andre1969

I've ridden all of Busch Garden's past coasters. In 1976 when I was a little kid, my Mom and Dad took my cousin and me to Busch Gardens. Mom was afraid of roller coasters and Dad didn't like them, and I was too little to go on the Glissade or Die Wildkatze by myself, so my cousin and I were relegated to the Das Katchen kiddie coaster. So I guess that would count as my first coaster experience! I remember the Glissade seemed pretty formidable in the eyes of a 6-year old who had never seen something like that before. It seemed big and fast, loud and furious. I wanted to go on it so badly! In 1979, we went down there again, and I finally got to ride the Glissade, Wildkatze, and the Loch Ness, which was there by that time. I was probably too big to go on it, but I went on the Das Katchen again! As for locations, the Wildkatze was where the station for the Big Bad Wolf currently is. Using this map from 1987 as a reference: http://www.themeparkbrochures.net/maps/1987/bgw1987.html , the Glissade was to the right of "Der Roto Baron", in what looks like a grassy area. By this time though, the slab the Glissade used to sit on was still there. The Wild Maus was located in that same spot years later, and I think "Curse of Darkcastle" or something like that took over the spot since then. I haven't been to Busch Gardens since 2004, so it's been awhile! The entrance to Drachenfire was located between the bumper cars and the Festhaus. I rode it in 1993, but the next time I went down there, 1998, it was closed down, but still standing. As for Das Katchen, my memory's a bit fuzzy, but I remember it being at the edge of a little ravine, under some big trees, in the Oktoberfest section. My guess would be between the Oktoberfest bridge and the gift shop in that 1987 map, probably underneath the white part of the "Oktoberfest" label.