gigacoaster2k

Of course there will be cell phones added to DB's ever-hungry phone box/net below the drop/brake run/ground under the coaster.. not to mention the inevitable car keys, iPods, wallets, season passes, hats, park maps, sunglasses, and undoubtedly flip flops that will fly off throughout the season. Giga, who isn't really one to talk, seeing as how she lost her phone to Maverick last September due to forgetting to zip my cargo pocket..

Thanks 13. I try to put a lot of thought into my PTRs, and try to remember as much as I possibly can. Last year I had several people tell me that my PTRs made them feel as if they were there.. I take that as an extremely high compliment. I try to showcase the park I visit while being goofy and conveying the emotions I felt at the time.. even while compiling my PTRs sometimes, I get so excited remembering the great time I had that I get sidetracked!

Here is the line for I305 that we didn't want to wait in. We rode Ricochet, which was quite fun for a wild mouse! It has a pretty sweet first drop! And then finally, much to my excitement, something opened that had been down almost all day.. Drop Tower! I absolutely love their Drop Tower, it's crazy fast! We decided to get everyone together since the day was drawing to a close, and do a night ride on I305 together. Tom, James, Adam, Matt, Jared, Nick, Shawn, and I met up with Dave (DaveStroem) and his 2 daughters for the ride. Tom and I in our first rider shirts!! I'm PUMPED, and he is TIRED! I305 at night. All I have to say about that night ride is WOW. At night, I305 honestly had the intensity of Voyage.. no, I'm not exaggerating. That was one unbelievably amazing way to end our day at KD. James met up with us in the I305 gift shop, and handed me a small bag. In it were two I305 shot glasses, one for me and one for Tom. He said it was a thank you for making it one of the best days of his life at his home park. Several hours from home and thirsty, hot, tired, and somewhat frustrated from the day's events, I was touched by this gesture of friendship from someone I'd only met once. On our way toward the exit, I saw this and had to take a pic! My ride count: I305 - 2 Volcano: The Blast Coaster - 1 Rebel Yell - 1 Dominator - 1 Grizzly - 1 Ricochet - 1 Anaconda - 1 Though I didn't get all of my credits, I quickly lost concern with that, and tried to focus on having fun even in a blazing hot, jam packed park full of line jumpers. Operations could have went better, but it was the first day, and that is to be expected with any park.. that is not something I base a park on as far as what I like most. I REALLY like KD, and plan to go back at least one more time this year. I'd like to go back when they aren't so busy, and take time to see more of the park and what it has to offer.

After fighting Dominator and winning, we went to Johnny's for some food. I believe I got a footlong chili dog and a bottle of water. At that point I was so, so hungry and so incredibly thirsty that I paid full price for my meal, caring far more about my health/blood sugar than my bank account. Then it was off to Rebel Yell, where a situation occurred. As Tom and I left Rebel Yell's station, we saw Adam. He yelled to us that his phone was destroyed. Only one side of Rebel Yell was running, but I like this a lot better than Racer.. as much as I love Racer, Rebel Yell overthrows it. We met back up with Adam, and he told us that Dominator smashed his phone and that Nick lost his phone to I305, and Jared's phone was dying, so I made a point of promising them and myself that I would not lose my phone too. We rode Grizzly, and saw pieces of HyperSonic XLC's track laying out in the woods! Then it was off to Anaconda. We went to go wait in line for I305, but the line was so very long and only running one train that we gave up. I took this opportunity to take a ton of I305 photos in the meantime. YUM. A photo I am very proud of. STAY TUNED!

Dude, I'm not even close to done yet. The good stuff is coming, so chill out.

