medford

I thought about including Orion, because as you say, it def changed the skyline (Dinosaurs Alive didn't change the skyline but its entrance was a part of Coney for a bit). However, I was thinking more along the feel of the Coney Mall strip/street. Lots of subtle changes like the addition of the BBQ restaurant, repainting of The Racers, lighting packages for Monster, Scrambler and Shake Rattle and Roll, but all the changes have been relatively small (even the addition/subtraction of rides like Flight Commander in the grand scheme. The addition of Vortex and the subtraction of Vortex is pretty much it as far as big changes go, at least that I can think of to the feel of Coney. WindSeeker looms over the place, but sits at the end, kind of tucked away and doesn't really feel like part of Coney to me (kind of like Days of thunder and Flight of Fear never did/have. It feels like its always been leave Oktoberfest, pass under the Coney Sign (why get rid of that?) racers on the left, retail on the right. Food establishments then flats then games (arcade or other wise) followed by flats, food establishments and Vortex. Kind of a roller coaster sandwich. A new, crowd drawing roller coaster (Vortex became too violent for many, including myself in his later days, though i still adored it) could be the spring board to a big change for the area. Lots of flats or a new restaurant, different, modern games that feel like they draw crowds in, etc... I guess my hope, is that there may become a describable image in our head of what Coney meant/feel like. A time during Vortex and a time post Vortex.

If Coney mall did a get a big revamp, it would likely include a bunch of the Carnival type games and maybe the arcade. Anyone have any insight into how much revenue is generated at the arcade and carnival games? Seems like both are usually pretty quit, though I suspect the upkeep and maintenance, especially on the carnival games is pretty low. Since both of these are often staples at other parks, how could KI incorporate those better? Would a sit down dining area be worthwhile in this area? Already have the BBQ place not to mention the diner, skyline, etc... Could flats be added in place of some of the games? Coney seems to have stayed largely the same since the parks opening, with slight changes every few years that bleed over thru the memory of time and keeps the area "same as it ever was" even if the changes and updates are indeed happening. Vortex was the last big thing to really hit that walkway (though one could argue the stunt coaster invades on the ambiance) in 30+ years. A Vortex replacement would be the perfect opportunity for a huge facelift across the entire coney main street.

FWIW, Park was def busier friday night than it was the opening friday night of haunt, however it wasn't horrible. I was in that line waiting to get in, but my friend I was meeting up with was running late so we didn't really start trying to get on anything until 6:30 or so. Diamondback was a pretty short wait, maybe 20 min. We went on Mystic Timbers, all the kids rode while the dads sat it out, the line looked fairly short, but it took the kids a bit longer to get thru than anticipated. We grabbed dinner and by this point it was dark outside. Beast line was out the entrance (not sure how many switchbacks were open or if they were using the secondary switch backs, haven't seen that since I was a kid many, many years ago. We decided to try slaughterhouse. I was surprised that the wait was only like 15 min. Its the only haunt we did this time around, I was expecting a much longer wait. Kids rode shake rattle and roll then we tried to get on Orion, i was told it was a 75 min wait, and the kids decided they didn't feel like waiting that long. FOF was a 90 min wait I was told, so we headed over to The Racers. A few switch backs were open and the line was backed up to the entrance, but it moved quickly, maybe 15 min to get on, 20 tops. Seemed like the blue side was running very smoothly. My son and my friends daughter then got on Drop Tower, while I took my daughter and my friends other daughter on Banshee (my daughter's first time riding it), maybe a 30 min wait. 2 trains were running and it moved pretty smoothly. From there it was about 10:00 or 10:30 and we decided to call it a night. WindSeeker was down, not sure why. Pretty good evening; likely my last trip of the season.

