Relocating to Seattle WA (Wild Waves Report)

[johnjniehaus]

Hey everyone just a heads up I have officially relocated to Seattle, WA! I just accepted a Horticulture position out here in the evergreen state and with that my home park is no longer Kings Island. I'll definitely miss it and will have to come back to visit every year or two (to see my family and hit up the park). So having said that, I just wanted to say a big thank you to the community of KIC for all of the entertaining forum conversation these past few years I've been a member and also say that I hope to keep posting on the forum (I have my secret agents who will keep me in the loop on the goings on at the park firsthand) 

So with that being said my new home park is Wild Waves in Federal Way, Washington. Wild Waves has 4 coasters including an arrow looper and an S&S woodie. One positive way to look at the coaster situation in Washington State is that despite not having a single B&M, Intamin, RMC, etc we have an Arrow and a Schwarzkopf! Two of my favorite classic manufacturers! So I will definitely continue traveling to different parks and will continue posting in the Trip Reports forums. I have connected with ACE out here and will be attending an event at the Enchanted Forest in Salem, OR. So yeah new beginnings here with the move but I know I'll always love Kings Island and I'll always keep up with the news and with the park. 

So my report of Wild Waves is that it was $75 for an annual pass with a free upgrade to gold. Included parking, admission, 3 guest tickets, and a souvenir bottle with $1.50 refills. The park itself is slightly charming with statues and fountains from its old days of being the enchanted village or whatever it was once upon a time. The rides lineup in general isn't stellar but it ok for a small park. They have a love affair with S&S having a woodie by then and also a Drop Tower. They also have quite a few zamperla rides. The Eli bridge Ferris wheel and scrambler rides are welcome classics too. One fun fact is that the splash boat ride was relocated from OpryLand so that is a cool piece of history. Overall it'll get me though the weeks between rollercoaster trips to better parks and hey who can complain about having an arrow looper in your backyard? If anyone is ever coming out here to visit Wild Waves, I'd highly suggest coming during the Puyallup State Fair so you can also get the coaster credits there including the Classic Coaster and the Wildcat! 

[Diamondback_Is_King]

I used to live in Oregon and Washington when I was a little kid, so it's always fun to hear from someone who knows what Wild Waves is!                                                                                Fun fact: Wild Thing was my very first legit coaster and my first upside down roller coaster. When we got back into the station, they asked if we wanted to go again, and to raise our hands if you wanted to get off. So, I raised my hand after being scared the first time, but my dad put it back down. So I rode it again and loved it, thus beginning my love for roller coasters! (Although I would say my first visit to KI was when I became an enthusiast)

Unfortunately, the Northwest isn't the greatest place to be a coaster fan, as there aren't that many parks around. But there are a few good ones around the area that people from the East Coast don't normally go to. My favorite from the Northwest is Silverwood! It's about a 4hr 45min drive from Seattle. I haven't ever made it down to the California parks (I wish I've been to Magic Mountain) except for Disneyland.

Odd question for you @johnjniehaus: Will you still root for your sports teams in Ohio, or root for your new local sports teams in Seattle? I still root for the Seahawks (although it's hard to root for them ) but also root for the Bengals here in Ohio. Except for when they play each other (very rare though) I root for the Seahawks.

So excited for you and your new home! I used to love the trees and nature as a little kid, and still would love to revisit today. The best of luck to you!

[johnjniehaus]

2 hours ago, Diamondback_Is_King said:

Odd question for you @johnjniehaus: Will you still root for your sports teams in Ohio, or root for your new local sports teams in Seattle? I still root for the Seahawks (although it's hard to root for them ) but also root for the Bengals here in Ohio. Except for when they play each other (very rare though) I root for the Seahawks.

So to be fair the Reds and Bengals have sucked most of my life so they are easy teams to dump. I was never super into sports ton begin with, I probably attended one baseball game a year, never watched the games on TV, and just occasionally listened to one on the radio. I always bet against the reds with work friends and guess what - I won alot of free soda cans because they loose quite often. When they say Pete Rose bet on baseball but he never bet against the Reds, I say sure I bet on baseball and I ALWAYS bet against the Reds because they have not been a good team for most of my life and free soda has been more appealing than loyalty to a baseball team. So having said that you can obviously see that I am not the biggest sports fan. I never attended, watch, or listen to Bengals games either. 

Now as for where my loyalties now lie, I have never given two hoots about football so I don't see that changing. While I'll always like the Reds, until they get their crap together and actually get a good team it's easy to not be super loyal. My partner also has a cousin who is a rookie on the Mariners (Ben Williamson) so I'm kind of backing the Mariners especially considering I have met Ben and he seems like a super great guy.