KDcoasterMAN

Only know this info from the time I work at KD. Know a few of the maintenance staff still to this day. It was a few of them who first told me that. Now granted...I also heard from them that KD had the choice between i305 and B&M Intimidator, which would had been within the exclusivity time period..... So... Just telling y'all what I heard.

Use to be an exclusivity deal with BGW and B&M from 2007-2017... It's a possibility that KD could be a fit for a future B&M, but they usually prefer to not build similar rides to that of BGW.

Sounds weird, but yeah. FoF has an additional staffing requirement of two due to its separate unload platform, and is of similar intensity to Dominator. You may well be right, families are a big draw. But with your plan, considering Twisted Timbers likely won't be open for this winter, that leaves families and holiday enthusiasts as the only draw since there are one or two adult-sized coasters left open. Either way, I agree, it will be interesting to see what they do. I305 has more crew than FoF, to my best recollection. I305: 1 booth op, 4 restraint ops (1 at each corner) FoF: 1 booth op, 3 restraint ops (1 on each side to load, 1 at unload) Personally, I think coasterbill is right, and we shouldn't expect more than 1-2 coasters to be open, if at all. Dominator is the most logical choice, especially since the activities will center on the fountain-turned-giant ice skating rink ( ) on Int'l St. I would say FoF for the other, as it will put the least stress on the climate-controlled ride, but that does require opening large swaths of Safari Village. We may just have Dominator, although I'd be fine with that as it would essentially be offseason ride time. Keep in mind that KD opens the earliest of any of the Winterfest parks (late March/early April), so the maintenance turnaround might eliminate the winter coaster prospects. My expectations will be better adjusted once KI's Winterfest is in the books in January. My expectations are Congo will probably be closed IMO... And 305 only needs 3 ride ops minimum sooooo.... The only rides I expect to operate during Winterfest would be most flats, and maybe Dominator is the temp is high enough... BGW operates only launchers now for a reason.

Source??

I first came across the name Rotten Apple a few weeks ago. If that ends up being the name, my gut reaction is... "Could be worse..."

Haha my thoughts exactly. But honestly at this point we really don't have any idea. I thought I'd throw it out there for kicks and giggles. I do expect the name, whatever it may be, to have some form of TT within its name and to be somewhat 'storm' or 'powerful force' related. I thought that 'Corvette' would be a pretty awesome name. Would fit with the drive-in theme already established. All they would need to do is retheme hurler to a garage of some sort. That name would fit all the criteria I listed above. But alas ROTTEN Apple sounds like something Kings Dominion would do...

Sooooo.... This video claims the new name of the Hurler will be.... ROTTEN APPLE. Wut?

KD is losing Pat Jones to Carowinds! Gonna miss the best Park Exec!

Carowinds is getting a one-of-a-kind exec! Pat Jones is coming from KD up I-85. From my time working at the park, I cannot remember a more dedicated park front office brass, I saw her often interacting with guest, checking in with employees, by the end of my fourth year we were on first name basis. Gotta wish her good luck with bringing the KD spirit to the best park in the Southeastern US.

14.5 miles... Dominator!

Fun Fact: Today marks the 6 year anniversary of the start of the ground work for I305

If you worked at the park or had any idea how much land Kings Dominion owns you would retract this statement immediately... The land parcel the park sits on is a little over double the size of the current park. In fact, I heard when Cedar Fair purchase the Paramount parks they felt that KI, Canada's Wonderland and KD had the most potential due to extra land available for development. Remember, the Lion Country Safari lands have been relatively undeveloped since it closed (other than the Intimidator site) Their is ample land behind Hurler, the south end of the Soak City and Behind Intimidator. By no means do I suggest that this land is going to be developed in the immediate future but I would say that Kings Dominion is in way better shape with extra land than Kennywood or Gronaland. ALSO, something to keep in mind, i305 has cost Cedar Fair close to 32 million... (25 million for its design, assembly and site construction, 1 million for a new lift motor in 2011, and 9 million for the replaced first turn in the 2010-11 offseason). Carowind's Intimidator and Fury cost a total of 53 million (not including the new park entrance) Maybe soon KD will make up that 19 million difference... I hope that Cedar Fair chooses to build a new coaster with the next few years that is worth it.

