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There's another aspect of excitement in the world of thrill rides. There's the excitement of the latest announcements of upcoming rides from an industry as secretive as the military at times, and the excitement of all the latest happenings at parks around the world. Sometimes the news is good, sometimes the news is bad, but our aim is to bring you the fairest, timeliest, most accurate details on everything that concerns you. COASTER-net's team of journalists is hard at work around the clock to bring you the in-depth scoop!
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Coney Island’s Astroland amusement park sold to developer
Cyclone roller coaster will remain in operation
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The owners of Coney Island’s Astroland amusement park, the Albert family, have agreed to sell Astroland's 3.1-acre site to developer Thor Equities. Astroland will close and be removed after the 2007 season to make room for a year round resort, which will include a hotel and the addition of a new roller coaster. However, the famous Cyclone wooden roller coaster will remain under the ownership of the Albert family, and the centerpiece of Coney Island.
Along with the Cyclone roller coaster, the Albert family will also continue to own some of Astroland’s other rides and attractions. They hope that they will be able to relocate these rides and attractions and add new amusement rides to a new location to create a brand-new Astroland amusement park. Astroland is expecting to have one of its best seasons in 2007 and the Cyclone, which made its debut in 1927, will also be celebrating its 80th anniversary next season.
At a cost of $1.5 billion, Equities plans to redevelop Astroland into a year-round tourist destination along the Brooklyn beachfront. A new hotel, a variety of amusement rides and attraction, and a new steel roller coaster will all be included in this expansion, which is part of a master plan to restore Coney Island into the tourist attraction it once was. Along with this redevelopment project, plans for another expansion within Coney Island were announced not that long ago.
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Mall of America takes a $1 billion plunge
New roller coaster planned for the Park at MOA
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© Gerstlauer
The new Euro-Fighter: The new roller coaster planned for the Park at MOA will be the second Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter in the United States.
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The Mall of America, home to the Park at MOA, announced that they are going to spend over $1 billion as part of the Phase II expansion project. The Phase II expansion project for Mall of America will include a performing arts auditorium, which would seat up to 6,000 people, a new roller coaster along with new rides and attraction for the Park at MOA, a Bass Pro Shop, and a hotel.
The on-site hotel would be eight stories tall and would feature 202 rooms at a cost of $180 to $250 a night. The cost to build the hotel will be $40 million and it will probably take between 14 to 16 months to build, pending city approval. Along with the hotel, the Mall of America will open a 300,000 square foot Bass Pro Shop.
Over the next 18 months, Mall of America officials plan to invest $25 million in new rides and attractions for the Mall of America’s amusement park, the Park at MOA. These additions include a new steel roller coaster, which is set to debut in the spring of 2008. The new coaster will be a Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter roller coaster that will stand 67 feet tall and will travel through 1345 feet of track during its two-minute duration.
The German engineers at Gerstlauer also designed the Park at MOA’s most recent roller coaster, the Timberland Twister spinning roller coaster. The mall also plans to make some small changes including the addition of the Cantina No. 1 Corona, a 13,000-square-foot Mexican restaurant. Construction for the Phase II project should begin in mid-2007.
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Carowinds looks toward what lies ahead in the future
New management is ready to make some changes
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© Paramount's Carowinds
What's next for Carowinds?: Carowinds newest addition was the Boomerang Bay water park, and still the park is looking to grow even larger in the future.
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Cedar Fair, based in Sandusky, Ohio, owned and operated seven theme parks and multiple water parks across the United States, until it was announced that they were going to purchase the Paramount Parks theme park chain, which includes four of the largest theme parks in the industry. Now one of those Paramount parks is already planning the future, and that park is Paramount’s Carowinds.
The new owners of the Paramount’s Carowinds, Cedar Fair, and the park’s newly appointed manager, John Shanrock, have already begun thinking about what the park will look like in the upcoming years. Shanrock is looking to start out by improving the overall atmosphere of the park. He plans to do this with some simple additions to the park such as more cotton-candy booths, better landscaping, and a scarier Scarowinds, the park’s Halloween-themed event that is held on weekend nights in October. Eventually, Carowinds hopes that they will be able to open a new roller coaster and other new rides throughout the park.
