CoastersRZ

I miss the days when it opened early to mid-April. I remember being at the park on April 9th before. Then again, I remember one opening day when the park closed at 12pm, only two hours after opening because it was cold and drizzly.

I can confirm that there was a small bobcat and a dump truck by Lake Como today. It was between Como and Kellogg Avenue. All I can say, is don`t get your hopes up. You will be surely disapointed if you are expecting anything much.

And don`t forget that Michigan`s Adventure, Interpreter!

And don`t forget that I blieve Coke is also the official soft drink of Six Flags parks.

And back in the day, there used to be a season pass holder entrance over by the building that is now ticketing and season passes. That entrance is seldom used anymore, but I have used it a couple of times for special events.

Well, there are still quite a few days left in October. Patience is a virtue.

I don`t think another stage is a possibility. There is already a large concerte venue and a small concert venue at Riverbend. There isn`t really a need for another venue.

Rumor has it that Brenda Walker isn`t actually the owner of Coney anymore. I can`t confirm this, but I did hear rumblings that Ron Walker Jr, her son, had taken ownership of the park from her. Also, Coney serves a purpose besides just the pool and amusement rides. It is the parking and food concessionaire for Riverbend Music Center. That is a very lucrative business for Coney that few realize it has.

Well, usually when the economy is down is THE time to make a big investment. That would give people a reason to visit the park, who otherwise think they do not need to visit the park. It is all about creating percieved value. If people think that a new attraction adds value to a day at Coney, they may be more willing to splurge and make a trek out to the park. Had they not added anything new, they wouldn`t necessarily have the desire to visit.

Who is to say it would be a B&M if they got a steel coaster? There are lots of other steel coaster manufacturers out there.

Have you even ridden Woodstock Express at Cedar Point? It is a completely different layout than wha tht Python is. The Python certain packs quite a punch for a coaster its size. And I think your numbers are a little off. You are just speculating and do not know anything about the park`s finances or attendance projections. Heck, I work sesonally at the park in the rides department, and don`t even know if attendance was up or down this year, let alone compared to what they were projecting.

And technically the ride won`t even be completely dimolished when the last of the wood is hauled away. There are scores and scores of footings that will need to be removed too.

How long before we see a similar announcement for the soft drink provider?

I think it was back in 2010. And the price he suggested they sell at was $11.50 or $12 I believe. A far cry from the price that it is currently at.

All parks have master plans. Sometime, however, those plans can be quite fluid, and what is spelled out in a master plan ends up not being what actually gets built. Technology, tastes, economics, marketing, the target market all have impacts on influencing what the finished product looks like. Would the original buildings of Kings Island could have imagined what the park would look like today? Probably not. There was no such thing as a hyper coaster when they were planning the park. Not to mention coasters powered by linear induction motors. Water parks were not very prevalent, and certainly didn`t have the range of water slides that they have today. The park is constantly changing and evolving. It will be a different place five years from now than what it is today. Enjoy the park today, remember the past, but don`t hold onto it as if the past is the end all. Memories often are seen through rose colored glasses at times. Times change. Would I love to see the Sky Ride back at Kings Island? Absolutely. Same goes for classic rides like the Whip, Flying Eagles and Tumble Bug. But those rides aren`t going to be coming back. I am positive that the park will look different in the future and that a whole new generation of people will fall in love with the place, just like we have.

