homestar92

Cost was a part of it for sure, but there were other major factors too. There is a very specific subset of the home video industry that played a relatively big part in the VHS-Betamax battle. It wasn't the sole factor that won the battle as many will try to claim, but there was certainly some major influence. This same subset of the industry was substantially less influential in the Blu-Ray/HD-DVD battle, largely because of the internet.

^ Original post, quoted from Kenucky Kingdom's Facebook page: From a profit point of view, this is less than ideal, but it looks like they may be getting something right from a PR standpoint...

You pay $25 to register for the fundraiser. That 25 is mostly to cover the overhead from the in-park event (the T-shirt they give you, the meal, etc). Then, everyone who raises an additional $75 gets to participate in an in-park event involving a several-hour marathon on a given ride and exclusive ERT on another. Last year the marathon was on Racer (and I don't see that changing) and the ERT was Diamondback (which very well might change). Formerly, you could ride and ride and ride all you wanted, but as of last year, you can ride twice, then you must get up and walk back around (through the Fast Lane line). Of course, if you get bored of The Racer, you are free to leave and ride other rides. Just know that for every ride except Racer, you'll have to wait in line like everyone else. The park provides a meal and and during this time, they invite a few people who have benefited from the work of Give Kids the World. They'll tell you about what kind of things the organization did for them, so you get a good idea of where your money is going. It's really a great cause! There are also some pretty lucrative prize packages for the top collectors at each park. All 11 Cedar Fair parks participate and it's a lot of fun. If you don't want to participate in the event, you can register as a "virtual rider". You don't have to pay the $25 fee, and you don't get to go to the in-park event, but you can still raise money for Give Kids the World just like those who do participate. As an added bonus for those who participate, you get to be in the park WAY before it opens, effectively securing a prime parking spot for the day!

I'm definitely participating to some extent. Not sure if that means participating as a rider at Kings Island, riding at another park, or just donating to the campaigns of some from this site who participate. But the event is awesome and definitely worthy of participation.

From what I've heard, Kentucky Kingdom was already paying most of their seasonal workers above minimum wage. I don't know what the average was, but it might not affect them much at all. Then again, it could affect them in a devastating way. The next couple years will be interesting to watch play out. I've said before, if the park makes it to 2017, I think they'll be OK for the long haul. Time will tell if that happens.

Those little pendulum rides really do offer great bang for the buck for a small park. The one at Camden, at least on the day I was there, was one of the only rides with a line, and it was a few cycles' wait before I was able to ride. Especially considering that it's one of the higher capacity thrill rides in the park.

I tried to register on the page on their website, and it kept telling me my pass number is invalid... I'm not really upset, since I probably wouldn't use these perks anyway, but I'm hoping that isn't a sign that there will be issues when I go to use my pass especially since I intend to go to Carowinds this year...

#NoRegrets

Lucas has a video that he really needs to upload. Hint hint, nudge nudge.

This isn't the first such list I've seen include T3... People must have really liked that ride in its past life. I've ridden a couple SLCs, and from what I've gathered from those experiences, T3 will be a "ride it once just for the credit" kind of coaster. Unless the new train does something truly miraculous for the rideability. Don't get me wrong. I would LOVE for Kentucky Kingdom to prove me wrong. If the ride ends up being fun after its refurbishment, then great! All that much more reason to go there. I know the Enterprise won't be. Those are almost as unenjoyable as droppy rides for me. Almost. I can actually stomach an Enterprise about once a year.

^The control panel for the Larson scooters at Hartland. It's obscured by a pen, but you'll see that there is definitely a speed setting, and it's set to low. Cedar Point's Eagles didn't seem much, if any faster than the set at Kentucky Kingdom to me, so I'd surmise that CP's set is kept on low, too. Worth noting also is the (optional) foot pedal control, which ends the ride if released at any point. If you get a good snap and startle the operator, sometimes this happens inadvertently... The foot pedal is optional, so that might not be the method used to control the cycle time at Kings Island. The speed is a setting. I'd bet that you won't find KI using the high speed setting, but they could, and they might. We won't know for sure until we get a chance to ride them. I've ridden KI's old Eagles (at their new home) as well as several sets of Larsons (Darien Lake, Kentucky Kingdom, Cedar Point, Camden Park) and several non-Larsons (Holiday World, Stricker's Grove, Columbus Zoo*). Excluding the old KI set, the Larsons are FAR superior to the others. To the average rider who doesn't know or care about snapping, the Larsons are probably every bit as good as Carowinds' Flyers (our old Eagles). *The Columbus Zoo ones MIGHT actually be Larsons, I'm not sure and I can't find that information online. But if they are, they're a poor example because they are definitely not as good as the others.

http://www.people.com/article/sherlock-doctor-who-theme-park-bbc?xid=socialflow_facebook_peoplemag Not a whole lot of useful information here, but it's enough to have me intrigued. It's like one of my wildest theme park dreams come true. Now if only we could have a NintendoLand...

