Robbie Knievel at Kings Island- 5/24/2008
Sarah and I traveled to Kings Island to witness "Kaptain" Robbie Knievel's attempt to jump over 24 trucks.
We arrived well before they even opened the gates to the parking lot. But at least that meant we were able to park in the front
row.
Firehawk was our first ride of the day. It was the first time for both of us on Firehawk since it was relocated from Geauga Lake last
year. it was also our first time on The Crypt since it received its new programming and new name.
Since it was the weekend, Memorial Day weekend and the day of the Robbie Knievel jump, the crowd was huge. There was about a 45-minute
wait for each of the rides. Later we headed over to Nickelodeon Universe so that Sarah could ride a few things she was interested
in. It was insane. Kids, parents and strollers were everywhere. The lines were crazy. We didn't stay long.
About five o'clock we got the camera from the truck and walked to the jump area. We walked around a bit to find the best place to watch
from. A vendor was handing out free cans of "Vault" which came in handy sitting on the hot hard asphalt while we waited. How did
they get those trucks parked so close together? The two-hour wait actually went pretty fast.
The show started at seven with skydivers bringing in the American Flag as Robbie's daughter sang the National Anthem. Robbie rode out to
the cheers of the crowd. He walked onto the landing ramp and safety deck talking to the fans. After getting the crowd pumped up he
rode some wheelies back and forth in front of the trucks. Robbie rode to the top of each of the ramps and checked things out. From
the top of the sky jump starting ram he gunned the bike to 90 miles per hour and flew through the air, landing safely but just a little short
onto the safety deck. The crowd roared and the fireworks blasted off. Robbie returned to the landing ramp to receive the
congratulations from his crew and climbed to the top of the trucks to thank the crowd.
I thought that maybe after the jump Sarah would want to go home. Surprisingly, she was ready to ride some more. So we headed back
into the park for more coasters and some water rides. While climbing the hills on the coasters we could see the long lines of traffic in
the parking lot. It turned out to be a good idea to stay for more rides. The final ride of the night was on Son of Beast. Sarah
kept asking me questions about the ride and I tried not to tell her too much because I was afraid she would chicken-out. While we were on
the loading platform the park had their fireworks display, so we missed it. Once Sarah was firmly strapped into her seat I finally told
her, "By the way, this is the world's roughest roller coaster". It was only my second ride ever on Son of Beast and my first since it
reopened after the accident. Riding at night was great. Even with the changes to the ride and the new trains it was still a very
rough ride. We were off the ride at 10:20.
Twenty minutes later we had already walked out of the park to the truck, sliced though the parking lot traffic and were on the highway headed
home.
It was the best trip to Kings Island ever.
Check out my pictures of Robbie Knievel's jump.
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