Ferris Wheel

[silver2005]

There have been quite a few parks with both observation towers and Ferris wheels.  Its not like they can't coexist.   Ferris wheel's views are more fleeting for people who may not want to stay up high for extended periods of time and the ride motion is relaxing.  

 

[Hawaiian Coasters 325]

Made this idea for a skywheel on International street. The location is in between Festhaus and Skyline/Starbucks across from the KI Theater. This would honestly be a good addition for the 50th anniversary in 2022 if they were to go this route:

 

[FUN&ONLY!]

On 2/20/2021 at 11:52 PM, Hawaiian Coasters 325 said:

Made this idea for a skywheel on International street. The location is in between Festhaus and Skyline/Starbucks across from the KI Theater. This would honestly be a good addition for the 50th anniversary in 2022 if they were to go this route:

 

I would rather Kings Island bring back an old more beloved ride like Der Spinning Keggars, Phantom Theater, or Enchanted Voyage in some form or another. I know Kings Island used to have a Ferris Wheel for a few years, but I don’t think it is missed too badly by longtime fans of the park. Also, in my opinion, Ferris Wheels are not really worth riding that often with their terrible capacity and lackluster ride experience. If you want good views, the Eiffel Tower has you covered with much better views than any Ferris Wheel could provide at Kings Island.

[IndyGuy4KI]

If we were to get a ferris wheel, a 50-footer in Planet Snoopy would be all that we would need in my opinion.

The only benefit to a big wheel is an LED light package. As @FUN&ONLY!mentioned, we already have a great viewing ride with Eiffel Tower, WS, and DT.

Use the money that would go for purchasing a big wheel into LED light packages for existing rides. 

[purdude86]

I think a big wheel in Planet Snoopy could be good. The height would be thrilling for kids but it's a mild ride still that's fit for families. Plus it would  give another tall point to that side of the park as aside from the peak of Diamondback (which is a little bit away still) that are is relatively flat in comparison with the kids rides, log flume, etc. So it would balance the skyline more. I think one on International Street would impede the appearance o that area and the Eiffel Tower a bit. Coney Mall could be a good fit too but not sure where exactly to put it and there are already lots of tall rides on that side.

[SonofBaconator]

I don't want a big wheel for the reasons @IndyGuy4KI said. The Eiffel Tower is our centerpiece and looks great at night. I'd rather see Racer feature color changing lights underneath the support structure 

[Joshua]

A ferris wheel would be great for the park. Think about a big family group. The parents, the teens and older children want to ride the thrill rides. But maybe the grandparents want to enjoy a slower paced ride by themselves or perhaps spend time with the younger grandchildren who aren't big enough yet for the rides everyone else is interested in. Or maybe it's not a grandparent but someone who for one reason or another can't handle the tall, fast, spinning rides and need something that's a gentler pace. Or maybe they want the view, but also to sit down, relax and enjoy it without the vertigo that comes from walking on those grated floors. 

 

[TombraiderTy]

I'd love to see a medium- to large-sized Ferris Wheel added to the park. I think that you can have more than one ride that offers views of the park, and a Ferris Wheel is a great ride that's super inclusive... pretty much anyone can ride it. I'm also always a fan of adding more rides outside of Planet Snoopy that kids can ride.

[BeeastFarmer]

I'd like a small-medium sized wheel in the Oktoberfest ruins.  I think a giant wheel would be too distracting, and it terrified me at KK and CP.  lol  

[johnjniehaus]

On 9/7/2020 at 5:53 PM, super7 said:

A ferris wheel is a great family ride that everyone can enjoy except those afraid of heights.  KI needs more total family rides.  Right now they only have the antique cars, the helicopters, the cheaply made Boo Blasters, the train and the carrousel.  

However, that large ferris wheel at Cedar Point is  virtually worthless.  It has a HUGE capacity, but normally they only use about 1/4 of the gondolas due to balancing.  No single riders either.   The whole ride is stop/start over and over again.   Other that the view, it's a piece of crap.

King's Island had one of the best ferris wheels of all time, the Zodiac.   1/2 the gondolas loaded at one time while the other half took their loong ride.   It was super efficient, very high capacity and didn't have the balancing issues as the hunk of junk at Cedar Point.   It had great views, and you could see it from I Street as you entered the park.

