bkroz

^^^ What if you could buy a Season Pass for a certain price, a Waterpark Pass for a certain price, and a Gold Pass that combined the two? That's what Busch Gardens Williamsburg does with their Water Country, U.S.A. park, and what Cedar Point does with Soak City... (Even though we think of the Platinum Pass in wide terms, consider that in the Sandusky area, it's marketed as "a pass to Cedar Point, Soak City, free parking, and early ride times." After all, there is no "gold pass" to Cedar Point. You either get a regular season pass that does not include parking, ERT, or Soak City, or the Platinum Pass which includes it all). That also opens up a new ticket pricing scheme, like Cedar Point does... One day for one park, one day for both parks, two days at both parks, etc., even if the waterpark is only a 10 or 15 dollar add-on. That seems appropriate just on the basis of crowd control, really. I don't think it's unreasonable to separate Boomerang Bay provided it gets new slides in the coming years (whatever happened to Geauga Lake's Wildwater Kingdom's Phase II? 4/5 of it never materialized, so perhaps that budget can come back elsewhere...). As it is, I avoid the waterpark like the plague only because waiting 20 - 30 minutes for a 12 second slide doesn't seem worth it to me. If the park were separately admitted, available ONLY to Gold Passholders and above, and got some new slides, the waits may decrease and it might actually be a worthwhile way to spend a summer afternoon. Again, the only way to publicly justify that would be to REALLY improve the park with a whole expansion to the east, new slides, and more reclining room.

Here you go. Up-charges for un-needed services. You hit the nail on the head. These experiences are NOT necessary to enjoy your day at Kings Island. Seeing the Dinosaur park is not needed. Fast Lane is not needed. The 3-D movie is not needed. Laser tag that is not needed. NONE of those activities are required to enjoy your day at the park. So why you complain, I don't know... After all, I think you've made it very, very, very clear that you don't partake in those "un-needed services," so you haven't spent a single cent more this season than you did last season, and have had the exact same experience to show for it. Why are you complaining? You have no interest in the laser tag, you have not paid extra for the laser tag, and thus you have not been affected whatsoever by the laser tag's presence. Quite the opposite, making things like the dinosaur park, new 3-D film, laser tag, parking, and Fast Lane free would exponentially increase the daily admission ticket. Better to have the OPTION to pay for it and not do so, than to pay for it and not partake.

Let's be honest... Son of Beast and The Beast are often mixed up by the general public anyway (yet another reason I can't help but laugh when people say the Son of Beast name is forever tarnished and can never be used again because it's a public disgrace... People point at the 200 foot wooden hill and say, "Dude, let's ride The Beast!" and then say, "Wow, Son of Beast was rough today! But I liked the tunnel!"), and let's face it... People are inattentive. Anyone else seen The Crypt shirt with a mummy and Egyptian scarabs? That ride has a Hindu goddess, dog warriors from hell, a pink bat demon, and skeletons galore. About the only ancient world/horror cliche it doesn't have is mummies, so what do they chose for the shirt? Poor Rivertown. First, it was an early Ohio settlement. Now it's home to a mysterious beast, a giant snake, a Hindu temple, a demonic bat demon, and mummies. Talk about a bad neighborhood...

Well, they could. They could park at Great Wolf and walk over. However, doing so may be against the policies of both Great Wolf Lodge and Kings Island. I'm not sure how Great Wolf Lodge works, but I know at a lot of larger resorts or even the most basic hotels in the Orlando / Anaheim area, you pay an amount (usually between five and ten dollars) per day as a parking fee. When you check in, you write your license plate on the form you sign and that works as a sort of parking pass. Even when you stay at hotels in Mason that don't require a parking charge, you'll often see a space to write your license plate number on the agreement at check-in, because the larger properties and the properties near huge destinations do so. Great Wolf Lodge might... But even if they don't I'm sure it's against their policy to park there. It's a business, and likely a private tow-away zone. That would give them every legal right to have your vehicle removed from the premises if you were not a paying customer at their establishment. It just depends on if the people working notice / care enough to inform someone who could remove your car.

