By Jonathan - April 27th, 2010, 7:04 pm
- April 27th, 2010, 7:04 pm
#40225
22 photos from Busch Gardens Williamsburg http://www.flickr.com/photos/jhawkins/s ... 813499341/
93 photos from Kings Dominion http://www.flickr.com/photos/jhawkins/s ... 814474323/
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With a week to go until heading to Sandusky, Ohio for the summer, followed by the move in August to New Brunswick, New Jersey, I wanted to get back up to Virginia for another visit to one of my favorite parks, Busch Gardens Williamsburg, plus a trip to Kings Dominion for their version of Intimidator. Jay and I drove up Friday and spent a few hours at a completely dead Busch Gardens, then went back to the park until mid-afternoon Saturday. Friday morning I dropped by Carowinds for a good many rides on Intimidator, and I was interested to compare it to Apollo's Chariot, as they are my second and third favorite steel coasters. Apollo's Chariot is one of those rare rides that I enjoy more with each time I ride it, and I don't think I will ever get tired of it. Ultimately, I think I prefer Intimidator slightly, but it's close. The first half of Intimidator is far superior with bigger drops and more airtime, but the second half of Apollo is far superior with great pacing, use of terrain, and airtime. You really can't go wrong with either ride.
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In thirteen years of going to Busch Gardens, I can only remember riding one of their flat rides (the tea cups). So, this was a trip of new things, as we did many of the flat rides, including Da Vinci's Cradle, which is a magic carpet style ride. None of their flats are really anything special.
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Now for the sad pictures. I almost did not want to visit Busch Gardens at all this year because of this. Big Bad Wolf was a ride that I really loved, and the park definitely seems to be missing something with it removed.
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Hopefully the park is going to build a new coaster and land (Spain?!) here next year, because two years with this site empty would just be too much.
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Unfortunately, the Bavarian village that Big Bad Wolf ran through has been completely removed. Other than that, though, there really is no sign of much work; no markings or digging. It seems to me that if the park is going to build a major project for 2011, there should be visible signs of work very soon. This makes me think that perhaps the replacement for this area is not coming in 2011. I wonder if the Blackstone purchase of the park put plans on hold?
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We were loving these lines on Friday. I'm not sure how necessary it is to reserve a row for Quick Queue on a day like this...
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Alpengeist is one of my favorite steel coasters. It took me years to come around to this ride, but one day a few years ago something just kind of clicked, and I am now a big fan.
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Jay is still a skeptic, but I think a ride in the front seat changed his mind a little bit. Here we are in line for Griffon, which was also nearly a walk on. Griffon is a really fun ride, but there is not a whole lot to it. Apollo's Chariot and Alpengeist are still the best rides in the park for me.
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Chris came out for a couple of hours, and it was great to see him again and meet his family (one behind the camera and one hidden in the stroller).
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I almost completely forgot that there was a coaster at Busch Gardens that I still had not bothered to ride.
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Yes, it is the incomparable Grover's Alpine Express.
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It was only around 30 minutes until park closing, and the coaster went down, so I think they were ready to just shut it down and call it a day. However, thanks to three losers who were not ready to give up on riding, they got maintenance up there and got it running.
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#324.
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Do be jealous that I had the rare opportunity of the complete Belson family credit.
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After a very nice evening at the park we hit the Second St. tavern in Williamsburg for a great meal. I did not bring my camera into the park on Saturday, so that's it for Busch Gardens photos. It was supposed to pour rain all day Saturday, but we didn't get a drop. Crowds were a bit strange as the park was filled with band groups that seemed to move about as one giant herd, so a ride would have a completely filled queue, then an hour or two later be a walk-on. You really had to make sure you were in the right place at the right time to avoid lines.
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On the way to Doswell we stopped at a rest area on I-64 and saw these electric car charges, which are free. Nice job by the state and Dominion Power to be ahead of the curve.
