What started out as my yearly trip to KD, turned into a KD/BG trip.
We expected to atleast hit a decent crowd , but the park was dead the entire time I was there.
Got to KD right as they opened and hit Dominator.
Dominator:
Lots of people hate on this "parking lot" coaster, but I really do enjoy it. Walked right onto the back row. Super smooth, but some chatter going through the corkscrews.
We then went back to Intimitador.
Intimidator 305:
Another ride people like to hate on, but it is one of my favorite roller coasters now. It was my first time riding and I was really impressed. We walked right back onto the back for this as well. The harnesses were extremely comfortable. I actually fully blacked out, not grey out, but its due to a previous mx injury. Woke up at the brake runs. It was interesting experience... So beyond what better interest would have been, I rode again hoping to stay awake for the whole ride. Which luckily I did. Just grayed out half way down the drop and cleared up going up the first hill. While watching the ride, I noticed they spray the wheels or bearings? as the ride comes into the station and while sitting in the station. I found that to be interesting...
Then headed to Volcano...
Volcano:
Waited about 20min to ride. It seems to have gotten rather rough compared to previous times I have rode. Still a great ride though.
Decided to ride Anaconda next.
Anaconda:
Great classic ride. Me, my girlfriend, and my younger brother were the only ones on the ride 2 times in a row. We rode the back car and it was pretty rough. Love the corkscrews though.
Walked over to Stunt Coaster next:
Backlot Stunt Coaster:
Rode the very back on this as well. Was not expecting the force of the first launch. Great surprise. The tunnel was also great. Of course alot of the effects were gimmicky, still a very enjoyable ride.
By then Flight of Fear was open
Flight of Fear:
Pretty uneventful. The first launch was great, but after that, I was kind of bored. Rough at times too.
Then walked over to Rebel Yell
Rebel Yell:
They were running one train so we had to wait about 10min to ride. And being a woody, I was expecting it to be rough, but not THAT rough. Maybe riding in the back wasnt the greatest idea. Great airtime, but it could really use some work.
Then we hit Hurler.
Hurler:
For some reason, Hurler has always been one of my favorite coasters. It didn't disappoint me this time either. Walked right on and rode the back a few times.
Then we ride Grizzly before lunch.
Grizzly:
Rough as always. Still also one of my favorite wooden coaster for some reason. The ride before mine stopped 3/4ths up the chain hill, but it started going again after about a minute. They got on the phone and I guess nothing was wrong as they kept sending it.
Lunch break...
Note to self, pack lunch for Kd next time...
Forgot where we ate at, but we all got cheese burgers and drinks. Mcdonalds taste better... haha I knew this from previous trips to the park, but it was never that bad. I got on my phone and saw Mach tower was testing, and since we had done everything we went for, we decided to head to BG for the rest of the day/night.
We hit intimidator a few more times, along with Dominator, then went to the top of the Eiffel Tower. Then we headed out.
All and all, Kings Dominion really is all about the rides. I'm sure most people know this going in. I only go for the roller coaster selection. Anything else is just an added bonus. The parking lots could be cleaned up some. My G35 hated it. Bottomed out a few times for no real reason.
Hit some traffic right when we got on the interstate(truck had an engine let go, blocking both lanes). Stopped by my grandparents for a few, then got to Busch.
Got to the park around 6. Walked right to Loch ness of course.
Loch Ness Monster:
Walked right onto the back. Line formed behind us though. Rode the back row of course. Seemed smooth compared to some rides at KD haha.
Then went to Mach Tower
Mach Tower:
Waited in line for about 15min and then once we were next, the lift carriage got stuck 3/4ths up on its way back down. So that took about 45 min or so to fix. No biggie since its the only reason we went to Bg. Opinion: Nothing really special, but for some reason drop towers sketch me out, so I was a bit nervous going up. I liked the spinning effect, its also helped that illuminights had the park lit up. Great view from the top. The music effect also added to the suspense. The vibrating seats was a huge gimmick. I was expecting more from that. Still vibrated though. I do wish there was a bit more of airtime, you feel the brakes immediately. Its still a great addition for the park. The general public has seemed to take great interest in it.
We grabbed some dinner at Oktoberfest after Mach Tower. Grabbed some pizza that I love. Brings back memories of basically growing up at Busch and always eating that pizza.
We hanged out for a bit then went out for some more rides.
Alpengeist:
Waited about 10min for the back. Great ride at night. Seemed smoother than usual. Surprised me a bit.
Then got to Griffon before the fireworks.
Griffon:
About a 20 min wait. It's Griffon. you know its smooth. The ride looked great with the light on it for illuminights. Though I wasn't expecting it when it blinded me at the top before the drop. I still never expect the second drop. It always gets me.
The fireworks show was great. For something they do nightly, I give them props on that. I've seen cities do shows much smaller than that for 4th of July events.
Got over to Apollo about 10 min before closing.
Apollo's Chariot:
Waited about 5-10 min to ride. We rode the second to last row. Great ride, great airtime. Caught a few bugs of course. It did make some chattering somewhere. I forgot where, but I did make a mental note of it.
I have never done 2 parks in one day, so I feel like I accomplished something. It was great to do both parks in the same day and be able to compare both. KD was really dead, I felt like there should have been more of a crowd, even for a Thursday. Busch Gardens had atleast twice the crowd once we got there. I'm sure alot of it was locals for illuminights, so it seems atleast on that front Busch has been rather successful.
