jcgoble3

Thanks for the report and reviews! I tend to agree with most of your ratings. One question: how did you use your Express passes on Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit? When I was there last August, that ride did not accept Express, so I had to wait in the regular queue. (Of course the regular queue those days ranged anywhere from five minutes down to a literal walk-on, so it's not like it affected me. ) Did they change things so that Express is now accepted?

That was an interesting diversion.

The nicest dress you'll probably ever get out of me is a good polo shirt, dress pants, and ordinary shoes instead of sandals or Crocs. My dress jacket has been collecting dust since my senior prom in 2005 and would need a thorough dry cleaning before it could be worn, my dress shoes have also been collecting dust for the same length of time and might not even fit me anymore, and I don't think I even own a dress shirt with buttons all the way down (I borrowed one from my dad for prom). If I were ever to get married, I would implement a "street casual" dress code at my wedding, meaning nothing fancier than what the average person would wear on a quick trip to the grocery store. This would apply to everyone, from guests to groomsmen and bridesmaids to myself and the bride. I myself as the groom would probably wear one of my amusement park or Star Wars t-shirts, shorts, and Crocs or sandals. Would save a lot of money by eliminating the need to buy or rent tuxedos and dresses for me, the bride, groomsmen, and bridesmaids. Then again, there's no danger of that happening anytime soon, since I currently plan to remain single my entire life.

SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY! I want to ride this NOW! I am definitely going to have to try to plan a trip to Florida next year. This looks awesome!

The wristbands for free 20 oz. drinks came from the FUN Perks season passholder rewards program that was tested last year. That program was discontinued after last year.

Thanks for the report. As for BLSC, your train cannot leave the fire/helicopter scene until the block in front of it is clear. This requires that the train in front must be fully moved up to the unload position from the brake run, which in turn cannot begin until the third train is fully moved into the load position in the station, which in turn cannot happen until your train has cleared the initial double helix and is on its way down the first hill, eliminating the possibility of a rollback. There is not much difference between the time need to go from the first hill to the helicopter scene, and the time needed to roll the other two trains forward one at a time. So if there is a delay of more than a few seconds in moving either of the other trains (such as loading a disabled rider or someone on a VIP tour, or simply a ride op not paying full attention and/or being slow to push the button), your train may sit in the helicopter scene for a few extra seconds while you wait for the brake run to be cleared. I've always felt that BLSC would run more efficiently with two trains instead of three due to its short ride time. (Disclaimer: The above paragraph is based solely on my own observations while in line for BLSC and my resulting inferences, and is not based on any actual direct knowledge of the ride's operating procedures. Corrections from those who have worked on the BLSC crew or are otherwise "in the know" are appreciated.)

Big Sexy, you should just quit while your ahead.... I'm not sure he ever was ahead....

Because we don't have enough information yet to have even the slightest hope of cracking the code. So all we can do is speculate until we get more clues.

So let's see if I'm understanding this right. Employees are issued a paycheck, from which had been deducted the usual stuff, including income taxes at the city and higher levels. Except that Louisville, instead of keeping the deducted city income taxes and using them to fund city operations, will instead pay them to Kentucky Kingdom. Is that right?

Sounds like you're having fun on vacation! I was at Universal and IoA at the end of August last year and am already craving a trip back that I know I can't afford right now. Let us know how the Studios is!

I don't understand this either. Would someone that understands this stuff better explain or even "interpret" that for me?

Also look at Diamondback on Google Maps/Earth. The track is actually broken at the Rivertown midway.

Slingshot is a pure snoozefest to me. I wouldn't ride it even if it was free and only had a one-cycle wait.

I want money flying out of my ears too. Glad you guys could make it, and thanks for sharing an "ordinary" day in the park for those of us that were doing CFK all morning and afternoon.

Wait: you rode Congo Falls, then you cooled off on Drop Tower? Please tell me you meant that you dried off on Drop Tower, or else explain to me how in the world that makes sense, because it's making $0.00 right now. Otherwise, thanks for the nice report. I catch myself overlooking the flats sometimes.

^ I find it very interesting that concrete footers with bolts sticking out with nuts on the end would be used for potted plants. When and where in the park was that taken? I haven't seen that myself and would be interesting in looking for it on Saturday if it's still there.

Yesterday at Coasting for Kids, Don asked us for suggestions for next year's event. Somebody suggested that the new ride should be included in the event, to which Don responded by saying that it would be rather difficult to marathon a campground. Case closed.

Agreed. If the line extends across the bridge and makes the turn back toward the queue house, then I won't wait in it if I'm by myself.

WHIO is the best news outlet in Dayton. Or rather, was. It is not like them to be reporting this non-news. Something must have changed at WHIO, and I don't like it.

Would a Dayton chain be okay? Give me Marion's (dine-in) or Cousin Vinny's (delivery) anytime. The former even has a restaurant in Mason now.

Terpy will severely disagree with you on that first point, and I do too. Maverick is an entirely different ride in the front seat and is not worth the time I spend riding it, never mind the wait time, in the back. I ride in the front or I don't ride at all.

^ On the contrary, I recommend the marina gate for ERT. Go straight to Millie, then hit Maverick after that. Both are best in the front seat, and Maverick will always have a shorter front seat wait than Millie, due to the fact that Maverick has much shorter trains and thus can put 1 of every 6 riders in the front, compared to Millie's 1 of every 18 riders. Millie's front seat can be an extra 15 to 20 minutes even during ERT. Maverick is usually no more than 5 to 10 extra minutes. If you get to Millie quickly right as the gates open, you can often get into the front seat and only have to wait two or three trains.

Yes, we were on the same train the whole time. I didn't see you, but I didn't look over at the blue side a lot.

This is getting ridiculous.

Hotel Breakers can be done the cheapest of those actually on the peninsula (unless you have an RV or camper). And look into those Platinum Passes again; they can get you 10% off the standard rack rate at Hotel Breakers (and a few of the other resorts) by using promotional code PASS on the online reservation system. That savings alone might be enough to warrant getting Platinum Passes. Also, do you already have KI passes? If so, you can upgrade those passes to Platinum for the difference between what you paid for the pass and the current price of Platinum (but you can ONLY do so at KI). That might save you even more money. Even if you get Platinum Passes, I still recommend spending the money to stay on-site. It's nice to be within walking distance of both parks (CP and Soak City) and be able to use your room as a locker. Breakers Express is not just further away; it is on the mainland, which is separated from the park by a 1.5-mile-long strip of land (on which rests the Cedar Point Causeway) that is not safe for pedestrians. You will have to drive back and forth, and Breakers Express packages may not come with free parking like the resorts on the peninsula do, so you might have to pay $15/day to park. Not worth the savings IMO.