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I'm amazed that we are almost a full month into 2013 and this is the first "Tower Johnny" thread of the year!

Spoke with a former high up manager who served at SeaWorld and Dollywood among other theme park industry postings. Asked him what he thought of Hart's attempt to reopen Kentucky Kingdom. He expressed extreme skepticism. It was his belief the economy in general, and that area in particular, simply can not support another theme park. Echos Matt Ouimet's conclusion the theme park business is fully built out in the United States. He also does not expect Six Flags to acquire SeaWorld and Bush Gardens parks. Seems to think Six Flags has its hands full managing the parks it already owns. Had positive observations on the current leadership and management at Six Flags and felt they were doing a good job. All this from a veteran of the industry who now works outside the industry and thus has a clear vision of the market and players. Things to think about.

You fanboys complain about the supposed long walk to Flightdeck yet you walk around a big ass amusement park all day?

I had a dream once, after watching "Johnny Dangerously," that BLSC was themed 1930's Chicago, with Capone-era cars (including the police cars), and the ride ops decked out in pin stripes and Fedoras. ...too much?

Photo #29 - The Bat - Station - Notice how the transfer track was on the front of the station thus a train never had to go backwards to be taken on or off the circuit. The station and drive box still exist today as Vortex.

I knew this was coming..... BTW- you are killing me Smalls!

You should be in the park at night. After closing. With only a very few employees. Eerie is right. Cedar Point? That's Erie.

Wasn't the condition assessed earlier? The only B&M item at Kentucky Kingdom in 2015 will be the footings remaining from when SF took Chang away. You'll be lucky if the park is even open by 2014 and even luckier if it's still operating just as a water park in 2015. So is Cincinnati! Is there a point to the crime and Heroin statements? First off, Cincinnati probably has a higher crime rate just based on population alone - especially taking into account the metro area. At the same time, Cincinnati doesn't seem to be having the same heroin issue that Louisville's media outlets continually report on in that fine city. And before you took a slight at the Queen City, there was a point to DieselTech's "crime and heroin" statements. Whether or not Cincinnati has a crime issue is irrelevant. Kings Island isn't in Cincinnati, it's about 20 miles north of the downtown core in an affluent suburb where the lawns are manicured, the sprawl and neighboring attractions are plentiful. Kentucky Kingdom is in downtown Louisville and perception is key. Personally, I love visiting Louisville just as much as I do visiting downtown Cincinnati. However, the area surrounding Kentucky Kingdom isn't known for the friendly neighbors. I remember picking my friend up who's repair business was within view of the Twisted Twins: "Hey Greg, ready for lunch?" - "Yeah, but first get your car off the street and park in our garage." Not to mention, Kentucky Kingdom wasn't really well known for its classy guests throughout the day and at the wrestling shows. Which begs another question as to why other parks would want midget wrestling?

^We love it when we find out names....

Others who have been in the park have expressed similar views. Including, perhaps, the Bluegrass Boardwalk folk, who were exactly where Mr. Hart and Co. now are, and then suddenly were not.

Photo #30 - Pre Runaway Reptar - Nick Splat City

I chose the metonymy because: The truck's high-beams were on, so I couldn't see the driver. "It" sounds better than "he or she". You're right; it's spookier, fitting this specific thread better. (see also Christine) I suspect that the employee inside was having a great time watching my reactions.

I suspect its driver blew the horn. If IT did, that IS spooky. Terp, who can be quite the literalist

At Cedar Point after closing, a pickup truck followed me up the midway. Several times, after pulling as near to me as it could, it blew its horn to startle me. (I was not in the truck's way, and my confused gestures back were ignored.) This is what I get for being parked in the Soak City lot after staying past 11:00pm for ERT to end. (This was the first time they offered the weekly ERT, so not many people knew about it. The park was absolutely dead.)

I always knew this would come in handy someday: Easy: WWC cannons Hard: where the old fountains were in Oktoberfest Expert: Tall alien prop from Halloween Haunt

Now this is DINO'S Alive. http://s1311.beta.photobucket.com/user/Joshua_Thomas_Ratliff/media/188442_10151259320084028_1200422335_n_zps8e3178a7.jpg.html

Ride WWC or The Beast at night and get ready for an eerie, yet exciting, ride.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/85200936@N03/7854489620/'> Diamondback, in Rivertown. a shot of the big Kings Island sign, one of the good amount of pics I took on Closing Day. Easy: Anything on International Street Hard: Pic taken from inside a ride's queue Expert: Any Coney Mall ride's entrance sign

I didn't join until June of 2012. I don't know why I waited so long to join. I've been coming here for a long time. I hate that I waited so long, but glad I finally did join as it has been fun and informative!

