COASTER-net.com v8 > News & Releases

COASTER-net.com > Your guide to ride on the wild side > News & Releases

There's another aspect of excitement in the world of thrill rides. There's the excitement of the latest announcements of upcoming rides from an industry as secretive as the military at times, and the excitement of all the latest happenings at parks around the world. Sometimes the news is good, sometimes the news is bad, but our aim is to bring you the fairest, timeliest, most accurate details on everything that concerns you. COASTER-net's team of journalists is hard at work around the clock to bring you the in-depth scoop!

Space Mountain Re-Launched
WDW classic re-opens after summer long rehab.

Magic Kingdom 11/16/09 - By: Ryan Shrout -

Way back in 1975, the Magic Kingdom park at Walt Disney World, Florida opened the first ever Space Mountain. Since then, many more installments of the ride have appeared at other Disney parks around the world. This summer WDW decided to close down this landmark attraction to give it a much needed renovation. And now its back.

The original and very ambitious plan for the ride's overhaul called for a complete re-tracking in addition to all new rolling stock complete with on-board audio. Sadly these were both cut in favor of lightening the budget and begin able to re-open the ride before the holidays.

Certain areas of the ride deemed to be "trouble spots" did get track replacements. The major part of the budget went into electronic upgrades. The most noticeable to guests will be the interactive games installed in the queue line similar to the system already in place at EPCOT's Soarin' attraction.

Other changes include the adding of a roof to the station, new, electronic e-stop recovery features, and a revamping of the scenes riders go past on the exit conveyor belt.

Though this refurbishment fall short of what some were hoping for, it is still a step in the right direction. As cool as it is to add new things to the park, its nice to see that Disney also takes care of its classic rides, preserving them and enhancing them for future generations of happy park goers.

Silver Dollar City gets Water Battle for 2010.
Tom and Huck's River Battle debuts for parks 50th.

Silver Dollar City 11/07/09 - By: Ryan Shrout -

As part of Silver Dollar City's 50th anniversary celebration, they will be opening Tom and Huck's River Blast. This will be the third Splash Battle style ride to open in the US in as many years, and this one is being billed as "America's Biggest Water Battle."

After boarding one of 8 rafts, guests will traverse 567' of river, duel with 17 shoreline based super soakers,and be able to shoot at 150 targets which all have special effects during the approximately 5 minute ride. The basic warning for this ride is that you will absolutely get soaked.

This $7 million investment marks the largest capital expenditure on a single ride by the park since Wildfire opened in 2001. The ride is set to open by the park's Family Spring Break Days, with the tentative date being March 18.

Cedar Fair to Drop the Demon off at Knott's
A Slice of History for a Historical Park

Knott's Berry Farm 10/21/09 - By: David White -

After 26 years of dropping at Cedar Point the Demon will no longer be dropping in Ohio. Riders will only have a month or so left to take their final rides at the park. Sometime in early 2010 Demon Drop will be heading out west to its new home in sunny Southern California at Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena Park.

Demon Drop which opened in 1983 is a 131 ft. tall tower built by Intiman of Switzerland. When the ride first opened it was one of several of its type (first generation drop tower) in the world. At the present time however, Demon Drop is the last of its kind in the United States and one of only four left in the world.

Screamin’ Swing, Knott’s Berry Farm’s up-charge swinging attraction is being removed to make room for Demon Drop. It is currently unknown as to where Screamin’ Swing will go, or if it will even find a home at all.

After passengers climb aboard the 4-person-cars the ride begins by moving backwards and ascending to the top of the tower. Once at the top, the car will slowly move forward and plunge 60 ft. down while reaching speeds of 55 mph until a computerized system slowly stops the car. Riders must be 48” inches or taller to ride.

Demon Drop is scheduled to open Memorial Day weekend 2010.

Kings Island pays off lawsuit
Woman seeking damages after 2006 accident

Kings Island, Kings Mills, Ohio 10/21/09 - By: Mike Strobel -

© Clint Novak

Back to the courtroom:This recent trial is but one of many legal actions taken against Kings Island in the past few years.

A seemingly lengthy chapter in the problems with Son of Beast are coming to light as two trials involving people filing lawsuits, with fiscal claims involving the accident involving Son of Beast in the summer of 2006. One of these trials occured this past weekend starting on Thursday, October 15th and ending on Monday, October 19th.

