Joncars05

I have been to Soak City 3 times so far this year. There have been a couple of things that have sort of disappointed me with the expansion. 1. Rocks/Pebbles- I have noticed rocks and pebbles everywhere throughout the paths. I walk with no shoes on through the water park and can't help but step on at least 2-3 pebbles in the middle of the paths. 2. "Action River"- Now I will preface this with I like getting "soaked" in the water park. Heck that is usually the point of going to the water park. But I can't help but being upset with the way they have set up the new Lazy/Action river. The zero depth entry is nice but after that the first "action" part has you getting spray/blasted/shot in the face with jets and water guns from little kids on the side. THEN you get shot and if you are "lucky" get a full bucket of water dumped on you from above when you go under the bridge... You can avoid most of the other water spouts but not the aforementioned water effects. Now I know I sound grumpy but to me the lazy river was the only place in Kings Island/Soak City where you could get in the water and relax without having to fight waves or slide down anything. You could just sit there and float. These new water attractions really take that away. mainly just the two "human controlled" water areas. Now there is no where to relax in water at SC. 3. New wave pool- Now I do not know if the new wave pool is heated. But it sure seems like it. Also the major flaw with this wave pool is the fact that they allow water tubes in the pool. Not only is it annoying, it is flat out dangerous because the tubes are amassed where the waves are crashing and if you don't have one well you better grab onto someone's tube otherwise you will end up under someone or getting hit in the head while trying to swim. I really could see someone dying drowning from these tubes just purely from being over taken by a group of 6 people interlocking their arms. In the new wave pool it seems that if you want to be in the ,as KI touts "more aggressive waves", you will need a tube to enjoy it. 4. $12-$15 lockers, w/ no refund (oh and exact change)...- That is just outrageous. Especially for a park that isn't even known for their water section. HW's lockers are $10 with a $5 refund... Yes I know they are smaller but still you can buy two for $5 less than one at KI. I feel that they are taking advantage of you for having to use a locker in the waterpark. It is almost straight gouging and I don't know about you folks but I hate feeling like I am being taken advantage of... $15 is just too much for a locker IMO These are just some of my peeves about the new SC. I think that the paint jobs and new additions of the volleyball courts are actually pretty cool. But I still think that These are just my opinions. I want to know what you folks think. Are you disappointed with anything at SC?

I agree with you! I would have loved to see DB run through the terrain a bit after the photo area. It could've gone straight instead of the left turn into the MCBR at the photo area. It could've explored the woods a bit then popped up for the final small hills before the splashdown. I just think the ride peters out before the end of the ride.

You do know I was kidding right?

My favorite photo is of the "Loop the Loop" ride. The sign on the fence by the ride says "Beware of Pickpockets"

I'm running an experiment with my GP and my girlfriend's GP. I am using my strictly for purchases (including swipes for parking) while she uses her pass strictly for getting into the park. We have been a total of 5 times and she has received nothing from visits but I have leveled up to level two with about $150-$165 spent in the park. I think the purpose of the program is only to have people spend money in the park. They could care less if you come to the park and not spend your money. They are after your money (like any other business) and are "kind" enough to offer discounts and free food/games as you spend more money. I think that visits almost count for nothing. Visits are probably used just to track how much money is spent per visit when they total up the visits compared to money spent through the year.That is just what I think.

I don't think I am reading this right. I have the offer of half off a Fast Lane pass. Can I buy one for me and the other for my girlfriend while only using the pass once? I was thinking it would just be half off for me and then full price for my gf. $25 for me and maybe down to $45 for my gf since we are buying two at the same time... IDK can someone that has used this coupon tell me how it works. Thanks in advance. In order to redeem it for yourself AND your GF, you have to have 2 of these available, one for each of you. Once you reach level 2, you get your choice of 2 level 2 rewards -- and you can redeem them both for the same thing (ie 2 50% off Fast Lane passes). Thank you very much for answering that for me!

I tried to tell you people... Randy Travis will explain it for me...

I don't think I am reading this right. I have the offer of half off a Fast Lane pass. Can I buy one for me and the other for my girlfriend while only using the pass once? I was thinking it would just be half off for me and then full price for my gf. $25 for me and maybe down to $45 for my gf since we are buying two at the same time... IDK can someone that has used this coupon tell me how it works. Thanks in advance.

I rode DB at night on wednesday. I saw the delay withthe train being worked on in the shed, not sure what they were working on but it ran fine to me. I can confirm that row 13 was roped off on wednesday the 13th also.

#1- The Voyage- Just an absolute BLAST from beginning to end. The only rest on this ride is the MCBR that last about 3-5 seconds... A Masterpiece! #2- The Beast- Great ride through the woods. You truly feel alone out in the back with this classic. Double helix finish is a great way to end this ride. The night rides are just fantastic! #3- The Legend- Very underappreciated IMO. I like the hard laterals and the pockets of airtime mixed in throughout the ride. #4- The Raven- I think this one could be in the running for #2 only if the ride was about 500-700 feet longer... It seems like the ride just gets going right when it ends.

I'm sure you didn't mean to come off like that. You actually proved a good point. I was throwing out my opinion on it because its the little things that you get nickel and dime you to death that set me off a bit <Lockers, food prices(especially for ice cream/snacks), drinks, etc... I think that happens more at KI. But you will get that when you pull over 3 million people annually to a park. I enjoy both parks for different reasons. KI for thrills and HW for more relaxing/family fun plus one heck of a coaster, The Voyage.

True but some people still bring backpacks or bags. Just like some people would buy a $52 KI ticket at the gate instead of buying a discounted ticket from kroger.

