Kings Island 2020 - Orion: B&M Giga

Hello! I thought this thread would be an interesting spot for the all new project at Kings Island in Mason, Ohio for what one can hope is for 2020. I will try to give weekly updates like I do on Youtube as well as maybe a daily update if things get interesting.

On Friday, April 26th, the weather was much better than the previous weekend. In terms of land clearing, as you've seen the stretch of land has been extended back towards Beast's first brake shed. All 3 Arrow's where open as well and entertainment options where posted at locations around the park. Currently the following shows are set to be for this year:

• Gravity - Kings Island Theater
• Off The Charts - International Bandstand
• *NEW*Flashback 80's - International Showplace
• *NEW* Country Flashback - Festhaus
• *NEW* Space Beagle - Peanuts Showpalce

[mkingy]

Nice update post, always good to read from you!

Thanks for the update, keep it up!

Want to chip in with something very intriguing.

Some large sections of B&M track were recently spotted at the B&M Plant in Clermont. Although there was lots of track pieces for Hershey's 2020 hyper, these had a different code on them. (MCT compared to the MCR on the Hershey track pieces):









Could this be for King's Island 2020 Giga???

Source: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set ... _tn__=HH-R

Who know? Maybe?

Nothing really intersting to report from the park on this update. Just some things I noticed:

• No new clearing has took place since the last update. They have cleaned up the work area though.
• New patch's have been added to the items to collect, they are $4.99 a piece before tax
• New Snoopy pins have popped up as well (found in the emporium on International Street)
• Congo Falls opened up this weekend for the first time.
• Space Beagle, a new children's show that is enjoyable for everybody opened this weekend in the Peanut's Showplace

So you all wanted a Giga...

...well, this is the layout apparently:



Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/rollercoasters ... ll_layout/

Plot twist: it's a decoy meant to throw us off while the real layout is much different and hidden behind credentials.

Hmmm...that would constitute a pretty massive disappointment given how much hype this thing has. Kings Island has the land and potential to deliver something exquisite, a giga on par with Leviathan would be a bit of a slap in the face. Especially when they went the extra mile with Banshee to use the terrain.

Better quality images of those plans:









There's even more if you follow this link here: https://imgur.com/gallery/evgVSOa

Source: https://twitter.com/sixohdieselrage/sta ... 4383996929

^That is really convincing fan-art.

^lol

EDIT: The coaster will be ~286' and feature a 301' drop, according to plans.

It definitely *feels off* for Kings Island to be presented with a coaster that doesn't quite qualify as a giga by lift height. That being said, this coaster looks to have the most extreme banking and tightest pacing of any giga excepting I305. It could end up being the best of the B&M bunch, and the location is definitely the best of those three.

What do you mean by the "tightest pacing?" The one with the least perceived faults? I'm not sure this ride will be special in that regard...maybe, given the short layout. We shall see.

LOL 286 FEET TALL. The KI fanboys on Facebook are going to throw so many temper tantrums.

I think this is going to be a great project regardless of the actual outcome/stats though. KI knows how to throw down a damn epic B&M.

Yeah, it's shady, but the 286' figure is from the top of the lift to the ground below and may not be correct. I'm guessing KI won't include that information, measure the height differently somehow, or just consider the coaster as 301' high with a 301' drop.

And as far as my impression of the layout, I do see it as having the least perceived faults and also including some of the best elements from B&M's other speed coasters...Leviathan's speed bump, Shambhala's ampersand, closing with an element that should be similar to the sideways airtime on Fury's treble clef. There's no lazy, drawn out curves or helices to be had here. Hopefully this thing ends up all killer, no filler. We shall see!

First footers have been dug for KI's Giga:



Also, this building is going up just over by Racer's station, although i don't think it has anything to do with the Giga coming in 2020, but who knows?:



Sources:

https://www.reddit.com/r/rollercoasters ... r_ki_giga/

https://www.reddit.com/r/rollercoasters ... _train_at/

What could be Kings Island's Giga track has been spotted at the Clermont Plant. Coloured Blue:







Source: http://www.wildgravitytravels.com/kings ... -update-2/

Footers are now going in for King's Island's 2020 Giga coaster:





Source: http://www.wildgravitytravels.com/kings ... -update-8/

I'm literally fine with any coaster KI gets, more for me to ride on; But it sure as hell is hilarious watching people flip their poop before anything even has been announced. Lol

Blue B&M Giga track emerging from the Clermont plant for what is supposedly King's Islands 2020 Giga:















Source: http://www.wildgravitytravels.com/kings ... ck-update/

Teasers have started popping up:







Sources:

https://www.reddit.com/r/rollercoasters ... sourninja/

https://www.reddit.com/r/rollercoasters ... _teaser_2/

https://www.reddit.com/r/rollercoasters ... _x_poster/

Well this teaser has recently showed up with a QR code:



But you will never guess where this leads too: https://www.change.org/p/kings-island-k ... dit_var=v0

Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/rollercoasters ... changeorg/

Announcement date set for August 15th:



Source: https://twitter.com/KingsIslandPR/statu ... 3035791360

Thrill-seekers will experience a new level of excitement when they visit Kings Island in 2020. Joining the world-class line-up of roller coasters at the park is Orion??, one of only seven giga coasters in the world, a class of roller coasters having a height or drop of 300-399 feet.

Themed to the park's new Area 72, the ride features the latest prototype vehicle developed by the Project X initiative. Scientists are in a race against time to develop technology capable of weaving transport vehicles through a coming meteor storm and traveling to a new planet within the Orion constellation. For the program to be successful, it needs volunteers to help with testing.

Riders on Orion will plummet down an exhilarating 300-foot first drop, sending them on a high-speed journey over seven more hills and 5,321 feet of track at speeds up to 91 mph on Kings Island's tallest, fastest and longest steel roller coaster.

Orion was exclusively designed for Kings Island by Switzerland-based Bolliger & Mabillard, which also designed the park's popular Banshee and Diamondback roller coasters.

Ride Information

Ride Manufacturer: Bolliger & Mabillard
Coaster Type: Steel
Classification: Giga
Lift/Launch System: Chain lift hill
Duration: 3 minutes
Trains: 3 trains with 8 cars. Riders are seated 4 across in a single row for a total of 32 riders per train
Capacity: 1,650 riders per hour
Minimum Height Requirement: 54 inches
Ride Opening: Spring 2020

Ride Stats

Track Length: 5,321 feet
Height of First Drop: 300 feet
Length of First Drop: 447 feet
Total Number of Hills: 8
Height of Hills: 287 feet, 174 feet, 202 feet, 56 feet, 147 feet, 125 feet, 90 feet, 83 feet
Top Speed: 91 mph

Source: https://www.visitkingsisland.com/explore/orion