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New at Silver Dollar City for 2015: FIREMAN'S LANDING (Including 10 New Family Attractions) A new family-friendly land featuring 10 new rides and attractions. 1. FireSpotter – Soaring balloons for spotting fire dangers 2. Fire Wagon Frenzy - A bumpy ride for the bucket brigade volunteers 3. FireFall - The 8-story fire tower free-fall drop ride for more daring recruits Station No. 3 Firehouse Play Place, in which guests can meet the station's newest Dalmation residents and "sign in" for three training activities: 4. Firefighter's Fire Drill - Featuring buckets, pumpers, foam ball cannons, and targets for showing mock fires 5. Firefighter's Fire Escape - An obstacle course of tubes, mazes, climbing structures and slides. 6. Firefighter's Junior Escape - A soft play area for toddlers 7. Fireman's Flyer - A low-flying swing ride for little firefighters. 8. Up the Ladder - A smaller drop ride for junior recruits 9. The Roundabout - A bouncing ride on Dalmatians racing around a fire hydrant 10. Firehouse Splash Yard - Squirting water jets and pump hoses. What an outstanding development in the family craze... A nice evolution from Cedar Point's Gemini Midway. Wouldn't we kill for an area like this? Just so well done. No surprise though, is it? OFFICIAL SITE

Looks like a well balanced set of attractions for both thrill seekers and the youngest kids. Definitely a top notch addition to Silver Dollar City. Herschend certainly does a good job with their additions. I still have yet to make it out to Silver Dollar City, but will hopefully get out there one of these years. It likely won`t be next year. Most of my vacation days are already spoken for next year with getting married and the honeymoon. (Going to be making my first west coast visit and checking out Disneyland as part of the honeymoon! ).

http://www.themeparktourist.com/features/20140119/15858/dangerously-thrilling-3-extreme-roller-coasters-pushed-limits-too-far?page=1 Neat article, about three coasters ahead of their time. Bet you cant guess #1:

Private equity. Blackstone. Acquired, and has already gotten back its investment and more, by milking the parks. This is what Mr. Kinzel and Apollo would have done to Cedar Fair. Thank goodness for Q, which for reasons of its own, foiled Kinzel's plans, using the very anti-takeover measures Kinzel and his cronies had instituted to protect themselves. Oh, the irony!

THE Flying Eagles went to Carowinds. There's a BIG difference between a set of Flying Scooters and THAT particular set of Flying Scooters. It's like the difference between A Subaru and MY Subaru. Lance Hart may buy A Subaru soon. He's not buying MINE. It's staying in DC. For now, at least.

Impressive. It's great to see them putting so much emphasis on families of all ages, rather than the typical "put in a new family coaster" type thinking that so many parks are doing these days.

Mr. Ouimet has spoken about rides that all family members will enjoy together. I think that an antique cars if added, would be outside of the kid's area based of his words. Once you put something in a kid's area it is usually thought of as a kid's ride. If they add 'tiques and flying eagles the interesting trend of undoing Paramount's mistakes continues. Should Back Lot be worried, haha? Could we see some kind of KCKC replacement sometime in the future? I really like the direction the park is going overall.

I really hope our 2015 addition is more similar to VF's 2014 addition versus CP's or KBF's. You all may desperately want your Eagles back, but there is not a single removed attraction that my family of five misses more the the Antiques. I'd like to see them make a grand return in 2015 after a decade of absence. As far as location is concerned I think a good area is the back side of the tower between Backlot, Diamondback, and the carousel, with the entrance facing the front of the park and coming off of I-Street.

I've seen commercials for the Kentucky Kingdom $9.99 state fair pricing here in Lexington that made absolutely no mention of the requirement of purchase at Kroger. There will be a lot of very upset people at the window.

Meanwhile, at Universal Orlando...

For crying out loud. Of all things to be proud of. Safety. Service. Courtesy. I don't remember running around like a chicken with its tail on fire to set a capacity record as being a cornerstone. I guess that means more Fast Lane customers can be accommodated more quickly. EBITDA, sweet EBITDA.

You do get that 9.99 was advertised with NO qualifications until recently, but the gate price is 19.99? I doubt the park will fill. Angry guests will be at the gate, unless the park relents and honors the advertised price. And the carnival midway opens well before the park, so many will have spent their budget on ride tickets before the Kingdom even opens.