The victim, a woman formerly of Springboro, Ohio, was one of 27 riders on Son of Beast, when a section of the track's support structure was damaged, and part of the track separated, and thus, gave guests a jolt, sending a majority of them to the hospital. The woman in question apparently suffered hip injuries, and has had may replacement and reconstructive surgeries to repair the damage sustained.

The prosecution attested that the woman has paid in excess of $50,000 in medical bills for all said surgeries and may end up paying over $100,000 for future proceedures. However, the attourneys representing Kings Island claimed that the woman may have suffered these injuries at her job as many dates didn't add up, and presented video evidence showing she could walk and do other physical ordeals without much problems.

In the end, the eight jury members voted 7-1 to have Kings Island pay off the suit, but it seems the evidence presented by the prosecution was effective, as the Ohio park only has to pay $76,364, $56,000 for pain and suffering and $26,364 for previous medical expenses.

As the future of Son of Beast remains uncertain until the off season, as Kings Island has claimed to announce such future in the upcoming off season, another trial involving the same accident is set for early November. Also in progress is the ongoing situation involving a woman injured this past summer, allegedly with burst blood vessels, however, the outcome of that remains uncertain.

Most of these have many speculating that this may be the end of Son of Beast. The park has claimed during this trial that Son of Beast was in now way closed for being unsave, as the State of Ohio Department of Agriculture inspected it after the accident and found it good as is. The park closed it from the results of recent surveys with the general public, as the popularity and view of Son of Beast has diminished.

A New Virtual Thrill opens at Disney World
"Sum of All Thrills" opens in Epcot

Walt Disney World, Lake Beuna Vista, Florida 10/16/09 - By: Patrick Leaske -

Ever want the thrill of riding a coaster without strapping into one? Well, KUKA Robotics has brought you one step closer to your dream. Recently, Walt Disney World opened a new attraction in their theme park, Epcot. The attraction is called "Sum of All Thrills", featuring a technologically advanced robotic arm. Attached to the arm are two seats, encased in a cover for the virtual screens. One of the big things about the ride is that you get to design the layout yourself! Which means that you program how you want the arm to move and rotate.

To ride the attraction, like most great things in life, you must stand in line. Upon reaching the front, you make your way to the design lab, where you will begin (and end) your temporary career as a designer. You select from three choices: Bobsled, Rollercoaster, and Fighter Jet. After choosing, you begin to design the layout that the robotic arm will follow. You are allowed to set the speed, height, and elements of your experience. Once finished, you will need to watch a short video, and then wait for your turn on the robotic monster.

So, when the video finishes, you strap yourself into the virtual ride you created. The ride itself will consist of the exact layout you specified. HD monitors, surround sound systems, and even air vents to simulate wind are used to magnify your ride experience, making it feel as if you were riding your creation.

The magic behind the attraction is the robotic arm. “The KUKA RoboCoaster® programmable robotic ride system utilizes 6 axes and 6 degrees of total directional freedom with synchronized “under the hood” entertainment provides a thrilling experience like no other”, said the KUKA Robotics Corporation president, Stuart Shepherd. Using this arm system, who knows what we could do?

All we can be sure of is that we will be seeing this KUKA technology in our theme parks for years to come.

Six Flags New Orleans No More
Deal finally reached between theme park and city.

Six Flags New Orleans 10/13/09 - By: Ryan Shrout -

Six Flags has finally been allowed to dump their New Orleans property. After a long dispute with the city regarding the park which took such a big hit, Six Flags has agreed to make financial reparations in exchange for being released from their lease deal. From the very beginning of this debate, Six Flags had been determined not to re-open the damaged park.

But the city of New Orleans insisted that re-starting the tourism industry was crucial and demanded that Six Flags get things going again. According to the terms of the lease that the park had taken out with the city, they were supposed to keep the park open until the contract was up.

Six Flags however decided that the park would not make a substantial enough profit in the water-logged city. And to add insult to injury, they even started re-locating most of the rides that they deemed to be salvageable to other parks in the chain. Most notably, Six Flags New Orleans' Batman the Ride clone was sent to Six Flags Fiesta Texas.

