Dominator delivers: Learn the best way to ride Kings Dominion's new coaster

I caught my first glimpse of Dominator about a month ago. It was dusk. I pulled off I-95 to buy a bar of Old Spice at a 7-Eleven, serendipitously across the street from Kings Dominion. I was on my way to Richmond to visit a friend. I'd forgotten deodorant, so made a pit stop.

My initial impression of King's Dominion's new roller coaster, Dominator, the 14th in the park, was simply "awesome." The 4,210-feet long, blue and orange coaster cut an impressive contrast to the darkening sky. I couldn't wait to ride it.

Maybe it was the build-up in my head, maybe it was the fact that I first saw the coaster at a dis-tance, but I was slightly disappointed when I saw the steel behemoth up close Tuesday morning as part of Kings Dominion's Media Day. No wonder it looked so awesome and imposing from across the street -- Dominator is literally next to the parking lot, right near the entrance to the park. Besides, Dominator reminded me of Anaconda, the park's 1991 coaster. A steep incline, a turn, a drop and a series of loops. All that was missing from Dominator was the gimmick of going "underwater."

My last media day at Kings Dominion had been for The Italian Job, a family coaster since re-named Backlot Stunt Coaster (the park changed ownership from Paramount to Cedar Fair in 2006 and could no longer use Paramount properties). Media Day is a pretty simple idea: invite mem-bers of the press and let them mingle with coaster aficionados and kids (no kids for Dominator). I'd have to work incredibly hard to find someone with something negative say about any of the coasters. At the Italian Job, everyone I spoke with told me it might just be his or her favorite new ride. Dominator was more of the same.

Coaster enthusiasts were thrilled to be there, to ride the newest attraction as many times as they wanted without any wait (when I went for lunch, I'd heard someone had ridden it 39 times).

After some opening remarks, welcoming the media, people involved with the ride and members of the American Coaster Enthusiasts, Coaster Zombies and Coaster Crew (all organizations of peo-ple who really like roller coasters), Dominator opened for everyone in the park. There was an initial long line (it seemed most riders, including myself, wanted to ride in the front for their inaugu-ral spin), but for the rest of the day, all seats but the front were walk-on.

I sat next to a guy named Derek McKee on my first ride. McKee, 33, of Portsmouth does Web work for Cedar Fair. He also loves roller coasters. On the initial incline (161 feet) he explained to me how Dominator differed from Anaconda. Dominator has a U-turn and an ascendant drop. Anaconda has a straight drop, he said. (Dominator is also longer and taller than Anaconda).

I rode it a few more times toward the front to get a feel for the coaster. The trick is to sit back and let the ride do its work -- don't fight it, it makes for a smoother ride.

Jason Hite, a Coaster Crew member from Bowling Green, told me that Dominator stacks up great to the other coasters, including his all-time favorite, Volcano, which is also at Kings Dominion.

Maybe. Keep in mind I'm not someone who would travel the country to ride coasters, but here's my two cents.

Dominator is a very good coaster. It's not great or the best in the park (my heart goes out to Grizzly, an old wooden ride, tucked in the back of the park) but it is a solid, fun ride. For a steel coaster with loops, corkscrews and drops, it's surprisingly smooth.

There's one small gimmick. Unlike the Anaconda (go underwater!) or Volcano (blast out of a volcano!), Dominator's gimmick actually adds to the intensity of the ride. Dominator is a floorless coaster (the world's longest, the park tells me). It's not inverted (meaning the track is above your head), but the coaster is high enough up from the track that you can dan-gle your feet and watch the track speed by at insanely high speeds. The illusion is there -- if your legs were a bit longer (think inhuman, Barbie doll proportions), you'd lose them.

My recommendation? If you're going to Kings Dominion this summer and plan on riding Dominator, go barefoot. You'll feel the wind between your toes. Also, sit in the back. There's a lot more of what coaster nuts call "air time" (time spent physically out of your seat), especially on the second drop. Dominator might not become your favorite coaster, but it's a solid ride and good at what it does.

For me, the physical location of Dominator was the only disappointment. The best part of the media preview of The Italian Job, two years ago, was the lonely walk back to the front entrance. There's something wonderful about a deserted theme park.

Staff writer Josh Eiserike can be reached at 703-878-8072.