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^If that's the case, ouch.

http://www.KICentral.com/forums/index.php?/topic/25899-new-giga-what/ http://www.KICentral.com/forums/index.php?/topic/26286-new-giga-coaster-2014/ http://www.KICentral.com/forums/index.php?/topic/26096-the-super-dooper-rumor-thread/

KIExtreme is the reason I became friends with certain enthusiasts and still talk to them today. When it was in its prime, as standbyme said, the community was fantastic, even though it was so small. Even though the community was much more minuscule than KIC, I remember being much more active and constantly talking to many of the active members (some of which I still do). The website was also constantly updated with new features like KITunes (PKI Unlimited, anyone?), a great photo gallery, desktop wallpapers, and history section (sigh). The fact it was ad-free was pretty nice as well. Such a shame what a waste of potential KIE had. There were some really fantastic things that were in the works and it had potential to be such a great resource for information for both enthusiasts and curious common-goers alike.

There's a more accurate timeline on this very site.

I also don't think Taft Prodcasting did either.

Nice. Well done. I was at the point today, wait, its 3 a.m..... EDIT: I was at CP yesterday. Haahha nice

At least you didn't start twenty new topics in a three hour span like some noobs. Welcome to the wonderful world of KIC!

The whole leveling system makes no sense to me. I spent over $100 and visited 6 times and finally hit level 2 yesterday. After the transaction in which I hit 2 I made two additional purchases, one that evening for just over four dollars and one this morning for about a dollar. I figured I would check the website and suddenly I am about 50% of the way to 3 already. It did not help that when I purchased a Fast Lane pass the employee never asked for my pass so I got no credit for the purchase (that is not even included in the $100 above). I wish their was a way to get credit for purchases in which the pass was not scanned. A transaction ID on the receipt I can put in on the website would be a great addition for next year. On the subject of instant rewards I got one yesterday (first all season) and then proceeded to loose it before I had a chance to use it. But I am assuming I only actually earned one. At least half of my transactions never produced a receipt, I was very surprised at the number of times I watched the printer jam, or run out of paper, or the employee just balled up the receipt without asking if I wanted it. Having said all of that, I like the idea behind a reward program. I do hope it is expanded to the whole chain. Would have been top tier easily with all the money I spent at Cedar Point and my visits to other parks in the chain.

I know that Taft Broadcasting didn't own Kings Island from 1970-1992. Kings Entertainment Company and Charles Lindner would like to agree with me.

Maybe this falls into the "You know you're a Kings Island fanatic if...you have your season pass number memorized"!

Finally, it came time to cap off my annual trip to the Point by doing my tradition of riding Sky Ride back to the area near the park entrance and riding the Midway Carousel. According to the picture above (taken while I was next in line) I rode Sky Ride in a purple car--Car #32. I took a few pics of the park from above, including the one right above this sentence. After touching back down onto solid ground (hey, it kinda rhymes!) I proceeded to the last CP ride I’d ride before 2013: the Midway Carousel. If I’m not mistaken, this particular carousel has a working band organ, which is pretty nice.I thought there was a working organ, but those recorded tracks sure fooled me! When I exited the gates and walked out into the parking lot, I was surprised to see a Revolution 3 Triathlon running race still going (It was also going on in the morning!). On the way to CP this morning I saw that not only part of the course was in Sandusky, but also up and down the causeway and through Cedar Point’s parking lot. After crossing the course, I grabbed my last skyline shots, knowing I would never see Space Spiral in person ever again. As the car drove away from the Point, I looked back at the whole park, Space Spiral and all, while going down the causeway back to Sandusky, then heading south. Once the park disappeared from view, I whispered to my self, “Goodbye, Space Spiral. Hope you have fun in the big amusement park in the sky! Also, bye to Cedar Point. I’ll be back next year, in 2013, to ride Gatekeeper and of course, all my other favorites…” Raptor: 1 maXair:1 Wicked Twister: 1 Overall: 2 WindSeeker: 1 Overall: 2 Power Tower: 1 (Drop) Overall: 2 (Drop: 1; Shot: 1) Corkscrew: 3 Overall: 5 Magnum XL-200: 4 Overall: 6 Top Thrill Dragster: 2 Overall: 3 Iron Dragon: 4 Overall: 5 Mantis: 1 Overall: 2 Millennium Force: 1 Overall: 2 Wave Swinger: 1 Maverick: 1 Gemini: 4 Overall: 5 Sky Ride: 1 Overall: 2 Midway Carousel: 1 Overall: 2

