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It’s finally back.

^ we had beer (I had frozen Pina Colada) there and watched a show on Saturday afternoon I made the bartender blush (and the other one Guffaw) when he asked me for ID, and I showed him it in my "wallet" and he said "can you pull it out" and without missing a beat, I responded: "But Sir, I JUST met you!"

Joel did take some pics. Will look through them soon as I can!

Thanks for picking my 3 year old trip report to add that comment

Express said $300+ when I looked this week. We stayed at a Sleep Inn on Milan Rd. that was suitable for 1 night.

Wow, you have done a good job remembering the day. The only thing I can think of (and this only partially affected you) was that after you got the Starbucks you caught up with us at Tom & Chee to have a bite of the greatest grilled cheese that ever was or ever will be.

day 1 continued. . . So we headed over to the front of the Eiffel Tower for the group picture at 2:30. to get there from Woodstock Express, we headed back thru Planet Snoopy, and past this bizarre ass game called "Stinky Feet" -- where you sit on a toilet and shoot water at the feet of a guy taking a bath (and there's also a bar of soap in his hand that has a target on it). I have SO Many questions, but really, at the top of that list is: What kind of bathroom is it, where if you're sitting on the toilet, you're facing directly at the bathtub looking at whomever might be in the tub? Seemed a bit kinky for a family park. so of COURSE I had to get a picture (tho hadn't noticed the lady looking at me from her perch on her toilet until just now. . . LOL) we got to the base of the tower tho: and tho there were a lot of us there, still immediately bumped into Stacy and John and chatted with them about the day thus far (and my opinion of what things we'd ridden thus far). here are the group shots they sent out to us - 1st the shot with everyone hands up which I think they quickly realized blocked out most everyone other than the front row, LOL. . so a "hands down" pic then went out to everyone as well: and tho the "vertically challenged" (or "fun sized" as they would say) Stacy & Kim aren't really visible.. you can actually see Joel, John, and myself in the pic: I hadn't officially met him yet - tho would within the next hour - PianoJohn from right here at the TPR forums is very visible in this pic too, far left front row, in the black shirt with white hat Pic taken, everyone split off to fill the ~1 hour until the next Coasterstock official activity - a behind the scenes walking tour/photo op for The Beast. I hadn't even seen the Carousel yet, and since it was right behind the tower, we headed that way to get a look at it and enjoy some other scenery - and I *think* we made a walk over to Diamondback, and rode it as the line wasn't too bad (tho the Mystic Timbers line had gotten long, so wouldn't get another ride on that until tomorrow when we rode the heck out of it with Fast Lane Plus) eventually, it was close to time for the tour, and we all met up by the gates next to Beast - ending up next to Stacy & John again (LOL), but she was able to point out PianoJohn to me and I went and said hello (he's a really nice guy and we chatted quite a bit thruout the tour, and even rode a few rides together thru the remaining of Coasterstock. and then the gates opened, and we got to walk way back into the woods where Beast course runs. It really felt like I was back at camp in my teens. . but so much fun, and thank goodness, no bugs! here are lots of pics of the backstage walking tour, that was ~50 minutes long: and yes, I'm sure all these riders were wondering who the hell all these folks are taking pictures of them! you can get some great shots of one of Orion's turn arounds from back here too. . . .and you can see how some of the light bleed from Orion at night results in a Beast night ride not being COMPLETELY black these days. . but still. . .beautiful coaster (and we hadn't even been near it yet at this point. . it had all been foreplay thus far today). and here he is (I hadn't taken a pic of us together, but John did), PianoJohn and bert, backstage at the Beast! I wasn't interested in heading further down into the woods - tho some did, to get some shots of the final helix, so we headed back towards the Station and remembered that this tour also included a chance to go over by Diamondback's turnaround - which was over here in the Backstage area - just behind the old "the Crypt" ride building, which is still standing, and they told us they use for Haunts these days. so we hung a left at the Beast Station instead of heading back out into the park. and discovered what the Water Dummies do on their downtime if you've ever wondered? Water Dummy Orgy, of course . . .LOL.. KI is way kinkier than I could have imagined I had actually forgotten that I had taken these pics, and was annoyed at myself that I didn't take any pictures of Mystic Timbers incredible 1st diving drop . . . so was so thrilled to see I have these in my photos from the Beast walkback tour: one last pic of Diamondback, before we headed out back into the park. I think we had about 1 1/2 hours until dinner time at this point, and I honestly can't remember what we went to next - but I seem to recall that the lines were pretty long on everything at this point in the day and we were worried that if we tried to get in line for something, we'd miss dinner. I wanted to do some shopping for Tshirts/magnets as well, so I'm pretty sure we decided that we'd head back over to the Eiffel Tower to go to the top if the line was short, and then run to the car to drop off hats, Kim could change shoes, and could drop off anything purchased. walking back thru Planet Snoopy, I stopped to snap a pic of this Carousel. I had to because: 1) it's a carousel 2) it annoyed the hell out of me that it's called "Character Carousel" - but with NO characters on it! I mean, c'mon. . I rode the craptastic carousel at USJ because it was themed to Sesame Street characters, and I rode the even worse one at YomiUriLand because I got to ride on LandDog. But only having the Peanuts characters on the Sign ? LOL.. that annoyed me, even tho I was tempted to ride it anyways, since I liked the Zebras. 1st world Carousel Fan problems. . . . but wait. . now there was an actual walk around Snoopy out? of COURSE I waited for a picture (thanks for taking Kim). tho I left snoopy high and dry, when I started to walk away without realizing he was trying to give me a high-five - I went back and did it once it was pointed out (by many!) that I had left Snoopy hanging. Speaking of High-5 (which makes me think of touching). . I do want to mention how the park is handling Covid these days. well, "handling" might not be the right word, since it's basicially not even being actively addressed. In several places around the park, I did note signs referencing social distancing, and a few of the stores did have signs up on the doors referring to Masks recommended, but none of it was being enforced or even mentioned. in fact, I think out of all the "Sanitation Stations" - and there are *many* of them thruout the park, and ride queues - I think I only found one of them in the entire two day visit that had any sanitizer in it. The rest were all dry. I carried a small bottle of sanitizer in my zip pockets, so just used that (and refilled it this evening for the next day), and I even supplied it once or twice to other folks who tried to use a sanitize station but found it out of fluid. I also had a mask with me both days (you can see it in my hand in some pictures from earlier in the day), tho I didn't really put it on when we were outside, but I did for ordering in Starbucks, when we cut thru the festhaus, and for the Elevator ride down from the Eiffel Tower - once realized on the way up that it was going to be a crammed full elevator of people. (i held my breath the whole time going up, and then kicked myself for not pulling out my mask. . so made sure to wear it for the ride down) I don't mean that in a negative way, or really to criticize the park. . . just giving heads up for those who are still a bit concerned about going out where there are groups as to how KI is handling it. other than myself? I saw, *maybe* , 5 other masks being worn in the park - either indoors or outdoors. not judging, just noting. anyways. . . we got up to the top of the Eiffel Tower, with only a one (packed) elevator wait, and spent a good 30 minutes up there enjoying the breeze and the view: Orion on the lift hill Clockwise from bottom LtR: Backlot Stunt, Beast, Diamondback, showbuilding for the Crypt, Mystic Timbers, Race For Your Life Charlie Brown Clockwise from bottom LtR: Dogem, Zephyr (swings), Racer, Orion, Antique Taxis, Windseeker, Beast, Backlot Stunt Coaster. ~40 minutes till dinner. . got it Pretty full parking lot, with Invertigo on the right Invertigo, Chute the Shoots boat, drop Tower, Delirium, the Bat, Banshee, and at the bottom the top of the Swinging Ship ride. In this pic, you can actually see our hotel - just to the left of the drop tower, about level with the red portion (across the freeway). So good location, and POSSIBLE to walk to if you must in an emergency. Banshee really does have a fantastic layout, with the elements spaced out just enough that it doesn't seem so intense. I played it safe and only rode it once (I know how I do with suspendeds), but it was very good Closeup on Diamondback's splashdown finale, from the top of the tower: (again, that big "box" is the showbuilding for the closed Crypt ride - an indoor giant Top Spin ) LOL. . Flight of Fear really isn't all that Photogenic, is it. LOOK! a big silo building. . .LOL But Orion sure is pretty tho! It absolutely just dwarfs Racer. I had such intentions to ride this. . but again. . every opportunity, the thought of spinning just said. . nope. I love these rides tho. the intention was to do a quick stop in some stores to pick up some t-shirts and then run them to the car before dinner (we had even taken a quick peek earlier while waiting for the group picture so I'd know exactly which shirts I wanted). . but finding the sizes I needed took longer than anticipated - the staff was able to find the sizes I needed in the shirts I wanted in the back, so big thanks to them. . and it got too late to run to the car without missing the first 30 minutes of dinner. So we grabbed our (my) bags, and we headed over to the Picnic area behind Planet Snoopy for the first of two catered Dinners at Coasterstock. . . to be concluded. . . .

