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More details to come, but an exclusive opportunity for KIC members to enjoy a lights on tour of three of the park's Halloween Haunt mazes will be available Saturday, November 1.

Banshee is on pace to give the most rides ever for a new attraction at Kings Island.

Thanks for the info Don! We appreciate all these benefits that the park has given us this year!

I noticed a rather weird prediction by the article TheBEASTunchained posted. *Italicized for emphasis. Unless Cedar Point wants to pride themselves in having, quite possibly, the longest queue ever, I think it's safe to call this false.

^ and today they are running a mother nature special.... get two water parks for the price of one admission!! Lol

^ It could make Fast Lane a worthwhile investment for that ride. Avoid the mile walk-around.

And the teasing continues... https://twitter.com/TonyClarkCP/status/506467064803254272/photo/1

IMO the only viable option for such a treatment was SOB, and that's now gone soo... I would like RMC not to work on any existing woodies at the park. If a new one ever were put in, that's fine, just leave the classics alone.

Awesome! Thanks Don and Boddah and Dane (and whoever else) for putting this together!

Cool! Now I have to decide whether to drive home that night and then back the next morning for closing day, or just get a hotel room for the night. I may just get a room at the Microtel over by The Beach, if I have the money.

At least the company has learned something from the Big Dipper sale. Removal required by September 2014. Oh, wait...

Considering its nearly 30 years old, its been sitting in the Canadian weather all that time, and Togo is no more, I really, really doubt it'll find a home other than a scrapyard.

Cedar Fair is selling it. That means they have determined they have no interest in relocating it. King Cobra was also offered for sale...and had no takers.

It has been up and running every time I have been at the park. Honestly any park I go to, the coasters I see running the best without complaint are the B&M coasters and the old reliable Arrow coasters. If they are ever down for any reason it is usually because someone puked or some minor error that doesn't keep them down for long. I'd say Banshee has proven to be a hard workin' gal thus far and will continue to be a reliable machine and worthy investment

There seems to be a fall party for gardening tools going on in Planet Snoopy. A shovel and a broom are playing cornhole against each other, among other things I also saw this person, who seemed to be having a perfectly normal conversation with the woman sitting there

Yes, and many people of my era find the Disney version an abomination to the Nick version.

I'm thinking maybe I'm just bad luck. Lol. Love Banshee though. Awesome ride. And being on pace for the most rides ever for a new attraction, goes to show how hard the Banshee crew works. Sent from a signal coming out of the Vega system.

Cedar Point does like breaking records.

Oh i know, I'm participating in such a special.

This is now going to take up most of my free time. Thanks.

A VERY interesting article: http://m.fastcodesign.com/3034304/innovation-by-design/inside-the-war-to-reinvent-the-soda-fountain#1

Forget the announcement, I want one of those pads full of Cedar Point branded checklists.

The poor kid doesn't seem to want anything to do with him. I feel bad for the kid. I'm sure that is the last thing he expected to see.

The Racer and The Beast were both running terrific yesterday. If they ever slapped a "treatment" on one of these beauties I would be livid and probably hunt down Don in the park to give him a piece of my mind. Only kidding Don...........maybe

Many of my visits to the park are early in the season and late in the season and Don doing that is nothing that he hasn't done before. Last year he did the hot dog thing, worked The Beast, and he and Greg were collecting parking money two years ago - and these are just events I have witnessed and remember. I seem to recall seeing him picking up trash and others things. All part of the job in a seasonal environment when the majority of employees are off in school.

Don't forget they also have to close the ride if someone get's sick on it to make sure it's completely clean. There is quite a few inversions on Banshee plus dollar food days going on today doesn't probably add up well.

Haha. Oh that is funny. Thanks! Can I blame it on being a spaz and thinking of this (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-2736835/Finally-I-photobomb-Benedict-Cumberbatch-puts-final-touches-Madame-Tussauds-waxwork.html) and the wax figures in the maze? And yeah, I figured. I just spend way more time in hotels than any normal person should.

FYI. http://www.madametussauds.com/ Sent from a signal coming out of the Vega system.

Lights-on are the only way I will go through Haunt! I went through the two tours last year and enjoyed it. The gentleman running the Wolf Pack tour was great and answered questions and pointed out cool tricks. For Madame Toussand's (I think that is the name?), we were rushed through quickly but still neat to see. I would totally recommend it. And jcgoble3 - they'll let you reserve under one card and charge with another. We've had to do it for work and they don't ever care. Just be clear at check-in which card to charge. Also, if you use a debit card for payment, hotels can and do freeze funds that can be released up to 2 weeks later.

I could use a coaster in my backyard.

