Leaderboard

Kings Island has updated their ride records page to reflect ride tallies through the end of the 2014 season. Firehawk had a record year with 624,016 riders, and Banshee thrilled an astounding 2,000,305. Though it didn't break a record, Xtreme Skyflyer had its most flyers since 1999. 2014 was also a great year for ride milestones. The Beast gave its 50 millionth ride in its 35th anniversary season, Diamondback gave its 10 millionth ride, and The Racer gave its 100 millionth ride. Milestones that are likely for next season include Xtreme Skyflyer's 1 millionth flyer and Invertigo's 10 millionth ride. With a bit of arithmetic and the help of the Internet Archive, you can determine the rider counts recorded from year to year. To save everyone the effort, I wrote a quick Python script and formatted the output. Note that some rides don't have figures available, as data from 2013 is limited. This is just for fun of course; rider counts may be subject to error that affects season-to-season comparisons. (Missed tally counts, empty seat button errors, etc.)

Look what I received in the mail today: My 2015 season pass and souvenir cup. But I feel kind cheated. Because if we compare the 2015 cup with the 2014 one... As a collector of these cups, I'm a little bit disgruntled... On another note, the barcode is the same on my 2014 and 2015 pass... Which begs the question, why not just activate existing cards for next year instead of sending out new ones?

My favorite audio is in the outdoor queue, when they say that the time travel meeting will happen last Tuesday at 0800 hours.

Wonder what he'd resort to now? Some look silly inn their decisions!

We had a user on here that claimed he would never go to KI again after they closed the campground because he, " refused to visit a park that does not support all forms of lodging." And yes, they looked as foolish as your guy did.

^^Great Pumpkin Coaster also received new seat belts, the Planet Snoopy style that the operator must unlock themselves. I don't think it's unfair to at least partially tally the 50,000 less riders to this. Thanks for putting this together malem!

I'm hoping Kings Island upgrades to live stream web-cameras soon, as both Carowinds and Cedar Point currently have them. Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful to have any webcams to view at all, I'm just hoping that Kings Island gets some live cams because they seem to be a lot more fun to watch, and they would be really neat to watch as the Planet Snoopy upgrades take place and as Shake Rattle and Roll is reassembled. EDIT: Forgot to mention Holiday World also has 2 live-cams

@mikefehnel on Twitter: "At this very point #FURY325 will be traveling 95 MPH!" Photo : Mike Fehnel (Carowinds General Manager) via Twitter Carowinds Amusement Park on Facebook: "For today's #Fury325 Friday, we give you your first look inside the Fury 325 station house before you would ascend the 325 foot tall lift hill. Did you know that 400 trucks will be used to deliver all of the steel track and supports to build this ride? Spring can't get here soon enough!" Photo : Carowinds Amusement Park via Facebook

There are those of us who DID read the Indiana court decision who think Dan loves Alabama Splash Adventure the same way he loved Holiday World, if you catch my drift.

Just got into a bit of a Twitter war with an individual who tweeted at Knott's that he was planning a trip to Knott's Berry Farm and Disneyland, but because of Voyage to the Iron Reef, would cancel his day at Knott's. You read that right: he's canceling his day at Knott's because they're adding a ride to a building that's been vacant for a decade. I obviously tried to insist that that was an absurd thing to do... "Just skip the ride and then it's the same park you had been planning on going to anyway." Nope. He's "boycotting bad decisions." I said, "You're skipping an entire park because you don't like the new ride they're adding. That's outrageous." And he replied: "people do that all the time would you say the same to the folks who don't go to SeaWorld because of shamu?" (sic) Yep. I asked: "Why aren't you canceling your day at Disneyland? Or do you just intend to skip Toy Story Midway Mania and enjoy the rest of the park? Get it?" Gah. Why do I try? And since when have Facebook morons migrated over to Twitter?

