Mozart67 Posted December 18, 2007 Share Posted December 18, 2007 ^ Colossus in '77? You rode it before it was done? How? Sigh..I hate premature Senior Moments! You're right..it would have to have been later than that. It would have to have been 1978, since I moved back to Japan with my parents for a couple years soon after that and then on to Kansas. Thanks for catching my early Alzheimer's, Eric! Scott "Don't get Compound W and Colgate mixed up in the morning" Mayfield Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
montezooma Posted December 18, 2007 Author Share Posted December 18, 2007 Here you can see the two areas of Colossus that received some major reprofiling. The speed dip after the first turn and the double up before the second turn the double up before and after speed dip before and after Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIP Psyclone Posted December 18, 2007 Share Posted December 18, 2007 Wow, unless you rode Colossus in 1978 you really haven't ridden it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebl Posted December 18, 2007 Share Posted December 18, 2007 ^ The airtime on it back then was...well, killer... Eric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skramp Posted December 19, 2007 Share Posted December 19, 2007 Going back to the Intamin catalog, I actually rode Flight Commander at KI when I was like 13 or 14 and I have to say it wasn't very impressive. You sat in this pod with a joystick that had four functions....move the arm holding the pod up or down and rotate the pod clockwise or counterclockwise all while the middle pillar rotated. It really wasn't much and didn't really require re-rides. I have been on swings that rotated faster than it did. Here's what's left of it: Old que Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrownStreak Posted December 19, 2007 Share Posted December 19, 2007 ^I rode it in my freshman year of college (the first time 'round) and I have to say that I really liked it! It was like the Rocket Jets updated. I also thought that the way you loaded from inside the circle was kind of cool! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
montezooma Posted December 19, 2007 Author Share Posted December 19, 2007 I never liked the Flight Trainer, I think it is one of Intamin's worst rides ever. The pods rotated slowly and there was a lot of painful hangtime when you went for a 360 degree roll. What made them even worse was the plexi-glass dome that some of them had. It made the ride hot and stuffy. Knotts - XK-1 Great America - Sky Hawk Kings Island - Flight Comander Kings Dominion - ? Playland - ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
palmerleeberry Posted December 19, 2007 Share Posted December 19, 2007 After going through all those photos, press releases, and a whole lotta other stuff, I can't say it, just express it - Thanks for the trip down memory lane for those who couldn't be there during that time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
palmerleeberry Posted December 19, 2007 Share Posted December 19, 2007 The name of the flight trainer ride at Kings Dominion was called the "Sky Pilot". I thought it was a fun little ride, but I had a trial or two trying to get in and out of the doggone ride. After a few years, that ride was taken out and the scrambler put into it's place. Today, the scrambler has been moved to Conga and the Drop Zone was put in its place. A little trivia I thought would interest you all; from the rider who's been at that park since 1978. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
montezooma Posted December 19, 2007 Author Share Posted December 19, 2007 Merry Christmas Everyone I am posting my Christmas Card for all to enjoy. Thanks for visiting the Amusement Attic and for all your great comments. I am thrilled to share all these great memories with a community that appreciates it. Shane Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIP Psyclone Posted December 19, 2007 Share Posted December 19, 2007 ^Thanks for sharing that card, Shane, but all the parks in Japan don't count? Anyway, this is one of the best threads ever, and I hope it never ends! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
montezooma Posted December 19, 2007 Author Share Posted December 19, 2007 ^ Well I did a lot more on my own, including my great trip to Japan, but the Holy Roller Tour was all the parks that I visited with my boyfriend and kids and the Sisters. It was truly a spiritual trip! If you remember I wasn't such an angel in Japan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thrillerman1 Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 Yeah you need to pay penance for all those "smile and waves" through the Japanese train station rail pass check points. I still crack up thinking about that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boweryboy Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 That's awesome. I actually like the Flight Trainer. I would ride it all the time at Great America in California. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