Cedar Fair is also looking at possibly dropping the Paramount name from the recently acquired Paramount parks including Carowinds. This means that the park would have to rename its Top Gun - The Jet Coaster inverted roller coaster and possibly the Drop Zone freefall ride, which are both named after Paramount movies. However, Cedar Fair is looking into keeping the Nickelodeon brand name with the idea that it would help draw families into the park.
Carowinds plans to announce a new attraction for the park that would open in 2007 in the upcoming weeks. However, it's not likely that the new attraction would be a major addition. Shanrock expects park guests to notice improvements at Carowinds, but no major changes yet.
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Pleasure Beach to suspend riders in 2007
Second-hand looping coaster becomes 'Infusion'
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© Pleasure Beach, Blackpool
Time for a change: The Traumatizer inverted roller coaster is already at Pleasure Beach, Blackpool and is now being transformed into Infusion.
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In early September, it was announced that the historic Pleasureland Southport amusement park in England would not reopen next season and was closed for good. The park’s signature attraction, the Traumatizer inverted roller coaster, has been rumored to be relocated to Pleasure Beach, Blackpool, which is one of the world’s largest amusement parks.
Well those rumored were confirmed today when it was announced that the Traumatizer would make its return at Pleasure Beach, Blackpool, but it will be transformed in totally different experience. This new experience is Infusion.
Infusion was originally constructed in 1999 as the Traumatizer at Pleasureland Southport amusement park, and it is a standard Vekoma suspended looping coaster. Pleasure Beach’s new inverted roller coaster will be built on top of a lake and it will replace the park’s Log Flume.
This new ride has been described as a "whirlwind water experience" because many of the new features that will be incorporated into the Infusion roller coaster that are designed to enhance the overall ride experience. Some of these features include the fact that the ride will be built over a lake, multiple tunnels will be added, and riders will fly through a series water effects.
Infusion is Pleasure Beach, Blackpool’s first major roller coaster since the famous Pepsi Max Big One was built in 1994. This is also only the park’s second roller coaster with an inversion. The park’s first roller coaster to feature an inversion was the Irn-Bru Revolution. Infusion will send riders through five inversions and will make its debut in the spring of 2007.
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The City Park of New Orleans reopens its amusement rides
Amusement park finds its way back after Hurricane Katrina
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City Park Carousel Gardens, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA 11/22/06 - By: Matthew Grauberger -
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© City Park New Orleans
One step at a time: Carousel Gardens amusement park in City Park New Orleans is still in the process of being rebuilt even though it will reopen this Friday.
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The Carousel Gardens amusement park, located in New Orleans’ City Park, was overwhelmed by Hurricane Katrina along with the rest of the Gulf Coast area. It has been almost 15 months since the park was last in operation. However, that will change this Friday when the park is reopened to the delight of everyone area the New Orleans area.
Carousel Gardens held a soft opening, (an early opening), last Sunday night for a sold out crowd of people wanting to experience the amusement park for the first time since Hurricane Katrina. The park is also offering six new rides as part of the reopening of the park. The Scrambler and the Rockin’ Tug are two of the six rides being added to the park’s lineup of rides and attractions.
Two of the more popular rides have been refurbished including the tower slide and the Live Oak Ladybug children’s roller coaster. However, some amusement rides will remain in disrepair for some time due to the slow reimbursement process. Some of these rides that will remain closed include the Ferris Wheel, the Tilt-A-Whirl, and the Tornado spinning ride. Also, the park’s signature miniature train ride is in the process of being repaired. Repairs on the miniature train may be completed by the end of this month.
The park’s famous, century-old carousel was recently restored in Connecticut and has just arrived on-site. It will be reassembled inside its stained glass building in the near future. The reopening of the Carousel Gardens amusement park is another step forward in the recovery of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Admission into the park will be $12.
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'X-Flight' cleared for takeoff from Geauga Lake
5-year-old ride on its way to another Cedar Fair park
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Geauga Lake, Aurora, OH, USA 11/22/06 - By: Devin Olson -
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© Clint Novak
Ready for Takeoff: In 2001, former Geauga Lake owners Six Flags constructed X-Flight on a former parking lot. Now, the ride is being relocated.
