In 1972, Kings Island opened with 3 roller coasters: Bavarian Beetle, Racer, and Scooby Doo. Many folks know about the Racer and Scooby Doo (now Woodstock Express), but few remember the Bavarian Beetle. The story of the Bavarian Beetle started in 1969 at Cincinnati’s Coney Island. Coney Island had an massive expansion in the 1950’s….
Cedar Fair fully supports the amendment to HB 665 that was adopted today, June 4, 2020, in the House Agriculture and Rural Development Committee. The amendment provides for the immediate re-opening of Ohio amusement parks and water parks. Richard Zimmerman, CEO, Cedar Fair Entertainment Company said in a statement, “We fully anticipate and expect having…
Cedar Point was set to host an entire season of epic 150th anniversary celebrations during 2020. But, those celebrations will have to wait until 2021. Park officials have confirmed that all of their planned 150th season attractions and festivities have been postponed until next year – including the new Snake River Expedition boat ride. As…
Over the the last few weeks, we have highlighted several proposed coasters that were never built in our “Lost Concepts” series. This week’s featured coaster was proposed and never built, but the concept was revived as a much larger coaster. In 1979, Kings Island opened the Beast, a record breaking wooden coaster. The ride opened…
After announcing a daily surge of nearly 500 deaths linked to COVID-19, Pennsylvania Health Secretary Rachel Levine revealed bad news today for those looking forward to amusement parks reopening. Amusement parks in PA such as Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom, Kennywood, Knoebels, Dutch Wonderland, Hersheypark, and more won’t be among businesses to open their gates under…
Over the course of the last few weeks, we have highlighted several proposed coasters that were never built in our “Lost Concepts” series. This week’s featured coaster was proposed, but replaced by a ride from another manufacturer. In the early 1990’s Kings Dominion was booming. In 1991, the park built Anaconda, an Arrow multi-inversion coaster….
When a park chooses a roller coaster to build, they often listen to multiple competing bids. Usually information about the bids never becomes public information, however a recently discovered article from 1987 provides insight into the decision making process. After the Bat was demolished, Kings Island was looking for a new signature coaster. When it…
Over the course of the last few seasons, Cedar Point has been rapidly updating the park with new rides (Steel Vengeance and Snake River Expedition) and new eateries such as French Quarter Confectionery, The Corral, and the soon to open Mac and Cheese Shack. Back in February, during the annual 2020 “Winter Chill Out” off…
Even though we can’t physically visit Carowinds, the park is still finding ways to bring the Carolinas together. The park has created downloadable coloring pages featuring five different rides as well as a word search challenge. Families can still play and have some Carowinds-inspired fun by creating their own versions of the park’s rides. The…
At the start of Kings Dominion Virginia’s 2019 season, The Crypt was closed for large stretches of the season. There were rumors flying around on whether the ride would reopen in 2020. In a shocking surprise, Kings Dominion has made the following announcement today: “Today we have some news to share regarding one of our thrill…
Cedar Point kicks off it’s 150th anniversary season on May 9th, 2020. Although, the official opening day for Cedar Point is on May 9th — the fun begins on May 8th as they host the annual Ohio State Day. Ohio State Day is when OSU students, faculty, alumni, and family have exclusive access to the…
Coaster enthusiasts will have some new models to collect as new Coaster Dynamix models were just revealed featuring coasters of Kings Island! Coaster Dynamix has created NanoCoaster models for the all new ORION giga coaster as well as retired legends such as Vortex, and the highly anticipated Son of Beast! Coaster Dynamix makes miniature replicas…