The Long Road to 250 - Kentucky Kingdom - Day 4

[EmmaUK]

On a 2 week to the USA I found myself with a few days to spare between New York and Orlando. To cut a long story short, my then girlfriend and I found an amazing deal on business class flights flying from Manchester into New York and then back from Orlando with Are Lingus. And then, we split up. Well, we decided to try spending a few days with each other at the start and end of the trip, but the middle bit she went to see her friend whilst I... well I had no plans. October park hours are a bit, well, crap, but I saw that Cedar Point had a Thursday evening opening, and all day Friday, with Kings Island, Kentucky Kingdom and Holiday World having weekend openings with decent hours. Nickelodeon Universe was also open so a few bonus creds to pick up on the way.

Before I get into the parks though, I was in the queue when an older Irish chap started talking to us. My ex is a musician, and he was saying how he'd been gigging a bit, and how someone wanted him to go on stage at a festival but no-one would have known who he was.

We were talking to him for a while as the plane took forever to load. He was somehow familiar but I couldn't quite place it. He spoke of how he had roots in Liverpool and Ireland, but now lived in New York, and how he'd been a musician since the 70s, and how one of his kids was now beginning to make music.

(In my best Bob Saget as the voice of Ted Mosby) And that kids is the true story of how I met Elvis Costello.



My ex with Elvis Costello.

So the air staff were saying how there was also someone who used to be on Coronation Street on the flight. Meh, I thought. Until I saw who it was:



To belittle the work of Craig Charles to suggest he was "that guy in Corrie". He will always, always, be Dave Lister.

Anyway, both of them were really nice.

And then 3 days in New York. Skyscrapers, Cocktails, Burgers, you know the drill and don't care.

And then it was time to go. I'd decided to hire a car from New York just as Cedar Point is a real pain in the backside to get to, and I could go via Nickelodeon at American Dream Mall. As I'm about to pay for my ticket online I see the closures:



Frankly, what's the point. So after my 75 minute drive to make it up 10 blocks in Manhattan, I left for the long journey to Cedar Point. After a stop over night half way, I arrived at Cedar Point Express, which I would very much recommend. Nice hotel. And the 1 hour early entry is a godsend. I wasn't feeling very well, and I was very tired, but getting there by 4.30 to be one of the first early entries, my plan was to go straight to Wild Mouse. I'd heard this could get awful queues. But there was no movement at Wild Mouse so far as I could see, so off to Gatekeeper it was.





#222 - Gatekeeper

I'd heard very mixed things about this, but I thought it was rather good. One thing I've never heard anyone talk about before is the moment of hang time you get as it goes across the entrance for the 2nd time. The near misses the first time were brilliant, but whether it was because it was the first train of the day on a cold October evening, or because it only had maybe 10 people on it, there was definite hang time on there. I agree with those who say it rather fizzes out at the end. Past the MCBR its very meh. But I was impressed. Top 50 worthy at least. Maybe top 25 when I sit down to check.

Over to Wild Mouse.





#223 Wild Mouse. And its not really a wild mouse. It spins. It made me feel a little queasy as I was already not well. One and done

After a Starbucks to make myself feel a little better, it was over to do the third coaster open on early entry, Millennium Force.



#224 Millennium Force. Now this I had heard a lot about. I mean the thing is a legend. But what I'd never been told was that at the bottom of the first drop in the back seat there is a real grey out moment. Whoever calls this Millennium Forceless is just wrong. Sure, it meanders a bit after that. And it is nowhere near i305 in terms of what it does with the speed. But a definite top 25er.

Unlike Rougarou.



#225 Rougarou. Oh Rougarou you piece of crap. You rattly, jerky waste of prime space and metal.

Feeling a bit ill I had a little walk around, and Cedar Point really is an odd park. The first half is old style (but not in a nice way) midway with little by way of theming. Honestly, take a photo here and compare to Blackpool Promenade you'd struggle to tell the difference. The second half, the back half, is pure THEME park. I don't know what they can do as the first half is kind of set, but it really is thematically a park of 2 halves.

I checked out TT2 progress.


Went on the Mine Train.

#226 Mine Train. It sucked.

And decided now was the time for the big one. SteVe.



