Midwesterner

That is Divertical in Italy. It has a complete coaster circuit, and its lift hill is over 60 feet taller than Pilgrims Plunge was. It opened in 2012. Edit, unless for some reason, they painted another one of these intamin water coasters identical colors to Divertical.

Yeah I'd agree that their next B&M coaster will probably be a flyer or invert. But lets not throw out a hyper either. However, before any of that, I'd like to see a Mack Rides spinning coaster to fill the family coaster gap they are missing. It would be no more than 7 million and could be similar of Twist at Le Pal or Dwervelwind at Toverland. I think it would be a great investment for 2019-ish? Then send the next roller coaster focus to another B&M.

It's just interesting how big of a love it or hate it coaster Voyage is. That's as harsh of a review as I've heard, but I've also heard other very negative reviews. But yet I've heard reviews raving about it still. I had a friend who came to Holiday World for the first time in May of 2016 and left stunned by how much he liked Voyage. He called it his "clear #2 woodie behind El Toro" and maybe number 1 if he could have gotten a night ride on it. Obviously Voyage runs smoother in May than August, but not that big of a difference. So according to most reviews I've seen, Voyage is either your favorite, or you hate it. Not many people have a middle opinion.

In another note, anybody have ideas of what Holiday World will add in 2017? Not expecting anything major, but.. slides, a flat ride, another coaster retrack? What are we thinking.

Once again, loved the review. Indiana Beach is notorious for having below average operations and running 1 train on their two major woodies. Apex Parks purchased the park after the 2015 season, which it had been slowly destroyed by Morgan RV resorts over the previous 7 seasons. So the park is already a lot better in 2016 than it was in 2015. Some notes on the coasters, as I know you were a little disappointed with what was open (and you have every right to be). Lost Coaster of Superstition Mountain has been open next to none this year. It has been open at times, but I'd say no more than 20% of the time. Over the past decade it's definitely been the coaster that's down the most, so I'm hoping the parks new owners will give it some TLC in the offseason. It's a really cool, unique type of ride when working right. As for Cornball Express, it's a shame you didn't get to ride it because it's their best coaster no doubt. Throw everything you now about coaster stats out the window before you ride because it because it's in a different league than it's stats suggest. I don't know what they were doing to the track but hopefully it won't be down for more than 2-3 days. Hoosier Hurricane is decent, glad you got to ride it even if it's single train was only partially operational. And Steel Hawg is a good fit for the park, not overwhelming by any means but a couple of inversions and now the second steepest drop in the US (curse you Cannibal) are nice. Tig'rr is just kind of there, but helps with the more old time feel to the park and got a much needed paint job during the off-season. Overall, I'd say come back in 2-3 years once the new ownership is well established and you should have a better time. Thanks for the report though!

I really enjoyed reading your Holiday World and Kentucky Kingdom trip reports. I thought your take on their coasters was a brave one but a cool perspective. A lot of coaster reviews are so obsessed with the positives of rides, that the reviewers refuse to give coasters anything less than an 8/10, but your was one of the harsher reviews I've seen on both parks coasters, and there's nothing wrong with that. I got to say though even if you're not a water park person, you gotta try out Splashin Safari at least some. It probably takes up 50-55% of the total park area, and was recently named the best US water park outside of Orlando. It's really good. GCI just re-tracked portions of Legend this off-season, including the first drop, so I'd like to see it possibly get some work done to the middle third of the ride. That's definitely the roughest part of the ride as it stands now, but it was a lot rougher overall a year ago than it is now. Hopefully we see a Voyage re-track done within the next 3 years by either GCI or Gravity Group. Anyway I know you don't have much to work with right now, but which one did you prefer? HW or KK?

It's tough but Id have to go with Holiday World. Voyage is incredible, Raven is as intense as it gets for its size, and Legend improved a lot with the retrack this offseason.

