Just stopping by to say that I think it's hilarious that as soon as Zachary reports on these things; KD is on the horn with the newspaper to confirm it.
Berserker Removal Imminent
- Thread starter Zachary
- Start date
Probably a journalist sees the article then reaches out to Kings Dominion
So I wonder how the GP is feeling about all of these closures at the many parks after buying season passes. While many of the rides are not overly popular, they are still offering less for the money at the time. Then there is the question of if this will continue for many years to come.
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I don't know that the GP are likely to link how bad it is. The Texas removals are a regional story unless you are in the enthusiasts community. Carowinds and KD are closes enough that there might be some cross media attention from the mainstream media. Ka got major attention simply because of the records but other then that I don't know that the multiple removals will generate that much attention other then from enthusiasts.
I think the water park attraction closures have been far more impactful then a couple unpopular rides. The water park legitimately has less capacity than it did previously, though I understand why those attractions had to close.
Did I miss some announcement about water park closures? Or are you referring to Tornado (removed almost 8 years ago) and Big Wave Bay (which was seldom open and replaced with a much more elaborate, consistently operating attraction)?
The removal of the big wave pool netted out to a small kids wave pool and a one for one swap of the kids play structure instead. It's nice, but there is way less capacity then what existed with having two full size wave pools.
Maybe it just happened to be when I went, but I rarely ever saw both pools in use on the same day. I guess maybe some holiday weekends where the juice is worth the squeeze and they can staff it?
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I made it to the park just in time for some final rides. Made a short vlog to share with you guys. It was COLDDD
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It's worth noting that one of the last riders off Berserker was a young lady that said she was a ride opp a few years ago and that Berserker was the first ride she learned to operate she also said it was her Dad's first ride when he was a ride opp there in the 80s. She also said that they had issues stopping it on the last ride cycle and that it's final ride ended with an Estop so in the end it didn't go quietly to it's goodnight.
Only sad about this because every time we’re at the kid height check, my son excitedly stares at it and asks if he’s tall enough yet. He likely would have been this season and will be crushed (like the restraints on thighs) when i tell him.
I never rode it because I knew it would make me sick. I don't mind it being removed, except that lines are going to be longer on other rides with all these ride closures.
We skipped out on passes for 2024. I think I'm going to do it again for 2025. I'm just not comfortable giving money to this company anymore. Removing GP-popular rides without an immediate replacement ready to go up is irresponsible and stupid, and I'm not going to support that kind of behavior with my money. Have fun on Rapterra guys, but this one was the last straw for me, at least for now. The ONLY think i can come up with is that CGA is closing sooner than we expect, and they're making room for ride moves.
I think they could have done a better job with giving people last rides, but I'm not sure that the general public cares in the same manner or intensity as some of the people posting here. They are adding new rides, after all, which I expect they'll continue to do, and the things that are being removed are very old in their service lives. I'm alright with being the odd person out and supporting what they are doing with these removals.
Curious what this will mean for ride groupings and staffing. Dominator and Berserker have been together for many many years and the running numbers for dominator are less than what would usually be run for a solo location but I can't imagine they'd pair it with anything due to the distance from other rides. Will be interesting to see if Dominator becomes one of the smallest locations in the park
My last few years, A lot of crews in ISTOVA (International Street/ Old Virginia) were crossed trained. The ride groupings (This might be out of date) were
Dom/Berserker
Flume/Eiffel Tower
WWC
Grizzly/Cars/Eagles.
With Berserker leaving, and Eiffel Tower still SBNO, it leaves three crews on a single Ride. I had gotten some form of ride certification in ever group just in case I had to go somewhere else for a rotation. Going forward, I could see them moving Tower (once it reopens) to Dominator and then flume with Cars or Eagles just to even it out again.
Dom/Berserker
Flume/Eiffel Tower
WWC
Grizzly/Cars/Eagles.
With Berserker leaving, and Eiffel Tower still SBNO, it leaves three crews on a single Ride. I had gotten some form of ride certification in ever group just in case I had to go somewhere else for a rotation. Going forward, I could see them moving Tower (once it reopens) to Dominator and then flume with Cars or Eagles just to even it out again.
Regarding CGA, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed Tiki Twirl when I visited there and always thought it would be an interesting fit in KD's Jungle.