I agree with many others, except with more passion. The shading around the queues is quite poor.. and on newer rides, no less!

-BLSC (not Cedar Fair's doing, but the could've put in some shade.) There is only shade in the switchback section that is only used on very busy days.. the queue after that is over 30 minutes of straight sunlight. Get baked.

-Firehawk. First CF installment coaster wise, I believe. Do we remember all the people that passed out due to the sun in line? In my few times actually waiting for this slow operating, dual-loading stationed ride, they'd be passing out cups of water to people, quickly running out etc.. it helps! But the shade there is sparse and honestly, the angle that the shaders sit almost angle with the sun making some of the smallest shadows you can get. Why isnt thw whole thing covered like DB or BLSC? Make it so that shadow size is maximized it's been nine years lol

-Diamondback. Better.. but the outer ring of the switchback section is for some reason not covered. The area that mostly gets used not couting busy days.. maybe 20 minutes from there? Then if it's real busy and that skinnier switch back section is used.. fans help... but shade works too and doesn't have running costs. [emoji14] they work well together.

-Banshee.. luckily.. the ride's capacity is so great that you never wait more than 10-15 min on a typical day non-weekend.. but still a little sparse around the area that will get used leading up to the ride.

All this said.. I've been witness to someone passing out in line on a hot day in line for Millenium Force.. they have great shade (in the area she passed out, same problem in the last 20 min of the queue having no shade at all... not enough fans either)

So maybe it's not as simple as having more shade.. but I highly doubt not having ample shade is helping things..

Edit- I just always thought over the years this guest safety concern would've gotten a little more effective attention

Speaking of direct sunlight, the first thing that comes to my mind is .... the "Harness Stable"

 

The best way to improve queue lines is to not go to the park on days the queue lines are going to be long. So far avoiding the weekends, and holidays have been sure fire ways to decrease your time spent in line.. Also picking to ride FoF Firehawk, or visit Soak City first thing in the morning helps immensely as well. The only time of the year I actually wait in long queue lines at Kings Island is during Halloween Haunt.

 

 

Sometimes that is not always an option.  I miss the days when I could go to the park on the weekdays.  Now I generally will visit Saturday and Sunday mornings for a few hours. 

I wonder how feasible it would be to put water fountains or some sort of water source at ride entrances and/or exits.  Not actually in the lines as that would cause problems. 

I wonder how feasible it would be to put water fountains or some sort of water source at ride entrances and/or exits. Not actually in the lines as that would cause problems.

Welcome to Carowinds!

Probably my biggest shock if Carowinds was seeing they had water fountains in the ques.

We have vending machines...

I wonder how feasible it would be to put water fountains or some sort of water source at ride entrances and/or exits.  Not actually in the lines as that would cause problems. 

If I remember correctly, Magnum at Cedar Point has a water fountain in the line.  I assume it would be fairly inexpensive if they have plumbed in lines for the misting fans.

 

 

We have vending machines...

 

Unfortunately, a lot of people tend to get soda out of those machines, which doesn't help with hydration.  Also, the cost is pretty high ($4.00 a bottle if I remember right).  

It would be nice if FunTV actually had, well, fun programming.  They'd play an occasional random music video, but mostly just the same commercials all season.  If I had a nickel for every Mobile Strike commercial....gah....

I really want to hear Danger Zone while I'm waiting in line for Firehawk

 

^ I want to hear that in line for The Bat.

 

If I remember correctly, Magnum at Cedar Point has a water fountain in the line.  I assume it would be fairly inexpensive if they have plumbed in lines for the misting fans.
 

 

Not quite in the line. The fountains are at the bathroom at the entrance to the line.

^ I want to hear that in line for The Bat.

 

If I remember correctly, Magnum at Cedar Point has a water fountain in the line.  I assume it would be fairly inexpensive if they have plumbed in lines for the misting fans.

 

 

Not quite in the line. The fountains are at the bathroom at the entrance to the line.

 

 

But its no longer Top Gun themed  . But did they play that during the Paramount era?

 

I wonder how feasible it would be to put water fountains or some sort of water source at ride entrances and/or exits. Not actually in the lines as that would cause problems.

Welcome to Carowinds!

Probably my biggest shock if Carowinds was seeing they had water fountains in the ques.

 

 

See also pull-handle showers on the midway at Carowinds. We typically don't have as many days with extreme heat as the southeast does.

As of my visit in July, those pull-handle showers were no longer in working order. I wish they were....I tried to get doused while Mr. and Mrs. No Chickens laughed at me.

 

^ I want to hear that in line for The Bat.

 

If I remember correctly, Magnum at Cedar Point has a water fountain in the line.  I assume it would be fairly inexpensive if they have plumbed in lines for the misting fans.

 

 

Not quite in the line. The fountains are at the bathroom at the entrance to the line.

 

 

But its no longer Top Gun themed  . But did they play that during the Paramount era?

 

For a time, yes. Also, the station featured fog to simulate the smoke that appears when fighter jets take off and land.  The line also had models of the jets featured in the movie and a giant Gillette billboard stating the ride was sponsored by its Mach 3 razors.

^ Gillette sure has to be imaginative to market its overpriced razors. They are hawking the Rogue One razor on Amazon right now. WTF?

https://www.amazon.com/Rogue-One-StoryTM-Special-ProShield/dp/B01L8XESM8/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1480540578&sr=8-1&keywords=rogue%2Bone%2Brazor&th=1

The worst I have seen recently was a bag of BB-8 oranges last year.

Bumping the thread.