And a guest who lives in Akron will likely find out after they travel to the park.

Orlando Sentinel: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/os-sea-world-earnings-20140813,0,5155583.story Quoting Coaster Crew Facebook admin "The Legend" (source):

Son of Shake Rattle & Roll.

Don't go there. Metaphorically. I'm not telling you not to go to the state. GYK, who was banned.

Due to internal miscommunication and confusion we have decided to honor the $9.95 price at the gate. Back Room Internal Communication: King of the Kingdom - "Hey, who is the idiot that authorized a $9.95 gate price, only available at Krogers?' Yes Man/Troll - "Sire we terminated him after the breastfeeding incident" King - "Thats just great, who do I blame now? Bring me one of the confused and under trained employees." Troll - "Yes Sire, what excuse do we use this time? How about due to miss numeration or the so-called employee suffered from dyslexia?" King - "That might just work, now someone get this wheelchair ramp off these steps. Its good to be the King!"

I will 100% echo what Terp said about The Roller Coaster at NYNY, the artist formerly known as Manhattan Express when I rode it in 2003. I'm not one to complain about rough rides, but this ride beat the crap out of me AND my entire family. We all had the same sentiment: Never again. I've been back since, I held to my word. It was that bad. Not only that, in 2003, I believe it was $13, so I can't imagine what it is these days. I know people around here often aren't fans of TPR, but if you find and watch their video of Manhattan Express, you'll understand... and laugh quite a bit (especially if you have ridden it and understand their pain). In 2003, most of the existing rides at The Stratosphere were not there, except for Big Shot. I did it at night and was lucky enough to face The Strip. That was quite the rush as you couldn't really see the tower below you. Worth the money. I didn't ride High Roller up top, but that has since been removed. Too bad Nascar Cafe closed and Vegas lost Speed: The Ride, because that was a fantastic ride, racing along The Strip and all. As for Desperado, I've driven past and it looked decent enough, but never stopped. It's not exactly close to Las Vegas. I've heard mixed reviews, but if you're coming by from SD, I'd say it's probably worth a visit.

I peeked in there on Monday. There was "blood" on the walls.

they are from KIC's twitter feed OK, then. In the future, please state and link to your source so we know where they're coming from. Im sorry i usually do just baby sitting and my nephew woke up so posted it without thinking about that! lol

It was a power hour. Saw this on Facebook: "I would like to give a HUGE shoutout to the Banshee crew for reaching a record of 53 cycles in one hour! This is just mind-boggling to me and is another great example of why Kings Island is the best."

If you have not been to Discovery Cove, GO! It is incredible.

As long as Kumba and Manta are operating, I will visit the parks every year. My family had a BLAST at Sea World in June. Hoping these parks can get turned in the right direction soon.

Honestly, the capacity is the last thing to worry about for that ride. Capacity doesn't matter if nobody is there to ride it.

Your little one can be held on the Carousels, Boo Blasters may be too scary, but it never bothered our son at 2ish or our daughter last year when she was about 15 months. Monster may be too early, out Daughter rode it once last season and just buried her head into Mom the whole ride (then proceeded to cheer with excitement when it was done) so we waited for a second turn this season and she really enjoys it. She rode it 3 times one day. He's probably too young to ride the whip it alone, if he had someone sitting on the outside seat that he could lean into when it turned the corner, he'd be ok, but as an individual its probably the right call to hold back. Our Daughter has been on it by herself a couple of times this season (kind of made me nervous w/o her brother right next to her, but she supported herself well), so maybe next season for you. Sally's Sea Plane and the Whirlybirds, well lets just say you're probably better off not letting him know that either of those are an option. Sea Plane is always a short line, so not too bad, but the line for Whirlybirds is often long, moves slowly and those things get awfully stuffy on the inside. I'm forever thankful that the 6 year old never really requested that ride much, and wouldn't complain if the line was long and we said no on a handful of occasions. Enjoy the next few seasons, dont know if your son will grow into much next season, but by age 3, they should have most of the 36" stuff open to them, then every 4" is a KI milestone. You have no idea how fun a night ride on The Beast can be until your 5 year old looks over at you on the 2nd lift hill smiling and talking about how he couldn't even see his hand in front of his face, let alone his dad sitting next to him. Same can be said about all the rides. Enjoy!

