McSalsa

Hmm...then I guess we can call easily Beast a long-term success, as it was still very popular at 10 in '89 and continues to get 1+ hour waits and 1,000,000+ riders per year at the amazing age of 34. And then there's also Vortex. 26 years old, and while the wait times aren't that long, it still pulls over 1,000,000 riders onto its trains every year...except that one year when it just missed 1,000,000 because it's chain broke and it was closed for a whole month. All this for a coaster that, according to the "normal" 25-year lifespan of steel coasters, should be dead (and some of its peers actually are dead)! I would call these 2 long-term successes, easily, as they remain relevant to guests long after their records (save Beast's length record of course) were broken and newer rides came into the park.

Umm...if you're referring to the list YoungStud posted, that's not the Golden Ticket awards- it's the 2012 Mitch Hawker Steel Coaster poll. And Leviathan actually did not do that bad in it- 18th out of 365 coasters is far from it, it won nearly 94% of its comparisons, was the highest ranked B&M that does NOT have heavy theming, it actually beat Millennium Force @ Cedar Point in their head-to-head comparison (though MF did manage to rank a bit higher overall), and it beat all but one other B&M Hyper/Giga coaster- the heavily themed Shambhala @ Port Adventura in Europe...yeah, I'd say Leviathan did pretty good for its Mitch Hawker poll debut. However, the people who do take the Mitch Hawker poll are mostly hardcore coaster enthusiasts, which can be an issue since sometimes the tastes of hardcore coaster nuts and the GP can differ- we (mostly) love our coasters to be forceful and aggressive, but the GP might not enjoy that as much.

While my vote obviously goes for Beast, I really think Diamondback was a great addition to the park, and compliments The Beast well in being so different. For some examples... Easily Visible? Diamondback: Yes, looms over most of Rivertown and can be clearly seen from all over the park and from the parking lot, as if it is begging for attention The Beast: Not really, it "hides" in the woods, so you have to ride it to see most of it. Even riding Vortex or WindSeeker, two large rides nearby, only reveals a little bit. Airtime? Diamondback: Diamondback was literally born for it- heaps of floater air (sometimes even ejector) over every hill! The Beast: One pop on the second drop, if you're lucky. Style of Layout? Diamondback: Pretty par-for-the-course for a modern B&M Hypercoaster, the splashdown being the only element really never seen before. The Beast: Unlike any other wooden roller coaster ever built, mainly due to its long sections of straight track and huge turns. Smoothness? Diamondback: Some rattling, but meant to be smooth. The Beast: Not horribly rough for a wooden coaster...but it is still 100% a wooden coaster so there is plenty of shaking and rumbling! Tunnels? Diamondback: What are tunnels? The Beast: 4. Finale? Diamondback: Splashdown into water visible to everyone in the area. The Beast: Insane helix tunnel visible to only its riders, and maybe people on Vortex & WindSeeker. Interaction with woods? Diamondback: Not really, you're always so high above the treeline... The Beast: Plenty. Type of Coaster? Diamondback: Steel. The Beast: Wood. Type of Animal Logo is depicting? Diamondback: A Diamondback snake, a reptile. The Beast: Unknown, but it has fur, so it's likely a mammal. I see them as Ying-and-Yang for these and some other reasons. So different, yet generally both end up getting so much love from guests...

Hmm...Montu or Oziris, Kumba, Dominator, Wild Eagle, Dominator, and Leviathan...you made me imagine them all in one park, LOL...I would go to that park if there were some good flat rides supporting these coasters.

^ I didn't see any real difference, save maybe it was a teeny bit slower, which could have been a variety of factors. I had meant basically, look at how the trees and such had grown in around Thunder Run 9 years later, and look at all the new rides easily visible surrounding it that were not there in 1990 (Chang, Twisted Twins, Giant Wheel, etc)...I don't know if Thunder Run itself had changed much at all by 1999.

9 Years Later, in 1999...Kentucky Kingdom was in it's "glory years", as Six Flags had just taken over... Wow. Look at how much KK changed from 1990 until 1999 from these POV videos...

I don't think that is accurate, is it? I thought Twister was a Knoebels in-house build. Oops! Thanks for correcting me...I thought it was a CCI there but it's not. I'll fix that...

...LordSkippy...you made me look up this... http://rcdb.com/r.htm?nm=na&ex=1&ty=2&pl=18965&ot=2 18 wooden coasters in Pennsylvania alone...including the previously mentioned Ravine Flyer II, there's also Phoenix (legendary wooden coaster), Lightning Racer (popular and highly rated GCI wooden dueling coaster), Thunderbolt (classic coaster that still gets great reviews), Twister (Knoebels' take on the classic Mr.Twister), Wildcat (first-ever GCI coaster), Leap-the-Dips (world's oldest operating roller coaster, opened in 1902!)...AND STILL MORE!!! And that's not even counting the awesome-looking steel coasters in this state! (Phantom's Revenge, Skyrush, Hydra the Revenge, etc.) Pennsylvania...an awesome-looking state for roller coasters...and with how much I've found I enjoy wooden coasters, I now have a sudden urge to visit before I die...

Oh boy, there are TONS of wooden coasters in the USA alone that would fall under the "other" tab here, that exist as of July 2013. http://rcdb.com/r.htm?nm=na&ex=1&ty=2&pl=59&ot=2 According to that search, 124 existing wooden coasters in the USA alone. I have been on 7 of them, so my USA wooden completion% is 5.6%! Granted, my vote went to Beast...though I've enjoyed every wooden coaster I have ever been on, which also includes: -Racer @ Kings Island (Last ride: May 2012, ditto for Beast's last ride) -Woodstock Express @ Kings Island (Last ride: Summer 2000 ) -Raven @ Holiday World (Last ride: June 2013) -Legend @ Holiday World (Last ride: June 2013) -Voyage @ Holiday World (Last ride: June 2013) -Hoosier Hurricane @ Indiana Beach (Last ride: Summer 1999 ) Yeah, I don't have much of a list...yet I've still been on the current #1 and #2 longest wooden roller coasters in the world!

Hey, if you think you are under a rock, I have never been, sadly. You already have 1 more CP trip than I do!

Interesting but true: In this video, early in the vid when the crane is raising the huge support structure, you can see the Giant Wheel. But wait, GIANT WHEEL IS NOT NEXT TO MANTIS! Yep, Giant Wheel got moved...it is seen here in its original location, but it was moved next to what was then Disaster Transport so that the park would have room to build Millennium Force in 2000... Just a random fun fact for you all.

Me too. Only I'm not even in bed. Does that make it even worse?

While in Action Zone, you could all ride this...I'm sure it would give a nice view...if for a moment at least...

On that "best station in the park" thing, I have to disagree...I perfer The Beast's run-down-looking old mill station (really matches the ride's atmosphere well) and Flight of Fear's heavily themed "launch tube" station over Firehawk's...Son of Beast's I have seen from afar but never got the chance to visit in person.

^ Yeah, I figured...my initial search for it came up with nothing, either, but since I was the one who originally posted the video in the linked topic (it is on page 1) I knew exactly where to look. Meh, well, at least here it's in an easier to find location for those who do want to see it!

I think I already posted that video on here a while back once...hold on while I search... Yep, it was in THIS topic last year: http://www.KICentral.com/forums/index.php?/topic/26157-kings-island-selling-beast-backstage-tours-for-25/?hl=coasterbob62#entry480989 It is a cool video though.

I have tried, alas, it being 5-hours away and our limited budget has not helped... We ALMOST went back in June, but my sister's finances broke down at the last minute and it ended up being a trip to the closer & cheaper Holiday World instead. (Still had an awesome day though) I really do want to go to Cedar Point though, as it would offer numerous "firsts" for me if I did: My First Giga Coaster, First Strata, First Blitz, First Arrow Hyper, First B&M Invert, First Stand-Up, First Wingrider, First Impulse, etc etc...not to mention it would likely nearly double my coasters ridden count.

I also saw that documentary- it made Gatekeeper look awesome, and gave a good idea on how a coaster goes from concept to construction to reality...and while the removal of Space Spiral has changed the "landscape" at Cedar Point, true, Gatekeeper also brought its own massive landscape changes with it as well, even if SS could have somehow been saved (I fail to see how it was ever in Gatekeeper's way, though I am guessing it's removal had to due more with age and decreasing popularity as the video suggested) and GK still built where it currently sits- especially given the modifications to the new entrance and the keyholes. (I'd also suggest removing bobsled-in-a-box affected the landscape more than removing Space Spiral)

^ Beast is already all of those things, for the most part, save a few huge drops and a double helix...just saying... Though I also love low-to-the-ground, high-speed coasters...and especially wooden coasters... (4 out of my top 5 favorites are wooden coasters, then again I have only been to Kings Island, Holiday World, and Indiana Beach...and IB was in 1999...)

^ If Kennywood is still advertising a ride they added last year as new...well then, they may have a problem. Then again, Kings Island was still promoting Diamondback very heavily in 2010, and will probably promote the new-for-2014 coaster more in 2015 too...

Actually, there are big differences, even though the rides are very similar- maXair was made by HUSS, and seats 50 riders per cycle maximum. Black Widow was made by Zamperla, as a competing model to the HUSS Giant Frisbee, and only seats 40 riders per cycle max. Also, Black Widow is not new-for-2013...it opened on June 8th, 2012...

Based on the interviews I have seen of him, Matt Ouimet did say he would love it if all the major Cedar Fair parks (Kings Island included) had an on-site hotel, campsites, etc. as they have proven to be good money makers at Disney (where Ouimet worked pre-CF) and Cedar Point, but the money to do this for all the parks just is not there right now. However, it could be something we see happen at KI and other large Cedar Fair parks in the future...

In some cases, there is absolutely nothing the riders can do, when it is a ride malfunction like this. I can only imagine what I would have been thinking had I been on this boat...well, then again, I did get flipped over at the pool end of Hyena Falls @ HW and was put underwater for a few seconds. Not fun, and I'd hate being stuck underwater for even longer as could happen on a ride like this. (At least Hyena Falls has nothing stopping you from swimming up when it flipped me at the end)

For anyone who is interested, here is a picture of the New Texas Giant's trains and restraint systems (if this picture is inaccurate, let me know BTW): No seat belts or anything of the sort...I know they are a bit of a drag and slow down loading times, but seat belts on coasters are usually a good idea since they offer a nice backup should the main restraint system fail...

The boat was apparently traveling backwards.... YIKES. Sounds like a major design flaw...this ride could be in for either a major modification, or removed for another attraction. I don't see it re-opening as-is right now...