California Great America (CGA) Discussion Thread

[CoasterBeagle]

Didn't someone die on whizzer?

[154bmag]

I think so, but I'm not 100% sure.

[MrSum1_55]

If CGA really wanted to make attendance skyrocket, I believe what would work best would be an 8+ inversion, 151 ft+ coaster.

 

In the bay area, Medusa is the coaster everyone talks about. Everyone talks about Medusa. While I believe Flight Deck to be a vastly superior ride, Medusa is the ride everyone wants to ride. If CGA wanted to compete with SFDK, they could advertise the new coaster as "bigger, faster, more inversions than Medusa".

 

Is this likely to happen? No. Would it really work for the park? I believe so. If CGA really wants to have some competition, this is what they should really do. Assuming they were remove no family rides in the process of building this, this should not really effect the park's reputation as a family-friendly park, but will serve as a major addition to the park's thrill scale. I know that it sounds crazy, but anything can happen at this point, even if that thing is nothing at all.

[Angry_Gumball]

The same can be said (to a lesser extent) for Tidal Wave/Greezed Lighting from CGA as well: It gave its life for the other Tidal wave at SFKK (SBNO).

The SFKK counterpart...that was at the Six Flags Great America, right? If so, then the 2 sister coasters are reunited with each other as probably the only other time they were together was at the manufacturing facility...assuming components for the ride were being assembled and stored around the same time frame.

 

Speaking of Schwarzkopf rides and parents having photos from GA... My parents used to frequent GA all the time, their favorite ride being "Willard's Whizzer." As a kid, they always told me how fun of a ride it was and tried their best at describing the ride (spinning uphill, or correctly known as the spiral lift...banked turns, and no seatbelts). They then told me they took it down after an accident happened on it.

 

They also used to check out the shows all the time, and do the other rides. A couple years ago, I was digging through some of their old random photos, gathering photos for a memorial slideshow for my aunt when I found some old GA photos. I'm sure I posted this before but it's been a couple years. What I was able to find and scan were these:

 

I wish I had taken the opportunity and rode this coaster more...but I do remember my 1 and only ride on it quite well. As a kid, this ride was one of the wonders of the world to me, making me wonder how the train made it through the loop when I never saw it get pulled up any kind of lift or anything (as a kid, for the most part, I realized roller coasters actually ran on gravity but this??)...leading me to believe that maybe there's an engine in the train.

 

Anyone remember the Wilderness Theater/Enchanted Island/Dolphin Show? I actually remember seeing the dolphin show as a kid, probably one of the first times seeing them. Seeing their size, I thought they were sharks jumping out of the water and through hoops (here we go with sharks...jaws...TPR and Airswimmers ). I enjoyed watching them and wanted to get a closer look but being quite young, I had to sit with the parents.

[jab88]

 

While we lost one of His great works with the removal of Whizzer- it still lives on- as an 'organ donor' of sorts for several other Speedracers throughout the world.

 

The same can be said (to a lesser extent) for Tidal Wave/Greezed Lighting from CGA as well: It gave its life for the other Tidal wave at SFKK (SBNO).

 

For me, a rather um, well, devout Schwarzkopf Believer, it is always sad to see the loss of such great rides- they provided a good, solid intermediate thrill for everyone. However, in the end these rides live/lived on for far longer than I think anybody could ever expect.

 

If we'd had the same preservation efforts 'then' as we do now, I think we could have seen Whizzer live on- which is why these -very- rare coaster credits need our attention: What we consider 'average' today could become extinct without a moments notice: Imagine CGA without TopDeck Aftergun, or Vortex. (While these aren't 'endangered' species yet, it's sort of like how the skyline at CGA was the year after Whizzer was removed: It wouldn't feel right.). Fortunately, people did stand up when there as a thread to remove Whizzer's twin at SFGAm, and we still have that model still around: The last of the SpeedRacers in the United States.

 

Great picture, too: Whizzer will always to me be a gem that never got the attention it deserved.

 

Thanks! Yeah, it was neat to see a picture of Whizzer and how it looked at Great America (especially since I never did get to see the ride). True, I agree, I think if we did have the preservation efforts then, many would still be around today. It certainly would be odd at Great America without Flight Deck or Vortex, it already was strange enough not having Invertigo there last season (though it's removal was for a different reason, not age in this instance) And yeah, at least they still do live on somewhat as parts for the other coasters just like them, such as Greased Lightning at Kentucky Kingdom, which isn't it still sitting there in that closed park?

 

Didn't someone die on whizzer?

 

Yeah, someone did die on it, I think the trains collided into one another (a moving train into a stopped train), I might have it wrong but I'm trying to remember what my dad had said about it, the person was getting on the stopped train when the other one hit it and he fell to his death.

[Tmcdllr]

Didn't someone die on whizzer?

