TombRaiderFTW

A related side note: my forum page just updated with the new banner image. It looks REALLY sharp, and it brings back memories of the old home page banner. Good job!

I was just there on Sunday--Kings Island Drive does appear to be complete. The landscaping looks pretty nice, too. The intersection on KI drive just south of the parking lot is still very condensed, though, like you said. That's not going to be fun to drive through Opening Day, especially if it's super busy.

Hey all! On Thursday, I went to all four Walt Disney World parks. I'd been to Epcot and Magic Kingdom before, but this was my first time going to Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. Just had some thoughts that I'd like to share here. There's probably going to be a ton of text and not many pictures, so you've been warned: this is going to be a novel. So it's been about a year and a half since I was last in Orlando. My last trip involved Magic Kingdom on Christmas Day... Uuuuuuugh. To say it wasn't a great experience is kind. So, I was aching to get back to WDW on a day with decent attendance levels. And that's very much what I had on March 9! A one-day Park Hopper ticket was at the cheapest price tier (the last day it's at that tier until sometime in August or September.) Spring breakers were somewhat present, but I think it's still pretty early in spring break season--they didn't really affect the park experience too much. There were some noisier folks staying in the same hotel as me, but even then, there weren't too many of them. (I didn't stay on Disney property--I stayed at an Extended Stay America fairly close to Universal, ironically.) The final Disney After Dark event at Magic Kingdom was also set to happen that evening. If you're not already aware, Disney After Dark is a (controversial) series of events that Disney started last year. In essence, you pay extra for around 3 hours of ERT at Magic Kingdom on select nights. It's typically priced higher than a full day at MK (about $115 for DAH vs. $100 for a one-day MK ticket)--hence, the controversy and accusations of Disney being greedy. Ordinarily, I'd be very, very hesitant to pay that much for only a few extra hours... But I made an exception this time as I wanted to ride certain rides in each park, wanted to spend more than 3 hours in each park (9am to 9pm hours across 4 parks = 3 hours at each), and probably won't be able to go back to Orlando for quite some time. Plus, with how short I've read the lines tend to be, I figured it would be fun to experience multiple re-rides on some of my favorite Magic Kingdom rides just once. So, I got ready and headed to Lake Buena Vista in time for an 8am arrival at... Park One: Animal Kingdom Time spent at park: 8am to about 12:30pm. Attractions experienced: 5, but with multiple re-rides. FastPass+ reservations acquired beforehand: Expedition Everest, Dinosaur, Kilimanjaro Safaris. Food bought at park: some Masala Chai tea and a chocolate doughnut. Percent of time spent drooling: 95.7%. First impressions: You know how when you pull into a park's parking lot, you look at the skyline to see the big rides? Yeah, that's mostly not how it works at Animal Kingdom. You can see some floating Avatar islands and the very tip of Expedition Everest, but that's it. Depending on what you look for in a park, this can either be intriguing or disappointing. Personally, I found it really interesting--that's pretty much exactly the opposite of Epcot and Magic Kingdom. So, with tentative excitement, I parked in the Dinosaur parking area and headed for the gate. The front gate does remind me a bit of Islands of Adventure, but not so much that it feels like a copycat. It's very jungle-y and filled with bamboo, and the buildings all have a green or dark brown color scheme. You enter the park, and you are in the Grove, a small grotto surrounded by huge trees and some water elements. Is it anticlimactic? Maybe. It flies right in the face of Main Street USA at Magic Kingdom. There are no lines of sight deeper into the park. Is it mysterious? Absolutely. If you're like me, you're dying to explore deeper into the Grove and into the park to see what's around the bend. In essence, that feeling summarizes Animal Kingdom really well. Magic Kingdom finds adventure in exploring imagination and fantasy; Epcot finds adventure in exploring the future and everything that contributes to making a brighter future; and Hollywood Studios arguably finds adventure in storytelling, especially through utilizing stories we know through movies. Animal Kingdom simply seems to find adventure in exploring the world around us; the world is its adventure. That really resonates with me. I just think that's so dang cool. Anyhoo, I digress: around 8:45, they let the crowds finally walk deeper into the Grove. We wound past trees and rocks until