There's so much that could be done to the ride given the ride budget towards themeing. The Inception music makes something pretty obvious - why not theme the ride to the movie Inception? building a circular "cityscape" around the ride (more along the lines of a Vekoma Madhouse like Alton Tower's Hex) would create an unimaginably disorienting experience. Especially if there were a "street" constructed on the back wall, with some cars sideways and trees growing down from the ceiling amid the curved skyscrapers. But again, that would involve a LOT of money and STILL the ride experience itself would be admittedly sub-par. As for why the lava, etc. was removed, I think there are two reasons. 1) It wreaked havoc on the ride itself. People here with far more information than me will tell you just how damaged that ride was due to its interactions with water. The leaping fountains, the mist, and the fog were too much to handle since the ride was not "weather proofed." It was not constructed to operate outdoors, because why should it? It was in a building, and would never come in contact with rain or snow or wind... Right? Also, mist and fog never set the fire alarm off before... Look at the photo I posted of the lava pits. You can literally see the red theater lights shining through the fog - that's how thick it was. And mist by definition is composed of water, so no fire alarms there... Maybe it depends on what the base of the fog is, water or chemical. 2) There is a very, very, very extensive protective copyright for Tomb Raider: The Ride. Really consider: would Cedar Fair have removed something they didn't have to remove? It cost them time and money to take down the stalactites from the ceiling, and if they could have stayed they doubtlessly would have. I have heard from the operations director of Rivertown that the ride was the most protected legally by Paramount Parks, to the extent that, without renewing the Tomb Raider license, the ride was forbidden to feature ANYTHING relating to Tomb Raider, including adventure, a jungle setting, seeking an ancient treasure, goddesses and gods, saving the world, a battle of the elements fire and ice... That being said, a "crypt" really is a pretty smart re-theme. Can you think of anything else that utilizes as much as possible without nearing a "tomb raider" theme? I certainly can't... And look at the ride now. It is not of the "adventure" genre, but of the "horror" genre. And there is no fire or ice. It's not jungle-y. And no goddesses. And no ancient treasure hunts... They've kept all that they could while removing only what they had to. And I agree whole-heartedly with The Bat demon. Frankly, I think it would be "Scarier" if it were turned off and painted like stone. As it is, it's truly the cherry on top of the joke... A clicking, hissing, barely-audible growling pink bat. Could it get any worse (did I mention it has nipples and armpit hair)? I have often said that (especially now that the pre-show room and antechamber are separately filled), it would make sense to have The Bat's raspy, demonic voice tell a short voiceover about how he is a fallen angel cursed to guard a crypt of evil spirits, and that you have been locked in. The only way out is to progress further in and challenge the spirits themselves. A 30 second, pre-recorded voiceover and at least the ride would have an inkling of theme. Then, the old "lava pits" are a pool of blood, the water-y lights on the goddess, the Inception music, and voila... At least a more well-rounded ride. Also, if it continued around and flipped even one more time, it would at least seem "worth it."

I know some people here have said that Delirium is shorter or has a new "click" sound / feeling whenever it changes direction. A lot of folks who have been here a while say that is not new, and that the ride is the same length it has always been. GYK, who goes between Delirium and maXair too often to notice a change like that.

