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But does that not defeat the purpose, at least a little bit? It's like going to the theater to see The Avengers, and the first trailer before the film is for The Avengers. Why see the highlights of the attraction you're about to experience? Especially The Beast, with its famously concealed layout that's still a surprise to most folks who ride. Personally, I'd rather not watch POVs while I'm standing in line, even if the POV is for a different ride. That's just me.

Includes brontosaurus, but not the Hanna-Barbara license agreement: http://abcnews.go.com/Business/flintstones-bedrock-city-arizona-sale-million-brontosaurus-included/story?id=31523653

Below is a CGI POV of what it must be like for those poor, dry passengers of Whitewater Canyon who, thinking they've made it through with only a mild sprinkling, look up to realize that, behind those colorful, unnatural tubes, way up there on the high banks that dominate the swirling stream below, stands a crowd of delighted (possibly even a little mischievous) fellow guests, each manning a quarter-operated panel that gives them the power to help fulfill Kings Island's fair warning that "you will get wet on this ride (you might even get drenched!)" For whatever reason, this has been my most relaxing, therapeutic passtime in the park this year! Most hilariously, last weekend, when what looked like the US Secret Service showed up (it was: 1) our own "Sky" pilot, 2) a gentleman of the Service (he of the Caduceus), and 3) another gentleman, all dressed up in dark business suits and mirrored sunglasses) to join in with a barrage that included someone manning every possible geyser for a ten-minute deluge that had the local woods drowning out even the mighty, five-chime blast of the green train's whistle with happy screams and laughter! I budgeted for another round of such hilarity tomorrow. I like the red geyser. It soaks so, so well! "Hey, what's that red thing? D-Oh!"

What on Earth is that second sentence supposed to be?

Not to mention that until the investigation is complete they may not be able to legally clean the area. If there is a lot of blood there are certain ways an area has to be cleaned...

About whether Rougarou or Mantis will appear on the timeline. I have predictions about what'll follow Rougarou too, but neither strong nor informed. I feel mostly confident that it won't be a garden-to-table garden.

I'm sick that those four people got hurt. There's no telling the extent of the long term injuries- I know there's an alleged amputation, but I'm also thinking of the "crush"described. Compacted, broken bones, muscles giving way to the impact, etc.. That has long term effects, and these people have entire lives ahead of them to deal with it. It's all Rashomon right now, everyone sees something different. There's no way I can speculate with all of these different points of view right now. They sent several empty carriages through, right? Before they sent the carriage loaded with people? Are there cameras positioned to view different parts of the track? I know it's a difficult question, we have no Alton Towers workers regularly haunting this forum. edit: Answered my own question Quote from trotters98 on Towertimes Forum "Having been in the operators cabin on a work experience placement last year, I can say that there is two large screens displaying around 30 live images from around the track, so the operator can see the majority of the track. Whether the op was at fault or not is another question..."

^ And how much you want to pay. GOCC is a much less expensive club to join than ACE. As a general rule, expect GOCC events to be in the general vicinity of Ohio, while ACE events are more likely to be all over America and the world.

Last thing they want in the middle of this is a bunch of people trying to get over there to see waht happened, and what is going on with the investigation. Let them do their job, then, re-open the park when that is done. This is bad, folks, as bad as it gets in this industry. Don't question that for a second. The ramifications from this will be forever, and, for every park in the world. Accidents like that just simply cannot happen.

@Magenta Lizard- It could be a rehearsal for the Off The Charts! show that opens a week from today. They have live instrumentation including guitars, drums and horns. They had tryouts months ago. silver2005, who plans to be at the park that day.

