Wild Mouse roller coaster
A Wild Mouse roller coaster (also Mad Mouse or Crazy Mouse) is a type of roller coaster characterized by small cars that seat four people or fewer and ride on top of the track, taking tight, flat turns (without banking) at modest speeds, yet producing high lateral G-forces. The track work is characterized by many turns and bunny hops, the latter producing abrupt negative vertical G forces. When approaching a turn from a straight section the intended impression is that one will simply continue straight, and thus plunge off of the device, this since there are no transition sections as are in a conventional high speed coaster track and the turn itself is obscured upon close approach. Almost all Wild Mice feature "switchback" sections, consisting of several of these unbanked turns, separated by straight sections. Usually the turns on the switchback section are 180°, but some coasters feature 90° turns as well as more rarely steep runs with loops (for example Crazy Mouse at Tobu Zoo in Japan, which is no longer operating). Some riders, usually among taller people, report sustaining whiplash after being subjected to these turns.
The feeling of a Wild Mouse coaster is amplified by using cars that are wider than the track itself, giving the impression that the riders are hanging off the side or that they might fly out, thus giving it the name "wild".
Some may include trick-track — a "straight" piece of track banked slightly side to side designed to throw the rider left to right. Some wild mouse coasters, such as Primeval Whirl, also have spinning cars.
The modern Wild Mouse was invented by German designer Franz Mack. In the original wooden Wild Mouse coasters of the 1960s and 1970s, the cars were so small that they could only fit two adults in close contact. While the low capacity of these rides led to long lines, the cars were small by design.
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s the Wild Mouse type coaster was nearly extinct. However, beginning in the mid-1990s, Wild Mouse-style rides made a comeback for two reasons: First, they were cheaper than larger, conventional coasters; second, they added to a park's "coaster count" with minimal impact on cost and square footage.[1]
Contents
Examples of Wild Mouse roller coasters
Australia
- Scooby-Doo Spooky Coaster at Warner Bros. Movie World in Queensland
- Mad Mouse at Royal Adelaide Show, relocated to Indonesia
- Mad Mouse at Royal Melbourne Show, now removed.
- Wild Mouse Roller Coaster at Aussie World in Queensland
- Wild Mouse Roller Coaster at Luna Park Sydney.
- Wild Mouse Roller Coaster at Luna Park Melbourne.
- Crazy Spinning Coaster at Sydney Royal Easter Show.
Belgium
- Speedy Bob at Bobbejaanland, Lichtaart
Canada
- Wild Mouse at Belmont Park, Montreal
- Wild Mouse at Playland, Vancouver (currently removed)
- The Fly at Canada's Wonderland in Vaughan, Ontario
- Toboggan Nordique at La Ronde in Montreal
Chile
- Wild Mouse at Fantasilandia in Santiago, Chile
France
- Une Souris Verte at Parc Saint-Paul in Le Becquet
Germany
- Ghost Chasers at Movie Park Germany, Bottrop
- Matterhorn Blitz at Europa Park, Rust
- Project X - Test Strecke at Legoland Deutschland, Günzburg
- Crazy-Mine at Hansa-Park, Sierksdorf
Ireland
- Wild Mouse at Tramore Amusement Park, County Waterford
- Wild Mouse at Funderland, Cork
Italy
- Pakal at Mirabilandia, Savio (Ravenna)
- Wild Mine at Cavallino Matto, Livorno
Netherlands
- Flying Dutchman Gold Mine at Walibi Holland, Biddinghuizen (moved to Mer de Sable in France as Tiger Express in 2011)
- Kopermijn at Drievliet Family Park, The Hague
New Zealand
- Gold Rush at Rainbow's End, Auckland
Russia
- At the All-Russia Exhibition Centre, Moscow
- Bowl Flyer "PINCOD" at Sochi Park Adventureland, Sochi
Saudi Arabia
- Wild Mouse at Al-Hokair Land theme park in Riyadh
Sweden
- Vilda Musen at Gröna Lund in Stockholm
United Kingdom
- Fantasy Mouse at Fantasy Island (UK amusement park), Ingoldmells, Lincolnshire
- Walls Twister Coaster [1] at West Midlands Safari Park, Worcestershire
- The Rat at Loudoun Castle, Ayrshire
- Rattlesnake at Chessington World of Adventures, Chessington
- Treetop Twister at Lightwater Valley, Ripon
- Rock 'n' Roller at Bottons Pleasure Beach, Skegness, Lincolnshire
- Wild Mouse at Pleasure Beach, Blackpool
- Wildcat at New Pleasureland, Southport
- Crazy Mouse at Brighton Pier
- The Wild Mouse roller coaster also makes a yearly appearance in Plymouth at the Civic Centre.
