Kings Island - 4/16/2023
Today was Kings Island's second day of operations for 2023. I arrived at the park at about 9:30 and normally
I would be able to get in with early entry even before the general public at 10 o'clock. Instead, it seemed as
if they were just letting everyone into the park regardless.
The forecast called for overcast skies all day, and a chance of a few light rain showers. I was hoping the
gloomy forecast would keep the park attendance low and for the most part it worked out exactly that way.
The park's new addition for 2023 will be Adventure Port. Most of the Oktoberfest, located between Coney Mall
and Action Zone, will be home to this new themed area and will feature two new family rides, Sol Spin and Cargo Loco,
as well as enhanced theming for Adventure Express. I was able to peek over the temporary fencing and check out
the construction progress.
The area is set to open later this summer.
I was able to get at least one lap on most of my favorite coasters, Beast, Banshee, Racer, Diamondback, Mystic
Timbers and Orion.
As there was some light rain throughout the morning and into the early afternoon, I decided to get a ride on the
Kings Island & Miami Valley Railroad to get in from the rain for just a little bit. At one point while on the
train I could hear the locomotive chugging away with an irregular pattern and I noticed that the train was also
gradually slowing down ever so slightly. Since the train was going around a bend, I could see the
locomotive. The wheels were losing traction on the wet rails. The engineer was varying the throttle up
and down to minimize the drive wheels slipping and to keep the train moving. This was the first time I've ever
experienced this on a train.
There was a rain shower that closed most of the rides. I was already in line for Orion and while most other
guests chose to leave the queue, I decided to stay in line and stay dry inside one of the themed buildings in the
queue. After about a half hour, the rain had stopped, Orion reopened and I was on the first train.
I rode another coaster or two when a second light rain shower hit the park. The temperature had dropped and
the winds had become brisk. I had spent over five hours in the park and I felt it was time for me to head
back home.
Although brief, it was a fun day at Kings Island and a good start to the 2023 roller coaster season.
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