HUSS is a company whose rides are not very well known for their reliability. Especially their "Giant" rides (of which Kings Island has two, a Giant Top Spin and a Giant Frisbee), which are not only rare (thus making parts rare) but often prototypical. I think what we've seen this year is their version of "now it's maintained, so we can work on the theme." Observationally, the ride has never run more smoothly or consistantly than it does with this two-flip cycle, so even if it bores some (or even most) park guests, it is in the park's and ride's best interest to keep it so. Remember that when the ride first opened as The Crypt, a sign posted out front boasted, "This ride now has more THRILLS!" Of course, those thrills also meant that the ride had absolutely zero on-ride lighting (as I recall, the "loading lights" stayed on for the whole ride) and the soundtrack was techno-dance music. I would argue that no ride at Kings Island has gone through more distinct changes than our Giant Top Spin. After all, on-ride lighting, appropriate music, changed music, queue lighting, LEDs in the lava pits, etc. have all been individual steps in the lifetime of the ride that have created distinct experiences, and that doesn't include the many forms of TOMB RAIDER: The Ride. You say you just found this ride, so I wonder if you're familiar with its life as Tomb Raider: The Ride. Watch to get an idea of the themeing it used to have, and the cycle it used to run. This used to stand where The Bat does now, and a video screen rose from the alter to play a pre-show video. The LED lights so many people are talking about used to be this "lava pit," which shot up at riders while the volcano stretching up the back wall (which is still visible when boarding) erupted with fog and strobes. When photographed from above and covered with water, those LED lights looked like real lava, which the car hung over. (That's why people are asking for that pool to be re-filled, even if the water just lightly circulates without fountains or fog... It makes the LED lights look really cool). The carved figure on the forward wall which is vaguely visible through the ride cycle used to "come to life," with laser eyes. This is the picture on the official Kings Island website of The Crypt: As you can see, it's an edit of an earlier image of TOMB RAIDER: The Ride which shows the goddess: As you said, the Crypt isn't a bad ride in and of itself. But compared to what it used to be, many people here are greatly upset. The themeing was removed in accordance with the sale of the park from Paramount. To compensate, the "thrill" was increased with a much more wild cycle. Now, probably due to the mechanics of the ride, it is both less themed AND less thrilling than its former incarnations. That's the problem I know I have. Also (this is the longest post ever...), the seats are checked by the ride operators, who do signal "all clear" to the ride operator who is seated in a room hidden on the "goddess wall." The operator sits halfway up the wall and looks out a window to see the operators. As with pretty much all modern rides, the computer will also not allow the ride cycle to start until all of the seats display green lights. The Crypt at Kings Dominion (an outdoor, smaller Top Spin) has these little lights right on the gondola itself. From afar, it looks like a green block. Up close, it is two rows of 22 (or however many) lights no bigger than Christmas lights which each represent one of the seats. You can see it on the front of the gondola .

You are right on all counts, Dill. Good observations. If only the lights in the ride chamber were as enhanced as the rides in the queue. Imagine those "water lights" that fill the backdrop behind The Bat being aimed at the goddess on the wall of the ride room. Disorienting, interesting, and unique! It would cast unbelievable shadows and really add something cool. When you think about it, it's almost comical that so much work and so many new lights went into the queue, but not a single solitary thing besides some old LEDs changed about the ride itself.

People go to Kings Island to ride rides, not go to the potty. There are very few places that people go to specifically to use the potty, but all businesses have potties that are used... So what does that say about their importance? When I go to a restaurant, I do so to eat food, not to use the bathroom. But still I expect there to be a bathroom, and if I use it I expect it to be clean and comfortable. Maybe not "like home," but certainly livable conditions. For the most part, I think there's little you can do about bathrooms like the ones at theme parks. Sure, they can be made quite nice with newer, touch-free technology and nice lighting and plenty of care. But when literally hundreds of people are walking into these buildings and disposing of their biological waste day in and day out, what do you expect? Sure, the older bathrooms in older parks amount to not much more than mega-outhouses. But they are little standalone buildings exposed to the heat with people walking in from the dirty outside all day long. Compare an outdoor, standalone restroom to the one in Festhaus. There are just certain issues that come with the bathrooms like the ones in Coney Mall. And really, I doubt it's a matter of not air conditioning them because of there being no doors. 1) Doors can be easily installed. 2) Look at Flight of Fear, Boo Blasters, or especially The Crypt. Massive openings in which conditioned air pours forth all day and night. Frankly, I'm surprised they haven't used black rubber hanging sheets (like Disaster Transport's) that guests need to push through in order to enter those rides and keep the air conditioning in. But really, doesn't this come down to a "first world problem?" The bathroom isn't air conditioned? Maybe we ought to take a step back and think of what we're really complaining about, and if it deserves the time and attention we're giving it...?

Of course it's about money, but I think you hit the nail on the head with this, too. I, for one, would probably be upset if the Q-TV's were there, playing advertisements for Gillette and replaying the same 3 or 4 music videos while I was trying to listen to my iPod or play a game on it. Too many people have their own entertainment devices with them today, so even the cheapest flat-screen TV's and programming wouldn't even be worth it.

