Photo TR: A pleasant and unexpected visit.

[King Maple The Tree King]

I woke up this morning to find that some of my friends wanted to cancel our planned 18 holes of golf due to the rain last night over saturating the ground (As if any of us were really good enough so that, that really mattered ) and the threat of rain today. With my day freed up I decided to make a solo trip to Kings Island, unplanned and unexpected I just wanted to have a nice relaxing day enjoying the atmosphere of the park. Not feeling up for many of the intense rides, at my age some start to get to you and without my daughter and son-in-law to convince me to ride things, I figured I would take my camera along. After a brief traffic mess on Northbound I-71 I arrived at the park to pleasant smiles at parking lot admissions and front gate admissions. I hadn't been to the park since the historic Robbie Knievel jump and was glad to see the front entrance still looking great. First things I noticed: Landscaping and cleanliness. I have been to parks all over the world, some of them not so recently, but rarely do I see very clean parks. Kings Island this year has improved so much in keeping litter off of the grounds. I am sure that is due to more trash cans added by Cedar Fair, but those kids in bright yellow shirts seem to be everywhere keeping busy. The landscaping in the front looks great, the trees and plants around the new logo sign seem to have filled in nice. I decided to head off towards Action Zone first.

At first sight of what many consider "the coaster enthusiasts favorite eyesore," a.k.a. Son of Beast, I just couldn't resist. I love wooden roller coasters. I loved the concept of Son of Beast, the promotions leading up to its opening. Having experienced the father upon its opening 20 years ago, I was looking forward all of the 1999 season to watching SOB go up. In 2000, like many, I was disappointed and last year upon its reopening I felt it was much better, yet still not any way comparable to the other great woodies I have ridden. Yet, every time I go to the park I seem to think "maybe they finally have it running well," always to find its the same old rough monster. Today, I had that same feeling so I canned my "relaxing day of atmosphere attitude" and got in line...

-Waiting in line for the last car I glanced at the faces of returning riders trying to judge how it was. The ride crew here was great, every time a train came back they asked "Welcome back (Red or Blue) train, how was that ride?" and every time a train came back there was an enormous amount of applause. "Maybe people are enjoying it again." I thought. I boarded the very back seat of the blue train. My ride went like this...

-Drop out of the station, a bit shaky.

-Up the lift hill, loud as usual.

-Over the lift, down the first drop, REALLY smooth with a HUGE pop of airtime that makes you say "WOW!"

-Up into the 70 degree banking before the "Rose Bowl" I prepare for pain.

-Drop into the Rose Bowl, another good pop of airtime, contiue to brace for pain.

-Train runs the circuit of the rose bowl.....surprisingly.....no pain. Bumpy, but not painful, no worse than The Beast. Nice G-forces and laterals, no rib shaking or head shaking.

-Drop into the area where the loop used to be, great pop of airtime.

-Second helix, forceful and smooth.

-Ride hits that hill before the "clover" turn, very slow I figure... "ok, its over, boring time." However, just as the train leaves the hill before entering the final brakes there is a great burst of airtime and speed before the ride comes to a close.

When the train came back into the station and they asked "Blue train how was that ride?" I couldn't resist clapping! Kings Island's Wood Coaster Maintenance teams have done a phenomenal job on that thing. I went right back around and got back in line for a second ride.

-I've noticed that once you get East of I-71 the cicadas seem to be everywhere, at Kings Island Action Zone seems more plagued than anywhere else. From the looks of this photograph it seems that the Son of Beast trains have come into contact with the cicadas on more than one occasion, prevailing in that contest.

SOB would be my only ride in Action Zone. I stopped in the Festhaus to use the restroom.

-I had seen County Line the weekend of Knievel, despite the addition of a show in here I still think this building is dark and dreary. I didn't stick around for the show but did notice that they have installed six new flat screen televisions in the Festhaus and that every food stand was open, including a booth that sold only beer.

-Exiting the Festhaus I once again noticed the landscaping.

I then decided it was time for a ride on Adventure Express. Great ride as always, the second tunnel though that once had the moving spears....wow does that look bad. The spears are all bent and falling apart and the tunnel is littered with park maps.

-It was here that I saw some of the friendliest employees I have seen in the park all year. Every time they checked a lap bar they said "Check. Have a great ride!" The gentleman in the drive box was spieling about the "amazing" 65 ft. drop and "thrilling" four tunnels. He also mentioned how the Adventure Express "takes riders upside down not once, not twice, not even three times but NOT AT ALL." The entire station laughed, but I have heard this done at The Beast before for many years.

I continued down Coney Mall and took in rides on both Blue and Red Racer. Red Racer is definitely much smoother and seems to have a bit more "airtime." I like the decision to turn it around. Reminds me of old days at the park and provides great views of the entire park and Coney midway. Both sides were great rides.

-Did I mention how great my rides on SOB were earlier?

