KI Kidd

It was exactly what the box said it was...a present for Snoopy. He turns (turned?) 60 this year.

Thanks for sharing! Sounds like you guys had fun. Vortex can be a little rough at times but its still a great ride IMO. Try it in 5-1 next time, that's that 'magic seat'. Hopefully you can get back soon. Racer, Firehawk, Flight Deck, and Flight of Fear are all great rides!

Best? First drop on Millie in the very front or very back and Diamondback in the first row. Underrated? Gemini's first drop, the first drop on Vortex at KI (in the back), and the drop out of the turn around on Shivering Timbers (again, in back).

Rock n' Roller Coaster at Hollywood Studios and man was it a rush!

I live in Indianapolis and have found it to be a pretty ideal location for my coaster habit. While we don't have a park here in town there are 8 parks that can be day trips from here. Sure 8 hours (there and back) can be a haul for some, but I have done both Cedar Point and Michigan's Adventure as day trips and had a great time. 1) Indiana Beach - 1.5 hrs 2) King's Island - 2 hrs 3) Holiday World 3 hrs 4) Six Flags Great America - 3.5 hrs 5) Beech Bend 3.5 hrs 6) Six Flags St. Louis - 4 hrs 7) Cedar Point - 4 hrs 8) Michigan's Adventure - 4.5 hrs All these parks have their perks and all are (IMO) worth the drive. If you are a fan of the woodies it is awesome to have Beast, Voyage, Raven, Shivering Timbers, Cornball Express and Viper all within a days drive!

Apparently there has been some land clearing work done over behind Son of Beast the past few days. Some pics of the work can be found over at KIC. http://www.kicentral.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=21000&st=510 This is the same area that was used as Diamondback's storage area...new ride for KI? Work on Sonny? Nothing at all?

This is just incredible! I just finished reading the first 70 pages and I honestly wish there were 70 more! Keep up the great work.

Looks great so far! Looking forward to watching this develop.

Every year since 1991 (when I was 5) my extended family has taken a yearly trek to KI for coasters, food, and fun. I took my very first coaster ride that year on (what was then) the Beastie and to this day my family makes fun of me for how white I looked getting off that ride. It scared me to death. Actually it scared to the point that I never again rode a coaster until my family took a trip to Disney World in August of 2008. Luckily that fear has past and these family trips to KI have gotten a lot more fun! Here's a quick rundown of the day and then a few pics. We started our day out on Flight Deck (Arrow suspended). We walked right on to the front row and had a great ride. FD was really flying! Strangely this ride always seems to be running better in the morning to me. I really love this ride and hope the rumblings of it being removed soon turn out to be untrue. After a quick ride on Drop Tower we headed over for our first Diamondback ride of the day. The line was extremely short so my girlfriend and I bit the bullet and waited the two train wait for the front row. It was my first time in the front row of Diamondback and it was absolutely incredible. The way you completely loose sight of the track below you on the first drop was awesome. I had Diamondback ranked as my top steel coaster already but this certainly confirmed that I had my rankings right. That was what a coaster ride should be. In our attempt to take the most illogical possible route throughout the day we then headed over to Racer for another walk-on ride. We got the front rows of the Red train and had a nice ride. In my opinion Racer gives some of the best views of the park from the top of its first hill. You can see just about everything from up there, including a great view of Firehawk which often seems hard to get. After Racer it onto Adventure Express (Arrow Mine Train). Once again we had a walk-on to the back few rows. I love Adventure Express, especially this year with the effects all working this year. My appreciation for this ride grew even more after riding its sister ride at Cedar Point a few weeks ago. Really a hidden gem of a family ride. We intended to hit Firehawk (Vekoma flying) next but it was down (no surprise there unfortunately) and thus the line for Flight of Fear was very very long. So we headed over to Backlot Stunt Coaster. This is another great family ride. The launch into the first helix is always intense and the drop into the tunnel after the MCBR is a blast. Vortex was up next and I claimed my usual 5-1 seat. Anyone who has ridden in this seat can tell you that it takes this ride from good to great. Smooth, excellent airtime on the underrated first drop, and plentiful hangtime through the inversions. One of my favorite rides in the park. We took a quick snack break before riding Diamondback again (row three this time) and then headed back over to Firehawk which was up and running once again. Firehawk is kind of an enigma to me as I can't ever decide if I love it or hate it. The first time I rode it I came thinking 'OMG that was the greatest experience ever!" But ever since that ride its been a love/hate relationship. The whole 'flying' sensation is really neat but I have also had some rough rides in the back of the train and the in-line twists have been painful a few times too. After Firehawk we jumped in line for Flight of Fear and encountered out longest line of the day. I really don't know what it is about that line but it is the only line I have ever encountered that I simply hate waiting in. For whatever reason it just seems to bug me to death, which is made even weirder by the fact that I love the ride. I am a big fan of launched coasters and Flight of Fear always delivers. The spotlights have been on inside the spaghetti bowl this year too which allows you to see all the track they have crammed into that building. Great ride all around. When then hit Beast (always a winner) and had a fantastic ride through the woods before getting one last ride in on Diamondback before heading home. Overall a great day at one of my favorite parks! Thanks for reading! On to the pics: Going up! Better first drop than Millennium Force? Drop Tower getting ready to make grown men scream. Racer just after the turnaround on its way home. The picture of Firehawk that everyone takes. Arrow loopy-ness! Batwing fun. Even kids need roller coasters to ride! One last Diamondback shot before we leave!

Incredible pictures! Thanks for posting!

This is just awesome! Thanks for sharing all these pics! Can't wait to see the rest.