fryler87

Bob the Builder would kick ass!!! He could get us a sweet coaster for 2005. Can we build it? Yes we can!!!!

New silver rolling stock for Beast...that would be cool. The trains ARE fairly well broken in though. New stock isn't needed but may be appreciated. Maybe they could refurbish the old stuff and restuff the seats or something. That would make my butt smile.

This is getting more off topic but...sounds like Surf Cincinnati (though I've never been there) tried to start something that is similiar to Wisconsin Dells. Is that Big Chief's Carts and Coasters? I can't remember if it's a whole park or spread out. The Dells also has Noah's Ark (the sweetest waterpark in the Midwest even on a mediocre day).

LCD displays are better for up-close use, like computer screens and stuff. Sure, they can make the crystals bigger (like in calculators) but it's still extremely expensive. LEDs are the way to go, like stated before.

I think it would be cool if they put tunnels on Sonny for Daddy's 25 b-day. It would make SOB more enjoyable for me. What does it have to do with Daddy? No idea. Maybe a new logo for SOB? What is up with its trademark; the biochemical hazard symbol? I never understood it. Maybe Daddy will get new rolling stock from PTC. Leather seats, adjustable headrests, magnetic shock absorbers... ...maybe not. I'm a little excited about this March announcement - we may be seeing some major upgrades in the near future (2004-2005) along with BB.

That's correct. If coasters are maintained, they can stay up and running for ungodly periods of time. If worse comes to worst, then a park can always try take down a coaster, repour footers and build a carbon copy of the old one right where the old one sat. This probably isn't economical unless a park has a classic that is the sole thing that keeps people coming back and keeping the park in business. Really old coasters like Racer at Kennywood and Comet at Hersheypark are still in operation today. Coasters are like cars. Treat 'em like sh*t, they die. Treat 'em like royalty and they'll reign forever.

Almost a funny thing to me how CP and PKI's figures are so close. Then again, PKI is only a half hour drive from Dayton or Cincinnati, two of Ohio's most populus cities.

King's Island WILL have a sign next year. Insurance probably will probably cover the amount the sign was worth or something, then PKI will probably just go overboard and spend a few more dollars for something that will get EVERYONE'S attention from the highway.

Overbudget from BB? Ahh....I doubt it. PKI is owned by Paramount which is owned by Viacom. The money within the company CAN be tossed around if Viacom/Paramount wishes. Besides, why would an amusement park not have a sign? Not to be offensive, but no sign because of no budget? Ludacris.

I think it's a real possibility. The Beach does their Winterfest number each year, and maybe PKI has seen them have some success with it. I hope they bring it back. Oh, by the way....I accidentally thought it was 2004 and voted for 2005. Oopsie. Meant to click the first choice.

Yeah...I was being sarcastic when I said 'small fender bender.' I actually heard that half the train derailed and the last three cars were totaled. I survive life through my sense of humor. If PKI had plans to get rid of Top Gun, then why would they have replaced the destroyed train in the first place? Top Gun is here to stay. I doubt much is leaving for a while.

Heh, that is true, but PKI would probably need an arseload of money to do that kind of job. Maybe we'll see a new coaster in it's own area out beyond Racer and AFXT and a new area that will be gradually built connecting it (the area down by Vortex) and FoF. FoF's plaza seems to be fairly empty for the number of rides back there. They would have to work around those buildings just south of the FoF plaza, but it could most definitely be done. I would like to see an Intamin Giga or a B&M Speed/Terrain, but we may get neither of those. Either way, it's been eight years since we've gotten a full circuit, full size steelie. My vote is for a new coaster.

I can't seem to find the statistic anywhere...how much money did PKI shell out for SOB? I think I heard a figure under $10 million off of some website, but that can't be for the size of him. Does anybody know the correct figure?

Didn't Top Gun's one train get totaled in a morning-testing mainenance truck accident? I heard someone parked a truck a 'smidge' too close to the track and the train had a 'small fender bender.'