Happy Halloween Weekends Saturday, October 13, 2012 Useless stats: this was my 6th visit to Holiday World (2000, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2011). Saturday morning I packed up my wife, my 10 year old son, and my 7 year old son and we left Cincinnati bound for Santa Claus. This trip was originally set for last weekend, to coincide the Coasterbuzz fall affair. That was ultimately cancelled, and the weather was looking nasty, so we waited a week and were rewarded with a forecast of 70-80 degree temps all day. Fantastic for October in the Midwest. Around 10:30 local time the Holiday World skyline came into view. We promptly drove past and stopped at Santa's Lodge to pick up our park tickets. The Santa Claus attractions are really pushing tourism this month, and we paid $175 for a double queen room plus 4 park tickets (3 adult, 1 under 54"). A few minutes later and we arrived to a mostly empty parking lot, right near Ravens second hill. I like to walk near the Raven fence, comparing the "short" lift hill to the tunnel way down in a deep ditch. It's very deceiving. The hills visible from the parking lot look so gentle... As we approached the front gate, I saw a spunky little "witch" smiling and welcoming guests. She was doing her best to deal with a guest who was disgruntled about something, and who walked away in a huff. The witch, otherwise know as Pat Koch, sincerely and desperately called out... "Sir, this is a business. Have a great day". I don't know what the issue was, but I'm betting the witch was in the right. I shook her hand and then strolled with my family into Holiday World. It was nearly noon "our time", and we grabbed some pizza at Kringle's cafe. The pizza was decent, the breadsticks surprisingly warm and delicious. With the necessities taken care of, it was time for the real fun: a spin on The Raven. The line was just out of the Poe house. While in line my older son asked where the dive show was. "You can actually see it from this line, it's right over"...As a matter of fact it isn't. Totally gone. No concrete, no sign of the dive tank, nothing but a big hole. We did spot the bench lined up neatly near the woods, and a bulldozer nearby. Are they building a 400' tall WindSeeker there for 2013? Or perhaps a new dive theater? We'll have to wait and see. 20 minutes later we climbed aboard the middle of Raven's single operating train. I love the way the entire station shakes and rumbles as the train hits the breaks. It was a middle of the road ride by Raven's standards, which means it was still fantastic. Not rough, not as smooth as it can be, but just fine for an October morning. Raven strikes me as a normalish sized coaster taken at 3x speed. Drop, tunn... Did we just skim the lake..plunge.....leftrighthopleft...brakes. Slam, bamm, over just like that. We all loved it as usual. When I ride the Raven, I like to imagine riding along with Will Koch in 1995 on his first flight. What was he thinking? 1. That was an awesome awesome coaster ride! 2. This huge, risky investment of my family's money and reputation turned out better than I could have dreamed. 3. This changes everything for the future of my park! 4. I've got an incredible coaster in my own park! I believe he was thinking all of these and more, beaming from ear to ear, giddy as a child on Christmas morning, anxious to share the joy of his creation with the world. We all skipped down Raven's exit, jolted by the adrenaline rush and bad hair only a coaster can give. Next stop:Legend. Legend may be my favorite coaster of all. Unfortunately today, I could not have been more disappointed. On the bright side, there was no line. But it performed badly. Dispatch intervals were eternal, there was no grease on the track, and it was horribly understaffed. Instead of the typical crazy lateral filled out of control ride, today it was forceless and boring, a shadow of itself. My worst Legend experience in 12 years. Oh well, I'll have to wait until next year to get a decent Legend ride. Since KI removed their antique cars, at other parks we hop on them every chance we get. Holiday Worlds version, called "Lewis and Clark" is unremarkable but still fun, especially if you are 7 or riding with someone who is. 10 minute wait. Like KI's, these are set in a nicely landscaped area. Come