Kings Island 4/26/14

After much debate as to whether or not I was going to be attending an amusement park back East this year, I decided to attend Kings Island.

Had my coaster loving cousin to drive and be my riding buddy which is always a plus. Left Cleveland around 7am and arrived right around the park opening at 10am. Paid the $15 parking fee, and parked near the bus lots.

Loved seeing the Banshee sign over the front gate, and all the promo stuff for the ride. Headed toward Banshee the first stop of the day.

Banshee (1hr-1.5hr wait)
Themeing of this ride is definitely a step up from most Cedar Fair rides (non-existant) Loved the eternal flame for , and the amazing sign. Also loved the que line being right under the lift, and loop. Assigned seating (blah), and the que system was unique. Outside of the line they had people telling guests their items had to go in lockers, and in line about 1/3 of the que was actually being used. Lines were backing up on the midway, and another thing I noticed was Drop Zone wasn't operating. Anyhow onto the ride. By far the best invert I've been on, loved the zero g roll towards the end, and the g's this ride pulled toward the back end are undescribable.

Now onto Diamondback. I love this coaster so very much. Rode it for the first time last year, and ended up going on it in a downpour. (Not the best idea, but the ride was amazing). I love the feel and smoothness of this coaster, and I always have floater air going up and down the hills. I like the simplicity of the ride, but I do wish it was a bit longer. My cousin keeps saying if I rode the Intimidator-305, I'd change my feeling in a second...which I'm sure may be a great point. But for now, I love this coaster.

Diamondback (1 hour wait)
Somewhere around an hour wait for this coaster, maybe less. Wasn't really keeping track of time, was just there to ride some coasters. Anyhow, assigned seating (again :{ ) Sat somewhere in the middle of the train, back seat of the car. Love the seating style on this, and I don't remember if they had seatbelts on last time or not, I just remember that lapbar just barely held me in. Massive amounts of airtime on this.

Next we headed toward the Beast.

The Beast (20 min wait)
Beast is just a classic wooden coaster, which I love a ton as well. Ended up somewhere near the back. I don't remember exactly where, but I remember having tons of fun. A little bumpy in some spots, bruises under neath my arm to prove it, but still a great wooden coaster that has a mediocre beginning but an awesome back half. Hit the trims somewhere in the middle though, and thought "aww man no trims" but I could see why they trimmed it there, because it didn't make much of a difference the speed picked right back up. Probably one of the smoother rides I've had on a woodie.

Headed up towards the Coney Mall area of the park. Vortex was sporting a line out of the ques all day long. Windseeker I don't think was running either, at least I didn't see. Headed toward Flight of Fear and Firehawk which were both sporting some relatively hefty lines. So headed to the Racer, what a fiasco...

Racer (30 min wait with the long train waits in station)
My cousin always was talking about the ineptitude of the operations department at this park, and sadly for the first time, I did too. We were on the red train side of racer, and for a racing coaster, the sending of the trains was worse than watching a non-nitrous snail. They would load the trains completely, and have the trains waiting in the brake station for at least a minute, every single train. So we loaded, last car front seat...and waited almost all the way through Steppenwolfs "Magic Carpet Ride." This is a decent out and back coaster, but that waiting really dimmed any enjoyment I would have had otherwise.

We continued on in search of food this time. Stopped in the Festhaus and saw ridiculousness at its best. The whole area was full, so I suggested we make a trip out of the park for lunch (cheaper and hopefully some crowds would leave.)

Once we were back in the park, we took another jaunt through Planet Snoopy area, in which I decided to take my ride on Woodstock Express.

Woodstock Express (30 minute wait)
Ah another "fine" example of the "great" operations at Kings Island. The gentleman who was running the controls, seemed to have a bit of troubles. If I was a parent and saw this, I believe I would take my child out of line for fear of their safety. In the train right before ours, he had to lock/unlock and relock the train 3 different times, and it still wasn't sending. The other female operator seemed like she wasn't sure of what was going on either. I was left appalled, and this also happened on our train as well. I'm unsure if it was a computer problem (will go into that later) or an operation problem, but that's the first time i felt uneasy about a coaster ride in a while. Rode anyhow, because I love Woodstock Express.

Walked towards the back again, where Delirium was supporting a huge line all day, Vortex was also with the big line. Went and rode Flight of Fear and Firehawk.