I've ridden a 306 foot B&M. If the 325 foot one is as good as that one, I think we're all in for a real treat.

See also Canada's Wonderland.

And that Boomerang is fantastic in its new home, too. And the new trains are a very nice improvement over the standard Vekoma ones and, though I hate to say it, the Arrow trains that a lot of Boomerangs use. The Carolina Cobra was my first (non-inverted) Boomerang and it led to a pretty severe disappointment when I rode the ones at Darien Lake and Canada's Wonderland.

Nope. Every viewing of the fireworks has been done either from Beast's queue (an admittedly terrible spot to view them) or on WindSeeker or Banshee.

I had a near-zen ride (only other rider was another KICer) on 2014's closing day, and was on the last public train of the season. I find it humorous that the first and last riders of the season were members of this site.

Building a mediocre hypercoaster that the general public just eats up, thereby thinning out the lines for the good rides. In all seriousness though, I was at the park one time in my life when it was a Paramount Park. I have no point of reference to compare against, but for me, Banshee seems the most logical answer. The Gliders will likely top it, but I can't say for sure until I ride them. I also really like the improvements that 2011 brought to the park. We got a big flat, something KI desperately needed. Is it the most thrilling and dynamic ride? No, far from it. But it's fun, and I enjoy it. At night, its lighting package is a thing to behold. The improvements to Coney Mall that came with it were even better. And, for a short time, I could enjoy an hour of ERT on my beloved Vortex until everybody complained nonstop and ruined that for me... I do appreciate Diamondback though. Had I not ridden it, I wouldn't have nearly the appreciation I have for Magnum, Phantom's Revenge, and Ride of Steel. Diamondback helped to set my bar low so that I could be absolutely blown away when I rode other hypercoasters.

Were they? I thought I remembered not seeing them there, and then being surprised to find them elsewhere. But I've been to Kings Island so many times that my visits all kinda run together anyway, so you may very well be right.

The Diamondback ones were available at the park this past season, but I only recall seeing them in one store and I don't remember which one it was. They might be back next year. Of course, it is also distinctly possible that they won't, especially if the shop that had them was the Thrill Seekers store...

OK, Screamin' Demon's lighting package might be my favorite ever. I wonder if the Flying Dutchman still has the same lighting package in its new home. Or a better question, will it ever be seen even if it does? Watching that video (the Eiffel Tower at night one, specifically) made me realize that I have nothing to compare it to. In all my years of going to KI, I don't think I've ever gone up into the tower at night. It's always been one of those things that I tell myself I can do any time, and then never end up actually doing.

After digging a little deeper, it doesn't look like this is going to be a body slide, it appears that riders will be secured in some sort of semi-enclosed raft-like contraptions with a restraint. That should at least eliminate concerns for hitting your head against the top if you go airborne inside the slide. I'm guessing (or hoping anyway) that riders being restrained in a ride vehicle means that it won't finish in a splash pool and will be more like the racing slides at Soak City, ending in a long section of slide meant to slow you to a stop.

So THAT'S what that was!? Well, that actually makes me like the park a bit more now. I was really bothered by that smell the whole time I was there, and it reflected badly on the park. The knowledge doesn't make it any more enjoyable, of course, but at least it makes me think more highly of the park. This is kind of off topic, but do you, by chance, know what the deal with the back row (or rather, what SHOULD be the back row) on Big Dipper is? I noticed it had no seat or lap bar and from pictures I've seen online, it's been that way for some time.

I have inspected them closely and the answer is, nothing. There is no difference whatsoever between the two. I personally don't intend to use it for drinks anyway, I wanted it as a collector's item. Funny thing about these cups: if you are not a passholder, you likely won't visit often enough to make them worth the price, so you wouldn't likely buy one. If you are a passholder, there's no need for one as you can get 21 oz drinks for the same price without it as with it. The only real market for these things is people like me that collect them. I'm sure that didn't help a whole lot with the surplus either.

Look what I received in the mail today: My 2015 season pass and souvenir cup. But I feel kind cheated. Because if we compare the 2015 cup with the 2014 one... As a collector of these cups, I'm a little bit disgruntled... On another note, the barcode is the same on my 2014 and 2015 pass... Which begs the question, why not just activate existing cards for next year instead of sending out new ones?