What has become of the Beast?

I go to KI yearly with my friends and it seems that the last few times we've gone when I ask if they want to ride The Beast they just reply as if it were just a waste of time.

Sadly, I too find it kind of on the boring side, because of its lack of speed and airtime. They say that it gets up to 64mph but I just don't find that true. Plus, haven't they added trims all around the course? Why would they do this?

The coaster used to be such a big hit, so I don't understand why I don't care for it that much. Is there a certain seat I should ride in that will inhance the experience (front/midle/back)?

I would like to know what some of you think about the Beast. Thanks for sharing your opinions! *** Edited 6/16/2007 3:22:15 AM UTC by DantheCoasterman***

I never found the Beast very exciting. I thought Racer was definitely the woodie star at King's Island. The second helix was brain hemorrhage inducing. I'm not sure how it has changed since I rode it in 2001, but my memories of it aren't too sweet.

If you want to reduce the roughness and get a better quality ride, go for the front seat.

Actually the same trick that worked for SOB also works for the Beast (and Racer) just nab a middle row of a car, no wheels and thus a smoother ride.

Also for the record I have no problem with the Beast becoming the "Magnum of King's Island" it just means I get to ride it more :).

I'm still trying to figure out what a "waist of time" is. Or maybe I shouldn't waste my time trying? ;)

Yeah, if it's a waist of time, they should probably lay off of the park food for a couple visits. That should fix it. Oh, you meant as in "not worth their time." I wouldn't say The Beast is my favorite wooden coaster (that spot belongs to Cornball Express right now), but it sure was scary and kicking butt at BeastBuzz last year.

Of course, it helps that we rode in total darkness and at times it was impossible to figure out where you were unless you knew the course by heart.

I say put the G trains on it and put the PTC's on SOB.
:)

Chuck

Ohhh what now? Post has been edited ;).

The first time I was at KI for the season, I got a horrible ride and a good ride. One was on a wheel in the front of the train and one was in the second to last seat (not on the wheels) in the back of the train. This last time I was there, we got a middle seat and it wasn't a bad ride when it comes to roughness. It was fun.

It is trimmed rather heavily. The only aspect of the coaster I don't really like is the long tunnel mid-ride; it gets rather loud by the time you exit. I'm not a fan of loud noises. But other than that, and if you can grab a middle seat, it's still a rather fun ride.

I don't have much of a "track record," and really the only park I've ever been to is KI, but one of my complaints regarding KI is that there really is no coaster where you can get a smooth ride, besides Top Gun. I thought I was going to break my jaw on the restraints when riding Vortex in the second seat of the front car. I even had a rather rough ride on Adventure Express. I was sure I was going to die riding the Racer backwards, although riding forward was a good ride. Firehawk is a rather uncomfortable ride as well, but I didn't find it to be "rough." Italian Job is still mostly smooth, but it can be uncomfortable sometimes as well.

*** Edited 6/16/2007 3:25:55 AM UTC by Infamy***

I asked the same question last year. I agree that the front was much better to ride in. I think that it might just be a lack of tlc. Last year i hated the ride, it was brutal. I dislocated ribs last year, im not pinpointing the beast as the ride, but i certainly was feeling pain in my lower back last year after that one.

I even ran into Dick Kinzel, a day after that at geuaga lake and we chatted cause i was wearing my beast shirt. I told him it was far removed as a good ride to the year previous where i fell in love with it. I even mentioned working on it. But it certainly wasnt nearly as good as the year i previously rode. I doubt he took me seriously with all this other stuff he was doing, but nonetheless it was a bad ride last year, i have yet to ride this year.

The Beast is still the single roughest coaster I've ever been on. That's after Mean Streak, a host of Arrow loopers, and Wild Lightning at Lake Winnie (you will REALIZE). It's so far the only one that's ever caused an open wound, and for that it's in last place on my Wooden List.

Almost salvaged by the last helix, but only almost.

LOL Dan...just teasing you over your funny typo.

Aw, I love the beast. Just ride in a middle row.

This is refreshing. I thought it was blasphemy to speak poorly about The Beast so I usually keep my mouth shut about it.

But I didn't get it. It's a long ride of mostly nothing and those few spots where there is something beats the crap out you.

Pretty amazing when the best woody in a park with four wooden coasters is the family woody (whatever they call it this week). And even that has a trim brake on it!

I never thought The Beast was spectacular, but I always enjoyed the aesthetics of it (trees flying by, middle of woods with no rides or people around).

I rode once in the front, and once around the middle and I found the middle much rougher, maybe because I sat over the back wheels.

Personally, my favorite coaster at KI has always been Vortex for some reason. Rough, but fun.

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millrace said:
This is refreshing. I thought it was blasphemy to speak poorly about The Beast so I usually keep my mouth shut about it.

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I think the Beast has been routinely bashed since around here since the beginning. Matter of perception I guess.

Has anyone considered that maybe these people are just not interested in this ride and it's as simple as that? Maybe a long, wooden coaster doesn't appeal to everyone on the planet.

It's not really a big deal..

Now to ask, more specifically, about hitting speeds and whatnot is fine imo, but not ridiculing others for not being interested.

Vortex/FOF are my KI top coasters. Firehawk will probably get a close to that high ranking after I've ridden it a few mroe times.

Beast is a mess. During the Paramount years it went from a great ride to a severely overbraked, rough mess. My rides on it so far this season, even after some retracking it got this offseason, are rougher than ever.

It needs a SERIOUS refurbishment. Maybe Cedar Fair can get the M&V guys or GCI down here next offseason to do some serious work on it.

It's funny this thread came up. Some people think the Beast is dying, but last night it was amazing !! Nothing beats a ride on the Beast @ 10:30 at night, in the front seat. The ride is TOTALLY different at night in the dark. Yes, I also miss the skid breaks in the "shed" in the middle of the course. But these days the park can't be to careful because of all the lawsuits going on in this world.

On a side note, when did KI stop Beast operations during fireworks? Last night they stopped at 9:50 and then finally resumed at about 10:20 or so due to the fireworks. I take it is normal operation procedures now?

According to a ride op, after the fireworks they have maintenance on the track checking to make sure no damage was done to the track during the fireworks show.

Well I think like most wooden coasters, The Beast is tempormental. I really recommend riding in the second seat of a car, with the last seat of a car being the most vibrational ride. Even still, I really feel that the ride is really in the middle when it comes to roughness compared to other wooden coasters. Kings Island wood coaster maintenance is really as good as it gets, its just with 7359 feet of track to maintain and non articulating PTC trains, its not an easy task to keep The Beast as well as it is.

When I worked there, I never remember stopping operations due to the nightly 10 O'clock fireworks. Although for the fourth of july nights of fire , the ride was closed down at a certain time and I think not open till maintenance walked tracks again, or perhaps it didn't reopen those nights, can't remember.

PkiDelrium:

I am a bit confused since I think before Paramount aquired the park, that there were skid brakes on the first drop, ramp to helix, mid course brake shed, and second drop. Really the only thing that took place under Paramount ownership was the conversion from skid brakes, to magnetic trims in the same locations and fin brakes on the bridge. The Beast with the skid brakes did have great variability in how fast it ran, especially in rain, etc. The magnetic brakes to me give sort of an average skid brake run. Typically the easiest way to tell how fast the ride is running is to see how far it gets up lift 2. For the most part it gets to the same location that it always did on lift 2. *** Edited 6/16/2007 7:37:17 PM UTC by Beast Fan***