LOL! I got soaked real good waiting in line for pizza ($1 a slice today)... got too hungry and opted for Skyline

The Science Behind The Success Of The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge http://www.forbes.com/sites/ricksmith/2014/09/01/the-science-behind-the-success-of-the-ice-bucket-challenge/

^ Kennywood has 3.

So, I recently moved to Columbus for a new job (my first post-college, big boy job. *takes a bow*) and have had a chance to really get to explore COSI, the absolutely incredible world-class science center here in downtown. Brief history: COSI was originally a small, local, family / children's museum in Columbus. In 1999, it re-opened in a brand new, state-of-the-art facility on the bend in the Scioto River along downtown Columbus. The purpose of the move was to create in COSI a world-class science center. And I mean, world class. The idea was to be on par with Tokyo's Miraikan, Medizintechnick Berlin, etc. Designed by famous artist / architect Arata Isozaki, the building is just unbelievably incredible. From downtown, it's disguised with the remains of the city's old Central High School as a tribute to the history of the city. If you can believe it, the other side of the building is a 320,000 sq. foot futuristic structure (which I compare to a blimp hangar) made of 159 curved concrete panels. Architecture and math fans will get a kick out of the odd statistics of the West facade. So, from the city, the museum is a testament to the past. Approaching from the neighborhood of Franklinton, it's a statement of the future. A really, really cool juxtaposition right off The Bat (and you all know how I love that kind of thing / stories / details). Most science centers I've been to are simply large levels filled with fun experiments (green screens, bubble walls, piano floors, tornado machines, etc). COSI is different. It has this crazy Epcot-like mentality of having pavilions themed to different topics. You enter under the gold cylinder in the photo above into a three-story atrium with two levels crossing overhead on bridges. Two very long, high hallways split off from that atrium and flow down the length of the "blimp hangar." Just long, white walls with white vertical lights. Along those long hallways, you suddenly see... oh, I don't know, a shipwreck bursting halfway through the wall. That is the entrance to the Ocean exhibit. Like a freakin' theme park, COSI has massive themed atrium themed to seven topics that, when combined, make up "science." Ocean Entering through that shipwreck, guests step into an underwater cavern. The path branches. To the right is an exploratory submarine called the DMS Poseidon, full of hands-on exhibits that discuss the factual exploration of the ocean - how submarines work, how diving suits work, watersheds, piloting remote subs, pressure readings, and ecosystems (above). Back in the underwater cavern, the path to the left branches into the underwater Temple of Poseidon (presided over by a massive statue of the god and a shining gold halo behind him) where hands-on experiments deal with the fantasy of water - the incredible things it can do, how it feels, how it looks, etc. You'll find water bells, laminar flow cannons, waterfalls, erosion, and whirlpool activities as well as ancient fish statues (you can see one in the bottom left in the photo above) that spit laminar flow streams into the ceiling, where they disappear without a single drop falling back down). If you have an Instagram, you'll Instagram this room. You just have to. Progress How obvious and simple and yet brilliant is it to consider "Progress" an element of science? It really is. Here, you enter into the small town of Progress, USA in 1898 (so, set a few years before Disney's Main Street, where electricity and gas lamps still co-mingle). The town of progress has shops you can step into, a post office, a telegram office, grocery stores, etc. The town itself is on the crossroads of Hope Street and Fear Street as you explore the hopes and fears of the era, which are inseparable elements of progress and change. Then, you turn the corner and enter into the SAME town in 1962, which is 64 years later. Now there's a diner, and the department store has certainly changed its offerings. The telegram office has become a television news studio, etc. But along with a new era come new hopes and fears. The exhibit ends by asking "What would the streets of Progress look like today? What would be YOUR hopes and fears? What would your grandchildren think of the town of Progress in 2014?" Life Life is divided into sections dedicated to Mind, Body, and Spirit. Mind is full of brain teasers and hands-on exhibits that show that you can't overpower your brain's reflexes. Spirit discusses life and death, our conception of both, and the way we memorialize. Body contains fitness tests that allow you to compare your statistics (resting and active heart rates, flexibility, and strength) to national averages. The exhibit