Kings Dominion (KD) Discussion Thread

[KingB24]

So, I went Friday right after school with my dad. We left from my school right at 2:50 and got caught in traffic on the way to the park and we ended up having to take a different route. We ended up arriving close to 4pm and got out season passes processed. On our way to I305, we walked through Planet Snoopy to see the changes, and I must say, I'm not that impressed. Other than the fresh coats of paint, new signs, and the new bouncy castle thing, nothing has really changed. (note that we did completely forget to ride Boo Blasters on Boo Hill- did anybody ride it? if so what was it like?) We then headed into Congo and saw the huge crowds heading towards I305. I looked up into the sky and saw I305 looming in the distance and my heart just started pounding. When we got to Flight of Fear's plaza, we did notice that the outside queue was completely full and spilling out. I don't know if the inside queue was open though. We walked over to Intimidator and, well, the pictures of this monster really don't do it justice. The line was completely full (as it turns out, not THAT bad) and spilling out. We waited a few minutes and by the time we were actually at the entrance of the line, an attendant said it was a 30min wait from that point on. Ultimately it was about 45min, but still close. At the entrance to the station, the regular line and the single-riders line merged and another attendant was directing people to seats. We were strapped in and I was told I couldn't wear my glasses... I ended up being glad about this, read on to see why. When the train was clear, a recording said "GENTLEMEN, START YOUR ENGINES!", you would hear a motor start, and the train began to crest the lift. It climbs that thing extremely fast and you have no time to think about it. At the very top you just tip over and plunge down! It was amazing, it felt like I was flying! But then, it was ruined at the first turn where I completely grayed out and I thought I was dying. I totally had no idea what was happening mainly because it had never happened to me before. But going into the second hill all sight was regained. I don't remember much else of the ride other than that almost every transition HURT. It totally tosses you from side to side, and that's why I'm glad I didn't wear my glasses. They're already broken, so I305 would've destroyed them. Overall, I give I305 a 6.5/10. We're heading back later in the week (hopefully!) so I can re-ride it and know I'll gray out and also be prepared for transitions. After the ride, we wandered through Congo briefly. Volcano had a full line, as did Avalanche. The Crypt, however, did not. We headed down The Grove and stopped for a bit in the pizza place (can't remember the name) for a bite to eat. Drop Tower was full also. Shockwave, had it been open, would no doubt have had a line down to the Carousel. We headed over to Ricochet only to find the line there full too. So the two of us walked over to Old Virginia, finding there had been some work done on the vegetation over-head thing (again, the name slips my mind). I wish it hadn't been destroyed in the snow. I went to ride Grizzly but the line, shockingly, was backing out of the station down the ramp. So I skipped it and we walked through OVA and headed to White Water Canyon. We didn't ride, since my dad hates water, I didn't have a change of clothes, and the line was close to spilling out. By the way, does anyone know why the Log Flume is closed? Renovation, perhaps? So anyway, we headed to Dominator to find that Berserker was closed, most likely to clean up vomit or something. We lined up for Dominator (which probably had the shortest line of any coaster that day) but it broke down quickly. We bailed out and found that Berserker was up and running again, so I took a spin on it. Then we just a bought a few things and finally left.

 

Sorry for the long report, thanks to anyone who actually read it!

[KDCOASTERFAN]

Just got home from the park about an hour ago & man was I305 one sweet ride!!!! I got in 3 laps today with the final being in the front row,I just hate the assigned seating policy & had to argue with the attendant at the SRL merge point just to get a front row ride & after riding in the front can see why the OTSR's are needed as my rear end was off the seat the whole way down that drop.

 

I did have a problem on Grizzly this evening though.I was riding the yellow train,car 5,row 1 left side & shortly after dispatch on the curve between the station & lift my lap bar popped open & fortunately I was able to get it down & locked before going over the drop which scared the crap out of me.I did let the staff know when I got off the train & had to fill out an incident report form as well as show the mechanic just how far the bar had opened but other than that it was a rather good start to the 2010 season.

