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Kentucky Kingdom | Kentucky Flyer | Gravity Group Family Wooden

Haven't done one of these lil' GG coasters, but they look solid. Unexpected but great for KK.

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Props to Kentucky Kingdom too for releasing their No Limits rendering in HD this go round, rather than the 480, 15 FPS Storm Chaser promo 3 years back. :p


This thing looks great, good placement in the park, and will be pretty cool to see in action. Great seeing a resurgence of kiddie/family woodies.
 
@Hyde That wasn't even Kentucky Kingdom, it was just someone on the internet with some time and NL2.

Looks great, though. Really looking forward to seeing this go up!
 
^That absolutely was Kentucky Kingdom, what are you on about? The video Hyde linked is the official announcement video posted to the park's YouTube channel. If "someone on the internet with some time and NL2" did it, I'd put money down that it would've looked better. The absolute icing on the cake is that this time around, they didn't go to NoLimits to unveil their ride. They chose PLANET. COASTER. What a time to be alive.
 
CoasterMac305 said:
^That absolutely was Kentucky Kingdom, what are you on about? The video Hyde linked is the official announcement video posted to the park's YouTube channel. If "someone on the internet with some time and NL2" did it, I'd put money down that it would've looked better. The absolute icing on the cake is that this time around, they didn't go to NoLimits to unveil their ride. They chose PLANET. COASTER. What a time to be alive.
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I'm assuming he's talking about the NL2 recreation of the new coaster posted earlier.
 
Yes, I was talking about this video...


...which is not by the park. Hyde said:

Hyde said:
Props to Kentucky Kingdom too for releasing their No Limits rendering in HD this go round
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Which indicates that the above video was made by the park. I corrected him, saying that it was made by someone on the internet(nothing against them, I think it's a fantastic recreation). The Storm Chaser and Kentucky Flyer announcements are by the park. The above video is not by the park. Kentucky Flyer's announcement utilized Planet Coaster. Storm Chaser's and the above video were done in NL2. I apologize if I wasn't clear in which video I was talking about. I will try to better reference things next time around. No need to get worked up over something this small. That is all.
 
GuyWithAStick said:
Yes, I was talking about this video...


...which is not by the park. Hyde said:



Which indicates that the above video was made by the park. I corrected him, saying that it was made by someone on the internet(nothing against them, I think it's a fantastic recreation). The Storm Chaser and Kentucky Flyer announcements are by the park. The above video is not by the park. Kentucky Flyer's announcement utilized Planet Coaster. Storm Chaser's and the above video were done in NL2. I apologize if I wasn't clear in which video I was talking about. I will try to better reference things next time around. No need to get worked up over something this small. That is all.
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I was referring to the announcement video by the park, which I now realize is Planet Coaster. So hey, going up in the world.
 
In this video by Coaster Studios, Ed Hart says the coaster will have a white painted steel structure, so it will be a hybrid and will have the exact same colour scheme as Twister. Also, Ed claims this coaster was inspired by Wooden Warrior, and that it will be better than Wooden Warrior with a better range of elements:-
 
Hate it or not, at least SOMEONE in the US is gonna build a wood coaster in 2019. So big shout out to KK for that <3
Had they not, it would have been the first time since 1985 a new wood coaster hadn't been built in the US.

And while I doubt I'll be making a trip for it next season, I'll definitely be making a stop in 2020, based off what KI does.
 
"We're rounding 'em up in a very humane way, in a very nice way. And they're going to be happy because they want to be RMCed. And, by the way, I know it doesn't sound nice. But not everything is nice." - Donald Trump
 
Here's a pretty neat video from Kentucky Kingdom where he answers numerous questions, including why they chose The Gravity Group, why they picked the name, and what they wanted in a ride when they began planning.



It's still amazing that those Timberliners have a 9 foot turning radius. Wonderful design!
 
Ed Hart has always been one of my favorite owners. Has just always been so genuine and lighthearted. While KK isn't my first choice for a park, the people who run it are definitely top notch and I wish they managed other parks.
 
Some bad news I'm afraid. The park released the following information:
In preparation for installing a new roller coaster for the 2019 season, Kentucky Kingdom gave notice to its landlord, the Kentucky State Fair Board, that it was exercising its option to use one acre of the 20-acre tract to which the theme park is entitled, per the terms of its lease with the Fair Board, for the purpose of expanding and improving the park. Unfortunately, the Fair Board has yet to agree to transfer that additional acre to the park.

Ed Hart, President and CEO of Kentucky Kingdom said, “We don’t understand why the Fair Board is delaying this transfer. Since our lease with the Fair Board gives us the right to option up to 20 acres of additional property to expand Kentucky Kingdom, the Fair Board’s approval of the transfer is merely a formality. Not only has the Fair Board delayed its approval, it has prevented us from taking soil samples, which is an essential first step in installing any roller coaster, even though this work in no way disturbs the property. I have advised Mr. Beck, the President and CEO of the Fair Board, that we have waited almost two months to receive the Fair Board’s approval for use of this small portion of the expansion property. All that is required is routine paperwork in the form of a simple addendum to our lease, signed by the Fair Board and the other state agencies that are also parties to the lease. We have given Mr. Beck all the information he has requested about the new coaster, but still have not received the addendum. We planned on making our first payment on the coaster yesterday, in the amount of $786,000, but cannot do so without the addendum in place. The Fair Board was fully aware of this but apparently does not appear to be concerned about the success of its premier tenant. A continued delay jeopardizes our schedule for getting the new coaster built in time for the 2019 season, which regrettably, may force us to cancel the project. The new coaster, which we have named the Kentucky Flyer, is the centerpiece of Kentucky Kingdom’s 30th anniversary celebration in 2019 and the focus of our marketing campaign for next season. The Kentucky Flyer has already garnered a great deal of national attention, especially among coaster enthusiasts. Cancelling this marquee attraction would be very unfortunate.”

