Tag: Bobsled Coaster

The many novelties of the Wiener Prater

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Hochschaubahn

During my last visits to the Wiener Prater, the world-famous Hochschaubahn was closed each time. This time, however, I planned my visit much earlier so that I could take a ride on the classic Scenic Railway. The ride, which is still traditionally controlled by a brakeman who rides along with the train, impresses with its gradients and the quite distinctive curves. It is the most family-friendly of all scenic railways, but a ride on this 70-year-old roller coaster is a must for every theme park and roller coaster enthusiast.

Rollerball

Another novelty for me is the Rollerball. This utterly imposing roller coaster from RES is an extremely fun family roller coaster with one small problem: it’s a one-trick pony. The roller coaster, which runs vertically, convinces with its rocking moments initiated by the bizarre drops – but that’s about it. The very family-friendly ride is very enjoyable for a single ride, but the very repetitive course of the track does not awaken the desire to ride it again straight away. In addition, the ride is simply not accepted by the visitors and therefore you never know whether it is running or not.

King Size Turbo Booster

Also new to me is the King Size Turbo Booster – the second iteration of Funtime’s Vomitron, which is very popular in the Prater. However, instead of just doing its flips straight on a circle path, the King Size Turbo Booster takes it up a notch. The seats are now all separate from each other and can each rotate around their own axis. The gondola carrier itself also rotates and is driven by a motor. The superimposition of all the rotational movements creates an extremely fast ride in which you can experience all kinds of crazy moments. Interestingly, the ride is still quite stomach-friendly, although it doesn’t look like it from the outside.  

Gesengte Sau

The biggest novelty of the past years is the roller coaster Die G’gengte Sau. This is a bobsled coaster from Gerstlauer, but here it is primarily built up high and takes an absolutely wild route back to the station.

The start is made by classic hairpin bends, as you would find them on a Wild Mouse.  After a total of three, we race down a big drop. Just past the Black Mamba, the path leads us back up a little and immediately into two more hairpin bends. Straight away we are pulled down a steep bend. After another valley, we climb a small straight section before leaning further and further to the right and plunging towards the ground one more time. After another climb, we race through a block brake and into another hairpin. Once again narrowly missing the Black Mamba, we go down the biggest drop of the ride. On the other side of the ride, the facade of the Funhouse Funball awaits us, which we also narrowly miss. Three tight turns follow, which lead us to the other side of the ride. We then repeat the whole thing in a small steep curve and several bunny hops. For the finale, a downward curve and several swerves to the right and left await us before we find ourselves in the brake and the absolutely brilliant roller coaster comes to an end.

The Gesengte Sau is an outstanding novelty and one of the best bobsled coasters from Gerstlauer. The extremely compact ride convinces with its multitude of drops and breathtaking curves.

Bilder Wiener Prater

 

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Wiener Prater

Rushing through the Black Forest

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Tatzmania Löffingen

The history of the Tatzmania Löffingen animal and amusement park began in 2017, when the former Schwarzwaldpark was taken over by the Braun family. In order to separate it from the Steinwasen Park, which also belonged to the Braun family, it was decided to operate the park as a zoo instead of a wildlife park from now on. Both parks have a small selection of rides in common.

African Spin

While Steinwasen Park offers a small selection of exquisite rides, Tatzmania focuses on quantity from SBF Visa. The focus here is mainly on rides for smaller children, including the park’s first roller coaster: the African Spin.

The compact spinning coaster has a layout with three loops that merge into one another, so you are constantly alternating between upwards leading right turns and downwards leading left turns. The cars are spinning quite well – but the ride is not too wild. Rather, it becomes more tedious lap by lap, so that after the seventh lap at the latest, you really want to get off.

Gold Rusher

Fortunately, there is also a bobsled coaster from Gerstlauer at Tatzmania Löffingen. The compact roller coaster Gold Rusher is a fair bit wilder and can boast a multitude of drops and tight curves.

The ride on Gold Rusher begins quite leisurely. After the bar – for whatever reason – has been pressed down far too hard, we immediately enter a bend and then a small dip. After passing the maintenance hut, we approach the lift hill of the ride in a short right turn. Having barely reached the starting height of 16m, we immediately plunge down into a steep turn towards the ground. Far above it, however, we soon climb up again. After a short block brake, we go through two hairpin bends before a wide curve takes us into the next braking area. In another downhill helix we now come very close to the ground. We then gain height quite smoothly in a right-hand bend before we speed through a depression. Shortly afterwards, we pass through the next braking area. Now it’s over hill and dale, once across the ride. We first race through a left-hand bend before we are lifted out of our seats a little in a series of camelbacks. A final right turn leads us into the final brakes of the roller coaster.

The Gold Rusher is a really nice family coaster that seems tailor-made for the park. The ride is not too big and not too small either, which allows it to successfully entertain a large part of the family audience at Tatzmania Löffingen.

Papageienflug

Something I can’t think of on the next ride. The Papageienflug, formerly Eagle Fly, is – at least in theory – an interactive rollover carousel from SBF Visa, in which two smaller gondola arms whirl around a large boom. These are raised hydraulically at the start of the ride, which means that the ride is always at a very steep angle. Now, however, the riding position is – if you do nothing – very uncomfortable. So you use the small joystick, but it takes some time before the motor reacts. Now the gondola turns very slowly, which, superimposed on the ride’s motion, results in a very uncomfortable ride.

