DBru

^Same. Cycling the train empty to “dry it off” is one of the more stupid things I’ve ever heard. Aren’t they basically spraying the trains down with Lysol? Did no one think of...a dry towel?

Logically, would it make more sense to attend Kings Island on the 4th (open till 10pm) as opposed to the 3rd or 5th (open till 7)? I’m wondering if the park capacity limit will be the same all 3 days, and if so, would it make any difference? (I’m assuming reservations will sell out for each day that weekend...but I could be wrong?)

^See, Andy? Glad to see someone here has class.

Um...I was under the impression we had all completely erased this from our memories? At least I got in some solid cardio. And Barry didn’t die.

LOL! Andy, I’ve been excited for months to see your “aerial” photos of this park from the observation tower, knowing that no one else made it up there. Come to find out...it’s all trees! Regardless, it’s pretty cool to see how the park is engrossed in THAT much foliage. I agree with all the previous sentiments: while Duinrell ranks lowest on my list of parks for the trip, I’m still glad we went and that I got to experience it. The boat jump was fun and Barry and I actually got to do the covered shoot-the-chutes, which was...an experience. Lol! I’d happily visit again on a breezy fall day when the kids are back in school. Of course, if I weren’t such a credit whore, maybe I wouldn’t have had to knock out that punk who kept cutting me in line for the kiddie coaster... Also, that giant slide was HUGE!

^Oh totally! I’ve ridden them both, as well. Great rides! I just find the experience to be quite similar to both Lightning Run and Storm Chaser. I’d love to see a gimmick (read: launch) added, but I haven’t seen any hard evidence of RMC making that available for the Raptors, yet.

It’ll be interesting to see whether this is a clone or custom layout. I don’t really see how this will add diversity to the park’s current lineup, but it’ll be another great coaster for the park, nonetheless.

This is why I don’t understand people’s aversion to virtual queuing. Does this really look better than being able to spread out around the park and wait for your time to ride? And seriously, what’s the point of only loading every other row on a coaster if everyone is packed together in the queue for an hour before getting on? In fact, what’s the point of only loading every other row on Manta regardless? Riders are more than 6 feet apart as it is.

This park is run by the same operator as Plopsaland De Panne, right? Can Holiday Park please get one of these, too? [youtu_be] [/youtu_be]

Did anyone happen to take note of how quickly reservations disappeared for Dollywood’s opening day (June 15th)?

^They might need it again in 3 years for Dragon’s Revenge!

Considering I think Sierra Sidewinder and Dwervelwind are two of the most underrated, insane coasters in existence...I absolutely must ride this thing. Can Holiday Park get one too, plz?

I’ve never been more excited about a Universal addition. I don’t know any other way to say it: this thing looks sexy. I also love how they’re putting up a unique, unexpected new element every day.

I’m not afraid of a challenge.

If you look again at the first photo, there are two connector supports extending from the cross beam, each with a flat end to connect to a piece of I-Box track. This is consistent with a free spin but not an axis coaster, unfortunately.

These photos are from Reddit user SwuaraeC, who visited Adventureland yesterday. I’d say this is pretty irrefutable evidence of a free spin. I’m a little disappointed, considering this seemed like an opportunity for Adventureland to add something unique that would really put it on the map (like one of the excellent new Vekoma loopers), but I suppose it will be more fun than Dragon. Still, I hate losing a big custom coaster to a small clone you can find at most Six Flags parks.

Just saw on Facebook that the ride supervisors went back to work today! Exciting news!

Can I petition for this, or...? Seriously though, given Universal’s lack of non-coaster thrill rides, something like this could be a unique new attraction for them. Maybe themed to The Thing? (Yes, I am pipe-dreaming.) My first Paramount simulator experience was Spongebob Squarepants 3D, which I actually remember being quite fun. I’d have loved to see the James Bond film, though.

^What’s even funnier: according to the park’s website, it looks like you could’ve gotten an even bigger discount by paying with cash!

Wait...you’re saying you got admission to the park, including coasters—for 4 people—plus a hotel room—for 4 people...for $90??? TOTAL??

Nice report David! Glad to see a positive report from a generally negative-reviewed park. I’m not sure when I’ll get the chance to make it to Wisconsin, but I plan to get there eventually. I’m happy to hear that Cyclops still has impressive airtime despite the reprofiling of the famous drop—the difference looks quite drastic in POV’s. But I’ve always thought the coaster had a similar vibe to Cornball Express, which I love, so I’m excited to check it out some day! I’ve yet to ride a coaster with Timberliners that I thought tracked smoothly (including first year rides on Mine Blower and Kentucky Flyer), so I’ve adjusted my expectations accordingly for Hades. The thing sure does look impressive though.