Yes, there is a fine line between expanding and over expanding. And Coney will not ever be Kings Island or like it once was back in its hey day as America`s Finest Amusement park. That being said, I think that there are certain things that could be added to improve Coney and bring in customers. Hopefully something big comes. It has been quite a few years since they added an adult ride to the rides side of the park. They added River Runner (along with Eurobungy and Turtle Parade) back in 2008 and then installed the Twister in 2009. Those were the last major ride installs that Coney has done. Granted Twister did cost a lot of money (just shy of $2 million). But since those years, the park has added a kiddy swing ride, repainted some rides, renovated the picnic grove, and general sprucing up. Would I love to see a new roller coaster at Coney? Absolutely! Do I realistically expect to see a new coaster coming to Coney any time soon? Not really. I think part of it is a reluctance to put in a big ride like that because they don`t want to overstep their target market as a family friendly park. And a coaster is a big investment. But I also think that the park is a little tentative especially given the future of their neighbor to the East. I don`t think River Downs will swallow up Coney, but the relationship between the two certainly is evolving and could have some pretty interesting impacts on Coney. Only time will tell what will happen. But something is up at River Downs, that much I`m sure of. I`ll pass on anything that I hear about Coney for 2013 when I find out about it. Right now I have not heard anything.

And why exactly would they rename a ride that just opened this season? My hunch says it will be another ride. They surely must have a reason for renaming said ride.

International Street has been slowly changing and evolving the last few seasons. You may not have realized it. The park has removed some of the trees and planters and put in more tables and sitting areas. I still would like to see a nice new lighting package incorporated into the Royal Fountain, to play off the lighting for the Eiffel Tower. I would agree that the front entrance could use some sprucing up. Not necessarily a brand new entrance building, but a major renovation to the entrance would be nice to freshen it up a bit.

I wouldn`t look for a giga to come to KI anytime soon. I`m still a bit surprised that Canada`s Wonderland installed a Giga from B&M given the fact that they already had a hyper from B&M that wasn`t that old. Has anyone here ridden Leviathon? How does it compare to Behemoth? The one thing that seems odd about Leviathon is how high the brake run starts. It seems like they could have added several more hills. Its as if they ran out of monye for the ride making it so tall, and had to cut the ride short.

It is surreal to see this ride coming down. I remember watching avidly the ride get built the summer of 1999. To think it is coming down so quickly and ungracefully. Hopefully good things will be in store for that location in the coming years.

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Fireworks can be very expensive. And often with little or no return on investment, unless you make them special (like what Coney does with July 3rd and now the fireworks competition).

Like Gary said, many of these plands are way too grandiose for Coney. It is going after a slightly different target market than Kings Island. It is not going after the roller coaster, adrenaline junkies. It is going after a family crowd. Heck, the "it" in the slogan "Coney has it" is referring to affordable family fun. Not to mention Coney usually doesn`t have very long lines for the rides. I`m sure Coney will add new things in the future. They will help attract and drive new business to the park. Will Coney be different in 30 years? Absolutely. Who knows what it will look like. Even ten years from now, the park is going to look drastically different. Same thing applies for Kings Island.

Sunlite Pool is not my area of expertise. I work on the rides side and the differences between rides and pool is night and day. The pool make a lot more money than the rides do. They have been investing money in the park. Its just not on flashy new rides. Keep in mind that they did spend close to $2 million on the Twister water slide back in 2009, replacing the Zoom Flume that had been at Coney since 1977.

That is a tough thing to deduce. Why? Well the rides side is an open park, meaning there are no admissions gates. Grandparents can stroll the grounds of the ride side without paying admission (they must pay to enter the Sunlite Pool area). Only people that ride rides must have a wristband. The other reason that it is difficult to figure is what exactly constitutes attendance. Riverbend, located right next door utilizes Coney`s parking lot. Many of those concert goers will stroll through Coney`s property on their way to the concert (often stopping at LaRosa`s in the park, to buy some pre-concert food), and to use the restrooms. They technically aren`t visiting the park, but Coney still makes some money off of them. I`m choosing my words carefully here, but I`d say your numbers are on the low side of things for attendance (excluding the effects of Riverbend). I agree that Coney could use a signature ride. Heck even a good family ride like the Flying Eagles would be a good hit. Coney never will be a big amusement park like it was in its heyday (and even the Coney of the 1960s would be small compared to Kings Island today). The rides are primarily there to help sell season passes and group sales.