Kings Dominion will get first Air Thrust in 2001

How come everyone has to complain about this thing? This has not even been built yet, this is just the announcement. Why don't you all wait until it opens to bad mouth the ride. You won't really know how good or bad the capasity is until it gets built.

Will every "new for 2001" coaster be slagged before they are even built? Or is this a "it should go in at CP" instead?

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Gotta ride 'em all! *** This post was edited by Soggy on 8/1/2000. ***

I'll tell you. Paramount is short-sighted when it comes to their parks.
How irrelevant will the Wayne's World area be in a couple of years?
I'm just glad I live close enough to Busch Gardens Williamsburg to ease the pain.
:)

Ha ha... Makes you wanna hurl! Schwing!

I don't doubt it will be a good ride, but I have to agree that this wasn't the park for it. I left PKD feeling so empty, like there should have been something more. Other than Volcano (which is short as it is), there really aren't any true signature modern-day rides. The woodies are in bad shape (sqeeeak!) and the steel collection is too old to interesting.

Like I said, I look forward to riding it, I'm just curious to know why they chose that park.

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Jeff
Webmaster/Admin - CoasterBuzz.com

Its has been 9 years since PKD has gotten a complete circuit steel with a traditional chain-lift.Looks like it will be a little longer.I don't think it is replacing Shockwave,but we'll see.Better than nothing right?I think it will be cool.Ohh and it is not surprising to me that PKD got another launched coaster,they pioneered the technology so we are kinda like the "Home of Launched Coasters".

SFSL never get a good coaster?What is The Boss?

1560 & 80mph sounds like the prototype. So yup, PKD gets another short launched.

Good throughput though - it's up in the MF range, if not in the Magnum or anywhere near the Gemini capacity.

I suspect the cars will be longer than the prototype used.

Maybe they'll get Drachen Fire! lol

90 degree drop on the descent? If I'm not mistaken, that'll be a record. I don't think Oblivion (or the other vertical coaster, wherever it is) is 90. I remember seeing somewhere it's 87.5 degree drop...

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WHOO!

I'm with Simcoaster, I'm actually glad PGA cancelled this and let PKD have it instead. PGA already has more than enough short low capacity coasters, hopefully now we'll get that rumored Intamin Jr Hyper instead. Like Stealth, I'm sure Hypersonic will be a fun and unique ride, but with horrible capacity, long lines and just way too short of a ride.

The waterpark is on one side of Candy Apple Grove and Shockwave is on the other. I think we know where Hypersonic XLC is being placed. I hope they don't replace Shockwave as it 10x more comfortable that Mantis at CP. Togo got the bicycle seat right. As for Wayne's World, I think it was getting old back in 98, the last time I visited.

HyperSonic?!?!? What's up with that? It's not even a hyper coaster!

Shockwave is comfortable? What? More than Mantis?

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Jeff
Webmaster/Admin - CoasterBuzz.com

Mantis left me in pain for hours after I had ridden it. The bicycle seat they use is way too wide and hard. The inside of my thighs were in bad pain and I'm a thin person. I have never (and I repeat never) hated a roller coaster before the ride started, except for Mantis. The support that makes you stand up never adjusted correctly either, which suprised me also.

LOL Mantis is by far the more comfortable of all stand-ups I've been on!
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Shawn Bailes
Webmaster of Coasters R Us

http://coastersrus.home-page.org

Riddler's Revenge at SGMM [ the most underated coaster in the world] is a very comphy stand up, the bycicle seat looks painful but its fine!

Well for once, Im glad I was completely wrong. (above post) A fast turn and a camelback should make it more interesting.

... a little

Still, this should've gone in at, hmm, what Paramount park would this make sense at??

It's not like PKI isnt prototyping itself enough with SOB, and PGA is simply out of the question, seeing as it's refusing the ride.

I think carowinds needed this more, but thats my opinion and it aint gonna change a thing.

How about Canada's Wonderland? They have all low capacity coasters. Don't they?
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THE BEASTmaster

www.geocities.com/byostie

Can you take me higher? (CREED)

I was at PKD's announcement. Yeah, I admit it wasn't exactly what I was hoping for, but I still can't wait to ride Hypersonic.

Here's some of what I learned:

- It will be located near the SkyCoaster and entrance to Wayne's World. It's supposed to have a pretty small footprint... I wouldn't expect it to extend much beyond the Carousel.

