Kings Dominion (KD) Discussion Thread

[woolandmammoth]

Ive found all the hurlers to be fairly dismal. There is just nothing special about them except that they are especially rough. I'm not even sure RMC could save that one.

[CPmillenia94]

On the contrary, hurler is easily the best wooden coaster in the park for me. I can't be the only one that gets ejector on the hills.

[pkdcoaster]

Hurler has no air time whatsoever anymore since the trims were added a few years ago. In the 90's it was an airtime machine but the ride has been negleted for many years and is just barely making it around the course now.

 

Jeff

[Brassinthegrass]

Your all awake now, so I'll ask my quick question again; is there any kettle corn in the park? Thanks in advance!

[cfc]

^I don't recall seeing any kettle corn at KD (but I may have just missed it). Busch Gardens has kettle corn, though.

[certifiedcoastergeek]

DISCLAIMER: ANY REPOSTERS, PLEASE GIVE CREDIT TO MY ACCOUNT

As a careful observer of KD's website, I noticed recently that on the front-page Gold Pass advertisement, an orange or red B&M hyper or gigacoaster with bright green supports (don't confuse it with the Dominator) is hidden in plain sight. Before you dismiss this as an artist's mistake because the incorrect variant of Intamin drop tower is shown, I already checked similar ads of other Cedar Fair Parks (like Carowinds) and found that only existing coasters were shown. Considering the fact that the first teaser last year for this year's Soak City expansion came as a logo hidden behind the old WaterWorks logo on the front page around this time last year, this is an exciting prospect for the 2016 season.

(On a side note, a purple ride/track is found towards the back on the right side).

Interestingly, the three coasters considered to be on the chopping block (Hurler, Anaconda, Shockwave) are all shown, but not Volcano.

2016 announcement season hasn't started yet... or has it? Look behind the Hurler!

[nannerdw]

KD was dead today. Walk-ons for everything in the park. It looks like going on a Sunday between spring break and summer break was the perfect choice.

 

I thought all the rides in the park were pretty good, except Hurler. Carowinds and Kentucky Kingdom took much better care of theirs. Ok, maybe Anaconda sucked a little bit because of its headbanging, but I did legitimately like the Togo standup; though it was rough, it still had some nice airtime.

 

The Crypt: ran a decent program, and made me realize that I don't actually hate Top Spins. I just had a bad experience on Tomb Raider at King's Island, which hung upside down for WAY too long and punched me in the crotch unexpectedly.

 

Flight of Fear: Easily the best ride in the park for me. I'd put it on par with the one at King's Island. The exit of the corkscrew at the end gives me such a weird feeling, as if I'm sitting sideways for a second before my brain catches up to the fact that I didn't just go through a banked turn after that corkscrew, but I'm actually sitting right-side up on the brake run. FoF is the only ride to ever give me such a feeling of true disorientation.

 

Dominator: Definitely a front seat ride. It gave me a slight headache, but was still worth a re-ride.

 

Avalanche: Pretty fun, and actually a little scary going around the turns and seeing the ground below, because of how narrow the trough is.

 

Volcano: The forceful launches really took me by surprise. It was a great ride, and pretty well themed compared to the rest of the park.

 

Grizzly: I really liked this one. It was well-paced and had some strong laterals through the turns. It was rough, but not painfully so.

 

Drop Tower: I'm not sure if I'm just getting acclimated to the feeling of drop towers, but after riding the awesome Mach Tower at BGW the day before, this one didn't feel very intense to me. Nice view of i305, though.

 

Backlot: Really fun, and pretty intense for a family coaster. I even greyed out a bit in the helix.

 

Ricochet: standard mouse. Not much else to say there

 

Rebel Yell: It wasn't bad, but if they tore it down, I wouldn't even notice it was gone.

 

Woodstock Express: little airtime machine. These rides are always great, and definitely not just for small kids.

 

After riding all 3 US gigas, I think I would rank them Fury > i305 > MF. i305 definitely felt smoother than Fury, though I was expecting i305 to be more intense than it actually was, like Skyrush or Maverick intense, but it was much more tame than either of those two rides, in my experience.

[Brassinthegrass]

Yesterday was my first time to KD and was my first time to a major theme park all by myself. I spent Saturday at Busch Gardens surprising my students on their Band Trip and had a blast, but with another long 7 hour drive ahead of me on Sunday I thought I would break it up a bit with a morning at KD. Since I have a Platinum Pass for my major trip later in the summer, it cost me nothing to go for the morning.