This led the city of New Orleans to actually file a restraining order against Six Flags to keep them from removing any more rides. Everything seemed to be in legal gridlock. The breakthrough came when Six Flags filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this summer.

As part of their re-structuring and attempts to lessen their debt, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court of the District of Delaware has approved the termination of Six Flags' lease with the city of New Orleans. In return, Six Flags will pay New Orleans $3 million and 25% of whatever money they get from the insurance money.

Inbev sells Busch parks to Blackstone
Busch Gardens and Sea World parks acquire new owners

10/07/09 - By: Mike Strobel -

© Busch Entertainment/Orlando Sentinal

Takeover complete:The inevitable sale of the Anheuser-Busch parks came to a conclusion as Blackstone buys them out.

Since Inbev bought out Anheuser-Busch, it was imminent that the parks of which belonged to the beer giant would be sold. To who and when remained a mystery until now. All it took was $2.7 billion.

The former Anheuser-Busch owned parks are as follows; Busch Gardens Europe in Williamsburg, Virginia, Busch Gardens Africa in Tampa Bay, Florida, Sea World Orlando, Sea World San Antonio, Sea World San Diego, Adventure Land in Tampa Bay, Aquatica in Orlando, Water Country USA in Williamsburg, Sesame Place in Pennsylvania, and Discovery Cove in Orlando.

All these parks were sold to a group known as Blackstone Group, who owns the Universal Studios park chain as well as the Legoland chain and Madame Tussauds Wax Museums under a partnership with Merlin Entertainment. There are said to be possible package deals with all the Florida based parks for easier access for guests.

Chang to be Removed
SFKK loses its premier attraction.

Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom 09/22/09 - By: Ryan Shrout -

© Homer

The End of the Line: SFKK's best coaster is moving on to a better place; its current home park however is not.

Sad but true, rumors of Chang's demise have been proven true as the deconstruction process began this past weekend. The ride had a good run at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom. When the ride opened at the park back in 1997 it stole all of the records previously help by Cedar Point's Mantis in the stand-up coaster category. Indeed Chang was the tallest, fastest, longest, and loopiest stand-up coaster ever built and still places #2 in all of those categories behind only Riddler's Revenge.

But alas, the ride is over, at least for SFKK. Unfortunately this is just the most recent in a long line of problems that have befallen the Louisville theme park. Back in 2007 the park's Intamin freefall tower, Superman Tower of Power malfunctioned when a cable snapped and subsequently severed a 16 year old girl's feet. The incident set the park in a negative light that it has still not managed to over come. But the problems would not end there.

One of the most unique ride's at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom, Twisted Twins, did not open with the park for the 2008 season. It was said that the twin tracked duelling woody which opened in 1998 needed some extra time to completely repair and refurbish the ride. As things would turn out however, the ride remained standing but not operating all summer. This year Twisted Twins and the Northwest Territory that encompasses failed to open yet again.

And now this. Chang, the most popular ride at the park, is being dismantled as I type. There is some marginally good news to this story. It is rumored that Chang will not die but simply be shipped off to another park in the Six Flags chain, the leading candidate of which at the moment appears to be Six Flags Great America in Gurnee, IL. The other good news is that the removal of Chang is making way for the largest waterpark expansion in the history of Splashwater Kingdom. To be honest though the big picture does not look good for Kentucky Kingdom and many enthusiasts are already drawing comparisons to the now defunct Guega Lake.

Cedar Point to "Shoot the Rapids" in 2010
A new water ride the whole family can enjoy!

Cedar Point, Sandusky, Ohio, 09/03/09 - By: Patrick Leaske -

Cedar Point recently announced it's newest addition to it's ride lineup with a water ride called Shoot the Rapids. The water ride will have two drops, one 85 feet tall and the second standing 49 feet. This Intamin water ride will also be 2,100 feet long to make a 3-minute ride. Shoot the Rapids will be a 10.5 million dollar investment, becoming the largest investment in a water ride ever at Cedar Point. The ride will also include a tunnel and rapids. Guests will be able to watch the riders get soaked via walkways next to the ride.

“Shoot the Rapids will instantly become a family favorite,” said John Hildebrandt, vice president and general manager of Cedar Point. “Our guests wanted another option to cool off on warm summer days. We listened, and Shoot the Rapids will deliver the perfect combination of refreshment, thrills and new memories at Cedar Point.”

