The Thunderbolt! the 21St Century’S Scream Machine
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BROOKLYN Your Neighborhood – Your News Now Including Park Slope Courier, Carroll Gardens/Cobble Hill Courier, Brooklyn Heights Courier & Williamsburg Courier June 27–July 3, 2014 SERVING GOWANUS, PARK SLOPE, PROSPECT HEIGHTS, WINDSOR TERRACE, BROOKLYN HEIGHTS, DUMBO, METROTECH, BOERUM HILL, CARROLL GARDENS, COBBLE HILL, RED HOOK, WILLIAMSBURG & GREENPOINT Island The ultimate guide to summer fun at the People’s Playground ♦ FEATURING ♦ The Thunderbolt! The 21st century’s scream machine THEY DON’T BUILD THEM LIKE THIS ANYMORE! THE PURCHASE OF A KIDDIE PARK 10 PACK $2 OFF! ONE COUPON PER CUSTOMER PER PURCHASE BOARDWALK AT DENOS D. VOURDERIS PLACE (W. 12TH ST.) CONEY ISLAND, NY 718-372-2592 • WONDERWHEEL.COM A2 S♦P♦E♦C♦T♦A♦C♦U♦L♦A♦R C♦O♦N♦E♦Y I♦S♦L♦A♦N♦D 3, 2014 3, ULY 27-J UNE , J IFE L NEW THUNDERBOLT OURIER C A JOLT FOR CONEY B BY MAX JAEGER took them through a pitiless tan- instead of an empty lot,” said where the new Coney Island be- G It was a heavenly ride for gle of drops, twists, and turns at Harold Kramer, whose great- gins to enter the phase of being M some, and a ride from hell for speeds of 65 miles for two heart- aunt and great-uncle built the up to the quality of the past.” others. pounding minutes. wooden coaster in 1925 and lived Lesser bravehearts “ooo- The Thunderbolt rumbled Relatives of the original beneath it in the Kensington Ho- hed” and “aaahed” from the into Coney Island like a tantaliz- Thunderbolt’s operators cheered tel before its was dismantled in sidelines. ing brute, delighting thrill seek- the arrival of a spine-chiller that 2000. “My son is a thrill-seeker, ers who shrieked their lungs out is also the fi rst to fl ip riders up- The new Bolt is a $9 million but I am a thrill-coward,” joked as Sodom-by-the-Sea’s fi rst new side down since Loop-the-Loop slice of the city’s investment pie Borough President Adams. roller coaster since the Cyclone more than a century ago. in the amusement district over His predecessor was more “It’s nice to drive up Surf the past decade, and a game blunt. Avenue and see a roller coaster changer, said Coney’s unoffi cial “There’s no amount of mayor. money you could pay me to ride “It ranks right up there his- that!” said former beep Marty torically as one of the major Markowitz. rides ever built — it’s an A-plus,” The Thunderbolt brings said Dick Zigun, who was among more attention and about 20 jobs the maiden voyagers. “This is to a neighborhood still recover- ing from Hurricane Sandy, but there’s still more work ahead, claim advocates. “We’re not done rebuilding yet,” Zigun said. Still, the ride signals a comeback for the People’s Play- ground. Private investors shelled out $140 million for area improve- ments in the past two years, and Mayor DeBlasio proposed $180 million in new funding for infrastructure improvements, including new mixed-income housing and sewer upgrades, in a effort to return the glory days of the early 1900s when world travelers fl ocked to Coney’s bathing pavilions, seaside re- sorts, and amusement park be- fore the Great Depression ush- ered their decline. RIDE THE LIGHTNING: Riders on the coaster’s maiden voyage race out of the fi rst drop and into an 100-foot-tall vertical loop. Photo by Stefano Giovannini ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ A3 J S P E C T A C U L A R C O N E Y I S L A N D UNE 27-J ULY Thunderbolt vs. Cyclone 3, 2014, C BY MAX JAEGER speeds and ride times, but that’s where the OURIER A new thrill ride has rumbled into Co- two storm-themed thrill rides part ways. L ney Island, and it’s giving a People’s Play- The Thunderbolt’s most obvious advan- IFE ground favorite a run for its tage over the Cyclone is the money. shocking fi ve inversions — The Thunderbolt roller the new coaster is the fi rst coaster shocked riders for ride to take Coney Island- the fi rst time on June 14, ers completely upside-down and now that the amusement in nearly a century. Then B district has a second major there’s the fi rst drop, which G scream machine, Coney Is- sends you straight down for M land adrenaline junkies may nearly 100 feet. fi nd themselves torn between Still, what the Cyclone spending their hard-earned lacks in newfangled pizzazz, Hamilton on the whirlwind- it more than makes up for Photo by Stefano Giovannini of-fun Cyclone or the hair- in sheer