Daily Spin 8.23.09

All this talk of new ride announcements in recent weeks got me thinking: Whatever happened to Ring Racer? Germany's speed demon was originally set to open toward the beginning of July. Then the date got pushed back to August 15. But that date has also come and gone, and still nothing. What's going on? Well, a quick translation of this article revealed that "a technical defect in the pneumatic firing mechanism" is now preventing the world's fastest roller coaster from getting its speed on. By the time the park replaces the damaged component and carries out additional tests, it's looking like Kingda Ka will retain its speed record well into the month of September. [By the way, Kingda Ka has reopened! There's your Daily Spin "extra" for today.]

If you've ever had a hankering to go behind the scenes at Hersheypark, you are in luck! Creative writer extraordinaire Luke Rettig is about to launch a brand new weekly blog series that will take us on all sorts of behind-the-scenes adventures at The Sweetest Place on Earth. The series, which will run through December 23, kicks off this Wednesday with live tweets from Luke's first escapade: A foray into pizza making at the park's Famous Famiglia restaurant.

It appears that Joe Sitt's Dreamland has become the latest nightmare for Coney Island. The Thor Equities CEO put the kibosh on his own makeshift amusement park this past Friday, citing $500,000 in unpaid rent as the reason. The "park", which sits on the plot of land formerly occupied by Astroland, has been riddled with problems from day one. It opened late, and to this day only features about half the number of rides originally advertised by Sitt at the beginning of the summer. While the latest chapter in this seemingly never-ending series of Thor debacles has created more negative publicity for Coney Island, you can rest assured that all of the authentic parks, rides, and attractions are still very much alive and well!

As far as the amusement industry is concerned, most of the recent headlines involving Dubai initiatives have centered on project cancellations or postponements. But one new park has bucked that trend and actually opened! The Sega Republic indoor theme park officially opened on August 21 inside the Dubai Mall. Developed by Emaar Retail in association with Sega Corporation, the park features a small but well-rounded selection of thrill rides, including a Gerstlauer spinning coaster called Spin Gear. The video embedded below provides a sneak preview of the action. Enjoy!