finally, the Tree of Life came into view. It's a HUGE faux tree that has several animals carved into its trunk, and by far one of the cooler centerpieces to a park I've seen. Check it out: (Source: Disney Parks Blog.) What's more, as they held people in the plaza in front of the Tree of Life, they did a small show featuring at least a dozen Macaw parrots flying in from another part of the park and swooping over the crowd. It was one of the COOLEST things any park has ever done. I'm geeking out so hard over it. That was so cool. Finally, at 9:00am, the ropes were dropped. I had a FastPass+ reservation at Expedition Everest starting at 9:00, but I wanted to try to get multiple rides on it if possible. So, I started power-walking to it with several other people. Now, time for a PSA: when you're heading for Expedition Everest from the Tree of Life plaza, you'll notice that you have to go around the large-ish body of water used for Rivers of Life to get there. You can either turn left and walk through the Asia section of the park, or you can turn right and go through DinoLand U.S.A. Go left, it's quicker. Didn't know that myself, so I went right and realized my mistake when only a couple other people went with me. If you want to beat the crowds to Expedition Everest, don't do what I did. Go left. You're welcome. Expedition Everest: I wasn't totally sure what to expect out of Expedition Everest. I've heard both great things and complaints about a "Disco Yeti" not living up to expectations. I've watched (and watched, and watched) POVs, and I wasn't sure how much I should raise my expectations. I didn't want to experience anticipointment, ya know? Uh, yeah. About that. Anticipointment was not an issue. Expedition Everest is incredible. Much like Verbolten, it's one of those things that might not look like much on YouTube. Also like Verbolten, it's a much better experience when you are actually there experiencing G-forces and the bass of the Yeti's roar (or the forest spirit's voice, in Verbolten's case.) On the second lift hill, you pass through this small tunnel themed to a temple with paintings warning you of the legend of the Yeti, and there are these wailing horns that play as you pass through, and I get straight cold chills every time. If you didn't know (I didn't!), the story behind Expedition Everest is that you are starting an expedition to the top of Mount Everest from a small town in India/Nepal. You're taking a train up the side of the mountain. You are warned about the legend of the Yeti, but you press on--until your train encounters track that appears to have been pulled to pieces. You hear a faint roar off in the distance, just over the sounds of the birds squawking. Your train stalls, then rolls back down a side track until you're deep within the caverns of the mountain. You pause--and in light shining through a small hole leading outside, you see the silhouette of a huge animal tearing more track to shreds. Your train speeds through another side track and down the side of the mountain in a frantic attempt to escape, but the more you run, the closer the roars echo. Finally, as you plunge through a final tunnel, the Yeti is inches from snatching you out of your train--and you can only see him in quick and occasional bursts of light. You narrowly escape and roll into the brakes at your base camp: the expedition failed, but you survived. Everest had a HUGE price tag ($100 million, more than Cedar Fair or Six Flags spends across all of their parks in a typical year), so I'm sure the technology behind the ride wasn't cheap. Plus, y'know, the giant mountain they built and stuff probably cost some money, too. That being said, there's something really awesome about the indirect and somewhat subtle way they tell the story. There's never any narration, but it still communicates a story really well. I've never really experienced anything like that before, and I really, really like it. I can't quite decide if EE ties Verbolten and Fury 325 as my favorite steel coaster or if it's in a very close second, but I do know for sure that it's a must-ride. If you have time to visit Animal Kingdom while in Orlando, you HAVE to ride Everest. I recommend the back if you want the forces or the middle if you want the best view of the theming. I like both forces and theming, so sitting about 3/4ths of the way back on the train was my favorite experience. They assign rows for this ride, though, so your mileage may vary. The single rider line is VERY nice, though, and you can cut a 45-minute wait down to 5 minutes pretty easily. That's how I got about 3 rides in on it. (Side note: if, like me, you've ever heard complaints about "Disco Yeti," here's my understanding of what that's about: the Yeti animatronic you encounter in the final tunnel is illuminated by a strobe light. It doesn't move. This is due