The ride will be built on Millennium Island, where much of Millennium Force's layout lies. It will take advantage of the naturally wooded area and water that surrounds the island. The ride will have ten boats, with ten seats per boat. The ride will use 728,000 gallons of chlorinated, filtered water throughout the ride. It will be themed to moonshine, and will become Cedar Point's third currently operating water ride. The ride will be located near Frontier Town.

Shoot the Rapids is scheduled to open on Opening Day in 2010.

The Intimidator Speeds into Carowinds
Red B&M Hyper Coaster for 2010

Carowinds, Charlotte, North Carolina 08/26/09 - By: Mike Strobel -

Cedar Fair is at it again, introducing the American motorsport of NASCAR in the form of a coaster at yet another park, this just days after Kings Dominion announced Intimidator 305. The park on the map for this latest installation is Carowinds, under the same name, though without the 305.

Carowinds version of Intimidator will be built by Bolliger and Mabillard instead of Intamin, using a hyper coaster to get the point across. The L-shaped layout shall start by lifting riders 232 ft. above terra firma before plummeting 211 ft. at 74 degrees to a top speed of 75 mph. Seven air time hills are present to represent the seven NASCAR championships that the real Intimidator, Dale Earnhardt Sr. racked up in his impressive career before his death at the 2001 Daytona 500 in 2001.

Also included among the features of the 5316 ft course will be a s-curved 2nd drop, a hammerhead-like maneuver dubbed the panoramic u-turn, and a twisted, hilly helix finale. As with Cedar Fair's previous B&M hypers, Diamondback at Kings Island and Behemoth at Canada's Wonderland, the trains will be the 4 across staggered seating, meaning the two outside seats shall be set just behind the 2 center seats. A stockcar-like impression shall adorn the front as well as the Intimidator's infamous 3.

As the thirteenth coaster at Carowinds, Intimidator shall be the largest. In fact, the first four drops will be larger than any other coaster at Carowinds. Intimidator is also Carowinds 3rd coaster built by B&M, the other two being Afterburn and Vortex. The grand opening is set for spring of 2010.

'Intimidator 305' Announced
Kings Dominion reveals giga-coaster

Kings Dominion, Doswell, VA, USA 08/20/09 - By: Tyler Carlton -

The long awaited announcement of Kings Dominion's new ride finally came today. Speculation and rumors have been flying ever since photos of supports and track hit the web. Well, the wait is finally over. Today Kings Dominion announced the details of its new Intamin AG giga coaster, Intimidator 305.

Standing at 305ft tall and boasting a 300ft drop, Intimidator 305 will become just the second giga coaster in the western hemisphere. A giga coaster is a complete circuit coaster with a height between 300ft and 400ft. The other giga coaster, Millennium Force, resides at Cedar Point. Intimidator 305's 300ft tall drop comes in at a staggering 85degrees, just five degrees shy of being completely vertical. Also, that drop will get the stock car themed trains moving at speeds in excess of 90mph.

This ride is more than just a big drop, however. Intimidator 305 features six airtime humps, including S-curve transitions. The largest airtime hill comes soon after the first drop; the two hills are separated by a high speed ground turn similar to the opening manuever of Intamin's popular Mega-Lite models. In addition to the six airtime humps, Intimidator 305 has three ground level high speed turns. These turns are designed to simulate the experience of driving a stock car through high speed turns on a race track.

© Kings Dominion

.

Intimidator 305 will also sport trains themed to stock car racing. The trains will be designed to look like the stock car of racing legend Dale Earnhardt, who tragically lost his life in an accident at the Daytona 500 in 2001. Intimidator 305 draws its name from the nickname of Dale Earnhardt. He was knows as "The Intimidator" due to his aggressive driving style, which this ride attempts to imitate.

Coming in at $25 million, Intimidator 305 will be the single largest capital investment in the history of Kings Dominion. Intimidator 305 is scheduled to open in 2010, but until then you can take a virtual ride, view photo galleries, and learn more about this ride at www.intimidator305.com .

