Two Questions About Diamondback Seating

[Austin]

1. When will the assigned seating stop? I wait forever and I get a crappy seat in the middle! (So I just sneak to the front when no one's looking)

2. Do you think the stadium seating is useless after the first car? It could get so many more rides per hour if they made it regular seating after the first car.

Thanks!

[The Interpreter]

a. Assigned seating will stop when the park decides to stop it. Sneaking to another seat can get you thrown out of the park, at least theoretically.

b. Stadium seating at KI has 32 seats per train. Kings Island may or may not have gotten 36 seat trains if they had not gotten it. And stadium seating has a major effect on the ride experience, as you will perhaps find out some day on Nitro, Goliath, etc.

[Justin_M17]

With the assigned seating, if you ask politely, you will more than likely be able to sit wherever you choose.

I hit my 78th ride on Diamondback yesterday at the park and I have yet to be denied row 16, with the exception of four rides in the SRL.

[Austin]

Nah, whenever I ask them, they say, "Sorry, no preferred seating." Gah.

[HTCO]

Try it with different ops, there is one specific op that always lets me go to row 1. That is, If I asked politely. . Ive only been denied once, and Ive ridden in row 1 at least 4 times..

[Beast1979]

Ive ridden in row 1 at least 4 times..

Please. Row 16 is where it's at!

[HTCO]

Ive ridden in Row 16 a few times. It's alright, I think I like the feeling of a ton of wind in my face and being held almost face down 215' in the air better than being forced down almost every hill.

[Oldiesmann]

The first time I rode it yesterday, the girl who was assigning seats was letting people go to their preferred row if they asked. I don't know if they were doing it in the evening though.

[thunderbeast1968]

I was also there yesterday, and several people were asking for the front seat. Some ride were allowing it and most were not. I have another small comment, I was in the single rider only line (by myself) of course and there were groups of people in front of me trying to get on as single riders. WHen the ride op was asking How many riders? The people in front of me were like 2. Well im sorry, If you were with someone and they clearly were, the they should of not been on the single riders only line. There was a family of six in front of me all together. This should not be allowed(and they were sitting them 2 at a time, which clearly says they were not single riders.

[Tom76257]

That's odd. Guest Relations should DEFINITELY be notified of this.

[Touchdown]

Why does everyone have a problem with the idea of groups going in the SR line? My thought is this, if you are willing to not ride as a group and not get to pick your seat you should be able to go SR if you want.

[Oldiesmann]

The problem wasn't that there was a group in the line, but rather that they weren't acting as single riders and instead were pairing up so they could ride together anyway.

[Tchu]

http://www.KICentral.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=17625

^There's a very thorough detailed discussion ongoing about the SRL... its every changing policy, and the potential problems that arise from certain uses of the line. I suggest you guys check it out and add your two cents.

As it relates to the seating, the stadium seating is nice, and without it... the capacity wouldn't be that much greater. The standard B&M hyper trains seat 36. These trains seat 32. That's not a huge difference, and I personally think its worth for the better view, and the extra length/weight of the trains that do more to push and pull opposite ends of the train over the air-time hills.

In regards to the 'assigned' seating, as has been mentioned, it's sort of the luck of the draw, and no one is certain when it will officially stop (I believe it ended for Behemoth before the end of its first season). I would, however, say there are a few things you can do to increase your chances of being granted a seat request.

1.) Ask politely. "I want row 1" is a far cry from "Could I wait for the front row, please" I've found that asking (not demanding) and doing so politely with a smile has netted me the seat I've requested about 80-90% of the time.

2.) Don't argue and Don't switch Rows behind the Ops back. This sort of action isn't going to help you have your requests granted in the future, and while I highly doubt a guest would be kicked out of the park for going to a line they weren't assigned, if a Rid Op sees it, they're certainly not going to grant your future requests.

3.) Crowds can play a role. If the park is really crowded and Diamondback is sporting an hour plus wait... the Ride-Ops are going to be less likely to take requests in an effort to keep the queue moving quickly and to prevent lines forming at certain rows. If its a slow day (say middle of the week) and lines are 20-30 minutes, your request is probably more likely to be granted.

Also, and I almost hate pointing this out for fear it'll start a trend... but for those of you who prefer the front of the train on Diamondback to the back (and I'm among them... better view, better wind in the face, and a MAJOR burst of air on the trim hill that the back just doesn't provide) don't be afraid to request ROW 2. It offers all the freedom and awesome forces of row 1, without the popularity and long lines.

There have been a couple of occasions i've gotten to the station and seen 6-10 people waiting for Row 1... and only two people waiting in Row 2 (same as every other row). I request row 2, and because it doesn't have a line any longer than rows 3-16, I'm granted the request.

I still get a "front row" ride, and don't have the extra wait or the high chance of my request being turned down by the Ride-Op.

[ZukoGirl]

Well at least I think I know why they have arranged seating.

[rotag]

i personally dont car as long as i get to ride. if the ride op sticks you there then there you should stay. it sets me off inside to see someone not go where the ride op sticks them leading to an empty seat on db. which cause longer lines, leading to the empaitiont people {you know who you are} linejumping, which from there sets other people off leading to bad visits. so THANK YOU individuals who go against the grain.

sorry bout the rant but i neede to say it!!!

