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Luna Park to Open this Season at Coney Island

Eric — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 18:34:02 +0000

Mark your calendars, Luna Park is set to open Memorial Day weekend of this year. Luna Park, a throwback to the original Luna Park that operated until 1944, will feature 19 new rides and will be operated by Central Amusement International LLC, an affiliate of Zamperla, Inc. They will of course have a Zamperla signature Mega Disk’O, one coaster and a new ride called “Air Race”. Luna Park will feature no entry fee and will be on a pay per ride basis; they will also offer an unlimited ride wristband. The new park will be located in the former Astroland footprint, which brings up an interesting point what happened to all of the old rides at Astroland? Well according to the NY Post Carol Albert, the former owner of Astroland and current operator of the Cyclone is planning on selling the 22 rides that she put in storage after Astroland closed and no deal could be reached to reopen. She is also updating the Cyclone sign with LEED-certified lights.(1) Currently Central Amusement International LLC (CAI) is leasing the property for 10 years from the city and with 4 more rides set to open in mid-2011 it looks like Coney Island is coming back in a big way.

On a side note, Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus will be back this year with a show running from June through August and Schmaltz Brewing has a created a new beer to go with the new Luna Park called Luna Lager that is set to be released this summer.

Current Time Line:

March 28, 2010 (Opening Day) – Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park opens at 11:00 AM

Cyclone opens at 12 noon (first 100 riders ride FREE)

March 29th – April 6th – Cyclone is open daily (12 noon – closing)

April 7th – May 13th – Cyclone is open on weekends (12 noon – closing)

May 14th – Labor Day – Cyclone is open daily (12 noon – closing)

Memorial Day Weekend – Luna Park scheduled to open.

June – August – Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus

June 19, 2010 – 2010 Mermaid Parade.

To stay updated on the latest happenings at Coney Island & Luna Park check out:

The official Luna Park blog – http://lunaparknyc.blogspot.com/

Coney Island on Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/coneyislandfun

Twitter – http://twitter.com/ConeyIslandFun

Coney Island Development Corporation – http://www.thecidc.org/News/CIDCUpdates/021610.html

Coney Island Fun Guide – http://coneyislandfunguide.com/

Zamperla official release – http://www.zamperla.com/js/uploaded/news/PRESS-RELEASES/20100217/Official_release.pdf

Concept Images for Luna Park – http://www.nycedc.com/PressRoom/PressImages/Pages/PressImages.aspx

Schmaltz Brewing Official Site – http://www.shmaltzbrewing.com/CONEY/media/

(1) – http://www.nypost.com/p/cyclone_set_unlikely_roll_again_t1PIDIpou5kCx0etyc3dkK

Ghost Town in the Sky to Become a Real Ghost Town?

Austin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 03:47:03 +0000

It seems that things are going downhill for the Ghost Town in the Sky park in The Smoky Mountains (yes folks, that’s how it’s spelled). Ever since the park opened, they’ve suffered an onslaught of financial troubles and difficulties with their feature ride, the Cliff Hanger coaster. A few days ago, Screamscape.com reported that the park’s phone lines are supposedly disconnected. Only a day later, word was received that the park must pay $300,000 by May 31st if they want to avoid foreclosure.

My personal two ideas for why the park is declining the way it is (besides the obvious financial burdens, of course) are the location and the constant down-time of their best ride. While I haven’t been there personally, I’ve done quite a bit of research on this interesting little park. For one, the only way to get to the park is in a rural mountain area, and the only way to get to the rides themselves is via a 20 minute ski lift ride to the 4,600 ft Buck Mountain. While this isn’t as much of a problem for me (I, as many others I’m sure, would enjoy a peaceful 20 minute ride up a scenic mountain side), it does discourage the general public who are used to just walking into a park and getting straight to the attractions.

Secondly, there are the problems with the Cliff Hanger, the park’s star attraction. Ghost Town itself speaks of the ride as “The World’s Most Unusual Coaster.” It has a solid and unique layout with great views and exciting elements. However, the ride has been open on and off quite a bit. First it was minor tweaking, then Safety Code violations, then cracks in one of the seats, the list goes on and on. If this coaster was more reliable, you can bet that their attendance would be much larger.

It’s too bad that this park may be going away. While it’s very small and the thrills are not up to par with many other parks, it has the unique factor as its biggest plus. Definitely out of the ordinary with the ski lift being the only way to enter the park, and possessing one of the most unique layouts to any coaster. Not to mention the incredible scenic images brought about by being 4,600 ft above sea level while riding roller coasters and drop towers! It’s always good to see something different from the ordinary, especially in the theme park world. Ghost Town delivers that and I hope that they will get the chance to continue doing so.

But those are just my two cents. What do you think of this recent news about Ghost Town in the Sky? Have you ever been there? Know any other news about the park? Please leave a comment below.

