Thrill_Biscuit

I read it, but was blown away by the awesomeness of your drawings (especially the Spaghetti Bowl)! Nice! For this cat, it's always been KI's original giant:

I think that the whole concept of theming has kinda died out in our public psyche. There's not much mass appeal for it, I think. It worked back in the 70s and 80s, when there wasn't such instant access to every kind of information right at our fingertips. It's like how when, once Americans landed on the moon and came back safely, the public quickly grew bored and moved on... to disco... Anyway, my point is, we live in a world where nothing is left up to the imagination anymore. It's all either blurted out in full detail, or shown without warning or redaction right up into our faces (watch any public, prime-time tv program these days...) And what's not covered by the broadcast media is instantly available to anyone on the internet. No need for imagination, or to let curiosity simmer a bit in the magical emotion of wonder. Nope. Theming seems somehow silly in this electronically enlightened world. Sad.

^LOL They'd have to keep a few extra microphones on hand!

But what if you have a voice like James Earl Jones'?

As far back as I can remember (and that's a lot) I believe they were sold in the Emporium, along with the fuzzy bird Marionettes, "Goober and the Ghost Chasers" 'invisible dog' leashes, and 3" Chrome-plastic Eiffel Towers.

Well, on the bright side of things, Banshee wasn't named "Tarzan."

"Membership," eh. So now it's an amusement "club?" Pardon the pun, but I'll "pass."

♫ If I had a billion dollars ♫ I'd return the Eiffel Tower's light package to its original glory, and even add led sparkle to the whole tower (not just the SE-facing side); Construct a hydraulic loading system around the Monster so that more riders can on-board/off-board simultaneously; Engineer a cost-efficient way to make the water in Diamondback's splashdown look more appealing; Buy some licensing and hire some "Imagineers" to overhaul "Boo Blasters" with some interactive, enhanced LED Scooby Magic throughout (including the queue room); Get rid of the chopper "scene" on BLSC and make it a 2-circuit ride; Repair and return to service the wonderful band organ at Grand Carousel; and Reboot Viking Fury by replacing it with a Berzerker.

The parking lot would now be a well-groomed, lushly landscaped, high-end condominium community, and the former park area would have nice $1MM -$2MM homes surrounding the very unique, SBNO Eiffel Tower centerpiece held over from the old Kings Island days. Sad, middle-aged fanboys would be dusting off their one-of-a-kind, authentic plaques made from Beast and Racer wood as they yearn for just one more night ride. Generations of youngsters would begin hiking in the woods behind their relatively new neighborhood, completely oblivious to the historical significance of the ground upon which they stand. Eventually, almost all will fade away into memory as the only two remaining, recognizable relics of this once-great amusement park stand proudly against the merciless ravages of time: The stoic tower, and the curiously ubiquitous concrete pad, there under the new gazeebo, which is curiously named "Zodiac Bandstand." Or not.

Fun to watch! Thanks for posting. Cool to see the Eiffel ("Sherwin-Williams Paris?") Tower without its safety bars; it looked somehow more "stately" back then.

Kinda looks like it's doing the Axl Rose dance.

Hey, that's my MOM! How dare you call her a Banshee? My mother's a saint! Cool observation, though! Actually it looks like a cheap Atari Space Invader from 1982...

So, is it "Whee-met," or "Oy-met?"

Adventure Express would be interesting backwards, except maybe for the second lift hill, which wouldn't be as interesting without being able to see the "cauldron."

I know, right? It's more fitting a name for a coaster, but as it is, I guess it's better than "Galesearcher," "Gustfinder," or "Breezetracker."

Can't make it. Have fun! See y'all next year. -Tb

Does anyone else get a funny double-take from other KICers when you reveal who you are to them?

Great report, fanofFirehawk! I've stopped and chatted with Don a couple of times. I know he's busy, so I try to keep the conversation short, but he seems like a real nice guy. On Banshee Announcement day, I was more nervous meeting Boddah1994 and Gordon Bombay for the first time than I was of shaking hands with Don (lol)...

LOL! Because it's random, your results will be different when you click the link. You can try putting in "Hawk," "Force," "Wind," and it will yield some good, some hilarious results.

Using the attached link to a random band name generator, and putting in the word "Steel," a lot of interesting results came up. I think something like this can be used to name new rides (or relocated old ones). http://www.bandnamemaker.com/generator/?cw=Steel

Does Surf Dog coast, or does it "drive" along its track? Does it matter? I think it's a FRALAC. I probably just made that up. It stands for Flat Ride Acting Like A Coaster. I am now running for the door. Good day.

This would make a great "Big Money" question on the "Family Feud!" It is a relatively unique subject about which to be an enthusiast, but at the same time it can be a popular one. Music groups, automobiles, sports figures/teams, television programs, movies and local social dynamics dominate in that area of young life (with much of the rest taken up by trying to figure out how the rest of one's life is going to go). If anything, it's a great subject for conversations, school reports, etc., because so many others will choose those more "mainstream" topics, and will talk and talk and talk about them until it becomes boring to hear about. At that point, talking about roller coasters will be a welcome breath of fresh air.

I fear the involuntary bug snack; so I often keep my mouth closed on: 1, The Beast, 2, Diamondback, and most especially 3, Delirium at night.

Though technically accurate, somehow, the word "employee" seems a bit weak for the guy who literally is the voice of Kings Island.

Poor, little Gerstlauer. Nobody loves them.