CoastersRZ

Thanks for the kind words on the update! It is hard to believe that the first event of the spring at Coney will also be the same weekend that Kings Island opens. The Cincinnati Flower Show will be held on the banks of Lake Como April 19th through 27th. A few selected rides along the shores of Lake Como will likely operate for the flower show (I do not know if River Runner will be one of those attractions. They have a lot of work to do on the platform for that ride). This will be the 19th annual flower show, and the sixth year the show has been held at Coney Island. (It was previously held at Cincinnati`s Ault Park, before moving to Coney in 2003). For more information on the Cincinnati Flower Show, visit their website at www.cincyflowershow.com.

My understanding is that the ACE walkback is no longer reserved exclusively for ACE members. Instead you must be a current card carrying member of any official coaster club. (No, KIC is not a card carrying coaster club). In the past, the ACE walkback has occurred any day the park is open to the general public.

Yes, River Runner has only been used for about two months last year at Wild West World. It is manufactured by SBF Rides/Vista, who also made the Skyscraper ride at Krazy City in Tri County Mall. Turtle Parade is a used ride, and I`m not sure where it was previously located at. I`m not sure about the Eurobungy Dome, as it has yet to arrive on site at Coney. I would venture to say that it is likely direct from the manufacturer though.

Kiddie Circle Freeway has been retired from service. A couple of the cars will be rehabbed and return to the park this season as photo ops for park guests. The Turtle Parade is going on the site vacated by the Kiddie Circle Freeway. The Eurobungy Dome is going on a site that has been vacant for the last six years. It is right next to the Ferris Wheel. That location used to be the site of the Helicopters, before they were moved in front of the Administration building back for the 2002 season. I hope that answers your questions. If not, just ask away.

I believe that Holiday World began a similar program either in 2007 or in 2006. It really makes sense. I`ve had to handle my fair share of lost children at Coney. Most of the times, when security gets there, they will ask the kids if their parents have a cell phone and if they know the number to it so they can reunite them.

In reference to the vests. I`m assuming that this is referring to the corporate CF policy where all guests under 42" are now required to wear life jackets in Boomerang Bay, after the drowning at California`s Great America`s Boomerang Bay last year.

The Cincinnati Enquirer has an article here that discusses the lawsuit that Kings Island filed against the insurance company for the Roller Coaster Corporation of America, the defunct company that designed and built Son of Beast. Kings Island sued the insurance company in 2005 after RCCA went bankrupt.

Yes, I am quite pleased with how Coney Central has grown over the last eight months!

Yikes! I sure hope no one was afraid of heights and stuck 450 feet in the air. Last year when operating the Ferris Wheel at Coney on a busy Saturday, I had the unfortunate pleasure of witnessing a park wide power failure! The ride was completely loaded, save for the car we were in the process of loading. We waited ten minutes before we finally started manually moving the wheel to unload it.

And, interestingly enough, there was also a Spanish building when the park first opened in 1972. Great find, as Ryan said!

Yes, The River Runner is a new attraction at Coney in 2008. Here are the new attractions that Coney is getting for this season. Keep in mind that the Eurobungy Dome will be similar to Famous Fairways golf, in that it will be a separate upcharge attraction. In addition, the Frog Hopper and Giant Slide will have new homes for this season. If any one else has any questions, feel free to ask them. If I don`t know the answer, I can likely find it out. In addition to the three new attractions, there will be several other potential new things at Coney this season. The games department is looking at adding several new games, which could possibly include a Dance Dance Revolution game. Additionally, several of the old cars from Kiddie Circle Freeway will be rehabbed and placed around the park for photo opportunities. Furthermore, plans call for fish feeders (not unlike those that resides by the restaurant formerly known as Bubba Gump`s at Kings Island. If anyone has any historical pictures from Coney Island that they would be willing to contribute to the site, please do so. You can contact me by PM, or send me an email .

I was able to stop by Coney and take some pictures of the latest preparations for the 2008 season. Included in the picture update are some pictures from inside of the Sunlite Pool filter room, some flood water in the deep end of the pool, and of course the various updates that are occuing in the rides department. Turtle Parade is now on site, with some preliminary construction ocuring. The new foundation for the Frog Hopper has been poured, and the Giant Slide is receiving some work before a paint job and a move to a new location. Additionally, work was continuing on River Runner, which looks like it will be a big hit with the crowds this year. Currently, there was no work going on on the Eurobungy Dome. Click here to see the photo update. As always, be sure to check out Coney Island Central for the latest news and developments on Cincinnati`s Coney Island. -Robbie

Yep, the Flying Dutchman opened in the 1973 season. You can still ride that attraction down at Kentucky Kingdom. The bridge over Swan Lake was there until the mid `90s or so.

Thanks for the fantastic historical photo contributions! Always nice to see the park in the older days! Especially nice to see some high quality shots of the wild animal habitat!

Yes, last year Kings Island actually had a rule that you were not allowed to leave loose articles (minus cups and souvenirs ) in the station. All backpacks, purses and other items you were required to take with you! Didn`t much make sense, but I guess that they had people trying to say that the ride ops should have been responsible for the articles, when there are numerous verbal and written warnings (and have been for years) saying the park is not responsible for lost, forgotten or stolen items.

Times are much different. Its hard to believe that the Brady Bunch episode that was shot at Kings Island in 1973 is now almost thirty five years old!! My how the park has changed significantly since then! Look how many owners have come and gone. Taft is gone, KECO is gone, Carl Lindner`s control of the park is gone, Paramount, Viacom and the brief stint that CBS had the park are gone as well. Just look at all the modifications that have been made to The Racer trains over the years in the name of safety. Seat belts, new lap bars, and head rests to name the major ones.

Rest assured, Coney Central will be updated soon enough with the latest happening down at Coney Island.

Yes, I agree. The Juke Box sign looks good. I`m actually kind of surprised that they made the Juke Box portion in neon lights to match the Diner portion of the sign. I can only hope that Kings Island`s sign is the same way. Apparently, several of the attractions were logoless at Carowinds, including Afterburn and Drop Tower. From pictures that were posted on Screamscape, those attractions had their old logos removed, but did not yet have the new logos in place. It would be interesting to see how high the food prices have risen from last year.

Now that is a LOT of people. Talk about a terrible experience if you happened to be at the park that day. It looks like it is akin to the infamous Bring a Friend Free days that Kings Island used to have.

Still, they are taking good care of the eagles. A little tidbit. When LeSourdsville Lake sold off their Eagles, Coney actually had placed a bid on them. But, they were outbid, and so the Eagles never migrated down to Coney, unfortunately.

That means that the flyers that used to be at Kings Island have been painted two times since they were moved to Carowinds in 2005! At least they are keeping good care of the ride down there!

Nope, nothing major, other then having to give stuff a good power washing, which is typically done anyway before the season starts. Certainly not as bad as the flood of 97, when waters came up about seven feet or so on all the buildings at Coney!

In a response in another thread, I mentioned how the current flooding is affecting Coney. Right now, part of Sunlite Pool is flooded with river water, as is the filter room. Additionally, Lake Como is a couple feet higher then normal. Kellogg Avenue yesterday was shut down at Coney`s main entrance gate due to high water to the east, by Riverdowns. Also, the eastern most stretches of Coneys parking lot was flooded. The general park area is not currently flooded.

A lot of the setup and removal of the show is done by volunteers. I actually helped build the green home display last year. The event used to be held at Ault Park in Cincinnati, before moving to Coney about five years ago. While some rides will likely be operating, don`t expect a lot to be operating. In years past, the Pedal Boats, Scrambler, Tempest, Frog Hopper and Spin a Ree have operated for the flower show. But since the Frog Hopper will be in a new location this year, and Spin a Ree has been placed in storage, do not look for those rides to operate this year. I do not know if the River Runner will be operational for the Flower Show this year or not. The rides that do operate are the rides that are located around Lake Como, since the main flower show area located between Kellogg Avenue and Lake Como.

A $10 million, 80,000 square foot building that will house a model train display will open its doors in West Chester, off of Tylersville Road and I-75 in June. Part of this entertainment complex will be an area that houses seasonal displays, including an old amusement park funhouse. The centerpiece will be a 25,000 square foot train display, broken into three historical periods. The annual holiday train display at Duke Energy`s downtown office is only 2,000 square feet by comparison! Read the full article from the Cincinnati Enquirer.