Shaggy

ACEonline.org That should explain it all...

I believe high winds and lightning within a 10 mile radius would be much more of a concern than rain. Remember... Beast opened on a rainy Friday the 13th.

I *believe* The Beast's paw tracks managed to extend all the way around the Eiffel Tower and to the right side of International Street for at least one season. However most seasons, that I recall, the tracks began behind the Eiffel Tower. The tracks haven't been consistent... they've been there some seasons, not there others. Traditionally, they wear away by mid-season or so from foot traffic. But for those years where no tracks appeared it was often because the black-top had been re-sealed just prior to the park opening. I would suspect their appearance/disappearance has more to do with "time" or the lack thereof. As other's mentioned, Vortex, Flight Commander had them. But Beastie typically had them when Beast did. Top Gun and, I believe FOF had them for their inaugural seasons.

I have to respectfully disagree. Lightning Run is smaller than I expected. Now I won't dare be an armchair coaster judge (one who passes judgement without riding.) But I am visually underwhelmed by it's stature in the park. I have seen it up close and personal a few times and I pass by it every day when headed to my office. I hope it will be a sleeper - you know, one of those fun little coasters that pack a whallop. Kentucky Rumbler (a wooidie at Beech Bend) is exactly that, and I wouldn't have expected it. But traditionally, small, compact steelies can go one of two ways: short, intense fun or short, intense head banging. Visually it has an *air* of how FOF looked when I first saw it. (Although not *as* tightly twisted.) Time will tell. I will say, thank goodness for Mark Brunner. He - with permission from the park - has documented it's construction. Although I see it routinely, he's been kind enough to keep other enthusiasts updated with progress online. Shaggy

I just realized something... guess I'm late to the party in observing this... but the station floor doesn't drop. It's a static, concrete loading station floor. Shaggy

"Are prototypes usually cheaper?" I always heard Hellivator was. Sorry... had to...

According to the Time Dragon Clock, this Wicked Witch will begin defying gravity in just a tick-tock. How's that Don?

Could be a rep with B&M. I *believe* B&M has reps in the US that help oversee installs.

Wow... if Don's comparing it to the likes of "Celebration" (which I saw...) then it's sure to be amazing. :-)

Well, it is a park themed to candy, so I don't see how any kind of electricity has to do with me buying chocolate. It's not themed to candy... rather has AN attraction with a chocolate theme. (And even that isn't INSIDE the park.) If it were themed to candy, we would have seen a waterslide named Hershey Squirts already. ;-)

I believe this is the area in question: Perhaps it's a belfry ;-)

...when they have light poles installed in them.

At Disney Parks, the sweepers are the creme-de-la-creme of the cast members. They pick their best people for these roles simply because they interact with guests the most often.

To elaborate on Terpy's comment... At the front and back of each tub, there are 2 cables (4 total.) They are doubled and coupled together for safety purposes. By directing the tub to drop downward toward the center axis while in motion, it causes the rear of the tub to bottom out leaving slack in the front 2 cables. As inertia takes over, the tub rights itself and the front 2 cables tighten and "snap" together. The tub then makes a dramatic surge upward and in some cases goes completely horizontal above the pivot point at the top arms of the carriage. The visuals of this prompted both "ooohs and ahhhhs" from guests, as well as concerns among those worried about safety. Sometimes, when many pro "snappers" were on board, the carriage arms would shake and thud loudly. For those riding, the swoop upward was literally a thrill beyond belief.

FYI, I was at the Fairgrounds over the weekend, and vertical assembly of Lightning Run is underway. They had at least 4 sections of track in place.... lower "bunny hop" hills. It struck me as a bit odd since typically they start with lift assembly. However I figure they'll probably assemble it from the centermost area outward. Erecting the lift/first drop will likely necessitate closure of Perimeter Road - not feesible during weekends when events are occurring inside the Fairground wings. I will say I'll be SHOCKED if Lightning Run and some of the newer attractions are completed by opening. If they are, and operate on time, opening day visitors should not wear their best shoes... the pavement may still be wet ;-) In addition, there are literally DOZENS of billboards all around Louisville pushing KK season pass sales. It's obvious a hefty penny was paid to rent all the billboards. Locally, KK Marketing is pushing hard. However I'm baffled by this strategy since the whole State backing for KK was based on the promise to draw visitors to Louisville in order to help support hotels, restaurants etc. That was the whole push to re-open the park in the first place - to help draw tourism. Out-of-state Marketing strategy will begin once the park is closer to opening, obviously, but I cannot imagine how much of the budget has gone to renting all those local billboards!