to think of it, this is a big prime piece of real estate in the front of Holiday World. They could squeeze a great little Wooden Warrior style family coaster in there, and link it to 4th of July, Halloween, or Christmas. On the other hand, this is a nice quiet area, and it would be shame to tear it up. Graveyard Smash time. Somehow I'd never gotten around to seeing a show at the Hoosier Celebration Theater. We arrived just in time, finding a crowded theater, yet a few open seats in the front center row. We all loved it. My 10 year old son is getting dangerously close to being too cool for this sort of thing though, but even he got into the fun. You have about 10 monsters ranging from Dracula, Wicked Witch of the West, zombie bride, zombie punk rocker, zombie Jack Sparrow, and so on. All singing and dancing to Halloween parodies of everything from Dynamite to Thunderstruck. Hilarious and fun. Warning, the performers get in your face if you are up close or on the aisles. Next it was Sparkler time, or Spookler time to be precise. A great little ride, it fits this side of the park well. One cycle wait. It goes up, it goes around, and it doesn't give me the goosebumps that WindSeeker does. It also provides some new views, including a maintenance shed with all of Legend's trains neatly lined up outside. That dashed any hopes that Legend might just reopen today after all. To be fair, I'd read on Facebook and even on the map that Legend was closed for the year, apparently getting its winter spa treatment now instead of waiting for Happy Halloween Weekends to conclude. Still a bummer. Later that night we saw "Spookler" lit up in a monochrome yet neat white lighting display. My boys jaws dropped as I told them somewhere in Texas they were building a 400' version of this. I wonder if the entire tower spins on that one like here...I doubt it. We walked up the impossibly narrow ramp to the bumper cars. These are always a hoot despite the smart alecs who decide to drive the wrong way. 2 cycle wait. It was now the moment of destiny: The Voyage. Last year, both of my boys just didn't have the nerve to tackle this monster, the clincher being my report of nasty washboard roughness. It just wasn't that fun last year, for me anyway. Even the first three drops beat me up. Even though the new Gravity Group trains were delayed again, the track improvements were encouraging. One bummer was the one train operation today. There are few quieter, less exciting places than the Voyage station during single train operation. That train is gone Forever, and you begin to wonder if it will ever cone back. When you estimate a good 5 trains until you board, multiplied by the eternal dispatch interval, you get discouraged. But hey, this is one of the most amazing coasters in the world, so shame on me for complaining. It is kind of a miracle that the Voyage even exists. Think about all the stars that aligned: 1. A park (not called Kings Island) willing to build a 6000' long wooden coaster 2. A park with a large enough piece of sloping, wooded, available land 3. A park who really cares about the extras, like tunnels, tunnels, tunnels, station flyby's, tunnels, ridiculously excessive turnarounds and finales, tunnels... 4. A design firm competent enough to engineer the thing 5. A park willing to do whatever it takes to keep it running in top form If those weren't enough, add these improbabilities: 6. This behemoth is actually themed to pilgrims on a boat, in a section called Thanksgiving. Not a snake or something huge and intimidating 7. The fact that all of this happened just 3 hours from my house I got off track there, but my point is that Voyage might be the most unlikely coaster ever, built in a park that really didn't need it. But they built it and I'm so glad. So back to the ride. We were all pumped...my boys have been looking forward to this ever since they chickened out last year. The four of us took our seats in the third car, and off we sailed. In short, we were thunderstruck. What a ride. The only rough spots I detected were on the last sidewinding stretch under the lift hill, and part of the finale, but even these were not bad. Though I forgot to heed my own advice from 2006: don't try to brace yourself too much, instead just go with it and let the coaster have its way with you. It