CoastersRZ

I don`t know what shows they had in the Kings Island theater. I know that for the first couple of seasons they had the puppet show. They might have put in another show, such as one of the simulator films. I may be wrong but the theater building was destroyed by heavy snow, causing the pnuematic structure to collapse.

Yes, Son of Beast will be closed until at least around Memorial Day weekend. They don`t have a firm date of when they expect it to open though.

Unfortunately for me. I won`t be able to be up at the park on Friday April 14th until 5:30 at the earliest. I have work until 5. So most likely, I will miss opening day. But I will definantely be up there on Easter!

I wouldn`t say low budget is going to run the park into the ground this year. From what I understand, the operating hours are pretty much set in stone. The only fluctuation you will see is when they actually open the gates to the park. On busier days, they will open up International Street like they used to, so there isn`t a mob at the front gate at ten am.

Depends. One of the first things I will do is grab a ride on The Beast. But checking out Nick Universe and Avatar, won`t be far behind.

Yeah, there was a theater on the current location of the Paramount Story (formerly Tower Garends). The theater was a pnuematic structure (a balloon type structure) and it was a bright orange color. It was originally, I believe, the location where Sid and Marty Kroft performed their marrianette puppet shows. The theater can be seen briefly in the Brady Bunch episode. I haven`t been able to locate any images on the web that have this theater in it.

TombRaiderTy, if you are referring to this building over by Reptar and Plankton Plunge, it doesn`t look like a restroom to me but some sort of food stand. Now, there is a restroom close to this building, seen here. No, we really didn`t get close to The Beastie, er Fairly Odd Coaster. The closest we got was when we were over by Avatar, and saw that the trains had been covered up with covers, to protect their new paint job. The only change that was visible in fact was the new coat of paint on the cars (from Winter Soar). The ride and queue houe remain the same color. As of Winter Soar, the tunnel was still standing. I think that Avatar will prove to be a popular ride among the public. Just like SDGC was popular (if you ever rode that ride, you know that it was not a very fun or smooth ride, not to mention the terrible capacity). Avatar will have a better capacity, and has a visual appeal to it due to its size, and the large Avatar character that will be mounted to the ride vehicle. It will kind of be like Delirium, with lots of people just watching it. I am looking forward to trying out Avatar. You don`t need to have a little kid accompany you on Avatar.

The Interpreter, I wouldn`t say that the other Paramount Parks have gotten more attention recently than what PKI has. True, Canada`s Wonderland has more attendance last year. But there are several factors that have caused that. One, is that Wonderlans has an awesome collection of flat rides. Another factor is that there are no nearby parks in direct competition with Wonderland. PKI competes with several other parks in the area, namely Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom, and to a lesser extent Cedar Point up in central Ohio. Over the last decade or so, both Cedar Point and Kings Island have hovered around the 3.3 million mark. Some years they improve, while other years they decline. One interesting thing that I just realized. Paramount has been the owner of Kings Island for a longer amount of time than any other owner. Taft owned Kings Island from its opening in 1972 until KECO bought out Taft`s park division in 1984. Taft had control of the parks for 12 years. KECO has control of the parks from 1984- July of 1992 when they sold to Paramount (although KECO was sold to American Financial and Carl Lindner in 1987). KECO had control of the parks for eight years. Paramount has owned the parks since July of 1992 through present, or thirteen years (going from 1993 when they rebranded the parks under the Paramount moniker). As has been stated before, many people of the younger crowd have only experience the park under the stewardship of Paramount Parks. I myself think that in the last couple of years, the park has been making some excellent decisions, especially with live entertainment. From WinterFest, to FearFest, to School of Rock, to the Nickelodeon Celebration Parade, these things are not so much about the rides, but the environment and entertainment aspect of the park. Which is a big part of an amusement park. True, some ride removals have been questionable, the classic Antique Cars in favor of IJST, (which seems out of place in the once serene and tranquil central area of the park), and the shipping of the Eagles down to Carowinds. In general, though, they have added some very popular rides in the last decade. Delirium, Drop Zone, the expanded water park, and a TR:TR a ride that has good overall theming for a ride not at one of the big themers down in Florida or California. Everyone will have their own opinions about what they like and dislike and what they think the park has done/needs to do. I just think that the park has become a better place in the last couple of years, despite the losses of some classic rides.