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For the past five seasons, it stood proudly at Geauga Lake’s entrance; the newest roller coaster track in the park. Now, X-Flight is taking off towards an undisclosed location.
In recent years, thrill-seekers have learned that infancy is hardly a promise of longevity for thrill rides. Now, that point has been underscored once again as the Ohio theme park begins dismantling one of its star attractions – a ride that was marketed as the first in the Midwest to send riders flying like their favorite superheroes in prone position.
Growing theme park giant Cedar Fair, owner of Geauga Lake since 2004, now operates a dozen other amusement parks throughout North America. Any one of those parks could become the new landing site of X-Flight, in theory.
However, two of the other Cedar Fair parks – Paramount Canada’s Wonderland and Paramount’s Carowinds – already operate lay-down coasters. Two more – Cedar Point and 
© Refreshing Look
What Goes Up...: Construction workers are shown five years ago removing ride parts from shipping containers like the ones to which they are now returning.
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Valleyfair – already have installations of major new coasters in the works. Half a dozen others have land shortages that might not justify the acreage of X-Flight, leaving some to believe that Geauga Lake’s Midwestern neighbor Michigan’s Adventure will soon be seeing lime green track and dark blue supports on its property.
To followers of the roller coaster world, the relocation of X-Flight will conjure recollections from three years ago when a nearly identical ride that spawned the modern “flying coaster” craze made a cross-country flight of its own. After three years of operation, Stealth at Paramount’s Great America in California was shipped to Carowinds in North Carolina where it was reincarnated as BORG Assimilator for the 2004 season.
Geauga Lake states that the removal of X-Flight does not signal the arrival of a new attraction to fill the void.
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Classic Coney Island undergoes biggest renovation yet
Seaside park to be transformed into seasonal destination
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© Astroland
Living History: The Classic Coney Island Cyclone is the last major roller coaster addition at the park since 1927.
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Historical Coney Island, home of the first coaster ever in the United States, has plans for its biggest expansion ever.
The architect, Stanton Eskstut, says he wants to create a “wow” entrance when people first come to the park. He envisions a grand new area, such as a tower filled with water and a light show. There also might be an observation deck overlooking the park and ocean.
The newly transformed park is may also have movie theaters and an indoor water park. They hope to have a major roller coaster in the park, which would be the first in Coney Island since the Cyclone opened in 1927. The roller coaster would take riders through the many buildings in the area.
The plans for the park are being sketched currently. The centerpiece of the park is going to be a carousel, three stories high. It will have glass walls so it can be used year round, which is the goal of the park. It will also have year-round shows, lights, water, color, and music all around the park throughout the whole year. The park will not give up on its classic rides, and will try to enhance them as much as possible.
The New York Aquarium, also located in Coney Island, will undergo a renovation. The plans are estimated to cost 1.5 billion dollars. They want the approval to begin as soon as possible so they can start construction. They hope to have the park finished by 2011.
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Six Flags over Texas to unveil new show
Cirque Dreams Coobrila to be performed in 2007
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© Six Flags Over Texas
A new way of thinking: Cirque Dreams Coobrila fits great with Six Flags image of creating a family friendly atmosphere that can be enjoyed by everyone.
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Six Flags over Texas has announced that park guests will be amazed and memorized by a new show. The show will make its debut June 16, 2007, and will be performed for 65 consecutive nights at Six Flags Over Texas. The name of the new show? Cirque Dreams Coobrila.
Cirque Dreams Coobrila is designed to take its audience on an extraordinary journey into a world of imagination. By combining three key descriptive elements of the show, the word Coobrila was created. Performances will be presented outdoors at night when temperatures are COOler, illumination effects within the park are BRIghter, and so guests can enjoy the park operating LAter. These elements also make up the three principal characters of the new Cirque Dreams Coobrila show.
Cirque Dreams Coobrila will come alive in the 10,000-seat Music Mill Amphitheatre. The theater will be completely transformed and reconfigured with multiple stages and performance runways that are designed to connect the performers with the audience. Also, above the theatre, a large structure will be assembled to accommodate special effects, illuminations, and displays of aerial artistry. "Cirque Dreams Coobrila will be like no other show we’ve ever presented at Six Flags Over Texas," said Steve Calloway, vice president and general manager of the park. "This is exactly the kind of world-class entertainment our guests have been looking for - an escape that will transport them to another place and time. It will, quite simply, take their breath away!"