to some alleged foundation issues for that animatronic that keep it from moving--apparently, the Yeti used to reach out towards the train as you go by. I don't know what the lights originally did, but I guess it wasn't the intermittent strobe situation it is now. Since the main thing that makes the Yeti alarming now is the strobes, it's earned the nickname "Disco Yeti." Admittedly, I haven't researched the original ride's design, but I don't mind Disco Yeti. I think it's pretty cool the way it is, but that's me!) Maharajah Jungle Trek: Maharajah Jungle Trek is essentially a zoo, but with some incredible crumbling Asian-/Hindu temple-inspired architecture. I visited it very early in the morning after 2 or 3 rides on Expedition Everest, so it was nearly empty. The animals were pretty active, though, and the views you get of their exhibits are really well-designed. I saw tigers sprinting a few feet from the windows I watched from. There also are cast members stationed at each exhibit, so if you have any questions or just want to learn some things, that's there for you. I thought that was a neat touch. One of my most favorite places is the small Islands of Southeast Asia area at the Columbus Zoo. I still love it, but MJT is that experience on steroids. I don't know of any themed park area that's ever felt like an adventure the way that MJT does. Plus, it's secluded, (at least for me) not crowded, and doesn't have a line. If you love seeing animals, I have to recommend Maharajah Jungle Trek, regardless of whether or not you ride Kilimanjaro Safaris. (More on that in a bit.) I don't have too much more to say than that--just be sure to check it out if you're at AK! Here's someone else's picture for reference: (Source: the Walt Disney World website.) Dinosaur: Wow. Wow wow wow wow wow. Let me make a big claim right now: as far as I'm concerned, Dinosaur might be the most underrated ride at WDW, in Florida, or even the American amusement industry. You may not agree, but I stand by what I said. It's one of the best dark rides I've ever been on. I think it's tied with IOA's Spider-Man for my favorite dark ride. Dinosaur is located within the fictional Dino Institute, which holds a handful of traditional museum pieces in it (e.g., a large dinosaur skeleton, pieces of fossils, etc.) As you enter, you are separated into one of two preshow rooms, where the head of the Institute, played by Phylicia Rashad, explains that they have perfected a time machine to take you back to see dinos firsthand. It's praised as the next step in experiencing history--after all, "the future is truly in the past." And then the video feed is interrupted: quirky subordinate scientist Dr. Seeker wants you to travel to the past to bring back an Iguanodon. You're not supposed to, of course, as Dr. Marsh (Rashad's character) reminds you. When she's not looking, though, Seeker modifies the time coordinates to the point JUST before the comet hits and kills the dinosaurs, which is where his Iguanodon is located. Don't worry, though--"you'll be in and out of there before it breaks the atmosphere. What could go wrong?" I don't even want to describe the ride experience because I don't want to spoil it. Yes, the ride is 19 years old, but still. It's so good. And so much of the ride is in the dark that it doesn't video particularly well. If you want to know what the ride's about, I'm sure you can find an in-depth description somewhere else. If you absolutely want to get an idea of what it's like, check out a POV on YouTube. The audio in the darker parts will give you a pretty good idea of what's going on. It's just so good. I will never ever not get goosebumps at Yeah. Yeah. Just go ride Dinosaur, okay? At least on the day I went, it never had a line longer than about 5 minutes, not including the preshow video. Primeval Whirl/DinoLand U.S.A.: Uhh... I think this might be why Dinosaur doesn't get more praise. I've read somewhere that Dinosaur is supposed to be the "serious" attraction in DinoLand U.S.A., and everything else in that area is supposed to be themed to a cheaper tourist attraction for visitors to the Dino Institute. Knowing that, I guess the theme of the area works... but I'm not a fan of it. If I hadn't known that beforehand, the area would feel like a very, very cheaply done attempt at mimicking (or even mocking) the Jurassic Park area at Islands of Adventure. Frankly, if it came out tomorrow that Eisner actually was trying to mock IOA, I'd believe it. There's a jarring contrast between the romanticized African and Asian sections, with their rustic signs and crumbling archways and respective animal elements, and the faded, cartoony, and flat printed signs of DinoLand. Gone is the feeling of "the world is an adventure"--and it's been replaced with something that feels a lot like "we needed some other stuff to go with