Cedar Fair is to be applauded for all of the nods it's making to the past in the former KECO/Paramount Parks. We are seeing a flurry of terrific things, especially out of Kings Dominion, Much loved attractions and theming elements are being restored to the parks. The return of the name "The Bat", The Singing Mushrooms etc. I can't tell you how much these fantastic decisions mean to the fans of these parks. That having been said, I decided to start this official request to Cedar Fair: Please bring the Flying Eagles home. For many, the Eagles were a staple of Kings Island. They were an original attraction that made their debut at the Cincinnati Coney Island in the early 1940s, and then were re-located to Kings Island for it's grand opening in 1972. The Eagles thrilled and entertained guests at KI for 33 years (in two different locations in the park) until the shocking decision was made to remove and relocate them to Carowinds. According to the park (at the time) they were removed because the installation of Italian Job Stunt Track necessitated it. However, the truth is, a formal KD General Manager that had been transferred to Carowinds specifically pushed for the relocation. Bottom line, my wish is for those that are currently spearheading the Cedar Fair leadership to recognize the value this attraction had at KI and to bring them back to their home in Cincinnati - KI. This thread is meant for other fellow KI and Flying Eagle fans to chime in with their support. It's also meant for those that enjoyed the attraction to reminisce about experiences they may have had. Perhaps Cedar Fair may take note and recognize the opportunity to restore yet another piece of 70 year-old history to it's rightful place. Thanks! John K - aka Shaggy

...or how about I save them to occasionally surprise folks in threads such as this ;-) LOL!

I have many pics of PT, most of the of the characters up close and personal. I was fortunate enough to see the attraction a number of times with the lights on, walk through it etc. I even went through the workshop that was housed inside where the characters were repaired and replacement masks and costumes were kept. Here's a picture of me (a looooong time ago....) playing around in one of the "scenes" from Phantom Theater. (It's the "Who's out there? No one's allowed backstage" scene.) Again, the pic is not great - it was nearly impossible to get good pics when walking through the attraction with just work lights on. I also have many memories of riding it. I rode it every visit of every year it was in operation. There were minor changes through the years, and many original effects bit the dust after just a season or two. In it's first year of operation, the attraction was insanely amazing. By the final years, the maintenance of it was laughable. One time, while riding, I witnessed one of the character's arm fall off. No joke... in the final boiler room scene.. one of the "How 'bout some heat!" fellas arm fell out of socket and was dangling by his sleeve.

The waterpark portion will be the draw.... always was.

When BBOBH (actually Scooby's Haunted Castle) took over Phantom Theater, the set upon which the Pepper's Ghost effect took place was "platformed up." Meaning 2x4 lumber was used to build risers and level the floor with the omnimover track. The base of the Phantom Theater Peppers Ghost set was probably about 6-8 feet below the track so there was probably no real room for a "basement." For those that don't know... the Peppers Ghost scene in PT involved a pass in front of the Theater's "Stage" where the various characters appeared and dissapeared from view. The scene was a direct copy of the one used in Disney's Haunted mansion. The trick is achieved by having the physical animatronic characters located above an below the ride vehicles. Riders were actually staring at reflections of them on a well hidden, enormous pane of glass. This gave people the illusion that you could see through them, and they were appearing at random. It was, by far, the best feature of PT. Here are two pictures I took many moons ago while walking through the Pepper's Ghost scene in PT. It's an empty set, because the remaining characters were behind me in a darkened, unlit space (the ride was not operating and was slated for demolition at this point.)

Wanna go truly old school?

It's where Tomb Raid... errrrr.... the Crypt... errr..... was, were.... ;-)

Ghoster Coaster anyone?

...or how about a rare look at a drained KCKC...

Or how about a rare (albeit blurry) look at the former Phantom Theater buggies passing by the "Pepper's Ghost" portion of the attraction.