Browntggrr Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 My personal favorite: By K Newport April 6, 2008 12:55 PM MY DAUGHTERS AND I ARE PLANNING A VISIT TO THE WARREN COUNTY AREA THIS SUMMER AND I AM PLANNING TO TAKE MY YOUNGEST TO EXPERIENCE Kings Island FOR THE FIRST TIME, TOO BAD IT WON’T BE LIKE IT WAS WHEN I WORKED THERE RIGHT THROUGH HIGH SCHOOL. PLEASE LEAVE IT THE WAY IT HAS BEEN GIVING JOY FOR THE LAST 26 YEARS. The Racer IS MEANT TO BE 1 - FORWARD AND 1 - BACKWARDS. IF IT AIN’T BROKE DON’T TRY AND CHANGE IT !!! Someone should really mention that from it's opening year to 1981, both trains actually went forward. DDN really should have printed the news release with all the information, not just that Racer will only be going forward. That is rather poor journalism. Especially when you give the news, and then ask the question "Will you miss The Racer running backward?" It's a set-up for negative reactions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beast1979 Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 The entire "Racer Backwards goes Forwards" thing was set up for negative comments to start with! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coaster_junky Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 well i guess some of the same things were being said when they turned the backwards racer backwards, but if it was such a hit in '82 as it was in '07 why change it for any reason but to save money? and as i said earlier they took the choice of your ride experience and shoved it down the toilet. and since both are now going forward, will they both be open on math and science day this year? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beast1979 Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 Depends on if they need to have it open. If they have an almost empty train on both sides, why bother? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bparrott03 Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 Rumor has it that not all of the track on the former backwards racer has been retracked. Also... Last year when I was sent to racer (which was not much, lol), I'd try to make them race as much as possible, because thats the purpose of the ride.. That's not always possible though. Unfortunatly there are times when you just have to dispatch, racing or not. Usually if theres a long hight checking delay, or a issue with loading [or unloading for that matter], you just have to move on and continue doing your job.. I understand that it sucks not to race, believe me, I don't like it either, but like I said, delays do happen. I do believe that this year you will see a lot more racing with change. They have really good supervisors there that will do a great job! Hope everyone is excited to go to the park on april 20th! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZ Kinda Guy Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 ...if your trying to make me look like a fool all I can say is Good luck... Nobody needs luck, nor do we need to try and make you look like a fool. You do it quite well with your whining, false rumors you claim to be the truth, and your apparent knowledge of amusement park insurance rates... Someone had the idea earlier of a "Member of the month" type thing, which was shot down. How about a village idiot? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cory Butcher Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 Or better yet, since we have our Island, how about a cast-away? lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoddaH1994 Posted April 7, 2008 Author Share Posted April 7, 2008 Addressing some of the rumors: "The Backward Racer was more popular than the Forward Racer." I can see where it may seem that way, but that's simply not numerically true. Turning around the side of The Racer was a publicity stunt in the early 1980s. It was intended to be just for a short while, but it went over very well and they kept it. In the past several years, ridership of the Forward Racer has maintained marginally flatined while the Backward Racer has seen a steady decline. "Everyone's angry at Kings Island for turning the Backward Racer around." People hold many opinions, however the outlook seems to be that far fewer people are upset that The Racer being restored to the way it was than when they turned it around in the 80s! In fact, many from the park report some very positive feedback... especially from those who rode it in its original state. "The Backward Racer was turned around for insurance reasons/there was an accident/because it was unsafe." When one side was turned backward in 1982, the original gimmick was to do it for just the weekend... which turned into just having it that was for the week... then the month.. They decided to turn it back around in 1983, which turned into 1984, and so on. The fact of the matter is, the popularity of the gimmick constituted its continuation. During that 26 year period, the Backward Racer gave millions of safe rides with no notable incidents. The decision to turn it around was simply long time coming, rather than a reaction. Many believe that there is a safety or insurance issue involved, but that's simply not the case. I mean, don't you think that if insurance were cheaper having the train run forward, CBS would have done it? "This is a sad/dark era for Kings Island fans." I realize that it's hard to look at the past few years and imagine that anything meaningful will come into being from the decisions made, but we're under a new regime now. You can love or hate the decisions that Cedar Fair has made thus far, but I do encourage you to remain, at the least, cautiously optimistic about the future of Kings Island. What you must understand is that for almost 35 years Kings Island, as well as