Hawaiian Coasters 325

Update from Great Ohio Coaster Club on Facebook: Per Chad Showalter at Kings Island - Coasterstock will return in 2025. This year there will be some opportunities for coaster club members to attend behind the scenes tours,, early ride times, and other perks that will be announced by the park at a later date. https://www.facebook.com/greatohiocc

I think anyone thinking it would open opening day were too optimistic especially after Holiday World themselves stated Vekoma confirmed to them Good Gravy would open first.

While a "storm" or "Vortex nod" theme would be cool and pay respects to the ride, I think a 50's/60's old timey theme would fit best in that back section of Coney Mall since you have the Antique Autos and Jukebox Diner right next door. You can even have Backlot as part of that too.

Its been awhile since I did one of these but here y'all go with another amazing Vortex replacement paint mock up. This time I went for a Vekoma multi launch and I combined some of the best parts of Formula and Abyssus at Energylandia as well as Lech Coaster and Fonix. The name I went with is Mustang sorta as a nod to the rumored name for Diamondback, but instead of it being themed to the Mustang horse, I have it themed after old 1960s Ford Mustang cars. This would really help with the theming of the back section of Coney Mall and would work great with the Jukebox Diner and Antique Autos right next door. Also I spent time designing the station in Microsoft Paint based on Quaker Steak restaurants and did the coaster layout in Pixlr.

No just no. Please don't retheme Banshee. The name is significant for the park and that sign is iconic. I'd hate to lose it. Also please don't get rid of Drop Tower. I would rather it get rethemed to Lex Luthor Drop of Doom or something. I think Timberwolf would be a good spot for a justice league dark ride.

Looks like most if not all the footers are in place:

Since we named all the cranes during the Orion thread after those in the Clifford show and Greek Mythology, what should we name this crane? I'll go with Hamburger (the white dog in Clifford) https://clifford.fandom.com/wiki/Category:Dogs

I was there and it was my first time actually doing the New Year's Eve thing at the park. In the past I would work and then head home and watch the ball drop there. Since I was scheduled a swing (4:30-8) I decided to stay in the park and check it out. Like what @BoddaH1994 said, the balloon drop worked perfectly this year. Makes me wonder if the park did a test run of it after the fail that was last year's balloon drop to make sure it worked. I also got to drive the last ride of the night on Antique Autos was also my first ever time riding the antique autos so that was fun. The energy was amazing and I always say the New Year's Eve party is like the big "End of season party" and it is a great way to end out the season and start to look forward to April.

I'll do the honor and be the first KICer to post in 2024! Happy New Year everyone and looking forward to continue seeing this project come together this off-season.

I was fine with the jazz for the 50th year as the whole point of that season was celebrating the milestone and celebratory jazz fit with that. However, I was not a fan that they kept it this season and I would've preferred them to go back to the classical pieces. Now, I would take the jazz over what played on I street during the early CF days with the actual pop music.

I think the entire 2nd level of that building could make a great VIP lounge if you did it right. Have the main room be the main food/lounge area and the two end rooms could be repurposed to where one is turned into a bar area to where sports games are playing on multiple TVs like in a sports bar and the other room could become a kids play room where they have toys and games for the kids to play with. I think it could easily be repurposed into a seating patio for Enriques similar to the back of Brewhouse. Keep the TVs and everything, but just make it a general seating area for regular park guests.

Resurrecting this thread in hope that jazz music does NOT return to International Street in 2024 and that we get actual classical pieces back!

.....And a Happy New Year!! (I'm sure most of you understand this reference)

Well if that would mean we could get some Nickelodeon back in some form whether that be a retheme of a section of the current kids area that isn't getting the Camp Snoopy makeover or Nickelodeon events like a Slimefest or the old Nick Celebration Parade I would be one happy KI fan.

It also seems as if the park has added some more concept art photos of the coaster and beagle scout acres onto the website: https://www.visitkingsisland.com/new-in-2024

Imo anyone who believed SSBR would be ready for opening day was too overly optimistic and wasn't paying attention. Holiday World literally came out and said on a podcast that Vekoma guaranteed them Good Gravy would open first. Also I don't believe concrete has been poured for footers yet and concrete if I remember correctly (correct me if I'm wrong) requires at least 28 days to fully cure before vertical construction can begin. With that being said, we may not see SSBRs go vertical until like mid-late January-early February. I think we're looking at Memorial Day weekend at the absolute earliest hopefully I'm wrong. EDIT: Just saw @Taylor.B03 post when I posted my post. Like I said, if they're pouring concrete now, I believe we're at least 28 days out from vertical construction (correct me if I'm wrong though).

So another concert venue in an area already stacked with concert venues. Imo I think this along with the potential for the Linder Family Tennis Center to host concerts down the line should be the final nail in the coffin for Timberwolf. I hate this for those who go to Coney in the summer to swim/go to the water park as they never got a chance to say goodbye. This feels like Opryland/Geauga Lake all over again where the park closed without people having the chance to say goodbye.

I could see a coaster going there. However, since Six Flags IP's are now in the picture with the merger, I could very well see one of those Justice League dark rides going there along with an Action Zone DC Universe retheme.

According to this post on Twitter a few days ago, rebar work is being done for footers:

I never said it would go all the way to Timberwolf. An idea I have is to build the pedestrian walkway overtop the current sidewalks in the center that connects the drop off area to the front gate and have it connect from the area right in front of the metal detectors and would end in front of the tennis complex. Ik its a long walk, but I think what they could do is add those straight escelator things that are in airports (Ik Universal has them in the walkway between parking and CityWalk. Unfortunately this would probably mean the end of the current KI marquee sign, but they could design a better marquee sign that would go on top of the walkway. EDIT: Here's a mockup I came up with for this idea.

From an article posted 3 weeks ago on WCPO: "Beemok has proposed a $260 million expansion that includes not only a larger stadium complex, but also public amenities like a pickleball center and facilities to host concerts, NCAA tennis tournaments and other events year-round." If this ends up being true, I think we can 100% kiss Timberwolf goodbye. I think the best option would be for KI to work with the city as well as the stadium owners to maybe develop some sort of easy accessway between the stadium complex and the park so that people attending events at the tennis complex can visit the park as well without fighting traffic on KI drive/I-71. Link to article. It's actually a good interesting read: https://www.wcpo.com/news/local-news/i-team/more-costly-than-previously-announced-but-still-reasonable-inside-the-deal-that-kept-w-s-open-in-mason

Seems like footer work is continuing:

I believe family boomerangs use square footings. I know Good Gravy's footings are square shaped. Also Pine Tree Rocket at Wild Land Taizhou (a clone of Snoopy's Soapbox Racers) has square footings.

I'm watching Christmas Vacation on TNT and I just saw a Winterfest commercial! It was brief and I believe mentioned a 2024 season pass.

I would prefer to see the gravel stream by Mystic Timbers' entrance to be turned into an actual running water stream (I believe it was a stream at one point).