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The weather stayed nice, although a bit chilly and overcast. We arrived at Kings Dominion to find it absolutely dead. This park never seems to be too crowded when I go, but I had never seen it as empty as this, especially on a Saturday. Kings Dominion is probably my second favorite Cedar Fair park behind only Cedar Point, and while I haven't been to a few of the parks in the chain, I don't see myself liking them better than this one.
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Like the other former Paramount Parks, Kings Dominion stripped out all of the Nickelodeon branding this year, but unlike Carowinds, they only made over a small portion of their children's area into Planet Snoopy. Most of the rides have more generic names and themes.
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Now, onto the main event and the reason for this trip. The placement of Intimidator 305 within Kings Dominion is a bit unfortunate, as it can't be seen from the interstate, and the size of it does not really jump out at you like say Millennium Force when driving up the Cedar Point causeway, or even Intimidator at Carowinds, which can be seen from miles away and towers over the front of the park. Once we walked back toward the back area of the park, though, the sheer height of the first drop really became evident.
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If you did not believe me when I wrote that the park was the emptiest I have ever seen it, have a look at this. Worries of massive lines and few ride opportunities were put to rest to say the least. Our first ride was a walk on right into the front seat of the coaster.
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There are two things about this coaster that separate it from anything else I have ever experienced. The first is the lift. This lift hill is comically fast. It looks like a tape being played at double speed when it goes up. We're talking ground level to 300 feet in less than ten seconds. It flies out of the station and there is no time to take in the view or contemplate what is about to happen as it races to the top. It actually scared me a little bit, but what scared me even more was what was coming next, because I already new what to expect based on comments from others who had ridden. That brings me to the other thing that separates I-305 from everything else out there...
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This turn. The single most intense moment i have ever experienced on a roller coaster. There are only a couple of times I can recall going very slightly fuzzy in the head on a coaster: once during the batwing on Afterburn at Carowinds, and once in the third inversion on Tennessee Tornado at Dollywood. I-305 goes way beyond fuzzy to near complete blackout. It is not so much the amount of G force in the turn as much as it is the duration of the forces. The train is going 94 MPH when it hits this long swooping turn right at the bottom of the first drop. Every single time I rode (and the same goes for everyone else with me by all accounts), about halfway through the turn darkness would start closing in, and as the train pulled out of the turn and climbed the second hill I would start regaining full consciousness again. I find it hard to believe that the designers intended for this to happen, and knowing the history of the amusement industry, I do not forsee it lasting too long before it is slowed down. I really do not know quite how I feel about the turn. On the one hand, it flat out impresses me in a way that few rides have, but on the other hand, I don't think I really enjoy the feeling of nearly passing out very much.
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Now that I've gone through some of the good about this ride, here is some of the bad. I love airtime; it's my favorite riding sensation, and it is why my favorite steel coasters are rides like Superman: Ride of Steel (now Bizarro), Intimidator at Carowinds, Apollo's Chariot, and Goliath. I-305 has two great moments of airtime: the first drop (toward the back of the train), and the second hill. Unfortunately, it could have had at least four great moments of airtime. This hill, and the one immediately after it, are destroyed by a long brake that grinds off a huge amount of speed and makes both hills a yawn.
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The other real negative about this coaster is the restraints. Intamin, the Swiss manufacturer, has had some safety issues in the past with their lap bars, as it seems to me that they really have trouble grasping how to secure some of the... how should I say... more hefty American park guests. I can only assume that there are some liability concerns for the company now, and that may very well be the reason why they have put these cumbersome and restrictive shoulder restraints on this coaster. I-305 is the only Intamin hyper or giga coaster, and one of the only hyper coasters period worldwide to have shoulder harnesses.
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With those neck chopping restraints, whipping through these turns at high speed is not as fun as it could have been.
