TombRaiderFTW

I figured that, too, right at first... But it's been there 6 days. The fact that it even exists shows the difference between Dan and Will for me.

Per Dan Koch (@splashindan) on Twitter: "@SplashinDan: We are getting it done. Rampage rules! # SplashAdventutre" Attached is a picture of some maintenance employees and Pat Koch in what appears to be a new red Rampage car from PTC. Link to tweet: https://twitter.com/splashindan/status/520603083039326210 If you look a few tweets down from this one on Dan's feed, you'll find a somewhat awkward selfie. I suppose what he does with his Twitter is his business, but still...

^ same here. I have only stayed there once, but I thought it was decent and I really liked the fact that it was close but not expensive.

^ Wait, is there another one in the U.S. besides (I'm assuming) Great Escape? I always figured it was Great Escape and La Ronde that Six Flags didn't totally own, but since you specified Six Flags within the country, I'm curious.

^ Yeah, the baton slid to one end on Friday (or last Sunday--can't remember) when he was spinning it around his neck. The fire end was on his neck when he was meant to be taking the baton off his shoulder. He grimaced but passed it off as smiling. I totally couldn't have been that subtle about it, but he's obviously been doing that for quite some time. Between Cirque and Skeleton Key, my curiosity about next year's Cirque sequel is very high. I'm wondering what else there could be for them to do. Of course, I'm sure they're going to knock it out of the park with something that none of us are expecting.

Since there was some discussion of the music used in Cirque Imagine earlier this summer, I thought I'd share what Skeleton Crew songs I've been able to identify using the Shazam app on my phone. All of the songs listed here are available on iTunes, so if you're interested in owning them, you can find them there. If the song has a link, it will take you to YouTube. So, without further adieu: Before the show: Carmina Burana (O Fortuna) - Maxime Rodriguez (Album name: Symphonie Sur Glace)(This one comes across as "Cours D'amours: O Fortuna - Orchestre Philharmonique de Sofia et Georgi Robev et Choeur National[...]" in Shazam but redirects to the Maxime Rodriguez song in iTunes, which seems to be correct. Take this info with a grain of salt.) Beginning of show/acrobatics on hanging ropes: Electroshock - Seth Podowitz Nightmare (Original Mix) - Biometrix The fire baton/triangle act (which always makes me wince--I'd be too afraid I'd burn myself!): Teardown of the tower stacking act:Unholy Spirits - Kevin Michael Manthei The skeletons: Final bows:Ultraviolence - Cliff Lin (see earlier link) I do not have all the pre-show music identified, nor do I have the roue Cyr act or tower stacking act music identified. I have a feeling the roue Cyr & tower stacking music is custom. So enjoy! If you happen to identify any other songs not listed here, let me know, and I'll add them to this post. Disclaimer: If having this information available publicly is not okay with the park or the production company, please don't hesitate to remove this topic. I'm not trying to get anyone in trouble. I am posting this with the understanding that, since Skeleton Crew's pre-show announcement does not ban the use of electronics as a whole the way that Cirque Imagine's did, my use of the Shazam app on my phone to get the music information shown here does not conflict with the interests of Kings Island, Cedar Fair, or Les Productions Haut-Vol. Again, if anyone would not like this information posted, please don't hesitate to speak up and/or remove it.

^ We're saying the same thing, to a degree. Yeah, the people who purchase these are going to want to avoid being scared. I'm saying that these things could convert some of the "I'm not going to Haunt because I only want to ride rides" people into "I'll go if they won't scare me" people. "I'll go if they won't scare me" people could spend money that they ordinarily wouldn't spend at KI at all. I'm just saying that people might be more inclined to do it if there wasn't a pricetag included with this "benefit." Also, I'm not contesting the pricetag because I would use the service and just don't want to pay for it. I enjoy the haunts and the scares and would never purchase one for myself. I'm just saying that the pricetag could be off-putting. But that's my opinion. You do make a good point about the cost associated with creating and marketing the glowsticks, though. I hadn't considered that.

Some people actually enjoy getting night rides on roller coasters without being frightened between rides. There also are people that want to have fun with friends at Kings Island on the rides but don't get into Halloween stuff. This is targeted for these people, and it's been done at other parks before now. And as far as I'm concerned, it's a fantastic idea. With this, I might actually stand a chance of bringing friends who don't like Halloween stuff with me on a Friday or Saturday instead of being stuck with Sundays. I like the way Beast hauls at night more than not having to wait for a daytime ride on Sundays, and now I won't have to preface Friday/Saturday visits with "well, if you don't look scared, they probably won't come after you..." What I don't understand (or, more accurately, what I don't agree with) is why they're charging for them. You can't tell me that the cost of a glow stick couldn't be covered in the profit from admission. People who are there to be scared aren't going to waste their time with playing with a glow stick, because it's going to ruin their time--it's not the sort of thing I would imagine people would abuse. Make them available at Guest Services, add a pop-up during online purchases that informs customers of them, leave the sign up inside the park, and have ticketing cashiers tell customers about them during purchases. If you can get people who wouldn't ordinarily come to the park during Halloween Haunt to come if they can avoid getting scared, they might spend money that would be otherwise spent at the movies, football games, the mall, etc. Those people could be deterred by an extra charge. But that's my two cents.

And, if you consider the grand scope of Earth or the Milky Way or the universe as a whole, Vortex and Viking Fury really are in pretty close proximity!