We plan to get there at open. Don't know if we will focus on many haunts or not. Its the same group of people as went last time, and seems like most preferred coasters to Haunts, however my youngest son (8) is going along as well so that might change the equation. Honestly not sure if he is prepared for all the scare actors or not but he has been begging and begging to go.... so we will see. Thanks for the response, hoping for a relatively quick lines. I guess if it is slammed then we don't have to stick around

Any guesses to wait times for this evening? I know Saturday's in the fall are typically slammed. I went on the first Friday of fest this season as well as a few other Fridays in the past, but I've never been on a Friday this late into the fall season. Do the Friday night crowds grow a bunch as you get closer to Halloween or will Friday night football still keep crowds down? The lines for Haunts were a little long, but nothing unreasonable, lines for coasters were really quick when we were there a few Fridays ago.

visitkingsisland.com has today listed as 6-midnight https://www.visitkingsisland.com/calendar-and-hours So does the park app

I remember when they used to have a kids corral at some roller coasters; I believe The Beast had one at one point. Maybe The Racers too; can't recall for sure. I'm sure at some point some lawyer said the liability possibilities were far too great for that to be worth the parks efforts. Anyhoo, makes me wonder what is the proper age to leave a kid unsupervised just off the ride? Obviously an 8 year old "watching" a 4 and 2 year old is far too young. Would a 10 year old watching a 6 year old be OK if they waiting in line then stood at the exit while you rode? I'm past that thought excersize as my youngest (8) will ride everything, so its really only my 12 year old daughter that occasionally has to wait in line with us then sit in the exit que while the rest of the family rides. As long as she just stands by the exit gates I feel she is pretty safe.

To me, it doesn't matter how fast the ride is spinning, if the swings/seats are capable of hitting anything in their path no matter the speed, then the "anything" is too close. Seems like the standard should be a 45 degree angle from vertical; maybe even more (up to possibly 90 degrees, though the amount of power the motor would have to generate beyond its normal capacity would be far too great to actually reach those levels of speed required). No matter the reason, it sounds like there was some sort of poor E-stop settup. Furthermore, doesn't it seem like there should be something more than just a "kill switch" on the power? Unless gravity/friction are going to slow you down quickly, I would think there is easily a situation where you want a quick slow down, not a long, gradual slow down. ie in the instance where a kid is trying to climb out of the restraints. You want that ride to slow down rather quickly rather than be allowed to spin freely if that spin freely is going to lead to a long gradual slow down. Reduce the amount of time serious injury could happen to a guest that isn't following the rules.

International street: More shade, roving entertainment. Drop the photographers that are more annoying than anything and with smart phones don't really offer much of a service to the public anyways. Have someone there that is willing/able to take a picture in front of the tower of your group with your phone (or better yet, if you want some value out of it, offer the pic free, just give them your phone number to text it to them then have ads to up sell their photo package on rides). Turn the upstairs dining room into a full service restaurant, and offer reservations for a fireworks show and desert late in the evening. If there was a way to do something similar at several of the buildings along I-street on their rooftops for fireworks viewing that would be pretty cool Planet Snoopy: As mentioned yes Boo blasters is IS, but its entry is in Planet Snoopy and its theme fits in there. I honestly wouldn't change a whole lot to it, just make sure the guns work and the theming needs a huge update. I'd re theme to Phantom's revenge and keep the general idea the same but with working pieces and props. I'd also use the space next door for another immersive dark ride/attraction/show. I would get ride of Sally's sea plane and open up that area for another flat/path and make the the linus launcher and the log flume feel like more of a part of Planet Snoopy. Rivertown, Use the darn box that was Tomb raider. it has a fantastic que, maybe the ride has to be part inside, part outside, but utilize the box and the que. Coney Island, update the theming and include more "food truck" style food places. Turkey legs, grilled sausages, hand spun cotton candy, the kind of things you get at your local fair. Ride wise, Vortex Replacement is the obvious and retheme stunt coaster to more of a cincy coaster with the signs reflecting places in the area. Area 72, a few more flats, not sure where but it would be easy to theme. Might have to knock down/repurpose the maintenance buildings with may be a non starter. Adventure Port/Oktoberfest - just make it one big area, my biggest complaint is that Oktoberfest didn't have much of a german feel to it. Team up with Schmidts for some grilled sausages and cream puffs. Even if the fest house had to become "international house" the lack of german food in the area for so long seems shameful Action Zone, retheme to a "dark zone" or whatever name you want. The 2 major attractions already fit in well, rename drop zone (Delirium could remain the same) Replace congo falls and Invertigo with a major new coaster and add some dark themed flats to the area. Water park, a new water coaster. Yes I realize they are getting one next season, but I'd be looking to add another one down the road to enhance the area. If holliday world can have 3, then KI can have 2. 2030 for all of this seams highly unreasonable, so I'd really make this a 2035 time line 2026 for The Vortex replacement/coney update 2027 for boo blasters and Stunt coaster retheme 2028 for the start of the Dark zone transformation with a couple of flats, 2029 for the new coaster replacement for Invertigo and congo falls 2030 for the Area 72 flats expansion as well as the rest of the Planet Snoopy updates 2031 general park upkeep 2032 Water Park water coaster addition 2033 Rivertown big box conversion 2034 General park upkeep 2035 major coaster addition back in area 72 I'd add better signs for each area along the way and more immersive theming.

