Oldiesmann

Several cars on the train at Silver Dollar City derailed tonight. Fortunately it doesn't sound like anyone was seriously injured, but several people were taken to a local hospital. https://www.ozarksfirst.com/local-news/local-news-local-news/heavy-emergency-responder-presence-at-silver-dollar-city/

It will definitely be interesting to see what eventually goes in where Vortex once stood. However, if they do add something there I'd expect other major improvements to that area as well (at the very least a new food stand since the only one in that part of the park is Jukebox Diner, which doesn't handle crowds all that well)

I think this is a great addition to the park though I am surprised KI waited this long to announce it. Should be fun to see if the lines for Adventure Express get longer next season considering it usually has one of the shortest lines of all the coasters in the park.

Fox19 says Skylab and Flying Dutchman were coasters... https://www.fox19.com/2022/10/19/new-adventure-port-area-coming-kings-island-2023/

Here's the announcement from Carowinds from a local TV station. https://www.foxcarolina.com/2022/10/18/carowinds-expanding-year-round-operations/

That parade was a huge deal. I worked at KI in 2005 and there were always huge crowds along the parade route. It was a lot of fun. Also I think 16+ years might be a record for thread bumping

A short video of the new ride in action, courtesy of The Island's Twitter feed:

Not sure if this has been announced or when it's going to open, but a Zamperla NebulaZ is being installed next to Paula Deen's Family Kitchen.

That sign has been there all season I think. I'll have to try the mobile ordering process next time I'm at KI

A bit more info on the situation from the Enquirer: https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2022/09/23/the-beach-water-parks-future-is-unclear-new-owner-eyes-redevelopment-mason-ohio/69511199007/

It was off to the right as you came down the hill from the parking lot. You can see it on the 2006 park map here: https://web.archive.org/web/20061119185652/http://www.thebeachwaterpark.com/rides/map.pdf

My only memory of The Beach for the most part is from when I worked there during the summer of 2006 and the Holiday Fest that winter. During the summer I worked at the main Dippin Dots stand and in the winter my sister and I worked at the donut stand (where Blue Ash Chili was during the summer months). I did visit once or twice when I wasn't working as well. It was a fun experience and far different than what's now Soak City, in part because there was no big corporate group overseeing things.

Lost Island, a brand new amusement park in Waterloo, Iowa, closed early Sunday citing low attendance: https://www.kwwl.com/news/top-stories/reflecting-on-challenges-lessons-learned-during-opening-season-of-lost-island-theme-park/article_c52bab5c-274b-11ed-8bf3-bbca74e3fd53.html The comments about the article on the r/rollercoasters subreddit offer a lot more insights though:

This is the state fair where anyone can get in for just $10. That doesn't include rides though (that's another $35 according to the fair's website). I can't say I'm surprised.

Only the third night of the fair and people are already being stupid... https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/crime/2022/08/21/gunfire-sends-crowd-running-at-kentucky-state-fair/65412477007/

Fun fact... The lady involved in that was a bridesmaid in my sister's wedding. My sister quickly cut all ties with her after that.

Reading around Facebook, this is apparently a thing for most CF parks. Kings Island and Cedar Point also have announced it. https://www.visitkingsisland.com/season-passes/prestige-passes/

I wonder if we'll see this at all CF parks... https://www.carowinds.com/season-passes/prestige-passes/

I'm glad I've been able to ride all of those. Got the YoYo and Southern Star credits in 2019 and managed to get Plants Vs Zombies last year. Sad to see them go (especially as that leaves Kings Dominion with one of the only remaining inverted ship rides that I'm aware of), but will be nice to see that area get some attention.

Sad and strange news out of Gatlinburg tonight: https://www.wate.com/news/gatlinburg-woman-jumped-from-anakeesta-chair-lift/

The park has now decided to close the ride for good: https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/danish-amusement-park-scraps-ride-girl-killed-86879114 RCDB says this was the only one of this particular model. It'll be interesting to see if the company faces a lawsuit over this at all

https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/police-14-year-girl-dies-denmark-amusement-park-86812505 The article says the coaster is 82 feet tall and has a top speed of 44mph. RCDB on the other hand says it's about 69 feet tall with a top speed of about 40mph: https://rcdb.com/4021.htm

I rode it when I visited Hershey in 2018. I thought it was fun, but unfortunately haven't been back to Hershey since then and won't have time to make it back out there before it closes.

If you're a fan of Hersheypark's classic Wildcat wooden coaster, you've got until the end of the month to ride it... https://www.facebook.com/Hersheypark/photos/a.165822924356/10160195150919357