The Coaster Critic's Blog

Dominator Reigns Over Kings Dominion
Recently Dominator opened at Kings Dominion. ThemeParkReview has a message board thread with photos from media day. Check out the photos here.

I'm glad Dominator found a new home at my old home park. All those Northern Virginians that I couldn't convince to travel the extra hour south to Busch Gardens will finally get to experience some B&M greatness. Part of the appeal for the Dominator when it was at Geauga was its marshy setting next to the lake. I was afraid this would be an ugly parking lot coaster, but it's good to see that the park is trying to landscape the area.

Check out this video of Dominator at Kings Dominion:

Exclusive Shot of Dominator Progress at Kings Dominion
Last weekend, I happened to be in the Doswell, Virginia area so I took a few shots of Dominator. As you can see, the lift, drop, and world's largest loop are all complete. I'll leave the up-close, professional shots to the experts at sites like CoasterCrew and KDConnection. Plus, I didn't want to get in trouble. I didn't have my press pass with me.

For more on Dominator including an onride video, check out this popular Dominator post and join the discussion.

Predicting the Best Roller Coasters of the Class of 2008
With the 2008 season upon us I thought it was time for a countdown of the biggest and best roller coasters opening in 2008. I admit it's impossible to rank coasters I've never ridden, but how can I turn down an opportunity to do another Top 10?

10 Flying Turns at Knoebels
Knoebels to Resurrect an Extinct Type of Wooden Coaster
Keeping with Knoebels' tradition of classic wooden coasters, the park has been working on Flying Turns for the past few years. According to Wikipedia, Flying Turns was the name of a specific type of wooden roller coaster. They featured a trackless wooden chute that was twisted like a bobsled course and had toboggan-like cars. There hasn't been one in operation in over 30 years, so it seems like a great move by Knoebels to resurrect this type of coaster. Flying Turns will help to put the small park on the map, just as the airtime-packed Phoenix has, while still keeping in step with the homey old school amusement park feel. Check out these photos of Flying Turns.

9 Dark Knight at Six Flags Great Adventure, Great America, New England
Dark Knight Roller Coasters Swoop into 3 Six Flags Parks in 2008
Six Flags looks to mass produce (well mass produce in coaster terms) a new indoor wild mouse coaster for three of its parks. In 2008, Six Flags Great Adventure (Jackson, NJ), Six Flags New England (Springfield, MA), and Six Flags Great America (Chicago, IL) will get Mack Wild Mouse coasters enclosed in a Batman themed building.

Details have been sparse other than the blueprints that emerged and this concept art (pictured right) in a recent New York Post article. Some enthusiasts have been quick to dismiss the DK coasters, because the wild mouse coasters are not the most thrilling coasters, but with the dark ride feel and the right theming the Dark Knight coasters could surprise a lot of people. More on the Dark Knight coasters...>>>

8 Dominator at Kings Dominion
Kings Dominion Adds Dominator for 2008
Another Geauga Lake orphan has found a new home. The Bolliger & Mabillard floorless coaster will dominate the Kings Dominion skyline next year. Among the five inversions is the largest vertical loop on the planet. So, that will give KD's marketing department something to tout. Dominator is easily one of my favorite floorless coasters and also one of my top 10 or 15 seated looping coasters. Virginians should be excited. More on Dominator at Kings Dominion...>>>


7 - Led Zeppelin - The Ride at Hard Rock Park
Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach to Feature a Led Zeppelin Roller Coaster
The new Hard Rock Park set to open in 2008 in Myrtle Beach will feature a large Bolliger & Mabillard looping coaster with themed after legendary rock band Led Zeppelin. The station will be a zeppelin and the ride will be synchronized to their hit "Whole Lotta Love". Members of the band apparently worked with Hard Rock on the theming and picked the song from their catalog.

The layout of the coaster looks great. It will have six inversions (vertical loop, cobra roll, zero-g roll, vertical loop, and a corkscrew) and it will be situated partly over a lagoon. More on the Led Zeppelin Coaster and Hard Rock Park...>>>

6 - X2 at Six Flags Magic Mountain
X Gets Remixed and Enhanced for 2008
X at Six Flags Magic Mountain was the world's first 4th dimension roller coaster. Instead of riding above or below the track, riders are positioned beside the track in seats that spin. Here's a really good look at one of X's trains. If that doesn't sound insane enough, Six Flags is taking X2 to the 5th dimension(?) with $10 million dollars worth of audio and visual enhancements. More on X2 as Six Flags Magic Mountain...>>>

Check out the rest of my picks, including my top pick, in the New for 2008 Top 10 Part 2. What do you think of picks 10 to 6? Do you agree with the rankings? Leave a comment below.

Kings Dominion Adds Dominator for 2008
Another Geauga Lake orphan has found a new home. Today, the official announcement was made that the B&M floorless coaster Dominator will dominate the Kings Dominion skyline next year.

An Inviting Concrete Setting
In true Kings Dominion fashion the ride will be located on top of the existing park instead of in the acres and acres of untouched wilderness surrounding the park. It had a cool setting in a marshy area on the edge of the lake at Geauga. In its new home it will sit in the parking lot next to the swinging inverter ship Berserker. Similar to G.A.S.M.'s setting at Great Adventure. The general public won't care but this kind of thing irks me. At least that other Virginia park knows a thing or two about theming, atmosphere, and integrating roller coasters into a park.

A Strong Addition to the Lineup
On the bright side, Dominator is a great ride. It's easily one of my favorite floorless coasters and also one of my top 10 or 15 seated looping coasters. There' not a real need for this type of coaster, but it will satisfy the general public, especially those who haven't ridden a B&M coaster. Aside from a smooth, twisted ride and great capacity that'll keep the line moving, it features:

148' drop (14 stories)
Record setting 135' tall vertical loop
Cobra Roll (2 inversions)
2 Corkscrews
Floorless trains
For more information see King's Dominion's press release.

Check out this onride video of the Dominator:


**UPDATE - 05/20** Dominator's open! Check out photos and a video from media day in this post.

**UPDATE** I have posted a new photo from March 9th that I took showing the progress of Dominator. View the picture here.

Anyone looking forward to Kings Dominion's newest addition? Leave a comment below.

Is Cedar Fair Drying up the Lake?
I have to give the Coasterdom podcast credit. Their last two shows have been jam-packed with juicy tidbits. Geauga Lake is a medium-sized amusement park located in Eastern Ohio and owned by Cedar Fair. Cedar Fair also owns Cedar Point (Sandusky, OH) and acquired Kings Island (Cincinnati, OH) last year. Maybe Cedar Fair thinks that Ohio's a bit too crowded. Last winter they removed Geauga's Steel Venom and X-Flight and shipped them to other parks within the chain.

And now according to the Coasterdom podcast, The Kevin and Nate Show, Geauga Lake will lose two more coasters. Allegedly the B&M floorless coaster Dominator will move to Kings Dominion and the Vekoma SLC Thunderhawk will go to Michigan's Adventure. If these rumors turn out to be true, could Cedar Fair be draining Geuga Lake dry with plans to close it permanently down the road? Maybe some enthusiasts out there who are into the financial side of the theme park industry have some insight into why Cedar Fair is doing this.

In my opinion, if Dominator really is moving to Kings Dominion I couldn't be more excited. That park sorely needs and B&M coaster. I just wonder where they'll squeeze it in.

What do you think of Geauga Lake's future? Do you think Cedar Fair is managing this re-shuffle correctly? Leave a comment below.