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I like Intimidator 305. It is a very unique coaster and one of the most powerful rides I have ever been on. Since it is pretty much inevitable to compare this to Intimidator at Carowinds, given the proximity of the two parks and the fact that the rides opened in the same year with the same name, I will say that I like the Carowinds coaster much better. I think it is great though that the two coasters are so completely different, when Cedar Fair could have easily installed identical or very similar rides. I have no doubt that many people will greatly prefer the Kings Dominion coaster, as it really comes down to personal preference. I like lots of drops, airtime, and open air cars. Those who are more about raw power and speed will probably enjoy I-305 the most.
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Since the coaster is so compact, there are great views of the ride from the line, exit, and plaza. We got a kick out of this area of the park, though, which almost certainly holds the distinction of now being the most schizophrenic themed park area of all time. The Congo area, named after the African nation, now contains the following:<br><br>
-Avalanche, a snow bobsled themed ride.
-Flight of Fear, which is supposed to be set at an American military base.
-Intimidator 305, themed to Dale Earnhardt and NASCAR.
-Outer Hanks, a seafood restaurant referencing the North Carolina Outer Banks.
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Next we met up with Nicole and her friend Liz, and headed straight for the crown jewel of Kings Dominion, the Treasure Cave.
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Then, the rethemed Scooby Doo's Haunted Mansion, which is identical inside to the ride at Carowinds, and as I said about that one is an improvement for me over the Scooby Doo version. Some of the Scooby Doo themed items they had in the queue before though were kind of neat, so it's too bad they had to remove all of that.
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Heading back to Intimidator, have a look at this rather clever wall of 305 stuffed bears that can be won at one of the midway games.
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Yay for killing more brain cells. Well, three of us at least. Liz had ridden once before and will not ride again because she happens to not be a fan of being knocked unconscious on an amusement park ride. Fair enough.
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Despite the lack of lines everywhere else in the park, Volcano had a bit of a wait. The last two rows being roped off was not helping matters.
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Front seat ride! I still love this ride, and I like it almost as much as I-305. There's never really been another ride built like it anywhere.
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For the first time this year the park was open until 10 PM, so night rides were in order. Okay, a night ride on Anaconda was not exactly what I had in mind, but somehow I get conned into riding this thing every time I go to the park.
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I-305 is very dark at night, with the only lights being in the plaza and the neat tracers they have installed going up the lift.
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Just when you thought the slightly amusing Back Lot Stunt Coaster could not be neutered any more, Mini Cooper forced the park to remove their branding.
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The progression of this ride is hilarious. It wasn't much to begin with, but then piece by piece more and more of it has been destroyed. The fishtail and stair bouncing hydraulic effects on the cars lasted all of a couple of weeks before it was discovered that hairline stress fractures were occuring in the cars. Then, the Paramount sale resulted in the removal of all Italian Job branding and the brilliantly imaginative Back Lot Stunt Coaster name. Now, the cars get the sterilization treatment.
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We got our I-305 night ride, and I did not care for it much more than I did in the daylight because I could not see where I was going to brace myself for the turns.
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The highlight, as always, and one of the best night rides in the country, Grizzly. It is still my favorite coaster at Kings Dominion. The tunnel is one of the greatest coaster moments ever.
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The park is VERY EXCITED to let you know that Shockwave opens at noon!!!
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The flat ride trend from Busch Gardens continued here as we did the Flying Eagles (okay well we always do these), Triple Spin, the Wave Swinger, Drop Tower, and then many of the remaining flat rides on Sunday.
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Drop Tower finished off the night. Sadly we had to say goodbye to Nicole and Liz, but Sunday we were back at the park again, even though we had already ridden pretty much everything.
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A wonderful breakfast to start the day at Perly's in downtown Richmond.
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While Jay and I had already knocked out everything at the park, Matthew, Alan, and John were only just arriving. Sunday was to be even more empty than Saturday, which I did not think was possible.
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We headed straight for the back of the park for more mind numbing I-305 action. Alan was a bit scared to ride after hearing about the first turn. He loved it, though, as did everyone else I think.
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Waiting near the back for our next ride. The first drop is awesome in the back seat, but after that I think I prefer the front.
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The airtime on this hill is great, but I was always regaining my senses from the turn barely in time to enjoy it.
