McSalsa

^ Though if they do the same as in past seasons, you may not be able to ride Legend again this year- it's been closed for Happy Halloween weekends the last few years. Though you can still ride Raven & Voyage...and Thunderbird has yet to be fully built.

^ Wait, so they start spending only $2.5 million in 2016...isn't that when they are supposed to be fixing and re-opening the Twisted Twins wooden dueling coaster? Even without a full-blown Iron Horse treatment, $2.5 million would likely only BARELY even get the ride running again- and leave $0 for other improvements. EDIT: And Terpy's latest numbers which have been suggested may not even cover that. And that's if Kentucky Kingdom GETS to 2016. With Thunderbird opening in 2015, Holiday World has launched a major assault, and then you have the elections and if the "other" guys get elected, they may not look so kindly to Ed Hart's park- though this isn't new information at all.

^^ That could have been what happened- especially if Hart & Co. decided their $15M budget wouldn't get much of a B&M. Though I'm reading the Kentucky Kingdom proposal PDF again and checking this- they state "an amazing one-of-a-kind" new coaster for 2015. Though Lightning Run is not mentioned it seems...also I corrected KK's attendance figure above, they had 1.3 million at peak in 1998, not 1.5. EDIT: Reading the proposal, I found a section where it states one of the "new rides" will be a 135-foot swing ride. Well- that one comes true next year.

^ Pretty early in the proposal- Hart said he was only spending $15 million on it though I think (with that budget I doubt it would have been much since most B&M's run $20M plus these days). When the park was approved to be re-opened, the new-for-2015 coaster seemed to get dropped and T3 was made the main-new-thing for 2015.

Based on attendance estimates I have seen... Kings Island: 3,000,000+ (has risen up to 3.5 million before) Kentucky Kingdom Late 90's: 1,300,000+ (After Debut of Chang, right before Six Flags "decline" started) Holiday World: 1,100,000+ (could shoot up to 1.5 million with Thunderbird in 2015) Kentucky Kingdom 2014: 600,000+ While 600k is fairly impressive for a smaller park just now coming back, they are still far behind Holiday World and far from where they were in the late 90's attenance-wise. And they have NEVER even gotten close to Kings Island. As for the new-for-2015 rides...they look like nice additions, if not anything huge. Cyclos in particular looks really cool, and they are getting on the chair swing ride bandwagon it seems. Not exactly anything that looks like it's going to blow the $10,000,000 budget they seem to have though, and the once promised 2015 B&M coaster is nowhere to be found...

There was also fog on The Beast on Saturday in TWO locations. In the middle of the "ravine drop" (2nd drop, right before the brake shed) and right before the long tunnel in the middle of the ride.

^ Actually I did notice that. Guess it just didn't bug me too much since it was only a 10-minute wait there anyhow...

^ OOPS!!! My bad. It's been added at the end.

