Shaggy

Paul Ruben has passed away at 84. The name may ring a bell to some, not to others. Many of us, ummm "long time" coaster enthusiasts knew (or knew of) Mr Rubens. He did a lot within the industry, and was essentially many park's go-to guy for quotes and opinions on rides and attractions. I would often come across him at parks, media days etc. (including several of his visits to KI and many ACE events.) "https://obits.democratandchronicle.com/us/obituaries/democratandchronicle/name/paul-ruben-obituary?pid=199434434&fbclid=IwAR1iia_yPU0gc4X2IpFdesR8jN3y5t8n47FcliJrs8_bPq4v_Oxyj451N3g

When the Dinn Corporation ceased operations, Charlie’s daughter Denise re- formed the company as CCI.

Not sure if this has been posted, but Charles Dinn, head of Construction at KI for a number of years (who lead the team to build "The Beast") has passed away at 88. He also was responsible for the relocation and building of several coasters across the country - under his firm Dinn/Summers - after he left Kings Island. Here's a link to his obituary: https://www.brewerfuneral.com/obituaries/Charles-J-Dinn?obId=21626357&fbclid=IwAR3Tu4prfRNaDjzzFxsl56CX15JHCTB23nlpynv908KUioy8kYKRAx9rfik

Kudos to Chad for addressing this. Rumormongering by uninformed folks can really do social damage.

The Waterpark placement at KD began a string of really bad decisions by that park's planners. Many blame Paramount for the devastation of KD's original "feel"... but, in fact, it was well underway in the years leading up to the sale. Draining of 75% of Lake Charles was a ridiculously poor decision - not only because of the esthetic loss, but also because from the start they "land locked" the waterpark. It was inevitable from the beginning that they'd have to split it up and expand on the other side of Rebel Yell. They very easily could have duplicated what KI did, and utilized the Old Dominion line as a transport to a waterpark placed on the back corner of the property... or built it adjacent to (then) HB land in the front of the parking lot where (ultimately) Dominator was placed. Of all the parks, Wonderland (IMO) has managed to stay pretty true to its original concepts. The biggest change to the park is the land surrounding it. When I first went there some 20-25 years ago, the entire area surrounding it was essentially all farmland. Then, within a couple years *BAM* it was surrounded by development. I've never seen that kind of change anywhere else.

Well, lookie here…. Gotta say, the 2021 Coasterstock T-shirt is incredible… the itinerary is most definitely “coasterstacked”… and there’s even a cool matching wristband. So excited to be returning to this superb event. Counting down the days!!!

This is VERY reminiscent of the tragedy that occurred on Raven at Holiday World just prior to the start of “ Stark Raven Mad” in 2003. Tamar Fellner was a part of that enthusiast event and fell out of the train just prior to the start of the evening ERT. From all indications, the female that passed away was an enthusiast attending their “Hollywood Nights” event (which was essentially the re-named SRM event after the park took a few years off after the Raven tragedy.) Apparently she was found unresponsive just prior to the start of the ERT. My heart goes out to everyone involved. I was the newly appointed ACE Regional Rep when the SRM accident happened. I was at the event when the death occurred. To say it is an awful situation is a complete understatement. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.wthr.com/amp/article/news/local/indiana/ohio-woman-unresponsive-holiday-world-roller-coaster-dies/531-c59df18d-1df2-4fe6-be9a-371047a85219

100% correct.

We all, in some form or another, take ownership in the park. Every single one of us should be outraged that this happened at a place as beloved as Kings Island. The mere fact that this has occurred makes me sick on my stomach. For the love of God there were families and little, little children there. Its simply disgusting. I trust in the park's leadership enough to know this sort of thing will not be tolerated. If that means hard rules must be instituted, fine by me. I support any measure the park takes to ensure the safety of ALL guests, and ALL employees.

This is coming on the heels of multiple "incidents" at the park. Not just the recent two "newsworthy" fights in the parking lot. Let's just say there's a very bad, underlying problem inside the park that has prompted this. I hope this change works... but until they make some very difficult, hard-core decisions, the problems that have plagued the park dating back to Six Flags days will continue to happen. Read through some FB responses to this new policy, and you'll get the general feel of what locals actually think about the park.

He's an absolute legend. An asset to the industry, and to enthusiasts. Terrific Podcast.