I’ve been a little nostalgic about the Paramount Parks era recently. There’s no arguing that Cedar Fair has brought us some great coasters, but I can’t help but miss the times when Paramount was adding super unique, well-themed rides to their parks across the continent. To start us off, I’m going to reminisce about two of my favorite attractions in amusement park history: 1.Tomb Raider: The Ride In 2001, Paramount’s Kings Island announced a $20 million “immersive dark ride experience.” Given I was only 9 years old at the time, I didn’t follow construction or speculation on coaster enthusiast forums, so when I arrived at the eerily gorgeous cave entrance of Tomb Raider: The Ride in spring of 2002, I had no idea what to expect—other than a “spiritual battle of fire and ice.” Suddenly (okay, maybe it was quite slowly), I was walking through the best themed queue I'd ever seen, and then, after a fun preshow, the giant circular cavern door rolled away. I remember, clear as day, the reveal of 3 endless stadium-style rows of seats. The beat of drums. “Ah, so it’s a motion simulator,” I thought. Then, I noted the orange shoulder harnesses—“but does it go upside down?” I took my seat, the harnesses ratcheted down (yes, it was a crotch-buster), and I looked out into the darkness before me. The restraints were checked, the loading ramps lifted away, and the flood lights dimmed. Oh shit. I’ll never forgot the grandeur of the goddess sculpture illuminated in front of me. I had never seen anything like it before, especially not this up-close and personal. I was shocked as the whole theater, or whatever this thing was, began to rise...and then plummeted! We all screamed. (I’m a screamer.) Suddenly, we were catapulted back up nearly 100 feet in the air, face-to-face with dripping stalactites. The rest of the ride experience was a blur: a terrifying and wonderful series of flips and dives, being thrown into my harness and pushed back into my seat, then finally hanging upside down over a boiling pool of lava. Then, it was over, and I would never be the same. (Jk...but not really.) As we unloaded the ride vehicle, I looked up and recognized the structure of a top spin—an absolutely massive one. Black, and coated in fog. It was quite the sight to see. Over the years, I remember the ride experience being tamed down a bit, but the indoor themed experience was still special and thrilling. After Cedar Fair took over, I was one cycle away from experiencing the “crazy Crypt” with the super intense flip sequence, and then later I got to ride the Ferris-wheel-in-a-box cycle, which I still enjoyed (for almost completely nostalgic reasons). But I’ll never forget the magical, immersive experience that Tomb Raider: The Ride was. I’d give up any other attraction at Kings Island to have it back. 2. Italian Job: Stunt Track In August of 2004, Paramount announced a pair of Premier launched coasters for Kings Island and Canada’s Wonderland themed to one of my favorite action-thrillers, The Italian Job. (Would I have Mark Wahlberg and Charlize Theron’s babies? Yes.) At this point, I was starting to follow online coaster discussions, and I remember the reception to these announcements being a bit cold. The coasters had less-than-impressive statistics, and Kings Island’s version was replacing a beloved antique car ride and their FLYING SCOOTERS!!! Given I was a budding preteen coaster enthusiast, I didn’t really care about those types of attractions at the time—I was just pumped to ride in those super cool-looking red, white, and blue mini coopers! I remember waiting almost 2 hours for my first ride on the Italian Job. Holy cow that was an excruciatingly slow-moving line. But after riding it, I formed my opinion that still holds firm today: Italian Job: Stunt Track is one of the most underrated coasters anywhere. Sure, it only goes 40mph and it’s biggest drop is barely 30 feet, but man, that launch into a tight triple helix is the best kind of doozy, and the dark tunnel finale is a total blast. I love coasters with quick, sharp transitions that toss me into the air, and Italian Job is full of them. Add in a fun show scene midway through the ride, complete with FIRE, and you’ve really got a special experience. Now that I live in LA, I appreciate the quirky theming even more. Too bad the drifting effect of the mini coopers in the announcement never came to fruition—what ever happened to that? Regardless of enthusiast reception, the rides must have been somewhat successful, because Paramount added another one to Kings Dominion the next year. I was devastated when Cedar Fair took over and stripped these rides of their coolest theming features: most notably the details on the mini coopers and some fun sound elements. I suppose we can’t blame CF for the removal of the splashdown effect—I believe that disappeared years before they came into the picture. Regardless, I still think these coasters are really fun and unique, and they’re some of my favorite overlooked attractions in each of their respective parks. That’s all I’ve got for now, but there are numerous rides from the Paramount era that I really appreciate and/or miss. What do you guys think were some of the best Paramount Park attractions?

Hate on The Method all you want; we're starting a movement, and it's gonna be HUGE! It took Formule X from a solid 7...to a 7.5! Drievliet was a blast. 3 of the quickest hours on the trip, and so much fun basically having the park to ourselves for the first two of them. Despite being small, that park was PACKED with fun rides! It felt like something new and surprising was tucked into every corner. Also, I can't believe I'm just noticing this, but was the mini-breakdance themed to SHARKNADO?! And why would I be offended that Drievliet's farm show features an animatronic clone of my Uncle Steve?

^Don’t shame me, woman! I’m a little bit less nerdy than I look. (Okay, maybe not, but still.)

Fun that a lot of HowieP’s predictions have/are coming true!