As a citizen of the Commonwealth, I get that. But, season passes in Louisville area Kroger stores were $59.95, now $79.95 and in Lexington area Kroger stores, they are still $59.95. Great value for the money. I think the way the tax incentive is set up, a certain number of out of state visitors must visit an attraction, this incentive is not unique to KK, it is available to any tourist attraction that wants to apply. So it makes logical sense to target low hanging fruit like Indy and Nashville with very good admission rates. I can see why they would not target Cincy since KI is such a formidable competitor. Not that this explaination makes it easier to swallow for citizens of The Commonwealth; but KK clearly had low priced season tickets for much of the off season, and continues to have this option now. I doubt this will be much of an election issue because KK is following the rules for the tax incentive. As far as the fate of the park, it will be interesting. I don't think a conservative or liberal government would want to see the park closed as the sales and income tax the park generates is fairly significant I'm sure-which of course is a voluntary tax. They want that revenue generated and an open park will do that, a closed park will not. If a park were afraid to target an area where another park is already dominant, there would arguably have been no "coaster wars", let alone the parks that co-exist along with the Mouse in Orlando. The ads in the Star feature pictures of different flat rides "new" for 2015-balooon ride, sky screamer, etc. No mention of T3. An article in the USA Today yesterday mentioned that this quarter generates the vast majority of a regional park chain's revenue (no surprise there). If Hart cant generate the $ he needs right now, the chances of him doing so after Labor Day are slim, esp if KK doesn't have a Halloween/fall season like KI/HW/CP do. I agree. But you generally have to crawl before you walk. If KK matures into a true regional park, it may have more resources in the future, then it can compete against KI and HW. But you start small to get big. Sell tickets as a loss leader and the make 80% markup on thousands upon thousands of $1.00 soft drink sales. And the same with other merchandise in the park. I would imagine the reason the out of state stipulation is in place is to encourage hotel stays, which rake in so much money in taxes and fees for the governments. So, hit the low hanging fruit of Nashville and Indy area, sell cheap season tickets and expand on your core base. Then go after more difficult markets like Cincy. They are already competing with KI in the Lexington/Louisville and Indy markets. As far as T3, yes they should have underpromised and overdelivered. With other lessons they have to learn, hopefully things will change in the future. They really need a new PR person though. The brand is so undefined.

I found this on facebook(https://www.facebook.com/groups/325861871036/permalink/10153396315131037/) The most amazing thing just happened. We've been spending the weekend at Holiday World in Santa Claus Indiana, as part of a roller coaster enthusiast club event. A new launched wing coaster opened here last week, called the Thunderbird, and it launches from a two story barn in a crescendo of thunder, simulated lightning, and clouds of steam. Brendan watched the intro video last week and was so excited to try it. But none of us realized the special effects would scare him so much. Even a daytime tour back behind the tracks couldn't make him feel better about it. Scott and I felt so bad for him. He cried while we sat on a bench and watched everyone else riding it. Finally, Scott and Jeff found some staff to talk to about the problem... And within minutes the maintenance crew arrived to TURN OFF THE SPECIAL EFFECTS! He was so excited and was on the ride in minutes. Kudos to the operators at Holiday World for being so kind to those with special needs!

That looks like a nice place for a new FunTV! /sarcasm

About what follows Rougarou? Terp...all ears.

Perhaps they are successful by their definition. One bunch works like crazy. The other has paid smartphones and groceries, such as they are. It is not for me to judge which has the higher success in their OWN eyes.

Will they mention Mantis or just Rougarou? Time will tell.

You can get KI parking tickets at Kroger too. Don't forget to use your plus card when you checkout. You get gas points. And if you use said plus card on any Fri-Sun through Labor Day, your purchase will earn you 2x gas points. 100 points=$0.10 off a gallon.

They are all shorter trains with multiple trains on the course at once. It sounds like a change in operating procedure will be implemented on these rides.

A few other coasters at Thorpe Park and Chessington (both Merlin parks, as is Alton Towers) have been closed now, including Saw, which is another Gerstlauer. The two at Chessington are Maurer-Sohne coasters. Saw makes sense, but I find it interesting that they would specifically cherry-pick the other two coasters to close. I wonder if this means they've learned something and that they feel those particular coasters have the potential to cause a similar issue...

The next two coasters, Corkscrew and Gemini, have been added to the timeline: Photo credit: Great Ohio Coaster Club

For those who haven't seen it yet, I posted a trip report of Holiwood Nights 2015 on my blog. http://chasingthrills.com/track-to-the-future-holiwood-nights-2015/ Enjoy reading!

