Flat Freak

Quoted for GOOD IDEA. I might get one pair of cargo shorts, do this, and designate them my park pants. [/showing my age]

Depending on whether we are going to Boomerang Bay that day, I either wear: 1) Swimsuit (board shorts) with deep pockets 2) Cargo shorts with deep pockets I leave my wallet in the car. I leave my keys in the car. In a Ziploc bag in my pocket, I carry cellphone, spare key for car, cash. (Ziploc bag is in case we do a water ride to protect contents.) Streamlined.

I think it'd be fun to try for a first ride on WS (although employees and VIPs will have ridden it first, of course). If ERT starts at 9, how early would one need to arrive to get in line to be among the first 64? Will the park respect the line and escort the riders back, or will it be an undignified mad stampede when the gate opens (I refuse to participate)?

It just occurred to me that ERT might be a bad decision for Vortex. Just think how fast that bad boy will sink with all the extra ridership?!?! ERT on the bubbles FTW!

Until we get confirmation that WindSeeker and Vortex are the ONLY rides open for ERT, I'm not getting upset. After all, there is no point getting upset over something that is uncertain when I have no control over the outcome. That said, I will be quite upset if (especially) DB is removed from ERT and I'm posting it here knowing the certainty that KI management is aware of what we are saying here in the hopes of influencing the decision. WindSeeker will be great if it is as advertised, and its visual impact on the park's skyline (read: marketing) will be significant, but two rides appeal to the enthusiasts, as a general rule, more than any others. The enthusiasts are the Gold Pass holders that use the ERT. We are telling KI that we want DB and Beast included in ERT in no unequivocal terms. We appreciate the preferential treatment regarding WindSeeker - as a new ride, the enthusiasts would appreciate special access to get a chance to enjoy it before the great unwashed. But there are very few people that will repeatedly re-ride WindSeeker given the chance, especially after the novelty has worn off. That is not the case with DB and Beast. Thirty-plus years later, Beast is still an incredible thrill every. single. time. You can take Vortex and shove it. I ride it perhaps every fourth trip. ERT on this ride is completely worthless to me. Remember, KI, you have three main sources of income: 1) the Gold Pass enthusiasts, who don't spend much per visit, but visit a lot and spend a lot over the course of a season, and more importantly, boost attendance numbers so FUN can have a pretty annual report. 2) the large groups and corporate groups 3) the once-a-year tourists or casual families that pay full price for admission and buy one of everything in the park. Groups 2) and 3) are a non-factor in ERT determination. Group 1 is EVERYTHING in ERT determination. Listen to us and give us some love.

I had my first season pass in 1986. I was going to say it was $45 but your post suggests it might have been less. I do remember justifying the cost to my parents that three visits would surpass the price of the pass, and the admission was $16.99 or $17.99 if my 25-year memory serves, so $40-45 or so seems about right.

TMobile here, never any problems in limited use (text, occasional voice, I've never used data there that I recall)

The trim brakes are off, but sadly the trains are in the maintenance shop.

I can't drive to sunny California 12 times a summer so this is one Flat Freak that would gladly wait a few extra weeks for his new flat to be well anchored. I'd rather it not tip over onto The Racer.

BB is open during October, in a sense. The hayride attraction (originates in the Picnic Grove as part of the kids' Howl-o-Fest) tours primarily through BB. They yelled at me when I jumped off the tractor and tried to climb the stairs to Awesome Aussie Twister, though. (As an aside: does anyone agree with me that AAT is the single scariest ride at Kings' Island? That is one intense water slide!)

I see mention of changes to the restraints in this thread. Is someone suggesting that the OTSRs will be gone (wishful thinking)?

The embedded video shows some of the work being done to Intimidator 305 (language warning!!!!) Hopefully they can restructure the ride so it can lose the trims and not have so many people gray out.

You spin me right round baby right round, like a record baby right right round round: (We get discounts on season passes for helping select the music tracks) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJv5qLsLYoo

Good thing the pylon is there. Someone might trip over the pile of asphalt.

I feel like I'm on solid ground when I say you two are on a slippery slope. Here's a long distance dedication going out to my friends at KIC:

Ditto. I am constantly in awe of excellent photography. Well done.

Good thoughts. I'll add to the list: 75 to Tylersville My instinct is to avoid going further south than needed, but I'll try it 75 to 123 to 122 to 741 This makes a lot of sense, as it takes the most direct route (741) but avoids the congested parts of 741 (Dayton Mall and Springboro). 48 due south seems to be best when starting nearby.

We were there yesterday (the 17th). The weather was perfect. We never waited more than two trains for The Beast, and the last time we rode it was a walk-on. We rode Diamondback 18 times and never had a walk-on except the last two rides (when we got a re-ride), but the wait was rarely more than three trains. Once when someone had a really nasty "protein spill," they stopped the ride for a few minutes so they could clean it out on the brake run. That caused a minor delay and our wait on the next ride was almost 20 minutes. Drop Tower was a walk-on for our two rides. Delirium was a walk-on the first time, a one-ride wait the next. Racer was a one-train wait, but they only had the red side open when we were there. Planet Snoopy was packed as expected. The Howl-o-Fest area in the picnic grove looked crazy from our perch on the Eiffel Tower.

