Ride Profile
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Designed by The Gravity Group, Wooden Warrior is a tidy 1,250-feet-long (381-metres) with a maximukm height of 35ft (10.5-metres). Yet as Paul Ruben discovers, this new addition to Quassy Amusement Park in Middlebury, Connecticut (New England), delivers rather more than its modest spec suggests
Thrill machine in disguise “O
ur new rollercoaster is a family ride," says Quassy co-owner George Frantzis II, “one that parents and grandparents
alike can ride with children.” Frantzis is being modest. It is so much more. It feels faster than the reported 35 mph. The pacing is superb. It rides better than most coasters twice its size. It is exhilarating, with trainloads of smiling riders returning to the loading station. This is a pint- sized major league thrill machine. Wooden Warrior's layout, a dog-legged out-and- back that crosses over the park’s miniature railroad twice, is one of the secrets of its success, but much of the credit may also be due to its new 12- passenger ‘Timberliner’ train, the first of its kind installed on a new ride in the United States. The lightweight steer-axle trailer cars, which were tested on The Voyage at Holiday World in Indiana, are comfortable and ride effortlessly over the layout. Identical trains have just debuted on the Twister at
WOODEN WARRIOR
Gröna Lund in Stockholm, Sweden, and some 24- seat Timberliners will open later this year on the Racer in Happy Valley Wuhan, China. The immediate success of Wooden Warrior belies the courage it took to build it for a small park like Quassy. "After reviewing submissions from a half- dozen coaster builders, both steel and wooden," explains park president Eric Anderson, "we decided that an all-wooden coaster would be the best fit for Quassy Amusement Park. Based on our demographic, we knew we were looking for a ride that could be ridden by all age groups and a woodie would be considered a classic ride.”
Signature Attraction
Thought it may be considered a junior coaster, Wooden Warrior features several unique and exciting elements, making it a one-of-a-kind experience. “From the incredible airtime, tunnel and banked turns, it’s rather amazing how The Gravity
RIGHT: Quassy co-owner Eric Anderson
38 JUNE 2011
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