I haven't been to Magic Mountain, but they certainly seem to have a wider range of coaster styles, experiences, and types. Again, I can't really say which has better rides. My guess would be that, on average, Cedar Point has a better collection (Maverick, Magnum, Millennium, Top Thrill Dragster, etc) but that a day at Magic Mountain would be more unique and new for most of us since so many of their coasters have no real counterparts in America. In the end, I think it's a stupid fight anyway. Why don't these parks with such immense capitol and manpower work to create the most well-rounded parks, or the best customer service, or the best up-time for their rides? Does the sheer number of coasters really make a park the best (and don't ask Amusement Today for their answer)? So, if Cedar Point cranks out two identical Vekoma roller skaters and plops them wherever they fit, they'll be universally understood as the best thrill park on Earth? And the sad thing is, I think they really would be... But whether or not Ouimet gives a rat's behind about having more roller coasters than someone else has yet to be determined. So far, I should think that is no where near the top of his priorities list.

I highly, highly doubt that anyone would even want to re-open the ride as it stands now, so I'm sure you wouldn't ever see the ride suddenly running. And yes, given the past, I'd say it's safe to say that the most basic, acceptable fix would require re-bracing and stabilizing the entire structure. And anything of that scale will look like it's made of toothpicks, don't forget!

I agree that it's wrong to offer them the front. Busch Gardens' Quick Queue pass specifically mentions that you are not guaranteed preferred seating or front row seating. Again I'd stress that I like the "up the exit / reserved car for fast pass users" system much much better than the "merge into one line near the station system", but I've never seen the reserved car being the first car, and I don't think it should be.

If that were the case, maybe. I believe, however that Kings Island has enough money right now to build 100 coasters if they wanted to. That's if they took in no more money. I'm sticking to Fast Lane is a bad thing and bad idea. Wow, do you really?

I'll say this of the cause: The longer same-sex marriage is treated differently (primarily by those who rally for it), the longer it will be perceived as different. Calling it "gay marriage" only builds on the perception that it is different from "marriage." Why not call it marriage equality? Again with things like Pride festivals - community is a tremendous thing, and it is fantastic that you can fit in when you might otherwise feel different. But the way to help society see homosexual people as no different from heterosexual people is not to wear leather booty shorts on the streets and dance to Lady Gaga and wave rainbow banners while drag queens sing Katy Perry songs. I can see how that incites disgust in a lot of people who are "on the fence" about same-sex issues and marriage equality, and cements the opinions of those who are against it. Instead, why can't the message be: "Yes, I'm gay. But I'm not a fan of Lady Gaga. I don't care about fashion or celebrity gossip. I dress like you, I go to a daily job like you, I speak like you, I eat like you... We're the same, and I request the same legal rights." Announcing our differences is not the way to get people to see our similarities, and I think that's where many same-sex couples are confused. The fact of the matter is, most Americans have a very clear stance on issues like marriage equality that will not change much in their lifetime. As tends to happen, the generation that is most concretely against it is passing away, and new generations increasingly know a friend or relative who is gay. If John's Uncle Frank is gay, then John is probably more likely to recognize that his uncle deserves the same legal rights, even without religious acknowledgement. Age of Aquarius anyone? I think Keith Olbermann said it best after the legalization of same-sex marriage in New York: And yes, I agree that it'll happen. Probably in my lifetime. And for gay people and straight people alike, it will truly be a momentous day. There were times when inter-religion marriages were not even a choice. Likewise, inter-racial couples had absolutely no prayer for acceptance fifty years ago. And I believe that one day, people will look back on the rejection of same-sex couples with just as much confusion as we look at the rejection of inter-religion couples. Even the most religious among us would say that our bodies are temporary housing for our soul... So isn't it the soul or spirit we connect with? And why should the physical housing of that spirit matter? But these things have a way of changing! GYK, who is not a fan of Lady Gaga, doesn't care about fashion or celebrity gossip, dresses pretty standardly, goes to a daily job like you, speaks like you, eats like you, and (on a more politically charged board) would request the same legal rights.

