DILinator

Um they said wooden coaster, not hybrid or steel. KBrylczyk is Energylandia: CONFIRMED!

I've always loved the SEAS parks, and with this latest spending splurge, I can only love them more! I'm definitely excited about this addition for SWSA, and even though I sadly don't currently have any plans to get back down so San Antonio in the near future, I'll be glad to have this there whenever I do get back down there!

^Yeah, it's definitely one of my favorite coaster shirts, even after all these years! It has all of the stats of the coaster on the back too, including the humorous designation of: "G-forces: EXTREME"!

^Oh wow! Guardian doesn't have FL+? I didn't realize that! That's definitely going to be a priority for beating the crowds then! Thanks for the heads-up!

So they released the official POV on my Birthday, and are officially opening on my son's Birthday. How considerate of them! Unfortunately, we'll be halfway around the world. I still appreciate the thought!

^Are you referring to the length they're designed for? Or the amount of people in them? I'm not usually a FL guy, but my kids and I got free FL+ with our Platinum Passes this year, and are going to CW the weekend of the 7th and 8th of September. So I'm very curious about what you're describing, as it'll be ironic if the first time I ever use the FL system in my life, and probably the last, it doesn't matter much, because the line is still long anyway! I know CW is just a VERY busy park, which is why I was glad to have the free FL+ for our trip, so maybe this is just more normal at this park. While on the topic of FL+, for those who know, after we activate our passes on Saturday night, I'm hoping to go into the park for a couple hours, and hit some of the coasters that don't NEED FL+. including I hope Leviathan. Does anybody have any suggestions for that last couple of hours of the day, what the best things to do would be? Also, I'm planning to be at park by opening Sunday the 8th, so I wondered what regulars would recommend as a plan of attack with FL+? Are they still doing early ERT for passholders that Sunday? My plan currently is to hit up Yukon Striker first thing, as I've heard even with FL+ it gets a bit of a wait. Final question: are you able to buy FL+ for the following day? Or do you have to buy it day of? Because they say they offer a "very limited number" of FL+ each day, and with everybody getting their free end of season FL+ with Pass renewals and purchases, I imagine they will be in high demand from that weekend on. I'm thinking it might be wise to scoop ours up the night prior if we're able to. Thanks in advance for any help with these questions, as I plan our upcoming visit!

So glad you had a great day at CP, Inverted! It's great you got to make it back out before going back to school! You would not like my take on FastLane! But then nobody on here does, so what else is new! You would REALLY not like my take on TTD! It's not even a Top 5 coaster at CP, let alone overall, in my opinion! But I will admit that when it runs, (a very rare occurrence whenever I've been there recently), it is a blast! (Though I still prefer Kinga Ka in the front more. Fight me! ) I'm glad you enjoyed SV a lot more! I really do feel it's the perfect roller coaster, and does everything anybody could want on a coaster (besides launching), and does it well! However, it IS so different than Fury, it's really hard to compare them. Kind of like Maverick and MF. I rank SV one above Fury, but they could really be 1a and 1b they're so different. I agree with this! It's surprising you feel that way, because my son (who you met the other day) and I were talking not too long ago about how even after all of these years, and all the other great drops on coasters we've been on, MF still has THE BEST first drop of any coaster out there in our opinion! It's pretty much the best part of the ride in our perspective. So that's interesting you feel the complete opposite. As with SV, I'm glad you enjoyed it a lot more this time around! I still LOVE MF, and get a thrill out of it every time I ride it! I've never really understood what it is about enthusiasts that makes so many dog this coaster, but as somebody who has ridden it 95% of the times with GP and not enthusiasts, I can attest to the fact they always feel born again after riding it!, and most consider it their fave at CP, even after SV is there! Again, F&%@ OSU!!! I don't feel like a dive element is any more of a "gimmick" than any other element on a coaster is, but that's a different rant for a different time. I haven't ridden Hangtime, so I'm curious how that rides. My kids and I love Dive Coasters, but pretty much always want front, for the very reason you alluded to. It's a little disappointing that you don't really feel much like you're hanging over the drop in the second and third rows. Still, I think Valravn is great, ShieKra is great, and I can't wait to ride Yukon Striker in two and a half weeks, as that looks like the best out there! I'm glad you enjoyed your ride on Valravn! (Also, props for the OG "Dive Machine" reference!) Amen, and amen! I'm right there with you! Again, glad you had such a great visit! I hope to be able to enjoy a park with you again sometime when you're back in the area, maybe even CP! (Or you can come North, and marathon Shivering Timbers with me while I hum the U of M and MSU fight songs! )