Most of today's bands/performers/musical acts are contracted through an outside "promoter." For instance, Live Nation is a concert/act promoter. Many promoters, have their own venues. That, or they have contracts/agreements with independent venues to bring their acts there. Those contracts can differ, depending on the facility and are often financially complex. Successful venues often use very current technology - not only the staging, lighting and technical needs of today's acts - but also event admissions technology such as mobile barcode scanners, live analytics data, and database-driven sales feeds etc. Many of those venues also have contracts, or agreements with successful ticketing software/distribution providers (i.e. Ticketmaster) Kings Island (TMK) does not have a contract, or agreement with major concert promoters (outside of Spirit Song - which I'll get to in a bit.) So any concerts they *may* do (at this point) would likely be, one-offs. Kings Island does have a contract with Ticketmaster to not only sell and distribute tickets - but to also supply the software and ticketing equipment on site (such as Boca printers, dumb terminals etc.) Because of the infrequency of concerts, there's not been a need for KI to invest in the costly ticketing technology themselves. That infrequency is due, IMO, to a number of things... competition from other venues (better & larger facilities/better options for inclement elements etc.) Also, the "face" of concerts has drastically changed in the past 40 years. Most of today's performers are heavily reliant on theatrics... so they travel with their own stages and massive rigging so they can distract audiences with light shows/hydraulic lifts/scenery changes/fire and special effects etc. Such performances are best seen at night - or in a darkened venue. Timberwolf wasn't really built for that - it was built for static performers and bands. Demands of artists play a role as well - and KI simply isn't in the business to cater to most of today's intricate tech-riders themselves. Spirit Song is a low-risk, successful event that has proven to be a large draw for decades. The performers are more traditional "static" performers that don't rely heavily on theatrics or complex tech-riders. Its a "festival", so it is an admissions draw to the park for an entire weekend. Because of the nature of the concerts, and the fact that it is at a family-oriented theme park - its a huge draw for churches and youth groups across the Midwest. A great portion of ticket sales are to large groups that are maintained, and return, year after year. There's a built-in base of buyers that help guarantee that it's a success. Now, I am not privy to what type of a contract SS's promoter may have with KI... but I'd guess its a simple 4-wall, where they are essentially just renting the venue and KI only retains the profits from park admissions and concessions. It is my opinion that the reason Timberwolf still exists is literally because of Spirit Song. The event is obviously a large enough draw that the park continues to see its merit (As recent as 2020 - which was cancelled due to Covid.) And as long as Kings Island deems the facility's use for Spirit Song as a viable use of the "real estate", then Timberwolf will continue. Also, as long as SS's promoter deems the facility adequate, then KI will likely just "maintain" it rather than heavily re-investing. If the park deems the land's use better suited for something that can be better marketed, or produce a larger return on investment, then it will be removed. If they are faced with a costly renovation or remodel (in order to maintain some sort of standard for future use) then they'll run the metrics to find out what the better monetary use is. As of now, its costing them little to nothing to just sit there... and its tucked away in a spot that isn't really prime midway real-estate. I do not think the land clearing seen this season is reflective of anything related to a removal of Timberwolf - I think its just a simple clearing of foliage overgrowth.

Hidden Mickey! ;-)

Then there's Huss vs Hoooz. ;-)

The mere fact that the name "Gerstlauer" is continually mispronounced "GerTslauer" in that video undermines any potential credibility IMO. ;-)

It was time for Vortex to go. A dagger to the heart of sentimentality, but its time had passed. ;-)

Yeah, its pretty evident there was mis-information in that USA Today article. I'm glad it got shared, because its a good example of how the press can misconstrue their reporting about parks. Bottom line, there's no factual information that any such thing ever occurred on The Beast.

Interesting. Any idea if it was a local article or something printed through AP? On a related note, I personally can recall a large article on coaster safety that appeared in Popular Mechanics in the 1980's that featured coaster accidents. It covered, in great detail, information about the West Edmonton Mall Schwarzkopf derailment, the Lightning Loops incident etc. I still have it somewhere in storage. When I was a teen, that article was the trigger for me to understand that those sorts of tragic stories sell.

Scattered throughout the decades, there's been a few collector gems pop-up for sale at KI. During the Paramount Era, they commissioned hand painted replicas of the lead carousel horses. Also, there was some original International Street art that was sold in a very limited capacity. Unfortunately, unique artistic representations of KI are pretty few and far between. Which amazes me, because in each of those cases they sold out afaik.

Glad to see KI again stepping up their exclusive merchandise game. The pin collection, the Nano-Coasters, the Coaster Cut Outs, the Ornaments, the calendar are all great pieces for a collector. Although these train models look a bit "rough" (as is the case with most resin models of any sort) I am very glad to see these and have made my purchase. I'm still wishing/hoping for CoasterDynamix Statix trains of Orion, Mystic Timbers, Racer, Banshee and "The Bat" (original please), as well as a much needed return to the large souvenir park maps. (I mean seriously, if CP can do it every year for 30 years straight, why cant KI?) Baby steps, I suppose ;-)

