Michigan's Adventure
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Michigan's Adventure | |
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 Michigan's Adventure logo |
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| Location | Muskegon, Michigan, United States  |
| Website | http://www.miadventure.com |
| Owner | Cedar Fair Entertainment Company |
| General Manager | Camille Jourden-Mark |
| Opened | 1956 (as Deer Park) |
| Previous names | Deer Park, Deer Park Funland |
| Operating season | May - September |
| Rides | 53 total
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| Slogan | Two parks for the price of one! |
Attendance - 850,000 in 2007 ( 18% from 2004) |
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Michigan's Adventure is an amusement park in Muskegon County, Michigan, about halfway between Muskegon, Michigan and Whitehall, Michigan. It is the largest amusement park in the state and has been owned and operated by Cedar Fair Entertainment Company since 2001.
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[edit] History
The park was originally founded as the Deer Park, a petting zoo, in 1956. In 1968, Roger Jourden purchased the park and began selling off the deer and purchasing attractions, eventually renaming it Deer Park Funland.
In 1988, Jourden added the Wolverine Wildcat roller coaster. At this time, he changed the name to Michigan's Adventure. In 1991 he opened WildWater Adventure, a water park. The park was bought by Cedar Fair Entertainment Co. in 2001[1] and has become a major Michigan attraction. Michigan's Adventure is the only surviving thrill park in the state of Michigan. (Boblo Island park, west of Amherstburg, Ontario near Detroit, was closed in 1993. Although in Ontario rather than Michigan, it is often thought of as the last of the Detroit parks.) The park features seven roller coasters, including the critically acclaimed "Shivering Timbers" (a high speed wooden out and back roller coaster), a common "Corkscrew" coaster, and a suspended looping coaster, "Thunderhawk".[2]. The park also includes a number of "flat rides" such as the "Scrambler" and "Flying Trapeze". [3].
[edit] WildWater Adventure
The water park, WildWater Adventure, opened in 1991. After the addition of the WildWater Adventure, the slogan for the park became "2 parks for the price of 1" since the regular gate admission of $25 allows full day usage of both the amusement and the water park, rather than a separate fee for both. The park carried out phase two in 1997 and added the Snake Pit slide complex, two wave pools, and a children's play area. When Cedar Fair purchased the park from Roger Jourden they added cabanas to two of the wave pools and in 2005 added the Funnel of Fear tornado slide. Today the park is one of the biggest draws to Michigan's Adventure and many people solely go there to go to WildWater Adventure.
[edit] Purchase by Cedar Fair
In 2001, Cedar Fair, the owner of Cedar Point, purchased the park from Roger Jourden. His daughter, Camille Jourden-Mark, was demoted from General Manager, a position she had occupied since 1988, and replaced with Larry Mackenzie. Mackenzie later left for Valleyfair at the end of the 2001 season. Camille Jourden-Mark was then reinstated as General Manager where she has remained since.
[edit] Ride malfunctions
- One of the rides was damaged after the Late-May 1998 Tornado Outbreak and Derecho storms which took place during Memorial Day Weekend, the traditional start of the summer tourist season. The ride destroyed was Mutley's Putt Putts, and a new entrance opened on that location the following year. The storm also leveled many of the taller trees in the park, leaving shade a rare commodity for the next few years until transplanted trees could begin filling out.
- The park's Gondola Wheel once malfunctioned prior to Cedar Fair ownership, and an aerial truck from the White Lake Fire Authority had to rescue people from the top compartments of the ride.
See also Chaos incident
[edit] New for 2007
- Improvements with the water in the park, including a new water tower located near the corporate offices. Now with city/community water in the area, the park anticipates money saving investing with this project.
- 3 Point Challenge, a new game featured at several other Cedar Fair parks.
- Smoking Policy - smoking will only be allowed in designated areas throughout the park.
- The coaster Zach's Zoomer now has a ride photo booth.