Renegade was my first GCI, and I have loved all 3 (Thunderhead @ DW) that I've been on. Added to it, we were planning a weekend in Minneapolis after visiting family in WI and ValleyFair wasn't even on the radar; my wife was pregnant at the time, however my wife's cousin was taking his kids there at the same time we were in the area, so we tagged along last minute. I hadn't looked at a single POV video of any of their rides, I knew WildThing was suppossed to be their "it coaster" so when my oldest and I got on Renegade we were not expecting a ton. The station flyby as you wait in line was cool; the ride, especially the 1st drop took us both by surprise. When the ride was done we just looked at each other and couldn't believe how much we enjoyed that. Mystic Timbers is my favorite ride at KI, so obviously I'm a GCI fan Interesting to know, how do you feel about RMCs? RMCs, at least the 2 that I've been on are far more intense but incorporate a lot of the similar elements that give you air one direction and a twist in another. Steel Vengance is either #1 or #2 for me (along with Velocicoaster) and Lightening Rod would be ranked pretty high in my limited coaster experience (though that was before they changed the lift hill, not sure how much that changes the experience, I'd guess not a ton other than the lift was pretty cool, but you weren't exactly thrown over the top like other launches do)

Its been 8+ years since I've been to Valleyfair. Disappointing that you didn't enjoy Renegade; I loved that ride back then, no clue how well it has been maintained, was pretty smooth (and still fairly new) back then. I do like Mystic Timbers better, but Renegade will always hold a spot in my heart (I doubt I ever make it up that way again). Wild Thing was a mixed bag for me. Great drop, phenomenal floater hill that follows and fun bunny hills at the end with ejector air time, but man that middle section just kills the pacing and overall experience. That park is so overdue for a coaster, being that close to a major metro market (and little competition around it) I'm surprised it doesn't see enough patrons to warrant more major investments. I believe the airport forces some height requirements, but a new B&M invert would fit in very well there.

I always take my glasses off on rides with inversions lots of air time and put them in my cargo pockets. I'd rather be safe than blind the rest of the day

I was wondering how one gets back there w/o being noticed, but I was thinking of the fences by the front of the ride where it seems like the fence isn't easily climbable and would be noticeable to many people. Since it happened back in the pretzel loop/vertical loop (?) portion near the end where the ride comes pretty close to the ground 3 times he must have worked his way over a fence somewhere over by SOB/The Bat ques. There are several spots there that would be easy to get over the fence/hedges. What precautions lie beyond those clearly identifiable ques and the service road I don't know. Once you are on the access road, getting to the fence around the low areas appears to be easy, and based upon the POV, the fences appear to be little more than the standard chain link fence, maybe 6-8 tall, but easily climbable (though I'm sure well marked) if someone was determined. Hopefully this guy can make a full recovery; unfortunately his asshatery is likely going to cost the park money and require even more idiot proofing of all parks down the road. If it was a set of keys that were dropped, that seems like a potentially challenging item to find depending on how recently that grass has been mowed. cargo pants with zippers is the answer folks, its not that difficult, but I'm guessing we are going to start seeing metal detectors and short term "ride" lockers like universal has (not to mention steel vengence and other rides). The ones at Universal are quite easy to manage/use.

