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The OP says they will be in Indianapolis before going to Kings Island, In the Indianapolis area the Kroger billboards are advertising Kings Island tickets for $28.99. so it sounds like you may want to buy them in Indianapolis before you head to Cincinnati. Backyard BBQ is good if you want to stay at the the park but since you suggested on your own, HTCO did a great job listing choices and locations.

Whales_Rock Sorry to hear that you are having difficulties in convincing them to take you to Kings Island and I hope it works out for you. At this time of year it is hit or miss in predicting crowd sizes for certain days or hours of that day. Now I would like to say something about your Title of this thread and I mean this in a polite way. There are some members here who read and post regularly and they are dealing with a family member who is really struggling with their life but are terminal and other members who have some very sick family members and worry about the unthinkable to happen. I think your title comes off as trivializing dying and can be hurtful to some. I do not think you meant to do that in any way and it probably did not cross your mind of others on their situation. I just wanted to point this out so that maybe we can use another example on how to convince your parent s to take you. I hope it does work out for you and have a great evening.

Hi everyone hope all is well your way. One of the best things about KICentral is it's members and getting to know them threw the years. Some members we meet on a casual meet up at the parks but some we take more interest in their life and get opportunities to meet up outside amusement park settings. I had not planned to do this trip report for a couple reasons one I did not think there would be enough to write about and two because I worried it would interfere with a fellow KICentral members work. Well after the expedition I was invited too I realized there was far to much information and interesting situations that I could not keep it to myself and I should share it. So being careful to try to write about the event and the people I shared this expedition with and not focus too much on the subject will be a tab bit tricky but I think a story you may enjoy. The Expedition Subject will be covered by a true talent of Ronny Salerno in his own words at some point and place of his choosing. Back last winter probably in January I had a discussion with Ronny in which he expressed interest in coming to Indianapolis to do a photo shot for his site Queencitydiscovery.com of historic Bush Stadium. As the months went by Ronny continued to express his desires to make his Bush Stadium photo shot a reality and shared his progress of all the necessary steps he had taken so far. Well with his persistence he got permission and a scheduled date to do his shoot. This is were we will start this this story. June 8, 2009 Expedition Bush Stadium I met Ronny Salerno his father Ron and cousin Jeff outside Bush Stadium Indianapolis, Indiana at around 11AM Ronny had called his contact who was in charge of Bush Stadium to let him know that we had arrived and were ready to be let in. The contact person (name & job title left out on purpose) talked with Ronny and to the rest of us about the condition and safety concerns they had. The gentleman was very nice, had a mild voice and listened with interest of Ronny's project and shared some stories of past entrants. I got the impression that the gentleman only had basic knowledge of the park prior to him being in charge of holding the keys to Bush Stadium. He seemed eager to hear what information and facts that we may have had about the park and then shared some information others have shared with him. I was glad he shared those facts as I truly would have walked right by some interesting points of interest and missed some bygone history. So as we entered the contact gentleman stressed safety then started to point out how to access areas of the stadium, he parted with us by telling us we had full unrestricted access and that we could stay as long as we would like and call him when we were ready to leave. So just like that there we were in the outfield of a old ball park and the thought of were do we begin raced across my mind. It was at this point Ronny really showed his expertise in taking the lead of the expedition. He lead us straight to the bleacher structure and went into the grand stands to get a birds eye view of the area. I could see Ronny's natural instinct of a serious photographer kicking in as he scoured the area looking for the perfect angle and interesting subjects to shot.. After a while as we were