We live in the Dayton area, and I'm wondering what routes others use to get to the park, in the slim hopes that I may save a few minutes. Sometimes we leave from the center of Kettering (right by Fraze), and sometimes we leave from Woodman Dr/US35 area. I've tried several routes, and none stood out as particularly good or terribly bad. We've gone: 75 to 63 to 741 this route isn't bad as long as there are no delays on 75 or backups at the off-ramp by the flea markets/outlet mall. Dixie Dr to 741 This route isn't much fun. Negotiating the Dayton Mall area, Springboro, then 63 isn't much fun. 48 to 48 Bypass to 71 This isn't as bad as it might seem. Once past Centerville, it's pretty much open until you get to the Lebanon bypass (at Miller Rd IIRC). When starting in the middle of Kettering on 48, it makes a lot of sense. Township Line Rd to 42 to 48 Bypass to 71 If you take Wilmington Pike all the way to the Warren County line, a quick jog puts you on Township Line Rd for a straight shot to 42. Dangerous intersection at 73 though.

A few other thoughts: When you pay to park, make sure to save your receipt and take it to the ticket window with you. When buying a season pass, they take the parking fee off of your season pass price (if your season pass includes parking, as a gold pass does). Now, since you're buying a 2011 pass but parking in 2010, this may not work, but it can't hurt to try. I would buy my tickets online and get the printed e-ticket to save time at the gate in the morning. Just be sure to hang on to your ticket, because you can then go to the window inside the entrance (to the left next to Keyhole Photo by Skyline Chili), and pay the difference between your ticket price and the gold pass price and get a gold pass ticket. You could then go have your hand stamped and go outside the gate to the season pass office at your convenience (and not inconvenience your other guests). The line at the season pass office is sometimes a few deep right before open. When we renewed our passes this year (upgrade to gold), there were five people in line in front of us, and the wait was about ten minutes.

Well, I'm not 6'3", but I'm close. I think I'll continue to chicken out. Someone that does a lot of writing (typing, anyway) in his work needs all his fingers functional.

Maybe this will help, as my daughter is about the same age as the thread starter. She rode small roller coasters from a very young age and always liked them. At a local festival at age 3, she wanted to ride the dragon roller coaster (about 10' high) so many times I thought I would end up bankrupt buying the tickets. At age five, she rode (what is now) the Great Pumpkin Coaster a dozen times, so I thought I'd let her ride Beastie for the first time. She said she liked it, but had a "meh" look on her face. This was in the area where you stop for a minute before rolling back into the station. When we started the slow roll into the station, she said "I don't want to go again!" Of course, we weren't going again, but the poor kid didn't know that. OK, she wasn't quite ready for The Beastie. The next spring, we went back, and all she talked about for days before was riding The Beastie. I had my doubts, but let her ride. She demanded to go again. And again. We ended up riding six times that day. Fast forward to this year, four years later, age 10. I think we've only been to the park once in the interim. We have season passes and plan to go many times. First trip, she is hesitant but wants to ride bigger and better rides. She starts with Beastie and Flying Ace (which she's done before) as warmups. She does Adventure Express and likes it (it never gets very high off the ground). She does Racer for the first time, loves it, rides it ten times. Next trip, we do Racer a bunch of times. I don't want to push her, but she learns the thrill of sitting in both the front and the back seats. Next trip, add The Beast. Her idea. She realizes that The Beast is a lot like The Racer, just a little bigger, a little rougher, a littler faster (55 vs 61 mph I think), and a little longer, and has some tunnels. I told her that I did my first Beast ride at her age (when it opened). She does it once, loves it. Does it the second time and we both feel like we've been pummeled (we were sitting in the third row of the car without realizing it). We give that a pass for the rest of the day, but she's been back a dozen times since. We just always make sure to avoid the third row. Next trip, Diamondback. It's taller, faster, smoother. Her cousin promises her if she likes Beast, she'll love DB. I'm excited too because I haven't had a chance to ride this one yet. In line, she notices the open seating and thinks it looks like fun. The lift hill was somewhat intimidating, as it's the steepest and highest we've experienced. We do the first downhill (which is pretty scary the first time you see it), and I look over at her on the uphill. She screams "This is awesome" and has a big grin on her face. Good, I can relax and enjoy the ride. We end up riding ten times that day and over forty for the year so far. She's also done Drop Tower and Delirium (after seeing how much Dad enjoys them), but isn't quite as enthusiastic about those yet. I think she needs a little more time for those. Next year, she says she wants do the upside down rides, but we'll see. So I'm in the camp that it's better to work up from the smaller rides than it is to ride the biggest first. Ride one, be afraid, but enjoy it. Then get right back on the horse. If you were afraid the first time, you'll be less so the second time. When you gain some comfort with one ride, ride it repeatedly until you master it. Then work up. I promise you that when you love The Beastie, you'll do fine on The Racer. When you love The Racer, you'll do fine on The Beast. And the Diamondback is the smoothest, least scary, most fun ride in the park once you overcome the fact that you're 230 feet up on the first hill. In my mind, that's a feature, not a drawback, but I do understand the fear of heights. Rides are supposed to be a little bit scary. That's part of what makes them fun.

I have a Beast question, off topic from this thread, but I hated bumping or starting a new thread for a silly question, so I'll ask it here: What is the vertical clearance going through the tunnels? When I have my hands up approaching the double helix tunnels, I always chicken out and lower them before I get to the tunnels. It sure seems as if you could hit the ceiling of the tunnel with your hands, which might be a <little> painful at 60 mph. Of course logic tells me they would never design it as such, but I'd sure like to know to ease my mind.

Something about the gravity in Virginia? (j/k) I was also at the park yesterday. One thing is certain...throughput was not a problem yesterday. I noticed it going up with empty seats almost every time I looked at it. The two times I rode it was about half full.

Monday was the most crowded day of the year for me personally, but all my previous visits were on weekdays. The Diamondback speedrails were all open (except the last two) in the outer part of the queue, and the line was almost to the entrance. This was about 6pm. I didn't time the wait, but experience tells me it was less than 45 minutes and probably just over 35 or so.