CoastersRZ

But, there was ERT for Gold Pass holders prior to 2008. It simply was not every single day of the season. (Ie, there were Thrill Seeker Thursdays, which featured rides in Action Zone, and then there was a day when they had attractions open in Coney Mall, and another day when they had some attractions open in Rivertown.) The Gold Pass first debuted in 2001.

I certainly hope you aren't talking about California's Great America for a coaster install. As evidenced in the earnings release last week, they consider Cedar Point, Knott's Nerry Farm, Canada's Wonderland and Kings Island as their four biggest parks.

So very true. And to think Coney will be celebrating its 125th anniversary this season. I for one am fortunate it is still around! And I know I`m going to sound like a broken record, but if you haven`t made it to Coney in recent years. It is worth a visit. The pricing is not that bad (parking is $7, all day rides admission is $11.95, or $7.95 after 4pm! And Coney has lots of flat rides that typically aren`t found in most major amusement parks anymore. Round Up anyone? Giant Slide? Bumper Boats?

Yeah. Until I got my first pass to Kings Island in 1998, I would only get to go once, maybe twice a season to the park. Now, since I`ve had a pass, I typically go about twenty to thirty times. But I can sense that number may be dropping this year. Why? It has nothing to do with what ERT sessions are or aren`t offered. This will be my second full summer with a full time job. Additionally, I intend to still work at Coney on the weekends. But one of the other big reasons is that life happens. There is a strong chance I will have a girlfriend by the time the full season rolls around. As such, I`ll spend less time at the parks. On that subject, look how many posters on these forums have come and gone over the years. There are several people that used to post very frequently who haven`t been seen or heard from on these forums in years. Life happens, and interests wane as people simply loose interest or develop other hobbies. Such is a fact of life. And the really remarkable thing is that this website has been around for as long as it has. Most park focused fan websites (there was a point in time where almost every park had two or three websites devoted to it) have come and gone. So treasure what you have, while you can enjoy it. (And no this is not to say KIC is going anywhere anytime soon). While you may find KI a great place to visit, there maybe a day when you start to loose interest in it and it doesn`t have the spark that it once had. Gosh, that last paragraph I just typed was full of melancholy! Sorry to depress everyone. On the bright side, opening day is just over two months away!

Which part won`t be the case, that people will want to trade in their passes because they are upset about not getting The Beast and Diamondback ERT or the part about the park offering a refund? Or both?

Now that you mention it, I did notice that. But keep in mind it is just a rendering. Renderings are not always accurate in depicting color. See Backlot Stunt Coaster, where the original rendering showed yellow track, but the park decided to change it to gray track after the rendering was made. Or, look at Cheetah Hunt at where, the rendering incorrectly depicted the height of the sky ride cable. The new coaster will actually go OVER the sky ride.

I don`t believe that the concrete you illustrated as being part of the ride pad will in fact be the ride pad. I think that it will in fact be part of the midway. I think the ride pad will be the area where concrete has not been poured. The tower itself will likely be about the size of the raised foundation with all the anchor bolts. Keep in mind that each arm of swings will be almost completely vertical when it is loading, which means the ride pad won`t have to be as wide as the rendering that shows the swings at their full angle. Does that make sense? I`m still curious as to what the posts are on the right side. One of them is just barely visible on the right edge of the webcam.

I haven`t experiences the new OTSRs that are on Intimidator at Kings Dominion. I just know that Maverick has not been one of my favorite rides at Cedar Point, mainly do to its restraints. While the ride has improved a little bit for me since I took a front seat ride on it last September, the restraints on it really take away from the ride, in my mind.

And for the record, the original ACE walk backs were just that. They were not ERTs. You would be walked back to The Beast, to be the first riders in line. Often times, the park had opened (and the general public started arriving), before you were escorted up to the station. I know, as I was an ACE member for a few years, and partook in some of those walkbacks, in a time before there were any daily ERT sessions for Gold Pass holders! Remember when there was just one KI pass, and about the biggest benefit you got was a sneak peak weekend, or a private party on a Friday night before the park opened to the public. Beyond that, there were no ERT sessions or early admittance into Boomerang Bay.

When did I ever complain about Ride Warrior Weekend? I don`t think I ever did. And I don`t recall any KIC members complaining after the one and only RWW either. I had an incredibly fun time, and thats all I heard from other people. Sure, there may have been minor hiccups, but it was the first time that KI was hosting the even, so there are bound to be some hiccups.

That is a nice idea. Kind of like the d Beast ACE walkbacks. But aren't there often other ERT sessions as well? It will be interesting to see what the complete list of perks is. I just wish that ride warrior weekend was coming back. That was a blast and I only did the first day.

