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So, this is a bit delayed… It’s already snowed probably 10 inches and everything, but now is better than never, I guess. The day started out when I, my mom, dad, sister, cousin, other cousin, aunt, and uncle, went to meet up with members of KICentral at Big Boy. Some of the members at the meet up included NoChickens/Rick and Mrs.NoChickens/Dee, malem/Matthew, jcgoble3/Jonathan, IndyGuy4KI/Brad, Fire-Beast-of-FEAR/Duncan, Beastie1980/Melissa, and probably a few others I am forgetting. We filled ourselves up with some good food (even though they had no waffle sticks) to get ready for the last day of the year! We soon arrived at the park and I realized I had forgotten my coat at Big Boy. Yay. I didn’t think it was worth it to go back and get it now, and luckily, until riding RFYLCB, I didn’t need it, as my light jacket was enough. We met up with thedevariouseffect, BeastForever, fan-of-Firehawk, and some others. Then, my family and I headed to the season pass processing center. I honestly wasn’t sure yet what we were getting, but I was really hoping for Platinum for the last few years. And, we finally got one. So 2014 should be a Cedar Point and Banshee and Kings Dominion year! Everyone clapped when I held up the shiny new piece of plastic. It was cool. It made me feel special. So, we chatted and waited for the park to open for one last day. Soon, the gates opened, we grabbed our bobbleheads, and headed to Diamondback. Just waited a cycle to get our ride on the tallest, fastest, and meanest roller coaster at Kings Island. Next was The Beast. A station wait. Good ride. I believe around now, I somehow lost the group. I figured they would be in X-Base, so I headed to Firehawk. I walked through the queue and didn’t see them, and they weren’t in the station, either. But while I’m here, I might as well ride the thing, right? Walked right on, and it was another fun ride. I believe after that ride, I found the group exiting Flight of Fear, and they wanted to do Firehawk. I rode it again, another walk on, and another fun ride! After this, they decided to head back to Flight of Fear. Just a station wait to see the aliens that day. Got on, zoomed off, and made it safely back to earth. The coasters never get old! Now we headed down the Coney Mall Midway to The Racer. It was a walk on for the red side. Up down, up down, fun ride. Now we went to Flight Bat Deck Gun Thing. A walk on for this ride. The ride ops kept saying “We could be different next year”. After the fun ride, when we got on the brake run, an ride op said on the speakers “Thank you for riding Top Gun, sponsored by Gillette Mach 3”. That got some laughs from the train. And the non KICers were pretty confused. We rode again, with another walk on, and another fun ride. That would end up being my last ride of the Flight Deck era. It was now time to head over to Tower Drinks for the group picture. We got our picture in front of the Blood Drums stage. After this, it was pretty split on Reds Grille, or Festhaus. In the end, we all went to the Festhaus. I got pizza and ate it. We watched Graveyard Shift. Nice lunch. After this, I headed to Adventure Express with some people. Fun ride, and I said hi to Banshee a few times. Now it was just kind of Fire-Beast-Of-FEAR and BeastForever and I. Everyone was doing there GOCC tour. We rode Delirium, cycle wait, and had a fun ride, almost hitting a certain dive loop. Then we headed to Drop Tower. It was a cycle wait. I forgot if Duncan liked this ride or not. I did. After that ride, we peeked under a fence. Like, we all laid down on concrete. A few people definitely noticed. It looked like Don tried not to. She looks good from down below too. Yeah, that was a lot of fun. We found malem and MDMC01 and went to Invertigo. It was a cycle wait. Matthew and Matt ended up a couple of cycles behind us, so I took a few pictures . Now we headed to one last Ed Alonzo show. The show was magical and funny. The kid volunteer was so tiny. Now it was Vortex time. On our way, malem let me know I was walking right behind The Interpreter. I had no clue. That was cool. I sat in 7-1 after a station wait. Awesome ride. Bye for 2013, Vortex. Next was a 15 minute wait for The Beast. I sorta got a group photo while in line. And another, more odd one. Fun ride on the longest wooden roller coaster in the world. Next was one last ride on Diamondback. About a 10 minute wait for a fun ride. There was a Diamondstack. Now it was time for… Flying Ace: Aerial Chase. Due to the limited seating on Flying Ace, we couldn’t fit everyone on one train. We sort of got most people on one, though, after a 15 minute wait. It was my first and only ride on Flying Ace that year, and it was great preparation for Banshee. Next we did something even more stupid than that. We went on this thing. I wasn’t going to ride it, but I don’t know, for some reason, I got in line. I rode in front of The Interpreter. I kept getting wet. Too wet. While on the ride, Terp asked me “Are you doing ok up there”? My response: ”No”. Then he said, “Good!” I got drenched by the splash and especially that awful Snoopy. After the rides, the “Stupid 12” got a picture. I was probably the most soaked. Next, I, Jonathan, and Melissa went to Xtreme Skyflyer. We waited about 10 minutes. It was Melissa’s first time on. I ended up having to pull the rip cord. It was another incredible, freaky ride on Xtreme Skyflyer. Next was Drop Tower, with its spinless cycle. We got on and had another fun ride. But… Time was running out. The FUN was about to end. We decided to spend the end of it on The Beast. I got one of the last cycles on The Beast. Well… It was fun. Very fun. We waited for Don, and then headed to the entrance. And that was it. It was over. That’s all she wrote for 2013 at Kings Island. We met up at Taco Bell for some dinner. It was good. I liked it. We said our goodbyes, and then headed home. A couple of notes: *Rides seemed to be running. Good for that. *Banshee is just stunning. In 4 months… *Once again, Closing Day managed to be such a fun day. Well, that’s all for 2013. But, the good news is, writing this trip report so late, means we have already waited 2 months, and are about 1/3 the way to next season. Between the guessing, footers, and green Intamin track, this was such a fun season. And thanks for reading! Oh and Happy Holidays!

