silver2005

Is anyone else thinking this station might be pretty picturesque in a thunderstorm? Photographers, take note.

I guess I'm more mad about people here acting like people shouldn't carry anything at an amusement park or that people shouldn't carry things onto rides and set them aside at the station for capacity's sake. I totally understand some of Kings Island's reasoning to their decisions.

I think I should chime in here. I have a medical condition where I have to carry certain things around with me at all times in a back pack as well as hydrate regularly (a liter a day more than an average person). As much as the lockers are cheap, it would help me greatly if I could carry those things in line knowing I could put them aside at the station on warmer days, especially in long lines like Firehawk can get. It often is the make or break decision for me to ride those rides at all. Being forced to use a locker for Firehawk and now Banshee is a bit disconcerting to me. I realize I'm in a minority, but there are times the lockers are an inconvinience. I don't understand why Banshee won't have the bins. What, just because its the 'new' ride and they want the greater capacity where employees do not have to check loose articles? Didn't Diamondback have its bins during its opening year? It did just fine in capacity that year didn't it? B&M inverted coasters at a lot of other parks have places to put things. What really makes Banshee so different? Apologies if I come off a bit angry, but please, just understand there are those of us with legit reason to have things on our person. I'm willing to be corrected on anything I'm missing.

Maybe the basketball gods will smile and set up a Bearcats/UK Wildcats match up.

I'm currently at Cincinnati State, but am a member of the Bearcat Bands up at UC (there are several colleges including NKU and Thomas Moore that allow that). I will be going to UC in fall of 2014 though. It's a very long story why I've been at Cincy State.

Since Cincinnati State decided it'd be a good idea not to have a Spring Break since switching to semesters, I will be signing up to go on one of the tournament trips (either the AAC tournament or, likely, the NCAA tournament) come March and adding in one of my own. Seriously, I needed ALL of Thanksgiving Break in the fall, I don't get why C-State didn't put in a spring break (UC gets one BTW). I'll likely be doing a PTR. I have no guarentees as, obviously, a lot of people in band want to do this. Other than that, I hope to be posting a KI trip report come mid-May or so. Gonna wait until a Friday in the middle of May so there are less crowds for my first venture on Banshee.

I have to admit, going to Water Works prior to the Boomerang Bay change made me a big fan of the Beach Boys (especially that awesome sax solo in the middle of Kokomo). I miss how simple it used to be in the path layout as well as more natural shading. I hate walking on all that hot concrete making my way out to the wave pools.

^Yeah, but they still have roughly 3 months to do all that, plenty of time.

I'll miss Clifford/Clifford Jr. working around and bending down for pennies. Hoping to see them again for the next construction project. On a more serious note, I'm glad Kings Island gets construction done at a good pace. It's nice to know they have a lot of time to get everything in place and have it tested before opening day. I wish certain parks from another chain involving flags would take note...

Well...this is kind of a kick in the teeth for me. There's no way I can do opening weekend now. I'm really busy with the family that weekend. Oh well, at least it'll be significantly easier to ride Banshee on later weekends.

I think that photo really illustrates the length and the unique, sprawled out layout of Banshee quite well, especially compared to other B&M inverted coasters which are mostly more compact rides.

^oOo...look at all the saxophones in that band! Digging the pink cover over the bell on that alto sax in the center. What I'd give to do something like that....

Here's my opinion on why I like Adventure Express- - Like a few other coasters at Kings Island, it utilizes the terrain and woods well. - A unique pre-lift stretch of track which goes a long way to build up the rest of the ride. - Unlike mine train coasters at some other parks (at least among the ones I've ridden) AE has some decent forces, particularly lateral forces. It is a bit jerky, but that gives it character IMO. - Decently themed tunnels.

^Sigh. The camera is on SOB's station. SOB's station hosts Wolf Pack. The cloth is likely a part of the props used to theme up that Haunt attraction every year. Its likely a bit of wind got under it and blew it over the camera. If your theory is right, why didn't they cover up the camera on top of the Eiffel Tower? You can see the track lifts fine there still. Just sayin'.

The press release states the total height differential from the tallest point of the lift to the lowest point is around 208 ft. So, its probably about a 40-50 ft elevation change from the bottom of the first drop to the bottom of The Bat-preztel/2nd loop area.

I'm pretty sure Don has confirmed multiple times that the SOB station and Wolf Pack are staying.

Wait...if the camera is at the SOB station, couldn't that just be a stray cloth they use for the Wolf Pack props? Maybe wind is blowing them in front of the camera?

I'd be up for something like this. The AF Museum would be a big if for me due to the distance (I live 15 minutes west from downtown Cincy, Dayton is a 2 hour drive for me). The rest are pretty do-able for me though. If I had to chose, I'd probably go for the Cyclones game, but I'm open to anything else as well.