standing in the grand stands I started to look around and remember the area's of were I had sat at during many of games I attended there as a young boy and through Junior High. I even got so caught up in my memories that I shared a few endearing moments of how my dad (now deceased) knew a catcher one year and and when we went to a game the catcher came over signed a few autographs for some lower seated fans then looked up to us and said "Hello Jim good to see you, thanks for coming out" then throwing a baseball to my dad and said "give that to your boy will ya" I remember feeling frozen in my seat and thinking Wow how great is my dad knowing the catcher like that. The baseball was signed and it sat in a special baseball cradle on a shelf in my room until I moved from home. See I had forgotten most of the stories that was now flooding my mind until then. I must admit they were wonderful memories but at the same time distracting me on the mission at hand. At this point Ronny suggested we should push forward and upwards to start exploring areas closed to the general public during normal operations. Ronny expressed several times that we should not disturb or damage the property and that a successful expedition is one that the photo subject is in the same condition as it was when we started. Even though it would have made it easier to pull a rotting door open we respected the structure and integrity of it's present condition. I have viewed Ronny's site Queencitydiscovery.com and admired his photo shots but I did not realize how dirty and at times work he went through to bring his viewers great pictures. We worked our way through the front office and the press boxes high above the stadium. I thought at one point I was experiencing another flash back as I kept hearing a very fast Click, click, click, click as Ronny was taking advantage of his professional camera and a rare opportunity of the view from the press boxes. As we worked our way down and turned the handle to every door to see if there was anything of interest most of the time just a picture or two would do but at other times it would take a while to set up the lighting condition, get the right angle or to take many shots to capture the whole area. I was very thankful that Ronny's dad Ron remembered to bring a flash light as some places were as dark as caves. In the photo below Ronny's cousin Jeff and father kneed below Ronny's camera and held flashlights in the baseball teams field tunnels to help put lighting in places so the right picture could be taken. At this point we had made our way through the ball park structure and out to the right field and decided we should take a group picture of us inside the park. Ron, Ronny, Jeff, Jesse We wondered across the baseball field for a bit then separated to explore on our own for a while. Like I said I will let Ronny tell about the Stadium through his pictures but I will share one that tugged at my heart at seeing how this place was becoming very over grown by vegetation. We grouped up and explored some more as we worked ourselves back out the way we cam in and on our way Ronny's dad Ron asked me "how does it make you feel seeing Bush Stadium like this versus just maybe seeing it torn down with maybe a nice plague in the area" Wow I have never thought about it that way. I toke a few seconds to try to think about it, I answered in this way "it really pains me to see this place like this but coming here has brought back a lot of memories, even though it looks rough now I still can get perspective of how it was and I enjoy looking at all the places I sat at and remember almost vividly how the game looked in my memory from those spots. I think I would rather see it like this than standing looking at a plague in the area. So this here today is bitter-sweet ". We departed the ball park at 3:20PM and I was amazed at all I had seen and learned about the park or never knew existed before. I thought it would only take us about a hour and a half to get through Bush Stadium and was amazed that we kept busy for the whole 4 hours and 20 minutes, it was never boring or dual. It was at that moment that I realized that I can see with more clarity of what drives Ronny in his photography and a bit more about him and now hopefully you do as well. I would like to thank Ronny for sharing his passion of exploring and photography with me first hand, Ronny this expedition to Bush Stadium meant a lot to me in a way that I had no way of knowing before hand. I assure you Ronny that I will never forget this or the old memories that are now fresh in my mind again. From the bottom of my heart Thank-You my friend and I know my dad thanks you too. Avatar/Jesse