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The weather forecast called for storms all day, but it was once again very nice out.
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There were two times when we got off the ride and saw someone in the on ride photos with their head in their lap, seemingly passed out. Kind of hilarious, kind of terrifying.
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Over at the African bobsledding adventure ride, John was having a good time.
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There are not too many of these rides out there, so I always like to get a ride in when I can.
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A little bit older, a little bit thinner on top, and still wearing that damn necklace.
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And now, the obligatory Eiffel Tower view of the ridiculous change to the Kings Dominion skyline.
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It's too bad there wasn't a way to build this on the side of the park against the interstate. It may have caused a few accidents.
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Anytime the parking lot looks like this in the middle of the day, you know you are in for a good time.
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Someone here must have gone to the Bart Kinzel School of Greenery Destruction.
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Something I thought I would never witness but now have photographic proof of: Alan on a ferris wheel. There were several things throughout the two days that evidenced that I-305 scrambles the brain, but this was the final nail in the coffin proving its judgment blurring power. He does not look too pleased here, though.
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This view has changed a bit. Rebel Yell, by the way, was running great.
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Yeah hi.
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On second thought, maybe that above photo is not the final evidence of I-305's effects...
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This is. Yes, every one of us rode Shockwave voluntarily.
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Treasure Cave again?
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I am shocked and appalled at the things I have seen in here.
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That just ain't right.
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Near the end of the day we hit Ghoster Coaster, completing most of the adult flat rides in the park and all of the roller coasters except Hurler (closed both days) and Taxi Jam (didn't even try).
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So that's it for this trip. I always have a good time here, and Intimidator 305, while not as good as it could have been, is a nice addition to a very good collection of rides.
93 photos from Kings Dominion http://www.flickr.com/photos/jhawkins/s ... 814474323/
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[/center]With a week to go until heading to Sandusky, Ohio for the summer, followed by the move in August to New Brunswick, New Jersey, I wanted to get back up to Virginia for another visit to one of my favorite parks, Busch Gardens Williamsburg, plus a trip to Kings Dominion for their version of Intimidator. Jay and I drove up Friday and spent a few hours at a completely dead Busch Gardens, then went back to the park until mid-afternoon Saturday. Friday morning I dropped by Carowinds for a good many rides on Intimidator, and I was interested to compare it to Apollo's Chariot, as they are my second and third favorite steel coasters. Apollo's Chariot is one of those rare rides that I enjoy more with each time I ride it, and I don't think I will ever get tired of it. Ultimately, I think I prefer Intimidator slightly, but it's close. The first half of Intimidator is far superior with bigger drops and more airtime, but the second half of Apollo is far superior with great pacing, use of terrain, and airtime. You really can't go wrong with either ride.
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[/center]In thirteen years of going to Busch Gardens, I can only remember riding one of their flat rides (the tea cups). So, this was a trip of new things, as we did many of the flat rides, including Da Vinci's Cradle, which is a magic carpet style ride. None of their flats are really anything special.
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[/center]Now for the sad pictures. I almost did not want to visit Busch Gardens at all this year because of this. Big Bad Wolf was a ride that I really loved, and the park definitely seems to be missing something with it removed.
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[/center]Hopefully the park is going to build a new coaster and land (Spain?!) here next year, because two years with this site empty would just be too much.
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[/center]Unfortunately, the Bavarian village that Big Bad Wolf ran through has been completely removed. Other than that, though, there really is no sign of much work; no markings or digging. It seems to me that if the park is going to build a major project for 2011, there should be visible signs of work very soon. This makes me think that perhaps the replacement for this area is not coming in 2011. I wonder if the Blackstone purchase of the park put plans on hold?
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[/center]We were loving these lines on Friday. I'm not sure how necessary it is to reserve a row for Quick Queue on a day like this...
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[/center]Alpengeist is one of my favorite steel coasters. It took me years to come around to this ride, but one day a few years ago something just kind of clicked, and I am now a big fan.
