INSIDE: RCS debuts Observation Wheel ANNIVERSARY PAGES 42-44 TM & ©2017 Amusement Today, Inc. May 2017 | Vol. 21 • Issue 2 www.amusementtoday.com Great Coasters unleashes two thrilling woodies InvadR lands at Busch Williamsburg as park's eighth coaster AT: B. Derek Shaw nothing on here that is dangerous [email protected] — you don’t have to worry about being thrown around or getting WILLIAMSBURG, Va. — hurt. It’s very smooth with quick Amid the pomp and circumstance change of directions — a lot of of Viking-themed regalia, InvadR snappiness.” Fans agree with opened to the public at Busch Hain that InvadR is a fun, fast, Gardens Williamsburg on April smooth ride providing an out- 8. The ride, a Great Coasters, In- of-control feeling in a very safe, ternational, Inc. (GCII) designed controlled environment. intermediate-sized twister, was Busch Gardens Williamsburg Crowdsourcing via social built between the entrance to the media was the mantra for this park president David Crom- New France train station and Le ride from the very beginning. well welcomes guests to the Scoot Log Flume in that section of InvadR, Viking Raider and Bat- InvadR opening ceremonies. the property. tle Klash were three potential COURTESY BUSCH GARDENS The ride is a fit for all family coaster names that were vetted A Viking actor portraying Magnus The Red takes a front seat members from kids to teenagers, everybody wants on this ride,” by the park and presented to fans ride on the new InvadR at Busch Gardens. mom and dad and grandma and said Clair Hain, Jr., President of 4See INVADR, page 6 COURTESY BUSCH GARDENS WILLIAMSBURG grandpa. “It has everything that GCII. He continued, “There’s What's in the Shed? Kings Island's Mystic Timbers debuts AT: Tim Baldwin so smooth and seamless. “ [email protected] “I think Mystic Tim- bers brings the modern-day MASON, Ohio — Kings wooden roller coaster to Island is no stranger to Kings Island, where The Rac- building world-famous er and The Beast were built roller coasters. From the in the ‘70s,” said Don Helbig, captivating Racer when the public relations area man- park opened in 1972 to The Great America and, most re- ager, Kings Island. “GCII Beast — which still holds cently, the revamp of Knott’s brings different technology the record for world’s lon- Berry Farm’s GhostRider. for our guests.” gest wooden coaster — re- “Cedar Fair has had an The thematic slant to the nowned thrillers have been incredible partnership with new ride involves “mysteri- a hallmark of the park for Great Coasters,” said Adam ous circumstances” dating more than four decades. House, senior design en- back to the 1980s at the Mi- Officially opening to the gineer, GCII. “It makes the ami River Lumber Company public on April 15, Mystic designing and building pro- on the edge of Rivertown. Timbers is the latest crowd- cess so streamlined when the Despite the audio and post- pleaser. Built by Great Coast- customer knows what they ed warnings to stay out — Kings Island Introduced its newest wooden roller coaster ers International, Inc. (GCII), want and what they are get- and certainly: Don’t go in to with the debut of Mystic Timbers on April 13. The Great the coaster is the company's ting. From the initial proj- the Shed — guests, of course, Coasters product features 16 airtime hills, 197 feet of over- latest project for Cedar Fair, ect discussion to the point insist on forging on in their all drop and a mystery shed at the ride's end produced by following hits at Valleyfair, where the corporate guys Holovis. COURTESY KINGS ISLAND Worlds of Fun, California’s show up to ride, it just seems 4See MYSTIC, page 8 42017 AMUSEMENT INDUSTRY PREVIEW – PAGES 10-16 NEWSTALK PARKS & FAIRS Dated material. material. Dated Page 3 Pages 34-48 RUSH! NEWSPAPER POSTMASTER: PLEASE 25, 2017 April Tuesday, Mailed INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS, SAFETY Pages 19-24 Pages 49-61 PERMIT # 2069 # PERMIT FT. WORTH TX WORTH FT. PAID US POSTAGE US PRSRT STD PRSRT WATER PARKS CLASSIFIEDS Pages 25-33 Page 62 2 AMUSEMENT TODAY May 2017 May 2017 AMUSEMENT TODAY 3 NEWSTALK EDITORIAL: Gary Slade, [email protected] FLINT’S VIEW: Bubba Flint Coasters being designed for family-friendly thrills Is the North American roller coaster record-setting arms race over for a while? It would certainly appear so as the selection of new coasters opening across the U.S. this season is far from the record books. A new "family first" approach in thrills is the new trend as engineers and designers plug Slade in smaller designs that still generate the requested thrills, and now slower speeds, the parks are seeking. New this season are two new wooden thrillers from Great Coasters International, Inc. (GCII), that top out at speeds of only 48 mph on InvadR at Busch Gardens Williamsburg