McSalsa's Coaster Adventues: Kings Island Haunt 9/20/2014

[McSalsa]

Hello everyone! I got back from a trip to Kings Island yesterday, Saturday September 20th, 2014. First off, here's my ride rating system:

10=Incredible

9=Excellent

8=Very Good

7=Good

6=Decent

5=Meh

4=Bad

3=Really Bad

2=Very Bad

1=Fail

0=EPIC FAIL

Our group consisted of me, my best friend, another friend, and my sister. Though for most of the day it was just me and my best friend. We arrived at the park around 6:30PM (which felt weird since I am so used to going to Kings Island during the day) and found a pretty darn huge crowd. Uh-oh. We split up once we finally got in the park around 7:30 (me and best friend wanted to ride rides, they were there for Haunts), and headed for our first ride...also spoiler, we (me and my best friend) didn't do any actual haunts but my sister and her friend (also a friend of mine) got ALL of them thanks to Fright Lane+Skeleton Key.

RIDE #1: Diamondback
Wait: 45 Minutes

Well, passing by this and realizing the line was supposed to only get longer, we hit Diamondback ASAP. The crew did a really good job getting trains out and keeping the line moving, so not much "Diamondstacking" occured...only like 3-5 times at most, I think. We rode in the very back, and by the time we got on, it was nightfall already so this was a night ride.

They don't call it Diamond "BACK" for nothing. The airtime in the back of the ride is epic, and since it was night it was slightly harder but not impossible to see where we were going (though since I knew the layout well already there wasn't any suprises for me...) and at the end, the splashdown got my left arm wet. An awesome ride to start the night.

Score: 10/10

While riding Diamondback, we saw another ride me and my friend really were hoping to do doing test runs, then opening up. We used the bathroom and headed over to...

RIDE #2: WindSeeker
Wait: 30 Minutes

FINALLY!!! After 3 years of failures, I have at last ridden WindSeeker! MWAHAHAHAHAHA! Also, the line looked way worse than 30 minutes (it was overflowing) but since WindSeeker takes 64 riders at once it moves FAST...when it moves that is- loading/unloading takes a bit and the ride cycle is somewhat long. The lighting package here is also gorgeous, even more so in person than it looked in photos and videos. During out wait, my sister and her friend showed up in the same line and she stated she had a gift for me. What could it be!?!?

When I actually got on the ride, I actually got a bit nervous. 270 feet up (at least) and only a bar to really hold the weight of 2 people, both of whom were pretty large (my friend, though not really "fat", is a bit over 300 pounds and I'm around 210) though once we got up top the epic music and view distracted me enough to calm me down very well. My friend, however, was actually somewhat scared and he does not have a fear or heights- plus he noticed the weight limit sign when we got off and stated he was a bit over it. As for my overall opinion of the ride, I liked it a lot even if it was a bit intimidating...though I have a soft spot for swing rides. I don't think I can take Texas Skyscreamer though- 400 feet up with just chains!?!? Uhh...

Score: 9/10

After WindSeeker, we filled up our drink cups and drank, then we split up again and me and my friend headed across the park and went to Banshee. Since we had souvineer drink cups but my friend was pretty broke so we couldn't get a locker (sister paid for the drinks), but since this was our last visit in 2014 (Kinda ), he said that we had nothing to lose if they were stolen so we ditched them at the entrance...but later I went back and no one had taken them, so I do still have my cups. Also, I thought I saw Fireworks, but it was just Sling Shot- neat lighting on that ride too. As for Banshee itself...

RIDE #3: Banshee

Wait: 50 Minutes

HOLY CAPACITY BATMAN! Banshee had FAR more people in its line than Diamondback did, yet only a 5 minute longer wait! The q-line night visuals are awesome as well. As for the ride itself...it is better at night, and the cool lighting effects were awesome, but I didn't quite see the "transformation" the park promised us when this ride was announced. It was the same general Banshee ride feelings, but at night with some cool lighting. Still, Banshee kicks butt already during the daylight with its inversions, forcefulness, and intensity, so any bonus from the night is just icing on a awesome cake.

Score: 10/10

After Banshee, we decided to check the line for Drop Tower, which was not running on either of my other KI visits (opening day or in May)...

RIDE #4: Drop Tower- Scream Zone

Wait: 30 Minutes

Well, this 2 firsts. I had never ridden Drop Tower at night...or by myself, for that matter. My friend, who as I stated earlier is pretty big, could not fit Drop Tower. So I had to ride a 315-foot drop ride all by myself, which was even more nerve-wracking than WindSeeker since I was with strangers...but Ferris Wheel @ Indiana State Fair was still way worse BTW. And the view was incredible. And the Drop, always brings relief. A great ride I still enjoyed but wish my friend could have done it with me.