Hello everyone! I got back from a trip to Kings Island yesterday, Saturday September 20th, 2014. First off, here's my ride rating system: 10=Incredible 9=Excellent 8=Very Good 7=Good 6=Decent 5=Meh 4=Bad 3=Really Bad 2=Very Bad 1=Fail 0=EPIC FAIL Our group consisted of me, my best friend, another friend, and my sister. Though for most of the day it was just me and my best friend. We arrived at the park around 6:30PM (which felt weird since I am so used to going to Kings Island during the day) and found a pretty darn huge crowd. Uh-oh. We split up once we finally got in the park around 7:30 (me and best friend wanted to ride rides, they were there for Haunts), and headed for our first ride...also spoiler, we (me and my best friend) didn't do any actual haunts but my sister and her friend (also a friend of mine) got ALL of them thanks to Fright Lane+Skeleton Key. RIDE #1: Diamondback Wait: 45 Minutes Well, passing by this and realizing the line was supposed to only get longer, we hit Diamondback ASAP. The crew did a really good job getting trains out and keeping the line moving, so not much "Diamondstacking" occured...only like 3-5 times at most, I think. We rode in the very back, and by the time we got on, it was nightfall already so this was a night ride. They don't call it Diamond "BACK" for nothing. The airtime in the back of the ride is epic, and since it was night it was slightly harder but not impossible to see where we were going (though since I knew the layout well already there wasn't any suprises for me...) and at the end, the splashdown got my left arm wet. An awesome ride to start the night. Score: 10/10 While riding Diamondback, we saw another ride me and my friend really were hoping to do doing test runs, then opening up. We used the bathroom and headed over to... RIDE #2: WindSeeker Wait: 30 Minutes FINALLY!!! After 3 years of failures, I have at last ridden WindSeeker! MWAHAHAHAHAHA! Also, the line looked way worse than 30 minutes (it was overflowing) but since WindSeeker takes 64 riders at once it moves FAST...when it moves that is- loading/unloading takes a bit and the ride cycle is somewhat long. The lighting package here is also gorgeous, even more so in person than it looked in photos and videos. During out wait, my sister and her friend showed up in the same line and she stated she had a gift for me. What could it be!?!? When I actually got on the ride, I actually got a bit nervous. 270 feet up (at least) and only a bar to really hold the weight of 2 people, both of whom were pretty large (my friend, though not really "fat", is a bit over 300 pounds and I'm around 210) though once we got up top the epic music and view distracted me enough to calm me down very well. My friend, however, was actually somewhat scared and he does not have a fear or heights- plus he noticed the weight limit sign when we got off and stated he was a bit over it. As for my overall opinion of the ride, I liked it a lot even if it was a bit intimidating...though I have a soft spot for swing rides. I don't think I can take Texas Skyscreamer though- 400 feet up with just chains!?!? Uhh... Score: 9/10 After WindSeeker, we filled up our drink cups and drank, then we split up again and me and my friend headed across the park and went to Banshee. Since we had souvineer drink cups but my friend was pretty broke so we couldn't get a locker (sister paid for the drinks), but since this was our last visit in 2014 (Kinda ), he said that we had nothing to lose if they were stolen so we ditched them at the entrance...but later I went back and no one had taken them, so I do still have my cups. Also, I thought I saw Fireworks, but it was just Sling Shot- neat lighting on that ride too. As for Banshee itself... RIDE #3: Banshee Wait: 50 Minutes HOLY CAPACITY BATMAN! Banshee had FAR more people in its line than Diamondback did, yet only a 5 minute longer wait! The q-line night visuals are awesome as well. As for the ride itself...it is better at night, and the cool lighting effects were awesome, but I didn't quite see the "transformation" the park promised us when this ride was announced. It was the same general Banshee ride feelings, but at night with some cool lighting. Still, Banshee kicks butt already during the daylight with its inversions, forcefulness, and intensity, so any bonus from the night is just icing on a awesome cake. Score: 10/10 After Banshee, we decided to check the line for Drop Tower, which was not running on either of my other KI visits (opening day or in May)... RIDE #4: Drop Tower- Scream Zone Wait: 30 Minutes Well, this 2 firsts. I had never ridden Drop Tower at night...or by myself, for that matter. My friend, who as I stated earlier is pretty big, could not fit Drop Tower. So I had to ride a 315-foot drop ride all by myself, which was even more nerve-wracking than WindSeeker since I was with strangers...but Ferris Wheel @ Indiana State Fair was still way worse BTW. And the view was incredible. And the Drop, always brings relief. A great ride I still enjoyed but wish my friend could have done it with me. Score: 9/10 After Drop Tower, we headed towards... RIDE #5: Vortex Wait: 10 Minutes Well, the crowds were starting to "die" down (Haunt PUN LOLZ ) and since Vortex has good capacity anyway it had a short wait. We rode in 5-1 of course. My friend fit this one easily, and the restraints I actually realized are honestly pretty good for OTSR's. The ride itself? While I could just barely make the track out ahead of us, it was still intense and forceful...also as usual for older Arrows, a bit rough. Not too bad though. There was solid air on the first drop as well even if it paled to what Diamondback was doing earlier. A great ride slightly enhanced by the darkness. Score: 9/10 In spite of the crowds, we felt were were making good time, and my friend had never ridden... RIDE #6: Backlot Stunt Coaster Wait: 10 Minutes Well, after a short wait, this ride suprised me yet again- I didn't expect it to get this much of a boost from the night ride, but the cop car chase scene and helicopter scenes are far better at night since the lights stand out more. And all the remaining special effects were working on top of the usual thrill-packed tiny coaster. A very solid ride overall. Score: 8.5/10 This would be a good spot to point this out- earlier in the day, Toyota had rented out the park, and from what I had heard some of the ride ops were staffed from when they showed up (10AM) to 1AM. Yikes! That is a nightmare shift. Yet the ride crews were still getting trains out quickly and safely, and doing good spiels. I have to give those guys some props for that. And then we had just enough time (and energy) for one last ride, and we waited 15 minutes for my sister to do one last Haunt so we could all meet up. And then we rode... RIDE #7: The Beast Wait: 40 Minutes (was 20-25, but we wanted Front Row!) Yep. Waited for front row too, since that's supposed to be the best seat for night rides. And it was so worth it...Beast at Night is just surreal. The forest, the sense of isolation, the pitch black tunnels and the sense of speed due to the fact it's a wooden coaster and feels out of control. There were also 2 fog machines: in the "ravine drop" after the first tunnel and right before the 2nd tunnel but no "hidden Beast" this time. No matter. The view from the 2nd lift was as epic as always, the helix was incredible, and one last bonus- it cooled us of with the lower temperatures in the woods & tunnels as well (my friend was wearing a thick hoodie expecting it to be colder today so that was great for him). What an awesome ride. Diamondback and Banshee are awesome additions, and during the daytime they may be better, but at night, no matter how much strobe lighting you add, Beast just curbstomps everything else in the park due to its location and the fact it's a wooden coaster so it feels out of control. Dear Cedar Fair, if you let RMC Iron Horse Beast due to complaints of "BUT IT DOESN'T HAVE AIRTIME AND DOES NOTHING!!!"...I will never visit ANY of your parks again. Though I at this point don't think that will happen (only Six Flags has really done it so far). Oh, stay away from Racer too. It may just need a re-track or something though (was rough back in May, Beast however was very smooth for a woodie). Score: 11/10!!! After Beast, it was time to head home on a epic finale. As we walked past the Eiffel Tower, I spotted a blue coaster car up ahead. You can probably guess what ride it was from. I looked on and thought "What was supposed to dethrone Beast and become the greatest wooden coaster ever has been reduced...to a Haunt Prop." Now for Pros & Cons... PROS +Epic Night Rides (especially Beast) +Awesome Ride Crews +The Haunt Props were pretty cool +Cool Haunt Actors as well, at least the ones I saw. The didn't try to mess with me though...guess it's 'cuz I'm a dude. CONS -A bit too much fog -Lines for food moved SUPER...SLOW... Well, I hope you enjoyed this trip report. Comments and questions welcome. EDIT: Oops. As for that gift my sister got me, it was a $5 set of roller coaster...drink coasters. Apparently from 2010 or so (The Diamondback one is CG, and Invertigo has its old paint job). Still cool though, and she also is letting me keep her skeleton key she bought.