Speaking of webcams... December 21... Spring-like weather... The rain is filling up the wave pool. Crank up the wave machine, don the bathing suits its time for a NEW Kings Island tradition- a 2013 POLAR BEAR PLUNGE! I know, not on topic... but there is a usual spattering of webcam photos on this thread.

Great TR. Part that made me laugh most was Terp saying Are you doing ok up there? My response: No. Then he said, Good!

"Flight Bat Deck Gun Thing" I think this was my favorite part of this report. It's certainly the point where I laughed the hardest! Great report, even if it is two months late. Have fun with your Platinum Pass next year!

Waiting on the park to release the operating calendar and curiosity got the better of you? The last three years it has been on the last Saturday in April. In 2010 I believe it was earlier in April, though I'm not sure of the exact date. This year, we already know that Banshee media day and the A Kid Again fundraiser are scheduled for Thursday, April 17, therefore the park will not open before then. One would assume that they will want to open the park while the media reports about Banshee are still fresh in people's minds, hence I expect opening day to be Saturday, April 19. I of course could be wrong on that, but I don't think I am.

Great trip report; that was a great day

So much for shutting up. For those that saw the film, spend at least that much time researching the other point of view. I honestly did not know until about a week ago that Seaworld had other animals. I thought they only had killer whales. The focus of the film doesn't go into the other animals very much. I had never put much thought into this park until then. The official website, of course, is PR. So was the documentary. Give both equal time and make your own decision. As a warning, due not view the webcams unless you have a few hours to kill. To me, they were mesmerizing. As fairiewench said, some things in the park, are not perfect, but investing in the park can make it more so. Let's not descriminate against these whales due to where they were born. Let us buy them lunch. I'm liking all the links and posts on both sides. I like to hear all the debate, not just one side.

It has been 5 days. Once again it is time to move on... IMG_1132 by KIC-Vortex_BFF, on Flickr Easy: any coaster train Hard: Vortex at night Expert: Close-up of a decal on front of a coaster train

It's 70 and sunny here in DC. Still, I bet the concrete and water would be cold!

