MasonBuzz.com

Shauna Steigerwald reports:

It’s that time again, when the Beast will roar across its wooden track at close to highway speed; the Diamondback will plunge down its 215-drop even faster; and Snoopy and friends will greet kids and the young at heart.

Kings Island, a warm-weather tradition for many Greater Cincinnatians, opens Saturday, with daily operations resuming May 10, the earliest the park has ever been open daily.

In addition to their favorite thrill rides, visitors will have a few new things to see, do and eat this year. Read on to find out about some of the park’s newest attractions.

• Take our Kings Island quiz!
• Photos: What’s new at Kings Island
• What’s new: Kings Island adds dinosaurs, Reds and German fare
• First look: Reds Hall of Fame Grille
• We tried it: KI’s new Reds-themed restaurant
• From Retro: The lost rides of Kings Island
• Photos: Kings Island through the years

Posted in: Arts & Entertainment, Kings Island |

Tags: Tags: attractions, dining, dinosaurs alive, food, food review, kings island, lost rides, mason, new, old rides, opening day, photos, quiz, reds hall of fame grille, rides

A group of preschoolers pet a snake during a presentation by Ohio State Parks Naturalist Shawn Connor at King of Kings Preschool in Mason on Wednesday, March 27, 2013. The Enquirer/Leigh Taylor

Preschoolers at King of Kings Preschool got an up-close look at some cool critters this week.  Ohio State Parks naturalist Shawn Connor visited children at the school and brought with him a snake, red-tailed hawk and a great-horned owl.  The Enquirer’s Leigh Taylor captured these shots.  Click on an image below to see a larger resolution version.

Posted in: Community, Photos |

Tags: Tags: animals, king of kings preschool, naturalist, ohio state parks, photos, shawn connor

Pawl Griffin, a one-and-a-half year old Petit Basset Griffon Vendeen, is the vice president of canine communications for P&G Pet Care. P&G Pet Care, makers of Iams, Eukanuba and Natura Pet Food products, allows employees at its Mason Business Center headquarters to bring pets to work.   Provided photo

For a handful of companies in Greater Cincinnati, it’s no exaggeration to say the office has gone to the dogs.

While not common, some local companies have adopted pet-friendly policies that allow workers to bring their pets to the office in an effort to improve job satisfaction and create a friendlier, more productive culture.

Do you bring your pet to work? Email photos of pets in your workplace to workplacepets@gmail.com for a chance to be featured in an upcoming photo gallery on cincinnati.com.  Please include your name, pet’s name, community you live in and business name (optional).

Posted in: Community, News |

Tags: Tags: business, iams, mason business center, P&G pet care, pets, pets at work, photos, procter & gamble, workplace

A major winter storm that dumped heavy snow across the region overnight didn’t stop work crews at Kings Island as the Mason theme park gears up for its 41st season.

Crews spent Wednesday morning shoveling and removing snow from rides to continue off-season maintenance work.

A crew of about 50 mechanics, carpenters and welders work year round to conduct testing and maintenance of the park’s 46 rides.  The bulk of the work takes place in the park’s off-season months of November through late April.

“I think a lot of people think that you just swing the gates shut when the park closes and swing them open when it’s time to open.  It’s completely different than that.  This is our busiest time of the year.  We’re working right up to park opening,” said Tom Dillingham, the park’s manager of rides and mechanical maintenance.

Kings Island opens for the 2013 season on April 27.

Posted in: Kings Island, News |

Tags: Tags: amusement park, crews, kings island, maintenance, mason, mechanics, off-season, photos, snow, the racer, theme park, tom dillingham, winter

From left, parent volunteer Marta Nowak, third-graders Ahmad Mamlouk, Jessey Li, and Belle Page calculate fuel costs as COSI visits the Montessori Academy of Cincinnati in Mason on Tuesday, January 22, 2013. The Enquirer/Leigh Taylor

Children at the Montessori Academy of Cincinnati got an up-close look at energy and electricity this week when representatives of COSI visited the Mason school Tuesday.The Enquirer’s Leigh Taylor was there to capture the fun.  Click on an image below to see a larger resolution version.

Posted in: Community, Photos |

Tags: Tags: cosi, mason, montessori academy of cincinnati, photos, science

During the football season, they’re on the sidelines, rallying and energizing the crowd to support the Comets on field. But come winter, Mason High School’s competition cheerleading team takes center stage.

The high-flying group of 26 girls in grades 9-12 does more than just yell on the sidelines. Practices start in June and continue through the summer, with girls spending hours each week working out, flipping, tumbling and perfecting a synchronized routine for competitions, which run October through March.

The Comets started the season on a high note, placing first at the Greater Midwest Cheer Expo Pink Ribbon Cheer & Dance Championship in October and finishing as Grand Champions at the Edgewood Holiday Cheer Championship in November. The team placed 10th out of 21 schools that qualified in its first trip to the OASSA Cheerleading Championship last year and hopes to place in the top five when they return in March.

Click through the slideshow above, or view the photos here, to see the Comets cheerleaders as they spring towards success.  The team is also featured in the February/March edition of Our Town, which is distributed to residents of Mason and Deerfield Township.

Posted in: Photos, Sports, Winter Sports |

Tags: Tags: cheerleaders, cheerleading, comets, mason, mason high school, photos

Maryn Lorenz, 3, of Mason, smiles during story time at the Mason public library on Friday, January 4, 2013. The weekly story time is led by children’s librarian Alice Beresford. The Enquirer/Leigh Taylor

Children gathered Friday at the Mason Library for story time.  Children’s librarian Alice Beresford leads the weekly program.  The Enquirer’s Leigh Taylor captured these shots.  Click on an image below for a larger resolution version.

Posted in: Community, Photos |

Tags: Tags: alice beresford, children, mason library, mason public library, photos, story time

Gail Brown’s 1955 Ford Victoria Skyliner at the Cavalcade of Customs in 2010. / The Enquirer/Eamon Queeney

As the 2013 KOI Cavalcade of Customs kicks off Jan. 11-13 at the Duke Energy Convention Center, we want to see photos of your custom vehicles.

Send photos, along with your name, the community you live in, and the make, model and year of your car, truck or motorcycle, to jkellogg@cincinnati.com and we’ll share some of our favorites later in the week.

Posted in: Photos |

Tags: Tags: calvacade of customs, custom cars, duke energy convention center, koi, photos, vintage

Students at the Western Row Elementary in Mason got an up close look at some exotic critters this week.  Representatives from Cool Critters Outreach visited the center and brought with them exotics like an African sulcata tortoise, a baby alligator, snakes and other reptiles.  The Enquirer’s Leigh Taylor captured these shots.  Click on an image below for a larger-resolution version.

Posted in: Community, Photos, Schools |

Tags: Tags: cool critters outreach, mason, photos, western row elementary

Posted in: Photos |

Tags: Tags: christmas, elf on a shelf, photos