For some reason one of the racks of $5 t-shirts is now missing from Coney Confections. I think it will eventually return (I'm sure they didn't sell all the shirts that had been on it), but for the moment they're trying some new display configurations. Good news is that they have clarified the sale on their glassware. It used to have a sign saying "up to 70% off" leaving one with the impression whatever price was on the bottom was the sale price. However the sign now says "70% off" and I asked to make sure that was off of the marked prices and they said yes. I bought four of the brown ceramic Diamondback shot glasses and two of the blue ceramic ones. The marked prices on the blue ones was $1 higher, but they rang up the same price as the brown ones, less than $1 apiece after tax. Since I had been hoping for a repeat of last year's sale of $1 each (which I stupidly didn't take advantage of at the time), this made me really happy! If you're in the market for Kings Island drinkware, now is a really good time to buy! The selection isn't enormous but the price is right! Also, if you have the Kings Island app and you sign up with Facebook or email, when you are in the park, check the "offers and notifications" tab. There should be an offer of "Buy one, get one 50% off" at the Int'l Street Emporium shop.

I have not been to Great Wolf but it does look nice. My point however is how can we bash them for not advertising and then turn around and take another swing when they do? Is this conversation still a reasonable critique or are we just going after KK for every single action/inaction good or bad? The former can be very interesting to read and discuss, the latter not so much.

So I was at Kings Island yesterday and while I was in line for Drop Tower, I saw that they had new POVs for Diamondback and Firehawk. I have never seen this online anywhere and I was really glad to see an updated Diamondback POV. Does anyone know if they released the POVs anywhere online or if they're only available on the FUN TV's at Kings Island. Thanks!

It is mind boggling that anyone would consider themselves successful when they are literally living off of a program that they did not work for. Be that as it may, it's those that live off the system that give a bad rap to those that legitimately need to. But that discussion is a whole other can of worms.........

My friends and I are going on Friday. We regularly attend the Cincinnati Beerfest at the Convention Center downtown each February. Like Beerman_IPA said, the people who normally attend these events are not the rowdy Bud Light crowd (I love the way you put that). For the February Beerfest we always have a DD set up, and for this one Mrs. Gator will be coming to the park to take us home. My group is responsible adults, and hopefully others will be too. I wonder if KI will have cabs readily available for people. They're easy to catch near the convention center (and the Cincinnati Beerfest has a deal with Uber too) but taxis are much rarer in Mason. I don't have a neck beard, but I do wear the hard pretzel necklace!

If they're creating a timeline of the park's current coasters, then I have a strong prediction.

I would suspect so. Things in the UK are very different.

I am going to check it out. Its 15 sample tickets and each sample is about 3-4 oz. I usually only use a fraction of my drink tickets when i go to these things. I think its nice to see the park is doing this and the breweries seem to be mostly Ohio based. Typically the craft beer crowd isn't as roudy as the bud light crowd.

They stil havent got this years coaster running so I am doubtful when it comes to the twins

It’s a beer tasting event! Breweries provide small samples of their finest brew. Probably about the size of the water cups in the park. Attendees have a maximum number of samples they can consume per event ticket. Nothing to worry about, responsible adults will handle this just fine. I’m sure security will take care of the 1 or 2 idiots.

Sorry to single you out, and with all due respect: This is the exact mentality of where the wussification of America started. A scenario: Why did little Johnny cry and want to quit soccer? Because he did not get a shiney trophy like his buddy down the street. Why didn't he get a trophy? Because his team came in 6th place. Now, what are the solutions for parents: - Let little Johnny quit. - Give the 6th place team trophies to make them feel good about themselves & let them believe that they were good enough. - Teach the child to practice harder & as a parent help him. Make the child understand that he must earn a trophy. Too many parents are afraid to instill a drive in their kids. What a select few are calling "force" (which still is such a disgusting term to use given NOBODY here has mentioned using force to make their kids to ride anything) is simply pushing your child to want to achieve goals. Will those who are not pushed still achieve success? Sure. As was mentioned here multiple time, yet ignored by some, all kids are different. But just because some are successful, does not mean they all are. Just look at those on welfare with smartphones standing in line at the grocery store with expensive food in their cart. Any bets that they were not pushed as kids?

It's already missing a few roller coasters....but I'll let it slide. I'm sure if they put up Jumbo Jet and the like, someone would be asking where it is. "Cedar Point has two Wildcats? WHERE?"

We have 6 platinums with 2 of them being Jr's and they enjoy playing the "who's going to pay for parking" game every time we go. Only once at Carowinds did the attendant actually check to see if the child was in the car.