We went to see Dimensions: A Cirque Experience at Canada's Wonderland this past Friday. We got 2nd row on the right side on the aisle. GatorGirl's seat was wet, so she decided not to sit there. Mrs. Gator came in a little after us and sat there but decided to move because she thought someone may have relieved themselves in it. I figured it was wet from someone who had ridden a water ride, so I agreed to sit there so Hydra wasn't sitting on his own. But halfway through the show I got to thinking... wouldn't the other people in that group have ridden the water ride too, so the other chairs around it would be wet also? But then I realized that the back of the seat was damp too, putting my mind at ease that it was from a water ride... I hope.

If parks should shuffle in the future, here's hoping that the best of the best acquire some of SeaWorld's parks. Those parks deserve to be nurtured and invested in.

SeaWorld is an odd duck. If we're really being honest, it's a zoo. And a darn good one! And the few coasters it has are nice ones. But people travel from around the world to get to Universal Orlando and Walt Disney World, and become absorbed into its parks and resorts and day trips and details. No zoo – no matter how beautiful – can compete with that. SeaWorld is not a great "theme" park, nor a great "amusement" park. It's a great zoo with some nice themes and thrills. It's just an odd duck. It doesn't quite fit with the parks it's supposedly "competing" with.

Park Management on the Cheap, Blackfish, and poor public relations regarding Blackfish have added greatly to SEAS lack of success. Both Disney and Universal are experiencing excellent growth in the Orlando Market, yet Sea World continues to flounder. The 2 Busch Parks are not what they once were either. Talking with some long time season pass holders they are extremely unhappy with the turn they have seen their parks take. People need a reason to leave Disney or Universal property and SEAS is not providing them with that reason, if anything they are reaffirming the choice not to leave.

Hey, who said I was calling this a bad thing? Things you find only in KY are some of the special things I love. It's the good kind of country folk you can find in some of the most unlikely places. For example, right down the road from KK is Mike Linning's, the best fish restaurant in my opinion south of the river and north of the mason dixon.

I wish they had a grown-up version of those... I'm totally jealous of how much fun the whip around the ends looks.

The Legend is right. The only truly remarkable and well-done rides added to the parks since this conversion have been Verbolten and Cheetaka. Everything else has been filler. This as the parks face exponentially stronger competition. At least fifteen years ago, a family visiting Walt Disney World would have a hard choice to make between a day at Universal Studios and a day at SeaWorld. As it is now, a visit to Orlando already includes Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando... SeaWorld will need to step up its game in some big ways. More and more, the future of the current SeaWorld Parks is looking grim. I bet, for one, they wish they hadn't chosen that name.

Swing and a miss with this one. Sorry.

electronic cars may not be the same to you, but they'd be every bit as enjoyable to the 6-12 year olds of today that would be chauffeuring their parents around the coarse. As far as location, my vote would be to get rid of Snoopy Junction (even on busy evenings I often see empty trains leaving) and extend the track back towards picnic groove. It would win thru the trees, you could create some interaction with the walking path back there, perhaps even use it an an excuse to spruce up picnic groove (I've never personally been back there, so I don't know if it needs any sprucing or not). The 3 rides behind Surf Dog are seemingly ignored by many in Planet Snoopy. They're kind of hidden back there, and while Snoopy Junction and Peanuts Offroad Adventure are largely forgettable, Linus' Beetlebugs are a joy to watch. It would be nice to have something to attract parents back to that area (all 3 are rideable by children under 36" which appeals to our 2 year old) they could probably even re-use Snoopy Junction's station, though finding room for a que could prove difficult.

Give it up. You were called out for stereotyping and now you're being a baby about it. I'm not opening this can of worms. Suffice it to say, my original post on the subject was concerned NOT with how awful your state is, but with the pre-concieved notions that MANY people have about it (just as they have about Ohio, California, West Virginia, New Jersey, etc. just upon hearing the name). Kentucky Kingdom incites bias. It just does. Sorry, wish I could help! BB1's "Only in Kentucky..." post above is only verification of those biases and the fact that it's a bias we have, culturally and psychologically, whether we like it or not. I said that my psychological biases against Kentucky gave me the impression that I would not feel welcome there. Humorously, your way of "calling me out" for stereotyping was a guns-blazing, yee-haw style monologue about how Kentucky didn't need me and to not show my face there because I was unwelcome. Uhh... sort of verified my stereotype, didn't it? GYK, who's being a baby about it... by still waiting for a response from the apologetic and clarifying PM I sent you day of... EDIT: And even if we're all going to brush it under the rug, I still think this whole biases / stereotypes thing does affect Kentucky Kingdom. I just think it does. I think Bluegrass Boardwalk would've been read differently. I know. I'm a bigot or something.