We expected to atleast hit a decent crowd , but the park was dead the entire time I was there.
Got to KD right as they opened and hit Dominator.
Dominator:
Lots of people hate on this "parking lot" coaster, but I really do enjoy it. Walked right onto the back row. Super smooth, but some chatter going through the corkscrews.
We then went back to Intimitador.
Intimidator 305:
Another ride people like to hate on, but it is one of my favorite roller coasters now. It was my first time riding and I was really impressed. We walked right back onto the back for this as well. The harnesses were extremely comfortable. I actually fully blacked out, not grey out, but its due to a previous mx injury. Woke up at the brake runs. It was interesting experience... So beyond what better interest would have been, I rode again hoping to stay awake for the whole ride. Which luckily I did. Just grayed out half way down the drop and cleared up going up the first hill. While watching the ride, I noticed they spray the wheels or bearings? as the ride comes into the station and while sitting in the station. I found that to be interesting...
Then headed to Volcano...
Volcano:
Waited about 20min to ride. It seems to have gotten rather rough compared to previous times I have rode. Still a great ride though.
Decided to ride Anaconda next.
Anaconda:
Great classic ride. Me, my girlfriend, and my younger brother were the only ones on the ride 2 times in a row. We rode the back car and it was pretty rough. Love the corkscrews though.
Walked over to Stunt Coaster next:
Backlot Stunt Coaster:
Rode the very back on this as well. Was not expecting the force of the first launch. Great surprise. The tunnel was also great. Of course alot of the effects were gimmicky, still a very enjoyable ride.
By then Flight of Fear was open
Flight of Fear:
Pretty uneventful. The first launch was great, but after that, I was kind of bored. Rough at times too.
Then walked over to Rebel Yell
Rebel Yell:
They were running one train so we had to wait about 10min to ride. And being a woody, I was expecting it to be rough, but not THAT rough. Maybe riding in the back wasnt the greatest idea. Great airtime, but it could really use some work.
Then we hit Hurler.
Hurler:
For some reason, Hurler has always been one of my favorite coasters. It didn't disappoint me this time either. Walked right on and rode the back a few times.
Then we ride Grizzly before lunch.
Grizzly:
Rough as always. Still also one of my favorite wooden coaster for some reason. The ride before mine stopped 3/4ths up the chain hill, but it started going again after about a minute. They got on the phone and I guess nothing was wrong as they kept sending it.
Lunch break...
Note to self, pack lunch for Kd next time...
Forgot where we ate at, but we all got cheese burgers and drinks. Mcdonalds taste better... haha I knew this from previous trips to the park, but it was never that bad. I got on my phone and saw Mach tower was testing, and since we had done everything we went for, we decided to head to BG for the rest of the day/night.
We hit intimidator a few more times, along with Dominator, then went to the top of the Eiffel Tower. Then we headed out.
All and all, Kings Dominion really is all about the rides. I'm sure most people know this going in. I only go for the roller coaster selection. Anything else is just an added bonus. The parking lots could be cleaned up some. My G35 hated it. Bottomed out a few times for no real reason.
Hit some traffic right when we got on the interstate(truck had an engine let go, blocking both lanes). Stopped by my grandparents for a few, then got to Busch.
Got to the park around 6. Walked right to Loch ness of course.
Loch Ness Monster:
Walked right onto the back. Line formed behind us though. Rode the back row of course. Seemed smooth compared to some rides at KD haha.
Then went to Mach Tower
Mach Tower:
Waited in line for about 15min and then once we were next, the lift carriage got stuck 3/4ths up on its way back down. So that took about 45 min or so to fix. No biggie since its the only reason we went to Bg. Opinion: Nothing really special, but for some reason drop towers sketch me out, so I was a bit nervous going up. I liked the spinning effect, its also helped that illuminights had the park lit up. Great view from the top. The music effect also added to the suspense. The vibrating seats was a huge gimmick. I was expecting more from that. Still vibrated though. I do wish there was a bit more of airtime, you feel the brakes immediately. Its still a great addition for the park. The general public has seemed to take great interest in it.
We grabbed some dinner at Oktoberfest after Mach Tower. Grabbed some pizza that I love. Brings back memories of basically growing up at Busch and always eating that pizza.
We hanged out for a bit then went out for some more rides.
Alpengeist:
Waited about 10min for the back. Great ride at night. Seemed smoother than usual. Surprised me a bit.
Then got to Griffon before the fireworks.
Griffon:
About a 20 min wait. It's Griffon. you know its smooth. The ride looked great with the light on it for illuminights. Though I wasn't expecting it when it blinded me at the top before the drop. I still never expect the second drop. It always gets me.
The fireworks show was great. For something they do nightly, I give them props on that. I've seen cities do shows much smaller than that for 4th of July events.
Got over to Apollo about 10 min before closing.
Apollo's Chariot:
Waited about 5-10 min to ride. We rode the second to last row. Great ride, great airtime. Caught a few bugs of course. It did make some chattering somewhere. I forgot where, but I did make a mental note of it.
I have never done 2 parks in one day, so I feel like I accomplished something. It was great to do both parks in the same day and be able to compare both. KD was really dead, I felt like there should have been more of a crowd, even for a Thursday. Busch Gardens had atleast twice the crowd once we got there. I'm sure alot of it was locals for illuminights, so it seems atleast on that front Busch has been rather successful.