Late to respond, but thanks for the responses. The pictures on the link don't really look like what I saw. IF (and this is probably a big if) it was prefabbed wooden track, it was being shipped as a single 10 foot +(?) stretch of track including the cross pieces underneath the rails, almost like they were taking out an old section and putting this back in its place. Of course it may not have even been anything close to what my instincts question it could be. If Gravity Group is where several have said it is, then it likely wouldn't have originated or been heading there. It was coming up 275 on the East side of Cincy north of Milford/Indian Hill and getting off on 71 N towards KI. Other than that, where it originated from, where it was headed and even what exactly it was will forever be a mystery Thanks for the responses, I didn't know Gravity Group had a manufacturing facility in the area.

@jcoop22 easily my favorite memories at the park is watching my kids experience the new thrill as they grow up in the park. Watching my 2 youngest bump into each other on the beatle bugs, my oldest challenge The Beast and Vortex when he was 5, the look on my youngest face when he got to the top of millennium force for the first time then watching him transition to hands up the entire 2nd half of the ride (I don't think I ever took my eyes off of him even though it was my first ride as well cause the change in emotions was too priceless). Enjoy these moments they will stick with you far longer than I could have ever imagined.

Wasn't really sure where to put this, so figured I'd ask it here To start, I'm not really sure what I saw so the whole question could be way off base anyhoo, I was driving home the other day on 275 b/w the Milford area and 71 when there was a "wide Load" trailer driving north. It stood out to me, because the trail car was driving really really close to the truck/trailer to the point it kind of looked dangerous. Anyways, at first I wasn't really sure what the truck was hauling but as I past it, its kind of looked like prefabbed wood/hybrid coaster track. Can't really recall it if was mostly straight or had some bend in it. If it was pre-fabbed track, could it have been manufactured by CSF? I know they have done B&M track quite often but don't recall any prefabbed wood/hybrid track. The truck got off 275 onto 71 towards KI. Regardless of the origin of the track, I'm not even sure where it would be headed. KI isn't in need of that, neither is CP perhaps somewhere off of I70 in Pennsylvania or the East coast? Finally, does anyone have a picture of what prefabbed track looks like when being shipped on a trailer? I searched on the internets but couldn't find one. I may be way off in what I saw and figured if I saw what it looked like on a typical delivery truck it may help me better gauge if I was anywhere close to being right.

15 year bump; impressive use of the search tool vs just starting a new thread. Always fun to look back on conversations before I was on this site. Hope the trip went well, but since you didn't get any advice I'll offer my advice to whomever reads this moving forward. 1) to date, nobody has fallen off a coaster at KI. Those things are pretty secure, actually doubly or triply secure with the addition of seatbelts since this thread was started on many ride. You have a significantly higher odds of getting injured (or worse) on the drive to KI than on any of the rides at KI. 2) Watch some POV videos on youtube. it will give you an idea of what to expect on each ride, part of the biggest fear is the unknown. Knowing what is coming up on each ride could help relieve that part of the stress. (as an aside, once you have ridden a number of different rides in varying parks I'd suggest against that prior to a trip to a new park as the element of surprise can make a new coaster all that more enjoyable) 3) Start easy and small and work you way up. I mean you could always just head back to Orion and say "heck with it" and know that from there every other ride is going to be smaller. You could honestly start with the viking ship as that will get you decently high in the air (higher with each set back away from the middle) to get you that feeling of looking straight down. Also know that the Viking ship is significantly less constraining than any coaster at KI. Its not unsafe, but you certainly are not strapped in tight. As for Coasters, start with Adventure Express that really doesn't have any hills or Stunt Coaster (that also doesn't really have any hills) then work to The Racers then Mystic Timbers (my favorite ride) and move you way up in height. 4) don't be too prideful to put a death grip on the restraints. Sure it won't actually make you any safer but you will feel more secure. Not "holding on for dear life" can/will make the ride more enjoyable as you get used to the forces, but for your first time (or 1,0000 time if you like) those restraints are your safety blankets. 5) when in doubt, reread my first post. KI (nor any other park save maybe the glory days of Adventure Park) aim to have you anything less than full secured at all times. If the heights bother you, don't look at the ground as you work your way up the lift, instead focus on your restraint, friend, etc...

How long does it take to go from "lets build this" to 1st rider? I was always under the impression that it was a 4-5 year time frame from when they decided what they wanted to build (or started collecting ideas) to getting funding, to getting plans approved, to install to 1st rider. If you believe that KI's next major coaster is coming in 2026 anything out of these survey's wouldn't have much of an impact, if any on something that would be built starting next season. So what kind of major coaster that would plug a hole in KI's lineup isn't on that list? Seems to me like a winged coaster with several inversion on Vortex's lot would be not only a good replacement for Vortex but also fill in some holes in KI"s lineup and with GateKeeper being as old as it is, not taking away from a similar concept already in the chain nearby. Add a launch aspect to like they have at Holiday World and it adds a twist.

Could you? Of course, with enough money you could do just about anything. Would you? That is the correct question, and my guess is no.

If you have never been to the new family area at Dollywood, KI is very far apart from retaking that throne from dollywood. The addition of Big Bear Mountain easily tops this coaster addition (though this appears to be a solid addition) in my opinion. I guess I'll know for sure when I ride the new KI addition. Anyhoo, This appears to be a solid add, and maybe if they retheme the whole area and slowly add on/improve different aspects of their kids/family area over the next 3-4 seasons they could be in the running. KI's area is great, though in obvious need of the love that they are getting. Dollywood's area is fresh and vibrant with a lot of different varity. I enjoy FAAC, but dragon flyer is significantly better version of a family invert. The shaded play area is a much needed add.

@KI Beast it wasn't an overly crowded day, but yes it did seem like operations were slow. Only 1 train on Lightening Rod is a disappointment for speed thru the ride. I think everyone is having issues with staffing it seems, though that may not be the issue for LR. KI would need a ton of work to catch up with Dollywood to get that prize back. @johnjniehaus is probably correct that its not really worth their time. But I would love to see them add to Planet Snoopy and get it back in the ballpark.

Too bad you didn't ride Firechaser express, its a fantastic family coaster, my seat had some wheel wobble/shuffling when we went about a week prior to you, but I personally enjoy it a shade more than Big Bear Mountain (which is fantastic). Dollywood isn't giving up its claim to best kids area any time soon.

I'm guessing because of their strong association with Marvel and Stars Wars now, I think most kids today will associate Disney with everything Marvel and Star Wars. Seems like both properties have taken a bit of a dive since Disney purchased them (or at least over the last several years anyways, not sure exactly at which point Disney acquired them.) Some of that is the natural ebb and flow in that I think super hero movies have been so played out that people are ready to find something different (though I'm not sure that they have) but part of that is on Disney or whomever is in charge of the scripts and stories, they haven't been great for the most part. the other area that will hinder them is for many older generations, Disney then later Nick represented the main kids programing and there wasn't much else. Disney World/Land offered a heightened experience with the characters that you loved in the movies/TV. Today's kids have so many more options for content, youtube, netflix and a billion other streaming services not to mention Tik Tok and the like. Disney's movie of the week is no longer something special, its just another option (well not that the movie of the week thing exists anymore, but you catch my drift) With so many options, younger kids will age out of Disney and into more grown up kids content much quicker that will lesson that sense of nostalgia that older generations developed with Disney Properties. I think the way older generation or Disney Adults if you will feel about Disney will be lost of today's youth if we check back in 20 years. Course by then I'll have my flying car so all will be good

