Thrill_Biscuit

I had forgotten about that until Robbie Knievel Day back in 2008, when they had people dressed up in the 1975 uniforms, with the old balloons and tissue-paper "Big Flower" souvenirs. Those outfits were, well, very unique; full-length, yellow and white dresses with puffy highlights.

^(re: Skylab) Man! I miss that thing. Those are awesome pics, too, esp. the nighttime shot! Keep 'em coming; 'tis great off-season therapy. (p.s. Didn't Zephyr open in '84?)

It's great that they're changing to the pavers. It will improve the KI experience greatly, I'm sure. Aesthetics are very important, and KI has always lived up to my visual expectations. One thing is still missing (for me at least). Does anyone know if there's any information on whether they plan to change the background music played throughout the park this year? (I hate to beat a dead horse, but asking once a year is not too much, I hope.) I've asked CR, but all I've gotten are form letters. Anyway, I'm happy to see the changes taking place there in CM. It looks like a lot of great planning went into it.

KI FPS.

I couldn't resist. Seriously, though, I don't know what kind of XBox360, PS3, Wii games would have mass appeal, unless someone hacked a 3D environment of Kings Island into some modern Multi-Player first-person shooter, which would be kind of sick (in the classic sense of the word), unless, in keeping with the amusement park theme (no pun inteneded there), they also hacked in classic Hanna Barberra characters as the 'hero', and featured innocuous weapons like rapid-fire dippin' dots, or pie-in-the-face, or Scooby Snacks, or something. I dunno. The sky's the limit in today's rapidly evolving technological world. Happy Thursday

Not to mention all the tobacco companies and their ads of old! LOL yes! Like our friends "Fred and Barney," who a decade before being in advertisement materials for Kings Island, were pitching cigarettes -- on TV, no less.

Witam! I feel this is the greatest thing to ever happen in my life! Na Zdrowie! A little SpongeBob-esque humor for your morning coffee! Actually, this does seem like something that might irritate other guests. I can imagine someone grumbling inside as they watch "spoiled-little-rich-brats" running past them in line, flashing their 'can't wait' passes like FBI agents flashing their badges as they enter restricted crime scenes. On second thought, that might be a good thing: once their ego gets so bruised, they'll be encouraged to run to the ticket booth to get one of their own, thereby generating more revenue for the park. What an ingenious play on human behavioral traits; and why not? It works for Hollister, Under Armour and Nike...

I wanted my own beam o' mass doom, but settled for a small, green laser pointer. Terpy: Inspiring! I don't know how else to put it. Maybe I'm biased, because the park is in my hometown, so there's that much more wistfulness in my heart for it. Anyway, as for what what I'd say, I guess I'd brag up how Kings Island has been on two classic TV shows, with entire episodes written around it; the legacy of the Knievels; How it's been mentioned on Glee, CSI, etc. I'd talk about the park's pioneering superlatives (the new-coaster-era-kick-starting Racer, the door-kicking-down- for- record-breakers Beast, the push-the-inversion-limit Vortex), among many others. Introduce them to the park like they're about to meet a legendary figure. In some ways, it really is. For group #2, I'd just say, "Well, you've come to the right place! Let's start earning your coaster badges with a pleasant little stroll through that little path to the right of Slingshot..."

Very questionable. There's no escaping the double entendre here.

LOL! That would make it a banner episode.

They could just splice in some "establishing shots" of familiar KI scenery between Cali shots, and no one ('cept us) would be the wiser. Plus, chroma-key work is far cheaper than CGI.

You can, to a limited degree. If you have the latest version of Earth, click on the little clock icon at the top of the view screen, and there will appear a sort of slide bar that has some dates along it, going back, I think, to about 1994. Set your desired view angle, and then 'slide' all the way back (the image is grayscale, and only detailed to about 3'/px), but then you can just click back and forth between 1994 and 2010, and watch how SOB appears/disappears, Tiques becomes BLSC, Keelboat Canal becomes Ferris Wheel (just kidding: Crypt) / DB, etc. You can have fun with Lesourdsville/Americana, too. Watch the lake through the years. Neat stuff, this technology!

They can film at Knott's and just say they're at KI (and digitally edit in an Eiffel Tower here, a WindSeeker there, and just put up some KI signage to block out palm trees;) ). It would save a load on travel expenses. Or, they could go to the Grand Canyon, Hawaii, or even... I dunno.

Yes, but The Beast will remain the longest wooden coaster with a breathtaking forest view before the first drop ...in the world! Maybe their view will be nice too. I dunno. Maybe.

Great poll!!!...I'm for restoring the theming to BLSC, (as well as to the train, but you only get one choice here : - | ). But, I also wish they'd restore the thematic music to the various parts of the park, or at least to the main entrance...

^ Unlike good old Paramount, who just kindly asked the trees to step aside, right?

I had a 1-in-50 shot. ... I had to make sure it wasn't a [ahem] 1-in-57 shot, so I wiki'd it

^ Wow! She could have just added a sentence that had no real impact, such as: "On January 15, 2009, a judge in New Jersey entered a sentence into the content of this article, with the intent of removing it shortly thereafter." It would have still proven her point (or is it 'proved?' I need to wiki that.)

I once heard an employee guessing my age. He was wrong, and I got to take home a huge, purple monkey.

1. The visual quality of a ride makes it a little more enjoyable; however, wear and tear gives some rides a bit of distinct character imho. 2. Wow! It's already been 6 seasons for IJST/BLSC, and it does look like it's been more like 10. ...and 3. Kings Island is in Ohio (great state with lots to do and see, but not exactly known as a tourism Mecca). I think parks in the "wider-season" zones of the country, where there are a lot more options for amusement experiences, pay more attention to aesthetics because they have to compete a little harder for John Q. Public's entertainment dollar. I could be waaaay off, though. But just consider.

...and yet, Coney Island has a traditional, grand-old-days feel, as if the park is conserving its heritage; whilst: Kings Island has evolved into a more progressively modern park, with a more liberal selection of musical ambiance.