cassie_KY Posted June 4, 2009 Share Posted June 4, 2009 On May 28th, Nathan and I headed out on our second big trip of the year. Five days of nothing but coasters and having fun! Be warned, this trip report is long and includes details about the parks and experiences- not just the rides. Our first stop was Kentucky Kingdom. This was the first time we had visited a Six Flags park. To be honest, I was not sure what to expect. I had read horror stories about how terrible the park was and that it should be avoided at all costs. To say the least, we went in with low expectations Happily, we were surprised with what we found. Our first stop was to process our season passes as we planned to check out Six Flags over Georgia in June. In less then two minutes, we had our passes processed and were on our way into the park. The park is really pretty! There are lots of flowers and trees throughout. I had flashbacks to King's Dominion in some places. The smoke trees were in full bloom (or whatever they do) and were breathtaking. We spent some time just walking around and taking in the scenery. In addition, it was really clean. I didn't see very much litter on the ground. One thing that I really found interesting was all the posters and advertisement for green technology in the park. Compact Fluorescent bulbs (the curly energy efficient ones) were in the light sockets. Trash containers to recycle pop bottles were plentiful. Newer driers were installed and hand towels were not available to cut down on trash and waste. Signs pointed out where recycled materials were used (and there were more than a few). Walking through the park, we stopped at the Secret of the Lost Temple which is a 4-D movie theater. This was a new show for the year. It wasn't in 3-D and the storyline was a little corny, but cute enough to take kids to and neat for adults to watch a time or two. We then headed over to Chang- the B and M standup coaster. The coaster was a walk on and pretty good. The head “cushion” were comfortable and I didn't experience any head banging while Nathan had a couple incidents. The ride was smooth and definitely re-ridable. T2 was next. I admit, I have a history of hating inverted coasters. They scare me and I habitually refuse to ride them. This year, I promised myself I would step outside my comfort zone and ride them. Like Chang, it was a walk on. This ride is fast! We flew threw the five inversions in no time. While I won't say it's my favorite, the ride is smooth and not violent. This would be a good coaster for people like me who are nervous about riding this type of coaster and need baby steps to work up to more intense coasters. From there, we walked around to Thunder Run- a large wooden coaster in the back of the park. This was a fun ride. We rode in the very front, second row, and in the middle. Not too rough, but enough to let you know you were still on a wooden coaster. I wacked my ear on Nathan's shoulder (but not as bad as I did on KD's Hurler when I was certain I had lost it!). Cresting the first hill, we could look over and see the Twisted Twins hanging out in the back. I have my fingers crossed that they will be running sometime in the future. Roller Skater was one of those rides Nathan said was a grin and bear it as it was a "kiddie coaster." I thought it looked adorable because you set in big roller skates. We each got our own skate and took off. There was a little girl in the front seat who turned around to tell me how fun the ride was and that she was riding it over and over. She went on to show me how she could ride it with no hands. An enthusiast from the get go! While the ride overall was pretty tame, there was a good drop on the first hill that made my tummy bouce unexpectedly. When we hopped off (and waved goodbye to our little friend) Nathan declared that while that was a kid's coaster, it has "a little spice." We crossed the road and headed back to the other side of the park. Road Runner Express was the next coaster and is a wild mouse. It is decorated to look like the desert southwest. I really liked the imprints in the concrete. This ride had a small wait. We got a car to ourselves and were on our way. It was a typical wild mouse with turns that felt like you were on two wheels as you zoomed around the track. Fun, but nothing I would wait for. The final coaster to hit up that day was Greezed Lightning. It is a Shuttle Loop Coaster that shoots forward through a loop and then goes backward through the loop and up an incline before coming to a stop again in the station. This coaster was alot of fun. The launch, while not Dragster, was fun. The backwards route flipped my stomach more than once. While it is more than 30 years old, it is still fun! After that, we took a break and browsed through the gift shops. The prices were pretty steep. We bought a magnet for $6.00. Then, we went out to the car and grabbed the camera. We rode the Giant Wheel and snapped some pictures and walked around the park taking pictures of rides and all the flowers and trees. To show how nice the employees were, I was snapping some photos of the carousel. The gentleman running it opened the gate for me and told me to go on in and take as many pictures as I wanted. That was really nice and I got some close up shots that would have been obstructed with the bars otherwise. This is a nice park for a day or an afternoon- depending on what your interest is. We enjoyed talking to the employees and people watching. The Looney Toons characters were plentiful and spent alot of time entertaining the guests. Thanks for reading our report. Here is a slideshow of our photos. Kentucky Kingdom Slideshow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyGuy4KI Posted June 4, 2009 Share Posted June 4, 2009 Loved your slide show! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 Great PTR! Watch out for that T-2, though. The further back you sit in the train, the more violent it becomes... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westcoaster Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 great trip report,,,,,, will twisted sisters ever reopen also one of my fav water rides, Pingeons blizzard river its themed great Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cassie_KY Posted June 5, 2009 Author Share Posted June 5, 2009 When we were there, the Penguin's water ride was closed, but there were some trucks parked around it and it looked like they had been working back in there a little, even though there was no water in the chute. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TOPGUN1993 Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 I love the photos, I'm tempted to visit now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoeter Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 I saw the commercial here in Cincinnati for the Big Six Package- 6 visits for $30. I was down by Kentucky Kingdom in March at the Mid America Trucking Show at the Kentucky Exposition Center. Boy does SFKK look small. I'll have to check it out even though Chang is the only ride that looks appealing to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beast79 Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 KK I think is a very nice little park to go to, I used to go there once or twice every summer while working at KI when you could trade in you park tickets for other parks. I was wanting to go there to ride their Proslide rocket water coaster since I helped modify and improve GWL's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kittenpooh Posted June 6, 2009 Share Posted June 6, 2009 Love the pictures and the TR but it still doesn't look appealing to me....I guess when I go to a theme park I want lots of thrills.... just doesn't seem to offer many at KK! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted June 6, 2009 Share Posted June 6, 2009 Thunder Run really is a great wooden coaster. The Break Dance at Kentucky Kingdom is among the best anywhere...and Starchaser is blessedly gone. Chang is good for what it is, a B & M stand-up....T2...well, it's unique... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rcfreak339 Posted June 6, 2009 Share Posted June 6, 2009 Great Pictures! Glad you had a good time at the place I call home! Kentucky Kingdom is a good park and is defenitly worth a visit, yes it's not great but it's nice. SFKK doesn't deserve the crap it gets. The park is getting better, I can't see why anyone would say it's not. The waterpark is great and Deluge is just icing on the cake! There is only a few things lacking which I hope they will fix soon, Lack of flats is a big problem for SFKK, I can only name a few that I ride every time I go there and those are Enterprise, Breakdance and Buccaneers Bounty. The park is spaced out funny, but only on the back side, They also need to get rid of Top Eliminator Dragsters which have been sitting there locked up for 5 years now. I also they need to take down Twisted Twins and Mile High Falls and just start that whole section over. Also T2 needs work, bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted June 6, 2009 Share Posted June 6, 2009 Even if T2 got work, what would you have when it was done? T2 needs replacing, perhaps with a nice new steel coaster from B & M or INTAMIN. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rcfreak339 Posted June 6, 2009 Share Posted June 6, 2009 Even if T2 got work, what would you have when it was done? T2 needs replacing, perhaps with a nice new steel coaster from B & M or INTAMIN. Don't expect anything form INTAMIN, Remember the lawsuit SFKK filed against them? But, True on the replacing....I wouldn't mind two good flats in it's spot.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cassie_KY Posted June 6, 2009 Author Share Posted June 6, 2009 While it wasn't a thrill a minute, we had a great time. I like to check out the parks as a whole, not just to get credits or "must ride every ride." It's a mini vacation for me and I sometimes like just sitting and watching the world move around me knowing that I can jump back in at any time. Thanks everyone for the nice compliments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kittenpooh Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 Im glad you had a wonderful time! It's nice just to sit back and watch it all go by I did that when I took my kids to KI. Didnt ride much but loved watching the world of KI work and how children just light up at the park. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 Indeed, it's amazing how different a park experience can be when you are not riding anything, or much of anything, that day...for whatever reason. This is one reason I have learned to tolerate, and even enjoy, some of the busiest of days at the park. You just choose to do other things than what everyone else is doing, from people watching to going to the shows to sitting and relaxing to watching how the park operates to shopping the stores... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
windshawne Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 Indeed, it's amazing how different a park experience can be when you are not riding anything, or much of anything, that day...for whatever reason. This is one reason I have learned to tolerate, and even enjoy, some of the busiest of days at the park. You just choose to do other things than what everyone else is doing, from people watching to going to the shows to sitting and relaxing to watching how the park operates to shopping the stores... Exactly. I go to the park these days to walk for exercise. It's the safest place I can think of to go alone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LongLiveTheSmurfRide Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 Wow, that carousel looked pretty awesome. They don't actually have the rings you grab on that one, do they? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 No, they do not, it's Six Flags! Two that do come immediately to mind, at Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk and Knoebel's Amusement Resort in Elysburg, Pennsylvania. http://history.amusement-parks.com/knoebelscaro.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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