Kentucky Kingdom
 | |
| Location | Louisville, Kentucky |
|---|---|
| Opened | 1987 |
| Owner | Six Flags |
| Operating season | April through October |
| Area | 58 acres |
| Attractions | |
| Total | 27 (excluding water park) |
| Roller coasters | 7 |
| Water rides | 2 |
| Website | Kentucky Kingdom |
Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom, located in Louisville, Kentucky, is the ninth amusement park to use the Six Flags name. It has many attractions such as Chang, one of the world's longest steel stand-up roller coasters. The park is built on 58 acres of land, 38 of which are leased from the Kentucky State Fair Board, and is operated by Six Flags.
The park opened inside the Kentucky Exposition Center on May 23, 1987 simply as Kentucky Kingdom. On June 21, 1998, the park opened under the Six Flags banner. It is operated by Kentucky Kingdom, LLC., a subsidiary of Six Flags Theme Parks, Inc. The park's only direct competitors are Paramount's Kings Island, located near Cincinnati, Ohio, approximately 100 miles from the park, and Holiday World located in Santa Claus, Indiana, approximately 75 miles from the park.
In late March 2006, the park was in the news when a contractor painting the Chang roller coaster fell 25 feet off a ladder and was taken to the hospital.
90% of its daily attendance are comprised of season ticket holders, and the majority of holders are under 18. [citation needed]
Attractions
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Front Gate
There are nine attractions in the Front Gate area, with the main attraction being the Hellevator, which is a 15-story free-fall ride. There are two roller coasters in the area. Greezed Lightnin’ is a steel coaster with one loop and the Road Runner Express is a roller coaster for children. Also in the area is Bluebeard's Bounty (a swinging ship ride), Breakdance (a scrambler-type ride) and Skycoaster (an additional charge freefall ride).
Bridge Area
The main attraction in the Bridge area is the 150-foot tall Ferris wheel. Bumper cars and the Tin Lizzie antique car ride are also in the area.
Chang Area
This area gets its name from one of the longest steel stand-up roller coasters in the world. Chang features a 121' loop, a 103' dive loop and two flat-spin corkscrews. In 2006 the park held a children's coloring contest to determine new colors for Chang. The winning colors were blue and yellow. There are two "extra charge" attractions in the area. Thrill Carts (go-carts) and The Wall (a rock climbing wall) each cost an additional $5.00 per attraction. Chaos, a spinning ride, was also in the Chang Area, but was taken down to make way for a smoking area.
T2 Area
Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom's steel inverted roller coaster, T2, has been open since 1995. It features a rollover, a sidewinder and a double spin. The Penguin's Blizzard River puts the rider in a floating raft, trying to escape from Batman villain The Penguin.
Northwest Territory
The Northwestern Territory is home to two thrill rides. Mile High Falls is a nine-story log flume ride that usually leaves the riders soaked. Twisted Twins is a wooden roller coaster with two tracks, named Lola and Stella. The coaster can hit a speed of 55 miles per hour. This area is also home to a new themed entertainment area, opening in summer 2006.
Belgian Village
The Belgian Village is home to the park's oldest roller coaster, Thunder Run. Thunder Run hits speeds of 53 miles per hour and stands 90' tall. The family roller coaster, Roller Skater, also calls the Belgian Village home. The Flying Dutchman, the International Carousel, and the Frightfully Funny Free-Falling Fire Engine #9 are all in this area.
Looney Tunes Movie Town
This is the children's area of the park. This section of the park has a Ferris wheel, a merry-go-round, airplanes, a bounce area and a play area with Acme products made of foam.
Hurricane Bay
Hurricane Bay is Kentucky Kingdom's water park. The water park features a 750,000 gallon wave pool, the Caribbean Cruise lazy river, Tornado, Hook's Lagoon tree house and Barefoot Cove children's play area. Hurricane Bay also has four water slides housed in Mount Slide Hai.
Past rides
- The Vampire— A steel roller coaster that was one of the original coasters in the park. It was removed in 1999 because of multiple breakdowns. It is now known as Flashback at Six Flags New England.
- Starchaser— An enclosed roller coaster that was also an original attraction at the park. It was removed in 1996 due to a pending lawsuit from guests who were injured on the ride in 1995. It is currently at The Great Escape & Splashwater Kingdom where it is called Nightmare at Crack Axle Canyon.
- The Squid— Another original ride that was removed in 1999 to make room for the Road Runner Express roller coaster.
- The Quake— This ride was removed in 2004 due to maintenence issues.
- CHAOS- Removed before 2006 for a smoking area. This type of ride has had many problems at other Six Flags parks.
Images
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Chang
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Hurricane Bay & Thunder Run -
Twisted Twins
