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Nice job on the wrap job and I like the design they used to promote Dinosaurs Alive. Man these guys work fast, maybe Kings Island could contract these guys out for Kings Islands next attraction project As far as the song I thought it was a catchy tune, maybe I am just showing a bit of dinosaur in me.

Indyguy4KI - I enjoyed the interview and thanks for inviting me to tag along. I think you asked great questions for the target audience that was listening back here in Indy and hopefully it sparked some interest with all that is new at Kings Island. I hope we get to hear more of your work in the future.

New for me this year as far as night rides go, Vortex has great views and coming out of the double loop looking straight up at WindSeeker is really a sight to be experienced. Thanks for the kind words 74Gibson and as far as the negativity on the boards lately, well just know that is priority #1 for us right now

Just curious, did you guys get a chance to try out the wakeboarding place place down in Orlando? I think of you everytime I pass that place.

Welcome to KICentral Rutgerkev - I believe you and the wife will find Kings Island to be a excellent entertainment value and worthy of many more visits to the park than you have already made so early in the season so far. To answer your questions; 1. During slow times of the season or day at times the area may not have a employee checking for Gold Passes but that usually is more rare as the season progresses. I have parked three times in the Kings Island Gold Pass lot so far this year and each time someone checked our Gold Pass. As far as special that will be more evident when the park is busy and you can find a spot in the Gold Pass lot or choose to spend the difference in price for the VIP parking. 2. A list of rides open during haunt are usually announced as the Haunt Season approaches. But most major attractions have been open in the past. 3. No you can get a seat in the area anytime of day but if you wait till Mid afternoon on the weekend you may need to search and wait a bit to find one. I tend to get there early though to ensure a choice seat and to be able to ride the major slide attractions before it gets busy in the mid afternoon times. So while others go to Boomerang Bay to cool off in the late afternoon I am in the park riding or cooling off while watching the great shows Kings Island has had over the last few years

Great current run down on The Crypt GYK! Hope you had a great day at the park.

When we used to see rain in forecast we would highly considered going to KI because we knew it would be a slower day for crowd sizes. Now and even yesterday for our most recent visit we almost did not come due to rain in the forecast, we did go anyway and had a great time with the family (spent way too much but it was a family day). I must admit when the rain did come we left the park for a early diner versus dealing with the rain effect on ride operations and since fewer choices of restaurant openings scared us a bit in getting a place to sit waiting on the all clear signal. So my thought here is that as much as we hate the rain effect on operations Cedar Fair/ Kings Island must really hate the rain as they must see lots of potential revenue staying/driving away.

Oh boy, well at least The Beast is giving some great smooth rides this year. I hope the rain stops and and stays away so you will not need to use those white shirts for surrender flags.

You may not know of those who will but come May 26 you will be able to see thousand who will.

This is true if you show up at the gates with no planning but the vast majority of visiting guest come as a group or buy discount tickets through work or online. They often get a great discount that way and feel they got a good deal by doing so. Currently The two-day ticket for $51.99 makes it $26 for two full days at the park. It cost more than that 15 years ago for one day. I feel with the scheduled ERT for gold pass and all the billboards across several states I can safely say Kings Island is not alienating WindSeeker. So far as far as advertising goes Dinosaur Alive is taking the backseat to WindSeeker. I am sure some families will be upset and voice their opinions about the up charge to DA but trust me the park has done its homework and feels that most guest will happily pay the fee in some measure to experience the new attractions, otherwise I do not see Kings Island committing to spend the money for Dinosaur Alive.

Manta back Seat!!! My family feel in love with SWO last summer. Another tip the rides in the back of the park get busy later in the day while manta line shortens late in the day. A great photo op and a cheap but worth while upcharge is feeding the dolphins. if you take anything away from my post here let it be that you at least try Manta from the back seat. Have Fun!!!!

I think most here have gotten used to and understand the value of the $5 up-charge for Dinosaur Alive. So it seems the optional additional $2 for a 3-D movie is at question here, I can understand on the premise how some of you may see the extra charge as being a bit overreaching. May I suggest that we all hold criticisms or objection until we see the new attraction first hand. Obviously this is a major cost undertaking to get this area ready and they seem to be trying to do something outside the tradition way of thinking to get revenue in. I applauded that and I applauded Kings Island management taking the risk to try this and not playing it safe. I am more than sure they have researched guest about Dinosaurs Alive with guest at the park these past few weeks. Keep in mind they are there to make money by offering a product worthy of the extra cost and they are putting a lot on the line to achieve this. I do say that if Dinosaur Alive is as big of a success as I think it will be then the current KI management should be nominated to the KI Walk of Fame. So please as a KIC community let's try to judge this as a possible great addition to the park that will enhance a guest experience and a possible windfall for the park.