11-10-08 I got into KIExtreme after following DB construction (really just land clearing at that point) for awhile. Then I started liking KIC better and I've been here ever since. I'm truly grateful for all this community has given me! There are some amazing people on here with a very diverse set of talents and knowledge bases. Thanks KIC!

Haw! I like that they have this adult in the kiddy ride on the webpage. Couldn't they find a photo of winsome children?Edit: That's Don looking so pensively into the middle distance as if he were Columbus discovering a new world in his Woodstock Glider? More Haw. The ride is in the kids' area of the park. It is an ideal ride for parents to take their kids on, with or without dad or mom snapping, depending on the family. And the park did portray a winsome child. You said Don was in it! Don, clearly on site, takes great pleasure in the best in fun....now playing.

Some POV footage can be seen in this video:

I love how on the website it says "you'd never know by looking at it, but Woodstock Gliders is over 70 years old!" I want to say "you'd never know by looking at it, but that ride belongs to Kings Island!" I would gladly trade BLSC (formerly Italian Job:SC) to Carowinds in exchange for the Flying Eagles to make a return flight to KI. BLSC's current theming is a shell of it's former self, which was rather questionable to begin with imo. I mean rusted shipment crates, and concrete/gravel really? I can stay home in Dayton and still get that experience. Also if the money is going to be spent on keeping the pyrotechnics operating, I feel it should have more of a stage to be observed and admired, rather than being atleast partially concealed. It's been stated that Action Zone seemed the more appropriate location for this attraction, and I would have to agree. NOW years later, and it appears the much wiser decision would have been to leave the area untouched with the Antique Cars and Flying Eagles Maybe BLSC can be rethemed and billed as a new attraction for Carowinds?

Excalibur was one of my favorite rides when I was little (living a half hour away)! Good to see TB paying homage to the old stomping grounds!

I love how on the website it says "you'd never know by looking at it, but Woodstock Gliders is over 70 years old!" I want to say "you'd never know by looking at it, but that ride belongs to Kings Island!"

It will probably be a LONG time before a ride delivers what TR:TR did in 02 for me. The queue line; never seen anything so well themed, actually felt like you were on the other side of the world, just for those moments waiting for the unknown. Walking in and seeing all those rows of seat and restraints, it was just something I've never seen before. If you tried to look around to see what was in the building, heh, good luck with that, they had the lighting perfectly aimed so the only thing you could see were the arms & the gondola. The music so loud you couldn't even hear yourself think. Your heart beat matching the drums on the soundtrack. Once you pulled down your restraint, take a relaxing deep breath, you would look around, then you would see water dripping, just sprinkles of it every second, you would look up to see where its coming ,but can't see the ceiling due to the perfectly placed lighting. Once everyone was buckled in, you knew you were in for a once in a lifetime ride. The 2 blazing sun lights suddenly turn off, now you're in complete darkness and the restraints tighten, you know its about to start. Well as you watched the video, you can fill in the rest. You were extremely lucky to ride TR:TR when everything was working. Some of us are extremely lucky. *will fill more of this in later , off to dinner!*

And search here is your friend....

How cool would be be to be able to rummage through the areas where they have all the old stuff hidden away?

Looks like Don was telling the truth when he answered Woodstock Gliders @ Carowinds to be his favorite Cedar Fair owned ride outside of Kings Island.

Photo #28 - Action Zone Debut 1999

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jcgoble3/6977021342/'> Easy: Any basketball game (TOPGUN1993) Hard: Any coaster at night (KIfan73) Expert: Trash can blocking entrance to any closed ride (myself)

Posted on Screamscape, this early POV of Tomb Raider: The Ride appears to be include most of the original effects and the spectacular lighting and even the sparker! For those here who never got a chance to ride it and always wondered what the Crypt "used to be," check it out.

I remembered riding it couple weeks after it first opened.....freaked me out a bit, lol. My already freaked out at the time aunt was going nuts when it started to flip. But have to admit, I'd take TR:TR over what the Crypt became its final couple years.

If BLSC ever makes its way to Carowinds,Im taking my talents to Sandusky.

At least it seems he contemplated jumping onto the car. The counterweight is not your friend.

Maybe not a coaster that reaches out to the entrance of the park. But maybe one that reaches out to a certain midway... Only one can dream.

It's ok, the "KI Enthusiast Dude" hasn't even rode all the coasters at the park. And went up to the top of the Eiffel Tower for the first time since the 90's this past season.

I lol'd

Moving a ride as big as Backlot within in the park would be a waste.

The thing is I always like taking a day to relax at the swimup bar in Khalari it is jus an awesome experience and very very relaxing. The indoor waterpark is second to none and I dont think a pool at one of the CP resorts could even come close to the experience.

