thegajone

Not to be too grim, but also consider the people who have said the same thing about parks that are still going strong, and then there was no next year for those people. I said the same thing about KI, CP, WDW and US back in 2010. Then boom, cancer diagnosis out of nowhere. Since then I have made an effort to do things I've always wanted to do when I can -- when I'm not going through chemo or recovering from surgery, which have both increased in frequency in the last 2 years. But since recovering from my first bout with cancer I've been to the Masters (the feeling of going to the Masters for the first time for hardcore golf fans is akin to going to WDW for the first time as a theme park enthusiast), traveled to places I've always wanted to visit, and made it a point to get back to KI and CP in the last couple years after not visiting either for close to a decade. Now my family and I are headed back to WDW and US in May. I'd love to wait until Star Wars land is open, or even just wait until this fall when Kong, Hulk and Soarin are up and running, but that might be too late. Anything can happen between now and then. Heck, I'll be thrilled if I can just make it to May in decent shape. I have been EXTREMELY lucky to get a 2nd, 3rd and 4th chance now to do things I said I'd do "next year", "some day" or "later". I know many others who were not so lucky. Time is one of the toughest things to predict and one of the easiest things to take for granted. Don't ever take it for granted. Sorry for getting so serious and dramatic on you all, but I just wanted to support and add on to Terpy's point. I'm glad he said it! Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

I knew as soon as I created a thread we'd already call an audible lol. We made a last-minute change and opted for a family suite at the Art of Animation resort. It's definitely smaller than the 2-bedroom villas at Saratoga Springs, but we think we can make it work for the $1,800 (!!?!) it saves us. The total cost for airfare, room and park tickets is a whopping $4,850. That does not include US tickets which we are estimating at around $800 based on what certified 3rd party vendors are offering, though my mom thinks she can get us free tickets through a friend. You can certainly go cheaper than that (getting 2 standard rooms at a value resort would have saved another $800 or so, but there is no guarantee that our rooms would be anywhere near each other; additionally, renting a house through Airbnb would have cost half what we paid for our room, even after you factor in renting a car, parking & gas), but you can also go significantly more expensive, but I feel good about our decision. I did a lot of research and analyzing of the meal plan options, but ultimately determined that it doesn't fit our situation very well so we passed. Now that it's official I am super excited. In about a week I'll be able to make our fast pass selections! Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

I truly hope you're being facetious and not legitimately concerned about that...Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk I don't like to tolerate unhealthy lifestyles.Especially when they affect other people. It's not about the immediate affects, but the lifetime of exposure to it. I don't think it's absurd to be a little concerned about it. Why shouldn't I be? Genuinely, if I've nothing to worry about, I'd like not to. I don't wanna smell farts either hahaBuut, I think farts might be a little less harmful. I'm pretty confident that your second hand smoke exposure whilst riding DB will be non-existent.Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

I truly hope you're being facetious and not legitimately concerned about that...Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

I'll be meeting with my travel agent tomorrow to get it booked and I'm excited! We looked at pretty much every possible option (all the Disney resorts, the US resorts, local hotels and Airbnb) and have tentatively decided on a 2 bedroom villa at the Saratoga Springs resort, unless the travel agent has a better idea. There are some VERY affordable options on Airbnb but ultimately we opted to stay on property for the "full Disney experience" -- which unfortunately also means full Disney price but we haven't stayed at a Disney resort since '96 so we decided to just go for it! I'll post updates as they happen, more for myself as it'll be nice to read back on the experience well after it's over Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

On the rare occasions where the AE line extends out to the queue entrance and I've gotten in line, I don't remember waiting more than 15-20 minutes. Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

Maybe they've been watching Gold Rush and decided to run a test pile? Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

Jurassic Park River Adventure where you encounter the T Rex at the end just as you start to head down the hill, when it's working properly (sadly it was not last time I rode it). 2nd would probably be the laughin' place scene on Splash Mountain, or the entire indoor section of that ride if I don't have to narrow it down. Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

Well it looks like a return trip is happening sooner than originally thought; my parents, brother and I are planning a 7-day Disney and Universal vacation for the first week of May. I was hoping to go back in the fall after the new Kong attraction opens and Hulk opens back up, but the timing is much better for us in the spring. We'll take what we can get! It'll be our first trip together to the Orlando parks since 2000, so it should be interesting. Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

And this completes my daily objective of learning at least 1 new thing every day. I can't tell you why that's interesting to me, but it is and I did not know that. Thanks for sharing!Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

I remember that sign at FC's pad as well. I don't remember the specific wording but I remember being excited that we'd get a Drop Tower ride like Kentucky Kingdom had, on that same pad. I assume it didn't go there because of the bedrock issues that Terp pointed out, but then again WindSeeker is pretty dang close to there so who knows. Maybe the incident at KK had something to do with it as well. Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

When people congregate around and block the entrance to a queue. Come on folks, stand off to the side until you're ready to get in line. Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

The Big Dipper Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

That's interesting! I never knew that. Is the bedrock in that area really far down, or just nonexistent altogether?Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