Wildebeest on the loose at Holiday World
Presenting the world's longest water coaster

Holiday World, Santa Claus, Indiana 08/13/09 - By: Mike Strobel -

Holiday World continues to push the envelope with water rides with their latest addition for 2010. Hot off the drawing boards of Pro Slide Technology Inc.

The addition comes after the park has just added a water laden monster in Pilgrim's Plunge, currently the tallest water ride in the world at 135 ft. The new slide, called Wildebeest, will be the worlds longest water coaster. Water coasters are similar to slides in that riders are taken through the lengths of tubes via water flow. However, a water coaster features Linear Induction Motors, allowing for up hill accelerations and a layout with less concerns for gravity.

Wildebeest shall be about a third of a mile long, or, as the park boasts, 1,710 ft. Wildebeest shall feature 8 sets of LIM's. While venturing through the 2 minute, 30 second course, riders shall also encounter a 38 ft, 45 degree angle drop, speeds around 36 ft/sec., 7 drops, and 3 tunnels, two of which are underground.

Collision Injures Dozens
Two trains collide on Big Dipper in England

Pleasure Beach, Blackpool, England 08/11/09 - By: Stephen McCarthy -

Dozens of people have been injured at Pleasure Beach in Blackpool England this Tuesday evening after two trains on the Big Dipper collided. After the collision, the two trains came to rest about twenty-feet above the ground. The accident happened around 7:50 local time, and it was reported a rider was still stuck on the ride at 9:00. There have been conflicting reports of how many people were injured, though all were taken to local hospital. It has been confirmed that none are life threatening.

Big Dipper is the oldest of Pleasure Beach’s many classic wooden coasters. It has been in operation since 1923 and was extended in 1936. It has a classic out and back design with a height of 60 feet and a maximum speed of 35 MPH. It is unclear whether this ride has crashed in the past.

The cause of the crash is still unknown.

Riders stranded around 80ft in the air
Vekoma 'Invertigo'-style coaster malfunctions

California's Great America, Santa Clara, CA, USA 08/10/09 - By: Lukas Tyler -

© KTLA

'Invertigo'ing Nowhere Fast: Riders await extraction so they can get back to enjoying the rest of all the fun rides at California's Great America.

At 1:45pm this August 10th 2009 afternoon, the Vekoma manufactured inverted boomerang style roller coaster ride "Invertigo" at California's Great America amusement park malfunctioned. 28 riders remain stranded up to 80 feet above the ground and all of them at a 45-degree angle.

Thankfully, no injuries have been reported. All of the riders appear to be sitting in the shade as they sit and wait to be extracted by Santa Clara Fire Department officials who've brought in ladder and basket trucks. Each rider will have to be removed one at a time from their harness and then lowered into the basket and brought slowly down to safety.

Officials said the process will be very slow and probably take close to two hours to complete. With 40 different fire department and emergency medical personnel on the scene, everything looks to be under control, with no one in harm's way and everyone feeling calm.

Tragedy in the sky
Rider suffers health problems on Firehawk

Kings Island, Kings Mills, Ohio 08/09/09 - By: Mike Strobel -

© Kings Island

This bird grounded:Firehawk will be down as the state of Ohio conducts their ususal post-accident inspections.

All was quiet on August 8, 2009 at Kings Island, with all the rides running as usual, save for the problematic Son of Beast. However, at 3:30 pm, that all changed.

Firehawk, the park's flying coaster, which was transfered to the park from Geauga Lake under the previous name X-Flight, was encountered by a man, who took his turn to ride the Vekoma-made ride. However, 2 minutes after as the ride came back into the final brakes and into the staion, fellow riders and onlookers sighted that the man was undergoing breathing troubles. Kings Island emergancy staff, and later, the Mason Fire Department, came to the aid of the man and was later flown Bethesda North Hosptial where he later passed away from his aflictions. Nothing was released as to the direct cause of death.

While Firehawk is notable for its downtime, this is the first major accident for the ride since it was brought to Kings Island. However, for the park, this isn't the first similar incident. Son of Beast encountered such a conflict as a woman complained of undisclosed trauma after riding it. Son of Beast is still down from that incident.

However, it was made known that the Ohio Department of Agriculter, the people responsable for amusement park safety and operations, begun inspections Sunday morning and the park has re-opened the coaster after the inspection.