If you get the chance, go see "Saving Mr. Banks", great movie. I think Emma Thompson will get a nomination for her performance.

just be glad we live in a country where we are given freedom of speech and the right to question - in many countries, a lot of posts throughout this forum (not just this topic) would be under continuous censorship and would never see the light of day; public flogging of those with posts deemed questionable; and perhaps death in other parts of the world. Personally, I try not to worry about things outside of my control (but even that is tough to do). For every show-whale SeaWorld has, how many other whales and animals have been rescued and given proper care to then reenter nature - maybe show-whales is a small price to pay for the overall good being provided to countless other wild animals that were injured and brought back to health and then returned to the wild. Same with zoos. Being an animal trainer is dangerous. So is being a firefighter, police officer, or astronaut - should we eliminate those jobs as well because people have been killed in those jobs? Do we really need to risks peoples lives to go into space? The fact of the matter is that things learned in space has made our lives better. The things being learned about animals at SeaWorld and zoos can ultimately save an animal from extinction. Some will find that acceptable, while others will say if they were meant to die off, then we shouldn't interfere. Taking that logic one step further, then we shouldn't be trying to find cures for cancer, AIDS, etc. and we shouldn't allow people to undergo experimental treatment that furthers the science so that perhaps in the future a cure can be found. I will end with if you make the argument that animals shouldn't be displaced from their natural habitat, period, then I think you have some serious soul-searching to do. The native americans probably say the same thing about you and I, so unless you are 100% native American, you should go back to England, Europe, Japan, Africa, Korea, China or whatever country your ancestors came from and return this land back to those that were first here. We will not see many people do that. Not everything humans do is perfect, and unfortunately there have been stumbles along the way, but as long as we grow and learn and make the world a better place and try to learn from mistakes and rectify when possible, that is all we can ask for in a modern society. The alternative is to go back to living off the land with no phones, no lights, no motor cars, not a single luxury.

Ok, now you're just torturing us. All these pictures...the trip report...4 more months...aaagh.

With the exception with the inaugural season most of the time opening day hovered around the first or second weekend in April and stayed that way until around 2002 when it started opening the first weekend in April. That stayed the same until Cedar Fair changed it to the third weekend in April from 07-09 and 14- but changed to the last weekend in April for 10-13. Most if not all where on Saturdays exept in 08' when it was a Sunday. I could be wrong but that's what historical information has given me.

On the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, and 13th day of Christmas Kings Island gave to me... a second wave pool for it's 40th.

I despise LTO (limited time only) offerings. It's not the toppings that need improvement at Tower Pizza. It's the pizza. Tiny little slices of dry, dried out dough with very little sauce. It's almost as bad as the crap that Six Flags called pizza last year, and that's saying something. Cedar Point (when it's hot and fresh) and Dorney Park have excellent pizza. Cedar Fair CAN do it. Will it?

Oh, the things I would do for mass transit that could get me from Dayton to Mason in a reasonable amount of time...

For the most part, you hit the nail on the head. Though SeaWorld hasn't actually taken an orca that was directly from the wild in decades. (those they have taken in since the 80s had been someplace else like Marineland Canada or Sealand originally before actually going to SeaWorld) Morgan is the most recent example as Harderwijk and their folks did her rescue initially and she is now a SeaWorld orca at Loro Parque. Moragn was found in the wild starving and with a bad case of peanut head, which is a sign of malnourishment, and she was still bit of a youngin (kind of youngin that still needed her mom to survive). When she was first brought in I had little to no hope for her even that she would actually survive. So everyone knows I'm far from being someone that supports everything that SeaWorld does, I don't even like their bottlenose dolphin tanks to be honest cause of the sheer amount of them rascals they got. They breed very, very well...too well if you'd ask me. Hence why....I actually love the Mirage dolphin habitat. In all honesty...a lot of people refuse to admit but if it hadn't actually been for SeaWorld no one would give a flip about orcas. Before the first captive orcas, we as humans, were still hunting and killing them, either because they were nuisances to fisherman or for sport. And probably still be going after them present day more than likely.

