KIC Day Photo Trip Report

[standbyme]

Wow, it’s hard to know where to start with this report. I could start with the fact that I came REAL close to not even buying a ticket to go. Since I would have to come alone I waited until the very last day that tickets were on sale to decide whether I wanted to do that or not. Anyway, with the prospect of appearing to be a loser (as mentioned in an earlier post of mine) I decided to come…and I’m REALLY glad I made that decision…the day turned out (as Ryan/Boddah1994 might say) AMAZING!

Since I am in Illinois, my day started SUPER early, I was on the road by 3:30. (Which is 4:30 Ohio time) I arrived at the park toll-both gate by about 7:50...there were already 4 others waiting to get in…including a big mobile home. (Was that anyone here on the board?) For the next 40 minutes I just watched the KI sign countdown the minutes as more and more cars arrived in line. After the gates opened I easily found a nice Gold Pass parking spot and headed to check in…I thought I would be the first “regular member” to register since no one seemed to be getting out of their cars that quickly…but when I got to the table I noticed that “pkiboy” already seemed to have that honor. I talked to him for a minute or so…and he seemed to at least pretend that he had a clue who I was! (I don’t post that much…so I am not offended when someone doesn’t know my “name”.) It took a mere minute or so for Ryan/Boddah1994 to find my name on the list and I was all set. I have met Ryan a couple of times in the past…and he always seems like he’s glad that you showed up…and at the end of the evening after I saw how much work was put into this event I can see why he’s glad!

Basically I just looked around while people checked in and then tried to see if I could figure out who might be who. At last year’s event I “met” a grand total of 1 person! (Gabriel/Captain Nemo) At this year’s event I was planning on changing that. I remember Ryan posted that meeting fellow KIC posters was half the fun of the event…so I was going to see if that was true. (It was MORE than true.) I looked around for either a familiar face or nametag…the first tag that seemed familiar was “Ty”…I went up and introduced myself and asked if happened to be “TombraiderTy”. Even though he was a lot younger than I am, he was very polite and we had a nice talk about the park, this site…and the “other site”! (Ty, it was nice meeting you…and I look forward to any other grand ideas that you come up with for the park! Don’t let anyone dampen your spirit for the park.)

The morning was going well…I had already doubled how many people I met last year!

Time flew by quickly and before I knew it was time for the Club Blood Tour. On the way back to the tour I got to meet the “easiest” member to identify…Avatar. Since I always read all of his trip reports that are loaded with family photos I knew who he was instantly. We talked for most of the trip back…and he was just like I pictured his personality to be…nice and easygoing…I’m guessing he’s one of those people who is always at ease whoever he is with, and everyone’s a potential friend. At some points during the walk I would kind of sink back a little or speed up…unknowing to Avatar it was more of a case of me just trying to stay out of anyone’s camera shot…iChase (and his camera) were behind us! Avatar made a joke about “How can I standbyyou if you’re either up there or back there”…I didn’t bother telling him my motives at that time since we just started talking. The day is already becoming a blur and I can’t remember who else was walking with “us”…no offense to whoever was there…just old age setting in. Hanging out with Tombraider Ty outside of Club Blood was TOPGUN1993/Paul, so it was nice to say hi to him in person after reading countless posts and pictures he has posted over the years. Now, Club Blood is not one of my favorite haunts…but it was still very interesting to see it with the lights on. There are quite a lot of details that you never notice in the dark…if I were the designer(s) I would be a little depressed that I worked so hard and so much of it doesn’t get noticed.

Next up was the ERT on Invertigo…which means nothing to me. Once you “kids” are older you’ll (unfortunately) understand. Over the years your body changes…and even if a coaster doesn’t scare you in the least it can still make you sick! When I ride Invertigo it’s like playing the lottery, with great odds…I know that if I ride it there is about a 1 in 3 chance I will end up with a headache for the rest of the day…and since the ride doesn’t thrill me that much I usually just choose not to risk it…and that is what I did this morning, I just watched and took more random photos…which was good, because I got to meet the site’s very own photographer Ronny/Gordon Bombay. I have always been in awe of his photography skills and it was great to be able to tell him that in person…what was even better was that a nicer guy he could not have been. If you ever got to meet Jeff Siebert you have an idea of what his personality is like…from the moment he said “hi” it was like he was truly glad to meet you. He seemed like he was having the time of his life at the park with everyone.

After the ERT ride time it was about 10 o’clock and we had a little time to kill, so I followed/slowly ran with some other members to get in line for SOB just before they dropped the ropes to let the public in. I am not a fan of SOB and every time I ride it I swear it will be my last…but after hearing so many posters say that the front seat is a good ride I figured now was the time to see since there was no line. Guess what? I actually thought it was decent! Maybe even fun! (I still think it’s sad though that most people say that there’s only 1 decent place to sit in a whole train though.)