Kind of a random post, but I put on my old Kraken shirt today, and got to thinking about how amazing it is that a t-shirt I bought on my Honeymoon back in 2001, still looks really good, and doesn't have any holes or places where the graphics have faded away (not to mention, it still fits!) My son got a Steel Vengeance shirt at CP early last year, and it's already ripped at the seams in a number of places, and my Valravn shirt started looking faded out the same year I got it! And don't even get me started on the Banshee Media Day shirt that looked like crap after one wash! So, I jiust wanted to give a shout out to the SEAS apparel maker (It says Gildan Activewear on the tag), at least in regard to the manufacture of this particular shirt! BTW, I heard the 2020 announcement planned for today was pushed back. Does anybody know of a new date?

^I'm right with you there! I can't wait to watch this beauty go up! Also, given that they know they can now market this as the tallest hybrid in the world (assuming they use the full 210 they have on the height), I suspect an announcement will be forthcoming in the next couple of weeks!

Haha! It definitely didn't scare me that much! I mean, it was a surprise, for sure. But I actually took it in stride pretty well. So well, in fact, the kids actually thought I already knew it was there!

I think this looks like a great coaster, and obviously any RMC is going to be an awesome, world class coaster! But I was a bit underwhelmed by the POV, honestly, after all the anticipation for it, and based on views from off-ride. Not that it doesn't look intense, or exciting, because obviously it does! I love the stall, and the giant airtime hill and relentless speed are the highlights of it to me personally! But I'm not as into rapid, twisty transitions as I know a lot of enthusiasts are, so that could be why it was underwhelming to me. It certainly looks like the best RMC for that! It still looks awesome though, and I hope someday to be able to go over there, and check the park and this beast out! As for it being called a wooden coaster... I mean, I get that it's all marketing, and they can market it to the locals however they want, and that's their target audience. Still, it's kind of hilarious, in a "shots fired!" sort of way!

^Yeah, along those lines, Haymaker, I wanted to mention that I took my kids last year, who are a little older than yours, and got one No-Boo necklace. Even though I took three kids, the one necklace was enough, and nobody tried to scare them. Just make sure you get a map, and avoid the Scare Zones once they open (which is possible), because some of them have scary imagery, and things that automatically pop out, that the necklace won't help. It's a great time though! I highly recommend KI Haunt to everybody!

Love those sunset pictures, and of course the rainbow one! Great job!

I've been every year since 2015, and I've never found lines for the coasters to be very long. Haunts can be a different story though, generally being longer the closer you get to Halloween. Typically, I prefer going to Haunt there in September for this reason.

Given that you apparently can buy anywhere, and activate anywhere, the question you have to ask yourself is whether getting the Free Fast Lane Plus later this year at Worlds of Fun is more important than saving money through the exchange rate at Canada's Wonderland. I am going to CW next month, so I bought there anyway, and used the EZ Pay plan to spread out payments. My initial up front cost for 4 passess, 1 Fun Pix, and 1 All Day Drink Plan, came out to $196 dollars. But of course, that is in Canadian. My actual cost, was only $147. So that's nearly a $50 savings. I can't imagine the exchange rate has changed much since yesterday, so that's the kind of discount you'd be looking at, purchasing at CW, and giving up the FL+ benefit. Just wanted to put that out there for you to tangibly see, since I just went through this.

^Congrats! I know it's hard work, and takes a lot of determination! I am certainly hoping my goals and efforts come to fruition as well!

They're advertising right now as the lowest price they'll be, and I think that typically is the case. I just took advantage of this price theough Canada's Wonderland today, so I think it's a great time to buy!

I agree with this, and I also would personally hate to see American Eagle go. I know this is an unpopular enthusiast opinion, but I don't think Viper is anything special. If they were going to RMC conversion something at SFGAm, I think it would be that, because of the possibilities the more twisted layout offers. I don't think they're doing either coaster though, and I doubt they're getting a coaster at all in 2020.

