New Roller Coasters Opening in 2004 Seventy-two new coaster projects are sure to bring thrills to park patrons around the world this season. This year the industry is seeing an overall increase in coaster production and the emergence of an interesting trend: smaller-scale projects. When Funworld first began publishing the new coaster projects list in the 1990s, the production of huge, expensive, and complex coasters was on the rise. However, 2004 might mark the decline of that trend; the era of the “giga” coaster looks to be fading. These hyper-coasters, such as the Magnum XL at Cedar Point, Steel Force at Dorney Park, Mamba at Worlds of Fun, and Wild Thing at ValleyFair all stepped up to the 200-foot-tall mark. Soon after coasters such as Millennium Force at Cedar Point, Steel Dragon in Japan premiered, and the bar has recently been raised by Cedar Point’s Top Thrill Dragster at 420 feet. After these benchmarks were laid, the innovations of twists, turns, and inversions were the newest trend. The suspended coasters, flying coasters, and rotating or spinning coasters all permeated the trade show floor at IAAPA. Next, launched coasters or impulse coasters became more prevalent. All the technological options gave riders thrills and spins they had never before been able to enjoy. But this year’s list shows a general trend of moving back to the basics of small-footprint rides that are still marketable as new coasters but require less space and capital. Wood coasters seem to be holding their market share with a handful of innovative and new projects each year. Achterbahn Wild-und Freizeitpark Klotten/Cochem (Klotten, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany) 1745 foot-long Gerstlauer Bobsled Coaster built through a volcano façade. Aqua Wind Lagunasia (Gamagori, Aichi, Japan) Bobsled model by Gerstlauer featuring both wild-mouse elements and helixes. Avalanche Timber Falls Adventure Golf (Wisconsin Dells, Wis., USA) 89-foot-tall, 2378-foot-long wooden roller coaster by S&S Power, which circles the park twice. Booster Bike Toverland (Sevenum, Limburg, the Netherlands) First Vekoma Motorbike family roller coaster with unique motorcycle-like cars and a launched start. BORG Assimilator Paramount’s Carowinds (Charlotte, N.C., USA) Vekoma Flying Dutchman model formerly operating as the Stealth at Paramount’s Great America. Cheetah Chase Busch Gardens Tampa (Tampa, Fla., USA) Mack-built Wild Mouse relocated from Busch Gardens Williamsburg. Coastersaurus Legoland California (Carlsbad, Calif., USA) Family roller coaster by Gerstlauer. Crazy Mouse DelGrosso’s Amusement Park (Tipton, Pa., USA) Reverchon spinning wild mouse roller coaster. Crazy Train Aberdeen Fun Beach (Aberdeen, Grampian, Scotland) Pinfari-built Mini Mega family roller coaster. Cyclone Grove Land (St. Clears, Dyfed, Wales) Italian-built carnival roller coaster. The Demon Tivoli Gardens (Copenhagen, Sjælland, Denmark) 92-foot-tall, 1,850-foot-long floorless roller coaster by Bolliger & Mabillard. Dive to Atlantis Mt. Olympus Theme Park (Wisconsin Dells, Wis., USA) Water coaster by Miler Coaster, Inc. Draak Plopsaland (Adinkerke-De Panne, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium) Heavily themed Mack-powered roller coaster. Dragons Fury Chessington World of Adventures (Chessington, Surrey, England) Custom Maurer Söhne spinning roller coaster. Falken (Photo by Richard Bannister) Fårup Sommerland (Saltum, Jylland, Denmark) 66 foot-tall, 2,041-foot-long S&S Power