Sledgehammer (ride)

Sledgehammer is a ride at Canada's Wonderland.^[1] The Huss ride was opened to the public on May 4, 2003 and continues to operate today. Sledgehammer is also the world's first and only 'giant jumping machine' to be ever made.^[1] Over the past number of years, the ride has been faced with a number of serious mechanical issues closing the ride constantly and making it almost unpredictable for the public to know a re-opening date.^[2]

History

When the ride was first opened during the 2003 season, the ride attracted lots of guest and had almost no problems. As of the last couple of years, the ride has been hampered with so many problems that it has been almost impossible to say when the ride would be open. Canada's Wonderland has not stated exactly what is causing all the problems with the ride.

Structure

Sledgehammer is mainly made out of 4 different parts. The first part is the main "tower". This is where most of the machinery is located (inside) and where everything is connected to each other. The second part, is the "claws" (there are six of them). These are where riders sit during the ride. The third part is the "arms" (once again, there are six of them). These are what hold the "claws" to the main "tower" and allow the "claws" to go up and down. The fourth part is a grey "block like" piece that hold everything together and helps get the "claws" up and down.^[3]

Ride experience

2003–2010

First, riders take a seat in one of the eight seats inside one of six "claws". Once the operators say that it is safe to proceed, all eight claws raise off the ground and instantly begin to spin around the center machine holding the claws. About 10 seconds into the ride, the eight "claws" instantly shoot upwards. Then, about 12 seconds later, the "claws" shoot right back down to where the ride began. Around 34 seconds of the operation of the ride, once again, the "claws" shoot back up. 10 seconds later, instead of the "claws" going straight back down, they go down only halfway and stay there for about 2 or 3 seconds. After the 2 or 3 seconds, the "claws" return to the bottom of the ride. Then, for one final time, the "claws" shoot back to the top of the ride, then instantly shoot back down. The ride then slows down and return to its "loading position" when riders exit and enter the ride. One cycle lasted about 1 minute and 20 seconds.^[4]

2011–present

Just like the other cycle, riders take a seat inside one of six "claws" located around the central tower. Once the operators give the "all clear", the claws raise of the ground a begin to spin around the central tower. The first (very small) change in the cycle comes when the claws "shoot" upwards at the 8 second mark instead of the 10 second mark. The second change is when instead of the claws coming down at around the 12 second mark, the claws stay up for a full 28 seconds before coming back down to the bottom of the ride. Next, the time between the "claws" spinning at the bottom of the ride and going back up is relatively the same time as the old cycle. The fourth change comes when instead of the "claws" staying at the top of the tower (second time) for 10 seconds and then going halfway down for 3 seconds followed by the claws returning to the bottom of the tower, the "claws" now stay at the top for about 25 seconds and then go straight back down without stopping in the middle. Then, the time between the "claws" on the ground to the time of going back to the top for a third time is also relatively the same. Finally, once the claws reach the top, they instantly "shoot" right back down (just like the same as the old cycle). One cycle now lasts about 2 minutes.^[5]

References

External links

• Official Sledgehammer page