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 wooden roller coaster is a type of roller coaster classified by its wooden track, which consists of running rails made of flat steel strips mounted on laminated wood. The support structure is also typically made of wood, but may also be made of steel lattice or truss, which has no bearing on a wooden coaster's classification. The type of wood often selected in the construction of wooden coasters worldwide is southern yellow pine, which grows abundantly in the southern United States, due to its density and adherence to different forms of pressure treatment.
Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters (PTC) is one of the oldest existing roller coaster manufacturing companies in the world. Based in Hatfield, Pennsylvania, it was established in 1904 by Henry B. Auchy and Chester Albright under the name Philadelphia Toboggan Company. The company manufactured carousels, wooden roller coasters, toboggans and later, roller coaster trains.
Wilde Beast is a wooden roller coaster located at Canada's Wonderland, in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada. It was originally named "Wilde Beast", from 1981 to 1996, when it was renamed to "Wild Beast" in 1997. The ride was reverted to its original name in 2019. It is one of the five roller coasters that debuted with the park in 1981, and is one of three wooden coasters at Canada's Wonderland modeled after a ride at Coney Island amusement park in Cincinnati, Ohio ; the other is the Mighty Canadian Minebuster. The ride's fan curve was rebuilt in 1998.
Great Coasters International, Inc. is a Sunbury, Pennsylvania-based roller coaster manufacturer which has created several award-winning rides since its formation in 1994. Starting in 2006 with Thunderbird at PowerPark in Finland, the company expanded beyond the United States and began building coasters in Europe and Asia. Günter Engelhardt GmbH handles the company's marketing rights in Europe. In addition to building new roller coasters, GCI also refurbishes and re-tracks existing roller coasters, regardless of manufacturer.
Elitch Gardens was a family-owned seasonal amusement park, theater, and botanic garden in the West Highland neighborhood in northwest Denver, Colorado, United States, at 38th Avenue and Tennyson Street. For more than a century Elitch's was one of the most popular entertainment destinations in Colorado. It was nationally known for its luscious gardens, the Elitch Theatre, the Trocadero Ballroom, and the premier wooden roller coaster, Mister Twister. The park moved to downtown Denver in 1994 and later in November 1998 became Six Flags Elitch Gardens. The former location has been redeveloped.
WildCat (roller coaster) may refer to:
The Wild One is a wooden roller coaster at Six Flags America in Prince George's County, Maryland. It features a 450° spiral helix and a series of bunny hills that produce a significant amount of air time. The wooden coaster was previously known as Giant Coaster when it was located at Paragon Park in Hull, Massachusetts. It operated there from 1917 to 1984. It is the oldest coaster in any Six Flags park.
Comet is a wooden roller coaster at Hersheypark in Hershey, Pennsylvania. It is located in the Hollow section of Hersheypark, next to Skyrush. Built in 1946 by the Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters (PTC) of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the coaster features a double out and back track layout. When built it was jointly owned by Hershey Park and PTC. The maximum speed is 50 miles per hour (80 km/h).
Thunderhawk is a wooden roller coaster with an out-and-back layout located at Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Originally opening as The Coaster in 1924, Thunderhawk is the oldest operating roller coaster in the Cedar Fair chain, and one of the oldest in the world still in operation. It was manufactured by Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters (PTC) and designed by Herbert Paul Schmeck.
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.
Herbert Paul Schmeck was an American roller coaster designer. From 1923 to 1955, Schmeck designed 84 coasters for the Philadelphia Toboggan Company. As a designer and president, the company became the most prominent manufacturer of roller coasters in the United States.
Wildcat is a wooden roller coaster located at Lake Compounce in Bristol, Connecticut. It was built in 1927 and is the 14th oldest operating roller coaster in the world. It greatly resembles the now-defunct Wildcat roller coaster at Elitch Gardens Theme Park in Denver. Wildcat has received the American Coaster Enthusiasts (ACE) Coaster Landmark Award for its historical significance.
Sea Dragon is a junior wooden roller coaster located at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in Powell, Ohio. The ride is in the Rides At Adventure Cove section of the zoo. Built by Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters (PTC) under famed designer John C. Allen, the roller coaster opened in 1956 as Jet Flyer. It was one of three junior wooden coasters that Allen designed shortly after becoming president of PTC in 1954 – the other two were Flyer at Hunt's Pier and Valley Volcano at Angela Park. They were based on earlier designs developed by another legendary coaster architect Herbert Schmeck, who was Allen's mentor. The ride became the Sea Dragon when the park reopened as Wyandot Lake in 1984.
Comet is a wooden roller coaster located at Waldameer Park in Erie, Pennsylvania, United States. It was designed by Herbert Schmeck and built by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company in 1951. It is similar to other Schmeck-designed PTC junior wooden coasters which feature a layered, figure-8/oval layout. However, Comet is taller than the previous junior wooden coaster designs. Comet is an ACE Coaster Classic.
Skyrush is an Intamin prototype Wing Coaster at Hersheypark in Hershey, Pennsylvania, United States. It opened to the general public on May 26, 2012, as Hersheypark's 12th roller coaster and the park's third coaster made by Intamin. Skyrush features a 200 ft (61 m) cable lift that raises the train at 26 ft/s (480 m/min). The roller coaster is located in the Hollow section of Hersheypark, next to the Comet wooden coaster; Skyrush itself is mainly set above Spring Creek.
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.
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.