Well, for the first time since May, I'm headed back to KI today to use my season pass for the...3rd time this year. Hopefully I'll have a good time, but since every past visit I have had to Kings Island thus far has gone well and been fun (including a Haunt visit in 2010) even if it's been crowded. Expect a trip report fairly soon after. I would have liked to have used my season pass more this year but it was not to be. At least it's paid off (we did the payment plan). Looking forward to some late September night rides (so far, all I have been on after dark is The Beast and Vortex once....time to add more to that list!)

Well, I am late, but I'll react to this: this looks solid in more ways than one. #1- It'll be much, much more comfortable to most guests. That's a plus. #2- The ride's capacity will increase as now it is a basic floorless coaster and not a it-takes-a-long-time-to-load stand-up. Which is great because if I ran a park I could use as many high-capacity rides as possible to keep lines short. (Cedar Point seems crazy about capacity as well it appears- mainly due to their large collection of Arrow & B&M rides which are both known for their great ability to move lines). A ride like this right next to the uber-popular Millennium Force is also great since it may help reduce the line for MF a bit. #3- The layout looked great to start with, but may have been ruined by the stand-up configuration. Now, it may not be a problem and the park will have another great coaster...and like CP even needs more great roller coasters. As for the other additions for 2015, they look awesome as well. Cedar Point- and Cedar Fair in general- are really looking good since Matt Ouimet took over.

^ Good point- changed from "all" to "a lot".

