SonofBaconator

I enjoyed reading this article so thanks for sharing! Rivertown is my favorite part of the park so it does disappoint me that its a ghost of its former self. The Beast's lake is gone, a huge chunk of the train's theming has disappeared, the Keelboat Canal is gone, the kids area took the log flume and there truly is no river in Rivertown anymore. I'd argue what caused this to happen was a chain reaction that happened over decades. 1st you get the draining of The Beast's lake to make room for Vortex and the setting immediately changed. Fast forward to 2002 when a classic log flume was replaced with a metal box. 7 years later a lot of the woods were cleared and Swan Lake was drained to make room for the impressive B&M Hyper- Diamondback. 4 years later we get a Cincinnati Reds restaurant. I'm not saying these addictions were bad, (maybe with exception to the metal box), but they all drastically changed the section's landscape to where its not as recognizable anymore. Back then I'd argue the philosophy was thrills over theme- which is why we saw a ride themed to treasure hunt in an Asian jungle. Now however, I think we're starting to see a need to push the theme aspect and possibly bring some character back to Rivertown. As a matter of fact we already see this with Mystic Timbers. I doubt it'll ever look like its former glory but the park can try and make something new. I think Vortex's removal has given the park a rare opportunity to redefine Rivertown and possibly expand it further towards Coney Mall (heck BLSC and SRR are technically part of Rivertown). Who knows, maybe The Beast lake might make a return.

So you're assuming it would've gone in the same area? I could see that. Looking back on it I was glad KD got Dominator; they needed it more than we did.

I bet this guy is enjoying quarantine

These photos are great! It makes me sad to see how many trees there used to be vs now, especially where the old antique cars used to be.

Welcome back! Are you by any chance related to @VortexLover?

This is getting off topic. Yes it ties into amusement parks but its making a huge turn. Things will get better as they always do. I'm just grateful for my family's health and pray this all goes away.

They do, doesn't mean you still don't hear the occasional gunshot or sirens from ambulances going to nearby hosiptals. I don't think so I've worked in that area and I can 100% attest to that.

Just wait for the sirens and the gunshots to go off and you'll remember you're in Avondale

I'd just say spooky and have the rides themed as such. I'll make some type of concept art or something

I think Action Zone needs to be kept "spooky" A chunk of KI's identity comes from paranormal activity and folklore- @KIghostguy can attest to that. I think if you complete Action Zone and give it that type of spooky vibe it would reflect well. Some ideas would be install more gothic lamp posts with flame LED bulbs. Make the area seem more eerie, especially towards night time. The area doesn't have to be themed to Europe as Banshees can also be linked to Cincinnati since a lot of us natives have Irish roots. Maybe make some of the buildings more primitive and reminiscent of 19th century architecture. I'm thinking as a whole, give the area a "haunted town" feel. (If you've ever walked through downtown Lebanon at night you know what I mean)

I think a compact wing coaster would be cool in the Area 72 section. X-Flight is one of the most underrated wing coasters out there in my opinion. Near miss elements are awesome on wing coasters, especially when the space is already compact. I'm not as much of a fan of compact coasters but X-Flight is one of the exceptions. Heck it would be cool to have it pay homage to Firehawk if one was ever done since I don't see a flyer returning.

That's what's on a lot of people's minds. On one hand it matches the 150+ shuttle that CGA mentioned in their report for their additions. On the other hand, this will have been the 3rd home for Possessed if it gets moved to CGA. I don't know how many times a ride can be relocated without it causing some type of wear but I'm sure its fine. The only other thing I never understood is why CGA wants an impulse that's not Wicked Twister when their direct competitor has one thats pretty unique. At least with Wicked Twister they could claim the tallest and fasted inverted coaster

@TombraiderTy I think he's referring to Firehawk being the 1st relocated GL ride to be removed after its relocation.

If anyone is wondering why I'm such a proponent of the floorless model vs others, I'm happy to explain. When I was a little Vortex used to be the tallest coaster in the park. The tall lift hill, tall to me anyway, and the multiple inversions were intimidating to a little giy like me. Fast forward a decade where I get my 1st ride on it. I enjoyed the long chainlift to the top of the hill, the intense inversions, and greasy smell of the chain and the clanky anti-rollbacks. The ride represents the pure nostalgia of what an Arrow looper was. Fast forward again to 2019 when it was announced that Vortex would be removed after 33 years of service hitting the park in a huge way. Not only were we losing some inversions, we were losing a KI classic that broke records when it was built, featured on tv several times, and was praised by many. I want a floorless, or even a sitdown, by B&M because I think it would be fitting replacement for such an iconic ride. There are some who think memories should be memories and sequel/tribute rides are unoriginal but I believe Vortex should be the exception. Not only do I want those inversions back but I also want to try and relive the feeling of riding Vortex in a more modern way. I'd like to end up taking my kids to the park one day when I'm a father and take them on Vortex like my dad did with me. Maybe I'm being nostalgic but I don't think a launched coaster or a dive would do Vortex justice.