And some of us here (myself included) have ridden it a dozen or so times in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011. That being said, we'll wait for more word from others before we can really say one thing or another about the ride cycle. One thing is, the park knows what a terrible state the ride is in. In 2011, they tweeted about the changes to the queue. In 2009, they even tweeted about a new soundtrack in line. So it seems to me that if they installed a new ride cycle (which is what everyone has been asking for) they might say something about it. If they market a new Halloween CD being played in the queue, they'd probably market a new ride cycle... But again, we'll wait and see.

One of the reasons I asked you to stick around on these boards is that I knew something like this was coming. One day, you'll look at this post and laugh. As I said, there is one and ONLY one Giant TopSpin on the planet. It is our Crypt. Because it is larger, taller, and holds more people than any other similar ride, it operates completely differently. As such, it use pre-programmed ride cycles that have been approved (I would suspect) by HUSS Rides, the German manufacturer. One would suspect that there are only four ride cycles approved for the ride: the original, one-flip Tomb Raider cycle, the four-flip Tomb Raider cycle, the nine-flip Crypt cycle, and the current two-flip Crypt cycle. The ride is not manually operated (that is to say, no one in a booth has the ability to control the ride with a joystick or anything), and since these is one cycle that is currently used on the ride, it is that one cycle you have experienced. If you asked someone checking your seat to change the cycle, they may say "Sure!" as a joke or just to mess with you. First of all, how would they change it? They're checking restraints and hang out at the base of the ride while it's running. The only way to access the ride operator booth is to exit the building and climb the stairs along the back wall visible from The Beast's queue). And besides the fact that they can't make it to the ride operator booth in time, the ride does only have that one approved two-flip cycle. Once you know more about the industry and ride manufacturers and the ins-and-outs of the amusement park business (which I am no where close to knowing), you'll recognize that there is only one cycle on The Crypt. I guaruntee (you heard that right, folks, guarauntee!) that you have had the same ride experience as everyone else every time you've ridden it. I know you'll think I'm wrong, but PLEASE trust me on this. I promise you they cannot and do not change ride experienced based on a guest asking them to. Stick around here and one day you'll see. The only thing that might have happened is if the ride had to emergency stop, in which case the gondola would unlock and swing back and forth like a pendulum until gravity brought it back to its unload stage. But that is extraordinarily unthrilling when it happened, so I doubt you'd be excited about it.

You did not make me mad, JonasGirl. I think we've now confirmed via jc that the ride now is the same that it has been for the last few years. Again JonasGirl, your percieved different experience may have been from improved visibility or the new lights in the queue and ride. But the ride cycle itself is exactly the same as it has been for years. As such, it seems that you thought you experienced something new when you didn't. It's not a big deal. No one is mad. Just trying to clarify it to you. Spend more time on these boards, get to know some terminology (The Crypt is a Giant TopSpin built by a German company called HUSS - it is the ONLY Giant version of that ride in the world, though you'll find regular sized versions most everywhere, even in The Crypt at Kings Dominion park in Virginia), and you'll realize it's not that people don't believe you, it's that you were mistaken. There is one cycle that is programmed for our Crypt right now, and it's the one you experienced and the one jc experienced. Again, no one's mad... Just trying to help you understand.

You don't. Just stop posting in it, and so long as no one else posts in it, it will disappear. The board here is in chronological order, so the most recently active topics are displayed first. Every time you post in this topic, it brings it back to the top of the list. Don't post in it for a day or so and you'll see no more of it unless you go looking for it. An administrator can also manually delete it if he thinks that's the best course of action, but if you want it gone, just don't post in it.

According to this site based out of OSU in Ohio, an above-ground parking garages cost is modeled pretty well by (number of spaces) x ($20,000). Under ground, each space ends up costing about $50,000. Besides, is there a real need for that? Is the parking lot in such bad shape that we somehow think a parking deck would be the only solution? I don't know that I've ever ever seen the parking lot entirely full, so essentially building many equally-sized parking lots on top of eachother seems redundant. Only the first floor would be filled!

