Kentucky Kingdom (SFKK, KK) Discussion Thread

If Kentucky Kingdom ever did relocate, I think a location around Carrolton would be better. It is roughly half way between Louisville and Cincinnati. It's also isn't far from Frankfort or Lexington. Then again, it won't happen, even though it would open up many possibilities. A location near Louisville would be good in that it is next to a major city, but a location near Carrolton puts it within easy driving distance of even more people.

I hope the new management can turn the park around. Kentucky Kingdom looks like it used to be a nice park, sadly it seems to have gone downhill under Six Flags management. If the grounds are fixed up and some more flats brought in, Kentucky Kingdom can once again become a nice regional park. The park doesn't really have much room for a coaster, minus the hole left by Chang, so they might as well use their limited space to the best of their ability.

^ I will give Six Flags credit cause they looked into doing just this back when they first acquired the park in 1997. SF didn't move ahead because of 9/11 IIRC.

Rumor's out that Chang might be going to Six Flags Great Adventure to replace Great America Scream Machine.

Quote from The Coaster Critic's website:

Chang may not be opening at Six Flags Great America (near Chicago) as everyone had thought. Rumors have the stand-up roller coaster moving to Six Flags Great Adventure (Jackson, NJ), arguably the company’s flagship theme park. The rumor also has Chang replacing the Arrow looper, Great American Scream Machine.

 

Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom’s Chang started coming down last winter only to resurface at Six Flags Great America. The move seemed a bit weird as that park already had a stand-up coaster in Iron Wolf, but 2011 was thought to be a year with a lot of shuffling around of rides as it will be Six Flags 35th anniversary.

 

The rumor appears to be based on a Coaster Fusion message board thread that where a long-time member (I’m assuming the site owner) states:

 

We have confirmed with a supervisor in rides that Six Flags Great Adventure will be closing Scream Machine as of July 1, 2010. The ride is getting to old to find parts for, since S&S is only focusing on their new rides and the X coasters. The park will become home to Chang from Kentucky Kingdom which will replace Scream Machine. -Coaster Fusion

 

Shockingly, this news upsets some people. I know that the reputation of stand-up coasters is not good. If you’ve never ridden Chang then you may not know that there are good, even great stand-up coasters (2 or 3, at least). This makes sense to me, but there are actually people who are sad to see Great American Scream Machine go!

^I call BS. Why would Arrow suddenly want to stop selling parts for its older rides? There's so many of them out there that they probably make more money on supporting their older rides than they do their new ones...

^ Seriously. S&S didn't buy Arrow for their new rides division, because they sure as hell weren't building many by then. Just think about the sheer number of Arrow rides in the US *alone* and think about how many spare parts they must go through each year.

^^ I agree with you.

When I took the tour at BGW I talked to a mechanic on the loch ness about spare parts as they had pointed out that they had disassembled a train from a former coaster for parts, and asked if that's what they were resorting to. I was told that parts for the old arrow coasters were plentiful and that they were still making parts for the older coasters. At 1k+ a pop for a new wheel, I would imagine it's still a very profitable side of the business, and as many of us know, coasters eat wheels and various other parts for dinner all summer long.

I've seen Chang run ONE time with 3 trains a long time ago. T2 also had 3 10 car trains until 1998 when it was down all summer and opened back with 2 7 car trains. T2 obviously never ran more than 2 trains. I don't know what happened to Chang's third train but it's been missing since before 2000. T2's third train became a parts donor. It will be great to have this park open again just to go up the street and around the corner instead of 1 hour drive, 2 hour drive etc...

Aren't all the SLC's set up from a blocking standpoint to run just two trains max? The first brake is merely a reduction brake while the 2nd adjacent to the transfer/storage track is a holding brake.

The first brake stops the train completely. When the ride had three trains, one of them were in storage.

Chang never had 3 trains. It was equipped for 3 but only had 2.

I'm just wondering if KK never opens again can CF buy Greased Lightnin to bring it back to CGA? & There is a model of the Tidal Wave in CGA's park office. That's a good sign. I have a feeling it will return someday.