#227. Steel Vengeance. I was so excited getting on this. Except also fear. What if I had hyped it up? My number 1 of El Toro is all about the airtime, and I loved Wicked Cyclone which is a baby version of this? Surely it's up my alley? What if it couldn't possibly be as good as everyone seems to say? What if me being ill spoiled it? What if it breaking down whilst in the queue so I had to wait an extra 45 minutes for it to get back up and running somehow ruined it.

I should not have worried. Oh my god. This thing is relentless. From that first drop your bum doesn't seem to touch the seat. Sideways ejector. Flojector. The inversions. The turns. Sure it hurt at the end, but that's because I'm carrying a bit of spare weight and the bar nipped my belly skin by the end. But I did not care. Without a doubt my new number 1!

By now it was dark and the Halloween Event started. Before getting onto the Halloween, I did one more coaster, Maverick.

#228. Maverick. Too dark now for any dedicated photos. This is good. Very good. The launches are good (although the 2nd into a trim is a buzzkill). The sudden changes of direction are I305-esque. Its very very good, but you can see the genesis from this to Velocicoaster and Pantheon, and there is no doubt that they are better. Whether this would be better with the new restraints is undoubtedly a yes.

The Halloween event. It's spooky. The mazes rely a little too much on the jump scare for my liking. I didn't see many walk-around actors in the scare zones. But it does have a great atmosphere. Just a few photos dumped here for the Halloween vibe.






Today - back to Cedar Point to finish the set. And re-ride this beast

 

[EmmaUK]

A second day at Cedar Point. 17 creds on RCDB. But obvious TT is becoming TT2. So that's down to 16. And I knew Gemini and Corkscrew were weekend only for the event so that's 14. And obviously Wilderness Run is out. And Woodstock Express wasn't opening either. So that's down to 12 potential credits, with 7 done yesterday.

I started with #229 Raptor.



30 minute queue it said. Well that's not too bad.

Nearly 90 minutes later I got onto the ride. Speaking with others, it seems that the park consistently underestimated their wait times today. Normally its the other way around to push you towards Fast Passes.

Anyway, it pushed me towards a Fast Pass. I was here for a day, all of the rides had massive queues that might have been underestimated (2 hours someone waited for Valravn). It was worth the investment.

As for Raptor. I mean it's ok. It has the occasional slightly janky transition. I just don't know if I'm getting a bit older now, or these are getting older, but they don't quite do it for me anymore.

Grabbing a fast pass ($160 well spent in my view) and an all day meal voucher (very good value if, like me, you're a snacker at the parks). I headed to Valravn.

#230 Valravn.



Now with a fast pass, I was up and on in under 20 minutes. I know this ride gets a bit of hate but I like it. Having the far left front seat (being single rider you always seem to get a far left seat) should, if anything, give a sub-optimal ride, but this was smooth as butter, the first drop is great, the inversions smooth and graceful, and I even liked the restraints. Probably my favourite dive machine, and probably a top 20 ride.



I did like this though (CBA turning it) - pushing it a bit with the records. Claiming both the tallest dive coaster AND the longest drop on a dive coaster. When, ever, are those 2 things not hand in hand in a dive coaster?

#231 Blue Streak



Blue Streak. Meh. It's ok. Shows how desperately a good modern woodie is missing from the line up here.

And then over to Iron Dragon. Except not. The wait says 30 minutes, but its clearly not, spilling out into the causeway. It seems that they just say 30 minutes for this ride regardless, because despite spilling out into the causeway further and further, the wait time never changed. Go figure. In the end this ride eluded me, but wait 30 minutes for Iron Dragon (which does not have fast pass) or use that valuable time to fast pass Maverick. Only one option there. The 120 minute queue bypassed in 15. I really felt that scene where Mr Bean wafts his first class ticket on the plane.

Good ride. Great ride. But I do not like the restraints. They were really digging in. I love the second launch, but it wastes it all into the trims, and I know why it does that, but it just feels disappointing. Its just not quite as far up there as I thought it would be.

On to Steel Vengeance. And this thing confirmed its the best thing out there to me. It's not quite perfect:

a) If placed incorrectly, the seatbelt buckle can really dig in towards the end of the ride;
b) I miss the stall ubiquitous in newer RMCs;
c) I could live without those final airtime hills into the station;
d) At night, you're at risk of eating flies. They kept hitting my hands like little darts. And one hit my eye.