I would also suggest not posting like this. That's like me starting a topic with "My Kings Island Trip Report" and then the post only said "Let me know if you want me to tell you about it!" or if my topic was called "My best pizza recipe" and I simply said, "It's realllllly good guys! I'll make it later and tell you if my friends like it." It's like... Do we want to know what's changed in The Crypt? Yes...That's why we clicked on the topic was to see "ride enhancements to the Crypt." So yeah, we'd like you to explain your reasons on why The Crypt has changed. That's the point of this topic. If I was really, really, really excited and desperate for information, imagine how annoyed I'd be by the post I quoted above. It's like, why didn't you just explain your changes instead of asking if we wanted you to? Now I have to wait until you log on again and take the time to explain, blah blah blah... In your other topic, there were two or three times when you posted about having lots of good news on the ride, but that you were too tired and would explain later. Don't make a topic on something until you have the time and energy to go into detail, because it's frustrating to be so close, but to get no information. But that said, people here are not trying to be rude. It's just that the ride you're describing is what has been for the last two years. Understand that you're saying things like "getting close to the goddess' face and hanging over the lava pits," but the ride is concreted into place. Therefore, it has been the exact same distance from the goddess since 2002, and the ride has always always always flipped backwards towards the lava pits. One possible explanation is that perhaps you had to wait in a longer line for the ride this time, and thus your eyes adjusted to the darkness and allowed you to see them clearly despite always having been there. I'm surprised by my friends who never, ever, ever see the goddess on their first ride. She is not difficult to see by any means and is slightly lit up at various points during the ride, but perhaps people just don't look for her so they can't see her. As well, the ride's queue line got new lights this year, and some of the LED lights in the former lava pits were turned back on. So I think that people are under the impression that you're just noticing those small changes to the theme, when what is really longed for on this community is a change to the ride cycle (the program that the ride's computer commands it to run - number of flips, hangtime, ride length, etc). IF you suspect a change has happened on the ride cycle, please describe it to us. To help: since 2009, the ride has started lifting backwards (away from the goddess), revolved around the room once, locked into place, then flipped forward one time. It then slows and reverses direction, revolves around the room once towards the goddess, locks into place on the second time around, and flips down towards the lava while locked in place (in other words, it flips twice, and both are slow, locked flips, not quick spins of the gondola where the seats are). If that is different than what you experienced, please give us detail on that. If not, it is possible you are just seeing some things for the first time and that the ride is not different. And like Avatar mentioned in another thread, just let the "Updates On The Crypt (AKA Tomb Raider The Ride)" topic die. Just don't post in it and it'll move back in the board history gradually. That way we can keep all the Crypt talk in this thread.

Hopes are still up... Probably shouldn't be, but they are... Gah.

So let me get this straight... You truly thought you were allowed to text message on a roller coaster? I mean... Really? I'm sorry, but the fact that anyone may think that at ALL is absolutely absurd. I always thought it was a joke that ride operators need to take the PA system in the station to announce that cell phones are not allowed on rides. I suppose you've proven that they do it for a reason - there really are some people dense enough to try it. Even if you didn't know it was strictly against the rules, did you think it was a SMART idea? Claim you didn't know it was forbidden if you must, but to act like you couldn't have come to the conclusion that it's a poor decision by yourself? Be realistic.

The reports like these will keep rolling in, but when will we hear more from those who thought this was the absolute worst thing ever to happen to Kings Island, and that they'd see 40 minute additions to their normal waits? And another question, when will those nay-sayers actually go to the park and see it for themselves instead of speculating? While the theoretical math may not be perfect, the fact of the matter is, as afkifan said, if 20 people pass you in the Fast Lane, you will wait one additional train. Perhaps each cycle will take an extra 10 seconds as the attendant at the top of the stairs is controlling two lines simultaneously, but 20 extra people means one extra train total (even if it's 5 people on 4 trains), and your wait will reflect that by being 1 - 2 minutes longer. Yeehaw. EDIT: As for extending the Fast Lane time, I can see why. More than a strict limitation, I always thought of it as the park's way of saying that you'll really only need it from noon to 7:00, as lines aren't too heavy before or after that. So when lines continue to be daunting after a day of delayed operation, I can see why they'd go ahead and extend it.

Right after Cedar Fair purchased Paramount Parks, didn't we hear that they planned to make Kings Island into a resort destination like Cedar Point and make Boomerang Bay a separate gate? It's never too late, you know!