Mystic Timbers

Mystic Timbers is a wooden roller coaster located at Kings Island in Mason, Ohio. Constructed by Great Coasters International and designed by Skyline Design, the roller coaster opened in the Rivertown section of the park on April 15, 2017.[2][3] The ride's fictional theme is set to the site of an abandoned logging company where unexplained events are taking place. During its marketing campaign, the finale element in an enclosed shed was not revealed to the public until opening day.

Mystic Timbers was voted "Best New Ride" of 2017 in the annual Golden Ticket Awards publication by Amusement Today. Its opening also allowed Kings Island to reclaim the title of having the most wooden roller coaster track of any amusement park in the world with 18804 ft.

History

Kings Island officials began dropping hints during the 2016 operating season, which teased the possibility of a new, future attraction.[4] In the park's Rivertown section, a construction wall was built displaying signs that stated, "Caution - Watch For Falling Trees". In June 2016, a set of plans labeled "Kings Island Project 2017" was submitted to the Mason planning board with designs for a new roller coaster.

Ride experience

Queue

The queue begins with a sign at the main entrance displaying "Miami River Lumber Co.", along with a checkpoint themed for shipping and receiving lumber. It features a vintage GMC Truck that appears to have crashed into one of the sign's pillars. Music from the truck and a man speaking about the backstory of the ride is played. A message also plays occasionally that states, "Warning, do not enter. A mandatory and ongoing lockdown has been ordered for the Miami River Lumber Company. Repeat, do not enter."

Throughout the entire queue, many rails are made of wood in accordance with the ride's theme. At the beginning of the queue, the path is very windy and features television screens showing security cameras of the woods, with security teams performing a search. One clip shows a frightened security guard running off screen after seeing something in the woods. The queue winds toward the back of the station, returning to the front if all rows are in use during long wait times. It eventually leads to a staircase that takes riders up into the station. Multiple props resembling a lumber workspace are on display inside the station. Spooky instrumental music plays throughout the queue and station.[17][18]

Layout

The ride begins with the train leaving the station, upon which it makes an S-turn to the right, crossing over the railroad, then to the left, before climbing the lift hill. Upon latching on to the lift hill chain, a pre-recorded voice chastises the riders saying, "Hey! Hey! I see you up there! What on Earth do you think you're doing? This is security. Seriously, guys, you need to take that truck, go home to your video games. This place is not safe." Cresting the 109 foot lift hill, the chain slows again so that another pre-recorded voice can tell the riders over loudspeakers, "Whatever you do, don't go in the shed!" At the top, the train makes a swooping 98 foot drop to the left, before rising over another hill. At the crest of this second hill, the train makes another left turn and crosses over the lift hill, before diving close to the ground and traveling over a series of airtime hills. The track briefly enters a covered tunnel as it makes a left-hand turn to change directions and return towards the station. The return track runs mostly parallel to the outbound track until near the second drop, where it veers away to hit a brake run, coming to a stop outside the entrance to the shed.[19]

The Shed

Upon stopping on the brake run, a pre-recorded audio segment is heard. A security guard is heard saying, "Don't go in the shed. This is a restricted area." The audio loops several times and begins to glitch and skip, eventually changing to, "Go in the shed."[20] The train proceeds slowly into the shed, which is only dimly-illuminated by flickering overhead lamps and fluorescent lights. After passing through the storage tracks, the train comes to a stop approximately where the shed crosses over the railroad once again. In this room, an assortment of saws, vines, leaves, a Coca-Cola vending machine, and other items left behind by workers are visible. A cassette player starts playing music from the 1980s until a loud screeching sound is heard. Projection screens show one of three random creatures, followed by a 90° turn to the right as the train re-enters the station.[20]

Bats: A large group of bats swoop at the train followed by a giant one that swarms the middle of the screen.
Snake: A huge snake appears on the screen and appears to take a biting lunge at riders.
Tree: First, a swarm of insects can be seen crawling on some tree branches. Next, a giant tree comes alive giving the illusion of grabbing the train as it passes by.

location	Kings Island
section	Rivertown
coordinates	39.3412°N, -84.2686°W‡R1R‡
status	Operating
opened	April 15, 2017
soft opened	April 13, 2017
year	2017
cost	$15,000,000
type	Wood
manufacturer	Great Coasters International
designer	Skyline Design
lift	Chain lift hill
height ft	109
drop ft	98
length ft	3265
speed mph	53
inversions	0
duration	2:00
capacity	1200
restriction in	48
trains	3
carspertrain	12
rowspercar	1
ridersperrow	2
virtual queue name	Fast Lane
virtual queue image	Cedar Fair Fast Lane availibility.svg
virtual queue status	available
rcdb number	14116

History

Characteristics

Ride experience

Queue

Layout

The Shed

Awards

External links

References