The gates opened.. but there was a problem. Our passes weren't scanning, and they only had 2 metal detectors open to funnel the large throng of people that were shoulder to shoulder, spilling out from the entrance. Someone yelled at them to open more metal detectors, and they took notice and opened (I think) all of them. We started walking down I-Street for our 10 minute ERT on I305, and I had to take photos of the entrance. The front part of KD was like seeing KI again after so many months of being away from the park. It made my eyes get a little misty, walking with KICers and walking through a park that mirrors KI in so many ways.. <3 We were gated off, and then escorted by a security guard who told us to walk, not run. After what seemed like miles of speed-walking, my energy was rebooted and I screamed with joy when I saw THIS. I am surprised that my photos came out this clearly. I was literally shaking with excitement. As we got closer to the station, we heard a very loud and very definitive pre-recorded "GENTLEMEN!! START YOURRR ENGINNNNNESSS!!!!!!!!" and deafening screams and applause from the riders as they raced out of the station and up the incredibly fast, very smooth lift hill. I305 is extremely photogenic. I305 is Tom's 50th coaster! We didn't have to wait long for our first ride. I screamed so hard in the station when we were getting ready to go up the lift that my throat hurt! The lift is significantly faster than MF's lift. I'd heard of people blacking out on the first drop, but I only saw a few gray spots at the bottom of the first hill. The drop on this sucker is INSANE. Intense twists, crazy turns, and a couple of very nice airtime hills with FAR better "airtime" than MF, and I got no headbanging whatsoever. I don't even know how to begin to describe I305. It now sits proudly atop my steel coasters as number one. It is THAT good. I305 is maddeningly amazing, left me out of breath and wanting more, booing Millennium Force as I proudly threw on my I305 first rider shirt, shaking with adrenaline, excitement, and a thirst for more and more of I305. After that first mind blowing ride, we were going to get back in line, but my heart sank when I saw that the line for my beloved new #1 steel coaster had grown ridiculously long. I sighed a deep, sad sigh as I made myself walk away from that amazing ride. I305 OWNS MF. End of story. We went to Flight of Fear, and the line was almost nonexistent, but we were 3 trains away when it shut down. We decided to go to Volcano: The Blast Coaster! This was a very fun ride! I really liked the vertical launch! We sprinted back over to I305 to see if the line was still long. It had gotten even longer. *sighhh* Then it was off to Dominator! More Dominator! The wait was very long, and the line was jam packed full of line jumpers like you would not believe. The day was getting extremely hot at this point, and I would have done anything for a moment of shade or a drop of water. James informed us that he rode Dominator 1,503 times last year! Dominator is also very photogenic.. then again, what B&M isn't? It's about time someone implemented this. I'm not a person that needs a larger seat, but I absolutely hate watching people leave a ride they were excited about because they can't fit. Either way, we chose the very back row! Tom, James, and I were going up the lift when suddenly it ground slowly to a stop almost near the top of the hill. Several minutes passed, and everyone on the train started joking with each other. A voice came over an intercom to us and said someone would be with us shortly. I actually dozed off for a few minutes, regardless of the sun glaring in my face. Apparently, the kid in front of us wasn't tall enough to ride, so they had to evac him. After about half an hour of chilling out on Dominator's lift hill, we got going again with applause and cheers, and let me tell you something: Dominator is a pretty sweet ride. It was totally worth it. The supervisor met us back at the station with cups of cold water for everyone, which was appreciated. That sun got HOT up there! STAY TUNED FOR MORE!

Here it finally is.. a little late, but better than never! This may take several posts, but I'm not going to post every photo I took at every park for every PTR.. I will be making a different PTR for each park. I will try my best to only post the photos that showcase the trip. The rest of my photos can be seen on my Facebook photo albums. April 1, around noon, I had finished packing. Then it was off to Adam's (pkiboy) house to meet up with the crew: Tom (Tom76257) Shawn (BeastMan) Jared (rotag1299) Matt (gnomeprisoner) and Nick (DropZone99)! Once we all had our stuff packed into the van, we headed down to KI to process our platinum passes. We weren't allowed on the property quite yet, so we took some photos from the drop off area. I have a tiny DB. We were first in line for processing around 3 pm! Z0MG I CAN HAS PLATINUM PASS!! After everyone processed, we hit the van and it was off to KD!! Here is our ridiculous route from Cincy to KD to Carowinds to SFOG to Dollywood and back. Adam was having WAY too much fun scaring passing drivers with Jared's wig. We were all dying with laughter at the reactions we got! Before we knew it, we were in West Virginia! We were getting hungry around 8 pm, so we stopped here for some om noms. The staff were extremely friendly, and we even made friends with the people at the tables around us! My potato fries and bacon/ham/cheese omelet were amazingly delicious. I took one bite and said "Bob Evans, you're fired!" Our waitress enjoyed our company so much that she even invited us out for beers after she got off work, and we even got a photo with her and told her about KIC! We got back to the van, and Tom went to adjust his headrest. He yanked on it too hard, and the headrest popped off in his hand. It was quite amusing. After several phone calls, around 12 am, we met up with Rachel (StalkerChick) and her boyfriend Jack at an Exxon station close to the WV-VA border. We hung out for a bit, and then got back on the road. After several hours of a very tiring and slap happy road trip, we got to Doswell around 3 am. The sight of I305's lift hill glowing red and reaching high into the night sky woke me up faster than any cup of coffee ever has. We promptly went to bed in our hotel that was right next to KD's parking lot, and I believe we all got about 1 hour of sleep due to our extreme excitement. THE BIG DAY! Good morning, Kings Dominion. We went to Denny's for breakfast, which was right around the corner from our hotel. Then it was time to head to KD!! We got to the entrance around 8 am, one of the reasons being that we had been informed that the first 1,000 riders would get an I305 first rider shirt. We were one of the first at the gates! I also got to meet my friend James, who offered to be our tour guide and show us around since KD is his home park.. he goes almost every day! Dominator is testing! Our group was not happy about Shockwave being closed. I for one was not happy about Hurler being closed either. We also got to meet Pat, the GM of KD (?). She told us, and I quote, "Once you get on that ride, it delivers. It is stupidly great." HAHA I LOVE IT! STAY TUNED FOR MORE!

What I'm saying is that if every part of every coaster that makes any person gray out is trimmed, that would certainly dull the thrill for more people than I can account for. Some trims and MCBRs grab so ferociously that it causes the riders to jerk forward.. there is positively NO reason to have a brake on THAT hard. To be honest, and I know this sounds odd (some of you may or may not agree), but I kind of like the feeling I get when I gray out. Knowing a ride can do that kind of adds to the thrill for me.