Flight of Fear (1.5-2hr wait, complete with "technical" problem)
We get in line and are expecting the normal hour/ hour and a half wait....as we are moving through the ques, we notice people start leaving, and sure enough the ride op comes over and at first says it's a minor technical problem, and should be up in a minimal amount of time. 15 minutes later he says they are having a technical problem and are unsure how long it will take. Finally get moving and run into yet again, assigned seating. This however I don't mind where I sit. It's a launched coaster, and a bit of a headbanger. Always fun ride to me though. The ride ops here actually made it fun too, watching others be launched and their spiels.

Firehawk (X-flight) (30 min/1 hour wait)

Utilization of the double que system is something I have seen this ride do maybe once or twice when it was at Geauga Lake. I haven't rode it since the move and figured why not. The way they que the line is unique, but appears to work relatively well. The lovely green paint from X-Flight is beginning to show through. When I rode, I immediately remember why I waited so long to ride again in the first place. I hate the loud chain lift and I always feel dizzy after riding. No different from the good old Geauga Lake Days, but great trip down nostalgia lane.

Onto Adventure Express

Adventure Express (30 minute wait)
What I love about this ride, is the que line. People think this ride is longer wait than it actually is, and will skip it due to this misconception. I love the que line on this as well, and I finally was able to choose where I sat....not the best idea. Went right for the very last seat, and I think this is why my leg/butt cramped up on me for the rest of the day. Love the mine rides though, and no matter how bumpy they are, I will still choose the lap bars over an arrow otsr any day of the week. Love the themeing of this ride as well, but I wish the ending would do a bit more...

Headed toward the front again and went to ride Fight Deck...err the Bat.

The Bat (45 minute wait)
Kept calling this Flight Deck and my cousin kept calling it the bat. My ignorance preceded me as I thought the park had removed the Bat, and didn't realize they renamed a ride yet again. Walked up to it and sure enough it was now known as the Bat and supported an amazing Orange and Grey coat of paint. Even the trains were beautiful colored orange and grey. Love this ride, but always too short. Also for once it wasn't a headbanger! In line my cousin gave me the toughest choice of the day, ride the Banshee one more time, or hit up Diamondback one last time.

I figured since I had rode Diamondback the year prior with near marathon rides due to rain, I'd give Banshee one last try and attempt a front seat ride.

Banshee (1 hour - 1.5 hour)
Waited in line as the sun was going down, and as I said before I love the que line here and the elements being right overhead. The Banshee scream to me though sounds like Maverick as it's launching up the lift hill. I'm not sure if anyone else can hear that too....but all I think of when I hear it is Maverick. Anyhow back to the ride, I indeed got to ride front seat, and was loaded in by none other than, McLovin' (I swear this ride op was a doppleganger for Christopher Mintz-Plasse better known as McLovin) anyhow was on the left outside seat again for this ride. The G's pulled towards the back half are insane, and I would love a back seat ride just to experience them at the fullest, with the whip effect. I think it may be a while before I find another coaster that is even remotely comparable to the Banshee.

Over all despite the inept operations, the long lines, and the relatively warm day...it was a nice send off to the west. Hopefully I'll have at least two more reports this year from parks out west.

-Ellen

"E"Coster Gurl said:

Diamondback (1 hour wait)

My cousin keeps saying if I rode the Intimidator-305, I'd change my feeling in a second...which I'm sure may be a great point. But for now, I love this coaster.

Beast - Probably one of the smoother rides I've had on a woodie.

Adventure Express (30 minute wait)
I finally was able to choose where I sat....not the best idea. Went right for the very last seat, and I think this is why my leg/butt cramped up on me for the rest of the day

The Bat (45 minute wait)
Kept calling this Flight Deck and my cousin kept calling it the bat.

Not so sure on the I305 comment. I'll start by saying I like the ride. But you cannot sit back and enjoy it like you can on a BnM hyper, or even MForce. Much like Maverick at CP, (which is the most similar ride to I305 I can think of) you have to ride defensively, which, IMO, takes all the fun out of it and makes it not re-ridable. I like I305 and I like Maverick, but each of these rides would be so much better if they went about 5-10 mph slower.

Beast - For being as old, large, and fast as it is, I'm surprised at how smooth the Beast usually is. Granted, we avoid wheel seats at all costs, but still.

Adv Ex - Again... gotta avoid those wheel seats...

Bat - It's okay, I still call it Top Gun. I hate the term Flight Deck. I hate the movie Top Gun too, but it's the old Law Of Primacy. I think I'll have no trouble calling it The Bat though, as it's a great name!

Thanks for the TR. I hope to make the drive down to KI from CLE with my son in May. He's shooting for Banshee to be his 200th coaster!