any sister park it may have had at the time, were a very small part of the big picture. Cedar Fair runs parks. That's what they do. If they don't do a good job running their parks, they fail. It's a simple as that. We know it and they know it. Their dedication to running a better Kings Island is evident already. In the past two years, we've seen a much cleaner park, the addition of a wonderful coaster, and an entertainment lineup that's nothing short of incredible. Over the next few years, you will see Cedar Fair ask you many times to pardon their dust, not necessarily always in a physical sense, but also as they finalize their identity after having doubled in size over night. I think we're all going to feel a lot better once the park opens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cory Butcher Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 I think we're all going to feel a lot better once the park opens. Isn't that the truth. I know I will feel better, that means school is out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iChase Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 "The Backward Racer was turned around for insurance reasons/there was an accident/because it was unsafe." When one side was turned backward in 1982, the original gimmick was to do it for just the weekend... which turned into just having it that was for the week... then the month.. I think we're all going to feel a lot better once the park opens. How was that possible to turn the ride around for such a short period of time? That seems like a lot of work to me. I definitely think we'll feel better when we're staring the changes in the face. They'll seem more sensible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WooferBearATL Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 Addressing some of the rumors: "The Backward Racer was more popular than the Forward Racer." I can see where it may seem that way, but that's simply not numerically true. Turning around the side of The Racer was a publicity stunt in the early 1980s. It was intended to be just for a short while, but it went over very well and they kept it. In the past several years, ridership of the Forward Racer has maintained marginally flatined while the Backward Racer has seen a steady decline. You're usually pretty sound on your info but that information is simply incorrect. If it were a publicity stunt there would have been, uhhhhh, publicity on it. There was next to none when the side was turned around. Anyone that wass around at the time can attest to that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Purplehaze Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 I can vouch for woofers post. I was working in the park when this was done it was no big deal. Looking back in time you can say alot or get info but nothing is better than actually being there and having hands on the rides. I remember back then when i had a conversation with Doug Krammer and Don Miller about this. OH god that was so long ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phantom Theater Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 What needs to be done to make the Backwards side forwards? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coaster_junky Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 What needs to be done to make the Backwards side forwards? first they have to redo the trains so they can travel forward, then they have to move the blue trains to one side then the red trains to the other. unless they are just going to paint the trains on the side they are on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Browntggrr Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 ^ Along with that, I am going to guess that the brakes need to be moved, the blocks need to be moved. And I can only guess that state regulations will make them do a certain amount of cycles before they put their stamp of approval on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coaster_junky Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 ^ Along with that, I am going to guess that the brakes need to be moved, the blocks need to be moved. And I can only guess that state regulations will make them do a certain amount of cycles before they put their stamp of approval on it. and don't the air gates on the recar side open the opposite way of The Racer? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WooferBearATL Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 I can vouch for woofers post. I was working in the park when this was done it was no big deal. Looking back in time you can say alot or get info but nothing is better than actually being there and having hands on the rides. I remember back then when i had a conversation with Doug Krammer and Don Miller about this. OH god that was so long ago. Donnie, and you can back me up on this one as well. People attribute the turning around of The Racer with the issues that The Bat was having. As I remember it, there was no connection or correlation between that Bat's Issue's and The Racer's Direction of travel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoddaH1994 Posted April 7, 2008 Author Share Posted April 7, 2008 I can vouch for woofers post. I was working in the park when this was done it was no big deal. Looking back in time you can say alot or get info but nothing is better than actually being there and having hands on the rides. I remember back then when i had a conversation with Doug Krammer and Don Miller about this. OH god that was so long ago. Donnie, and you can back me up on this one as well. People attribute the turning around of The Racer with the issues that The Bat was having. As I remember it, there was no connection or correlation between that Bat's Issue's and The Racer's