BeeastFarmer

How crowded could I expect it to be on Oct. 31? I know many factors come into play, like weather etc. Being that it is a Saturday night, the last night of Haunt and Halloween itself. I'm planning on coming up after work (from Lexington), checking into lodging, and then going to KI for a couple of hours. Then all day Sunday for closing day.

Florence ya'll! Great story, thanks for sharing! Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk

Why would the park have FUN TV blasting when the park is closed? (Today is Thursday 9-17-15, the park is closed). Also of note, it looks like there are purple lights outlining a pathway between Diamondback and RHOFG.

I would estimate 96% of ride operators I have witnessed have been nice, efficient, and concerned with the #kibestday experience. I too, experienced "power hour" on Banshee recently. I didn't see any thing I would call unsafe, and being of a larger stature, the ride ops were quick, but did not staple me into the seat. I kind of liked the intensity of the dispatch: "Ladies and gentlemen, when the gate opens, we have 30 seconds to dispatch this train! Take your seat quickly, just drop your shoes where you sit," etc. And then the countdown was cool too. I could see how it would be annoying if you were marathoning or if you go to the park daily, but I thought it was refreshing to see quick work and a sense of urgency. I thought to myself, if they could set goals like this on Diamondback, the station train would depart when the ride train hit the MCBR each time and the 20-30 minute wait for Diamondback would shrink even more! (Don't mess with my The Beast; I rarely see any stack here and the ride ops are incredible. Plus, with the way they do the station ques now, I don't mind hanging out in the station for a few minutes, especially on hot days with the fan running.)

I rode The Beast 76 times in 2014 and 56 times in 2015 (so far!) The Interpreter: Negative bias? Nah. Although every time I hear the Abba song "Take A Chance On Me" I think of Kentucky Kingdom and you.

Admit it...I think most, given the opportunity, would strike a like pose. I probably would don a hard hat, however.

Oh, The Interpreter, we could discuss THAT subject for days! But, back to food service at the park: My main gripe is not with the price (You get your money's worth) or quality (the food I eat tastes really good). They really need to come up with a plan and focus on it. If they can turn around the culture among employees from being surly and sour, surely they can change the speed culture in food service and allow these employees to have FUN and serve customers well. Lots of great ideas in this forum, and it sounds like they could adopt Best Practices from sister parks.

RE: Universities and beverage companies: There was an agreement between the University of Kentucky and Aramark to take over the University's food operations, starting in 2014. As a part of the contract, Aramark was required to source so much of it's food locally, and this was to increase annually. Turns out, Aramark paid Coca-Cola around $1 million in 2014 and counted this as a local purchase---because there is a bottling plant in Lexington. It would not surprise me if there was a kickback to the University involved in this.

I remember this incident well. I was in junior high school and of course rumors were rampant. I usually think of Mr. Hartner when I go up the Tower and say a prayer for his family and friends (whoever they may be, I don't know them but I believe the one I pray to does!). Seeing the face to the legend puts it in a great perspective.

At $4.99 per drink, there is money being made by some entity.

Thanks for the clarification.

So, are you saying he is professional but not competent, or that in essence he is not the representative of the PR staff and Mr. Hart is not competent?

Magenta Lizard, I will private message you his name. I do not want to mention it in public because I think that is frowned upon on the forums here. But I am glad you are willing to do that, I think it is great for the employees who are outstanding, and I am sure the Guest Service folks appreciate compliments as I am sure they hear plenty of complaints.

You gotta be kidding me: http://m.14news.com/14news/pm_/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=od%3A1N3Et1Ny Just when I think the PR staff couldn't possibly be any less competent. The Interpreter, forgive me, but earlier this season, when I stated KK needed to up the ante in the PR arena, you responded that Mr. Mulcahy is a "true professional." Is he no longer the the PR representative? Edit: changed the last sentence because I read the link and saw that Mr. Mulcahy is still employed by the park as a "spokesman."

As I stated in the Overall Food Concession topic (or the thread of a like name), I-Street Skyline was horrible at lunch (~11:30). 30 minute wait in line for food, 2 workers on the front line and the could care less how long the line was (I used a timer on my phone and the average time to open a coney dog bun by one worker was 19 seconds). No food trays, etc. I got some Blue Ice Cream when we first arrived in less than two minutes as there were no lines. I asked for the ice cream to be placed in a bowl instead of a cone; it was not. When I asked for the correct item, she slammed the cone into a bowl. oooookay.... I had the meal plan, so I was not concerned about lines. My companion shared some of my excess Skyline at lunch. At dinner, Festhaus was very efficient, she got some pizza and I got Panda Express. We watched the show and a very good side show by one of the "sweeps" who danced his way around the Festhaus. I did stop by Guest Services to leave a compliment for this employee. Having FUN on the job! At the end of the evening, my companion was "done" with coasters, so I marathoned The Beast while she went to Starbucks. On the walk back to I Street, even though the park was closed, lines were long at the open food establishments and I-Street was packed. We peaked into Skyline after seeing the line, and they still only had two line employees. Nobody was in a hurry to leave even though the park was closed. Overall a good day at the park in spite of the heat and seeing happiness die at Skyline.

In a previous career, the company I worked for was a contractor for PKI; while we were not a food establishment, we provided a much needed service and had prominent signage through the park. We were paid the going rate but gave the park a slight discount to advertise our services. Amyway, back to food service: I don't know, I just assume the frachise scneario for the national brands. I've been wrong before, however.

I would assume they would pay franchise fees/royalties. Eating at the Feshaus now. Short lines, plenty of trays and workers. Very impressive line up and service. Happiness is alive and well at the Festhaus! Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk

Skyline Chili had a 30 minute wait for food. 2 people working the line. When asked about the lack of trays, the cashier stated: "They all at da Festhaus. They real busy." The expression on the workers faces makes the place feel like a cesspool of sadness, where happiness goes to die. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk

I didnt even consider this park. It is about 9.5 hours from where I live. Maybe I will add it to the list. But of course, that will take away from Kings Island and Kentucky Kingdom. Maybe I will have to ask off a weekend and do Dorney Park and some of the other non-FUN parks. Pennsylvania has a few good ones, yes?

I plan on Cedar Point, Carowinds and Kings Dominion.

Thanks for the insight, malem and jcgoble3. I've never gone to a haunt that late, so I wasn't sure exactly how it worked. Back to food service: I will be going to some other CF parks next summer. If others have gone, how has the experience compared to our beloved Kings Island?

Ok, so if I am understanding this correcting...If I am in the park and LEAVE the gate during before Haunt starts, I must re-enter before the 6p or 7p time or I won't be allowed back in. This is important, and I don't want to misunderstand: I most likely will be going on 11-1-15 for closing day; I'm fairly certain I have that day off. I am also thinking of going after work on 10-31; but I don't get off work until 730p, and I have about a 2 hour drive. Will my gold pass get me in to Haunt at 9 or 10pm, or are gold passes not valid for Haunt only?

Albeit one directional after 6pm or 7pm on fall operating nights. So, if one has a gold pass, can one not enter after these times? Do they have a cap?

It appears to have cost them much. But they press on.

Easier said than done. Having employed people in another at-will state, I can say from experience that costly and unnecessary lawsuits can be filed against a business when someone is fired for documented reasons, much less for "I don't want you anymore" reasons.