jcgoble3

That happens of Flight Deck, too, and nobody is claiming it to be unsafe. The Raven does that also. Comparing FD to SoB?? Really?? I think it's not meant to be a comparison so much as making the point that the track shaking when the train hits the brake run is not an issue preventing SOB from re-opening.

Really? Saturday morning was pretty short too, especially around 10:00am. Walked on Wildebeest, and Mammoth only had a one boat wait. But man, talk about being cold! Around 9:00 to 9:30, which was when I was hitting the water coasters, Wildebeest had about a five-boat wait, and Mammoth had a longer line than that (though I walked on anyway by using the single rider line, which I didn't use on Friday). I think that like me, by 10:00 most people were tired of being cold and wanted to warm up, so they quit riding, which shortened the lines.

Cold days are great for waterparks because there's no lines. I hit the waterpark at HW Friday and literally walked on to both Wildebeest and Mammoth on Friday without even having to wait a single boat. Saturday morning ERT had longer lines than I encountered mid-afternoon on Friday.

*sigh* I'm crazy enough to do this event, but not quite crazy enough for this. I'll have fun listening to you guys, but probably won't join in. (I'm not a music person anyway.)

But does the Fair Board understand what type of maintenance is required on amusement rides? Perhaps they thought they were maintaining it, but did not perform several necessary steps that they were not aware that they needed to do.

Let's see here: A while back, someone claimed that Mr. Ouimet (I think) effectively told him that SOB was done. Later, another poster reported seeing and hearing suits discussing what sounded like plans for SOB or its replacement in public where guests could overhear. After merely being told "yes, there's a limit" on Fast Lane passes last year, this year someone reported that Mr. Helbig stated the actual limit. Now you say that Mr. Ouimet confirmed the Register's story even though the official announcement has not yet been made. If all of these reports are to be believed (and I personally do believe them), then I like Cedar Fair's new approach of more openness and less secrecy. It's refreshing to get actual information instead of a broken record that tells us nothing new. I strongly believe that Mr. Ouimet himself is responsible for this change.

Kochs request modification of lease to reflect 2014 opening: http://bluegrassboardwalk.com/bluegrass-boardwalk-confirms-request-for-2014-opening/

Please check the forecast closely BEFORE you pack. Accuweather lists a high of 72 for HW on Friday, however according to the hourly forecast, that high will be reached before HW opens, with the temperature steadily dropping throughout the day into the mid-50s by sunset. Plan to bring a long-sleeved shirt, long pants, and possibly a light jacket for Friday. Saturday's hourly forecast is not yet available without a premium subscription, but with a low of 52 Friday night, a wetsuit may be warranted for the waterpark ERT session Saturday morning.

Time to break into my facepalm folder:

My account shows all three of my visits, including opening day. I have spent around $20 in the park. And I have yet to receive a single reward (other than the free drink wristband I got for signing up).

Good to know. I was going to email them here in a few minutes. Thanks for letting me know you already did.

http://strickersgrove.com/Events.aspx Summary: Wednesday, July 4; Sunday–Thursday, July 8–12 (4-H Fair); Sunday, August 12; Wednesday, September 5 (?); and Sunday, October 14. I question whether the listing of Wednesday, September 5 is intentional or was meant to be Monday, September 3, which is Labor Day.

I completely agree; Maverick is front seat only. I still have a lot of parks I'd like to visit, but of the ones I've been to Maverick is definitely a favorite in the front seat. I forgot that in my first post. Maverick goes with Flight Deck in the "refuse to ride anywhere else" category for me.

Raven is a thousand times better in the back imo. The ejector air on 'the woods drop' is one of the highlights of the ride! I guess I am missing something in regards to Flight Deck. It seems a lot of people here enjoy it in the front but I have always thought of it as a back of the train ride. I'm not a big fan of ejector air. I'll try the back again on Friday, though. On Flight Deck, you get more swinging action the closer to the front you go. Also, FD is consistently fast, and nothing beats the wind in your face combined with the most swinging action.

Good points, but I would still expect to see something like an iPhone (which was first released in 2007) at least once in there.

I overheard a comment by someone else while at that point in line for DB on Thursday. She pointed out that all of the cell phones in the box are the cheap kind that you can buy at Walmart for prepaid plans. There are no smartphones of any kind in the box that I can see. I suspect KI just bought a bunch of broken phones and tossed them in the box. I don't think those are actual phones lost on DB.

Flight Deck. I refuse to ride it anywhere other than the front seat. Flight of Fear and Backlot Stunt Coaster are also great up front, and I'll try to get the front whenever possible, but it's not mandatory. Millennium Force and Top Thrill Dragster are awesome in the front, but the long waits for that seat mean I may go elsewhere (more likely on Millie, which has other good seats, than TTD, where there's the front and then there's the rest). Mantis, Raptor, the Raven, the Voyage, and Invertigo are good in the front, but not so much that I'm willing to wait more than two or three extra trains for it. Otherwise, I mostly prefer the back.

Possibly a sign of the economy rebounding to the point that more people can afford tickets and season passes?

Great report! Did you get evacuated, or were they able to bring you back around to the station?

It is a serious violation of park rules. Absolutely no on-ride photography or videography is permitted on any ride at Kings Island, with the sole exceptions of the train and Eiffel Tower.

Please tell me that he was not shooting video while riding.

I can see where he's coming from. The first time I rode FOF, I thought there was only one inversion (the one at the end). The first three go by so fast that it's nearly impossible to recognize them unless you know that they're there, and the darkness only makes it harder to recognize them. To someone who's never seen or heard anything about FOF before, I can fully understand how they might think there was only one inversion instead of four.

The booth was closed on a Saturday in June? That's very weird. I don't have any clue what was going on with that.

I believe on-ride photos are sold at The Beast, Diamondback, the log flume, the Great Pumpkin Coaster, Boo Blasters, Vortex, Firehawk, and WindSeeker. The photo sales booths are often closed when the park is short-staffed due to teenage employees being in school (as was the case for all of them this past Thursday). Apparently the park does not consider them a priority when they have limited staff. They should be open on the weekends and after school lets out (which for many it just did).

The longest I've ever waited for any ride was two hours for Diamondback, and that was almost entirely a rain delay where I just opted to stay dry inside the station. Without downtime, I've never waited more than 70 minutes for anything (front seat on TTD). I can't imagine waiting in a three-hour line, let alone five hours.