The line has some shade areas in it, but I really liked that the park put plastic cups and water coolers in line. Firehawk had the longest line of the day, about 45 minutes. We walked by Flight of Fear to ride Firehawk. The helix at the end pulls some good forces. The corkscrews are really high off the ground. I really enjoy the turn before the block brake because it's taken so quickly. The two loops made me start to black out. The first drop is fun, and there are high G-forces at the bottom of the drop. There were wasps at the top of this lift hill too. There are seat belts on the harnesses like on Corkscrew at Cedar Point, only they're the opposite way. While in line for this, we saw a brake for The Beast sitting off to the side just like the Vortex rails. It's probably the best coaster at the park. As we exited, I saw some rails from Vortex sitting next to it. Especially after finally riding Voyage this year. What is this about? The helix was great as always, but it didn't save this ride for me. There were more wasps at the top of the second lift hill. It hugs the ground and speeds along, so it really feels like the fastest part of the ride. I'm sure the ride would really tear through the woods without them, though I did enjoy the last turn before the hill prior to the second lift hill. They take away speed quickly and powerfully, which I don't like. It uses the terrain really well, and the amount of trees surrounding it is great, but it's got far too many magnetic brakes. I got a night ride in 2004, the last time I was here, but I only needed one ride this time. Why would there be wasps at the top of the lift hill? While climbing the lift hill, we noticed a lot of wasps at the top. We rode in the back, which is the only place I'll ride on Beast. The line was short enough that we nearly got up to the station before stopping. I used to love this ride, but it's just not doing much for me anymore. There are some brakes right after the water splash, but they appear to only be there because the main brake run is immediately after a turn. It ends with a fake water splash after bursting through a sign. It's a pretty short ride, but it's really fun. It has two launches, the first of which goes into a triple helix. The cars are Mini Coopers, and you drive through Los Angeles dodging police cars and a helicopter. The cars are really cool, and the theming on the ride is great. The line wasn't long, and we got to the back car in maybe five minutes. Up next was Italian Job: Stunt Track, which was a new coaster for me. Doug and I got in with our MaxxPasses, which was the first time all season I'd used it at another park.

We got there a little after 1 p.m., so 12 hours at the park was fine. It was Halloween Haunt, so the park was open until 1 a.m. Experiencing it as a Cedar Fair park was interesting, and it was fun seeing all the old Paramount things that remain. My friend Doug, his friend Tracy and I went to Kings Island for the first time each of us had been in years.

Kings island racer lap bar