Saying Goodbye to the Astrotower at Luna Park

© Christopher Brucker

It all started with some swaying in the breeze, which is actually normal for the Astrotower at Coney Island's Luna Park.  But as the swaying got worse so did the concerns of the public, and soon the entire area around the tower was closed off, the amusements shut down, and a plan put into place.

This was two days ago, mind you, I'm a bit slow to the gate I know, but one of our readers was there when this started and was kind enough to send in some photos.  I'm not big into sensationalizing anything, so at first I was going to pass this story by.

© Christopher Brucker

But, in the end I changed my mind because the Astrotower is coming down - and quick - so I thought it was only fair to say good bye to a Coney Island landmark.

The plan that was put in place was originally said to be to remove the top portion of the tower, which I guess would have stopped the swaying.  And if you're interested in seeing this swaying, check out this YouTube video.  The removal of the tower has taken place in the early morning of the past two days, allowing the park - and it's neighbor the world famous Cyclone coaster - to open in the afternoon.  That's pretty important for the area on July 4th, you can imagine the loss of revenues from sitting closed on a day like that.

The plan to remove only a part of the tower must have changed quickly, as this story reports that all of it will be coming down.   This shot, just taken from a live earth cam, shows that more than half of the tower are already gone.  I would assume the rest will come out tomorrow.

The Astrotower, once known as the Tower to the Stars, originally opened in 1964.  The 272 foot tall observation tower operated for decades, only closing in 2008 along with the rest of Astroland.  You can read some more great history of the attraction from Amusing the Zillion.  While sad to see an icon of the area go, suddenly the park has a spot for a great freefall tower!

Premier Rides Proud to Show Off Full Throttle

Happy 4th of July to everyone! I hope you're all having a fun day, perhaps even at an amusement park? Or a water park, that would work well, too!

Premier Rides sent out a press release about Six Flags Magic Mountain's new Full Throttle roller coaster, and I thought it would be good to share on a day like this when everyone is pretty busy!

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Baltimore, MD – The wire service feed from Southern California Public Radio on June 22nd said it all:  “Traffic chokes [Los Angeles], Full Throttle Roller Coaster Opens at Six Flags Magic Mountain.”  And with that, lucky park guests who arrived as early as 12am got to experience the newest Six Flags/Premier Rides collaboration Full Throttle; the world’s tallest and fastest looping roller coaster.

© Premier Rides / Duane Marden

The ride has been an instant hit with rave reviews and high-definition videos circulating throughout social media to the point that Yahoo highlighted the attraction on its “Trending Now” online daily report.  Global coverage even included a coveted front page story on the BBC’s website.  Some of the first riders that got to enjoy Full Throttle included ride aficionados like Brady MacDonald of the Los Angeles Times who described the ride as “silky smooth and whisper quiet” and noted, “you ride Full Throttle and there’s only one reaction:  Wow.”  Robert Niles, publisher of Theme Park Insider stated, “It’s rare for me anymore to discover a truly new experience on a ride” and added “a moment unlike any other on roller coasters awaits you.”

“We are excited to add another world-record coaster to our existing collection of record-breaking attractions,” said Bonnie Rabjohn, Six Flags Magic Mountain Park President.  “Six Flags is regarded as the industry leader in thrill ride innovation, and Six Flags Magic Mountain, with the most comprehensive collection of thrilling roller coasters anywhere in the world, is proud to build on our status as the Thrill Capital of the World.  Guests can now ride Full Throttle, the most anticipated new coaster of the summer, and also feel the energy and exhilaration of a Full Throttle lifestyle with our new entertainment experience.”

Jim Seay, President of Baltimore-based Premier Rides, is extremely pleased with the ride’s success.  “Full Throttle uses the most advanced technology we have ever incorporated into a roller coaster.  The unique topography of the Six Flags Magic Mountain site, combined with the desire to take riders right through the mountain in a tightly dimensioned tunnel, required precision design and engineering efforts and an innovative use of our magnetic launch technology.  Our launch system is the same type of technology that the United States Navy is developing for their newest aircraft carriers.  In their case, the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) will create high energy magnetic pulses to catapult aircraft off the carriers.  In the case of Full Throttle, a new dual magnetic pulse system was engineered to allow multiple high speed launches with a reduced launch distance capability.  Additionally, the equipment’s electronics are configured to direct magnetic pulses in both forward and reverse directions for an added thrill factor.”