montezooma Posted December 21, 2007 Author Share Posted December 21, 2007 MEISHO ride catalog Well I just have enough time to get one more update in before taking off for the holidays. For those of us lucky enough to have traveled to the far land of Japan we probably have ridden one or many of these contraptions. I love Japan simply for the pure quirkiness of all their rides and parks. Along with Togo, Meisho is one of the major ride producers in Japan and although most of their rides are in the Land of the Rising Sun they did build the Thunderbolt in Australia. Here is the catalog of their rides. From Coasters to flats, Meisho seems to have built them all. Please pay special attention to the sexy "Meisho Girls" with their random pointing and surprised looks. I love Japan! This catalog comes from an IAAPA convention I visited sometime in the mid 80's. Did you know that there was a Great America in Janan? Here is the Columbia Carousel Japanese style The wheels of Japan Maybe Magic Mountain can get new trains for their Metro here. now back to the rides these next few coasters are not from this catalog but from an earlier catalog I picked up the year before this one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
montezooma Posted December 21, 2007 Author Share Posted December 21, 2007 Oops, I missed this page in the update, but here you can see more of their collection of looping coasters including the Thunderbolt that used to be at DreamWorld in Australia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRapidsNerd Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 Thank you for the early Christmas present Shane. This is just awesome! Diagrams and track layouts. Yeeeeeeee! I am so happy, I do the Dance of Joy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FLIPDUDE Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 What's that black coaster? Look slike it has a fun, twisty, BMRX style drop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stormrider Posted December 22, 2007 Share Posted December 22, 2007 That's Lightning Coaster at Nasu Highland. I like how Meisho makes lots of huge rides that look like junior hypercoasters. I used to think all there was in the coaster world was Arrow, Vekoma, B&M, Intamin, Mack, etc. but on the other side of the world there was Meisho doing its own thing in Japan (and technically Australia and North http://www.rcdb.com/pd1121.htm and South Korea, and China. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gisco Posted December 22, 2007 Share Posted December 22, 2007 I miss Japan! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
montezooma Posted December 23, 2007 Author Share Posted December 23, 2007 (edited) I have been going through all my old coaster stuff that has been stored in my attic since the 80's. I came across these great magazine ads from parks in California and thought I would share them. I miss the golden years of the theme parks, everything was so new and exciting then. If anyone else has ads like these from parks in their area I would love to see them. I hope you enjoy these ads from the hey day of the California park beginnings. Lets start with Knott's Berry Farm, Disneyland, and Marriott's Great America below. Shane PS. If you love looking at old nostalgic amusement park stuff check out my thread that is dedicated to all the old parks, rides and fun stuff of the past. I will be updating it with old stuff every now and again so check back often. Shane's Amusement Attic Here's some links to other ads: Universal Studios, Sea World, Six Flags Atanta, and Elitch Gardens Magic Mountain Kings Island's The Bat Taft Parks & Disneyland Knott's used to be such a quaint park that really follows it's theme intent. Now it seems like a hodge podge of random ideas that don't really belong together I loved the Roaring 20's airfield, shame it has stripped of all its charm. Notice rides like the Loop trainer, Propeller spin and Whirlwind The Corkscrew was a HUGE deal back in those days. Hold on 70 feet and two 360 loops!!!! Edited March 2, 2013 by montezooma Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
californiascreamer1 Posted December 23, 2007 Share Posted December 23, 2007 Those are really cool! Its neat to be abel to see how parks advertised in the 70's. How did you find them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
montezooma Posted December 23, 2007 Author Share Posted December 23, 2007 Now onto Disneyland. It was a huge deal when the Matterhorn was shut down and the inside of the mountain was refurbished to include snow scenes and the menacing abominable snow monster. Space Mountain was also a huge deal the attraction cost more than the original cost of the entire Disney park. I love this ad. The lines for the Matterhorn where over 90 minutes long when the abominable snow man first appeared This picture is a model of the attraction Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
montezooma Posted December 23, 2007 Author Share Posted December 23, 2007 Marriott's Great America opened the bicentennial year of 1976. The Turn of the Century was all the rage in those days. It oringinally had two extreme air time bunny hills where the current loops of the Demon are today. Oh those where the days. When Marriott owned the park it was true to the theme of Great America. Most of those theme elements have been watered down or are completely missing from the park. Anyone remember the Yukon Yahoo or the Saskatchewan Scrambler? For Fun and Pictorium were added in 1979 This year the park added the Yankee harbor themed Tidal Wave. This is the ad from the year the park opened Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
montezooma Posted December 23, 2007 Author Share Posted December 23, 2007 Coming shortly the early years of Magic Mountain and the transition to Six Flags Magic Mountain, Universal Studios, Sea World and for some reason I have a couple ads for Six Flags Atlanta and one from the original Elitch Gardens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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