Score: 9/10

After Drop Tower, we headed towards...

RIDE #5: Vortex

Wait: 10 Minutes

Well, the crowds were starting to "die" down (Haunt PUN LOLZ ) and since Vortex has good capacity anyway it had a short wait. We rode in 5-1 of course. My friend fit this one easily, and the restraints I actually realized are honestly pretty good for OTSR's.

The ride itself? While I could just barely make the track out ahead of us, it was still intense and forceful...also as usual for older Arrows, a bit rough. Not too bad though. There was solid air on the first drop as well even if it paled to what Diamondback was doing earlier. A great ride slightly enhanced by the darkness.

Score: 9/10

In spite of the crowds, we felt were were making good time, and my friend had never ridden...

RIDE #6: Backlot Stunt Coaster

Wait: 10 Minutes

Well, after a short wait, this ride suprised me yet again- I didn't expect it to get this much of a boost from the night ride, but the cop car chase scene and helicopter scenes are far better at night since the lights stand out more. And all the remaining special effects were working on top of the usual thrill-packed tiny coaster. A very solid ride overall.
Score: 8.5/10

This would be a good spot to point this out- earlier in the day, Toyota had rented out the park, and from what I had heard some of the ride ops were staffed from when they showed up (10AM) to 1AM. Yikes! That is a nightmare shift. Yet the ride crews were still getting trains out quickly and safely, and doing good spiels. I have to give those guys some props for that.

And then we had just enough time (and energy) for one last ride, and we waited 15 minutes for my sister to do one last Haunt so we could all meet up. And then we rode...

RIDE #7: The Beast

Wait: 40 Minutes (was 20-25, but we wanted Front Row!)

Yep. Waited for front row too, since that's supposed to be the best seat for night rides. And it was so worth it...Beast at Night is just surreal. The forest, the sense of isolation, the pitch black tunnels and the sense of speed due to the fact it's a wooden coaster and feels out of control. There were also 2 fog machines: in the "ravine drop" after the first tunnel and right before the 2nd tunnel but no "hidden Beast" this time. No matter. The view from the 2nd lift was as epic as always, the helix was incredible, and one last bonus- it cooled us of with the lower temperatures in the woods & tunnels as well (my friend was wearing a thick hoodie expecting it to be colder today so that was great for him). What an awesome ride. Diamondback and Banshee are awesome additions, and during the daytime they may be better, but at night, no matter how much strobe lighting you add, Beast just curbstomps everything else in the park due to its location and the fact it's a wooden coaster so it feels out of control. Dear Cedar Fair, if you let RMC Iron Horse Beast due to complaints of "BUT IT DOESN'T HAVE AIRTIME AND DOES NOTHING!!!"...I will never visit ANY of your parks again. Though I at this point don't think that will happen (only Six Flags has really done it so far). Oh, stay away from Racer too. It may just need a re-track or something though (was rough back in May, Beast however was very smooth for a woodie).

Score: 11/10!!!

After Beast, it was time to head home on a epic finale. As we walked past the Eiffel Tower, I spotted a blue coaster car up ahead. You can probably guess what ride it was from. I looked on and thought "What was supposed to dethrone Beast and become the greatest wooden coaster ever has been reduced...to a Haunt Prop."

Now for Pros & Cons...

PROS
+Epic Night Rides (especially Beast)

+Awesome Ride Crews

+The Haunt Props were pretty cool

+Cool Haunt Actors as well, at least the ones I saw. The didn't try to mess with me though...guess it's 'cuz I'm a dude.

CONS
-A bit too much fog

-Lines for food moved SUPER...SLOW...

Well, I hope you enjoyed this trip report. Comments and questions welcome.

EDIT: Oops. As for that gift my sister got me, it was a $5 set of roller coaster...drink coasters. Apparently from 2010 or so (The Diamondback one is CG, and Invertigo has its old paint job). Still cool though, and she also is letting me keep her skeleton key she bought.

[jcgoble3]

Great report, but you left us hanging: what was the gift that your sister had for you?!

[McSalsa]

^
OOPS!!! My bad. It's been added at the end.

[marth555]

They had all 3 blsc trains in the station at one time yesturday

[McSalsa]

^
Actually I did notice that. Guess it just didn't bug me too much since it was only a 10-minute wait there anyhow...

[jcgoble3]

They had all 3 blsc trains in the station at one time yesturday

That's normal, and happens on every cycle when all three trains are being run. It happens due to the extremely short length of the ride, and because the train at unload cannot be advanced to load until the launched train clears the first hill (due to the slim possibility of a rollback), which delays loading. As a result, the train that was just launched will return before the next one is launched virtually every time, because the next one cannot be loaded fast enough to be launched before the previous one returns to the station.