Sure seems like a lot of "Whoops!" going on down there, especially on things that are not all that complicated.

New York New York Coaster...... No...... Just.... No Gplez90, who misses Speed The Ride.

Just wanted to throw this out there, Don started Following Premire Rides yesterday which have Flying Aces on their web site. I tried to click link and it would not let me.(I know we have rides from them already, just found it odd that he just started following them yesterday)

Everything old is new again?

Found another. Challenge of Tutankhamun! This is another INCREDIBLE interactive dark ride from Sally Corp commissioned for Six Flags Holland (now Walabi Belgium). Like Labyrnth of the Minotaur, low-scoring riders are ejected from the ride early. However, Minotaur had ejection points about 1/3 and 2/3 of the way through the game. In Challenge of Tut, both ejection points are at the end of the ride. If you've scored enough by time you reach 14A (on the layout below), you get to face the golden god Set (sort of like a final boss battle... labeled 15A). Only if you defeat him do you see Tut's treasure room (16A) and the fate of the ride's antagonist and protagonist are revealed. It's smart. On Minotaur, if you don't score enough you miss the last half of the ride or more. Here, you get the full ride no matter what, but only those who score high enough get the big finale. Pretty smart. Here's a big version of the layout map below, and a photo of 3D model. The YouTube video above is official from Sally Corp. and, at the end, mentions their other new dark ride for 2003: Scooby Doo and the Haunted Castle at Paramount's Kings Island. Both Minotaur and Challenge of Tut are INCREDIBLE. I can't get over it. I don't know which one I'd be more excited to ride. Sally can do great work when budgets are expanded.

When the terms of service are not being adhered to, we're supposed to turn into skittish mice, afraid to say so? Photos (and rumors for that matter) need to be cited according to the terms of service. Especially if they give the impression that they might've been taken by breaking park rules and policies. Goble saw a photo and wanted to know it's origin. That's his right. And it's the poster's responsibility to cite that kind of thing. Lessons learned all around.

I think it's pretty sad how many flats not coasters that have been removed from the park just since I started going which was in 1987. I can think of at least 6 off the top of my head. Skylab, The Crypt, Der Spinning Keggers, Flight Commander, Flying Eagles, Oktoberfest Ferris Wheel. And the list goes on. I think Kings Island is lacking in the Flat Ride department.

The first indoor spinning glow-coaster in the U.S. OVERVIEW: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfFQhQIikOk#t=13 POV: Family friendly fun-house coaster. http://www.hersheypark.com/2015/

Ran across this essay and though it worthy of sharing: http://illusion0flife.wordpress.com/2014/08/12/defining-our-medium-a-k-a-what-the-hell-is-a-theme-park-anyway/ It explores questions such as are theme parks "art?" and what is a theme park? The writer settles upon a good working definition incorporating elements such as immersion, artificial environments, entertainment and education. The writer compares and contrasts Knott's Berry Farm and Disneyland as he constructs his essay. Interesting observations and analysis of Knott's to be sure. Enjoy the read.

What is this? I noticed this sign on a tree at the end of International Street awhile back, but I kept forgetting to get a pic and ask about it. Finally got one.

That $9.99 price got a lot of attention across Kentucky. There's going to be some disappointed, surprised, shocked and angry people at the Kentucky Kingdom gate during the fair. Not to mention how late the park opens..well after the carnival midway. How the park handles these people will be yet another indicator of its future.

I'm on my phone, so I'm not sure how to edit my previous post, but here's a link from the mobile site. https://mobile.twitter.com/KingsIslandPR/status/494500977844977665 The source is the Official Kings Island Twitter Page/Account Thingy.

Just giving a friendly reminder. Admins have asked several times in the past that the source of photos be provided. I'm just trying to help a user who may be unaware of that before he gets in trouble.

The craps table can be quite a roller coaster. Up a couple hundred one minute, down a couple hundred a few minutes later.

I don't get the music being removed for FunTV, you can't even hear what the TV is playing because it is so loud with everyone talking over each other.