With the addition of two new rides into Planet Snoopy, Kings Island also announced that Snoopy's Splash Dance had engulfed its last kids in gallons of water in an out-of-place splash park a quarter mile from the water park. My first thought was, "Good riddance! That thing was stupid." But after a little bit of time to think about it, a big part of my childhood was lost to the bulldozer a few days ago. Kings Island Webcam Image I'm going to go ahead and say it: Nickelodeon Splat City (not Universe) was the greatest era for Kings Island's kids' area. Before you throw stones, let me explain why. I was a kid of the 90's. Growing up, there was but one way that you can entertain yourself as a kid in front of the television: by watching Nickelodeon. The thing that I remember about Nickelodeon growing up was that the programming was completely irrelevant, it was the promos at the beginning and end of the commercial breaks that really created the spirit and atmosphere of the network. Simply put, you were sitting in front of your TV on a cold day in February. You were in that small TV-watching break between the turmoils of school, and the unnecessarily large mound of homework that you were going to "get to" after dinner. This wasn't what a kid was being about. It was about being carefree, messy, and even wildly irresponsible at times. There was a place like this. It was Nickelodeon Studios in Orlando, FL. Wikipedia Nickelodeon's production was brilliant. Even as a kid sitting in my living room in Edgewood, KY, I felt like, in a small way, I was sitting right beside those kids who were (for some reason) not in school that day, getting covered in slime, and basking in the sunshine of a kids' utopia. I remember visiting (Paramount's Kings Island) in 1995. This was before the day and age of the Internet, so I really had no idea if or when a ride or attraction was added or removed. I walked into Splat City and instantly recognized it. I was there. I was old enough to know that it wasn't where they "really" filmed the Nickelodeon shows (not that many of the shows were really filmed in Orlando, anyway) but I really felt like it was a perfect recreation of the world that I had seen on television throughout my childhood. Not only did it have the signature bright orange and "Gak" green, but it promoted a feeling of true kid-friendly chaos. The Green Slime Zone (later Snoopy's Splashdance) was the centerpiece. Kids today probably don't realize that the original intention of the Zone was to NOT get wet. You would traverse through leaking pipes and dumping buckets while spinning valves and pivoting levers in an attempt to turn off the water that was ahead of you. The challenge: every time you would turn off a set of water spouts others would turn on - thus soaking the person in front of or behind you. Onlookers weren't safe either. The "pressure" from all of these water valves being turned off would cause a giant green tower to spew water dozens of feet into the air periodically (about every 20 minutes). The whole setup was truly brilliant. As the pressure gauge on the tower started reaching a critical point, the sound of failed pipeworks was pumped into the immediate area. The large nuts and bolts holding the tower together would start to spring leaks until BAM! The tower ERUPTS onto the unsuspecting crowd! This level of unpredictable chaos and insane fun was perfectly in line with what the kids on TV were experiencing. As time went on, it lost a lot of its allure. As opposed to creating a Nickelodeon-like experience, elements of the "Nickelodeon Studios feel" began to disappear. Most of it was simply replaced with rides that had some random character's name slapped on it. I remember thinking that this sort of thing was kind of insulting to me as a child, and I imagine that kids today (if they knew how it COULD be) would feel the same way. Not everything can or should be Disney, but removing someone from certain elements of their day-to-day lives and putting them in a somewhat augmented reality is a real jackpot when it comes to park experiences. Now, for the dozen or so of you who bothered to read this far into my rant, I'm sure you're asking: Ryan, what do you think about Peanuts? I hate everything about Peanuts. As far as I'm concerned, there are four main characters: Snoopy - a mute dog that really adds nothing to the storyline, Charlie Brown - an antisocial outcast who suffers from chronic depression, Linus - the only one in the group who still carries a security blanket and suffers from apparent developmental issues, and Lucy - a sociopath who will sacrifice the well-being of her friends and loved ones for minimal personal gain. I suppose the problem with the Peanuts comics is that I don't think they were ever intended to be for kids. They were intended for adults reading the Sunday paper. The characters were intended to be laughed at. When it comes to childrens' programming, the real winners are the ones that feature a hero - one who can overcome adversity to achieve a personal or altruistic goal. These characters embody none of this. But hey - I suppose you could say that 14 Golden Tickets later I'm putting nostalgia over progress. Maybe you're right. I suppose the fair thing to say that the Kings Island we know now is, in almost all regards, better than the Kings Island I knew in 1995. I believe that statement would be entirely accurate, but I still feel like the kids are missing out on some of the magic that I knew. What iteration of the World's Best Kids' Area do you think was the best? Do you feel the same way about anything else at Kings Island? I'd love to hear from you.

I see Diamondback's rider count dropped by over a quarter of a million. I wonder if the new seat belts had any impact on that?

There was a high school student that I saw yesterday with a shirt with that on it. It took me a moment to get it.

That is such a great statement. If they do not know who they (the Peanuts Characters) are they will like/adore them when the see them at KI. For example, some may see Snoopy as a dog name Snoopy and they will still love them.

I suppose the show was called Hoosier Daddy?