The Flying Turns thing kind of reminds me of 2009's GTAs. A lot of us were all so sure Diamondback was going to CLINCH that year, as it was at a huge park and was getting rave reviews, and is the type of ride the GTA's seem to favor. If there was a challenger, most thought it would be Manta @ Seaworld Orlando...which was also at a popular park and was also getting rave reviews. Then Prowler, a fairly small GCI at a lesser-known park in Missouri, goes on and beats both of them. Granted based on POV's and reviews I have read of it, Prowler is awesome, but it's victory was a bit of a shock. Though with Flying Turns, Knoebels is a well-known park in spite of its small size and it has a seemingly large fanbase among coaster junkies...but it seems like a small (ish) ride has come out of nowhere and trumped Kings Island's fancy new coaster, as well as the other new-for-2014 rides, AGAIN. Then again, not winning the 2009 GTA's didn't hurt Diamondback (10+ million riders and still getting mostly solid reviews 5+ years later) one bit, so Banshee will more than likely be fine. Though this does make me want to try Flying Turns pretty badly, to be honest, to see what this "little" ride that beat out Banshee can do...

^^^ It did- a soft opening very late in the 2013 season, I'm 90% sure. But it was only for like a week or something if I recall, and it was not a a canidate for the 2013 GTA's, so it was open for that award here. Where that ride places in the Mitch Hawker polls will be interesting- especially since that one is open for PUBLIC voting. As well as all the other new-for-2014 coasters.

Wow- this GT Awards started off so predictable. I guessed most of the winners easily early on. But then you have... #1: Diamondback jumping to #4- I'll bet Banshee had something to do with this, by bringing more guests in to try the hot-new B&M coaster, Diamondback may have gotten a boost itself. Leviathan rising to #6 in spite of being a foreign ride is also huge and indicates good things could be very possible for Fury 325 next year. #2: Flying Turns wins best new ride- The 2nd biggest "WTF" of the day, this small unassuming ride I have honestly not heard too much about beat Banshee, Escape from Gringott's, and Goliath...heck, even Lightning Run. I've heard WAY more about those other rides than Flying Turns (and Banshee is awesome), so this was a shock. But... #1: Cedar Point DEFEATED- by a European park! I didn't know this was even possible- especially for a foreign park in an awards ceremony that heavily favors the USA. Europa Park must be pretty darn good to do this- and from what I've seen of it, it may well be. The Mack Rides testing ground can do some major boasting now, and Cedar Point has to be like "Ahh crud...we have to change our marketing next year now." (Granted they will likely have a Mantis make-over or something...though waiting until now to market that could have possibly hurt their chances at the Golden Ticket...) Anyhow, I'll still be more interested in the Mitch Hawker polls when they come out, but this was kind of noteworthy for some of those later awards...

HOLY COW Cedar Point HAS BEEN DEFEATED!!! EUROPA PARK WINZ!!!

Sorry for Double Post, but: Diamondback jumped up to the #4 spot on best steel coaster list. It was running great earlier this year when I rode it. Oh, and ofcourse Millennium Force won that one yet again. And Leviathan shot up to #6...that's great for a non-American ride. Boulder Dash won wood, with Beast ranking at #8.

Flying Turns @ Knoebels beat Banshee for best new ride...and Escape from Gringotts...and Goliath... I didn't expect that one.

^^ Kind of also reminds me how many parks won't even seem to recognize polls other than the Golden Ticket Awards (unless perhaps its a big publication like USA Today). For example, the Mitch Hawker Poll I've only seen mentioned really by Six Flags Great Adventure for El Toro in either the steel or wood categories, and even then it seemed to be just a tiny blurb on the ride's page on their website.

^ It is basically, from what I can tell, a Mobius Loop Racing Steel Coaster with wooden supports. And you apparently go around twice during one ride, once on each side. Which, TBH, is a really cool concept but I hope capacity is not too big an issue.

^ I'm also pretty sure that's gonna happen at this point. I have to wonder if Six Flags spent all their 2015 budget on the RMC Woodies and those Justice Leauge Dark Rides (among others), and thus had to buy a bunch of fairly inexpensive Mega Loops so they could continue their "a new attraction every year at every park" thing they have been doing. Reminds me a bit of the later Paramount Parks years (post-Son of Beast & TR:TR) as far as additions go...nearly everyone got something, but it seemed no one got anything truly massive. Thought at least with Six Flags you have the RMC Coasters...

Well- having taken a nap and thought some more, as well as read some discussion, I can add a few more thoughts: On The Mega Loops: Upon further thinking, I can KINDA see the point behind these additions...barely. I remembered these go back and forth and all that, where a regular coaster would just go through its loop and be done. And these are still fun rides. Still, I would have gone for something else- do the parks getting these have Frisbees? If not, then I'd add one of those instead, for example- does not have to be giant, either. I still have to question how popular these will be. Also, on the "big new coaster" thing, I was mainly thinking when was the last time Six Flags made a large, expensive coaster that wasn't RMC, and 2012's X-Flight was what came up. To be honest I expected a B&M Wingrider in this announcement at some point...but nope. The only other thought, as I thought about the RMC woodies again: At least Six Flags and RMC figured out you can have different colors for your track besides red. Which I welcome- BTW RMC if you do any more "natural" colored woodies again, go with brown or black track. It'd look way better and would actually look more "wooden".

