DavidB

Vortex is front and center in that picture on the tweet. Maybe it's getting the new style trains and a fresh paint job? Doesn't correspond with the aforementioned land clearing, but could be a good solution to revitalize it and keep it around in the long term as one of the dwindling number of big Arrow loopers. A smaller enhancement for next year before whatever larger project comes the following year.

It's probably not the popular opinion, but I would be okay with the park getting A classic ride like a Troika if it's been refurbished. I was annoyed to have Rush Street Flyer sent away and refurbished to be replaced by Fireball. I think it's cool when parks get older rides that have been fixed up like WoF did a couple years ago with their Troika and whatever the other little spinning swinging deal is called.

^^I went from st. Louis on a Haunt Saturday last year with FL+ and requested front or back seat like 3/4 of my rides on the major rides and wasn't denied a single time. I think you will be fine riding wherever you want, if you just ask nicely all of the groupers were accommodating.

Personally I would prioritize Beast, Diamondback, Mystic Timbers, Bat, Banshee, Adventure Express, Vortex for night in that order.

So that appears to be CCMR with 5 trains before a shed was built over the transfer/storage? It seems a little odd that they would tease adding capacity back to a ride that surely doesn't need it? This and the "Kings Island" teaser poster both refer to the 6919 site, which is probably CCMR (1969 and 2019). The thing I found interesting about the "Kings Island" poster but didn't post anything was that it mentioned paleontology. My mind immediately went to Dinos Alive, but Dinos is a long way from SoB's station. Dinos is definitely close enough to CCMR to be part of the same project... I don't know what any of it means obviously...just kinda thinking out loud. I doubt CP would really have much interest in adding a train to CCMR though.

They are going to brush the spiderwebs off of Batman and Robin: The Chiller and install it, marketing it as a new ride.

I imagine the bug season was pushed back by the extended winter or late spring start the entire country experienced this year. Nature was pushed back a month or so. Edit: which may or may not have something to do with attendance, though I think the weather had broken in time for the start of CP's season

Almost included Bat on my list and should have...its been a long time since I've been on it, as I didn't get it last time I went. Definitely remember it being worthy of mentioning in this discussion though.

^^I hope it stays in your good graces, it really is a cool layout and not as rough as people claim, and I always ride in back for the drops. And yeah, also love Screamin' Eagle. Rumbling along through the woods in the dark with that floater then the drops after the 2 turns...all of it is so fun. I love our wood collection. ^Great description...always glad to hear from those who appreciate The Boss.

I wasnt overly thrilled by Diamondback, but Banshee was plenty intense. I thought the speed and positive Gs it carried though the bottom of the elements was impressive. Invertigo, FoF, Diamondback, Vortex, and Firehawk provide a second tier of intensity. It doesn't have a Skyrush or SV, but I find KI to have a well rounded, quality collection top to bottom that isn't lacking for intensity. Just my opinion.

Sounds like a crowded, crap day at the park. Its amazing how much the crowd level/quality can impact a visit! I'm thrilled you had fun on The Boss! I love it and there are few rides that can compare with the aggressive intensity in the dark. And admittedly,the new turn negated the roughest part of the ride. Get good and "lubed up" some time and try the back...just stay off the seat!

^ Some of those prints are awesome! I think I might get Magnum and Beast for my office...

What if coaster manufacturers offered a box on the back of the seat with a lid that locked and released like the restraints do. I know it is an added layer of complexity to an already potentially problematic machine, and couldn't really be implemented on existing rides. But it might be a good solution for future installations. Just something I've been thinking about since this whole discussion started.

Maybe they are going to relocate Troika or Tiki Twirl or something to the Witch's Wheel area? CP is always rearranging to accommodate new projects. IF they are doing some sort of large project by the former stadium location, maybe they will relocate a couple of those rides to gain some more space... I'd definitely prefer a new flat to replace a removed one though. For the record, I've always loved MF and never could really understand people not enjoying it. I described it to a movie buff friend as the "Titanic" of roller coasters. Is it Citizen Kane or The Godfather or Pulp Fiction? No. But, it's a massively successful, ambitious, well designed and put together ride. While it may not be everyone's favorite, it is hard to deny the quality and accessability of the package as a whole.

Someone from RMC was seen over by Racer; at least I seem to remember that from a few pages back. Could this be RMC racer? The bottom says "track 2 is no longer in use." Maybe a Twisted Colossus sort of deal?

Just to update, I live in St. Louis so this is big news and updates are frequent. Of the 31 on board 14 survived and it is confirmed by Missouri State Highway Patrol the remaining 17 did not make it. Such an awful and avoidable outcome. Hopefully at the very least operators of these boat tours will take more serious consideration to weather reports in the future.

I'm staying in one of the smaller cabins in early August with other TPRers who are also well traveled. I'll be posting about the accomodation after returning. I have wanted to stay in the cabins for years, but my family never wants to travel at the same time as me. I love staying at the cabins. For several years my friends and I would get a cabin for the 2nd week of Halloweekends. We’ve had up to 9 people together. It costs more but I love the privacy of my own building. I've done Breakers, Sandcastle, and Lighthouse Point. I liked Lighthouse Point the best. I will agree with Maverick that it is very nice to have your own "building." You have less worry about disturbing others if you're up late having a good time or whatever. The other thing I've noticed, at least when I've looked this season, is that the options at Lighthouse Point are cheaper than Breakers, especially when you take the capacity of the options into account. Breakers is probably "nicer" and you don't get daily housekeeping at LP, but for taking a large group of people it seems like Lighthouse Point would work better. Whether you all packed into one 10 person capacity deluxe cabin or got adjacent cottages, I'd prefer that to hotel, and should be cheaper than Breakers.

First *Sunday*. Keep in mind PointFest falls on Saturday, September 15th. No thank you. I can't legitimately speak for Friday nights as I've never been but early on I'd imagine it wouldn't be too bad. Keep in mind that there are no scare zones on Sundays as well. Also the only other downside to the day after PointFest is you can't park in the CP Shores parking lot since they put the stage out there. Thanks for the clarification; I didn't remember fully I guess! If the hotel pricing is an indication, the park must feel the first weekend has the lowest traffic, as it is lower than the rest of the weekends. It's cheapest the first weekend and ramps up peaking the third and second to last weekend, dropping slightly for the last weekend. I made the mistake before of not taking full advantage of Friday because I had a bad headache and wanted to watch the Cardinals NLCS game, and then Saturday was so swamped they sold out of FL+ before I tried to buy them. It was a beautiful Columbus Day weekend....avoid Columbus Day weekend... But the couple times I've gone on Friday the lines were definitely manageable, even last time when the only things running were Gatekeeper and Valravn due to wind. But yeah, not being able to park in the back lot is a bummer as well if you're not staying on the peninsula.

^^Agreed, and IF numbers are down it's not because a noticeably significant number of people decided to go to Disney instead of CP this year. On a somewhat related note (expansion of offerings-resort, entertainment, and otherwise), does anyone know if there anything at all happening at the Sandcastle Suites location? Or is it just an empty lot at the moment with no activity? I could see expansion of waterpark, guest accommodations(Lighthouse Point or different accommodations), or some new sort of attraction entirely. After it was mentioned that it was being torn down, I don't remember seeing much more about it and at least expected a couple pictures to pop up in this thread after the season started.

Robb, And I would agree that statistically, nothing Disney or Universal does really has an effect on Cedar Point and vice versa. I was even going against the grain of the discussion about CP's attendance being down. Are either of them concerned with what the other is doing? Strongly strongly doubt it. I was just giving a specific example that there is definite overlap between the audiences of these parks, especially in the band of the country where they are within similar driving distance. They are all looking to get some of the same dollars, but statistically, no there surely isn't much correlation. With their rebranding and destination resort focus I'm sure Cedar Point is looking to nibble what they can in the segment of people who are taking longer distance, multi day vacations; however, it would take a massive shift for Disney to even bat an eye, and surely has nothing to do with this year's attendance numbers. Bill, I agree wholeheartedly about the lack of statistics with regard to the whole discussion. As it's going on I'm thinking "we're talking about conjecture and hearsay like they're actual statistics." Again, just providing an immediate personal experience that just happened last week and could be relevant to the discussion; take it however you wish. Zach, Dirk is on point with his assessment for sure. CP has been installing good, high capacity rides for a while now, while drawing focus to things like the water park and beach as other options, which is surely helping with some of the crowd dispersion. And hopefully the trend continues with the large scale investment on a yearly basis. I do think that all plays into their rebranding and focus on pulling more multiple day visitors from further distances.

Not that this means there is specific direct competition, but I have a friend who just took his family of 4 to CP this summer after a couple years of Orlando vacations. He partly did it because of SV and isn't an enthusiast per se, but seems to be heading that direction as it's something he can share with his step daughter. After his 3 or 4 days at CP he is already talking about going back this fall and staying on the peninsula. Again, not that it means anything major, but when you have a certain amount of money to take a vacation out of town with, they've been swayed towards CP from Orlando, and it really is kind of an either or decision for many.

If at all possible take advantage of Friday night. Less people seem to go due to the limited ride availabilty and lines are typically shorter. You can do Friday and Saturday nights at Lighthouse Point with tickets for Friday and Saturday for 226 apiece after tax. Cheaper than Breakers by a little for some reason I fail to understand, unless it's the lack of housekeeping? And you get more space than the cheapest room at Breakers, and you get a grill. Bring some food and stuff with you. And this is assuming you don't have a season pass and need tickets yourself, or a platinum pass, where you can get the FP+ cheaper. Or as mentioned above, just hang out on Saturday and go to the park Friday and Sunday. But Anonymouscactus says on here that they go the first weekend of Halloweekends because the crowds are light...so maybe you wouldn't even need FP+ on Saturday. I did Lighthouse Point a couple years ago for Halloweekends and loved it, and am going to try and do it again this year. The more people you get, the cheaper it gets, especially at LP since you can comfortably stack some people in there without having to share beds unless you really pack it in.

^ ^^ Arrow or Vekoma...it blows

At my home park Screamin' Eagle and The Boss are both excellent at night.

Well, who are you? We're dying to know...