After this I headed straight over to the carousel for my ride so that I could attend the SOB Tour. Now, being that I am CONSTANTLY on the lookout for cameras I scouted the area…but didn’t see any real obvious. I was SURE that having all of us ride the carousel was just a way to make sure they could get video/pictures for the site…so I was being very careful. I chose a horse that I could easily keep my face hidden…it was a “stable” horse that didn’t go up and down. When I chose this horse that is when I met Cory Butcher…he “warned” me that my horse didn’t move…I told him I didn’t care…then he told me that if I sat on a stable horse I had to ride twice because they would only give me half a ticket on that kind of a horse…I am embarrassed to say I fell for it. I switched horses and he started laughing and said he was only kidding. The good thing is that I talked to him and another poster (sorry I forgot your name) the entire ride…which meant I never had to look out to where a camera was PROBABLY lurking! (So thanks Cory & ? For the assist!) I did not get any “decent” photos of anyone on the carousel…the only one that came out kinda clear was of KIfan73, but he looks like he is bored out of his mind…so I won’t post it!

The SOB tour was “ok”…I must admit I was expecting a little bit more…but it was still neat seeing the structure up close…it is always impressive anyway, but close up it is even better. I did not take any “good” shots of the actual ride…iChase’s photos are far better. I did find it a fun site seeing all of the people with cameras ready…it kind of reminded me of the bus of Japanese tourists at the end of the movie “Speed”.

After a little free time, the next thing to do was take the obligatory ride of the “bumper” cars in order to tour the Diamondback construction site. I have not rode the bumper cars in probably 1 ½ to 2 years…WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM?!!! They are now the saddest ride in the park…excluding “The Crypt”. (You’re welcome for that jab at your ride Ty.) They now go SO slow you could safely put a newborn child in one of them…alone…and still no harm would come to it. If the ride can not be run “properly” because of liability reasons I say it is best just to retire it with some dignity. It’s really sad knowing younger kids may never know that these were once fun…unless they hear stories from their parents starting with the good ol’ “Why back in my day” line.

After the “bumper” cars I was invited by Avatar to join him and some others to go and ride Zephyr. After that we just killed time looking at the splash pond construction site…it is during this time that I finally got to meet Bill/ZosoBeast for the first time. I have seem him at some of the past park events but never spoken with him, he was fun to talk to and we joked about the new Diamondback name instead of another Beast off-branch. The Diamondback construction site was the main reason that I came to KIC Day, and it didn’t disappoint. To some it may be nothing but dirt, markers and footers…or footings if you prefer, but to me it is a chance to see the park from a different angle…in this case the train! Both Bill/ZosoBeast basically just stayed at the bottom of the hill waiting for the train to come so that we might get some interesting photos. The train seemed to be running slower than usual…probably a “watched pot never boils” kind of thing…anyway the train only came by twice while we were on the tour…but that was enough…I was happy.

Directly from the Diamondback area we went to The Beast tour…to be honest, I have done this tour 3 or 4 times in the past…and it is getting a bit old. (They always say there’s nothing like your first time.) With that said, I will say that Ronny did a great job at livening it up with his enthusiasm and so it was more fun than I expected.

I love it when the sky is like this!

I skipped the Totally 80’s show…sorry Ryan…I just don’t care to watch the shows at the park…just not my style. I was walking by after it was over and snapped this photo of the interview session:

It was a little funny I came up behind two older women who walked up to see what was going on in the theater…after watching it for a few minutes one of them said to the other “This doesn’t seem like it’s that much”. I get the idea that they went away thinking they were seeing the 80’s show.

It was now time for dinner so off to the picnic ground I went. It was here that I finally met iChase who was also standing in line. After avoiding his camera for most of the day it was good to finally get to talk to him. (Like it says in The Godfather…keep your friends close and your enemies closer!) I had a lot of fun talking to him and he, KIfan73 & I ended up sitting together. KIfan73 has a nice “dry” sense of humor…which I appreciated. He said he was just waiting for someone at the Q&A Session to ask the “So what’s the park building next” question…I thought that would have been great.

The raffle was interesting…and Ryan was right, there were some AMAZING prizes…but there were some stinkers too. (In my opinion.) I have never entered a raffle where there were so many prizes that I was hoping I WOULDN’T win! Congratulations to everyone who did win something…I liked that mostly everyone applauded when someone won an item. Also, thanks to the park for the great “Pity Prizes” for everyone…giving all of us the Diamondback Media kits was awesome! Even though I didn’t win anything else I walked away feeling lucky to have came.

Looking at the “mystery autographed ball”.

The day’s events were dwindling down…but there was still some good things left. The Q&A session with Tony Carovillano and Jeff Gramke was great. They were both very friendly & interesting…so what more could you ask for?! I would just like to say thanks to both of them for taking the time to do something that went above & beyond what they had to do…it is appreciated. After the Q&A session concluded I heard the words “group photo” announced…which was my cue to sneak away.

I truly meant to go watch Ryan “take one for the team” but I got sidetracked and didn’t make it back in time. I look forward to seeing a video. To kill time before The Racer ERT I decided to just head over early and watch the fireworks…it was there that I finally got to meet the “2 brothers”…sorry I forgot your screen names now…I enjoyed talking to both of you…please reply to this thread and remind me your screen names…I tried to find your drum avatar but didn’t have any luck.