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Universal Studios Orlando lands the Blue Man Group
Popular entertainers to perform at Universal Orlando in 2007
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© Universal Studios Orlando
An all-new form of entertainment: The addition of the Blue Man Group is just the latest way that Universal Studios have separated themselves from the rest of the theme park industry.
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For some time now, Universal Studios Orlando has been looking for a signature act to perform in Universal Orlando’s CityWalk. That search came to an end when it was recently announced that Universal Orlando’s CityWalk would feature a new kind of entertainment. This all-new group just happens to be, the Blue Man Group.
Universal Studios and the Blue Man Group have announced that an old soundstage inside the Universal Studios theme park will be renovated into a state-of-the-art theater where the Blue Man Group will perform beginning next June. This old soundstage is actually the former Nickelodeon soundstage, and a new entrance will be created directly from CityWalk, which will be connected to the Hard Rock Café. This will be done so that attendees can attend the Blue Man Group show without buying tickets to the theme park.
The Blue Man Group consists of three entertainers in blue face paint who combine musical instruments, paints, everyday objects, acrobatics, comedy, special effects and music to create a this widely popular attraction. Performances in New York, Las Vegas, Boston, and other major cities across America have become astounding tourist attractions. This is what Universal Studios wants, and is what the Blue Man Group promises for Orlando.
The Blue Man Group is expected to perform up to 15 shows a week during peak tourism times in mid-summer and the Christmas season. It’s likely that the group would stage about seven or so shows a week during off-season periods. Ticket prices for the concerts are planned to be $45 for matinee performances and $55 for evening shows.
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The Starliner roller coaster will reopen in all its glory in 2007
Cypress Gardens announces additions for 2007
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© Cypress Gardens Adventure Park
The Starliner is ready to make its return: Cypress Gardens Adventure Park bought the Starliner for only $100,000, but will pay about $1.5 million to have it rebuilt at the park.
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To the delight of coaster enthusiasts across America, it has been announced that Cypress Gardens Adventure Park will become the new home for the famous Starliner wooden roller coaster. Along with the Starliner, Cypress Gardens will open an all-new interactive children’s area called Bugsville.
It was announced in March of 2005 that Cypress Gardens had bought the Starliner roller coaster from the now closed Miracle Strip Park in Panama City, Florida. The Starliner was originally built in 1963, and was designed by John Allen who is considered to be one of the best, if not the best, roller coaster designer of his time. However, when it was announced that the Starliner had been saved, no one knew when this classic wooden coaster would reopen.
The Starliner will be the park’s 6th roller coaster, and construction to rebuild the coaster will begin immediately. The park is hoping to have the Starliner reopened in late-May of 2007. Kent Buescher, President and CEO of Cypress Gardens Adventure Park also announced that the park would open Bugsville in the spring of 2007.
Bugsville will be home to many rides, a special theater, and eventually an interactive play structure. The first phase of the Bugsville project will be completed in 2007 and will include 13 rides. This new children’s area will also feature a new show called “A Bugsville Adventure.”
Cypress Gardens Adventure Park will also introduce a brand-new season pass for 2007 at the price of $69.95. In was recently reported that the park was dealing with major financial problems, but it now seems that the park has kept its troubles to a minimum. Cypress Gardens operates year round and will give free park admission to anyone who has a 2006 season pass to any theme park in the country through December 24th, 2006.
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Six Flags Magic Mountain not to be sold this year
Decision follows 12-percent chainwide drop in attendance
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Six Flags Magic Mountain, Valencia, California, USA 11/06/06 - By: Cory Gross -
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© Six Flags
Tatsu: Six Flags Magic Mountain opened Tatsu in the beginning of the 2006 season, and offered guests with a great thrill, but did not help the season's attendance.
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Six Flags Magic Mountain, in Valencia, California, and the rest of the Six Flags parks are overcoming a shocking 12 percent decrease in attendance. The Fright Fest has ended at all parks, and most have closed for the season.
