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May 3, 2011
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Richmond, Va
It's never too early to begin thinking about next season...

As everyone knows, this season is not the park's real 40th operating year, but it is 40 years since the preview opening back in 1974. 2014 was also the "off year" for Kings Dominion, even though it brought many changes to the inside of the park. That brings us to 2015.

Our last coaster was introduced as being a record breaking roller coaster standing at 305 feet tall and running at a max speed of 94 miles per hour, Intimidator 305, which was brought to us in 2010.

So that means its been 4 years since we have had a "big" attraction to say. So what will we see next? In 2012, Canada's Wonderland brought to life the first B&M giga coaster, Leviathan. In 2013, Cedar Point received Gatekeeper, a wing rider coaster which altered the park's entrance for the signature key hole element, Also in 2013, California's Great America opened up a new wooden ride, Gold Striker. This season, Kings Island is soaring to even bigger heights by opening their newest thrilling attraction, Banshee.

Is Kings Dominion next in line for the big attraction for the Cedar Fair parks? But if it is a roller coaster, who will be the manufacturer? And would it be steel or wood?

Last season, we saw 3 months + downtime by Intimidator 305 due to a believed faulty motor as well as a boat flipping over trapping riders under water briefly on Shoot the Rapids located at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio. Both as these attractions built by Intamin AG. I305's extended downtime is not the only issue this ride has faced, but the ride received trim brakes shortly after opening and the first turn had to be re-profiled due to a miscalculation in forces which consequently melted the ride's wheel rapidly.

Personally, I think it's safe to say that Intamin AG will not be providing us a new coaster next season(if it is a coaster). That leaves us to another big coaster designer... Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M). Though it's been a rumor in that past that there was a contract between Busch Gardens Williamsburg and B&M that they couldn't build any of their products within a certain radius of BGW, that rumor may have slipped. In 2012, BGW launched Verbolten,a brand new launch coaster that travels indoors and out with a surprise "drop" element inside. Could this have broken the contact between the two companies? We obviously will never know. However, Kings Dominion's only B&M ride is Dominator, which was acquired in 2007 after Geauga Lake & Wildwater Kingdom closed to become strictly a water park and all their roller coasters and other attractions were relocated to other Cedar Fair parks. Then of course, various other designers such as Mack, GCI, ect. could all be choices depending on the ride.

So there's a few things to think about if we even receive a new coaster at all. I certainly wouldn't rule out any flat rides as well.
 
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I'd love to see a nice big B&M addition to KD. I think it would add some much needed consistency to their lineup. Intamins are great when they hit, but disastrous when they miss, and CF seems to have had good success with some larger B&M projects. I do hope they don't go the way of the wing rider however unless it's massive.
 
Isn't Carowinds getting a giant coaster for 2015? I'm thinking this will keep KD out of the new coaster bid for 2015.
 
CF has the resources to do multiple big coasters in one year. Plus most of the other CF parks have had coasters since then.
 
I thought Carowinds was getting a 30 or 50 million dollar makeover? Or did that include a coaster as well?




EDIT: http://cedarfair.com/ir/press_releases/index.cfm

Direct link (PDF): http://cf.wddnsweb2.wddonline.net/_upload/pressreleases/082613%20-%20charlotte%20investment.pdf
 
At this point in time unless Carowinds has announced it themselves, it's all a bunch of speculation. And just because one CF park gets a coaster doesn't mean the other one won't. Look at 2013.
 
Mathew, I edited a link to the actual press release about the 50 million being spent...

But yeah, remember in 2010, Carowinds and Kings Dominion received the two Intimidators.
 
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There were talks of a 50 million dollar expansion at Carowinds, but I haven't heard anything about rumored new attractions. Also, Intimidator was built at Carowinds the same year KD got 305, so both parks could easily get new attractions next year.
 
I remember when they were announcing the $50 million investment into Carowinds that a chunk of the money would go to a Giga-coaster (or something damn close to it), and Screamscape's rumor updates back me up. What this means for Kings Dominion I don't know, but Carowinds definitely is getting something for 2015.
 
Dorney, Valleyfair and MICHIGAN ADVENTURE need a new good coaster before any other park. I think KD needs more flat rides, they have a great line up. With a couple new flats and coaster upgrades next season, I'd be happy.
 
I wouldn't mind Cedar Fairs first RMC. :p Though if they took down Hurler, that would open up a key to the rest of the property. They could easily make a Beast styled RMC back there. I'll just keep dreaming...
 
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I don't have a preference as far as a possible new coaster in 2015 is concerned. I am just not sure, at this point, if the new attraction will be another coaster.

There are other 2015 possibilities for Kings Dominion that would not be a coaster. Here are 4 possibilities for 2015; any of which could reasonably happen next year.

1) A dark ride like Canada's Wonderland "Guardian". Could use part of the volcano mountain as its location.

2) 40th anniversary related attractions: such as the return of the steam train; the return of the sky-ride cable cars; the return of a couple former flat rides; or some combination above.

3) Water Park renovation and expansion.

4) New coaster.
 
How about a people-mover styled ride? Man, that has to be on of my favorite transportation rides. I do wanna see a dark ride go into Volcano but not another shoot-em up ride.
 
Bring back the Time Shaft! I loved that ride as a kid!

In fact I missed it so much that when I went to Redstone Arsenal for work and we visited the museum, I convinced the staff to let us ride their centrifugal force rotor ride. I imagine they had it (and a drop tower) for Space Camp.
 
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I'd love to see the sky ride return. That park needs a transportation ride something awful. But if it's a coaster I see it going in behind Hurler with some type of new section.
 
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What the hell happened to el dorado? Is it still in the boneyard? It looked like a ride in good condition.
 
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