride as well.

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It shouldn't scare you any more than the reign of the former CEO, who in hindsight made little attempt to show any interest whatsoever in a decision. In other words, Kinzel seemed completely disinterested in Son of Beast, and unwilling to spend much time pondering its future much less making real, concrete decisions.

I agree that the new CEO probably wouldn't want to put his first signature as head of Cedar Fair on such a risky or controvertial document. His resumé also doesn't do much to make one believe that Son of Beast (or any big, oversized, overkill coaster) would be a priority of his. But throw enough capitol in SOB's direction and something can come of it. That might mean reusing one board of the original structure and investing $50+ million in constructing an all new coaster with a related name, though. And if such an investment were decided upon (which, by the way, I don't think it ever would be) then he'd certainly have an almost-guaranteed success on his hands, and a dedicated and appreciative group of enthusiasts. But what would the investors think, and really, who is Cedar Fair and Mr. Ouimet out to please at the end of the day?

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^

Cedar Fair should be out to please their customers above all else. This is why the this country (if not the world) is in such trouble, corporate greed has become the preferred method of operation. Let's please the investors above all else. Pish Posh! If the company pleases the customers, the investors will be taken care of, not the other way around. Without your customers, you have nothing. A sentiment that seems to be long forgotten.

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In my opinion, a corporation must Balance the needs of the shareholders and it's customers - it can't be either one above all else if it wants long term success. And while corporate greed is part of the problems in this country - I'll refrain from commenting further to avoid the restrictions on political discussions.

As for a decision - Leaders may not like the decisions they have to make, but good leaders will take the best available data and advice from trusted coworkers and make a decision. You can't avoid them.

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