But in spite of that, it's amazing. Truly amazing. That first half especially is just relentless awesomeness.

So #232 Magnum XL 200




(No idea how it maintains that sidewards momentum. OR once again I fall foul of the landscape photos only rule)

A while ago I put this down as in my 10 top bucket list coasters.

And OMG it was worth the wait. The biggest mystery in coasters is surely, it this inspired the Big One at Blackpool, why is this so awesome at airtime, and that is a monorail after the first drop. First drop aside, there is no contest between the 2. Clearly the knowledge was there, why was it not used.

I wasn't even in the magic seat. But this thing threw me out on any hill. I actually think this may be criminally underrated as a coaster.

The food was decent and the drinks fun.



So barring a few re-rides, its off to Kings Island. I'm not actually expecting any new top 10 rides but it should be a fun day.

 

[Livin’ the coaster life]

It looked like you had an amazing time at Cedar Point! - although I’m really sorry that you and your partner split up.

Cedar Point is my favourite park and I’m heading over there in 2024. The last time I was there was 2018 so I’m beyond excited 🫣.

Picture of me and my husband on the front of Top Thrill Dragster .

 

[EmmaUK]

It looked like you had an amazing time at Cedar Point! - although I’m really sorry that you and your partner split up.

Cedar Point is my favourite park and I’m heading over there in 2024. The last time I was there was 2018 so I’m beyond excited 🫣.

Picture of me and my husband on the front of Top Thrill Dragster .

Thank you - and you see that's what I need next time - a partner who actually gets this hobby and joins in with me. Maybe this site needs a dating page

 

[Livin’ the coaster life]

Thank you - and you see that's what I need next time - a partner who actually gets this hobby and joins in with me. Maybe this site needs a dating page

Me and the hubby share horse riding as our main hobby and tbh it makes us argue so much! Being similar isn’t always a positive thing. He likes his 4x4 trails and I love my coasters. We always seem to have a good time doing each others hobbies lol always ended up falling out over horses ha lol

 

[EmmaUK]

Day 3 - Kings Island

I'd heard before about the odd drive from Cedar Point to Kings Island, and I suppose it does feel quite odd that the 3 hour or so drive is at least half on little country roads, but I arrived at Kings Island by around midday. I knew I wouldn't be there for opening, but having splashed out on an Express pass (I thought that a Saturday on the run up to Halloween would be particularly busy) I wasn't worried about getting the credits.

On entering the park it was clear that this was a beautiful park beautifully decorated for Halloween. The sky, however, was not beautiful and the threat of rain existed all day, at times making good on its threat.





I headed over to Mystic Timbers

#233 Mystic Timbers



Little did I expect that this would be my highlight of the day, and over the course of the day was ridden several times in all manner of seats including an excellent night ride.

That it was build by GCI at a similar time to Wicker Man was clear as it all felt very familiar somehow. It felt like Wicker Man's bigger, faster, more powerful big brother. The forces were excellent with some excellent airtime (much better than I expected) and decent laterals. It felt like one of those rides that ended exactly at the correct time, just as you felt that it's relentless pace was about to falter slightly.

I quite liked the shed as well. I understand that if you didn't know what it was on riding you'd expect a drop track or something (although just looking at the shed from the outside made it clear it wasn't a drop track). Knowing what it was though, I liked it as it certainly beats just sitting on a boring brake run.

That I felt its similarity to Wicker Man got me thinking WWMNT (which as I'm sure that you all know is What Would Matt N Think). I think he'd like it. It wasn't rough despite its forces (certainly no more than Wicker Man) and was a good fun ride start to finish.

A top 15 ride for me.

The exit is very close to Diamondback.