There are those who do that. I believe some of them live in Pennsylvania and Ohio, among other places. They are, of course, the Amish.

I am hoping it is April 19. It would be an awesome way to celebrate my birthday. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

^ Where did the 13th day come from?

The whales in captivity now are our responsibility to care for the remainder of their lives. Humans dragged them and their ancestors from the wild, humans gotta take care of them. The orcas of SeaWorld/Loro Parque, Marineland France, Port, and Kamogawa Sea World will likely never see the ocean. Same goes for the 3 lone orcas, Kshamenk, Lolita and Kiska. (in Kshamenk's and Lolita's case I use "lone" kind of loosely because while they are the lone orcas at their parks they are not truly alone at all). Of those 3 loners, Kiska at Marineland Canada is probably the one I actually worry about the most. Sure she has a real large, roomy tank...but I don't think she is honestly receiving enough attention as her trainers not only look after her but the parks 30+ belugas they have living crammed in the tank next to hers. Marineland Canada is probably the one park where I will say I do not like its upper management, at all. I would LOVE to see Kiska out of there and living among other females around her age but with the current management there her fate is pretty much sealed and she will be at that park till the day she dies. There is no need for any more captures, I am appalled the Russians captured a bunch and even more irked by the reactions towards their situation. Almost no attention on them and I am hearing some pretty bad stories about those orcas. They should be released.

Maybe Im late to this party or not... Sea World has a response. http://www.cnn.com/2013/12/20/us/seaworld-newspaper-ads/ Personally, I think any time an animal is in any type of enclosure it is stressful on the animals. This is how I feel about all enclosures, Sea World, sea pens, The Wilds, The Cincinnati Zoo, the Columbus Zoo, etc. But does this mean we should eliminate them? No! These offer opportunities for education and saving of these animals. If we can preserve animal species or inspire a young child who goes on to be the next Jane G. then I say then it is all worth it. As for the Sea World event, I do not know enough about what is real and what is exaggerated. I will say this, Sea World, IMHO, has done more good than bad. This could be just by raising awareness in young children and adults alike. ...

From KDS Facebook: On the 9th day of Christmas, ‪#‎KD40‬ gave to me: The Return of the original Coca-Cola Pizza Parlor. Tower Pizza will be renovated and return to its original "Coca-Cola Pizza Parlor" - circa 1976. The restaurant interior will feature a whole new look and feel with more room inside to cool off during the dog days of summer and new limited time only pizza toppings. (Photo From KDs Facebook)

leave the wet-suit in the car.

At 65°F, it's warm enough for a regular, non-polar-bear plunge.

Yes... come downtown and ride the train through nothing to do nothing and to see nothing,

My opinion. its a bad financial deal. Unfortunately, unless I'm mistaken there are none, if precious, few hotels located on the route, doesn't access Fountain Square and only gets 2 blocks away from the Horseshoe and is NO WHERE near the convention center. It seems a better route would have included the aforementioned. Downtown just isn't touristy enough to support. Now, it may give cheaper access to parking for downtown employees to park at the Riverfront to their jobs up on, say, 7th street... which will suck on the Business Day Specials.

Due to high winds, not much progress today. Only 1.5 supports installed today. It was an oddly shaped support that has three legs support that actually supports 2 pieces of track. As always, Link to gallery.

Thought I'd share an interesting video I found on YouTube of Kings Island in 1991 (a fine year, I must say. ) It's been stabilized, which is why the frame keeps shifting all over the place (as opposed to being a VERY shaky video): It's relatively short, but in it, you can see and hear: -A relatively new Vortex that does not come to a complete stop on the MCBR -The theming on the KI&MVRR, including the town by the train shed -Kings Mills Log Flume, which woefully doesn't seem to have much video existing for it online -A few peeks at Adventure Village and King Cobra Unfortunately, there's also an on-ride video of Vortex. It's really distorted and looks like video of an uprising during an earthquake, but it's there. The posting of this video does not equate to endorsement or approval of the unauthorized filming on any ride at Kings Island. Please do not film on any rides the park does not permit guests to film on without permission, including Vortex.

