CoastersRZ

And for those of you who do not know, the Harlem Globetrotters are owned by Herschend Family Entertainment, the company that owns Silver Dollar City in Branson, MO and jointly owns Dollywood with Dolly Parton.

Maybe by you, but here on the east side of Cincinnati it has been raining nearly all day.

Trims are brakes on rides that slow the trains down in portions of the ride, usually in high speed areas. Sometimes, as in the case on Diamondback, and Vortex, the block brakes trim the train speed. On The Beast, the trims are located on the first drop, at the top of the second hill, in the brake shed (the covered portion of the ride before entering the second tunnel), and on the descent after the second lift. The trims, as Brad stated, have been on The Beast since it opened. They did switch out the old skid brakes to magnetic trims about eleven or twelve years ago (mid-2000s).

Looks snazzy. Still seems strange to have a single row of seats in the train.

Nice to hear. I typically have kept my gold pass in the FunPix carrier in my car this past year. Our passes have become warped from being in the hot car. Not that big of a deal, personally. They still scan fine, but if I were to want to put them in my wallet, I might have some issues.

I`d like to know what, in your opinion makes Voyage your favorite? I have ridden it, and it is a good ride. But it is a very intense ride, almost to the point of too intense (at least for a re-ride soon after taking it for a spin. I need some time to recover.

Yes, do not do RMC to The Beast. It is a classic coaster. It is no where near as intense as what Storm Chaser or Outlaw Run. Those are fun rides, but you do need to take a breather after riding them, because they are quite intense.

I enjoy the B&Ms. I haven`t encountered one I didn`t like (sans the standups). That being said, Storm Chaser at Kentucky Kingdom is one amazing ride. I can`t wait to try out Steel Vengeance at Cedar Point.

Just imagine riding Carolina Cobra with the original Vekoma style trains! When the ride was relocated from Geauga Lake, it received a new train. Yes, some of KI`s coasters are dated. But I still enjoy them. I wouldn`t want any of them removed simply because they are "dated." Back in the day, the Arrow coasters were all the rage, because there was no B&M or Intamin creations around.

It could be the novelty wearing off, or they simply decide the job isn`t what they thought it would be. We have hired people at Coney, who go through the rides training, then never work an actual shift running a ride with the general public.

Topic locked. Please direct all conversations about coaster removals into this thread, where the conversation has been going on for a while:

As I have stated, there will be KIC member involvement. f there is a KIC member that has specific expertise in an area that will be featured in an episode, they will likely be asked to join on the podcast. And we may have guests on just to provide some color commentary. I don`t want to be the only one talking for an hour. Brad and Matthew will likely be on future episodes, but they will not be on every single episode. I am working on lining up the next podcast topic, and am actually hoping to have another KIC member (and not a moderator) on as a guest. I am glad that people have been enjoying the podcast so far.

I don`t mind the Racer `75 name perse. But the Apple Zapple name for Ricochet just seems weird. I do hope that Coney Mall gets some attention. It is nice that Shake, Rattle and Roll, Dodgems and Scrambler have received new LED lights. And the area did get new pavers back in 2011. The are could use something new. I really enjoyed the Gemini midway at Cedar Point.

We weren`t bored when we created this. We had been talking about doing a Podcast for several months now.

We will have guest speakers on the podcast (we are hoping to have some special guests for episode 2 and 3). Not sure yet if we will have people apply to be guests on the show or not. If they offer some interesting content/perspective, then they might be welcomed on as a guest.

We are also open to topic suggestions for future shows. We already have the subject of the next couple of shows mapped out.

Ryan, Great suggestions. I actually completely forgot all about the stunt show until after we recorded the podcast. I am glad everyone has enjoyed listening to it so far.

Were you listening to it in the embedded file above? Or through iTunes? The podcast is free on iTunes. Both versions (the embedded version above and the version on iTunes) worked fine for me.

KIC Podcast: Episode #1- 2017 Year in Review If you wish to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, you can do so at this link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/kings-island-central-podcast/id1342475078 Show notes: The inaugural episode of the Kings Island Central Podcast. Listen as host Robbie Zerhusen (CoastersRZ) is joined by Matthew Middleton (Malem) and Brad Perdue (IndyGuy4KI) discuss the 2017 season at Kings Island. -Mystic Timbers debuts as a fantastic new wooden coaster at Kings Island. -Island Smokehouse opens to glowing reviews in Soak City. -Halloween Haunt and the new scare zone, Dance of the Macabre, debuts under the Eiffel Tower. -Winterfest returns for a third time, after a 12 year hiatus. We are all impressed with the amount of lights, entertainment and things to see and do. And look forward to visiting again next year.

Episode 1 has already been recorded. Stay tuned for the reveal.

I have a pretty extensive collection of history information to share on the podcast. Thanks for the offer though. You never know when we might need some information.

We will have guest speakers on the podcast. We eventually might have KIC members appear as guests. Right now, we are planning on the podcast being released monthly. Although we might change that and release them more frequently once the season kicks off. We already have the guest speaker lined up for March`s podcast. Stay tuned for episode 1 of the KIC Podcast. It will be coming very soon!

Carowinds is a fun park too. Afterburn is a great B&M inverted coaster. I haven`t visited since before Fury 325 was installed, but I hear that it is an amazing ride. Canada`s Wonderland is a fun park too. Lots of flat rides. Leviathon and Behemoth are both fun rides. Vortex is nearly identical to The Bat at Kings Island. Definitely worth a visit. Depending if you select this park, you could also hit up Waldameer in Erie, PA. Hersheypark is also a fun park to visit. I haven`t been since before Skyrush opened. I enjoyed the Comet, as well as Storm Runner (an Intamin hydraulic launch coaster). There are also some GCI coasters there as well. Overall a nice park. If you are visiting Hershey, Dorney is not far from Hershey (only about an hour and fifteen minutes apart, depending on traffic). I know I am not helping you narrow down your choices much, lol.

Sorry to double post. But no one has responded to this topic in several weeks now. I thought that I would pass along some information on a new feature that will be debuting soon here on KIC. See the below image. Stay tuned for the first episode of the KICentral Podcast. Robbie

Sadly I have not been to Dollywood since Lightning Rod has been operational. I need to get down there again sometime soon. Dollywood is actually the only park besides Kings Island that I have had a season pass to. The park is wonderful and the live shows are amazing. Their Smoky Mountain Christmas is amazing as well.