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[/center]Jay is still a skeptic, but I think a ride in the front seat changed his mind a little bit. Here we are in line for Griffon, which was also nearly a walk on. Griffon is a really fun ride, but there is not a whole lot to it. Apollo's Chariot and Alpengeist are still the best rides in the park for me.
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[/center]Chris came out for a couple of hours, and it was great to see him again and meet his family (one behind the camera and one hidden in the stroller).
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[/center]I almost completely forgot that there was a coaster at Busch Gardens that I still had not bothered to ride.
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[/center]Yes, it is the incomparable Grover's Alpine Express.
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[/center]It was only around 30 minutes until park closing, and the coaster went down, so I think they were ready to just shut it down and call it a day. However, thanks to three losers who were not ready to give up on riding, they got maintenance up there and got it running.
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[/center]#324.
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[/center]Do be jealous that I had the rare opportunity of the complete Belson family credit.
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[/center]After a very nice evening at the park we hit the Second St. tavern in Williamsburg for a great meal. I did not bring my camera into the park on Saturday, so that's it for Busch Gardens photos. It was supposed to pour rain all day Saturday, but we didn't get a drop. Crowds were a bit strange as the park was filled with band groups that seemed to move about as one giant herd, so a ride would have a completely filled queue, then an hour or two later be a walk-on. You really had to make sure you were in the right place at the right time to avoid lines.
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[/center]On the way to Doswell we stopped at a rest area on I-64 and saw these electric car charges, which are free. Nice job by the state and Dominion Power to be ahead of the curve.
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[/center]The weather stayed nice, although a bit chilly and overcast. We arrived at Kings Dominion to find it absolutely dead. This park never seems to be too crowded when I go, but I had never seen it as empty as this, especially on a Saturday. Kings Dominion is probably my second favorite Cedar Fair park behind only Cedar Point, and while I haven't been to a few of the parks in the chain, I don't see myself liking them better than this one.
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[/center]Like the other former Paramount Parks, Kings Dominion stripped out all of the Nickelodeon branding this year, but unlike Carowinds, they only made over a small portion of their children's area into Planet Snoopy. Most of the rides have more generic names and themes.
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[/center]Now, onto the main event and the reason for this trip. The placement of Intimidator 305 within Kings Dominion is a bit unfortunate, as it can't be seen from the interstate, and the size of it does not really jump out at you like say Millennium Force when driving up the Cedar Point causeway, or even Intimidator at Carowinds, which can be seen from miles away and towers over the front of the park. Once we walked back toward the back area of the park, though, the sheer height of the first drop really became evident.
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[/center]If you did not believe me when I wrote that the park was the emptiest I have ever seen it, have a look at this. Worries of massive lines and few ride opportunities were put to rest to say the least. Our first ride was a walk on right into the front seat of the coaster.
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[/center]There are two things about this coaster that separate it from anything else I have ever experienced. The first is the lift. This lift hill is comically fast. It looks like a tape being played at double speed when it goes up. We're talking ground level to 300 feet in less than ten seconds. It flies out of the station and there is no time to take in the view or contemplate what is about to happen as it races to the top. It actually scared me a little bit, but what scared me even more was what was coming next, because I already new what to expect based on comments from others who had ridden. That brings me to the other thing that separates I-305 from everything else out there...
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[/center]This turn. The single most intense moment i have ever experienced on a roller coaster. There are only a couple of times I can recall going very slightly fuzzy in the head on a coaster: once during the batwing on Afterburn at Carowinds, and once in the third inversion on Tennessee Tornado at Dollywood. I-305 goes way beyond fuzzy to near complete blackout. It is not so much the amount of G force in the turn as much as it is the duration of the forces. The train is going 94 MPH when it hits this long swooping turn right at the bottom of the first drop. Every single time I rode (and the same goes for everyone else with me by all accounts), about halfway through the turn darkness would start closing in, and as the train pulled out of the turn and climbed the second hill I would start regaining full consciousness again. I find it hard to believe that the designers intended for this to happen, and knowing the history of the amusement industry, I do not forsee it lasting too long before it is slowed down. I really do not know quite how I feel about the turn. On the one hand, it flat out impresses me in a way that few rides have, but on the other hand, I don't think I really enjoy the feeling of nearly passing out very much.