#234 Diamondback





I'd heard great things about this, yet as I put in the Rank the B&M Hyper thread, it was my least favourite so far. It has all of the usual B&M Hyper Tricks, camelback hill after airtime hill, couple of high speed turns and a forceful helix. But its rough. Oh my god it rattles the fillings out of your teeth. Using WWMNT, it's the opposite of Mako's smoothness. A later cold night ride on it with a slight drizzle was one of the most miserable coaster experiences I've ever had, as the icy rain hit my face as my entire body was shaken apart. Now don't get me wrong, it's still top 50 in my rankings as a bad hyper still had significant redeeming features. Rather than, like Mako where it gently lifts you up into the airtime hills and then gradually seats you at the end, this thrusts you out of the seat and then throws you back into it at the end of the hill, something I quite like if the coaster is smoother. And it felt faster than your usual hyper.

#235 The Beast





This Coaster is a real bucket list coaster to all goons and I was no exception. Not that it is renown for being a great ride, but it feels like a pilgrimage. One cannot help but wonder whether we would have the present wooden coaster scene that we do if the Beast did not exist. It has about the same amount of airtime as you'll find own your average alpine coaster, but the laterals are all there if you like that kind of thing. But its rough. OMG it's rough. It's even more marked when considered against Mystic Timbers just next door, but I had rare cause to put my arms down and hold on just to use brute force to stop my body constantly hitting the carriage. I'm afraid I have very little good to say about it. I didn't manage to get a night ride either as it went down whilst in the queue, but it falls into my lower 50% of coasters. I'd heard it was retracked significantly last winter and cannot imagine how bad it must have been before.

I seem to recall someone did this for their 1000th and said how disappointed they in fact were (Jordan maybe?) and I get it. To me it just was not fun.

#236 Backlot Stunt Coaster

I've done one of these before at Kings Dominion and felt this one was quite a lot better. Whether it's my memory failing, or it just wasn't turned on at the time, but this seemed to have a number of effects working that I don't recall at KD.

No one is really going to be wowed by this. It's solid. It's fine. It's one and done.

#237 Racer

This was much better than I expected. Decent airtime. It's a simple out and back layout but it hits the right spot. However, what I don't get (and here's my competitive head taking over here) is that it's a racing coaster, called racer, and yet at the end you've no idea if you've won. There's no finish line, and even if there was, you can barely see the other train coming down the other track in any event. On the home straight there's one small hill where you can see over to the other train and work out if you're ahead or not, but that's it.

#238 Adventure Express



It's a mine train. It's better than Cedar Point's mine train. Which is an admittedly low bar. I knew of the ridiculous "end on a lift hill" element to this ride, which I could live with, but it felt like a half baked story up it as well. It really made you think something was going to happen and then...nope...its over. What a weird ending.

#239 Banshee



At this stage, as you can see from the sky, the weather really was on the turn, and my first ride, as the cold rain started, was fairly miserable. Later, when it was more of just a slight spray, it was much better. I'd heard bad things about the restraints but I thought they were fine. It was a good forceful ride but for me the best part was not where it was intense and forceful, but instead does a slow inline twist high off the floor, and the hang time is like nothing I've experienced on an invert before. Without it, it was an average invert, but with that element it shoots it up and only Nemesis and Great Bear are above it in my rankings.

#240 Flight of Fear

I've been on this before at KD and the experience was pretty much the same. Even with the express pass it was well over 30 minutes wait (which when you're by yourself, and don't have a phone as its in the locker, felt like it lasted forever). The standard queue was 140 minutes and I cannot fathom waiting that long for it (although I do wonder how much the weather led to that).

It's fine. the launch is good but what follows could be better. It's very disorientating and at times you really question if you're inverted or not, but a bit of thumbing wouldn't go amis.

#241 Orion



This is the coaster equivalent of "I'm not angry, I'm just disappointed". If this was a "simple" hyper I think it would be viewed better, but when its a giga you just expect something more.

It's a good, but not great, first drop. I cannot understand how Shambhala seems to have a better first drop despite being nearly 50 feet shorter. The first hill rather than a simple camelback has a slight bend in it. It feels as though B&M tried to be a bit RMC / Intimin, but they're simply not. They are able to do the crazy forces, and the sideways airtime etc. B&M are kings of the camelback, and if they just kept to what they know, it would be better. What then follows felt a bit lazy and lacklustre. Turnaround that could have been so much better. A Helix that felt that it had been phoned in. A brake zone that was so high it felt that energy was wasted.

Still a decent coaster, and in isolation a top 20 coaster still. But it should have been so much more.

