Kentucky Kingdom (SFKK, KK) Discussion Thread

[Arthur_Seaton]

On 5/27/2022 at 8:51 AM, bert425 said:

Seriously. . Thunder Run has a lot of new wood, very noticeable, and it was SO good, that I wanted to go back again and get a ride towards the back of the train (rougher than in the front, but still no where NEAR what I had been warned about. . . I think it was my favorite coaster in the park!)

I liked it very much as well, and preferred it to both Lightning Run and Storm Chaser.

[Arthur_Seaton]

On 5/22/2022 at 4:14 PM, thrillseeker4552 said:

I've been on a million RMCs but the Voyage has been a huge bucket list ride for me, rough or not lol. Sad to hear you guys had a rough experience there.

It's a must-ride for sure, and I rode it five times when I visited. It was brutally rough though — jackhammering through much of the second half. The first half's journey out into the woods is pretty fun, but I found it oddly forceless — just big hills with a decent sense of speed through the tunnels. It's an impressive structure and concept, even though I thought it rode poorly.

[Midgetman82]

On 5/27/2022 at 9:29 PM, tndank said:

Lighting Run is the worst line and slowest loading. I'd start with LR myself.

It's rare people wander all the way to Storm Chaser.  Lines are never long back there.  Same for KY Flyer. 

 

I second this. T3 at single-train ops is unfortunately decently slow as well, so I'd recommend looping to KY Flyer then that soon after as well.

 

On 5/22/2022 at 7:14 PM, thrillseeker4552 said:

I've been on a million RMCs but the Voyage has been a huge bucket list ride for me, rough or not lol. Sad to hear you guys had a rough experience there.

Got to do Voyage this past weekend (HWN). The odd-numbered rows (1, 3, 5, etc.) that sit in the front row of each car are more comfortable. Voyage will likely need some re-tracking over the off season again, as will Raven, but it's certainly not running at its worst. It'll be up to tolerances. I found it still very incredible, and is for sure a must-do!

[CoasterAuditor]

Hi all,

I am making my first ever KK visit Saturday next weekend it's the first park of a weeklong midwest road trip with HW, KI, CP, and Kennywood (first time to all but Cedar Point), on the way back to Richmond, VA.  Does anyone have experience with this park on Saturdays?  Is KK pretty manageable on Saturdays lines wise?  I bought a 2 day ticket to start the Sunday there the morning after and then roll out to HW but I'd like to clear as much of KK as possible to get out to HW Sunday as early as I can.  Thank you for any notes!  

[prozach626]

One day will be plenty. KK is not a two day park. Not even if you include the water park.

Get there at the opening. Ride Lightning Run a couple times. Go clockwise, finishing with Storm Chaser. It's in such an isolated part of the park I've never had anything but a station wait.

Remember that you're an adult and skip the kiddie coaster, as to not weird out parents. (me) 

Go back for whatever flats you want. When you realize it's a great park, but there's not much else you want to ride, go to the water park and enjoy a beer.

Hit the road for HW the following morning. Be prepared for headaches and whiplash on 75% of the coasters. Try to lie to yourself and pretend they were good rides.

Reride Turkey Shooters and Thunderbird as much as possible.

Eat a cafeteria quality Thanksgiving dinner and talk about how great it is.

Wait in line shirtless for an hour for the water coasters.

Think about how much better of a one-day park KK is.

Don't drink the sunscreen. 

Edit: Also, don't forget to make fun of the clientele in your TR, because apparently it's the cool thing to do. Throw in a jab about Christianity and Trump voters.

[bert425]

the Roller Skater there is great, with a lovely setting.

don't worry about being an adult riding it. . MANY adults ride it.

including the TPR folks
 

 

[teacherkim]

4 hours ago, CoasterAuditor said:

Hi all,

I am making my first ever KK visit Saturday next weekend it's the first park of a weeklong midwest road trip with HW, KI, CP, and Kennywood (first time to all but Cedar Point), on the way back to Richmond, VA.  Does anyone have experience with this park on Saturdays?  Is KK pretty manageable on Saturdays lines wise?  I bought a 2 day ticket to start the Sunday there the morning after and then roll out to HW but I'd like to clear as much of KK as possible to get out to HW Sunday as early as I can.  Thank you for any notes!  

Dont forget that HW is in the Central time zone, which will help you out Sunday morning as you will essentially eliminate your hour commute. 