I wonder if there is some kind of exclusivity contract between SF and RMC for a few years which is why all the American steel RMCs have been at Six Flags so far. Wasn't Colossus quite linear too? I rode it a few years ago but RMC doesn't necessarily need a twister layout to be able to make the turns and drops more exciting or even put in inversions (I'm not saying they'll get an RMC BTW, I just thought I'd comment on this) Check earlier in the thread, evidence from RMC that there isn't any exclusivity clause Except it was Stated at the Twisted Colossus Opening that the I Box Track is Exclusive to Six Flags. Any sources? Can anyone vouch for this?

I wonder if there is some kind of exclusivity contract between SF and RMC for a few years which is why all the American steel RMCs have been at Six Flags so far. Wasn't Colossus quite linear too? I rode it a few years ago but RMC doesn't necessarily need a twister layout to be able to make the turns and drops more exciting or even put in inversions (I'm not saying they'll get an RMC BTW, I just thought I'd comment on this) Check earlier in the thread, evidence from RMC that there isn't any exclusivity clause

The airtime is very B&Mish towards the back half (very comparable to ending of Nitro). The most surprising element of airtime is in the Treble Clef turn.... When I compared it to Millennium Force, I was referring to the slowly twisting and high speed overbank turns. BTW, there is an amazing "hand-chopper" about 2/3 into the ride that got me both times I rode it. Last, I had some people ask me for a i305/f325 comparison... Best Drop --> i305 Best Element -->f325 (Treble Clef Turn) Best Airtime --> i305 Best Feeling of Speed --> f325 (even though 305 is faster) I like Fury as a better coaster because it focuses on mixing up its elements where as i305 is BANG BANG BANG done... I like Fury because it gives a longer lasting impression.

