KIfan1980

You might have ruined what seems to be an awesome vacation Thanks for sharing some awesome pictures - they remind me of why I miss the left coast so much. Can't wait to see the pics from 17 mile drive and Pebble - there is some incredibly beautiful coastline in that part of California.

That is a very interesting read. In some ways It makes me say - ok, the company has a strategy going forward, but then I'm left looking for details - such as what data is used to predict the CAGR over the next several years. I also am not a fan of the ongoing attacks of Q - maybe it's time for someone to take the high road. Finally, I'd really like to hear why the board is now so bullish on the company - remember, if it wasn't for Q, we may be talking about Apollo's Kings Island. Company leadership has conveniently never really discussed why they agreed to that deal - therefore my trust level is low.

While Cedar Fair is not looking too good in this war of words, I can't say as I'm getting a warm and fuzzy feeling about Q Investments either. I have to ask to what purpose is this whole thing - is it just about Kinzel? Is it just about distributions? It just feels to me as though there is a bigger end game at play that I for one do not understand.

Cool - thanks for sharing. All I can say is that it just goes to show how much has changed in 5 years. And maybe it's just me, but I don't ever recall me thinking about how pretty Swan lake was. Does it look nice from the Eiffel Tower, sure. How did I interact with it, walked past it or around it.

I think you are missing the VERY BIG difference between the two: The Ark Park is planning to use private investment financing ($150 Million) to build their park. If they build it, Kentucky has an incentive program where they could recover up to 25% of the investment. The incentive would typically come as a reduction in taxes over a period of time ($1.9 Million per year for 20 years for example). Kentucky Kingdom is asking for public government financing ($50 Million) to reopen the park. Providing ALL the funding up front is very different than providing a break on future payments to the state. I believe that if Kentucky Kingdom had $50 Million of private financing to reopen the park, they would also be eligible to recover up to 25% of the investment via this incentive program. Incentive programs are fairly typical methods used by state or local governments to attract businesses to their location. The idea behind them is that providing an incentive for private investment (their is often a jobs requirement attached) will bring in more money than it costs. In the Ark Park example above, the government is stating that they expect the state to benefit by more than $1.9 Million per year by having the Ark Park in Kentucky (property taxes, payroll taxes, other investment and growth in the region, tourist traffic spending, etc...).

Cute video. I like that KI is doing things like this during the off season, although it was only when I watched this that I realized I didn't ride Invertigo during the entire 2010 season.

I'm sure I wasn't the only one who saw that video and thought 'oh wait until Robbie hears that'.

And yet you still try to explain to every SoB fanboy that's posts about re-opening the ride and/or adding the loop back in that it is a bad idea And Terpy - your post made my head hurt. I need the graphical flowchart version.

In that case I really need to go ride Afterburn! I love the ride of Montu - and the paint scheme is also one of my favorites. In addition, I believe there should be a law against one train ops on a B&M.

Yes, many people would do so - still doesn't make it right. People who file frivolous lawsuits (and their lawyers) cause many problems for the rest of us, including higher costs (someone is paying for the lawyer fees and settlement costs - and it is all of us!) and less sympathy for those who truly have been wronged (see the story Dalefan linked about the bench as a potential example). And I'll share that I must have missed my chance - my family and I never even considered filing a lawsuit following an incident at a school gym when I was younger that left me with a large scar on my arm caused by a fire extinguisher. Why? - because what happened was an accident. Now for someone else or those out for money, I'm sure the school district, the fire extinguisher manufacturer, the coach, the other player, the league, etc... would have been potential deep pockets for a suit. Sorry, but the cynic in me says because of too many other frivolous lawsuits.

Railrider - thanks for sharing. It's been way too long since I've been to Yosemite, but your pictures remind me of how absolutely breathtakingly beautiful it is. As for the famous picture, I know I knew (and had a faint vision of something military running through my head). A quick Google search reminded me of the picture of a cavalry unit, including horses on top of the fallen tree trunk - helps you understand the sheer size! Looking forward to the rest of the trip - thanks for sharing!

Thanks for sharing Michael. I guess I'm a little surprised to see the coaster trains so exposed to the elements, sitting directly on the parking lot and resting on concrete blocks. I thought I remembered seeing pictures of KI trains during winter on skids and under cover in the picnic area at least.

