Judging by Kings Island’s latest Instagram post explaining that the track removal on The Racer is complete, I don’t think the split hill is getting re-tracked, but the rest of the track from the base of the first drop to the entrance of the turnarounds looks like it is getting re-tracked.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CJettBdBhIu/?igshid=1jmcs41h06t13

A new KIBlog update:

https://www.visitkingsisland.com/blog/2021/january/new-track-construction-begins-on-the-racer

Quote

Crews are currently putting steel channels in the valleys and will be installing new intermediate (bolster) bents at these locations.

If you look on the right side slightly below the center line, you can see one of Blue Racer's cars

Can KI replace the trains on The Racer with new ones without losing any historical status of the coaster?

^I'd be for bringing back PTC's with buzz bars.   

5 hours ago, BruceWayneWins said:

Can KI replace the trains on The Racer with new ones without losing any historical status of the coaster?

I'm no historian but I'd imagine it wouldn't. What trains are you thinking of? 

I wouldn't mind new PTC's with buzzbars, no headrests, & only a divider that goes up to the top of your hip, that tall divider is the most uncomfortable issue with the current trains imo.

 

 

 

 

From today's virtual No Coaster Con.

https://twitter.com/aceonlineorg/status/1360640059003830275

a ride similar to twisted collossus would be great.

2 hours ago, coaster sally said:

a ride similar to twisted collossus would be great.

Please no. The ride is a coaster icon and I would hate to see it converted

2 hours ago, SonofBaconator said:

Please no. The ride is a coaster icon and I would hate to see it converted

Not that I disagree, but rollercoasters as a historical landmark can be quite taboo outside of the community that enjoys them. Not even the GP know or understand what an ACE landmark is. They see a plaque and think, Oh this must be important. Now ACE landmarks are not voted upon politically, they are the enthusiasts deeming an attraction a landmark or not. 

Much like structures around the world, there has to come a time when their use cannot be of service anymore by a number of reasons. Take a look at Vegas which has seen a HUGE change in it's skyline in the past 50 years. Truly iconic resorts have been blown up to make way for something new. Is it disappointing to see the past go in such a tragic way? Of course. I would hate to see Racer leave in any form. But I have to be open to the idea that sometimes things do change and when they do it is mostly for the better.

Wow. Surprised to see Gravity Group on the project after GCI did such a good job. I would speculate it came down to cost.

Hopefully the banked turned towards the final bunny hills is reprofiled. It was always a little funky.

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I'm also guessing they likely also chose GG for the fact they're significantly closer than the GCI team (pandemic stuffs and all).  

GG probably just did the engineering study on this, as the park has stated the work is being done in-house. GCI uses their own crews.

GG probably just did the engineering study on this, as the park has stated the work is being done in-house. GCI uses their own crews.

GG is working on it.


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15 hours ago, Oldschool75 said:

GG is working on it.


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Technically, GG and an in house crew are working on The Racer.  They are working on different sections.

On 11/17/2020 at 6:24 PM, DonHelbig said:

500 feet of track on both sides. 

Turn 3415 feet of one side backwards again.....

New update:

 

Its hard to tell from that zoomed out picture, but it almost looks like they have reprofiled that hill and lowered it significantly (three or four feet) on the outbound (downhill side). 

51 minutes ago, CoastersRZ said:

Its hard to tell from that zoomed out picture, but it almost looks like they have reprofiled that hill and lowered it significantly (three or four feet) on the outbound (downhill side). 

I wouldn’t mind if The Racer got reprofiled in places were ride experience would be improved, if anything it should be done. The jackhammering experience on my back while riding The Racer is one of the main reasons I avoid riding it, which is saying a lot considering 3 of my top 5 coasters are woodies. (Beast, Voyage, and Mystic.) 

5 hours ago, Tr0y said:

I wouldn’t mind if The Racer got reprofiled in places were ride experience would be improved, if anything it should be done. The jackhammering experience on my back while riding The Racer is one of the main reasons I avoid riding it, which is saying a lot considering 3 of my top 5 coasters are woodies. (Beast, Voyage, and Mystic.) 

I will marathon the crap out of Mystic Timbers, The Beast, Voyage and Hades 360 but I only ride The Racer a couple times a year. I do not like it and it is rough in all the wrong ways. I really can not explain it very well. I even ride Beast back row over and over. I will give red and blue side another try as I always do every year to see if it is better.

On 3/18/2021 at 5:21 PM, IndyGuy4KI said:

New update:

 

The reprofiling Gravity Group did should hopefully bring more airtime to The Racer. Can't wait to ride it this season! 

21 minutes ago, BlondyRidesOn said:

The reprofiling Gravity Group did should hopefully bring more airtime to The Racer. Can't wait to ride it this season! 

Racer does not have any airtime.

2 hours ago, SnakePlissken said:

Racer does not have any airtime.

TBH I have found Racer's airtime- and its smoothness- can vary quite a lot. Sometimes my butt won't leave the seat at all, other times the airtime is stronger and there is more of it than Mystic Timbers has. And sometimes it beats the tar out of me, other times it felt glass smooth. On my rides from 2009-2018, riding Racer was a gamble- probably the least consistent coaster I have ever been on so far. One day in 2018 I rode it 5 times because a friend who was with us kept wanting re-rides and each time was different, one ride was absolutely horrible and then it would turn around and be good on another (luckily the good rides outdid the bad 3-2). The Blue Racer track work it got in 2019 made that side clearly superior, though I was not able to visit Kings Island in 2020 to ride Red Racer when it had the same work done. 

I am hopeful this retracking will make the ride smoother more often, as well as give more airtime more often, because Racer at its best is great while at its worst, it can sometimes make me think it is even worse than Invertigo in terms of being the park's worst adult coaster.

Hi everyone, first-time poster here, and apologies if this was answered somewhere else, but I happened to notice that The Racer has been removed from the Roller Coasters section on Kings Island's website - is this temporary until the re-tracking is complete? It should be open in 2021, correct? Thanks!

44 minutes ago, CincyCoasters said:

Hi everyone, first-time poster here, and apologies if this was answered somewhere else, but I happened to notice that The Racer has been removed from the Roller Coasters section on Kings Island's website - is this temporary until the re-tracking is complete? It should be open in 2021, correct? Thanks!

Looks like it is still there, but just not added to the rides page of the new site.

https://www.visitkingsisland.com/rides-experiences/the-racer

1 minute ago, IndyGuy4KI said:

Looks like it is still there, but just not added to the rides page of the new site.

https://www.visitkingsisland.com/rides-experiences/the-racer

Awesome thank you!

Just curious, are they still working on re-track work on The Racer?

13 hours ago, Shawn Meyer said:

Just curious, are they still working on re-track work on The Racer?

Keep an eye out for a podcast about this in a few weeks!