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[/center]Now that I've gone through some of the good about this ride, here is some of the bad. I love airtime; it's my favorite riding sensation, and it is why my favorite steel coasters are rides like Superman: Ride of Steel (now Bizarro), Intimidator at Carowinds, Apollo's Chariot, and Goliath. I-305 has two great moments of airtime: the first drop (toward the back of the train), and the second hill. Unfortunately, it could have had at least four great moments of airtime. This hill, and the one immediately after it, are destroyed by a long brake that grinds off a huge amount of speed and makes both hills a yawn.
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[/center]The other real negative about this coaster is the restraints. Intamin, the Swiss manufacturer, has had some safety issues in the past with their lap bars, as it seems to me that they really have trouble grasping how to secure some of the... how should I say... more hefty American park guests. I can only assume that there are some liability concerns for the company now, and that may very well be the reason why they have put these cumbersome and restrictive shoulder restraints on this coaster. I-305 is the only Intamin hyper or giga coaster, and one of the only hyper coasters period worldwide to have shoulder harnesses.
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[/center]With those neck chopping restraints, whipping through these turns at high speed is not as fun as it could have been.
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[/center]I like Intimidator 305. It is a very unique coaster and one of the most powerful rides I have ever been on. Since it is pretty much inevitable to compare this to Intimidator at Carowinds, given the proximity of the two parks and the fact that the rides opened in the same year with the same name, I will say that I like the Carowinds coaster much better. I think it is great though that the two coasters are so completely different, when Cedar Fair could have easily installed identical or very similar rides. I have no doubt that many people will greatly prefer the Kings Dominion coaster, as it really comes down to personal preference. I like lots of drops, airtime, and open air cars. Those who are more about raw power and speed will probably enjoy I-305 the most.
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[/center]Since the coaster is so compact, there are great views of the ride from the line, exit, and plaza. We got a kick out of this area of the park, though, which almost certainly holds the distinction of now being the most schizophrenic themed park area of all time. The Congo area, named after the African nation, now contains the following:<br><br>
-Avalanche, a snow bobsled themed ride.
-Flight of Fear, which is supposed to be set at an American military base.
-Intimidator 305, themed to Dale Earnhardt and NASCAR.
-Outer Hanks, a seafood restaurant referencing the North Carolina Outer Banks.
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[/center]Next we met up with Nicole and her friend Liz, and headed straight for the crown jewel of Kings Dominion, the Treasure Cave.
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[/center]Then, the rethemed Scooby Doo's Haunted Mansion, which is identical inside to the ride at Carowinds, and as I said about that one is an improvement for me over the Scooby Doo version. Some of the Scooby Doo themed items they had in the queue before though were kind of neat, so it's too bad they had to remove all of that.
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[/center]Heading back to Intimidator, have a look at this rather clever wall of 305 stuffed bears that can be won at one of the midway games.
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[/center]Yay for killing more brain cells. Well, three of us at least. Liz had ridden once before and will not ride again because she happens to not be a fan of being knocked unconscious on an amusement park ride. Fair enough.
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[/center]Despite the lack of lines everywhere else in the park, Volcano had a bit of a wait. The last two rows being roped off was not helping matters.
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[/center]Front seat ride! I still love this ride, and I like it almost as much as I-305. There's never really been another ride built like it anywhere.
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[/center]For the first time this year the park was open until 10 PM, so night rides were in order. Okay, a night ride on Anaconda was not exactly what I had in mind, but somehow I get conned into riding this thing every time I go to the park.
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[/center]I-305 is very dark at night, with the only lights being in the plaza and the neat tracers they have installed going up the lift.