 

I arrived around 9:45, there was a cheerleading competition in the park, so the gates were open and people were mulling around the front area as well as walking down to the Picnic area past Dominator. I walked over to the early entry and spent some time BSing with the security guards.

 

Volcano - first ride of the day, fro not row. I must say, I was pleasantly surprised by this ride! It was quite smooth, and quite forceful.

 

Intimidator - front row, alone in the entire train. What a great way to experience this ride for the first time! Second ride was with a gentlemen the who said we was from the CP area (didn't catch his name, wonder if he's in here with us!). Only someone like a TPR member would have a full blown convo on the lift hill about MF vs. I-305. Honestly, it's magical how great this ride is. The forces are perfect, the restraints are comfortable, and the transitions are unbelievable. It is definitely my favorite Steel coaster as of now, although El Toro still wins overall. All I could think on the hill after the "twisty" section was, "my god this thing is perfect!"

 

At this point it was just about 10:30, and the park was starting to come to life. Anaconda was down, so I made my way over to the wooden coasters.

 

Rebel Yell was first, fun, and OMFG what a view of Intimidator!

 

Hurler - expected it to be a little rough from what I've heard. Maybe it's all the years of riding the Coney Island Cyclone and rolling thunder, but it really wasn't that terrible.

 

Grizzly - let's start off with, "how the hell am I supposed to know I have to walk through a gift shop to get there?!?" I have to admit, this thing needs some love, the turn after the initial turn around did some damage on my vertebrates...

 

Dominator - great ride, standard B&M flourless, had some nice g's throughout. I love how the trains still clearly look like they should be Batman Themed.

 

After that it was about 11:30 and I hit the road (I did have 7 hours of driving still ahead of me). But what a great first experience at this park. I can not wait to go back this summer and spend some more time exploring the park and hitting the rest of the coasters.

[ThemeParkJunkie51290]

DISCLAIMER: ANY REPOSTERS, PLEASE GIVE CREDIT TO MY ACCOUNT

As a careful observer of KD's website, I noticed recently that on the front-page Gold Pass advertisement, an orange or red B&M hyper or gigacoaster with bright green supports (don't confuse it with the Dominator) is hidden in plain sight. Before you dismiss this as an artist's mistake because the incorrect variant of Intamin drop tower is shown, I already checked similar ads of other Cedar Fair Parks (like Carowinds) and found that only existing coasters were shown. Considering the fact that the first teaser last year for this year's Soak City expansion came as a logo hidden behind the old WaterWorks logo on the front page around this time last year, this is an exciting prospect for the 2016 season.

(On a side note, a purple ride/track is found towards the back on the right side).

Interestingly, the three coasters considered to be on the chopping block (Hurler, Anaconda, Shockwave) are all shown, but not Volcano.

OMG! You made an excellent observation! I truly believe Kings Dominion is getting something grand for 2016. I hope it would be a hyper because this will definitely balance out the park collection. Since gigas and hypers are blooming together. LOL.

[ferk60]

 

After riding all 3 US gigas, I think I would rank them Fury > i305 > MF. i305 definitely felt smoother than Fury, though I was expecting i305 to be more intense than it actually was, like Skyrush or Maverick intense, but it was much more tame than either of those two rides, in my experience.

 

I have to agree with you. I have not rode Fury yet but I agree with the i305 > MF. That isn't saying much b/c MF is still a breathe taking roller coaster however I think that i305 has a better drop, cooler airtime moments and I love that close to the ground feel for the ride b/c it never really loses speed.

 

I thought all the rides in the park were pretty good, except Hurler.

 

I think it would be great if they could add a new roller coaster though. It has been some time, its time to really bring something big to the park. The Hurler is awful. It is a bumpy ride rough ride when it is open and it might be time to a RMC make over. I honestly would not mind just a tear down.

 

Kings Dominion where it stands has an awesome line up making it tough to imagine what they need. If I was planning I would add a nice RMC woodie in the front of the park on the opposite side of Dominator. The ride interacting with the entrance thing is very in vogue right now but I think it would be cool to see Dominator on on side and a bad ass RMC woodie on the other side. flanking the entrance as you walk up to the park.

[Brassinthegrass]

It's not a bad idea, but where would the entrance to the rode be? That whole side of the park in the front is "back of house" stuff...

[ferk60]

It's not a bad idea, but where would the entrance to the rode be? That whole side of the park in the front is "back of house" stuff...

 

It is back of house stuff, move it, lol. No one will know the difference. Build a new back of house somewhere else. I am not sure what those building are but I think it moving them could justify a

 

1. Refreshed entry plaza

2. New front of of the park woodie that is accessed from right off of the International Street near Effiel Tower OR the entrance can be built near the action theater in Old Virginia. I'd love for it to be an Out and Back/Twister with some of the more twisted elements to be front of the park.

 

I am picturing on side of the entrance you have the huge dominator loop and on the other side you have nice inverted dive element from a RMC woodie. It would be great. especially if the went for the record and made it like 200+ feet tall and super duper long.

[willh51]

I am really happy to hear both Drop Tower and Grizzly are open this early in the year. It seems like those rides were delayed till summer for the last couple of seasons. Funny about Hurler, as sometimes the KD version is far superior to Carowinds' ride. I guess they didn't do much off-season retracking this year. The Crypt is kind of awesome, and I really like the floorless Top Spin models. That little area of the park has some nice scenery, too.

 

i305 tends to creep up on you. When TPR was there a few years ago I rode 10x in a row and REALLY felt it all over my body.

[coasterbill]

I normally think enthusiasts read way too far into things but I've got to admit... that's a very intriguing find.

[VF15]

DISCLAIMER: ANY REPOSTERS, PLEASE GIVE CREDIT TO MY ACCOUNT

As a careful observer of KD's website, I noticed recently that on the front-page Gold Pass advertisement, an orange or red B&M hyper or gigacoaster with bright green supports (don't confuse it with the Dominator) is hidden in plain sight. Before you dismiss this as an artist's mistake because the incorrect variant of Intamin drop tower is shown, I already checked similar ads of other Cedar Fair Parks (like Carowinds) and found that only existing coasters were shown. Considering the fact that the first teaser last year for this year's Soak City expansion came as a logo hidden behind the old WaterWorks logo on the front page around this time last year, this is an exciting prospect for the 2016 season.

(On a side note, a purple ride/track is found towards the back on the right side).

Interestingly, the three coasters considered to be on the chopping block (Hurler, Anaconda, Shockwave) are all shown, but not Volcano.

Hmm... I guess it could possibly mean something, but all of the Cedar Fair parks have one of these as the background for their season pass advertisements, and most of them have something that isn't quite right. I guess we'll find out soon enough.

[certifiedcoastergeek]

DISCLAIMER: ANY REPOSTERS, PLEASE GIVE CREDIT TO MY ACCOUNT

As a careful observer of KD's website, I noticed recently that on the front-page Gold Pass advertisement, an orange or red B&M hyper or gigacoaster with bright green supports (don't confuse it with the Dominator) is hidden in plain sight. Before you dismiss this as an artist's mistake because the incorrect variant of Intamin drop tower is shown, I already checked similar ads of other Cedar Fair Parks (like Carowinds) and found that only existing coasters were shown. Considering the fact that the first teaser last year for this year's Soak City expansion came as a logo hidden behind the old WaterWorks logo on the front page around this time last year, this is an exciting prospect for the 2016 season.

(On a side note, a purple ride/track is found towards the back on the right side).

Interestingly, the three coasters considered to be on the chopping block (Hurler, Anaconda, Shockwave) are all shown, but not Volcano.

Hmm... I guess it could possibly mean something, but all of the Cedar Fair parks have one of these as the background for their season pass advertisements, and most of them have something that isn't quite right. I guess we'll find out soon enough.

True, but the hyper clearly isn't a stock image because I checked the other CF park sites and there's no hyper in existence with that color scheme that I'm aware of. Also, the level of detail (telltale B&M catwalk, airtime hills) makes it clear that this isn't just some mistake.

[nannerdw]

As I was riding Shockwave, it reminded me that the Togo standup at King's Island was almost my very first coaster, but I was too afraid to ride it at the time. Good thing I chickened out, because that probably would have been a pretty traumatic experience to 11-year-old me. lol

 

Grizzly - let's start off with, "how the hell am I supposed to know I have to walk through a gift shop to get there?!?"

Yes, that was very odd. I walked back to Hurler, thinking "Wow, Grizzly must be a long ride. Wait, this part looks a lot like Hurler. Oh, that's because it is. How did I walk past Grizzly without seeing the entrance?" Then I walked over to the go kart area before finally realizing the gift shop had an exit in the back.

 

Also, I forgot to mention Windseeker. It's a pretty relaxing ride, but I spent most of it thinking "Hmm, I wonder what would happen if that single shoulder bolt that's holding me in just sheared off. Would I fall all the way to the ground, or get saved by the dampers attaching me to the surrounding seats?"

[cfc]

 

Grizzly - let's start off with, "how the hell am I supposed to know I have to walk through a gift shop to get there?!?"

 

I think this sign was meant to provide you with a hint.

 

 

Where it says "Entrance ahead to Grizzly and Dinosaurs Alive."

 

That being said, even before the dinosaurs. Grizzly's entrance was pretty well hidden.

[loop-de-loop]

The hyper seen is also on World's of Fun's background.

[TyRush]

I wouldn't take that hyper as a hint or anything in the backgrounds

[certifiedcoastergeek]

The hyper seen is also on World's of Fun's background.

Oh well... likely debunked then

Anyway, I think that most of us can agree that KD is due for a coaster of some sort, even though it's still speculation at this point. The Hypersonic station is still there, but the right side of International Street and Old Virginia definitely need some 40th/41st/42nd anniversary love.

Most likely for next year (reply if you'd make some tweaks to this list):

1. B&M hyper - replaces Hurler and/or Grizzly - no-brainer, great fit, B&M hyper/Intamin giga 1-2 punch, only detractor is that every other CF park has gone hyper, then giga

2. B&M invert - think Banshee, but maybe 200 ft+ - but Alpengeist is <100 miles away

3. Large flat/family ride - replaces Shockwave, skyride possibly rebuilt - ugh but likely at some point, might happen in 2017 because of 2013 Planet Snoopy expansion

4. Intamin Impulse - replaces Shockwave - a better twist (no pun intended) on #3

5. Triotech 4D dark ride/roller coaster hybrid - built into existing Volcano in space left over by Haunted River + other previous ride

6.B&M giga - replaces Hurler, Grizzly, Action Theater, Log Flume, and Halloween corn maze (CornStalkers), with remodeled International Street and queue to right of fountains (sounds ridiculous but might not be a terrible fit). KD probably wants this, but CF wouldn't be likely to approve because of Fury (and two gigas while KI has 0 wouldn't fly, either).

7. Intamin strata or other Accelerator - replaces Hurler and/or Grizzly - makes sense because Hypersonic station is still there, could be done with the space, back to Launch Capital of world, but CF probably doesn't want to take the spotlight off of TTD, so a smaller Accelerator is more likely

[Sfne1313]

The WOF one is different. Look in the top left of this one.

[ThemeParkJunkie51290]

I love how early in the season it is, and we're already making speculations! But TRUST ME, that's no mistake by any means. Worlds of Fun and Michigan Adventures are the only other two parks that have "mysterious" rides as well. Only time will tell, but it's something to think about. How come all the other Cedar Fair Parks' attractions are accurate, but you're going to throw in a giga/hyper picture in the background? YOU CAN'T MAKE THAT BIG OF A MISTAKE!!!

 

[The Geek Mojo]

I think if KD got a hyper, it would be a waste. I know Cedar Fair is on a B&M kick lately so I could see them adding another B&M to KD because they only have one. But adding a hyper wouldn't be what this park needs. Currently it's in a market with two other parks that fill most of what B&M offers. SFA has a stand up. Busch Gardens has a hyper, Dive, and Invert. And KD has a floorless. What's missing? A Wing Coaster. If KD built a mega version of HW's Launched Thunderbird, I think that would be a home run for this park. That whole Virginia/Maryland area up there would be a B&M lovers paradise.

[Intimidator305]

So by this logic, KD must also be receiving a Vekoma SLC too because the graphic on the game booth next to Safari Village is accurate besides that on it.

 

2016/2017 just has to be a coaster for Kings Dominion... remember, Intimidator 305 construction didn't even begin until Monday June 1, 2009. There's plenty of time in the season - they haven't even opened their new Soak City yet! (which will be great and is a large investment to be honest)