Went to the park on Friday, a beautiful, though school-aged crowded day at the park. It was Education Day at the park and I was one of the many souls who volunteered as a chaperone on one of the field trips. We began our sojourn to Carolina border at 7 in the morning and arrived at the perfect timing of 10 am. By that point the bus parking lot was teeming with activity and general car parking slowly filling up. The bright side of younger audiences coming to amusement parks is often they will always go after the gimmicky rides first, leaving some of the fun and interesting ones to the rest of us. Downside is, dealing with the stupidity of younger children who have no business running around an amusement park unattended. Anyway, on to the TR.... When we got to the park the students I accompanied quickly dispersed (high school seniors) and I with two other chaperones began our day traversing the landscape. We first descended from the bus in the bus parking lot and found one heck of a new park entrance. The ride DOMINATES the front of the park, at first it was hard to notice the new front gate (without those god-awful metal detectors) with that HULKING coaster 'blocking' the view. We immediately entered the park and began our first ride decision. At first they wanted to ride Nighthawk but I quickly deterred them from waiting in an unnecessary 2 hour line (yes, all the way to the entrance...). I had my eye on the beats, Fury 325. One of my favorite coaster memories was riding Intimidator 305 and Millennium Force within a 12 hour period. I could not wait for my third Giga coaster. Ride entrance to Fury is eccentric, exciting and eye-poping with sharp lines of green and silver. Its theme is thorough through-out the queue line with the hexagon shapes found throughout many parts of the attraction. The ride design staff were able to accommodate many important guest satisfaction needs in the extended queue including a water fountain, ample and adequate shading, drink machines, TVs with park info programs blaring, and water misters with fans. All of these things combined made the one hour and five minute wait for the ride easier than it could be. Three things though about the ride which bothered me were the bag policy, the fluffy bunnies and loud lift motor. Fury is the ONLY attraction in the park which requires you to put you bags in a puffy hare before entering the line (the greeter will ask you to do so). Each rental is a reasonable $1 per hour. Also a one point in the line, you are right next to the lift motor in order to talk to one anOTHER YOU HAVE THE YELL TO GET YOUR POINT ACROSS... chainsaw loud. No more qualms. On to the ride!!! The ride has two safety harness systems (normal B&M restraint and seat belt) which is quickly checked and then dispatched. The lift speed begin slow then accelerates when the train is one-third the way up until the top. The train then immediately crests, giving you a great two-three second look at the city of Charlotte directly ahead of you (unlike the Intimidator which you have to turn around and look back in your seat while on the lift.). You then accelerate down the first drop and begin the hellacious course of twists and turns ahead. When coming into the park and see the train running during morning tests or with first riders its looks fast but not too fast. BUT mark my words this ride hauls major A$$!!!!!!! It reminds me of mix of the speed of Millennium Force with the fun twisting turns of Rougarou/Dominator. The ride effectively mixes diving turns, tunnels and some well place airtime hills at the end of the course for an exceptional well-rounded ride. I expected a ride with some less forceful elements based on my rides of Intimidator and GateKeeper but was surprised with what I now consider one of my favorite rides. Does this mean that I recommend taking the time to drive 10,000 miles to Carowinds to conquer this giant? No, but if you find yourself in the area, I'd say its worth the time to stop by and pay homage to the unnamed coaster gods. As for the rest of the day, operations were relatively slow on all rides expect their signature attractions (Afterburn, Intimidator, Fury). The line for Windseeker which at Kings Dominion or Canada's Wonderland would have been 15 minutes, was 34 unusual minutes of double checking restraints, odd "scans" and overall slow approach to the ride's operation. Thunder Road did not seem to be up on Friday (I never saw it running is what I mean) and I never took the time to ride Carolina Cobra, Nighthawk, Drop Tower, Scream Weaver... To finish this post, Carowinds needs three things to be a more complete park: a larger water park (seems that it's already in the works), more signature flat rides (has an absence of high thrill flats like Huss Flatspin, Huss Giant Frisbee, S&S Swing [these are examples not suggestions]) and a better worker-guest interactions (I found myself mostly interacting with workers who seemed very unenthusiastic in their jobs). As a former amusement park worker, I have seen many people take the job to have some form of income but I feel that certain roles must be done in order to do certain jobs correctly. I would love to see the motivation and 'fun' that you get out of the worker you would see at Cedar Point, KI, KD and Canada's Wonderland at Carowinds one day. This is not to say that I did have good interactions with workers as their were a few golden eggs along with the pyrite ones... I had a great day, a hope that this TR inspires other to make a trip down to experience a truly great coaster. I'm raising a cold one to Fury as a coaster that could redefine any park. TL;DR: Ride Fury 325, its f*ing awesome!!!

I feel that is post undermines the work the park has done the last 10 years since Cedar Fair bought the park. The last 5 years under the Paramount leadership, the park had been rapidly declining in the maintenance and aesthetical appearance. Cedar Fair has restored much of the former charm of the park that Paramount had stripped from it. Last year, as a former employee, it was refreshing to see what the park had become and I was excited to see the future improvements coming. Everything the park did the last 10 years has been a deliberate and meaningful process. Cedar Fair has added four quality water attraction to the newly revised Soak City, transformed neutered former Hanna-Barbarra Land into a likable Planet Snoopy, Brought back many of the parks unique charms including the floral clock, signing mushrooms, and refreshed International Street, and also made the park safer through several ride renovations that brought the park up to OSHA standards. I am very satisfied with the improvements the park has made in the last 5 years. The park has brought back the charm from the late seventies and late nineties into a contemporary era. I am glad what they have done and hope they continue to focus on quality over quantity. As for the 'possible' coaster, I'm not holding my breath. If any recall the timeline for Intimidator 305, they started land clearing June 1st. They had pink survey markers on site in late April. I don't think anyone has seen any of those lately...