[Jasper]

I would imagine that on a muggy, cloudy, miserable summer day that they would let people pretty much have choice of what seat they want. It all depends on the crowd and how big the line is. Also, a little bit of manners and common courtesy goes a long way.

[Diamondback96]

Assigned seating will probably be gone next season.

[flightoffear1996]

I didnt sit in my assinged seat one time to ride in the very front. There was only a 2 train wait so I did it. I have sat in my assigned seat every time since though.

[The Interpreter]

I get enough of people telling me where to go in real life and on my job...I don't really need that in parks, too!

[DeLorean Rider]

Assigned seating will probably be gone next season.

What exactly makes you think that?

Italian Job was built in in 2005 and aside from some very slow and understaffed days has always had a separator.

Millennium Force built in 2000 still uses a separator.

The Diamonback separator position will likely be staffed for a very long time as it improves capacity and keeps things flowing better.

[Justin_M17]

Yeah, I don't see the assigned seating on DB being gone any time soon. The ride op assigning seats is the only thing that keeps the SRL line going. Without someone there to watch it, groups of people would simply walk through the SRL and onto the ride as a group.

[Oldiesmann]

I hope they don't do away with seat assignment because it maximizes ride capacity. This keeps the big wigs at CF happy, and it also keeps the lines shorter. I wouldn't mind seeing SRLs at some of the more popular coasters as well to help increase capacity.

[Tchu]

Assigned seating will probably be gone next season.

What exactly makes you think that?

Italian Job was built in in 2005 and aside from some very slow and understaffed days has always had a separator.

Millennium Force built in 2000 still uses a separator.

The Diamonback separator position will likely be staffed for a very long time as it improves capacity and keeps things flowing better.

But this gets back to the "how long will the SRL be around?" question. I believe it didn't last long with Behemoth. I can't imagine the seat assigning lasts long, and I don't think it does much at all to keep the line moving.

I would imagine, what is more likely to happen, is that an employee will remain staffed at the top of the steps for the next few years, but will move away from specific seat assigning and instead "pulse" the line, letting a certain number of individuals through into the station at a time, then letting those people break up into rows on their own.

That's how it was for Maverick. When I rode it in 2007... assigned seating. When I road it in 2008, the ride-op was just pulsing groups into the station and letting them head to rows on their own.

Forcing people to specific seats isn't too popular. I would imagine the park wouldn't want to do it for any longer than they feel is absolutely necessary.

[IBEW_Sparky]

Anyone who thinks for a New York minute that assigned seating on Diamondback will be gone next year was obviously not at the park during RWCW. Anyone who was, and remembers what the station looked like during Saturday night ERT, realizes that getting rid of a separator will be a complete disaster.

[gad198]

^ I was curious as to when someone would bring that up. I completely understand why KI would not have wanted to have kept a staffer there at that time, particularly for an enthusiast event, but it was a madhouse inside the station for the first hour. Top Thrill Dragster's station is like that most of the time as well.

[The Beast Rider]

A madhouse? I wouldn't go that far. It was no different than the line at The Beast or any other coaster at Kings Island that does not use a seat assigner. Personally, I do not like the idea of a seat assigner. I don't like standing in line for an hour or more only to be told what seat to sit in. I have my preferred seat on most if not all of the coasters at KI, and will wait for that spot, even if it means waiting several extra cycles. As someone else pointed out, they could use a person to "pulse" the line to keep the station from becoming over-crowded, but not necessarily to assign a seat.

[gad198]

^ Why don't we just say that the station was not set up for maximum efficiency that evening and leave it there, hehe. I agree with the rest of your post, with one exception: filling rows from the SRL then becomes a much harder task. I understand that the queue doesn't operate to bend over backwards for people in the SRL, but if you simply allow people from the main queue to go where they want it can get dicey.

Say there are three people in the main queue and you're a single rider. The attendant determines you, as the SR, can ride with the group of three who just came through. The group of three decides they're waiting for the front. Let's assume there is a five train additional wait for the front at that time, which wouldn't be out of the question. Do you want to wait the extra five trains? Do you really have to given that you're an SR? Could you simply roll to another row at that time (one presumably with less wait) and grab another SR perhaps? I'm not really sure the two concepts are compatible.

[RWildman424]

^^It has been said many times on this site and even in this topic that if you ask nicely, you will almost always be given the seat you request. Without a seat assigner, the station would indeed be a madhouse. A lot of guests can't even figure out what to do in the station after you have told them multiple times. You have to remember that most guests are not coaster enthusiasts and don't know exactly how things work before they are told what to do. With a train moving out out every minute, there would be a ridiculous amount of empty seats. Then the fact that there would be no SRL would make the line even longer and add more empty seats. I hope the separator stays for a while because it fills trains and keeps the line moving.

[DaveStroem]

We rode Magnum at CP a couple of weeks ago. There were no seat assigners and it was impossible for a group of over 2 people to try to sit on the same train. The station was a zoo with IMO too many people up there. I prefer it when they have seat assigners. I too have never had a problem with a requested seat.

For those that want to sit in the front you should also try asking for row 2. This has just as good a view as row 1 and does not have the wait.

[Mikewhy]

As several people have already pointed out, you do NOT need to assign seats to keep the station from being too crowded. Simply assign someone to only let in a certain number of people in order to keep the station from getting too crowded, but still let people choose their own seat. That is way I saw it done on Behemoth last year and it worked great. I have also seen it work fine on Millenium Force.