It's such a shame those 2 and 3 arm ferris wheels like the Zodiac are now extinct. They were amazing and were machines of the future.  It's a shame ferris wheels have reverted back to their old, slow loading, stop and go models.

The area where Saltwater Circus sat would be a great location for something.

 

I am with you totally! Bring back the Zodiac. Great concept. I don't know why design companies discontinued them and took a step backwards. I think they look super cool and would really go over well. And with some cool lights, that thing would be the hottest family ride in the park! Hey theme even matches the sort of space theme of Area 72!

[flightoffear1996]

I think the Invertago Spot could be a nice spot for a Giant Ferris Wheel.

[IndyGuy4KI]

1 hour ago, flightoffear1996 said:

I think the Invertago Spot could be a nice spot for a Giant Ferris Wheel.

Replace a low capacity ride with an even lower capacity ride. That is a pass for me.

To fill the wheel gap, let's put a smaller one in Planet Snoopy with a nice LED package.

 

[Imperial79]

I think bringing back the Ferris Wheel to Oktoberfest would be very welcomed. It would give something else to do in that area, since only Slingshot and the Viking Ship is the only other rides.  It would look nice as well with the lighting for people sitting there eating across the pond. 

[purdude86]

7 hours ago, IndyGuy4KI said:

Replace a low capacity ride with an even lower capacity ride. That is a pass for me.

To fill the wheel gap, let's put a smaller one in Planet Snoopy with a nice LED package.

 

Yea I like the idea o a giant wheel in the park but they are so low capacity. A basic ferris wheel back in Oktoberfest would be a nightmare capacity wise. But I think a giant wheel where they could load 4-6 gondolas at a time would do ok. Think Planet Snoopy would be a good spot for it as it would be a good family ride and a big thrill for kids with the height. Plus, a tall ride in that area would add to the skyline better. We've already got DropTower, WindSeeker, and Orion on one side and only Diamondback on the other.

[Shawn Meyer]

The one reason I could see people wanting a Ferris wheel is because it would offer another ride that you can take in the views of the park along with being able to snap pictures. WindSeeker and Drop Tower are nice, but you're not allowed to have a camera up there on either ride. I think Planet Snoopy would be a good area for a medium sized ferris wheel. Something along the lines of what Kings Dominion has near Racer 75. I know that Ferris wheel came from the late Geauga Lake, but from my observation, the guests seem to love it there.

[PKIDelirium]

Eh, I'd still like to see a good size wheel right across from Dodgem, basically by where the original Les Taxis station was. Hide Backlot's show scene from the midway some, and make a nice show piece for that entrance to Coney.

[medford]

I don't know how to cut and paste in photoshop, but using googlemaps, it appears the wheel at Cedar Point would fit rather nicely where the Kill mart building is, next to the 'Tiques and swings

[IndyGuy4KI]

16 hours ago, medford said:

I don't know how to cut and paste in photoshop, but using googlemaps, it appears the wheel at Cedar Point would fit rather nicely where the Kill mart building is, next to the 'Tiques and swings

My issue with a big wheel is that they are so low capacity. Very pretty to look at though! 

[BeeastFarmer]

I'd much prefer a standard  wheel in Oktoberfest.  Get it back to its' roots.

[medford]

On 12/29/2021 at 8:39 AM, IndyGuy4KI said:

My issue with a big wheel is that they are so low capacity. Very pretty to look at though! 

Wont argue that point, which is likely why they haven't built on.  The return on investment would see to be very low on such a project.  Seemingly, it would only work if you had a fancy light package that could be used on it as part of the night time ambience of the park/area it sits in.

I've never been on one of those revolving eyes, how do those work loading and unloading?  Would it be possible to install such a "ferris wheel that could just continually slowly rotate, such that you unloaded on one side of the platform as a worker got in and made sure everything was cleaned out, and a new riders would enter the other end of the platform a few seconds later.  Kind of like how Boo Blasters never really stoops (or I guess rarely stops).  Would that improve capacity?  Everyone gets one really slow spin around, and the light package is added for nighttime display?