[marth555]

Nice to know, how often does it happen?

[jcgoble3]

Every cycle. There's just nowhere near enough time to roll the next train forward, load it, check restraints, clear it, and launch it before the previous train stops on the brake run. You will have all three trains sitting in the station (technically, two in the station and one on the final brake run, but that's splitting hairs here) on virtually every single cycle. The only time you wouldn't is if they are only running one or two trains (due to rain, or mechanical problems with one of the trains).

[Dalefan]

Hello everyone! I got back from a trip to Kings Island yesterday, Saturday September 20th, 2014. First off, here's my ride rating system:

10=Incredible

9=Excellent

8=Very Good

7=Good

6=Decent

5=Meh

4=Bad

3=Really Bad

2=Very Bad

1=Fail

0=EPIC FAIL

Our group consisted of me, my best friend, another friend, and my sister. Though for most of the day it was just me and my best friend. We arrived at the park around 6:30PM (which felt weird since I am so used to going to Kings Island during the day) and found a pretty darn huge crowd. Uh-oh. We split up once we finally got in the park around 7:30 (me and best friend wanted to ride rides, they were there for Haunts), and headed for our first ride...also spoiler, we (me and my best friend) didn't do any actual haunts but my sister and her friend (also a friend of mine) got ALL of them thanks to Fright Lane+Skeleton Key.

RIDE #1: Diamondback

Wait: 45 Minutes

Well, passing by this and realizing the line was supposed to only get longer, we hit Diamondback ASAP. The crew did a really good job getting trains out and keeping the line moving, so not much "Diamondstacking" occured...only like 3-5 times at most, I think. We rode in the very back, and by the time we got on, it was nightfall already so this was a night ride.

They don't call it Diamond "BACK" for nothing. The airtime in the back of the ride is epic, and since it was night it was slightly harder but not impossible to see where we were going (though since I knew the layout well already there wasn't any suprises for me...) and at the end, the splashdown got my left arm wet. An awesome ride to start the night.

Score: 10/10

While riding Diamondback, we saw another ride me and my friend really were hoping to do doing test runs, then opening up. We used the bathroom and headed over to...

RIDE #2: WindSeeker

Wait: 30 Minutes

FINALLY!!! After 3 years of failures, I have at last ridden WindSeeker! MWAHAHAHAHAHA! Also, the line looked way worse than 30 minutes (it was overflowing) but since WindSeeker takes 64 riders at once it moves FAST...when it moves that is- loading/unloading takes a bit and the ride cycle is somewhat long. The lighting package here is also gorgeous, even more so in person than it looked in photos and videos. During out wait, my sister and her friend showed up in the same line and she stated she had a gift for me. What could it be!?!?

When I actually got on the ride, I actually got a bit nervous. 270 feet up (at least) and only a bar to really hold the weight of 2 people, both of whom were pretty large (my friend, though not really "fat", is a bit over 300 pounds and I'm around 210) though once we got up top the epic music and view distracted me enough to calm me down very well. My friend, however, was actually somewhat scared and he does not have a fear or heights- plus he noticed the weight limit sign when we got off and stated he was a bit over it. As for my overall opinion of the ride, I liked it a lot even if it was a bit intimidating...though I have a soft spot for swing rides. I don't think I can take Texas Skyscreamer though- 400 feet up with just chains!?!? Uhh...

Score: 9/10

After WindSeeker, we filled up our drink cups and drank, then we split up again and me and my friend headed across the park and went to Banshee. Since we had souvineer drink cups but my friend was pretty broke so we couldn't get a locker (sister paid for the drinks), but since this was our last visit in 2014 (Kinda ), he said that we had nothing to lose if they were stolen so we ditched them at the entrance...but later I went back and no one had taken them, so I do still have my cups. Also, I thought I saw Fireworks, but it was just Sling Shot- neat lighting on that ride too. As for Banshee itself...

RIDE #3: Banshee

Wait: 50 Minutes

HOLY CAPACITY BATMAN! Banshee had FAR more people in its line than Diamondback did, yet only a 5 minute longer wait! The q-line night visuals are awesome as well. As for the ride itself...it is better at night, and the cool lighting effects were awesome, but I didn't quite see the "transformation" the park promised us when this ride was announced. It was the same general Banshee ride feelings, but at night with some cool lighting. Still, Banshee kicks butt already during the daylight with its inversions, forcefulness, and intensity, so any bonus from the night is just icing on a awesome cake.