also contains Labs rented out by OSU faculty who partner with COSI and visiting programs right in front of guests. Space The final frontier, right? Space has been relocated a few times as COSI went through some difficult financial issues in the 2000s. Today it's the only exhibit that doesn't have its own giant themed atrium. When it DID, it was a crazy cool retro spaceport under the stars with one of those dizzying, spinning tubes as its entry. Today it's just a collection of exhibits along the mezzanine. This fall, COSI is re-opening its Planetarium (which is actually located in the big external gold cylinder... it closed during those tough years, and is now ready to re-open with your help) that should revitalize the exhibit or at least earn it its own official atrium again. Gadgets Gadgets contains probably the most "typical" science center stuff. This is where guests can play with lasers, floating foam balls, plasma-globes, chaotic pendulums, cogs, pulleys, pistons, transmission, circuits, light bulbs, etc. There's also a tiny little theatre that plays "how it's made" videos for things like automobiles, ice cream, etc that are really fun to watch and just a few minutes long. There's also the wonderful Gadget Cafe where you're given a menu of experiments (like invisible ink, mini-volcanoes, etc) and choose an appetizer, entree, and dessert to build or work on. A lot of fun. If you're a tech person, they also have old computers, phones, and household accessories to take apart and try to put back together. Energy The Energy exhibit is new. When walking in, you select an avatar and carry the card with you as you travel to the Home Zone, Product Zone, and Transportation Zone. At each, you place your avatar card into kiosks and answer questions about how to save energy given your character's back story. In the Home Zone, you walk around the home and look for "Energy Vampires" – household items that use power even when not in use. In the Transportation Zone, you can fuel up four cars with gasoline, natural gas, ethanol, electricity, and hydrogen and see which goes the farthest on $25 worth of fuel. You can also have two people "race" to the store - one by running in place on a sensor, and one by riding a stationary bike. Energy is totally interactive and a lot of fun to explore. Adventure I could (and may) go on and on about how unbelievably brilliant it is that COSI has deemed "adventure" an element of science, right alongside study of the oceans or space or life. Instead, I'll just tell you briefly what this is all about. Adventure is an add-on experience ($3.00, I believe, on top of general admission) where guests "live out" the scientific method. One group at a time is brought into an Indiana-Jones style outpost in the mysterious and ancient Valley of the Unknown. Set in 1937, the Adventure exhibit centers on a most peculiar element of the Valley of the Unknown recently discovered by the intrepid members of the Explorer's Society: the towering two-story stone Observatory at the island's center. Supposedly, the Treasure of Knowledge is contained within. No one knows, because the Observatory is sealed shut. The only way into the observatory is to awaken four stone statues hidden on the island, each of whom has one piece of a four-part code. P'lunk is the Spirit of Questions, who starts you on your quest. Then you - at your own pace - explore the island (in perpetual nighttime) and awaken Ba'ra'zoa in the Maze of Reason (where you must use reason to unlock his secrets), L'lala in the Temple of Inspiration (where you must think outside the box to bring her to life), and T'em-poa in the Caverns of Perseverence (where you must endure three physical challenges, each of which you may lose and need to try again... Get it?). Only once you've collected all four pieces of the code can you unlock the Observatory. It takes about an hour to unlock the Observatory in Adventure. What I've just recently learned is that there is a 'level 2' of the exhibit that takes 15 - 20 hours of work to complete. You end up plugging different codes into keypads where the island Spirits send you to new places. I won't say more in case anyone here is interested, but suffice it to say that once you unlock the Observatory, one of the island's guardians tells you that the code you used to unlock the tower has other meanings... Believe it, and check the ancient stone outside the Observatory's bridge. Conclusion The point is, if you've never considered a trip up to Columbus to visit COSI, think about it. It's very sincerely like a theme park for nerds (and I mean that lovingly, of course). If you're into science, it's the place to be. If you're into themed environments, architecture, museums, science centers, or storytelling, it's unbelievable. I'm blown away by Adventure. You will be, too, if you like that sort of thing. It's just sort of incomprehensible that all of this is at a science center. It's so unlike any other in the world. http://cosi.org/