[FoF96"]

16 hours ago, medford said:

Wont argue that point, which is likely why they haven't built on.  The return on investment would see to be very low on such a project.  Seemingly, it would only work if you had a fancy light package that could be used on it as part of the night time ambience of the park/area it sits in.

I've never been on one of those revolving eyes, how do those work loading and unloading?  Would it be possible to install such a "ferris wheel that could just continually slowly rotate, such that you unloaded on one side of the platform as a worker got in and made sure everything was cleaned out, and a new riders would enter the other end of the platform a few seconds later.  Kind of like how Boo Blasters never really stoops (or I guess rarely stops).  Would that improve capacity?  Everyone gets one really slow spin around, and the light package is added for nighttime display?

No it wouldn’t.  The reason they are such low capacity is not because they can’t hold a lot of people.  I’ve operated the wheel that’s at Kentucky kingdom which is similar to CPs.  If you were to fill the entire wheel up, the capacity would be quite high.  The reason you can’t is due to the balancing of the wheel.  If you fill it up, you need a continuous flow of people to keep it full, otherwise the wheel falls out of balance and will essentially “free spin” and the motors will error out as the weight is out of tolerance.  This continues until the heaviest part settles at the bottom.  In the 6 passenger gondolas like the 150ft Giant Wheel at KK.  The standard operating tolerance was +\- 2 gondolas.  So for example the loading platform had room to load 5 gondolas at once.  If you were just starting the day, you could only load 2 gondolas.  Once those got to the top you could load 4 and so on and so on.  The caveat though was you could never let it get out of tolerance so if the line died suddenly and you had 5 gondolas unloading you would have to stop it in a position to where only 2 gondolas could unload and the other 3 would have to go around again while you unloaded 4 and then again for the 3 and again for the 1.  That’s 3 extra rotations on a cycle to unload if no one is there to replenish.  Now imagine if all 4 sets of 10 were loaded. A nightmare.  That’s why the giant wheels are never used to their full capacity.  You’d need thousands and thousands of people to be able to maintain it

[medford]

Thanks for that info, that is quite an operation.  Do the large "eye" wheels like the London Eye operate on a similar premise?  I imagine that would make sense.  I could definitely see a scenario where there was something less than a full ride and future riders continually waiting in line.

[IndyGuy4KI]

Cool info to know @FoF96". Thanks for sharing. 

[Captain Nemo]

While I love the idea of a ferris wheel I would prefer a sky ride like what we used to have. 

I actually did some math through Google maps and found that if KI were to build a new entry building and place a skyride station at the top it could go over the center of the fountains, through the 50ft platform of the tower, over stunt coaster and decend right into the spot The Vortex station used to be. Now that is a view I would wait in line for everyday! Plus a great way to get to and from the front and back of the park!

[Hawaiian Coasters 325]

52 minutes ago, Captain Nemo said:

While I love the idea of a ferris wheel I would prefer a sky ride like what we used to have. 

I actually did some math through Google maps and found that if KI were to build a new entry building and place a skyride station at the top it could go over the center of the fountains, through the 50ft platform of the tower, over stunt coaster and decend right into the spot The Vortex station used to be. Now that is a view I would wait in line for everyday! Plus a great way to get to and from the front and back of the park!

And it would go right through the elevator shaft on the tower which would not work unfortunately. 

[Captain Nemo]

2 hours ago, Hawaiian Coasters 325 said:

And it would go right through the elevator shaft on the tower which would not work unfortunately. 

Skyrides have an offset from 'center' so it would be on either side.

[Bryce]

This is needed! Me and my family always talk about how a big wheel is needed! Would be beautiful!

[CoryK]

On 8/17/2020 at 1:06 PM, CorkscrewMcPuke said:

The best place in my opinion would be directly behind the Eiffel Tower on BLSC's plot, though I'm sure there's better spots.

What about the plot of land where Salt Water Circus was?

[PKIDelirium]

That would technically be part of Rivertown, a wheel wouldn't really fit.

[silver2005]

I think a wheel should be separated from the Eiffel Tower a bit so it kinda has its own place in the park skyline.