sounds counterintuitive for such a crazy ride, but it works for us. While we loved it, my boys and my wife debated if a second ride would happen, or if one was more than enough. They all leaned towards "one and done". They were stuffed, so why eat a second Thanksgiving dinner on the same night? Time for a breather. We lined up near Pilgrims Plunge, and 20 minutes later we were on a tram headed to the corn maze. There were two actual hayrides, but we got the vanilla tram both ways. The maze itself was interesting in that it was on uneven hilly land, and in some areas the stalks were barely 5' high. So in some spots you were deep in it with zero visibility, in others you have a commanding view of most of the maze. There were panic flags at various checkpoints, which also helped you navigate since many were visible from afar. Overall a nice diversion from the noise and activity of the park. We skipped the kiddie maze. Gobbler Getaway. A hoot as usual, though I never know if my low scoring is caused by my aim or a faulty gun...errr turkey caller. I also wonder if I am too distracted by the shooting/calling deal to miss the fun details of the ride itself. With the exception of Toy Story Mania, I'd rather just take in the view on my dark rides. What else...oh yes, we checked out the Halloween activities in the picnic grove. Face painting, pumping decorating, trick or treating, the usual activities aimed at families with little ones. Worth a stop if you if that fit that group, and very similar to what you'd find at your local fall festival. We did enjoy the many Halloween dioramas throughout the park. These were set up by park employees, using skeleton mannequins and a wide variety of props. Each won an award of some type, like "best use of theming", or "best use of bobble head Pat". All were tasteful of course, and added a humorous personal touch to the park. Another Halloween exclusive was the lone "haunted house", in glorious 3D, in the Holiday Theater. Again , no big scares here, save for a few surprise characters who come to life and startle the little ones. And even me. The 3d effects were outstanding. I am not usually impressed with 3d at the cinema. A great family haunted house, made better by the 5 minute wait. This is getting long winded so I'll try and cut to the chase. My boys are fans of night rides, so we scored another Raven ride (4 train wait), and my family "Thank"fully regained Voyage fever. Two more Voyage rides (front seat at dusk, third seat in total darkness). 20 minute waits for each. Breathtaking. The 2006 Voyage is back, for now anyway. Now it was for perhaps the best attraction of the day: pumpkin spice funnel cakes at Funnel Cake Factory, covered with some sort of cream cheese frosting. These are not as nutritious as you might think. But they are delicious. I will try to clone those for the scout campout next weekend. It's a good sign when you ask the workers in the food stand if these are any good, and they all light up with an emphatic, sincere, "they are sooooo good!!!!". They were right, and we got fat and happy. While munching we walked around the"back stretch" of Holiday World, near the Indian river ride and the "eagle's fright". I like these quiet, mature (tree-wise) paths in parks. This was made all the better by the glorious fall colors and the leaves literally falling by the hundreds and blowing in the breeze. Quiet and peaceful. Speaking of Eagles Fright, it was begging for riders, so we hopped on for a quick spin. We each got our own bird and enjoyed the peaceful flight in the cool, autumn night. We arrived at the Christmas plaza at 8, just in time for the laser show. It was a mishmash of funny laser animations projected on a big movie screen, fog effects, and the big cool real lasers that pierce the night and wiggle around, all set to Monster Mash, Thriller, Ghostbusters, and other Halloween staples. Fun show and a great way to end the day. So that was our day at Holiday Work. It was quite different without the waterpark and the Legend, but I think they did a fine job considering their family market, and taking their first stab at a "Halloween"event. It made for a nice 30 hour fall getaway from Cincinnati. Thanks to HW and the Kochs for a good time! PS: don't get a room at Santa's lodge near the banquet hall. Loud!

