Ravine Flyer II (Part 1 of 2): The Evolution of an Award-Winning Roller Coaster

The year 2008 changed everything for Waldameer and Water World.  The wait was finally over as Waldameer once again had a giant signature roller coaster to attract thrill-seekers.  Ravine Flyer II made a bold statement to everyone that Waldameer was not that same little park anymore.  Attendance rose 20% in 2008, which has been maintained and exceeded ever since.  As we all know how uniquely thrilling Ravine Flyer II is, the evolution and ongoing story of this roller coaster is like no other coaster in the world.

Let's go back to 1993...Waldameer placed it's first deposit to build a signature ride.  Ravine Flyer II would be the long awaited successor of Ravine Flyer; a coaster that operated from 1922-1938 which also crossed Peninsula Drive.

One of the earliest proposed layouts of Ravine Flyer II.

A couple years later, a wooden coaster manufacturer, Custom Coasters International, came up with the proposed layout below.  This design was the first "official" layout to be constructed for Ravine Flyer II's original target opening season, the year 2000.

Looks a little closer to what Ravine Flyer II looks like today.

During the longer than expected planning and approval process to build Ravine Flyer II, Custom Coasters International ceased operations in 2002.  However, the ambitious project never missed a beat as it was taken over by a new roller coaster manufacturer, The Gravity Group, from Cincinnati, Ohio.  In 2006 the final green light was given to Ravine Flyer II, and the current layout of the coaster was revealed. Construction was completed in 2008.

Ravine Flyer II as it stands today.  Advances in wooden coaster engineering allowed for a more intense layout featuring a 90 degree banked turn as well a high-speed s-turn following the bridge.

In September of 2008, Ravine Flyer II shocked the world by beating out a massive 230ft Steel Hypercoaster to win the Golden Ticket Award for "Best New Ride of 2008" in the entire world.  Our Owner, Mr. Nelson, also won the very prestigious Golden Ticket Award for "Person of the Year" in honor of is passion and dedication in not only getting Ravine Flyer II built, but for his decades of successful service to Waldameer Park.  It only took Ravine Flyer II one season to elevate Waldameer and Water World into the global spotlight.

Our Trophy Case.

Fast-forward into present day, and Ravine Flyer II has been ranked as the 6th Best Wooden Roller Coaster in the World by Amusement Today each year since 2009, and most recently ranked #6 in the World by the 2013 Mitch Hawker Wooden Coaster Poll.  Both of these rankings are the most prestigious roller coaster honors in the Attractions Industry.

Ravine Flyer II patiently awaits for the 2014 Season to begin. 

Make sure you grab a safety harness and have a good pair of climbing shoes for Part 2! We will be exploring the results of some interesting activities that occurred with Ravine Flyer II in preparation for a thrilling 2014 season.

Where There Is No Off-Season

Walking through the midways of Waldameer and Water World in the winter might give you impression of a place that is quiet, inactive, or even abandoned.  The Raging River raft slide looks like a vacant bobsled course, Showtime Theater is stuck on the "snow dance," clinking sounds of Ring Toss seem like a distant memory, and no one is welcoming all of us Earthlings into Whacky Shack.  While it might seem that Waldameer is in hibernation until May 10th, there are a few places in Waldameer that never sleep a wink.  Join us as we explore some of the many winter activities of Waldameer!

The Park Office may appear to be snowed in, but inside it's humming away with Season Pass Processing, Group Sales arrangements, Picnic planning, as well as strategy development for 2014 and beyond.

Rainbow Gardens stays hopping on the weekends with dances, craft shows, fundraisers, etc.

Perhaps the most active place of the park during the winter months is tucked away into the Western corner.  Back there you will find a large gray building which on the outside it may seem as quiet as the rest of Waldameer and Water World.  Step inside, and Waldameer comes to life.  Put on your safety goggles and lace up your work boots, as we are about to go on a journey through Waldameer's Maintenance Department!

All 30 Dodgem cars are in the garage for inspection and tune up.

The Pirate hesitantly gave up his treasure to be shined up.  I'm sure he will be counting every gold doubloon when he gets it back!  

After being  inspected, all seven Tilt-A-Whirl cars received a fresh coat of paint!

All twelve Spider cars received new paint inside and out.

Steel Dragon car bodies await reassembly as their undercarriage is disassembled, inspected, and cleaned.

All twenty Thunder River boats are dry-docked and undergoing touch-ups to their fiber glass and art details, as well as upgrades to seat cushions and safety features.

Ravine Flyer II's trains have been completely disassembled.  Wow! That's a lot of parts!

Once the cars for both Ravine Flyer II trains are completely disassembled, each individual part is cleaned, inspected, and repainted to look just like new.  This delicate process is critical in making sure each component is in excellent working order in ensuring rider safety.  Comet, Steel Dragon, and Ravine Flyer 3 all undergo similar inspection processes. 

I wonder what this could be?  Looks really sharp! Stay tuned as we learn more!