If you like water parks they are both worth it, if it's not your thing then try to hit the three water coasters at HW. They are at another level and of course you'll wait shirtless, unless you want to get your shirt wet

[AmyUD06]

So as it turns out, I'll be at KK when I hit my 250th coaster.  Any suggestions for the best one at this park to bestow the honor upon?

[bert425]

hands down my favorite there was Thunder Run. . it was amazing in the front row.

but most will tell you Lightning Run, since it's the only one of it's kind on the planet.
 

 

 

 

[AmyUD06]

3 hours ago, bert425 said:

hands down my favorite there was Thunder Run. . it was amazing in the front row.

but most will tell you Lightning Run, since it's the only one of it's kind on the planet.
 

 

Thanks for the tips Bert!  I'm surprised a Dinn coaster is so well received.

What do you think of Storm Chaser?  My #150 (Steel Vengeance) and #200 (Twisted Cyclone) were both RMCs, and I was thinking of keeping that trend going.

[bert425]

I did *not* like the trains/restraints.  (they land on my thighs, and there's no place to hold on securely - other than that one "rope" handle on the one side.

So the bunny hops/ejector air hurt.    The exact same issue I had on Twisted Timbers and why I don't ride that.

 

so yeah. . just my opinion, but I didn't care for it.

however, i will say, that diving 1st drop is incredible, and if the trains/restraints were different?   I probably would have loved it.

[jarmor]

14 hours ago, Mike240SX said:

So as it turns out, I'll be at KK when I hit my 250th coaster.  Any suggestions for the best one at this park to bestow the honor upon?

Be Careful, They don't have fastlane. . . lol lol

[AmyUD06]

Just now, jarmor said:

Be Careful, They don't have fastlane. . . lol lol

Ha ha ha.  Way to completely misread that post.

[jarmor]

Didn't misread at all.  I knew exactly what you wanted to know but knowing how you are about your fast lane access lol. . . couldn't resist.

[grsupercity]

15 hours ago, Mike240SX said:

So as it turns out, I'll be at KK when I hit my 250th coaster.  Any suggestions for the best one at this park to bestow the honor upon?

Lightning run 

[Nrthwnd]

19 hours ago, Mike240SX said:

So as it turns out, I'll be at KK when I hit my 250th coaster.  Any suggestions for the best one at this park to bestow the honor upon?

Easy... The Roller Skater!

[prozach626]

On 6/11/2022 at 10:49 PM, Mike240SX said:

Thanks for the tips Bert!  I'm surprised a Dinn coaster is so well received.

What do you think of Storm Chaser?  My #150 (Steel Vengeance) and #200 (Twisted Cyclone) were both RMCs, and I was thinking of keeping that trend going.

Everything is fine, until you get to the last 3rd or so of the ride. It's just the typical RMC different angled airtime thrashing/bucking, but with mini hills that try to rip your legs off. It feels like the train is trying to throw you out, not in a good way. I would imagine it would be like bull riding if you were strapped to the bull.

I saw go hard and make T3 your 250th. Joking, but not joking.

[Arthur_Seaton]

11 hours ago, prozach626 said:

Everything is fine, until you get to the last 3rd or so of the ride. It's just the typical RMC different angled airtime thrashing/bucking, but with mini hills that try to rip your legs off. It feels like the train is trying to throw you out, not in a good way.

The first 1/3 — the drop and camel back are pretty decent. I found the rest to be standard-fare post-NTAG / iRat aggressive ejection up and down/side to side. Since much of it is low to the ground, it's hardly thrilling. Both Storm Chaser and Lightning Run are worth checking out for sure, but I thought they were far from good rides since I'm not into extreme bucking/thrashing either. I though T3 was actually less violent/aggressive than those two, but the restraint pressure make that thing utterly unrideable. Thunder Run is the best coaster there, IMO.

[Midgetman82]

No love for KY Flyer, I see how it is...

Kidding aside, new folks tend to favor Lightning Run because of its uniqueness. As a local, I'd tell you Storm Chaser, but even I'll admit those bunny hills at the end got pretty wacky intense over the years, lol. Thunder Run in any row closest to the front is usually a guaranteed good time if that's how you swing.

[mikeykaise]

16 hours ago, Midgetman82 said:

No love for KY Flyer, I see how it is...

Kidding aside, new folks tend to favor Lightning Run because of its uniqueness. As a local, I'd tell you Storm Chaser, but even I'll admit those bunny hills at the end got pretty wacky intense over the years, lol. Thunder Run in any row closest to the front is usually a guaranteed good time if that's how you swing.

I love Flyer, I was there for media day and it took me by surprise because I wasn't expecting it to take off like it did and the pops of air were making me giggle like a little kid. It proves that a coaster doesn't have to be the tallest, fastest, or steepest to be a great ride! My only complaint about it is it doesn't last long enough.

[AmyUD06]

So I just got back to my hotel from a quick 2 hour stop at KK.  Those who said I wouldn't need 3.5 hours were absolutely right; I encountered nothing more than a station wait for any ride; longest of the day was T3 at 21-22 minutes for the front row, including ride time.

I'll end up posting a detailed report when this road trip is done, but here are some bullet points:

-You guys weren't kidding about no shade.  Eeesh....in 90+ degree heat, with half of the food/beverage places open, it was brutal, even for those two hours.
-Layout wasn't confusing, but I would call it "bad" - lots of dead areas with no rides or shops or anything (or shade LOL).
-I was able to hit all 6 coasters, and rank them as follows:
1. Thunder Run front row.
2. Storm Chaser
3. Lightning Run
4. Kentucky Flyer
5. Roller Skater
6. T3
500.  Thunder Run back row
-I was able to make Thunder Run my 250th, which was satisfying since I rode it in the front first.  Insane ride, easily earning a place in my Top 10 Woodies.  The back row, however, was absolutely brutal and would be right at home in the 10 worst coaster rides I've ever had.  Horrid.
-I definitely enjoyed Lightning Run, and will join the cadre of "Why didn't anyone ever order another one of these?"  I actually found the ejector a bit too strong at a few points, to be honest.
-Storm Chaser was typical RMC awesomeness, and I rank it towards the top of the RMCs that I've ridden.  I could go either way with whether this or Thunder Run front row are the best rides in the park.
-I didn't see what was so bad about T3; rode in the front row.  The restraints, while not as good as the Vekoma vests and they do hurt your thighs by the end (not as bad as SkyRush though), are an infinite improvement over the old hard OSTRs.  You just need to push out on those handles and push your head back against the restraint.  Anyone who "broke their teeth" on the joysticks is an idiot.  Sure, it's no Great Nor'Easter, but I've definitely ridden worse SLCs.
-I can totally echo Zach's comments a few pages back about the staff.  Plenty of them, but only like 3 I encountered made any sort of effort to interact with anyone.
-Water park seemed nice, but I didn't stop in.

EDIT:  And as quickly as it entered by top 10 wooden coasters, Thunder Run has been bumped out.  Holiday World's two are substantially better, as is the park as a whole (you guys who say otherwise are on crack LOL).

[Dan the Coaster Man]

Went to the park Wednesday and it was a great time. I got back to back zen rides on Kentucky Flyer and one zen ride on T3, park was pretty dead besides waterpark and Lightning Run. LR had a long line for a few hours after open, but eventually it was down to just a station wait. Unfortunately it broke down after I got one station wait ride. Noticed a lot of closed rides, even one that said it's only open Saturday and Sundays.

[FeelTheFORCE]

Thursday was a similarly light day!  The park was overall pretty dead, even the water park.  Storm Chaser is awesome, and its location allows for many rerides.  I can honestly say that I wasn't expecting Lightning Run to have more intense airtime than any RMC I've been on though.  That thing is bonkers!  Their water park was also a pleasant surprise, and better than I had expected.  We didn't anticipate staying until close, but we did because we spent so much time in the water park.  We also picked up some cinnamon bread on the way out to eat in the car.  I really enjoyed this park more than I thought I would!

[Midgetman82]

I feel like I haven't written up one of these in forever, but I'll give it another shot...

Visited Kentucky Kingdom again this past Saturday. It was my second visit this year since May 1st (missed out on visiting other weekends due to many other travels and other personal life hurdles). I knew it was going to be 100f/37c with over 50% humidity, so I had full intentions of spending the majority of the day within the water park. I basically wore my swim clothes throughout the day including a rash guard shirt.

I arrived minutes after the gates had opened 10am, with the immediate morning crowd having already dispersed into the park, and went straight for the water park.

I had totally forgotten the park was doing a Gold Pass early entry for the water park and would open to everybody else at 11am. It took some other hopeful swim guests by surprise too.

I flashed my pass and went to rent a $15 small locker to stuff my things in. I was hoping I could get my day's workout over with by summiting the Deep Water Dive stairs immediately, but learned the entire water park is roped off except for the wave pool for gold passers. I'm personally not a big fan of wave pools (love lazy rivers tho), but considering it was empty enough to my liking and it was already getting pretty hot, I went ahead and took a very relaxing swim in it for several minutes.

The hour passes, and I join a line to get into the newer half of the water park. Once everyone was let in, I was first to go up the Wikiwiki Wai slide complex and did all three inner tube slides back to back with the same tube with virtually no wait each time, and then left and went straight for a very peaceful swim in the adventure river.

The crowd level in the water park at this point was very tame, with plenty of tubes and swim noodles to use for cooling off. Getting to the water park right away in the morning seems very ideal for anyone looking to take big advantage of the water park. This changed drastically in the afternoon, but we'll get there soon. The only thing I would probably do different would be getting on a couple dry rides for the first hour the park is open before going to the water park when it opens at 11am.

Walked by Deep Water Dive and Wave Runner, water was flowing but no lifeguards manning them. I asked a passing supervisor if they planned to open it, and they said yes, so I ventured off to the older section of the water park to do an inner tube slide in Mt. Slide Hai and the other lazy river while I waited.

It was unfortunate seeing not only Deluge retired, but so was Voodoo Express body slide. Deluge's spot certainly opens up a lot of future possibilities at least. My hope (if they're listening) is bringing in a mat racer to round out the park's collection.

At this point, the ground was getting very hot and DWD was still closed, so I did a few more laps in a more crowded Adventure River again before drying off for lunch. I skipped doing the long line at the water park food stands and went to the front of the park for the hot chicken sandwich stand next to Scream Extreme instead, then returned to the backside of the park afterwards.

Started off easy with a nice breezy star flyer ride on SkyCatcher, then hopped next door for a lap on Kentucky Flyer.

T3 still only has the one orange train. The line was full inside the station, so I got in line for a moment before it went down for some minor maintenance issue. With the station already packed and incredibly hot, I chose to leave instead.

With the crazy hot weather, I considered doing Mile High Falls, but it seemed everyone else had the same idea. Full queue. Unfortunately it was only running one boat, so I stood on the bridge instead for a quick cooling-off splash before going back by Storm Chaser.

Really, really looking forward to this event! Pretty theming AND night rides until 10pm return? Yes please!! HallowScream was quite a fun even to shake things up at the park, so I'm happy a night event is at least returning to the park in some capacity, with a family-friendly edge this time.

Still absolutely bonkers of a roller coaster! And what they say is absolutely true, this thing SOARS when it's hotter out. Those final bunny hills are murderous, lol.

Me in the front going "holy crap!" from the sucker-punch of intense ejector.

Despite being a Saturday and the crowds picking up in the park by this point, Storm Chaser was still a walk-on with one train ops. It felt great getting four back-to-back laps, but certainly hope Herschend does something to entice more people back to this area of the park and on this coaster.

The ride photo booth was selling snacks and drinks along with photos, and there was this tornado simulator for $5. Honestly felt pretty nice. More effective at drying than those haystack dryers I'd see at other parks. There was another located in the water park, but I think they also need one at Mile High Falls.

From here, I wandered back past T3 to see Deep Water Dive still closed. it was past 3pm and I wasn't planning to stay the whole day anyways. I cut my losses on the water park entirely at this point because the majority of guests in the park were in the water park by this point.

I hopped on the 5D cinema for some quick air conditioning with Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs ride film, got a quick one-cycle wait for Cyclos, walk-on for Bluebeard's Bounty and Fearfall, then refilled my Gold Pass cup before heading out of the park.

I don't normally visit parks on a Saturday, but it was nice to at least see how very manageable the water park is first thing in the morning, a very good time to take advantage of getting laps on slides before the crowds get a bit too much. All in all, a good visit! I need to do more mornings solely focused on hitting up the water park again.

[prozach626]

10 hours ago, Midgetman82 said:

I feel like I haven't written up one of these in forever, but I'll give it another shot...

Looks like you still got it. 

Thanks for sharing.