I told everybody if you guys tell everyone about the shake purchases, I would denie it. But if I was to purchase shakes for some I would say you are welcome and enjoy them. Mark me and Kelli were just talking about you tonight and how glad that we got to spend some time with you it was fun and if I did not live two hours away I would be on my way to meet you for seconds. Thanks

Thanks - So does that mean I can become a member of the Glam Rockers Group, I hope so because in truth you guys Rock!! I was so glad we finally ran into you guys, Kings Island is so much better with friends and even better...enthusiast friends like you guys, Really.

Thanks everyone for reading and the nice comments, I am sorry I have not responded sooner to some of your responses and questions. I did the report late Sunday night then work a long Monday as I knew the next two days would be extremely long days, so if I waited to post the report I would just now be getting to it, besides I knew I would need to add a response to a trip to KI on Tuesday plus do a reort on my day on Wednesday. Dare to fly thanks for the correction, I changed it and I will not let that mistake happen any more. Also it was really nice to see you in action Tuesday night. BoddaH1994 – first off I was pleasantly surprised to see you show up and enjoy it very much when you do. Yeah you had your plan hiting the ground over and over and I was amazed. I thought it would be easy to do but I learned that takes some skill and practice to accomplish what you did. I bow to your flying plan talent. StalkerChick – thanks it was nice and really it was the right trip at the right time for us, the rain was OK not hard plus it adds to our memory. Gordon Bombay – Miss Rae is maturing fester than she is growing for her age anyway, but yeah she has grown a lot since I first started posting. Oh you caught that about referring to work ethics well maybe it was you maybe it wasn't, I'll never tell but if you ask me somebody sounds a little guilty. Standbyme – Dave – Kifan thanks for the comments I just used a tri-pod to shot the fireworks with a standard point and shot camera, the murals took me by surprise as how well they were done. If you look closly you should be able to tell that the wall is flat and the brick border is painted on as well. If you have not walked it you should really make the time it is worth the effort trust me. Dane – Sorry I missed you but hey if it was spending time with you in the rain or hanging out on a boat I would pick …..... RailRider - thanks About the larger rides she is fickle, one day yes next day no. Miss Rae is just now hitting 51 inches at 9 years old so she is shorter for her age, which suits her just fine. If you know what I mean. CoasterNSich thanks for the tips, they will come in handy especially when we try to hit DC/Annapolis in the next few years. I will just add I have not seen you since the commercial shoot a few years back, I hope our paths cross again sometime soon. DegenRider – you bet one of my favorte activities a=is meeting fellow members and sharing stories. Well the way you and Ryan where going I am glad it was not warmer or you guys would have destroyed the ride. LOL Diamodback FOF thanks – I was just trying the firework setting on a newer camera and used a tripod. I learned it is best to shot individual firework in that setting to keep the shutter open longer and to get the whole firework display like and sometimes multiple fireworks work in the shot but not always. See how thay stack over each other here. And the Grand Finale should be shot in regular mode/speed as leaving the shutter open that long makes for a big white fireball. So back home at I tried it again during the finale but further away, a bit better but not as good as I would like to see so I decided for memory sakes a video is best for Grand Finale's. The last half of my hometown fireworks. If anyone is interested in seeing all the pictures of the weekend full of Hot Air Balloons and Fireworks of all kinds feel free to visit my Phanfare album http://albums.phanfare.com/isolated/hfq1nO2g/1/4159585 Thanks again everyone for you comments, I got a lot of joy reading them while I was on the road the past few days.

If you listen closely you can almost hear singing in The Beast woods, I think it goes something like this “I often stop and wonder why I appeal to men, how many times I blonder, In love and out again, they offer me devotion I like it I confess, when I reflect emotion there's no need to guess”. Whales_Rock I know what you mean Falling in love again, I can't help it, either but it must be the way The Beast was made. Just be careful and don't be like a Moth around a flame.

Sorry guys as many know it has been a long week for all of us I feel bad That i have not even had time to respond to my on TR but i know you are waiting on this picture so here it is I have more I like to say and will later. had fun and have a great day.

Railrider I know you have planned and looked forward to your trip for a long time, sounds like you had a good time and got to share your beautiful Zoe with your family while on vacation. Cabin looks awesome. I am glad your shared Zoe's first solo ride with us I say all the time “they have not built a coaster or thrill ride that can give half the thrill as watching your child riding their first rides” .Nothing like it and now every time you hear some one tell you about their child's first ride you know how special and thrilling it is to them, words can not describe properly that feeling. I really enjoyed the pictures of Zoe as it's been a while since we have seen her, my my she has not only grown but she is getting more beautiful by the trip reports. Picture below is my favorite, but I must say it was hard to pick just one favorite. Thanks fore sharing and hope we see more.

I love this report and glad you guys got to go to so many parks. Like Interpreter said I like the money shot. I have a brother who lives out of state too and know it is always great getting together and I am glad you included that special moment in your report too.