Dinosaur, but we didn't have the money." It's a flat, crumbling asphalt patch with faded parking lot stripes painted on it. Attractions include two clearly portable spinning coasters and multiple game booths scattered throughout the area. The game booths aren't a bad thing by any means, but they're very simple and sun-faded; they'd fit more at a struggling FEC than a Disney park. The area, honestly, feels and looks cheap, and if lack of budget didn't "inspire" this area's theme to begin with, I'd kindly suggest that it get replaced soon. I get the feeling that Avatar is going to only make DinoLand look even more out of place. I never experienced the original California Adventure, but I get the impression that had a similar vibe. Here's a picture for reference: (Source: Vacationearing.com.) As far as Primeval Whirl goes... It's a pretty standard Zamperla- or Reverchon-style spinning mouse. It's fun enough, but it might not change your life. Disney's foresight to add two of that coaster was kinda nice, as I'd really hate to wait hours and hours in line for just a spinning mouse. I ended up waiting about 10 minutes. I'd say it's worth a 10-minute wait. Ho hum. Kilimanjaro Safaris: About 12 years ago, I had a chance to go on a safari in a national park in South Africa. Last January, I had a similar experience at an animal reserve in India. Kilimanjaro Safaris was pretty true to both experiences, and as a result, I totally loved it! Unfortunately, so does everyone else, so this ride gets a looooooooooong line early and keeps it all day. Fortunately, I managed to nab a FastPass+ reservation, so I only waited about 10 minutes. Quite simply, you ride through multiple animal habitats and see animals going about their day. There are many photo opportunities along the way, and the truck driver will narrate accordingly. If you've ever ridden the train at Busch Gardens Tampa, it's kinda like that, except you're in a wide truck instead of a train. If you've ever ridden Jungle Cruise at Magic Kingdom, it's like that, except in a truck and with 75% fewer puns. There's a very real possibility than an animal will decide to lay in the middle of the road and keep you from moving, so your typically 20-minute ride might be a half hour or more. For me, I really enjoyed both seeing the animals and hearing/seeing people's reactions to them. One of my most favorite things at any park is seeing and hearing people exclaim with excitement or wonder, and this was filled with that from start to finish. Such a good time. If you can make time for Kilimanjaro Safaris, you should definitely pursue it. For reference, here's a cool action shot: (Source: Disney Parks Blog.) In closing: I'm a very, very big fan of the Busch parks. I've gotten the impression before that Animal Kingdom was supposed to be Disney's/Eisner's attempt to keep people from spending a day at Busch Gardens Tampa. Many of the same sources made me believe that it wouldn't be very good--I've read many reviews where people name it their least-favorite park at Disney World. Whoever those people are, I couldn't have any more different of an opinion of the place. Animal Kingdom is definitely my favorite park there. It doesn't have a huge lead on Epcot, but it does have the lead. The attention to detail is just jaw-dropping, DinoLand excluded. If I had one day to spend at WDW again sometime soon, I'd be very tempted to spend a full day at Animal Kingdom. I'd love to try some more of the specialized food, I still haven't managed to see a show at a Disney park (AK has several), I need to see Rivers of Light, and I'm sure Avatar will be something to behold. I'd add some more thoughts on Avatar, but frankly, I've been working on this post for 3 hours, it's 11pm, and I'm old. Maybe I'll loop back around to it at the end. When daydreaming, I sometimes will think about what I would include in a third Busch park. BGW is themed to Europe, while BGT's domain is Africa. I can't help but wonder what a modern Asian Busch park might look like. Whatever I was planning, Disney completely blew it out of the water with AK's Asia section. It is probably my favorite non-Potter themed park area. Like I said before, I've had the opportunity to go to India, and "Anandapur"/Asia brought up some great nostalgia and emotions I associate with my trip there. The Hindi on the signage was such a cool touch, and the weathered look to most things was very true to the real thing. (I'm really kicking myself for not learning more Hindi when I've studied it in the past... It would have been really cool to be able to understand what was written on the signs and possibly find more Easter eggs.) ------------------------------------------------------------------ See? Told you it would be a novel. Part two is coming eventually; I'll cover my trip to Epcot, then Hollywood Studios, then back to Epcot.