But as always, things are subject to change. I would miss the early ride times (or at least the walk back) to The Beast. But I would really miss the Diamondback ERT times. I would often get to the park at opening to grab a couple of Diamondback rides, and then a quick couple of Beast rides before the park opened. I guess I`ll have to change my plans this year it looks like. It will be interesting to see the length of lines that WindSeeker will draw. It should get fairly decent capacity for a flat ride since it seats 64 people per ride cycle, which is getting up there. (Drop Tower seats 40, Delirium 50), I just do not know if it will have the draw of some of the coasters. Then again, Drop Tower has had pretty long lines, but part of that is the lower capacity. I wonder if they will load the ride like Delirium (ie, separate the queue into the next 64 riders when the ride is cycling, to try and increase the throughput. I think they would be wise to try and do this, regardless of the lines they expect to draw.

I agree. Although, I am all for the streamlining of the check in process at the hotels. Although, it is pretty streamlined already. Disney is quite the expert at moving people efficiently. And the whole experience from arriving at the Orlando Airport to getting to the hotels is quite stress free. Even the fact that your room key to your hotel room is the same as your theme park tickets makes things a lot easier.

Kings Island actually did do a season pass ride night, way back in 2000 when Son of Beast was new. Back then there were "pawprint" pass holders. (Pass holders that purchased before the end of the 1999 season. They were promised a ride date in early April to ride Son of Beast. When the ride wasn`t ready on time, that date was canceled. Once the ride was up and running, they declared a couple of ride nights in July of that year. They shut the line down to the general public at I think 9 or 9:30. And then the ride was free to pawprint pass holders for two hours. I rode Son of Beast one of those nights nine times in two hours. I wonder now, what I was thinking riding that thing so many times in so short of a time frame!

I`d like to go down there again, Jesse. Although not in the middle of the summer. (Thats right when Coney is kicking off, and the way things have been at work of late, I`ll be fortunate to be able to take my vacation days when I want to take them). And besides, I`m trying to get out to Kings Dominion and Busch Gardens Williamsburg sometime this year. Not sure if that road trip will happen or not. I need someone to go with, and it most likely will be a long weekend trip. Ie, Friday through Sunday evening. That way I maximize my vacation days at work.

But Disney has all the hotels down there, and that is a perk intended to keep more people staying on property. And generally, you should try and AVOID the park that has the extra magic hours. Most resort guests will choose to go to the park with the extra magic hours. And the wait times during extra magic hours can be quite long.

And its had a few other names along the way before it was Alley Cat 500. Remember, that ride originally opened at Cincinnati`s Coney Island!

Another thing I wouldn`t mind seeing is having some exclusive night ride times. I know Cedar Point has like three nights, where they keep one of their coasters open for like two hours after park closes to allow the pass holders a chance at some evening ert. I wouldn`t mind seeing some of that happen at KI. But then again, there likely are logistical issues to that as well (like clearing the park of guests, etc.

So does that mean the every day early ride times on Diamondback are no more? I really enjoyed that perk and would be sad to see it gone... Especially since most of my visits were early Saturday or Sunday morning visits.

Which makes me wonder, what is Cedar Fair planning hotel wise? They mentioned in the conference call that some of the capital budget was going to lodging. Could certain parks be seeing a return of a campground, or a hotel on property?

Hmmm. That certainly puts a twist on things. I wonder what is up,. Only time will tell.

I believe that it has been stated in the past that the Action Theater will be open in 2011. Has anyone confirmed whether or not those alleged pieces of WindSeeker spotted on 275 today were in fact for WindSeeker? **EDIT** This just posted to the WindSeeker page on Ki`s website here: http://www.visitkingsisland.com/public/park/rides/thrill_rides/WindSeeker.cfm

I guess we will find out in a month or two if Atlantis will make its way to the Dayton area. Personally, I hope it does end up at Wright Patt.

It is far from a done deal that one of the three shuttles will be retired at Wright Patt. One of the shuttles (Discovery) has already been committed to go on display at the National Air and Space Museum at the Smithsonian. The other two shuttles (Atlantis and Endeavor) have yet to find a home. Some people want them to go to Florida and Houston, the locations of the shuttle launches and mission control respectfully. I think it would be awesome if one of the shuttles was retired to the Air Force Museum up at Wright Patterson Air Force Base. NASA is expected to make an decision (and an announcement) on where the shuttles will retire by the end of April.

Glad tosee Newport Aquatium continuing to invest. Remember who owns the aquarium. That's right, Herschend Family Entertainment.