I just want to say thanks for writing and sharing all of these pieces. I literally spent about 8 hours yesterday reading through a lot of them! I just want to remind you that your work does not go unnoticed nor unappreciated. Keep up the great work! Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

Hmm that actually makes a lot of sense. It would certainly seem like they wouldn't move the entrance just to make the walk to the station slightly shorter, or rearrange things just for the sake of rearranging them. Perhaps there are other motives indeed...Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk But they would to install a game that could generate $$$$. Just think Soccer game $$ right next to the family dryer $$= $$$$I don't think the $$ generated by this new game will be projected to move the needle enough to warrant this grand rearranging; in fact I'd be willing to wager my own $$ that there's more to come shortly down the road (like in a year or 2) and this is just "phase 1" of the process.I'm not saying that every time a park makes a few minor changes it means a giga is right around the corner, but this one seems extra suspicious... Of course I could be wrong. Certainly wouldn't be the first or last time. Just trying to make an educated guess. Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

I vaguely remember reading this the first time around but I'm glad you bumped the thread as it was great to read again! I do have one slight criticism of the ride. Heresy I know! But I thought one thing about it was a bit odd. Maestro just didn't seem to fit with the rest of the ride. He was freaking SCARY as a child, while nothing else about the ride really was. Overall it was mostly humorous, and tried to be more silly than scary. And the ride pulled this off PERFECTLY...except for Maestro. He truly was frightening to me as a child. I remember riding for the first time as a 6 or 7 year-old. You see Maestro in the queue and hear his creepy voice, and on the ride the first thing you see is Maestro. I still remember to this day closing my eyes throughout the rest of the ride. It wasn't until afterwards when my parents said it wasn't scary and explained some of the scenes that didn't sound so bad to me that I decided I'd try it again with my eyes open. Maestro still creeped me out but I loved the rest of the ride. My even younger brother was freaked out by Maestro so badly that he talked about him even at home and had to sleep with the lights on for a while because he was afraid Maestro would "get him". The rest of the ride was totally appropriate for a young child, and the ride is right there across from the kid's area, yet Maestro was absolutely freaky to us as children. Then as a pre-teen and teen I thought it was lame. I just wanted to ride the coasters at that point. Then as an adult I outgrew KI altogether. So for a while I had no idea who the target audience for the ride was. It was too scary for kids, too lame for teens and not even on the radar of child-less adults. When I first found out about the ride being changed to a Scooby-themed shooter I remember thinking "yeah, that sounds like a good idea. MIB and Toy Story were great rides in Orlando, so it makes a lot of sense to try that out." Then as an older adult, after the ride was gone and the underwhelming Boo Blasters now in its place, I have gained an appreciation for amusement parks again and rides like Phantom Theater. The music, the concept, the animatronics, and the theming of that ride were pretty outstanding for a seasonal amusement park. Even the queue was bearable to wait in when lines were long, and how good was that Pepper's Ghost scene? Over time I have come to appreciate that ride and how wonderful it was, and I still miss it every time I go back. But I still don't really understand how Maestro fit in with the rest of the ride. Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

Hmm that actually makes a lot of sense. It would certainly seem like they wouldn't move the entrance just to make the walk to the station slightly shorter, or rearrange things just for the sake of rearranging them. Perhaps there are other motives indeed...Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

Ah so it's like the KI of old! Thanks. I'll have to make my way over there then! Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

I enjoy your cryptic posts as much as anyone else, but for someone like me who has never been to Kings Dominion, can you (or someone else) actually explain the compare/contrast that you speak of? Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

Everyone will have a different opinion on this, which is one of many reasons why coasters are so great! My personal favorite inversion elements at KI are the corkscrews on Vortex and the in-line twist at the end of Banshee. And my least favorite looping elements would be the vertical loops on Vortex. Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

I know we shouldn't judge rides by a POV video... but I've always thought that Shoot the Rapids looked extremely boring (minus the drops of course). I liked the fact that there were at least some attempts at theming, but it just looks like an extremely slow and uneventful boat ride between the two big hills. Unfortunately(?), I never got to experience it for myself, but based off video alone, I'm not sure that I missed too much. For the record, this is coming from someone who loves water rides. I've ridden it, and you pretty much nailed the gist of it. I too love water rides (my 2 favorite rides anywhere are Splash Mountain and Jurassic Park River Adventure) but this one came up short. It's like they started building a well-themed water ride but 25% of the way through decided "eh this is good enough, let's not bother spending any more money on it". A ride that is that long and moves that slowly is fine if the theming is great. But if the theming is a small barn that you pass through followed by a few rocks and plants, it really doesn't give you much reason to ride more than once. Basically it either needed to have a lot more theming or be a lot shorter. Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

I'm quite confident STR will not be coming to KI any time soon. Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

LOL [emoji1] I echo the sentiments of others. I never really did understand why a park would put in a flume ride with basically no theming and terrible pacing that gets you soaked. I rode it once but all it did was keep me wondering why they didn't do more with it. Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

This may have been mentioned on KIC before and I apologize if it has, but there's a Facebook page called "Old Photos of Cincinnati" that occasionally posts old pictures of KI. Recently they put up a photo of Enchanted Voyage and the exit of the Animal Safari monorail. Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk