pkdcoaster

When Alp was new it was much more forceful. The lift brake was not used and the MCBR was very light, here is one of my videos from a while ago that shows footage from 1997 when it ran full speed. The best shots are from 1:08-1:33 showing the unbraked speed of the last half.forgive the video quality shot with my over the shoulder VHS camcorder [coastertube]http://www.themeparkreview.com/coastertube/play.php?vid=8alpen[/coastertube] JEFF

Awesome collection of coasters ordering both! JEFF

[coastertube]http://www.themeparkreview.com/coastertube/play.php?vid=Launched[/coastertube] Here is my video of launched coasters from 5 years ago, Chiller footage from 1998 from inside the structure. Jeff

Got some info on the new coaster. 1. Coaster made by Zierer 2. 8 cars per train (16 people per train) load/unload 2 trains at a time in station. 3. Car themed (autobahn?) 4. Covered bridge finale where BBW drop was (approx. 126' drop) not sure if special effects are used. 5. The building looks to have a forest theme inside, with some kind of show finale before you exit the building. JEFF here is my crappy MS paint drawing of the layout The rectangles indicate block sections

I will chime in as a local. My first ride was in 1987 (7 years old) and it blew me away just seeing it cause it was so unique at the time. I admit that over the last decade of its life I did not ride it nearly as much as the other coasters at BGW but alot changed in 2008 when my son could ride it at 4 years old. We would marathon on it every time we went, even when the line was over an hour. To hear his laughter and enthusiasm really brought back the magic of riding big coasters for the first time when I was a kid. He was very upset when I told him his favorite coaster was being torn down but we went its last weekend and had a good marathon on it and got some pics and souvenirs and he still randomly says that he misses it to this day. So The ride really means a lot to me as a coaster lover and a father for those reasons. I know why they took it out and understand their decision though. I will go back when they build the new coaster though and hopefully my son will be tall enough to ride the B&Ms. JEFF

Damn, That layout actually looks really good. JEFF

Texas Giant was ranked #1 for like 8 years in a row Timberwolf was very good it's first few years too Almost all wooden coasters go downhill after the first few seasons. This is true even in this era, look at how many CCI's have been razed or are very rough (esp. the class of 2000) People complain about the older GCI's too. (Roar,Gwazi,Wildcat) It costs alot of money to keep a woodie smooth and as long as the ride is safe the parks are gonna let them ride. Fast,Intense, Airtime filled rides put alot of stress on the wood & structure. JEFF

Drove by the park today and guess what! They are removing track pieces from I 305 They had at least 2 down from the top of the 2nd hill Did not have my camera but will try to get pics soon. Guess they are doing some major re-profiling to the ride to eliminate the black out turn. JEFF EDIT:photo credit-Clint Novak

The park refers to the different sides of Rebel Yell as the North side and South side now, not red and blue (I believe that is a coaster fanatics thing). JEFF

Have not seen this posted yet but Google Earth just updated their satellite images of KD taken sometime this past summer. http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=37.838440,-77.443310&spn=0.003192,0.002951&t=h&q=Kings+Dominion@37.838440,-77.443310 Busch Gardens got the treatment as well http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=37.233980,-76.648160&spn=0.003192,0.002951&t=h&q=Busch+Gardens+Williamsburg@37.233980,-76.648160 Still no birds eye view for either though JEFF

Very interesting that CF removed them all after the Knotts incident. I knew Volcano's was removed but I just thought they sold poorly and were not worth the upkeep. JEFF

Sure, I will upload them to my Smugmug site soon check back soon for the link. UPDATE: Here is the link to all my HQ pics of I305 (fireworks pics are on the last few pages) Hold your cursor over the pic that is displayed in the window and click "original" for the Full size pic JEFF

A few more pics after the Fireworks plus some pics from July of I305 from the Waterpark. Thanks to Chris for the pics of me and my kids JEFF I really like this one

I promised my kids we would see the fireworks at KD since we missed the ones on the 4th so we headed out and packed my daughter (Abby) in her "good" shoes and low and behold she cleared the 40" bar which opened up two new ride experiences at Kings Dominion for her, Ghoster Coaster (Scooby Doo) & Avalanche. She was very excited to ride her first wooden coaster and it is now her new #1 (out of 5) We figured it would be crowded due to a holiday weekend+fireworks+Perfect weather but KD was running the park very well from what we saw. our 2 best friends decided to come too and they were able to help document the special day. Here are some pics, from Sunday night. It has been a great Summer but looking forward to Fall UPDATE: Here is the link to all my HQ pics of I305 (fireworks pics are on the last few pages) Hold your cursor over the pic that is displayed in the window and click "original" for the Full size pic. JEFF She wanted to hold her hands up but I told her she should hold on the first time. My son Aidan (6) is behind us she turns 4 in November Proud day When the ride hit the Brakes "That was AWESOME, lets do that again!!!" we spent a good 1/2 hour up the tower enjoying the weather and sights in my 28 years coming to the park, I have never been able to see the Blue Ridge Mountains till Sunday great sunset fun with the camera during the dusk conditions Beautiful Hill Nice pic of a crap ride unique but painful here come the lights there we go still a classic even though the organ is broke time for fun in the Treasure cave the best part Big moment too, Aidan's first solo ride Abby's first ride on Avalanche Almost time wait for it here we go, through the coaster! it seems that the best spot for the fireworks is at I305 love the red

Ha! That was you in the El Toro shirt. I was at Lakemont that day, as well. You weren't also at Waldameer later that day by any chance, were you? I swear we saw you again at Waldameer, unless it was someone else that resembled you and had the same exact shirt on. Congrats on 300! That was me, we did lakemont, Delgrosso's in the morning/afternoon and Waldameer from 6-10 then Kennywood the next day Ravine Flyer II was awesome at night, I got 18 rides on it. I saw quite a few coaster fans at lakemont that morning. what were you wearing? JEFF

My original post is on page 9 (1991-2007) 2008 The Dark Knight (SFgrtadv) Farenheit 2009 Diamondback 2010 Intimidator Sky Rocket JEFF

#1 was Space Mountain at WDW (no idea which side just remember crying the whole time, I was 5) 1985 1st wooden- Scooby Doo at Kings Dominion- 1986 Rebel Yell is the coaster that turned me into a coaster lover in 1987 1st looping- Loch Ness Monster in 1987 1st inverted- Batman TR at SFGRTADV in 1993 #50 was Hurler at Carowinds in 1995 #100 was Great American Scream Machine at SFOG in 1998 #200 was Millennium Force in 2000 #300 was Leap the Dips on 8-22-2010 JEFF success- I wanted to make 300 a good/special coaster

Awesome pics! Thanks for sharing! I love old pics of parks, especially the ones that have changed so much over the last few decades. JEFF

Went last week to Waterworks with my cam and climbed Pipeline peak to get some good shots. not really worth a whole PTR so I will post the best ones here. Enjoy, JEFF If anybody wants full size pics they can all be found on my smugmug page (over 500 pics of I305) Wallpaper material still photogenic racing Rebel yell on a weekday! view from Tidal Wave bay Neat view of Volcano nice timing wide view The internet rumors are true! hopefully she will be returned to one of the best first drops in the world soon I305desktop.zip Full size pic for wallpaper of 1st pic

The water tower already has cell antennas on it. JEFF notice the painted ones too

I rode Mantis in 1996 before the trims and it KILLED your legs (felt like a charlie horse in your legs for duration of the ride+ few mins. after) Most people complained about this so the trims were added in the off season to solve the problem. This is probably why every element on Riddlers Revenge is very drawn out between elements. [coastertube]http://www.themeparkreview.com/coastertube/play.php?vid=CedarPoint[/coastertube] here is one of my old videos of CP fwd to 2:09 mark to see Mantis footage from 1996 pre-trims JEFF

Small price to pay for a new credit Especially when I am so close to 300! JEFF

This past weekend I took my kids to Ocean city for some time with my extended family on my Dads side (most of whom I have not seen in 12 years) of course New coasters made the trip easier to swallow This was my first trip ever to Ocean city, it was very touristy which isn't a bad thing. The boardwalk was very lively with live performers, lights, food and rides everywhere. here are some pics from the weekend of fun. JEFF The view from the front of the Hilton. (nice pick mom) My kids are ready for a weekend of fun Sometimes the best rides in the world are not made from wood or steel! Aidan tackling the waves The beach was very nice but the waves were a little small The view from our room of the awesome kids pool A look down the beach (our hotel was about 5 blocks beyond the Boardwalk) I caught this awesome pic of a School of 5 Dolphins from our balcony. Sun is down......onto the rides Some Wacky Worm Whoring with the kids! The Jolly Roger Amusement park had a Wildcat coaster IMO still the best portable coaster layout. one of three Wacky Worms in Ocean City Jolly Roger also had a really Nice Waterpark (wish we had more time to try it out) Abigail is fearless Aidan approves of the sweet views the ferris wheel provides This is the "big" coaster in OC a 1986 Boomerang at Trimpers rides Could not resist a great opp. for night pics it was very well taken care of and had a very nice lighting package For some reason the back was much smoother than the front. when real estate is at a premium you have to squeeze everything in. They did have a Tobagan coaster till last year. but I did manage 5 new credits I was impressed at how many rides they had in a small area This was Aidan's first Boomerang he now has 23 credits Jolly Roger at the pier had a Looping star. It looks like it would be brutal but it was not that bad. My sister decided to tag along for pics we decided to take the Chesapeke bay bridge tunnel and it was a gorgeous drive especially at sunset (love this pic of my Abby) a few nice sunset pics I took from the observation area If you have the opportunity to make this drive over the Bay. I recommend it highly Thanks for reading

They are actually cooling the wheels down, they installed little mist nozzles lined up on the wheels when it is in the station and brake run. Now lets see if they take the trims off to see if it works (yea right!) JEFF

looks nice for a job done in 2 months. Thanks for the update. JEFF