#242 Bat



Via the old Son of Beast station



What a surprise this ride was. I expected something akin to Vampire at Chessington, but this is so much more. Surprisingly fast and surprisingly forceful. Undoubtedly my surprise of the trip so far.

Alas, Invertigo was down and I left it too late to do Woodstock Express or Flying Ace Aerial Chase. Which meant that my plan to hit 250 at Kentucky Kingdom was no longer realistically possible.

I stayed for a couple of hours to experience some of the scare fest which was really cool.

Overall, a really good park and a really good day. A couple of surprises, some good, and some bad. However, I cannot help but think that this park REALLY needs a top class coaster. They presumably hoped that Orion was it, but it's not. I know Cedar Fair has its issues with both Intamin and RMC, but it really needs something like this to elevate this into a top class park in my view. Put a Pantheon in here, or a Wicked Cyclone, and it would elevate the park so much.

It's also odd that there are 14 coasters here (+1 in construction) and yet they seem to be missing so many of the staple variants of coaster. No dive coaster. No grown up multi launch (I don't include backlot stunt coaster in this despite having a couple of launches). No flying coaster. Or wing coaster. If they don't want to use RMC or Intamin, maybe a Mack multi launch a la Helix, or Vekoma flying model. That's not to say that I would not go back to Kings Island, but it does feel like there's something missing.

 

[Matt N]

Great reports so far @EmmaUK; I’m glad to see that you’re seemingly having a nice time!

I have to say that I’m humbled by your newly invented acronym in my honour! Mystic Timbers looks like a ride I’d love to try at some stage; I’m a huge fan of Wicker Man, as you already referenced, but I loved Wodan even more, which looks to have a very similar layout style to Mystic what with all of the low-to-the-ground turns and airtime hills. I’ve sensed that Mystic Timbers is a ride that I’d probably really like, so I’m glad to hear that you enjoyed it!

What park is up next on your American adventure, out of interest?

 

[EmmaUK]

Great reports so far @EmmaUK; I’m glad to see that you’re seemingly having a nice time!

I have to say that I’m humbled by your newly invented acronym in my honour! Mystic Timbers looks like a ride I’d love to try at some stage; I’m a huge fan of Wicker Man, as you already referenced, but I loved Wodan even more, which looks to have a very similar layout style to Mystic what with all of the low-to-the-ground turns and airtime hills. I’ve sensed that Mystic Timbers is a ride that I’d probably really like, so I’m glad to hear that you enjoyed it!

What park is up next on your American adventure, out of interest?

Next up was Holiday World which, spoiler alert, didn't really do it for me sadly.

 

[witchfinder]

Sorry to hear you didn't really enjoy Diamondback or The Beast. Both were awesome when I visited at roughly the same time last year and easily the standouts in the park for me. I do agree that KI is missing an elite-level coaster, but I still loved the park as a whole.

 

[EmmaUK]

Next up was Holiday World. I'd booked into a hotel by Cincinnati airport as, for reasons that make no sense to me, hiring a car New York to Louisville cost double to Cincinnati for the week I was there. By original plan was to do Kentucky Kingdom first and get #250 on the Voyage, but a couple of missed coasters meant I would have to wait until Orlando to get #250.



Whether because it was Halloween or not, there were 2 types of people at Holiday World. Families with very young children, and goons, and no-one in the middle.

My first impression was a bit meh.



The building facades all seemed a bit cheap, and unbelievably it reminded me of Sundown Pets Corner in Retford for some reason. Anyway, I joined the around 25 people waiting for rope drop and followed them all up towards the Thanksgiving area. This is the one part of the park I felt was nicely themed.



#243 Straight onto Thunderbird, back left immediately followed by back right.





And...it's fine. Everyone waxes lyrical about this, calling it the best wing coaster, at least in the USA. The biggest issue for me was that as I'm sat there on the wing, awaiting the launch, my body and mind were taken back to Furius Baco and that amazing launch. Yes, I know these are very different rides, but my mind found that start familiar and I started the ride disappointed. I just didn't find it had much kick. The inversions are decent, the near miss element (of course) is very good, and the final inversion great hang time, but this wasn't troubling my top 50.