General question for everyone: If you know you need to have your pass scanned to receive FUN Perks credit for a purchase, why don't you hand them the pass when you make your purchase instead of waiting until after and being upset that they didn't ask? I'm not trying to be rude, I'm just curious...

Thanks! I really like the picture! Thanks for being so open and helpful!

You're new. Don't worry about it, everyone's been there. You'll get the hang of it, don't worry.

So im guessing that Dane or Avatar is the head professor, Interpreter being the paleontologist, and many more references?

Last Sunday (10/14) I heard "The Candy Man" by Sammy Davis Jr while I was walking through Coney Mall.

I think the website automatically renews it instead of making a new pass if your information matches your previous year's information, if that makes sense.

This is too bad... Big Tex was to them what the Eiffel Tower is to us. RIP Big Tex http://start.toshiba.com/news/read.php?rip_id=%3CDA20R1P00%40news.ap.org%3E&ps=1018

..."Terminator Tex." ..."We forgot the MARSHMALLOWS!" ..."The Marlboro Man shows what smoking can do to your body..." ..."Every bad Texas Barbecue joke rolled into one, five-minute event." ..."He'll be replaced with "Hug Me Hank."" ..."This was his big birthday roast." ..."Left the fair to get my camera, but he burned up on re-entry."

Exactly what I thought when I saw the photo: "He's gone to meet Big Butter Jesus."

Story, including a photo of the ribbon cutting at the park's grand opening in 1972: http://warrencounty.fox19.com/news/people/99634-former-kings-island-general-manager-named-hall-fame

Uh, no, the admins make that call, not you. There are other things being discussed in this thread besides your specific problem.

Reminds me of touchdown Jesus.

^I'm in your boat. I spent a lot of money and had about ten visits, but never reached level two. For those of you about to ask why didn't I call and ask, I didn't care enough.

They wanted to reopen Coney as a none competitor to Kings Island. He knew the park well having worked there from 1952 through the park's closing on Labor Day, September 6, 1971. Ed remained at Coney until his retirement.

For future reference, using cameras on Sky Ride isn't allowed. The only ride this is allowed on at CP is CP&LE RR. (And formerly Space Spiral.)

I'll be at KI tomorrow (Sunday) so I'll have the Eiffel Tower on my mental list of rides to ride so I can get some pics of what's left of SoB. edit: I got some pictures! Now all I have to do is import and then upload them... edit #2: The pics are now up!

I'm jealous of the people that go often enough to actually accumulate a worthwhile amount of points.

Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee Haaaaaawwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww! lol

Losing an icon is not necessarily easy. I am just happy no one was hurt in what we believe to be an accident. I hope management follows through with the rebuilding of Big Tex.

^ Start with the area KC used to occupy.

I personally don't like the snarl. For someone dressed like an animal, I'm okay with it, but for a human / formerly human / undead human character I don't like it. It's too simple, and it's unimaginative. Now for some undeads, like zombies, it makes sense. But if you're using something so simple, chances are there's a hundred other scareactors doing the same thing. Now put yourself in the guests' shoes. Would you want to go through 5,6,7,8 attractions where even a quarter of the scareactors are snarling? I wouldn't. It gets old. That's why Sam, and The Bouncer before him, doesn't/didn't snarl. Sam has a set of different things he'll say to or ask the people that walk past him. If it's busy and there's a long line of people coming through, sometimes he'll do the Sam Slam and glare at you while he resets so that he can get the people later in the group (because, after all, the Sam Slam is the most effective scare tactic that he's ever used), but if he's out and talking, he's not snarling. He's saying things that are unique to him, things that no other scareactor is saying because he thought long and hard to come up with those lines. So to all scareactors and future scareactors, be creative. Sure, it takes time to think of things to say. And some things you find will work, and some won't. It's trial and error, but after a few times you'll find out quickly what doesn't work, so you drop those and continue to use what does. I've even found that my improv skills have improved over the years. Sometimes a guest will say something to Sam, and Sam will come up with a snappy comeback. Or Sam will think of something a few minutes later and use it the next time someone says something similar. It just takes time and some thought.

