GhostRider (roller coaster)

GhostRider
Knott's Berry Farm
Park section Ghost Town
Coordinates 33°50′33″N 117°59′53″W / 33.84256°N 117.998056°WCoordinates: 33°50′33″N 117°59′53″W / 33.84256°N 117.998056°W
Status Operating
Opening date December 8, 1998
General statistics
Manufacturer Custom Coasters International
Track layout Double Out and Back
Lift/launch system Chain Lift
Height 118 ft (36 m)
Drop 108 ft (33 m)
Length 4,533 ft (1,382 m)
Speed 56 mph (90 km/h)
Inversions 0
Duration 2:40
Max vertical angle 51°
Capacity 1600 riders per hour
G-force 3.1
Height restriction 48 in (122 cm)
Trains 3 trains with 7 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 28 riders per train.
Fast Lane available
GhostRider at RCDB
Pictures of GhostRider at RCDB

GhostRider is a wooden roller coaster at Knott's Berry Farm, a theme park in Buena Park, California. It is located in the Ghost Town section of the park, south of the main entrance. It is the longest wooden coaster on the West Coast.

Ride experience

Queue

Riders approach the ride near the entrance to Ghost Town. The queue begins by going through a mysterious mining tunnel and then going into the mine-themed queue house. After a wait in both levels of the queue, riders board one of the three PTC trains of the ride. The trains themselves are colored gold, silver, and copper, similar to the precious mining metals.

The ride entrance, which is an eerie cave, was once part of the Pan for Gold attraction.

Layout

There is a small initial descent into a ravine, which is followed by a gradual sweep to the right. Trains then pass through the transfer track and climb the lift hill. At the top, riders descend a 108-foot (33 m) drop, turning left and rising up over an airtime hill before making a sweeping left hand turnaround. After the turnaround, riders descend another drop, and rise up a gradual right hand climb, before descending into the structure of the lift hill, and rising up into the ride's midway turnaround.

GhostRider

The turnaround starts the second half of the ride. Diving off the midcourse brakes, riders descend a steep drop, making a left hand turn, rising over an airtime hill, before making a right hand turnaround underneath the turnaround in the first half. After a few more airtime hills, the trains enter a 450 degree downward helix to the right, before rising over a final hill and hitting the final brake run.

The ride follows a double out and back pattern. Most of the attraction resides on the parking lot near the marketplace. Four times during the ride, two in the first half and two in the second half, the ride crosses over Grand Avenue, the road connecting southbound Beach Boulevard to the parking lots.

The initial drop was covered shortly after opening with a metal overhang after nearby residents complained of screams. At night, orange ropelights light up the handrails of the ride.

Trains

Over the 15 years of GhostRider's operation, the trains have gone through several different "generation" designs. As the PTC trains were originally delivered, Copper was a dark brown, Silver was a flat gray, and Gold was a light brown. All trains sported the standard "Knott's" logo on the front of the train. Later on, logos were added onto the trains and a metallic sheen added onto Gold and Copper trains. Lastly, the third generation added airbrush effects on the sides of the individual cars along with a customized "Knott's GhostRider" logo on the front, along with a repaint of Copper, which was repainted to a more metallic orange/copper.

Although the ride has three trains, only two are in use at any time. The third train will usually be in "rehab" and will be switched out with one of the other trains during the duration of the year. Each train is usually rehabbed during the year.

Construction, maintenance and incidents

Construction on the attraction proceeded so quickly that the coaster was completed and opened nearly six months ahead of schedule. In August 1999, an unsecured piece of wood from the track was lifted by a passing train and thrown into the queue. Five people sustained minor injuries and the attraction was temporarily closed for inspection and retrofitting of the track.

Due to being a wooden coaster, it experiences the most amounts of rehab in the entire park; at least four a year (once a season) and also as needed, causing excessive amounts of downtime. Also the ride has been known to offer a rather rough ride experience due to the aging wood.

Awards

Golden Ticket Awards: Top wood Roller Coasters
Year199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013
Ranking 13[1]8[2]6[3]6[4]6[5]8[6]10[7]12[8]17[9]24[10]19[11]24[12]27[13]23[14]29[15]

References

  1. ↑ "Top 25 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 6B. August 1999. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
  2. ↑ "Top 25 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. August 2000. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Top 25 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 6B. August 2001. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
  4. ↑ "Top 25 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 6B. September 2002. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
  5. ↑ "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 10–11B. September 2003. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
  6. ↑ "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 14–15B. September 2004. Archived from the original on April 3, 2007. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
  7. ↑ "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 22–23B. September 2005. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 30–31B. September 2006. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
  9. ↑ "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today 11 (6.2): 42–43. September 2007. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
  10. ↑ "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today 12 (6.2): 42–43. September 2008. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
  11. ↑ "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today 13 (6.2): 38–39. September 2009. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
  12. ↑ "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today 14 (6.2): 38–39. September 2010. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
  13. ↑ "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today 15 (6.2): 46–47. September 2011. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
  14. ↑ "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today 16 (6.2): 46–47. September 2012. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
  15. ↑ "2013 Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today 17 (6.2): 40–41. September 2013. Archived from the original on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 8, 2013.

External links