Since the 4th of July fell on a Saturday this year it gave us a great opportunity to come to Cincinnati for a longer stay than we normally do so we decided to do some parks that we have wanted to do again or to visit for the first time. I had learned that Coney Island was having there annual Balloon glow and Firework show on the 3rd and Strickers Grove would be open on the 4th to the public, so our visit would center around those two parks. We left out of Indy about 11AM on Friday the 3rd and stopped about half way for a bite to eat then arrived at the Marriot Rivercenter on the banks of the Ohio river for our hotel destination. We put a bid in for $60.00 for a four start hotel on Priceline and it was accepted for the Marriot, which was running cheaper than many 2-2.5 star motels were running for that weekend.. We have actually stayed at the Marriot Rivercenter once before when Miss Rae was about 3 weeks old. The rooms there are warm and spacious and the windows bow out to give a better view outside. We quickly put our things away and headed to Coney Island. As we arrived they told us we needed to either park down by River bend or the lot across the street which just opened up about 3:30 PM. The last time we attended this event at Coney Island it took us over an hour to get out of the lot so I decided try the lot across the street and parked right up against the fence close to an exit. As we walked in we were awe struck with the beauty of lake Como and noticed many water crafts navigating her beauty. At this point the pyrotechnicians fired of a test firework and I noticed where they were set up us on the bank of Lake Como and directly across the street from were we parked. I told the family that at 9:30 we should head back to the van and watch from there as it seemed to be the closest spot for the fireworks. Started walking inside the park by the lake and the first attraction we cam to was the Ferris Wheel. The ride operator there was the nicest ride operator and took the time to tell us were we needed to go go get our ride wristbands. In a brief discussion with Robbie he said he was supposed to be off at 4 but it look like they where going to hold him over to help out, such a devoted employee (unlike others who I have heard bragging about getting the day off). We quickly got our ride wristbands and started to ride many rides before the lines started to grow, like Python and Trabant "> Bumper Boats, The Giant Slide (which ended up being two of my favorite attractions). Then many other spinning rides that started to turn us green from spinning like Tempest. Miss Rae begged me to take her on her first upside down ride of Rock-O-Plane We decided to slow things down a bit to so that we could soak in some of Coney Island unique agenda of 4th of July activities. So we listened to the Anderson Township Symphony Orchestra. and also took some time to listen to the Cincinnati Bearcat Band Jazz Ensemble. The Balloons started to set up and fill with air It was shortly after seven and the crowds had really picked up so we just settled in to enjoy the atmosphere. Talking about atmosphere at Coney Island celebrating this countries Independence they offer Rides. Live Lady Liberty Special live local musical talent Jugglers Specialty treats to satisfy anyones tastes and Big Balloon Night Glow. One Thing for certain, when it comes to Independence Day celebrations "Coney Has It" Additionally to all that above Coney Island offers a huge firework display. Since it was getting close to 10PM we decided to head back to the van to watch the fireworks there as I said earlier the van was right across the street form the firework launch firing stage. Below will give you an idea of how close we where to the show. The show started and I took some pictures but the power lines got in the pictures. I tried to zoom in to get around the power lines but it was hard to get the placement and it was a bit to close. So I just took what I could with even if the power lines got in the way. and I must say that in forty years of my life I have never been so close to the action as I was and when the firework grand finale started I felt like I was in the show I mean from the ground up and to both sides of my sight the fireworks were exploding and I was absolutely completely flabbergasted as what I just witnessed. Awesomeness. I have many, many more Coney Island firework pictures if anyone what to see more let me know. Within 5 minutes from the end of the firework show we were back on the hiway heading back to the hotel but along the way we got to witness the Great American Ballpark fireworks over the Ohio river. We got back to the hotel and got ready for bed and I must say the bed at Marriot was the best I have ever slept in and for the price I was very pleased. The next day we slept in till 7:30, ate breakfast and went swimming, I played with the underwater camera again. Sorry cheep KICentral plug for all my friends at KICentral kkep up the great work! After check out we decided to take a walk along the river and found a path that had history murals painted on the flood walls. My favorite Miss Rae liked the idea of Kentucky on one side and Ohio on the other side of the river, so we decided to walk from Kentucky to Ohio and back. With one last look of the Cincinnati downtown skyline from the Marriot we decided to head out. We had a bit of time to kill so we stopped and had lunch at Perkins and they have a wonderful flatbread menu. When we arrived at Strickers Grove they said they would remain open all day and evening as long as there where no storms with lightning. The park was pretty much empty when the rides opened. I rode many rides with the family like Teddy Bear We also rode Tilt-a-Whirl and Top Spin I do not like to marathon spinning rides but Miss Rae rode both of those two about 20 times with about 8 of them in a row. I ran into (literally) DaretoFly and The Beast Rider at the Tornado and rode several times with them. Then boddaH1994 showed up and started to ride with us. We headed over to ride the fling planes and boddaH1994 gave us a demonstration on how to fly them. Then we all got on board and took a very interesting flight. We took a group shot of KICentral members that we knew was there and them some departed for the day. BoddaH1994, Pat and I went to the picnic shelter to have some conversation, the smoke from the grill of roasting corn keep lofting into the shelter that it made us hungry. So we got a plate of food . $5.25 for a cheeseburger, potato salad, chips and roasted corn on the cob. WOW!!! Really!!! At 7PM we all decided to go so we said our good byes and headed out. On the way home we all decides that this trip really hit the spot for us as we did some old and new things. We decided we want to go back to Coney more often and to Stickers Grove only if the mood hits us to do so but where really glad we went and rode in the rain on the 4th of July. Meeting old and new friends is always a highlight for me, also I got to spend some great quality family time that, which was much in need. I hope you all had a great Independence Day and hope you enjoyed the report. Avatar/Jesse

As always KiMan great trip report and awesome photos. Happy birthday!