Holiday World Future Plans This is a combination of what I would like to see happen (on a realistic level) combined with what I honestly think will happen with the park over the next 10 years. So I have a list of things that the park needs to get done over the next 10 years (2017-2026) as well as some luxuries and fun stuff. So it doesn’t matter too much to me as far as the order goes, but I’m just going to lay out the things in the order that I would like to see them done. This doesn’t include routine park maintenance. Only somewhat major park maintenance projects will be included. But I’d like to stress, I view this as a completely realistic outlook. Yes there are some bold predictions, but that’s part of the game. Enjoy! 2017 – Re-tracking Voyage and Splashin’ Safari updates So it’s well known at this point that the Voyage needs to be re-tracked on some level. It’s been known for being notoriously rough from July onwards every year over the past 3-4 years. So giving it the “Legend Treatment” that they did to smooth out Legend in 2016, for Voyage in 2017, would do wonders in restoring the ride to its former glory. Voyage is usually decent from opening day through May and June, but after that it gets rougher. So re-tracking the Voyage sooner rather than later should be high on Holiday World’s to-do list. This will either be performed by GCI or Gravity Group depending on a few variables. Splashin Safari updates include a lot of things. They have expanded a lot over the past few years but 2017 should be a time for a refresh on things. This includes new paint on a lot of the slides, new woodwork and railings on slide stairs, and just refreshing the scenery with new coats of paint or exterior shield and things of that nature. Just to get it looking as good and clean as it can for 2017. 2018 – Splashin Safari Expansion This is an expansion that should happen over by the newest added section of Splashin Safari; The Hyena Falls and Hyena Springs complex. Currently there is the Hyena Falls slide complex, the Hyena Springs splash pad, a Pepsi Oasis, and a restrooms building. But that’s it, and it’s all out there by itself. For 2018, here’s what I’d like to see happen over here. Firstly, a new slide complex. Probably won’t be a capsule slide complex since Holiday World already said they aren’t into those as much. But it could easily be one of two things. Either another single/double rider slide complex similar to Hyena Falls. Or one large family slide. Something like Watubee or maybe even Zinga. But if it’s a slide complex, a couple names for it come to mind. Rhino Blaster, which was originally what the Hyena Falls complex was to be named. Or possibly Amazoom and Bamboo Chute to pay homage to the first two waterslides in Splashin’ Safari that were removed after the 2012 season. (I still love those names). Aside from the new slide or slide complex, a new restaurant should be put up in the area to further draw crowds up there. Nothing like an indoor sit-down restaurant like Wildebeestro but something like Jungle Jakes with an outdoor eating area to go up there would be perfect. And finally for that area would be another locker bay. Splashin’ Safari offers cheap lockers with wristbands, but all of these lockers are located by the main entrance to the water park. So having more lockers out here, would provide an alternative if some people feel like they’d be closer to this location during most of their waterpark day. 2019 – Re-tracking Raven and new flat ride So at this point in time after spending some decent money in Splashin’ Safari, it will be Raven’s turn for a re-tracking. It will have to be done by GCI (same as Legend) and should definitely smooth Raven out and get it back in the top 20 wooden coasters in the US; where it should be. It’s not terribly rough because it’s just not as long or fast as Legend and Voyage, but the coaster will have operated for 24 seasons coming into the 2019 season, and hasn’t been re-tracked other than routine offseason maintenance since it opened. So now will be the time to do that. 2019 will also mark the 5 year anniversary since Holiday World got its last flat ride in the dry park. Mayflower opened in the Thanksgiving section in 2014, but since then, nothing has happened as far as flats go (outside the kiddie sections of course). The spot across the path from Liberty Launch in the Fourth of July section will have been dormant for 4 years now since Sparkler was moved from that spot and became Crow’s Nest over by Thunderbird to start the 2015 season. I want to see a Zamperla or Larson/ARM drop tower of around 150 feet in that spot, but I don’t see the park doing that with Liberty Launch right across the path. Currently Holiday World doesn’t have a flat that goes upside down, so this would be a good place to put something like that. The Fourth of July section is the only section (aside from Christmas) without a coaster, so pairing Liberty Launch with another thrilling flat back there could definitely allow the area to hold its own in terms of thrills. I was looking around and thinking and I could see something like a Zamperla Super Spin or Hawk going in that spot. It would be a nice addition especially since that spot sits on a little hill along with Liberty Launch and could be from a distance. Would offer a ride experience the park doesn’t have right now, and provides their first inverted flat. 2020 – Amphitheater and what to do with former Pilgrims Plunge spot? So an Amphitheatre is imminent and this seems like a good time to add it since I see it going close to the former Pilgrims Plunge/Giraffica spot anyway. There is a lot of land and space out there so I can see a somewhat large amphitheater going out there. While nothing massive, it would still be larger than any of their three current outdoor theatres. It would allow them to expand their show selection to larger and more exciting or diverse shows. The Pilgrims Plunge location features a massive and, to be honest, amazing station that was formerly used for Pilgrims Plunge. It’s too nice to tear down, which begs the question, what kind of ride would need a huge, well themed station like this. Well the obvious question to beg is roller coaster. But I don’t see that happening. Not in 2020, and not in this spot. Obviously they won’t be working with Intamin for this, but I see a revival of Pilgrims Plunge. Obviously very different, but a Hopkins Rides Super Flume or Shoot the Chute type of ride. You could surround this will excellent theming and if you remember, Pilgrims Plunge was a very popular attraction when it was running, so this could definitely fill that hole. It would include a wraparound element at the top, possibly even under a roof, before plunging down a drop I’m hoping at around 100 feet. 2021 – Family Coaster and flat ride The first part of this is the next long anticipated coaster at Holiday World. And here’s what I see it being. For 2021, the park gets a Mack family spinning coaster. Now I may disappoint some people with this prediction, but think about it logically. Holiday World is a family park and they don’t have a family coaster. Their gap is between Howler and Raven. This fills that void. If you don’t know what kind of coaster I’m thinking of, look up Twist at Le Pal in France. Around 70 feet tall, 1500-1700 feet in length, with a 65 foot drop hitting 40 mph. As far as location, it has to go in the Thanksgiving section at this time period as the park will not have opened a new section yet. I see it going between Thunderbird and the amphitheater and super flume the park opened the year before. It would be their first coaster of any significance that doesn’t race through the woods, but there is just too much room here to pass up. As far as name/color scheme, well, I can tell you I’d like to see burgundy track with yellow supports. Name, I’ll leave that challenge to Holiday World. Then another flat ride will be coming to this area. In fact, it will probably be up in the Thunderbird complex, toward the back/station of Thunderbird. I see a Huss airboat (aka troika) going up here. While nothing too thrilling or too mild, it would be another solid family ride to pair with Crow’s nest in that area, and the park doesn’t have anything like it especially since they removed Paul Revere’s Midnight ride (an octopus) in 2011. 2022 – Adding to Splashin’ Safari It will be time to address the waterpark again and this time we’ll still be in the Hyena Falls section. It will be a kid area. The only other strictly kiddie area in the park is the huge Safari Sam’s Splashland, but that would be now located in literally the opposite corner of the waterpark. So adding something of a slightly smaller scale, for kids aged 2-7, up here that outdoes Hyena Springs would be awesome, including small slides and fountains. Then the next part of this mini expansion would be a lazy river up in this area, something that goes around and under the now two slide complexes up here. As we know, Holiday World removed their first lazy River following the 2012 season, leaving them with just the Bahari River, which is good, but it’s only one and can get crowded on weekends. Adding another lazy river (maybe reviving the name Congo River?) in this area would further make this a must do area of the waterpark for people and would tie everything in this area together. 