wooden roller coaster with trains by Gerstlauer. Formule 1 Parc Saint Paul (Saint Paul, Picardie, France) PAX Wild Mouse roller coaster. Gauntlet Magic Springs and Crystal Falls (Hot Springs, Ark., USA) Vekoma inverted SLC roller coaster, originally built for Jazzland. Gold Rush Express Six Gun City (Jefferson, N.H., USA) Wisdom double-spiral family roller coaster. Green Dragon GreenWood Forest Park (Y Felinheli, Gwynedd, Wales) Green or people powered roller coaster by WGH Transportation. Grizzly Bear Lightwater Valley (Ripon, North Yorkshire, England) Pinfari Z47 carnival roller coaster. Halfpipe Six Flags Elitch Gardens (Denver, Colo., USA) Intamin’s second half pipe shuttle roller coaster. Journey to Atlantis SeaWorld San Diego (San Diego, Calif., USA) Copy of SeaWorld Orlando’s Mack-built water coaster. Jungle Coaster Legoland Windsor (Windsor, Berkshire, England) Mack Wild Mouse roller coaster with additional 50 foot drop. Kettle Creek Mine Playland (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada) Family roller coaster by Miler Coaster, Inc. Mad Mouse Rusutsu Resort (Rusutsu, Hokkaido, Japan) Wild Mouse by Meisho Amusement Machines. Mini Mouse Cartoon Parc Saint Paul (Saint Paul, Picardie, France) Zamperla family Mini Mouse model. Okidoki Bobbejaanland Family Park (Lichtaart, Antwerpen, Belgium) Vekoma’s largest Junior Coaster model to date. Panic Drive Nasu Highland Park (Nasu, Tochigi, Japan) Sansei Yusoki Co., Ltd., Wild Mouse relocated from Takarazuka Family Land. Quantum Loop Salitre Magico (Bogotá, Cundinamarca, Colombia) Transportable Soquet two-loop roller coaster from Seabreeze. Ragin' Cajun Six Flags Great America (Gurnee, Ill., USA) Reverchon Wild Mouse roller coaster with spinning cars. Revenge of the Mummy Universal Studios Florida (Orlando, Fla., USA) Magnetically launched indoor special-effects roller coaster built by Premier Rides, replacing the Kong attraction. Revenge of the Mummy Universal Studios Hollywood (Universal City, Calif., USA) Magnetically launched indoor special-effects roller coaster built by Premier Rides. Roller Coaster Paul Bunyan Land (Brainerd, Minn., USA) Molina & Son’s kiddie coaster relocated from the park’s former location. Screaming Crocodile Cypress Gardens Adventure Park (Cypress Gardens, Fla., USA) Inverted family roller coaster by Vekoma. Shamu Express SeaWorld San Antonio (San Antonio, Texas, USA) Custom Zierer Force model with a killer whale theme. Shock Wave Brean Leisure Park (Brean, Somerset, England) Pinfari single-loop carnival coaster relocated from Pleasure Island Family Theme Park. Silver Bullet Knott’s Berry Farm (Buena Park, Calif., USA) 146-foot-tall, 3,125-foot-long inverted roller coaster by Bolliger & Mabillard with six inversions. Sky Wheel Skyline Park (Bad Wörishofen, Germany) New X-Car-Coaster design by Maurer Söhne. Slitherin' Loudoun Castle (Galston, Strathclyde, Scotland) Reopening of its Schwarzkopf City Jet/Jet 400 roller coaster after refurbishment. Spin Turn Nasu Highland Park (Nasu, Tochigi, Japan) Built by Meisho Amusement Machines with spinning cars. Spinball Whizzer Alton Towers (Alton, Staffordshire, England) Custom Maurer Söhne spinning roller coaster with a pinball machine theme. Spinning Dragons Worlds of Fun (Kansas City, Mo., USA) First of two Gerstlauer roller coasters with spinning cars. Storm Runner Hersheypark (Hershey, Pa., USA) Intamin’s first hydraulically launched roller coaster featuring inversions. Storm Surge Cypress Gardens Adventure