Posted Today, 01:48 AM There was a shorter guy walking on stilts around AZ, and I stood next to him. He turned around and noticed that I was as tall as him. When I get the picture from my friend, I'll show you all. All 3 shows were great! Also, the leaf camoflauged guy by DB hid behind a tree next to Rivertown Junction, and sent a girl to the ground by simply saying a robotic "Boop!" He was great, as well as the guy at the front. "Can I help you...into a coffin? Bahahah!" "Take a picture...it will last longer than YOU!" The guy in rivertown is a BUSH and yes he does an excellent job with that goofy suit!!! Funny how some of the worst costumes on the right people seem to work. As for the fake chainsaws = if a scareactor can take something that fake and get scares....well that seems to me to be a very good scareactor!!!

they paved paradise & put up a parking lot... Or condos. Or a shopping center. Kings Island lives on. Would that we could say the same for Americana, Geauga Lake, Euclid Beach, Whalom Park, Libertyland, Williams Grove, Miracle Strip, Pavilion, Joyland of Kansas, Riverview, Palisades Park, and on and on..... Terpy. Context. Context. Context.

Anyone else find the happy, upbeat tempo of the background music unintentionally hilarious? I feel like Greg Scheid and Don Helbig are dancing a celebratory waltz somewhere in the background.

"Don't it always seem to go That you don't know what you've got till it's gone"

Thanks for the legendary trip report. It was delightful! I wish I could have been there, raving about the park witch I love! Unfortunately, that was a voyage not for me this year.

As I strolled down the midway on my way past the Luminosity stage and to my next ride, Iron Dragon, I took some time to grab these shots of Iron Dragon and Corkscrew: Iron Dragon was also a walk on, if not, a short station wait. I rode it four times, but I only had to go through the queue once since those four rides were CONSECUTIVE. That explains the fact that only Train #3 took me on all four rides. I started out in row 2-1, to get back the feel of flying through the woods like a dragon, barely missing trees and swooping over the lagoon. The first part of the ride was like a scenic flight through a forest of a variety of trees. The part after the second lift hill, right before the train descends over the lagoon, is my favorite part. I also rode in 7-1 (twice) along with 6-1. Iron Dragon is a nice ride to take through the woods and get a brief close-up with nature, and how it can really intermingle with the more synthetic/mechanical environment of an amusement park. Next up was the standup: Mantis! Since this ride also occupied part of the lagoon, it neighbored Iron Dragon at a fairly close proximity. As I made my way through the empty queue up to the nearly empty station, a few fish swam up to say hello. I boarded the very last row on Train #1. As you can tell in the pic below, I was on the far right. In my opinion, the experience was “next to mediocre.” I didn’t mind the inversions or the first drop, but in general the ride was a bit more forceful than thrilling. I did my usual riding method of relaxing, and in this case, I also put my head forward of the harness so it wouldn’t bang while I was getting thrown from side to side. The ride still was fun, but not as “balanced” in thrills and forces as it was on even the Corkscrew. (remember: I only like some rides better than others, and for me there’s no such thing as actually “hating” a ride. ) Part 5 coming soon!

Then there's Terp's strange elusive references that fly right over most. Say Good Night, Gracie!

Bigger is not always better. Terp, cross threading. (Donkeys, anyone?)

In 2009 two of the key members left the site, and along with a stubborn admin (who didn't update), it was basically abandon. I could go on and on

I love Drop Tower's music! Mainly because I love the drummer and I love Van Halen, plus it fits the ride.

Reading his reasoning I can agree with him. Plus Woodstock Express is a great ride.

Oh Really!?!?!