I started the evening ERT out perfectly…in the front seat of the Red Racer. I never actually caught the name of the guy I was riding with, but he was truly a very nice guy…plus, I can honestly say I have never heard anyone sing “It’s A Small World” as they go up the lift-hill…a unique experience! Even though the evening was almost over, I still had to keep an eye out for Ronny and his camera…he tried to get a shot as we were leaving but I ducted that one...and being that he was a professional, I just knew he would be waiting for us when we came back in…which he was...he IS dedicated…he is willing to outlast even someone like me who is pretty stubborn! I must admit though, he did finally get a picture of me that I not only can stand…but am glad that I have for a souvenir. (You can’t see most of my face!) Thanks Ronny for being so understanding.

(The flash didn’t go off…but I hated not to use the picture.)

I (Like others who I have seen posting about this day) am sure that I have forgotten to mention at least someone that I met that day…it is totally just because I met so many different people and my memory is not that good…and not because you were not fun to talk too!

So in conclusion let me say that if you, like me last year did not attempt to interact with anyone you were missing out…it was a world of difference for me this year. The next day the only regret I had was that I felt that it might have appeared that I abandoned some people when I started talking to someone else…that was not my intention…it just seemed like one minute I was talking to this person, then another person joined in and I would talk to them…then I would look around and the previous person was nowhere around. I hope no one felt like I was not interested in hanging-out with them. I enjoyed talking to absolutely everyone I came in contact with…hopefully anyone who talked to me can say the same.

I would like to thank all of the KI Central & park staff for putting on a day that I will long remember!

[Beast1979]

Nice TR! And yeh! I'm not the only one who thinks the Bumper Cars have gone down the toilet!

[DropZone99]

I wish i could of gone, i recognize so many people in the pictures you took, but ill be going to FFO!

[Beast1979]

^Fall Freak Out, what the heck is that?

[Avatar]

Standbyme- you have a unique humorous way to look at life and you are very observant. I laughed out load when I read your tour bus description and saw the photo you put with it.

Also if you don’t mind I would like to copy a couple of your photos.

In your conclusion I felt the same way about meeting fellow members, “so many faces to see and things to do” left little time to have longer meaningful conversations. I truly enjoyed talking with you and getting to know you. I enjoyed your report and have read it a couple times now.

[PKIVortex]

I see me in the last pic of The Racer. lol. What was I doing? I'm in the orange/yellow/grey polo. Those are my nephews with me.

[Beast Man]

I just love that pic of me riding Invertigo.

[gigacoaster2k]

Nice TR, and I like your unique perspective on everything.

Invertigo is great if you keep your head back against the headrest so that your head doesn't get beat by the OTSRs. This goes for any ride that has them, and it seems to work for me.

It appears that I missed out on a great time.

Oh well, maybe next year.

[BoddaH1994]

Cool trip report!

I agree that The Beast tour is a little overdone. I try to make everything new and fresh. You're absolutely right in saying that your first time is the best... there's really nothing like it. I got a call from Don Helbig just a few days before the event who pitched the idea of the Club Blood tour to me, which was an instant sale. He also added, "If we're doing the Diamondback tour... and we're right next door... why not just swing by and head down by The Beast too?" How could you say no to that? I'm sure there were plenty of people there who hadn't ever done it before that found it really interesting. You may have noticed that we didn't go all the way down the ravine like in past years and that was mainly for that reason. Being up near the helices is the best part and going all the way down is quite a long (and sometimes dangerous) hike and really anti-climactic.

[standbyme]

I see me in the last pic of The Racer. lol. What was I doing? I'm in the orange/yellow/grey polo. Those are my nephews with me.

Wow. I had no idea that was you...I see your screen name all the time...I wished that we had bumped into each other at one point. It would have been nice to say hi. As for what you were doing...the ride was over and everyone was starting to get out.

I just love that pic of me riding Invertigo.

Glad that you like it...so do I get to know which one is you? (It wouldn't be the one with the tongue sticking out would it?

I'm sure there were plenty of people there who hadn't ever done it before that found it really interesting.

I totally agree...I was not suggesting that just because I had done it in the past that it should never be done again...I was just kind of letting everyone know why I wasn't more enthusiastic about the tour...but you should of seen my trip report the first time I did do it!

[iChase]

Great TR! I really liked your way of describing everything and your sense of humor. It made this a pleasure to read. And, much to your dismay, I got one picture of you. It's just your back though. If it weren't for the NOFX on the back you wouldn't know.

It was great to meet you and I hope to see you at another event!

[Beast Man]

I just love that pic of me riding Invertigo.

Glad that you like it...so do I get to know which one is you? (It wouldn't be the one with the tongue sticking out would it?

Nope.I'm the guy in the sunglasses with his shoes off.

[Guest TombraiderTy]

Late on my response, but anyhow...

Good photos and great text. You were a great person to meet and I hope to see you again at KI in the near future. I especially love your photo of me in Club Blood

[Cory Butcher]

I have been quite busy, and did not realize that you had put up your trip report! I just want to say that it was very nice to meet you and be able to talk to you on the Carousel. (C'mon, the moving horse was definitely worth it ) Hope we meet again in the park sometime. Loved the Trip report by the way!