© Premier Rides / Sara Ingram

To begin their journey through the park’s distinct mountainous terrain, riders, seated two abreast on the sleek black and silver trains, are suddenly accelerated from zero to 70 miles-per-hour in the first of three launches,  toward their first inversion and thrill as they navigate the inside of a 160 foot tall World-Record Loop.  Riders then soar along the terrain-hugging track as they experience a high-banked curve to the right and then to the left as they approach the second inversion:  a Dive Loop that drops them rapidly into a tunnel.  While inside the tunnel, the train is dramatically decelerated to a stop.  Without warning, the train is launched in reverse, taking riders back up to the high point of the Dive Loop, and then, after a momentary pause, the train drops forward and is magnetically launched a third time, catapulting riders out of the tunnel and through a high-G turn to the left.  Riders then speed up and over a Top Hat that traces the outside of the World-Record Loop, where riders experience significant air time and a breath-taking view of the park before dropping down rapidly, decelerating and taking the final 180-degree turn left into the station.

“All of us at Premier Rides are extremely excited about the debut of Full Throttle,” noted Seay.  “We are honored to have teamed up once again with Six Flags to produce a one-of-a-kind thrill ride attraction that will deliver to their guests an amazing ride experience that will certainly be a lifetime memory!  Full Throttle is a perfect follow up to the award-winning SUPERMAN Ultimate Flight which opened at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo, California last year, and was recognized by the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions in the Best New Ride category for 2012.  Six Flags has an amazing and well-deserved reputation for introducing cutting-edge thrill rides that exceed the high expectations of their guests.  With the fantastic feedback Full Throttle is seeing, we are very pleased to be a part of Six Flags’ formula for success.”

Gold Striker Too Loud + A New Tunnel

© California's Great America

Gold Striker has been thrilling riders for weeks now at California's Great America... but apparently the ride was thrilling them a bit too much and making a bit of extra noise.  The park had noise levels that were to be followed with the new wooden coaster, but screaming riders pushed above that envelope to the dismay of nearby buildings.  Well actually the park was monitoring the ride's noise levels and decided on their own to take measures.

An amusement park and an office complex are not a match made in heaven to begin with, but all is well because the park had a quick fix for the issue:  build another tunnel!  The new tunnel went in on the turn closest to the office buildings, shielding them from some sound.  For riders, that means another unique experience on this twisted Great Coasters International design.

It sounds like a case of turning lemons into lemonade, and now a new ride that already has fantastic reviews under its belt is even more improved!

Viper Ready to Roll Backwards at Six Flags Great America

Six Flags Great America is ready to premier its next backwards ride, this time their twisted wooden roller coaster, Viper.  The park has announced that riders can board and cover the ride's 3,500 feet of track backwards right away, as the turned around ride is already open!

To celebrate the park had "30 snakes on a Viper train" - as you can see it was a more family friendly version of snakes rather than the actual animals.  Still, those kids are mighty intimidating with that snake face paint!

Oh, who am I kidding, these kids are cute, not scary!  30 snakes on a Viper train is a pretty fun promotional idea, I must admit.

Viper - Backwards! will run at Six Flags Great America through August 26th.  The first ride the park turned around this year, Batman the Ride, will end its backwards session on July 7th.  If you haven't checked out that ride yet you still have a few days to do so!

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk Almost Ready to Open Undertow

© Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk

The Summer season is upon us, but one new for 2013 coaster has yet to open, and that's the Undertow at Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.  The park has installed the coaster and is getting ready to open it - soon, they hope.

You can be sure that visitors to the seaside paradise are eager to test out the new coaster.  Its elevated location makes it tower over the boardwalk and beach, drawing attention from all passing by it.  The wait won't be too much more, according to this story, as the park is in the final stages of prepping the ride.