Even thought not everything is exact, I still say you did a good job. As for the accuract, it depends where you get your information. RCDB says SOB's top speed is 78.4. Ultimate Rollercoaster says 78.3. I remember somewhere seeing the number 78.6. The point is that nobody cares if you say just 78 miles an hour. Your article has got a lot of raw data and facts in it, and for the amount you have, I'm quite impressed with the accuracy.

Great job! Your article highlights the highlights of PKI and even tells about them. The length of each blurb is the same as all the others. Including stuff about shops or eateries in your next article (assuming you do another one) would be great - it could be almost like part two. Just an idea. Otherwise, I honestly don't think I could have written something that good. Structure is great, and the ideas are supported and detailed well.

Remember, when Gemini was built at CP, people said "Ok, now that we're this high up, coasters won't be built much taller than this." Along the same midway stands Dragster - 420 ft. into the sky. When people in 1913 saw the 792 ft. tall Woolworth Building constructed, they said, "Ok, this is the world's tallest. But they can't build THAT much higher." In 1931, the Empire State Building opened standing 1,250 ft. tall. Taipei 101 is nearly complete at 1,667 feet tall. Will SOB be the tallest woodie forever? Some crazy multi-millionare out there is saying "no" and will soon call up B&M or Intamin and ask for a bid. Remember...if you build it, they will come.

Yeah, I'm not sure why "nothing" wasn't a choice in the poll. PKI has huge area behind SOB, Racer and just due north of The Beast. Nothing is going to be removed. A lot of stuff in that park is signature to its history...I doubt they'd take something signature out. Sure, KC was signature, but as stated several times before, it was high maintenance and I suppose you could say that that spot where it sat was of somewhat high value to the park. The real question is one that I had started a topic about a while back...where will the next new area be? I think that is the more important thing for PKI to consider. I think it's the only choice they have to make a new area for a bunch of rides WAAAAY into the future. I went to Hersheypark back in 1998, and the area out by the Wildcat or whatever it's called was really undeveloped. Now they have a twin coaster out there, more flat rides (I think) and one of those roller soakers.

A countdown? I'm hoping this is a joke. I'm not even thinking about opening day.

First of all, I still can't believe that PKI owns all that land. There's some serious 'acreage' back there. The highlighted area on the map would be great for a new coaster - that area seems to be fairly hilly if i can recall correctly. It'd be sweet to put a coaster there since few people have actually been down walking on the ground that deep into the park's property.

They may change the way the map looks - like whether it looks hand-drawn-cartoonish, or like it was all done on a computer with symbols and general colors. PKI's maps from the late 90s used to be like that - kinda looked too professional and serious. Then again, they do want to provoke positive and enlightening feelings from map viewers, so they may stick with the cartoon deal. And yes, they probably will make some of the slides look taller than DZ and longer than SOB. The people who design those maps get paid to figure out what makes people look at certain parts of a map. It's marketing, and it works.

Man those pictures are crazy...I sure wouldn't want to find myself there with nobody else at night. It reminds me of this old school called Amanda Elementary. Can't remember which city it's in, but I can see it while we go to Oxford, Ohio. Heh, looks like a great place for that old show, FEAR on MTV. Can this place be seen from a point in the park?

Not only would a well-written article about rides and coasters be cool, but it would also be educational as well, as stated above. I remember in last year's Geometry book there was a picutre of Magnum at CP and question relating to circles or something like that. This stuff pops up everywhere.

Two words: Terrain coaster

Well put, TraderJake. I think BB will be a huge success for a while. Hopefully long enough to give PKI bigger profits so a world's top ten coaster could be built. (Ok, I'm done ranting about the coaster I'd like to see.) As for the future (2008 and after), we'll just have to see how well PKI can keep BB up. If they really push keeping BB in shape with landscape, paint and stuff like that, the Beach across the street may find they they have lost their supremacy with water parks in Mason, Ohio. BB could be the single project that shows how well PKI can manage park sectors if they try harder than ever. Maybe I'm being overly optimistic with BB, but if PKI can pull it off, our home park may start the process of becoming nearly the world-class park that CP up north is.