style. The wooden A BOLT IN THE BLUE: The Thunderbolt, named after a famed ride that thrilled mil- raising Thunderbolt. coaster is a disappear- lions a short distance away‚ offi cially opened on June 14. If you don’t have the stom- Photo by Steve Solomonson ing breed, and the Cyclone ach (or the dough) to ride both, we’ve got drips sentimental value for generations you covered. of Brooklynites who can still remember In general, you’re in for the same their fi rst ride as well as their last. CYCLONE ROLLER COASTER THUNDERBOLT 85 feet Highest point 115 feet 60 degrees Steepest drop 90 degrees — straight down! 60 miles per hour Toppest speed* 55 miles per hour 0 times Turns upside-down 5 times 5g G-force experienced 5g 2,640 feet Track length 2,233 feet 1 minute, 50 seconds Ride time 2 minutes 4-foot-6 You must be this tall to ride 4 feet Photo by Stefano Giovannini $9 Price $10 FIRST STRIKE: Pamela Harris and kids from the Coney Island Youth Gap youth orga- nization were the fi rst to ride the new coaster on opening day. Plays itself in “The Warriors” Star turn Dead relative in “Annie Hall” * Yes, we know that is spelled wrong. Photo by Stefano Giovannini A CLAP OF THUNDER: The new roller coaster’s ribbon-cutting by state Sen. Diane Savino and Borough President Adams drew thunderous applause. A4 S♦P♦E♦C♦T♦A♦C♦U♦L♦A♦R C♦O♦N♦E♦Y I♦S♦L♦A♦N♦D 3, 2014 3, ULY 27-J Wet & wild: Water park next UNE , J IFE BY WILL BREDDERMAN streets. In 2012, the funzone their family,” said Alberto Coney Island postcards for L Brooklyn’s waterfront is expanded to include the Zamperla, who runs Luna just $5. getting a lot more fun! B&B Carousell, a restored Park. A short walk away, on W. OURIER C Brooklyn’s legendary 108-year-old ride with hand- Details on what rides 12th Street between Bowery amusement destination carved wooden horses situ- the splashy spot will have Street and the Boardwalk is emerging from decades ated on the Boardwalk ad- remain sketchy. — under the iconic Wonder of decline, the storm of jacent to the landmarked “It’s in the very pri- Wheel — the Coney Island the century, and the bit- Parachute Jump, which has mary stages, we don’t want History Project will hold B ter months of winter to re- been decked out in state-of- to mention anything yet,” an exhibit this summer on G claim its reputation as the the-art lights that pulse and said Luna Park president the famous “Funny Face” Playground of the World. dazzle nighttime crowds. Valerio Ferrari. that has come to represent M This summer, and for But Luna’s wildest — But Coney wouldn’t be Coney Island. the fi rst time since 1927, a and wettest — attraction Coney without its sense of But the biggest event new roller coaster swoops may still be yet to come. nostalgia, and the neigh- for Coney history buffs is and dives in Coney Island. The park’s owners borhood has two vaults of the return of the Astroland Named the Thunderbolt — leaked to us preliminary Coney relics to remind visi- Rocket. The space-age ride after a famed ride that once plans to construct a water tors of those halcyon days was the symbol of Astro- thrilled millions a short park on the vacant parcel — plus one big exhibit of a land Park — which sat in distance away — the new next to the new Thunder- People’s Playground icon what is now Luna Park’s lo- attraction at W. 15th Street bolt. The lot belongs to Jas- once thought lost. cation from 1962 until 2008. off Surf Avenue is the fi rst mine Bullard, daughter of The Coney Island Mu- The rocket spent the last Coney coaster to feature an the late Coney Island land seum at the corner of W. several decades as a sign upside-down loop since the baron Horace Bullard, who 12th Street and Surf Av- atop Boardwalk oyster bar historic Loop-the-Loop ride soug ht u nsuccessf u l ly to re - enue re-opened on May 22 Paul’s Daughter, pointing closed shortly after World vive the amusement district following a year-and-a-half visitors toward the now- War I. in the 1980s. Luna’s leaders of renovations. Visitors shuttered funzone’s gate. The coaster is part of said they are thrilled at the are now able to check out The city took possession of Luna Park, which opened prospect of a partnership 1920s funhouse mirrors, the rocket after Astroland in 2010 on Surf Avenue be- with the younger Bullard. vintage bumper cars, and closed, and left it to rot be- COMING TO CONEY: Luna Park is in negotiations to bring a water- tween W.