Ride Update
www.parkworld-online.com
On the right track S
The Mine Blower roller coaster experience has been enhanced by RMC’s new 208 ReTrak
ummer season typically means new installations at theme parks, but this year the team at Fun Spot America Kissimmee took a different route. The park looked at its popular Mine Blower roller coaster, the
only wooden coaster with an inversion in Central Florida and focused on how to improve its overall guest and ride experience. For the answer, Fun Spot’s management team turned to Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC) to make improvements to significant areas along the six-year-old coaster’s track. To do this, RMC brought its newest product, the 208 ReTraK solution to Fun Spot. Mine Blower debuted at Fun Spot in 2017. Reaching speeds over 45 mph
(72 kph) along 2,290 feet (698 metres) of track, the coaster has become a favourite with Fun Spot guests and coaster fans alike. To date, there are only eight wooden coasters in the world with an inversion, and Mine Blower powerfully turns its riders through its zero-gravity roll immediately after the train plunges down an 80-foot drop at a 65-degree angle. “Our relationship with RMC has been a true partnership,” shared John
Chidester, senior vice president, marketing, Fun Spot America Theme Parks. “With the incredible opening of ArieForce One earlier this year at our Atlanta park, we approached them to help us provide a solution to improve Mine Blower’s key sections of track. Their answer, the 208 ReTraK process, has been a game changer for our already incredible coaster.” As a year-round park, Fun Spot Kissimmee’s rides and attractions operate outside in weather marked with high heat, high humidity, and almost daily
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rain each spring, along with entertaining millions of guests each year. Those facts have an impact on wooden coasters, and while still a favourite, recent online comments and feedback were showing Mine Blower was becoming an increasingly rough ride. Having just spent over $13 million (US) on ArieForce One, Fun Spot needed a solution that was within budget and would not remove the coaster from operation for the entire busy summer season. While best known for creating world-class roller coasters around the
world, like ArieForce One, RMC also sees inspiration in existing coasters, and for years has developed solutions to help transform traditional wooden coasters into award-winning hybrid roller coasters. That inspiration has led to the development of its latest product, the new 208 RetraK for wood coaster refurbishment. The team at RMC was excited to again partner with Fun Spot and the
Kissimmee location to bring smoother days to Mine Blower. Extensive accelerometer testing on the coaster demonstrated the speed and impact of the ride at its most dynamic sections, where the G-forces were at their highest, had negatively impacted the existing track. Happily, the majority of the track remained in solid shape. “The Fun Spot management team is bold and was willing to embrace
innovation to improve their existing ride,” shared Darren Toor, president and CEO, Rocky Mountain Construction. “When they approached us with the idea to look at Mine Blower and enhance it, we embraced the
AUGUST 2023
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