silver2005

Holiday Party link- http://www.KICentral.com/forums/index.php/topic/30887-holiday-party-2015-dec-11-12/

Here is the poll I said I would put out regarding one of my songs. I want to throw in a slower number and I think I have a few good ones.

I just had the BEST news concerning auditions. They are allowing sax auditions on either alto or tenor sax, so I don't need to have both. If you see smoke coming from the west side of Cincy, its likely me prepping my songs for the audition sessions next weekend. So, SO excited!

Another possible benefit with putting the Flyers on Beast is to have GCI come in and re-profile turns and let it run unaffected by trims. I'd also do a bit something different with the brake shed before the 2nd tunnel.

My only issue with adding Millennium Flyers (that's what those are BTW) would be capacity. With how long it is and how the block sections are spread from lift 1 until lift 2, it needs to be a capacity monster. I have yet to see GCI go above 24 rider capacity with Millennium Flyers. GhostRider itself is reducing from 28 to 24 per train with this though its not as big a difference as Beast plus its significantly shorter. I do see a lot of benefit with switching from the PTC's if KI ever deems them unfit for the ride.

When this thread starts ballooning with posts.

Ok, talk about weird. I tried to call the number KI provided about auditions to ask a question, but I'm being directed to an answering machine. I'm confused about what I'm supposed to do. I was expecting to talk to a real person. I'm not even sure if its the right place I'm calling.

Beast for the final public ride of the year for me.

I agree with getting rid of them, especially since 99% of everyone has cameras on them now and if one wants them printed, its probably cheaper outside the park.

From Kings Island's Facebook page- Construction of the new Tropical Plunge, a complex of six different water slide experiences towering nearly seven stories, is underway in Soak City Waterpark.‪#‎KI2016‬ https://www.facebook.com/visitkingsisland/photos/a.226729858367.174830.155893938367/10154225594418368/?type=3&theater

From Universal's head of external communications- "This is not a competitive issue." Really? Also this. Riiiight.

Google.com is obviously a foreign concept for Ed Hart.

^The best part about Banshee's slowed pace is it had some better weightless moments and/or hang time on the inversions. I can't say I disliked it. The ride was nice none-the-less. It didn't have as much of a rattle when it was slower.

This trip wasn't quite as epic as last year's Haunt meet-up, mainly due to the heavier rain and colder temperatures, but it all worked out pretty well despite the weather. It kept the crowds away at the very least. My goal was simple, get some last rides before taking a year off from the park. As much as I could use a change of scenery when it comes to amusement parks, there are still things at KI I will sorely miss. I do appreciate those who hung out with me who let me do my thing. It was nice with the company. A few interesting things happened during this trip. Firstly was right after the gates opened on the first few ventures on Banshee. The wind was pretty gusty at opening, and it affected Banshee quite a bit. It was a bit sluggish through the course. It was going over the first few elements a bit slower than usual, but it really slackened at the roll and the final helix. It also felt like it barely got back to the final brakes at the end. Later on though, it would go back to its fast paced ways. It was also odd the lighting package wasn't on all night. I kind of liked it. The added darkness was a nice touch. The first half of the visit had heavier rain, so it made a lot of rides uncomfortable for me. It was mostly to burn time until it got darker as it wasn't quite sunset yet during opening. Most rides I could at least tolerate, save for Diamondback and Delirium. Those were bad ideas being 2 of the fastest rides in the park. It actually made me a bit disoriented on Diamondback as I had my arms in front of my face blocking the 80 mph water bullets, so I couldn't anticipate or brace for anything. It was also quite brisk as well even with the layers I had on. After taking a break at RHoFG, we went out for round 2, and luckily the rain was dying down so I could enjoy the rides more. I did go through a few mazes, though reluctantly. The group wanted to see Gator at Slaughterhouse, so I sucked it up and went through. Not a fan through. The one themed to game boards was alright I suppose. I pretty much rode every coaster except Invertigo, and of course, due to weather, Drop Tower and WindSeeker were closed. A lot of the more intense rides like Firehawk and Vortex felt more comfortable in the cooler weather which was a nice surprise. The cooler weather also prevented me from graying out on Backlot's helix. I guess heat plays a factor in those things. Beast and Racer in the rain were great of course. Got another ride on Diamondback in the front when it stopped raining. To finish, I got 2 rides in 1-1 on Beast. Luckly I didn't have a long wait, just 3 trains of waiting each for the front. I'm glad I did because the weather made the ride awesome. I imagine the type of setting that was there is something RL Stine had in mind when he wrote his Beast book. My only complaint is the lights were on in the helix which I'm not a fan of. I also let myself not brace for things as much and let the laterals do their thing. Had a great night, and I will surely miss the park in taking a break from it. I'm heavily leaning to a 2 day Holiday World visit to fill the void, possibly KK or Kennywood as well. I also doubt I will be at closing day.