I like how ques like FOF, Banshee, and MT set the mood for the ride before people even get on. Two rides that I wish had an improved que are The Bat and Firehawk. Just walking to The Bat arguably takes the longest time out of all the coasters at KI. People walk to the ride, board, then leave when the ride is over. It's almost reminiscent of the old Beast plaza where people can sit if they chose not to ride and its quite off the beaten path. However, when I go to ride The Bat, I want something to look at. The perks about Top Gun was all the billboards and outside theming set the mood for the ride and gave people some scenery to look at before riding. Just some things like the original 80's Bat audio recordings, some appropriate music, and maybe a couple of farm props are inexpensive and could really spruce up the area. 

Firehawk has a long wait, especially on busy days during the summer. When I'm in the que the only thing I have to look at is the coaster itself and the Flight of Fear building. If the que would be semi enclosed or even fully enclosed I think it would increase ridership. Maybe have some air force audio and a slight back story- maybe call it "Project Firehawk"- and install some air conditioning and people will immediately notice. I always felt like Firehawk is the more ignored coaster in KI's line up. 

I know these things won't likely happen but a little love and theming goes a long way. Banshee and Mystic Timbers are prime examples of how theming enhance a coaster's popularity so why not spread the love to some of the older ones?

I feel Beast's queue could use actual covers on the switchbacks and the ramp heading up to the station for when it rains. I also feel they need to expand the width of the queue in Beast as it feels quite narrow in the switchbacks.  I feel Adventure Express also has that issue closer to the station since they added the Fast Lane queue.  

With Banshee's capacity and its crew on Red Bull and caffeine pills, does it even need all those switchbacks anymore? 

@SonofBaconator: I agree with your ideas about Firehawk; great ride, but the line placement's kinda just... there (and very bare). It doesn't help that it's out in the middle of nowhere, but at least FOF has awesome theming indoors. The next newest (oldest?) Cedar Fair installation, Diamondback, works because it's close to the midway and nestles under the track before leading to the station. Although The Bat is sorta out in the middle of nowhere as well (I even had a dream one time that exaggerated the length of The Bat's queue!), the line snakes out of Action Zone and once you go under the bridge, it opens up into this beautiful forest, after which you bear left and go down and then up some stairs into the station. Maybe it's due to nostalgia and I love The Bat so much, but its out of the way location just works for me. Basically, for me, Bat's queue > Firehawk's queue as the latter is bunched up and secluded while the former is sprawling and set in a more pleasing natural environment.

@MDMC01 I really like how The Bat is out of the way, it's nice and secluded from the rest of the park. I guess I just want a little theming or something to look at. I love the trees and the quietness but I want some more effort thrown into the theming.

If Firehawk's que was altered, I think you'd see a lot more ridership. To me it isn't worth it to go wait 20+ minutes for a ride in the hot, baking sun when I could wait 20+ minutes for a ride in the nice air conditioned building next door. When you're sitting in a long line sweating like crazy for a ride that literally points you up to the hot sun, you're not really going to want to stay at the park much longer. Even a shelter like Drop Tower's would be enough. After walking around the park, especially on humid days, I don't really want to keep baking in the sun waiting for a ride. Similar to how people don't like to stand in long lines to get on a ride where you stand up. There has to be a little incentive, even for roller coasters. 

Firehawk also needs a tent or something where you have to wait to get back into the station. I don't ride it unless it's slow or cloudy. 

Firehawk's lift could use some sort of covering as well. 

Firehawk tends to operate too slowly for me to want to wait in line on typical crowd days, on top of the queue issues you guys mention. 

36 minutes ago, silver2005 said:

Firehawk's lift could use some sort of covering as well. 

And it's not hard to do either. There are a couple of coasters that have covered or enclosed lift hills.  

https://rcdb.com/773.htm#p=34506

 

Nighthawk at Carowinds has a covered holding brake section prior to returning back to the station. It even has a fan.....would be nice if KI would add one to Firehawk. The queue definitely needs something different...maybe more mist fans...maybe more shade structures. The one thing I don't necessarily like with Firehawk operations is that they only let a certain amount go up to the station...when there's plenty of room to allow for more folks to go through...especially when both sides are open. 

 

At least Firehawk doesn't stop on the brakes because of the twin station.  I feel it would be more useful to cover the lift since its so slow and you're spending all that time looking into the sun.  

4 minutes ago, silver2005 said:

At least Firehawk doesn't stop on the brakes because of the twin station.  I feel it would be more useful to cover the lift since its so slow and you're spending all that time looking into the sun.  

There are times it stops....and when it does...it's just as uncomfortable to stare up into the sun as the lift hill. 

I wish the lift worked as it was originally supposed to...that'd make it more bearable. 

44 minutes ago, chugh43 said:

There are times it stops....and when it does...it's just as uncomfortable to stare up into the sun as the lift hill. 

I wish the lift worked as it was originally supposed to...that'd make it more bearable. 

I think we all did but it wasn't feasible to do so I vote tunnel!

@SonofBaconator it was a feasible idea....it just never worked as it should have, so an in house system was created and it is very meh.

 

3 minutes ago, chugh43 said:

@SonofBaconator it was a feasible idea....it just never worked as it should have, so an in house system was created and it is very meh.

 

I always associated feasibility with reliability in this case- my vocabulary leaves a lot to be desired. 

I've said it before and I'll say it again, rides like The Beast and especially Boo Blasters don't need fun TVs, period. Rides like The Bat need something and I mean something to keep you entertained and themed, it's a 1 minute ride which is fun but severly lacking on a single theme. Being Halloween colors don't cut it. I see it on its last leg anyway and I still do enjoy but I'm sure all that space will be up for grabs sooner than later. MaestroJr