A Ferris wheel is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating upright wheel with multiple passenger-carrying components attached to the rim in such a way that as the wheel turns, they are kept upright, usually by gravity. Some of the largest modern Ferris wheels have cars mounted on the outside of the rim, with electric motors to independently rotate each car to keep it upright. These cars are often referred to as capsules or pods.
Whistler Blackcomb is a ski resort located in Whistler, British Columbia, Canada. By many measures, it is the largest ski resort in North America and has the greatest uphill lift capacity. It features the Peak 2 Peak Gondola for moving between Whistler and Blackcomb mountains at the top. With its capacity, Whistler Blackcomb is a busy ski resort, often surpassing two million visitors a year.
Hersheypark is a family theme park in the eastern United States in Hershey, Pennsylvania, about fifteen miles (25 km) east of Harrisburg, and 95 miles (155 km) west of Philadelphia. The park was founded in 1906, by Milton S. Hershey as a leisure park for the employees of the Hershey Chocolate Company. It is wholly and privately owned by Hershey Entertainment and Resorts Company. Hersheypark has won several awards, including the Applause Award.
A drop tower is a type of amusement park ride incorporating a central tower structure with one or more gondolas attached. In a typical modern configuration, each gondola carrying riders is lifted to the top of the tower and then released to free fall back down to ground level. This produces a feeling of weightlessness followed by rapid deceleration. A magnetic braking system, or a variation that relies on pistons and air pressure, is used to safely bring the gondola to a complete stop. One of the earliest drop towers configured as an amusement ride was a parachute ride that debuted at the 1939 New York World's Fair, which was inspired by paratrooper training devices used by the Soviet Union in the 1920s.
Sky Whirl was the name of two amusement rides which featured triple Ferris wheels. Both debuted in 1976 at the California's Great America and Six Flags Great America amusement parks. The ride in Santa Clara closed in 1997, and the ride in Gurnee closed in 2000. Two additional triple Ferris wheels were later built for the Seibu-en and Lotte World parks in Japan and South Korea (1989–97), respectively. All four rides were manufactured by Waagner-Biro and brokered by Intamin.
Wildcat's Revenge is a hybrid roller coaster located at Hersheypark in Hershey, Pennsylvania, United States. The ride originally opened in 1996 as Wildcat, a wooden coaster manufactured by Great Coasters International (GCI). The wooden coaster was the first from GCI and served as the anchor attraction of the Midway America section of the park. It cost $5.6 million to construct and was built on a 2-acre (0.81 ha) plot of land that had previously been used for parking. The ride traversed a 90-foot lift hill and twelve banked turns, subjecting riders to forces of up to 3.5 Gs. From 1998 to 2009, Wildcat ranked among the top 50 wooden roller coasters in the annual Golden Ticket Awards publication from Amusement Today. Wildcat initially received critical acclaim, but it gained a negative reputation for its increasing roughness.
The Enterprise is an amusement ride, manufactured primarily by HUSS Park Attractions and Anton Schwarzkopf beginning in 1972. The HUSS ride was an adaptation and improvement of a design produced earlier that year by Schwarzkopf, with an increased passenger capacity. Despite not owning the original incarnation of the ride, HUSS was issued the patent.
Chance Rides is a roller coaster and amusement ride manufacturer. Originally founded in 1961, the current company was formed on May 16, 2002, when the former Chance Industries Inc. emerged from bankruptcy. The main office and manufacturing facility are located in Wichita, Kansas.
Skyride is a transportation attraction at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay in Tampa, Florida. It carries passengers from the Edge of Africa section of the park to the Stanleyville section or vice versa. During this experience, passengers get a bird's-eye view of several attractions at the park.
Acrophobia is a free-fall tower ride located at Six Flags Over Georgia in Austell, Georgia. The attraction was designed by Intamin of Switzerland, and is marketed by Intamin's Liechtenstein-based subsidiary Ride Trade. When Acrophobia opened to the public on May 12, 2001, it became the first free-fall attraction of its kind in the world.