Don't feel stupid. Feel wiser now.

Same! Its absence is a real shame.

Don't you go to Moller? Now Colerain, that's a poor school! Yes, I go to Moeller. We don't have a lot of money - since it's a private school, Moeller makes its own money (which isn't a lot) - plus they already pay for a LOT. Every week it seems like there's some type of fundraiser or way to give the school money!

Gator, ultimately let me know what you guys decide to do! I'd love to attend the event alongside the Gator family!

Weekend Beast Bonus Photos*** - Beast Lake One of my favorite photos^

I joined back in 2010, when I was still just a reader. Since I didn't visit KI between 2003 and 2012 - or any Cedar Fair park between 2008 and 2012 - I never found a reason to post. There would usually be something interesting here to read, though, and I'd end up helping my family with their visits to KI and beyond. After reading enough about new management at Cedar Fair, I finally decided to see for myself what a decade had done to KI. As my interest grew, I asked a couple questions here and popped into a few threads. (Somehow, the 2-day ticket became a season pass, two days became six, and a few posts became a few hundred. I blame the Customer Service attendant at Kroger who upsold me.)

Thanks for the answers, Don! I'm archiving the questions and answers here, since old tweets can be hard to find. (Even harder when people delete their questions, which at least 2 people have already done.) Q. Why did you retire from riding The Racer? (ohiocolts) A. Love the ride! First roller coaster I rode. Will ride again at some point. Q. Can you share any teasers about new shows, new food, or other additions this season? (myself) A. Ed Alonzo will be back with a new show. New Peanuts show, legends of rock type show in Festhaus and live band on the Bandstand. A2. Some more Soak City enhancements, lots of special events being planned. Q. when are you guys making an new roller coaster ? (@noahharsh1) A. Down the road. Q. how many park maps are distributed throughout the year? And how could one obtain old park maps? (@rollercoastinRO) A. Literally thousands but not as many as before with the launch of the mobile app. Old maps hard to come by. Q. Do bigger people have any issues fitting on the Diamondback or Skyhawk? I've had issues with coasters at Cedar Point before. (@UnderZenith) A. It depends on how ones body is proportioned. It varies from ride to ride. Q. when will details of Coasting for Kids 2013 be finalized? (@jporta2) A. Mid February to early March. A lot involved in putting the event on at all Cedar Fair parks. Q. What is favorite ride of all time, past or present? (@tismeansbeans) A. Favorite is The Racer. First roller coaster I ever rode. Q. any ride improvements this off season? What do you count as hidden gems at KI. How come there are trim brakes on The Beast?TY (stashua123) A. Work is done on all rides during the off-season. Racer has has had work done bottom of first drop and other places. A2. Brakes have been in place on The Beast in the same spots where the trims are since the ride opened. Just different type. Q. What is the "hot stuff" being cooked up in the marketing dept? (@Nathan90210) A. Working on series of special events that our guests will be excited about. Q. what's going on right now during the off season? (@KDFreak925) A. The off-season exists only for guests. Beehive of activity at the park in all depts. Rides get stripped down and rebuilt. Q. What is your favorite snack to eat while in the park? (ohiocolts) A. Fresh-cut thick fries in Rivertown. Q. What was ever done with the crate that sat by Son of Beast's entrance? (@TheSpeedDemon__) A. Dismantled. Q. If anything new is coming for 2014, when will we see teasers and signs for it? (coastergeek101) A. Sometimes late summer, sometimes winter like Dinosaurs Alive!, and sometimes like WindSeeker not at all. Q. If we were trying to think of a random meaningless number between 300 and 309, what number would that be? (‏@gahannaman) A. 308 Q. Any chance of The Racer running backwards again in the future? I miss it (@SteveSnowmn) A. No plans to run one side backwards again, at least for the foreseeable future. Q. will a winterfest ever come back? (@lynchc20) A. No plans to bring the event back at this time. Q. what is new in dinosaur adventure? (@the_chop) A. There will be some additions for 2013. Details will be announced in the spring. Q. how early do rides usually start testing before opening day? (@elizwal01) A. Depends on the ride but some 4-6 weeks before the park opens. Q. Will any consideration be given to increasing early ride time back to 1 hour? (@ssskellogg) A. Early rides for Gold and Platinum passholders will be 30 minutes before park opening as they were previously prior to last year.

A waterpark that doesn't suck. Oh wait, you said improvements, not miracles.

I'm in the -2% then.

I joined December 16, 2004. This has been an awesome place to discuss Kings Island, and has been an amazing cure for the off-season blues! All the best! -Tb