These are just some of the countless projects going on in our Maintenance Department.  As the weather begins to get warmer, projects will transition from disassembly and inspection to reassembly and preparation for Opening Day.  However, maintenance doesn't slow down one bit once the rides and attractions are back up and running.  Our maintenance team is always the first to arrive in the odd hours of the morning for safety inspections and routine maintenance, and some of the last to leave late at night.  These "Heroes" of Waldameer cannot be thanked enough for their countless hours of dedication keeping all of our attractions safe while they continue to provide family fun for multiple generations.

Growing Comforts for a Growing Park.

A key theme of this 2013-2014 offseason has been improvements to Waldameer's infrastructure. You can think of infrastructure as the inner workings and logistics of Waldameer.  At Waldameer, infrastructure goes beyond just the rides and slides.  Infrastructure includes several things such as the following: having enough seating for families to share meals together, enough parking for thousands of cars, having enough games available to challenge growing crowds, designing a midway that doesn't get congested, and making sure our ride queue lines are organized and not overflowing.  This week we are proud to share with you an infrastructure addition that will surely provide for a more comfortable visit to Waldameer!

Click to Enlarge.
What's that? Looks like another improvement got checked off!

Perhaps this heated box is the warmest place in the City of Erie!

One critical piece of infrastructure that Waldameer is addressing is having enough restrooms in convenient locations.  As Waldameer's midways branched out, new attractions became further and further from existing restrooms.  In 2014, that will all change. Perhaps our largest ongoing construction project is a new modern restroom facility.  These restrooms can be found right next to Steel Dragon and under "Big Thunder" of Thunder River.  These aren't just your basic run-of-the-mill ladies and men's restrooms, but modern facilities that will also feature the much needed convenience of family restrooms that are easily accessible and accommodating for a variety of needs.


An Inside look gives us an idea of what to expect once construction is completed.  On the far end is the ladies and men's rooms, and closest to us will be two family restrooms.

Another neat feature of these new restrooms is a convenience for your furry friends! Your dog will never have to go thirsty with the new doggie drinking fountain!  As being one of the rare pet-friendly amusement parks, we thought our canine friends could use a comfortable place to rest and rehydrate on those hot summer days! 


New restrooms aren't our only major construction project for 2014, make sure you keep an eye out for a post in the coming weeks about a major change that will significantly benefit our guests as they enter the park! Stay Tuned!

A High-Flying Birthday Present

Backtrack 15 years ago, and you will find a very different Waldameer.  Ravine Flyer II existed only in blueprints, Steel Dragon was an empty lot, The North End was a former maintenance area, Mega Vortex was a collection of picnic tables, and no one was "XScreaming" as they dropped 140ft. So that might make you ask yourself the question...Which thrill ride was Waldameer's King of the Midway in 1999?

I'll give you a hint.  This thrill ride is the new check mark on our 2014 Improvements Map.

Click image to enlarge

That's right! Ali Baba was the King of the Midway in 1999.  Along with Frog Hopper and Big Rigs, Ali Baba opened as a part of a major multi-ride expansion for the 1999 Season.  Today, Ali Baba is no longer the only large thrill ride that dominates Waldameer's skyline, but now a part of an increasingly impressive skyline of many diverse thrill rides.

From 1999 through 2006, Ali Baba was Waldameer's tallest thrill ride, and second tallest ride in the park just behind the 100+ foot Giant Gondola Wheel.

To celebrate a special 15th Birthday, Ali Baba deserves a present that benefits the thousands of guests each year that are thrilled by this magical flying carpet ride.  You might recall how Ali Baba used to feature one large safety restraint for each row of seats that was lowered to secure the entire row of riders at once.  For the 2014 season, these two large safety restraints were replaced by individual restraints for each seat.  No longer will you be surprised by the giant restraint coming down too fast, as you can now lower your individual restraint at the comfortable speed you choose.  Even better, individual restraints mean a better custom fit for each individual rider which makes Ali Baba even more safe and more comfortable.

Ali Baba's Birthday present all wrapped up.

We couldn't help but peek underneath to see what's inside!  See the gaps between the new individual safety restraints?

Along with new restraints, we touched up the flying carpet colors and made some upgrades to the lights. Ali Baba will surely sparkle like new as riders continue to enjoy soaring seven stories into the air.

This is the lighting decoration that will be reattached to the flying carpet once we have Ali Baba put back together.  The original all gold lights now are a colorful combination of blue, purple, pink, red, and gold.

Happy 15th Birthday Ali Baba! Here's to many more!

P.S. We have many other milestone Birthdays at Waldameer this year.  Can you guess which rides are celebrating their 5th, 10th, 20th, 25th, and 50th Birthdays?



It's a Winter Walda-land!

Brrrrr! It sure got cold again!  This winter is truly living up to the Farmers Almanac prediction of cold and snowy.  However, the cold and snow did not stop us at Waldameer from keeping busy as usual.  This week, by popular demand, we set out through the entire park to capture what Waldameer looks like during its winter rest.  Enjoy your "Winter Walda-land" walk in the park!


The Walda-log is lonely without visitors taking pictures each day.

I don't think Comet is flying at intergalactic speeds today.

Mega Vortex all "huddled up" to keep warm.

Not too much fire coming from Steel Dragon right now.

