KI Guy

Thank you for posting these pictures! I'm completely confused now. Are there still two levels in the station house and one is not used? I have never noticed it if that is the case.

@Rivertown Rider In theory with a healthy investment Oktoberfest could just absorb Action Zone since it is just generic amusement park these days. I'd really like to see a return to better developed themes for the areas. I had high hopes for the now concluded Ouimet Era in this regard to more avail.

I'm really impressed by the fact that Kahn's and Rainbo made sausages and bread respectively IN the park. Also the German food selection in the Bier Garten is impressive. Why not try this at the park again? I think it'd be a hit! Think like Busch Gardens!

I like to be blown away by a coaster when riding one the first couple times. I'm more than willing to put up with downtime in exchange for a fantastic ride. RMC and CCI/Gravity Group are my idea of what a coaster should be. They don't let up (and sometimes get more intense), until they hit the brakes. Examples of their brilliance are the seemingly 20 straight seconds of reverse banking on Legend and the "top gun stall" on Twisted Colossus.

In an ideal world I would choose an independent to run KI as their only business. No one treats a business better than an independent operator who would treat the park as his or her baby. If I had to choose an existing amusement park company it would either be Herschend or Busch Parks/Sea World. I would probably lean towards Herschend since I believe their parks are more similar to KI than Sea World/Busch's parks are.

The premise is simple. Imagine you could snap your fingers and select one group or entity to own and operate Kings Island. Who would you choose and why?

You are correct. But I will say Intamin prefabs are wooden in the same way that O'doul's is beer.

Intamin Prefabs use laser cut plywood held together with epoxy, (I'm not in construction). The train wheels they use are polyurethane to further increase smoothness. They like RMC, have been stripped of all wooden coaster feel. At least Intamin prefabs have track made of wood unlike all RMCs. When you think of a "wooden coaster" neither experience comes to mind,(although both systems have resulted in great coasters).

I've been on both a "wooden" and a hybrid RMC. There is no difference in feel whatsoever. What RMC markets as their "wooden coaster" is closer in feel and smoothness to Adventure Expess than Beast or Racer. RMC uses a steel track bolted to a wooden structure for complete smoothness. If they do go with RMC they might as well go with the iron horse track so they can make it have several inversions.

Anyone can install whatever they want. The laws you're speaking of affect the manufacturing of incandescent light bulbs. There's a certain efficiency a bulb has to make to be sold in the US and incandescent bulbs usually fail to meet that standard. Novelty lights used for decorative purposes are exempt from the standard. They'll be incandescent amusement ride bulbs for many years to come.

This is a concern of mine as well. I'd hope could fit the next coaster in the current spot without removing many trees. I'm curious if a coaster like Steel Vengeance would fit in that spot.

Variety is the spice of life! I've found that each manufacturer has a feel and philosophy. B & Ms are big, fun and are generally less intense than their size may suggest. They are incredibly comfortable and reliable. They have a very broad appeal. RMCs are absolute insanity. Their philosophy is to make the most intense, disorienting, air time filled coaters that height and budget allow. These may be too intense for some. They are also not as reliable as a B&M. A major plus not to be overlooked is that all RMCs use a lap bar restraint even for coasters worth inversions. Intamin is similar to RMC with intensity level, but at least today, is not as innovative especially with inversions. It's reliability record has been spotty to say the least. GCIs are very good costers, but are not usually as intense as the full size coasters from the Gravity Group. However they age so much better than traditional wood coasters by any manufacturer including GG. There are of course other manufacturers but I'm not qualified to give a summary of them.

This is sad news for many KI fans and guests. Whenever something this old is removed people feel like they're having a piece of their past/memories removed. I think it's not such a nice thing to criticize people for being sad at this news. It might just mean more to them than it does to you. Now, with that being said, I would hate to see a dive coaster on the former Vortex/original bat site someday. I've never ridden one and walked off thinking they were anything but average. One other request if possible, (ADA compliance), I'd like to see the station preserved for the next coaster just as it was from the (old) Bat to The Vortex.