The first time I ever saw/heard of this place was when I watched the Adam the Woo video a couple of months ago. The place looked deserted. It was amazing to me that the place was "supposedly" still in business. Not sure who'd want to buy this place, especially without the rights to the characters.

^^ http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2004/03/08/daily24.html?jst=b_ln_hl Cedar Fair bought the park for 145 million from Six Flags. When the park was closed down, they relocated the rides to other parks, which represents the majority of their investment. So while Cedar Fair IS losing some money keeping that land, they're not losing quite that much, only the amount that represents the worth of the land and the rides that they chose not to relocate. Plus yearly property taxes, etc.

Hmm, sounds to me like the license came up for renewal and they didn't have the money to pay it. Pretty much useless without the rights to use the theme wouldn't you say?

Cedar Fair wants 6 million for the property, i just hope someone does something with it, don't know how they are getting rid of that old Hurricane Harbor though lol

Not exactly true..this accident caused amputations* (potential multiple). It's smart to keep it all closed. Then on top of it all, it keeps public and media away from that ride at the moment to generate any press other than text and stock pictures.

Or...since it is being investigated to see if the coaster was lawfully being operated, the choice to not open the park was made for it.

City of Mason Fire Department would respond to any incident requiring outside assistance, as they already do when a guest requires emergency medical treatment that the park's First Aid station is not equipped to provide. In a major accident like this, it would be up to Mason FD to call in mutual aid from other nearby departments if they feel they need the extra help.

Dynamic pricing is always going to upset someone...They probably should have just pushed the cheap season passes in Indy and Nashville rather than cheap day tickets.

Just wanted to share... Took the day off yesterday and took my kiddo to KI and she finally just barely hit the 54 inch mark! After putting on the coveted orange bracelet and lots of high fives and victory dancing all around, we practically ran all the way to Diamondback. Once we got there though she just about had herself talked into being scared of it and kept trying to talk me in leaving the line because she was too hungry to ride / she had to pee / her stomach was hurting and she might have to go home / etc. but we finally made it on and by the time we hit the bottom of the first hill she was holding her arms in the air like a pro screaming about how awesome it was. I had been holding off riding the 54 inch coasters (except Diamondback) for the past two summers waiting for her to be tall enough, so we had a really fun day only riding rides we had never ridden before She liked Diamondback, Invertigo, and FoF but she thought Firehawk was not very exciting. I remembered hating FoF the last time I rode it in like the late 90's but I really like it now... the different harnesses made a world of difference! All in all good day!

There are many comments that have already expressed my thoughts on this. Every child and adult is different. A smart and aware adult knows how to gauge their kids. With my three youngest nephews and niece and my best friend's son, there have been four different approaches. My best friend's 14-year-old son refuses to ride all major coasters and rides at Carowinds. No amount of guilt-tripping, cajoling, puppy-dog eyes, or science/technology facts will convince him to ride. I've tried them all and no dice. He just doesn't like how the rides make him feel. That may change as he gets older...but if not, that's okay. I convinced my oldest nephew that it was a rule that you couldn't visit KI without riding The Beast. Also, hearing that his favorite uncle first rode it at a younger age may have sealed the deal. It took many visits for him to get up the courage to ride Diamondback; I compared the sensations and height to other rides. Science, a touch of guilt trip (you're going to make me ride alone?!) with a side of double dare tends to work for him. The youngest nephew has absolutely no fear and would ride everything now if he was tall enough. The niece takes some gentle coaxing and quiet encouragement before, an arm around her during the ride, and praise/hi-fives after. I know her mode of "escape" for rides and how to work around it. I haven't forced any of them to ride anything. If we go to get on a ride and they change their mind, they get to wait in the "cage" or sit outside the exit until we are done. No drama, no "I'm disappointed", just a quick "are you sure" and "okay, wait for me at the exit". We watch the rides and talk about what we see and I encourage their questions. None of them have started or ended their rides with tears. I watch them closely and encourage them as needed. So far, my game plan has worked. The two youngest talk about how tall they are and which rides they can now ride...and how many more inches until they ride XYZ. The oldest is looking forward to getting the all clear for a CP trip. If things change for the kids, I will change my approach. For now, this works.