My family spent last week in Pigeon Forge including a day at Dollywood (our 2nd trip, prior one was in 2019). First the weather sucked, but was by no means a washout, actually aside from arrival and our first 30 min or so inside the park, rain was pretty much a non issue, I was hoping that would help keep crowds down a bit (we had similar weather on our prior visit and once the rain/thunder cleared the park was fairly empty) but the crowds were strong for a Wednesday. It was the last day of the ACE event (I'm not in ACE so this wasn't a planned thing, just a coincidence) and with a lot of ACE name badges around that might have been part of the reason for the larger crowds despite the wetish day (it was also wet all week, so Wednesday was the best of the bunch and might have brought in people that wanted to attend one day and that was the best of the pick). Anyhoo, we got into the park shortly after opening. Several rides were still not running yet, but Big Bear Mountain was one of them and it was only listed as a 10 min wait. We headed back to Wildwood Grove and got in line. Probably took about 20 min to get thru the line, a nicely themed entry line, to get on. Sat towards the back, and for 39" height requirement it was an awesome experience/ride. Great theming, felt like pretty good speed and just a lot of fun. If KI has any designs of taking back the best themed kids area from Dolly, well good luck cause they will have to "earn it". Firefly was still not open yet, we had ridden it on our prior visit (I believe that is win Wildwood Grove was still new. Kinda like Flying Ace Arial Chase, but better cars/restraints and a better ride. Definitely feels more "kiddie coaster" than Big Bear Mountain or Fire chase express but a fun ride when we went 4 years ago. When it did open up, it was listed as 40-50 min waits most of the day, so we never jumped on. Anyhoo, my youngest wanted to desperately ride Wild Eagle so we headed in that direction, however on our way Fire Chaser Express had just opened up, and knowing the lines for Wild Eagle would be shorter all day, we jumped on that while there was only a min wait. The Ride, at least my car has gotten noticably rougher than when we rode it 4 years ago, not painful by any means, but a definite rattle; perhaps it just needs new wheels. Anyhoo, for those that have never been, its a great ride, awesome theming, I'd love to see something like this in Planet Snoopy at KI. Best family/kiddie coaster I've been on (39" requirement). From there we jumped on Wild Eagle, maybe a 10 min wait, my youngest son loved it. I rode it last time with my oldest son and it is as smooth as ever. Not super forceful but a fun ride. Lightening Rod opened up at the same time as fire chaser express and what started out as a 10 min wait turned into a 115 min wait by the time we rode FCE and WE and got over there. Rather than wait in line, figuring it was a bit of a "just opened up rush" we grabbed lunch at the restaurant near the entrance. Burger themed diner and I've got to say, not the best food experience, Dolly is known for great food and this was sub par (though better than some other parks food that I've had). By the time we were done, the listed wait was 45 min so we jumped in line, however things we moving very slowly then we saw a car shoot up the lift only to fail to make it over and come back down. I assumed perhaps they could relaunch it from the bottom, however it went down for maintenance with an evac at the bottom of the lift hill. So from there we jumped up to Blazing Fury. We somehow failed to ride that on our prior visit. Fun little indoor family coaster, not great and a little painful in parts but a quirky coaster/dark ride. From there it was Tennessee Tornado, which I'm told is still very smooth but I refuse to ride arrow loopers early in the day so I still can't verify that then over to Thunderhead, their GCI. I'd say I still like Mystic Timbers better, but Thunderhead is still fun like every GCI I've been on (which actually only extends to Renegade at Valley Fair). By that point, Lightening Rod had reopened and the line was down to 60 min so we headed over and got in line. For whatever reason they were only running 1 train, which certainly made the wait longer, but it moved at a slightly steady pace. My daughter waited in line for 60 min then decided to bail, however my 7 year old loved it. Wife and the oldest had ridden it before along with me on our last trip, still forceful, yet smooth. Launch up the hill is fun. At that point, we had cleared all the coasters so it was time for repeats and some flats mixed in. Had diner over by the pizza place at Drop Line, pretty good pizza for a theme park. Since my oldest is Gluten Free, I still haven't had the cinnamon bread which I'm told is out of this world and a must try, but don't want to watch him drooling while I enjoy it so we haven't tried it yet. With the exception of Drop Line, the 7 year old was able to get on everything else that he wanted (WE is a 50" height, he is 52"). I love the park, they had a fun little foam pit set up that the 2 youngest did for awhile during the middle of the day and their summer themeing "road trip" displays were pretty cool, something KI should copy/imitate some day.