Way29 thanks for taking the time to share your Kings Island experience with us. Two things, 1 I would like to hear more about what made your trip a overall nice time as you started with. 2 May I suggest that if you encounter a KI emplyee who may not have lived up to proper guest expectation standards, that you swing by KI guest services and explain the situation to them so KI can deal with those two situations better. Versus making a statement about two situations and then use it to make it blanket statement of all the employees because most employees do care as you did have a nice experience overall.

Thanks Kirk for sharing one of your days at Kings Island with us and good to hear you got to get a few rides in. I look forward to seeing you at the park one day soon, I know where to find you : )

I was thinking about Dinosaurs Alive and WindSeeker both opening this year and wonder if they knew about the addition of Dinosaurs Alive when they made the announcement would they have named it something different than WindSeeker. Like Time Warp or something Dinosaur like. Maybe not but I thought it was fun to at least wonder about that.

House there is so much to do in the Pigeon Forge, Gatlnburg area. As far as hiking as you enter the Smokey Mountain National Forest go into the visitor center and they have tons of hiking maps that offers something for every level of hiker, the rangers will also help make some suggestions too. Dollywood is worth the trip and you will probably start planning a return trip shortly after you leave.I suggest going online to find a place just remember the phrase "you get what you pay for" truly applies here. We visited last 4th of July and the area was WAY TOO crowded but Dollywood on the 4th was not bad. We also encountered 3 black bears on our hiking trial and one of them walked out onto the trial within 15-20 feet from us. Do make sure if you can to walk a trial as it very scenic and a great family memory. Here is a picture of my daughter and me on one such trial we took. We are in the upper right hand side close to the falls.

Honestly this is a hard one to predict as i feel the 4th of July event schedules have changed a bit but one thing almost for certian they will have fireworks like past years and they will advertise that it will be the biggest they have had to date.The firework show has evolved through the years in style, so come see it this year to share with fellow members who can not come. My family has visited Cincinnati several times during the 4th of July weekend and have never regretted it. There is so much to do on that weekend in the area you will have no trouble filling up your days and nights to make a very memorable weekend.

Oh matter if it is from there or there, there is always a place for you here. Just know oh matter where there is you will never be that far as you are cared about here in our hearts and minds which make you close to those who care and even for those who could care less.

I normally agree with you on how we here sometimes get ahead of ourselves like "Who is going to KI opening day, sign up here" which is posted the day after the last day of the season. I find that often as getting ahead of ourselves as there is no way any of us could know for certain if we actually could. I guess they could add the word "Plan" and that would make it more realistic. So considering that Amusement/Theme parks usually plan their ride/park improvements well in advance as to get things lined up to be done in the off-season, I see this poll as a fun way to express our hopes and desires before a possible announcement late into the current season while Kings Island is hopefully in/close to their planning phase for next season. Personally I have been wishing and asking for a major expansion to Boomerang Bay for many years now and that is in part because I love attending water parks with my family. I think if Kings Island focused on expanding Boomerang Bay they could easily become the water park of choice here in the Midwest. I am like Indyguy4KI I think a expansion of Action Zone will come first and I would love to see that area get a makeover with the same care as Kings Island has given Rivertown and Coney Mall the past couple years. I think it would be fun to see a lot of new flat rides in Action Zone and just because my enthusiast side comes out here and there, throw in a coaster too.

My job requires a lot of travel during and i will usually pass one particular gas station about four times through a typical day. This station is serviced by Thornton’s and it is well maintained they try to keep their prices in to the hi-low to medium low price range compared to other gas stations in the Indianapolis area. Well yesterday morning 5/6/11 they opened with $4.22 for a gallon of gas down from the evening before of $4.29. Shortly after the morning rush hour they lowered their price to $4.09 and on my way home during the evening rush hour they lowered the price again to $4.04. I have never seen this station lower their prices so many time in a single day. Down the road a mile or two there is a cut rate run down station which was now under $4. So seeing this first hand yesterday it looks like we will be seeing some lower prices form the outrages high prices they have gotten to. Also I tell my company drivers to only fill up for that days use when prices are going down as it may be cheaper the next day because for us $0.25 off equals $7.50 savings per tankful.