 

While at the park I did shoot some video throughout the park & hope to have some,or all of it up ASAP after I get a chance to review & edit it,next time I think I'll take along a couple of spare battery packs since I ran out of battery power toward the end of the day.

 

I305 is a great ride from start to finish & NEVER lets up,they were having problems with the "redback" train & pulled it from service while running only "silverback" for the remainder of the evening(I just love those nickmames for the trains) but they were still able to move the lines rather well.The air on the ride is just incredible especially on that 150 ft camelback & if it weren't for the OTSR's the "twisties" wouldn't be as rough but all in all this IS a great ride that has to be ridden to appreciate as niether words,pics nor video truely do it justice.

[redfoot12]

Just got home from the park about an hour ago & man was I305 one sweet ride!!!! I got in 3 laps today with the final being in the front row,I just hate the assigned seating policy & had to argue with the attendant at the SRL merge point just to get a front row ride & after riding in the front can see why the OTSR's are needed as my rear end was off the seat the whole way down that drop.

 

I305 is a great ride from start to finish & NEVER lets up,they were having problems with the "redback" train & pulled it from service while running only "silverback" for the remainder of the evening(I just love those nickmames for the trains) but they were still able to move the lines rather well.The air on the ride is just incredible especially on that 150 ft camelback & if it weren't for the OTSR's the "twisties" wouldn't be as rough but all in all this IS a great ride that has to be ridden to appreciate as niether words,pics nor video truely do it justice.

 

Hey KD,

You seemed a little underwhelmed (disappointed?) when 305 was first announced. So were you pleasantly surprised and are you satisfied with how the ride turned out?

[Capitalize]

My review of KD today:

 

My fiancee and I showed up at about 2pm. I told myself I would get there when the park opened, but being a tiny big hungover and working all week resulted in us waking up at noon - so scratch that. In any case, I was still pumped after waking up that I was going to get a ride on I305 that afternoon/evening after a long off season of anticipation.

 

We first went to Avalanche... It seems stupid, I know, but I made the mistake of telling my lady about people blacking out on I305 and saying it was an intense ride. She was a bit freaked out having not been on a ride for several months, so she felt she needed a warm up ride to get the blood flowing before plummeting 300 feet. Avalanche was running one train, so it was a very, very, long wait... Still a fun ride...

 

After this warm up we headed over to the main attraction - Intimidator. It was closed... So we waited, we took a look around the gift shop, I took plenty of time to simply gawk at how amazing this ride looked. Then we sat down under the tunnel and waited a while until I saw the op's checking restraints then we joined the line as they began test runs. After they started boarding the trains we were close to the station in no time. I was incredibly excited to wait for the front and have the best steel coaster ride of my life - then the attendant told me I was riding in row 14. I said "we want to wait for the front." They shook their head and said "No we don't allow that." Then a manager person escorted us to our row and I told him "I want to wait for the front!" He said "Sorry sir, we don't allow that." I rolled my eyes and said oh well. I was more than a tiny bit annoyed because I have literally pictured my first day at Kings Dominion this season since this ride first had track show up, I would wait for the front for the first ride, then get a ride in the back at night for my second ride...

 

So we ride in row 14. What a ride! The first drop was incredible, the first turn was silky smooth yet forceful. Then I got tunnel vision and things got a bit dark as we speed up the 150 foot hill in broad day light. My vision returned as I was flying upwards over the apex and getting incredible airtime. The following flurry of epic transitions at an incredible speed left me howling for more. The 3rd hill gave a nice bit of air and the final S-turn just capped off an incredible, unforgettable ride. As we were slowed on the brakes my head was swimming, I was trying to run back through everything that just happened and try to place the ride in my top 5-10 coasters. I first tried to place it in my top 5 steel rides, I went line by line down the list and decided it was the best steel coaster I've been on (this is coming from someone who has never been Bizarro/SROS at SFNE and has only been on one coaster - Dragon at Ocean Park in Hong Kong - outside of the USA, so take that for what it's worth). I was overwhelmed. So happy that such an amazing ride is within driving distance to my home. Its been said - but this ride KILLS Millennium Force. Take the best parts of Millennium Force and multiply it by 10, and you are still a bit off from the sheer power of Intimidator 305. Suffice it to say I long forgot my disappointment over assigned seating.

