Inspired by the re-release of Captain EO at Disneyland, I strike again with my top five retro attractions. In other word’s, my top five rides that don’t exist anymore. This is comprised of both ride’s I rode, and ride’s I wish I could have rode. So, let’s get down to business!

Also, be sure to vote in the poll in the first comment of this post! Thanks!

#5. The Big Bad Wolf.

The most famous of all the Arrow Suspended coasters, The Big Bad Wolf was renowned for its beautiful landscape and thrilling twists and turns. A ride I had admired ever since I first “became” an enthusiast, The Big Bad Wolf was demolished last year due to increasingly high maintenance costs.

#4. Flashback

Flashback is one of those rides that everyone has an opinion on, good or bad. I sadly (or perhaps fortunately) never got a chance to ride Flashback, but I certainly remember it’s looming presence, slightly obscured by the trees in the front plaza. A ride that was constantly consistently plagued by down time and poor reviews, Flashback sat un-operated for about five years before it was finally pulled to the ground.

#3. The Ozark Wildcat

The Ozark Wildcat resided at the now defunct Celebration City in Branson, Missouri. While some of the rides from this park were moved to its neighbor, Silver Dollar City, it is rare to see a wooden coaster make a move, even a short one, and now it stands un-operated for a year or two. Heralded as a great ride (ranked #16 in the 2008 Mitch Hawker Wooden Roller Coaster Poll) and designed by GCI, this is a ride that was lost due to poor circumstances, and not technical failure. However, hope remains. There is still a chance that Silver Dollar City will relocate the ride, and if that happens, no one will be more pleased than I.

#2. Drachen Fire.

Another Busch Garden’s Europe entrant, Drachen Fire. It was too ambitious and ahead of its time, Drachen Fire has a lovely layout and a great color scheme. Alright, well maybe just a great layout. Had this been designed by a more capable company, like B&M, this ride would likely still be thrilling riders today. Sadly, it was closed in 1999 and demolished in 2002. Drachen Fire resides among the great rides that I can only wish I had the opportunity to experience.

#1. Rocket Rods.

I suppose it is only fitting that the number one attraction on this list be a Disneyland attraction. Rocket Rods holds a special place in my heart. I rode it three times during my 2000 Disneyland vacation (this is before I moved to Southern California in 2004) and loved it to death. Loved it enough to wait three hours twice, until I found the single rider line for my third ride. It had a lot of great intensity, speed and was just a whole lot of fun. However, it was flawed. Deeply flawed. During the Michael Eisner reign, budgets for big additions were slashed and Rocket Rods was no exception. The turns were not banked, nor reenforced and as such the ride did not travel as fast as it could have. And even at the speed that it did reach, the structure was damaged slowly but steadily, causing the ride to close later that year. The ride was open for just over two years, and is rumored to return as a Tron themed attraction.

So that does it for this list! Thank you for reading, and please share your top five closed rides in the comments!

All photos are provided courtesy of RCDb.com.