Last Saturday night Indyguy4KI and I took a night ride on Vortex while the lights were on WindSeeker. When we were coming out of the second back to back loop the track goes up for a short bit. The beauty of it is as you go up at that point there is a direct unobstructed view of WindSeeker tower and it gives the illusion that you are on track to ascend to the top of WindSeeker. I must say I will be taking more night rides on Vortex now as I thought it was pretty awesome seeing WindSeeker like that. Indyguy4KI looked at me afterwords and stated "I wonder if when they planed WindSeeker, if they lined Vortex up that way".

Again Thank you all for the support it really means a lot to have that support going into this role. I would also like to add that there have been many KICentral staff members before me and I have always and still do have great respect for them. I just hope I can live up to the great standards they have set. I am very appreciative that Ryan and Dane have accepted me into this position knowing the choices they have made with staff positions in the past. Now for a bit more old man ramblings for those who care to read on, otherwise turn back now. Like most of you I have great affection for Kings Island and this site has helped me understand and to keep me interested in many more visits to Kings Island than I would have otherwise made. I love interaction with people and always have as far back as I can remember. I enjoy talking with a wide variety of people professional to laymen young and old, as this is a great way to learn. I say this because when I found KICentral it was a perfect place for me as I was able to learn so many interesting facts about the park that I grew up adoring while becoming friends with so many fellow members. I have learned much from so many who have a wealth of amusement/theme park industry knowledge or in professional fields that can relate with similarities to Kings Island daily operations. I am in awe of the knowledge that many here on KICentral have about the amusement/theme park industry and very appreciative when you share that knowledge when appropriate. So when we add this all up we can see why so many of us have decided to become long term members and to watch for new happenings around the park while we have fun in discussions about them. Now when we reflect on our appreciation for KICentral it is always good to remember two very important facts. First; If Kings Island did not exist or god forbid closed it doors, then KICentral would be for the most part irrelevant. I bring this up because it is always good for us to remember that we should support the people and places we enjoy and care about, even when we have simple differences of opinions or desires. This builds trust and a respect for all parties involved. We know Kings Island has monitored this site at times, toyed with us on new attractions by teasers and have even invited us to private previews exclusively to KICentral. We here on KICentral should always look to Kings Island as a friend and support them in positive light and yes it is good to give friends constructive criticism when needed. If we as a community can strive to never forget what is most important to us, then I am sure Kings Island will continue to give us even more reasons to enjoy the park like the way we did when we first discovered we had a great affection about going to Kings Island. Second; If KICentral members quit posting or reading then KICentral would have little reason to exist. I believe KICentral has a vast array of members who come from a wide variety of backgrounds and differ in their likes from one another and as much as their personalities differ. With all this KICentral has stood the test of time and has much to offer to all those who come to visit to read, learn, research, discuss, tease or to make friends. For whatever the reason you come here to KICentral just know you are in good knowledgeable company and with others who see the value of each poster input as each opinion is unique. Discussions often offer differing opinions but always lead to a better understanding. I have felt KICentral has a very special membership and should be treasured and valued. I whole heartily believe that when the two of the above mentioned pillars of KICentral are respected and valued by all parties of interest then I believe KICentral will be here to be enjoyed for all for a long time. It is with this rambling of thought that guides me here and gives me the desire to help in any way I can to achieve my first priority of KICentral and all it can offer. Thanks for reading and now let’s go enjoy and share Kings Island.

I have four season passes, the first one is my anchor season pass which gets first priority in purchasing and that of course is my Kings Island season pass of 7 years the others are Universal Studios Dollywood both for 2 years and finally this year I have a Holiday World. My wish is to purchase a 2 year pass at Busch Gardens Williamsburg which includes all Sea World parks.

Dkeysor42 - it is great to hear you are going to take advantage of your gold pass perk by the way of ERTs. Please keep in mind that the park can change what rides that will be avlialible for ERT at any time per their disgretion. Just enter the park as normal and look for the Gold Pass early entry gate usually to the right of the fountian. Then proceed to that days ERT ride, if they have a single rider line open you can see if itmay get you through faster. The amount of rides during the ERT depends on the crowd size. Have a great time!

Thank-you everyone for the vote of confidence and especially to Ryan and Dane for giving me an opportunity to be a part of the KICentral staff. Switching over from a member to a staff position will take a bit of getting used to but this is the best online community and I know you will patient with that. Thank you Robbie I look forward to working with you more, it is my understanding that you and I are both Administrators now.