 

After this we hit up Dominator which had a nice short line. We followed this up with Grizzly which gave a good, smooth ride in the front seat with some nice airtime.

 

Next we got on Rebel Yell which was decent despite its attempts to realign my spine in the back car. Some dinner was followed up with a ride on Volcano in the front. Then it was time for a final ride on Intimidator before heading home. We got in line around 7:30 and found an almost full line. It took around 30-40 minutes to get through the line and ending up in the second row. While close to the station I was a bit annoyed to see the front having a slightly longer line than the other rows and the person in front of me argue his way into being allowed to wait for the front. I personally think that is crap - assign seats or don't arbitrarily decide who makes a strong enough case to wait for the front, or simply who bitches the most. I think they need to figure out a better solution for this personally. Anyways, the second row was even more amazing. I got a sense of the speed and had tears running down my cheeks from the wind (also maybe joy due to just how incredible this ride is).

 

After this it was after 8 and the park was closed so we headed home. Basically Intimidator 305 is an amazing ride. Non-stop intensity and a beautiful mix of positive, negative and lateral forces. I'm a fan of intense rides that shake you up a bit and give you some intensity (perhaps just on the borderline of being uncomfortable for most people), so I thought this ride was simply incredible. I'd say its my number one steel coaster as of now and 3rd overall (behind El Toro and Phoenix).

 

Kings Dominion has a real winner on their hands, hopefully it can keep up the insane speed and incredible smoothness over the years. On that note, after my last ride a guest on the train before ours was apparently so "blown away" by the experience she was about as close to unconscious as you can get while still being "there". This actually made me mad. The guest seemed far from enthusiastic to to ride in the first place, and the ride clearly tells guests in line that if they aren't sure, "DON'T RIDE. You know your limitations, WE DON'T." The last thing I like to see is someone miserable or traumatized after a ride, but I also don't want to see this ride neutered because a bunch of stupid GP get on while ignoring the warnings that this ride is incredibly intense and not for everyone.

 

Intamin seems to have a penchant for making tighter and tighter transitions on their attractions (See: Maverick, El Toro)

 

Robb, did you find the transitions "violent" or were they actually quite tolerable? Seems from the video that they're "snappy." Without OTSR's - that might be frightening. Then again, I don't want to sound like one of the haters who still haven't rode it...

 

Too late.

Once again...and I think I've written this like 5 times in the last 20 pages, I didn't have a problem at all with the restraints. The transitions were fine. Totally awesome. Completely smooth. Very enjoyable.

 

I'm really not convinced this ride would actually better with lap bars only. This doesn't seem like one of those rides that would really benfit from it. If anything I was glad that I had something to grab tightly onto! And It just doesn't matter that much to me.

 

I don't get why so many people made such a huge deal out of it.

 

Personally, I think there are many people out there who flat out don't like OTSR restraints and will say a ride is terrible with them even if they know damn well it's just fine. And I305 is just fine with these restraints.

 

I sat at the exit ramp for about an hour today shooting video and probably had a good thousand people walk by me. I heard a ton of comments about the ride and I don't recall anyone complaning that the ride was rough. Stand at the exit of Gouderix and see if you get the same results!

 

--Robb

 

I was a restraint hater from day one when the animations came out (and was essentially a hater on this ride for a good bit until I warmed up to it over the winter). I have to say you were right in your judgements about the trains since day one as I have no gripes at all about them now.

 

^^^I totally see your point, but for me personally, I'd rather have a short and awesome ride, then another freaking exactly the same B&M Hyper.

Yep, too true! I'm going down to Carowinds this May, but after riding KD's Intimidator I'm honestly not feeling very excited about riding theirs as I have already more or less rode that ride countless time over the past decade since my first rides on Apollo's Chariot and Nitro... I'll give it a good number of rides and I'm sure it will be a good coaster, but I just don;t see it impressing me very much right now.

Edited April 4, 2010 by Capitalize

[Capitalize]

,they were having problems with the "redback" train & pulled it from service while running only "silverback" for the remainder of the evening

Not true, they ran both trains from the late afternoon until closing.

[pkdcoaster]

There was one op that was very rude on opening day with the assigned seating. On our first ride we asked for the front and she said no so we went close to the back (fine) Now our 2nd ride is where I was beyond pissed off, picture this, the whole station is filled with one trains worth of riders (meaning 2 people in every lane, even the front) we figured alright worked out good. she remembered us asking for the front and told us to go to row 2 so I argued with her saying there is nobody in the front and that is where you need to start loading from. she kept saying row 2 but we just went in row 1 anyway.

 

later in the day some ops were very nice, if you asked for the front they would let you go. I just hate assigned seating on coasters and single rider lines do not work on anything but B&M's in my opinion. Thankfully I live close but it still sucks for out of towners. I am still a little peeved that I had 10 rides on Diamondback when I visited last summer and never got the front row.

 

JEFF

[KDCOASTERFAN]

Just got home from the park about an hour ago & man was I305 one sweet ride!!!! I got in 3 laps today with the final being in the front row,I just hate the assigned seating policy & had to argue with the attendant at the SRL merge point just to get a front row ride & after riding in the front can see why the OTSR's are needed as my rear end was off the seat the whole way down that drop.

 

I305 is a great ride from start to finish & NEVER lets up,they were having problems with the "redback" train & pulled it from service while running only "silverback" for the remainder of the evening(I just love those nickmames for the trains) but they were still able to move the lines rather well.The air on the ride is just incredible especially on that 150 ft camelback & if it weren't for the OTSR's the "twisties" wouldn't be as rough but all in all this IS a great ride that has to be ridden to appreciate as niether words,pics nor video truely do it justice.

 

Hey KD,

You seemed a little underwhelmed (disappointed?) when 305 was first announced. So were you pleasantly surprised and are you satisfied with how the ride turned out?

 

Suprised & satisfied & then some.

 

Can hardly wait to get back to the park in may to ride this beast a few more times.

[1pizza14]

INTENSE! Looks like they made a good decision taking out XLC. Fast lift hill i must say. Anyone know how steep up it goes?

[pkdcoaster]

45 degrees same as The Beast's first drop

 

JEFF

[coaster1robert]

Beautiful coaster Rob.

[Homeboy23]

If anyone can make it to the park today during the last four hours you can probably marathon it. I went in for the third straight day to get some rides on it and every ride in the park including I305 is a 1 to 2 train wait. I did not attempt to see Volcano though.

 

Today I noticed they were not slowing the train down near the top of the lift like the previous two days and I was thrown off my seat going over the hill and down.

[KDCOASTERFAN]

If anyone can make it to the park today during the last four hours you can probably marathon it. I went in for the third straight day to get some rides on it and every ride in the park including I305 is a 1 to 2 train wait. I did not attempt to see Volcano though.

 

Today I noticed they were not slowing the train down near the top of the lift like the previous two days and I was thrown off my seat going over the hill and down.

 

Even with the slight slowdown just before the lift crown I still got thrown off the seat the whole way down but the true kudos have to go out to that 2nd hill because that's where the sustained air really is.

[PKI Jizzman]

(I wasn`t well informed...thought that Robb`s onride-comments were a slap in the face of Dick Kinzel...I didn`t know he belongs to Kings Dominion, too)

Not at all. That was just my poor attempt at being funny. I do actually like Millennium Force...quite a lot actually! I do think I305 is better, but that doesn't stop me from having MF be one of the coasters I ride the most when I visit CP.

 

And hey...I look forward to the day when I'm riding the "next big thing" at Cedar Point and saying how it craps all over Indimidator!

 

--Robb

 

Besides, when you're on camera and a roller coaster, I'm sure it's not as easy to think and talk compared to sitting on a bench by the exit platform! Especially after reading about how intense this ride is.

 

Great read! Great videos! Great comparisons! Can't believe the USA has built something new that's considered one of the most intense rides out there to this date. Can't wait to ride...

[redfoot12]

Hey folks! Just got back from KD about an hour or so ago.

I was actually not impressed after my first ride (which was in the middle, more towards the front) but 10 rides on it later, I definitely have a new #1 steel and it's neck and neck with El Toro for #1 overall. I would have ridden it more but my friend hasn't been to KD since Flight of Fear was new so we had to do some other rides as well.

I was not too happy about the assigned seating but I still was able to ride once in the front and once in the back. Both were awesome, front for the first drop and sense of speed and back for feeling the various forces the ride puts you through. I really can't decide which one I liked more. As for my initial disappointment I chalk it up to lousy seating and the track not being "warmed up".

It's so awesome having this coaster 20 minutes from where I live.

Other notes...

Crowds were pretty light today for the holiday, I guess. Hurler, Shockwave, and the log flume weren't running. Got a great ride in on Grizzly (my friend disagreed) after being turned away for it being down for some reason. Dominator broke down at least 3 times. Volcano broke down at least twice. I got two good rides in on each though. Also rode Ricochet and Backlot Stunt Coaster--each ride was a standard run. 305 was my 125th credit.

 

Now...for my "bag of crap" (I don't do Trip Reports, photo or otherwise, just yet, and these were taken with my 2MP camera phone.)...

I swear it says Theme Park Review right above my man boob!

That there's a big coaster...

[pkdcoaster]

I was there tonight as well too with my kids and my son got to ride Rebel Yell & Grizzly for the 1st time. (He liked Rebel Yell much better, He's 6) Got 2 rides in on I305 with my Sis so I wanted her opinion as a "Civilian" coaster rider.

She did like it but thought it was a little rough and she could not take more than 2 rides back to back. (Especially after seeing a guy lose all of his dinner over the railing after his ride )

 

One really crappy thing is that ALL of the trees from the infield of Grizzly's first turnaround have been removed and really killed some of the atmosphere.

 

Also noticed that Shockwave was missing the chain cog at the top of the lift and its chain. so itmight be a while before it opens again.

 

Sad thing is that in 1.5 hours today I got more rides in than 9.5 hours on Friday

 

JEFF

[redfoot12]

One really crappy thing is that ALL of the trees from the infield of Grizzly's first turnaround have been removed and really killed some of the atmosphere.

 

I noticed that too. Every year I go to KD I find something else to make me a little sadder when I ride Grizzly. I thought the ride itself was great today. Not as rough as when I rode it last in 2008.

[Brashnir]

Also noticed that Shockwave was missing the chain cog at the top of the lift and its chain. so itmight be a while before it opens again.

 

It's scheduled to open on April 17, according to the park's website. Hurler is down til May.

[robbalvey]

I have just updated TPR's Official Media Day Report with some new behind the scenes photos, a downloadable desktop wallpaper, and more! Click here:

http://www.themeparkreview.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=877056#p877056

[robbalvey]

I have just updated TPR's Official Media Day Report with some new behind the scenes photos, a downloadable desktop wallpaper, and more! Click here:

http://www.themeparkreview.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=877056#p877056

[pkdcoaster]

Sweet new Wallpaper!! Thanks Robb

 

JEFF

[Tmcdllr]

I just watched the POV and all I can say is.... OMFG!!!! That is one hell of a ride! I can't believe how fast it tears around the track. This is the first coaster in a while that I have seen that actually looks scary and incredibly fun to ride.

[KDCOASTERFAN]

Also noticed that Shockwave was missing the chain cog at the top of the lift and its chain. so itmight be a while before it opens again.

 

It's scheduled to open on April 17, according to the park's website. Hurler is down til May.

Thanks for the update,I'll be sure to get some video of it on next month's visit.

 

I must be in the minority here but I actually enjoy riding shockwave.

[animalfarm2006]

So anyway, we headed to Dominator to find that Berserker was closed, most likely to clean up vomit or something.

 

The reason why it was clossed is because it shut down on itself with me, and my cousin.

 

Sunday the dominator shut down with us + his mom and my brothers wife at the slow down point. We had to walk down the spiral steps to get off.

 

As for the 305, My second ride was just as scary as my second friday. The wheels or something on my car was making a HORRIBLE screeching noise mid way through the track and on the lift hill. It also seems to me that they hold the cars a little more in the breaks at the third hill.

 

The grissly was rough towards the back for me. Stunt coaster was fun. We finaly got on the flight of fear! ^.^ Got my brothers wife on it for the first time as well. Rebel yell was fun. The people loading the el dorodo or whatever its called would not let people sit in the front or back.

 

but over all, I liked sunday more that friday. We brought the kids and played at the kidsvile area. My four year old nephew got on the scooby coaster, and screamed the whole time. lol. He liked the taxi cab. The boo blasters is fun, but so cheap at the pop outs. You hear the chains banging after ever pop out, and some get stuck. We rode it about five times as their was no line. I like the fact that if you hit the circles things pop out and move. The misty 3d skull was scary for the kids.

[Fooz]

Ok, my first post: (for anyone looking for yet another I305 review:

 

Ok so first of all: Its amazing. Amazing.

 

I've been on a lot of coaster, including millennium force, maverick, el toro, kingda ka, both versions of Superman:ROS. These aren't comparable. The pictures/layout/pov don't show you the insanity, forcefullness, speed, or raw energy that this ride possesses.

 

I rode about 12 times on Sunday (my girlfriend doesn't ride, so single riders line is my friend, and it was pretty much a walk on for me) with 2 rides in the front (do whatever you can to ride in the front, although they don't let you choose). I "greyed out" pretty severely every time in the first turn. My fondest memories of the ride are looking down the first drop (I prefer the view to millennium's, which may sound weird, but the amount of time you're looking straight down at brand new bright red intamin goodness is incredible) the second drop (when you realize what just happened to your brain, and see the insanity before you, all without slowing down) and the absolutely crazy ground hugging section.

 

Yes, it is frightening to lose vision after the first drop (Well, I was quite frightened), and everyone I talked to on the rider experienced the same thing. You would need a strong composure, or very high blood pressure to avoid it.

 

The air time does not so much replicate the feeling of floating, falling or flying; its more like a powerful beast doing its best to whip you off of its back. Its strong, strong air, but not what you're used to. By the time you hit the breaks, you're still traveling faster and more intensely than some respectable coasters ever achieve.

 

As I grew up, I started noticing my dissatisfaction with coaster design, thinking everything was tame and slow for the comfort of the general public, but I thought maverick was the cure. Maverick (while great) is nothing compared to this ride, it has to be ridden to be believed. If a coaster has ever been too forceful for you, avoid this ride, because it is more so.

 

I think some people are dissapointed with the layout because they have a notion of what a hyper or giga should look like, and what it is supposed to provide. It turns out an enormous rollercoaster is capable of many things, and one of them is generating enough speed for the most insane and powerful rampage on the planet.

 

(Ok so I've over hyped it maybe, it doesen't cure cancer, but it goes places no ride ever has, and is the best riding experience I've ever had.)

Edited April 6, 2010 by Fooz

[Vigil]

By the time you hit the breaks, you're still traveling faster and more intensely than some respectable coasters ever achieve.

 

That is my one and only problem with Intimidator 305 and really Millennium Force too: when you hit the brakes, then train is still traveling incredibly fast. There is so much wasted momentum. I'm not saying the ride is too short--it looks amazing--but if you are going to all the effort of getting it up to 94 mph anyway, why waste all the extra speed. I know, I know, it would cost too much money. Still... I have not ridden it yet so I don't know...maybe people would not want the ride to be longer because it would place too much strain on the body.

 

Does anyone know how fast it is traveling when it hits the brake run?