Canada's Wonderland! My first visit back since 2008, and first visit ever for my kids! We're likely going the weekend of September 7th and 8th.

I dunno if that would be logical from an engineering standpoint. You would basically be splitting the current structure in half since you would have significant differences in the tracks as far as location and height. From there you have to consider structures ability to take the loading. Not saying engineers can't come up with something, but on it's face it seems like quite the task. Yeah, as a non-engineer myself, that's what seemed likely to me. It was just this vision that came through my head as I was watching that video, of half the track behind him being RMC, and it made me go "hmmm..." Definitely seems very unlikely to ever happen.

Ok, I should have been more careful with the term "show building", because that implies something that may or may not be present. There is a building shaded in, right before the stairs going up to the station, that in the blueprints is described as a "New Prop Building." Both the FL and Standby queues go through this structure, and it appears that even at their smallest size, they still do (it's right before the stairs.) So while expecting a "show" may be a bit much, there is enough room between the standby and FL queue, that a themed prop could fit in there, or a large TV screen showing pre-video supporting the ride's theme. While it's probably nothing too major, or even on the level of Disaster Transport's animatronics in the early days, it's something, and I look forward to seeing what's in there! Glad you enjoyed it! Your large TR's inspired me to take the time, I guess!

Ok, I this really crazy idea that I'm not even sure is possible, but it made me wonder... Would it even be possible for RMC to only convert one half of a racing roller coaster? I know typically a lot of structure is removed, and heights and things changed, but the idea of a racing or dueling coaster that was two types in an interesting thought at least... Probably not plausible, and certainly not likely. But I'm curious, nonetheless...

From my first time going to a park at my largest size ever the other day at Kings Island, I know I really need to get serious about losing weight before next coaster season! Not because I couldn't ride anything, but getting in and out of coasters was awkward and more difficult, and The Racer's double click caused me to get punched in the gut the entire duration of the ride by my lap bar. I do appreciate the advice in this thread, but I'm really planning to not have to use it anymore come next season!

Yikes! If other people enjoying this announcement and expressing themselves in a fun and humorous way makes you feel that way about your life... 'Twas just a joke to express my dislike of the term, that's all. I don't actually hate my life because of people using it. Good to know! But I still love KIGA, and plan on getting a shirt made to wear next year to KI just to annoy people who can't enjoy a little fun with the humorous nickname!

