This Kings Island coaster is up for BEST NEW attraction nationally

Mystic Timbers, the new roller coaster introduced this year at Kings Island, has been nominated for the “Best New Amusement Park Attraction” in USA TODAY’s 10Best Readers’ Choice Travel Awards contest.

The online voting poll which ends Jan. 1 has placed Mystic Timbers in second place since the second day of voting, according to Chad Showalter, director of communication for Kings Island.

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“We have had good support already, but we have been sitting in the second spot since the second day of voting, and I think we can all agree that Mystic Timbers deserves the top spot,” Showalter said.

A panel of experts with the contest put together a list of what they think are the best extreme thrill rides that have been introduced by amusement parks from across the country each summer, and this year Mystic Timbers made the final cut of 20 new rides.

Mystic Timbers was running behind the Haunted Mine Drop at Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park, which is the world’s first drop ride to go underground, taking riders 110 feet inside Colorado’s Iron Mountain.

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Showalter says that voters are allowed vote once per day until polls close at noon on Monday, Jan. 1. The 10 winning attractions, determined by the online vote, will be announced on Friday, Jan. 5.

Click here to vote for Mystic Timbers.

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Built by Pennsylvania-based Great Coasters International and designed to resemble an abandoned lumber company, Mystic Timbers made its debut this year in Kings Island’s Rivertown to favorable reviews.

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The 109-foot-tall wooden roller coaster takes riders through 16 airtime hills along 3,265 feet of track through densely wooded terrain and over water at speeds up to 53 mph.

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