- Eight people to a car. No idea (or mention) of how many cars it will have or what throughput will be.

- I'm pretty sure they'll be using the prototype, although they'll modify it somewhat (camelback at the end of the ride).

- For anyone in the Richmond, VA area, (unfortunately not me), Channel 6 will be covering the construction periodically as it progresses to a March 2001 debut.

And Jeff, I was talking to the PKD PR Manager, and he mentioned CoasterBuzz. He was telling me that all he had to do was click a button and the announcement would head your way in cyberspace. Apparently you got it.

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10 days and counting...

Then, OHIO!!!!!

I'm with Soggy-I can't believe how everyone's ragging already-1 DAY AFTER THE ANNOUNCEMENT! I've heard complaints from low capacity to "how could they put it there?" to "PKD sucks", ect. God, man, lighten up!! Any time you're at a park you're not at work, school, or home dealing with the usual crap that we all hate. So Virginia won this one- if you want to ride it, you'll go. I have two weeks and a 12 hour drive until I get to experience SOB and MF for the first time. A six hour drive to Virginia is cake. A week in May of PKD, SFA, And Busch Williamsburg sounds like a good week to me. I'm thinking the thing is gonna kick big time and will be a great experience. I can't understand how much ragging there is after hearing the announcement yeaterday. If people are that jaded against the new ride or PKD, then don't go and shut up. I'll let you know how it was!

Thank you Dave, well put. As for all of the EXPERTS I feel it's fianally time I speak my peace. Here are some thoughts for you to ponder. Every time a new coaster is built some of you find something wrong with it(they should have done this or that, they could have made it this much longer, ect.). Well for all of you engineering experts all that extra stuff costs MONEY. If you have ever been involved in large budget projects, let us say 150k as a nice number you know you sometimes have to make sacrifices. Also there is something else to consider it's called PHYSICS and the laws associated with it. I have more than once been on a new ride and heard complaining as to why this and not that. Yeah, whatever it was you wanted might be possible but maybe not or maybe it would be to intense. TO INTENSE I know some of you just said, but yes to intense. At least for the general public. Remeber these are the people who pretty much keep the parks in business. We the extremists, I'm sure are only a very small part of thier income. Granted we make the most noise(just read coasterbuzz) but we probably don't pay the bills. Back to the intensity thing. Want proof. I don't care what your opinion is of it because I know some like it, some don't, steel phantom. It is an intense ride and everyone I have ever taken on the ride gets off shaking thier head going "WOW". But have you ever noticed that no one really rides it. I've been to the park on busy days and still did'nt have to wait in any knid of line while all the less intense rides had lines(thunderbolt, ect). Beacuse of this steel phantom will live now more. Yeah I know I've heard other rumors of the 2nd drop shifting or what ever other reasons for it's removal, but the fact is still no one rides it. I can be sure of one thing however. What ever KW announces for next year will certainly get some of you in an uproar, either because "it's my number one ride" or "they should have made it do this". As for my opinions of ANY new ride I typically wait to ride it to pass judgement. I have been both suprised and disappointed in the past because I judged a new ride on how it looked or where it was located or any other reason. Now I just wait to ride them. Maybe you should too.

Phil says:
"Every time a new coaster is built some of you find something wrong with it."

Some of the points you make are very good ones with regards to the reasons some members are already trashing the park, but many, including my own opinions, have more to do with the business of amusement parks (quite contrary to what you're saying). I don't think anyone doubts it will be a great ride, but what many are questioning is the need to do it there.

The more parks I visit the better my appreciation for market dynamics that drive the development of different parks. High priced food aside, I don't have any real complaints about PKD, but I've ever left a park feeling so indifferent about it. Volcano is a real gee-whiz ride, but it still isn't the signature ride that keeps coming back. They really don't have an enduring signature ride, and that's something that neigbouring Busch Gardens does have. Heck, they've got several! Even Six Flags America has a signature ride, whose mirror at Darien Lake made many top 20 surveys last year early in the year. PKD is not going to capture attention away from these parks with another short ride.

I've been involved with million-dollar budgets, and capital improvement is always something that you plan several years out and budget for (note to Six Flags: you're not a dot-com, stop borrowing). This ride will draw crowds and provide them with decent ROI, but it won't grow the business like a bigger ride will. A park that big and that close to markets like DC and Baltimore should be doing far more than 2.3 million visitors a year.

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Jeff
Webmaster/Admin - CoasterBuzz.com