XGatorHead 8904

Here's a website with cd's for sale of it. http://www.bandorganmusic.com/machines/mqueen.htm Some of them feature other organs as well, but the "Come to the Fair" and "More from the Queen of Kings Island Vols. 1, 2 & 3" are exclusively the Wurlitzer 157 of Kings Island fame.

Hank's Burrito Shack is one of the two reasons (the other being FunPerks) that my in-park spending increased last year. The way I described it after having it for the first time last year was "It's just a notch below Chipotle in taste, and just a notch above Chipotle in price." The only reason I say a notch below in taste is because Hank's doesn't have the corn salsa that I like at Chipotle, but the price was just right to keep me in the park and not going out to the new Chipotle down the street on Kings Island Dr.

Thank you! I love carousels with working organs, and hate that KI's does not work/was removed and we now get pre-recorded music. I've seen these recordings for sale before, but have never come up with a way to justify to Mrs. Gator the expense of buying them.... because you know I couldn't buy just one, I would need the complete set! Of course, there's the saying "It's easier to ask for forgiveness than it is to ask for permission!"

Anyone want to take a crack at interpreting Terpy's use of the word "plane" instead of "plain"? Calling KIC's aerial photographer...

Well... almost. The goats and pigs were pulled (pulled pork?) before opening night of Slaughter House in 2009, so the public never got to see them there. But their scent lingered that year, providing a nice olfactory assault on our victims. Regarding the main topic, a petting zoo was one of the attractions offered at Howl-O-Palooza last year, and had been a part of the kids Halloween event in years past too.

Nothing for Coasting for Kids 2013 has been announced yet. It typically isn't until a little later in the year. As far as having both trains running, they have one side of Racer open for the event (last year was Blue, previous years was Red). There were enough participants to just about fill both trains on the one side. In the early part of the day, it's just the one side running for the event. Then, once the park opens to the GP, the other side opens to them and we can actually race after doing our many practice laps! Mrs. Gator & GatorGirl said they want to join me this year, after hearing how much fun we had last year. Of course I then got to thinking, maybe we might do it at CP this year. Magnum and Gemini would be great to marathon too!

Sad news. This would mean that both of Mrs. Gator's childhood home parks would be gone (the other being Idora). We've been hitting a different park in PA every year for the past several years... if Conneaut is open again this summer, it's time for us to go there this year. "There's not much amusement in the closing of an amusement park." - Tin Man, The Wiz

My job. And Terpy, I cannot like your post enough!

Plymouth Rock Cafe is where I have to eat every time I go to HW!

Anything's better than Garfield's Nightmare at Kennywood (after which, GatorGirl's exact words were "I'm not impressed". Such a grown up response from a then 7 year old). Now Ghostwood Estate, on the other hand... Boo Blasters could only wish to be as good as Ghostwood Estate!

I've always hated those trains! No room at all.

Flying Eagles would fit quite nicely in my backyard. Plus, with as much wind as I sometimes get on that side of the house, we could really get those things snapping!

If not, I will... Two roads diverged after some treated wood. Will the park take the road less travelled by? That wood make all the difference. Even though I only live seven minutes from the park, Saturday was the first time I'd been by there since closing day. I said to Mrs. Gator, "Something seems to be missing." I can't wait to test GatorGirl about what's missing when we drive by there again this Saturday. It certainly looks different, but I'm old enough to remember quite a few years without it being there in the first place.

I had no idea there was so much going on with control of HW. Hopefully things get worked out so the park can operate smoothly for years to come.

Good for Matt! I spoke with him very briefly at the park a couple years ago, seems like a nice guy. He's been with the company for over a decade, so he knows the park's values and vision.

I said "Nevermore" somewhere around 2000-2001. I broke that vow in 2004 when I went with someone who had not been to CP since the '60s. I told him about my vow, but he convinced me to ride with him. We both got off with headaches, and I quickly reinstated the vow. I remember reading people's Facebook posts from opening day 2011, and how they said it was much better. As the year went on, people said it had gotten a little rougher then it was opening day, but still not as bad as it was before. Nevertheless, I have stuck with my vow and haven't ridden it since that day in 2004. You know that old saying, "Fool me once..." I'm fine without it, since there are plenty of other rides at CP to occupy my time.

Here are memories that stand out for me regarding SoB: - Being a media ambassador for the announcement, and with the big shaking crate, just built up my anticipation for the ride. - Taking pictures of the area as they were pouring the footings. - Being a media ambassador for the opening of SoB and riding it for the first time during the media event. I loved the drop out of the station, and the first big drop after the lift was unforgettably great. And then came the rose bowl, which was unforgettable in a completely different way. I had never before (or since) experienced such turbulence on a coaster as I did on that section. And then came the wonderful loop... a great experience to have on a woodie. I rode it a few more times that day and ended up sore, with bruises on my thighs. We got to go behind the coaster, and I kick myself to this day for not bringing my camera along to get that famous picture of the Eiffel Tower framed in the loop for myself. - A few years later, during an employee rides night, my friends and I marathoned SoB in the back car, without getting off. We had some great night rides on it that night. - My first ride without the loop and with the new trains, it just seemed odd. They had taken out one of the greatest parts of the ride (which I understand the reasons for) and it just wasn't the same. It went from something that I would possibly ride on each visit to something that I didn't really care if I rode or not. I had good rides on it and I had bad rides on it, but with it's history and final incarnation I'm really indifferent to it being gone. It wasn't my favorite coaster... far from it... but at least it didn't have me saying that I would never ride it again (which, for the record, Mean Streak is the only coaster that I ever said that about). Looking back in my records, out of my 16 visits to the park in 2008, I only rode it once. I then rode it once more, for the final time, in 2009.