I know Cedar Fair has worked with Gravity Group in the past retracking parts of the late Rebel Yell but this'll be the 1st ground up coaster the company's received from them. Maybe the top tier parks will get GCIs and the mid to lower tiers will get Gravity Group coasters.

Just got a few rides in on Vortex Virtual reality is often disappointing. Now virtual reality can be whatever I want.

Going off of what @bengalsguy23 said on the Dorney shuttle coaster thread- Ouimet wanted to focus on the money makers where as Zimmer is trying to capitalize on all properties. I think this is a good transition considering they invested a lot of the company's capital in the parks they knew would give them a good ROI. Now they can focus on their mid to lower tier parks with smaller investments that are unique enough to increase attendance. I also think this is decade will be the one where they really build up California's Great America like they've been planning. This new concept of "everyone gets something every year" seems like a take on the Six Flags model. The difference is that Cedar Fair has the money to put in quality attractions with enough originality to where they're not repetitive of one another. If KI gets a new coaster every 5 years vs 3, you can almost guarantee that we'll get more flats in those between years as well as more quality family attractions and experiences. Plus a new coaster every 5 years might mean that the quality will be better; not that Cedar Fair has ever given us anything less than excellent.

It seems like Cedar Fair's plan for mid to lower tier parks is to install upgraded versions of successful models from other parks. KD is set to get an original S&S Freespin and now it looks like Dorney is getting an upgraded version of Switchback. Not a bad plan if you think about it. Heck we might see parks like Valley Fair! and World of Fun get original raptor installations.

That honestly doesn't suprise me at this point. Cedar Fair is trying to knock out rides with high maintenance costs and low uptime. Considering the fact that Volcano was removed, it was only a matter of time for their impulses to follow suit.

@Snowball I do prefer the theatricality of music scores over other stuff. Speaking of theatricality, that's something I think our haunt could use more of. More creepy/halloween appropriate music throughout the park. I'd also like to see more rides get "altered" for haunt. The Beast used to have a creature that was covered during the day and revealed at night- I don't recall them doing that anymore. Knott's alters there rides and I think its awesome. There are a handful of our attractions that I think could get "hauntified": Flight of Fear, Backlot Stunt Coaster, Adventure Express, Mystic Timbers, Boo Blasters- rides that have a dark section. I don't think it would be too hard to do and would bridge the gap between haunts and thrills

We'll have to fill the looping coaster hole 1st before we can hope for a true multi-launch. We have to gain those inversions back somehow. I always considered a true multi-launch to focus on intense accelerations and maintaining speed like Maverick, Cheetah Hunt, Maxx Force, etc. Talking about filling holes, I also think we lack a "gimmick" coaster: something unique that the GP will love. When I say gimmick I mean it in a good way. For example, I used to consider Firehawk our gimmick coaster. Coasters that I consider gimmicky would ones like dives, flyers, spinners, wings, floorlesses and other models along those lines

Adding more trees and shade would do the water park some good. I think trying to attract water park fans would also be a technique they could try. Try and see if you can target people who prefer water parks over amusement parks and sell to them. "Enjoy world class pools, slides, and other wet attractions. While you're here take the train over to the main park and cool down on water rides like Race for your life Charlie Brown, White Water Canyon, and Congo Falls" I still think moving Congo Falls over to Rivertown could really sell this idea- get soaked at the waterpark then ride the train to Rivertown/Planet Snoopy where you could get soaked on the water attractions. I think the main reason why Congo Falls isn't that popular anymore is its placement. No one wants to get wet when there's no other water rides nearby. I'd be more likely to ride it if it got moved to Rivertown where I could also hit up WWC and RFYLCB afterwards then maybe hit up the waterpark after.

I don't think Cedar Fair is in a position where they'd want to install an El Toro type ride at their parks. To be honest I think they're content with GCI as their go-to wooden manufacturer. I've heard Intamin woodies are costly to maintain; you can also throw Gravity Group in there as well The only wooden coaster I'd want, and yes I consider it a wooden coaster, is something modern like Wildfire in Sweden. There's still Son of Beast track left standing and that area beyond Banshee has some nice terrain...

I wonder what's the next park that's going to get a B&M giga. I don't know of any company outside CF who can finance one. Six Flags couldn't afford one unless they left all the other parks in the dust for the season. Sea World might be able to but I don't see any of their parks needing something like that. I'd say we might see one overseas in a few years but that depends on if any of those parks would want to spend a minimum of $30 million

Any speculation on the colors? Maybe a throwback to its original color scheme? Since the locomotive is under Cedar Fair ownership it makes me wonder if it'll stay at WoF after Eli's return or move to another park.