[center]
[/center]Just when you thought the slightly amusing Back Lot Stunt Coaster could not be neutered any more, Mini Cooper forced the park to remove their branding.
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[/center]The progression of this ride is hilarious. It wasn't much to begin with, but then piece by piece more and more of it has been destroyed. The fishtail and stair bouncing hydraulic effects on the cars lasted all of a couple of weeks before it was discovered that hairline stress fractures were occuring in the cars. Then, the Paramount sale resulted in the removal of all Italian Job branding and the brilliantly imaginative Back Lot Stunt Coaster name. Now, the cars get the sterilization treatment.
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[/center]We got our I-305 night ride, and I did not care for it much more than I did in the daylight because I could not see where I was going to brace myself for the turns.
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[/center]The highlight, as always, and one of the best night rides in the country, Grizzly. It is still my favorite coaster at Kings Dominion. The tunnel is one of the greatest coaster moments ever.
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[/center]The park is VERY EXCITED to let you know that Shockwave opens at noon!!!
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[/center]The flat ride trend from Busch Gardens continued here as we did the Flying Eagles (okay well we always do these), Triple Spin, the Wave Swinger, Drop Tower, and then many of the remaining flat rides on Sunday.
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[/center]Drop Tower finished off the night. Sadly we had to say goodbye to Nicole and Liz, but Sunday we were back at the park again, even though we had already ridden pretty much everything.
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[/center]A wonderful breakfast to start the day at Perly's in downtown Richmond.
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[/center]While Jay and I had already knocked out everything at the park, Matthew, Alan, and John were only just arriving. Sunday was to be even more empty than Saturday, which I did not think was possible.
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[/center]We headed straight for the back of the park for more mind numbing I-305 action. Alan was a bit scared to ride after hearing about the first turn. He loved it, though, as did everyone else I think.
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[/center]Waiting near the back for our next ride. The first drop is awesome in the back seat, but after that I think I prefer the front.
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[/center]The airtime on this hill is great, but I was always regaining my senses from the turn barely in time to enjoy it.
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[/center]The weather forecast called for storms all day, but it was once again very nice out.
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[/center]There were two times when we got off the ride and saw someone in the on ride photos with their head in their lap, seemingly passed out. Kind of hilarious, kind of terrifying.
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[/center]Over at the African bobsledding adventure ride, John was having a good time.
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[/center]There are not too many of these rides out there, so I always like to get a ride in when I can.
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[/center]A little bit older, a little bit thinner on top, and still wearing that damn necklace.
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[/center]And now, the obligatory Eiffel Tower view of the ridiculous change to the Kings Dominion skyline.
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[/center]It's too bad there wasn't a way to build this on the side of the park against the interstate. It may have caused a few accidents.
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[/center]Anytime the parking lot looks like this in the middle of the day, you know you are in for a good time.
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[/center]Someone here must have gone to the Bart Kinzel School of Greenery Destruction.
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[/center]Something I thought I would never witness but now have photographic proof of: Alan on a ferris wheel. There were several things throughout the two days that evidenced that I-305 scrambles the brain, but this was the final nail in the coffin proving its judgment blurring power. He does not look too pleased here, though.
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[/center]This view has changed a bit. Rebel Yell, by the way, was running great.
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[/center]Yeah hi.
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[/center]On second thought, maybe that above photo is not the final evidence of I-305's effects...
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[/center]This is. Yes, every one of us rode Shockwave voluntarily.
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[/center]Treasure Cave again?
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[/center]I am shocked and appalled at the things I have seen in here.
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[/center]That just ain't right.
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[/center]Near the end of the day we hit Ghoster Coaster, completing most of the adult flat rides in the park and all of the roller coasters except Hurler (closed both days) and Taxi Jam (didn't even try).
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[/center]So that's it for this trip. I always have a good time here, and Intimidator 305, while not as good as it could have been, is a nice addition to a very good collection of rides.
And in 92 it still would have had all the trees around it as Hurler and XLC and the STUPID go-karts didn't exist yet. I'm so envious. 
