WoodVengeance

It seems possible to just take out Invertigo and have an out-and-back style coaster that utilizes the land between Action Zone and the parking lot.

I do think it's nice that we're seeing a thrilling new-gen Vekoma opening up in the states next year. However, I really don't think The Flash: Vertical Velocity going to fit Great Adventure all that well, primarily because of capacity and I know others have raised their concerns over this as well. Looking at Vekoma's website on the Super Boomerang, they state that the Super Boomerang with one train has a theoretical capacity of 800 r/h. Knowing how Six Flags ops can be, the actual average capacity could very well be lower than that. Keep in mind that Great Adventure is one of Six Flags's most popular parks, serving the Newark, New York City and Philadelphia areas. Given its capacity issues and also the fact it's being built towards the front of the park, I imagine The Flash: VV is consistently going to have the longest wait times in the park, maybe even exceeding 2 or 3 hours on busier days.

If that is something the park wants to do for 2026, then we'll know by next year. Invertigo and Congo Falls would have to close in 2024 so the park can start construction in 2025.

Well, Six Flags used that name in the 90's, so...

Sometimes it's not that simple. If Invertigo and Congo Falls become too expensive to maintain and operate, then it's very likely Kings Island will make the decision right then and there to remove those rides, even if nothing has been planned to replace them. I'm certain the park would have preferred to keep Vortex operational for several more years until a replacement was planned. Clearly, that's not what happened and that plot still sits mostly vacant to this day. Yeah it stinks seeing that hole in the back of Coney Mall, but it's understandable why the park chose 2019 to remove Vortex. I'm hoping the park can at least keep Invertigo and Congo Falls operational long enough for Vortex's spot to be filled, as I don't want Kings Island to gain a reputation for removing coasters all the time. I'm not saying this is going to happen, but if Kings Island made the announcement tomorrow to get your last rides on Invertigo before it closes for good, I would not be surprised. I speculate Invertigo has about five years left at-most, and Congo Falls may very well go with it.

I like the idea of re-theming Action Zone with some haunted dark forest theme. Banshee and Bat already fit this theme well, so they can be left as-is. re-theme Drop Tower to Demon Drop and the other rides in the area too like Delirium and Congo Falls.

Are Railblazer and Patriot out-of-the-question?

I think Valleyfair is more likely to get a new ground-up coaster than Michigan's Adventure (probably from Zamperla or Vekoma). Though I imagine one, if not both of those parks will get relocated coasters from CGA once that park closes.

Something I thought about was retheming the back portion of Coney Mall to an area called Vortex Valley, an area themed to severe storms. The new coaster could have its own name, but still tie back to that storm-related theme. That way, you'll have a new coaster with its own identity while also using The Vortex IP to pay tribute to the fallen attraction.

I thought of the idea that when Kings Island puts in The Vortex replacement, they could re-theme the back section of Coney Mall to some sort of storm-related theme. (I like the name Vortex Valley) WindSeeker could also fit into this theme as well.

You can tell that was built with Snoopy's Splash Dance (Formerly Green Slime Zone and Spongebob Bikini Bottom Bash) in-mind.

Holiday World started land clearing on Good Gravy months ago, it's a different park but it's still the same ride model. I'm wondering if Vekoma is producing pieces for Good Gravy first before doing Snoopy Soap Box Racers.

Looking at their teasing on twitter, it seems this could be for the T-Rex or some sort of new train.

King Cobra was in there too, doesn't mean we're getting a new King Cobra.

The first phase of Wildwood Grove cost Dollywood about $37 million when the area opened in 2019. Also, Big Bear Mountain cost an additional $30 million when that opened this year. (for comparison, $30 million is what Kings Island spent to put in Orion, adjusted for inflation it's even more than that) I do have a ton of respect and pride for Kings Island since it's my home park and I've been going there my whole life, and I'm also impressed with what Kings Island is doing with Camp Snoopy next year. However, Wildwood Grove is just on another level and I feel that area is just going to keep getting expanded as time goes on. I just don't think Kings Island can get that "World's Best Kid's Area" award back, unless the park is willing to invest more money into Planet/Camp Snoopy than they did with Orion which I can't realistically see them doing.

If I had to pick between the two, probably the wildcat model. The top gun model looks nice as well, but I really don't think it would be a good fit for Kings Island, mainly due to the capacity with those 8-person trains. Personally if I had to choose a new-gen Vekoma to go to the park, I would go with a tilt coaster. It would be highly marketable with the general public and be different enough from a ride like Valravn to justify its placement in the same state. My only concern with the tilt coaster is that we don't really know how much of a maintenance issue the tilting track would be, as no new-gen tilt-coasters have opened up yet to really serve as an example. Of course Gravity Maxx exists, but that's a 20-year old coaster and doesn't have the same technology found with new-gen vekomas.

Potential spoiler for a 2024 coaster in the US:

With Camp Snoopy coming in 2024, I'm thinking it's very possible we're going to see a Soak City expansion in 2025.

I just realized each major owner of KI has contributed to our Planet/Camp Snoopy coasters. Taft with woodstock express, KECO with great pumpkin coaster, Paramount with flying ace aerial chase and Cedar Fair with snoopy soap box racers.

Given how some "thoosies" went to the Orion announcement just to boo at the park, yeah I don't blame Kings Island for not wanting to do in-person announcements.

Personally I don't find this shocking at all, as a matter of fact I felt it was fated to happen. Ever since Vekoma reworked their coaster division, their newer coasters in Europe and Asia have received a lot of critical acclaim, far different from the boomerangs and SLCs they were known for building prior. In addition to that, Vekoma is usually regarded as one of the most reliable manufacturers in the industry, with even Disney relying on them often for this reason alone. Historically, Cedar Fair has been selective with the manufacturers they choose for their projects. B&M and GCI are selected quite often for Cedar Fair coaster additions due to their reliability, whereas Intamin and RMC are often neglected due to previous issues the chain has had with their coasters. If Vekoma can build coasters as reliable, if not more-so, than a company like B&M while also providing elite ride experiences, then you bet Cedar Fair is going to be interested in working with them. I very much believe we're about to see a Vekoma renaissance in the states not just with Cedar Fair, but with other chains and parks throughout the entire country.

As of 8/10/2023 | 3:51 EST * means unconfirmed but has evidence supporting it California’s Great America- Canada’s Wonderland- Moosehorn Falls (Splash Works expansion) Carowinds- Cedar Point- Top Thrill 2 (Zamperla multi-launch conversion of Top Thrill Dragster) Dorney Park- Iron Menace (B&M Mini Dive Coaster) Kings Dominion- Kings Island- Camp Snoopy (Vekoma family shuttle coaster, new play area) Knott’s- *Highly likely a Camp Snoopy addition Michigan’s Adventure- Valleyfair- World’s of Fun-

Even if they did, I'm certain Gravity Group could've redesigned the ride a bit to make it more compact. This is the same manufacturer that built Boardwalk Bullet after all. Although I still think a GG shuttle woodie would've been a far more interesting ride than the B&M Dive they eventually got, I understand why Dorney went with the latter. Factoring in Dorney's competition with parks like Hersheypark and Great Adventure combined with the effects of the pandemic, the park needed their next coaster to be highly marketable. Not only are dive coasters very popular with the general public, but it so happened that neither HP or SFGAdv had a dive coaster, so the opportunity was ripe for the taking.

Yep, though I don't think it will happen in 2025 since Soak City is still unaccounted for.

Probably. It seems pretty evident that Knotts is getting something for Camp Snoopy next year, so I wouldn't be surprised if they get a clone of SSBR, or another coaster model that reuses the same name.