With Thursday, June 2, 2022 being my 43rd birthday, I was looking for something fun to do. Naturally, I wanted that to involve roller coasters and good friends. Much to my delight, both Sam and Greg were free, so we decided to head down to Kings Dominion. The park was open from 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. and the forecast was calling for storms later in the evening. We lucked out in that regard. The storms held off until 5:40 p.m.
Speaking of rain, Sam had visited Kings Dominion less than a week before. That visit was cut short due to storms, but she did manage to grab Tumbili and a handful of other rides. She was looking forward to going back Intimidator 305 and Twisted Timbers. Both Greg and I both needed Tumbili, but Greg still needed Dominator, Woodstock Express, and the North side of Racer 75 too. We managed to do all that and so much more.
New Credits & Exploring Jungle Expedition
Aside from getting the credits Greg and I needed, one of the things I was most looking forward to was seeing the new theming added to the Jungle Expedition area of the park. I had heard good things and every bit of those things turned out to be true. The park looks great with the new landscaping, props, retheming of Avalanche to Reptilian, and the addition of Tumbili. And don’t even get me started on all the amazing merchandise they’re selling. Check out the vlog above to see these things in more detail.
As for Thursday’s rides, we managed to get 17 rides on 13 different attractions. The park was pretty empty and we made the most of it. Had we not stopped to cool off from the heat, or have repeated issues with our FunPix pass, we could have easily done more. No complaints though.
Dominator
Normally I save Dominator for later in the day. Being so close to the park entrance, many people head straight to this floorless coaster, resulting in longer lines earlier in the day. Wanting to make sure Greg got this credit if our day was cut short due to rain, we made it our first stop. It’s a coaster he’s been looking to ride for years now, missing out on his last visit, prior to Thursday, in 2019. We did catch our longest line of the day, but it was a 15-20 minute wait tops.
I have to say, this was one of the better rides I’ve had on Dominator the last few years. My most recent rides usually involved winter weather or heavy rain. Neither of the situations were ideal conditions. This visit, however, the ride was hauling and was a great way to get things started. Greg loved the ride too, ranking it right up there among his favorite floorless coasters.
Tumbili
Let me be 100 percent honest here. I was not looking forward to Kings Dominion adding Tumbili to its line up. The 4D Free Spin model is one of my least favorite coaster types. Sometimes they’re head bangers and other times they’re kind of boring. I wanted to see the park get something better, but it’s not a bad replacement for the former Crypt ride. Now they just have to hit it out of the park when they finally put something on Volcano’s old plot.
All that being said, one look at Tumbili in person had me impressed. It’s ride station, theming, and the surrounding region look phenomenal! Kudos to Cedar Fair for refreshing this whole section of the park. When it comes to the ride, it’s easily my favorite 4D Free Spin. It is glass smooth and we had a few moments of airtime throughout the short course. Can’t say I’ve had that on any of my other 4D Free Spin credits.
Reptilian
Speaking of refreshing the area around Tumbili, Avalanche, now called Reptilian, looks brand new! The bright orange paint on the tube and lift hill track really stands out from the green of the trees and bushes all around the ride. I honestly figured this ride would be on the chopping block, but seeing it as Reptilian has me glad the park gave it new life. Heck, even the station and service bay have theming now.
Be sure to check the gallery below for a more detailed look at this classic coaster. It’s so photogenic with lots of spots to grab photos from multiple angles.
Twisted Timbers
We knew going into the day that we’d be grabbing more than one ride on both Intimidator 305 and Twisted Timbers. We managed two on i305, but we doubled that with four on Timbers. The ride was practically a walk on most of the day. Our longest wait was a train or two for a back and/or front row. We even were allowed re-rides when no one was in the station. We’ve gotten lucky with being allowed during our last several visits, dating back to 2021’s Winterfest event.
Having had so many Twisted Timbers rides to end 2021, I figured I knew what to expect. Well, with the temperatures in the mid-90’s Thursday, our rides blew away anything we had in December. Timbers was hauling and our thighs were feeling every ejector pop. Just look at Greg’s expression in one of the ride photos down below. That ride camera is literally in one of the most intense portions of the ride with those bunny hills and then the cutback.
Even though we felt it in our thighs, we loved every minute of those four rides. We managed to get the final ride of the day as the storms moved in. In the vlog I mention being on the second to last train, but I didn’t realize until after I filmed that segment that the final train was empty. We seem to have a knack for being on the last trains on my birthday trips these last couple of years.
Final Ride Counts
Anaconda (1)
Backlot Stunt Coaster (1)
Boo Blasters on Boo Hill (1)
Dominator (1)
Grizzly (1)
Intimidator 305 (2)
Racer 75: North (1)
Reptilian (1)
Shenandoah Lumber Co. (1)
Tumbili (1: Patrick, Greg)
Twisted Timbers (4)
White Water Canyon (1)
Woodstock Express (1)
My Wingmen
A few months ago Sam and I spent an evening in Annapolis, Md. – our state’s capital. We hit several shops and found the shirts you see above. Since this site’s name and a few elements of its theming are based on Top Gun, I just had to buy them. Since this was our first time getting to a park together this year, we decided to wear them on Dominator. It’s awesome that this also lined up with the recent release of Top Gun: Maverick. That’s a great movie, by the way. Go see it!
To my wingmen, Sam and Greg, thanks for hanging out with me on my birthday. It’s always a fun time with you two and I can’t wait to do it again. You’re both amazing friends! You can be my wingmen anytime!
Kings Dominion Photo Gallery - June 2, 2022
If you would like to use any of the images in the gallery above for your commercial and/or non-commercial projects, feel free to do so. I ask that you credit We Were Inverted whenever they’re used. I also ask that you do not alter the image or remove the watermarks. If you need any images/video resized or without the watermarks, please contact me directly.
CREW MANIFEST
The following flight crew members attended this park, & earned the respective credits below:
Patrick
CAG
New Credit(s): Tumbili
Sam
Admiral
New Credit(s): n/a
Greg
Admiral
New Credit(s): Dominator, Racer 75: North, Tumbili, Woodstock Express
