Intimidator 305. I305. The 305. Whatever you call this beast of a coaster does not matter. What matters is that this coaster is in the top ten of most enthusiasts list. What matters is that this is my number one coaster ahead of other amazing coasters such as Fury 325 (Carowinds), X2 (Six Flags Magic Mountain) and El Toro (Six Flags Great Adventure). Now my opinion could change when I get the change to ride Lightning Rod at Dollywood or The Voyage at Holiday World. but for now, this coaster is my favorite. Why? Intensity. intensity. intensity.
So now you know why I wanted to visit Kings Dominion. This was the second park we went to on our five day amusement park trip over the past summer. Located in Doswell Virginia, about thirty minutes outside of Richmond, this theme park has built its reputation on two rides: I305 and Twisted Timbers. This park is really not near anything and is kind of in the middle of nowhere unless you are willing to drive the thirty minutes from Richmond to get there.
We arrived at the park a bit after opening as we had just flown in from Charlotte and had to drive two hours from the Washington Dulles airport to get to the park. After arriving at the park we unfortunately hit a few snags. For one, I305 was not yet open. It was just starting to test meaning that it was not going to open for a few minutes. Also, Twisted Timbers was not open and did not open for the whole day which was very sad. Originally, we had planned for two days at Kings Dominion. But, when we realized that Busch Gardens Williamsburg was so close by we scratched the plans for a second day at Kings Dominion meaning that I did not get a ride on Twisted Timbers 😭. Hopefully I will get to go back to the park soon to ride it although it is not likely.
So instead of getting on the bigger rides first, we went on some of the smaller coasters such as Grizzly, Racer 75, Dominator and Flight of Fear. The fact that the two main attractions were closed to start the day made me mad because we had literally come across the country to ride these two rides. But there is not much we can do about that. I was so happy when I305 opened as it was the only reason I wanted to come to Kings Dominion. Here are the rides I got on and what I thought of each of them.
I305: The main attraction; the star of the show. Going into the trip, I thought this would be my second favorite coaster and it actually became my first favorite and new number one overall coaster. Now why is is better than Fury 325? It is more intense, the drop is scarier and the phenomenon of greyingout just cannot be beat. I got a total of six rides on this amazing coaster and every ride wore me out. When we got back to the hotel at the end of the day, I was the most tired I had been in a while. The coaster was that intense.
My first ride was a back row ride and it did not disappoint. Before riding this, I did not know what a greyout was but after a couple of rides, I figured it out. It essentially occurs because the ride is so intense and has so many twists and turns that your brain cannot process it all fast enough. This causes tunnel vision and thus a greyout. The back row ride I had, I experienced a greyout. Some people on our train also passed out. The fun thing about the back is the drop and getting hammered around the turns. The lift hill is powered so you are up and over it before you know it and into the drop. Being in the back we got pulled down and then whipped around the turns which was amazing.
My second ride on I305 was a second row ride. One thing that really made me upset about the way they set up I305 is the front car line. We had fast passes for the day at Kings Dominion so that we could skip the lines and get as many rides as possible on I305 in the day which is what we did. But, I305 is set up in such a way where there is a completely separate line for the front car and you cannot access it with a fast pass. So, we would have had to wait in the long front car line for the ride which did not seem worth it. Instead we just marathoned the second and back cars. The second car is my favorite place to ride I305. I do not believe that the first and second car are that much different to be honest. I love the drop as you get so much airtime from your seat. You literally feel like you are floating (lots of floater air time!). Then the turns come at you really fast and you have the wind in your face making the greyout effect more profound. By the end of the ride your eyes are watering but you feel great. This is the sign of an amazing coaster and why I made it my number one favorite.
The other rides at the park: Since Twisted Timbers never opened, we were able to ride some other rides in the park, although we mostly stuck to the I305 area for obvious reasons. We started off the day with a ride on Racer 75 which is a great wooden coaster and is in surprisingly great shape for its age. I recommend getting a ride on this if you can. It is also great for kids or people just getting started with roller coasters.
We then got a ride on The Grizzly which was a surprising disappointment. This is the park’s other wooden coaster and it has a series of drops and turns. But it just has not aged well so it felt very rough, especially for me as a tall person.
Finally, we also got a ride on Dominator and Flight of Fear. Flight of Fear is a classic indoor dark ride with a launch and some drops, nothing really special. Dominator on the other hand was actually really good and my second favorite overall (could have been Twisted Timbers). It has Medusa (Six Flags Discovery Kingdom ride) style seating and did a massive loop. The drop was also quite intense and overall the ride felt very smooth which was awesome.
Overall we had a very mixed day at Kings Dominion. I loved I305 and thought that it was definitely worth the visit just for that. But with Twisted Timbers closed, the park did not really have much else to offer. Also, the atmosphere was not too good as the Eiffel Tower was closed due to COVID and we waited about thirty minutes for our hot dog lunch. Maybe Tumbili, their new 2022 ride that is a 4D free spin ride will help make this park better. But based on what I saw on my one day there, it unfortunately was not that great.
P.S.
If you are looking for something to do in Richmond Virginia here are some options:
- Proper Pie Company: Amazing freshly baked pies. They have seasonal flavors and they are sold by the slice or by the whole pie. We bought a couple different slices to try and even brought some back with us on the plane; it was that good.
- Alewife: Good seafood restaurant. Their menu changes based on what is fresh and they also use local ingredients. We went here for dinner and it was amazing. I recommend getting a cocktail/mocktail too.
- Anything Historical: Richmond is a very history based town and you can totally take advantage of that while you are there. We went by the White House of the Confederacy as well as the historic St. John’s Church. Shoutout to my Mom who recommended it to us!
Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this blog post and that a trip to Richmond or Kings Dominion is in your future. Talk to you next time!
— ChefWalker out ✌🏻🎉😁
Walker's World 