Reservations are no longer required to visit Busch Gardens. which is perfect timing for . . . Bier Fest! Here's some information about this year's event. ALL NEW BIERGARTEN RESERVE AND OVER 100 BEER VARIETIES MAKE BUSCH GARDENS’ BIER FEST A HIT Starting July 30 with live music, NEW beer-infused bites, and more! Balancing the traditional and the modern, Busch Gardens’ Bier Fest returns on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from July 30 through September 6 with plenty of NEW fun to help you soak in the last days of summer. The event is a fusion of the craft beer scene with an Oktoberfest flair showcasing over 100 different beers tapped throughout the park and includes an ALL-NEW Biergarten Reserve with live entertainment, specialty brews, and NEW beer-infused bites. Bier Fest wouldn’t be complete without brewery talks from local craft brewers, popular local bands like Kevin MaC and Audacity Brass Band, and Friday and Saturday night fireworks. Among the beers on tap are varieties of local favorite craft brewers Alewerks Brewing Company®, Billsburg Brewery®, and Virginia Beer Co.®, plus Virginia-based breweries ranging from Virginia Beach’s Wasserhund Brewing® to Callaway’s Chaos Mountain Brewing®, and everywhere in between. For the more traditional fans, Hofbrau Munchen®’s Oktoberfest and Spaten®’s Oktoberfest will be making appearances, too. Feel like something different? Bier Fest will still include your favorite wines, ciders, and non-alcoholic beverages, with something for every taste! Now for the perfect pairing! ALL-NEW beer infused bites make their debut throughout the park, and these culinary delights are not to be missed. Some highlights include Spicy Lager Wings tossed in beer-infused Sriracha, Beer Bang Shrimp tossed in sweet and spicy chili IPA-infused garlic sauce, Beer Cheese Nachos, and Bratwurst Burger Sliders. This event is FREE with park admission. Beers are available for guests aged 21 and over, for an additional fee.

^I maintain that Kings Island is one of the parks in the country that has improved the most in 20 years. Like seriously, rides, operations, food, merchandise, EVERYTHING has improved so much.

@ice1972 No, I don't support their decision to not offer Flash Pass on the phone for season Flash Pass customers. Yes, they should offer the same system to every paying customer, I'll agree with you there. I don't agree that it has "devalued" what you're paying for. The system operates exactly as it did when you purchased it. Now, if they removed rides from the Flash Pass program, then yes, I'd say you have a "devalued" argument. Mainly, what I don't agree with is the extreme to which you've taken your upset-ness. Your mild inconvenience from them not offering season Flash Pass on the phone app does not give you the right to berate, yell at, or otherwise harass a low-paid, young employee of the park, who has literally no control over the situation whatsoever. Write an e-mail to the GM of the park if it bothers you so much...front-line employees at theme parks don't have any say over how things are done. Was I highly annoyed when CF parks decided to keep their smoking zones to outside the park gates post-COVID? Yes, absolutely. Did I bitch and moan about it to the employees who scan the tickets/passes on entry? No, because they have no ability to change things that are corporate-wide or even park-level decisions. You also realize that this is Six Flags, and the "decision" to not offer what you're looking for is likely as simple as one of their tech guys forgetting to check a box to enable it, right? Again, not someone who works at the park and interacts with guests. Guest Relations might be your only real outlet at the park, since they can take notes that get forwarded on to the park management, but certainly you're a better human being than to "give them an earful." A casual, friendly, "Hey, it would be nice if..." will get you miles further. If the "1972" in your user name refers to your birth year, this is even worse, because a grown-ass adult should not get so bothered by trivial things like this. I hope you never have to face any actual hardship in your life.

So despite a laundry list of questionable choices and complaints about this park, we made the most of this 2 day visit. Absolutely BGT is a bucket list park with the legendary Kumba & Montu and they not only lived up to the hype but it's so great that they are SO SMOOTH! Riding Banshee 2 days ago it's laughable comparing old to new B&M. Kumba feels massive yet the stats have you thinking it's a smaller looper. What a beast. Not once did my head touch the OTSR, even on the cobra loop. Sheikra is my new favorite dive coaster. That backrow air is incredible! Cheetah Hunt is such a perfect family coaster. I love how the inversion is hidden way out in the Savannah and you could hear it take some guests by surprise. Loved the front row's airtime going up the tower and the back for the drop off. Falcon's Fury was life changing in a way I had only experienced similar to DoDoDonpa. What an insane, amazing, terrifyingly great ride. Gwazi was closed. Cobras Curse was closed. The safari up charge was 10000% worth it to hand feed giraffes! I'll post a more detailed trip report later, off to Orlando for Sea World and Universal for 4 days!

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