- King Solomon's Mines (Wooden) is also in storage in Margate in preparation for the Dreamland Heritage Park.
- Magic Mouse at Brean Leisure Park
- Alton Mouse at Alton Towers, Now removed after an accident
United States
- Coast Rider at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California
- Crazy Coaster at The Orange County Fair in California
- Crazy Mouse at DelGrosso's Amusement Park in Tipton, Pennsylvania
- Crazy Mouse at Rye Playland in Rye, New York
- Crazy Mouse at the San Diego County Fair in San Diego
- Crazy Mouse at the Ohio State Fair in Columbus, Ohio
- Crazy Mouse at the South Carolina State Fair in Columbia, South Carolina
- Crazy Mouse at Martin's Fantasy Island in Grand Island, New York
- Cyclone at Wonderland Amusement Park
- The Doo Wopper ay Morey's Piers in Wildwood, New Jersey
- The Dark Knight Coaster at Six Flags Great America in Gurnee, Illinois, and Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey
- The Exterminator at Kennywood, in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania
- Galaxy Spin at Fun Spot USA in Kissimmee, Florida
- Go Bananas at Wild Adventures in Valdosta, Georgia
- Goofy's Sky School at Disney California Adventure in Anaheim, California
- Gotham City Gauntlet: Escape from Arkham Asylum at Six Flags New England
- Lego Technic Test Track at Legoland California
- Klondike Gold Rusher at Wild Waves in Federal Way, Washington
- Mad Mouse at Michigan's Adventure, Muskegon, Michigan
- Mad Mouse at Myrtle Beach Pavilion in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
- Mad Mouse at Uncle Cliff's (Now Cliff's Amusement Park) in Albuquerque, New Mexico
- Mad Mouse at Valleyfair in Shakopee, Minnesota
- Mad Mouse at Little Amerricka in Marshall, Wisconsin
- Monster Mouse at the Washington State Fair in Puyallup, Washington
- OPA Roller Coaster at Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin (currently removed)
- Primeval Whirl at Disney's Animal Kingdom in Lake Buena Vista, Florida
- Psycho Mouse at California's Great America in Santa Clara, California
- Rajun Cajun at Six Flags Great America, Gurnee, Illinois, in the Chicago metropolitan area
- Ricochet at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia
- Ricochet at Carowinds in Charlotte, North Carolina
- Sand Serpent at Busch Gardens Tampa in Tampa, Florida
- Spinning Dragons at Worlds of Fun in Kansas City, Missouri
- Steel Dragon at Waldameer in Erie, Pennsylvania
- Twist 'n' Shout at Magic Springs & Crystal Falls at Hot Springs, Arkansas
- Wild Chipmunk at Lakeside Amusement Park in Lakeside, Colorado
- Wild Lightning at Lake Winnepesaukah Amusement Park in Chattanooga, Tennessee
- Wild Mouse at Beech Bend Park in Bowling Green, Kentucky
- Wild Mouse at Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom in Allentown, Pennsylvania
- Wild Mouse at Florida State Fair in Tampa, Florida
- Wild Mouse at Hersheypark in Hershey, Pennsylvania
- Wild Mouse at Joyland Amusement Park in Lubbock, Texas
- Wild Mouse at Lagoon Amusement Park in Farmington, Utah
- Wild Mouse at Idlewild and Soak Zone in Ligonier, Pennsylvania
- Wild Mouse at Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey (currently dismantled and in storage due to the pier/boardwalk reconstruction after Hurricane Sandy)
- Wild Mouse at Funtown Splashtown USA in Saco, Maine
- Wild Mouse at Champlain Valley Expo in Essex Junction, Vermont
- Wild & Wooly Toboggan at Little Amerricka in Marshall, Wisconsin
- Power Trip Coaster/Rockstar Coaster at Fun Spot USA in Kissimmee, Florida
- Crazy Mouse at the 2011 South Florida Fair in West Palm Beach, Florida
Spain
- Vértigo at Parque de Atracciones de Madrid
- Ratón Vacilón at the annual Seville Fair
References
- ↑ Sandy, Adam. (2006) http://www.ultimaterollercoaster.com/coasters/history/1980_1990/90s_part_two.shtml Roller Coaster History, 1980's - 1990's
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wild Mouse roller coasters. |
- Wild Mouse Rides: Early History in North America
- Amusement Ride Extravaganza - Wild Mouse History in Australia
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