italianchef

I was born in 1972, the year Kings Island opened. So, The Racer, the Eiffel Tower, and several other rides premiered the year I was born.

Diamondback. That's the tallest coaster I've ever ridden.

I only waited 20 minutes by going on Sunday one week after KI opened.

Yesterday I went to Kings Island with my wife and son. We spent the day in Nickelodeon Universe, expect for SDATHC and a ride on the Kings Island and Miami Valley Railroad. Today I return to the park with a friend to try Diamondback - which we rode first - and a few other coasters. WOW - Diamondback blew me away. I never encountered such speed and smoothness in my entire life. I felt great physically and spiritually - young and fast. Diamondback is the single greatest ride experience of my entire life. After Diamondback we rode The Beast - and for the first time in my life, it felt lame. After Diamondback, all the other coasters seem less exciting. I also rode FoF, The Racer, and Adventure Express. I like KI's coasters, but love Diamondback. PS - This week I start my new full-time job. It took my 15 months after my layoff (with a severance package) with lots of interviews and temp jobs - to land a new full-time job. I hope that all my other friends who were laid off and didn't find new jobs yet will do so soon.

My opinion is that Nick will leave with the contract's expiration and H-B will return. There's no reason why CF should pay a hefty sum to Nickelodeon for its license when the H-B license is a sunk cost. Kids may prefer Nickelodeon, but they won't say, "Mommy I don't want to go to Kings Island because the Fairly Odd Coaster is now the Scooby Doo Coaster."

I really hate to admit it - but Diamondback was the single, most awesome ride experience of my entire life. It really, really was. The speed, the hills, the height, and smoothness made me feel so alive and vibrant. I felt 10, if not 20 years younger.

I do believe there was sound when I rode SDATHC. Sorry that there wasn't any when you rode it.

The kids area was voted best in the world when it was Hanna-Barbera Land, and the award has remained after the area switched over to Nickelodeon Universe. So long as the rides remain in place, the signage ought not influence the awards.

If memory serves me right, when CF purchased Paramount Parks, the Nickelodeon license was only good for 4 years. Last season I noticed Hanna-Barbera characters instead of Nickelodeon characters at the kids' Halloween festival - as well as Nickelodeon merchandise being offered on sale. Today when I went to Kings Island I noticed that select Nickelodeon merchandise in the Nickelodeon Store is being offered at 50% off - on opening day! What do you think will become of Nickelodeon Universe in 2010?

My son has been talking about Kings Island since January, but it didn't open until today. So my wife and I finally took him to his delight. As soon as my son saw Kings Island from the car, he began joyously yelling "Kings Island" and clapping his hands. We arrived around 10:20 a.m. and were surprised how crowded the park was. Hey, what happened to the recession? The 3 of us rode SDATHC first. Then my son did several kiddie rides on his own, including Nick Jr. Drivers and Blue's Skidoo. I rode Fairly Odd Coaster, Little Bill, and Phantom Flyers with my son. The 3 of us rode Timmy's Air Tours together, as well as the Kings Island and Miami Valley Railroad 3 times. We left the park around 3 p.m. My son had a great time. Best regards, Italian Chef

Call me nostalgic, but I'd like to return AE to its former glory.

I like SDATHC, I really do. But I loved the Phantom Theater and wish that it would return.

I'll vote for Paramount because I got my book published when they were in power, and they invited me to every media event. Those were the good old days.

At my age, I prefer steal coasters. My favorites as KI are FoF and Vortex.

Yesterday I went to CoCo Key with my family for the day as part of my son's birthday celebration. The last 2 years we stayed at GWL, but I cannot currently afford it due to my UNDER-employment. Compared to last year when I visited the park, it was VERY crowded. We got there 45 minutes after it opened, and there were significant lines at the big slides. I rode the two big enclosed tube slides, Barracuda Blast (in total darkness) and Pelican Plunge (blue colored) first. Riding them made me feel almost like an X-Ying pilot in Star Wars. Then I played in the kid area, Dip-In Theater, with my son. We then went to Parrot's Perch Play Structure, which has big slides that I went down, and yellow family slids that my son and I did together. My wife tried the yellow slides, too. I spent most of the day with my son and wife, but did do the Coral Reef Cavern obstacle course and Coconut Grove Adventure River (a lazy river) by myself. We ate fast food lunch at the Callaloo Grill, played at the arcade after we finished with the water park, and then left. From the perspective of a child, my son, CoCo Key is as much fun as GWL's Bear Track Landing. It is the extra amenities that makes GWL a better overall experience. I'm sad that I can no longer afford GWL, but glad that with my wife, I can afford CoCo Key for the day.

I put my season pass in my wallet.

The economy is very, very bad. I am livinf proof as 14 months after my layoff with a severance package, I've get to get a full-time job offer - and I have an MBA and 10 years of professional experience. That being said, I still survive off temp jobs and hope to find a full-time job soon - and I think that KI will make a LOT less money this year, but will survive.

Most of the time I ride roller coasters with my hands up, but it's difficult to do on Flight of Fear and some other rides.

Tasmanian Typhoon is my all-time favorite. What could be more fun than getting flushed down a giant toilet?

I like CoCo Key's water park as much as I do Great Wolf Lodge Mason. However, I voted for GWL because I LOVE the GWL hotel, restaurants, entertainment, and overall atmosphere. And as far as the Sheraton Hotel that CoCo Key is located in and its restaurant, I'm not that impressed as it is business-oriented, not family-oriented.

I have had awesome experiences at Six Flags Great Adventure (NJ) and Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom. I hope that the busines can be saved.

I do think that KI will continue to be profitable this year, but its profit margins will likely be lower than last year as the economy seems to be free-falling.

Drop Tower - though it was known as Drop Zone at the time - was the scariest ride that I ever rode at KI. It was so scary for me that I rode it once - and never, ever again.

Tonight I attended Winter SOAR, and it was sooo cold! It began raining when I left home and was snowing at the beginning of the tour. It was VERY VERY cold. That being said, Diamondback does look pretty awesome. After the COLD tour in the COLD, we entered the International Street Restaurant for pizza, breadsticks, salad, brownies, and soda. The spread was nice, but would've benefitted from HOT chocolate. HOT tea, or HOT coffee....even HOT water. There were some interesting speakers, such as Mike Graham who showed videos including of a coaster design in Shanghai China, Bill Balfour, a lady from Great Wolf Lodge, a gentleman from Cedar Point, and best of all, Don Helbig. Don discussed the new changes for Kings Island in 2009. Many of the guests won free prizes. It was a nice night, except for the cold. Best regards, Italian Chef

Every Valentine's Day White Castle takes reservations and serves special meals to couples (and often their children, too). Since my financial resources are not what they once were, I made a reservation to White Castle and took my wife there tonight for Valentine's Day - and we brought our son. All tables were ganished with white table clothes and candles. Heart shapes were placed on the bathroom doors. A hostess greeted and sat us. She provided us with paper menus and waited on us just like in a real restaurant, taking drink orders before food orders. The menu offered the same fast food as their normal prices, which we ordered. The food was served to us at our table, and we were provided with free ice cream for dessert. Plus White Castle provided my wife and all the other ladies with carnations. It wasn't my fanciest or most romantic Valentine's Day. But it was interesting. Best regards, Italian Chef