I actually didn't notice him freaking out at all about it when I walked around the corner there before stopping to take a pic, so I think it might just be the way he happened to move in the moment I snapped the pic.

Surprised they already have the guy out in costume this early. He is great though.

I visited COSI with my friend back in 2011. I'm pretty sure I should visit again soon, because it's my favorite science museum. My favorite parts were/are the spinning tunnel entrance into the Space exhibit, the glass elevator (I'm an elevator person ) and riding the unicycle with the counterweight that went right over the front lobby! Speaking of the unicycle, is it still there now? I didn't see a mention of it in the trip report.

I think you miss an important point: Some properties are so valuable that parks PAY to use them. Others see the parks as so valuable a place to do their marketing that the outside companies PAY the parks to be there. And some are in fact barter arrangements-I'll give you my product to sell in exchange for "promotional considerations." Which are which? The answers might well surprise you. and since the answers (and the amounts of money, if any) accompanying each transaction vary wildly from park to park and product to product and chain to chain, this information is often proprietary, very closely guarded and quite revealing. Compare, if you will, Coca-Cola (think about the arrangements with colleges and universities and stadiums and sports leagues--who pays whom?), Pepsico (Holiday World--and just lost the Cedar Fair contract--why) and, oh, since you seem to think Cedar Fair is so judicious in its partnerships--Halloween Haunt, Driven by SafeAuto (really) and Fast Lane sponsored by a Chevrolet dealer who would want me to say their name. Since they have not offered Terp a promotional consideration (no GM products accepted for ignition), no.

Well it was no longer a discussion really and what little there was was no longer about the event but general park bashing so it needed to be locked or removed until calmer heads could prevail and new information was out to talk about.

Sometimes lightning can force everything to shut down without ever getting a drop of rain, if an isolated storm passes close enough to be seen but far enough away to not get anything wet. I saw this at Soak City once a couple years ago; they closed everything and cleared the pools with an announcement that there was lightning in the area, and the pools reopened about 30 to 40 minutes later without a single drop of rain falling; the sun even stayed out the whole time.

You must have joined the line at 4 unlucky times. In my 11(!) visits this season, the only time it was down when I was trying to ride it was Opening Day. (Not counting weather, of course.) Go ride something else, and it will probably be back up by the time you work your way back.

Yet, KI posted on that same Facebook page, August 22nd "A sure sign that summer is almost over: Daily operation ends this Sunday." The person knew how to post a review, so obviously they knew how to check out a Facebook page....they apparently couldn't comprehend what daily operation ending that coming Sunday meant. I smell a troll.

I just read a Facebook review saying they drove 8 1/2 hours away on Monday to KI only to find it closed, and claiming that nowhere on the website does it say it is closed. Apparently there were many other confused people waiting in line behind her at the parking gates. It amazes me how people can plan a trip so badly that they come on a day that the park is closed. This isn't National Lampoons Vacation days anymore - we have Internet, and KIs website definitely says it was closed this past week! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I believe it was moved to the Nick resort down there.

By the way, for a glimpse at what this ride may or may not entail, check out the Justice League: Alien Invasion 3D dark ride that Sally installed at Warner Bros. Movie World in Australia's Gold Coast. Looks really well-done, and many of the folks behind Six Flags' upcoming installations worked on the Australian ride. You're right that it'll appeal to families and that sought-after demographic of pre-teen boys. It seems that this is the perfect way to capture the best of all demographics. Because I'm used to their Scooby Doo rides and Boo Blasters rides (all of which were done on a budget at the former Paramount Parks), I equate Sally Corp. with the sort of "cheap" looking blacklight 2-D cutout dayglo interactive shooters like those (also also the turkey-themed one at Holiday World is the very distinct style I equate with Sally). The company, though, is truly a powerhouse and can produce INCREDIBLE attractions when given the budget and time. There's a post about two such examples of their stellar dark rides.

Check this out, as of right now it's considered legal.... http://nickreboot.com/ They run all of the old shows on a schedule with old commercials etc. It was online about a year ago and was taken down after a lawsuit. They were found to be legal since they don't run it for money and do it as a service to people, or something. Check it out and enjoy it while you can.

Along with station hangers, those that just stand around outside the entrance to the ride. I've noticed this a lot with Flying Ace Aerial Chase for some odd reason and of course at Banshee for the obvious reasons, but I see it at just about all rides. Seriously, either enter the line to get on the ride or get out of my way.

Station hangers. People who who just stand there blocking the entrance into the station even though several rows are available for them to proceed to. At least get out of the way so others can enter the station...

Gate hangers. These are people who are waiting outside the exit gate for someone to get off a ride but are unable to recognize that other people are also riding and need to exit. So, they hang on the outside of the gate, and then seem surprised (and annoyed) that it needs to swing outward to open for the people walking toward it to leave. On Adventure Express, they even have a yellow line marked in the exit lane to show how far back you should wait so that the gate can still swing open but I often have to practically shove the gate into people to be able to leave. They'll take one step back and expect everyone to squeeze through the little foot-wide gap the gate can swing open. I realized just how annoying gate hangers are when I encountered an anti-hanger at The Beast today. I was in the back row, so I was the first to the gate, and before I could even reach my hand out to unlatch it, a woman waiting outside quickly unlatched it and stood far enough back it could open fully. I thanked her sincerely.

Sadly, not likely a troll. I've had to turn people away at work on our closed days. People make assumptions about business hours based on previous experience with that place or similar places. They don't think to double check. I don't get it. Before I drive across town for errands or hours away for vacation, you better believe I'm checking their website for hours, admission and parking situation. How do people manage to drive such a length of time without any sort of planning?