Park (Cypress Gardens, Fla., USA) Family coaster by Vekoma. Super Flight Playland Park (Rye, N.Y., USA) Zamperla Volare model flying roller coaster. Switchback Gulliver’s Matlock Bath (Matlock, Derbyshire, England) Family roller coaster made by I.E. Park. Thunderhead Dollywood (Pigeon Forge, Tenn., USA) 100 foot-tall, 3,230-foot-long wooden roller coaster by Great Coasters International with Millennium Flyer trains also by GCI. Timberland Camp Snoopy (Bloomington, Minn., USA) Second of two Gerstlauer roller coasters with spinning cars. Tomb Raider: The Ride Paramount Canada’s Wonderland (Vaughan, Ontario, Canada) Zamperla Volare model flying roller coaster. Tornado Blackgang Chine (Ventnor, Isle of Wight, England) Family roller coaster by Westech Ltd. Tsunami Clementon Amusement Park (Clementon, N.J., USA) 2,600-foot-long, 89-foot-tall wooden coaster by S&S Power. Tsunami M&Ds Scotland’s Theme Park (Motherwell, Strathclyde, Scotland) M&D’s traveling inverted coaster by Pinfari kept at their stationary park for at least this season. Tulireki Linnanmäki (Helsinki, Uusimaa, Finland) Fun Coaster model by Mack featuring cars that tilt in the turns. Typhoon Bobbejaanland Family Park (Lichtaart, Antwerpen, Belgium) Gerstlauer Eurofighter with four inversions and a past vertical 95 degree first drop. Unknown Al-Shallal Theme Park (Jeddah, Makkah, Saudi Arabia) Vekoma’s 43rd Boomerang shuttle roller coaster. Unknown Cypress Gardens Adventure Park (Cypress Gardens, Fla., USA) Family wooden roller coaster by the Martin & Vleminckx Group. First roller coaster built under their name. Unknown Europarc (Hérault, Languedoc-Roussillon, France) Four inversion roller coaster by Vekoma relocated from Spree-Park. Unknown Funtown Pier (Seaside Park, N.J., USA) Family roller coaster by Miler Coaster, Inc. Unknown Huanan Mall (Dongguan, Guangdong, China) Custom built indoor junior family coaster by Vekoma. Unknown Metropolitan Park (Beirut, Beyrouth, Lebanon) Vekoma’s 44th Boomerang shuttle roller coaster. Unknown Metropolitan Park (Beirut, Beyrouth, Lebanon) Custom spinning coaster by Maurer Söhne. Unknown Table Mountain National Park (Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa) Relocated Vekoma inverted roller coaster from Ratanga Junction. Unknown Valle Fantástico (Puebla, Puebla, Mexico) Fabbri inverted roller coaster. Unknown Waldameer Park (Erie, Pa., USA) Maurer Söhne Xtended SC 2000 model. Volare Wiener Prater (Vienna, Vienna, Austria) Zamperla flying Volare model customized to fit limited space. Wacky Worm DelGrosso’s Amusement Park (Tipton, Pa., USA) Family Wacky Worm roller coaster built by Fajume. Whirlwind Seabreeze (Rochester, N.Y., USA) Maurer Söhne Xtended SC 2000 model previously traveled Spain with Family Fraguas. Wild Mouse Luna Park (Sydney, New South Wales, Australia) Wooden Wild Mouse reopening after refurbishment. Wild Train Erlebnispark Strasswalchen (Strasswalchen, Austria) PAX Wild Train family roller coaster. Wile E. Coyote Canyon Blaster Six Flags Over Georgia (Austell, Ga., USA) Customized Chance-Morgan Big Dipper family roller coaster. Xtreme Drievliet Family Park (Rijswijk, Zuid-Holland, the Netherlands) Maurer Söhne Xtended SC 2000 model previously traveled Germany with Freddy Schneider. Zyklon Blue Diamond Park (New Castle, Del., USA) Carnival coaster by Pinfari formerly from DelGrosso’s Amusement Park. For more information about these and many, many more rides, please visit The Roller Coaster Data Base at www.rcdb.com.