I don't know any of the details behind the switch, but I'm just throwing this out there: if I had a ride whose manufacturer decided that the modified way I was running their product is no longer recommended, I'd also have an executive make the "nostalgic" decision to change. Saying "the manufacturer recommends that we don't do this anymore" implies that the park was operating the ride in an unsafe manner for 30 years. I don't see why the points being argued are mutually exclusive. Not to mention that one of the people bringing up the "PTC caused the change" point was The Interpreter, who typically was considered a reliable source around here, apparently until recently...

Did he ever actually say that, though, or did we (and Screamscape) assume that it would happen because of Wonderland's and KD's fountains being upgraded? I'm not accusing you of lying by any means--I'm just asking the question because I don't remember him ever talking about the fountains. That, and I'm trying to desperately hold on to hope that all the Cedar Fair parks are still going to get dark rides.

As of the writing of this post, the Ohio Department of Agriculture is responsible for approving the operation of amusement rides in Ohio. Because I don't want this post to be cited as a definitive source of information in school papers, news articles, or court proceedings, I'm not going to say anything more than that. If you're curious about the regulations concerning ride clearances, I'd start there. You may be surprised by what you find online.

You bring up a very good point--if the maximum number of Fast Lanes the park will sell in a day doesn't change, then the number of people in the FL queues won't be any worse than what we've seen before on the busiest days of the year. Hopefully, they won't change those maximum daily FLs numbers. If they leave that alone, then I'm okay with the idea of season-long Fast Lane.

Wow. Wow. Okay, first impressions: That is stunningly cheap. Like, mind-blowingly cheap, or "ditch the pricing integrity; get people to spend money"-kind of cheap. Here are the prices: Kings Dominion: $115 Carowinds: $125 Dorney Park: $99 California's Great America: $89 Valleyfair: $89 Let's talk comparisons: At the Six Flags parks in New Jersey, Texas, Massachusetts, and Georgia, all-season The Flash Pass will run you from $349.99 to $399.99. And that's on sale. Later in the year, it will jump up to $799.99. And that's for the Gold version, not the Platinum that gets you near-instant access to rides and is the only one that gets you on the newest or most popular rides. You still have to wait some amount of time with Gold. And that amount of time is changeable by management as the park gets busier. This is Fast Lane Plus, which gets you into a shortened queue whenever you want, regardless of how many Fast Lane-wearing friends you bring with you. And hey, for just $115, why WOULDN'T they have all-season Fast Lane, too? This add-on is almost half the price of the pass that gets you into all Cedar Fair parks. Did I mention that there is literally no metering of the Fast Lane queue, by the way? If there's room for you to stand, you're in. You can't even pay for that kind of service at Disney, regardless of whether you're a one-day ticket holder or an annual passholder. Universal handles their system similarly to Fast Lane, including season-long Express Passes--but the only annual pass that has it costs $489.99, doesn't let you use it till after 4:00pm, and limits you on which attractions you can use it on (i.e., not the super-popular ones.) The single-day Express passes, like single-day Fast Lane, seem to be priced at a price that will sell them but not detract from the standby guests' experience. By comparison, Fast Lane Plus at Cedar Point on July 4th will run you $108. This is only $7 to $17 cheaper than all-season Fast Lane Plus at Kings Dominion and Carowinds, the latter of which is poised to become the Cedar Point of the South and needs to have a solidly positive reputation as it reinvents itself. The pricing is more understandable at the smaller parks, but it still seems dangerously cheap. If these things are going to be sold this cheap, they NEED to be very, VERY limited. If this is an attempt to bring the same perceived value that FastPass brings at Disney parks, I think this is a dangerous line they're tiptoeing. Too many of these things sold is going to bring the sorts of wait that food service has had at KI recently to Fast Lane queues. That's not a best day experience. I'm trying not to overreact or be melodramatic about this. I'm not opposed to front-of-the-line options at all--in fact, they've improved several of my visits to multiple seasonal AND destination parks. I am just very concerned that these season-long ones will be more available than they probably should be, especially with how many I expect they'll sell at these price points. At least introduce some blackout dates or something. Wowee.

Agreed! Thank you very much! It wasn't too annoying to have to scroll over, but it's also really nice to not have to.

Great trip report with some awesome photos! We actually were in the same group, coincidentally. It really was a wonderful event!