This is devastating news for Disney fans. I prey for the cast member and the family of relatives and co-workers. So sad just sad. WofferBearATL - it's been a long time since I have seen you post and it is good to see your OK and hope you will join us more in conversation.

Yes I echo what everyone has pretty much said so far. I enjoy the article very much as it related to the amusement park industry and the way some parks handled the segregation issue. I think much can be learned through that time and how segregation impacted society and business, obviously more than others but also in different ways. I think sometimes we dwell and look down on our past instead of taking pride and joy of how far this country has come and to motivate ourselves to do more in this area. I mean as a whole we are a better country after segregation so we should apply what we have learned and always seek equality of the individual. Interpreter thanks for posting these articles, you have actually peeked an interest in me to seek out more articles of that time and the amusement park industry.

My family rode it yesterday too, it had no problem spinning for us. After riding Tempeast I had to sit out a couple spinning rides as my head seemed to be still spinning. We had a great time at Coney Island and look forward to sharing our experence when we get home. Coney has it!!!!

We are getting ready to head out. Hope we see you there kelli. Yeah we'll be going to Coney for the day then Strickers Grove from opening till about 7PM, then head back to Indy to watch the fireworks off of the Regions Bank Tower (37 floors high) at 9:47PM. I hope everyone has a good time what ever they may be doing. Happy Independence Day and may freedom in our country last forever.

Thanks for the information G-Force, it is always great to see our countries finest on display on such a great day.

We can usually tell when someone has had a really great experience at Kings Island as their words just pop right off the page as your words have in this report KIfan80. Thanks for sharing a special family moment with us.

Thanks Dave for the report and pictures. We are thinking about adding BGW to the front end of our fall trip and after seeing Kat's and your report I am hoping that plan holds out,I even called the wife in to show her your pictures. I am looking forward to the rest of your trip.

Gator another great installment. good to hear you had success with line jumpers and tons of rides. I look forward to seeing your report on The Beach and I understand about not getting to Boomerang Bay yet this year. We normally have made many visits there but nothing new in a long time translates to us not being as eager as we normally are to go. Hope all is well and the dentist trip was a good one.

Kat enjoying the update trip report, I enjoy reading your amusement park Tour 09, so keep-em coming. I must say I think I am most impressed with your ability (patience) to type out a trip report on your blackberry. I hope the two of are enjoying your time together.

A lot of people are taking their vacation this week so that may be why It seemed mote busy today. Edit to add; Sorry terpy I just seen in the meet-up forum that you said about the same thing I just did here.

Raptor great report thanks for sharing. I probably will never get to go to either of the parks you enjoyed but by looking at your pictures I feel like I have.

Many have their favorites spot but if you have kids or you like a lot of atmosphere, may I suggest up by the front gate by the Royal Fountain. More precise about half way between the Gate Building and the start of the Royal Fountain more to the south side (bathroom side) as the north side of that area does not get a good view and they move over to the south side when the fireworks start. Below is a video I shot a year ago from that same spot. I recommend this spot as I think with the Royal Fountain and the Eiffel Tower in the foreground it gives the fireworks more atmosphere. The video should help give you a idea of where I am talking about in the above location description. Edit to Add: As Interpreter suggested here is a video form a top of the Eiffel Tower, we did get there plenty early and stood right on the rail but as you see in the video many squirmed their way in front of us. nice view just go up there with your patience.

Thanks for your report I was hoping someone would report about the tattoo contest, sorry you did not win but glad to hear you participated. About your DB picture, they should be able to look it back up- if you have the number of the photo that would be the easiest way to get it and it may be on your receipt. Otherwise you should be able to call them and give them the time of day and a description of the photo. After all you paid for the service, I am sure they want you satisfied. Please let us know if it does come in or how it turns out in the end. Have a great evening.