Some of my general thoughts: Twisted Colossos & Wicked Cyclone: While Six Flags turning a bunch of their old wooden coasters steel is questionable, at least they do appear to become incredible coasters once built and these two look like no exception. Twisted Colossos in particular looks like it could give New Texas Giant- and thus nearly any other major coaster- a serious run for its money. And, by combining both sides into one track, it avoids the usual RMC shortness (Iron Rattler, Outlaw Run, and Goliath aren't very long at all) and is actually a very long ride. Wicked Cyclone also looks like a very fun, airtime-packed and twisted ride. Batman: The Ride @ SFFT: The only other true new coaster in my eyes, but I'll get to those next. For now, this...could go either way. It could be an awesome ride, but it looks kinda cheap and gimmicky from the video and will likely have dreadful capacity. This one is a wait-and-see, and I seriously doubt this will challenge Fury 325, Thunderbird, or the RMC's for best new coaster 2015... Mega Loops @ Various Parks: WHAT THE HECK!?!? This type of ride really should have no place in huge amusement parks like Great Adventure, especially when there are full blown full-circuit looping coasters in the park like Bizarro & Green Lantern in the same park. If you were looking to improve your flat ride lineup, there were other, better options. And if you're thinking of counting these as actual roller coasters, Six Flags, then I pity you...and yes, I have ridden one of these before and while it's a good ride it is no replacement for a real looping coaster. Justice League Battle for Metropolis @ SFStl & Over Texas: This is actually IMO one of the cooler additions- I like the concept and if they pull it off well, I'm sure these will be a hit. Maison Rouge @ La Ronde: A year-round haunt maze themed to clowns? Pretty interesting. Looks pretty cool, too. Others: None of the other stuff seems too noteworthy, just some water attractions and yet another SkyScreamer. But for those parks I'm pretty sure those are going to be solid additions. Overall: While I liked the RMC coasters, Justice Leauge, and Maison Rouge a lot some of the other new additions- mainly the Mega Loops since half the parks seem to be getting them- don't make much sense to me and kinda soiled this announcement a bit. Also a bit disturbing is that, outside of RMC, the last true new steel or wood coaster at Six Flags was X-Flight in 2012...have they been saving up for some huge additions, or is Six Flags done with huge coasters period...

^ Ahem...that's a bit excessive. IMO, a Maverick-Type coaster (Mack?), Giga Coaster, and a modern wooden coaster (GCI/GG/Intamin/etc.) by themselves would be pretty much enough overkill to easily make Kings Island a top-tier coaster park. And adding all 3 at around the same time would actually have negative effects on the park- see Six Flags around the early 2000's, and it's heavily implied the over-addition of new rides is what doomed Geauga Lake. The park also needs more flat rides (both of the family and thrilling varities) and the waterpark hasn't added any new slides since 2004. Those things could be done in-between large coasters, keeping guests happy between big thrill rides and adding more variety to the ride lineup. And you have to consider new coaster styles will eventually be created during that time period, so there will be more coaster options as well that could fit the park. And then you also need to have good food & show offerings and good employees, etc etc. Adding a dozen roller coasters at once really doesn't make for a great park- spread it out, and add other stuff in between. And also records and # of inversions do not matter- it's the ride experience guests get that does.

2010 was the year of the Raven train on Voyage, as my first rides on Voyage happened that year and were on that train (Memorial Day Weekend 2010 was my first trip to Holiday World ever). The rides I got on that train, thus far, I still consider my best Voyage rides to date (My rides in 2011 were crazy rough, didn't visit HW in 2012, and 2013 was great for the first half and just OK the 2nd half). Here's a photo I took that year which kinda "proves" this- If you look closely you can tell the train on Voyage in this picture is red: http://i772.photobucket.com/albums/yy10/McSalsa/VoyagePlungeampBakuli1_zps4f541b99.jpg~original UPDATE: Got a bigger version of this image, taken May 29th 2010, which shows the red train on Voyage.