and 53 mph on Mystic Timbers at Kings Island. California's Great America transformed its B&M stand- up coaster into the more family-friendly Patriot floorless coaster with great fanfare. Later this spring/summer the U.S. will see: INDUSTRY OPINION: Dean Lamanna, [email protected] •Wave Breaker: The Rescue Coaster at SeaWorld San Antonio is from Intamin. It will launch guests with a U.S. administration fuels foreign tourism fears maximum speed of 44 mph and take riders on a course over The summer high season is almost here. At the end of January, the travel stat- And with hundreds of millions of dollars in isticians at ForwardKeys.com reported an the park's signature lake. new technologies and attractions being in- 80 percent plummet in flight passengers •The Gravity Group-designed Mine Blower is a super- troduced, optimism and expectation in the from the seven Muslim-majority countries compact wooden coaster currently under construction amusement industry have, indeed, never been listed in President Trump's original exec- at Fun Spot Kissimmee. It will feature a family-friendly higher. utive order, while Travel Weekly pegged compact layout. Our business has rebounded from the the overall drop in incoming foreign visi- recession. The American economy, as of this tors at almost seven percent. Forbes.com •S&S is supplying 4D Free Spin coasters to three Six writing, is strong. People are seeking fun and Lamanna noted a 12 percent dive in European tour- Flags parks as well as debuting its GaleForce launch coaster escape more than ever. Nothing to worry ist interest alone. at Playland's Castaway Cove in Ocean City, N.J. about, right? Any persistence of such numbers for a coun- •Lake Compounce turned to Martin & Vleminckx for Not according to travel industry observers, try that saw an estimated 77.5 million international who see signs of what they’ve dubbed the “Trump visitor arrivals in 2015, Frommer said, “would reduce new trackwork on the historic Wildcat wooden coaster while Slump” — a foreign tourism fall-off. They say it is the value of foreign travel within the U.S. by billions also outfitting the ride with new trains from GCII. the result of Donald J. Trump’s tough presidential of dollars.” (Over $7 billion, by one estimate.) •Joyland Park in Lubbock, Texas, retired its aging campaign rhetoric and his administration’s push to Repercussions on the amusement industry are Miler kiddie coaster with a newer Wisdom Dragon coaster, implement a temporary U.S. travel ban on refugees most likely to be felt in Central Florida and Southern relocated from Santa's Village near Chicago. and immigrants from countries deemed terrorism California, where foreign visitors represent a signifi- hot spots. cant theme park and attractions admissions percent- The new coaster designs are proving that bigger is not Beyond any partisan debate, this is a problem age. A much-wider impact, though, may be felt by always better and that thrills can indeed come in all sizes. of perception. allied companies and workers. For a complete list of all the new-for-2017 projects Travel guru Arthur Frommer sounded the alarm How our business will fare stateside remains around the globe, be sure to check out AT's annual in February, declaring that “most travel experts are to be seen. But it’s not a leap to predict that a viral of one mind: They are currently drawing attention to view of the U.S. as unwelcoming won’t be good for Amusement Industry Preview, compiled by Jeffrey Seifert, the unintended consequences of the Trump-led ef- some domestic industries — particularly those that on pages 10 and 12 (North America) and pages 14 and 16 forts… pointing to a sharp drop in foreign tourism to depend in part on international tourism, not to men- (International). our nation that imperils jobs and touristic income.” tion American cultural appeal and goodwill. Call (817) 460-7220 for advertising, circulation or editorial inquiries Amusement Today is an independent, privately- Founder, Publisher and Editor Social Media & Editorial Print Issue & Extra Extra owned trade newspaper published 14 times Gary Slade • (817) 460-7220 x3 Dean Lamanna Desktop Edition Production per year by Amusement Today Inc., P.O. Box [email protected] [email protected] Website Maintenance 5427, Arlington, Texas 76005. Print issues are John Robinson • (513) 256-1441 $50 per year and are mailed Presort Standard Postage (permit No. 2069) Pre-Paid Fort Worth, Accounting & Classified Editorial [email protected] Texas. The entire contents of this newspaper, Sammy Piccola • (817) 460-7220 x1 Tim Baldwin and its related websites, are Copyrighted and [email protected] [email protected] Association Memberships Trademarked 2017 by Amusement Today Inc., AIMS International, ASTM, IAAPA, IISF, IRT/ all rights reserved.