Pagoda Gift Shop

They must be planning a nice walking garden area. I bet they are jealous of the former Paramount Story area and want one of their own.

What if there were no loop to throw?

Yeah the newer lighter trains did not go as fast as the original trains. If you hunt around on YouTube for POVs, you can see a noticeable difference in overall speed between the new and old trains.

Oh good. I don't have to change my avatar for a while.

That's a good point. The Eiffel Tower is at about the same height. So that is a good test if you want to see why it is closed.

I know that from Cedar Point discussions Sky Ride can operate in winds up to 20 mph. Also, Dragster will not operate if there are sustained winds over 35 mph at 420 feet. I would say WindSeeker probably falls somewhere in between those to values. I can't imagine the wind is less than 10 mph at 300 feet very often.

I think it's no big deal if SOB just sits there while they add another coaster. They haven't been in a rush to make a decision, and I don't think they will until something reasonable is proposed. I'm not a wood coaster expert, but I don't think the cost to make SOB operational again is going to be that different if it sits there for another year or two.

And why would sitting out ruin them forever? All of the moving parts would have to be replaced anyway.

Some nice claims, but I have seen no evidence to suggest any of them are true.

I was only using painting the Eiffel Tower as an example. I just think CP gets preference over KI. I know that part of that is because of Dick Kinzel, but even after he's gone it's likely the new CEO will work in Sandusky. I don't see how CP will not continue to get more attention than KI in the future.

Anybody else a bit bothered that CP's opened before KI? I can't think of any logical reason why. I guess I shouldn't be surprised next year when CP gets a new coaster and KI gets the Eiffel Tower repainted. Happy 40th.

Well, it would be encouraging if some work started before the end of the year. They will have so much track work to do that I doubt they would need to move any of the haunt stuff anyway.

Awesome pics. Makes me want to go and take pictures at the park. Thanks for posting this.

I agree and that's really my point. I don't expect anything to change and then it will be the new leader's problem. Whoever that next person is will be the one to really "deal" with the issue.

Gemini is not a wood coaster. I should also point out that Mr. Kinzel will be retiring in January, long before any real decision is made most likely. So while his thoughts explain what the story has been for the past 2 years, it does not indicate what might happen in the future.

Pointbuzz has posted Dick Kinzel's keynote speech from Coastermania. You can get it here: http://i.pointbuzz.com/audio/coastermania2011.mp3 The Son of Beast question is at around the 28 minute mark. Initial estimate to fix $20 million+. EDIT: Whoa, it turned the URL into a player. Here is the link to the direct file.

I agree Hendrick. That's why I used the words "rumor" and "reportedly". Personally, I read a trip report over on Pointbuzz: http://pointbuzz.com/Forums/Thread/26681.aspx

Rumor has it that during the Coastermania Q&A at CP with Dick Kinzel, the topic of SOB was brought up. Reportedly, DK said they were considering the TG treatment but were waiting to see how it held up, price of steel, etc.

New for 2011! WindSeeker! Diamondback!

I wonder what kind of work they are doing on WindSeeker today. It has not been moving up and down the tower like it has been almost everyday this past week. I still expect to see it cycling before it gets close to opening.

Yeah I've never heard a good explanation of why those tunnel lights are on or off. Nothing directly comes to mind as to why it would be useful to have them on unless they are inspecting the tunnel.

Sounds like it was a good visit. Too bad about the crowds. I also would have thought it would be less crowded than you described.

Thanks for the info. It's a potato works conspiracy!

Thanks for sharing. This is a positive story and shows that the park really does care about feedback. It certainly gives me more confidence knowing they will definitely read any comments that come in.

Someone reported over on pointbuzz that CP's WindSeeker tossed a dummy or two during testing yesterday. I'll be watching the webcams closely today.