Pagoda Gift Shop

What other names do you think "Flight Deck" was competing with at Kings Island?

This was a show that did an arena tour across the country. I remember going to it at the Nutter Center in Dayton. Ironically, I don't think I ever saw the show at Kings Island. I'm sure they saved a lot of money on production costs for the show by using the same format as the traveling show.

I think it will be Festhaus, no doubt. Put the gamers up on the stage and have TVs all over where people can watch.

I agree with not applying this to random strangers. However, I have often been in line and witnessed a group of 4 kids/teenagers who are clearly together, but then each take an individual glider on the ride. When that happens, capacity is absolutely crushed.

I must have missed when those ridership numbers for 2012-2014 were originally posted. If Vortex is still pulling anywhere close to 1 million riders per year (and I can't think of a reason it wouldn't be) I think there is very low chance it would be the ride being removed. For a long time now, the metric of "cost per rider" has been one that has been rumored to be an important evaluation number. It's not the only factor obviously, and we don't know the maintenance costs, so it is only one piece of the puzzle. I would think Backlot and Flight of Fear would be closer to their "end of life" than Vortex is.

So....I'm betting $100 that it will take place in the Festhaus. Yes?

If I was asked what the "flagship" parks are in the Cedar Fair chain, I would say Cedar Point, Canada's Wonderland, and Carowinds. The investment that they have made into those parks since the Paramount acquisition is why I would lean in that direction. Even though I don't put Kings Island in that category, I think Kings Island does have its own unique place, which is not insignificant.

This is a good addition in my mind. It sounds like the old Zodiac/Flight Commander space will finally be reworked after sitting (mostly) vacant for over 20 years! I think it will be interesting to see the area of construction in Coney Mall. Coney Mall is my pick for the location of a future Giga, so we'll have to see if any "extra" clearing is done for a future station/queue/etc. If anything is a trend with new coasters these days, it's that construction often starts as much as 2 years before the ride opens. Team Terpy.

I think Kings Island has a lot. I would think they would be in the running for the most in the chain, but apparently Canada's Wonderland is a high number also.

"RMCing" makes sense as a solution for not-so-popular old wooden coasters that have not aged well. Kings Island does not have a ride that fits that description in my opinion. I'm sure RMC would be happy to build Kings Island a brand new ride of their choosing (Topper, I-Box, T-Rex, whatever).

Considering it was most likely not the "plan" to convert the Banshee gift shop mid-season, I'm guessing there is a probably a decent chance that it will be made to look better by next season, or even by the time Haunt rolls around. Maybe they could move some of the scary/horror games into that space. I'm not even sure how many of those they have in the other arcades. (Anyone else remember the large arcade at the end of Days of Thunder?)

I always thought the gift shop across from the Banshee exit was much better suited for being the "Banshee" gift shop.

I agree, it is intense enough as it is. The Beast already has many elements which make it feel like you are going really fast (in the woods, low to the ground, tunnels). Going a faster speed is likely going to increase roughness more than anything else that would be noticeable. My only real complaint with the ride is the seat dividers in the trains.

The people on that train look like they came straight out of a bag of Skittles.

If it were this easy, wouldn't they have done it already? They now use the retractable belts on the PTC trains, but these are not PTCs. Any change in the restraint system would likely be coordinated with the manufacturer to ensure everything is approved. Would it make things easier on the crew? Yes, but every ride is different. Banshee doesn't have retractable belts, and that would potentially be easier on the crew as well.

I wonder where they plan to build it? I would have to assume on site somewhere.

I've given up hope that Kings Island will ever have a good sit down restaurant at this point. I suppose the only real hope would be for a franchise to come in.

Probably not, but the park is not under any obligation to do any sort of Q&A at all. I think most answers for future projects can be interpreted as the "current plan", but plans can always change.

Some other info from the Q&A: Kings Island (maybe Cedar Fair as a whole?) is exploring the idea of all-day locker access anywhere in the park, as well as season pass based locker availability. Attendance at Kings Island in 2017 was the highest since 1998. Mystic Timbers' shed will not receive any changes in the next year or two, but updates in the long term future are possible. Flight of Fear and Shake, Rattle, and Roll will operate during Winterfest. Painting coasters is expensive and can easily hit six figures in cost. The Tomb Raider/Crypt building is still being considered for how it can be used for something during the regular season. There are no plans in the next 4-5 years to create a new section of the park. There is plenty of land though, which may be used for new rides.

Even when Serial Thriller/Thunderhawk was sitting on those footers it was pretty depressing. That area was always a big swamp and not exactly a fun queue experience. And then there was the ride experience itself...

I'm sure they are considering it, or at least it has been discussed. It is not coincidence that every new coaster (across the Cedar Fair chain I believe) for the past several years has had a "no loose articles" policy.

All the names come from characters on the old Maverick TV show which aired in the 50's and 60's. It is coincidence that Dick Kinzel's son is also named Bart.

I'm guessing that in 1982 there were a lot less lawyers involved in the ride operations policies.

Yeah at this point I think the announcement of updates for 2018 might happen at a winter coaster event of some sort.

That's a great picture of the original train design. Thanks for sharing. I've never seen that before. I can deal with the loss of a lot of things (button upholstery, headlamp, 4 bench). It's the addition of a seat divider and the orange ratcheting lap bar that are the negatives for me. Has anyone ever asked Don if he could have done all those Racer rides if he were forced into the seat dividers and orange bars? I love riding The Beast, but I don't usually get off the ride thinking, "that was a really comfortable seat."