Details Emerge on Legoland Florida

Eric — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 03:30:37 +0000

Merlin Entertainment has recently purchased Cypress Gardens, the defunct park in Winter Haven, FL, and is going to be transformed into Legoland with a park opening slated for late 2011. The park is still in the planning phase and not much is known of what will happen to the leftover rides at the park. The recent In The Loop podcast (Jan, 25, 2010) had Julie Estrada from Legoland CA on to discuss future developments at the Legoland California Park along with the upcoming plans for Legoland Florida. Some of the key things that she mentioned where:

Topiary will stay and will be incorporated into a mini-land section
Most leftover rides will be re-themed to fit the Legoland brand.
A 4-D theater along with the driving school attraction found at Legoland CA will be added.
One of the two coasters that are left will stay.
Ski show will most likely stay as well.

This park will be geared to a younger crowd, but should prove to be a nice change of pace for people looking to do something fun outside of Orlando. What’s your take on the Legoland redevelopment plans?

Gravity Group’s Timberliner Trains Headed to Holiday World?

Eric — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 20:35:19 +0000

Go Timberliners! The new trains from Gravitykraft, the sister company to The Gravity Group, LLC might be heading out to Holiday World once again only this time maybe permanently. The Gravity Group posted a new blog that talks about their upcoming IAAPA ad which features The Voyage on the left side of the ad with the right side said to contain “something very revealing”. Read the Gravity Cast post here.

Gravity Group also posted video footage in March 2009 of tests for the new train on The Raven at Holiday World. It’s still too early to say for sure if the Timberliner train will make its way on one of Holiday World’s coasters but regardless The Gravity Group has definitely created a lot of buzz for IAAPA.

Some of the more impressive features of the new Timberliner trains are: launch system capable; shock absorption and an innovative restraint system that will net higher throughput of people on the ride. Overall these new trains could really change our perception of older wooden coasters. They will make older coasters feel smoother and cause less wear and tear on the track along with maintaining more speed around the curves due to less friction, but should these new trains be installed on older classic coasters (i.e. Coney Island Cyclone)? Would these trains take away some of the nostalgia from a classic ride?

UPDATE – Today, Holiday World announced that the Timberliner trains will be used on The Voyage next year. Read the full story.

Demon Drop – The Last Day at Cedar Point

Austin — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 05:34:43 +0000

Most theme park enthusiasts have heard that the classic Intamin 1st generation drop ride Demon Drop is now in the process of being relocated to Knott’s Berry Farm. I wanted to take the opportunity to give you a look at the last rides of Demon Drop, as well as hopes for the future.

During the last full week of the season, Cedar Point announced a contest for the last 25 rides on Demon Drop on its final operating day at the park. A certain number of employees carried golden tickets, which if guests said a secret phrase correctly, would be handed out to those lucky few. On November 1st, the last day of the season, all 25 tickets were swiped from staffers. On that cold night, Demon Drop took its last riders on one more classic thrill before the long move. A video of the last riders was posted on Cedar Point’s “Point Cast” on YouTube, seen here.

It’s a shame that so many of these types of classic drop rides are getting removed, but I’m happy that at least Demon Drop isn’t going to the scrap heap for good. I’m certain it will be missed by the guests of Cedar Point, and I’m hopeful that it has a great acceptance in California at Knott’s.

Which brings me to my question for readers: What would you like to see from Demon Drop at Knott’s Berry Farm? Would it be better for it to stay the same, or would a new type of theming or modification (new drop cars for example) be better for such an old ride to make it fit better in present times? Personally, I think that promoting it as a retro thrill ride would be the best route because of its status as a classic. I could see retro scenery going into parts around it and in the queue though. It will be interesting to see what the park does to it. Leave a comment below with your thoughts.

Theme Park Are Tweeting

Joel — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 17:42:10 +0000

Theme parks have jumped aboard the social network bandwagon in a big way. They’re even starting to tweet. Some tweet via a personality like the entertaining @Shamu does for SeaWorld, while others are faceless corporate accounts. So, we’ve started adding links to theme park’s twitter pages on the Official Theme Park Sites page. Check it out here.

Feel free to email me any official theme park Twitter pages that I haven’t included. Submit a link here.

Gravity Group Launches Blog & Podcast

Joel — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 17:51:57 +0000

The Gravity Group, acclaimed wooden roller coaster designers, recently launched their blog and podcast known as Gravitycast. More than just a place to post updates (which would be enough for coaster geeks out there like myself) The Group has essentially opened up a conversation with the fans. They’re already soliciting comments and even answering them. This open forum will only help to reduce the silly rumors and misinformation out there within the enthusiasts community. Way to go Gravity Group!

As I’m a big fan of Gravity Group’s coasters, I’ve already subscribed to their RSS feed. Subscribe to their feed here.

What do you think of Gravitycast? Leave a comment below. Check out more industry and fan blogs and podcasts.

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