I guess that poses the real question: are kids' areas themed for the kids or for their parents? But regardless, I'm 31, so I'm close to the age you mentioned and even I knew about Snoopy and Co. but really had to look them up to figure out what the heck is going on. And keep in mind that The Flintstones was originally intended for adult audiences. The cartoon first aired on a Friday night at 8:30pm in 1960 - and was sponsored by Winston cigarettes and commercials ran with Fred and Wilma smoking Winston's during its first two seasons.

All of the Above except A

Here ya go: http://www.ragingcostumes.com/Lara_Croft/Paramount_Kings-Island_Stunt-Show.htm

Voicetek - I agree! I think it is those memories and experiences that we hold dear as we get older. If I don't look at pictures, what I remember of our visits to KI as a child is how those experiences made me feel. The talking tree, riding in the antique cars with an aunt or grandma, my nervousness of getting into the boat every single time as we headed into Smurf's Enchanted Voyage and how much I loved the ride, both carousels, riding The Beastie and the slight fear of going through the tunnel, the sheer joy I felt on rides and waving to my mom and grandma as I rode past them, having a very unique way of navigating the very friendly wall of characters as we entered Kings Island, and the sheer exhaustion and happiness as we drove away after a visit and I tried to keep sight of the Eiffel Tower as long as possible. There was a good 11 years between my visit as a child and as a high school senior. The shock of the changes (from my memory) of the children's area was overwhelming. I was so excited to ride the Smurf ride and...well...it didn't exist. I was so sad! I have pictures of us in a long line for 007, in line for The Beast, on the Eiffel Tower - and all I can remember was no Smurf ride and that I had fun with my friends. Our perception of things as a child is hard to beat as an adult. It will never meet the expectations that we have from what we remember. Seeing how much fun that my niece and nephews have in Planet Snoopy now is probably pretty close to how I was when it was Hanna-Barbara then. I'm sure that in 20 years when they visit, whatever theme is there will not match the happiness in their memories.

Gosh, nostalgia is rough isn't it? I look back and remember fondly the days of visiting Kings Island as a kid. My dad would pick my sister and me up on Saturdays (my mom and dad were divorced), and we'd swing by the breakfast buffet at Frishes and then head out to the park. My sister and I were pretty young, so the 3 of us would spend the day in Hanna-Barbera Land. I sure loved that place! I remember riding the Flinstone Bumper Cars, and several other rides. I used to love riding the little trains that you powered by turning a handle with your hands. There were also different colored trains that went round a track (can't remember for the life of me what they were called) and we always took a ride on those. After a while of rides, it was time to sit down, relax, and catch a puppet show by the Puppet Tree. I can still remember walking around that area and hearing theme songs from some of my favorite shows. You'd hear the lyrics over the speakers, "Scooby, Scoobidy Doo..." or "...just because he's smarter than the average bear!" Thinking back on things like this just gives me warm fuzzies inside. It reminds me of being a carefree child, experiencing certain rides for the first time, or just spending a Saturday with my dad. Did I think it was that great while I was experiencing it at the time? It's hard to say. I did know I was having fun though, and that's what was important when I was a kid. I was having great fun! I didn't care about anything else as long as I got to ride Scooby Doo on the carousel. Looking back now though, it's clear to see that these types of things hold more meaning now then they did when I was a kid. Yeah they meant a lot to me then, but over time the meaning changes. It's not about going to the park and having a good time, it's looking back and reliving those times in your memories and knowing that you'll never experience them again. There is something a bit sad about it, but also you're happy because you got to experience those things. So for me, well, I'd probably say that Hanna-Barbera was the best era at the park. Why? Because of the memories I carry with me from that era. The characters, the rides, the attractions, the music. It gets all rolled together into one big memory. 20 years from now, find someone who was a kid during this era and ask him about his memories of visiting KI as a child. I bet you it'll sound the same as my description above, except the names of the rides and attractions will vary slightly. When it really comes down to it, the characters on the signs, or the paint schemes of the rides have nothing to do with it. It's the people you're with and the experiences you share together that cement those memories in your mind. The other things are just secondary. Things change, memories are forever.

This by far will probably be the greatest influence for most. As for myself, no different. Hanna Barbera Land, was there in my childhood, and is what I remember so fondly. My kids on the other hand would surely say Nickelodeon.