I absolutely LOVE this post, and I totally agree with you. I like steep drops, zero-g rolls, loops, cobra rolls, launches, airtime hills, curved drops, and vertical lift hills. See my top 5 wooden and steel coasters on my profile for a great example of what I love most. I have a thirst for extreme rides, and you will see me on the world's craziest rides with my hands up and a huge smile on my face. Trimming every ride to the point where it's leisurely is not fun for thrillseekers like me and many, many others.. we love rides that leave us out of breath, and who cares if we see a few gray spots, it's not like we're disobeying the signs that strictly prohibit people with certain medical conditions from riding. If we wanted to ride kiddie coasters, we would. Leave our THRILL rides alone.

I've grayed out on Maverick's first drop. The helix on Goliath at SFOG also made me see a couple of gray spots. These are all noteworthy rides.. why weaken their punch with excessive trim brakes?

On I305, I only saw gray spots from the turn at the bottom of the first drop to halfway up the first airtime hill. That's a span of about 3 seconds. On MF, I have grayed out from the bottom of the first drop to the point where I couldn't see, and when my vision did clear, I was coming out of the first tunnel. Anyone who's been on MF knows that's quite a distance.

I'm not sure if this should be in this section or the Rumors section. I was told that CF is considering putting a trim brake on I305's first drop due to "everyone" "blacking out" on it. I BARELY grayed out on the first drop both times I rode it. I have grayed out FAR worse on Millennium Force's first drop than I did on I305's. So far I have heard of people only graying out and momentarily blacking out on I305's first drop, but after MF's first drop, I've gotten tunnel vision, extreme graying, seen gray/white sparkles, and a few people have even told me they have purpled out or even completely passed out. I have also lost my vision for far longer on MF than I did on I305.. I only saw gray spots for about 3 seconds on I305 while I have lost my vision for nearly 10 seconds on MF. With all due respect to CF, why do they feel that I305's drop is intense enough that it needs a trim brake, while the 100% trimless MF has been knocking people unconscious for a decade?

Todd, I must wholeheartedly agree with you on your detailed raving about I305. That coaster is just incredible. This 4-park trip I went on this past weekend brought me from 56 to 89 coasters. I305 completely blew me away and sits proudly atop my favorite steel coasters as #1.

I forgot to add my "other" response. Aside from amusement parks, I'm an enthusiast when it comes to: trying new foods going new places/traveling historical places vehicles football hockey wrestling photography nature music architecture Watch me at a car show, an aquarium, or the Gateway Arch. You will see me having just as much fun as I do at an amusement park. The list goes on. I used to be a very shy, very hesitant person up until junior high school. I broke out of my shell and decided to be a daring person who loved to try new things, and I haven't stopped since. I have found enjoyment in almost all areas of life.

! I got that at first too.. a few people on here accidentally referred to me as a he until they saw me at KI, and there was no question afterward.. I am indeed a she! hahaha

Rachel, I absolutely love your pics! I can't wait to ride the flying scooters.. those ride ops had better watch out for OUR group! LOL.. glad you had such a great time, but I'm sorry your head hurt and Robbie got sick.. hope both of you are feeling better. I still have my painkillers and nausea prescription meds left over from my fight with a very nasty stomach flu virus just in case.. Giga has NO plans of getting sick, not this week, no-way!

I remember that! One of the few times I've ever screamed on a roller coaster! Do you remember when we were heading up Magnum's lift and I looked out to see a huge flock of seagulls around the second hill? I was sure that we were going to hit the flock. Thankfully, the train coming toward them scared them away.

When it takes several beers to get me to ride a coaster, that should tell you something.

Agreed 100%. I am one of those that had pain on SOB, but I did give it another chance after several people told me I need to ride it in the front seat of the blue train. I tried it, and I was blown away how smooth it was in that seat. I rode it that way again, and it closed shortly afterward. I was sad to see it not running for the remainder of last season, and I missed hearing the sound of the lift, like any enthusiast would. If they rehab it, great. I'll give it another chance. If they don't, you will only see me riding in the front. If it never reopens, see my above statement. SOB isn't the worst ride I've been on, but it's not the greatest either. KI still has my favorites: DB, Racer, Slingshot, Drop Tower, Flight of Fear, and Flight Deck to keep me happy. And I repeat: At least it isn't DB that's closed for the season. Look on the bright side.

YUCK. I ate so many of those at CoasterMania!, I got used to the taste of bug in the back of my mouth.

Anyone who thinks the bugs are bad at KI needs to ride the front seat of Millennium Force on a midsummer night. The night Tom was talking about, MF's trains were coming back with people in the front rows spitting, gagging, and wiping their shirts. We rode in the second seat and I was picking bugs out of my eyes, off my shirt, out of my nose, out of my hair, and shaking them out of my bra. Some people will even wear a poncho to protect themselves from the unavoidable coat of bugs.. yes, it is that bad, and no, I am not exaggerating.