VortexBFForever

Wait...they weren't working again yesterday?? I was on AE on Saturday night and all the effects were working in the last tunnel!

WindSeeker had the hiccups when I was there tonight. It was open briefly, so I took a ride on it after I had gotten off of Vortex. Near the end of the ride when we were still about 10 feet above the ground, it stopped. It stayed that way and did not move for about 3 minutes until maintenance restarted it and brought us back down safely. I thought it was very interesting, and even fun, for I had never gotten stuck on a ride before until tonight. What an interesting experience I had on WindSeeker! After I had gotten off, WS was down for the rest of the night, except for it was testing quite a few times including during the fireworks. I wasn't able to get a fireworks ride on WindSeeker like I hoped, but I instead got a fireworks ride on Vortex! Better yet, it was my 230th ride on Vortex, so it was an amazing way to celebrate!

I may be going tonight. But first, I'm helping my mom do chores. Work comes before fun!

^How much do they cost?

I do wish the price was lower. They're really tasty! I'm very thankful that I was able to enjoy one for free on Thursday.

Yes, it was taken only a year ago, but Banshee has come such a long way since then. From footings and dirt to a fully operational ride! Like some say, they grow up fast!

Nice TR. Thanks for sharing!! -BFF, who couldn't make it to Opening Day but hopes she can make it Saturday night...

I may try to go tomorrow night, but chances are slim at the moment. We'll have to see what happens! Also, my mom and I cannot make it tonight. She had to work today so she is a bit tired. I hope we can still make it on a normal operating day before my Spring Break ends (namely Saturday night, because we have different, special plans for the lovely Easter Sunday and the park is closed on Monday).

Are there any rides that aren't open? I know Banshee is/was having problems.

Do you have any idea how long the lines for other rides are?

You mean the other rides' lines are short?

Wow. That's one big line! Webcam image captured here: https://www.visitkingsisland.com/online-fun/webcams

(this was taken when I was sitting down) The 3rd ride, taken in 6-2, happened to be the start of a 15-ride marathon. I don’t exactly remember the order, but I moved all over the train. I rode in 1-1 another time, along with a couple more in 1-2, 6-2, and 2-1. I also rode in 7-1, 7-2, 5-1, 3-1, and 2-2 as well. Looks like The Bat has a head start over Vortex, in terms of seasonal ride totals! On the 13th consecutive ride, it was my 60th ride ever on The Bat! Amy (faeriewench) was at the exit and she took a couple pictures of me on that special ride, which I spent in 2-1. On my last ride I saw a few more KICers (including malem) making their way up to the station, and I met them after my last ride. Devan (thedevariouseffect) was there too, along with a couple other members. We made our way back to Action Zone. I went to Delirium. When I was making my way to Seat 15 (my assigned seat) I ended up right next to Princess Sparkles, Beastie1980 and LoraX. We had a fun ride together. Princess Sparkles and I stayed on for the next cycle, which we enjoyed together. Call me crazy, but I stayed on AGAIN for a THIRD CYCLE! I found out 3 cycles in a row on Delirium was enough for me, as I did not feel the best when I walked off. The rides were still fun, though! (Before this, I did not know I could marathon Delirium! ) TurkishDelightBGW and I decided Banshee’s line was too long for me to take one last ride (we had to leave in about 10 minutes). Meanwhile, the folks at Ice Scream Zone were handing out free cones of Banshee Twist Ice Cream. I had one, and it was delicious! Next we checked out the Chicken Shack. To my surprise, the food and drinks they had there were free as well! We each had a plate of two chicken tenders, some fries, a piece of butter/garlic bread, and a small cup of dipping sauce for the fries and chicken. They were really good! I loved them! I definitely hope to eat there in the future (even though the food won’t be free then…). Finally, it was time to leave. I hope we can visit on Opening Day! (if we do, it will be during the evening hours, approx. 7-10pm) Thanks for reading! +Banshee: 2 +The Bat: 17 Overall: 62 +Delirium: 3 Overall: 16 Notes: -Sorry for not being very mobile-friendly...I take a lot of pictures! -As you can tell, I did a bit of continuous photography during this trip! -loved the fog, especially when it engulfs the sign! -Festhaus's back entrance has a new look -free refreshments! -Some other rides were testing, including Adventure Express, Vortex, and WindSeeker -The Bat’s line really shrank when I was riding it; in all honesty I never thought I would marathon it on Media Day! -it was my first Media Day, and it was amazing! -Thank you to Kings Island and everyone who helped put this event together! Mom's pics of the day: Getting ready for my first ride on Banshee! I'm the one with the penguin apparel. The first ride on Delirium. We (myself, Princess Sparkles, Beastie1980, LoraX, etc.) are seen on the upper right part of the circle.

It was now time to head back to The Bat once again. It was one of the additional rides that were open, along with Xtreme Skyflyer and Delirium. Xtreme Skyflyer was giving free rides, but the line was already lengthy and, considering Skyflyers capacity, very slow moving. Although I have never been on it, I decided to pass. As I was heading through the tunnel, a bright orange and black train swooped by. I was overwhelmed with excitement. I was back, ready to ride it again! I found a line extending to the flight of stairs before the station. The wait was roughly 7-10 minutes. https://flic.kr/p/ncCJTy] End of Part 4 I got on in row 1-2, for my first ride of the day on The Bat. It was awesome like always! The line was down to about ¾ of its original length when the cycle finished, so I decided to ride again. The line for the front row was shorter so I rode there. It was very nice feeling a 51mph breeze in your face. It felt really good!

At around 9:25, they closed the queue line so the remaining people that were waiting could ride in time for the ceremony. Once the last riders rode, the welcome ceremony began at 9:40. (if you look closely you can see Don in the middle) As Don and Greg were talking, there would be a time or two when they’d mention something about Banshee and the scream would sound from the lift hill. It added a nice touch. I stood on the side of the crowd that was the closest to Banshee’s entrance. I made a good choice, because a reporter from FOX19 (the Cincinnati station) happened to be doing a live broadcast at that time soon after the ceremony started. He interviewed me and asked how I liked Banshee. I said that it was really cool, especially near the end during that last twist when you feel weightless (my favorite part!). Let me say that it was cool being on LIVE television for about 20 seconds! One of the lights around Banshee. Near the end of the ceremony, people were starting to form a line by Banshee’s entrance. I ended up being the 3rd person in line because of my close proximity to the entrance. When the ceremony ended, a security guard led the large group through the line, while they starting testing and opening Banshee again. I was assigned to Row 2 this time, with 3 members of the media in the same row. I saw Tony (from Cedar Point) there; he was helping check restraints. As I was walking on I told him I’d seen him before and that was in his PointCast (or whatever it’s called). When I sat down I noticed he was setting up a GoPro camera in front of the row. My 2nd ride on Banshee was going to be recorded, and probably end up on the news somewhere! Needless to say, that ride was amazing as well. Loved it! Part 4 in next post

Another picture of the KIC group: Once I got to the top of the stairs, one of the attendants was looking for a single rider. I called out and said I was one. I was assigned to Row 7 for my first ride on Banshee, and that was how my wait time was cut short by a few minutes! I was on the dark blue train. I saw Matthew (malem) and the others in line for the front as Banshee took me away. I tried to wave to them but they weren’t looking my way. I liked the music on the lift hill, followed by the scream at the top. I was afraid it would get a little annoying after hearing it over 10 times while waiting, but I actually LIKED it! I liked it, even with the repetition. Since Row 7 was just one from the back, I got pulled over the top and through the inversions, all throughout the ride. I absolutely LOVED the last inversion because the train goes through slow enough to make you “fall” out of your seat a little. It was a really cool ride! I used my complimentary ride photo voucher to purchase the photo of my first ride, and then I exited and saw jcgoble3, MrsNoChickens, and IndyGuy4KI. Jonathan (jcgoble3) was holding Amy’s (faeriewench’s) camera bag. We talked for a few minutes before heading back to The Bat. It was closed at the moment, but I got quite an eyeful of the new colors. They looked AMAZING! I couldn’t wait to ride it. While we were walking back to Banshee’s entrance, I saw Delirium testing. It had a very similar orange to that of The Bat, and it had some white and red near the base of the swinging arm. ohiocolts and Fire-Beast-OF FEAR were by the dive loop. We talked about a variety of things including what we liked about Banshee, what rides we couldn’t wait to ride soon, and ideas for the next Off Season Photo Contest. In the meantime, I got some more shots: Part 3 in next post

^I was thinking about it, but I didn't take one. Sorry

It still slows down in the middle of the lift hill. I know that from riding it 17 times yesterday...

That is a hard question....but if I end up going to the park tomorrow evening, it may make it easier (and more fair) to decide. It wouldn't be fair to decide now because I rode Banshee only about 12 hours ago and I haven't been on Vortex in over 5 months. Neither of us have yet

Love the extended twist! (The last inversion) I felt like I was (almost) going to fall out of my seat, just like when you're going through Vortex's corkscrews! It's totally AMAZING!!!

Banshee Media Day at the Island - April 17, 2014 First trip report in this thread, and it's of my very first Media Day! Mom (TurkishDelightBGW) and I woke up just after 6:20a.m., and got ready for the big day. We left just after 6:40 and arrived at the park at 7:50. We checked in at the booth labeled Coaster Crew/Other Coaster Clubs and went back to the car to put our shirts and glass blocks/paperweights away so we wouldn't have to carry them around all morning. Then we headed into the park (with our lanyards, of course) for the first time in 5.5 months! Obviously, we headed left into Action Zone, since it was the only section open! Banshee was the only ride open at the time. I hopped in line. The line was filling up a handful of switchbacks, but it wasn't that bad. Banshee had 2 of its 3 trains running the course at the time. Seconds into the wait I spotted a group of KICers: I remember seeing ohiocolts, Beastie1980, Fire-Beast-OF FEAR, malem, and Katie.Greg (later known as Princess Sparkles) along with a couple others (please forgive me if I do not know or have forgotten the name or exact place of any member I saw that day). I also saw LoraX, faeriewench, and sikkinixx99. (I finally got to meet faeriewench! Hooray! ) And what better time is there to snap pictures and videos than during a wait for a ride? There are also some TVs in the queue showing various trivia questions and facts about Banshee: I heard sounds coming from Adventure Express, so I figured it must have been testing for a little while: The still-rising sun made for a lot of gorgeous shots! The rest of the queue will be packed full tomorrow... Part 2 in next post. I may have been there for only about half of Media Day, but I ended up taking over 200 photos!

I loved Media Day! It was a nice way to end the off season.

As you can see I have decided to try the idea of having all my trip reports (except for a few) in one topic instead of one topic for each one. Clearly I am not the first member to try this, but I figured why not try it for myself this year and see how it works? Since I will be going to Media Day tomorrow, the PTR I will write for that will be in this topic; I would recommend following this topic so you will know when I post a new trip report (or a reply, for that matter). Also, I will have links to the individual reports provided in my signature for added convenience. Hope you like this as much as I will!

I'm on Spring Break this week. No, I'm not trying to brag. Yes, I still cannot believe that we are almost to Media Day and Opening Day!