It’s getting to be that time of year when the eighth graders at our school would normally go to King’s Dominion for the day. I went seven years in a row before making the move to sixth grade. I have yet to visit KD and pass on the roller coasters. I have always loved them.
My earliest memory of King’s Dominion was when my family went there for my older sister’s birthday. Lara must have been turning 10 – or thereabouts -and she brought her best friend, Beth. We had great fun on the log flume, the swings, and the old fashioned cars. The Rebel Yell was still very young, with a bright white coat of paint and an offensive name that didn’t even make us flinch at the time (it has since been changed to Racer 75).
We were saving the best for last: the King Kobra. The King Kobra was a green demon that did an actual upside down loop by the lake, something very new and exciting for the late 1970’s. I could barely contain myself all day in anticipation of going on my first upside down roller coaster.
My mom and little sister split off to go on some kiddie rides while my dad, Lara, Beth, and I finally made our way over the King. You had to be as tall as the painted wooden animal in order to be allowed to ride. From a few people back, I got a look at the smiling wooden monkey holding a measuring stick. He looked taller than I had expected. He’s not taller than me. Nah, couldn’t’ be. Could he? As I stepped closer to him, he started to resemble the monkeys from The Wizard of Oz. Could this little beast dash my hopes and condemn me to the kiddie rides next door? As I stepped up and got a good look at him, I swear his eye twinkled with wicked glee.
“Sorry, miss. You’re not tall enough.” I looked incredulously at my dad as my eyes filled with tears. Lara and Beth were already making their way up to the platform, shrieking with delight.
“Come on, Jo, let’s go rider the paratroopers.” By the time we had boarded the tame birds, tears were falling freely. When we disembarked, my dad led me back over to the King Kobra and asked the guy if I could please ride the coaster – after all, I had only come in about an inch shy. Miraculously, the guy shrugged and nodded, and invited me to pass on through with my dad. I gave that mean monkey a smirk as I skipped up the platform.
It was everything I had hoped for. As I sat, snugly pinned into my seat and trembling with excitement, a sinister voice rolled out over us: “Are you ready for the King Kobra to strike?” And POW! Off we hurtled toward the loop. The parked turned upside down as I screamed with terrified joy. It was all over in about 20 seconds, but those 20 seconds were unforgettable and the beginning of my long love affair with the biggest coasters in the park.
King Kobra at Kings Dominion on the left; Rebel Yell on the right, circa 1980.
My Corner of the Village 