3 supports and 3 pieces of track installed again today. As always, Link to gallery.

Cool looking streetcar!

Soon, the majority of Internet traffic will be delivered to mobile devices. It's bad enough you must have Flash to buy a ticket or season pass from FUN. Don't tell me about Accesso. The average customer couldn't care less--FUN is responsible for its contractors' performance in its name. So, today I get an email from California's Great America. Like many, soon to be a majority, I'm on a mobile platform. They sent a Happy Holidays video. That, on an iPhone, at least, defaults to their mobile website. In 2013. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Really? Pathetic.

http://m.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2013/12/19/last-minute-deal-making-greenlights.html?ana=e_cinci_bn&r=full

depends on how you measure time. If you mean a 45 minute drive by car versus a 55 minute by train/light rail. 45 minutes of driving, getting upset at other drivers, watching out for accidents, eating while trying not to crash etc.... or 55 minutes by light rail where you can read your book, eat food, play games, comment on topics such as this. If there was such a service for light rail that could connect down town cincy with dayton, indy, cleveland, and columbus, I think it would be a huge hit. Not to mention if there were the correct coordination of services in those areas, taxis, buses, street car. People dont ride the Grayhound bus, because its slow and cramped. Light rail trains are a bunch better, not nearly as cramped.

Goodness, its crazy, Subway if it had ever get completed what would the Tri-state had been like? But at the very least Cincinnati will not have 2 cancelled/stopped major transportation projects. Will we ever see high speed loop run as Cincinnati as the hub, to INDY, Columbus, Louisville, Lexington, and Dayton, that would rock, ?

Oh if they just finished the subway cincy may not be in this situation

I guess I shouldn't say the main hub for Metro but use it as a stop? To me that would be a great spot for a tank to the levy run or metro to the burbs following a reds/bengals game.... Why don't we have light rail again? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

And, to make it clickable: http://www.cincinnati-transit.net/

The main reason Metro does not use the RTC as its main hub is because it's several blocks from the center of downtown, where a majority of the office buildings are located. Essentially, if Metro/Tank busses were to use the facility they would have to loop around downtown and into the underground center. Then passengers would have to walk several blocks into the central business district. As it stands with Government Square, Metro's current hub, Metro's routes terminate right in the business district center with stops along the way. Their current hub is much more convenient. As you stated, the RTC was built more so with rail intention in mind. On a daily basis, the approach ways of the RTC are used every day, but the underground section is not used daily. The entry ways are converted to monthly parking spots that can be purchased for downtown workers and in the evenings for event goers. The interior underground area is used frequently for busses visiting the Freedom Center, game days and special events. If you remember, when Cinergy Field was still around, charter and group busses could be parked on the main level of the stadium's entryway. Nowadays, those busses park in the RTC while their riders attend events. You can usually walk down there (especially during Reds day games) and see just how many busses are down there In terms of it "being a waste," it's actually a good example of forward thinking. You have to remember, before the RTC was constructed and Ft. Washington Way was completely redesigned, 2nd St. was not at the level it's currently at. Essentially, 2nd st. was raised to the same plane as 3rd st. To support it, they would've just filled in dirt, but the idea of the RTC was conceived of. When all was said and done, it cost only $2 Million more to build the RTC than it would've to build the dirt and concrete structure to support 2nd st. The eventual plan is to use the RTC as a rail terminus (light rail, commuter rail, eastern corridor, oasis line, airport line, etc). The streetcar will actually feature a stop directly above on 2nd St. to connect and serve the RTC. Here's a photo of what it looks like on a random day when the doors were unlocked:

By regularly I mean on a daily basis, and not just for special events. It's just a waste of infrastructure if you ask me.

On an iPhone, touching the time at the top of the phone screen takes any Safari screen to the top.