 

There were actually two serious accidents, one resulted in a death. That plus the unstable area it was built on basically caused its removal. It wasnt worn down or in bad shape, it was just a death trap in the parks view.

 

One accident involved the drive system failing on a train going up the lift, no anti rollbacks, it then hit a train in the station. The other involved a train failing to stop as it entered the station, hitting a train there. I forget which one caused the death.

 

This is from Wiki but it explains what happened...

 

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whizzer_(roller_coaster)

 

Main article: Incidents at Cedar Fair parks

 

From the start, both Willard’s Whizzer roller coasters suffered from problems with the braking system that would sometimes allow the trains to collide in the station. Unfortunately, no immediate solution was put forth to remedy this problem. In one four-year period, from 1976 to 1979, there were at least 11 recorded instances of the Whizzer at California's Great America colliding in the station, resulting in an unknown number of injuries. There were also two instances of the Whizzer at Six Flags Great America colliding - both of which occurred less than a month apart in 1976. A total of 31 riders were injured in the Gurnee collisions. Then on March 29, 1980, a 14-year-old boy was killed and eight others injured when two trains

 

collided at the station on the Santa Clara Whizzer. [1]

 

Following the accident, both rides underwent several changes. Seatbelts were added, the braking system was modified and the number of trains that could be run at once was reduced from five to three. Willard’s name was also dropped, leaving the ride’s name as simply "Whizzer." Marriott never reported the potential safety hazard to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, which led to a 1981

 

civil penalty amounting to $70,000.

[coaster-crazy]

Since we are all talking about the history of CGA, you all need to REALLY check out this website:

 

GREATamericaparks.com

 

It was/is put together by a good buddy of mine. TONS of great photos of most of the Marriott era rides plus videos, audio recordings, music, a forum, and a whole lot more!

[Tmcdllr]

That is a "Great" site, love the pics of the parks and classic rides.

 

I especially like the commercials.

[XYZ]

Since we are all talking about the history of CGA, you all need to REALLY check out this website:

 

GREATamericaparks.com

 

It was/is put together by a good buddy of mine. TONS of great photos of most of the Marriott era rides plus videos, audio recordings, music, a forum, and a whole lot more!

 

I went on that website for years now, the only problem is that your post needs to be approved before it goes on the forum and the amount of time it takes to get approved takes weeks. Though, I realy enjoy the old pictures, though the site is more geared toward Six Flags Great America it seems.

[Angry_Gumball]

Since we are all talking about the history of CGA, you all need to REALLY check out this website:

 

GREATamericaparks.com

 

It was/is put together by a good buddy of mine. TONS of great photos of most of the Marriott era rides plus videos, audio recordings, music, a forum, and a whole lot more!

 

I went on that website for years now, the only problem is that your post needs to be approved before it goes on the forum and the amount of time it takes to get approved takes weeks. Though, I realy enjoy the old pictures, though the site is more geared toward Six Flags Great America it seems.

 

I thought approval for linking was for users with 50 posts or less.

[Rollercoaster Rider]

Since we are all talking about the history of CGA, you all need to REALLY check out this website:

 

GREATamericaparks.com

 

It was/is put together by a good buddy of mine. TONS of great photos of most of the Marriott era rides plus videos, audio recordings, music, a forum, and a whole lot more!

 

 

Do me a favor please. Tell Steven to Update it.

[QueerRudie]

And yeah, at least they still do live on somewhat as parts for the other coasters just like them, such as Greased Lightning at Kentucky Kingdom, which isn't it still sitting there in that closed park?

 

The SFKK counterpart...that was at the Six Flags Great America, right? If so, then the 2 sister coasters are reunited with each other as probably the only other time they were together was at the manufacturing facility...assuming components for the ride were being assembled and stored around the same time frame.

 

Yes, the Tidal waves were reunited into a single being again. Schwarzkopf's coasters were, for the most part, modular and completely interchangeable within a particular series: I.E. the trains for a Jumbo Jet/Speedracer III could be used on a City Jet; Trains for any of the LoopingRacer/LaunchingRacer/HeartlineLooping/etc. coasters were completely interchangeable- or modified quickly to work on any other variety.

 

The Tidal Wave Twins were exactly that: Both were assembled side-by-side in Munsterhausen. While most of the track was sold for scrap (Sadly, I'd love to have had a section of that for my backyard...), the cable, drum, weight-drop tube and tower, full train, all of the brakes and motor assemblies were saved and re-used on SFKK's Greezed Lightning coaster.

 

As for Whizzer's parts: The trains went to different homes along the way: From the best information I can get, one full train plus spares went to Worlds of Fun, while the other two migrated south of the border. The original transfer track, brakes and other spares went to... Chicago, keeping the Whizzer there operating. Sadly, like with the track of Tidal Wave, most of it was scrapped.