Other thins I noticed in the park as far as atmosphere goes....the music. It seems like all they play on the queue lines videos and on the park soundtrack are tracks from the 1980's. Is this subliminal messaging for the new Flashback Totally 80's show? Walking down the Coney Mall, however, you can't hear the music. Because of all the games going on:

-These two employees were by far some of the most annoying I have ever heard, however, I understand what they were doing is their job. Taunting guests, barking on the microphones, trying to convince customers to play their game, but its so loud it drowns out the music. Between the annoying games barkers and bouncing basketballs, Coney Mall can give you a headache.

-Monster always made me sick even in my younger days, however, you have to enjoy the atmosphere classic rides like this add to the park. A lot of history is with this ride, I believe it was constructed in 1937 and the original manufacturer, please forgive me as I forget the name, was also an aircraft manufacturer.

-Making my way around the park, I traversed through the former Tower Gardens a.k.a. the former Paramount Story a.k.a. nothing now. This is the only part of the park I found to be unattractive today. The former "stage lights" that once lit up the Paramount theming are all still there, rusted, lacking light bulbs. Many of the areas that once held water are filled with dead leaves. The area is still quiet but there are not benches to sit on. It does provide a nice view of the Carousel's lovely decoration though.

Continuing down Coney...

-I hate this ride, but it's definitely the most photogenic.

-Personally I don't mind the new Cedar Fair names. They work well at Backlot Stunt Coaster and the new sign looks great.

I'll always remember King's Mills Log Flume (and in it's former inception at Coney Island) but...

-I think the theming of this ride has withstood the test of time better than most of the former Paramount theming in the park, it looks great in the kids area.

-I ran into TopGun1993 who advised walking down the WWC exit to catch some great views of the construction going on. I made the walk and noticed that the "cannons" have been replaced by larger colored tubes that seem to spray even more powerful bursts of water. While not shown in this photograph, some boats still don the "Paramount's Kings Island" logo.

I decided to complete my ride on all the wooden coasters (with the exception of Fairly Odd Coaster) by riding The Beast, only to find a nice young man out front advising guests that The Beast was temporarily closed and would most likely re-open shortly. I wanted to get a photograph of The Vortex from The Beast's exit line so I headed up that way. While heading up the exit I noticed one red shirted employee sweeping pine needles out of one of the lower queue houses and yet another employee roaming the grassy areas of the ride picking up trash into a bucket. Kudos to them to keeping up on park cleanliness! As I got up the exit path I was surprised to see a rare site. I've worked on wooden roller coasters before at various parks in the past, so I love to see things like this:

-The crew was adding their third train to the track. It was interesting to see how they use the transfer table. Right before the train was added I noticed some of the employees holding rags and bottle of cleaning sollution. They were wiping down the train, I found this to be quite impressive as cleanliness seems to be a theme throughout the park this year. In no time the train was added and the ride re-opened, so I headed back around and got in line.

-Hardly any wait for The Beast.

-After a short delay The Beast was back and running at full force. The apologized for the delay and The Beast offered a great ride, from the looks of this photo it seems their efforts of cleaning cicadas off the front of the train paid off.

I decided to end my day with a ride on the train.

-This conductor was nice enough to let me step in front of the train for a photograph. (Please note the train was not moving and had just began boarding passengers.)

-K.I. somewhat looks like a war zone back here, but I'm sure the new attraction will be worth it. I just hope they announce soon!

-There was plenty of work going on behind the bridge of the train...

-While things at the former Swan Lake seem to have settled down.

All in all a very pleasant visit to the park. Had excellent rides on everything (especially Son of Beast), friendly employees, and saw a lot of work being done all around to keep the park clean and looking nice. The park has look the best it has in years and seems to be doing well. I think they are on a great track and KI has a bright future ahead of itself with its current leadership under Cedar Fair. I was skeptical at first, but todays visit and the Knievel event have really started to win me over, and that is coming from someone who has lived through ALL of the owners, and even remembers Coney Island!

Thanks for reading!

[LongliveKingsCobra]

Tres Bon! Very Good, Loved it, kept me interested.

[flightoffear4thtrain]

Great Photo TR! Did you happen to notice if the green engine was running on the KI&MVRR or was it just the Blue Train?

[The Interpreter]

Nice report. Spiders and Monsters (Kings Island has a Monster) were built by Eyerly Aircraft:

http://www.allbusiness.com/services/amusem.../4596612-1.html

[Rollercoast19]

I decided to end my day with a ride on the train.

-This conductor was nice enough to let me step in front of the train for a photograph. (Please note the train was not moving and had just began boarding passengers.)

Awesome trip report! I love this photo as well!

[CoastersNSich]

Not only wonderful photos, but I also like the rounded edges, as if it were the 70s again. Then again, nostalgia is the theme for Kings Island for 2008!