I would argue that downtown already is a lot more than Reds and Bengals games and festivals. As someone who spends a lot of time down there, downtown is a lot more active and entertaining than it was even back in 2007 when I first moved back to the area. There's a lull on weeknights in the winter for sure, but overall downtown is doing great. The streetcar itself serves as an urban circulator which connects multiple attractions and businesses on a loop. The point of it is to provide rapid transportation between these waypoints and spur economic development. Essentially if you take the bus or your car downtown, the streetcar helps you navigate around multiple attractions very quickly. In the future you may see improved bus service, BRT or even light rail reaching the further outlying areas and connecting them with downtown. However, keep in mind that rail lines extending into other cities and counties becomes a far more complicated process. If this were true, you'd see economic activity springing up all around the "Southbank Shuttle" line. You don't. Meanwhile in Portland, Charlotte, Atlanta and cities where modern streetcars and light rail are being built - you see businesses popping up all along the fixed rail routes, mainly because those routes are permanent and not going to change. Unfortunately, had the Governor of Ohio not recommended state funding being pulled from the streetcar - you'd see the Clifton line under construction right now. Keep an eye out for it in the future though. Not to mention all the bars, restaurants and good stuff in between and along the route. I'm guessing you're not aware of the actions taken today. A private donor stepped up to guarantee operational funding until 2025, meaning the city's operating budget won't be going towards the streetcar. Not to mention, even if the city bore the operational costs, they're minuscule compared to the rest of the operating budget. You won't be paying more taxes for it, nor have your taxes been raised. To be fair, not just Cincinnati, but the entirety of Hamilton County is paying for/voted to raise taxes for the construction of the two stadiums. It takes far longer than eight minutes to walk the entire route, I know because I've walked the entire route before: http://queencitydiscovery.blogspot.com/2009/09/cincinnati-streetcar-virtual-tour.html Also as far as "the hood" goes, I've been in neighborhoods and cities far worse than where the streetcar runs. OTR still has its issues, but increasing pedestrian traffic and development in the neighborhood is one way to combat crime.

I wouldn't classify a stadium for a football team that hasn't seen the second round of the playoffs since the fall of the Berlin Wall to be an awesome or profitable improvement.

Thank you so much for posting this, I love the footage of the anamatronics.

I remembered that the other day driving, but don't promote Tapatalking and driving. Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk

Sigh. This is not a good day to be a Cincinnatian.

No urban mass transit operates at a profit in the USA.

to the future of a great Downtown with street car, but truthfully can downtown be more than the red, bengals big festivals. will macy stay? Will kroger build a super kroger/ general merchandise store like they did in Salt Lake city? will the bank be as popular in 10 years. We have to hope the street car expands beyond downtown to nky/ newport/ covington, and out to lunken and beyond: maybe the airport:?

Just an FYI there are also couple other threads already with Blackfish discussions. http://www.KICentral.com/forums/index.php/topic/27946-blackfish-the-movie/ http://www.KICentral.com/forums/index.php/topic/28198-busch-gardens-williamsburg-cuts/ Orcas have the most sensitive hearing between 15-20 kHz, so basically the music is nothing more than background noise or similar to what we used to hear on our TVs as kids with the static snow screen. I don't like the loud music mostly because it is at times too loud even for me, so I would often find myself with my ear buds in listening to my ipod as opposed to the music at the stadium. I think it is up to the mods. Poor conditions? Again go research the Asia parks where the latest captured orcas are goin and then compare them to SeaWorld and then we will talk. They don't perform for food, they are given their food throughout the day even when they are in crabby moods. They aren't forced to perform as pointed out before. At the end of the day when the trainers go home at night...they are treated to a feeding frenzy sort to speak, so with that they probably overeat. Starved? Right....then I guess we imagined Tillikum's fat rolls throughout the 2000s, he really looked like he was starving. After the 2010 incident they started exercising him more and he finally dropped the weight and he looks like a normal bull now. (well sort of).

Here ya go: