Kings Dominion (KD) Discussion Thread

[boldikus]

It's kinda crazy the park is having as many issues as they are especially with TT after opening day. On opening day we had very little issues other than a few things being closed (Drop Tower was the only thing we really cared about) but we expected that on opening day. TT ran all day with only one breakdown that I remember hearing about but ran consistently the times we were at the ride that day, and operations all around weren't amazing but were far from terrible.

[CoasterAuditor]

Quick question for the KD regulars.

 

I'll be driving down from Michigan this week and initially was planning on visiting Wednesday. While the forecast looks fine from a rain standpoint, there are projected winds of 15-20mph for most of the day (with heavier gusts). How likely are the major coasters to be operating in these types of conditions? I can potentially shift to visiting Thursday if this level of wind will shut a lot of stuff down.

 

I have never actually seen any of the coasters closed due to high winds at Kings Dominion. Windseeker will shut down instantly once it has found the wind it seeks.

[redfoot12]

I got walked.....Oh well at least the three rides on i305 made up for it. Back to the gym....

 

sorry to hear that. . I know you were concerned about that.

 

but you got a great consolation prize, and you have the whole summer to keep working towards the goal!

I've got some work to do too...

 

Not only did I get denied on Twisted Timbers but for the first time in my life I got denied on I305.

 

I went back to the park yesterday and successfully rode Twisted Timbers!

It was an amazingly intense ride in the back. I feel very fortunate to live 20 minutes away from such an excellent coaster, not to mention I305 (which I was able to ride as well).

As much as I'd like to say my one week of dieting was an absolute success, I'll chalk it up to better choice of clothing and better ride ops!

[steamedturtle]

Ohhhhh that's not what I want to hear... I'm going today, TT better be freakin running!!!!!!

 

It's running!

 

Edit: drop tower is now g2g as well. First time I've seen it running this season.

Edited April 2, 2018 by steamedturtle

[jrd64fan]

Ohhhhh that's not what I want to hear... I'm going today, TT better be freakin running!!!!!!

 

It's running. xD

 

 

Are you serious? Couldn't tell because of xD.

[steamedturtle]

My bad, edited for clarity. It is up today with 1 train running. Green train is covered with a tarp.

[bill_s]

Quick question for the KD regulars.

 

I'll be driving down from Michigan this week and initially was planning on visiting Wednesday. While the forecast looks fine from a rain standpoint, there are projected winds of 15-20mph for most of the day (with heavier gusts). How likely are the major coasters to be operating in these types of conditions? I can potentially shift to visiting Thursday if this level of wind will shut a lot of stuff down.

 

It will slow down the coasters. I rode Dominator the day before hurricane Sandy dumped Star Jet into the ocean, and between the cold and wind it felt like it wasn't going to finish the course -- which was really cool since I've ridden it so many times, but may not be what you had in mind. Crowds might be better. Sunstantial rain does close I305 before other rides. Forecast does show wind abating before closing time ( http://www.usairnet.com/cgi-bin/launch/code.cgi?Submit=Go&sta=KOFP&state=VA ).

 

It was windy last Friday night, turning upper 50s into rather frigid. Dominator was down then also.

[coasterbill]

Quick question for the KD regulars.

 

I'll be driving down from Michigan this week and initially was planning on visiting Wednesday. While the forecast looks fine from a rain standpoint, there are projected winds of 15-20mph for most of the day (with heavier gusts). How likely are the major coasters to be operating in these types of conditions? I can potentially shift to visiting Thursday if this level of wind will shut a lot of stuff down.

 

I wouldn't worry at all. I don't expect anything noteworthy to close, and it's supposed to be warm enough that the coasters will probably run fine.

[CoasterAuditor]

It was windy last Friday night, turning upper 50s into rather frigid. Dominator was down then also.

 

From what I had heard from a park employee (take that with a grain of salt of course) Dominator was having issues with its moving floors on Friday not wind.

[LogBur]

Thanks for the info guys!

 

Gonna stick to the original itinerary - Tuesday evening for a few hours and then all day Wednesday. Hopefully the threat of some light rain will keep a few folks away as well.

[dakota381]

I hope I'm not opening a can of worms here but I'm curious about the loose articles policy and new lockers. I saw a post on here that someone was told to remove a fanny pack before riding TT. I don't use a fanny pack but I have one of these tactical pouches that attaches to your belt and I'm hoping it won't be a problem taking this on rides at KD. I'd like to chalk the whole fanny pack incident up to new rules and new ops and maybe it will calm down by my trip up in early June. Anyone have any thoughts on this to help ease my mind?

 

Here's what it looks like.

[bgtlover]

Fanny packs are indeed not allowed on Twisted Timbers.

If what you have is hidden under your shirt and not bulging too much you MIGHT get away with it. I wouldn't hold my breath however.

 

Here is a photo posted in a comment on FB about the loose article policy for TT (I would assume it's the same as Intimidator 305 & Flight Of Fear as they installed lockers at both & removed the bins).

[Canobie Coaster]

^ Good to know about the glasses strap when I go there. I've just defaulted to bringing it now when I go to parks.

[Password121]

I had that exact sign memorized for every time there was a huge line-up at Millennium's entrance last year... man did people hate me

 

It's nice to see them taking initiative with capacity for their new coaster though, and having the staffing to enforce it properly is good to see (park security at the entrance).

[mtorange]

For those worried about the wind gusts and such, most rides at Kings Dominion don't usually close until wind gusts reach the 30s. The taller rides in the park (Drop Tower, Windseeker) keep track of the wind speed and make the call to temporarily delay operation if need be. Tallest rides usually close first in a case like this (aforementioned rides, i305, etc.). I cannot speak for how wind affects the speed of a coaster, but I assume it wouldn't affect it too much unless the wind reaches 30mph or above. So with that being said, I wouldn't worry at all about 15-20mph.

 

I've been a longtime browser but a first-time poster! Glad to be here!

[coasterbill]

On the subject of hats... you can secure them in a pocket (per the sign) but do so before entering the queue. If they see you wearing it then won't let you in the queue even if you tell them you plan to secure it in your pocket later. That was super weird. We just hung ours on the fence... as did everyone else. lol

[steamedturtle]

On the subject of hats... you can secure them in a pocket (per the sign) but do so before entering the queue. If they see you wearing it then won't let you in the queue even if you tell them you plan to secure it in your pocket later. That was super weird. We just hung ours on the fence... as did everyone else. lol

 

Interestingly, today some, but not all, of the gate attendants were not letting people leave their hats and bags on the fence by the entrance. I walked up and the kids in front of me went to hang their bag on the fence right in front the attendant, and there were already tons of bags hanging there, but the attendant gave them a very stern "No!" as if they were a "bad dog," and pointed them to the lockers.

[CoasterAuditor]

^My guess is a manager or supervisor saw that and lectured them to not let people do that shortly before that. At least KDs lockers aren't anything like Busch Gardens locker policy which I found out yesterday is fairly intense compared to KD. But I do like the $10 transferable locker option as I will certainly be using that everytime I go to BGW.

[bert425]

that's strange on the hats. . can you not just put them down the front of your shirt?

 

(that's what we did at CP last year)

[CoasterGuy06]

But I do like the $10 transferable fluffy, fluffy bunny filled with medicine and goo option as I will certainly be using that everytime I go to BGW.

 

That was one of the things I liked about the lockers when I visited SWO/BGT for the first time last year. Every big ride had a set by the entrance and you could by a transferable locker. Even if you don't force people to use the locker for every ride why do you not make them available? I would much rather get a transferable locker and put my phone, wallet, etc. in a locker before getting on each ride and be able to have access to them as soon as I get off the ride.

[CedarFlags]

Transferable storage units is something I REALLY wish parks like Cedar Point could figure out. I would gladly pay an upcharge for the convenience of having my stuff with me during the day and not having to constantly hike so far to retrieve things. $20 would be worth it for me, so $10 sounds like a dream.

[dakota381]

Fanny packs are indeed not allowed on Twisted Timbers.

If what you have is hidden under your shirt and not bulging too much you MIGHT get away with it. I wouldn't hold my breath however.

 

Here is a photo posted in a comment on FB about the loose article policy for TT (I would assume it's the same as Intimidator 305 & Flight Of Fear as they installed fluffy, fluffy bunnies filled with medicine and goo at both & removed the bins).

 

Thanks for the info! I plan on getting a season pass so, I'll just use the lockers, marathon this sucker during ERT, get my crap and go on about my day.

[coasterbill]

There's a crazy lack of consistency, so we just kept asking whatever greeter happened to be there at the time and doing whatever they said we could do. Sometimes they said we could bring the hats if we secured them later, other times they said we couldn't but they said that we could hang them on the fence. Other times we just secured them before we got in line (we forgot a few times since it's such a weird rule). we just chalked it up to the fact that it was early in the season. It's weird, but no big deal. I'm sure they'll figure it out eventually.

[Jason Maier]

I can understand the lockers for I-305 and Twisted Timbers . . . but why the lockers for Flight of Fear?

 

And how come they junked the I-305 gift shop?

[CoasterAuditor]

^That honestly is something surprising to me as well. Maybe they weren't selling much last year? You would think with Intimidator 305 being the headlining coaster at KD that they would have kept their gift shop for it.