A LOOK BACK IN TIME: GATEKEEPER’S PREDECESSORS

The gravel crunches under your car as you drive around the corner finally visualizing what you drove so far to see. The sound of a carousel organ fills your ears as you park under the large wooden structure, gazing intently. The planks around your car start to shake and the noise you’ve been hearing faintly grows immensely. Suddenly you see it. The Cyclone goes whirring past your head. It’s beautiful.

Long before Gatekeeper was even thought about, this is what you would find in its place. The Cyclone, a large wooden coaster built in 1929, was said to be “scientifically built for speed.” Cyclone was famous for its steep drops and large banked turns. At times it was so dangerous you could lose teeth or succumb to a black eye. During the 1950’s, Cyclone was torn down, as the war had left the coaster in a crumbling state. The next coaster to take over the beach didn’t come until the 70’s. Jumbo Jet, a beautiful steel coaster, slowly spiraled up its lift and plummeted down hills, sending you around banked curves as high as seventy degrees. It was said to be the fastest coaster in the United States boasting speeds of up to 60mph. Jumbo Jet thrilled riders for many years, finally closing in 1978. If you missed your opportunity to ride this beauty, don’t fret. Jumbo Jet was sold to Dreamland in Minsk, Belarus and continues to give rides to this day.

The following year, WildCat, which already thrilled riders in the park, was rebuilt on Jumbo Jet’s former site after the park bought a new model. As many of you know, WildCat was a figure-8 style steel coaster featuring small four person cars. The coaster climbed to heights of 50ft and reached speeds of 40mph. WildCat remained in this place until it was moved in 1985 to accommodate a new ride, Avalanche Run.

Avalanche Run, an Intamin bobsled style coaster, hit speeds of up to 40mph, flying through its troughs after reaching its maximum height of 63ft. The ride never gained the popularity that the park had hoped for and in 1990 it was reopened as Disaster Transport. The coaster, which was now fully enclosed and dark, held over 150 props and took you on a mission to deliver cargo. Upon opening when all the audio-visual equipment still worked, the ride had animation that enticed the mind as you thought you were “losing control” on your way to the end. Again this ride never gained the popularity of the people, as the animated effects eventually ran into disrepair leading to its dismantling in 2012.

For now, we patiently watch Gatekeeper’s construction come to an end, and wait with anticipation to ride on May 11th. Will Gatekeeper succumb to the ominous aura of the rides before it? Or will it last for years and years to come? We will have to wait and see!

By Britt McMillan