Cyclone (Dreamworld)

Cyclone

The Cyclone from the Dreamworld carpark
Previously known as Big Dipper at Luna Park Sydney (1995-2001)
Dreamworld
Coordinates 27°51′55″S 153°18′55.5″E / 27.86528°S 153.315417°ECoordinates: 27°51′55″S 153°18′55.5″E / 27.86528°S 153.315417°E
Status Operating
Opening date 26 December 2001
Cost A$5,500,000
Luna Park Sydney
Coordinates 33°50′51″S 151°12′36″E / 33.847482°S 151.209964°E
Status Relocated to Dreamworld
Opening date 1995
Closing date 27 January 2001
Cost A$8,000,000
General statistics
Type Steel
Manufacturer Arrow Dynamics
Lift/launch system Chain lift hill
Height 40 m (130 ft)
Length 900 m (3,000 ft)
Speed 85 km/h (53 mph)
Inversions 2
Duration 2 minutes (approx)
Capacity 400 riders per hour
Trains Single train with 6 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 24 riders per train.
Q4U available
Cyclone at RCDB
Pictures of Cyclone at RCDB

The Cyclone is a steel roller coaster operating at Dreamworld. The roller coaster is one of the tallest in the Southern Hemisphere,[1] after originally being the tallest when it was first built.[2][3] Designed by Arrow Dynamics,[4] the ride was originally installed at Luna Park Sydney in 1995 as the Big Dipper before being sold and relocated to Dreamworld on the Gold Coast in 2001.[4][5][6] When it was brought to Dreamworld, the ride was the first roller coaster to be opened on the Gold Coast since 1997.[7][8]

History

The steel roller coaster, designed by Arrow Dynamics, was constructed at a cost of A$8,000,000 during the 1994 redevelopment of Luna Park Sydney.[5] Opening in 1995, the new roller coaster became a point of contention with residents, and was cited as the main example of the noise pollution generated by the amusement park. After appeals to various courts by both the "resident action group" and the park's new owners, it was decreed that the roller coaster could only operate at certain times, and under strict conditions. These conditions caused major shareholder Wittingslow Amusements to consider 'walking out' on the operating company.[9] The park's administration was doubtful of Luna Park's survival under the restrictions, and was proven correct when Luna Park closed in February 1996.[10]

A view of the Cyclone from the Dreamworld and WhiteWater World administration office.

The roller coaster remained on site until late 2001,[11] operating on several occasions for charity-supporting events, including those for the Variety Club and The Spastic Centre. Between 1996 and 2001, the roller coaster was filmed for sequences in the Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen film Our Lips Are Sealed and for Farscape Season 3 episode Infinite Possibilities Part I: Daedalus Demands.[12]

Developers looking to redevelop Luna Park were sold the land on the condition that the Big Dipper be sold prior to any developments.[13] The ride was dismantled in the latter half of 2001, and sold to Macquarie Leisure Trust, the owners of Dreamworld. The new owners transported it to their Queensland amusement park, where it reopened on 26 December 2001,[13] in a ceremony dedicated by Peter Beattie and Merri Rose MPs.[7] As of March 2015, the ride still currently operates.[14]

Construction

The Cyclone was constructed at a cost of A$8 million in 1994 at Luna Park,[5] using over 1,000 tons of steel and 15,000 sets of nuts and bolts.[7] The ride was purchased in 2001 by Dreamworld for A$3 million and a further A$2.5 million to install, modify, and to develop the roller coaster's theme.[5] Several of the supports needed modifications to make them rest on the ground because they were originally located on top of a single story building.[5] It took 136 trucks to carry the track from Luna Park Sydney to Dreamworld.[6]

Design

Cyclone track interacting with slides at WhiteWater World

Queue

The ride's queue was originally designed to match the name and theme of the ride. The intention of the design was to occupy patrons as they waited in the queue through both visual and physical stimuli such as theatrical lighting and shaking floors.[15] At a point prior to 2008, the queue line was switched with the exit ramp resulting in patrons lining up on the ramp that wraps around the building, and exiting through the deactivated interior queue.

Track layout

The 900-metre (3,000 ft)-long ride stands 40 metres (130 ft) above ground at its highest point.[13] The ride features two inversions towards the end of the ride - a reverse sidewinder followed by a vertical loop.[5][6][7][13] The single six-car train seats 24 passengers (4 passengers per car), and reaches a top speed of 85 kilometres (53 mi) and a top acceleration of 3.0 g (31 m/s²) during the course of the two-minute ride.[5]

In 2001, Dreamworld chief executive, Tony Braxton-Smith, stated the ride was similar to being in an actual cyclone: "the name Cyclone fits the ride perfectly with lots of nail-biting twists and hair-raising turns to simulate being caught in a real cyclone".[2]

Fiscal results

In the first 6 months of the ride's release in December 2001, more than half of all visitors to Dreamworld rode the Cyclone putting its popularity above The Giant Drop and Tower of Terror, but still lagging behind Thunder River Rapids Ride and Rocky Hollow Log Ride according to Macquarie Leisure Trust, owners of Dreamworld. They clarify: "the Thunder River Rapids and the Log Ride remain the most popular attractions in the park due to their large capacity and ride frequency".[3]

The Trust concluded that the Cyclone's success, along with the impact of social changes in Australian culture were able to offset the negative impact of the Ansett collapse and increase attendance by 6.9% and total revenue by 13.3%. They did not attribute a specific portion of this to the Cyclone itself.[3]

References

  1. ↑ "Cyclone Rollercoaster Dreamworld". Your Gold Coast. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Australian Associated Press (22 October 2001). "Fed: Big Dipper renamed as Cyclone at Dreamworld".
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Macquarie Leisure Trust Newsletter July 2002". Macquarie Leisure Trust. July 2002. Archived from the original on 14 August 2008. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Cyclone roller coaster - Dreamworld". Roller Coaster Yellowpages. Ultimate Roller Coaster. Retrieved 27 March 2008.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 "Cyclone (Dreamworld)". Parkz. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Australian Associated Press (20 December 2001). "Qld: Big Dipper Roller-coaster Unleashed as a Cyclone".
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Dreamworld (1 January 2002). "Dreamworld Guests Blown Away By Cyclone". Press Release. Parkz. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  8. ↑ Carne, Lucy (10 December 2006). "Just add water". News.com.au. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  9. ↑ Marshall, Sam (2005). Luna Park - Just for fun (2nd edition ed.). Sydney, Australia: Luna Park Sydney Pty Ltd. p. 131. ISBN 0-646-44807-2.
  10. ↑ Marshall, Sam (2005). Luna Park - Just for fun (2nd edition ed.). Sydney, Australia: Luna Park Sydney Pty Ltd. p. 134. ISBN 0-646-44807-2.
  11. ↑ Marden, Duane. "Big Dipper  (Luna Park Sydney)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  12. ↑ ValaScifi (15 December 2008). "314 Infinite Possibilities.Part I.Daedlus Demands -FrScp-5". YouTube. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 "Cyclone (Dreamworld)". Thrill Network. Retrieved 27 March 2008.
  14. ↑ Dreamworld. "The Cyclone". Dreamworld. Retrieved 7 July 2010.
  15. ↑ "Schematic Design - Cyclone - Dreamworld". Sanderson Group. Retrieved 1 January 2009.

External links