Score: 10/10

After Banshee, we decided to check the line for Drop Tower, which was not running on either of my other KI visits (opening day or in May)...

RIDE #4: Drop Tower- Scream Zone

Wait: 30 Minutes

Well, this 2 firsts. I had never ridden Drop Tower at night...or by myself, for that matter. My friend, who as I stated earlier is pretty big, could not fit Drop Tower. So I had to ride a 315-foot drop ride all by myself, which was even more nerve-wracking than WindSeeker since I was with strangers...but Ferris Wheel @ Indiana State Fair was still way worse BTW. And the view was incredible. And the Drop, always brings relief. A great ride I still enjoyed but wish my friend could have done it with me.

Score: 9/10

After Drop Tower, we headed towards...

RIDE #5: Vortex

Wait: 10 Minutes

Well, the crowds were starting to "die" down (Haunt PUN LOLZ ) and since Vortex has good capacity anyway it had a short wait. We rode in 5-1 of course. My friend fit this one easily, and the restraints I actually realized are honestly pretty good for OTSR's.

The ride itself? While I could just barely make the track out ahead of us, it was still intense and forceful...also as usual for older Arrows, a bit rough. Not too bad though. There was solid air on the first drop as well even if it paled to what Diamondback was doing earlier. A great ride slightly enhanced by the darkness.

Score: 9/10

In spite of the crowds, we felt were were making good time, and my friend had never ridden...

RIDE #6: Backlot Stunt Coaster

Wait: 10 Minutes

Well, after a short wait, this ride suprised me yet again- I didn't expect it to get this much of a boost from the night ride, but the cop car chase scene and helicopter scenes are far better at night since the lights stand out more. And all the remaining special effects were working on top of the usual thrill-packed tiny coaster. A very solid ride overall.

Score: 8.5/10

This would be a good spot to point this out- earlier in the day, Toyota had rented out the park, and from what I had heard some of the ride ops were staffed from when they showed up (10AM) to 1AM. Yikes! That is a nightmare shift. Yet the ride crews were still getting trains out quickly and safely, and doing good spiels. I have to give those guys some props for that.

And then we had just enough time (and energy) for one last ride, and we waited 15 minutes for my sister to do one last Haunt so we could all meet up. And then we rode...

RIDE #7: The Beast

Wait: 40 Minutes (was 20-25, but we wanted Front Row!)

Yep. Waited for front row too, since that's supposed to be the best seat for night rides. And it was so worth it...Beast at Night is just surreal. The forest, the sense of isolation, the pitch black tunnels and the sense of speed due to the fact it's a wooden coaster and feels out of control. There were also 2 fog machines: in the "ravine drop" after the first tunnel and right before the 2nd tunnel but no "hidden Beast" this time. No matter. The view from the 2nd lift was as epic as always, the helix was incredible, and one last bonus- it cooled us of with the lower temperatures in the woods & tunnels as well (my friend was wearing a thick hoodie expecting it to be colder today so that was great for him). What an awesome ride. Diamondback and Banshee are awesome additions, and during the daytime they may be better, but at night, no matter how much strobe lighting you add, Beast just curbstomps everything else in the park due to its location and the fact it's a wooden coaster so it feels out of control. Dear Cedar Fair, if you let RMC Iron Horse Beast due to complaints of "BUT IT DOESN'T HAVE AIRTIME AND DOES NOTHING!!!"...I will never visit ANY of your parks again. Though I at this point don't think that will happen (only Six Flags has really done it so far). Oh, stay away from Racer too. It may just need a re-track or something though (was rough back in May, Beast however was very smooth for a woodie).

Score: 11/10!!!

After Beast, it was time to head home on a epic finale. As we walked past the Eiffel Tower, I spotted a blue coaster car up ahead. You can probably guess what ride it was from. I looked on and thought "What was supposed to dethrone Beast and become the greatest wooden coaster ever has been reduced...to a Haunt Prop."

Now for Pros & Cons...

PROS

+Epic Night Rides (especially Beast)

+Awesome Ride Crews

+The Haunt Props were pretty cool

+Cool Haunt Actors as well, at least the ones I saw. The didn't try to mess with me though...guess it's 'cuz I'm a dude.

CONS

-A bit too much fog

-Lines for food moved SUPER...SLOW...

Well, I hope you enjoyed this trip report. Comments and questions welcome.

EDIT: Oops. As for that gift my sister got me, it was a $5 set of roller coaster...drink coasters. Apparently from 2010 or so (The Diamondback one is CG, and Invertigo has its old paint job). Still cool though, and she also is letting me keep her skeleton key she bought.

Alot of the wait times for rides maybe longer if they are close to mazes or zones. Banshee is right by 2 mazes.