Absolutely! Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts. Your passion and enthusiasm is super uplifting and appreciated. I don’t think anything you had to say was too “out-there”, and hopefully, to the benefit of all of us, you’re right about some of your guesses! Intelligent speculation is always fun when it comes to coaster announcements. But regardless of the specific details Kings Island unveils tonight, I hope we can all agree that this is going to be a world-class coaster! Thanks for your kind words, and thanks for reading it, and letting me know my hour and a half spent writing it was not in vain! I just love coasters, and amusement parks, and everything surrounding them, so it's fun for me to spend time thinking about them and coming up with imaginative ideas! Been doing it ever since I went to CP as a 4 year, old, and don't plan on stopping anytime soon, just because some people don't care for it! Virtually none of my predictions/suggestions came to be (at least not that we know of, or not yet), but that's no big deal to me, and Orion definitely is a world class coaster, and fits my definition of having FUN, above all else, on a coaster! Yikes! If other people enjoying this announcement and expressing themselves in a fun and humorous way makes you feel that way about your life... It was great meeting you, and I hope we can hang out at a park again sometime! The day really was a blast, and the deadness of the park was unexpected, but amazing! Also, I'd love to see blue racer backwards again! When I rode it backwards back in the early 2000's, it was a blast, and one of my favorite coasters in the park! It's definitely not that anymore, so turning it backwards couldn't hurt! I agree completely about the importance of FUN in this hobby, and that's what I'm always looking for when I go to a park, typically with my growing kids. I also no longer ride crap, or just credit whore for coasters I'm not interested in, and my coaster counting is somewhat casual, as I have three lists, all with different numbers, and different things counted as coasters, and not counted as coasters, and I don't actually know how many I've ridden, nor do I care. It definitely leads to an improvement in overall experience, at least in my opinion. And yes, I think you've hit the nail on the head with your last comment there! There is no denying that swaths of people worldwide consider Steel Vengeance to be the #1 roller coaster in the world. However, Cedar Point received a larger percentage gain in attendance in 2016, the year that Valravn opened, than they did in 2018, when Steel Vengeance opened (2.8% in 2016 vs 2.0% in 2018, according to the TEA Theme Index). I don't think it's too far off for casual park-goers to think that A) Steel Vengeance is a little TOO crazy and B) it's in essence the new and improved version of Mean Streak, which some older people may "have ridden before". EDIT: Just to be clear, I'm NOT suggesting that Cedar Point shouldn't have built Steel Vengeance at all. I think some of us underestimate the appeal of a roller coaster that LOOKS imposing, and monstrous, and scary, to the general public. People dare their friends to ride the biggest and baddest coaster in the park. It's the stuff that casual YouTube viewers look for reactions to. If a scary-looking coaster that happens to be smooth and re-rideable is what the park wants, then that's what the park gets. They certainly know how to run their park better than most of us do. Let me say from personal experience, as somebody who rarely ever goes to parks with enthusiasts (well, other than my own kids!), this is spot-on, what I've experienced! I went a bunch the year Valravn came out with non-enthusiasts, and then again last year with SV. It honestly doesn't surprise me, based on what I heard from the people I went with, as well as the other people around the park, and near the new coasters, that Valravn's year brought in more people than SV. There's just something about imposing B&M Dive Coasters the GP eat up, and this new Giga is no different! At the announcement last night, I was surrounded by soccer moms and dads, and their kids, and when the animation started playing and the kids saw it, they went nuts, and their parents were excited too. As much as I think SV is the best coaster out there, I totally understand it being a bit much for your average park-goer, and them preferring something like Valravn, or Orion. Personally, I think we will see some other "themeing" elements over time, and that could certainly include tunnels, and possibly a few other surprise touches they wanted to save for people's first actual experience on the coaster. There is going to be a brief "show building" the queue goes through, so that's something, and it wouldn't surprise me if there are other minor things that will complement the coaster that didn't need to be mentioned at the announcement. This is my favorite post of the day. This is what it says on why he was banned when he logs back into the forum: "Banned for being an asshole. Let me make it clear... You are NOT being banned for "having an opinion", you are being banned for being an asshole." Is that your new favorite post of the day? In all honesty Robb, you were incredibly patient, and tolerant of him, for quite a while now! Every time I saw him post something else, I was a little surprised he hadn't been banned yet! So nobody can say he wasn't given a fair shake. I hate to ever see anybody get banned, but I will NOT be sad to see that pervasive negativity go, so sometimes you've gotta do what you've gotta do, for the betterment of the forum. And yes, that was my favorite post of the day! I agree with you here. I've actually been surprised by how few negative Nelly's there have been in here since the announcement, but that's great! I think the complaining about the complainers after a major announcement has almost become a more cliche and predictable epidemic than the complaining, at least in these parts! But now we're starting a new trend... Complaining about the complainers about the complaining! Regarding a couple of other topics people have brought up: I don't understand anybody saying KI doesn't have a standout attraction currently! For me, it's hard to decide which of their 3 standout coasters is my favorite, they're all so awesome! I'll never understand the minimizing of Banshee's intensity, because as I can attest to from my visit just the other day, it's definitely intense, and fun, with a great and unique layout. That's why I prefer it to the more notoriously intense Raptor and Batman clones, and will take it over any of them every day, and twice on Sunday! Mystic Timbers was absolutely hauling the other day, and dishing out airtime like there's no tomorrow! And while Diamondback pulled a no-show for its soon to be big brother's big day, I love that Hyper, and have had some of the more sustained out of my seat airtime on that coaster that I've ever had! So adding a Giga to this standout collection is almost unfair, and just keeps KI firmly planted as my #2 favorite park! Along those lines, anybody complaining or even slightly disappointed about this coaster, should absolutely take a look to the West, as I'm sure anybody in the Western half of the country would absolutely love to have this coaster near them! Those of us in the Midwest/East are truly spoiled, when it comes to having insanely epic coasters all around us! Again, circling back to what Elissa and I mentioned above, it's all about having FUN, and that's what we should all be focusing on in regards to Orion, and this hobby in general!