^Not to mention KI did the same thing a few years ago with the building that has housed Club Blood since 2007. And then there's Kings Island Theater, which houses a show for about 2.5 - 3 months out of the 6 that the park is open. I wouldn't call either one wasted space, they both serve their purpose.

Well, let's see... I've been to 5 of the 8 parks in the running for the Finals (Dollywood, Idlewild, Sesame Place, KI & CP). As much as I love KI and enjoy CP, I had to give a slight edge to another park and voted for Dollywood. We had passes there this year and had lots of fun and created some great memories. In May, GatorGirl got her first ever inversions (on Tennessee Tornado), her first ride on Mystery Mine, and with her first ride on Thunderhead I gained a Thunderhead marathoning buddy! Not to mention the great shows, especially during Smoky Mountain Christmas, and the wonderful food. We spent a lot of time with friends there too over my nine days in the park, and even though it's nowhere near a Top 10 coaster for me, GatorGirl was absolutely thrilled in November when on our last visit of the year she was finally tall enough to ride Wild Eagle (and she could then say that she finally had a big park where she could ride EVERYTHING). WE also has the distinction of being her first B&M. So yup, DW wins for me this year.

A few years ago, if I was with my family you would usually find me in Nick U/Planet Snoopy & Boomerang Bay. Now that GatorGirl is over 48", it's impossible to say... we don't really have a favorite section, we're all over the place! During Haunt season though, the past five years you could find me lurking in Action Zone...

FoF? DS9? I wonder if there's a connection between the two...

Well, it was a good show, but I think I might have liked it a little better if I wasn't familiar with the Kings Island version. Don't get me wrong, it was very well done. But a lot of the stuff that I really liked about the show was missing from this production. I was waiting during the opening scene for GatorGirl's eyes to light up when they started singing "Hard Knock Life". And then they didn't. When it was time for the reindeer scene, I leaned over to GatorGirl and said "I like this part". But instead of the giant blacklight puppets that KI had, they had people in reindeer outfits singing "Up on the Roof", and she asked me "Why do you like this part?", so I had to explain to her what KI had. There were not 12 penguins singing "The Twelve Days of Christmas" with a Cincinnati twist. There were 3 penguins who sang "This Christmas" (which happens to be one of my least favorite Christmas songs). There was also no homesick alien singing "I'll Be Home for Christmas". With that said, some positives are that the main character, Wendell, was played by local 2012 American Idol contestant Eban Franckewitz, who GatorGirl is very familiar with. Also, the new parts of Heat Miser and Snow Miser were played by Bob Herzog and John Gumm, respectively, both from Channel 12 news. Overall, I do recommend the show, as it is still very good. It's a fun story, good songs and the kids enjoyed it. I'm just a cranky old guy who remembers the old version a little too well.

This weekend and next, The Children's Theatre of Cincinnati is showing Santa's Toy Factory at the Taft Theater. After reading the description of the show on their website (http://www.thechildrenstheatre.com/onstage/) and especially after reading the synopsis on page 2 of their study guide (http://www.thechildrenstheatre.com/pdfs/2013_santa_sg.pdf), I thought it sounded very similar to the Santa's Toy Factory show that KI did back in the days of Winterfest. I emailed their public relations person and asked if it was. She was kind enough to respond very quickly and confirmed my suspicions: it is the same show, which "has been adapted and expanded" with a few additional scenes. After reading her response, that's all I needed to know that I would definitely be going! This show is one of my favorites that Kings Island ever staged. From the opening number with Santa's elves rushing around to "Racing With the Clock" and "Hard Knock Life", Santa's reindeer singing "Up on the Roof", the homesick alien singing "I'll Be Home for Christmas" and the penguins singing "The Twelve Days of Christmas" with a Cincinnati twist, this show still stands as one of my favorite Christmas shows ever (right along with Dollywood's Babes in Toyland, 'Twas the Night Before Christmas, and Christmas in the Smokies). Show times are: Friday 12/7 at 7:30 PM Saturday 12/8 at 2 PM and 5 PM Sunday 12/9 at 2 PM Saturday 12/15 at 2 PM and 5 PM Tickets are $20, $18 and $7 (plus additional fees if purchased through Ticketmaster). There are a few videos of the KI productions on YouTube. There's one with parts of the 1991 production: There's also one of the 2006 production (which I couldn't get to play on my work computer, but you may have better luck. Individual results may vary): GatorGirl and I are going tonight (although she doesn't know it yet). I'm so glad that I get the chance to share one of my fondest Winterfest memories with my daughter.

"Hey, good lookin'... What ya got cookin'?"

Well.... not quite. While Scooby Doo (the coaster, aka Beastie, aka Fairly Odd Coaster, aka Woodstock Express) can be seen in the background, Mrs. Brady is not standing in Hanna-Barabera Land. She's standing in a behind the scenes area, specifically right in front of the Administration Building. That building is also where they shot the boardroom scene, in which Mike pulls the Yogi poster from the tube. What I find interesting (along with the running scenes that you pointed out make no sense if you know the layout of the park), is that when they're running through the park, it's sunny, but when they're in front of Admin handing the plans over to the executives, it's raining. You can't really tell by looking at the actors, but the ground is wet, you can see some raindrops to the sides of the frame, and there are a few rather large raindrops that pass right in front of the camera lens. I love that I have this episode (ok, ok, I admit... I have all 5 seasons!) on DVD, and The Partridge Family episode on VHS so I can watch them anytime I want.