Pagoda Gift Shop

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."

I plan to join in the Fall to see what ACE is all about. Then I can at least have more of a point-of-reference for comparing ACE to other coaster clubs.

I don't think I ever knew what that Banshee first rider shirt looked like. It seems like a pretty plain shirt compared to the ones they gave out at media day which were blue with a colored logo.

I agree. I was at the Banshee media day as well, and thought that despite the very large crowd; everyone was very well behaved. My theory has been that the park didn't get as much of a social media boost as they were expecting, and decided to focus media days on the main stream media. There were some behavior incidents at both of the media events held at Cedar Point in 2014, but I don't know if those really impact Kings Island's decisions or not. Both of the ACE-related events this year seemed to happen with little mention beforehand on these forums. This surprises me because I know that so many folks around here have relationships with Kings Island staffers, not to mention this is probably the only forum where Don would login and post once in a while.

Does anyone have info about the relationship between Kings Island and ACE (American Coaster Enthusiasts)? Last week, ACE members were apparently invited for ERT on Mystic Timbers and The Beast for National Roller Coaster day (tweet). Earlier this year, they were also invited to media day for Mystic Timbers. I would love to be able to attend special events like these, but I've been a Coasterbuzz member for well over 10 years now. I know a lot of people around here are in Coaster Crew as well. Events like Coasterstock are open to a variety of clubs, just curious if anyone knows why ACE is getting special treatment. It certainly makes me feel like I'm in the wrong coaster club because we don't get invited.

I think Vortex is the best Arrow mega looper ever built. Those that were built after it were all too tall and too intense. I think it will be around for at least another 25 years. Talking about which ride will be removed next is always a popular thing to do. I think The Bat and Backlot Stunt Coaster will both be gone long before Vortex.

My guess would be that it was some sort of mechanical issue with the lap bars. Unless there are reports that the front car is closed off on other days, I would imagine that would confirm that theory. Closing off the front car of any coaster is going to be very unpopular, so I'm sure they would avoid it otherwise. And I've been of the opinion for years that they need to move the fireworks launch spot. Having them in a place which closes the most popular night ride in the park is just silly. Move it over near Firehawk or Banshee.