The glowing red eyes on the Eiffel Tower are a very subtle but effective touch. Its especially effective when the tower is at a moment when its not lit, just the eyes ominously overlooking the park. Add to that an overcast night sky and its just perfect for the Haunt/Halloween.

I haven't seen any of the SIX parks in the line of this storm say anything yet, though, I imagine that'll change for SFoG, SFA and NJFTP.

Well, conversely, I don't like when it stops on the first lift either if they're too close together because that really kills the anticipation (unless its purposefully part of the ride experience like on a B&M dive coaster).

I'm of the opinion that they should spread out the dispatches so the trains go up the first lift a bit quicker. The ride feels more fluid to me when its done like that. I think the slow lift kind of diminishes the anticipation.

Track doesn't need to be all that special to function. I consider this a simplistic approach to it (which I hear can be a good thing in engineering). It looks like it requires less work to produce than about any other track out there. It also might reduce the number of supports needed since those big solid pieces of steel track will allow them to be spread out, possibly using less supports than a B&M. There's also less welding since the rails and the supporting elements are all one big piece of steel.

There is something the Diamondback crew did on P&G Day that I hope they continue. They did advise guests that they were dispatching in 20-30 seconds each time, but they did it in a way that, for lack of a better word, motivated guests to load faster, including the deal with the bins. It worked fantastically and they were dispatching much like they did when the ride opened. I hope that's a permanent change. I think they were dispatching better than Banshee at times- Banshee had triple stacks often that day. The best part of it was that they were doing it in a way that guests weren't uncomfortable about it. Beast was also pumping trains through pretty well, though, they did it so close together that the trains were crawling or stopping on the first lift. I actually don't mind a delay there so that the first lift is a bit quicker.

^I would guess some track would have the middle adjusted or cut out to accommodate brakes. They could even just mount it on top so the undercarriage of the trains would have proper clearances.

I consider the construction and designing of coasters an art form. The different ways the track looks and the amazing layouts are amazing structures in their own right. As long as they're structurally sound and are safe for riders, I have no qualms over how they're made or how the track looks. I think this has a neat look to it. It kind of looks like Hot Wheels track come to life. I would think the costs of constructing this type would be on par with a B&M with how much steel they'll be using. I imagine this would be a full fledged steel coaster as I don't think wood supports would handle the weight.

^I think that may be my schtick with TR's from now on. Instead of doing 1 thread with my TR's, I'll do separate threads and be a bit creative in naming them.

Yeah, I forgot to mention- the staff was entire staff was excellent today. I imagine a lot of that is due to the fact KI wants to look good for potential season pass owners, but also with what kind of company they're dealing with. They handle thing well towards that particular demographic. I would like to shout out the girl running the Eiffel Tower elevator all day today. That has to be an insanely monotonous job, and she was still pretty spunky at 10 pm. Kudos.

I have a rather special TR, this time from P&G Day 2015. Got there a bit before 10 am due to no ERT and headed to Rivertown. Usually at P&G Day, people are in lines to pick up free stuff with vouchers that are mailed with the tickets. Over the day, lines accumulate, but nothing over 15 minutes, even for the likes of Firehawk, Invertigo and the major flats. It was much less crowded than any day I've been to the park. Nearly everything was a walk on or in the case of flats, a single cycle wait. Even X-Base. WindSeeker and Drop Tower were down most of the day for high winds, which, we got to Drop Tower once the skies cleared up, while only brief with winds picking up again later. BTW, there was overcast and a misty rain through most of the morning and early afternoon. Cleared up by dinner. Beast and Racer ran spectacularly the rest of the day (including either less biting trims on the former or no trims on the later). The weather after it rained was absolutely perfect. A nice Autumn brisk-ness was in place by sunset. So you may be thinking- why the thread title? Well.... With the lack of live entertainment, we had to take breaks from riding a lot. We rode KI&MVRR 3 times. Eiffel Tower 2 times (one of which to catch the fireworks). We tried to stretch our time at the Reds HOFG (watched a bit of the OSU and UC games, both nail biters) to kill more time. I think we ended up getting all the major popular rides at least 3 times. Overall, the only adult section rides we missed were Scrambler, WindSeeker, Skyflyer and Sling Shot. We wanted some sort of lines to burn time off. Again, even X-Base failed us. The longest we waited was for Dodgems. The longest line overall belonged to Woodstock Gliders, which, was ironically too long (this was after walking a while). We even tried a few front seat rides to get some sort of wait. Got in 6 night rides in less than an hour (Diamondback, Beast, Vortex, AE, Banshee and Bat) still had time to get to ET for the fireworks. Note to self- come later for P&G Days.