 

i can say with some good confidence that now that Gerstlauer (the company which bought up Schwarzkopf's facilities and assets...) is building new trains, etc. for Schwarzkopf coasters that it's a matter of time before we could see these great designs returning to life again. It would be -wonderful- to see coasters like Whizzer and Tidal Wave brought back to life again, as more modern designs overall.

 

R.D.

Praise be to Anton

[Tmcdllr]

I read somewhere that they will support replacement trains for his rides,like parts or completely new trains, so these rides will continue to shine.

[ScottBrown]

^ Yes I believe the Sooper Dooper Looper at Hersheypark will be getting some nice new Gerstlauer trains this year

[QueerRudie]

I read somewhere that they will support replacement trains for his rides,like parts or completely new trains, so these rides will continue to shine.

 

^ Yes I believe the Sooper Dooper Looper at Hersheypark will be getting some nice new Gerstlauer trains this year

 

Yup. These two new trains are the prototype/first production trains from Gerstlauer, and will be LAP BAR ONLY...as His coasters should be! However, this is just the start, I think. I'm hoping SFMM is watching HP for those new trains... and gets the hint!

[KDCOASTERFAN]

I read somewhere that they will support replacement trains for his rides,like parts or completely new trains, so these rides will continue to shine.

 

^ Yes I believe the Sooper Dooper Looper at Hersheypark will be getting some nice new Gerstlauer trains this year

 

Yup. These two new trains are the prototype/first production trains from Gerstlauer, and will be LAP BAR ONLY...as His coasters should be! However, this is just the start, I think. I'm hoping SFMM is watching HP for those new trains... and gets the hint!

 

Would be nice if only California would revoke the rule requiring all looping coasters to have the dreaded OTSR's.

[Angry_Gumball]

What about Montezooma's Revenge? That's lapbar only.

 

It would definitely be cool to see some "Schwarzgerstlauerkopf" coasters pop up, would be awesome if something like that happened for CGA but I don't see that anytime soon. I'll be grateful for what they actually put in, still thinking/feeling a GCI revival.

[Jew]

For what feels about the 100th time I've had to post this: THERE IS NO LAW IN CALIFORNIA MANDATING OTSR's.

[DarkStitch626]

For what feels about the 100th time I've had to post this: THERE IS NO LAW IN CALIFORNIA MANDATING OTSR's.

 

LOL reminds me of when Nitro opened in NJ...people were saying the same thing and it just cracked me up when the opening of Kingda Ka rolled around. Some people just don't have common sense to realize these things.

 

I have some high hopes for CGA's future as bad as some people view it.

[QueerRudie]

I read somewhere that they will support replacement trains for his rides,like parts or completely new trains, so these rides will continue to shine.

 

^ Yes I believe the Sooper Dooper Looper at Hersheypark will be getting some nice new Gerstlauer trains this year

 

Yup. These two new trains are the prototype/first production trains from Gerstlauer, and will be LAP BAR ONLY...as His coasters should be! However, this is just the start, I think. I'm hoping SFMM is watching HP for those new trains... and gets the hint!

 

Would be nice if only California would revoke the rule requiring all looping coasters to have the dreaded OTSR's.

 

For what feels about the 100th time I've had to post this: THERE IS NO LAW IN CALIFORNIA MANDATING OTSR's.

 

The reasons for the OTSRs on Revolution are entirely insurance/legal related, and not with California's laws. Montezooma's Revenge, the upcoming Superman: Ride of Crapacity, and others are lap-bar only/seatbelt and lap bar rides.

 

It would definitely be cool to see some "Schwarzgerstlauerkopf" coasters pop up, would be awesome if something like that happened for CGA but I don't see that anytime soon. I'll be grateful for what they actually put in, still thinking/feeling a GCI revival.

 

I honestly think the GCI is dead, dead, and well, dead. If anything, I could see a small Eurofighter/Gerstlauer custom coming first- as those rides are not only quieter, but easier to assemble and cheaper long term.

[Tmcdllr]

Quiet does not matter. If they really wanted to build something that would be noisy there are ways to reduce the noise, such as a giant, ugly ass sound wall the neighbors could stare at all day....oh wait, they would complain about that too!

[Manic Monte]

Cedar Fair is playing politics now. Don't be surprised if it is now suddenly easier to get "certain" attractions approved.

 

If a company wants something built bad enough, they will find a way.

[belo777]

I agree, if they want something bad enough, they'll find a way no doubt.

[Tmcdllr]

So now the question becomes... what DO they want?

[XYZ]

So now the question becomes... what DO they want?

 

MONEY!

 

Of course, Cedar Fair wants to earn a profit with CGA. Honestly, I just think the 2013 coaster will be the GCI coaster, it makes no sense to create a new design that would waste money.