For posterity, I was a Beast Crew member (many, many moons ago) and can tell you we were all made aware of the potential hazards with the ride when in driver training. We were given examples of accidents that HAVE occurred in its history, so we knew what to look for and how to handle. Not once, in my time working there - or in training - was there ever any mention of someone being mortally injured by The Beast. However we were warned that people HAVE hit their heads on the trains, broken fingers and hands in the helix, busted lips, had heart attacks etc. Unfortunately, those types of things DID happen (rarely) while I was on crew. I saw and handled a couple of those types of instances personally. However, with the exception of one case, the injuries occurred to people that ignored and challenged the safety warnings. They were all treatable and relatively minor injuries. Perhaps the story is confused with another? In the 1980s a young teenager did get partially decapitated on a coaster at Kings Dominion when they stood up on the Galaxi. It made national news. (Side note: the growing issues and concerns with persons standing on the coasters (not just The Beast) is why the individual orange lap bars took the place of the buzz bars on PTC trains at many parks. But this was after many, many years of operating without them. The more recent addition of seat belts also was a result of concerns about guests breaking rules while riding.) FYI - I've never personally understood the fascination with these types of hearsay "stories." I once had a barber SWEAR he was at KI in the late 1980s on the day The Bat crashed into a concrete pillar, fell off the track, and killed people. He was adamant that it happened. There was so much wrong with his story, but when I tried to correct him - he got very defensive. You would have thought I had killed his first-born. After that, I learned to just roll my eyes and not engage with such stories when they are told directly to me. There's no use arguing.

Coastermania has, traditionally, had a much higher capacity allowance than most enthusiast events. I've been to several Coastermanias over the years where there were upwards of 2,000 attendees. Its worth noting that interest in Coastermania, and attendance, usually flexes based on a new coaster. In "intermediate" years between coasters, attendance tends to dip. I don't know the KI Coasterstock capacity, but I'd not be surprised if it is 1/3 of Coastermania's allowance. Given that, and the fact that Orion is still essentially a new coaster to most... its no surprise demand for CS tickets was incredible.

So, ever since I first saw the Brady episode as a kid, something bothered me about the episode... they didn't show Kenton's Cove Keelboat Canal. In 1973, the new (and heavily promoted) attractions were the Bayern Curve, Flying Dutchman, International Street Restaurant and KCKC. All were included as a headline attraction in brochures, pre-season news articles and advertisements. The Brady Bunch episode was filmed the week of August 20th 1973. Both the Flying Dutchman and Bayern curve appeared in the episode... but KCKC did not. As a matter of fact, that entire area of Rivertown was completely omitted from the overhead shots. They did film near it - the Canoes and Rivertown Pizza Parlor... but no KCKC. (The Rivertown Pizza Parlor was also new that season...) It never made sense to me that they wouldn't feature, or at least show, the largest new attraction at the park that season. It seemed to me they'd want to showcase a eye-catching new attraction. Well, today I finally found the answer... Turns out, there was a major delay with the construction of KCKC... not sure what the delay was, but in August 1973 the ride was still under construction. A newspaper article states that the park was actually considering waiting to open it in 1974 (the same year they opened Lion Country Safari.) However, it appears it DID open in fall of 1973. Here's a blurb about it from a news article dated August 5th 1973... Fun to discover new things!

I agree with this, generally speaking. When it comes to generic kids rides (flat rides, etc) No matter the name/theme, children will either want to ride a kids attraction - or not. Heck - most kids/parents refer to standard attractions in terms of what they are, or do... "Momma, Daddy - I want to ride the airplanes!", "Jimmy, do you wanna go on the motorcycles?", "Little Emily loves the merry-go-round." etc. etc. etc. At most of today's parks - outside Disney and/or Universal - the names and themes of rides is mostly a secondary overlay. Licensed characters only play an important part on story-driven, or character-driven attractions (dark rides, flumes etc.) Now, there's something to be said for the costumed characters themselves. Young kids DO want to "meet" certain characters at parks (and many "big" kids too! LOL) Also, I think the licensing of characters plays an important part in the ability to market and sell merchandise. When KI was built, Taft's interest was to capitalize off the immense popularity of the HB characters they owned. That's the main reason KI exists on the scale that it does. HB was a HUGE, necessary draw in those formative years. IMO, as the seasons passed, KI developed enough of a solid reputation that they outgrew & outlasted the need for the characters on whose backs it was built. Its also worth noting that its all very generational. For me personally, as an adult, I will always feel there's something lacking at KI without the HB characters - because they were such an important part of the park in the years I first visited. For those adults that first attended KI as children in the Paramount years, they likely feel there's something missing without the Nickelodeon theme. When/if the day comes that the Peanuts leave KI - kids that have first visited KI as kids with those characters may always reminisce about them. But that having been said - most of us... no matter what it was called at the time - remember our childhood rides on the Scooby Doo... errr... Beastie... errr... Fairly Odd Coaster... errr... Woodstock Express... Finally... outside of non-kids coasters or theme-driven attractions, most people (enthusiasts and KI buffs excluded) don't remember the names of the attractions either. For instance, I was recently privy to a conversation where the persons were talking about how KI used to have a "big log ride" and a "small log ride." In reality, they were remembering Kentons Cove Keelboat Canal and the Kings Mill Log Flume. Had I spoken up and corrected them on the names, I guarantee neither would have registered with them.

My speculation would be that, like the deal with Hart, they will be required by the state to re-invest a fair amount of the profits back into the physical park.