[King Maple The Tree King]

Great Photo TR! Did you happen to notice if the green engine was running on the KI&MVRR or was it just the Blue Train?

Today there was only one engine running. After I rode the train I went to go take some photos of the the lake area. I ran into TopGun1993 again and there was an employee in front of the train who mentioned the train would be shut down temporarily as they were switching engines. A few moments later the Green Engine pulling Red Cars came by.

Nice report. Spiders and Monsters (Kings Island has a Monster) were built by Eyerly Aircraft:

http://www.allbusiness.com/services/amusem.../4596612-1.html

Thanks Interp! That was it. I have heard but never confirmed, did they offer an even larger model that had 4 tubs on each arm?

I decided to end my day with a ride on the train. http://www.mcflash.4000loavesanhour.com/ma...ingMaple_34.jpg

-This conductor was nice enough to let me step in front of the train for a photograph. (Please note the train was not moving and had just began boarding passengers.)

Awesome trip report! I love this photo as well!

Thank you! I am glad you like that photograph!

[Avatar]

We have been honored recently to have some photo trip reports from some long time members and it is great seeing the park through their eyes. I enjoyed your report and your selections of photos. Thanks for taking the time to share your day with us.

[KIfan73]

Nice TR. Your trip sounds like my last couple trips. The newest ride that I rode all day long was Adventure Express. Took in a couple shows, and enjoyed the landscaping. Ah, nothing like getting old, huh!

[Shaggy]

Nice report. Spiders and Monsters (Kings Island has a Monster) were built by Eyerly Aircraft:

A little known fact is that the Monster now at KI is, according to what I have been told, not the one that opened with the park. In the 1980's the original was removed and a different one installed. The Monster pad sat empty for at least half a season. The original was rumored to have been re-furbed and sent to Wonderland.

BTW, those pics in the TR are great. You have a very good eye for taking interesting pictures.

Shaggy

[Jasper]

I guess for the KI RR's sake the new coaster will help it out a lot. It will kind of become like the train at Cedar Point where it takes you by Maverick and gives you a little bit of info about it. So this new coaster might actually make the train become another favorite attraction in the park due to the view it lets you have.

[welchce]

I decided to end my day with a ride on the train.

-This conductor was nice enough to let me step in front of the train for a photograph. (Please note the train was not moving and had just began boarding passengers.)

Awesome trip report! I love this photo as well!

Simply beautiful. I love how you cannot see anyone besides the conductor, like you were there for a photo shoot.

All of your pictures looked incredible. Amazing trip report.

[cassie_KY]

Your photographs are beautiful. My favorite is the Viking Ship with the flowers. I would think it was a postcard! Very nice!!

[Kawana]

Thanks for the TR. I wish mine came out as well as this one. I'm still learning, I guess. I really think that if I get to in-depth, I'll bore people, but who knows? But I digress, great photos, and it looks like there are two folks out there that like SoB.

[Jeffy]

Thanks for posting your photo trip report I enjoys these type of reports better than anything on this forum. Great photos and impressive well-written report! Thank-you very much!

[sora_chan]

Indeed, what an awesome report, I'll have to try to do as well with mine. Hope I can find my digital camera! = /

Just wanted to give you Kudos for that, you have one up on me, I've only been going since it was regular Kings Island ... that was in 86'.

I think it's great they are focusing on the essential things for KI, getting it cleaned up and now, very obviously building a new ride. There is no doubt about it from the pictures, something is going there! I hope it's great.

Keep posting. = )

[King Maple The Tree King]

Stopped by the park the other day after a lunch meeting with a friend at Kings Mills Skyline, just to ride SOB and Beast. Couldn't believe SOB had a 45 minute wait for the back seat while Beast was pretty much a walk on.

Also, things to note:

-Rode Blue Racer, not as smooth as Red Racer but there is definitely airtime on the ride once again.

-The Racer crews now have the same headsets Beast and Delirium reportedly received recently and that Cedar Point has used for some time. However, I wonder if this slows them down as I sat in the tunnel for a good while on both my Red and Blue rides. Just a quick visit, hoping to have another trip soon.

[Avatar]

Thanks for the follow-up report.

I look forward to more from you especially if it comes with a unique picture like the on in you follow-up post.

[Cory Butcher]

Simply, a visually stunning trip report, through and through! I enjoyed this.

Kings Island is cleaner this year than it has ever been, right on par with Disney and the Florida parks. While some prices are higher, the experience this year at the park has certainly increased by a significant amount.

You know what they say, "Cleanliness, next to godliness"

[iChase]

Great photos! I really liked the panorama. The Vortex picture was quite nice too. Great job!

[Ki Man]

SoB is always having that 30-45 minute wait...

Why?

It's so much better!

It's slowly growing on me....I LOVE a front seat ride. The operations were *great* yesterday. I had a nice view of 6 different firework shows, a hint of airtime, and a smooth ride at 10:10PM last night.