2023 – New dry park section! This is my first truly bold prediction but it’s still realistic. Holiday World has expanded, in a word, massively, from the 2005-2016 era. So expanding at this rate, they will have to open another park section at some point. That point comes in 2023. And that park section is, St. Patrick’s Day. It was a tossup between St. Patrick’s Day and Easter. Honorable mention would be New Years. But at the end of the day, St. Patrick’s Day edges out Easter because of theming. There is a lot you can do here. Stone buildings would be built that resemble an older Irish town while a possible Leprechaun type character could be introduced to their costume lineup. But the old Irish town theme with the cast iron and stone buildings would be really cool. And, of course, how would a new park section open up without a new coaster to dominate the area. That’s been the theme with new sections at Holiday World in the past, new section = new coaster. So let’s look at our options here. Let me just say, no I don’t see a B&M, yet, at least not in this situation. What I can see and what my prediction is: a Zierer tower speed coaster (similar to Impulse) or a Gerstlauer infinity coaster (similar to Monster). Guessing stats I’d say somewhere between 110-130 feet in height (with a 90-99 degree first drop), 58-65 mph and perhaps breaking 2500 feet in length. 4-5 inversions should also be expected on a ride like this. As far as color, that’s a little easier to predict. Green has to be thrown in there. My ideal color scheme would be light green track and deep green supports using footers shaped like rock. This ride would most likely be situated somewhere between Mammoth and Thunderbird. As far as the name, Celtic is all I can think of right now. There are some pretty terrifying demon type creatures in Irish mythology, but I doubt Holiday World will go down that road. Other things that will happen in this section would include a new Irish themed restaurant, a gift shop outside of the new coaster, another Pepsi Oasis of course, and two flat rides. I see a Zamperla Disk’O themed to a leprechaun’s pot of gold fitting back there nicely. Also a Zamperla sky chaser possibly themed to chasing after a leprechaun could also be a nice addition. So that’s all I have at least for the opening year of St. Patrick’s Day! 2024 – Large new slide to Splashin’ Safari As far as breaking records go, this slide may or may not do it. But it will be tall and long. No this is not a slide complex, but rather a single large slide. Think Zoombabawe. However this slide would be partially enclosed and partially open top as its 4 person rafts would descend from a large height down a twisted and exciting landscape. I see it going next to Mammoth. It would obviously be well in front of the new coaster back there, and would be rather close to Bakuli and Kima Bay as well. 2025 – Finally a drop tower Despite their decision to stick with only Liberty Launch for a while, more and more parks will be getting drop towers by this time. And Holiday World will be one of them. I can see it going in two places. Either the newly opened St. Patrick’s Day section, or in the Halloween section next to the DIVE! outdoor theatre. This would probably be made by Zamperla considering Holiday World’s recent usage of them in flat rides, but a Larson/ARM drop tower wouldn’t exactly be the end of the world either. Once again, I’m thinking around 150 feet in height, and would be visible from almost anywhere in the park. 2026 – New B&M Flying Coaster This is another possible stretch, but no more so than the new park section prediction. It would be the closest time frame Holiday World has opened 2 major coasters together, BUT, it would be only their third major coaster in 18 years and if these predictions were real, Holiday World won’t have spent much money over the past two years. And before you say it took them 9 years between Voyage and Thunderbird, they almost opened a B&M invert for 2009, which would have been just 3 years after Voyage, they had the money. They decided to go with Pilgrims Plunge, Wildebeest, and Mammoth instead at the time for a combined cost of $19 million. So they have the funds to feasibly pull this off. Expect it to be a large coaster, situated behind and to the slight right of Thunderbird. It would obviously be in the new St. Patrick’s day section, and I’m thinking Manta sized, pushing 3300-3500 feet in length. Towering up at around 145 feet with a 115-120 foot drop. Speeds hitting 60 mph max. Expect 4 inversions on this flying coaster. But this would definitely be big time. If Holiday World could open a major Zierer or Gerstlauer coaster followed by another B&M just 3 years later, that would call for some serious attendance increases. This would obviously be unlike any coaster the would currently have and would make Holiday World a major coaster enthusiasts destination now with 2 bigtime B&M rides to pair with the Zierer/Gerstlauer, their Mack family coaster, and their amazing Wooden lineup. Their next major coaster would probably take quite some time to come after this one, but I think Holiday World’s park goers would be more than happy to sit on this current lineup for 7-8 years. So yeah these are my 10 year Holiday World predictions. Obviously Holiday World will be announcing their 2017 plans soon so that will be interesting to see how close or far off I was. I know there are some bold predictions but you have to predict boldly occasionally when going this far in the future. I've heard debate as to whether their next major coaster will by a hyper coaster or not, but it's all speculation of course. Hope you guys enjoyed reading, and please leave your opinions!