I'd love to have the original Coney/Kings Island flyers back as well as the original much larger antique cars. KCKC could have been replaced with almost anything else and it would have been better. It's ironic that two of the park's biggest "eyesores" are BLSC and the former TR:TR building. Hindsight is 20/20, but this still was a series of unfortunate decisions.

Thanks for sharing. I'd say that's the only logical answer to the question at this point. They can't say they plan to buy them and distract from Orion/spoil a future announcement. Also why would the park say they plan to buy anything before actually doing so? Consider also they may or may not have known in advance about Coney closing it's amusement side, and decisions like this aren't made over night. I would be somewhat surprised if KI does purchase any of Coney's rides, but I wouldn't rule it out either at this point.

I agree. l miss the neon light tubes on the center piece removed several years back.

I guess I misplaced the Musik Express from another park. I guess Flying Bobs and maybe Tilt-a-Whirl would be the only real options for KI. Maybe they would want the Round Up if it's in storage, but I doubt it. Flying Bobs is a fun flat though. I'm sure they could find somewhere to put it in the Coney Mall.

This is very sad news. I thought Coney had it's niche in the market, that being a smaller park perfect for families. I can't say whether this was the case or if the park did not position itself well enough to make money serving that demographic. There's one less amusement park in the Cincinnati area. In just 20 years we've went from three amusement parks and a picnic park, to one large amusement park and a picnic park. A significant piece of Cincinnati history will be no more. As far as the future of Coney, I don't buy the pitch of "a world class swim and play facility." I don't want to see the Sunlite Pool, close but I don't know if it makes it. Despite what they say, I don't know if enough people will drive to Coney for a pool and a few extras. There are local aquatic centers and YMCA's for that. I think the rides side was what made their pool a choice for many over these types of places. I have some good memories of Coney Island especially when I went there for a Boy Scout event in the early 2000s. I really hate to see it go. I hadn't planned on it, but I'll definitely be making a visit to say goodbye.

The Flying Bobs, Musik Express and Trabant (still there?), and Super Round Up come to mind as high enough capacity. Also 2 (3?) of them were ride models previously at KI.

I'd hang onto it! Thanks for sharing!

...and (an expanded) antique cars moved to the site.

I remember being really excited reading this article. It's a shame we never got any of the "picked" rides. The closest we got was the new set of Tin Lizzies. https://www.latimes.com/travel/themeparks/la-trb-cedar-fair-flat-rides-20150806-story.html

@RustbucketIt's amazing how much ranking vary from person to person. I've been on 155 coasters and Steel Vengeance is at #1 comfortably with Lightning Rod next, Twisted Colossus and then Fury 325. Steel Vengeance is my new definition of the perfect coaster and blows me away. Millennium Force loved by many is probably not in my top 25 steel and I also prefer Magnum and Maverick. My favorite wooden is Voyage, but it's been over 5 years since I've been on it.

It came off as entitled no doubt. I totally get the "coaster enthusiast" bad image. I don't think he's necessarily wrong about his definition of a giga though. Wikipedia does it best with hypers over 200 in drop height but not in vertical height like Phantom's Revenge given an asterisk. It won't matter much in the long run, but I think the park did bring this on themselves to an extent by not just building the extra 13 ft. I highly doubt they're losing any sleep over it though! I expect this to be an excellent ride and that it will supercede DB or Banshee as the favorite steel coaster.

I wouldn't touch The Beast or The Racer for a potential RMC job. As someone who has ridden both a topper track "wood" coaster and 2 i-box "hybid" coasters, I can say that the track feel is the same. What RMC calls a wood coaster is a structural steel track bolted to wood. Only GCI and the Gravity Group make true wooden coasters. RMC just likes to market that they do. By the way all three RMC's I've been on are FAN-TAS-TIC.