Some sort of a shop. She didn`t specifically mention what it would be. But judged by its design, some sort of food stand.

UncleHenry, there are several images in there of the Phantom Flyers. One I took is currently on the last page, and then there are several that Ryan took on pages two and three. Yes, a big thanks to Maureen and Jennifer! Another wonderful construction tour! As far as the ACE walkback goes. The gates to the park will open at 10am with the parking lot opening around 9:30. ACE members should meet between 9:30 and 9:45 over by the Season Pass processing building. The ACErs will then be escorted in through the side entrance. The park will have signs for the ACE walkback. Bring your ACE cards, they will be checking them!

Sounds like a rip off of the new name for the Boulder Bumpers. Jimmy Neutron`s Atom Smasher.

I never heard that SoB was supposed to have used pre-engineered wood track, or that it was supposed to have polyurethane wheels.

PKI has had a pass holder preview day for years. In the past, it used to be the Friday before the park opened to the general public. It was also the day that radio contest winners got to experience the park.

But I do believe that Cedar Point does not consider Demon Drop as a roller coaster (nor does RCDB consider Demon Drop as a roller coaster).

Interesting. They have the past several years always had a season pass preview weekend or day. I wonder what the flash animation on their website was referring to when it said season pass holders get a sneak preview of the new Nickelodeon Universe?

Very good point with the impulse coasters! Is the powered mine ride up at Canada`s Wonderland considered a roller coaster?

Actually, it was Roy Disney who told the people at Taft when they were planning the park to figure out how much land you will need and then buy five times the amount. That led to them buying 1,600 acres of land. However, today the park only owns about 750 acres. Of which the theme park sits on about 365 acres. Part of their property down by the Little Miami River is, I believe, a protected wildlife sanctuary, so they most likely will never build anything close to the river. That and the Little Miami is a state and national scenic river places some restrictions on what is built around the river.

Yes. Very true. It kind of blurs the line between what is a coaster and what is not a coaster.

Yes, the Sea Dragon is a John Allen design. I believe that it was his first design for a junior woodie.

Well, I believe that the KECO offices were in Cincinnati, since Taft Broadcasting was in Cincinnati. That is also why Cincinnati has become a hotbed for amusement and theme park designers. From Dennis Spiegel at International Theme Park Services to Jack Rouse at Jack Rouse Associates to Bruce D. Robinson. They all originally worked for Taft or KECO before opening up their own design firms. When Paramount bought KECO they opted to move the offices down to Charlotte. Not sure the exact reasoning behind the move.

Well, the park hasn`t been calling it a roller coaster. And it is not listed on rcdb as a roller coaster. It is sort of a cross between a flat ride and a roller coaster. Now Paramount`s Great America is refering to their Survivor ride as a roller coaster, and the only difference is the ride vehicle. It does have wheels and rolls, but is doesn`t really coast since it is powered. I would tend to say that the ride is a flat ride more than a coaster.

But while the maintenance crews are local and based at PKI, it all comes down to budget. If Paramount Parks doesn`t give PKI the budget to fix and maintain the theming, then it won`t be maintained. Without an increase in budget, they won`t have the personal to maintain all the theming, or to buy replacement parts for the theming. I just hope that they get the on board speakers working on IJST this season! The onboard audio added a lot to the ride experience, IMO.

You mean the sneak preview weekend for all pass holders? The park has not released any perks for pass holders yet. However, on the flash animation on the PKI website promoting the gold pass and a "special sneak preview for the all new Nickelodeon Universe." Most likely this will end up being the weekend before when they have "dry run" day. That is the day that they run things for the first times, and is meant as a day for employees to get a feel for their job before the park officially opens to the public. Employees recieve tickets for their friends and family to visit the park on these dry run days. I haven`t heard anything official with regards to a season pass holder weekend the weekend before the official opening day on Friday, April 14th.

Yeah, the double sides will definantely improve capacity. If the ride is as popular as the Frog Hopper at Coney, the ride will be a huge hit with kids!

And don`t forget that PKI brought back WinterFest this year. The event shows that PKI is dedicated to live entertainment still. WinterFest was a top notch event that will hopefully be a tradition for years to come. I don`t know if the Nickelodeon Celebration Parade surpassed Disney, but it was right up there with them. Hopefully, the parade will expand and grow throughout the years, as it seems to be a big crowd pleaser.