What the guy above me said. The Point's entrance is one thing, but what they did to Carowinds' entrance is just brutal. And if they did it there, they won't hesitate to do it here. As a former line worker at the front gate and friends with a few that have worked there recently, The Front Gate Infrastructure needs to be retooled and opened up a little bit. The park has done several refurbishments to the Old Virginia (OVA) the last few years with the addition of Dino's Alive attraction refurb. The only major part of the park that hasn't recieved any love the last 5 years is the Volcano side of the Congo. Shockwave, Hurler, Rebel Yell, Anaconda, Grizzly have all received TLC the last few years and i think it may be time to be on the lookout for some new work in the Congo. When was the last time Backlot SC received any work? Its about 9 years old and the ride gets less and less attention every year. I think that we'll see a 'The Guardian'-style dark ride before a coaster. CP seems to be riding heavy on that.

Speaking as a former Kings Dominion worker, these rumors don't surprise me with the current timeline. BUTTTTT... plans do change. In 2007, the rumored replacement for the Hypersonic site was a Huss Giant Frisbee in 2008. Hypersonic was to close after Labor Day and the park would begin deconstruction of the ride for the new attraction. All of this made sense as the park had a good working relationship with Huss before it went bankrupt in 2008 as it had worked with them on the Crypt (Tomb Raider: Firefall). In July 2007, the decision was finalized the close of Geague Lake and to move several of its attractions. Dominator and Thunderhawk were both rumored for the park, but CF was unsure if they could build Dominator with the standing 10-year agreement standing with BGW and B&M. The contract stipulated that any park with 100 miles couldn't build a NEW coaster. CF postponed the order for the Huss attraction, which later due to the Huss bankruptcy has cancelled. Dominator was built, and the rest you know. The rumor I have heard from the park as of recent is that the park WILL receive a new attraction next year of a thrilling variety, but not necessary a full-clown coaster. Could we be seeing another version of 'The Guardian' or 'Iron Reef' coming to KD? It is possible that KI gets one as well. Not sure if two would be built at the same time. As for the rumored Shockwave removal, I am still somewhat skeptical. Unless TOGO has stopped manufacturing replacement parts or the coaster track is showing costly wear and tear, some of the recent past of Shockwave tells me it could be there a few more years. My guess is two to four years. Keep in mind, when Skyrider and King Cobra closed, they sent the spare parts they hand for each coaster (trains, ride parts) to Kings Dominion. Ridership has not dropped in recent years and recent investments to the ride structure (paint and new signage) tells me they have a longer planed time frame for it. I believe that unless they have a new ride planned for next year or the maintenance cost are mounting up (which they never have in the past. Usually one of the cheaper coasters at the park to operate) the ride will remain apart of the lineup of ride for time to come. As for the rumored B&M wing coaster for 2017, the idea of not building it just because KD already has a floor-less coaster is ludicrous. Example a should be CP, now with a floor-less coaster and a wing coaster after converting Mantis into Rougarou (forgive my spelling). I would speculate that a launched variety would be a welcomed addition as KD once proclaimed itself the launched coaster capital of the world in 2006... The front gate needs a facelift and having another coaster would be a fun, exciting addition. I imagine a coaster with sky blue track, and yellow supports would contrast well with Dominator. I have seen some of the recent posts and usually consider myself a lurker but I could not hold myself back in regards to this matter.

We are staying at the Coranado Springs Resort, as for dining we have a reservation at the Luau at the Polynesian Resort, we want to have a fancy sit down at the Boathouse since it will be open, and we are still thinking over our dining while at Epcot (one table credit and one counter credit). One of things we both want to do is an early lunch at Be Our Guest when it opens at 11 while we are there. I know its not the best time of year to go to Disney but we are hopeful to make the best of it. Thanks for the cabana recommendation! Will have to look into that!!

..but I want some input. We're getting married in North Carolina and thinking about our options. We've got reservations for Coronado Springs for mid-July and we're doing a day at Epcot and Magic Kingdom. We're also doing a day at Discovery Cove. Still deciding on a few things like flying versus driving to Orlando. Dining options while in the parks. Just wanted to hear about some fun things we could do around Disney while we are there!

I've decided to come forth out of my cave just to say, Holy S#!%, That's totally insane!!! To bad none of these RMC projects are in the Mid-Atlantic...

Backseat ride on Skyrush. the word to describe would be UNREAL!

Good Riddance..... As long as LNM, I am content.

The "Wave" looks photo-shopped. The ride is going to be crazy!