2007 is almost over and what a year it has been for the industry. There was a lot of news that made the mainstream media as well as a lot of great new rides. Worldwide 108 coasters opened this season. The U.S. took in 43 of those 108 coasters according to RCDB. The 2007 season was filled with a lot of new and exciting ride types, technologies, and new combinations of ride design to give us a diverse ride selection. So let us take a look at what happened this year.

The Parks

            This year seemed to be very active in the amusement park world. Several parks were closed forever and a few parks were announced for the first time. Wild West World, only open for two months, closed it door’s and had a major ride sell off. We also heard a lot of news with Bell’s Amusement Park. At last word, the park was moving to a new location. And perhaps the biggest story to hit the industry this year, Geauga Lake closed its doors forever as an amusement park. The park’s closing had a huge ripple effect that was felt though the industry and the local community. Luckily many of the parks rides are being placed into other locations so that we can still enjoy them.

            There was also enormous news this year with the announcement of Hard Rock Park, which is set to open in 2008. It will be a park entirely themed after rock and roll. And it will feature five new roller coasters. Disney announced a 1.1 billion dollar retrofit of California Adventure. Some of the changes are already taking place and Disney fans are singing praises for the modifications.

            We also had a lot of parks changing hands this year. Six Flags sold off seven of its parks, with surprising approval from enthusiast circles. Clementon Amusement Park also undertook new ownership, which is also a change for the better. The new owners want to expand the parks and spend money to bring it up to their standards. Finally, Kennywood Entertainment was inexpediently sold to a Spanish firm. There was a lot of uproar over this, especially from locals, but it appears that there will be no major changes to the parks. 

The Coasters

            With 43 new coasters this year, there are only ten or so worth mentioning. Six Flags opened two Tony Hawks Big Spin coasters at Six Flags Fiesta Texas and Six Flags St. Louis. The rides must be a hit because there are two more on the way for next year. Knott’s Berry Farm also took a piece of the spinning coaster action with the addition of Sierra Sidewinder. The Mack version of a spinning coaster also appears to be popular as the line is almost always full for the ride.

            SeaWorld San Antonio opened Journey to Atlantis, a Mack SuperSplash. The ride was extensively themed and has some pretty good reviews for a ride of its type. Lagoon park in Utah opened Wicked. This Zierer Tower Drop Coaster features two LSM launches; one of the launches is actually vertical. The ride as pretty mediocre reviews but I think the concept could be refined to make a dynamite ride. Click here to read a review.

            Two wooden coasters opened this year, Renegade and Boardwalk Bullet. Both rides have had some impressive reviews. Renegade is a GCI twister which features a station fly-by, which has become a GCI trademark, and Millennium Flyer trains. Gravity Group was not outdone with their version of a twister in the Boardwalk Bullet. The coaster crosses over and under itself too many times to count.

            Dollywood opened my personal favorite for 2007 in Mystery Mine. This Eurofigher coaster features two vertical lifts, a 95 degree drop, a heartline roll, a dive loop, impressive themeing, and quite a few suprises. Click here to read a full review of the ride. Busch Gardens Europe followed in its sister parks footsteps with Griffon, a B&M dive machine. It is the first floorless dive machine in the world and two 90 degree drops. A month or so later, SheiKra at BGA was converted to the floorless trains.

            The big ride for the year was Maverick at Cedar Point. Intamin built a one of a kind coaster that doesn’t feature height or speed, but rather low to the ground elements and quick turns. The ride has a non-traditional lift hill and also has a launching segment. Maverick also has a 95 degree drops and two inversions. We sure did receive a large variety of quality coasters this year.

Final Thoughts

            The industry went though a lot of changes in 2007. Some classic parks were either sold or demolished along with the country’s oldest coaster in the Jack Rabbit at Clementon Amusement Parks. The big corporate parks went through some serious changes as well. There were a few accidents that shook us to the core, SFKK and Expoland, but we still love to ride. Next year looks to be promising as well. To see what we can expect next year, come back next week as I give you a 2008 preview.

            To check out a month by month recap of this year, listen to the Kevin and Nate Show’s 2007 Review Podcast.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 1st, 2008 at 12:54 am and is filed under Editorials. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.