Wicked Cyclone

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Wicked Cyclone
Six Flags New England
Park section North End
Coordinates Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Status Operating
Opening date May 24, 2015 (2015-05-24)
Replaced Cyclone
Six Flags New England
Park section North End
Status Closed
Opening date June 24, 1983 (1983-06-24)
Closing date July 20, 2014 (2014-07-20)
Replaced by Wicked Cyclone
Original Cyclone at RCDB
General statistics
Type Steel
Manufacturer Rocky Mountain Construction
Designer Alan Schilke
Model I-Box
Track layout Twister
Lift/launch system Chain lift hill
Height 109 ft (33 m)
Length 3,320 ft (1,010 m)
Speed 55 mph (89 km/h)
Inversions 3
Max vertical angle 78°
Height restriction 48 in (122 cm)
Trains 2 trains with 6 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 24 riders per train.
Wicked Cyclone at RCDB
Pictures of Wicked Cyclone at RCDB

Wicked Cyclone is a steel roller coaster located at Six Flags New England amusement park. The ride originally opened as a wooden roller coaster named Cyclone on June 24, 1983. Its name and design were inspired by the 1927 historic roller coaster Cyclone located at Coney Island. In 2014 after 31 seasons, Cyclone was closed temporarily while being re-tracked with steel. It reopened as Wicked Cyclone on May 24, 2015.

History

In 1983, Riverside Amusement Park decided to open a wooden roller coaster named the Riverside Cyclone.[1] The ride was the second full-sized roller coaster to open at the park since its re-opening in 1940, following the installation of Thunderbolt in 1941.[2] The $2.5 million Riverside Cyclone was designed by William Cobb & Associates and built by the Frontier Construction Company. The ride officially opened to the public on June 25, 1983, with Cobb as well as Norm Howells from Frontier Construction in attendance. The opening of Riverside Cyclone was expected to increase park attendance by more than 10% to 1 million annual visitors.[3]

During its first season of operation, Riverside Cyclone featured two trains from Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters (PTC) where riders were restrained via a lap bar. Part-way through the first season, shoulder belts were added; however, these were removed prior to its second season. During its second season, the ride's trains were damaged, forcing the park to combine parts from both trains to form a single operational train. Two new replacement trains were purchased from D. H. Morgan Manufacturing in 1985.[1]

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File:Cyclone, Six Flags New England.jpg
A view of the original Cyclone from inside its footprint

In the late 1990s, Premier Parks (later Six Flags) purchased Riverside Amusement Park. Over a period of four years, approximately $100 million was invested in the renovation and expansion of the park, culminating in its rebranding to Six Flags New England in 2000.[4] As a result, the Riverside branding was dropped, with the ride being renamed to the Cyclone. The D.H. Morgan Manufacturing trains were replaced with two PTC trains.[1] The new operators made modifications to the track in 2001, shortening the first drop by between 15 and 20 feet (4.6 and 6.1 m).[1]

A refurbishment of the Cyclone in 2011 saw Topper Track from Rocky Mountain Construction added to sections of the ride.[5] Topper Track is steel plating that replaces the upper layers of laminated wooden track. This track style is designed to reduce the maintenance typically required for a wooden roller coaster and to provide a smoother ride experience.[6][7]

Conversion to steel track

In June 2014, Six Flags New England announced that Cyclone would closed permanently on July 20, 2014.[8] Across its 31 seasons in operation, Cyclone was ridden by more than 15 million riders. The decision to close the ride was made over a period of one and half years, with the park reportedly having no immediate plans to demolish the ride.[9][10] On August 28, 2014, it was announced that Cyclone will undergo a transformation into the Wicked Cyclone steel-tracked roller coaster. Manufactured by Rocky Mountain Construction and designed by Alan Schilke, it will feature a 10 story drop, speeds of 55 miles per hour (89 km/h) and the world's first Double Reversing Bank Airtime Hill. It will be the first hybrid coaster on the East Coast, and the only to have a 200 degree stall and two Zero G Rolls. The ride reopened in May 2015.[11]

Characteristics

Statistic Cyclone[1] Wicked Cyclone[12]
Years 1983–2014 2015–
Manufacturer Frontier Construction Company Rocky Mountain Construction
Designer William Cobb & Associates Alan Schilke
Track Wood Steel
Height 112 ft or 34 m 109 ft or 33 m
Length 3,600 ft or 1,100 m 3,320 ft or 1,010 m
Speed 45 mph or 72 km/h 55 mph or 89 km/h
Max vertical angle 54° 78°
Trains Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters (PTC) Rocky Mountain Construction

Reception

In Mitch Hawker's worldwide Best Roller Coaster Poll, the Cyclone ranked moderately, peaking at position 25 in 1999. The ride dropped to a low of 122 in 2009 before returning to position 103 in 2013. The table below summarises the results.

Mitch Hawker's Best Roller Coaster Poll: Best wood-Tracked Roller Coaster[13]
Year 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
Ranking 31 29 35 27 29 25 31 38 51 71 89 86 86 95 107 122 115 109 110 103
Golden Ticket Awards: Top steel Roller Coasters
Year 2015
Ranking 23[14]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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