Surprisingly, I only have memories of it when it was Hanna Barbera themed. This is weird to me, because Nickelodeon was there for most of my childhood, but I guess that my family had switched to taking me to Cedar Point by the time Nick came in. I remember one time being present in the Nick area, and a vaguely remember a show that involved "dirty" diapers from Rugrats and someone from the audience getting slimed. That is it. I remember a lot from the HB days. Pictures with Scooby, the Flinstones themed bumper cars (this is probably where my bumper car intensity started!), and riding on JaberJaw every single time on the character carousel. I don't even know about that show, I just knew it was a feakin' shark! It was awesome to me. Anyways, I can't really say what the best era was. I guess we could chalk this up to "Whatever you grew up with." I agree about hating the Peanuts, though. EDIT: I remember this more than anything and I don't know why: from http://www.negative-g.com/kings-island/2002/paramounts-kings-island-2002-4.html

^ Banshee was extremely popular in its debut season, and it delivered great capacity. The number of rides each guest will take per day is finite, so a slight downtick elsewhere in the park isn't necessarily unexpected. Note that The Bat and Delirium were up in ridership. Also notice that the figures from year-to-year are very comparable. Ridership is usually limited by capacity, which is about the same each season. As for Diamondback, delays from guests and operators becoming familiar with the seat belts are presumably one factor in its drop. Another factor to consider is that many of the most experienced ride operators were stationed at Banshee. Kings Island announced that it had "record" profitability this year. Attendance figures for individual Cedar Fair parks are not disclosed.

Thanks for putting this together malem! It's pretty cool to see it all on chart like that and formatted with the different years and such.

Oh wow goodyellowkorn182. I can understand if someone were to avoid a business because of how they treat their employees/customers...or if they support certain organizations, but because the park is adding something? Not taking away a ride or two to add something, but to just add it? That's just seems silly to me. Unfortunately, some people have to find something to blame on being unhappy or cranky. As for me, I will happily make a second visit to Knott's Berry Farm to check out the ride. It sounds interesting enough to check out at least once.

If you break it down, the feat really isn't that daunting--timing as they say is everything. Consider Epcot has the fewest rides (minus Maelstrom even less now), so any time lost in DHS and DAK can be made up at Epcot. I would think conquering every ride at the MK would prove to be most difficult, even on a lightly crowded day. I would also think the task is only doable on days where the last park (usually MK) closes at 11 or after.

http://www.holidayworld.com/holiblog/2014/11/14/hard-hat-tour-14news/ Wow. 57 of 77 track pieces are already in place, and that number may have increased in the past few hours. They are moving fast on construction.

Maybe one of the animals from the Jungle Cruise wasn't so animatronic after all!

I remember this show too. They had the dirty diapers, which may have just been wet rags, being pulled above the audience's heads on some clothesline deal. Water would then drip down on the audience members. I also recall a group of three or four adults being placed in "stocks" of sort, and then pied in the face. And a similar set-up of kids, although slimed from above. "Everyday's a second chance, so get on your feet and dance..."

I heard about this; my college youth group leader at my church is somehow related to knows one of the guys (I think it's his brother or brother-in-law or something...) and he told me in class recently. EDIT: It's actually one of his friends.

You'd think that a newspaper could spell the name of the local amusement park.

(...those who have read the Indiana court decision would: ( a ) question that, and ( b ) hope he isn't doing things as the Court found he did at Holiday World after his brother's passing--things which are why he now owns 40 percent of that park and not all of it... Terp, who is still stunned...)

My oldest nieces and I went to Busch Gardens Tampa almost two years ago and had a great time. I was hoping to convince them to go again when I visit in May. It will be interesting to see how these cuts change the guest experience.

Next up--anyone in middle management up will be sending out resumes and trying desperately to get out before they become a part of the $50,000,000 annual savings. A great theme park chain is being ripped asunder. Hopefully, the sale is soon. If not, irreparable harm may result.

^ Wow, that's great! Thanks!

It has begun... http://seaworldparks.com/en/buschgardens-williamsburg/book-online/tickets/ct12days/

Gulp... This is bad. Horribly bad. Oh man. I hate seeing this happen. How many possible outcomes are there at this point? Seems there are MANY directions this could go and none look spectacular.

^Well, there goes any and all productivity of mine over the next few months...

Not to mention his tweet pictures...

Except for one visit when I was too little to remember, I've only visited Kings Island as an adult. I really feel, though, for all those people who have memories of a certain era. I definitely would have been in the H-B era, and know how much the child version of myself would have liked to have seen it during the '70's and '80's. I think this thread brings up a good point. Look at Disney. I'm sure you can still see things there that you would have seen as a child 40 years ago. I think parks like Kings Island are missing the boat when they trash so much of their past, although I understand much of the trashing is due to legal reasons.

Carowinds finally installed a higher quality live feed cam focused on Fury 325 construction site! https://www.carowinds.com/swarm/building-the-nest/live-camera-feed

Now owned by Time Warner, who licenses its characters to Six Flags Entertainment Corporation.