Wipeout appears to be missing something. I wonder why"?"

The river has frozen over.  Ice skating anyone?

Polar Vortex with a chance of Big Thundersnow.

The louder you scream, the faster May 10th will arrive!

If you simply can't get enough of Waldameer in the offseason from our Blog, Facebook, and Twitter, you will be excited to know that yet another book was published which features a chapter dedicated to Waldameer.  Great Pennsylvania Amusement Parks Road Trip features in-depth interviews with our owner Paul Nelson, and engineers from Gravity Group who designed our award-winning Ravine Flyer II. In addition, you find several other pictures and readings exploring all of Waldameer Park as well as many other chapters featuring our Pennsylvania amusement park neighbors.



Don't forget about another Waldameer Book written by a Historian for the National Amusement Park Historical Association, Jim Futrell.  You will be fascinated for hours with pictures and passages all the way back from Waldameer's beginnings in 1896 up until the 2013 season.  You can find more information and purchase a copy in our Online Store.









Before we embark on our next journey, we would like to take the time to thank all of you for being such loyal fans of our re-launched WaldaBlog.  Our previous post alone, Mapping Out What's New for 2014, has already had more views than every post in past three years and the second most views of all time.  Once again, we cannot thank each and every one of you enough, as this would not be possible without you!

Mapping Out What's New for 2014

In 2011, 2012, and 2013 Waldameer kept extremely busy opening at least one new ride each season.  For the upcoming 2014 season, we took a different approach. We decided it was best to use our offseason to focus on improvements and updates to our existing rides, slides, and attractions.  There might not be a new ride or slide for 2014, but we just as busy as ever preparing many exciting new surprises to make your visits with us more fun and family friendly.

To keep track of all these new improvements, we will use a park map to check off each attraction that will be undergoing a change for 2014. Red check marks are updates we have already shared, and red question marks are updates and improvements we will be sharing with you in the near future. Make sure you click on the map to get a closer view! 

Click to Enlarge

Last week we shared our updates for Water World so we checked that off on our map.  You might have also noticed there is a second check mark over our XScream drop tower, that's because this week we are proud to share with you a dazzling new twist for this already terrifying ride. Within a couple weeks of our last day of 2013, our brave maintenance team put on their hard hats, fastened their safety harnesses, and went to work on all 140 feet of XScream.  First thing to go was the original orange and green incandescent rope lighting.  Then, the entire tower got a fresh coat of white paint. Last, but certainly not least, was the installation of approximately 1,000 feet of awesome new LED lighting.

In addition to adding thrills to XScream riders, these new LED lights will entertain everyone in that area of the park. Families taking a break to enjoy some Dippin' Dots, non-riders waiting for others to finish riding XScream or Steel Dragon, and guests waiting in line for Whacky Shack will all be entertained by this incredible lightshow.  Most importantly, LED lighting is much more energy efficient than traditional incandescent lighting which not only saves our resources, but is also dramatically more environmentally friendly.


XScream looks like a brand new ride with new paint and LED lights! Red, white, and blue are just one of the many effects you will see.

Many of our valued Season Pass holders got a chance to preview this new light show firsthand as they came to process their 2014 Season Passes on January 10. In case you weren't able to stop by, here is a little preview of this brand new awe-inspiring lightshow.

  





Time to Start Thinking Warm!

What a relief to see that our "polar vortex" of a winter storm gave way to some unseasonably warm temperatures.  This brief winter thaw gave us the perfect opportunity to easily explore the park and check on many of our offseason improvement activities.  In celebration of this "heat wave," let us begin our exploring in the most popular part of Waldameer on super hot days, Water World.

In case you haven’t caught word on our Facebook or Twitter, or taken a stroll along Peninsula Drive to see them, many of our waterslides have received a makeover.   No longer are white, teal, and black the main colors of Water World.  Instead, we have a vibrant array of lime green, striking yellow, bright blue, and dazzling orange.

Bermuda Triangle showing off it's new "Bermuda Colors."

Along with new colors, you can expect a much smoother and even safer ride on our original Giant Slides, Lake Erie Dip and Presque Isle Plunge.  With the new paint also comes a slick new sliding surface that uses a new gel coating to make these already fun slides just a little more wild!



Lake Erie Dip and Presque Isle Plunge are ready to wow sliders with their new smoother and faster slide Surface.  Anyone up for a race?



New improvements sometimes mean we have to wave goodbye to older traditions.  Midnight Plunge has been our granddaddy of water slides at Water World for over two decades, but we decided we can do even better with the same slide.  With new paint on the outside, there is increased darkness while you navigate the stormy waters as the original brief peeks of light are much darker.  Right as you think you have conquered the dark storm, you are diving straight down into the pool below as sudden as a flash of lightning.  Fittingly, this new experience is named, “Liquid Lightning.” Are you ready to weather the storm?

Liquid Lightning (right) looks ready to strike next to an awesome assortment of new colors on Awesome Twosome (left).

With many of our current water slides looking sharp with all of their bright new colors, they will surely be ready to stand tall and proud next to their new "wavy" neighbor opening in 2015! Stay Tuned…

Can you picture all 26,000 square feet of it?