Then #244 The Voyage



(Rare Selfie)



I can only imagine what kind of hellish day it would be when these are in use. Is this the worst queue room ever?



First ride was back seats (again without any queue) followed by a 2 or 3 row ride with a lovely guy who worked at Dollywood. And I so wanted to love this coaster. And it is amazing. That speed. Those laterals. The power. The relentlessness. By my god it beats you up. For me it crossed the line between enjoyment and painful. A bit of pain can be fun (stop it!) but this just went beyond that. Row 2/3 was much better than the back but whilst it does crack my top 50, its not the top 10 I expected. WWMNT - I can't imagine this would be his bag at all. None of the Wicker Man goodness. Just lots of throwing you around into the seat.

Of course, it was still better than Legend.



I'd rather not think about this one again. #245 and maybe the roughest coaster I've ridden. Worse than Grizzly at KD. Worse than anything at BPB. They ought to offer counselling as you get off this ride.

#246 Raven



And it's meh. Rough, but not as much as the other two, and with far fewer forces.

I wanted to love Holiday Park. I love all that it stands for. I love the family angle. The free sunscreen (not that it was needed today), the free soft drinks (that I did not use). It feels the opposite of corporate and I want to shout from the roof tops. But it just did not do it for me.

 

[Matt N]

Nice report @EmmaUK!

I’m sorry to hear that Holiday World didn’t live up to your expectations, though. I’m surprised to hear that the park’s wooden coasters are so rough; that’s never something you typically hear about them, and given that at very least, Voyage was recently retracked, I do find the roughness surprising.

Are you reporting on the parks you did in Orlando? Having been to the area myself recently(ish), I’d be interested to know your thoughts on some of the new coasters.

 

[FistedColossus]

I had similar feelings about Holiday World last year. Best thing about it was the free fountain drinks

Agree Voyage isn't top 10 worthy.

 

[EmmaUK]

Nice report @EmmaUK!

I’m sorry to hear that Holiday World didn’t live up to your expectations, though. I’m surprised to hear that the park’s wooden coasters are so rough; that’s never something you typically hear about them, and given that at very least, Voyage was recently retracked, I do find the roughness surprising.

Are you reporting on the parks you did in Orlando? Having been to the area myself recently(ish), I’d be interested to know your thoughts on some of the new coasters.

I might do a brief one, mainly as I actually reached the 250 there. Although I was only there 4 full days, and didn't make it to Sea World or Busch Gardens. Didn't even make it to IOA and I only did Universal for Halloween Horror Nights. That said, I did make it on a few coasters so I'll be giving my views.

 

[EmmaUK]

Having spent only 2 hours at Holiday World, I drove the 1 hour, and crossed the time zone, back to Kentucky Kingdom. Honestly I wasn't expecting much for this one.

Having tried to buy tickets online for $40 it wouldn't let me (couldn't quite work it out, I think it was having a UK address that was the problem) so the website said it was going to $50 on the gate. Oh well. Not much I can do about that.

Arriving at the gate it was only $30 so nice surprise there.

And the surprises continued.

It was dead, and really nice to look at.




The grey skies remained and it was off to Lightning Run.



I've mentioned before, but this was REALLY good. No queue at all so it was basically straight on and pick your seat. I had a few rides in a few seats, and this was just awesome in every seat. It's an absolute airtime machine.

The Kentucky Flyer is difficult to get a good photo of, but is a solid family coaster, if someone forgettable.

The water park was shut, the pools drained, and the (apparently) piece of crap T3 sat in the background thankfully shut for good.



I imagine though that in summer and with this area open, it would be a really nice area. Thunder Run was shut for reasons that weren't really obvious, so it was off to what was, originally, my intended 250.



Its solid, and the airtime is extreme, but it didn't wow me. I think it's because as the airtime increased through the ride, the restraint had a habit of nipping my skin. The lack of queues meant that you could just stay on, but despite trying a few seats, I just didn't really want to stay on it. Sadly it hurt me and sits as my lowest ranked RMC, even below Jersey Devil.

Roller Skater was shut, so it was merely a +3 at Kentucky Kingdom.

Overall thoughts - I'd come back. It felt like a park where the owners cared and it felt very much "on the up". It wouldn't surprise me if T3 is replaced with something rather special that will bring me back again.