The Undertow is a Maurer Sohne spinning coaster, similar to a few others that operate in the United States.  When it opens it will be the only coaster in Northern California with individually spinning cars, according to the park.  Undertow stands 50 feet tall and features over 1,400 feet of track.

I've been on a similar coaster in my travels, and they're certainly a lot of fun.  Hopefully not too much longer until it opens!

Dorney Park Celebrates Summer with the Opening of All Wheel Sports

A part of Dorney Park's Summer Celebration, which runs through August 25th, the park has brought an exciting new production to the Good Time Theatre, named All Wheel Sports.

The production features a cast of athletes that gained a lot of exposure and fame last year on the hit NBC show "America's Got Talent."  Their amazing performances got them all the way to the finals, which is not too surprising once you see what they're capable of.

All Wheel Sports is a show that has performed (and still is) at other Cedar Fair parks, but traditionally is and outside production.  When it was time to take a break from the tradition Snoopy themed ice show that the Good Time Theatre had, the park went in a totally different, much higher energy direction.

Having All Wheel Sports inside allows a lot of production changes that are tough in an outside setting, and in my opinion this adds greatly to the show.  Above is a shot of the theatre's stage before the action began.  The lighting throughout All Wheel Sports is excellent, and the changes to the stage itself are welcomed, too.  For instance you can see the nest-like decorations that frame the stage's borders which add to the high energy style of the show.

It doesn't take long for the show to ramp up and get moving, at first the performers warm up the crowd during some thumping music, great interaction is always a fun part of any performance.  Before long a "guest" is brought on stage and the BMX rider performs a trick that requires a lot of trust - he jumps down off the perch you see him on just clearing the guy on the ground.

The "guest" ends up exploring the elaborate obstacles that make up the show's sets, and before long most folks will gather that he might just be a part of the cast after all.  Still, there's a fun chase scene that involves a very flexible security guard and even a Harlem Shake... complete with a trampoline zebra.  If you see it you'll understand!

The show moves quick, and I'll be sure to return to focus on the performers and not on trying to get photos!  The ramps that line the stage make for some high energy flips and tricks by BMX bikers, inline skates, even a scooter!  The ease with which these guys and gals perform such elaborate moves is a bit mind blowing for someone who keeps his feet pretty firmly on the ground... aside from roller coasters, of course.

The back of the stage also features some large trampolines which allow the cast to bounce around with ease, completing flips and maneuvers that most could only dream of.  This certainly isn't anything like some kids on their backyard trampoline, no doubt about that.

There's also a great 'dark' segment of the show where the fact that the performance is indoors really shines.

With a flip of a switch the theatre is turned dark but the stage starts to glow in neon colors.  The performers continue their tricks, only with additional lightning on their bikes.  This isn't something that could be done on a sunny summer day, and it really ads to the show.

The darkness is also a great lead in to the aerialist's performance.  She appears throughout the show, but this is definitely her time to shine.  A backdrop of twinkling stars and dramatic lighting from below create an almost surreal setting for her performance.  And as you can see from the photo above, she's quite talented!
 

As if the setting wasn't dramatic enough, the show then uses the theatre's built in rain feature to make things even more beautiful.  It is somewhere not long after I took this shot that she starts to spin faster than I would ever desire with the help of a cast mate.  You could really hear the crowd loving this segment, and I can understand why.

Before long things lighten back up, and the whole cast has a go at showing off their skills.  Did I mention that there are more trampolines built along the length of the stage?  Some of the cast are also gymnasts and they certainly know how to make good use of this track, flipping and jumping high into the air.

When the show comes to an end - always too quick when you're enthralled - you can stick around and meet the cast.  That's a nice treat, especially for younger guests who may want to one day hone their skills into a professional level like this.

All Wheel Sports performs at Dorney Park each day except Wednesday through August 25th.  I highly suggest taking a break from the heat and checking out what they have to offer, I don't think you will be disappointed!