How weird is it seeing a B&M coaster on that kind of sale list?

I would have to agree with moving in an existing top spin. I simply loved Tomb Raider and its original programs. I think making it an outdoor ride would be a bit more impressive than the eyesore of a metal box we have sitting at the bottom of Diamondback's first drop. There are 2 steel coasters I have in mind. Both are launch coasters that really set up the launches well with a bit of set up. First is Volcano from KD. That simple slow turn is actually kind of suspenseful before the LIM's kick in and haul the train off. The 2nd has a bit of a longer pre-launch segment which is indoors, and that is Blue Fire from Europa Park. I know KI has a few launch coasters already, but those two just stick out in my mind. For a wood coaster, as much as it wouldn't stack up to KI's capacity standards, any GCI would do. I'd probably narrow it down to Lightning Racer and Joris en de Draak from Efteling as they are both dueling coasters which would be slightly better for KI's capacity needs.

Well, if we're going with ghost/haunted themed songs, who else would you call? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9J9haehfQeg

While local selections are nice, I think having at least 1 or 2 national chains would still be best as some patrons just want things that are familiar to them.

I think most people are over-thinking this thing about KK adding a Drop Tower so shortly after the accident with their previous one. I'm pretty sure the local GP would be aware at the very least that the other 2 nearby parks, Holiday World and Kings Island, have safe, working Drop Towers. With that in mind, I don't see why a new Drop Tower wouldn't work at Kentucky Kingdom.

So here's my Belk Bowl PTR. The trip began on the 26th of December. It was a bit different than the year before, whereas last year we had to leave at about 2 am so we could do some performances straight off the bus. This year, we had an extra day (last year it was on the 27th, this year on the 28th), so we had that extra night to sleep before a rather busy day on the 27th. There was a minor short coming as the last 2 buses (one of which I was on) fell back too far from the first 3, and thus we took a wrong turn and spent an extra 40 minutes cruising through South Carolina before we turned around back towards Charlotte. We stayed at the Omni Hotel. We also had $50 in spending money provided by the bowl. We initially had more, but we used it to stay the extra night so we didn't have to go straight back to Cincy after the game, which was the original plan. On the 27th, we had an early morning rehearsal at 9 am. A local HS, which was also where the team practiced, was where we went, and they even had the right hash marks on (there are 3 different sets, HS, NCAA and pro, the HS had the NCAA marks while the stadium had NCAA and pro marks, they are vital to making the pictures you see bands make). In any case, the sun glare was so fierce that it was hard to see the marks at all. After a 3 hour break for lunch back at the hotel, we did a little battle of the band contest with the University of North Carolina Band. I have to say, I liked their style. A very southern-y style band, and though a little top heavy (more higher pitched instruments for sure), they sure had a lot of energy and they had a heck of a trumpet who was just wailing away. There wasn't a winner declared, but it was just nice to see another college band perform. We then had dinner and I was in a special 50 piece band that performed for the special pep rally they had that night at a plaza area called the EpiCenter. They even had a bar for UC fans selling Skyline coneys and 3-4 ways. It was a pretty intense rally too. We traded songs again with a small group from UNC's band. Unlike last year where we outnumbered Duke's fans, UNC definitely had more presence than the Cincy crowd. Probably one of my favorite parts of the trip. Found a great NY style pizza place for dinner that night as well. Now onto game day on the 28th. Got a noon start after a boxed lunch at 11 am. We hardly used the buses other than the rehersal as everything was within walking distance, so we mostly walked everywhere, including to battle of the bands which was by the NASCAR HoF and Bank of America Stadium, also the home of the Carolina Panthers. Got to the stadium at about 1 pm so we could get situated and prep for pre-game. Also got a few shots of the team. (might be a tad blurry, the net made focusing a bit tough). So...the game...where do I begin? Both the O-line and D-line let UNC run through them all night. 2 big plays let up by the special teams, a botched kick return and a UNC run back for a TD, really hampered us early. They had momentum from the get go and never let up. Final score Tar Heels 36, Bearcats 17. After the game, we walked back to the hotel and I went out for a few drinks with friends as well as a nice steak dinner. I usually try to have at least one nice dinner at each of the bowls, and I saved this nice meal for the end. We left at 10 the next morning and arrived back in Clifton a little after 7:45 pm. Overall a pretty decent trip. Also, I have news that the UC band will be at the Bengals play off game this Sunday vs the Chargers! I'll post that part in the marching band thread as its not much of a trip.

Just got back from the Belk Bowl trip. Sure, UC did get throttled by UNC, but I had a blast regardless. PTR to come tomorrow.