...is a great example of an accident that would require track to be replaced, whether at a Magic Mountain or at that place where you can see the Woods by the Sea like a true Ravine Flyer! EDIT: This post made sense before Terp edited his post, haha.

^^ I wouldn't think so, unless whatever means of bending track that Arrow used has since become obsolete. I would imagine Arrow kept drawings of the parts to its coasters, including records of how to bend the track. They had to have had some means of communicating to their people on-site what they were supposed to be making. That's just how manufacturing anything works. I would imagine the bigger obstacle to replacing Arrow track is the price tag. If the ride has reached the end of its service life, you're going to have to replace a significant portion (if not all) of the track and supports. You're basically paying for a new ride, except you're getting the same old ride you always had, and none of your guests are going to notice the difference. And I seriously doubt that rebuilding an Arrow coaster to the same specs it was originally built to is going to make the ride any smoother. I'm not claiming parks have never, ever had track or supports replaced. I don't have inside information about the maintenance of roller coasters. I'm just saying that, apart from accidents or poor design, I can't think of a viable reason that they would need to.

I imagine folks probably said such things about Great American Scream Machine, too. Rides have service lives, whether we want them to or not. Things can be done to extend or renew them, like rebuilding Florida's (Space Mountain?) with new track and supports, but truthfully, I think Disney's the only one who would ever spend that kind of money. For the rest of the world, which has far less iconic rides (would anyone in New York City know what Vortex is by name alone? How about Space Mountain?), it's just a better business decision to bring in a new ride. There isn't an ROI on a seasonal park replacing steel on their Arrow looper that's been around for 25 years. There is, however, an ROI on taking down the coaster and replacing it with something new that can be put on TV commercials and radio commercials and flyers and discount coupons at the local Wendy's. I wish it wasn't that way, because I know that, when Vortex goes, Adventure Express probably won't be far behind. But that's the nature of our hobby. Enjoy the rides you've got while you've got them.

That's an awfully broad statement you're making there. I understand what you mean by it, but do bear in mind that there also are teenagers who wouldn't steal a basketball and who would have reported the theft the same way you did.I'm not trying to be the PC police, but I think it's unfair to generalize it like that.

So is Kentucky Kingdom's Thunder Run a completely different coaster in 2014 than it was in 2009? It was completely retracked before it opened, which would mean it didn't run on the same track as before. FTW, not being argumentative... just asking the question that's kept him from speaking up in the "Are Mantis and Rougarou separate credits?" thread.

SFA tweeted yesterday that any rumors of fighting and injuries at the park were "absolutely" untrue. That tweet seems to have mysteriously disappeared. Based on the number of people that responded with "there are pictures," it sounds like someone in the PR department jumped on social media before knowing all the facts. Attending a Fright Fest at SFA would be truly frightening. I know I would NOT want to be behind Joker's Jinx or near Superman: Ride of Steel or Batwing at night.

Yeah, I would buy the heck out of a forest green Adventure Express shirt with this logo and the 1972-1992 Kings Island logo beneath it. Would have made a neat limited edition shirt for the 40th anniversary. Oh well. FTW, not faulting KI... Just pointing out how impressed he was with KD's 40th anniversary this year.

They don't. The most I've seen is a Bat shot glass. I think the new logo is awesome and would totally buy it on a shirt, but... alas.

Yep, you get to keep the key. The actors in each room are very, very good at what they do. The experience in Urgent Scare is not my sort of thing at all and is not what I would have put there, but I have much respect for the fact that that actor carries the whole experience single-handedly. I know I couldn't do it that well.

I've used it at Kings Island for regular one-day tickets. It works well. The only downside to this is that you then have your phone on you when you go to ride something, but if that doesn't bother you, I recommend it.

^ There are kangaroos in Kings Island's water park, and you're excited about some stinking goats? Who are you, and what have you done with BB1?!

Ah, Sam's posting on KIC. One of my favorite traditions. It's really that time of the year. Before we know it, it'll be time for the annual retelling of that classic Christmas tale, the Sinking of the S.S. Gator. But first, Haunt! For everyone heading out to the park tonight: have fun! And let us know how good Skeleton Crew is!

Per the Ital International, Inc. listing, SkyRider has been sold: click. That was unexpected, but it's definitely appreciated (as long as the ride is rebuilt somewhere I'll have a chance of riding it!) Hopefully it wasn't bought for scrap.

As someone who didn't know Paramount Parks from a hole in the ground in 2006, was Anheuser-Busch ever a possible purchaser when Paramount Parks was up for sale? Because a Kings Island with the attention to detail of BGW would have been glorious.

I still maintain that Twister at Knoebels would make a much better Beast "sequel" than Son of Beast ever did. It's got most of the elements that Beast has, but all jumbled up and with more intensity mixed in.

Sean Flaharty posted a video on August 28th that makes me so nostalgic for Tomb Raider: The Ride that I could just about cry: I've wanted to see video of Tomb Raider's media day forEVER, and that music and the video of the queue and that MUSIC and the fact that you can see the door to the preshow open with music and lights and THAT MUSIC. GAH. This video doesn't do the original ride justice, but it's the closest dang thing I've ever found (apart from a full queue walkthrough video I found several years ago that I've since lost and never recovered.) I hope you all enjoy this as much as I did.