The Fair Board’s blockage of this new attraction may well be tied to a separate and long-standing disagreement about parking rights of Kentucky Kingdom’s guests. Ed Hart remarked, “Over the past four years, we have worked very patiently to resolve these parking problems with two Fair Board Presidents, two interim Fair Board Presidents, and the Fair Board’s Chairman, Mark Lynn, who has presided over the Board for the last four years. With the appointment of Mr. Beck as the fifth President of the Fair Board in five years, matters have only gotten worse, especially during the National Street Rod Association show and the State Fair, when so many parking lots are made off limits to Kentucky Kingdom guests. This year, thousands of additional parking spaces were denied to our guests, including all of the parking lots closest to the park’s entrance. To make matters worse, during the State Fair, our guests have to pay $10.00 for admission to the State Fair that they weren’t even going to, simply to gain entry to Kentucky Kingdom’s front gate, where they then have to pay admission to the park. These actions are a clear violation of our lease and certainly aren’t the way to treat a major tenant who pays over $1 million each year in rent - and is entitled to receive adequate access to parking in return for that rent. Making sure our guests have a great experience is the heart and soul of our business. Because we’ve made no progress in resolving the parking dispute, the only way for us to protect the interests of our guests was to resort to legal action.”

Three months ago, Kentucky Kingdom filed a lawsuit against the Fair Board for a “Declaration of Rights” with respect to the loss of thousands of parking spaces that, per the terms of the theme park’s lease, are supposed to be available for Kentucky Kingdom’s guests. Instead, the lack of availability of parking during certain major events at the Kentucky Expo Center, particularly the National Street Rod Association show and the Kentucky State Fair, has caused much dissatisfaction among the park’s guests, as evidenced by the hundreds of complaints received during guest surveys conducted by the park.

Ed Glasscock, a partner in Kentucky Kingdom, offered this explanation for the Fair Board’s delays: “The Fair Board cannot reasonably defend its violations of the lease with Kentucky Kingdom. Instead, its objective is to pressure the park to drop its lawsuit in Franklin Circuit Court in return for Fair Board’s approval of the park’s expansion. After all the time, energy, and money my partners and I have devoted to Kentucky Kingdom, we are very disappointed with the Fair Board’s obstruction of the park’s progress. After all, the option for expansion property was included in the lease for the express purpose of allowing Kentucky Kingdom to grow. Simply put, the Fair Board is acting in bad faith.”

Bruce Lunsford, also a partner in Kentucky Kingdom, added, “We have fulfilled all of our obligations to the Fair Board and the state. In fact, we’ve gone above and beyond those obligations. With the new coaster, our total investment in redeveloping Kentucky Kingdom exceeds $64 million, or $20 million more than required per the terms of our lease. We knew that bringing the park back wouldn’t be a sprint, but a marathon, especially with the competition we face from other theme parks in the region, coupled with the damage to the park’s reputation that was inflicted by its previous operator. We knew it would take money, time, patience, and a great partner and experienced operator like Ed Hart. It’s a shame the Fair Board is reneging on its obligations, jeopardizing the park’s continued success. The Fair Board apparently wants to collect our rent, yet deny our guests the parking lots they should be able to use. The Commonwealth has so much to gain in additional fiscal revenue from direct, indirect, and induced expenditures by visitors who are here because Kentucky Kingdom is here. Unfortunately, this is a textbook example of bureaucratic red tape thwarting business that is good for Kentucky.”
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The Fair Board meets again next Thursday, Oct. 25.
 
Cranedude said:
Such confusion, can you give me a rundown?
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If you can't be bothered to understand the detail, you don't need to read further than the first two sentences. Did you even try to understand?
In preparation for installing a new roller coaster for the 2019 season, Kentucky Kingdom gave notice to its landlord, the Kentucky State Fair Board, that it was exercising its option to use one acre of the 20-acre tract to which the theme park is entitled, per the terms of its lease with the Fair Board, for the purpose of expanding and improving the park. Unfortunately, the Fair Board has yet to agree to transfer that additional acre to the park.
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Muppet.

It's a real shame to see the park stifled like this. I wonder if something is just tied up in a paper trail somewhere. These kind of lease agreements always sound lovely in principle, but I've yet to see one of these come off easily. That said, reading the statement (not for everyone, I know) it sounds like the park and fair have had some disagreements in the past, which may be rearing their head now. My initial reaction was "why would the park risk announcing this ride before this was sorted", but reading between the lines I wonder if they've done it put additional [public] pressure on the fair. It's a power game, really. I wonder who will win...

This sounds right up @Hyde's street. :p
 
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