Posted: Jul 23, 2010 11:00 AM EDT

Six Flags, Fair Board come to agreement

 

The Kentucky State Fair Board and Six Flags have settled their property dispute over Kentucky Kingdom.

 

According to our partner Business First, the agreement could pave the way for a new operator to re-open the park next summer.

 

Thursday the Fair Board approved an agreement that requires Six Flags to turn over sixty acres of the park it still owns, and all but one of its rides.

 

In exchange the Fair Board would pay Six Flags more than $2 million, and the amusement park company would also be forgiven overdue rent and back taxes.

 

The Fair Board is currently in negotiations with Louisville businessman Ed Hart to re-open Kentucky Kingdom.

www.fox41.com/Global/story.asp?S=12859525

http://louisville.bizjournals.com/louisville/stories/2010/07/26/story2.html?b=1280116800%5E3696121

Looks like the mouse coaster is going back to six flags.

In exchange, Six Flags would get $2.35 million and would be relieved of a tax debt to the state that totals close to $2.5 million. Also, $2.8 million in rent payments due to the fair board would be forgiven.

The park operator also would be allowed to remove one ride, the Road Runner Express coaster, and take it to another of its venues.

Harold Workman, fair board president and CEO, called the agreement with Six Flags “amicable.”

“We’re very pleased with it,” he said. “It’s been obviously a long road to get to this point.

^Dang, Road Runner Express was one of the better Mouse coasters, oh well. This is great news for the park, this means that Deluge, Mega Wedgie, and pretty much the rest of the waterpark is even staying. Also that space for the (defunct) viper coaster is going to be open again!

I won't miss Road Runner Express at all. I'm surprised SF didn't take Deluge, though maybe the cost of dismantling and moving it was cost prohibitive.

The park is going to reopen next year.

Any rides that are left, you will be able to ride once again next year.

THANK GOD Greased Lightnin WILL BE SAVED!!! Greased Lightnin & Montezooma's are the only 2 standing of their kind in the USA. I will be so in heaven if I get to ride Geased Lightnin again someday. I rode Montezooma's in July 2008 & wasn't very fond of it. WHAT??? I know I can't believe it. I guess it just felt too different since it isn't a weight drop launch. I guess there is a major difference between the two. Weight drop launch is better that's why I didn't care for Montezooma's I guess.

THANK GOD Greased Lightnin WILL BE SAVED!!!

I'm not sure how Road Runner was anchored, but that big concrete space below it could fit almost anything compact. El Loco, anyone?

They also took away the 180ft Sky Coaster, I vote something over 100 feet tall (Vekoma Stingray?). If not, then I agree with the El Loco!

So Which Six Flags doesn't have a mouse/Dark Knight Mouse...

SFStL

SFMM

SFA

SFDK

SFNE (I think they still have the pad poured even after not getting a Dark Knight)

Great Escape

SFoG

La Ronde

Maybe they could get Elitch Garden's Flying Coaster for that wild mouse pad. Could SFNO's Boomerang be refurbished? Could a boomerang fit in that same general spot, just a few feet over where the Skycoaster was?

I think SFNE should just try to get a standard mouse outdoors. It was already going to have a repetitious genre if they got Dark Knight fully installed.

curious of what the new operator will do with the twins, falls, and dragster sites. a lot of room for expansion in this one given time and money. Maybe this will inspire the fairgrounds to also spruce up the entrance and whatnot to help out the new operator bring back the crowds.

I'm surprised nobody has seen this yet...but the whole front side will not be used. There will even be a new main entrance, it will be a much smaller and wetter life for Kentucky Kingdom.

http://img822.imageshack.us/img822/6523/stuff052640x480.jpg

http://img709.imageshack.us/img709/4796/stuff053640x480.jpg

http://img834.imageshack.us/img834/4977/stuff054640x480.jpg

^Your links do not work.

I was thinking of maybe a Vekoma suspended Family Coaster replacing T2 and some kind of crazy intamin ride in the place of where Chang stood.