I finally was able to ride Thunderbird during Holiwood Nights this past weekend. This ride does not disappoint! The theming of the ride is outstanding. The queue line is underneath the station. I like the fact that the lights in the queue under the station flicker and dim with the lightning and thunder when the train gets into the pre-show/launch area. Speaking of the pre show once you are rolled out of the station you enter the "launch area." The lighting, fog, and sound effects are great. The speakers are loud and the fog is good without being overbearing, thepreshow really does get you off to a thunderous start of the ride. The launch is smooth and more powerful than what the POV shows. And the Immelmann turn is fantastic. On the left side I felt weightlessness, on the right you get pulled over pretty quickly. The loop following is solid as well. I thought the turn arounds actually had some force to them at the bottom of the turns as they carried much more speed than I though they would. The zero g roll from the right side has a pretty good pop of air, from the left it has the airtime plus the roll feels like it takes forever to roll through(in a good way) and get upright again even though you carry a good amount of speed through it. The s curve before the barn on the left side is fast as you are closer to the ground but on the right side there is a good pop of airtime before getting pulled through the barn. Then the finale of going through the barn not once but twice is fantastic. The first time through you are ducking because it feels so tight when you are riding. The second one on the left side comes so fast you barely have time to react to the barn as you flow right through it upside down. On the right side during the second time through the barn you miss the barn but fly over the roof in such a slow fashion that it feels like you may land on top of the barn. My favorite seat I think the POV does a good job at describing the ride but the little things that I mentioned make the ride unique and a bit different from the POV. I think the biggest thing is that they literally saved every tree they could to make this ride happen. In this day in age of massive land clearing, building a new coaster, and having nothing to base the speed off of the ride truly unique. The tradition of ride rolling through the woods of Holiday World is indeed alive and well. With how heavily wooded the area is one would think the ride has been at Holiday World for years especially when you compare it with the newer rides being installed lately. Overall this is a fantastic ride addition to HW. It is intense enough to entertain enthusiasts and coaster fans in general public yet not so intense that a young kid would be intimidated into not riding it. It really is a family friendly addition that includes a 60 MPH launch and 4 inversions. My twin cousins that are 11 absolutely loved it. It was their first roller coaster that went upside down so it was a big deal to them that they could ride it and ride it over and over again during Holiwood Nights. I snapped a few pictures and videos from my phone:

Not sure if it's been posted about yet or not, but this is lit up again.

If the roller coaster ever gets up and walks into a temple and makes an egregious claim of power, then I'll worry.

I'm going to try the bribery route. Maybe offer to go to buy a souvenir if he will ride a ride. No matter what he decides, I'm sure we'll have a great day, and that's what I want to share with him.

Music is such a simple element that can make a world of difference. Cedar Fair was bad about it. Real bad. Remember when The Crypt opened with techno music? Eventually, it was replaced by jungle animal noises, which was a (narrow) step up. That was about when WindSeeker opened and they seemed to suddenly realize that music licensing is simpler than other types. WindSeeker is VERY musical, and we got simple but effective music added to Delirium, Drop Zone, Invertigo... WindSeeker had Harry Potter and Star Wars scores, and The Crypt got the music from Inception, which was really great. Backlot played smooth Michael Buble songs that totally fit the "spy" aesthetic. It was just a big boost to atmosphere and style. Seems that that, too, has fallen by the wayside. I'm not saying that Diamondback needs to play songs that reference snakes or anything, but why SHOULDN'T Banshee play atmospheric Irish music, or Diamondback play Western songs like Maverick does (er... apparently, used to ). Maybe blame FunTV? I was SHOCKED that they actually added flatscreen TVs in Boo Blasters' queue playing "Rude" by Magic. I mean, shocked. Is nothing sacred? The park existed for decades without the songs of four-years-ago playing in the queues. Is it more fun for the masses? I mean, maybe narrowly. But c'mon. When waiting for an experience like Boo Blasters or Banshee or Diamondback, at least try. Different music for different themed areas. Music creates atmosphere. Walking through Islands of Adventure, the music is on par with the physical theming. What fun is walking through Jurassic Park without its score playing? What's exotic about Lost Continent without its music? The Wizarding World's big emotional punch is the score from the films playing. At Kings Island, you get "California Gurls" from the early Ohio settlement to the Irish moors. And then there's International Street...