Nice post. I think its all relative to your experience, we all long for things of the past, often overlooking the downsides while focusing in on the good things. As a kid, I adored The Smurfs Enchanted Voyage, I could have ridden that thing 5 times a trip, I often remember riding it at least twice. The little hill at the very end and the set of teeth ready to "chomp" down on you was always a highlight as a kid. I remember being scared of The Beastie, then loving the tunnel and hills. Aside from that I don't remember much. As a parent, I have many, many more memories of experiencing that part of the park with my kids. In my opinion, the kids are isn't really for the kids, its for the parents. Many young kids are going to be thrilled by even the tamest of rides in that area, so as a parent, quick lines, good variety and varying level of thrills are a huge bonus. The way it is set up today (and perhaps has always been setup this way) the area is very much tiered. My 6 year old son will likely hit 54" next season and its a shame much of this area will be closed off to him, but on the days my wife splits up and takes him over to Banshee, The Beast, The Bat, Racer, etc...I'm very much looking forward to progressing thru kiddie area with our now 2 year old daughter, much in the same way we progressed thru the area with our son when he was that age and beyond. First its the things she could ride before hitting 36", Tumble Bugs, Boo Blasters, small train, etc... next season we'll get to add in The Great Pumpkin Coaster, swings, Snoopy vs Baron (or whatever its called) while getting to look forward to the day she can get on Woodstock Express, then eventually FAAC and Surf Dog before graduating to the rest of the park (save Viking Fury, SRR and Scrambler, etc..) The anticipation of my son growing up into the next set of rides was as much fun for my wife and I as it was for him. The times where he was "on the cusp" and one week he'd hit 42" (yeah SRR) and the next week he'd be just shy (how the heck did that happen) were always interesting adventures at the measuring booth. The excitement of not knowing for sure if he'd hit that mark, or the hopes that he'd finally reach the next mark as he approached were sources of conversation on the walk to the front gate. The current kids area not only gives kids a great area to play, it gives parents a measuring stick of growth and achievement, something to mark the season with as new rides are added to the possibilities. In short, there is no wrong answer, every stage of the kids area has been great.

For me, I grew up in the Hanna Barbera era. I liked the Flintstone Boulder Bumpers, Enchanted Voyage (pre Smurfs), the Jabber Jaw on the Carousel. I actually watched Jabber Jaw on Saturdays along with a lot of other classic cartoons like Speed Buggy, Looney Tunes, Buford Files, Scooby Doo, and many more. I loved Jabber Jaw because his voice over characterization sounded just like Curly of the 3 Stooges (I'm sure intentionally). Also, I love watching Peanuts on TV as well. I've always loved the holiday specials like A Charlie Brown Christmas. Yes, Charlie Brown is wishy washy, but it always made me want to pull for him because he's like the really nice kid that is in fact too nice. I thought the things that Snoopy did were hilarious like taking on the Red Baron and preparing the Thanksgiving Dinner of popcorn and toast. As a matter of fact, one of my favorite books from then was Snoopy vs. the Red Baron. I know I read it numerous times. I thought Lucy was kinda funny in that she always managed to trick Charlie Brown in attempting to kick the football, much like the running joke on Family Guy about various characters falling and injuring their knee. Linus was very insecure and I think we can all relate to having insecurities, even though Linus was extreme. And Sally's infatuation with him is something we can all relate to. Who hasn't had a crush on a boy/girl at that age and thought we were in love? It's like when you finally got the courage to send her/him a note asking, "Do you like me? Yes or No?" Circle one. I also miss the Kenton Cove Keelboat Canal. I loved the way it wound through the trees at a nice, slow pace and then you had a pretty thrilling drop at the end which got me pretty wet.

The factory I work at has a cafeteria. Not so long ago the company sent a new plant manager, who's office was located above said cafeteria. He actually tried to have bacon removed from the menu because he couldn't stand the smell of it cooking. He's gone now, the bacon remains.

Or, dare I say, impastas! Wow that was dumb...

Looked like Kings Iceland most of this week.

It ran for about two weeks in 2003 (maybe) and was in the Showplace. I remember it being a little nonsensical, but interesting to say the least. Do any of you have any recollections of this? Maybe photos or video? I'm just curious.

I saw it once, can't remember too much about it, but I remember liking it... I like stunt shows, it would be neat to see one return to the park. Edit: Found this video of the show while it was at Paramount's Great America. It rotated around the chain so I assume that it's just about the same. It was at Kings Island from July 15-July 27. It's not the best video, but it gets the point across.

I saw it once. The young lady who played Lara was quite attractive and talented.