For several reasons, I highly doubt whether this ride is a joy to behold. On the one hand, the ride is hardly compatible with the family audience of the amusement park. On the other hand, at the time of its opening, the ride looked like two swastikas rotating in the air. Thanks to the modification, in which half of the gondolas were dismantled, this is no longer apparent today, but the negative publicity remains.

As an engineer, I also find it very hard to believe that none of the people in charge at SBF Visa were aware of this during the design of the ride. I also find it hard to believe that the distributor did not see this. I hope, narrow-mindedly at least, that some heads rolled and that the park operator got out of it with a good deal without any major damage.

None of this would have happened if they had relied on the tried and tested products from Gerstlauer. If they had, they would have a ride that was equally well received by every member of the family. Now you have a ride in the park that visitors ride – if at all – only once. Yay!

Pictures Tatzmania Löffingen

Conclusion Tatzmania Löffingen

Tatzmania Löffingen, you have potential. As a zoo, I actually liked you quite a bit, even if you still remind me very strongly of the former game park. The redesigned enclosures near the entrance are at least pretty well done. If you were to focus on quality instead of quantity in your amusement park section and could keep your monkeys in the enclosure, then there would be a reason to visit you more often.

 

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Tatzmania Löffingen

Full Steam ahead on Hals-über-Kopf

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The novelties of Erlebnispark Tripsdrill

Erlebnispark Tripsdrill has once again built something new and presented it to the public half-finished – and thus not made with love at all. In the German amusement park scene, we only know this kind of behaviour from Hansa Park, but there they have to cover up a big tower every time. To be honest, I didn’t really understand why they had to open their two roller coasters, Volldampf and Hals-über-Kopf, during the Covid-19 pandemic; after all, they could have marketed the whole thing all the bigger when the pandemic was coming to an end.

Volldampf

Well, now the two roller coasters are here and can be tested. The smaller of the two Vekoma rides is the Family Boomerang Volldampf, which is already very impressive. Admittedly, the ride is basically finished; the only thing missing is the decoration at the reversal point of the ride.  Apart from the beautiful station, the cute and macabre train design, the foreign visitor gets acquainted with Swabian folk songs and before the ride starts, one sings along with Trulla-trulla-trullala of the song Auf de schwäbsche Eisebahne after the coaster has been designed.

The ride begins with the backward incline of the friction wheel lift. Once you have reached the top of the lift, you are first held in position while the friction wheels are pushed apart, thus clearing the way. Immediately the brakes are released and the descent begins. With momentum we now drive through the station and over a small hill to the right. Here we also avoid the threateningly close rail of Hals-über-Kopf. Close to the ground, we now whiz through a wide left turn before we cross a path on a hill. Now we make our way across the inside of the Suspended Thrill Coaster. After a slight turn to the right, a turn to the left follows. With momentum we then go through another right turn, whereupon we enter the station building of Hals-über-Kopf and change our direction above the station. A little more leisurely than before, we now go backwards through the already completed stretch.

Volldampf is fun! The ride across the big sister ride convinces with its curves close to the ground, the constant changes of direction and the mutual interaction. The long stretch of track also gives the passengers a lot to enjoy.

Hals-über-Kopf

Less is offered to park guests – at least in terms of design – on the Suspended Thrill Coaster Hals-über-Kopf. This is an iteration of the very common suspended looping coaster. The track profile, however, is based on that of the manufacturer’s new looping roller coasters.

The ride on the Hals-über-Kopf begins immediately with a short right turn, which soon leads us into the ride’s lift. Having reached a height of 30m, we immediately plunge straight down to the ground. Just above the roller coaster Volldampf we turn right. With momentum we now go through the first valley and immediately into the first inversion. We cross the station building of the family roller coaster in a long zero-G roll. Shortly afterwards, we turn around in an Immelmann Jr. Far above a pavement we now whiz over an airtime hill. After a short bend to the left, we plunge to the ground once more and immediately turn to the right and, poof, we see the world upside down a second time. Immediately we plunge into a 270° helix close to the ground and full of pressure, before we take off a little on a small hill. Another strongly inclined turn follows. Very close to the ground, there is a short bend to the right before we enter a dip to the left. This is followed by the last and final inversion of the ride. Shortly afterwards, we already hit the final brake.

Hals-über-Kopf is an extremely solid family roller coaster with a beautiful track layout and great pacing. The ride is only slightly stressful, which means that every member of the family should get their money’s worth. For us roller coaster fans, there is now an extremely exciting roller coaster in the Erlebnispark Tripsdrill that you could confidently ride for several hours at a time and that is an extremely nice thing per se.

Pictures Erlebnispark Tripsdrill

Conclusion Erlebnispark Tripsdrill

With the new roller coaster duo, Erlebnispark Tripsdrill has done a lot right. The new coasters enhance the front section of the park and, due to their location alone, ensure a better overall distribution of visitors in the park, who would otherwise mostly romp around in the back part of the park. Now there is something for the whole family in every area of the park and that is a very nice development for a family theme park like Erlebnispark Tripsdrill.

 

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Erlebnispark Tripsdrill