The Peak 2 Peak Gondola is a tricable gondola lift at Whistler Blackcomb Resort in Whistler, British Columbia, linking Whistler Mountain's Roundhouse Lodge with Blackcomb Mountain's Rendezvous Lodge. It is the first lift to join the two side-by-side mountains. It held the world record for the longest free span between ropeway towers at 3.03 kilometres until 2017 when the Eibsee Cable Car exceeded it by 189 metres. It is still the highest point above the ground in a gondola at 436 metres, although a temporary aerial tramway in Switzerland used between 1979 and 1986 had larger span. The gondola was built by the Doppelmayr Garaventa Group in 2007 and 2008 at a cost of CDN$51 million. The Gondola is the first Doppelmayr "3S" tri-cable lift in North America; there are four similar but smaller lifts in Europe which were built in 1991, 1994, 2002, 2004 and 2010 in Switzerland, Austria, France and Germany. Whistler Blackcomb promotes the gondola as an attraction and uses it to transport skiers in the winter months, as well as sightseers year-round.
Mini-Comet was a kiddie roller coaster located at Hersheypark in Hershey, Pennsylvania. It was situated near Comet in The Hollow section of Hersheypark from 1974 through 1975. It was relocated to Kissing Tower Hill in 1976, where it remained in operation until its removal at the end of the 1978 season. The ride was purchased used at a public sale; it was constructed by B.A. Schiff & Associates, some time before 1974. The coaster featured an oval track with a series of small hills. It completed the circuit five times before the ride cycle ended.
Delirium is the name of three Frisbee rides located at three Six Flags parks – California's Great America, Kings Island, and Kings Dominion. The installation at California's Great America, the smallest of the three, was designed by Chance Rides and opened in 2002. The installation at Kings Island was designed by HUSS Park Attractions and opened on April 12, 2003, as the largest Frisbee ride of its kind in the world. The record-setting ride is able to swing 50 passengers up to 76 mph (122 km/h) reaching a height of 137 feet (42 m). Mondial manufactured the version of Delirium at Kings Dominion, which opened in 2016. It accommodates up to 40 passengers, reaches a top speed of 60 mph (97 km/h), and swings to a maximum height of 115 feet (35 m).
The history of Hersheypark begins with the founding of the town of Hershey in 1903. Milton Hershey, The owner of the Hershey Chocolate Company surveyed a nearby area of land, which was to become a leisure park for the employees of his chocolate company. People began visiting the grounds of the future park in 1904 and 1905, while the park's first pavilion was built in the fall of 1905. The park was formally opened on May 30, 1906, when it opened as Hershey Park. The park slowly added rides until 1923, when the first roller coaster, the Wild Cat, was built. From then on, rides were regularly added, except during World War II. The park was redeveloped into Hersheypark in 1970, through a multi-phase project. Since then, it has added ten roller coasters, expanded to over 110 acres, and features many other attractions including shows with sea lions, well-known acts including Weird Al Yankovic and Duff Goldman from Charm City Cakes in the Hersheypark Amphitheater, and a short-lived laser light show.
The Miniature Railroad was a ride at Hersheypark from 1910 until 1971. The train ran a course along Park Boulevard, near the intersection with Park Avenue, around Spring Creek into Comet Hollow. It was the second ride Milton S. Hershey purchased for his park, after buying a carousel. While the railroad is no longer in operation, the train has been undergoing restoration since 2007, and was first publicly displayed in 2011.
The Mill Chute was a ride at Hersheypark from 1929 until 1972. Milton S. Hershey purchased the ride from the Philadelphia Toboggan Company when the decision was made to build a new pool and drain the existing pool and neighboring lake in Comet Hollow. In 1963, the ride was renovated and rethemed. It was renamed Lost River and maintained that theme until 1972. During the 1972 season Hurricane Agnes struck Hershey, and the resulting flood of the park caused irreparable damage to the ride. As a result, the ride was closed for the remainder of the 1972 season and was torn down in the off season.
The Hong Kong Observation Wheel is a 60-metre (197-foot) tall Ferris wheel located at the Central Harbourfront, Central, Hong Kong. It has 42 gondolas, including one VIP Gondola with leather seats and a clear glass bottom floor. All gondolas are equipped with air conditioners and communication systems. Each ride includes two to three rotations and takes about 15 minutes. Each gondola seats a maximum of eight people, other than the VIP Gondola, which seats five people.
The Disney Skyliner is a gondola lift system, part of the Disney Transport system, that opened on September 29, 2019, at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. The system is composed of five stations that serve four resorts and two theme parks, with a fleet of over 250 gondola cabins that can accommodate up to ten guests per cabin, or up to six with an open wheelchair or other mobility device. Guests sit on twin, inward-facing, wooden benches.
Kissing Tower is a gyro tower at Hersheypark in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The tower tops out at 330 ft, making it the tallest attraction in the park. Riders reach 250 feet, surpassing Candymonium which tops out at 210 feet. Kissing Tower is one of Hersheypark's most famous attractions.
