SwampFox

Gordon, The Beast was awesome today! I hit some airtime on the 2nd drop for the first time. Great pics and report. Oh, I think there are a few people on this forum that know about coaster structures, but I think we are just listening to others with a big smile on our face Swampy

Same as Stewart, 1.5 hours away from Lexington KY.....

Thursday Todd, a ride Op was assigning seat rows as you entered the station to the Maverick. Friday and Saturday however it was a free for all. As much as I dislike assigning ride seats, this did make the line move alot faster when Maverick was running. Georgia has one of my Favorite Woodies of all times, and yes that baby is violent. (GCyclone) I maybe used the wrong words to discribe it but I love em! I have to say, SOB was more fun in the back even though I was sore the next day! LOL Swampy

After a very nice 6 hour drive, we found our way to the Breakers Express located less than one mile from CP. My friend and I rushed to check in, unpack and head to the park. The drive across is wonderful. To see that skyline of MForce, Dragster, Bluestreak etc. just intensified our trip. Mean Streak We arrived at the front gates around 3:00pm and headed straight to the back of the park to Mean Streak. Ive heard all the rumers that they trimed this coaster to death but I loved the layout and had to see it for myself. In great disapointment, this coaster was boring to a thrill seaker like myself. I didnt even think it was going to make it over the 2nd hill. Maverick Ok, we warmed up on the woodie, now its time to ride the newest coaster in town. After a short 1 hour wait in line, we where placed on the 3rd row and all I can say is WOW! This is one awesome ride! What else can I say? Later we rode and got a chance to the front seat! This is the best spot for this coaster! M Force Im glad I do alot of reading about coasters. My diet (Lost 30 pounds so far) helped me snap those lap belts with no problem!(34 waistline) Back to the coaster, while waiting in line that lift hill was just one awesome sight. We finally made it to the station and jumped in the blue train on the 2nd seat from the front. The all clear was given and that baby does not waist any time getting up that 300+foot hill! The view was wonderful! Then came the drop. This was the best drop Ive ever seen in any coaster. I came out of the seat while reaching speeds up to 92 mph! We all know how MForce goes but OMG the speed, the airtime on the hills, by far the greatest coaster in the world! Dragster Pure 15 Seconds of fun. The Force of the launch is incredible. The Gs you pull when the train heads straight up... very nice! Only complaint like many others, to short of a ride, but very very Fun!! Oh yes we saw several rollbacks on the 18th, however they had the ride shut down and was testing it then. WildCat This was a coaster that I would have walked by if it wasnt for Interpreter telling me not to miss this, and Im glad I listened. What a fun, loud coaster this was. Blue Streak By far the Best Wooden Coaster at CP. Great airtime, speed. Only complaint is they had white lights in the station and everyone was attacked my millions of bugs including the ride ops. Put yellow bulbs in those stations!!! Raptor, Gimini, Magnum XL, This post is getting very long, but these are some great rides! Dont miss em! Mantis Im not a standup fan, these guys hurt! But I must say this was a good standup if there is one. Overall, in 4 days I had a chance to ride MForce 12 times, along with many ride counts on all the others even though I didnt mention them above. This is one great park for coaster fans. However on the way home, we had to stop back at KI and ride the SOB. SOB has been closed everytime I have gone to KI this year, Including the special trips after they re-opened it. First ride was front seat of the blue train. All I could ask myself was "This ride is smooth! What are they talking about?" A huge fan of SOB sat behind us giving us a complete detail of the ride while we where on it, but this ride was super smooth to me for a wooden coaster.... until: Then for the second time on SOB we decided to hit the back seat and got on the blue train. Thats right, I found out what the hard way what everone was talking about. Man that drop to the Rose Bowl is a denture chipper! Overall, this is a rough coaster, but I can remember I was bruised by others in the past which I found was alot worse than SOB (anyone been to Georgia lately?:}). This is one fast woodie, and I will ride it again when I return to KI! Thanks for the recomendations Interpreter! You where 100% correct! Swampy

Hail to the Coaster Walkers!!!! Great Article! Swampy

Tennessee Tornado is also another great coaster however they did take over 300 feet of track away to make it fit from the original design... Hince the incredible burst of airtime while on the breaks... But compaired to Carolina Cyclone, Corkscrew and many many others Vortex stands alone. Back to the Post, dont take away... ADD!!!

KI does not need to remove any of its rides, instead they need to use the other 1/2 of the land they own and do not use to add new rides. KI rides now are awesome compaired to other rides from the similar companies. (Vortex best arrow ever imo, SOB and Beast awesome woodies, FOF and IJ killer compacts, Firehawk great flying, TopGun very Intense but short for a suspended) However They do need a Giga Coaster and a B&M Dive Coaster.... Swampy

I first heard of Kings Island in 1979 at a family get together in South Carolina. I was 7 years old and I had some family from Indy that could not stop talking about "The Beast". Even though I was only 7 years old, I already was given my nickname I use online now from sneaking on Family Kingdoms Swamp Fox Coaster in 1978. My cousins told me how awesome this new wooden coaster (Beast) was and how terrified they were when they saw the 100+ foot lift hill! I was in awe and thought one day I was going to travel up there and ride this coaster. On Opening Day in 2007, I arrived at the beautiful front entrance of KI for the first time, and walked straight towards the Coaster that has been calling my name for 28 years. Yes it was more than I ever imagined it could be! I have been to KI this year 5 times since I moved to KY from SC, and now call KI my home park. Swampy

I have been coming to these forums for a while now, but never registered until I saw this post asking about the Family Kingdom in Myrtle Beach. Years ago this park was near perfect. The Swamp Fox coaster built in the 60s was once a top ten thrill ride in the world, along with the beach atmosphere and tons of other things to do... was a great place for families to enjoy a day at the beach. In the late 70s, The Pavilion opened its doors and due to its location in the heart of downtown Myrtle Beach, the Family Kingdom started to fall apart. In the late 80s to early 90s, they began to clean up the park and make it a great place again to families to have a good time. Im glad the Pavilion has closed to help bring life to the almost beach front amusment park. I have not been to the Family Kingdom in years since I have moved from that area to KY now, but I can still remember the good times when I was a kid. I have been sporting this nickname for years online due to the time I snook on this coaster when I was only 8 years old... years ago! Thanks KICentral for being a great home to a new KI fan, but a old coaster lover.... Swampy