I guess I'll add my 2 cents: Hits: I have to say that I think that KI has done a great job of adding innovative and exciting rides over the years. I think the collection of coasters and major thrill rides that has been assembled is outstanding. I think the kids area is first class. Misses (poor choices): location and ride removal. Sometimes the location of new rides just hasn't made sense to me. I'm not going to complain about Diamondback as I think it does add something to that location, but will forever wonder about things like: Why is Flight Deck so far back in Action Zone? Why did BLSC have to be placed where it is? The removal piece (as others have said) is about taking away a group of rides that appeals to the multi-generational family. When I look at pictures of family trips to Cedar Point, there are multiple pictures of the kids and grandparents on various rides (Cars, Calypso, Cedar Downs, Skyride, Train, etc....). At KI, not so much. Unfortunates (not desired outcomes): Sometimes, you make a choice and it doesn't turn out right. For me, SoB falls in this camp - can't blame them for trying to be innovative, but an unfortunate outcome. Same can be said of Bat and King Cobra.

And those two are "exceptionally well qualified" and "completely independent". Unless of course the draft proxy statement incorrectly represents the board as "unanimous" - if that is even possible?

How does slowing down fhe lift improve capacity? If anything, it would be the opposite I believe. From what I've read/heard, the slower lift hill is due to the blocking change which is ostensibly a safety driven change.

Well this is interesting to me - AZ, who has been credentialed by many to be in a position to know, is saying that Beast is slower. Then again, it is what it is, which to me is a great roller coaster, with some fun elements and some frustrating parts. Who cares if a coaster I'll likely never ride is going to be longer.

Now if you'd made it a full week, I'd give you the win, but the "nearly" drops you down a few notches. Got to ask, did you change it up at all or was it the same menu item all the time? I'm imagining a few chili-cheese sandwiches for lunch every day and a nice 4-way for dinner every night - I think I could handle that.

Railrider, I'm glad you are enjoying this because some of us are looking forward to the other part of the deal.

Well, they did try to get rid of it last year

RZ - I understand the new members can't fully impact the board. I was just surprised at it being unanimous (implies 9-0 vote) versus a split (7-2 vote). As for the date, at least they haven't set one they know they'll cancel, without telling the unit holders until the night before ... yet.

That indicates that the Board "unanimously" recommends votes against the proposals. I guess this surprises me as I thought Q had previously had the board expanded by 2 people who were supposed to be less part of the Kinzel Club.

I think you should add that to your signature quotes! Also, thanks for pushing people to think beyond what they "know" - while you share some great and large historical inventions as examples, I believe there are smaller and potentially more meaningful examples happening everyday. This breakthrough/out of the box thinking is what will keep this country and the world moving forward. Just looking around me right now, I'm amazed at how many things there are that I'd have scoffed at as impossible when I was in High School - USB drives (we had 5 1/4" floppies or tape back then), internet w/ wireless router (didn't exist back then), thin flat panel display (I don't miss the green screen), iPhone (we stopped at a pay phone to make a call, we had to see friends to talk to them, had an address book, calendar, yellowpages, maps, Mattel Handheld Football, etc... back then)

Jesse - I started reading this PTR on my iPhone the other day and knew I had to get back to it on the computer when I could really see the video's/pictures. Finally, I get the computer going and am rewarded with another day - Wahoo! Thank you so much for the time and effort you put into sharing your vacation with us - I hope you understand how much I enjoyed following it on Facebook and now getting to feel it in even more detail here on KIC. Thanks! So many thoughts - I'll share a few: Based upon this PTR, I've added Discovery Cove to my must visit list - although I'll need to let the kids get a little older. Yea for Miss Rae and riding Scorpion - You rock as a Dad! Your ability to plan and follow through on the animal print Mickey picture over the years is really neat - talk about something she'll treasure as she grows up. This reminds me why I love the Disney experience so much. From the theme in Animal Kingdom, to the architectural details in the resorts, to the rides - the total experience is what makes it "magic". I had to go check - only 116 more days until we check in again!

The New Texas Giant looks incredible. If it rides as good as it looks - watch out wooden steel coaster rankings.

So, the state is willing to support this project, but is unwilling to help support Kentucky Kingdom? Makes my head hurt. Definitely read the article as it is a very interesting read. There is a HUGE difference between state incentives for economic investment in an area/region and state funding of economic investment in an area. If this group raises and spends $150 million, and the state incents them to bring those jobs/investment to the region (versus them building in Indiana as an alternative), that is considered normal business. I'd also be willing to bet that those incentives are over many years. Fronting the investment money is a very different and not normal activity. If Ed comes up with the $50 million on his own, he'd also likely be able to get the same incentives.