This isn't an outstanding example, but it IS an example of a wooden coaster with on-board lights: (Source: forums.planetcoaster.com) National Amusement Devices was a major player in the pre-KI amusement industry. Their Century Flyer trains (pictured above) were capable of having up to three lamps installed in the first car: the two shown in the picture, and a third in place of that red circle in the middle. Century Flyers used to be everywhere, but now (to my knowledge) only exist on three coasters today: Thunderbolt at Kennywood, Blue Streak at Conneaut Lake Park, and Big Dipper at Camden Park (which I believe is the ride pictured above.) Lil' Dipper at Camden is (again, to my knowledge) the only coaster out there with NAD's kid-sized version of Century Flyers. I've read before somewhere (I've forgotten the source--it's been years) that the jostles and jolts of wooden coasters would knock something out of place in the lamps and destroy them. I've gotten the impression that many parks would, over time, remove them and provide some kind of non-technical placeholder that was easier/cheaper to maintain. Until very recently, all three trains on Kennywood's Thunderbolt looked something like this: (Source: Negative-G) In 2014, Penn State's Theme Park Engineering group made a proposal to restore the headlamps on Thunderbolt using LEDs. (Here's a link with a short write-up.) When Thunderbolt opened for 2014, the two headlamps on the red train were updated, but the green and blue trains remained the same. Here's what the new headlamps looked like: (Source: Kennywood Connection) Unfortunately, I don't know that the restoration ever continued beyond that point--or even that the red train's lights ever were functional. I've never witnessed them working myself, and I've never read any reports that they were operational. I've also never heard whether or not the blue or green trains were completed--I don't think I've been to Kennywood in the summer since 2014. Whether this is due to the lamps not functioning or due to them not being a priority for Kennywood at the moment, I'm not sure. So yes... lights on a wooden coaster have been done before. Kinda. I just don't get the impression that it's ever worked particularly well.

That's what I mean--rather than playing the standard pop music that gets played throughout the park in MT's queue, play the dramatic instrumental music from the announcement or the tracks that SonofBaconator suggested. Makes Mystic Timbers more of an experience from queue to exit ramp!

I really hope they can keep the improvement trend going! That's great, and it's exciting that they managed to turn a profit for the first time in a while. CLP really could be a charming park if it had the money to keep going.

Or even the audio tracks they played at the announcement! There was something really unique and engaging about the intense drumbeats and mystical chimes combined with chainsaws and shouts of "timber!" It's thematically appropriate, it helps tell the story, and it makes standing in the queue that much more engaging. I'd really, really love it if they'd do that. If you're going to go to the bother of theming a ride at all, why not use audio tracks you've already got prepared to make the experience that much more magical? But again, that's me. I'd rather have an immersive experience than listen to the same pop tunes I could hear outside the park. For me, that drives repeat visits and encourages me to invite more people to the park with me and [insert other things from Cedar Fair's Q4 financials that they are aiming to improve]. (But seriously, I might actually WANT to invite more people I know to join in a themed experience than just another roller coaster. But I'm sure I'm in the minority, and CF obviously knows their audiences better than I do.) A side note... Don, if you're reading this: if you aren't going to use the music from Mystic Timbers's announcement for anything for the ride, would you mind posting a tracklist here? It really made an impression on me, and I'd love to purchase the songs from iTunes or Google if possible.

^ To be fair: when it's actually functioning and turned on, that's exactly the kind of sound that plays on Adventure Express's first lift hill. I think bkroz mentioned a while back, shortly before or after Mystic Timbers was announced, that the glowing green lights shown in KI's scrolling banner on their website at the time would look nice in the trees lining the lift hill. I'd agree with that. Here's the image I'm talking about: Source: KI's website; image hosted by ThemeParkTourist.com. It adds a new level of mysticism to the ride AND makes for a new reason to ride at night. Some heavy-duty, translucent, sea foam green pendant lights in the trees would go a long way. But that's me! I don't actually know what sound you might play at the top of MT's lift, anyway. There's not exactly an iconic monster sound you could automatically attach to this ride based on the theme, unlike Banshee's Banshee scream. Maybe someone's voice yelling "timber"? Maybe take a page out of BGW's book and have some magic-y, windy noises and a spirit's voice telling you to run? I'm not sure. I'm also not sure that having anything playing noise loudly on that side of the park would work anyway--weren't there supposedly some complaints about noise levels for Diamondback and Banshee when they both opened?

Wow, I really love that picture. That's some really neat concept art. ^^ To be fair, we did kiiiiiiiinda get all the stuff in that picture--just not all in the same tunnel. The snakes and spiders are supposed to be in the first tunnel (although it's been years since the lights in there were actually functional), the lantern (I think) is right at the end of the tunnel before the lift, beside, the speared skeleton, the third tunnel is supposed to be lava with the red lights... Somewhere around here, there is a thread (I think by TombraiderTy?) that goes into detail about how Adventure Express was designed. I'll do some looking later to see if I can find it. EDIT: What Shaggy said.

All that for $2.10, huh? (Just teasin'.)

So since Greg Scheid teased the 2017 and 2018 additions at Tropical Plunge's announcement, it seems like something decently sized will hit the park next year. Seeing as how the addition of Mystic Timbers was (somewhat) uncharacteristically close to the addition of Banshee, I'm not betting on another big coaster--especially not a giga. I love Fury 325 and would die happy if there was something like it within a two-hour drive of my house, but I don't think that's reasonable to expect. Especially the year RIGHT after a coaster was added--this isn't Story and Burke's Six Flags, this is Ouimet's Cedar Fair. Remember that in 2015, Ouimet envisioned putting a Triotech dark ride at each Cedar Fair park "eventually" as part of the Amusement Dark project. In that particular article, he mentioned that no new dark rides would show up in 2016--the next one after Knott's Voyage to the Iron Reef would arrive in 2017 at the earliest. It's 2017, and there aren't any Cedar Fair dark rides opening this year... Which makes me wonder if 2018 will be the next time we see one. And, if so, I wonder if KI will be next. The "empty box" quote at the end of that article is still very interesting to me--that seems awfully specific, even though that seems extremely early to be hinting about a 2018 addition. (The article is from April 2015.) Like, I actually can't think of any other "empty boxes" at any other Cedar Fair parks I've been to besides our old Crypt building? But I also then think about Carowinds removing their log flume and wonder if they're actually next for a dark ride, assuming their Plants vs. Zombies ride isn't their Amusement Dark ride. (I wouldn't think so? Not if they're staying with the "world beneath our parks" theme mentioned in that particle. The Plants vs. Zombies ride definitely isn't that.) And if that's the case, I'm not sure what KI's possible 2018 addition(s) might be. Maybe some of those European/Asian flat rides that Cedar Fair had been looking for? I think most or all of the European ones have been spoken for at this point, but I don't ever remember hearing anything about what CF found in Asia. Maybe it could be that?

I have been telling myself for about a year (maybe more) that I need to get back into NoLimits 2, master the coding for it, and actually make this (bkroz's) build-out plan in it. I keep procrastinating and procrastinating, mainly because coding isn't exactly a passion of mine and it's going to take a loooooooong time to do. Maybe I'll make this my big project for the 2017-2018 off-season...

Thank you sincerely for all of your hard work since 2003. My life certainly wouldn't be the same if I hadn't experienced KIC, and I wouldn't have experienced KIC if you and Dane (and anyone else I'm unintentionally forgetting) hadn't put it here. Best of luck in life's next adventures!

Was this actually that big of a rumor? Oh well--at any rate: I agree that an inversion wasn't likely. GCI has stated before that they'll do inversions if a park wants them, but based on what has been shown and/or leaked, there just wasn't any room in the layout for one. The biggest portion of the shed is basically confirmed at this point to contain That being said, there are several wooden AND steel coasters that do inversions with just lap bars--no overhead harnesses at all. Examples include Mind Bender and Dare Devil Dive at Six Flags Over Georgia, Iron Rattler at Six Flags Fiesta Texas, Hades 360 at Mt. Olympus, and many others.

Fixed it for you.

These posts made me laugh out loud. I'm a mechanical engineer, and I love studying personality types (especially Myers-Briggs.) I WISH my company's HR department took that into considered that after hiring people. When I've interviewed people, I tend to ask questions in a similar vein (not as abstract, but still open-ended--and the other, more practical-minded interviewers usually rib me for it.) But, that's me. (And according to MB, I'm the sort of person who'd typically be into that kind of stuff, coincidentally enough. ) I just really enjoyed your posts, that's all. Good luck, sir! You'll do great, I'm sure.

1. Definitely that one time I rode Phantom Theater when I was little. I got off crying and never rode again. 2. Adventure Express, for sure. 3. I really like the idea of Oktoberfest and Rivertown, but I feel like both (especially Oktoberfest) have gotten pretty far away from their original intents. I'd love to go back in time and experience both in their original forms. 4. Tomb Raider: The Ride. Big surprise, haha. 5. I'm looking forward to Friday nights after Origins opens this year. Friday nights are always a fun time to go to the park, and I'm really excited to have both Origins and Mystic Timbers available this year. (I don't know what I'm going to do with myself once the cirque shows leave!)

I believe Fiesta Texas is the only one left. It's my understanding that Scooby is branded through Sally, the company who built the Scooby rides, not through the parks themselves.