- Antique Photos, a store near Shivering Timbers
- A $10 and Under shop near Mad Mouse
- A new midway connecting the games area to Falling Star
[edit] New for 2008
- Thunderhawk- Thunderhawk is the seventh coaster at Michigan's Adventure. The roller coaster, built by Vekoma, was relocated from Geauga Lake in Ohio. Construction on the coaster was finished for 2008 season. Thunderhawk is a suspended looping coaster that seats 2 people across as they are suspended beneath the track with their legs dangling. The trains will climb to a height of 105 feet before plunging into a 86 foot drop. Along the journey, the trains will reach speeds up to 50 miles per hour and flip upside down 5 times. With an approximate 2 minute & 30 second ride time while covering 2000 feet of track, it will be the first roller coaster the park has added since 1999.
- Backyard BBQ, an all you can eat meal, will be added to the Mary Lynn Catering area starting July 1 and ending September 1. The Backyard BBQ includes BBQ Ribs, BBQ Chicken, Hot Dogs, Macaroni Salad, Potato Salad, Potato Chips, Ice Cream Cups, Fruits & Vegetables, and 12 oz Soft Drinks. It will cost $12.50 for adults and $7.00 for kids.
- New two day tickets will be available for $44.00.
[edit] Attractions
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[edit] Roller coasters
- Shivering Timbers is a wooden roller coaster developed by Custom Coasters International with trains by Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters. It towers 125 feet in the air, reaches a top speed around 65 mph and the first drop is at a 55.5° angle. The ride is critically acclaimed within the industry and has been ranked as one of the best wooden roller coasters each year since its debut in 1998 and was ranked #3 in 2005.[4]
- The first suspended looping coaster in the state. This ride is 105 feet tall, has a drop of 86 feet, and will send riders upside down 5 times at a speed of 50 mph. Riders must be 52 inches tall to ride Thunderhawk. The ride was built by Vekoma B.V.(Netherlands).
- The Wolverine Wildcat is a wooden roller coaster designed by Curtis D. Summers and built in 1988 by the Dinn Corporation. It is 85 feet high and reaches a top speed close to 55 mph.
- Zach's Zoomer is a family oriented wooden roller coaster that opened in 1994. It was named after the owner's grandson, Zach Mark. It was designed by Custom Coasters International (the same company that designed Shivering Timbers). It's targeted to a younger audience and allows them to experience the sensation of a wooden roller coaster without the extreme drops, air time, and sharp turns inherent on a full-size wooden roller coaster like Shivering Timbers.
- The Corkscrew is a steel sit-down roller coaster (portable with some effort) developed by Arrow Dynamics. It has been operating at the park since 1979. It tops out at a height of 70 feet, reaches a top speed of 45 mph and has two corkscrew inversions.
- The Mad Mouse is a steel sit-down roller coaster developed by Arrow Dynamics. Operating since 1999, the minute and a half ride consists of sharp turns and sudden drops, characteristic of any wild mouse style roller coaster.
- The Big Dipper is a family oriented steel sit-down roller coaster designed by Chance Rides.
 Corkscrew roller coaster, which incidentally is now painted orange |
 Wolverine Wildcat wooden coaster |
 Zach's Zoomer wooden coaster |
[edit] Awards
- In 2007 Michigan's Adventure won the tourist attraction of the year award in the state of Michigan.
- Shivering Timbers was rated the #6 best wooden coaster in the world by Amusement Today in 2007.
[edit] Festivals
- The park hosts Timberfest, a festival targeted at roller coaster enthusiasts, featuring early admission and extended ride time. Season pass holders are also eligible to attend.
- The park also hosts Rock the Coast, a Christian music mini-festival, in May. It is organized by Alive on the Lakeshore, the organization which created the Unity Christian Music Festival.
[edit] Logo
The original Michigan's Adventure logo featured a cartoon lion.
When Cedar Fair acquired the park in 2001, they replaced the lion with Snoopy from Peanuts, who appears on the logos of other Cedar Fair parks.
The logo was changed twice in 2007; once to reflect Michigan's Adventure's part in the Cedar Fair chain, and again to re-add Snoopy.
[edit] External links
[edit] Notes
- ^ page at RCDB site, accessed December 17, 2006
- ^ ibid
- ^ Coaster Gallery Michigans' Adventure page
- ^ Amusement Today trade article accessed 17 December 2006
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