Direction of travel. I wasn't alive in 1982, but all of the information I've ever read about the Backward Racer always mentions that it was done in response to The Bat's downtime. So you're right, I wasn't there, but that's how history is written (So that makes it true, doesn't it? ) Moreover, I've talked to many people before this announcement that have said that they had several deadlines as to when they planned to turn it around again, but opted to keep it backward until now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpinJack Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! (Break to take a breath,,,,) BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! I LOVED the backwards racer. It was officially my favorite ride at the park. Now it's gone to 'stay consistent' with other Cedar Fair parks.?.? Bad idea. I loved this coaster. They could still race back and front sides, like they used to. This totally sucks!!! I very rarely post on these forums and just read them, but this is horrible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PKIDelirium Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 ^ Along with that, I am going to guess that the brakes need to be moved, the blocks need to be moved. And I can only guess that state regulations will make them do a certain amount of cycles before they put their stamp of approval on it. The brakes are on the same side of the track on both sides of the ride. They'll just have to move the brake fins to the other side of the train's undercarriage, and turn around the chain clutch assembly so the chain and rollback dogs are going the right direction. I'm not maintenance nor an expert in PTC trains, but I think that's the gist of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WooferBearATL Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 I wasn't alive in 1982, but all of the information I've ever read about the Backward Racer always mentions that it was done in response to The Bat's downtime. So you're right, I wasn't there, but that's how history is written (So that makes it true, doesn't it? ) Moreover, I've talked to many people before this announcement that have said that they had several deadlines as to when they planned to turn it around again, but opted to keep it backward until now. I'm not accusing you Boddah! I've seen this information passed on by several folk. It just seems to be a relatively new phenomenen that they correlate issues with The Bat and changing the direction of The Racer. I can certainly assert that it was nothing that was being discussed when it happened. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beast1979 Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 Publicity stunts don't always get the publicity there looking for. . . . . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LongliveKingsCobra Posted April 8, 2008 Share Posted April 8, 2008 ^^Such wisdom But I really dont see the big problem with the turn around, but if you have to then just turn your head around to face the back. Presto you have the Backwards Side Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoddaH1994 Posted April 8, 2008 Author Share Posted April 8, 2008 ...except it DID get publicity... national publicity. I asked Don about it and he himself was interviewed by USA Today and Entertainment Tonight amongst others. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WooferBearATL Posted April 8, 2008 Share Posted April 8, 2008 ...except it DID get publicity... national publicity. I asked Don about it and he himself was interviewed by USA Today and Entertainment Tonight amongst others. Hmmm, I watched Entertainment tonight pretty regularly during that time period. Never saw a story. I think it would be great if you posted the USA Today story from when this happened as it's something that I'd never seen. USA Today was quite a young paper at that time. Should be interesting. -edit: In fact, I just checked and the paper appears to have been founded in 1982. Now I'm really curious to see the interview in question. And unfortunately Boddah, I collected pretty much EVERYTHING KI at that time. There was not so much as a big story in the Enquirer. I can only remember 1 smaller size add that was placed in the Enquirer and that was several weeks after the change had been made. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoddaH1994 Posted April 8, 2008 Author Share Posted April 8, 2008 There were articles about it from national newspapers hanging in the International Restaurant until they took them all down in 05 for Winterfest. I'm working with the park to get some scans of articles so you can see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cholderfield Posted April 8, 2008 Share Posted April 8, 2008 i'm not saying that you're purposely misleading or lying, but just because you don't remember an article from over 25 years ago doesn't mean that it didn't happen....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beast1979 Posted April 8, 2008 Share Posted April 8, 2008 I don't think it would have gotten front page publicity, but I don't think it would go unnoticed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted April 8, 2008 Share Posted April 8, 2008 Unlike, say, when Flight of Fear lost its over-the-shoulder restraints, which got exactly no publicity, which was as the park wanted it....thoosies were told, and everyone else was left to find the new pleasure that is Flight of Fear on their own.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Braves0511 Posted April 8, 2008 Share Posted April 8, 2008 All I know is forwards/backwards or sideways, this seventy degree weather has gotten me ready to ride it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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