Gotta step in and add my two cents or nickles accroding to terpy... :-) First off gas is the same for me driving from indy to HW or KI. I drive a 2001 Saturn SL1 40 mpg and both trips take right around 3/4 of a tank. The difference is the path you take to HW is back roads so you don't drive fast 60-65 mph while getting to KI is Highway 70-80mph. Plus the distance for KI you have correct from Indianapolis is 127 miles but the distance to HW is 144 miles not 180 (even though that is interstate)... So that cancel the gas difference. But If you must add costs... then you must add the cost of lockers if you go to the water sections of the parks. I went with 4 people and had to spend $30 dollars that you DONT GET BACK at KI on lockers... At HW you spend $10 but you get $5 back. So you should add the $20 difference if you buy two lockers (or $10 if you get just one locker). Add $2-4 if you want to ride FH. (nitpicking yes, but its a fact) To say KI v. HW better value argument is destroyed is a bit silly. I think it depends on what you are looking for. I will agree with you on the fact that the parks are completely different. Dry thrills versus water thrills. And mostly they are even on price. But that is only because they just introduced the $5 drink bands this year. I still think HW is a better value with shorter wait times, better food, cleanliness, friendliness, and a water park that is unmatched by any other seasonal park. The only thing KI has on HW are thrill rides, IMO. </Rant Over/> Lo siento

http://www.holidayworld.com/clubs That is the webpage that contains all the info for the event that was held this past weekend.

Yes all coasters need to bend and sway especially in turns to absorb the forces created by the train on the tracks. If they are rigid they cannot support the forces created by the train going over and the track and supports would snap causing a catastrophic collapse. They are designed that way. The Legend at HW comes to mind, with its focus on hard laterals, with big shifts by the supports. It's not just wooden roller coasters that bend either... Check out this video of the Diamondback and the first two clips of the b-roll footage.

I will say HWN 2012 was awesome. The Voyage at night after the rain was amazing the trains slipped right through the MCBR and that made the final part of the ride just ridiculous! I will agree with you on the Mammoth rollbacks as well. We skipped the morning ERT because of the temps but when we were in line during regular park hours 2 rollbacks happened while we waited. We got through the line in about 30 minutes minus the rollback delays. Overall its a great ride though. Great report and awesome pics!

I wanted to post this on the article but I couldn't so I'll post it here: Debate it and tell me what you think? Ed if you were so "passionate" about your park You should have never sold it to six flags... But I guess every man has a offer they can't refuse. You can't sell the park for a ton of money then be sad when it gets run down by the new owners... If you wanted to have KK around you should have never sold the park. You could have had KK and been making a profit. But I believe you knew it was bad dealing with the fair board so you sold the park to the highest bidder (Premier Parks) and laughed as you knew they would run into problems with the fair board just a few years later when the lease renewal came up. So you are a master business man. You sold a park that was going to end when the lease was up because you knew it was going to be hard to renew the lease. So since you don't own the park now Six Flags has the blood on their hands because the park closed down on their watch. While you get off scot-free while counting the $64 million you made on the deal... Absolute genius...

What are you talking about? The man that spoke at the event was Dan Koch. The main person trying to open BB. It is fair to expect/believe that a man that owns HW and trying so hard to open BB again would mention something about BB. Especially if he is so excited (atleast in interviews) to open the park. I think his silence on the matter is a telling sign about how the negotiations are going (especially in front of coaster enthusiasts that actually would like to see KK/BB open up again). Here is a question. If they had a lease signed and were going to open the park in May 2013 like they believed they were going to... Would he have mentioned it during HoliWood Nights? I think so... p.s. It only took me two months to break my rule of not responding to you. Enjoy it... I'm gonna try for a bit longer next time...

I forgot to mention that. I was surprised yet not surprised (If that makes any sense) that it was not mentioned at all during HoliWood Nights. They are usually excited to talk about new things (Heck they were pumped about Sparkler being added to the park and it being on the ERT list). I think they know what most enthusiasts believe, that this is a losing effort to try and revive KK/BB. The general public is more gullible than the enthusiast crowd and most at the event probably wouldn't have bought the spin.

I was at Holiwood Nights this past weekend. I will say the ride is in great form. The only part of the ride that I would say was rough was the left hand turn (I believe right at the camera) there was major jackhammering but it lasted only 2 seconds. Other than that the ride was purely amazing!!! The offseason track work they put in paid off very well.

We are headed out to Holiday World now. Please be safe on the way down there. I am going to be in a blue pull over with black pants. I'll be wearing a backpack it has a padlock on it at the top of it My GF will be with me too. If you see us don't be afraid to stop us and say hey! We are headed to the Legend for the first little bit of ERT after the meeting tonight. Have fun!!!

I would love to see a Vertical Drop/Dive Coaster like Sheikra or Griffon. *Post #100!!!*

Wow some powerful stuff there from Ed. I can't tell if he is more upset with the state or the Koch's. The idea that the Koch's would make this move purely to destroy nearby competition doesn't sound absolutely off the wall when I read and think about it. I have a hard time believing that they would make such a move (Just based off of their outward appearance) BUT from a business perspective I would not be surprised if this was the motive for the move... With all of this turmoil around this BB situation I wonder if they will speak about it at all during HWN tomorrow. I hope they do because I really want to hear their side of the story (No matter how much spin put on it) and see what they are planning to do.

My GF and I are going to run an experiment with this Funperks thing. I am going to make all purchases with my card, which I have done so far this year (parking included). Her card will only be used for park visits. We will see if she gets any rewards based on the amount of times she visits. (Which I doubt she will receive any rewards, because the program is purely trying to get you to SPEND money in the park not just visit. But its worth a shot.)