Six Flags Magic Mountain, along with five other Six Flags parks, are up for sale. The company states that no one should expect any major changes at the parks, for they have not found anyone willing to buy the park, and do not expect to find one soon.
Even though Six Flags is selling Magic Mountain, they are preparing for next year, the same as all the other Six Flags parks.
If Six Flags Magic Mountain is sold, moving the rides of the park will stimulate big interest among smaller amusement park chains. No Six Flags Magic Mountain rides are being moved yet, but if the park gets sold, they will most likely be moved quickly.
Selling Six Flags Magic Mountain was never an idea that people liked. Most coaster enthusiasts thought that it should be kept because it held some of the best coasters in the country. Locals also disapproved of the idea. Some locals even protested, because they thought that without the park, the area would change for the worse.
Selling the parks, in the eyes of the Six Flags Company, would help the chain greatly, especially since the parks up for sale have small income. When the company released its quarterly report on Thursday, they were down 12 percent, compared to last year’s third quarter. The company could not release figures for individual parks, because of a policy of the Six Flags Company.
The new CEO, Mark Shapiro, has tried to make Six Flags more family- oriented, once he became the CEO this year. However, his idea of more families and less teenagers might have not worked. Snyder, the owner of Six Flags, states that he is not surprised at this year lack of progress because it was a rebuilding of all Six Flags parks.
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NASA decides on coaster escape system
Roller coaster to become potential life-saver
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Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, FL, USA 11/05/06 - By: Devin Olson -
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© NASA
Life-Saving Coaster: NASA hopes that their coaster escape system will save the lives of astronauts in the case of an emergency.
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For hundreds of years, the world has strictly associated the modern roller coaster with a form of amusement. Now, the popular attraction is about to take on a completely new utilization at Cape Canaveral: a potential life-saver.
As NASA moves ahead with plans to launch the next generation of space flight, the agency has approved plans for a next generation of emergency escape systems, which happens to be a near-30-story roller coaster.
After weighing four options, NASA made the call on Friday to install an $8 million coaster system at the launch pad of its new Ares I vehicle, which NASA hopes will eventually launch its Orion craft to Mars. Despite a price tag above the other three possibilities, the agency determined that the coaster would prove a safer, more maintainable option than other considered escape systems: a slide tube, slide wire and high-speed elevator.
© NASA
Sorry, Thrill-Seekers: NASA has no plans to offer season passes for this coaster.
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The coaster escape system’s initial design calls for a vertical path starting with an inclined loading area situated towards the top of the 300-foot launch tower. Once the first of three cars is loaded with up to six astronauts, it will depart with a quick vertical drop down the tower. From there, the track pulls out to enter a braking area leading to a safety bunker. The total ride time? 18 seconds.
Now, NASA has called for design propositions for the system, which will be contracted to an outside vendor.
The system should be in place before Ares I’s maiden flight in 2009 – one year before the current space shuttle program will be retired.
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Conneaut Lake Park falls deeper into debt
Park’s debt climbs to over $2 million
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© Conneaut Lake Park
Fading into History: Many of the older amusement parks have recently closed because of finical problems, Conneaut Lake Park could possibly be the next.
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Conneaut Lake Park in Pennsylvania began the year $1.9 million in debt, and now that number has climbed its way to $2.160 million. The small lakeside amusement park, water park, campground, and hotel lost a total of $225,000 this year.
The park’s debt from this year includes $37,472.48 of unpaid real estate taxes. However, LeRoy Stearns, a court-appointed overseer of the park’s finical problems, projected a 15 to 20 percent loss in revenue because of the poor weather throughout the summer in that area. He also explained that projected losses for Labor Day weekend were around $100,000 due to rainy weather.
“At the beginning of the year, we hoped to make money or least break even,” Stern said. “By July, we realized if we broke even we would be doing well.” He mentioned that the total amount lost might change by the end of the year when revenues from Sept. 16 through Dec. 30 are recorded. In addition to falling further in debt this year, the park had approximately $137,000 in emergency repairs that were paid this year.
Conneaut Lake Park celebrated its 100 anniversary in 2002, and is home to three roller coasters. One of those roller coasters is the Blue Streak, which is the park’s signature 68-year-old wooden roller coaster.
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